‘Dish Nation’ To Tap Radio In Promo Push

Twentieth Television is launching a four-week marketing campaign with Cumulus Media’s 296 radio stations to boost ratings on its sophomore syndicated show Dish Nation, an entertainment newsmagazine co-hosted by morning radio teams, including Heidi & Frank from KLOS-FM Los Angeles and Rickey Smiley from WHAT-FM Atlanta. The campaign is timed to coincide with the November sweep.

“This is about building awareness,” says Stephen Brown, executive vice president of programming and development at Twentieth Television. “The DJs in the Cumulus markets are going to talk about Dish Nation on their morning shows. In the top-12 DMAs, we’ll have a contest where their listeners can win a trip to Hollywood.”

The campaign includes 30-second spots for morning drive-time radio shows and 15-second spots to run in the afternoon. The :30s will also air at night.

Dish Nation’s on-air hosts will be featured in the campaign’s promotional spots.

“Radio is very localized,” Brown says. “With Cumulus, we’re hitting all the formats: country, urban, contemporary hit radio. It reaches all sorts of viewers who may want to get their entertainment news in a funny way.”

The campaign also includes sponsoring entertainment news on the stations’ websites. On air, the Cumulus DJs will say the tagline “Powered by Dish Nation” for entertainment news segments.

“We have a 5 p.m. Daily Dish, which is a branded entertainment news minute,” Brown says. “Then at 9 p.m., 10 p.m. and 11 p.m., we have what we call ‘promo roadblocks’ to remind listeners to watch us at night.”

For the week ending Oct. 13, Dish Nation ranked No. 7 among entertainment newsmagazines (in a tie with Right This Minute) with a 1.0 household rating, up 11% from a year ago.

However, in its core demographic, adults 18-49, it tied at No. 4 with NBCUniversal Domestic Television Distribution’s Access Hollywood. Dish Nation had a 0.6 rating, up 20% from last year.