Why radio is (still) a hot medium

Todd Moe, live, on the air, on your radio, here in the north country, this morning, for real.

I am not a nostalgic person. Maybe it has to do with memory. Some people remember every detail of their 2nd grade classroom. My capacity for remembering is a lot sketchier. Pretty much the here and now–and imagining the future–are what occupy my mind.

But some experiences–carried through my entire life–still live and breathe and have meaning.

Like radio.

Radio. Not just because I’ve known it all my life, but because it was the original “hot” –i.e., interactive–medium, and it still burns. The hot medium. Remember Marshall McLuhan?

Okay, this is an over-simplification but the takeaway is that the medium itself does matter, because of how we are changed by using different media.

This concept seemed a bit esoteric and hard to grasp in the ’60s, though as TV moved into top dog position people worried about its impact on children, on all of us, recognizing the power of the medium itself, apart from the content.

In the wired age, I think we can all understand how a medium changes us as individuals and as a society–again, regardless of content.

I use and appreciate the digital world. But I love radio.

Here’s why:

1. Nothing stimulates the imagination like the sound of a voice or music…
2. Unlike delayed or recorded content, live radio is, well, live. Immediate. Anything can happen. Surprising. Human. Flawed.
3. Universally and easily available, even without electricity.
4. The content DOES matter.

Love radio, too?

Support the hot lively medium in your life at www.ncpr.org or call 1-800-677-3606.

When you do, tell us why radio continues to be important to you.

Thanks!

Tags: mcluhan, media, radio