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Buffalo Big Changes for BTPM at 88.7 FM and 94.5 FM

L

LamaLaw87

Hi All: Long time lurker and first time poster. I do not work in the industry but have already been fascinated by radio and wanted to bring this to your attention, I am a sustaining member of BTPM and got this email today...looking forward to hearing your thoughts:

We’re writing to share an important update about Buffalo Toronto Public Media. As part of a long-term sustainability plan following the loss of $2.2 million in annual federal funding that includes several initiatives that diversify our revenue sources, we will realign our frequencies, essentially moving where you will find our radio stations on the dial.



As you may have learned from earlier updates, advertising is now possible on 94.5 FM. After careful planning and consultation with members, hosts and station leadership, we are aligning each service with the license structure that best supports it. The switch could happen as soon as May, but the date has not yet been determined.



Under this new alignment:

  • BTPM Classical will move to 88.7 FM and continue operating under a sponsor-supported license. Because NPR will not allow its programming on an advertising-eligible station, “Morning Edition,” “All Things Considered” and “Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me” will be broadcast on 88.7. BTPM Classical will be available without those flagship NPR programs on an HD station, 89.7 WNJA in Jamestown and on the BTPM Classical stream.

  • BTPM NPR will be available on the BTPM NPR stream as well as on an HD station, 91.3 WOLN in Olean, and 88.1 WUBJ in Jamestown. “Morning Edition,” “All Things Considered,” “Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me” and other familiar programming will be available on these stations. BTPM NPR will no longer broadcast BTPM The Bridge or “Friday Night Lights” high school sports games.

  • 94.5 FM will become a reimagined, full-service station featuring local, national and international news, public affairs, entertainment, sports and music, supported by members and an advertising-eligible license. The as-yet-named station will also have a dedicated streaming option.

  • BTPM The Bridge will retain its programming and format but will be on an HD station and will simulcast in the evening on 94.5 FM instead of 88.7 FM.


This realignment allows us to protect the services you rely on while strengthening our financial foundation for the future.



We remain a nonprofit organization. Our mission, editorial standards and public service commitment remain unchanged.



We’ll provide reminders and assistance before the switch. In the meantime, here are some frequently asked questions.



Thank you for standing with public media.



Warmly,



Tom Calderone

President & CEO

Buffalo Toronto Public Media
 
I also find this news interesting but for a couple of very different reasons. First, in general, in most markets, public radio news gets both more, and younger support from listeners and corporate sponsors than classical music does. Therefore, the only reason I can think of (assuming this is true in Buffalo as well) for making the classical channel (with a few NPR all star programs) the primary OTA signal on 88.7 has to be the conclusion that, at least in the short term, it is less costly to have classical music on that frequency than for it to remain all NPR news and talk. (I know that NPR stations are charged, based partially on the market sizes they serve, annual fees for the news programming from NPR and other sources they carry.)

The other reason this is interesting is the one that @Buddy Shula alluded to earlier; namely, what will the new news/talk programming look like on the 94.5 frequency. If the station is expecting dual support from both listeners and advertisers, then all-conservative talk is probably not in the offing as most public radio listeners would not be willing to support that. I wonder if we'll see something like some of the Civic Media stations are doing in Wisconsin and Minnesota--programs from both national (Thom Hartmann and Stephanie Miller immediately come to mind) and local liberal talk show hosts. I guess we'll see what happens.
 
LamaLaw87 said:
“Morning Edition,” “All Things Considered” and “Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me” will be broadcast on 88.7. BTPM Classical will be available without those flagship NPR programs on an HD station, 89.7 WNJA in Jamestown and on the BTPM Classical stream.
Click to expand...

It's a very convoluted way of saying: The 3 big NPR news programs will stay on WBFO's main signal. Otherwise, it will be classical.

The two BTPM branded stations will exist on HD channels and streams.

The reason it sounds so confusing is because it is. They're trying to hold on to those brands, while at the same time combining them on one signal.

And 94.5 becomes Hodge Podge Lodge. If I was on the board, I'd recommend they LMA the signal to someone who knows how to program a commercial station. Because what they're proposing sounds like a mess. They're trying to be all things to all people on one signal.
 
TheBigA said:
It's a very convoluted way of saying: The 3 big NPR news programs will stay on WBFO's main signal. Otherwise, it will be classical.
Click to expand...
This solution sounds a lot like what Public Radio KUHF in Houston did some years back.

In the latter half of the 00’s KUHF ran the flagship NPR programs during morning and afternoon drive times, but the rest of the schedule was Classical. However on their HD-2 the format was reversed, with Classical airing during morning and afternoon drive, while the rest of the HD-2 schedule was NPR (and other public networks) programming not heard on the main signal.

KUHF had been a NPR/Classical hybrid since the mid 1980s, but the addition of HD in the mid 00s allowed more spoken word content amongst the two signals.

KUHF acquired a second signal (KUHA) in 2011 and moved Classical there, while becoming full time spoken word on KUHF. The separate Classical effort was never able to bring in the needed donations, and was sold to a religious operator in 2016. Classical has continued full time on KUHF HD-2 since then.
 
Here is Lance's reporting of the story:

radioinsight.com

Buffalo Toronto Public Media To Launch Commercial Full Service Talk Station

Buffalo Toronto Public Media will realign its properties in Buffalo NY to launch what it calls "a dynamic, broad-based station
radioinsight.com radioinsight.com

He sees 94.5 as a "commercial full service talk station." I see it as Hodge Podge Lodge.

The Buffalo News just posted their story:

buffalonews.com

Alan Pergament: BTPM radio programs are changing stations as early as May

You may need a lineup scorecard as soon as May to find your favorite radio programs carried by Buffalo Toronto Public Media (BTPM), Pergament says.
buffalonews.com buffalonews.com

He too finds it a bit confusing. That's why most stations avoid block programming and prefer 24/7 formats. I think a lot of the success will hinge on what they do with 94.5.
 
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To be fair, this is not that different from what 88.7 WBFO used to be when it was run by the University at Buffalo; it was marketed as "NPR News & Jazz" with Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Jazz during the other dayparts.

It's a new era, maybe we can move past 24/7 formats. What about CBC Radio 2 / CBC Music, they program all kinds of things! People are more complicated and eclectic than we give them credit for.

They mention sports for 94.5...no way they have the money for the Buffalo Bills, but what about the Buffalo Sabres? Perhaps Bandits?
 
LamaLaw87 said:
To be fair, this is not that different from what 88.7 WBFO used to be when it was run by the University at Buffalo;
Click to expand...

Correct and this is what many public radio stations once did years ago when they only had one signal. Personally, my view is there isn't enough NPR talk program to fill a 24/7 station. My interpretation of this plan is they've determined that most listeners don't stick around for the WBFO daytime programming. And the majority of WNED audience is in the daytime. Therefore they feel this will satisfy both audiences.

LamaLaw87 said:
They mention sports for 94.5...no way they have the money for the Buffalo Bills, but what about the Buffalo Sabres? Perhaps Bandits?
Click to expand...

My take on what the Bills & Sabres are doing is it will be barter. They're not doing an exclusive where one station buys the rights. I expect several stations will have access to content from the teams. So it's possible that some pro sports may end up on 94.5. Who knows? The other question about 94.5 is how much local content it will have. That wasn't spelled out. I am guessing that will be where the BBC programming will end up.
 
LamaLaw87 said:
To be fair, this is not that different from what 88.7 WBFO used to be when it was run by the University at Buffalo; it was marketed as "NPR News & Jazz" with Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Jazz during the other dayparts.

It's a new era, maybe we can move past 24/7 formats. What about CBC Radio 2 / CBC Music, they program all kinds of things! People are more complicated and eclectic than we give them credit for.

They mention sports for 94.5...no way they have the money for the Buffalo Bills, but what about the Buffalo Sabres? Perhaps Bandits?
Click to expand...

Keep in mind that CBC2 is a Canadian government-supported network that doesn't answer to the needs of advertisers. In the age of the Internet where (at least for now) one can listen to almost anything at any time, having block programming, whether using an AM or FM commercial signal, will be frought with difficulty.
 
I guess this also helps explain why the unlinked the frequencies from the station names last year, going from 88.7 WBFO to BTPM NPR, and from WNED Classical 94.5 to BTPM Classical, make it more palatable / help people understand that these services don't necessarily "live" at those specific frequencies.
 
Buddy Shula said:
I think they are setting it up for sale
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Maybe. But then that would only be a one-time payment. If they lease it out, they get paid continually. That's more of what they need.

Audacy got $15 million for WTSS a few years ago. Station values are going down. They might do better with a long term lease.
 
NPR will not allow programming on an advertising eligible station, but what about PRX (who has close ties with Boston's WGBH) and American Public Media (who distributes Marketplace and BBC World Service, among other programming)?

I'm unsure if this will turn out to be a fiery trainwreck or something decent.
 
TheBigA said:
I am guessing that will be where the BBC programming will end up.
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BBC World Service Radio doesn’t have any advertising avails, unless you use the one minute promotional windows at :29 and :59. No idea if the BBC would allow that, though there may be examples outside the U.S. of local commercial stations running BBC content.
 
There's some logic to putting classical music, which has a smaller audience in general, on 88.7. Since NPR doesn't currently support putting their content on commercial stations, it will have to stay on 88.7. Whether NPR will change that in the future since there is no more CPB is likely up for discussion as more non-comms either go dark or become translators for bigger statewide or regional public radio conglomerations.

WNED-FM has a bigger signal that covers the metro and surrounding areas better than 88.7. BTPM has been cobbling together more locally produced show in the last few years, and has been relying on American Public Media, PRX, WNYC Studios, Public Radio Internation, WBUR, other syndicators already heard on WBFO and a wealth of podcasts have content that can be cobbled together to create programming for 94.5. The majority of the day on WBFO can already move to 94.5. Whether it can attract sponsors is another story. Marketplace, for example, has several other programs that could attract sponsors.

Local news and programming in AM and PM drive could give WBEN a run for its money. IMO, some of the current local programming is meant more to woo dollars out of public minded corporations than it is bring in listeners. A commercial station can give those sponsors more bang for their buck, and perhaps more bucks promoting their local involvement.

Of course, Calderone will put "The Bridge" on at night, trying to reach an audience that continues to ignore it for the most part.

How successful will it all be? That's what remains to be seen.
 
LamaLaw87 said:
I guess this also helps explain why the unlinked the frequencies from the station names last year, going from 88.7 WBFO to BTPM NPR, and from WNED Classical 94.5 to BTPM Classical, make it more palatable / help people understand that these services don't necessarily "live" at those specific frequencies.
Click to expand...
this is incorrect. they dropped the frequencies in 2020. last year they switched everything to BTPM.
 
RadioGuy1864 said:
I had to read Tom's letter 3x just to figure it out. I predict 94.5 won't make it past it's first birthday with it's format as explained in the letter.
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You are absolutely right.

The reason NPR stations have become so popular in recent years is their time-tested programs. But "Morning Edition," "All Things Considered" and "Wait Wait Don't Tell Me" will stay on non-commercial WBFO 88.7. So this new WNED-FM will have to compete with those popular shows on 88.7. Will BTPM be able to find witty, informed hosts and a support staff to make a Buffalo version of ATC and Morning Ed on 94.5? Do they know how hard that is?

The reason BTPM is doing this is the loss of federal funding. At least that's what they claim. Well, duh, how much more will it cost to have local hosts who are so compelling that you will listen to them rather than what WBEN and WBFO are already offering? Do they think they can sell enough commercials to fund this?

What about all the donations WNED gets from Canadian listeners? Classical fans north of the border donate to WNED because the CBC's FM music service only plays a few hours of classical music per day. Those donations end if WNED becomes a commercially-funded Buffalo talk and news station.

And how about all the programming WNED says it will offer. Here it is from the press release: >>>National and international news, public affairs, entertainment, sports and music.<<< Don't they know block programming like this is not done anymore? People have to know what they'll get when they tune in. They don't want to spin the wheel of formats every time they listen.

If they can pull this off, they'll be heroes. But geez, if the reason they're switching the programming is LOSS of federal funds, how can they fund this?
 


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