February 5, 2021
In recognition of the passing of the iconic Larry King, what qualities that made him such a powerful radio and TV broadcaster can be applied to any broadcast personality regardless of format or platform?
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Mike “OD” O’Donnell, WKRZ: He was a great listener. He allowed his guest to completely respond to the question without interruption. He never tried to upstage his guests, always let them be the star of the show. Today, many times hosts could have an agenda or bias about a subject and they cut guests off. King played it so great down the middle, with no agenda at all. To be a good, unbiased listener can be applied to any platform.
Valentine, WBHT: He never made it about himself. It was always about his guest and the audience. He was never ego-driven, he was the King of that (pun intended). He was also a great listener. Rod Phillips, iHeartMedia: He has a brand, and he stuck to it. Suspenders and dark rimmed glasses will forever remind you of your visual memory of Larry King! Plus, just a great communicator. Quick and concise never sounded so good. Max Volume, KOZZ: He got the guests to open up and made them the star of the show! |
Jana Sutter, WXXL: He wasn’t afraid to ask the hard questions, but could do it in a way that wasn’t threatening. It was never about him.
Kobe, WZNE: He treated everyone the same, made them feel like the most interesting person in the world. Regardless of what they did or their level of fame. Rich Davis, KDWB: Fundamentally, he was such a good listener, and he never wanted to over-prepare. A lot of times with young talent when they’re coming up, sometimes they’re overly concerned and get a whole bunch of questions down, and they’re not really paying attention when they do the actual interview, where they could get some good nuggets just by listening to what the answer was to the prior question. King did it the best. Lee Abrams mediavisions: Always well researched on the topics and people he programmed, prepared. A good listener. Didn’t ask questions and then answer them, credible and not preachy. Natural, engaging and free of pomp. Stayed neutral and let the person or topic do the talking, and asked good questions but stayed even.
Kevin Kash, WWEG: Larry King’s interview style was driven by passion. He also expressed an interest in what the guest was saying. He commanded answers to his questions through voice inflection as well. |
Josh Wolff, WAEB: He was inquisitive and you always felt that he was an advocate for the audience. Buzz Knight, Buzz Knight Media: He genuinely loved his craft. Seemed the only places he wanted to be was eating at his favorite deli or interviewing someone on his show.
Mike McVay, McVay Media: Listen to what your guest is saying, and live in the moment so that you can respond to them. All too often I hear an interview more focused on the questions they prepared versus following the natural stream of conversation. Rick Vaughn, KENZ: He listened to peoples answers and allowed the answers to dictate the next question and the dictate the direction of the interview, rather than having a long list of questions he prepared to ask. He let them write the script and he went along for the ride.
Heather Deluca, WSJO: Larry listened. Really LISTENED to his guests and callers. He wasn’t just waiting to ask his next question. He mastered the art of conversation while conducting his interviews, and that’s why he always got the answers and insight no one else could. |
Jeremy Rice, WBLI: Larry King really focused on the person he was interviewing and said that listening to them was just as important as the questions he asked. I think today too many interviewers are about “me” and “I.” While being interviewed in 2013, Larry told a famous podcaster that he probably used the word “I” fewer than five times in his career. He found people interesting, he was always curious about people and wanted to know more about them. He said if you were the person sitting next to him on an airplane, be prepared for hours of talk. When Larry did RADIO back in the day, his show was authentic and not politically biased, anyone could call in about anything.
Joey Brooks, WKSS: His authenticity was second to none. He was always very prepared and schooled on the topic content, and he was true to himself, all of which are essential qualities for any broadcast personality. I went back and watched some of his previous interviews and thought, “Wow this guy was unbelievably good!”
Buster Satterfield, WIOQ: Watching his interviews it was easy to see why people were so comfortable. That comfort level helped them to really open up which always makes for a great interview.
Jon Zellner, iHeartMedia: Larry was the master interviewer. He loved asking questions; he was always respectful; he asked the questions that we all would’ve asked if we were doing the interview; he never needed to “one-up” his guest…he always let them shine.
R Dub! Z90: Larry never ever made it about him – it was always about the guest. ALWAYS. He did not rely on hype, gimmicks, or even being loud. Consistency and integrity were some of his best qualities.
Chris Michaels, FM100: Be a good listener, likeable, and know the power of a good tease.
Dom Theodore, Radio Animal Media Strategies: He was a master of the art of communication. A great storyteller, very direct, a good listener, and understood that it’s still show business.Next Week’s Question Of The Week:
What have you learned the most from the challenges of 2020 that empower you to feel like you can handle just about anything going forward?
e-Mail your responses to: jodorisio@deanemediasolutions.com or bburke@deanemediasolutions.com
