{"id":7255,"date":"2026-01-30T12:25:34","date_gmt":"2026-01-30T01:25:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bprworld.com\/?p=7255"},"modified":"2026-01-30T12:25:34","modified_gmt":"2026-01-30T01:25:34","slug":"radio-is-about-communication-so-why-are-we-still-so-bad-at-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/bprworld.com\/de\/news\/radio-is-about-communication-so-why-are-we-still-so-bad-at-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Radio Is About Communication. So Why Are We Still So Bad At It?"},"content":{"rendered":"

By David Kidd, BPR<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Radio is, at its core, a communication business. That\u2019s literally the job.<\/p>\n

And yet\u2026 how good are we really at it?<\/p>\n

There have never been more ways to communicate than there are right now. Phone. Email. Text. WhatsApp. Zoom. Teams. Instagram. Facebook. LinkedIn. And, in a bold retro twist, face-to-face.<\/p>\n

In radio, we communicate internally with our teams and externally with listeners and clients. We talk for a living. We write for a living. We sell ideas for a living.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So here\u2019s the uncomfortable question:<\/p>\n

Are we actually any better at communicating than we were ten years ago?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Some days, it doesn\u2019t feel like it.<\/p>\n

I still hear promos that are clumsy, confusing, and trying to say five things at once \u2014 and therefore saying nothing.<\/p>\n

I still hear positioning statements that bear only a passing resemblance to what\u2019s actually on air.<\/p>\n

I still get emails that require decoding.<\/p>\n

I still hear talk hosts deliver opinions in a rambling, circular, meandering way that loses the audience halfway through sentence two.<\/p>\n

And I still hear talk breaks on music stations with so many \u201cthoughts\u201d crammed into them that every single one goes missing in action.<\/p>\n

The truth is,\u00a0successful communication is much harder than it looks<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

On one side, you have the sender\u2019s ability to express a message clearly and simply.
\nOn the other, you have the receiver\u2019s ability to understand it.<\/p>\n

Both matter. And both regularly fail.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Why Do We Communicate So Poorly?<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are some very common reasons:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Lack of Skill or Training<\/strong>
    \nNot everyone has been taught how to communicate clearly \u2014 verbally or in writing. Some never learned it formally. Some never saw it modelled well growing up.<\/li>\n
  2. Lack of Confidence<\/strong>
    \nIf you\u2019re unsure of yourself, your thoughts usually come out that way too \u2014 tangled, vague, over-explained or undercooked.<\/li>\n
  3. Emotional Interference<\/strong>
    \nAnxiety, anger, stress, fear are all great enemies of clarity. They turn simple messages into complicated ones.<\/li>\n
  4. Poor Listening<\/strong>
    \nCommunication is not just about talking. It\u2019s about listening.
    \nAnd in radio, this one is fatal. If you don\u2019t listen to your audience, you won\u2019t understand what they want, how they want it, or why they\u2019re drifting away.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    As the late Sir Michael Parkinson famously demonstrated: the best interviewers are elite listeners.<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Cognitive Differences and Bias<\/strong>
      \nSome people struggle to organise thoughts clearly. Others are blinded by their own assumptions. Both make messages harder to land.<\/li>\n
    2. Lack of Empathy<\/strong>
      \nIf you can\u2019t see the world from the other person\u2019s point of view, your communication will always miss the mark.<\/li>\n
    3. Lack of Practice<\/strong>
      \nLike fitness, communication decays without use.<\/li>\n
    4. The Tyranny of Short-Form Tech<\/strong>
      \nTexting and social media have trained us to communicate in fragments. Speed has replaced clarity. And misunderstanding has filled the gap.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

      How Do We Get Better?<\/strong><\/p>\n

      None of this is complicated. It just requires discipline:<\/p>\n

        \n
      • Listen. Then listen again.<\/li>\n
      • Always think about who you\u2019re talking to, not just what you want to say.<\/li>\n
      • In person, remember: body language does half the talking.<\/li>\n
      • Re-read that email. Then re-read it again.<\/li>\n
      • Be concise. Be specific. Be unambiguous.<\/li>\n
      • Think before you speak. Don\u2019t just release the first thought that escapes.<\/li>\n
      • And in verbal communication, a positive attitude (and yes, even a smile) actually changes how the message lands.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

        The Bottom Line<\/strong><\/p>\n

        Effective communication is not a \u201cnice to have\u201d skill in radio.
        \nIt is\u00a0the entire business<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

        And yet, despite having more tools than at any time in human history, we\u2019re still tripping over the same problems people had thousands of years ago.<\/p>\n

        Different platforms. Same human flaws.<\/p>\n

        I\u2019ll leave you with a quote from former Intel CEO Andy Grove that should be pinned to every studio wall and every management office:<\/p>\n

        \u201cHow well we communicate is not determined by how well we say things, but by how well we are understood.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

        Which, in radio, is a pretty good definition of success.<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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