Buffalo 12+ Trend

[TheBigA]

Wow! When was the last time you read that on this board?

He's talking about the one on the top of my head.

 

[Philip_Airtime]

Big A has a point.

Trying to steer this thread back, how about country music on KB? I would think of any music would work on AM that country would be it. Just my two cents.

KB tried country in the mid to late 1990s. It's one of the many failed formats tried on 1520 over the last 20 years. Nothing can be done to bring an audience to KB. Entercom is not going to spend any more money on the station. And they're not going to sell the station to someone who could mount a credible news-talk format that would challenge WBEN. So, KB is what it is for now -- an alternative for those of us who occasionally want a break from the right-wing rants of Rush, Sean and Glenn!

 

[Bob1370]

"how about country music on KB? I would think of any music would work on AM that country would be it. "

With a successful, well-programmed full-market-coverage modern country station on the FM band and coming in #1 12+ and 25-54 at the moment in Buffalo, I'd say that would have about as much chance of success as a snowball in hell.

Face it, KB's only chance for success would be a sale to someone who'd run a better and more localized personality-driven news/talk franchise. Entercom will never program it that way because that would slit WBEN's throat. WGR was bought from the Rich family and turned to 24/7 sports because it gave WBEN significant competition as a news/talker, and KB in order to block the only other full-market station from challenging WBEN's turf. They won't sell it to anyone else who would do it either.

That's what you get from the Telecommunications Act of 1996; less competition, less incentive to excel. Isn't it wonderful?

 

[TheBigA]

That's what you get from the Telecommunications Act of 1996; less competition, less incentive to excel. Isn't it wonderful?

You're assuming there's someone in Buffalo that would have the finances to run a competing localized personality driven news/talk franchise, and operate it as a stand-alone AM. Who might that be? I wouldn't blame the Telecom Act for the death of AM. It was on life support in 1992.

 

[SirRoxalot]

I don't see any reference that said it had to be a stand-alone AM. It's probably too late now, but other groups in town would have taken a crack at WBEN if they had KB's signal and cachet at a reasonable price.

 

[TheBigA]

I don't see any reference that said it had to be a stand-alone AM. It's probably too late now, but other groups in town would have taken a crack at WBEN if they had KB's signal and cachet at a reasonable price.

You think Citadel would run it as a locally programmed AM? Really? They aren't running WABC that way.

I'm asking if there's a locally owned company, other than the national chains, that has the interest and the resources to run a locally programmed AM radio station.

 

[SRP]

I don't see any reference that said it had to be a stand-alone AM. It's probably too late now, but other groups in town would have taken a crack at WBEN if they had KB's signal and cachet at a reasonable price.

You think Citadel would run it as a locally programmed AM? Really? They aren't running WABC that way.

I'm asking if there's a locally owned company, other than the national chains, that has the interest and the resources to run a locally programmed AM radio station.

There's a couple, actually. And if you had done your research instead of just coming on to every R-I forum with your KIA attitude (not the car company BTW) you'd know that.

 

[TheBigA]

There's a couple, actually. And if you had done your research instead of just coming on to every R-I forum with your KIA attitude (not the car company BTW) you'd know that.

OK...name a few.

WECK is really trying to do localized talk. They only have 1K. Do you think signal is the only limitation?

 

[Jim Santella]

Over at Buffalo's NPR station, WBFO-FM. 88.7, weekends have been devoted to the blues for the past fourteen years and we pretty much live by them. "The Car Talk Guys" and "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" provide excellent lead-ins.

Contrary to popular opinion that suggests nights should provide the ideal time for a blues show, blues lovers and rockers raised on AOR thrive on the familiar sounding muic. It provides the perfect companion for shopping, gardening and outdoor activites.

An active Blues Society consisting of 700 plus members doesn't hurt. They even sponsor enough blues and charity events to afford underwrites. Great fans! Great Audience!

 

[Ed Trefzger]

That's what you get from the Telecommunications Act of 1996; less competition, less incentive to excel. Isn't it wonderful?

With all due respect, as I do appreciate your program and your station, public radio should also be an outlet for local programming ... and even more so. But what has NPR brought us over the past decade? More network programming and less locally-produced music, news and public affairs. Witness WBFO, KXJZ, WBEZ, WCPN, WDET, WGBH, WUSF, etc., etc.

Other than news and drop-ins during Morning Edition and ATC, WXXI-AM has two hours of live local programming weekdays.

Yet somehow Clear Channel station WHAM -- a conglomerate that owes its gargantuan existence to of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 -- manages ten hours of live, locally-produced programming on weekdays and five or more on Saturday and Sunday. Debate about its quality, if you wish, but even excluding Lonsberry, the WHAM morning news, 5 o'clock news hour and Bob Matthews on Sports are long-lived local programs that are well-produced.

Public radio can do better. It's a shame that in so many markets it has opted for network programming instead.

 

[JustPastBuffalo]

An active Blues Society consisting of 700 plus members doesn't hurt. They even sponsor enough blues and charity events to afford underwrites. Great fans! Great Audience!

...Great host!

_________________________________________________

As to the debate about news-talk radio in Buffalo. Entercom owns the corner real estate in this market's news-talk neighborhood and any operator that chooses to buy into that neighborhood to compete with WBEN, WGR and even WWKB faces a formidable challenge. But it's not just the Entercom news-sports-lib-talk stations that offer competition.

Consider this: In Erie and Niagara counties, the news-talk consumer has a choice of ten listenable AM signals: 550 WGR; 590 The Fan, Toronto; 930 WBEN; 970 WNED Buffalo; 1010 CFRB, Toronto; 1040 WYSL Avon (listenable in eastern Erie county); 1180 WHAM; 1230 WECK 1 kw; 1340 WLVL and 1520 WWKB.

Based on my experience in programming and consulting news-talk, operators need quality personnel, stamina, commitment and money to compete in the game. A little luck also helps. Lacking these, an operator faces a Sisyphean challenge.

Recently, 88.7 WBFO has moved into the talk radio arena, primarily with offerings from NPR and APR. Citadel's Shredd & Ragan provide competition in afternoon drive on The Edge. Then there's the talking morning shows on FM music based stations. And then add local TV morning shows and the high budget, high profile morning shows on ABC, CBS, CNBC, CNN, Fox, MSNBC and NBC.

Ackkk!

The talk radio neighborhood, being congested and competitive, it wouldn't be imprudent to ask (1) how much will it cost to produce a competitive local product, (2) who will survivor, (3) where the listeners will be in five to ten years, and perhaps more critically, (4) where will talk radio be in five to ten years? These are the difficult questions with which operators, programmers and sales professional grapple on a daily, quarterly and annual basis. (They're certainly not intended to denigrate the efforts of those who have devoted themselves to creating and producing compelling, revenue-generating talk radio.)

With each passing year, it seems abundantly clear that unless it can reach a 35-44 adult and attract more younger Women, talk radio's future is may be limited. In this regard, local shows like Shredd & Ragan on the Edge may have a distinct advantage; even so, reaching listeners beyond the 18-34 Male demo may be a challenge equal to that advantage. To the best of my recollection, WBEN attracts a healthy number of (older) Women, but overall, commercial AM news-talk radio primarily appeals to Men.

The Edge may be positioned to best duplicate the efforts and success of FM talker NJ 101.5. But keep in mind, NJ 101.5 has an award winning news department that provides a healthy compliment of local, New Jersey-based news so that its listeners don't feel the need to get their news fix from WINS or WCBS, New York or KYW, Philapdelphia. Local news, 24-7, remains a critical component of successful talk radio stations, especially FM news-talkers.

 

[Philip_Airtime]

That's what you get from the Telecommunications Act of 1996; less competition, less incentive to excel. Isn't it wonderful?

With all due respect, as I do appreciate your program and your station, public radio should also be an outlet for local programming ... and even more so. But what has NPR brought us over the past decade? More network programming and less locally-produced music, news and public affairs. Witness WBFO, KXJZ, WBEZ, WCPN, WDET, WGBH, WUSF, etc., etc.

Other than news and drop-ins during Morning Edition and ATC, WXXI-AM has two hours of live local programming weekdays.

Yet somehow Clear Channel station WHAM -- a conglomerate that owes its gargantuan existence to of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 -- manages ten hours of live, locally-produced programming on weekdays and five or more on Saturday and Sunday. Debate about its quality, if you wish, but even excluding Lonsberry, the WHAM morning news, 5 o'clock news hour and Bob Matthews on Sports are long-lived local programs that are well-produced.

Public radio can do better. It's a shame that in so many markets it has opted for network programming instead.

I respect your opinion, Ed. But the rules are different for public radio. You'll just have to accept that. It's fine for a commercial station to put on a talented host who pontificates for three hours a day and takes calls from listeners. Say what you will about his politics, Tom Bauerle does a heckuva job as a talk show host. He's a top-notch broadcaster. But his kind of show would not work on public radio. The listener-expectations are different. You don't just put on a host and take calls. The most successful call-in shows on public radio are well staffed with producers, assistant producers, an engineer and call screener. Just listen to the credits at the end of Talk of the Nation or On Point. There are plenty of people working behind the scenes to make the show go. We had a visitor from Vermont Public Radio today. She does a noon hour show with a call-in component. She says the show has THREE producers, plus a call screener and board operator. It sounds good and resonates with the audience. In my travels across the country, I've heard my share of public radio talk shows that are being done on the cheap and it sounds like it. For now, Buffalo's public radio stations don't have the resources to produce a daily talk show. Perhaps some day they will. But again, it needs to be done right. The public radio audience continues to grow because of NPR. It's a fact. Listeners want to hear NPR's world and national news. And they want their local content to match the quality of the network. Anything less is a turnoff.

 

[cee]

Say what you will about his politics, Tom Bauerle does a heckuva job as a talk show host.

We had a visitor from Vermont Public Radio today. She does a noon hour show with a call-in component. She says the show has THREE producers, plus a call screener and board operator. It sounds good and resonates with the audience. In my travels across the country, I've heard my share of public radio talk shows that are being done on the cheap and it sounds like it. For now, Buffalo's public radio stations don't have the resources to produce a daily talk show.

I liked Tom's show better when he was on GR and not going the Rush Limbaugh route. And he then had one part timer as his producer? Tom Darro did an interesting show on WJJL with no producer - just taking calls live. If these shows around the country sound cheap, it's probably because of the talent level. Radio is actually the perfect cheap medium - you just need one talented broadcaster to get behind a mic and perform. That's it. And you can find talented people everywhere who will literally work for free, just like local theater, music and the arts.

There should be more community based radio. NRR programming is fine, but I'm not a big fan of local public broadcasting - like everything else, a victim of too much money and too much power in the hands of too few. Typical of the times we live in.

 

[SirRoxalot]

The expectation for public radio is different than typical commmercial talk. If you want to make talk interesting on a day-to-day basis, you need to have a variety of guests lined up, and you need to respond to hot topics in a timely fashion. That means developing a stable of reliably knowledgeable and entertaining experts on many subjects, and getting them on the program at the right time.

I've seldom been impressed by shoot-from-the-hip hosts who've done limited homework, and espouse an opinion based on talking points from their favorite political website. I, for one, expect REALLY fair and balanced talk from NPR stations. I expect to hear both sides of an arguement, in all its complexity, and not the sound-bite oversimplification of commercial talk radio. That requires a lot more work, and a lot more resources than commercial talk.

With all that said, I would like to hear more local features on WBFO. For example, the segments with Buffalo Rising are usual both informative and entertaining. Theatre Talk is of interest to a significant segment of the audience. More of those features, centered on the activities of local organizations, would be a useful addition to WBFO's programming. Yes, it might displace a syndicated segment, which means that it needs to be of great interest, and have quality content. Whether WBFO has the resources to do that right now is questionable.