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Today I read that veteran BBC Radio 2 DJ, Johnnie Walker, announced on-the-air that he has cancer and is about to begin treatment.

Johnnie Walker has been a familiar Radio voice in Great Britain since 1969. Except for a short stint in the United States in the mid 1970s, he has spent most of his career on the British airwaves including the legendary pirate Radio station, "Radio Caroline", BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 2.

Walker, who is 58, has about 5 million listeners.

Being a great Radio personality today requires something that wasn't expected forty or fifty years ago: realism. When Radio was mostly comprised of DJs talking with put-on voices and fake names, nobody expected much except for the time, temperature and the hits.

But, Radio has grown and evolved and the personalities people care about the most are also the ones who take the highest risks.

This usually requires honesty and realism about themselves that is not always easy to divulge.

It's hard having to face personal problems, fears and doubts. It's even harder putting yourself on display and allowing the world to breathe down your neck while knowing your most private business.

I'm sure when Walker confided in his audience earlier this week about the medical threat he is now facing, it was both difficult and easy at the same time. How can that be, you ask?

Well, sharing your worst news takes strength. But, listeners appreciate honesty in their Radio people and Radio people appreciate the humanity in their listeners.

Intimacy is - and always has been - the secret of great Radio and great Radio personalities. We wish you well, Johnnie!

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