By Jay Trachman
Associate Editor Keith Allen writes: “Friday, we head off to the mall for the ‘auditions’ for my co-host. They are looking at non-radio professionals. I am supposed to come up with the ‘judging sheet.’ We’ll have a few minutes with each person to ask them about their lives, why they want to be a radio ‘star,’ give them some kickers to ad-lib off of, etc.” “Any thoughts as to what areas I should be judging them on? Any questions you think are ‘must ask’ questions? Any thoughts? HELP!“
Sure, Keith! I think I’d start off by asking them to talk about themselves for a few minutes, without ever mentioning radio. Ask them about their family relationships: spouse, children, parents. The important thing is not what the relationships are, but whether they can talk about others as real people. “Describe your best friend to me.” Listen for detail; insist on non-generalities. You want them talking about a person’s emotional make-up. I think people have to be able to do that, before they can show their own emotions in public.
Ask them questions designed to encourage an emotional expression of opinions: “Who was your favorite candidate in the last election? Who was the one you liked the least, or hated?” Again, the specifics aren’t important; what counts is that they’re involved enough to have strong opinions, and an ability to express themselves colorfully. If they don’t care about politics, ask what they do care about; sports? Movies? You want someone who’s involved, who’s passionate about something.
Engage each candidate in personal conversation for as long as you’re allowed. Get a sense of their outlook – does this person sound as though he/she likes their life? Are they comfortable in their own skin? That’s not a necessity – sometimes cynics can make great entertainers – but overall, you want someone who can joke about life’s absurdities, who can express sarcasm as well as good humor, who can joke about others, but also can handle teasing of themselves.
Years ago, I wrote about a girl I dated in college. Emily wanted to be my “friend,” and I was after more, but she once said something that stayed with me all these years. She said, “What I like about you is that you respond to everything. Nothing I say falls flat.”
In retrospect, I realized it was one of the greatest compliments anyone ever paid me. If there’s a skill that’s central to my ability as a radio performer, I think that’s it. We want people on the air who can respond emotionally to us, to the weather, to the music, to whatever’s available.
I think we also want people who have the ability to display an emotional range, not just yuk-yuk, glad-handing, Pollyanna all the time. Can you get this person to say something tender, to which the natural response would be: “Awww…”? Can you get them to raise their voice in anger? Or verbally to “throw up their hands” in a colorful way?
There’s also a “chemistry” issue: you’re picking a co-host. You don’t want to find yourself in the position of choosing someone who’s great “on paper,” but for whatever unexplainable reason, you’re just not comfortable with them – you’re allowed a “peremptory challenge.” That is, occasionally, you may have to disqualify someone just because you don’t like their looks, or their smell, or whatever else it is that makes you uneasy.
One final point: in judging whether a person would make a good partner or performer: “Can they take guidance without either getting defensive, or (on the other side of the coin) becoming a suck-up?”
I don’t know about a “judging sheet” – but these are the standards I’d use. In summary:
* Do they have something to say?
* Do they have a colorful way of expressing themselves?
* Are they reasonably comfortable with who they are?
* Are they emotionally varied?
* Do they like their lives?
* Do they respond to things you say?
* When you correct something they do, do they get defensive?
Here’s something I wouldn’t be concerned with: do they have experience in radio? Do they have great language and diction skills? Do they have wonderful “pipes?” All these things are superficial, in my view.
Choosing a partner is largely an intuitive process. Get them to talk, and listen to how it feels. If they’re expressive and varied, and they make you respond to them, then you’ve got a decent chance of success.
Jay Trachman is publisher of “One to One,” a weekly information and humor service for broadcasters. Jay can be reached at: phone (559) 448 0700, fax (559) 448 0761, e-mail at 121@att.net, or www.121online.net. Reprinted with permission.
