Interview: THE MELTDOWN Hopes to Reinvent Media

With traditional newspapers going out of business and more and more of our news coming to us online, the world around us seems to be getting smaller and information is coming at us faster and faster. For the three guys who make up THE MELTDOWN this is an opportunity to share information in a new and creative way.

Starting on the radio in 2012 as The Midnight Meltdown, Tim Melton, Jon Lunceford and Aaron Daniel are keen to keep up with the trends and try to reach people in several mediums all at once. But they are also trained journalists who want to buck the trend of too much unsubstantiated information bombarding the public.

Although young, these three have more experience than you would expect. Having worked in print, radio and TV before and after graduation, all three are comfortable writing, being behind the camera and in front of it, as well as producing and on air radio work. The three met while working for a local sports station and although sports was what brought them together, they are also interested in sharing their views and the news on movies, sports, video games and more.

They see themselves competing with radio as well as TV and print media by combining a radio style format with visual as well as written content. They want to take things to the next level, focusing on what people are talking about that day. With "parking lot reviews" immediately following the opening of new movies, live conversations during sports and e-sporting events, podcasts and lots of fast paced, free access, THE MELTDOWN crew sees themselves reaching the millennial generation in a way that will be in keeping with that demographics' lifestyle.

With Twitter and all of the online access to information, some organizations try to skip steps and not verify sources in order to be first with a story and it has cost them. THE MELTDOWN sees the new world as still needing to slow down enough to get the facts straight, that it is more important to be accurate than to be first. They realize that now with smart phones everyone is media and that being part of a dialogue is what news is becoming.

Bottom line, Tim, Jon and Aaron want to gain the trust of their audience. They want to share their passion for accuracy, and be respectful of the audience. They are especially sensitive to how valuable time is to any of us and their goal is to base their company around being as concise, informative and accurate as possible while still being fun and young in their approach to the world around them.

All three have seen the scores of people in their college graduating classes who are looking for work in the media. These three have been fortunate to work in markets throughout the southeast and to learn so many different aspects of the job. Tim said it best when he admitted how lucky they have been and that they have had these breaks "for a reason." Jon agreed by saying that he wants to be sure they take advantage of their good fortune and that they "do this the right way, combining the best of digital and traditional in this time of change."

While all three are still working at traditional media jobs, they use every spare moment they can to work on THE MELTDOWN website and hope that by fall of 2016, they will have a larger presence either independently or as part of an established media group. Either way, the future looks bright for THE MELTDOWN.

To see what they are working on check out this link or go to their Facebook page. You can also check out www.meltdown247.com

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