Stunting (broadcasting)
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Stunting in radio broadcasting occurs when a radio station abruptly begins broadcasting seemingly uncharacteristic programming or making grandiose claims regarding itself or its competitors to generate attention or word of mouth. This sort of staging is temporary and often used when a station is permanently changing format and call letters, is moving to an entirely different position on the dial, or changes ownership.
An example of stunting might be when a radio station begins playing the same song or artist repeatedly, but will ultimately move to a common programming format. Another example of stunting might be when a radio station begins airing outrageous (and generally false) claims regarding another radio station (such as that station may be "leaving the air") in an attempt to shift listener focus toward itself.
One of the earliest radio stunts was when on March 15, 1975, WCFL Chicago aired two hours of ocean wave sounds between 5pm and 7pm local time, and switched from rock music to beautiful music. An even earlier stunt was when XEAK (now XETRA) played the same song, "Mope-itty Mope" by The Bosstones, for 72 hours straight in 1961 [1].
