Two topics in one post- WJYN, WPPM, and college radio

[radiodx10]

So I heard a new LP station signed on- WJYN 98.5 "Jawn Radio" I thought it was a joke at first but nope- it's real. And it sounds like garbage. Great music mind you- but I thin they're using a cheap computer head set for a mic, and running their audio by a 32kbps internet connection:/

WPPM 106.5 had really quiet audio but they must have gotten a modulator and compressor and now sound beautiful! Loud, well EQ'ed and a great line up. They could be (if they last more than a year) a great example of how to do LP community radio the right way. Good for them I say.

And now onto the third topic- college radio. I listen to 91.5 WDBK regularly and love mostly all their music. Your usual mix of unknown college bands and the like with a few hosts through the afternoon. I always wonder why WDBK, WKDU, and other stations like them do not try and advertise their stations more around the areas they serve? They are clearly filling the void of the ecletics in the area, so why not try and really take full advantage of their stations and get the name out more? I don't know. College radio is such a weird thing. So many people hate it because it is typically MUCH more liberal than commercial radio; typically if they talk politics on college radio it'll all be left-leaning (which for me is great) but it too has downsides. You're certainly not going to have your 55+ year olds tuning in to a college station unless for a few older liberals.

By the same token- 55+ year olds are the most likely to turn on a radio in the house or use it in the car, so for the majority of the people who are the most likely to listen to college radio- it'll be online (if at all).

Your thoughts on anything I wrote here today?

 

[TheBigA]

By the same token- 55+ year olds are the most likely to turn on a radio in the house or use it in the car, so for the majority of the people who are the most likely to listen to college radio- it'll be online (if at all).

That's not what we see in the ratings. You'd be surprised how many older adults listen to college stations like WFUV in NYC or WRTI and WXPN in Philly. What you're talking about is mainly a function of the music, not the platform. 55+ aren't interested in the music or presentation of the stations you list. Same with WSOU in West Orange NJ, one of the most popular student run college stations.

As for listening to the radio vs. online, the most interesting thing is that colleges that sold their FM stations and transferred the content online have seen their audiences drop by more than 90%. This was a very common misconception, that millennials are more likely to listen to a radio station online than OTA. The fact is the kind of listening they choose to do online typically doesn't include hosted content. So the standard presentation associated with FM isn't as popular when it goes online. Even Apple and Pandora realize that.

 

[radiodx10]

Hmm thanks for your reply! Very enlightening. I did not know that at all that when the colleges sold their FMs the listenership dropped. Makes me very glad to be on WGLS 89.7. We avg like 500,000 listeners a month I have been told.

I also love WRTI and forget it's technically a college station!

 

[TheBigA]

We avg like 500,000 listeners a month I have been told.

Where does that number come from?

From what I can see it's a 750 watt station that covers a population area that might be about that large, but I doubt the entire population actually listens.

 

[davideduardo]

Where does that number come from?

From what I can see it's a 750 watt station that covers a population area that might be about that large, but I doubt the entire population actually listens.

The 60 dbu covers 167,000 persons. While not subscribed to Nielsen, it appears that they encode, but they do not show in the book.

 

[radiodx10]

OH! I'm sorry no no no not 500k wow I meant 50,000 avg. That was a huge typo on my part I'm sorry. Yeah our station I know does encode. Sorry again

 

[Jstnpspck]

Is WJYN actually going with the "Jawn Radio" branding? I heard the station silent for a few days before playing a teaser loop of their hosts introducing their shows (along with some music I've heard as of today) and everyone is promoting it as "Uptown Radio" in reference to north Broad Street's Uptown Theater and the station's North Philly-centric presentation.

 

[TheBigA]

everyone is promoting it as "Uptown Radio" in reference to north Broad Street's Uptown Theater and the station's North Philly-centric presentation.

Their website calls it Uptown Radio.

 

[Heylistentome]

The other radio board has a good thread on the new 98.5 and the Asian station they should share time with although uptown radio has been hogging the frequency 24/7.

 

[b-turner]

I've been looking at college radio listening, specifically online only stations. As a control factor, I included online stations carried on college cable TV message channels as well. I've only received responses from less than 3 dozen schools and here's what I've found:

About 8.5% of campus population listens online and only 62.4 minutes a month. Average listening session is 40 minutes. For colleges with say closed circuit and cable TV channel as options to listening as well as online, say 28.9% is online listening 71.1% is via non-online options. Alternative format over the air stations seem to have 'time spent listening' in the neighborhood of 2.5 hours a week. Online only college stations, about 1.5 online listening sessions a month.

I learned some things: online listening is not seen as 'free' because it requires a data plan. An online listening device can be used for much more than online listening which is further down the list of more popular and frequent uses. A phone call kills the stream for some (and how much are we on the phone). Listening habits do not have to change for students even when moving to a different geographic area unlike over the air radio. If you listened to, say mostly Pandora at home, being states away at college doesn't matter, you can listen to those same online choices at college as well.

So, overall, online radio listening is growing as is time spent listening but the winners are not the stand alone college streamers even if they do excellent marketing to build top of mind awareness.

As for promoting, many college stations are funded mainly through student fees and college related promotions versus underwriting and general population participation. The stations seem to be student run, so the expertise here is not what you'd find in radio reliant on the general public for its success. Promotional dollars are generally not there as well. Many of these stations feel they are there for the college, not the general population, so while certainly appreciated, attracting the general population is not see as a priority. Those schools that operate stations as a format tend to pay attention to the general population and therefore restrict student governance. Those stations, while the audience might also be the college, have a broader target audience that just the student.

 

[bholcomb]

I wouldnt consider WRTI, WXPN or WYNC college stations. Those are owned by University and there are barely any students involved with the station. WBZC,WDBK WSOU are what I would consider college stations. I was the PD at WDBK and WBZC. WDBK is all funded by student fees and is overseen by student activities. WBZC falls under the marketing department and is funded by the general funds. WBZC we spent money on promotions and even did underwriting trade deals for station vehicles.