Bill Gavin, a radio program consultant in San Francisco, hoped to provide an information service to radio program managers and disc jockeys to aid them in their programming. His Gavin Reports provided a means for broadcasters to exchange information on the latest regional trends in music. The reports were based on telephone and mail reports of subscribers plus supplementary information obtained from listening audiences, distributors, and record sales reports. A final bi-weekly report, in addition to a weekly summary, listed the relative programming value of current records. (The reports were not concerned with the records' comparative national sales.)
Although their format changed through the years, the reports' essential elements remained: a recommended playlist; lists and evaluations of top, new record prospects; notes on personnel changes and general news of local radio stations and disc jockeys; and Gavin's comments on radio programming and the music industry. The reports in later years became specialized as separate record listings were provided for adult, rhythm and blues (R & B), country, and top 40 stations.
