Internet Radio: Going Beyond Blogs as Another Mass Medium Gets Micro

The buzz is all about blogs this year, with thousands being

created every day. Websurfers have realized that anyone with

a bit of information, an opinion or an idea can attract an

audience--sometimes a very large audience.

But now blogs may not be the only mass medium that's going

"micro."

Here comes Internet Radio...

"It's hard to believe," says Randy Gilbert, host of "The

Inside Success Secrets Radio Show"--an Internet radio

broadcast which has been "airing" for several years. "Now

anyone with a computer, an internet connection and a

microphone can create an Internet radio program. And tt's

not nearly as hard as most people think. You really don't

have to be some kind of techno-geek to do it."

A number of established media giants, like Entrepreneur

Magazine, already "broadcast" business-related programming

over the net. But it's the opportunity for "the little guy"

to start producing programs that intrigues Gilbert.

Will Internet Radio Replace Blogs?

Blogs have "leveled the playing field" in the world of print

media. Some blogs have more daily readers than many medium-

sized metro newspapers.

Single individuals, sitting at home in front of their

computer in their pajamas, can compete with media giants in

the battle for the minds and hearts of hundreds of thousands

of websurfers.

Bloggers may have even had an impact on the last

presidential election.

Bloggers were the first to zero in on suspicious information

in CBS' now-infamous story about President Bush's military

record. The inaccuracies in the story, and the embarrassment

that followed, may have hastened the departure of Dan Rather

from the evening anchor chair.

"Lots of radio and TV news programs now regularly report

what's being written in political blogs," according to Chip

Tarver, an Internet expert whose business-to-business

publicity blog regularly appears at the top of many search

engine rankings. "Some cable network news shows even have

regular daily segments where they talk about what bloggers

are saying."

Some experts have speculated if a similar phenomenon could

happen soon with Internet Radio: a traditional mass medium

which is becoming a "micro medium" as more and more people

are producing up their own Internet radio programs. But

Gilbert doesn't think so.

"Internet radio will probably never become as popular or as

'grassroots' as blogging has become," he says. "And you may

not have Internet radio stars who will compete with over-

the-air personalities like Rush Limbaugh or Bill O'Reilly.

But radio is a very conversational and intimate medium. You

can not only show people what you know, but you can also

give them a glimpse of who you are in a way that's hard to

duplicate in a print interview. If you have something worth

saying, radio is a great vehicle for saying it."

"Best of all," he continues, "there's practically no expense

involved. You can do it for pennies."

And Internet Radio Can Make Money Too

Gilbert adds that online "micro-broadcasters" are finding

ways to add to the bottom line, like over-the-air stations.

"You can be extremely profitable with as few as five

thousand listeners," he says.

Gilbert also teaches a course for anyone who wants to learn

to make money by creating their own Internet Radio Show.

Learn more about "Internet Radio Secrets" at

http://www.publicity-pro.com/internetradiosecrets

For additional information about how to use internet radio

to market yourself or your business, visit

http://www.publicity-pro.com/internetradio

About The Author:

About the Author: Award winning TV anchor George McKenzie

offers a free 7-part email "Publicity Crash Course" at

http://www.publicity-pro.com. During his 33-year

broadcasting career, George's work appeared on ABC, NBC,

CBS, ESPN and CNN.This article is free for republishing
Source: http://www.articlealley.com/article_11702_3.html