Tommy Hadges ranks among the giants of the independent media consultation industry. His years of broadcasting experience comprise a rock solid track record of achievement and his work with Pollack Media Group has earned him a reputation as one of the world's leading consultants. Oddly enough, he almost bypassed the field altogether.
The oldest child of working class parents in Brockton, Massachusetts, Tommy Hadges aspired to become a dentist. And his tenacity took him as far as Harvard Dental School before he realized his heart lay elsewhere.
The electronic media seemed to hold a spell over him from the beginning, however. A member of the audio/visual set during his early school years, Hadges was always fascinated with technology and its applications. He spent countless hours taking apart and reassembling radios, televisions and other household appliances.
It was not until college, however, that he tapped into what would become his life's work. While enrolled in a pre-dental program at Tufts University, he garnered his first radio experience through one of those "coincidences" that often prove instrumental in shaping one's future. A student living in the dorm across the hall was involved in neighboring MIT's campus radio station and invited the then aspiring dentist to join in.
The two later pooled their efforts and formed an on-campus radio station at Tufts, which in turn, led to an even more rewarding opportunity. In 1968, Boston's first "alternative programming" radio station was born, and due to his notoriety on campus, Hadges was offered a lead spot on the air at radio station, WBCN.
The adventurous, eclectic spirit of the late 1960s was still very much alive at WBCN and Hadges was afforded the rare opportunity of developing a highly personal approach to programming while working there. He still recalls that first professional experience with fondness.
However, in 1969, some personal decision-making still stood between Hadges and his chosen career. After graduating Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Tufts, he enrolled in the Harvard School of Dentistry. For 18 months a determined Hadges studied alongside Harvard medical students, but when the practical dental training began, he realized his calling lay in radio rather than oral surgery.
Looking back on that period, Hadges credits the Beatles as perhaps his most powerful influence. "They epitomized the kind of incredible impact that music could have on a generation," he explains, "and they utilized the medium in a way that I don't think had ever been done before."
In 1977 Hadges was promoted to program director at WBCN which was followed by a PD position at Boston' rock station WCOZ. While WBCN had been a fertile training ground for him creatively, Hadges received his formal initiation into the business of commercial radio at WCOZ, owned by Blair Radio.
After two years he took a position with Los Angeles' ABC owned album oriented rock station, KLOS. He spent five years with the station and, in the process, doubled its ratings. It was here that he met Jeff Pollack. Pollack was then consultant to ABC, and after working closely with him as a client, offered Hadges a position in his camp.
Tommy Hadges' years with Pollack Media Group have been marked by major successes around the world. In 1985, Tommy was Coordinating Producer and on-air talent for the Live Aid Concert broadcast, as well as serving as Coordinating Producer for the Live 8 Concerts in 2005. He served as Executive Producer of the Worldwide Radio Broadcast of the Live Earth Concerts in 2007. Tommy brings to the firm not only his years of format programming expertise, but also a technical skill that has proven invaluable in counseling station engineers.
On a personal note, the media expert spends his spare time jogging the roads near his Santa Monica home. And, while a portable computer is his constant companion, Tommy Hadges appreciates the value of leisure. When he does relax, it is usually in front of one of the many television sets that decorate his house. His personal collection of TVs ranges all the way from a 60" wide screen to a 2" Casio portable and rarely is he found at home without one of them turned on.
Entranced by the medium ever since the first black and white set rolled into his parents' living room, Hadges readily admits the impact television had upon him as a child. From Dave Garroway's, "Wide, Wide World" to the zany antics of comic, Ernie Kovacs, Hadges delighted in the entire experience. The proverbial channel switcher, he presently enjoys any and all innovative uses of the medium. And, not surprisingly, this personal interest has carried over into his professional endeavors.
Tommy Hadges' fascination with the medium has taken the form of Pollack Group television involvement in the U.S. and Switzerland. And he hopes to one day revolutionize the industry. "Television is going to have to diversify and expand its base of appeal to reach out to specific groups," he predicts, "and we look forward to participating in that process."
Sharp witted and cerebral, Tommy Hadges communicates ideas faster than the average person can digest them. He prefers to skim through numerous publications rather than sit down to absorb a lengthy novel. And, as world travel seems to be an occupational hazard ("I'm now an expert on any frequent flyer program there is."), Hadges has taken to visiting the corners of the earth for recreation. He has made trips to the Far East, including China and Japan, and Scandinavia as well as visiting relatives in the isolated European country of Albania.
With his years of radio experience and his fascination with all aspects of the media, Tommy Hadges has contributed greatly in making Pollack Media Group the largest international consultant in operation. "The station that touches the audience," he affirms, "the station that is a friend, is the one that is going to be embraced. And that's the one that will win the ratings game." And that is the perception that has made Tommy Hadges one of the most successful media consultants in the industry.
