The great Halloween storm of 2011 was to be  the final proof–The  #1 reason way local radio is alive and well,  and why 95% of American’s tune in at some point during the week–Yes even with Pandora, Satellite, IPods,  Spotify,  and dozens of other options that fight for ears and eyeballs.  Radio is still a local medium that shines brightest during times of crisis–Over here at the radio ranch, Adam Rivers broadcasted live for 15 straight hours to make sure the information got out to the people.  Our competitors?  Well some did ok, some phoned it in, some never showed up, and some just  plain sucked–Their time to shine and they dropped the ball.

So where does the Irony come in?  The stations who got it done in the Hartford area are now being penalized because Arbitron/Hartford is dropping two weeks with of PPM data because of the power outage.  So when (some) of  radio was at its best, the meter wasn’t running…What?  Thousands of little battery operated radios falling on deaf ears?  No cell phone, no power, no information–Except a few radio stations who take their license serious..

Radio has a responsibility—Keeping the public informed is priority #1.  The radio stations who kept the local communities of Springfield and Harford informed during this disaster don’t get any credit?—A dark day for Radio and PPM