The most head-turning midday personality in your market today may not be on the radio. Instead, you might find them on YouTube, iTunes, or another popular audio/video on-demand site.

In fact equal-opportunity stages like the above-mentioned sites have made stars out of so many living room dwellers, that it’s a wonder Program Directors aren’t scouting for talent online.

By the time you’re done reading this article, 4.8 million people will view videos on YouTube. That’s 11,574 views per second. And, they may be taking TSL away from YOU! Neilsen recently reported that over 65% of online videos are viewed between 9am-5pm—the majority happening between 12pm-2pm.

“We try to do videos about things that people are talking about,” says Ben Relles, the founder of popular YouTube channel Barely Political. His strategy has worked too—attracting over 255 million views in the last three years. Relles and a team of five people work together to produce one or two videos per week with each video taking about two days to produce. One of their most popular videos was the “Obama Girl” music video (remember… “I got a crush on Obama?”).

Barely Political is just one of many YouTube channels attracting millions of viewers annually—some rivaling the reach of major media outlets.

In Dallas, Carrrlita27, a tenth grader, has attracted over 10 million viewers—so many that she was invited by YouTube to join their Partner Program. Now, she earns money for the viewers she brings to the site with her after-school antics.

Other YouTube sensations include JamesNintendoNerd, who has attracted over 142 million views and over 401,000 subscribers. (That’s more followers than most radio stations have names in their e-mail databases!) See his work at JamesNintendoNerd.. With over 66 million viewers to-date, HappySlip is also paid by YouTube for their abundant viewership.

The on-demand audio world has also drawn millions. While most of the popular podcasts are produced by professionals like CBS News, CNN, NPR, and BBC, the list of most popular podcasts on iTunes is also peppered with un-broadcasters like Leo Laporte (This Week in Tech), Jay Liebenguth (Live with Jay), and Jesse Thorn/Jordan Morris (Jordan, Jesse GO!).

The moral of the story: Creative people don’t need tall towers anymore to get an audience. They need a $50 camera/microphone and an internet connection!

The opportunity for radio: What better place to find new talent than to hire online entrepreneurs—people who have so much to say that they created their own stage! People like this are deserving of an interview when PD’s are looking for new talent. You may just find your next big star on iTunes.

At the least, they are examples of what radio talent should aspire to be when they’re not back-announcing songs. If you are a creative personality, what are you doing when you’re off the air? Get yourself a Flip Video Cam and start a YouTube Channel. Or, buy yourself an inexpensive USB microphone, and start a podcast.

In the coming weeks, I’ll be introducing you to some of the most interesting online personalities. Keep an eye on the FUTURE FACES portion of the weekly newsletter Radio3D for insight into the minds of the media’s future stars!

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