Talking Points

It’s gratifying to hear a member of Congress uttering talking points that aren’t utter nonsense for a change. We especially appreciate the words of Rep. John Dingell in defense of local broadcasting against the Evil Axis, a.k.a. the RIAA, in the copyright fight. Indeed, we could not have said it better ourselves. That’s probably because we have said it ourselves—word for word.

A well-organized political party—you know who you are—has proved the value of staying 100% on message, using the same words and phrases over and over to drive a point home. Thanks to the leadership of the NAB, broadcasters are benefitting from that same unanimity of expression. The most pertinent example is our constant, consistent use of the term “performance tax.” It’s accurate, and it efficiently re-frames the issue. Ditto the reference to “the foreign-owned record companies.” (The only thing that would be more heinous would be if they were all based in France.)

Radio people, especially, are hard-wired to understand these concepts: everyone who’s been in our business for longer than a week knows that on-air repetition of the same concepts, words and phrases—like the station calls and slogan, for example—is extremely powerful.

Attempts to harness the wonderful diversity in our industry generally meet with less than stellar success—you know who you are, too—but in some cases it’s critical that we speak with one voice. We may not win every battle, but we’ll win more than our share.