Tuned-in thinker

Originally hailing from Raheny, and today based in Malahide, Elaine Geraghty holds one of the most senior roles in Irish media, as CEO of Newstalk 106-108 FM. After almost 20 years in radio - her radio career began as part of the start-up team at Denis O'Brien's 98FM in 1989 - Geraghty oversaw the successful application to the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) for a national licence for Newstalk.

A year and a half on, she is proud of the half a million or so listeners the station is now capturing every week.
Geraghty says she was no stranger to start-ups, having previously worked on the commercial side in the Sunday Tribune in the paper's very early days. "I left the Tribune in 1989, when licences were starting to be won for local radio, and made the jump from print into radio - knowing very little about it. I guess I have never looked back since," she explains.

Having joined 98FM in an operational role, the then Australian management team spotted something in Geraghty's easy style and manner that led them to offer her a role as co-presenter on The Breakfast Show at the fledgling station. "I ended up on air more or less by accident," says Geraghty. "It wasn't on my list of things to do, but sometimes that happens in life. An opportunity comes left of centre.

“I learned the trade from behind the mic with some fantastic people at the time and that whetted my appetite for the business as a whole. It gave me a great feel for the complete business."

Geraghty has little time for the detractors who complain about highly formatted radio - and there were plenty in the early days.
“Well, you know, I would challenge those who imagine that radio is all about some creative process that happens. Format radio is actually based on solid research. It's driven by hard targets and an understanding that revenue pays for cost base.

“That was the thing about 98FM at the beginning. It was extremely well researched. It was the start of real format radio, where it was taken seriously as a business. In radio, there's a bit of science and a bit of art, but it's definitely a business - that's what I learnt quickly." And she concedes that it is a tough business.

“Dublin is very competitive and it's still a very important market for us, but, naturally, national [listenership] is the one we have to cut. This business is not for the faint hearted. You've got to be planning and winning all the time, but it's very much a long game and you've got to be prepared to stick at it for the long run."

Having moved from the breakfast slot back into a role in operational management after her six-year stint, Geraghty then completed an MBA at Dublin Institute of Technology, working away all the while. "They say MBA means Married But Absent - it sure does," she laughs. "It was an amazing experience, however, and well worth the effort."

Geraghty then joined O'Brien's Communicorp - following its acquisition of a group of radio stations in Europe from MetroMedia - as central programme director. After a year in that role, she joined Newstalk, where she will have been CEO for three years this August. And she's still loving the challenge.

“It may be a bit of a cliché, but radio changes every day. It keeps you interested. It's highly competitive, and only getting more so, because we're now competing with other media as well as other radio stations. But I still have the same passion for it now as I did 20 years ago."

Indeed, Geraghty and her team are embracing the challenges presented by new media and looking at the new forums as opportunities, rather than problems. “We are about providing content. Today, that's about asking where do people consume their content. The answer is in all sorts of ways and in all kinds of places," she explains.

“I was on the Dart the other day and someone was watching Sky News on their handheld gadget. People with iPods are looking for news and content from providers such as us. As a brand and a format, podcasting has been a fantastically complementary tool for us. It's particularly suited to a talk format and something we would live side by side with.

“There was much talk of it being a substitute for radio a few years ago, but we've the ability now to create exclusive content for podcasting, which is a great extension of the brand. Whether it is the Heineken [Cup] rugby podcasts with George Hook or Gerry Thornley, or content from the Off the Ball team, it has really proven popular. I see it as a real growth area. You only have to look at the UK to see what's happened there. There is revenue to be generated here."

Unsurprisingly, the woman who has overseen the rise of the cult phenomenon that is Off the Ball admits to being a 'huge' sports fan herself, and has great praise for the programme team.

“Three hours of sport five nights a week is a huge challenge and something we do very well. It is now the stop-off of choice for sport in Ireland." It's one of five programmes (including George Hook's) that lead the way in the latest Joint National Listenership Research figures, according to Geraghty.

The station chief won't be drawn on actual figures, but she says it is well on track as regards the five-year business plan it was required to set out for the BCI. "We're not perfect, and we're learning every day, but today we do offer a strong alternative. That's the point of Newstalk — to be another voice."