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1020 AM gone?

J

JerseyBee

Guest
Tuned in to 1020 AM WIBG yesterday and it was all easy listening and classic, what they broadcast on their FM wing. No announcement about canning the talk lineup except for a small blurb on one of the host's web sites that they are changing format. They picked up a new talk lineup about 2 yrs ago and the fact is the hosts were not all that great nor was the station management but to my knowledge there was no announcement, no goodbye from the hosts just Friday its talk, Monday its music.
 
They are running "The Music Of Your Life" service during the week, and retaining some talk programs on the weekends ..
 
WIBG1020: BIGGER AND BETTER TO POISED TO REACH AN AMAZING DEMO

Hey Kew.. HAHAHAHA. Big things are set to launch here at our flagship WIBG1020.
Don't know what forest you're in, but you'll get to see the big WIBG1020 picture
shortly.

We are really proud of the incredible support of our new and upcoming format, plus a
strong FM translator at 101.3. Trust me. Our new format is wildly contagious

The days of the everyday repeat 25 political junkie callers and hosts who pontificate their political order
or read the local paper on air, will see an enormous rejuvenation of AM broadcast radio at WIBG1020.
Its live and local. Stay tuned.
 
The 1020 over the air signal was distorted when I travelled through the area a week ago. Totally unlistenable, whatever was put on the air. How could anyone listen to whatever came across 1020.. live and local is baloney.. no local temps and current weather conditions are given. The news is canned, not pro active-- better yet, it is inactive.
 
Re: WIBG1020: BIGGER AND BETTER TO POISED TO REACH AN AMAZING DEMO

wibg1020 said:
Big things are set to launch here at our flagship WIBG1020....you'll get to see the big WIBG1020 picture
shortly.

Our new format is wildly contagious

Stay tuned.
Click to expand...

If you can't what is coming, or even when it's coming, you can't expect anybody to believe anything you say. You have no credibility.
 
Just tuning in; the station is now "Lucky 1020 WIBG". They're playing all-80s music. Website has yet to be updated, so I'm not sure if this is a stunt format or the real deal.
 
I'm guessing that "Music of Your Life" and then 80s music are both part of a series of stunts until the "real" new format is unveiled. I suspected the talk format wouldn't survive when Harry Hurley moved elsewhere. I do wish the station success! I've long had a "soft spot" for WIBG-AM. Historically it was WSLT-AM at 1520 when I spent several years with WSLT-AM-FM, Ocean City, back in the 1970s, the last two as PD. (Our studios were at 957 Asbury Avenue in O.C) Plus, I've long had a great deal of personal respect for Rick Brancadora.

By the way, after several years at WSLT-AM-FM, I spent the next eight years at "Stereo 94" WWOC-FM (licensed to Avalon, but located in the beautiful swamps of Swainton!). That was the first incarnation of 94.3 FM -- now WIBG-FM. (Small world?)
 
RadioPro65 said:
I spent several years with WSLT-AM-FM, Ocean City, back in the 1970s,
Click to expand...

I worked at WSLT-FM for a short while in the early 70's. I remember Larry Keene and Ellen Hudson. I also remember that monstrous automation set-up. I screwed that up more than once :)
 
Ellen Hudson hired me for overnights when the FM went on the air in 1972. I also did news not only for the overnight, but recorded newscasts for the morning. Later, I moved over to middays on the AM under PD Tom Williams. Eventually, after we went first-wave Oldies (American Graffiti, Happy Days), co-owner Bob Simpkins asked me to take PD. Speaking of the automation, I also programmed it for the next 24 hours during the overnights. Larry Keene was my GM -- and I went with him to WWOC-FM when he launched it. Larry was co-owner with the Scarpa family's Warner Cable system in Cape May County. I feel like I should know who HarrytheK1 is -- but have no clue. We must have crossed paths. (Were you sales or on-air?)
 
As of Monday, the new format is Spanish Hits... "En Vivo". Local talk and religious programs still on weekends, but En Vivo is the new weekday format
 
Re: WIBG1020: BIGGER AND BETTER TO POISED TO REACH AN AMAZING DEMO

Enormous rejuvenation? A couple weeks of bland music you can hear anywhere and now a Spanish station? As for those 25 local callers that was the hosts fault - they did nothing to reach out to the community they were happy to take 2 or 3 calls a show from the same callers. Even the worst hosts in the area - and I won't name them - get a handful of first time callers every week and can do 3-4 hours without a repeat caller.
There WAS a talk station potential here but the management blew it. Picking up local friends to let them host, not enforcing and professional conduct (you would hear bumper music forever when they showed up late or took long cigarette breaks) and not doing anything to embrace fresh topics - had such potential and to be worse than WOND and WFPG is not a host or same-caller problem it is a MANAGEMENT problem.

wibg1020 said:
Hey Kew.. HAHAHAHA. Big things are set to launch here at our flagship WIBG1020.
Don't know what forest you're in, but you'll get to see the big WIBG1020 picture
shortly.

We are really proud of the incredible support of our new and upcoming format, plus a
strong FM translator at 101.3. Trust me. Our new format is wildly contagious

The days of the everyday repeat 25 political junkie callers and hosts who pontificate their political order
or read the local paper on air, will see an enormous rejuvenation of AM broadcast radio at WIBG1020.
Its live and local. Stay tuned.
Click to expand...
 
You don't have to be collecting a check in radio to understand that format changes are never about ratings or programming success. In today's world it is ALL about sales. I'll bet that with two other AM talkers in the market (the 900 lb gorilla WOND and Hurley's WPG) WIBG was seeing revenue drop every month. The Atlantic/Cape May market can't support two AM talkers, let alone THREE.

Management identified a revenue hole in the market, an under served demographic, and pulled the trigger. Good move. Spanish is a tough sell. Best of Luck.
 
RE-20 said:
I'll bet that with two other AM talkers in the market (the 900 lb gorilla WOND and Hurley's WPG) WIBG was seeing revenue drop every month. The Atlantic/Cape May market can't support two AM talkers, let alone THREE.
Click to expand...

With WPG soon to simulcast on 100.3fm things are going to get very interesting. With 250 watts from Northfield (nearly the center of the market) 100.3 should throw a 60db City-Grade signal over all of Absecon Island (Atlantic City/Margate/etc.) plus all of Ocean City along with Egg Harbor Twp. (population of over 43,000) on the mainland.

Also, that 1450 AM signal is probably the best AM signal in the market, much better than 1400.
 
WIBG1020 AT 101.3 FM SOON

WIBG1020 will soon be broadcast on its own 250 watt translator and with WIBG's
most powerful 1900 watt signal on a clear channel. it remains the markets best signal.
The nature of 101.3 is very clean. Response to EnVivo 1020 has been outstanding
with excellent advertiser support already. Great upswing in just 4 days.
 
RE-20 said:
You don't have to be collecting a check in radio to understand that format changes are never about ratings or programming success. In today's world it is ALL about sales. I'll bet that with two other AM talkers in the market (the 900 lb gorilla WOND and Hurley's WPG) WIBG was seeing revenue drop every month. The Atlantic/Cape May market can't support two AM talkers, let alone THREE.

Right now in the market (Southern NJ/Philly) there are at least 5 talk options, all well supported. The market is no worse for talk than for music, if its done well. As for ratings/success/sales - these are not independent of one another they go hand in hand. At the beginning of 1020s talk format change in 2011 they had a ton of advertisers but their follow up was poor and their programming didnt offer enough variety. When you look to Don Williams who is willing to change it up with live remotes and guest interviews you see what 1020 talkers were doing wrong. Advertisers want to see that you have a strategy for pulling in new listeners so that there are ears on those ads, which is what the M-F hosts never did - they got those 25 callers/repeat callers and were happy with that, harped on the same issues day after day. When you feel that the 900 lb gorilla is the long in the tooth WOND and you don't see that as an opportunity - imho that is a management flaw. As for Hurley - he succeeds with revenue because he does a lot of infomercial type shows that are guaranteed $$$. But do you listen to infomercials? I don't.
EnVivo is not good its just new. There are several Spanish language options in the market.
Click to expand...
 
Re: WIBG1020 AT 101.3 FM SOON

wibg1020 said:
WIBG1020 will soon be broadcast on its own 250 watt translator
Click to expand...

The FCC lists 101.3 as just 38 watts, there isn't even an application for 250.

wibg1020 said:
WIBG's most powerful 1900 watt signal on a clear channel. it remains the markets best signal.
Click to expand...

By day. In the hours around noon 1020 reaches as far north as Brick Twp. in Ocean County and well into Camden County to the west.

HOWEVER, at night 1020 is ZERO watts and reaches nobody.

wibg1020 said:
The nature of 101.3 is very clean.
Click to expand...

That is true, it is much clearer than 100.3 but transmitting from Palermo is a huge disadvantage - the signal will be un-listenable in Atlantic City, poor at best in EHT, only so-so in Mays Landing and non-existent in Egg Harbor City.

[quote. author=wibg1020 link=topic=234555.msg2124184#msg2124184 date=1370813248]
Response to EnVivo 1020 has been outstanding.
[/quote]

That tends to happen when you are the only game in town. There is no other Spanish language station in the Atlantic City-Cape May market. Even in Southern Ocean County 1020am is the ONLY Spanish language station with a listenable signal.
 
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