Radio books for program directors, imaging producers, radio personalities & music directors (photo: Thomas Giger)
Radio books about radio broadcasting
Books about radio broadcasting, including radio programming, radio production, personality radio, music scheduling and more. The following radio books are good resources for program directors, imaging producers, radio personalities, music directors and other radio industry & media production professionals. This page includes affiliate links to Amazon.com. [ Also look for radio movies ]
Beyond Powerful Radio
A Communicator’s Guide To The Internet Age
Broadcast consultant Valerie Geller shares how to communicate in a digital era. Beyond Powerful Radio is a sequel of Creating Powerful Radio and captures the essence of her previous work, but also includes new chapters on marketing and promotion, sales and copywriting, research and ratings, team building and job hunting, as well as traditional broadcasting vs new media. Read this radio book
Broadcast Announcing Worktext
A Media Performance Guide
This book is a basic introduction to radio, television and online broadcast platforms from the announcer perspective. It shows how to communicate effectively through these different channels, and teaches how to develop your broadcast delivery. The authors also discuss podcasting, webradio and other forms of online announcing. Broadcast Announcing Worktext includes a CD-ROM that contains audio bits and visual examples. Read this radio book
Broadcast Voice Handbook
How To Polish Your On-Air Delivery
This training book has been written for broadcasters. Apart from basics, like how to breathe correctly, it covers how to improve resonance, articulation and intonation, and sound more warm, natural and conversational. There’s a separate chapter on how to deal with stress when being on the air. Most chapters include practical exercises and useful tips, such as how to warm up your voice before speaking. Read this radio book
Creating Powerful Radio
Getting, Keep
ing & Growing Audiences
Although it’s focused on news, talk and information formats, Creating Powerful Radio (followed by the new Beyond Powerful Radio) includes lessons for any on-air personality. Broadcast consultant Valerie Geller explains universal ways to engage listeners. Chapters include topics like: how to interview people effectively and clarify complex stories, but also how to produce your show and coach your talent. Read this radio book
Essential Radio Skills
How To Present A Radio Show
This guide about how to present (and produce) a radio show is focused on the UK radio market, but includes many universal principles. From pros & cons of radio presenting to ins & outs of radio theory, this work also teaches a variety of practical skills. These include anything from radio programming and audience analysis to voice training and interview techniques. The book also explains a lot of radio jargon. Read this radio book
Essential Radio Journalism
How To Produce And Present Radio News
This is a source for people who are looking for a job in radio journalism, or would like to develop their skills in that area. Essential Radio Journalism covers the production and presentation of radio news – gathering and reporting; writing and editing; interviewing and presenting. The authors also address law & ethics, and offer a practical user guide for technical equipment for radio journalists. Read this radio book
Future Radio Programming Strategies
Cultivating Listenership In The Digital Age
What do listeners really want from radio? David MacFarland is using research data from less usual sources to answer this. He talks about listener-friendly production and announcing styles, and little-known music scheduling techniques based on audience moods. This book includes two tapes which illustrate, for example, the perception of the announcer’s distance from the listener, and the impact of vocally expressed emotions. Read this radio book
Howard Stern
A Biography
Shock Jock Howard Stern is different than any other radio host. His legendary battles with the Federal Communications Commission and program directors are Rich Mintzer’s reason to ask: if there is a line between constitutional freedom of speech and responsibility and decency – where is it? Howard Stern: A Biography tries to answer that while reconstructing the life and career of the self-acclaimed King of all Media. Read this radio book
Introduction To Radio
Production & Programming
This work was published in 1994, so (besides timeless radio fundamentals) it includes studio pictures where we see CD, DAT and NAB cartridge players – as digital audio storage & editing was just starting back then. The book covers production and programming basics, but more for people who are just starting in radio than for seasoned professionals. Still, its historical value makes it a nice-to-have collector’s item. Read this radio book
Making Radio
A Practical Guide To Working In Radio In The Digital Age
Making Radio is about techniques for presenting, researching, copywriting, producing, marketing and promoting radio. All for several different program formats. Author Steve Ahern also examines how radio has reinvented itself to keep up with today’s audience behaviour. He talks about Radio 2.0 skills that one should have in this digital world, including today’s hot topics: multi-platform delivery and social media marketing. Read this radio book
Media Programming
Strategies & Practices
An introduction to techniques & strategies for programming media, this book covers how content is selected, programmed, promoted and evaluated while considering technology, financing, regulations, policies and marketing. It highlights trends such as media concentration, cluster-wide sold content, and the impact of digital. Media Programming comes with a glossary of often-used media jargon. Read this radio book
Modern Radio Production
Production, Programming & Performance
This work is about production and programming fundamentals that increase station performance. The usage of new technology and techniques is being combined with basics of traditional practices and equipment. Instead of focusing on theory and terminology, the approach is rather practical as the authors provide many examples. It makes Modern Radio Production suitable for a wide audience. Read this radio book
No Static
A Guide To Creative Radio Programming
How to build a solid and creative team that brings fun and excitement on the air, is one of the topics in No Static by Quincy McCoy. He offers leadership development exercises to help you motivate your staff to work productive and as a team. Radio programming aspects are discussed as well, such as: highlight your brand, create stronger programming, and have personable deejays – to achieve better ratings and more revenue. Read this radio book
Private Parts
Autobiography
The most notorious (and successful) jock ever reveals it all in this classic bio. The offensive language and outrageous content may not be your cup of tea, but still Howard Stern’s personal life and early career story is entertaining and inspiring. Private Parts is more than the [filmed] story of a self-concious nerd who becomes a media star. It’s also an impression of American radio in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Read this radio book
Process And Practice Of Radio Programming
This great book is based on veteran program director and radio consultant interviews and columns. Topics include radio programming strategies, anti-competition tactics, audience research, music scheduling, on-air promotions, talent management, and station imaging. The PD interviews are insightful, and many programming fundamentals in this 1998 university textbook are timeless. Read this radio book
Programming For TV, Radio & The Internet
Strategy, Development & Evaluation
This work is an overview on programming for three different media and starts with its history. The main part covers testing audience responses, using programming strategies, evaluating content performance, and executing schedule changes. Broadcast programming ethics are being discussed in the final chapter. Although the majority of the book is about TV, it includes good lessons for radio. Read this radio book
Radio Programming
Tactics & Strategy
Eric Norberg writes about best practices of radio programmingm such as the major importance of programming consistency (which beats competitor inconsistency) and creating as well as fulfilling listener expectations. The writer uses a lot of practical examples to get you thinking. Chapters include: creating station identity, using music and news strategically, analyzing radio ratings, and more. Read this radio book
RADIO The Book
For Creative, Professional Programming
This book offers practical advice for programming both talk and music formats. From art (programming, marketing, branding) to science (music testing, audience studies, ratings analysis). Included are forms for daily operations (PSA schedules, format clocks, etc.) and ideas for cable, satellite, and Web based programming. Last but not least, there are suggestions on how to find radio broadcasting jobs and negotiate with employers. Read this radio book
Something In The Air
Radio, Rock & The Revolution That Shaped A Generation
Groups like Clear Channel own many local stations and often air standard programming through automatic satellite feeds. This book is about the time before syndication and automation took over radio: the time of Alan Freed, Todd Storz, Wolfman Jack, and Hunter Hancock who paved a way for today’s radio talents. The book ends on the positive side: local, personal radio still exists – and may come back on a larger scale. Read this radio book
Starting Your Career in Broadcasting
Working On And Off The Air On Radio and Television
This book is intended as a guide to break into broadcasting, both on air and behind the scenes. It features interviews with media personalities such as Larry King, but also station managers and their staff share stories about how they started. CBS Radio sportscaster Chris Schneider reveals what news and program directors seek in talent, and how to develop yourself once you have landed a job in radio or TV. Read this radio book
Television And Radio Announcing
50th Anniversary Edition
A guide for everyone who wants to be a radio or TV host, featuring both basic and advanced techniques for news, sports, and music programming. Professional announcers share their experience (about, for example, improving the personality of your voice) and there are student essays on today’s YouTube and MTV culture. The author also addresses ethical media responsibilities. Read this radio book
The Radio Producer’s Handbook
A practical book for radio producers of radio content. Topics include developing content ideas, booking celebrity guests, crafting interesting interviews, and creating great phoners. Other aspects are more internal, like how to write & pitch material, and cope with the pressure of producing a daily show. Radio personality John ‘Records’ Landecker wrote the introduction for the book, as the author has been his producer for years. Read this radio book
The Radio Station
Broadcast, Satellite & Internet
A classic radio broadcasting book that is in print for 25 years now. Michael C. Keith explains who does what, when & why at a radio station. He also looks at the consequences of clustering stations and management, and new ways of content distribution for radio – such as weblogs, podcasts, and mobile multimedia devices. The book offers ideas on programming for new radio formats that evolve thanks this new digital technology. Read this radio book
This Business Of Radio Programming
“The Best Book On Radio Programming Ever Published!”
This classic radio programming book covers the history of contemporary radio, based on interviews with legendary programmers like Bill Drake and Ron Jacobs, about the birth of Top 40 and Boss Radio. There’s also an interview section with American radio personalities, such as Don Imus and Robert W. Morgan. Further, the book mentions promotional ideas from this radio era (of which some might even work again today). Read this radio book
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