Kids all ears for Disney
Listeners age 6 to 14 lift Dallas radio network, along with their moms
12:50 PM CDT on Monday, July 25, 2005
By CHERYL HALL
The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/072505dnbusradiodisney.8164842.html
Robin Jones allows herself to be brainwashed by tweens on a daily basis. In
return, they have to listen to what she dishes out.
The symbiotic result is Radio Disney, one of the fastest-growing radio
networks in America, and the 46-year-old vice president of programming is
at its master controls in Dallas.
According to the latest ratings, 6.6 million listeners tune in weekly
half kids age 6 to 14, half adults chauffeuring children to school, sports
and shopping.
Every song, every contest, every celebrity interview emanates from here.
The disc jockeys are standing in on-air studios near the Galleria.
After nine years on the airwaves, Radio Disney reaches 97 percent of the
United States via Music Choice, a digital cable and satellite TV provider;
XM and Sirius satellite radio; and more than 50 radio stations, including
KMKI-AM (620) in Dallas.
The secret, says Ms. Jones, is to play hot music that kids clamor to hear
and moms also enjoy without a hint of sexual innuendo, violence or profanity.
"I'm not trying to be a censor," says the former on-air personality. "But
here's a place where you can safely go with your family and have fun
together. Too many stations play follow the leader. We listen to our
audience."
Not that she has a choice.
Each day, 225,000 kids from around the nation call in to request songs, win
prizes, play games or talk to the DJs. Most of them don't get through to
the live studio, but they can still leave requests on the computer system.
The highly interactive www. radiodisney.com targets tweens kids too old
for Barney and too young for U2 and draws more than 300,000 daily visitors.
"We give kids the records they want with good stuff in between, and they're
happy. It's not that hard," Ms. Jones says.
After-school drive time
Advertisers are primarily interested in reaching the moms. Even companies
hawking toys and videos know she holds the purse strings and has veto power
over this age bracket.
Premium ad rates kick in during the after-school drive time of 3 to 7 p.m.
Dallas time. That's when there's the greatest opportunity to encourage
instant gratification particularly if you're McDonald's, one of the major
advertisers.
Radio Disney, Oscar Mayer Lunchables and RealNetworks Inc. recently offered
a free music download promo targeted at families. The response exceeded all
expectations.
Oscar Mayer wanted to offer free music downloads that were certifiably
family-friendly, says spokeswoman Sara Delea. "When we consumer-tested the
concept, moms told us they really liked the fact that is was going to be
Radio Disney. We had over 80,000 downloads, and were thrilled with the
outcome."
These days, rumors abound that Disney might spin off or sell its lucrative
$3 billion radio station and network group, which includes Radio Disney.
Business gossip mentions Sirius Satellite Radio as a potential purchaser.
Disney officials aren't talking, and Ms. Jones isn't about to break the
silence.
Neither is her boss, Jean-Paul Colaco, the president of Radio Disney, who
handles the business side from Burbank and has flown in for the interview.
Rather, he's intent on talking about efforts to strengthen the brand on the
Internet, TV and computer downloads, as well as to extend Radio Disney's
international reach.
This all begins with Ms. Jones and her staff in Dallas.
Dallas headquarters
Ms. Jones, who fits the core demographic with two young daughters, has
guided Radio Disney since its inception on Nov. 18, 1996, Mickey Mouse's
68th birthday.
The network, launched shortly after Walt Disney Co. bought Capital
Cities/ABC, was a logical marriage of Disney's family focus and ABC's
broadcast prowess.
Radio Disney is here because ABC Radio Networks has its headquarters,
studios, production facilities and satellite uplinks here.
Last year in Dallas, 38 programming employees at Radio Disney and more than
40 part-time child actors for voiceovers produced 10,000 promos,
commercials and features for the network and its stations from 30-second
spots to one-hour music specials.
There were early missteps, says Ms. Jones.
"We were dumb and dumber in the beginning. Our first focus groups had kids
who didn't take their Ritalin flying off their chairs. We learned to keep
the sessions to no more than 25 kids and short, because after 45 minutes,
they want out. No sugar, no bathroom breaks. If you let one go potty, they
all need to go."
Parental watchdogs
Ms. Jones' biggest challenge is walking an ever-shifting line of acceptable
decency. "Parents immediately let us know when we cross it."
Like early on when they accidentally aired a song about prostitutes.
"Somebody queued up the wrong cut," she says, rolling her eyes. "It didn't
hit me until I walked down the hall humming the song and I thought, 'Oh,
dear God.' "
Does being in Dallas keep her tethered to mainstream thinking?
"I think it does," she says. "It's a good down-the-road middle."
Radio Disney's fondness for playing blasts from the past has encouraged
young artists to remake oldies.
Some artists, including Dallas' own Bowling for Soup, remake tunes to get
airtime on Radio Disney.
"If it's the whole song, forget it. But a word here or a line there can
make all the difference," Ms. Jones says. "A funny thing happens when
artists have children: Their whole perspective changes."
Singer Akon's "Lonely," an urban pop version of Bobby Vinton's "I'm Mr.
Lonely," now ranks No. 2 on the Radio Disney chart. He rerecorded the hit
to remove a risqué line about lying down next to his girlfriend.
"There's no lying down allowed," Ms. Jones says, wagging a finger. "Unless
you're napping."
Her latest brainchild is Incubator, which promotes young unknowns.
"It shows kids, 'Look, set goals, work them out in increments, and you can
make it. Don't give up on your dreams,' " Ms. Jones says.
So does all this keep her young?
"I think so," says Ms. Jones, who's been known to color her hair in various
hues just for fun. "When you're talking about booger humor and which band
is hot, how can you get old?"
================================
George Antunes, Political Science Dept
University of Houston; Houston, TX 77204
Voice: 713-743-3923 Fax: 713-743-3927
antunes at uh dot edu
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