What are careers in radio?

Station manager, audio engineer, and radio DJ are careers in radio. Here are some details about each of these careers and others in radio:

• Station manager

Station managers oversee an entire radio station. This can be a radio station that is online or a traditional offline radio station. Their job consists of organizing daily content in the forms of radio shows, radio DJ spots, and any other form of radio programming.

They are in charge of radio DJs, audio engineers, and radio producers. They may have creative input on certain aspects of radio shows. They also keep track of the number of daily listeners on their radio station.

Station managers typically start off in entry-level radio roles like an assistant, then work their way up to being radio producers, and then finally become station managers.

• Audio engineer

Audio engineers can also be referred to as sound mixers. These professionals ensure the balance of sound in a radio broadcast. This includes elements like the volume of a music track, and its overall sound quality.

In addition to radio stations, audio engineers also work on music recorded in studios and on recordings at live events, such as concerts.

• Radio producer

A radio producer is in charge of a particular radio program or show. They decide, sometimes along with the station manager, the overall content of a radio show. Radio producers give music to DJs to use during their shows and fill them in on any details about the music they should tell the listeners about.

Some radio producers also work on new radio programs. Here they have a more demanding job, as they often are the ones finding and researching the different stories that are covered on a news radio show. Some go in-depth and research stories for shows that take them months to complete, while others get information on a daily basis for shows on current events.

Most radio producers working in the news industry of radio have backgrounds in journalism or broadcasting.

Radio producers will also often liaison with any radio sponsors and advertisers. They might give a radio DJ a script on certain radio giveaways or sponsor-related events or, in the case of a news radio host, a script on a news topic.

• Radio DJ

A radio DJ is an "on-air" personality that plays a set of musical selections. They are expected to entertain listeners between songs and have a wealth of knowledge about music and musicians that their shows focus on.

Certain radio DJs are also their own audio engineers, so it is not uncommon for them to have a good deal of technical sound-based knowledge.

• Radio presenter