Media Programming Directors
Arts, Audio/Video Technology and CommunicationsO*NET 27-2012.03United States
Direct and coordinate activities of personnel engaged in preparation of radio or television station program schedules and programs, such as sports or news.
- Median annual earnings
- $85,168
- Projected change
- +9.4%
- Typical education
- Bachelor's degree
- Employment
- 178.94K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
52% of the workforce
Growing to 195.79K by 2035
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These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.
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The work
What media programming directors do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Operate and maintain on-air and production audio equipment.
- Check completed program logs for accuracy and conformance with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules and regulations and resolve program log inaccuracies.
- Read news, read or record public service and promotional announcements, or perform other on-air duties.
- Monitor and review programming to ensure that schedules are met, guidelines are adhered to, and performances are of adequate quality.
- Direct and coordinate activities of personnel engaged in broadcast news, sports, or programming.
- Prepare copy and edit tape so that material is ready for broadcasting.
- Coordinate activities between departments, such as news and programming.
- Establish work schedules and assign work to staff members.
- Perform personnel duties, such as hiring staff and evaluating work performance.
- Develop promotions for current programs and specials.
- Plan and schedule programming and event coverage, based on broadcast length, time availability, and other factors, such as community needs, ratings data, and viewer demographics.
- Monitor network transmissions for advisories concerning daily program schedules, program content, special feeds, or program changes.
- Develop ideas for programs and features that a station could produce.
- Evaluate new and existing programming to assess suitability and the need for changes, using information such as audience surveys and feedback.
- Select, acquire, and maintain programs, music, films, and other needed materials and obtain legal clearances for their use as necessary.
- Conduct interviews for broadcasts.
- Confer with directors and production staff to discuss issues, such as production and casting problems, budgets, policies, and news coverage.
- Review information about programs and schedules to ensure accuracy and provide such information to local media outlets.
- Direct setup of remote facilities and install or cancel programs at remote stations.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $39,558
- 25th percentile
- $56,946
- 50th percentile
- $85,168
- 75th percentile
- $129,016
- 90th percentile
- $203,863
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $85,168 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+9.4%faster than average
2025178,939 jobs
2035 projected195,786 jobs
16,847 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- Bachelor's degree
- 52%
- High school diploma or less
- 31.2%
- Some college
- 15%
- Associate degree
- 1.8%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Negotiation
- Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
- Systems Evaluation
- Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
- Systems Analysis
- Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Operations Analysis
- Analyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.
- Learning Strategies
- Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Newscast Directors188 postings
- 02Directors of Paid Media115 postings
- 03Directors of Media111 postings
- 04Associate Media Directors57 postings
- 05Media Managers54 postings
- 06Paid Media Managers53 postings
- 07Dialer Managers40 postings
- 08Medical Directors39 postings
- 09Associate Directors21 postings
- 10Directors of Media Relations20 postings
- 11E-Commerce Managers18 postings
- 12Broadcast Directors17 postings
- 13Directors of Broadcast Production14 postings
- 14Directors of Trading13 postings
- 15Integrated Media Managers13 postings
- 16Media Relations Managers13 postings
- 17Performance Directors12 postings
- 18Directors of Integrated Media11 postings
- 19Programmatic Managers11 postings
- 20Retail Managers11 postings
Top employers
- 01Publicis Groupe48 postings
- 02Sinclair Broadcast Group36 postings
- 03Directive30 postings
- 04ClearChoice Dental Implant Centers27 postings
- 05Acosta Group21 postings
- 06Nexstar Media Group19 postings
- 07Vml16 postings
- 08Fox News Network15 postings
- 09Robert Half15 postings
- 10ChurchStaffing14 postings
- 11The Coca-Cola Company14 postings
- 12Lucas James Talent Partners13 postings
- 13inVentiv Health11 postings
- 14Syneos Health10 postings
- 1524 Seven9 postings
- 16Dentsu9 postings
- 17Weber Shandwick8 postings
- 18Weisscomm Group8 postings
- 19AIG7 postings
- 20Graymedia6 postings
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