The world of radio broadcasts brings its own problems that are distinct from television broadcasts. Without the video signal, there are fewer issues that can go wrong, but it doesn’t mean radio hosts are free from potential problems. It is always important to understand the common rookie mistakes in radio broadcasts and how to avoid them.

No Opinion

If you want to bore people to death, don’t to have an opinion. People don’t turn on the radio to listen to someone who never has an opinion. They want to listen to one side or the other, agree with your side or completely disagree with your side. It is what gets people to call in and it really starts an open dialog. Howard Stern is the most popular radio host in the world and it isn’t because he’s a nice guy. It’s because he’s especially opinionated, yet can back up his opinions with facts while also interjecting his own attitude as well.

Not respecting your callers

A good radio host is going to have an assortment of callers chiming in with their own opinions, whether it supports your own or it is against your own. The entire point of having listeners call in is to allow them to voice their opinion. If you cut them off and tell the audience what they are going to say before they say it, it makes you come across as narrow-minded. You don’t want to come across this way as it turns people off from interacting with your show and calling you. Now, there are times where you need to cut some people off if they are getting derogatory or using profane language. However, in most cases, you need to let the listener make their point.

Only Asking Questions

If you have a guest on the show, it is a good idea to have a solid dialog of questions and answers because listeners want to hear how the guests answer these questions. However, simply turning the entire show into questions is not the way to go and it dries up listeners. Presenting a single question and accepting calls throughout the course of the show is one thing, but you still need to put in your own opinion about the question. Remember, those who respond to the question are also responding to you. People listen to you because they either like or completely hate your stance.

Failing to Turn the Mic Off

When the interview is over, when the segment is done or when you’re off to a commercial, you need to have the microphone off. You might say something to a producer that you do not intend the listening audience to hear, but if the microphone is on you may find yourself in all sorts of trouble, especially if it is something negative, laced with profanity or you say something that can be taken out of context. Always make sure the mic is off.

Not Setting the Proper Mix

This is more for the live editor, but the proper mix needs to be done for any radio broadcast. Without the right mix, listeners might have a hard time hearing the host or the music/sound effects might play too loudly. Always be sure the proper mix is set.