Brave new radio

If you know Luke Burbank, you know he can get pretty excited about stuff.

We just talked to him and he's even more hypermanic than usual.

That's because NPR, for whom he's been working for a few years after leaving Seattle, is turning him loose on 21st century radio- as a host of a national radio show.

He (with a female co-host not yet hired) and producer Matt Martinez are the only staffers so far of a morning NPR show from New York kicking off in September which will break plenty of new ground if not some new wind.

The show is as yet unnamed, but is steaming ahead under the code name: Bryant Park Project (which Luke, of course, compares to the Manhattan Project). Its public face, at this point, is a blog on NPR's site with a video of Luke getting hit in the crotch with a baseball.

He and Martinez figured a shot to the crotch might be a key to YouTube success, so they included it on their very first official post where they attempt explain just what they plan to do with all the money and license the megalithic NPR has entrusted to them.

As they explain in the vid, and in a FAQ on the site, the show will be a conversational approach to the news in a format that may be unrecognizable to listeners to the hugely popular NPR standard-bearer, Morning Edition.

The reason for that is, as a blog post explains: the show will be for those "... in their 20s and 30s. Maybe some 40-year-olds. And perhaps one or two 50- or 60-year-olds."

The idea is to create a presence that won't be dependent on the earthly NPR affiliates (who are pretty happy with Morning Edition). "We're trying for people who don't even listen to NPR- trying to steal ME's listeners is probably complete suicide," says Burbank.

"We want a show where somebody in NY gets up at 8 in the morning, plugs in their iPod, podcasts our show, gets on the subway and listens to it on the way into work," he says. "Meanwhile, we'll be updating all day long on the blog and streaming on Sirius, so listeners can go back on at anytime and see what's what."

When something big, or interesting or funny happens, we'll be coding in real time and podcasting as it's happening. It's a radio show: but it'll be a social networking, 24-hour news/information place to hang out, anchored by a 2-hr radio show."

Burbank says they want to create a networking thing where people may not even realize they're getting the news. "We want to be [a place] where people are constantly checking in."

He's a big fan of Gawker sports blog, Deadspin: "I check in all the time; I'm forwarding it to my friends, they sending it to their friends- and everyone's linking it to their blogs- there's a connectivity to all this where I think [our show] will live or die.

We want to become a place where people are hearing things they're not hearing them anywhere else, and hearing them in a way they're not hearing them anywhere else- then sending it to their friends who send it to their friends."

Social networking? Radio hangspot? 

Radio's changing. There's a new, large generation who don't listen to the radio, and never did. It's not that they're not audio slaves- they've got their podcasts, they're subscribing to satellite radio; they stream live on their cellphones, Blackberries, and laptops.

There's a demand with this 25-40 age group that they take part in the news- the gathering and prioritizing of it, and yes: defining it.

They want to participate in the process, not be lectured to. Burbank: "What I like about Jon Stewart, (besides that he's hilarious) is you feel we're all in this struggle together. It feels like he's finding things out at almost the same time you are. With his interviews, there's a camaraderie."

Earth radio listeners seem to be declining. There's been a downturn, a sluggish lack of growth which has scared hell out of investors, radio pros, and bloggers who depend on lively radio markets for blog-fodder.

NPR, though some of the most successful radio, is investing in figuring out the future; and taking the risk of letting such as Burbank and Martinez to venture into it.

(Maybe they saw PBS stuck in the mire of their self-satisfied 1980's heyday letting cable's Discovery and History Channels, etc. leave them in the programming dust of Masterpiece Theater and the humiliation of 24/7 pledge drives just to keep their transmitters on).

"For this show to survive," says Burbank, "it'll have to have a ton of personality. People will have to go out of their way just to find it- it isn't going to be on every station like Morning Edition- people are going to have to care about it to even to bother to go look for it."

They're betting that merely re-wrapping the news for kids won't work- nor that they can get away with watering down versions of existing NPR shows.

"We can't just be Morning Edition Lite," or Day to Day with hip-hop. We need to have our own personality and live and die with it," says Luke.

He's realistic about the potential for the dying part.

"I've been telling the bosses at NPR: if you let us do the show the way we want, there's a decent chance the show will fail. If you don't, there's a really high chance the show will fail."   

Burbank envisions something between Morning Edition and Howard Stern. When they interviewed him for the job, they asked, "Isn't this just a smarter version of commercial morning radio?"

He said yes, but hastened to add that they wouldn't have strippers every day (just on Tuesdays). "I'm fascinated by Howard Stern because their off-the-air life and their on-the-air life are so close."

This is kind of bleeding over of on-air, off-air lives, he says, is what makes people care about the show.

"They can do an hour discussing whether the present that Gary bought for Howard's kids' birthday was enough based on what Howard gave Gary's kids. They will talk about this stuff endlessly. I find it really fascinating."

NPR must challenge itself and not get stuck in the self-satisfied stasis as the place where smart people go on the radio.

"I give credit to the bosses at NPR for realizing that," says Burbank.

The NPR calf is pretty fat right now, there's the McDonald's money, and that it's been doing better than most radio in this downturn.

"Even if our show is a little ahead of its time and flops- the next show will be better or the next one after that and in 10 or 20 years, NPR will still be in a pretty good spot. They're trying stuff out before they have to."

Comments

[Duffman]

I think nothing ventured; nothing gained. It will be quite a challenge but for radio to survive it must expand into areas of new enlightenment that transcend the current typical approaches that are taken. Good for NPR; I wish them well - and I will be checking this out.

[reporterward]

Dead tree journalism will never go away. Nor will earth radio. NPR is a leftist tool, that has the unfair advantge in the market because of its dependence on public money. Put it into the market place and it would blow away like an intern on a Democrat.

[phil]

you're so full of shit, Don. and a fake reporter too. If you were a liberal and had a sense of humor, you could write fake news for the daily show.

[robinz]

Put it into the market place and it would blow away like an intern on a Democrat.

Or like a Republican in charge of anything ethical or honest. I know that blow job trumps any of the myriad of corrupt, unethical, dishonest, lies that the republicans have ownership of. Good for bid people have sex with someone other than their spouse...hell, from a republican point of view, considering how far some of the republicans have fallen when it comes to sex, you ought to applaud Clinton for having sex with a woman. More than you can say about a some republicans.

Can you tell by my ranting I'm so sick and tired of republicans obsession over Clinton's getting a blow job....jeeze, you'd think it was the first one ever.

It must be late, I'm getting cranky. :)

Robin

[chucks]

A place to check in through out the day. Sounds like this place.
Best of luck to Luke.

[cy]

At 45, I guess I'm not in any target groups here, but this sounds hopeful for public radio. I may be older but I check in on a couple of blogs 3 or 4 times a day and do the same networking with my friends that Luke does with his sports blog. I admit it, I'm bored with most of NPR (exception: Bill Radke's Weekend show)and commercial radio has become unlistenable. I'll be there, Luke- hope this blog keeps us posted.

[mark wygard]

You are right about PBS. I thought it was just me. It is tedious and hasn't changed in years. I still tape Frontline, but the rest is forgettable.

[Lynda]

I just know that regular talk radio has lost me (except for my guilty pleasure, Dr. Laura, sorry Michael). I'm ready for something new on the radio or on my computer at work :) NPR is too talky when you get outside the news casts I'm older, too but I'm ready for something new.

[JDH]

Pure and simple, NPR is government propaganda. Commercial talk radio's demise is being exaggerated by this blog and the advocates of liberal talk which HAS failed. If NPR had no taxpayer's money, it would go away. That's why these pathetic attempts by the always liberal Luke Burbank to save it with gimmicks and appealing to young people who could care less.

[phil]

I'm ready for something new from the NPR I used to love. I podcast all day. Let her rip, Lukie!

[Tlazolteotl]

Sounds like a younger version of a cross between Radke's "Weekend America" show and Chris Lydon's Radio Open Source.

I guess I will take a listen to the podcasts, but getting hooked will really depend on how much of a break is made with the typical MSM framing of issues.

I have enjoyed Burbank's reporting, though.

[Duffman]

Frankly I find myself listening to XM radio a lot, since my latest automobile purchase. I got a 3-month 'free' trial period and liked it so much I decided to subscribe (at least for a bit longer). So much choice and lack of commercials is kind of nice and something I might continue to be willing to pay for.

[Marsha]

Give me a place to get news, sports, a little opinion without the partisan rancor, stitch in a little humor and pop culture, podcast it in real time, I'm good to go. This might fill the gap in my listening life.

[Dag]

what's wrong with the old NPR? I go to public radio to get away from youth, and pop culture and driveby debate and heated partisanship.

[Duffman]

Bla'M is there any way for a lay-person (not steeped in radio knowledge) to see what the latest ratings are for Seattle area and National programming within demographics?
Web site? Publication?

[talkradiofiend]

I give Burbank about 3 weeks on this new talk show. He has a history on not sticking to any one particular thing. Casey Keating gave him a weekend talk show on KVI (replacing Doug Glant) and he did three shows, then didn't show for his fourth, put on a re-run, then a "best of"...and then the show was replaced. He has shown consistently that he doesn't have the commitment to stay to any one thing.

Duffman, go to www.radioandrecords.com and click on the "Ratings" section to see 12+ ratings for the Seattle market each quarter.

[Duffman]

tradiofiend:
10-4, will do; muchas gracias!

[eva]

When I first started my little local art talk radio show, it was on the dial. It was like a performance - it had its moment and that was it.

Then in the past two years we archived everything online. It completely changed the listenership. You did not have to be somewhere at 5pm. Plus I no longer had to be just local in my concerns because anyone could listen. Because the show was of a special interest, most people were willing to hunt it down and download it for later listening. It changed everything.

[mercifurious]

what's wrong with the old NPR? I go to public radio to get away from youth, and pop culture and driveby debate and heated partisanship.

Amen to that. Let's hope that the youth/pop culure angle doesn't infringe on NPR's upstanding ability to report actual News. For actual news, I'd take McNeil Lehrer and BBC over Cable-BS any day.

I'd be more worried about the infusion of J-LO, Idol, Jacko & "Who's your daddy" garbage.

[Andrew]

I don't enjoy listening to NPR anymore, they have an EXTREME bias against opinion or speculation of any kind. The hosts are ultra PC, to the point of speaking in monotone to iron flat any hint of infelection or emphasis. They rely on callers to say anything remotely provocative, but once the caller does this there is no back and forth, it's just a "well thank you for your call, it's half past a monkeys ass here on KUOW."