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Big Changes Coming To AM Talk Radio?

S

stationless listener

Dylan Byers of Politico just put up an article that says that Cumulus is going to drop the Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity shows when the contracts end this year.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/media...o-drop-rush-limbaugh-sean-hannity-169371.html

The article goes on to say that Cumulus and Clear could not come to terms of renewing those two shows because Clear Channel was asking for too much money that Cumulus was unwilling to pay.

So what happens from here on? How will Cumulus replace those two shows? Can we assume Clear Channel will shift those two shows from WABC to WOR or will there be other homes for either of them?
 
I don't see any new in formation here. It feels like the same story that ran in May. Without any specific and official quote from Cumulus or Clear Channel, it's just deja vu all over again.
 
This has been the story since CC bought WOR and Politico must have had a slow news day so they replay the same old story. No new news and no radio insight from Politico. They make it sound like it is a political decision when we all know it's just about Cumulus' desire to take everything in house. WABC no longer uses outside suppliers to provide traffic, news, and weather so this I just more of the same thing. It's all about the money!
 
This is Cumulus....ratings don't count. It's all about the money and Rush and Sean cost money. Huckabee and Savage cost nothing, so even without selling one spot, they're already making money! $$$$$ is what it's ALL about for Cumulus!
 
The "big changes" in question are:

1) What will WABC program between noon and 6 pm?
2) If that includes Levin, who will fill his WABC slot?
3) What becomes of the rest of the current lineup on WOR? And that's not just from noon to 6 pm.

This certainly is an opportunity for WABC to move forward from the morass they've been locked in for the past decade or more. They're operating on "listener inertia" -- listeners who tune in by habit and haven't noticed that Rush has lost his sense of humor or that Hannity is obsessed with play-by-play politics. These shows weren't that way in the beginning. If WABC puts some compelling content in those slots, the "77 habit" may continue while they cultivate new listeners (if that's possible on AM radio.)

For WOR listeners, the good news is that Dave Ramsey and Rita Cosby will be displaced from their current slots -- but -- they could resurface to pollute evenings on WOR. As for Joan Hamburg, my guess is that she moves to 10-noon and Mark Simone will rant about how much he hates regular hours as he resumes the role of "super-sub" he had at WABC, working weekends and fill-ins. Maybe this was the plan all along -- hire Simone as a super-sub but have him agree to fill time until the Limbaugh-Hannity switch, keep Dave Ramsey in place as filler until the switch, and hire Rita Cosby and let her get some talk radio experience under her belt before going back to whatever else she does. She looks much better on TV than she sounds on radio but probably thought doing a radio talk show would be fun and wasn't counting on a long-term radio career.
 
Before we all go exclaiming Rush and Sean to WOR, remember that Cumulus is known not just for layoffs but for being very adept at posturing. It is very likely they are doing everything they can to nickel and dime their chief rival Clear Channel. Remember too that Cumulus talk has not been able to attract top talent like Premiere. Banking on the failed Huckabee to go up against Rush has been an abject failure. Moving Savage against Rush would also be a failure. Cumulus knows their own shortcomings and are smart enough to play the game. They will keep Rush and Sean in the end, because they are afraid of doing what they know they need to do to get younger, and that is to go local. However they won't spend the money, so they will live with the status quo. Such is life in talk radio these days.
 
Rush and Sean will be at WOR in the new year. Bet on it. CC didn't spend all that money on 710 to leave their top talent on the competing station.
 
WNTIRadio said:
Rush and Sean will be at WOR in the new year. Bet on it. CC didn't spend all that money on 710 to leave their top talent on the competing station.
Click to expand...

Why not? This way they can sell spots on TWO stations. Twice the money. That's the goal of syndication: Selling spots on stations you don't own.
 
I think it is important that people look at the numbers and not put their own political point of view in the mix. Beck might be making money with a small hard core audience that buys his stuff. Oprah Winfrey the same thing with her TV Net. So, is talk radio a content for big stations? It is more of a niche market like liberal talk, small TV, small radio and the NET.

Savage ans Beck realized they are not mainstream and capitalized on that. Limbaugh TV SHOW, could not survive, Neck Tie business, did not survive, NFL commentator did not survive, NFL owner bid turned down, Limbaugh is not mainstream, and he is going to survive but not in Big Urban City Markets. He is talk radio for Reno NV etc.
 
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