On The Kowch Blog for week of February 28, 2011

Top Four Things You Need To Do To Be A Successful Talk Show Host

From where I sit On The Kowch, everyone has ONE talk show in them. Usually it deals with their agenda, their passion in life, their job, their hobby or they want to change the world that has been unkind to them or their family.

The problem is that once you do that ONE talk show in you, what do you do for the your second, 10th, 20th or 100th show? One trick ponies rarely work on talk radio. It's not about you or only what you're interested in. It's about what your listeners are interested in hearing you talk about on the radio. You need more than one show topic in you to succeed as a talk show host.

I've done three talent searches while programming talk radio in Toronto and Montreal. At CFRB  I auditioned 1,000 people in shopping malls. At CJAD in Montreal it was 500 people who thought they had what it takes to host their own talk show when they auditioned in the mall. My third search was Talk Radio Idol live on CFRB in Toronto where we received more than 500 e mails from people who wanted to host a talk show.

In the malls I could tell in the first 30 seconds of their three minute audition why they want to be on the radio. Librarians want to talk about the importance of reading. Teachers want to talk about poor grammar, bad spelling or problems with today's kids. Community activists want to talk about their agenda or fight with City Hall. People with illnesses want to talk about (you guessed it) their illness and how the government wasn't providing enough funding to find a cure. Guys want to talk sports - who they think is the best hockey, baseball, basketball or football team or player.

We knew within 30 seconds of their audition in the malls who would be a finalist because they stopped shoppers in their tracks. People in stores around our booth came out to see who these people were they heard on the speakers.

The 10 semi-finalists were picked because they could all do these four things:

1. express an opinion

2. be a performer

3. be entertaining

4. be a great story teller

The 10 semi-finalists in each city hosted a half hour talk show. Listeners voted for their favourite host. The contestant with the most votes won the opportunity to host their own weekend talk show.

In Toronto, Kim Mason was a nurse by day but wanted to be on radio by night. She had a great voice, could sing and tell stories that made you laugh one minute and cry the next. She got the gig and was on CFRB for about three years on weekends and filling in when hosts were away.

In Montreal, it was two girlfriends with an infectious laugh, the habit of finishing each others sentences and who were polar opposites. They rarely agreed on anything. Together they were magic on air. The Laurie and Olga Show was a weekend staple on CJAD for 14 years!

Not everybody loved them - some thought I dummied down CJAD with their show because I found them in a mall and because they didn't talk about serious news issues of the day. But they had a cult following in Montreal who thought they were the cat's meow! They made a point of listening to them on weekends or coming out to see them when they were hosting their show on location. Their detractors complained loudly and newspaper radio columnists took great joy in writing about why they shouldn't be on CJAD.

For Talk Radio Idol in Toronto the first sentence of their e mail usually revealed the same kinds of reasons they wanted to do a talk show as those who auditioned in the malls. But some e mails also had this theme: everyone tells me I have a good voice and should be on the radio.

Each Sunday night two people who wanted a talk show hosted a half hour on Sunday night and listeners voted for who should return the following week to take on another contender. The person who won four weeks in a row would come back to compete against the next person who won four weeks in a row. It took three months to come up with two contenders who each survived a four week run on Talk Radio Idol.

The winner was Kevin Foxx, a fearless standup comedian with a keen sense of the issues of the day. But as his comedy career flourished, he abandoned the talk show he won to tour the country to make people laugh.

Next week from where I sit On the Kowch: How to pitch a talk show with experts who give advice to listeners.