“The View From the Phlipside” is a media commentary program airing on WRFA-LP, Jamestown NY. It can be heard Monday through Friday around 7:30 AM. The following are scripts which may not exactly match the aired version of the program. Mostly because the host may suddenly choose to add or subtract words at a moments notice. WRFA-LP is not responsible for any such silliness or the opinions expressed. You can listen to a live stream of WRFA or find a podcast of this program at wrfalp.com. Copyright 2013-16 by Jay Phillippi. All Rights Reserved. You like what you see? Drop me a line and we can talk.
Program scripts from week of January 25, 2016
My name is Jay Phillippi and I’ve spent my life in and around the media. TV, radio, the movies and more. I love them, and I hate them and I always have an opinion. Call this the View from the Phlipside.
Commercial Future
Long
time listeners will be well aware that I am a little obsessed when it
comes to commercials. Over my career I probably listened to tens of
thousands of them, wrote a couple thousand and recorded several more
thousands. You would think that would put me off those buggers
forever but somehow the opposite has happened. Part of it is coming
to understand the difference between really good advertising and the
vast majority of what we have to put up with in the media.
time listeners will be well aware that I am a little obsessed when it
comes to commercials. Over my career I probably listened to tens of
thousands of them, wrote a couple thousand and recorded several more
thousands. You would think that would put me off those buggers
forever but somehow the opposite has happened. Part of it is coming
to understand the difference between really good advertising and the
vast majority of what we have to put up with in the media.
Advertising
is one of those unpleasant facts of life. Without them, most of our
media disappears, I’ve talked about that before. Finding the balance
between meeting the financial needs of the content provider and the
upper limit of viewer tolerance has been an ongoing struggle in just
about every form of media for generations.
is one of those unpleasant facts of life. Without them, most of our
media disappears, I’ve talked about that before. Finding the balance
between meeting the financial needs of the content provider and the
upper limit of viewer tolerance has been an ongoing struggle in just
about every form of media for generations.
That
discussion is now spreading into Internet content. How long can an
ad be, on a YouTube video for example, before the viewer gets
annoyed. Classically, non-print ads come in thirty and sixty second
sizes. I must admit that I find myself getting annoyed when online
ads run that long. Conventional wisdom says you have ten seconds to
grab the viewers attention. You will lose a third of your audience
by the thirty second mark, forty five percent by sixty and sixty
percent at the two minute mark. My first thought was that most
advertisers would be more than happy to hold forty percent of their
audience over a two minute span.
discussion is now spreading into Internet content. How long can an
ad be, on a YouTube video for example, before the viewer gets
annoyed. Classically, non-print ads come in thirty and sixty second
sizes. I must admit that I find myself getting annoyed when online
ads run that long. Conventional wisdom says you have ten seconds to
grab the viewers attention. You will lose a third of your audience
by the thirty second mark, forty five percent by sixty and sixty
percent at the two minute mark. My first thought was that most
advertisers would be more than happy to hold forty percent of their
audience over a two minute span.
Curiously
our perception of how long we will watch an ad and how long we
actually will can be very different. A poll from a couple years back
said that most of us believed that fifteen seconds was the upper
limit of our tolerance. At the same time a 2013 study of the most
shared ads, meaning the ones we really liked, showed an average time
of just shy of two full minutes. That’s the kind of exposure that
marketers drool about.
our perception of how long we will watch an ad and how long we
actually will can be very different. A poll from a couple years back
said that most of us believed that fifteen seconds was the upper
limit of our tolerance. At the same time a 2013 study of the most
shared ads, meaning the ones we really liked, showed an average time
of just shy of two full minutes. That’s the kind of exposure that
marketers drool about.
So
what’s the secret? I think it’s what has always been the key to
great advertising, good storytelling. A fifteen second ad that is
just a standard ad bores me and I want it over NOW! But a couple
years ago a lot of us passed around a video produced by Canadian
airline WestJet about a Christmas Miracle program they ran. We may
have thought it was a really cool video but in fact it was over five
minutes of advertising for WestJet. Advertising that we willingly
shared with family and friends all around the world.
what’s the secret? I think it’s what has always been the key to
great advertising, good storytelling. A fifteen second ad that is
just a standard ad bores me and I want it over NOW! But a couple
years ago a lot of us passed around a video produced by Canadian
airline WestJet about a Christmas Miracle program they ran. We may
have thought it was a really cool video but in fact it was over five
minutes of advertising for WestJet. Advertising that we willingly
shared with family and friends all around the world.
In
the end I think the discussion needs to be turned on its head. The
industry needs to stop worrying about length and focus on great
storytelling.
the end I think the discussion needs to be turned on its head. The
industry needs to stop worrying about length and focus on great
storytelling.
Advertising
is about getting and holding the viewers attention. Tell the right
story and my attention is yours.
is about getting and holding the viewers attention. Tell the right
story and my attention is yours.
Emergency Communication
So
it was feeling a lot like home here this past weekend. The View From
the Phlipside International Broadcasting Headquarters is now located
in south central Virginia, which put us on the outer edge of the
snow-pocalypse. We got about 10-15 inches in two days. For a
point of reference, that’s about a full year’s worth of snow around
here. So life pretty much ground to a halt.
it was feeling a lot like home here this past weekend. The View From
the Phlipside International Broadcasting Headquarters is now located
in south central Virginia, which put us on the outer edge of the
snow-pocalypse. We got about 10-15 inches in two days. For a
point of reference, that’s about a full year’s worth of snow around
here. So life pretty much ground to a halt.
With
all that free time on my hands I got thinking about how we
communicate during emergencies. Since 1951 we’ve had some kind of
broadcast system, beginning with the Conelrad system, followed by the
Emergency Broadcast System in 1963 which was phased out for the
Emergency Alert System in 1997. What they all had in common was a
TV/radio basis with the audience interface happening at the local
broadcast level. The problem in 2016 is an increasing number of
people like my daughter, who doesn’t listen to local radio or watch
TV, at all. No local broadcast, cable or satellite. As more people
“cut the cord”, the old systems leaves more of them out of the
loop. In a time of a major emergency that’s potentially a very large
problem.
all that free time on my hands I got thinking about how we
communicate during emergencies. Since 1951 we’ve had some kind of
broadcast system, beginning with the Conelrad system, followed by the
Emergency Broadcast System in 1963 which was phased out for the
Emergency Alert System in 1997. What they all had in common was a
TV/radio basis with the audience interface happening at the local
broadcast level. The problem in 2016 is an increasing number of
people like my daughter, who doesn’t listen to local radio or watch
TV, at all. No local broadcast, cable or satellite. As more people
“cut the cord”, the old systems leaves more of them out of the
loop. In a time of a major emergency that’s potentially a very large
problem.
While
we are all “plugged in” that very often doesn’t give us a lot of
local coverage in case of a local emergency. While some may point to
the pervasiveness of social media, I would note the number of times
that social media simply gets things wrong. The perversity of some
members of those social networks, folks who are more than willing to
question or cast doubt on pretty much anything, means that the
response may be even further delayed while people try to discover the
truth.
we are all “plugged in” that very often doesn’t give us a lot of
local coverage in case of a local emergency. While some may point to
the pervasiveness of social media, I would note the number of times
that social media simply gets things wrong. The perversity of some
members of those social networks, folks who are more than willing to
question or cast doubt on pretty much anything, means that the
response may be even further delayed while people try to discover the
truth.
So
maybe it’s through our smartphones that we should be looking for this
kind of information. There are emergency apps, including one that
ties you into the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Not a bad
option but not perfect given that the most optimistic estimates say
only seventy five percent of us carry smart phones.
maybe it’s through our smartphones that we should be looking for this
kind of information. There are emergency apps, including one that
ties you into the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Not a bad
option but not perfect given that the most optimistic estimates say
only seventy five percent of us carry smart phones.
Some
service providers offer emergency alerts. There’s still the question
of how localized issues may be handled since there is no real “local”
contact point.
service providers offer emergency alerts. There’s still the question
of how localized issues may be handled since there is no real “local”
contact point.
The
truth of the matter is that any kind of alert system is going to
involve some level of annoyance. Even the old EBS test noise caused
complaints (and let’s face it, that was an intentionally ugly sound).
Today’s society doesn’t deal with annoyances particularly well. A
system wide alert program will spawn masses of hacks, work arounds
and apps designed to block the system.
truth of the matter is that any kind of alert system is going to
involve some level of annoyance. Even the old EBS test noise caused
complaints (and let’s face it, that was an intentionally ugly sound).
Today’s society doesn’t deal with annoyances particularly well. A
system wide alert program will spawn masses of hacks, work arounds
and apps designed to block the system.
I
wish I had a better solution to provide right now. At the moment the
best option is to make sure we are thinking about it.
wish I had a better solution to provide right now. At the moment the
best option is to make sure we are thinking about it.
Oscar Argument
I
must admit that I’ve gone back and forth on whether to weigh in on
the whole flap surrounding the Oscars this year. Race is a “third
rail” issue in the United States. Touch it and you die. Add into
that the fact that I am a middle aged, white male. It’s guys like me
who are the controlling demographic in the areas that are involved in
the issues at hand. At the same time, this is a major issue in the
media right now. And this IS a media commentary program.
must admit that I’ve gone back and forth on whether to weigh in on
the whole flap surrounding the Oscars this year. Race is a “third
rail” issue in the United States. Touch it and you die. Add into
that the fact that I am a middle aged, white male. It’s guys like me
who are the controlling demographic in the areas that are involved in
the issues at hand. At the same time, this is a major issue in the
media right now. And this IS a media commentary program.
So,
a deep breath and let’s take the plunge.
a deep breath and let’s take the plunge.
First
we need to note that the issue over the complete lack of actors of
color in this year’s 20 nomination slots has divided the industry.
While director Spike Lee and actors Will and Jada Pinkett Smith are
high profile supporters of the awards boycott, veteran rapper and
co-producer of the movie “Straight Outta Compton” Ice Cube does
not. He believes that the awards are a sideshow to the business of
making movies for the fans. Many people believe that his movie is
one of the ones whose actors were snubbed by the Academy. This is
the second year in a row that there have been not a single person of
color nominated for an acting Oscar.
we need to note that the issue over the complete lack of actors of
color in this year’s 20 nomination slots has divided the industry.
While director Spike Lee and actors Will and Jada Pinkett Smith are
high profile supporters of the awards boycott, veteran rapper and
co-producer of the movie “Straight Outta Compton” Ice Cube does
not. He believes that the awards are a sideshow to the business of
making movies for the fans. Many people believe that his movie is
one of the ones whose actors were snubbed by the Academy. This is
the second year in a row that there have been not a single person of
color nominated for an acting Oscar.
The
Oscars are awarded by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences, hence the “Academy Awards”. Current president of the
Academy is Cheryl Boone Isaacs, who is also a black woman, and the
board of directors of the Academy have acknowledged that there is a
problem. The voting members, the people who generate the
nominations, are overwhelmingly white men. An investigation by the
Los Angeles Times in 2013 found that 93% of the voters were white
with a median age of 63. With that in mind, and in response
to the furor, the board accelerated changes in voting membership to
try and bring the demographic closer to national averages for both
race and gender.
Oscars are awarded by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences, hence the “Academy Awards”. Current president of the
Academy is Cheryl Boone Isaacs, who is also a black woman, and the
board of directors of the Academy have acknowledged that there is a
problem. The voting members, the people who generate the
nominations, are overwhelmingly white men. An investigation by the
Los Angeles Times in 2013 found that 93% of the voters were white
with a median age of 63. With that in mind, and in response
to the furor, the board accelerated changes in voting membership to
try and bring the demographic closer to national averages for both
race and gender.
The
bottom line is that the Academy is only part of the larger issue. It
reflects Hollywood, and to a very large degree, Hollywood reflects
the racial issues that still plague our nation. The fact that some
folks are willing to make the “Well, they already have the BET
awards” is proof of that. Separate but equal has been rejected,
and should be rejected here as well.
bottom line is that the Academy is only part of the larger issue. It
reflects Hollywood, and to a very large degree, Hollywood reflects
the racial issues that still plague our nation. The fact that some
folks are willing to make the “Well, they already have the BET
awards” is proof of that. Separate but equal has been rejected,
and should be rejected here as well.
For
generations, Hollywood has maintained that audiences won’t come out
for movies starring people of color or women. “The Force Awakens”
just became the highest grossing movie of all time with a black man
and a woman in the leads.
generations, Hollywood has maintained that audiences won’t come out
for movies starring people of color or women. “The Force Awakens”
just became the highest grossing movie of all time with a black man
and a woman in the leads.
It’s
not my place to tell anyone whether or not they should boycott the
Oscars. But it is time to drag the movie industry out of the past.
not my place to tell anyone whether or not they should boycott the
Oscars. But it is time to drag the movie industry out of the past.
Call that the View From the Phlipside
Copyright Jay Phillippi, 2016
Theme music for “The View From the Phlipside” and “TVFTP – Podcast” is “Hustle”
Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com), Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0
Stories Are My Life 
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