[GRE] ARGUE, changing radio station - memorandum from the manager of WWAC

* Would be great if anybody can help! *

The following appeared in a memorandum from the manager of WWAC radio station.

"To reverse a decline in listener numbers, our owners have decided that WWAC must change from its current rock-music format. The decline has occurred despite population growth in our listening area, but that growth has resulted mainly from people moving here after their retirement. We must make listeners of these new residents. We could switch to a music format tailored to their tastes, but a continuing decline in local sales of recorded music suggests limited interest in music. Instead we should change to a news and talk format, a form of radio that is increasingly popular in our area."

Write a response in which you discuss what specific evidence is needed to evaluate the argument and explain how the evidence would weaken or strengthen the argument.

"
(Words: 30 mins. , Time: 436)

The author argues that a new format for WWAC radio is needed to meet the challenges posed by declining number of listeners in recent years. To be properly substantiated to be considered convincing, however, the argument requires further evidence on the new population mix, people's interest in listening to radio, their taste in the type of radio shows they prefer, and listeners' loyalty with existing news and talk shows.

First, it is necessary to examine how big the newly arrived population is in comparison to existing citizens in the area. If the increased number of people is substantial comparatively, it makes sense to focus the attention to those after retirement, while it would not be logical to target them if they are small in number. Moreover, how big is the population after retirement among the newly arrived population? This information also provides a guide in deciding the proper focus in targeting them.

Secondly, granted that the new citizens in the area are high enough in their number to be considered an important listener group, we need information as to how big portion of they actually listen to radio. Large number of radio listeners would make it sound to target them specifically, while a small group does not make this change worthwhile.

Moreover, the listeners' interest in rock-music through radio must be examined through evidence. Decline in sales of recorded music does not suggest that people no longer have interest in listening to music on radio. It simply means they are less willing to pay for previous prices for music CDs. What is needed is the comparison between changes of rate of people who wish to listen to rock-music versus those who prefer talk shows over time. In other words, if the changes in two such rates suggest a trend of increasing population interested in news and talk show, it is worthwhile to consider changing the format of radio.

Lastly, it is meaningful to check how satisfied listeners of current news and talk show radio are with other shows. High customer loyalty with already existing shows may point to possible difficulty in attracting new listeners, while substantial number of listeners willing to change shows suggest that there is chance in breaking into this new market.

The argument that radio format must be changed from rock music to news and talk is tenuous at best in its current form. Further evidence needs to be provided in terms of the number and proportion of new population and those after retirement, listener's interest in listening to music or news through radio, and customer loyalty of those who listen to news.

This is an excellent essay. You were able to convincingly present reasons for the radio station to reconsider its reformatting and also offered some food for thought regarding the pros and cons of the format change. There are some negligible grammatical errors that I need to point out in order to clean up the essay though.



-... the size of the newly...


- ... to focus attention on the growing population of retirees ...


- This is a redundancy since you already mentioned considering the population size earlier in the statement.



- as to what portion of their population ...


- listen to the radio



- on the radio


- prices of music...


- changes in the rate of people...


- the format of the radio station .


- Finally ,


- a chance of breaking into...


- ... listen to news before a solid, final decision about the change in radio station format is made.
I really hope that my suggestions can help you further improve your essay. It is a very well written piece of work that you should be proud of :-)

Thanks so much for your detailed comment!