About Those Ratings

[Element9]

Have we become completely ambivalent? A trend comes out and nobody posts? Oh... oh yeah. It's only a trend. Tell that to WYRK!

 

[yugoidar]

Where's WECK? These numbers paint quite a picture of the difficult task that Tom Schuh and his posse have in front of them. Wow! What mountain to climb! I wish them well.

 

[Element9]

Where's WECK?

Two things. It may be that WECK doesn't subscribe and Arbitron prohibited R&R from posting WECK's ratings, or it could be that WECK fell off the table. I'd go with the former. And doesn't that CHWO number look good, especially compared to the once-mighty KB and the stagnant Lake!

 

[SirRoxalot]

WYRK and 97-Rock look stronger than the last book, and stronger than a year ago.

There are no winners in the CHR race. WJYE is leading, but dropped 1.3 shares 12+. WHTT had the only gain - up .1, while Star plunged .8. That's the race that could get more interesting. I've been hearing more '70s, and even some '60s on WHTT again when I tune in. I find that I'm tuning in longer because I'm hearing some things that I like. And yes, I know that I don't fit their apparent target demo. On the other hand, I heard both the Black Crowes and Sam & Dave in the same hour the other day while I was in my car, and that'll work for me.

I would expect WGR to continue to plunge until hockey season. The Edge is a bit of a surprise. They hit their lowest number in over a year. It would be interesting to see how that translates into the demos.

WECK has a problem indeed. I have noticed some Buffalo News ads lately, but they may need more than that to get them back onto the page. If they only had a credible Buffalo-based news department...

It is, after all, only a trend...

PS - Is Hank Dole the weakest morning show in Buffalo? He makes the voice guy on The Lake sound dynamic.

 

[Element9]

There are no winners in the CHR race.

Errr... you mean "AC" race, right Rox? Unless WTSS and WHTT have reverted to their formats of 1984, which with all the 80s songs those two stations play(ed), isn't that far a stretch.

...that's the race that could get more interesting. I've been hearing more '70s, and even some '60s on WHTT again when I tune in. I find that I'm tuning in longer because I'm hearing some things that I like.

Agreed, WHTT seems to be altering its approach with some 60s and much more 70s, especially on weekends (heard "Burnin' Love" on a Saturday car scan and a few other 70's pop hits.) It just may be that you are in the demo Rox, as it appears WHTT might be trying to regain the 45-54 year old males that it apparently lost when it went to the "lime green and pink format." I have to admit this 45+ male has been checking out the station a bit more than I had over the past year, although Q-107 and 97 Rock get most of my terrestrial radio attention.

The WHTT Flashback Weekend may be a good move because it differentiates WHTT from Star and WJYE, neither of which is likely to play Sam & Dave's "Knock On Wood" in the same set as Black Crows' "Hard To Handle," as Rox cites. I guess that goes to "music texture" as much as it does "music era." They might be onto something with this.

Historically AC takes a big hit on weekends because stations invest an inordinate amount of time and energy positioning themselves as "at work stations." WHTT appears to be making a move to counter the AC weekend trend. Back in the Oldies 104 days, every weekend was a theme weekend. It's highly unlikely the Everly Brothers will be in weekend rotation, but Roy Orbison may show up to warble the well-tested and timeless "Pretty Woman" from time to time.

Look at the 97 Rock and WYRK 12+ numbers. Those two stations position themselves as 24-7 formats. It's been a while but from what I've seen in the 25-54's, but 97 Rock and WYRK have strong Mon-Fri ratings and steady weekend numbers. As for WJYE, their weekends would be dead in the water if Disco Lance wasn't part of their Saturday night scheme.

BTW, it looks like WYRK and WBEN got kissed. Deeply.

 

[ThePickleReport]

WECK has a problem indeed. I have noticed some Buffalo News ads lately, but they may need more than that to get them back onto the page. If they only had a credible Buffalo-based news department...

It is, after all, only a trend...

PS - Is Hank Dole the weakest morning show in Buffalo? He makes the voice guy on The Lake sound dynamic.

I kinda figured that WECK might fall off the edge at first. They've cleared out anyone expecting to hear classic country and now they have to convince everyone else to give them a shot. That might take some time and the question is can WECK afford that luxury? Other than a few puff pieces in the paper does the majority of the public know they are there? We'll see. I'm not going to make any conclusions until at least the Fall 2008 book ends.

The Lake?

BOOOOOORRRIIIING! For the 500th time, I had such high hopes as to what that station would become and they left me high and dry. And for the 600th time, their mic processing sucks.

 

[NeedsMoreCowbell]

Always hilarious to read the wisdom imparted here on the true ramifications of a 12+ Phase 1 trend. Excellent entertainment value.

 

[cee]

And for the 600th time, their mic processing sucks

And for the 1,000,000th time, their imaging is incredibly annoying...agggghhh...how can something only 20 seconds or so seem like an eternity(I'm always thinking "the next song better be a good one, considering my patience in not hitting another button on the radio").

Also, bring back those more extreme deep cuts like Desolation Row by Bob Dylan and Questions by Buffalo Springfield(later used as the middle part of Carry On by C,S,N&Y).

 

[Steven21]

BTW, it looks like WYRK and WBEN got kissed. Deeply.

Huh?

'YRK maybe, but 'BEN? They dropped a whole share in just one month! Also, they're always at about a 10 share. How is that a kiss?

 

[Element9]

Always hilarious to read the wisdom imparted here on the true ramifications of a 12+ Phase 1 trend. Excellent entertainment value.

Just doing our jobs to keep you entertained and occasionally informed. Kinda like Fox News.

Huh? 'YRK maybe, but 'BEN? They dropped a whole share in just one month! Also, they're always at about a 10 share. How is that a kiss?

Well uh, I uh... gosh... this is... uh... You're right. What the hell was I thinking? I plead a momentary lapse of reason... listening to Pink Floyd again while posting.

 

[Radknowski]

Deductive reasoning. WLVL is listed in R&R's 12+ with a 0.6 while co-owned WECK is not listed. Therefore, it's not a matter of de-listing, WECK probably just came up short.

 

[Steven21]

Deductive reasoning. WLVL is listed in R&R's 12+ with a 0.6 while co-owned WECK is not listed. Therefore, it's not a matter of de-listing, WECK probably just came up short.

If a station is sending out a signal, yet there isn't anyone listening, does the station cease to exist?

 

[topsound]

The "top page" of the R&R listings didn't include all the stations. WECK posted a 0.4 12+ in Phase 1.

 

[Bob1370]

It's WAY too soon to pass any judgment on what WECK will do.

A good guess will be that its eventual plateau after a few full books will be somewhat higher than it ever reached with canned classic country, and somewhat below its 12+ peak as a big band/standards station, but with more saleable demos. In short, good enough for Dick Greene to make the nut and come away with some profit, assuming he's not giving away his inventory (which I'm sure he's not).