How long do you have? Lots of factors and lots of blame for 101’s demise.
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Axel
- Thread starter acheron1982
- Start date
I wasn't keeping close tabs on KLOL 20, 25 or 30 years ago, so I have no opinion as to whether misprogramming led to its fate. I do recall toward the end that KLOL was a tightly playlisted mainstream rock outlet that played few to zero currents and not much material past the mid 90s in general. I know this because I listened to the station in a rental car as I drove from Houston to Austin in 2002 or 2003. 94.5 The Buzz was a sister station that sat on the fence between alternative rock and active rock (and does to this day). The stronger of the two stations was kept. Bear in mind, too, that 93.7 in Houston was Classic Rock and part of that same cluster. If KLOL went heavier / more contemporary, then KTBZ would've needed to go softer / more Modern AC. That would've been a no-go because it would've stepped on Mix 96.5's toes.
I have no idea if KLOL, KTBZ (dating back to its days at 107.5 MHz) and 93.7 The Arrow were always sister stations since KTBZ's launch. All the M&A activity between Jacor, Clear Channel and AMFM has my memory mixed up in that regard. If what had been a pairing of male oriented rock stations ultimately became a trio because of that M&A activity, it is logical for the successor company to only want to keep the two strongest brands.
It would've been interesting to see if a KISS-like active rock outlet would've succeeded in the Houston market in the late 90s to mid 00s era.
Atlanta did not see a massive demographic shift over the four or five year period that 100.5 went from a 3.0+ share radio station (~5 shares in Men 25-54) to a ~1.5 share radio station.
I agree, in part because the amount of effort and care they've put into crafting the on-air product so far has exceeded my expectation. For the Atlanta market particularly, I assume there is much more "consensus" music available among alt titles centered in the 90s than present day titles. There is a nostalgia angle that Cumulus so far is playing up well. Hope they get the engineering issues straightened out.
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But the changing demographics is perhaps the biggest. Also plays a part in why there isn't a classic hits station there.
It's been 8 months, and no one has jumped into the format hole. No one will because there's no money in it.
Not to mention the fact so long as 99X remains successful, that reduces the potential "room" for an Active Rock upstart. Certainly none of the 100 kW blowtorches based in Fulton County would ever consider flipping to Active Rock, nor should they. I was surprised when 96.1 made such a move years ago, and honestly, Project 9-6-1 did not produce ratings all that much better than 105-3 The Buzz. iHM should've left The Buzz on 105.3 alone and done something else with 96.1 at the time.
I cannot see iHM tossing 105.3 The Beat to the curb despite its ratings challenges; the station is run cheaply and I think iHM believes it is strategically important to have an Urban radio presence in the ATL given the area's reputation for producing hip-hop artists.
I cannot see iHM tossing 105.3 The Beat to the curb despite its ratings challenges; the station is run cheaply and I think iHM believes it is strategically important to have an Urban radio presence in the ATL given the area's reputation for producing hip-hop artists.
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While technically a rimshot (and it really was a rimshot before their transmitter moved from Gainesville proper to Chateau Elan), it is a full class C on a very tall tower at almost 100kW power.
It was a typo. And who is “you guys”? I havent Programmed a station in a decade so I dont know what some PD’s are facing these days, aside from what I am told by them. And I dont jump into blaming people when I dont really know who/what/when etc or what they were even aiming for. Maybe you have or are programming a station now but even then you don’t truly know a stations goals or strategies unless you’re in the room.
speculating on Axel and where he is headed. Any one thing perhaps they are giving him TOSOR and letting him take it in an active direction? I get all the hints and speculations that he going to The River but I just don’t see him doing 100% pure classic rock.
Axel says he’s coming back to radio on October 5.
93.5 (W228CA - Suwanee) used to a few years back but it translates 95.5 WSB now. It is still announced at the top of hour on TOSOTR as their calls. I believed they moved 95.5 WSB onto the 93.5 translator when WSBB moved to the new tower in town. I assume to give back the coverage in the NE that was lost by moving the tower to Atlanta.
He says he was not let go at Cumulus - But he was offered something he couldn't refuse. To me, that would be more than just a DJ. He's going for PD somewhere and it's either at an existing station or a new one.
I've been listening to 96 Rock - Unlike 99X, 96 Rock is original in name only. The playlist sounds identical to Rock 103 in Columbus which I believe is just satellite fed. Nothing really unique or deep in terms of the singles played. Maybe I'm just older now and everything appears different looking back but I always felt 96 Rock had a deeper dive at times. Wasn't as prog driven as Z93 but seemed similar to the sounds of KSHE in STL - Not afraid to dig deep into the classics and not afraid to go harder on the rock, either.
I've been listening to 96 Rock - Unlike 99X, 96 Rock is original in name only. The playlist sounds identical to Rock 103 in Columbus which I believe is just satellite fed. Nothing really unique or deep in terms of the singles played. Maybe I'm just older now and everything appears different looking back but I always felt 96 Rock had a deeper dive at times. Wasn't as prog driven as Z93 but seemed similar to the sounds of KSHE in STL - Not afraid to dig deep into the classics and not afraid to go harder on the rock, either.
What is The Other Side of the River? Do they get good ratings?
It's WSRV-HD2 branded as "Atlanta's Alternative Edge." It was Steve Craig's pet project until he left for 99x. It doesn't show up in any ratings, and I have never heard any commercials.
The Other Side of The River - Atlanta’s Alternative Edge
60’s, 70’s, 80’s, 90’s – YOU name it….If it ROCKS it’s on The River’s Edge
Having never worked for or with Axel, I don't know what he was like as a boss or co-worker. I will, however, say that most PD's, even the best, are only as good as the data they get and the resources they have.
Case in point: I worked for an OM/PD who had been the group country PD for one of the largest broadcasters in the nation about 10 years earlier (about 30 years ago from today). Working for him was absolutely miserable, and the stations he was in charge of took multiple steps back when he took over. After Cumulus bought our cluster, even other markets several hours away saw the numbers going down and the constant staff turnover and noticed something was wrong. Simply put, he was a mediocre, at best, programmer who rose above his talent level by working in a format that had begun to catch fire and was hard to screw up, especially when many markets only had one station in the format. When he got hired by a major market country station owned by a large company, he got plenty of data, research, and information. With an already hot format, his star shot up quickly, and he got even more data, research, and information as he moved to being the brand manager for the format. If you gave him the material and spent the money, he was able to do what he couldn't do with our small operation and, later, had to do working for Cumulus brand managers. He was also the consummate corporate yes man, which definitely helped him navigate the politics at large operations. Having free reign to do what he wanted at a locally run company, we got the guy who fired two people while their PD was on vacation without even consulting her. (And, no, I was NOT among them. On paper, I got out on my own, though I was really forced out when he cut my airtime and hours and blocked me from picking up more when another station in the building wanted my help.)
Most everyone who has been in radio for any length of time has stores of success and failure. Sometimes, higher ups at a company choose a format that has too small of a niche in a given market to be successful. We surely took those jobs that failed, and that's on us. Most of us, however, wanted or needed the experience if we were going to get anything better, and, sometimes, we took those jobs simply because we needed the paycheck. The only truly bad PD's are the ones who ignore the data or who just can't work with people. Even a great PD is only as good as the data. Garbage in, garbage out. Cumulus may not have the top-down programming model it had with the Dickeys, but it still has brand managers. I don't if anyone can go outside of their respective format's brand manager or not. I can't imagine most smaller markets could afford to hire their own consultants, even if the company allows it. Atlanta stations might have more options.
I wouldn't necessarily read into Axel potentially going to the River or TSOTR as meaning he'll dismantle one or both. He more than likely did the best he could with what he had at WNNX. He might not be among the best PD's ever, but I can't imagine much of anyone would've been able to make Rock 100.5 work. If he goes to the River and/or TSOTR, he's more likely to get the information he needs working for Cox. If he gets put in charge of the River and takes it down, he won't likely be there long.
Any guesses on where he goes next week? Everyone assuming The River?
Yes, I think that's safe to assume. He posted the following a while back when asked where he was going - "legally can’t say, but I hope to make a big splash."
So one person would go from jock at The River to jock and PD at 99X...and the other would go from jock and PD at 99X to jock at The River?
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