Top Story Of The Week -- From the November 20 issue of R&R The Moral Of The Story Michael Josephson's mission is to bring ethics to the airwaves By Sky Daniels - R&R Alternative Editor Closely interacting with programmers in the format as I do, I have become alarmed at the apparent lack of ethical regard by many young programmers in their decision-making process. Too many PDs are oblivious to the wrongness of taking junkets for adds and TV sets for rotation increases. It seems these young programmers are being given no guidance as to what is inherently right or wrong. Many seem genuinely unaware, having come into radio in a full-blown era of the Tuesday auction. This column has been waiting to be written for some time. It's a touchy subject, and I wrestled with how I should address it without sounding heavy-handed. While this column remains a wonderful forum for expression, it isn't a license to preach -- and I know it. Having programmed in Top 5 markets and done label promotion, I am also far from naive regarding the ways of the world. Was I kidding myself that anyone wanted to read about this? Then, fittingly, the answer came to me over the airwaves. Once again, radio would tell me what I needed to know and wanted to believe. It came in the form of a new daily feature on all-News KNX/Los Angeles. Each morning, at 6:55am and 11:40am, the station runs a 90-second commentary by Michael Josephson, who heads the nonprofit, L.A.-based Josephson Institute Of Ethics. Josephson, a former law professor, offers passionate and inspirational essays on ethics as they apply in real-life decisions -- at work, at home, and in society. His warm and articulate approach worked on a technical level as well. He delivered "good reads." Apparently, I wasn't the only one responding to this man's messages. Articles in the L.A. press began popping up, heralding the popularity of the new feature. Orange County Register radio columnist Gary Lycan wrote a feature story lauding the approach for running contrary to the "tabloidism" prevalent in the press and on the airwaves. I attempted to contact Josephson seeking advice. Radio's 'Hollywood' Code Clearly, ethics in business is a hot topic these days, and finding Josephson is not as easy task. When I contacted his office, his assistant detailed his travel schedule for the next few days: Butte, MT in the morning; Evansville, IN in the afternoon; Cincinnati in the evening. Every day of the week, Josephson would be speaking to an organization seeking answers to similar concerns. These weren't Kiwanis Club luncheons, either. No, he would address such powerful conglomerates as McDonald's in his travels. I caught up with him before one such engagement, and he seemed genuinely concerned with my queries. He remarked, "I understand your concerns. I have done presentations for over a thousand organizations, and I have to confess, the one I felt was the least well-received was at an RTNDA convention. It didn't work, because I went into it thinking I was going to have an audience with a journalist's mindset. There has been increasing concern in that field for ethical coverage of the issues. I began to wonder at that convention if there seemed to be more of a fast-and-loose, 'Hollywood' code at play in the radio field. I received some particularly nasty feedback from that address, and, honestly, that ran contrary to what I've received lately." Josephson took time to discuss the increased competition in radio that was fostering a win-at-all costs attitude with little regard for ethical issues. "Sometimes people in that environment don't want to hear about imposed limitations," he said. "They dismiss it as philosophical rhetoric. It's an anything-goes, 'just do it' sensibility." How, then, did Josephson think he could take his message to radio in that context? Luckily, KNX News Director Bob Sims had heard Josephson speak and felt that his message, though contrary to prevailing on-air attitudes, could be meaningful to listeners. Sims stated, "I've always been attracted to stories with this ethical element. I had a sense that our listeners were being given a lot of messages through stories in current events, be they abortion rights, discrimination, welfare, etc. A lot of front-page stories had a real moral element to them. "If the listeners attempted to analyze those stories, they were forced to form an opinion without the benefit of understanding moral implications. Listeners would ask themselves, 'What do I believe?' and had feelings of being rudderless and adrift. They were expected to have an opinion on very sensitive and complex issues." Conflicts Of Interest Sims believed that offering Josephson's ethical insight would help listeners to form balanced, objective opinions. He said, "We decided to put the feature on in the morning, cognizant that it would provide a message to start the day with. Listeners were given something to consider as they faced the day. The feature has garnered a remarkable amount of feedback, and it has been overwhelmingly positive." Josephson, now learning the context of broadcasting first-hand, considered potential problems in radio by saying, "My recurrent message attempts to build up what I call my 'Six Pillars': trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship. The problems a program director and radio manager face are in the area of responsibility. When you have a job in the public-service sector, where radio is, you ask, 'What do the customers expect?' "You make decisions based on serving those customers responsibly. Is your only responsibility to make money? If so, for whom? For you? Or for the station? Conflicts of interest can violate the public responsibility. When that impedes decisions in the government, there is no doubt about its harmfulness. Newspapers are actively becoming concerned with conflict problems. The issue of responsibility is very active. "The second pillar of importance to radio programming is trustworthiness. Simply stated, is there any implicit or explicit deception going on? It can be as basic as a DJ making a comment about a restaurant he went to. If he is saying he enjoyed a meal there, the listener hopes that is a spontaneous endorsement. What if it isn't? What if he gets free dinners there? Then he's violated the listener's trust. Candor, which is part of honesty, says, 'You need to tell me information that will affect how I receive your message.'" What Is The Truth? Josephson challenges management to get involved by asking, "Where is radio management in this issue? It's sad to acknowledge that young people are not being provided proper orientation in developing sound values. There are reams of chilling statistics: 60% of graduating high school seniors admit they cheat; 40% admit they steal. If they are engaged in those practices in real life, they will carry them into the workplace. Kids today are different -- great grades, shabby ethics. Why isn't there someone in the structure providing guidance? "Doesn't management think their overall product is negatively impacted if decisions are made that violate these principles? In many presentations I have given, I take the morality stance out of it and concentrate on showing how this might negatively hurt their business. As soon as decisions are made that are based on anything other than quality, business is being hurt. "Another area of concern is this mad rush to provide titillating information - - wild stunts, shock jocks; no momentary pause to ask, 'What is the truth?' Has radio gone so berserk that no one considers this? Even if all I wanted as a station manager was to maximize profits and had no other prevalent concern, I wouldn't want my program director, in effect, taking bribes." Josephson cautions that public sentiment appears to be shaping up against any such violation of trust. He said, "There are two movements at play today. There is the individual, look-out-for-No. 1 ethic. There is also a growing counter-opposition in business. Business in general is becoming increasingly concerned with corruption, looking out for a collective good. The customer is really No. 1." Fiduciary Loyalty Josephson hopes that radio management, as a public-service entity, considers its responsibility. "Programmers are given a significant amount of discretion," he theorized. "They decide what music gets played, which features run, what promotions are pushed. Those decisions have to be made with a fiduciary loyalty to the ownership and a responsibility to the listener. If they're not, then this is an industry with the seeds of its own destruction. Sooner or later, those issues destroy systems. Entities seemingly more powerful than the music industry have crumbled. Governments in Italy and Brazil have collapsed. "You have to have historical perspective. Payola has never left the public's consciousness. It has been a huge public scandal for radio before and, if not understood, will create scandal again. There's a simple test any concerned programmers can ask themselves. If your listeners knew why a record was being played, would they trust you more or trust you less? Are you willing to go on the air and disclose why you put a record on? Are you confident in the listener's reaction?" As our conversation ended, Josephson felt compelled to offer disclosure on his own part. He added, "I appreciate your interest in these ethical concerns. I also appreciate your interest in my work. But, I want you to know, I don't make any money doing this. I had a very successful law practice and publishing company, which made me financially independent. I do this more as a missionary. I'm just trying to take my understanding of law and ethics and help make the world a better place for our kids in the future." That's the first truly Alternative thing I've heard in a year. What are your thoughts? E-mail Sky Daniels with your comments. © 1997 Radio & Records Inc.