A Sign Of WRKO Financial Desperation ?

[Mickey37]

Infomercials are just a sad fact of media life now as publicly traded companies focus their resources on key revenue generating areas and cut corners where they can. Hastening their demise in the interest of short term goals? One could certainly make that case.

One could, but infomercials have been around on radio for a mighty long time now in Boston. It's the way the industry is now. I fon't think you can make the leap from running-paid- programming to rearranging-deck-chairs-on-the-Titanic.

Paid programs are very much like 30- and 60-second spots, just longer.

 

[Casablanca]

Can always tell by the personal vitriol that certain postings hit too close to home for some who read them.

Not only are informercials a sign of bad economic times but of management inability to produce programming on the weekends to which people will actually want to listen and which therefore can make a profit for the station.

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

Not only are informercials a sign of bad economic times but of management inability to produce programming on the weekends to which people will actually want to listen and which therefore can make a profit for the station.

I'll say this as clearly and simply as I can, so you can understand it: You have no idea what you're talking about. You've been away from radio for so long that you don't realize how it has changed. The fact that a station runs or doesn't run infomercials has nothing whatsoever to do with management's ability, or lack thereof, to produce programming. Your failure to understand things like this is a good indicator of why you no longer work in radio. This is not 1967 anymore, but you still seem to be stuck there while the rest of the world has moved on.

 

[Casablanca]

As mentioned above, WRKO ran "Sounds Of Sinatra" and a paid travel show in the 80's when owned by General Tire and Rubber Company,Inc.

It was stupid programming then for an "ALL TALK STATION" and such diversions whether on WRKO or WBZ corrupt the format.

Again, if the money were flowing from national or spot ads this would not be necessary. Even Red Sox, Bruins, Celtics and the cheating Patriots can be defended as a means of building a broader audience base but informercials are a turn off, drive listeners away and do nothing to build the base.

Obviously, you were never in programming and reflect the accepted prostitution of the format by turning tricks as a means of making a quick and dirty buck. Call it anything you want, but it is still prostitution.

Not only are informercials a sign of bad economic times but of management inability to produce programming on the weekends to which people will actually want to listen and which therefore can make a profit for the station.

I'll say this as clearly and simply as I can, so you can understand it: You have no idea what you're talking about. You've been away from radio for so long that you don't realize how it has changed. The fact that a station runs or doesn't run infomercials has nothing whatsoever to do with management's ability, or lack thereof, to produce programming. Your failure to understand things like this is a good indicator of why you no longer work in radio. This is not 1967 anymore, but you still seem to be stuck there while the rest of the world has moved on.

 

[Mickey37]

if the money were flowing from national or spot ads this would not be necessary. Even Red Sox, Bruins, Celtics and the cheating Patriots can be defended as a means of building a broader audience base but informercials are a turn off, drive listeners away and do nothing to build the base.

Infomercials don't need to build an audience base. They're paid commercials. Local and national sales departments are having tough times keeping up with rising corporate expectations.
Infomercials help bring in the bucks, and that's the bottom line. The most entertaining programming is nothing if it can't come through with financial support.

 

[SonicOverload]

does anyone actually listen to those informercials?

 

[Casablanca]

Glad to read that you agree that selling informercials is a form of prostitution.

if the money were flowing from national or spot ads this would not be necessary. Even Red Sox, Bruins, Celtics and the cheating Patriots can be defended as a means of building a broader audience base but informercials are a turn off, drive listeners away and do nothing to build the base.

Infomercials don't need to build an audience base. They're paid commercials. Local and national sales departments are having tough times keeping up with rising corporate expectations.
Infomercials help bring in the bucks, and that's the bottom line. The most entertaining programming is nothing if it can't come through with financial support.

 

[TSBench]

As mentioned above, WRKO ran "Sounds Of Sinatra" and a paid travel show in the 80's when owned by General Tire and Rubber Company,Inc.

Ummm...so what? Syndicated niche programming was invented to fill weekend programming time on talk stations when the available audience wasn't large enough to justify more expensive programming. The only departures from this seem to be local sports and Saturday AMD, which is often included in the weekday AMD rotation. Considering the demos of talk stations, the Sounds of Sinatra seems a pretty reasonable programming choice, plus it's a pretty interesting show for folks of a certain age and musical tastes. Since the news cycle is pretty much Mon-Fri, Sid Mark was hardly a downgrade from flogging 3 day old dead horses. I assume you know that Sounds of Sinatra isn't paid programming but a straight-up syndicated show, so why group it with paid programming?

It was stupid programming then for an "ALL TALK STATION" and such diversions whether on WRKO or WBZ corrupt the format.

Why?

Again, if the money were flowing from national or spot ads this would not be necessary.

Curiously, in the media where they are possible, infomercials are least evident in the advertising medium in which revenue is down the most, broadcast network and spot television, and most numerous on the electronic advertising medium which is up the most, cable television. Radio is down, so far, in 2007, and paid programming doesn't seem any more prevalent than it did during the years when radio revenue was growing.

Radio's problem, which has been around forever, is that it is the most price-sensitive of all media, and thus vulnerable to whatever is the 'new' media of the day. It started when UHF television schedules were cost competitive with radio, and then with bargain basement cable deals. The newest kid on the block, internet advertising, appears to be eating everyone's lunch, not just radio. If you want to stay in business, you sell advertising...either spot, sponsorship, or long-form. Damning a medium which is around to sell advertising for selling advertising is like calling a butcher a prostitute for selling three grades of hamburger. What is the point?

Just what is your theory based on? As usual, the answer appears to be nothing.

Even Red Sox, Bruins, Celtics and the cheating Patriots can be defended as a means of building a broader audience

Actually, sports hasn't needed defending for any reason, but has been a mainstay of broadcasting for around 90 years. They run because they make money. But, if your definition of prostitution is running a program outside of the format for the purpose of revenue generation, and since most stations running sports are not sports stations, it would seem that running the Bruins on a news/talker vice running a paid travel program on one is a distinction without a philosophical difference.

informercials are a turn off, drive listeners away and do nothing to build the base.

If that was the case, they wouldn't be around, because the people that produce them and buy the time expect to make money. If nobody watched or listened, they wouldn't. And the ones that nobody watched or listened to are gone. Just what about this do you find hard to understand? Think about it the next time you're seaching for a DeLorean new car dealership.

Obviously, you were never in programming and reflect the accepted prostitution of the format by turning tricks as a means of making a quick and dirty buck. Call it anything you want, but it is still prostitution.

The low point of Boston talk radio was probably the Jerry Williams Sex Surveys, which was just blatant pandering to the purient interests of the listeners, making them probably the greatest demonstrable case of real air time prostitution in memory. Those bogus 'surveys' make the Magic Bullet infomercials seem like Firing Line in comparison.

Regards,
TSB

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

Obviously, you were never in programming...

Wrong.

...and reflect the accepted prostitution of the format by turning tricks as a means of making a quick and dirty buck. Call it anything you want, but it is still prostitution.

Wrong.

 

[Casablanca]

As one who had to put up with several weeks of the sex survey I would agree with you totally. It was complete pandering to which the sleezy geeem encouraged even under the dark shadow of the FCC which was about to take away the "General's" license to operate. It also demonstrates the limited power an executive producer has in the big picture. BTW it was even more boring to sit there in the studio knowing that many of the women were fabricating their sexual experiences and trying to outdo each other. It is not a pretty sight to see a geeem drool over a control panel.

As mentioned above, WRKO ran "Sounds Of Sinatra" and a paid travel show in the 80's when owned by General Tire and Rubber Company,Inc.

Ummm...so what? Syndicated niche programming was invented to fill weekend programming time on talk stations when the available audience wasn't large enough to justify more expensive programming. The only departures from this seem to be local sports and Saturday AMD, which is often included in the weekday AMD rotation. Considering the demos of talk stations, the Sounds of Sinatra seems a pretty reasonable programming choice, plus it's a pretty interesting show for folks of a certain age and musical tastes. Since the news cycle is pretty much Mon-Fri, Sid Mark was hardly a downgrade from flogging 3 day old dead horses. I assume you know that Sounds of Sinatra isn't paid programming but a straight-up syndicated show, so why group it with paid programming?

It was stupid programming then for an "ALL TALK STATION" and such diversions whether on WRKO or WBZ corrupt the format.

Why?

Again, if the money were flowing from national or spot ads this would not be necessary.

Curiously, in the media where they are possible, infomercials are least evident in the advertising medium in which revenue is down the most, broadcast network and spot television, and most numerous on the electronic advertising medium which is up the most, cable television. Radio is down, so far, in 2007, and paid programming doesn't seem any more prevalent than it did during the years when radio revenue was growing.

Radio's problem, which has been around forever, is that it is the most price-sensitive of all media, and thus vulnerable to whatever is the 'new' media of the day. It started when UHF television schedules were cost competitive with radio, and then with bargain basement cable deals. The newest kid on the block, internet advertising, appears to be eating everyone's lunch, not just radio. If you want to stay in business, you sell advertising...either spot, sponsorship, or long-form. Damning a medium which is around to sell advertising for selling advertising is like calling a butcher a prostitute for selling three grades of hamburger. What is the point?

Just what is your theory based on? As usual, the answer appears to be nothing.

Even Red Sox, Bruins, Celtics and the cheating Patriots can be defended as a means of building a broader audience

Actually, sports hasn't needed defending for any reason, but has been a mainstay of broadcasting for around 90 years. They run because they make money. But, if your definition of prostitution is running a program outside of the format for the purpose of revenue generation, and since most stations running sports are not sports stations, it would seem that running the Bruins on a news/talker vice running a paid travel program on one is a distinction without a philosophical difference.

informercials are a turn off, drive listeners away and do nothing to build the base.

If that was the case, they wouldn't be around, because the people that produce them and buy the time expect to make money. If nobody watched or listened, they wouldn't. And the ones that nobody watched or listened to are gone. Just what about this do you find hard to understand? Think about it the next time you're seaching for a DeLorean new car dealership.

Obviously, you were never in programming and reflect the accepted prostitution of the format by turning tricks as a means of making a quick and dirty buck. Call it anything you want, but it is still prostitution.

The low point of Boston talk radio was probably the Jerry Williams Sex Surveys, which was just blatant pandering to the purient interests of the listeners, making them probably the greatest demonstrable case of real air time prostitution in memory. Those bogus 'surveys' make the Magic Bullet infomercials seem like Firing Line in comparison.

Regards,
TSB

 

[TSBench]

As one who had to put up with several weeks of the sex survey I would agree with you totally. It was complete pandering to which the sleezy geeem

So you can understand why I don't consider running a paid program peddling travel or some magic potion of dubvious value as a blight upon the electromagnetic spectrum.

encouraged even under the dark shadow of the FCC which was about to take away the "General's" license to operate.

Which was entirely unrelated to radio program content.

It also demonstrates the limited power an executive producer has in the big picture.

I don't think anyone here was overemphasizing the power of an executive producer, or even mentioning it.

Regards,
TSB

 

[burnedout guy]

'rko has aired infos in the past

 

[raccoonradio]

Someone posting a comment on SaveWRKO.com said they spotted Howie at the Ipswich clam fest
and he was wearing a hat for his favorite radio station

WTKK.

 

[BRNout]

'rko has aired infos in the past

Ummmm, WABC, WLS and WPHT all air infomercials on weekends too. Does that mean that they are all desperate?

Hey, I hate 'em too - but they go with the territory (and the talk format).