1060 WIXC - Changes

[barthgimble]

I seriously doubt they will ever be "live and local". My opinion is strictly derived from my love of 80's and 90's country. To me, it reminds me of 60's rock. That's why a lot of baby boomers went country. That being said, I don't think that the
format will ever be more than a number 15 station in any market. It is "narrowcasting."

 

[byron]

It's an LMA through a company that thrives on cost-cutter techniques such as automation. Add to the mix, the format is most likely satellite delivered, ala Jones Sat Radio, and the reasons to not be live-and-local are pretty easy to keep in mind for the management staff. Remember, it just has to sell. That, and it's music on AM. Not exactly throwing some new breakthrough in programming onto our airwaves.

 

[jabo2000]

Easy now chief.... Where did I say it was ever about the listeners? I merely stated the fact that Genesis has most likely done ZERO research and literally made the decision to broker WIXC within a few days. That sir is bad radio business. But yes, "back in the day" as you say...it was about money as well; but not to the extent of it is now. Back then LOCAL research was done to dictate formats, music programming, and actual involvement in the community. Today, most decisions are made by a suit hundreds of miles away and maybe by someone that's never even visited the community the station is broadcasting too. That's the difference between THEN and now.

Genesis spent three years on WIXC and achieved a whopping .8 share. That's plenty of research. Look, Brevard County has no major league sports franchise. Sports talk is never going to be profitable in a market like that. Continuing to lose money on a format that has no chance of succeeding in a market is truly bad business.

Now WIXC is operated locally, has local programming and content, supports community charitable fundraisers with invites for on-air interviews and discussion, and it is offering a product the listeners cannot get anywhere else. Yes, all the radio "experts" know that nobody will listen to music on AM. Well, WINT in Brevard County has been as high as a 5 share in the past four years. So much for conventional wisdom. Ted Turner took WHKR from nothing in the ratings to become the #1 station in the market. They dropped to #6 after he left, but that's a pretty good track record. He's now programming WHKR, hosting the 6am-10am show, etc. There's a 4pm-7pm live show as well as high school football, Seminoles football, Jaguars football, and Monday Night football. So there's still sports content, but the kind that attracts listeners and sponsors.

And, the classic country format is something new to Brevard County. There are countless country fans who won't listen to K-92 or the Hit Kicker because they don't want to hear the same 15 artists and the same limited playlist. February 1 will be the first opportunity to see any numbers. That will ultimately tell the story.

 

[jabo2000]

It's an LMA through a company that thrives on cost-cutter techniques such as automation. Add to the mix, the format is most likely satellite delivered, ala Jones Sat Radio, and the reasons to not be live-and-local are pretty easy to keep in mind for the management staff. Remember, it just has to sell. That, and it's music on AM. Not exactly throwing some new breakthrough in programming onto our airwaves.

Check with sunbiz.org and you'll find that Whiskey River Broadcasting was formed in June, 2008 so I'm not sure what you mean about "a company that thrives on cost-cutter techniques such as automation". Yes, WIXC is partially automated, and partially live at the moment. Hey, the new format has been on the air for less than a month. Ted Turner is betting that if he offers people something they want to listen to that they can't get anywhere else, they'll tune in. AM music has appealed to pople very recently. Watch Radio and Records in 6 months for ratings info, and compare that to the ESPN format numbers from the past 3 year. That will tell the story better than all of our jawboning.

 

[froggiesmother]

Ted, ummm, I mean Jabo, the Hitkicker fell to # 6 with you, ummm, I mean Ted still running it, not after you, ummm, Ted left....For a country station in Brevard County to be #6 is an embarrassment...He killed the station, was responsible for a huge chunk of the lack of morale in that entire building...and had absolutely no respect from anyone at all... Oh, by the way, if Ted would cut out the 'ummmms' from his morning show he could squeeze in 4 or 5 more songs.

 

[jabo2000]

Look man, if you have a beef with Ted (and you obviously do) why don't you call him up and tell him rather than engage in character assasination behind an anonymous ID? That would be the manly thing to do.

You've obviously been listening to him. So you obviously still work for Cumulus, or you're a fan. Which is it? If you work there, how's the morale these days? Ted's been gone a year now, so things must have gotten better, right? But why do you suppose management didn't even respect you enough to share the most recent Arbitron numbers with you? How come people are bailing? Is Cumulus showing you much respec these days?

And no, I'm not Ted, but if you do want to know who I am why not just ask? No need for childishness.

 

[BIG APE]

Look man, if you have a beef with Ted (and you obviously do) why don't you call him up and tell him rather than engage in character assasination behind an anonymous ID? That would be the manly thing to do.

You've obviously been listening to him. So you obviously still work for Cumulus, or you're a fan. Which is it? If you work there, how's the morale these days? Ted's been gone a year now, so things must have gotten better, right? But why do you suppose management didn't even respect you enough to share the most recent Arbitron numbers with you? How come people are bailing? Is Cumulus showing you much respec these days?

And no, I'm not Ted, but if you do want to know who I am why not just ask? No need for childishness.

OK, I'm from Brevard County..Who are you? Tom Morley, Robert Rowland, Bill Cummins (WEZY, Is he still alive)

 

[jabo2000]

I'm Jim Burke, also from Brevard County. I posted here to dispell some of the misinformation that was being posted by posting some facts about the new format, how it is operating, and the new company that is programming WIXC.

 

[billalm]

OK... yes, it's good to hear someone doing something different; and if it results in higher ratings AND revenue for WIXC, then it's good for all parties involved. However, the fact remains that the station is owned by Genesis and is being leased by Whisky River. That means they have to make enough money to not only cover their own costs, but the cost of the lease. That's not gonna be easy with AM 1060 only covering Brevard and rimshotting Orlando. Seriously, I know the intentions are good, however I'm just not convinced it's gonna work on a signal like AM 1060. I'll hold ya to that prediction come February.

 

[BIG APE]

I'm Jim Burke, also from Brevard County. I posted here to dispell some of the misinformation that was being posted by posting some facts about the new format, how it is operating, and the new company that is programming WIXC.

Thanks Jim..I 'm in Winston Salem/GSO at the present time but will probably be back shortly to visit some family..Maybe we can get together and tip a few! APE!

 

[jabo2000]

OK... yes, it's good to hear someone doing something different; and if it results in higher ratings AND revenue for WIXC, then it's good for all parties involved. However, the fact remains that the station is owned by Genesis and is being leased by Whisky River. That means they have to make enough money to not only cover their own costs, but the cost of the lease. That's not gonna be easy with AM 1060 only covering Brevard and rimshotting Orlando. Seriously, I know the intentions are good, however I'm just not convinced it's gonna work on a signal like AM 1060. I'll hold ya to that prediction come February.

I understand. No venture is guaranteed. My point was to provide some factual information, and support the decision to abandon the sports talk format. It did not succeed and had no prospects of succeeding.

Whiskey River's relationship with Genesis is not limited to the LMA. The LMA is just the agreement that allows Whiskey River to program the station at the moment. With regard to Brevard County, there are the corporate stations that are solidly profitable on the limited market of 500,000 people that Brevard county offers. WMMB broadcasts on two frequencies, 1240 and 1350, and is still unintelligible in Titusville much of the time. The addition of The Beach (98.5) fragmented the market a little more. And the big signal stations from Orlando do get their share. However, there is a lot of research that indicates people do want the product WIXC is now offering, and particularly people in Brevard County. If you give people something they want, they will consume it. WIXC does not have to be in the top 5 Brevard radio stations to be profitable.

 

[Paperbill]

Look man, if you have a beef with Ted (and you obviously do) why don't you call him up and tell him rather than engage in character assasination behind an anonymous ID? That would be the manly thing to do.

You've obviously been listening to him. So you obviously still work for Cumulus, or you're a fan. Which is it? If you work there, how's the morale these days? Ted's been gone a year now, so things must have gotten better, right? But why do you suppose management didn't even respect you enough to share the most recent Arbitron numbers with you? How come people are bailing? Is Cumulus showing you much respec these days?

And no, I'm not Ted, but if you do want to know who I am why not just ask? No need for childishness.

OK, I'm from Brevard County..Who are you? Tom Morley, Robert Rowland, Bill Cummins (WEZY, Is he still alive)

Interesting what peope say and claim to know. I am interested who has left cumulus recently? Only sales people, right? Arbitron numbers where shared, not sure where you got your info but it is wrong. I am sure you guys will sell some $5 spots and develop an older audience, It would have been exciting to see a news talk station take on WMMB

 

[Paperbill]

Rumor is that Classic Country is going good bye......

 

[austingrace]

are you serious?

they don't even have a book under them. hell they have not been for 3 months yet. what would they do with 1060 if that is true? i can't think of anything. i doubt they would go true oldies cuz wint did that and failed. plus with wsbh in the market you can get that type of music. i don't think you get 50s oldies on wsbh. well i never heard them anyway when i lived in palm bay a year ago. so this is interesting. were they ever live and local? i think i heard 1060 one time hear in altamonte and i did hear a dj. 1060 comes in sometimes up here... no online streaming. well not from what i have found.

 

[Cosmic Zamboni]

Rumors are just rumors. I heard another one, that Denny Stone got fired from WHKR. He's no longer listed as an on-air personality on their website. If the Hit Kicker is falling apart, I can't see WIXC dropping the country format so quickly. JMO.

 

[Paperbill]

The Hitkicker will not fall apart with Denny Stone Leaving....nor will a county classic AM station ever give serious competition to a 50,000 FM today's county station.

As far as WIXIE, Ted Turner was released over a wek ago, no rumor there

 

[Cosmic Zamboni]

Well, there was more to the rumor I heard. It was a Cumulus house cleaning as I heard it. Programming director of WAOA is gone as well. And others. Automated stations are a dime a dozen, I can't see this as a good thing for the market. Get rid of on air people and not replace them?

I don't know about Turner's deal, but the station still plays country music. So the rumor that the format was changing doesn't seem to be panning out. And you have to believe that another country station in the market isn't helping WHKR much. Whether it fall apart or not remains to be seen, but another rumor is that their revenues are down 50%. That might have something to do with the cuts. Revenues down, personnel cuts, more competition in the market - seems like a clear picture to me.

 

[Paperbill]

clear picture? Care to make a wager on the WiKie thing? I bet the format will change within a month.

Revenues are down in this and every market, it doen't take a genius to figure that out.

Cumulus was the last "Live and Local" station in the marker, even though most of it voice tracked

 

[JohnValjean]

I have it on good authority the Classic Country format is staying at WIXC 1060. There are some changes going on within the organization but the format is not one of the things changing.

 

[Paperbill]

Willing to make a wager?