Talkback kings Alan Jones and Ray Hadley reveal the secrets of their success

AT the top of the radio heap, presenters Alan Jones and Ray Hadley are not just men, they’re kings.

Ray Hadley broadcasting from the Orange Ex-Services Club. Picture: Jonathan Ng

Legendary Sydney talkback radio presenter Gary O’Callaghan offered Ray Hadley one simple piece of advice at the start of Hadley’s on-air career.

“I was a traffic reporter on his program and I was searching for answers about the magic formula — what makes successful radio and how you do it,” Hadley recalls.

“Gary looked at me and said, ‘What’s your name?’ I thought, That’s a silly question, and I said, ‘My name’s Ray Hadley.’

“He said: ‘Well do you think you can be him?’ I thought about it and said: ‘What do you mean?’

“He said, ‘When you’re happy, laugh. When you’re sad, cry. When you’re angry, get angry. Don’t try to kid the audience by manufacturing sincerity. Just be yourself’.”

It’s not always pretty, or popular for that matter, but sticking to that one golden rule for the past three decades has elevated Hadley to the lofty heights shared by Australia’s top talkback radio hosts. It’s given Hadley legions of loyal listeners, the likes of whom helped him clock up his 100th ratings win this week for his Monday-Friday morning show on Sydney’s 2GB.

Colleague and breakfast show presenter Alan Jones, meanwhile, won his slot for the 103rd time. Jones, the doyen of talkback hosts, is closing in on 200 ratings wins if you count his previous stint at 2UE.

It is a significant feat for both men, given the cutthroat nature of Sydney radio and the millions invested by competitors to end their winning run, but a simply phenomenal achievement for Jones.

Alan Jones. Picture: Jonathan Ng

At the top of the radio heap, presenters are not just men, they’re kings. Their throne, the studio seat they warm each day, and their crown, the ratings surveys they dominate for months and years at a time.

That being the case, Jones has been the king of kings and there are absolutely no signs that his pre-eminent position atop the list of talkback radio announcers will change anytime soon.

Jones, due for indefinite leave later this month for surgery to alleviate chronic back pain, says the hard work pays dividends in the long run.

“The only thing you get without hard work is failure,” he says.

In a world where so much information can be accessed in so many ways, it would be easy to think talkback radio might one day be obsolete.

But Jones believes the opposite is true — that now, more than ever, people need someone to make sense of it all: “People know what the news is but they’re not quite sure what to make of that news, whether it’s a greyhound ban or a council amalgamation.

“They’re looking for someone who is able to research it and interpret it.” Asked about such enduring success, Hadley initially cites Jones’s strong lead-in audience: “Any presenter, me included, is determined by what happens before him at breakfast. That is the most important shift in any network, AM or FM.”

The kings of talkback radio. Picture: Jonathan Ng

That, however, doesn’t tell the full story. Years of ratings surveys prove that audiences won’t stick around for a dud, no matter how strong the lead-in program is.

They stick around for a host’s honesty and reliability, because they love him or love to hate him, because they want to learn about the issues he champions, and those he decries. There’s something else — something that even now, after more than 35 years on-air, Hadley can’t quite put his finger on: “I’ll listen to someone and think it’s a well- formatted hour and they should be successful. But when the ratings come out they haven’t connected.’’

Hadley, 62, went on to say: “Half the population is going to love you, the other half is going to hate you.

“So if you don’t like being hated, or receiving vile emails and threats, then you’re probably not suited to the job.”

Macquarie Radio Network executive chairman Russell Tate puts much of it down to the trust people such as Hadley and Jones instil in their audience: “The level of engagement with these guys is critical and their success speaks volumes of how they’re damn good at it. They understand their audience.’’

Maquaurie Radio's Ray Hadley, John Singleton and Alan Jones who are celebrating winning over a 100 consecutive radio surveys. Picture: Justin Lloyd

But that doesn’t always transpire to sweetness and light on the airwaves.

A recent example was the barrage of flak Hadley and Jones copped for opposing the greyhound racing ban.

Hadley says he gets the same reaction to his ongoing battle to toughen the stance on child sex offenders — an issue many listeners don’t find appetising.

But for both men, it comes back to being true to themselves and their listeners.

“It can’t all be information — it’s got to be entertainment, so you’ve got to be lighthearted and crack a joke and have a bit of fun from time to time,” Hadley says.