26th October 2007
Never can say goodbye
Have you noticed that on the radio very few, if any, presenters and guests say “goodbye” at the end of an interview or phone call?
More often than not they say “thank you” instead.
I was just wondering if this is conscious and deliberate.
Posted by Nic Price at 4:36 pm on 26th October 2007
Subscribe with a reader
I would say (as a radio presenter) deliberate. Although after a while it becomes habit forming. Radio is a conversation and saying goodbye sounds a bit formal and final.
It puts full stops in the flow of the program.
I don’t want my listener to take the cue and go too!
I’m much more likely to thank someone or comment on their final point and move on rather than say goodbye.
Cellobella, thanks. I wondered if there might be a psychological reason like that. It makes sense. Giving some continuity and not having listeners think it’s the end for them too.
I guess it’s more noticable on the radio because our relationship is more one to one than television.
ha! little off the topic but heh… this reminds me of a trick my brothers have started doing on me …they both live in the country, we talk on the phone about once a week - quite often they’re driving home together so onto speaker I go … they’ve started saying “ok” at the end of the conversation as a way of saying “bye”, but what it does is creates a reciprocal “ok” …so we end up spending minutes saying “ok” to each other before one of us hangs up - laughing usually.
perhaps an australian thing?
Ali, maybe radio presenters could give it a go and see what happens.
Any takers? Cellobella?
:-)
Hmmm… I’ll think about it…
ok.
Touché :-)