Stunting (broadcasting) (fictional)

Stunting is a practice in radio broadcasting, which occurs when a station begins, abruptly and without advance announcement, to air content that is seemingly uncharacteristic compared to what they normally play. The tactic is most commonly used when a station is about to undergo a major change, such as a change in format, branding, frequency, ownership or management, or occasionally as a simple prank on listeners and rival broadcasters. Either way, stunting is intended as a publicity stunt to generate a greater amount of media publicity and audience attention, by virtue of its shock value, than a straightforward format change could provide. Depending on the station's situation and its management's preference, stunt formats can last anywhere from a few minutes to several weeks before the permanent change is launched.

To a lesser extent, stunting has also been seen on television, most commonly in conjunction with April Fool's Day.

Continuous loop
A station may stunt by repeating the same song or songs over and over on a continuous loop:
 * From February 23-27, 2020, WJES-FM/ aired the entirety of Stryper's To Hell with the Devil album on a loop to poke fun at the K-Love network for it's owners' takeover of fellow rock radio station WAAF-FM (which became WKVB-FM).
 * In March 2020, conservative talk station KDRC-FM/ began stunting with a loop of R.E.M.'s song "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)", interspersed with comedic segments such as "Washing Your Hands for Dummies" and "How to Survive a Pandemic" to poke fun at the coronavirus pandemic.

Temporary formats
Occasionally a station dropping an old format will stunt with a transitional format, either containing clues and previews relating to the new format (such as songs referencing its new branding, and artists who may be included in the eventual format), or having little to do with it. This can include songs based on specific themes (such as a single musician), or novelties that would not be viable as a permanent format.
 * RKO Radio has occasionally used a format branded as RKO Radio Now as a transitional format for stations they have bought or are re-branding:
 * In 2014, WWPA-FM/, WRKO-FM/, and KIMR/ were purchased by RKO Radio, which returned WRKO-FM to RKO's ownership after nearly a decade. WWPA-FM and WRKO-FM transitioned from Regional Mexican and CHR respectively to hot talk as 91.5 The Cave and Chupacabra 102.3 respectively, while KIMR transitioned from to active rock as Shreddin' 101.5. As a transitional format, all three stations aired the RKO Radio Now format, this time featuring adult hits music interspersed with news, traffic, and weather updates for the three cities courtesy of the staff of RKO Radio's primary base station, KHTX-FM/.
 * Multiple stations have stunted with Chinese music under the branding Kung Pao, such as XHRKO-FM/- (which led into a flip to active rock as 90.5 The Blaster), KRAK-FM/ (which led into it's relaunch as hot talk station WUDD-FM, aka SHOUT! 104.1), and WTFS-FM/- (which led into a flip from Top 40 CHR to classic rock)

Christmas music
The popular practice of radio stations playing all-Christmas music during the lead-up to (and occasionally the week after) Christmas Day has sometimes been used as a transitional period between formats. Sometimes, Christmas music is used as a more blatant stunt format outside of the holiday season.
 * In November 2016, sold WEEK-FM/- to Interstate Broadcasting, Inc. On November 20, the day the sale was completed, WEEK-FM abruptly switched from it's AMP Radio Top 40 CHR format to Ho! Ho! 98.3 for the holiday season. The all-Christmas music format lasted until the morning of December 25, when the station relaunched under the  franchise as 98.3 Jack FM Omaha.

Sound effects
In a prelude to a format flip, a series of audio clips and sound effects centered around a certain theme may be played. Known as a sound collage, the theme under which these bits of audio fall may or may not have something to do with the previous or new format.
 * A common stunting collage consists of construction site noises (sawing, hammering, etc.), signaling the building of a new station; examples include WJES-FM/ (which transitioned from to active rock as 106.1 The Bomb in August 2018), WFAB-FM/ (which transitioned from conservative talk to rhythmic adult contemporary as Magik 88.9), and WUFW-FM/ (which transitioned from Regional Mexican to RKO Radio's KidzPlace network).

On television
In March 2020, ESPN El Kadsre began airing a non-stop marathon of sports movies and the animated TV series Hurricanes due to the cancellation of all live sporting events caused by the coronavirus pandemic. At the same time, ESPN2 El Kadsre began a non-stop run of the "ESPN8 - The Ocho" format, a homage to the sports comedy DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story, to entertain sports fans disappointed by the cancellations, with ESPN2 (as "ESPN8") airing events that were "almost a sport" including, but not limited to: chess boxing, roller derby, Gaelic games, table tennis, pickleball, sack races, sambo, competitive cheerleading, demolition derbies, the Tough Guy Competition, dodgeball, lawn mower racing, khuresh, runnings of the bulls, Little League baseball, beauty pageants, and karaoke contests.