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Fishbowl Radio Network allows hosts to see new side of radio

Written by Andrew Plock, The Shorthorn staff

Monday, 22 February 2010 05:26 PM

Arlington resident Jon Clegg speaks with mixed martial artist Jason David Frank about an upcoming fight at The Fishbowl on Wednesday night. The Fishbowl is one of the first online radio shows. (The Shorthorn: Aisha Butt)

In the radio industry the term “fishbowl” is just slang for a studio.

But when radio personalities come to sling songs and talk to the masses, at Fishbowl Radio Network the term gains a new meaning.

While sitting in a glass-encased booth overlooking the skyline of Arlington, Fishbowl Radio Network’s DJs broadcast worldwide on the online radio network. It gives veterans and newcomers to the radio industry a chance to broadcast their thoughts, ideas and messages beyond the realms of FM and AM radiowaves.

UTA alumnnus Jon Clegg and Sergio Hernandez are spreading a message of a more brutal nature.

The two co-host a Mixed Martial Arts talk show called “Tap or Snap,” in which they discuss the latest in the MMA world. Clegg said he interned for 105.3 FM before it became “The Fan” and learned a few lessons about the radio industry. He said FBRN is great for those wanting to get into radio.

“When you’re in radio, you don’t start hosting your own show,” Clegg said.

But he said he isn’t trying to make Tap or Snap his career.

“The career I have now works well for me,” he said. “I do this for fun.”

FBRN co-owner Sammi St. John-Martinez, also known by her radio persona “Sammi G,” is a radio veteran and former teacher at the American Broadcasting School in Arlington.

St. John-Martinez said the idea for the network started as a vehicle for fellow radio veterans and students to find work in an industry in transition.

Fishbowl Radio Network

fishbowlradionetwork.com

2225 E. Randol Mill Road, Suite 315
Arlington, Texas 76061
817-633-4880

“A lot of my friends were losing their jobs to the Internet,” she said. “I thought ‘What could I do for veterans and students?’”

Soon she saw that the medium once harming business could help bolster it.

“The Internet was changing things,” she said. “It’s the way everyone is starting to listen now.”

She brought this idea to her now partner and station engineer Johnny Burgos and the two crafted the network, which launched in September and now holds three studios with 60 shows covering a multitude of topics.

The show topics include music, comedy, real estate, spirituality, gaming, family issues and sports. All are broadcast worldwide on the network’s Web site.

Lance Liguez, radio production lecturer and UTA Radio adviser, said while a degree in a broadcasting gives one a well-rounded focus in the field, hands-on experience is a requisite when it comes to radio, regardless if it’s with UTA Radio or an online network like FBRN.

Alumni Sergio Hernandez (left) and Arlington resident Jon Clegg (right) air news updates for a mixed martial arts station called Tap Or Snap from The Fishbowl on Wednesday night. Tap Or Snap broadcasts online and through the radio every Wednesday from 7-9. (The Shorthorn: Aisha Butt)

He said Internet radio could be a help to UTA students.

“They could go and say ‘Hey, I’ve done this before,’ ” Liguez said. “It’s a great way for people who love this to find a new gig.”

Liguez said online radio can help bypass the smaller market radio one usually starts in by developing a following and having experience.

There are no contracts at FBRN because each is done show-by-show so any radio host can choose to do a time slot once, twice or even five times a week. Also the host owns the rights to the show and can turn their broadcasts into podcasts. A FBRN iPhone application is also available to help promote shows.

The training the FBRN hosts go through takes only 30 minutes or so to learn, St. John-Martinez said. If someone can point and click they could run the studio board, she said.

To have a show, someone must present an idea to fill a two-hour time slot to St. John-Martinez and it must be in compliance with Federal Communications Commission regulations.

Kevin Foresman is the host of “Raw Soul Radio,” a spirituality show on FBRN, now on its 18th show.

He said he’s worked in the media for a while, having graduated with a degree in radio, television and film from UT-Austin. But he said he feels at home with the network.

“I think: I’m working for them,” Foresman said. “But their attitude is: they’re working for me.”

Like Clegg, Hernandez and Foresman, many veterans and amateurs in the radio field host FBRN shows for their own specific gain. St. John-Martinez said some people run their shows to further a career in radio or use it promote their business.

For others, it’s a chance to fulfill long-held dreams of conversing with the masses. Regardless, the network is getting broadcasters studio time to work and learn at the station, she said.

“Radio is like a sport,” she said. “The more you practice the better you get. Our industry doesn’t require you to have any degree, but you do have to be trained to do it.”
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