Radio Terms

AC: A Radio format: Adult Contemporary which features lite Rock and Pop cuts.

Account Executive: A salesperson who sells commercials (air-time) and services clients who buy it.

Actuality: An older term for what we now refer to as a "soundbite".

Aircheck: Recorded copy of a broadcast, either digitally or on magnetic tape.

Adjacency: Commercials purchased to be run specifically next to (either immediately before or immediately after) a particular feature or programming element.

Air Shift: Refers to the length of time in hours that a DJ works on the air at a given time. The average air shift is 4 hours  but (6 -10 AM,10 AM - 2 PM., etc.) but air shifts can typical be up to 6 hours, especially for a DJ who does an early evening or overnight shift.

AM: Where the amplitude of a carrier wave is varied in accordance with some characteristic of the modulating signal.

Analog: A signal with characteristics that are continuous in nature rather than pulsed or discrete nature.

Analog Radio: Analog is the standard method of Radio broadcasting where the entire spectrum of radio frequencies is transmitted in a continuous flow of waveform data (AM, FM)

Announcer: One who's job is to reads scripts on Radio or Television.

Arbitron: Name of the company which provides the Industry - accepted standard of audience measurement for Radio. "Arbitron" can also refer to the actual survey.

Ascertainment: The process of determining what the community needs are so a Radio station can attempt to serve them.

Automated Radio: A radio station that can be automatically controlled by electronic devices and that requires little or no human intervention.

Average Quarter Hour : An industry term used in audience measurement. According to Arbitron: "The average number of persons listening to a particular station for at least five minutes during a 15-minute period."

Backsell: Refers to the DJ technique where the deejay announces the title and/or artist of the song he just played.

Backtiming: The act of calculating the intro time on a song before the vocal begins and then starting the CD or audio source with that song so that when the preceding audio element (usually something without music under it) ends, the vocal on the song you back timed begins directly at the end of the previous element.

Bed : A production element, usually instrumental music, but occasionally a continuous sound effect (like wind, for example) that is used as background for a commercial, promotional announcement, etc.

Bllboard: A short announcement that identifies a sponsor at the beginning and/or end of an element such as a traffic or news update.

Board: A console used to control the audio mix and output from either a live studio broadcast or recorded sources.

Board Op: Someone who physically operates the console in a Radio studio so that a live program runs smoothly or a recorded or network program airs properly.

Book: A slang term that refers to an Arbitron rating period: Fall, Winter, Spring or Summer.

Broadcasting: Refers to any medium that is disseminated via telecommunications.

Bumper: A pre-recorded audio element consisting of voice over music that acts as a transition to or from a stop set (commercials) and other content.

Bumper Music: Short music clips used to transition between one element of programming into another. For example: when a syndicated talk show is ready to allow a local affiliate station to insert local commercials, it will often play a signature music piece to allow the transition. In reverse, that same talk show will often play a piece of music prior to the host beginning again. This allows the local station to end it's local programming and re-join the network without dead air or uncomfortable pauses.

Call Letters: The official, legal name of a Radio station.

Cans: A slang word for headphones.

Cart : Primarily used before advent of digital technology, similar to an 4/8-track cartridge. It is made of analog tape that loops back to the beginning after it plays and is used to store recorded sound.

CHR:  A Radio format: Contemporary Hit Radio (formerly Top 40).

Churban: Hybrid Radio format which mixes CHR (Contemporary Hit Radio) with Urban (Hip Hop, R&B, etc.)

Clear Channel Station:  A Radio station operating at maximum power (50,000 watts) on an exclusive frequency, designed to serve large areas. Referring to any Radio station owned by "Clear Channel Communications", the largest Radio company operating in the United States, based in San Antonio, Texas.

Clutter: An excessive number of commercials and other non- program elements which appear one right after the other.

Consolidation: A Radio Industry trend where larger companies buy up smaller companies. Since 1996, when deregulation was approved, single ownership and small group ownership of Radio stations has substantially decreased.

Copy: Written material such as a commercial, a promotional announcement, a public service announcement or any other worded information that will be read by a DJ or Radio personality.

Crossfade: A technique where the control board operator mixes sound between two sources by fading one down while at the same time raising the volume of the second source. As the second source becomes prominent, the first sources is then subsequently faded away entirely.

Coverage: The percent of radio households that can tune to a station or stations) because they are in the signal area.

Cue Burn: Cue Burn is a phenomenon which occurred when DJs used vinyl recordings (33 rpm, 45 rpm) to play songs. The DJ would place the needle on the record and then hand-turn the turntable until the needle played the very beginning of the song. The DJ would rock the turntable back-and-forth a couple of times to make sure the position of the needle was at the very beginning so that when the turntable was turned on, the recording would start immediately. The act of rocking the needle back- and-forth, over time, created physical indentations in the vinyl which would eventually create a bit of white noise that sounded like "chhhhh" when the record would begin.

Cume : A radio station's cume is similar to a newspaper's circulation. Abbreviation for cumulative audience. It is the different or unduplicated persons or households listening during a specified period.

Daypart: A portion of a Radio station's broadcast day, usually split up into Morning: 6-10am, Midday: 10-2pm, Afternoon:2-6pm, Evening:6-12Midnight and Overnight: Midnight-6am.

Daytimer: A radio station which is only authorized and licensed to broadcast between sunrise and sunset.

Dead Air: Silence on the radio which can be due to either operator error, computer error or an act of nature. During dead air, there is no audible transmission.

Deregulation: Deregulation refers to the loosening of Federal regulation over Radio stations either by decree from the FCC or through law by Congress. The Communication Act of 1996 offered much new deregulation for radio.

Digital Radio (HD Radio): Digital Radio works by transmitting digital audio and data alongside existing AM and FM analog signals, allowing listeners to enjoy CD-quality sound and virtually eliminating the static and hiss associated with today's analog broadcasts. The technology also provides a platform for new wireless data services that, combined with display screens on HD Radio-enabled receivers, will deliver listeners a variety of additional information such as song titles, artist names, traffic updates, weather forecasts, sports scores, and more.

DJ: Short for deejay or disc-jockey.

Disc Jockey: A person who played songs on the Radio and provides chatter, information and other content between them.

Drive Time: Drive Time are the periods between 6-10am (Morning Drive) and 2-6pm (Afternoon Drive) where Radio stations traditionally have their highest listenership and also charge their highest commercial rates.

Drops: Sound bites lifted from movies, TV and other sources used by DJs to accentuate skits and programming.

Dub: A copy of a piece of audio. It can also be used as a verb, as in" I will make a dub of that commercial."

Eas Test: EAS stands for "Emergency Alert System". It replaced the old "EBS", Emergency Broadcast System. EAS is an electronic system which uses the Radio infrastructure to alert the general public to emergency situations including weather, safety and homeland security. It requires certain smaller, less important Radio stations to give their programming over to larger, more important stations for the purpose of information dissemination. An EAS Test is a real-time test of the system to insure the audio link between each station works properly.

Engineer: The technician who is responsible for maintaining and fixing the Radio station's equipment including consoles, microphones, transmitters, etc.

F.C.C.: Federal Communications Commission - the Federal agency responsible for overseeing all radio-telephone and television originated signals. It issues licenses, rules and regulations.

FM:  A method of impressing data onto an alternating-current (AC) wave by varying the instantaneous frequency of the wave.

FM Blanketing: That form of interference to the reception of other broadcast stations, which is caused by the presence of an FM broadcast signal of 115 dB (562 mV/m) or greater signal strength in the area adjacent to the antenna of the transmitting station.

Format Clock : A diagram that is circular-shaped like a clock but divided up like a pie where each "piece" represents both a programming element and its length in a typical hour (songs, commercials, talk time, etc.). Program Directors often use a format clock to create how the flow of a radio station will progress hour-to-hour.

Frequency: When speaking from a technical sense, it is an electromagnetic wave frequency between audio and infrared . When speaking from a programming sense, the number of times the target audience will be exposed to a message.

Gain: Another term for volume.

General Manager: The management employee who has overall responsibility for the running of a Radio station. Usually, the Sales Manager and Program Director report to him or her.

Hit The Post: An expression deejays use to describe talking up to the point when the lyrics begin without "stepping" on the beginning of the vocals. It also refers to talking up to an accentuation in the instrumental beginning of a song (the ramp) as in when a large beat kicks in or an instrument creates a predominant punctuation.

Hook: The part of a song which makes it unique in the listener's ear. It is a "payoff" for listening, in a sense, because it's the portion of the song the listener usually likes the most and is more apt to remember.

ID : Station Identification.

Imaging: Imaging is a general term for the type of sweepers or promos you produce. Imaging is how you position a Radio station within the marketplace. Imaging defines the station as a product so that the listener (consumer) knows what he/she will get when tuning in.

Indecency: The FCC defines obscene material as describing sexual conduct "in a patently offensive way" and lacking "serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value." Indecent material is not as offensive but still contains references to sex or excretions.

Jingle: A produced programming element which is usually produced by professional studio singers who sing DJ names or station positioning phrases (i.e., "The Most Music!")

KiloHertz: 1000 Hertz.

Liner: A written imaging phrase, sentence or sentences that a DJ says over an intro of a record or during a break between songs and spots. Usually, Liners stand by themselves and are meant to communicate concise imaging.

Live Assist: Describes how a DJ creates a Radio show by interacting with a computerized system. The DJ provides live talk, chat, liners, etc. and then activates the computer system which automatically runs commercials (spots), jingles, promos and songs. When it is time for the DJ to talk again, he/she deactivates the automation and goes live at the appropriate time, repeating as necessary during an air shift.

Log: Written record of what transpires in three areas: music, commercial content and transmitting specification. In other words, A music log is a list of the songs played for the day, a commercial log shows which commercials were played and when and an engineering log show the status of a transmitter's specifications during the course of a day.

Microphone: A device that converts sound waves into electrical energy

Miscue: Beginning an audio element too soon so the end result is two audio sources playing at the same time.

Music Director: Responsible for interacting with record company reps, auditioning new music, making decisions (sometimes in conjunction with the Program Director) as to which songs get airplay, how much and when. The Music Director devises rotations for songs and at most Radio stations today, programs the daily music through specialized music software made just for this purpose.

NAB: Acronym for National Association of Broadcasters, a trade group for radio and television license holders.

On-Demand Audio: The act of turning audio into digital data and transmitting it over the Internet.

On The Beach: Another term for being unemployed when you are in radio.

Payola: Payola, or the Payola Scandal, came to a head in the 1960s when DJ Alan Freed (the man who coined the term, "Rock and Roll") and 8 other disc-jockeys were accused of taking money in exchange for record airplay. Today, technically, it is perfectly legal to accept money for playing a record on the Radio AS LONG as you publicly disclose you have or will do so. But, Radio companies still do not encourage employees to do that and almost always insist new employees sign documents declaring their personal business interests in any Radio or record company, whether they have accepted any money on behalf of either, etc. Since the Payola Scandal of the late 1950s and early 1960s, record companies and record promoters have found various ways to legally get around current payola laws in promoting their music, songs and artists.

Phase Shift: A change in the phase of a broadcast signal. Phase can be defined as a periodic and varying phenomenon.

Phone Interface: A phone interface is an electronic device which allows on-air performers easy access to telephone lines.Normally, it allows the signal (audio) from a microphone to be heard by a caller and in turn, takes the caller's audio and directs it into a Radio studio console or recording device or both.

Playlist:  The official list of songs a station is playing during any given week. In some formats, these lists are looked on as very important since they are submitted to trade newspapers and magazines and compiled to reflect national airplay and trends. In some other formats, like oldies, a playlist does not carry as much weight since it is not a reflection of current songs being played.

Prize Pig: A listener who listens to any station, most times many stations, for the sole purpose of calling to try and win contests.

POT:  Short for Potentiometer, a round control which increases or decreases the volume sent to a channel on a radio console or audio mixing board.

Producer: This usually refers to a person who conducts the day-to-day business of a Radio show. From lining up guests to acting as a liaison between management and the talent.

Production Director: Employee responsible for overseeing the creation and implementation of commercial content, promotional announcements and any other audio element that must be created for broadcast.

Production Element: Any audio element such as music, sound effect, audio effect (reverb, echo, etc.) used in creating a final audio mix such as a commercial, promotional announcement, humorous skit, etc.

Programming: The output or product of a Radio station that is presented either in long form or short form styles. An example of Long form programming is when a station presents a topic in extended length, as Public Radio does. An example of Short form programming is when a station maintains a constant format, such as a style of music where the programming is in effect, small modules strung together.

Program Director: Management employee responsible for the creation and maintenance of the audio output (product) of a radio station with the ultimate goal of attracting a listening audience comprised of a target demographic.

Promo: An announcement, live or pre-recorded, which promotes an upcoming event, promotes the station image, promotes the results of a past event or promotes any other event which benefits the station's image or activities.

Promotion Director: Management employee responsible for creating, planning and carrying out the logistics of both sales and programming oriented promotions.

PSA: Acronym for Public Service Announcement.

Radio: Telecommunication by modulation and radiation of electromagnetic waves.

Ramp: The instrumental beginning of a song leading up to the vocals. Also known as an "intro".

Rating: An estimate of the size of an audience shown as a percent of a total group of people surveyed.

RDS-Radio Data Systems: This technology allows stations to transmit additional types of information via encoded digital signals that can be received and displayed by the user's Radio. For instance: an RDS-capable Radio can display the title and artist or current song playing, local traffic information, an advertiser's phone number while a commercial is playing, etc.

Remote: A broadcast that originates live on location, outside the studio where the broadcast would normally originate.

Sales Manager: The management employee who is responsible for the department which sells radio commercials and other radio products at a Radio station.

Sirius: A pioneering company in the Satellite Radio industry.

Share:  The number of persons who listened to a station during a given time period, expressed as a percent of all persons who listened to radio during that time period.

Shock Jock:  A Radio personality who talks in such a way, using controversial and/or what could be considered obscene contest by some, in order to attract more attention in the pursuit of higher ratings.

Soundbite: A snippet of audio usually culled from an interview and used in conjunction with a news story. Length may vary, but in general, soundbites are anywhere from :05 to :15 seconds. But, this is not a firm standard.

Spot: Another word for a Radio commercial

Stinger: A sound effect or musical effect that punctuates a punch line or emphasizes a thought. This technique is often used by DJs and comedians.

Stop Set: The place where commercials are played during a typical broadcast hour. There may be several scattered throughout a typical 60 minute period. Stop Set length can vary much between local stations and even network programming.

Streaming: The act of turning audio into digital data and transmitting it over the Internet.

Syndicated:  A program offered by a network or an independent organization for sale or on a barter basis to Radio stations.

Sweeper: Usually a recorded element (voice or voice over music or sound effects) that bridges two songs together or creates a transition from commercials back to music.

Tower Array:  A tower array is the physical configuration of several radio antenna towers. Some radio signals are confined and restricted in the pattern they may be broadcast. This is usually done to protect other radio broadcasts in other geographic areas that also use the same frequency. A combination of the tower array and station wattage is a way engineers control the coverage of a particular station's broadcast.

Traffic: Department responsible for creation of station commercial logs. They enter contracts for commercials sold and are responsible for billing after their broadcast.

Transmitter: The source or generator of any signal on a transmission medium.

Voice Track: A pre-recorded voice of a DJ or Radio personality that is recorded and stored in a computer to be played at a certain time in a pre-programmed sequence of events such as at the beginning of a song, end of a song, etc.

VU Meter: A device which measures, in units, the strength of an audio signal.

Arbitron Radio Terms

Average Quarter Hour Persons: The Quarter Hour is the basic unit of measurement in radio audience measurement. AQH as it is referred to is the number of listeners who tuned in during a specific quarter hour for at least five minutes.

Cost Per Point: CPP is the most commonly accepted way of measuring ad placement efficiency in radio. Cost per point is a measure of how much it costs to buy one rating point in a particular market. CPP is determined by dividing the costs of all spots by gross rating points. **

Cost Per Thousand: CPM ,It is the cost of reaching a thousand listeners. (M is the Roman Numeral for 1,000)The figure comes from numbers that include new listeners to a certain period and listeners who may have heard the commercial before. CPM is calculated by dividing the cost of all spots by the gross impressions, after you have divided the gross impression by a thousand. If an advertiser knows the CPM they can compare the cost of running ads on all stations in a market. The CPM can also be broken down by gender and age of listeners. **

Cume: Cumulative audience measure or cume. Uses statistical interpretation to determine the number of unduplicated audience listeners.

Frequency: The average number of times a listener hears a commercial. It is determined by dividing the gross impressions by the cume.*

Gross Impressions: The total number of exposures to a commercial. Gross impression is calculated by multiplying average quarter hour persons during the time the commercial was run by the total number of spots. This figure can reflect duplicated audience.*

Gross Rating Point:  A way of expressing gross impressions as a rating figure. Multiply AQH ratings by the total number of commercial played in those quarter hours to determine the gross rating points. Advertisers buy time based on a calculation of how many gross rating points they want to achieve at a given time.*

Optimum Effective Scheduling: Many Radio executives argue that cost per point is not an effective way of measuring the effectiveness of radio advertising because CPM and CPP do not take into account the segment of the audience that hears the commercial more than once. **

Rating: It is a percentage of the total available audience. This is in reality a total number, estimated from statistical interpretation of the results

Reach: This refers to how many different persons hear a commercial. It is calculated by using the cume figure. *

Share: This is the percentage of the people who are actually listening. This is the most commonly used measurement in radio. The share is most often broken down into different genders and age groups ( Male or Female, Adults, Teens 18-34,12+ , 25-54, etc).

Total Survey Area/Metro Survey Area: These are the areas in which audience measurement is done. The total Survey Area includes several counties that are served by 2 or more stations from within a metro area. The Metro Survey Area is a local area defined by the city and it's immediate surrounding areas. Most discussions on ratings will refer to Metro Survey Area rather than use broad areas comprising several counties.

Time Spent Listening: TSL is a measure of the average time an individual listener tunes into the station.

Turnover: It is a measure of how many people out of the entire audience leave the station during a given period.

*  =  Used to Calculate How Efficiently A Station Reaches its Audience

** = Used to Calculate Cost for Efficiency

PDF Download of Arbitron Terms