Many have speculated and are speculating on the future of broadcasting. Most of the readers perusing this article have grown up with the traditional forms of broadcasting known as radio and television. The two forms of mass media have dominated the landscape for more than half a century and have seen their respective devotees decrease in numbers for a number of reasons. Although broadcasters might have reason to feel alarmed, many others on the cutting edge have seen this as a reason to celebrate.
This examiner.com columnist had the opportunity to be a guest on "The Slam Show" and observe all the sign posts of the future of the medium. Host and creator of The Slam Show, Sam Maxion is a handsome and very fit gentleman who could quite easily be mistaken for an action hero in one of director Michael Bay's epic films. He is affable, gracious and is also a talented D.J. who can regularly be seen mixing music in the club known as "Redux" in the San Francisco suburban city known as Walnut Creek on any given Thursday.
Maxion unvieled the origin of his show, "The Slam Show wasn't The Slam Show right away! It began as a podcast back in 2009 for gamers on Xbox 360 and PS3. It evolved into a more entertainment based podcast. The idea of making into a visual show arrived at the beginning of 2011. Since then it has been one of the more higher rated shows on USTREAM and ITunes."
It is always a challenge to form an opinion of a show if an individual just listens and views it once. Analyzing the show over several viewings the first thought that creeps into one's mind is the wonderfully cohesive nature of the interplay between host Sam and his partners in crime, LadySage, Pistol Pete and D.J. Stallion. Sam comments, "the idea of the show is to make sure that a lot of the topics and discussions are transparent. We do have some guidelines, but that is more for timeline purposes. For the most part it is to enable us to discuss things on a general level, make some verbal mistakes, but at the same time we know that it is a pathway to the show." Maxion adds, "it is not a free-for-all or else we would have a bunch of outlandish and outrageous stuff that would lead to no where! It stray from this topic to that topic-we can't have that because our audience wants to see something there."
Sam had invited me to be a guest on his show and I accepted his gracious invitation. I have been in several radio and television station studios in the past and was immediately impressed by Sam's clever and very professional studio. The studio's layout is reflective of Sam's experience as a professional radio station D.J. among many hats he has and still wears. Slammin' Sam recalls, "without dating myself-I did a lot of work over at a San Francisco station called Wild 107 which is now 94.9. From those early beginnings I started to be involved with their mix shows which involves weekend work putting together these shows based on music being mixed." Sam demonstrates another facet of his personality with his generous comments about inspiration. He clarifies, "Cameron Paul was a big inspiration for me as a disk jockey. Without his inspiration, I probably would never have gotten my real start into moving into radio! He was genuine, he was real about his intentions for putting out good music and mixes. I patterned myself after him."
The Slam Show is a two hour video podcast where Sam and the rest of his fellow commentators discuss the most relevant topics happening in the entertainment industry, gaming, sports and dining. Guests invited to his show are encouraged to join in the banter and the atmosphere in the studio is quite entertaining and many times, reverent towards the featured guest. Sam's sidekicks demonstrated their amazing sense of timing and humor which complimented Maxion's professional and charismatic manner of delivery directed to the multi-camera set up in the studio. It was a unique vantage point that enabled this columnist to grasp all the elements of a successful show. It also afforded me an amazing glimpse into the future of broadcasting in the form of podcasting utilizing the internet. The internet has been accused of fracturing the viewing and listening public among many other common complaints. There is a lack of vision within that complaint that fails to take into account that the internet has allowed many ambitious individuals to move forward with their idea of what constitutes an entertaining show-talk or otherwise. As a guest on Sam's show it was inspirational to be part of this revolution in entertainment as demonstrated by Maxion and his crew. Sam effortlessly directs the show in real time as he is on the air and the internet format has allowed him to produce the show in the manner he wishes. Sam Maxion has the last word on his ambitious dreams for the future, "I want to have a million viewers, to have a facility, to be able to have a Tom Cruise or a Anne Hathaway as a guest! There is a lot of leg work and lot of effort, but that is the ultimate!" Slammin' Sam concludes, "I would like to see the show be on that Howard Stern level. I want to have those A-list level of guests. I want to have those sponsorships."
Is the use of the internet as a delivery vehicle for entertainment-the future? There can be no doubt the internet will continue to further create stars and allow more individuals to realize their dreams of entering the entertainment business. The Slam Show is a harbinger of the new state of art in the notion of broadcasting and will in turn inspire many others to dazzle future generations the way The Slam Show is currently dazzling this one.
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