Voice-tracking

Voice-tracking has become common on many music radio stations, particularly during evening, overnight, weekend, and holiday time periods.

At that time, elements were recorded on reel-to-reel magnetic tapes and broadcast cartridges and played by specialized professional audio equipment.

It has become more controversial recently as computer technology permits the process to be more flexible and less expensive, allowing for fewer station employees and an effective illusion of live, local programming.

Voice-tracking allows that person to record a three-hour air shift in considerably less time, freeing them up to do office work.

The outsider will add local color using information provided by the station and news stories gleaned from newspapers available on the Internet.

These tracks (with the voice transition covering the end of one and the start of the next) are then played on air to give the listener the effect of a live show.

These and similar techniques, like prerecorded time checks, greatly add to perception that a show is being broadcast live.

[4] Armed with the knowledge of these rules, the clock, and with the station's music log, the cyber jock can recreate what the finished radio program should sound like.

[5] If the station employs other methods of doing this, the cyber jock should be familiar with them, and can alter their speech and timing to accommodate them or use software to adjust the speed of their natural voice to fit the ramp and hit the post.

[6][7] Still, supporters of voice-tracking contend that a professional presentation on the air by an outsider is preferable to using a local DJ who is not very good.

Since voice-tracking is designed to work without human intervention, stations using the process may have no one in the building at all outside of business hours.

Emergency Alert System (EAS) equipment is programmed to automatically break into whatever is playing and deliver information to the listener, usually using audio from a local government weather radio service.

Often if severe weather conditions are known, a live person is "on-call" to stay at the station and give out details about the situation.