Stunting (broadcasting)

In radio broadcasting, stunting occurs when a station abruptly airs content that is seemingly uncharacteristic compared to what they normally play. The tactic is commonly used when a station is about to undergo a major change (such as a change in format, branding, frequency, ownership or management, or even the acquisition of a high-profile program or personality), or simply as a prank on listeners and rival broadcasters (e.g. a temporary April Fools' Day stunt that does not involve an on-air change); either way, stunting is intended as a way to generate a greater amount of media publicity and audience attention to the station, by virtue of its shock value, than a straightforward format change could provide. Depending on the station's situation and its management's preference, stunt formats can last anywhere from a few minutes to several weeks before the permanent change is launched.

Types of radio stunting and noted examples

Continuous loop

A station may stunt by repeating the same song or songs over and over on a continuous loop.

Sound effects

In a prelude to a format flip, a series of audio clips and sound effects centered around a certain theme may be played. Known as a sound collage, the theme under which these bits of audio fall may or may not have something to do with the previous and/or new format.

Sneak preview

When changing formats, a station may be upfront about the nature of the new format by using a limited playlist of songs or highlights of the new format, an approach intended to preview what to expect after the format change takes place.

Temporary formats

Occasionally a station dropping an old format will stunt with a temporary transitional format, one intended to tease not so much the listener but competing stations who are not privy to the station's new plans. The fake format, more often than not, is only intended as a transition to a new format or existing format adjustment. A similar, but smaller, effect can be produced by registering numerous domain names suggesting various formats, in an effort to throw off "net gnomes" and generate buzz.

Novelty songs

A station may stunt by temporarily formatting a series of novelty songs, a song style that usually wouldn't support itself as a stand-alone commercial radio format.

Overlap in music formats

A station may mix musical selections from both its old and new formats for a period of time. This smooth transition works best if the formats have little to no normal overlap in their playlists, such as a shift from country music to rhythmic contemporary or alternative rock; it may not be as effective or obvious if the transition is from, for example, modern rock to alternative rock. This type of stunting does not occur as often as other forms, as the approach does not increase the shock and anticipation value as much as with the other forms.

Christmas music

As far back as the early 2000s, stations have made an annual practice of airing nothing but Christmas music in the days and weeks before (and occasionally the week after) the holiday. Though going all-Christmas may be a temporary pause in a station's existing format (with the regular format resuming after the holiday mainly intact or with minor adjustments), it has also been used as a temporary transition to a new format. As a result, the holiday season has become a watch period of sorts in the radio industry, or at least those in the industry who anticipate a station or stations flipping formats after the holidays.

On television

Radio-like stunts on television are not as commonplace as they are on radio, usually due to iron-clad programming commitments, a general lack of concrete formats in television (especially among local television stations, which still mostly use a homogenized and daypart-driven block programming strategy), and a lower level of shock value in a multichannel universe. In contrast, because there are fewer radio stations available and most are local, a format change at a local radio station is likely to draw the attention of a significant number of listeners in the station's broadcast area. Instead, a TV station or network may stunt in the form of a heavily-promoted event, as in the case of promoting new on-air branding, station affiliation change, or acquisition of programming or personnel; an increase in publicity (and with it, the station hopes, viewer anticipation) will increase as the changeover date nears. A prime example of this promo-type stunting involved British cable channel Bravo, which in January 1997 used a series of eerily-produced promos to herald a change in programming tone (including mutations of the network's old and new visual presentations).[17] Marathons, the sequential broadcast of several episodes of the same series, are quite common during network transitions.

At least two networks have used stunting-type events prior to their formal launches. MLB Network, for example, aired a continuous loop of baseball highlights and promos as a "soft launch" in the weeks before its formal debut on January 1, 2009, while Canada's Sun News Network employed an on-screen countdown clock graphic in the hours before its April 18, 2011 launch.[18]

In October 2013, British children's channel Nick Jr. Too stunted with a long-term marathon of Peppa Pig, during which the channel also re-branded as Nick Jr. Peppa.[19]

References

  1. Tognazzini, Bruce. "The Bizarre Demise of Mighty 690". AskTog.com.
  2. "WZNN Starts Stunting". Wisconsin Broadcasting. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27.
  3. Audio of KROI's "construction" stunting in 11/2011
  4. KLSX Format Switch on YouTube
  5. http://formatchange.com/wpgb-becomes-big-104-7/
  6. "WEMP/New York Wakes Up With News Friday". All Access Music Group. August 12, 2011.
  7. WRKA Radio, Louisville changes format 7-18-2008 on YouTube
  8. WVMV Format Change on YouTube
  9. Dellecese, Dave (2009-05-18). "Just a publicity stunt - KISS FM remains on air despite weekend claims". WKTV. Retrieved 2009-05-18.
  10. Dudek, Duane (June 2, 2010). "Ratings games spur radio identity crisis". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  11. "Former news station turns to 'classic hip-hop'". Houston Chronicle. 13 October 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  12. "Here's one for the books". Johns Hopkins Gazette 24 (38). June 26, 1995.
  13. "Radio station takes down the tree". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  14. "New station jingles all the way". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix (Postmedia). Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  15. "96.3 Cruzes in Saskatoon". Radio Insight. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  16. "Saskatoon radio station lays off staff". CBC News. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  17. Walker, Hayden. "Bravo". TVARK.
  18. Ladurantaye, Steve (April 18, 2011). "Sun News Network launches with anchor as Sunshine Girl". The Globe and Mail.
  19. Wallop, Harry (2013-10-08). "Dad of four: a family united by Peppa Pig". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2013-12-01.
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