“If more leaders of our industry do not start taking more responsibility for developing young talent, we are going to be in a crisis situation very soon.”
That remark was made by a 27-year-old engineer at WCBS(AM) in New York named Rob Bertrand. He was quoted in a Radio World story in January 2006 titled “Young Engineers, Please Stand Up.”
Article author Ken Deutsch wrote: “We so often hear the lament: ‘Where will the next generation of radio engineers come from?’ The stereotype — justified or not — is of the engineer as a grizzled 60-year-old who grouses that the new-fangled computer gear isn’t as reliable as his old Ampex machines and who will leave no replacement behind when he retires.”
Ken continued: “No doubt radio engineering has its gray elders. But where is the bright young talent? Radio World asked around; and we found to our pleasure no shortage of promising younger engineers active in the industry.”
His article profiled six engineers, of which five were under age 30.
Now here we are more than 20 years later, and we still hear the lament: Where is the next generation of engineers?
I decided that Radio World would ask around again. We’ve launched a series on our website by contributor Elle Kehres. And I’m happy to say that we have a growing list of candidates to profile.
Elle began her series by interviewing Jake Bleck, age 24. He’s a staff engineer and acting chief engineer for 10 stations owned by the Curtis Media Group in Raleigh, N.C. We learned about Jake from Paul Michels, the company’s director of group operations and IT.
“I do a bit of everything,” Jake told Elle. “I love that no two days are the same.”
Jake said he’s always had an interest in technology. In middle school, he was introduced to amateur radio by family friends. In high school, he ran the AV club. (Does any of this feel familiar?)
He went to work during COVID at WTKF(FM) and helped relocate the studio. After that project, he offered to work carrying tools and turning wrenches whenever a second set of hands was needed.
“The engineer took me up on my offer and we did several projects over the next few years: transmitter installs, RF plumbing and antenna installs. I loved every minute of it.”
Jake joined Curtis Media Group and attended the North Carolina Association of Broadcasters Broadcast Technology Academy, an initiative we’ve told you about.
“The path to amateur extra taught me a lot about RF theory,” he continued. “I’ve spent most of my life around computers and my IT degree gives me a good understanding of internet protocol. I took construction in high school and worked for the local hardware store, so I know how to work with my hands.
“Broadcast engineering is a very niche career field that ties all my hobbies together.”
We’re asking these young engineers to tell us about a typical workday, to share their most interesting experiences and to compare their perceptions of radio with those of their age peers.
I hope you’ll read along as we discover these next-gen technical professionals. Elle’s second profile is of Rachel Haggerty, which you can read here.
The series also appears in your daily Radio World SmartBrief email newsletter, which you can sign up for at our website under “Subscribe.”
Does our experience finding candidates for this series put to rest any worries about the future of radio engineering? Certainly not. (As I write, Curtis Media is recruiting for a replacement for a market chief who’d been there for 20 years. That kind of experience is hard to replace these days.)
But I do think common wisdom often overstates a problem. For instance: “Why are there no women in radio engineering?” Elle’s Radio World series about women engineers showed that common wisdom was at least simplistic.
Perceptions also may be based on what we see at trade shows and SBE chapter meetings. But just because enthusiastic younger people aren’t coming to those events doesn’t mean they aren’t out there. (Why that might be is a good question in itself.)
So here’s to the younger folks who are diving into this challenging, frustrating, exciting world of broadcast and digital media. Where will you take us?
Rob Bertrand, now in his late 40s, has done well for himself. He went on to become head of technology for big public radio outlet WAMU in Washington and now is CEO and partner at Inrush Broadcast Services; he is often quoted in these pages and is an industry thought leader.
Here’s hoping we’ll be talking about Jake Bleck and his peers in a similar vein in another 20 years.
Radio World welcomes letters to the editor on this or any story. Email [email protected].
