Given the prices asked for AMs in the LA market, somebody is making something and even those without the ratings must be because they are still there. In my experience radio owners don't change formats unless it is not working. Owners seem to be acutely aware of money draining from their bank accounts and a format change is always to stop losing money or at least lessen it. Contrary to popular belief, radio station owners haven't a money tree in their backyard to harvest at will. They only have so much money and tend to want to hang on to it, meaning they don't run stations to lose money. Saul might like jazz and classical and try to make a go of a format he likes but the intent is to always produce a positive income. Sure, AM is greatly challenged compared to FM.
I doubt a move toward oldies would happen. If that were the case why not just go oldies. You're already changing the format. Perhaps he is tidying things up to get ready to sell. Perhaps Unforgettable is less overhead, something potential buyers look at. Perhaps the feeling is Unforgettable will attract a wider base audience than classical on AM. It seems it would. My feeling is more classical listeners would prefer FM over AM for classical music.
Unforgettable is very different in my book than true oldies. Yes there is a good amount of crossover but Unforgettable is based more on what we once called MOR and Easy Listening while Real Oldies is based on Rock and Roll Era material. While Frank Sinatra might be heard on both formats, The Dave Clark Five would not. Likewise you you less apt to hear Mitch Miller on Real Oldies than Glen Campbell. Both might play Elvis but Crying In The Chapel fits Unforgettable while All Shook Up is strictly True Oldies. I'd say it is more of an either/or based on the charts and true formats.
With that said, many so called Nostalgia stations sound more like soft Top 40 oldies these days, so where Saul draws the lines is what counts.
