1) Does Atlanta need four Sports stations? 680 WCNN (at one time running CNN Headline News) is the market's ESPN affiliate. And 790 WQXI is its chief competitor. Spill-over games from WCNN are heard on 1340 WALR, a Fox Sports affiliate. Then there's also 1230 WFOM, but I couldn't find its website. So what do WQXI and WFOM air on nights and weekends when they don't have local sports hosts? I suppose one of them is affiliated with The Sporting News, the nation's third all-sports network. Atlanta used to have an ESPN Deportes station in Spanish but I think that's been discontinued.
2) Does Atlanta need five talk stations, plus a few rimshot talk outlets? WSB, owned by Cox, has the market's largest news department and runs mostly local hosts. WSB's 50,000 watt signal is heard all over the South. Then there's 640 WGST, owned by Clear Channel. They've got Rush and a few other big names in syndicated talk. But their ratings are not great, especially after giving up an FM simulcast. Religious broadcaster Salem owns 920 WGKA, running their national line-up of conservative talkers, but with poor ratings. There's a black talk station owned by CBS, 1380 WAOK. Their website only lists a few local hosts and says nothing about any national shows they may run, or whether they stay black talk around the clock. Then there's 1160 WCFO running national syndicated shows, such as Dr. Laura, Lou Dobbs and Mancow. Their website shows the CBS logo for news, but if WAOK is owned by CBS, who carries CBS News on the hour? WCFO lists Imus in the Morning as their wake-up show. But isn't Imus also on Oldies 106.7 WYAY? Does Citadel dilute Imus' ratings with an AM outlet also carrying his show? Other than WAOK, are the other four talk stations ALL carrying conservative shows? Georgia might be a red state but it came close to going for Obama over McCain in the recent election. And surely Atlanta is more liberal than the more rural areas of the state. So why are four Atlanta talk stations running ALL conservative talk shows?
3) Atlanta is not a great market for rock stations and it seems to be getting worse. It wasn't too long ago that 99.7 WNNX was one of the leading Alternative Rock stations in the U.S. Atlanta also had a healthy Classic Rocker in WKLS. CBS-owned 92.9 WZGC has always had ratings problems, never permitting Howard Stern to be its morning show, fearing a backlash, even though Howard boosted other CBS rock stations around the country. Now everything's changed. Cox introduced a Classic Hits station a few years ago called The River, 97.1 WSRV, which has become the only rock station consistantly in the top 10. It has a very pop-flavored playlist of Classic Rock hits of the past. WKLS gave up Classic Rock to go younger, but hasn't equaled its past ratings. The owners of WNNX watched it drop over the last few years to the point where they moved it to a lesser signal at 100.5 and made it a more mainstream contemporary rock station, also with poor results. They've just relaunched Alternative on a weak translator and an HD station. And CBS is now trying a very eclectic Adult Alternative format on WZGC, perhaps too unfamiliar and hard-edged for this market. Four Rock stations and only the most familiar, pop-oriented one, WSRV, does well 12+, although WKLS is doing OK in young male demos.
4) Urban formats are the real winners in Atlanta. CBS-owned 103.3 WVEE is usually #1, often beating WSB. 107.9 WHTA is more hip-hop and younger. Despite signal problems, it's also a contender. For Urban AC, there's the Majic simulcast at 97.5 and 107.5... although adding 107.5 knocked out the market's Smooth Jazz station a few months ago. There's Urban Oldies 104.1 WALR-FM. And Gospel WPZE recently moved to a stronger signal at 102.5. They're often all in the Top 10. Plus there are several Gospel stations on AM too.
5) Altanta may have the most religious outlets of any market in the U.S. In additon to the Black Gospel stations, there are six or seven AM stations doing religion, including a couple broadcasting in Spanish. There's not one but two Christian Contemporary stations on the FM dial as well as a few preaching stations. How can they all make a profit (or for the non-commercial stations, how they can get enough contributions)? And are there no mainstream or Catholic broadcasters?... So many religious stations and they're ALL Evangelical?
6) The big country station in the South's biggest market is Citadel's 101.5 WKXK. WKXK's protection station, also owned by Citadel, 106.7 WYAY, recently gave up Country to run Imus in the Morning and the True Oldies format the rest of the day. There are also rim-shot FM stations doing country at 92.1, 92.5, 96.7 and 107.1. And Clear Channel a couple of years ago jumped on the Country bandwagon, flipping long-time Soft AC WPCH to The Bull 94.1 WUBL. That has not been a good move. For decades, WPCH was Altanta's at-work station, first as Easy Listening, then as Soft AC. Why would they jump into the overcrowded Country war?
7) WPCH's demise has left Cox's WSB-FM as the only AC in the market, and it's usually #3, especially in the Fall when it goes all-holiday music from Late November to Christmas Day. It's very odd that Atlanta has four rock stations, two Top 40s, two Christian Contemporary stations... but only one AC. WSB-FM steers right down the middle, trying to be the office station while still being uptempo and allowing DJs to talk, more like a Hot AC. How long can they stay the only AC station in Atlanta?
8) Oddly, Georgia Public Radio doesn't have an Atlanta outlet. Some Atlanta listners may pick up GPR stations from Warm Springs or Rome. The Atlanta Board of Education owns WABE 90.1, which runs NPR programs, local shows and Classical music. I'd guess Atlanta Public Radio would want a station in Atlanta but could they not acquire an FM signal in the market?
Gregg
[email protected]
2) Does Atlanta need five talk stations, plus a few rimshot talk outlets? WSB, owned by Cox, has the market's largest news department and runs mostly local hosts. WSB's 50,000 watt signal is heard all over the South. Then there's 640 WGST, owned by Clear Channel. They've got Rush and a few other big names in syndicated talk. But their ratings are not great, especially after giving up an FM simulcast. Religious broadcaster Salem owns 920 WGKA, running their national line-up of conservative talkers, but with poor ratings. There's a black talk station owned by CBS, 1380 WAOK. Their website only lists a few local hosts and says nothing about any national shows they may run, or whether they stay black talk around the clock. Then there's 1160 WCFO running national syndicated shows, such as Dr. Laura, Lou Dobbs and Mancow. Their website shows the CBS logo for news, but if WAOK is owned by CBS, who carries CBS News on the hour? WCFO lists Imus in the Morning as their wake-up show. But isn't Imus also on Oldies 106.7 WYAY? Does Citadel dilute Imus' ratings with an AM outlet also carrying his show? Other than WAOK, are the other four talk stations ALL carrying conservative shows? Georgia might be a red state but it came close to going for Obama over McCain in the recent election. And surely Atlanta is more liberal than the more rural areas of the state. So why are four Atlanta talk stations running ALL conservative talk shows?
3) Atlanta is not a great market for rock stations and it seems to be getting worse. It wasn't too long ago that 99.7 WNNX was one of the leading Alternative Rock stations in the U.S. Atlanta also had a healthy Classic Rocker in WKLS. CBS-owned 92.9 WZGC has always had ratings problems, never permitting Howard Stern to be its morning show, fearing a backlash, even though Howard boosted other CBS rock stations around the country. Now everything's changed. Cox introduced a Classic Hits station a few years ago called The River, 97.1 WSRV, which has become the only rock station consistantly in the top 10. It has a very pop-flavored playlist of Classic Rock hits of the past. WKLS gave up Classic Rock to go younger, but hasn't equaled its past ratings. The owners of WNNX watched it drop over the last few years to the point where they moved it to a lesser signal at 100.5 and made it a more mainstream contemporary rock station, also with poor results. They've just relaunched Alternative on a weak translator and an HD station. And CBS is now trying a very eclectic Adult Alternative format on WZGC, perhaps too unfamiliar and hard-edged for this market. Four Rock stations and only the most familiar, pop-oriented one, WSRV, does well 12+, although WKLS is doing OK in young male demos.
4) Urban formats are the real winners in Atlanta. CBS-owned 103.3 WVEE is usually #1, often beating WSB. 107.9 WHTA is more hip-hop and younger. Despite signal problems, it's also a contender. For Urban AC, there's the Majic simulcast at 97.5 and 107.5... although adding 107.5 knocked out the market's Smooth Jazz station a few months ago. There's Urban Oldies 104.1 WALR-FM. And Gospel WPZE recently moved to a stronger signal at 102.5. They're often all in the Top 10. Plus there are several Gospel stations on AM too.
5) Altanta may have the most religious outlets of any market in the U.S. In additon to the Black Gospel stations, there are six or seven AM stations doing religion, including a couple broadcasting in Spanish. There's not one but two Christian Contemporary stations on the FM dial as well as a few preaching stations. How can they all make a profit (or for the non-commercial stations, how they can get enough contributions)? And are there no mainstream or Catholic broadcasters?... So many religious stations and they're ALL Evangelical?
6) The big country station in the South's biggest market is Citadel's 101.5 WKXK. WKXK's protection station, also owned by Citadel, 106.7 WYAY, recently gave up Country to run Imus in the Morning and the True Oldies format the rest of the day. There are also rim-shot FM stations doing country at 92.1, 92.5, 96.7 and 107.1. And Clear Channel a couple of years ago jumped on the Country bandwagon, flipping long-time Soft AC WPCH to The Bull 94.1 WUBL. That has not been a good move. For decades, WPCH was Altanta's at-work station, first as Easy Listening, then as Soft AC. Why would they jump into the overcrowded Country war?
7) WPCH's demise has left Cox's WSB-FM as the only AC in the market, and it's usually #3, especially in the Fall when it goes all-holiday music from Late November to Christmas Day. It's very odd that Atlanta has four rock stations, two Top 40s, two Christian Contemporary stations... but only one AC. WSB-FM steers right down the middle, trying to be the office station while still being uptempo and allowing DJs to talk, more like a Hot AC. How long can they stay the only AC station in Atlanta?
8) Oddly, Georgia Public Radio doesn't have an Atlanta outlet. Some Atlanta listners may pick up GPR stations from Warm Springs or Rome. The Atlanta Board of Education owns WABE 90.1, which runs NPR programs, local shows and Classical music. I'd guess Atlanta Public Radio would want a station in Atlanta but could they not acquire an FM signal in the market?
Gregg
[email protected]
