Posted by chicagomedia.org on May 02, 2008 at 09:52:11:
BY ROBERT FEDER Television/Radio Columnist
Imagine having the resources of a giant radio company at your fingertips to help you create your very own format.
With just a few clicks and drags of your mouse, you could custom-design the radio station of your dreams -- and share it online with all of your friends.
That's just one of many bold and exciting options that's being built into the new CBS Radio Digital Network, to be rolled out in the coming months at play.it.
In a combined effort with AOL, the initiative will integrate every one of the company's 140 over-the-air stations with all of its Internet-only stations into one simple online player.
With the zeal of a man on a mission, CBS Radio president Dan Mason has been traveling the country to share his vision of revitalizing the medium.
Hundreds of advertisers and media buyers gathered Tuesday at the Chicago Theater to hear Mason exhort them to "rethink radio" and peek into a future of virtually unlimited choices -- all available at no cost to listeners.
To those who predict radio's demise, Mason pointed to the continued reach and impact of his stations, including those in Chicago that posted substantial gains in the ratings this week.
Under Mason's leadership, the whole culture of CBS Radio has been rejuvenated since the bleak days of his inept predecessor, Joel Hollander, whose mistakes were too numerous to count.
"We have no problem taking the lead in banging the drum for what remains the most engaging medium reaching more than 93 percent of the population . . . every week," Mason said. "Using great local content and the best technology available, [CBS] is poised to be the undisputed champion in radio broadcasting."