Radio the Personal Medium
| 2018 Q1 | story by Tim Robisch | photos by Steven Hertzog
KLWN’s Eric Holcomb and Brian Hanni
Technology and massive volumes of instant information have created a challenge to have real, person-to-person communication. Our pockets, wrists and hands are filled with electronic magnets grabbing our attention, ears and eyes. Ability to have a real one on one conversation remains the single most important and effective way communicate and navigate the stormy sea created by this technological revolution, radio is an ideal way to communicate on a true, person to person level.
Great Plains Media and our three radio brands KLWN AM/FM 101.7 & 1320, 105.9 KISS FM and 92.9 The Bull make it our daily mission to connect, report and relate to our community on a daily basis. Since 1951 when KLWN AM signed on in the middle of the massive Kansas floods, our mission to be the Voice of Lawrence and Northeast Kansas is our primary focus. Local Radio is one of the most effective ways to reach and connect person to person reaching over 93% population weekly regardless of power or weather conditions and it doesn’t need a subscription or internet connection.
That commitment is heard in our local community focused programming on 1320 KLWN AM and its new, FM sister station KLWN-FM 101.7. Over 70% of the programming is local, as the stations are the Voice of the Jayhawks, local high schools sports play by play of Lawrence and Free State High School boys and girls sports. Local charities, politicians and business owners speak with you through John Flood, Eric Holcomb and Rock Chalk Sports Talk’s Nick Schwerdt addressing Lawrence’s issues, concerns, weather and topics of interest and importance. Specialty, community driven shows including Lawrence Business Magazine’s weekly shows, Sunday services and religious programming including Sunday mornings “The Schmooze” with Rabbi Zalman Tiechetel at 8:30 AM.
“According to the Record” is a weekday fixture of KLWN’s line up since Arden Booth started the longest running program in the State of Kansas sixty seven years ago, addressing community issues and priorities in a tradition continued to this day by his son Hank every weekday at 8:10 AM. Thursday evening’s “High School Sports Weekly” is live and local every Thursday night at Hyvee’s Market Grille featuring student athletes from the regions schools hosted by Nick Schwerdt and David Lawrence.
LtoR: Stuart Boley, Hank Booth, Tim Robisch, John Flood
The person-to-person connection of radio is even more than the latest Lawrence news update hourly, breaking weather alerts about the latest severe weather or bringing you a high school game you can’t personally attend. It’s the ability for our local government, business and charities to tell their stories to us and advocate for their position and passion. It reaches the “masses” and Mass Street it a way that connects person-to-person. As listeners, we relate to what John Flood tells us in the morning about school closings or what is happening on Mass Street and anxiously wait to hear Nick talk to Brian Hanni about the latest Jayhawk news. Those personalities become our “friends” and connections to what is important to us.
Speaking of that person to person connection, Kansas University alum, Richard Oatman, has taken is passion and learning of marketing, consumer behavior and communication to create a company called “Person to Person Marketing.” His company takes the power of commercial endorsements by radio personalities and connects businesses and customers through a unique use of radio. He carefully pairs products and radio personalities using well crafted, personal endorsement messages to convey the benefits of a business to solve a problem or need they may have. It’s the power of one person telling their story to another person and relating what it means to them as an individual. It works just like getting advice from a neighbor, family member or friend because of the personal connection between our radio personalities and each listener. The picture is brighter and message resonates deeper because of that person to person connection.
Whether it is news, entertainment or the power of an advertising message to inform and educate, making a person-to-person is the most effective way to make that connection. In a world our ability to relate one on one there is a tremendous vehicle to bring those connections back—it called Local Radio.