Pilots of the Airwaves
What makes a good radio D.J.? Is there a difference between a disc jockey and an announcer? Why is it that within about five microseconds of listening to a radio station, you can work out whether the DJ is fab or flab?
A Bit of History
The term DJ is believed to have first come into worldwide usage via the American Forces Network during World War 2. The BBC called them "Presenters of Gramophone Record Recitals," (accurate, but not very sexy!). The first DJ was probably Peter Eckersley, an engineer working for the Marconi radio company in Britain (and later the BBC's first chief engineer). In fact, he was probably one of the world's first real broadcasters, singing, joking and announcing his way through test broadcasts from Marconi's Writtle radio station.
The first scheduled programme of recorded music with a "personality" announcer may well have been in 1924 (history is understandably faded!) when British playwright and novelist Compton Mackenzie (then in his early forties) presented a collection of new records. Mackenzie's qualification was that he was the founding editor of the highbrow Gramophone magazine, then barely a year old.
It was, however, his son in law, Christopher Stone, who became Britain's (and possibly the world's) first star disc jockey. He became so popular, he even made an appearance at a Royal Variety Show - playing records, of course.
It took rock and roll music to turn disc jockeys from the largely conservative, establishment figures of the forties into the personalities we are more used to today.
Today, disc jockeys have become internationally known megastars. Casey Kasem is the doyenne of US jocks, with thousands of editions of the American Top 40 under his belt; Larry King, CNN's top interviewer, was a radio jock first and foremost - we've all got favourite names we could add to the hall of fame.
DJs Today
Today, disc jockeys fall into two broad categories - "liner" jocks, and the rest. Now that automation has caught up with the radio business, liner jocks are becoming more and more popular...at least with the accountants that now run the entertainment industry. The accountants look to maximise the potential audience, while minimising cost and individual quirks. They want to be able to guarantee their advertisers that a certain section will listen ceaselessly, without being tempted to switch over to another station. The last thing they want is a radio presenter who may play a music track that might not run smoothly into the station's profile, or who may say something outrageous. So, just as the computer programs the music that will be played, the presenter is geared to say only pre-programmed sentences - or liners. They say things like "You're listening to radio 'X,' the latest hits, the greatest memories on 100 FM," or whatever. They'll be allowed to have one or two "personality" spots, as long as they don't step out of line. The result is bland, but seamless.
Latest Articles