A CBS Boston exec told me WSCR headed to 104.3 shortly

[Fenway1912]

I was talking to a high level management person at the CBS-Boston cluster tonight at Fenway Park.

He said New York has decided to move WSCR to WJMK's slot on FM in a matter of weeks. He said it will be a simulcast until CBS Sports Radio fires up at which time 670 will carry the new network similar to what they plan to do in Philadelphia with WIP-AM.

CBS is planning on feeding Nanci Donnellan overnights on the new network and WBZ-FM in Boston has been told to clear her even though they run the popular JT Brick overnight. Nanci is doing a soft launch overnights on the new CBS station in Tampa ( WHFS )

He also told me the only big market CBS can't figure out how to get cleared is New York as because of New York geography WFAN is still better off on AM as it can deliver Long Island, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Cape Cod, New Jersey and Delaware which a FM stick can not do.

WSCR on FM can deliver the Chicago billable market.

 

[scanman1]

I hope that's not true. Right now, K-Hits is my number 1 station of choice! The presentation is good, the music selection has improved and even the processing sounds good now. Besides, 670 covers the Chicagoland area completely, and even goes further out to make it accessable to folks who are transplants from Chicago and like to keep up with sports here. So my message to CBS is: let's keep K-Hits on the air! 8)

 

[SHIFTY 1]

That will shake up the White Sox. The BULLS moved off FM quickly. Baseball execs like their flagships to be AM, multi state coverage...

 

[radioman148]

That will shake up the White Sox. The BULLS moved off FM quickly. Baseball execs like their flagships to be AM, multi state coverage...

That's why if this happens, which I doubt, expect the White Sox to move to another 50KW AM.

 

[tvnut]

That will shake up the White Sox. The BULLS moved off FM quickly. Baseball execs like their flagships to be AM, multi state coverage...

That's why if this happens, which I doubt, expect the White Sox to move to another 50KW AM.

Presuming there would be a move, the only possible one would be WMVP-1000. WGN has the Cubs, WBBM is CBS-owned, and WLS is Cumulus-owned (and thus careful with a dollar). I discount a move to WBBM on the theory that Reinsdorf would want to snub CBS rather than switch to another station.

But I wouldn't expect a switch from 670 at all if this happens. I'd expect the White Sox to be carried on both 670 and 104.3, getting the best of both worlds. Carriage on 670 would help CBS draw attention to its new network, and carriage on 104.3 would keep the connection with fans who followed WSCR's hosts to FM.

Now, if only the team would find some professional announcers.

 

[Fenway1912]

That will shake up the White Sox. The BULLS moved off FM quickly. Baseball execs like their flagships to be AM, multi state coverage...

That's why if this happens, which I doubt, expect the White Sox to move to another 50KW AM.

WSCR-AM would simulcast the White Sox.

The Phillies, Tigers and Red Sox to name 3 teams have games on both AM-FM.

Philly WPHT 1210 and WIP-FM
Tigers WXYT-AM and FM
Red Sox WEEI AM and FM

 

[radioguy39nj]

That will shake up the White Sox. The BULLS moved off FM quickly. Baseball execs like their flagships to be AM, multi state coverage...

That's why if this happens, which I doubt, expect the White Sox to move to another 50KW AM.

IIRC, before the new contract with WSCR took effect, the White Sox expressed an interest in being on FM.

The Pirates and Nationals both broadcast on FM exclusively on CBS sports stations, Pirates on 93.7 The Fan (KDKA-FM), Nationals on 106.7 The Fan (WJFK).

 

[radioguy39nj]

the only big market CBS can't figure out how to get cleared is New York as because of New York geography WFAN is still better off on AM as it can deliver Long Island, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Cape Cod, New Jersey and Delaware which a FM stick can not do.

IMHO, CBS or any major operator doesn't care about listeners who receive WFAN outside the NY market. The prime concern is the local embedded market. A class-B ESB FM stick can deliver that along with more favorable demos.

WXRK (CHR 92.3 NOW-FM) is CBS' lowest rated NY FM. WFAN currently broadcasts on 92.3 HD-3. I wouldn't rule out a WFAN move to FM, clearing 660 AM as the flagship of the new CBS Sports Radio.

 

[Fenway1912]

That will shake up the White Sox. The BULLS moved off FM quickly. Baseball execs like their flagships to be AM, multi state coverage...

That's why if this happens, which I doubt, expect the White Sox to move to another 50KW AM.

IIRC, before the new contract with WSCR took effect, the White Sox expressed an interest in being on FM.

The Pirates and Nationals both broadcast on FM exclusively on CBS sports stations, Pirates on 93.7 The Fan (KDKA-FM), Nationals on 106.7 The Fan (WJFK).

The Nats are also on 1500 AM
Washington, DC WJFK 106.7 FM *Flagship
Washington, DC WHFS 1580 AM
Washington, DC 94.7 FM-HD3
Washington, DC WFED 1500 AM
Washington, DC WTOP 103.5 FM-HD2

CBS seems content to leave WCBS-AM and WINS on AM.

Mushnik in the Post claims WEPN-FM will chase after the Mets and not the Yankees. However if they do that they will have to build a network which is something the Mets have not had since they moved to 660. Last I checked they had 2 stations upstate and none in Connecticut.

 

[davideduardo]

WSCR on FM can deliver the Chicago billable market.

I don't know what the term "billable" means, but will assume you mean "the entire metro survey area."

The Willis and Hancock B's deliver about 6 million in the 65 dbu contour, and about 7 million in the 60 dbu contour.

The market is 9.34 million.

WSCR delivers over 11 million in its 5 mV/m contour.

So an FM does not deliver the market... as to in-home and at work listening, where a 65 dbu signal is pretty much a minimum, they miss a third of the population.

 

[davideduardo]

IMHO, CBS or any major operator doesn't care about listeners who receive WFAN outside the NY market. )

They certainly don't get any appreciable billing from coverage outside the NYC Metro Survey Area. And, while it's nice to serve listeners where ever they are, there is no business model based on out of market coverage.

 

[audioguy]

Such a shame to lose K-Hits to a copycast of 670. This is yet another sign of the deterioration of broadcasting in this country. More and more duplicated signals. What a waste of spectrum! Ridiculous. The FCC should outlaw this.

 

[joebob]

I hope that the local Score hosts stay on 670. I want to hear my Bears sports talk in Rockford, as well as White Sox baseball! It would be a bad move.

 

[Fenway1912]

IMHO, CBS or any major operator doesn't care about listeners who receive WFAN outside the NY market. )

They certainly don't get any appreciable billing from coverage outside the NYC Metro Survey Area. And, while it's nice to serve listeners where ever they are, there is no business model based on out of market coverage.

Ahhhhh but you forget the quirky nature of the NY market.

A lot of the ad buyers live in Fairfield County, Connecticut and while the FM signals from Manhattan start to fade, the NY 50K AM outlets just bomb in along the Connecticut coast (especially WCBS and WFAN from the Bronx)

 

[1069_KIFR]

I was talking to a high level management person at the CBS-Boston cluster tonight at Fenway Park.

He said New York has decided to move WSCR to WJMK's slot on FM in a matter of weeks. He said it will be a simulcast until CBS Sports Radio fires up at which time 670 will carry the new network similar to what they plan to do in Philadelphia with WIP-AM.

CBS is planning on feeding Nanci Donnellan overnights on the new network and WBZ-FM in Boston has been told to clear her even though they run the popular JT Brick overnight. Nanci is doing a soft launch overnights on the new CBS station in Tampa ( WHFS )

He also told me the only big market CBS can't figure out how to get cleared is New York as because of New York geography WFAN is still better off on AM as it can deliver Long Island, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Cape Cod, New Jersey and Delaware which a FM stick can not do.

WSCR on FM can deliver the Chicago billable market.

Now why would someone devulge all of this information?

 

[Fenway1912]

Such a shame to lose K-Hits to a copycast of 670. This is yet another sign of the deterioration of broadcasting in this country. More and more duplicated signals. What a waste of spectrum! Ridiculous. The FCC should outlaw this.

I agree in principal but I also can not ignore that in virtually every market where an AM signal is now being heard on a FM simulcast the bottom line has improved.

I would love to see the WBBM breakdown between AM and FM - same in Boston with WEEI and Philly with WIP.

 

[cd637299]

^ It's the future of radio, anyway. Music will be thinned out more and more over the years....what exists on AM will eventually be on FM. It'll take some markets longer than others. What's on FM now, will be downloaded in the future.

I believe that even WGN will have to purchase an FM eventually. How soon, I could not say.

cd

 

[Fenway1912]

^ It's the future of radio, anyway. Music will be thinned out more and more over the years....what exists on AM will eventually be on FM. It'll take some markets longer than others. What's on FM now, will be downloaded in the future.

I believe that even WGN will have to purchase an FM eventually. How soon, I could not say.

cd

It appears Tribune Broadcasting is for sale but the buyers of the TV stations may not want an AM.

Most likely buyer of WGN Radio?

Merlin (Randy)

ugh

 

[davideduardo]

A lot of the ad buyers live in Fairfield County, Connecticut and while the FM signals from Manhattan start to fade, the NY 50K AM outlets just bomb in along the Connecticut coast (especially WCBS and WFAN from the Bronx)

The actual buyers are fairly junior members of an agency media department, and they don't live in Fairfield County.

Media Buyers simply take the buy specs from the Media Planners and negotiate and buy the stations that meet the demographic and CPP criteria of a radio plan.

In any case, only the SW corner of Fairfield County is in the NYC MSA, and that area, although mostly at the edge of the 65 dbu contour of the ESB FMs, does get significant coverage from the market's FMs. Oh, and since that part of Fairfield is only 370,000 in population vs over 18 million for the total market, nobody is paying much attention to it.

 

[JOHNNY on the RADIO]

It's the future of radio, anyway. Music will be thinned out more and more over the years....what exists on AM will eventually be on FM. It'll take some markets longer than others. What's on FM now, will be downloaded in the future.

I agree.