Kyle and Jackie O - a damp squib? Or just poor-quality smut?
In Australia, Kyle and Jackie O’s simulcast into Melbourne has - so far - failed to take Melbourne by storm.
Some in radio are keen to point out that syndicated shows don’t work in breakfast, where radio needs to be local. I’d disagree with that. Syndicated shows can, of course, work across any country. The fact that “this is coming from Sydney” is no reason why someone shouldn’t want to tune in, if the content is “real and relevant”: real human beings, talking about things that are relevant to the audience. You don’t have to be from the studio above the pizza shop in the high street to do that. (The show still contains local news and travel).
Indeed, this Reddit thread about Australian breakfast radio is notable that, deep into the comments, Hamish and Andy gets a lot of love. They were real and relevant; they connected with their audience - but they were from Melbourne, syndicated across Australia. (As is every afternoon drive show). Despite what people will tell you, “local” isn’t a thing people want: “relevancy” is, and that can be local, but it can also be other things too.
One of the reasons why Kyle & Jackie O has yet to work is that expectations were too high. The show was expected to be an instant success because it’s the #1 FM breakfast show in Sydney. Back in January 2014, the show shifted from Sydney’s 2DAY to KIIS - taking its #1 FM status with it in a shock survey. People were expecting similar. But, radio numbers don’t work like that for the rest of the year: K&J started mid-survey on April 29. Their current numbers still aren’t entirely theirs: made from surveys from Apr 14-Jun 22.
Not only that, but Kyle and Jackie O’s main show has never been heard in Melbourne. A heavily-edited version has been heard in the early evening, true, but never the “normal” breakfast show. It’ll take a while to grow its audience.
But another part of the reason for that is that the show has seemingly changed from a quality show with big stunts and even bigger guests, into something that is “abusive, foul-mouthed and obnoxious” - not me, but Paul Barry of ABC MediaWatch - there are some clips on that website (which are astonishingly awful). The show has to run its own censor, because Kyle can’t be trusted to toe the line - leading sometimes to extended amounts of tone. And, perhaps, it’s the lazy smut which will be its downfall - not Sydney.
(Image: Lennon Cheng, of Swanston Street in Melbourne)
Did you know that Star Wars “saved NPR”? Well, strictly, it didn’t; but it did carry a Star Wars radio drama in 1981 - which introduced NPR to a new audience. This book is all about the radio drama. Disney now owns the rights, and apparently prevented the airing of the show for a 40th anniversary on Washington DC’s WAMU.
SoundStack has partnered with KCRW, WBGO and KUT for live streaming. The stations get good insights into consumption, streaming management tools, and a rock-solid CDN. I’m looking forward to chat with SoundStack to learn a little more at Podcast Movement.
Fun fact: the UK’s Global sells ads into iHeartMedia’s podcasts in the UK and Ireland. Yet, if you follow a link to an iHeart podcast page from the UK, it, er doesn’t work.
Recommended music album: This New Noise by Public Service Broadcasting and the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Expansive, orchestral, rather lovely - made for the BBC Proms for the BBC’s 100th birthday a few years ago. Lots of clips (some real, some recreated). Full concert on YouTube (starts at 7m45s); album: on Spotify, on YouTube Music, on Apple Music.
Another recommended album: Airwaves, by Loops and Topology. I went to see this live in Brisbane earlier in the year (it’s a Brisbane production!): a fascinating set of clips from radio and other places which have been looped together to produce that sort of “sing-song” experience that you get from repeating a small amount of speech over and over again. This short clip of Gough Whitlam is a good introduction to it. The (99-track!) album is on Spotify, on YouTube Music, on Apple Music.
Tom Swarbrick has been doing an impressive job on the UK’s LBC recently. In this clip, he quietly questions someone who took part in the recent unrest in the country. The use of silence in this polite disagreement is a brave thing for a presenter to do; and it makes it all the more telling.
Want to supercharge your radio show? Here’s a £1 week-long trial of Show Prep - from a world class radio consultant and the best show-prep writer in the UK. Great for UK stations, or for English-language stations everywhere, too.* (ad)
Where I am speaking next
- Podcast Movement, Washington DC (Aug 19-23)
- Radiodays Asia, Kuala Lumpur (Sep 2-4)
- PBI Conference, Ottawa, Canada (Oct 8-10)
- Lyddager, Norway (Oct 18-19)
- Guldörat, Sweden (Oct 22)
- Independent Podcast Awards, London (Oct 23)
- Audiodays, Denmark (Oct 25)
- ASI International Radio & Audio Conference, Venice, Italy (Nov 6)
- Radiodays Europe, Athens, Greece (Mar 9-11 2025)
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