A&O Research = Country Radio IS Inspiring, Aspirational

I feel sorry for the rock programmers who learned the reactions to terrestial radio from their youngest listeners last week from Fred Jacobs. When beer ad buyers required alternative and rock stations target 21+ or no longer get their dollars, radio owners quite intentionally waved 'bye bye' to their future audience, who were already very new tech savvy and friendly.

Fortunately, in the research we are seeing at A&O country clients right now as well as our quarterly national tracking across the U.S. and Canada, the passion for and interaction with country format radio remains very high, as a source of values reinforcement ("it's a positive and upbeat influence on my life, it's fun, I love it..") and a community connection our target listener remains loyal to.

Hats off to Jacobs Media for once again telling the truth, even when it hurts: “Radio is tethered to the car,” and younger listeners believe that “radio is tethered and the iPod is not.”

Be sure to read the reports on the new study and ask yourself: what am I doing today in MY content to be sure that isn't our format's future in the next 5-7 years??