There won't be a big production number about it, because Clear Channel talk WTAM/1100 Cleveland doesn't carry full-length network newscasts...but it appears they've turned the corner with FOX News Radio.
In the past day or two, OMW has heard WTAM using only FNR wraps in their locally-produced newscasts. WTAM has also used FOX reporters for morning drive live hits, though that's been going on for a while (and they've also used ABC reporters in the mix).
(UPDATE: Sunday afternoon, we did hear an ABC wrap in a WTAM local newscast.)
Unlike CC sister talk station WHLO/640 Akron, you may never know when ABC is "gone for good" at WTAM. The end of the contract with ABC will solely involve WTAM not playing ABC network spots, and they can add FNR before losing ABC.
WHLO's transition will be more abrupt, as you'll hear it - sometime in the coming couple of weeks - start running FNR's new top of the hour newscast instead of ABC's Information Network cast. Then, ABC's product will show up on talk WNIR/100.1, as reported earlier here on OMW. We hear ABC will consider WNIR the "Cleveland market" Information Network clearance, as no other Cleveland station will pick up that "main" feed. There's really no home for it, with no other major news/talkers in the Cleveland market, and Salem's talk WHK/1420 (or sports WKNR/850) certainly isn't going to pick up the ABC Information Network feed.
One note: As far as we know, WTAM will continue to run veteran commentator Paul Harvey, even after losing the ABC News product. And no, it's not true that they'll hang onto Paul Harvey because Triv demanded the extra 5 minutes rest at the beginning of his show. (It's a joke, folks...)
As reported earlier on OMW, WHLO liberal talk sister WARF/1350 Akron "Radio Free Ohio" will hang onto an ABC newscast after the change, though not the same one they're running now...the Information cast, in tandem with WHLO. In fact, aside from the sounders in the automation computer, WHLO and WARF pretty much simulcast every hour for the first 5 minutes or so...something which will change when the network newscasts change.
Sunday, July 31, 2005
Friday, July 29, 2005
Dr. Laura's Fall From Grace In Northern Ohio Is Complete
500 watt Canton religious/talk WCER/900 is now syndicated advice talk host Dr. Laura Schlessinger's only Northern Ohio affiliate.
OMW doesn't know when it happened, but Dr. Laura's last Clear Channel affiliate in the region, talk WMAN/1400 Mansfield, replaced her with a delayed airing of her affiliation nemesis, Glenn Beck. WMAN's website schedule now shows Beck running 3-5 PM and 6-7 PM, with an hour local news block filling the gap. Dr. Laura has been pushed off the WMAN schedule entirely, and doesn't even air in nights or weekends.
We know it must have been a recent change, as Dr. Laura's own Ohio affiliate list, which does list WCER, also still lists WMAN carrying the show 3-6 PM weekdays. The list also has another glaring inaccuracy - Clear Channel's WKRC/550 Cincinnati no longer carries the show. And WMAN's carriage of the Glenn Beck show is in their affiliate list, in smaller, recently added print.
In 2000, Dr. Laura was riding high in Northeast Ohio. Her show aired weekdays 9-11:30 AM on Clear Channel talk powerhouse WTAM/1100 Cleveland, and many other Clear Channel stations in Ohio and beyond.
In late 2001, Dr. Laura was pushed off the WTAM lineup for a fellow Premiere syndicated host, Glenn Beck...who himself was replaced on WTAM recently.
She rebounded, landing on new Clear Channel talker WHLO/640 Akron in its midday slot. WHLO recently dumped her, first for TRN's Laura Ingraham, then to pick up Beck when WTAM dropped him. CC's WKBN/Youngstown also no longer carries Dr. Laura.
Our only surprise at OMW - why Salem's secular talkers, like WHK/1420 Cleveland, haven't made room for Dr. Laura on their schedules. Salem does run her in Pittsburgh and New York City, but on otherwise religious stations. Perhaps there'd be room for her on Salem religious WKHW/1220?
Her departure from many Clear Channel stations, first fueled by Glenn Beck's then-new national show, has been set on fire now that Clear Channel doesn't own the show anymore. Premiere still markets it on behalf of new owner "Take On The Day Productions". Her new Ohio affiliate list - once WMAN and WKRC are removed - has her on a small handful of very small non-Clear Channel owned stations. On the list, Canton is now her largest market in Ohio by far...not hard when the list is populated by places like Findlay, Bellfontaine and Chillicothe.
OMW doesn't know when it happened, but Dr. Laura's last Clear Channel affiliate in the region, talk WMAN/1400 Mansfield, replaced her with a delayed airing of her affiliation nemesis, Glenn Beck. WMAN's website schedule now shows Beck running 3-5 PM and 6-7 PM, with an hour local news block filling the gap. Dr. Laura has been pushed off the WMAN schedule entirely, and doesn't even air in nights or weekends.
We know it must have been a recent change, as Dr. Laura's own Ohio affiliate list, which does list WCER, also still lists WMAN carrying the show 3-6 PM weekdays. The list also has another glaring inaccuracy - Clear Channel's WKRC/550 Cincinnati no longer carries the show. And WMAN's carriage of the Glenn Beck show is in their affiliate list, in smaller, recently added print.
In 2000, Dr. Laura was riding high in Northeast Ohio. Her show aired weekdays 9-11:30 AM on Clear Channel talk powerhouse WTAM/1100 Cleveland, and many other Clear Channel stations in Ohio and beyond.
In late 2001, Dr. Laura was pushed off the WTAM lineup for a fellow Premiere syndicated host, Glenn Beck...who himself was replaced on WTAM recently.
She rebounded, landing on new Clear Channel talker WHLO/640 Akron in its midday slot. WHLO recently dumped her, first for TRN's Laura Ingraham, then to pick up Beck when WTAM dropped him. CC's WKBN/Youngstown also no longer carries Dr. Laura.
Our only surprise at OMW - why Salem's secular talkers, like WHK/1420 Cleveland, haven't made room for Dr. Laura on their schedules. Salem does run her in Pittsburgh and New York City, but on otherwise religious stations. Perhaps there'd be room for her on Salem religious WKHW/1220?
Her departure from many Clear Channel stations, first fueled by Glenn Beck's then-new national show, has been set on fire now that Clear Channel doesn't own the show anymore. Premiere still markets it on behalf of new owner "Take On The Day Productions". Her new Ohio affiliate list - once WMAN and WKRC are removed - has her on a small handful of very small non-Clear Channel owned stations. On the list, Canton is now her largest market in Ohio by far...not hard when the list is populated by places like Findlay, Bellfontaine and Chillicothe.
Thursday, July 28, 2005
Jerry? Jerry? Jerry?
The recently-released ratings contain the first measure of WTAM/1100's experiment: replacing conservative Premiere syndicated talker Glenn Beck with liberal syndicated talker Jerry Springer, a Clear Channel product out of WCKY/1530 Cincinnati. (Springer is also heard on the Air America liberal talk network, but WTAM's carriage of the show is not tied into AAR.)
If you believe numbers reportedly given out by Beck on his show recently, the news isn't good for Jerry. OMW hears Beck told an area listener that Springer's show has roughly a third of the ratings Beck enjoyed on the Cleveland talk powerhouse. Beck also noted something we alluded to in the 12-plus number breakdown earlier on the blog - his presence on Akron CC talker WHLO/640 has helped bring that station into the Cleveland ratings book for the first time in ages.
OMW would like to remind various radio observers that Rome wasn't built in a day (no, not Jim Rome), and that one book does not a trend make.
You could almost consider the Beck-for-Springer trade a three hour format change for WTAM. Though both do talk radio shows, the audiences are not at all compatible. There's always a cross-section of people who "tune in to hear what the other side says", but it's no surprise that Springer's first book features an apparent 2/3rds drop in the audience. The challenge for WTAM - build back up from there. If anyone in the market can pull it off, it's WTAM, which is a powerhouse 50,000 watt talk station that regularly scores in the ratings. (In other words, it can lose that much audience in one time slot without falling off the map, and no other AM in the market can.)
The problem here, in OMW's humble opinion, is that Springer is not all that good of a host. He's not awful, but he's not all that great. Skills-wise, he pales in comparison to Beck, putting ideology aside...even after improving somewhat from a very rocky start. Meanwhile, anyone in Northeast Ohio in the mood for liberal talk in the 9-noon slot has an alternative: Democracy/Jones' Stephanie Miller on Akron's WARF/1350 "Radio Free Ohio". Stephanie's show is more humor-oriented, but her radio skills - she is a veteran of the Los Angeles market - run rings around Springer. And, unlike "Jerry"...she's not doing her show as a springboard to a future political race...
Of course, though it puts a decent signal into much of greater Cleveland, WARF is not a Cleveland market station, and it's certainly not nearly the signal equivalent of WTAM. But in listening to Stephanie's show on and off the past few weeks, we'd guess that the folks at CC's Akron/Canton HQ on Freedom Avenue have to be happy to hear a lot of Akron and Cleveland area callers...
If you believe numbers reportedly given out by Beck on his show recently, the news isn't good for Jerry. OMW hears Beck told an area listener that Springer's show has roughly a third of the ratings Beck enjoyed on the Cleveland talk powerhouse. Beck also noted something we alluded to in the 12-plus number breakdown earlier on the blog - his presence on Akron CC talker WHLO/640 has helped bring that station into the Cleveland ratings book for the first time in ages.
OMW would like to remind various radio observers that Rome wasn't built in a day (no, not Jim Rome), and that one book does not a trend make.
You could almost consider the Beck-for-Springer trade a three hour format change for WTAM. Though both do talk radio shows, the audiences are not at all compatible. There's always a cross-section of people who "tune in to hear what the other side says", but it's no surprise that Springer's first book features an apparent 2/3rds drop in the audience. The challenge for WTAM - build back up from there. If anyone in the market can pull it off, it's WTAM, which is a powerhouse 50,000 watt talk station that regularly scores in the ratings. (In other words, it can lose that much audience in one time slot without falling off the map, and no other AM in the market can.)
The problem here, in OMW's humble opinion, is that Springer is not all that good of a host. He's not awful, but he's not all that great. Skills-wise, he pales in comparison to Beck, putting ideology aside...even after improving somewhat from a very rocky start. Meanwhile, anyone in Northeast Ohio in the mood for liberal talk in the 9-noon slot has an alternative: Democracy/Jones' Stephanie Miller on Akron's WARF/1350 "Radio Free Ohio". Stephanie's show is more humor-oriented, but her radio skills - she is a veteran of the Los Angeles market - run rings around Springer. And, unlike "Jerry"...she's not doing her show as a springboard to a future political race...
Of course, though it puts a decent signal into much of greater Cleveland, WARF is not a Cleveland market station, and it's certainly not nearly the signal equivalent of WTAM. But in listening to Stephanie's show on and off the past few weeks, we'd guess that the folks at CC's Akron/Canton HQ on Freedom Avenue have to be happy to hear a lot of Akron and Cleveland area callers...
There's A Baseball Game Going On?
There's been a lot of chatter recently about Salem sports WKNR/850 Cleveland's behavior during daytime Cleveland Indians games. The behavior - basically - is that the market's only full-time sports talk station acts like the Tribe doesn't exist while they're playing during the day.
'KNR's sports update anchors are apparently not giving the Indians score while they're still on the field, and its sports talkers aren't talking Tribe while the team is playing. This only happens when the Indians play before 7 PM weekdays, as WKNR has no regularly scheduled local sportscasts after 7.
Why would the market's only full-time sports talker ignore the game that's going on?
Well, one would presume that they fear people hearing about a good game, and flipping the dial to the station's chief competitor, Clear Channel talker WTAM/1100, to actually listen to Tom Hamilton, Matt Underwood and Mike Hegan call the game on the team's flagship station.
Some have suggested that legalities force WKNR to ignore the Indians during day games. That can't possibly be the case. The only legal hot water would involve WKNR's anchors or hosts doing impromptu play-by-play of the game while it's going on, which would be a definite no-no.
But there's no legal prohibition against station sports news anchors, or hosts, simply giving the game score.
Our suggested happy medium: Have the anchors briefly give the score, but not dwell on it, and use the score as a way to promote the station's "Tenth Inning" show with Bob Karlovic. ("Tribe 4, A's 2 in the 8th, and a reminder, talk about the game with WKNR's Bob Karlovic and the 'Tenth Inning' show...") We also don't expect WKNR afternoon host Kenny Roda to get on and say "hey, there's a great Indians game going on now!", but general talk about the team (not in the context of the current game) shouldn't be verboten.
Of course, OMW and others have suggested that WKNR program director Michael Luczak actually use an out-of-station voice for 'KNR's imaging, but he continues to voice the imaging pieces himself. So much for being an armchair PD, eh?
'KNR's sports update anchors are apparently not giving the Indians score while they're still on the field, and its sports talkers aren't talking Tribe while the team is playing. This only happens when the Indians play before 7 PM weekdays, as WKNR has no regularly scheduled local sportscasts after 7.
Why would the market's only full-time sports talker ignore the game that's going on?
Well, one would presume that they fear people hearing about a good game, and flipping the dial to the station's chief competitor, Clear Channel talker WTAM/1100, to actually listen to Tom Hamilton, Matt Underwood and Mike Hegan call the game on the team's flagship station.
Some have suggested that legalities force WKNR to ignore the Indians during day games. That can't possibly be the case. The only legal hot water would involve WKNR's anchors or hosts doing impromptu play-by-play of the game while it's going on, which would be a definite no-no.
But there's no legal prohibition against station sports news anchors, or hosts, simply giving the game score.
Our suggested happy medium: Have the anchors briefly give the score, but not dwell on it, and use the score as a way to promote the station's "Tenth Inning" show with Bob Karlovic. ("Tribe 4, A's 2 in the 8th, and a reminder, talk about the game with WKNR's Bob Karlovic and the 'Tenth Inning' show...") We also don't expect WKNR afternoon host Kenny Roda to get on and say "hey, there's a great Indians game going on now!", but general talk about the team (not in the context of the current game) shouldn't be verboten.
Of course, OMW and others have suggested that WKNR program director Michael Luczak actually use an out-of-station voice for 'KNR's imaging, but he continues to voice the imaging pieces himself. So much for being an armchair PD, eh?
That Long-Delayed Ratings Post
Here at the OMW World Headquarters, we actually went through the recently released Cleveland and Akron market ratings late last week, and had already outlined the highlights of what we wanted to touch on. But trying to divine anything from "vanity" 12-plus numbers often leads to disaster and blanket statements that are not held up by in-demo numbers, so we've held off, until now. The below covers some of the "highlights", and not all stations are mentioned. We'll focus mainly on stations with decent gains or significant losses, or which have made recent changes.
CLEVELAND
* Spring 2005 was good to Clear Channel country WGAR/99.5, which moves to a tie for first place with sister news/talk WTAM/1100. Though the Indians' play has been somewhat erratic as late, the Tribe always helps WTAM's spring and summer numbers.
* Infinity AC WDOK/102.1 slips a little, but still lands in fourth place in the vanity numbers.
* Infinity classic rock/Stern affiliate WNCX/98.5 moves up to sixth place. It's hard to tell from one up book (and without in-demo numbers) if 'NCX would be saved from a rumored restructuring after Howard signs off from his terrestrial radio career.
* Clear Channel Akron talker WHLO/640 shows up in the Cleveland book for the first time in a long time, with a typical out-of-town station number. It's, as far as we know, WHLO's first appearance in the Cleveland book as a talker, and probably dating back many, many years. Our semi-educated guess - Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity fans in WHLO's more favorable signal areas are finding the station in droves.
* In the "where did the books land" department: Lorain County. Classic country WOBL/1320 Oberlin, which basically doesn't make it out of the county, shows up.
AKRON
* Rubber City country WQMX/94.9 puts up a strong first place showing. Welcome to the Spring of Country, 2005, in Northeast Ohio!
* MediaCom talk WNIR/100.1 is off some, but still in its usual ratings range and still in second place in the market. 'NIR historically bounces between first and fifth place.
* Rubber City rock WONE/97.5 provides more reason for the folks at the Akron Radio Center to celebrate, with a nice jump up to fourth place in the Akron book.
* As in Cleveland, Infinity AC WDOK/102.1 is off, but still in a relatively high position (5th).
* Clear Channel Cleveland rocker WMMS/100.7 is back to more usual Akron numbers from a down Winter 2005 book. It's tied with steady sister Akron market Hot AC WKDD/98.1 in eighth place.
* Clear Channel Cleveland CHR WAKS/96.5 and Salem CCM WFHM/95.5 are both down around a point.
* In the news/talk division of Clear Channel's Akron cluster, WHLO/640 saw no change. WARF/1350 is down to its historic levels as a sports talker, but OMW has no idea how much of the liberal talk format is covered in this book. 1350 dumped Fox Sports Radio for liberal talk in late May.
OMW's new policy is not to cover the ratings released in the Canton or Youngstown/Warren markets, as they are not continuously measured...and "standard" markets can swing wildly in between their only two books a year.
CLEVELAND
* Spring 2005 was good to Clear Channel country WGAR/99.5, which moves to a tie for first place with sister news/talk WTAM/1100. Though the Indians' play has been somewhat erratic as late, the Tribe always helps WTAM's spring and summer numbers.
* Infinity AC WDOK/102.1 slips a little, but still lands in fourth place in the vanity numbers.
* Infinity classic rock/Stern affiliate WNCX/98.5 moves up to sixth place. It's hard to tell from one up book (and without in-demo numbers) if 'NCX would be saved from a rumored restructuring after Howard signs off from his terrestrial radio career.
* Clear Channel Akron talker WHLO/640 shows up in the Cleveland book for the first time in a long time, with a typical out-of-town station number. It's, as far as we know, WHLO's first appearance in the Cleveland book as a talker, and probably dating back many, many years. Our semi-educated guess - Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity fans in WHLO's more favorable signal areas are finding the station in droves.
* In the "where did the books land" department: Lorain County. Classic country WOBL/1320 Oberlin, which basically doesn't make it out of the county, shows up.
AKRON
* Rubber City country WQMX/94.9 puts up a strong first place showing. Welcome to the Spring of Country, 2005, in Northeast Ohio!
* MediaCom talk WNIR/100.1 is off some, but still in its usual ratings range and still in second place in the market. 'NIR historically bounces between first and fifth place.
* Rubber City rock WONE/97.5 provides more reason for the folks at the Akron Radio Center to celebrate, with a nice jump up to fourth place in the Akron book.
* As in Cleveland, Infinity AC WDOK/102.1 is off, but still in a relatively high position (5th).
* Clear Channel Cleveland rocker WMMS/100.7 is back to more usual Akron numbers from a down Winter 2005 book. It's tied with steady sister Akron market Hot AC WKDD/98.1 in eighth place.
* Clear Channel Cleveland CHR WAKS/96.5 and Salem CCM WFHM/95.5 are both down around a point.
* In the news/talk division of Clear Channel's Akron cluster, WHLO/640 saw no change. WARF/1350 is down to its historic levels as a sports talker, but OMW has no idea how much of the liberal talk format is covered in this book. 1350 dumped Fox Sports Radio for liberal talk in late May.
OMW's new policy is not to cover the ratings released in the Canton or Youngstown/Warren markets, as they are not continuously measured...and "standard" markets can swing wildly in between their only two books a year.
WCER/Canton Recasts As Secular Talker
A small item at AllAccess.com:
"Religion WCER-A/CANTON completes its transition to secular News-Talk on MONDAY (8/1) with a new local talk show with JASON BURNETTE 6-7p weekdays. OM/ND JOHN AMRHEIN tells ALL ACCESS he's also adding new imaging and more local news."
Amrhein has actually posted about the station adding more secular talk on the Radio-Info Cleveland board.
The name Jason Burnette doesn't ring any bells in the OMW World Empire, and a quick Google search on the name doesn't reveal any links to either radio or Canton. The 6-7 PM slot would clip an hour off the station's carriage of Take On the Day/Premiere syndicated talker Dr. Laura Schlessinger.
WCER recently settled on TRN's Jerry Doyle for its noon-3 slot, after a brief attempt to run the syndicator's highest profile host - Michael Savage - was nixed by Clear Channel Akron talker WHLO/640, which carries Savage live 6-9 PM weeknights, and claims Canton market rights to the show in its contract with TRN.
There's no word if the station will continue to run various religious programs and features that are still on its website schedule, particularly at night and in early morning hours.
"Religion WCER-A/CANTON completes its transition to secular News-Talk on MONDAY (8/1) with a new local talk show with JASON BURNETTE 6-7p weekdays. OM/ND JOHN AMRHEIN tells ALL ACCESS he's also adding new imaging and more local news."
Amrhein has actually posted about the station adding more secular talk on the Radio-Info Cleveland board.
The name Jason Burnette doesn't ring any bells in the OMW World Empire, and a quick Google search on the name doesn't reveal any links to either radio or Canton. The 6-7 PM slot would clip an hour off the station's carriage of Take On the Day/Premiere syndicated talker Dr. Laura Schlessinger.
WCER recently settled on TRN's Jerry Doyle for its noon-3 slot, after a brief attempt to run the syndicator's highest profile host - Michael Savage - was nixed by Clear Channel Akron talker WHLO/640, which carries Savage live 6-9 PM weeknights, and claims Canton market rights to the show in its contract with TRN.
There's no word if the station will continue to run various religious programs and features that are still on its website schedule, particularly at night and in early morning hours.
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Job Listing: WMVX/Cleveland Looking for PM Driver
It's been open for a while now, since Lee Ann Sommers scooted off to Denver, but Clear Channel Cleveland Hot AC WMVX/106.5's new PD has posted a job listing for the afternoon drive slot at "Mix 106.5".
Here it is, courtesy of the jobs section of a website anyone looking for radio work should have on their favorites list, AllAccess.com:
"Cleveland’s MIX 106.5 is looking for our next star to make PM drive sparkle. Three to five years on-air experience with contemporary formats, strong show prep skills and a proven ability to shine at appearances required. WMVX is a rock based HOT AC. Send an MP3 (please keep them short), your resume and other pertinent materials to (DonHallett at clearchannel dot com) or mail your package to my attention: WMVX, 6200 Oak Tree Boulevard, 4th Floor, Independence, Ohio 44131. No calls please."
(The E-Mail address above is modified by OMW to provide less food for spambots.)
Oh, we're still figuring out how to word that look at the ratings...without sounding too much like a soothsayer. It'll come soon.
Here it is, courtesy of the jobs section of a website anyone looking for radio work should have on their favorites list, AllAccess.com:
"Cleveland’s MIX 106.5 is looking for our next star to make PM drive sparkle. Three to five years on-air experience with contemporary formats, strong show prep skills and a proven ability to shine at appearances required. WMVX is a rock based HOT AC. Send an MP3 (please keep them short), your resume and other pertinent materials to (DonHallett at clearchannel dot com) or mail your package to my attention: WMVX, 6200 Oak Tree Boulevard, 4th Floor, Independence, Ohio 44131. No calls please."
(The E-Mail address above is modified by OMW to provide less food for spambots.)
Oh, we're still figuring out how to word that look at the ratings...without sounding too much like a soothsayer. It'll come soon.
Job Listing: WAKR/Akron Looking For Air Personality
OMW hears that Rubber City Radio standards WAKR/1590 Akron may be expanding its locally-hosted music programming, and is looking for someone that could fill a new position.
Right now, the station has a local news/information show with Ray Horner in morning drive, and mostly uses Westwood One's Adult Standards format the rest of the day. WAKR vet Bob Allen holds down afternoon drive.
The new hire would be WAKR's music director, so the station is looking for someone with Selector experience. They're also looking for experience with computer-assisted automation.
Send your T&Rs to WAKR, 1795 W. Market St., Akron, OH 44313 (Kevin Mason, operations manager).
Right now, the station has a local news/information show with Ray Horner in morning drive, and mostly uses Westwood One's Adult Standards format the rest of the day. WAKR vet Bob Allen holds down afternoon drive.
The new hire would be WAKR's music director, so the station is looking for someone with Selector experience. They're also looking for experience with computer-assisted automation.
Send your T&Rs to WAKR, 1795 W. Market St., Akron, OH 44313 (Kevin Mason, operations manager).
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Robin Swoboda Leaving 95.5 The Fish
We hinted at this earlier in OMW, when someone found a help wanted ad for a co-host of Salem Cleveland CCM WFHM/95.5 "The Fish"'s morning show. And though we have NOT confirmed this, it now appears that co-host Robin Swoboda is leaving the station.
Swoboda is exiting the "The Fish"'s morning show for - from what we hear - family reasons. This could be related to her husband's recent pursuit of a high school football coaching gig, and the need to take care of their kids. A personal note from OMW - kudos to Robin for acting truly in the spirit of the "family friendly" station.
Swoboda is a well-known face in Cleveland, as she was formerly a news anchor at both WEWS/5 (ABC) and WJW/8 (then CBS, now FOX). Her husband, for those who don't remember, is former NFL punter Bryan Wagner. A recent newspaper article chronicled his drive to get into school football coaching.
And a trivia question delivered and answered: When she first came to Cleveland from Miami, Robin Swoboda was known as Robin Cole. Her new local TV bosses in Northeast Ohio urged her to use her given name Swoboda, to appeal to the more ethnic Cleveland market.
Swoboda is exiting the "The Fish"'s morning show for - from what we hear - family reasons. This could be related to her husband's recent pursuit of a high school football coaching gig, and the need to take care of their kids. A personal note from OMW - kudos to Robin for acting truly in the spirit of the "family friendly" station.
Swoboda is a well-known face in Cleveland, as she was formerly a news anchor at both WEWS/5 (ABC) and WJW/8 (then CBS, now FOX). Her husband, for those who don't remember, is former NFL punter Bryan Wagner. A recent newspaper article chronicled his drive to get into school football coaching.
And a trivia question delivered and answered: When she first came to Cleveland from Miami, Robin Swoboda was known as Robin Cole. Her new local TV bosses in Northeast Ohio urged her to use her given name Swoboda, to appeal to the more ethnic Cleveland market.
Sunday, July 24, 2005
Yes, We're Still Here!
OMW has been busy off in the world of Real Life(tm), so we've been away from the blog for a while. But no...we haven't disappeared.
Coming sometime in the next 24 hours or so, we'll pick apart those pesky 12-plus ratings numbers for Cleveland and Akron. But we won't go line by line. For one, the 12-plus numbers are rightly called "vanity numbers", and those figures and 50 cents may get you a can of Coke in the lunchroom of your favorite radio station. (A tip of the hat to our most recent employer, which only charges 45 cents!)
But no matter, some observations will appear in this space, soon.
Coming sometime in the next 24 hours or so, we'll pick apart those pesky 12-plus ratings numbers for Cleveland and Akron. But we won't go line by line. For one, the 12-plus numbers are rightly called "vanity numbers", and those figures and 50 cents may get you a can of Coke in the lunchroom of your favorite radio station. (A tip of the hat to our most recent employer, which only charges 45 cents!)
But no matter, some observations will appear in this space, soon.
Thursday, July 21, 2005
An Ashtabula Bull?
A helpful tipster has reopened the "Case of the Bull" in Ashtabula.
Clear Channel recently signed on WYBL/98.3 in that city, which is currently running uninterrupted oldies music.
OMW has noted, in the past, that the new station was rumored to be considering a country format...though we wrote off some of that speculation due to the fact that a former Clear Channel country station in the Louisville market once held the WYBL calls, and that those calls ended up moving north to the current Ashtabula station. At the time, the website WYBL.COM resolved to a dead page with the Louisville market station's former "Bull" logo.
Today, www.wybl.com still lands on a dead page, but the error message is rather clear:
"Forbidden
You don't have permission to access / on this server.
Apache/1.3.33 Server at www.983thebull.com Port 80"
Note that the error message now shows a new URL, "983thebull.com". According to a Google search, the Louisville country station was on 93.1, a frequency now carrying smooth jazz WJZL. The only 98.3 anywhere near the Louisville market is in Elizabethtown KY, which is apparently a long-time local station called WQXE "Quicksie 98", and which is not owned by Clear Channel. Clear Channel does have a country station still carrying the "Bull" name in Lexington KY, but it isn't on 98.3.
Maybe we're putting the dots together too quickly, but it seems like too much of a coincidence to us. It wouldn't be the first new format inadvertently released by a website URL... though stations HAVE also taken to planting stuff like this to throw people off the scent.
Clear Channel recently signed on WYBL/98.3 in that city, which is currently running uninterrupted oldies music.
OMW has noted, in the past, that the new station was rumored to be considering a country format...though we wrote off some of that speculation due to the fact that a former Clear Channel country station in the Louisville market once held the WYBL calls, and that those calls ended up moving north to the current Ashtabula station. At the time, the website WYBL.COM resolved to a dead page with the Louisville market station's former "Bull" logo.
Today, www.wybl.com still lands on a dead page, but the error message is rather clear:
"Forbidden
You don't have permission to access / on this server.
Apache/1.3.33 Server at www.983thebull.com Port 80"
Note that the error message now shows a new URL, "983thebull.com". According to a Google search, the Louisville country station was on 93.1, a frequency now carrying smooth jazz WJZL. The only 98.3 anywhere near the Louisville market is in Elizabethtown KY, which is apparently a long-time local station called WQXE "Quicksie 98", and which is not owned by Clear Channel. Clear Channel does have a country station still carrying the "Bull" name in Lexington KY, but it isn't on 98.3.
Maybe we're putting the dots together too quickly, but it seems like too much of a coincidence to us. It wouldn't be the first new format inadvertently released by a website URL... though stations HAVE also taken to planting stuff like this to throw people off the scent.
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
Midweek Odds and Ends
A couple of items picked up off the R-I Cleveland board, and more:
* "Johnny Morgan" picks up an ad by Salem CCM WFHM/95.5 Cleveland ("95.5 The Fish") for a morning show co-host. There's no indication if the advertised position replaces a current host, or if it's for an additional talent on the show. The line "Previous on-air experience a plus" would tend to indicate, in OMW's humble opinion, that it's a third personality to join established co-hosts Len Houser and Robin Swoboda.
* "bigwoody" notes that Clear Channel Ashtabula CHR WZOO/102.5 Edgewood ("102 Zoo") has recently replaced a long-time local morning show with the Kidd Kraddick show, syndicated by Premiere out of Dallas. Premiere, of course, is owned by Clear Channel, which also owns news/talk WFUN/970 and AC WREO/97.1 ("Star 97") Ashtabula, classic rocker WFXJ/107.5 ("107.5 The Fox") North Kingsville and new addition WYBL/98.3 Ashtabula...which recently signed on with oldies, for now. (OMW lists the entire cluster because we'd apparently left out WREO the last time. Oops! Sorry about that.)
And not that we needed to remind anyone, but Radio Business Report jumped the gun, when it seemed to indicate a flip of an Infinity Cleveland market station to JACK FM was around the corner. It's been a week and a half since the item, and there are no signs that any of the company's stations are getting ready to "play whatever we want". At least yet...
* "Johnny Morgan" picks up an ad by Salem CCM WFHM/95.5 Cleveland ("95.5 The Fish") for a morning show co-host. There's no indication if the advertised position replaces a current host, or if it's for an additional talent on the show. The line "Previous on-air experience a plus" would tend to indicate, in OMW's humble opinion, that it's a third personality to join established co-hosts Len Houser and Robin Swoboda.
* "bigwoody" notes that Clear Channel Ashtabula CHR WZOO/102.5 Edgewood ("102 Zoo") has recently replaced a long-time local morning show with the Kidd Kraddick show, syndicated by Premiere out of Dallas. Premiere, of course, is owned by Clear Channel, which also owns news/talk WFUN/970 and AC WREO/97.1 ("Star 97") Ashtabula, classic rocker WFXJ/107.5 ("107.5 The Fox") North Kingsville and new addition WYBL/98.3 Ashtabula...which recently signed on with oldies, for now. (OMW lists the entire cluster because we'd apparently left out WREO the last time. Oops! Sorry about that.)
And not that we needed to remind anyone, but Radio Business Report jumped the gun, when it seemed to indicate a flip of an Infinity Cleveland market station to JACK FM was around the corner. It's been a week and a half since the item, and there are no signs that any of the company's stations are getting ready to "play whatever we want". At least yet...
Monday, July 18, 2005
Bill Press Gets His Second (Over Air) Affiliate
Syndicated liberal morning talker Bill Press, who aired solely on Akron's WARF/1350 "Radio Free Ohio" for the first few weeks of his new radio program, is picking up another over-air station.
Radio & Records Online reports that Press' show will be in the lineup at new liberal talk station KRXA/540 in the Monterey/Salinas/Santa Cruz market on the Central California coast, when that new station debuts July 21st. There's no word as to when KRXA will air Press, who is live 6-9 AM Eastern Time. A live airing out there would start him at 3 AM. The station's website, which has actually been up for weeks now, does not list Press yet.
Press' program went national three weeks ago, when Sirius Satellite Radio picked it up for its "Sirius Left" (143) channel.
Radio & Records Online reports that Press' show will be in the lineup at new liberal talk station KRXA/540 in the Monterey/Salinas/Santa Cruz market on the Central California coast, when that new station debuts July 21st. There's no word as to when KRXA will air Press, who is live 6-9 AM Eastern Time. A live airing out there would start him at 3 AM. The station's website, which has actually been up for weeks now, does not list Press yet.
Press' program went national three weeks ago, when Sirius Satellite Radio picked it up for its "Sirius Left" (143) channel.
Another Youngstown Operator In Financial Trouble
Thanks to our friends at AllAccess for the tip:
The various companies associated with Stop 26-Riverbend Productions, which owns three Youngstown/Warren market stations, have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, according to the site TheDeal.com.
The move comes after a lender filed to appoint a court-ordered trustee in the case, which covers tens of millions of dollars in reported liabilities.
In addition to urban WRBP/101.9 Hubbard, religious WGFT/1330 Campbell and Spanish language WASN/1500 Youngstown (also the home of English language brokered host Louie Free), Stop 26-Riverbend also operates stations in the Columbus market.
The numbers in the story above make Beacon Broadcasting's problems look almost quaint. With its new moneyman in charge - you know, the guy whose last name rhymes with "Blunt" - maybe he's sniffing around one or more of the above properties? Our Beacon-connected source has already told us that the new operator is already looking at Columbus, where Stop 26-Riverbend owns stations...hmm.
The various companies associated with Stop 26-Riverbend Productions, which owns three Youngstown/Warren market stations, have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, according to the site TheDeal.com.
The move comes after a lender filed to appoint a court-ordered trustee in the case, which covers tens of millions of dollars in reported liabilities.
In addition to urban WRBP/101.9 Hubbard, religious WGFT/1330 Campbell and Spanish language WASN/1500 Youngstown (also the home of English language brokered host Louie Free), Stop 26-Riverbend also operates stations in the Columbus market.
The numbers in the story above make Beacon Broadcasting's problems look almost quaint. With its new moneyman in charge - you know, the guy whose last name rhymes with "Blunt" - maybe he's sniffing around one or more of the above properties? Our Beacon-connected source has already told us that the new operator is already looking at Columbus, where Stop 26-Riverbend owns stations...hmm.
Some Akron Non-Comm Radio Changes Ahead?
File this one under "Widely Spread Rumor".
OMW hears that Kent State University's classical/NPR WKSU/89.7 Kent is getting antsy to expand, and wants to do so by buying another local non-commercial FM station.
The two most named suspects are Akron University's student-run rocker WZIP/88.1 Akron ("Z88"), and the Akron Public Schools' AAA-formatted WAPS/91.3 Akron ("91.3 The Summit"). If OMW were a betting window, we'd offer even money odds on WKSU picking up WZIP.
What would WKSU do with a second station? What many other pubcasters have done across the nation...split its current format into two full-time signals. For example: WKSU could buy 88.1, and move the NPR news/talk content there, turning 89.7 into a full-time classical station. That proverbial bus could be driven by the fact that Cleveland-market commercial classical WCLV/104.9 Lorain has an awful signal in pretty much the same parts of the Cleveland market where 89.7 has a strong signal. The east side of Cleveland - home to much of the city's fine arts community - has never forgiven WCLV for abandoning 95.5 (now Salem's CCM "95.5 The Fish").
If it's indeed the current WZIP that's caught in this deal, it could migrate to on-campus-only status, along with an Internet webcast. That's what Ferrum College in southwest Virginia did with its student-run WFFC, after selling the 89.9 FM over-air signal to Virginia Tech University for its "Radio IQ" NPR/BBC news/talk service.
We have no idea how soon any of this will happen, but it's sure making rounds in the local radio rumor mill...so we thought we'd give you a "heads up".
OMW hears that Kent State University's classical/NPR WKSU/89.7 Kent is getting antsy to expand, and wants to do so by buying another local non-commercial FM station.
The two most named suspects are Akron University's student-run rocker WZIP/88.1 Akron ("Z88"), and the Akron Public Schools' AAA-formatted WAPS/91.3 Akron ("91.3 The Summit"). If OMW were a betting window, we'd offer even money odds on WKSU picking up WZIP.
What would WKSU do with a second station? What many other pubcasters have done across the nation...split its current format into two full-time signals. For example: WKSU could buy 88.1, and move the NPR news/talk content there, turning 89.7 into a full-time classical station. That proverbial bus could be driven by the fact that Cleveland-market commercial classical WCLV/104.9 Lorain has an awful signal in pretty much the same parts of the Cleveland market where 89.7 has a strong signal. The east side of Cleveland - home to much of the city's fine arts community - has never forgiven WCLV for abandoning 95.5 (now Salem's CCM "95.5 The Fish").
If it's indeed the current WZIP that's caught in this deal, it could migrate to on-campus-only status, along with an Internet webcast. That's what Ferrum College in southwest Virginia did with its student-run WFFC, after selling the 89.9 FM over-air signal to Virginia Tech University for its "Radio IQ" NPR/BBC news/talk service.
We have no idea how soon any of this will happen, but it's sure making rounds in the local radio rumor mill...so we thought we'd give you a "heads up".
Sunday, July 17, 2005
The ABC Shuffle - Including One Big Northeast Ohio Change
Regarding upcoming changes to ABC Radio newscasts in the Cleveland/Akron/Canton area:
We understand that Akron liberal talker WARF/1350 "Radio Free Ohio" is hanging onto ABC, even after conservative talk sister WHLO/640 drops the network for FOX News Radio...like many Clear Channel talk stations, including WTAM/1100 Cleveland.
Unlike what it ran at the start of the liberal talk format, WARF is now running the ABC "Entertainment" newscast, which is a slightly different newscast that is, if memory serves, also slightly shorter than the ABC Information newscast that WARF carried at launch, and that WHLO still carries now.
Now, follow the bouncing ABC ball all around Northeast Ohio. Ready? There's a big bounce at the end...a doozy.
* In August, as mentioned, WHLO/640 Akron will drop ABC Information Network newscasts in favor of the 5 minute FOX News Radio casts.
* In August, as mentioned, WTAM/1100 Cleveland will drop ABC audio reports and updates - it does not carry the full 5 minute ABC Information cast due to its use of 24/7 local anchors, but acts as an ABC Information affiliate - and will carry reports and updates from FOX News Radio instead.
* And here's our wildcard...and the biggest news of all. OMW hears that once WTAM drops the ABC Information affiliation, Akron market talk station WNIR/100.1 Kent will pick it up, dropping its long-time affiliation with CBS Radio News. OMW doesn't know how long "The Talk of Akron" has had CBS, but it's certainly been as long as we can remember...perhaps the entire run of its talk format.
Look to around August 8th for these changes to start taking effect.
And WARF and WNIR will not be the only Akron market stations carrying ABC newscasts. WAKR/1590 has carried one of the ABC casts for some time. We can't identify it right off, but it may be the "Contemporary" network, ABC's third network configuration. (UPDATE: We're told it's the "Direction" network...which makes sense, as we've heard the same sounder on another ABC "Direction" affiliate in another market.)
ABC has never had much problem with ABC newscasts sprouting up all over the place, as long as they're broken out separately between Information/Entertainment/Contemporary/Direction within a certain market.
And in yet another example, if a local station would pick up ABC's 24/7 satellite-fed music formats, they'd AUTOMATICALLY get yet another ABC cast, a 2 minute short cast fed down the network line. These casts were heard on WQKT/104.5 and WKVX/960 Wooster, in the last days of their carriage of ABC's "Country Coast to Coast" (on the FM) and "Pure Gold" (on the AM). The Wooster stations now carry similar satellite formats from Westwood One.
By jumping from CBS to ABC, WNIR will follow stations like WTMJ/620 Milwaukee, a Journal-owned news/talker which just announced it's picking up ABC...after the network gets dropped from Clear Channel competitor WISN/1130. That little piece of news has a small local connection, as WTAM-based anchors supply news updates to WISN via the Clear Channel WAN, during off-drive-time hours.
One other question...could WTAM keep Paul Harvey, despite moving its overall news affiliation from ABC to FOX News Radio? We'll see...
We understand that Akron liberal talker WARF/1350 "Radio Free Ohio" is hanging onto ABC, even after conservative talk sister WHLO/640 drops the network for FOX News Radio...like many Clear Channel talk stations, including WTAM/1100 Cleveland.
Unlike what it ran at the start of the liberal talk format, WARF is now running the ABC "Entertainment" newscast, which is a slightly different newscast that is, if memory serves, also slightly shorter than the ABC Information newscast that WARF carried at launch, and that WHLO still carries now.
Now, follow the bouncing ABC ball all around Northeast Ohio. Ready? There's a big bounce at the end...a doozy.
* In August, as mentioned, WHLO/640 Akron will drop ABC Information Network newscasts in favor of the 5 minute FOX News Radio casts.
* In August, as mentioned, WTAM/1100 Cleveland will drop ABC audio reports and updates - it does not carry the full 5 minute ABC Information cast due to its use of 24/7 local anchors, but acts as an ABC Information affiliate - and will carry reports and updates from FOX News Radio instead.
* And here's our wildcard...and the biggest news of all. OMW hears that once WTAM drops the ABC Information affiliation, Akron market talk station WNIR/100.1 Kent will pick it up, dropping its long-time affiliation with CBS Radio News. OMW doesn't know how long "The Talk of Akron" has had CBS, but it's certainly been as long as we can remember...perhaps the entire run of its talk format.
Look to around August 8th for these changes to start taking effect.
And WARF and WNIR will not be the only Akron market stations carrying ABC newscasts. WAKR/1590 has carried one of the ABC casts for some time. We can't identify it right off, but it may be the "Contemporary" network, ABC's third network configuration. (UPDATE: We're told it's the "Direction" network...which makes sense, as we've heard the same sounder on another ABC "Direction" affiliate in another market.)
ABC has never had much problem with ABC newscasts sprouting up all over the place, as long as they're broken out separately between Information/Entertainment/Contemporary/Direction within a certain market.
And in yet another example, if a local station would pick up ABC's 24/7 satellite-fed music formats, they'd AUTOMATICALLY get yet another ABC cast, a 2 minute short cast fed down the network line. These casts were heard on WQKT/104.5 and WKVX/960 Wooster, in the last days of their carriage of ABC's "Country Coast to Coast" (on the FM) and "Pure Gold" (on the AM). The Wooster stations now carry similar satellite formats from Westwood One.
By jumping from CBS to ABC, WNIR will follow stations like WTMJ/620 Milwaukee, a Journal-owned news/talker which just announced it's picking up ABC...after the network gets dropped from Clear Channel competitor WISN/1130. That little piece of news has a small local connection, as WTAM-based anchors supply news updates to WISN via the Clear Channel WAN, during off-drive-time hours.
One other question...could WTAM keep Paul Harvey, despite moving its overall news affiliation from ABC to FOX News Radio? We'll see...
Friday, July 15, 2005
Week Ending Odds and Ends
* As far as we can tell, Friday 5 PM came and went without a "JACK FM" flip within (or outside) Infinity's Cleveland cluster.
* Harold Glunt's latest Youngstown/Warren market radio acquisition, WRTK/1540 Niles, is still pumping out urban AC music, and was even heard soliciting for advertisers, with a 216 area code number being given. Of course, we wonder if those advertisers will be told that the format's likely going away soon...
* And another Side Effect of Glunt: OMW already reported that the "Wexy 107" oldies format moved lock, stock and transmitter to new Beacon Broadcasting station WLOA/1470 Farrell PA. We didn't realize that the Pittsburgh Pirates moved along with the oldies format, until we heard a Pirates game this afternoon on 1470 AM. But someone really should tell them that the in-game legal ID for WEXC/Greenville does them no good if they're only broadcasting the game on WLOA...since 107.1 was merrily rolling along with its new Christian rock format, and not doing the Pirates...
* Harold Glunt's latest Youngstown/Warren market radio acquisition, WRTK/1540 Niles, is still pumping out urban AC music, and was even heard soliciting for advertisers, with a 216 area code number being given. Of course, we wonder if those advertisers will be told that the format's likely going away soon...
* And another Side Effect of Glunt: OMW already reported that the "Wexy 107" oldies format moved lock, stock and transmitter to new Beacon Broadcasting station WLOA/1470 Farrell PA. We didn't realize that the Pittsburgh Pirates moved along with the oldies format, until we heard a Pirates game this afternoon on 1470 AM. But someone really should tell them that the in-game legal ID for WEXC/Greenville does them no good if they're only broadcasting the game on WLOA...since 107.1 was merrily rolling along with its new Christian rock format, and not doing the Pirates...
Thursday, July 14, 2005
BREAKING NEWS, GLUNT RADIO EMPIRE DIVISION: Glunt Buying WRTK/1540 Niles
(Those of you with Beacon Fatigue, please scroll down the blog to the next action-packed update, posted just a little earlier this evening. There's not a single mention of the word "Glunt" in it!)
----------
As first reported by OMW, Beacon Broadcasting's Harold Glunt is buying yet another station in the Youngstown/Warren market. The FCC website shows an application for assignment of license of WRTK/1540 Niles from D & E Communications (Dale Edwards) to Harold Glunt. The price listed in the sales agreement is $400,000. WRTK is a 500 watt daytimer.
WRTK, at least earlier this week, was running an urban adult contemporary format. It's possible that's changed, since upon agreeing to buy it, Glunt immediately flipped WLOA/1470 Farrell PA to the "Wexy" oldies format that once ran on WEXC/107.1 Greenville PA. (We've written about it so much here, we could almost write those words without thinking.) We're driving in the general direction of the Mahoning Valley tomorrow, so we'll check.
For whatever reason, this deal was first written up between D & E and Beacon, but Glunt has apparently decided to buy it himself as an individual.
As we mentioned in our earlier update, a Beacon connected source says Glunt plans to seed the "Wexy" format on a network of stations including WLOA, WRTK and WANR/1570 Warren.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled non-Harold Glunt programming.
----------
As first reported by OMW, Beacon Broadcasting's Harold Glunt is buying yet another station in the Youngstown/Warren market. The FCC website shows an application for assignment of license of WRTK/1540 Niles from D & E Communications (Dale Edwards) to Harold Glunt. The price listed in the sales agreement is $400,000. WRTK is a 500 watt daytimer.
WRTK, at least earlier this week, was running an urban adult contemporary format. It's possible that's changed, since upon agreeing to buy it, Glunt immediately flipped WLOA/1470 Farrell PA to the "Wexy" oldies format that once ran on WEXC/107.1 Greenville PA. (We've written about it so much here, we could almost write those words without thinking.) We're driving in the general direction of the Mahoning Valley tomorrow, so we'll check.
For whatever reason, this deal was first written up between D & E and Beacon, but Glunt has apparently decided to buy it himself as an individual.
As we mentioned in our earlier update, a Beacon connected source says Glunt plans to seed the "Wexy" format on a network of stations including WLOA, WRTK and WANR/1570 Warren.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled non-Harold Glunt programming.
The OMW Five Items Or Less Lane
ITEM 1: We guess that we don't listen to WTAM/1100 afternoon motormouth Mike Trivisonno as much as we used to, as we missed a recent controversy centering around him. This column from the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Connie Schultz explains it - Triv apparently made quite a few insensitive remarks about HIV-positive people.
We felt the need to include the mention here, but didn't really feel the need to talk about it. Reporting that Mike Trivisonno makes insensitive and stupid comments is roughly equivalent to reporting that there's a thunderstorm in Northeast Ohio in July. The popular WTAM host wears his ignorance near his mouth like a badge of honor, so this is really no surprise. And if the fine folks at the local AIDS Task Force are still upset about it at this stage in the game... remember this: Despite the fact that Triv hosts the #1 afternoon radio show (or somewhere near there, give or take a place), a good 90-percent-plus of the Cleveland market's radio population is listening to rock or country or something else from 3 to 7 PM, or not listening to the radio at all.
'Nuff said.
ITEM 2: A small item we picked up while searching for news articles about the "Triv controversy"...expect the new FOX News Radio on WTAM in August, according to WTAM program director Ray Davis in a Billboard Radio Monitor article. This isn't really news, as the Clear Channel/FNR deal was announced months ago, and the company's big news/talkers are expected to switch during this summer. Since WTAM does its own hourly updates 24/7, you're not likely to hear the FOX-produced hourly newscasts on 1100, but you will hear FOX's reporters and sound bites in the local newscasts. Listeners have already reported hearing interviews with FOX News reporters on WTAM's "Wills and Coleman" morning drive show.
Expect Akron CC sister talker WHLO/640 to carry the newscasts in August as well. There's no word on what happens to ABC on WHLO's new liberal talk sister WARF/1350, but OMW would bet the virtual farm that Jerry, Keith and company won't put the right-leaning FOX News product on "Radio Free Ohio". If ABC goes off 1350, expect something like CNN Radio, heard on many Clear Channel liberal talk stations.
ITEM 3: It's nearly Friday, and no Cleveland radio station is yet proclaiming that "we play what we want" or calling itself "JACK" or "DAVE" or "DENNIS". (That last one would be a good name, considering the city's colorful former mayor, now a Congressman, and a one-time presidential candidate. Oh, we understand he's getting married...yes, Congressman Kucinich, we at OMW understand the appeal of a smart, redheaded woman...)
You might recall an earlier note from the folks at Radio Business Report, saying they were expecting a Cleveland Infinity station to flip to the eclectic "adult hits" format "soon". Infinity flipped its last two "JACK" converts, WCBS-FM in New York and WJMK-FM in Chicago, to the format at 5 PM on a Friday. We're not saying it's going to happen on Friday on WQAL/104.1 or WDOK/102.1, but we're just throwing that fact out there, and noting that 5 PM Friday is just hours away this week.
OMW can't help but think of involving WXTM/92.3 and WNCX/98.5 in this speculation. It's widely expected that WNCX could drop classic rock once morning anchor Howard Stern goes away, and if you believe the shock jock, that could be as soon as September due to sales concerns. Infinity is putting some big bets on 92.3 morning host Rover as a regional replacement for Stern, and it would not be surprising to see them move him to the more powerful 98.5 signal when Howard's off the terrestrial airwaves.
WDOK, especially, is said to make a LOT of money for Infinity's Cleveland cluster, and there aren't a lot of bettors holding the 102.1 ticket for a JACK flip.
As a responsible online news source (we try), we once again caution that there is absolutely no solid, or even shaky, information behind our speculation. Consider it a "prediction", and if it happens, we're reading the tea leaves correctly. Frankly, we're mostly just throwing stuff against the wall with this one.
ITEM 4: Welcome to all of those reading from a link on PBRTV.com, a Pittsburgh-based radio news site. It's a great place to check out news from Western Pennsylvania, particularly the area just beyond our usual haunts in markets near the Ohio border.
ITEM 5: We're out of the area once again for a personal weekend trip. This time, we've nailed down all of our remote computer and monitoring issues, and we'll be able to check out most Northeast Ohio radio stations even from a few hundred miles away. Since big things seem to happen when we leave town, OMW feels almost obligated to give you the warning.
We felt the need to include the mention here, but didn't really feel the need to talk about it. Reporting that Mike Trivisonno makes insensitive and stupid comments is roughly equivalent to reporting that there's a thunderstorm in Northeast Ohio in July. The popular WTAM host wears his ignorance near his mouth like a badge of honor, so this is really no surprise. And if the fine folks at the local AIDS Task Force are still upset about it at this stage in the game... remember this: Despite the fact that Triv hosts the #1 afternoon radio show (or somewhere near there, give or take a place), a good 90-percent-plus of the Cleveland market's radio population is listening to rock or country or something else from 3 to 7 PM, or not listening to the radio at all.
'Nuff said.
ITEM 2: A small item we picked up while searching for news articles about the "Triv controversy"...expect the new FOX News Radio on WTAM in August, according to WTAM program director Ray Davis in a Billboard Radio Monitor article. This isn't really news, as the Clear Channel/FNR deal was announced months ago, and the company's big news/talkers are expected to switch during this summer. Since WTAM does its own hourly updates 24/7, you're not likely to hear the FOX-produced hourly newscasts on 1100, but you will hear FOX's reporters and sound bites in the local newscasts. Listeners have already reported hearing interviews with FOX News reporters on WTAM's "Wills and Coleman" morning drive show.
Expect Akron CC sister talker WHLO/640 to carry the newscasts in August as well. There's no word on what happens to ABC on WHLO's new liberal talk sister WARF/1350, but OMW would bet the virtual farm that Jerry, Keith and company won't put the right-leaning FOX News product on "Radio Free Ohio". If ABC goes off 1350, expect something like CNN Radio, heard on many Clear Channel liberal talk stations.
ITEM 3: It's nearly Friday, and no Cleveland radio station is yet proclaiming that "we play what we want" or calling itself "JACK" or "DAVE" or "DENNIS". (That last one would be a good name, considering the city's colorful former mayor, now a Congressman, and a one-time presidential candidate. Oh, we understand he's getting married...yes, Congressman Kucinich, we at OMW understand the appeal of a smart, redheaded woman...)
You might recall an earlier note from the folks at Radio Business Report, saying they were expecting a Cleveland Infinity station to flip to the eclectic "adult hits" format "soon". Infinity flipped its last two "JACK" converts, WCBS-FM in New York and WJMK-FM in Chicago, to the format at 5 PM on a Friday. We're not saying it's going to happen on Friday on WQAL/104.1 or WDOK/102.1, but we're just throwing that fact out there, and noting that 5 PM Friday is just hours away this week.
OMW can't help but think of involving WXTM/92.3 and WNCX/98.5 in this speculation. It's widely expected that WNCX could drop classic rock once morning anchor Howard Stern goes away, and if you believe the shock jock, that could be as soon as September due to sales concerns. Infinity is putting some big bets on 92.3 morning host Rover as a regional replacement for Stern, and it would not be surprising to see them move him to the more powerful 98.5 signal when Howard's off the terrestrial airwaves.
WDOK, especially, is said to make a LOT of money for Infinity's Cleveland cluster, and there aren't a lot of bettors holding the 102.1 ticket for a JACK flip.
As a responsible online news source (we try), we once again caution that there is absolutely no solid, or even shaky, information behind our speculation. Consider it a "prediction", and if it happens, we're reading the tea leaves correctly. Frankly, we're mostly just throwing stuff against the wall with this one.
ITEM 4: Welcome to all of those reading from a link on PBRTV.com, a Pittsburgh-based radio news site. It's a great place to check out news from Western Pennsylvania, particularly the area just beyond our usual haunts in markets near the Ohio border.
ITEM 5: We're out of the area once again for a personal weekend trip. This time, we've nailed down all of our remote computer and monitoring issues, and we'll be able to check out most Northeast Ohio radio stations even from a few hundred miles away. Since big things seem to happen when we leave town, OMW feels almost obligated to give you the warning.
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
So, How DOES One Sign Up Bill Press' Show?
Maybe WARF/1350 Akron "Radio Free Ohio"'s Keith Kennedy can answer some of these questions.
From Brian Maloney's "Radio Equalizer" blog, in his mailbag:
-----------
From Ed Christian, President, Saga Communications:
Brian: Any further info on the Bill Press show? Amazingly enough I have three radio stations where I want to place his show and we, for the life of it, can't get (a) return calls or (b) promises of a package or information on the show from his people.
I have never seen such ineptness since the launch of Air America.
(Ed: this may explain why Press's show still seems to lack a single additional affiliate since my previous essay on the subject. Brian)
-------------
(Thanks to AllAccess.com for the tip!)
We at OMW feel kind of responsible for this, as we helped bring news of Press' new show to the radio trade news sites. WARF announced him on the schedule locally, and OMW took the opportunity to find out from Mr. Press himself what the overall situation was with the new show. We assumed, correctly, that Bill Press wasn't going to be doing a local show for Akron.
Mr. Press kindly answered back, and indicated that he'd be on Sirius Satellite Radio, as well as being syndicated to other radio stations besides WARF. He mentioned Jones Radio would be selling the show to over-air stations, but there's been no indication from Jones that they are selling it.
Fast forward to mid-July. Bill's still on WARF, and has been on Sirius Left (143) for a couple of weeks.
The funny twist to this? Mr. Christian has stated elsewhere that he won't run shows on his stations that are available on satellite radio. And aside from WARF, that's the only place you can hear the new Bill Press radio show now! Since most information about this show has mentioned Sirius, Mr. Christian would have to know that. It's on Bill's site, for one.
Anyway, AllAccess notes that a new syndication deal should be in the works "soon" for the Press morning drive liberal talk show. We're assuming that Jones Radio hasn't been involved yet, since their affiliate sales force is somewhat professional (and aggressive).
From Brian Maloney's "Radio Equalizer" blog, in his mailbag:
-----------
From Ed Christian, President, Saga Communications:
Brian: Any further info on the Bill Press show? Amazingly enough I have three radio stations where I want to place his show and we, for the life of it, can't get (a) return calls or (b) promises of a package or information on the show from his people.
I have never seen such ineptness since the launch of Air America.
(Ed: this may explain why Press's show still seems to lack a single additional affiliate since my previous essay on the subject. Brian)
-------------
(Thanks to AllAccess.com for the tip!)
We at OMW feel kind of responsible for this, as we helped bring news of Press' new show to the radio trade news sites. WARF announced him on the schedule locally, and OMW took the opportunity to find out from Mr. Press himself what the overall situation was with the new show. We assumed, correctly, that Bill Press wasn't going to be doing a local show for Akron.
Mr. Press kindly answered back, and indicated that he'd be on Sirius Satellite Radio, as well as being syndicated to other radio stations besides WARF. He mentioned Jones Radio would be selling the show to over-air stations, but there's been no indication from Jones that they are selling it.
Fast forward to mid-July. Bill's still on WARF, and has been on Sirius Left (143) for a couple of weeks.
The funny twist to this? Mr. Christian has stated elsewhere that he won't run shows on his stations that are available on satellite radio. And aside from WARF, that's the only place you can hear the new Bill Press radio show now! Since most information about this show has mentioned Sirius, Mr. Christian would have to know that. It's on Bill's site, for one.
Anyway, AllAccess notes that a new syndication deal should be in the works "soon" for the Press morning drive liberal talk show. We're assuming that Jones Radio hasn't been involved yet, since their affiliate sales force is somewhat professional (and aggressive).
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)