970WFLA asleep again ???

[flwfg]

42 minutes AFTER Bay news 9 had it on line... WFLA has a teaser headline for the story about a FHP Trooper involved in a shooting in Pinellas County.....Yup... right on top of things... again...

 

[SarasotaJim]

This is what happens when an owner reduces staff to the point where they can no longer do their job if something breaks.

 

[tampalistener]

42 minutes AFTER Bay news 9 had it on line... WFLA has a teaser headline for the story about a FHP Trooper involved in a shooting in Pinellas County.....Yup... right on top of things... again...

OK, we get it ... you've got problems with WFLA's news operations.

There are a lot of things about WFLA (as a direct result of Clear Channel's ownership) that disappoint those of us who have been long-time listeners or are industry observers. But how about trying something constructive and sending your thoughts to the news director, who's in a better position to do something about it than folks on a discussion board?

Or is it just easier to gripe here and be miserable?

 

[Mike_Hennessy]

I certainly hope I'm wrong, but too often in situations like this the reaction of management (speaking in general terms, I do not know any of the current management team at 970) is to blame the staffers who didn't get the story even though their workload is so intense that they can barely keep up on a normal day.

 

[SarasotaJim]

I certainly hope I'm wrong, but too often in situations like this the reaction of management (speaking in general terms, I do not know any of the current management team at 970) is to blame the staffers who didn't get the story even though their workload is so intense that they can barely keep up on a normal day.

A very simply reason for that, Mike. My observations have been that most "managers" these days know nothing about the businesses they are supposed to be managing. The honest radio people who care about their product and the people they serve are mostly gone from the business now.

 

[Studio20]

To appease all of the above posters, let's get some education here.

Back in the day, I had local newscasts at :05 and :30, and inbetween I ran board for either syndication or local talk, and made cop calls when I could

Assuming Bay News 9 has a fully staffed news operation, and can bang out a headline that instantly appears on the screen ticker; What exactly is the workload these days of a local radio news person, say at 970?

 

[coolaid213]

OK, we get it ... you've got problems with WFLA's news operations.

There are a lot of things about WFLA (as a direct result of Clear Channel's ownership) that disappoint those of us who have been long-time listeners or are industry observers. But how about trying something constructive and sending your thoughts to the news director, who's in a better position to do something about it than folks on a discussion board?

Or is it just easier to gripe here and be miserable?

Ok, so I guess we're not supposed to talk about WFLA sucking anymore? Really? Why?

I don't know anything about this particular news story, but I know that Bay News 9 is notoriously slow about reporting local news. So if BN9 scooped WFLA... I think that's a big deal.

In my opinion, 970 has gone from the best talk station in the market, to the absolute worst. With the exception of when they're playing Coast to Coast, I would rather listen to any other talk station in the market... I think 820's news coverage is better. 860 is automated all day long and managed by glorified publix bagboys, and even they have better (outsourced/automated) news and traffic.

Of course, the programming on 970 is also atrocious, if you aren't a brainwashed Republican fanboy, there's nothing on that station for you to listen to... I honestly believe the brokered programming on Tan Talk is far superior to the syndicated fare on 970. Which is funny, I think CC thought all they had to do was put Beck, Rush, Hannity, and Levin on every station, and they'd be set... but this is dinosaur talk. AM Radio isn't dead... but that kind of pseudo-conservative talk is. I really wish people would stop blaming the technology for AM radio's decline, and place the blame where it really belongs, the programming. Clear Channel (bain capital) has made the conscious decision to air propaganda disguised as entertainment, and no one should be surprised to see FLA's ratings slip, but I digress...

WFLA isn't asleep, it's being suffocated by it's corporate owners. They've cut all the good local on-air and off-air talent. Just like what happened to me at Salem, they're replacing talented broadcasters with inexperienced morons who wouldn't know good radio if it bit them. But knowing good radio isn't a requirement anymore, being willing to babysit the automation program 15 hours a week for 7 dollars an hour is... Everyone should listen to Bob Lassiter's Radio For One.

 

[flwfg]

My point exactly about Bay News 9 beating WFLA970.... They are usually the LAST of all the major local TV news stations in the market to post new items.... And I'm sorry.. but I feel that the St. Pete High story was important due to classes being cancelled... and any police shooting is important...Especially FHP, as they are not too often involved in shootings.. and especially when I found out it was in a cemetery... added mystique to the story... If WFLA is supposed to be THE NEWS station for the area... they are failing ...

 

[tampalistener]

Ok, so I guess we're not supposed to talk about WFLA sucking anymore? Really? Why?

That's not what I was saying. Reread my post.

Most who follow the local radio scene are pretty much in agreement that the big boy ain't what he used to be. But what's the point in moaning about it here? Be a motivated consumer and complain to the people who need to hear the feedback. (I have.) Otherwise, to borrow one of Bob Lassiter's favorite expressions, it's just "support group" stuff when you're whining to people who generally agree with you but can do nothing about it.

The original poster has a point, but he also has made his opinion known already, so I'm suggesting he channel his energies in a useful (read: different) way that might actually lead to action.

 

[coolaid213]

I dunno, I always get a kick out of it whenever people start bitching about radio stations they hate. ;D

 

[flwfg]

I really do NOT hate 970WFLA..... I am just SO disappointed at how bad they have become.....E-mails to WFLA don't seem to do anything either... I am sad that there have been so many FORMERLY great or at least good, decent stations who have just seemingly given up... NO ENTHUSIASM.. where these once decent stations are mere shells of what they USED to be...I know you can never go back... but it is still frustrating to me anyway...

 

[dwtpa97]

Whether you're talking about radio or super markets, becoming and staying the leader means that you have to outperform the competition. Simply meeting the competition won't cut it - your efforts will be inconsistent and you'll suffer from a lack of a sense of mission. Becoming and staying the leader in any commercial field means doing what is best because it is best, and not because you're reacting to something somebody else does. And I think it probably means loving what you do.

 

[druidhillsradio]

When did CC/Bain buy them. Didn't Jacor own them before?

 

[SarasotaJim]

Can you imagine what would happen to Apple products if Clear Channel bought them out?

 

[badjef]

Can you imagine what would happen to Apple products if Clear Channel bought them out?

They would all have the iheartradio app built-in.

This nastiness of Bain Capital is coo-coo talk. Obviously, DHR ain't paying' attention.

Bain loans money. So does Ally. Do you know who's Ally is - outside of the people who loaned me the money for my 2010 Chrysler Town & Country? They are the new name of GMAC.

Sounds like O'Bamamotors to me. I don't care! I wanted the car, they loaned the money.

Bain capital did the same thng, only they loaned the money to BIG, BAD, CLEAR CHANNEL!

You guys have got to get over your own unwarranted hatred! You don't even recognize a simple "divide and conquer" strategy when it is presented to you.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[coolaid213]

The Jacor years were great at WFLA. Jacor had some really great stations back in the day. Jacor ran FLA from 1988 to 1999. Cheap Channel bought Jacor in 1999, and it's no surprise things started sliding after that point. Bain Capital bought Clear Channel in 2008... and regardless of what some people want to say, Mitt Romney still has substantial influence over the company, why wouldn't he??? The bottom line is, he started that company, and now that company is writing the paychecks of all the talking heads on CC stations. It's no wonder all the shows sound the same. You do the math. Is it any surprise that board-ops are getting fired left and right, but Rush and company are still collecting the big bucks?

 

[badjef]

The Jacor years were great at WFLA. Jacor had some really great stations back in the day. Jacor ran FLA from 1988 to 1999. Cheap Channel bought Jacor in 1999, and it's no surprise things started sliding after that point. Bain Capital bought Clear Channel in 2008... and regardless of what some people want to say, Mitt Romney still has substantial influence over the company, why wouldn't he??? The bottom line is, he started that company, and now that company is writing the paychecks of all the talking heads on CC stations. It's no wonder all the shows sound the same. You do the math. Is it any surprise that board-ops are getting fired left and right, but Rush and company are still collecting the big bucks?

The problem started long, long, ago.

Deregulation in 1996 caused a floodgates of radio buying occur. But by the time Jacor was bought by Clear Channel, the value of 970 was placed at 18. In English, that meant it would take 18 years to make up for the purchase of the station if it were business as usual. They cut the costs of operations to make up for "overpaying' for the station.

If CCU did not purchase Jacor, somebody else would have had similar results. The changes in technology and listener habits were also changing.

I didn't care for some of the changes on the listener side, but I understood why they were happening.

Rush brings in money as a personality and all you need is a Board-op. You don't even need to monitor the "Rants of Rush", either. His "One Minute Warning" will notify you when it's time for a break. It is an easy show to board-op. You don't even need to be in the room - just in ear shot of the tone.

No offense to the guys at the station(s).

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[flwfg]

I would have to agree that deregulation has been the worse detriment to broadcasting in the past 40 years....especially from an employee and listener's view

 

[badjef]

I would have to agree that deregulation has been the worse detriment to broadcasting in the past 40 years....especially from an employee and listener's view

I didn't mean to say deregulation was bad, it was the regulation of it and then deregulation.

Washington gets involved with the Marketplace and then skrews things up. It is then left to the Marketplace to straighten the problem that was created by Washington and then those in Washington hold a news conference patting each other on the back for correcting the problem, solved by the Marketplace, that they created in the first place.

We will never know what radio would have looked like had Washington not regulated ownership in the first place.

One of the dumbest statements I ever heard from an FCC Commissioner was about 12 years ago. we discussed it on the now defunct airwaves.com. The Commissioner (paraphrased) "I think the radio dial should reflect the city you are in."

Here, in Sa-ra-so-ta!, we have a huge Amish population. It is hard enough to get them to hook up to the electric company, let alone, listen to a radio station.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[SarasotaJim]

I would have to agree that deregulation has been the worse detriment to broadcasting in the past 40 years....especially from an employee and listener's view

But, you're not looking at one of the biggest root causes of the deregulation: regulation. badjef got it right. If Washington had stayed out of the situation to begin with, we wouldn't be where we are today.

The FCC made a decision decades ago that stations would have their "class" status downgraded if they didn't make full use of their licensed class. In those days, a Class A could operate on a Class C allocation. (The following details are pure fiction, used only to illustrate the issue.) Assume a Class A operating on a Class C allocation in Sarasota. Under the FCC's then-newly-implemented regulations, if that station didn't upgrade itself to a C within a given time frame, it would be downgraded to an A allocation and other stations moved in around it. It would forever give up its ability to upgrade. A lot of stations in suburban, or even exurban, towns were forced to upgrad and the result was our famous "move-in" period. Sarasota loses a local service and it's crammed into Tampa.

As if that wasn't bad enough...

In the dying throes of the failed Jimmy Carter administration, the fools came up with Docket 80-90. This was a beautiful piece of social engineering stupidity of the first magnitude. The FCC relaxed some separation requirements so additional stations could be licensed for the sole purpose of putting licenses in the hands of blacks and women. No matter what your feelings regarding that part of 80-90, the real problem arose when the FCC believed its own crap about what it felt was "community service" and programming in the "public interest."

Like all bureaucrats with no experience in how the world operates, the Commission favored people who had no experience in broadcasting and promised all kinds of discussion and interview programs to service the local needs. Does it really take a Rhodes Scholar to figure out what happened?

They went friggin' broke, that's what they did. And, in the end, they got bought out by real broadcasters who knew what they were doing. Now, we have all the move-ins PLUS the 80-90 idiocy that, in some markets, doubled or even tripled the number of viable signals.

It didn't take too many years for everyone, including the morons at the FCC, to figure out that no one could pay their bills anymore. Stations were failing right and left. Something had to be done, especially since the Commission wanted to keep all those signals on the air in order to provide diversification of formats. Again, it didn't take a Rhodes Scholar to see the only solution: one manager running multiple stations, one sales department serving multiple stations, etc.

In the end, deregulation was the only viable solution to previous stupid regulations.

For those who think regulation is the answer to the country's social ills, this caveat: be careful what you ask for. You might get it.