There are so many forums this thread could go in… could be a GQ, could be here, could be in The Pit. But we’ll go for MPSIMS and see what happens.
There’s this new trend in radio that I’ve noticed over the past couple of years, and it really bugs me. Basically it’s when the DJ/announcer/talk show host/whatever pimps for his sponsor’s product during his/her spiel. For example, the following sequence from a local “Morning Zoo”-type program:
ANNOUNCER #1: Boy, that last caller was dumb as a brick!
ANNOUNCER #2: Speaking of bricks, have I mentioned that my new brick home is being built by XYZ Construction Company? I sure do love their competitive rates and professionalism!
ANNOUNCER #1: Wow! I guess I’ll be calling XYZ Construction Company at 1-800-555-BRICK today!
ANNOUNCER #2: You would be very wise if you did so.
The GQ portion of this OP: what the hell is this called, and why is it becoming de rigeur these days?
The Pit portion of this OP: uh, this really bothers me and I wish they would just have commercials instead of trying to hide them in their monologues. Do these DJ’s think I’m stupid and don’t realize that they’re being paid to praise these companies?
I used to be an avid listener of day-time AM talk radio. I found it informative & entertaining…I even called in a time or two. In the last 5 years, it has become so commercial ridden (5 minutes of talk, 4 minutes of commercials, 15 minutes of Paul ack Harvey, repeat ad nauseam…) that I’ve been largely driven away from it. I still listen to NPR; no commercials.
I did make a rule for myself. NEVER patronise any business touted by DJ’s & talk hosts. The ads are so incredibly phony, I can’t even stand listening. On FM/music stations, The very instant either commercials or DJ’s come on air, I switch to another station, or to CD.
As to the OP: I don’t know what it’s called, but it irritates the hell out of me!
I don’t know what it is called but it is akin to product placement in movies. The reason they do it is because people are used to hearing normal ads. We’ve all heard TV and radio ads since we were kids and we are conditioned to resist them. However, when an ad appears somewhere we don’t expect it advertizers have caught us with our defenses down. We are more susceptable to these hidden ads than we are to normal ads, and as a result they are more effective.
WCCO-AM, the Minneapolis radio station that broadcasts the Vikings games, pretty much whores out the entire game to various advertisers. For instance, if somebody fumbles the announcer will say “…and that’s the 2nd turnover for the Bucs. Why not ‘turnover’ your insurance to American Family Insurance?”
It’s not new. It dates back to the very early days of radio. They’re called “ad libs” – not in the sense that they’re off the cuff, but because the DJ can drop them in wherever they seem to fit. A typical deal is that as a special sweetener to a sponsor who buys a large enough regular schedule (or one the station is trying to impress) the sales rep throws in a few as a “bonus.” This is all perfectly legal as long as the ad libs are noted in the station logs.
The second manisfestation is when a restaurant or a donut shop sends over some of the goods and the DJ spends the rest of the morning thanking them on the air. In my line of work we’ve managed to turn a $4 pack of muffins into a morning full of plugs.
However, there is also the well-known phenomenon of “plugola” where the DJ takes a few bucks under the table and jams in a cheap, shameless (and illegal) plug
I think that it’s to make the ad seem like less of an ad, and more like a “personal recommendation” from this guy or gal to whom you’ve been loyally listening for these many years. They are hoping that you will think, in the back of your mind, “Hmmm, “Radical” Reggie, whom I’ve liked and listened to for years, really thinks these Dodge Neons are swell. I need a new car. Perhaps I’ll head over to Riverdale Dodge and give one a test drive.”
WCCO, as Torgo mentioned, has been doing this sort of thing for years and years. It’s more like the old TV ads, where the host would hold up a product and talk about it, rather than the pre-recorded spots of today.