by Debbie Hazelton
As ACB Radio approaches its 10th birthday milestone in December, it is still a best kept secret with all it can do for you and your affiliate! While you may be aware of one or more of ACB Radio’s five streams, we believe ACB Radio is still a largely untapped resource.
Perhaps this article will serve as a good introduction for some, and a review for others, out of which can come a wide variety of new talent, opportunities, information and more. As ACB Radio is getting ready to roll out a 10-year birthday celebration during the last week of December, we want you to know that even now, with much ground work done, there is still a plethora of ways in which you, our readers, listeners, members and affiliates can continue to shape the direction and content of ACB Radio.
ACB Radio can help you and others in your affiliates gain so much more from listening to its streams. There are new friends to find, new skills to learn. We can learn yet more from the advocacy of others, the projects of affiliates. While there is much content already on ACB Radio with our five streams, there is still room for many more shows, topics, conventions and announcements. We want to hear from you! We want you to involve your affiliate projects! If you’re doing a fund-raiser with something to sell, why not announce it on ACB Radio? If you’re having a convention or large activity that involves one or more speakers, why not stream it? If the technicality of it all is new or overwhelming, we can help.
During the last 10 years, ACB Radio has gone a long way to build five streams, and yet it is still a vastly unused, undiscovered resource, and we want to change this! You can help. ACB Radio is fun! For some, it is a thrill to find out that it is possible to broadcast and play favorite music. And still, ACB Radio is here to be a mouthpiece for ACB! We want you to get involved. This is a resource that is here for you and all of ACB!
There are many people who only know of one or two of our five streams. ACB Radio is working hard to see that all of our streams are cross-promoted. Currently, Treasure Trove, our stream for old-time radio, is our most popular stream. Yet we know from how busy our Mainstream channel is at the time of our national convention that it is also popular for those who know of its availability. There are some people who only know of our Interactive stream, which is our music stream for live DJs. Our Café stream fills in when there is not a live DJ available, and the Café stream is a lovely place to become more acquainted with the music of blind musicians. Our World stream will likely be a place for more live programming, such as conventions and other special programs.
There is so much more ACB Radio can do for you, and we look forward to an ongoing and growing partnership. Feel free to call upon us for help, or to brainstorm ideas. We are here to help! If you need help putting together an announcement you’d like to have on the air, or if you have the text and want us to create a promo, we’re here to help! Write to [email protected]. We look forward to getting to know you better and helping you grow our many wonderful affiliates through ACB Radio!