Could Struble Be Radio's Obama?

How you react to adversity often defines you.

This week we heard that the economy dropped an incredible 6.2% in Q4 and that unemployment soared to almost 7% (and almost 9% in not-so-sunny California).

So what did President Obama do?

Did he cower away from his campaign pledges?

Just the opposite.

He proposed a stunning $3.7 trillion budget that is not only a repudiation of the past 30 years of Reagon's "trickle-down" economics, but also a down payment for future growth.

He starts his 134-page budget with a 10-page preamble entitled "Inheriting a Legacy of Misplaced Priorities".

"It is no coincidence that the policy failures of the past eight years have been accompanied by unprecedented Governmental secrecy and unprecedented access by lobbyists and the well-connected to policymakers in Washington. Consequently, the needs of those in the room trump those of their fellow citizens".

Powerful stuff.

But what if Obama was not talking about President Bush's policies over the past 8 years, but rather "Big Radio" and the NAB?

Sadly, Obama's preamble could just as easily apply.

For too long, the folks at Clear Channel and other large radio conglomerates were so busy lobbying Congress for special privileges including ownership rights and killing satellite radio that they totally forgot their most important constituent: the listener.

Thus, it should surprise no one that radio ratings and revenues are falling just as fast (if not faster) than the economy overall.

If only terrestrial radio had its own "Obama".

Any suggestions?