A radio personality (American English) or radio presenter (British English) is a person who has an on-air position in

radio broadcasting Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

. A radio personality who hosts a

radio show A radio program, radio programme, or radio show is a segment of content intended for broadcast on radio. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series. A single program in a series is called an episode. Radio netwo ...

is also known as a radio host, and in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

and

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

as a radio jockey. Radio personalities who introduce and play individual selections of recorded music are known as

disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobil ...

s or "DJs" for short. Broadcast radio personalities may include

talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featu ...

hosts, AM/FM radio show hosts, and

satellite radio Satellite radio is defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)'s ITU Radio Regulations (RR) as a '' broadcasting-satellite service''. The satellite's signals are broadcast nationwide, across a much wider geographical area than t ...

program hosts.

Description

A radio personality can be someone who introduces and discusses genres of music; hosts a

show that may take calls from listeners; interviews celebrities or guests; or gives news, weather, sports, or traffic information. The radio personality may broadcast live or use voice-tracking techniques. Increasingly in the 2010s, radio personalities are expected to supplement their on-air work by posting information online, such as on a blog or on another web forum. This may be either to generate additional revenue or connect with listeners. With the exception of small or rural radio stations, much of music radio broadcasting is done by

broadcast automation Broadcast automation incorporates the use of broadcast programming technology to automate broadcasting operations. Used either at a broadcast network, radio station or a television station, it can run a facility in the absence of a human op ...

, a computer-controlled playlist airing

MP3 MP3 (formally MPEG-1 Audio Layer III or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III) is a coding format for digital audio developed largely by the Fraunhofer Society in Germany, with support from other digital scientists in the United States and elsewhere. Origin ...

audio files which contain the entire program consisting of music, commercials, and a radio announcer's pre-recorded comments.

History

In the past, the term "

" (or "DJ") was exclusively used to describe on-air radio personalities who played recorded music and hosted radio shows that featured popular music. Unlike the modern club DJ who uses

beatmatching Beatmatching or pitch cue is a disc jockey technique of pitch shifting or timestretching an upcoming track to match its tempo to that of the currently playing track, and to adjust them such that the beats (and, usually, the bars) are synchron ...

to mix transitions between songs to create continuous play, radio DJs played individual songs or music tracks while voicing announcements, introductions, comments, jokes, and commercials in between each song or short series of songs. During the 1950s, '60s and '70s, radio DJs exerted considerable influence on popular music, especially during the

Top 40 radio Contemporary hit radio (also known as CHR, contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format that is common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by ...

era, because of their ability to introduce new music to the radio audience and promote or control which songs would be given airplay. Although radio personalities who specialized in news or talk programs such as

Dorothy Kilgallen Dorothy Mae Kilgallen (July 3, 1913 – November 8, 1965) was an American columnist, journalist, and television game show panelist. After spending two semesters at the College of New Rochelle, she started her career shortly before her 18th birth ...

and

Walter Winchell Walter Winchell (April 7, 1897 – February 20, 1972) was a syndicated American newspaper gossip columnist and radio news commentator. Originally a vaudeville performer, Winchell began his newspaper career as a Broadway reporter, critic and ...

have existed since the early days of radio, exclusive talk radio formats emerged and multiplied in the 1960s, as telephone call in shows, interviews, news, and public affairs became more popular. In New York,

WINS (AM) WINS (1010 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to New York, New York, owned by Audacy, Inc. It features an all-news format known as 1010 WINS, with the call sign phonetically pronounced as "wins". WINS's studios are located in ...

switched to a talk format in 1965, and

WCBS (AM) WCBS (880 AM, "WCBS Newsradio 880") is a radio station licensed to New York, New York and is owned and operated by Audacy, Inc. WCBS's studios are located in the combined Audacy facility in the Hudson Square neighborhood of lower Manhattan ...

followed two years later. Early talk radio personalities included Bruce Williams and Sally Jesse Raphael. The growth of sports talk radio began in the 1960s, and resulted in the first all-sports station in the US,

WFAN (AM) WFAN (660 AM) is a commercial radio station licensed to New York, New York, carrying a sports radio format known as "Sports Radio 66 AM and 101.9 FM" or "The Fan". Owned by Audacy, Inc., the station serves the New York metropolitan area while ...

that would go on to feature many sports radio personalities such as Marv Albert and Howie Rose.

Types of radio personalities

*FM/AM radio – AM/ FM personalities play music, talk, or both. Some examples are Rick Dees,

Elvis Duran Elvis Duran (born Barry Brian Cope; August 5, 1964) is an American radio personality. He is the host of the daily morning radio program ''Elvis Duran and the Morning Show'' in New York on WHTZ, Z100 and in syndication on Premiere Networks. Bef ...

, Big Boy,

Kidd Kraddick David Peter Cradick (August 22, 1959 – July 27, 2013) was an American radio host and television personality, known as Kidd Kraddick. His nationally syndicated morning radio show, '' The Kidd Kraddick Morning Show'', is based in Irving ...

, John Boy and Billy, The Bob and Tom Show,

The Breakfast Club ''The Breakfast Club'' is a 1985 American teen coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, produced, and directed by John Hughes. It stars Emilio Estevez, Paul Gleason, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald, and Ally Sheedy. The ...

, and Rickey Smiley. *Talk radio –

Talk radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featu ...

personalities often discuss social and political issues from a particular political point of view. Some examples are

Rush Limbaugh Rush Hudson Limbaugh III ( ; January 12, 1951 – February 17, 2021) was an American conservative political commentator who was the host of '' The Rush Limbaugh Show'', which first aired in 1984 and was nationally syndicated on AM and FM r ...

Art Bell Arthur William Bell III (June 17, 1945 – April 13, 2018) was an American broadcaster and author. He was the founder and the original host of the paranormal-themed radio program ''Coast to Coast AM'', which is syndicated on hundreds of ...

George Noory George Ralph Noory (born June 4, 1950) is an American radio talk show host. Since January 2003, Noory has been the weekday host of the late-night radio talk show ''Coast to Coast AM''. The program is syndicated to hundreds of radio stations in ...

, Brian Lehrer, and

Don Geronimo Michael L. Sorce (born September 18, 1958), better known by his stage name Don Geronimo, is an American radio personality formerly featured on the nationally syndicated radio talk show ''Don and Mike Show''. Career Geronimo began his career in ...

. *Sports talk radio – Sports talk radio personalities are often former athletes, sports writers, or television anchors and discuss sports news. Some examples are Dan Patrick,

Tony Kornheiser Anthony Irwin Kornheiser (; born July 13, 1948) is an American television sports talk show host and former sportswriter and columnist. Kornheiser is best known for his endeavors in three forms of media: as a writer for ''The Washington Post'' f ...

, Dan Sileo,

Colin Cowherd Colin Murray Cowherd (born January 6, 1964) is an American sports media personality. Cowherd began his broadcasting career as sports director of Las Vegas television station KVBC and as a sports anchor on several other stations before joining ...

, and Mike Francesa. *Satellite radio –

Satellite radio Satellite radio is defined by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)'s ITU Radio Regulations (RR) as a '' broadcasting-satellite service''. The satellite's signals are broadcast nationwide, across a much wider geographical area than t ...

personalities are subject to fewer government broadcast regulations and may be allowed to play explicit music.

Howard Stern Howard Allan Stern (born January 12, 1954) is an American radio and television personality, comedian, and author. He is best known for his radio show, '' The Howard Stern Show'', which gained popularity when it was nationally syndicated on terr ...

Opie and Anthony ''Opie and Anthony'' was an American radio show hosted by Gregg "Opie" Hughes and Anthony Cumia that aired from March 1995 to July 2014, with comedian Jim Norton serving as third mic from 2001. The show originated in 1994 when Cumia took part in ...

, Dr. Laura, and Chris "Mad Dog" Russo are some of the notable personalities who have successfully made the move from terrestrial radio to satellite radio. *Internet radio -

Internet radio Online radio (also web radio, net radio, streaming radio, e-radio, IP radio, Internet radio) is a digital audio service transmitted via the Internet. Broadcasting on the Internet is usually referred to as webcasting since it is not transmitted ...

personalities appear on internet radio stations that offer news, sports, talk, and various genres of music that are carried by

streaming media Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content i ...

outlets such as

AccuRadio AccuRadio is an independent, multichannel Internet radio property founded in 2000, and based in Chicago, Illinois. It currently offers over a thousand pre-developed 'music channels'. Some channels also highlight music from different locations around ...

, Pandora Radio, Slacker Radio and Jango.

Notable radio personalities

Notable radio personalities include

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former descri ...

radio hosts

Wolfman Jack Robert Weston Smith (January 21, 1938July 1, 1995), known as Wolfman Jack, was an American disc jockey active from 1960 till his death in 1995. Famous for his gravelly voice, he credited it for his success, saying, "It's kept meat and potatoes ...

, Jim Pewter,

Dick Clark Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality, television producer and film actor, as well as a cultural icon who remains best known for hosting '' American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 19 ...

Casey Kasem Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem (April 27, 1932 – June 15, 2014) was an American disc jockey, actor, and radio personality, who created and hosted several radio countdown programs, notably ''American Top 40''. He was the first actor to voice No ...

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

Charlie Gillett Charles Thomas Gillett (; 20 February 1942 – 17 March 2010) was a British radio presenter, musicologist, and writer, mainly on rock and roll and other forms of popular music. He was particularly noted for his influential book ''The Sound of t ...

Walt Love Walt is a masculine given name, generally a short form of Walter, and occasionally a surname. Notable people with the name include: People Given name * Walt Arfons (1916-2013), American drag racer and competition land speed record racer * Walt Be ...

Alan Freed Albert James "Alan" Freed (December 15, 1921 – January 20, 1965) was an American disc jockey. He also produced and promoted large traveling concerts with various acts, helping to spread the importance of rock and roll music throughout Nor ...

, and

Charlie Tuna Arthur W. Ferguson (April 18, 1944 – February 19, 2016), known professionally as Charlie Tuna, was a radio personality and television host based in Los Angeles, California. Career Radio At age 16, Tuna began working at his hometown's radio s ...

; sports talk hosts such as Mike Francesa; shock jocks and political talk hosts such as

Don Imus John Donald Imus Jr. (July 23, 1940 – December 27, 2019), also known mononymously as Imus, was an American radio personality, television show host, recording artist, and author. His radio show, '' Imus in the Morning'', was aired on various sta ...

and

Career

Education

Many radio personalities do not have a post-high school education, but some do hold degrees in

audio engineering Audio most commonly refers to sound, as it is transmitted in signal form. It may also refer to: Sound *Audio signal, an electrical representation of sound *Audio frequency, a frequency in the audio spectrum * Digital audio, representation of sou ...

. If a radio personality has a degree it's typically a bachelor's degree level qualification in radio-television-film, mass communications, journalism, or English.

Training

Universities offer classes in

and often have a

college radio Campus radio (also known as college radio, university radio or student radio) is a type of radio station that is run by the students of a college, university or other educational institution. Programming may be exclusively created or produced ...

station, where students can obtain on-the-job training and

course credit A credit is the recognition for having taken a course at school or university, used as measure if enough hours have been made for graduation. University credits United States Credit hours In a college or university in the United States, students ...

. Prospective radio personalities can also intern at radio stations for hands-on training from professionals. Training courses are also available online.

Requirements

A radio personality position generally has the following requirements: * Good clear voice with excellent tone and modulation * Great communication skills and creativity to interact with listeners * Knowledgeable on current affairs, news issues and social trends * Creative thinking, to be able to think of new ideas or topics for show * Able to improvise and think "on the spot" * Ability to develop their own personal style * A good sense of humor

Opportunities

Due to radio personalities' vocal training, opportunities to expand their careers often exist. Over time a radio personality could be paid to do

voice-over Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non- diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentation ...

s for commercials, television shows, and movies.

Salary in the US

Radio personality salaries are influenced by years of experience and education. In 2013, the median salary of a radio personality in the US was $28,400. * 1–4 years: $15,200–39,400, * 5–9 years: $20,600–41,700, * 10–19 years: $23,200–51,200, * 20 or more years: $26,300–73,000. A radio personality with a bachelor's degree had a salary range of $19,600–60,400. The salary of a local radio personality will differ from a national radio personality. National personality pay can be in the millions because of the increased audience size and corporate sponsorship. For example, Rush Limbaugh was reportedly paid $38 million annually as part of the eight-year $400 million contract he signed with Clear Channel Communications.

Gallery

File:Radio personality.jpg, Jessica Letshwiti, ICE100 Radio,

Botswana Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kal ...

Southern Africa Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number o ...

File:%D8%AA%D9%82%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%85_%D8%A8%D8%B1%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%AC%D9%87_%D9%81%D9%8A_%D8%A5%D8%B0%D8%A7%D8%B9%D8%A9_%D8%AF%D8%A8%D9%8A.JPG, Ibrahim Astady,

Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, wikt:دبي, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the List of cities in the United Arab Emirates#Major cities, most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 ...

93 FM,

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...

File:Luis_L%C3%B3pez_durante_el_programa_World_Dance_Music..png, Luis López, director and presenter of the World Dance Music radio program at

Los 40 Los 40 (The 40, stylized as LOS40 and formerly ''Los 40 Principales'', es, Los Cuarenta) is a Top 40 music radio network and radio station brand in many Spanish-speaking countries from PRISA Radio. The station has its origins as a music show ...

studios in

Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...

File:Norman_B_in_Studio.jpeg, Norman Batley, WMNF, Tampa, FL, 2013 File:Radio Commonwealth (22294437619).jpg, Kevin Joseph O'Donnell,

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (CA), who ...

station "Radio Commonwealth", Korea 1955 File:Aunt_Daisy.JPG, Maud Ruby Bashsam aka " Aunt Daisy" on station 2ZB,

Wellington, New Zealand Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, 1959 File:Mauricio Lomonte.jpg,

Mauricio Lomonte Mauricio Alberto Lomonte Suárez (born 10 June 1982), known professionally as Mauricio Lomonte, is a Cuban radio announcer and television host. Lomonte started his broadcasting career in 2000 and later branched into television as host. He curre ...

on station Radio Reloj,

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribb ...

File:ITaukei Radio Talk back show (13589354753).jpg, Talk radio host and guests,

Radio Fiji One Radio Fiji One (NA DOMOIVITI) is an iTaukei (Fijian) language - public service broadcaster in Fiji. The station broadcasts on the 93megahertz and 558 kilohertz to the cities of Suva, Navua, Nausori, Labasa, Savusavu, Nadi, Denarau, Mamanuca and La ...

, Fiji Broadcasting Corporation

References

{{Authority control Radio personalities Telecommunications-related introductions in 1909