Buffalo Summer Phase 2

[Bob1370]

"So, making the “new” oldies radio format using 70's and 80's music work like the “old” oldies format isn’t going to happen."

If WHTT doesn't get the freedom to do it (maybe because Citadel thinks it would bite too deeply into 97 Rock's core) someone else soon will. It's the logical next move for Regent with Jack, a station that certainly has a lot of room for ratings improvement. (The Jack-to-personality classic hits transition worked so well in New York City this summer, that I'm surprised the suits at 'BUF aren't already checking it out to see if it'd work in Buffalo.)

 

[SirRoxalot]

Jack to Classic Hits

Jack is actually doing quite nicely in their target demos. Considering the cost of operation, it may not be that advantageous for them to change.

The "Jack to personality classic hits transition" worked in NYC because CBS-FM had well-known and loved personalities to bring back. WBUF doesn't. There aren't many well-know and loved Buffalo radio personalities running around unemployed who are willing to get back into "the biz".

Perhaps I should qualify that. There aren't many well-know and loved Buffalo radio personalities UNDER THE AGE OF 65 running around unemployed who are willing to get back into "the biz".

 

[alw]

My vintage T-Bird only has AM and WJJL has not got their act together to keep me there. There is potential with the format, but the dead air, stuck rotations and such are a turn off.

So, I guess I'm a market that most stations don't want to deal with. Keep up the great posts here and I'm watching and reading and hoping that something exciting for me will be coming to Buffalo Radio.

Joe

I think you'll find that since Steve Mitchell has started to program the automation (new automation that he has put on line) the dropouts and 5 songs at the same time problem is no longer an issue. Not much he can do about signal, but I hear an improvement over all.

 

[cee]

Quote from: Lost Listener on Yesterday at 09:24:59 pm
My vintage T-Bird only has AM and WJJL has not got their act together to keep me there. There is potential with the format, but the dead air, stuck rotations and such are a turn off.

So, I guess I'm a market that most stations don't want to deal with. Keep up the great posts here and I'm watching and reading and hoping that something exciting for me will be coming to Buffalo Radio.

Joe


I think you'll find that since Steve Mitchell has started to program the automation (new automation that he has put on line) the dropouts and 5 songs at the same time problem is no longer an issue. Not much he can do about signal, but I hear an improvement over all.

That's good to hear. I live in Rochester, so I don't ever listen, but Steve obviously knows what he's doing. They are currently automated with no DJs? I also think they could get some listeners with -- a few familiar air pesonalities and a night signal that comes in strong in the city(daytime signal was always very good). I hear they are applying for some kind of construction permit to increase their signal?

 

[Element9]

WJJL has all the appeal of a toxic waste dump. Love Canal, perhaps. The CP for improved day and night power has gone nowhere, much like the station, and will likely expire if it hasn't already.

Mitchell can razzle dazzle the automation all he wants. I wish him luck, but if it didn't work for 50 thousand Watt KB, what makes anybody but the most dilerious oldies fanatic think it's gonna work on a sorry ass 1 kW signal.

Sorry for the seemingly vitriolic words, they're not intended personally, it's just that this station gets more pub on this board than it deserves. The guy who said we don't pay enough attention to WBLK, WYRK and other worthy stations had a point. The best move for WJJL is to relocate to Niagara Falls.

-9-

 

[cee]

WJJL has all the appeal of a toxic waste dump. Love Canal, perhaps. The CP for improved day and night power has gone nowhere, much like the station, and will likely expire if it hasn't already.

Mitchell can razzle dazzle the automation all he wants. I wish him luck, but if it didn't work for 50 thousand Watt KB, what makes anybody but the most dilerious oldies fanatic think it's gonna work on a sorry ass 1 kW signal.

Sorry for the seemingly vitriolic words, they're not intended personally, it's just that this station gets more pub on this board than it deserves. The guy who said we don't pay enough attention to WBLK, WYRK and other worthy stations had a point. The best move for WJJL is to relocate to Niagara Falls.

They get a lot of attention for a station with a consistent "zero" in the ratings, but WJJL and for that matter WHLD, WUFO, WBBF(Buffalo) and even WXRL are an anomaly in today's corporate radio scene.

I guess I'm kinda two faced to wish WJJL luck as an Oldies station as I have previously posted similar vcomments as the above quote: that they would be a lot better off in Niagara Falls as a community station. But as an Oldies lover, part of me would like to see them get a small slice of the ratings pie.

Like a lot of mom and pop stations, they operate in a dysfunctional way. They probably won't succeed unless they get some new investors.

 

[Lost Listener]

My hat goes off to the program director that has success with the 70's and 80's "oldies". From a music standpoint, I think it would be very difficult. In the late 70's and all through the 80's you had many different formats of music that were liked by their own crowd. You had the top 40 hits, but you also had rock, heavy metal, new wave, dance/techno, even rap was getting started. To do the "new" oldies, as I call them, would have to reach out to and keep the listeners of all the above types of music tuned to your station. I don't think it could be done, but that's me. As I mentioned in my first post, 50's and 60's pop music hits covered all types. For example, in the mid 60's you had Roger Miller with King of the Road and Eddy Arnold with Make the World Go Away. These were country songs that crossed over into pop. Sam and Dave were an R&B group that crossed over into pop. Every one listened to Pop music. In Buffalo it was KB, other cities had their own favorite station. The point is that everyone listened to the same thing back then and did with the 50's and 60's oldies format. Today's music is very diversified and there are no catch all stations. Nothing crosses over much except maybe some country into AC.

I would think that to have any kind of success in a "new" oldies format, you would have to basically play what wedding DJ's play. These guys go from standards like Sinatra, all the way up to Get the Party Started by Pink and everyone has a good time. Skip the Chicken Dance though. Maybe I'm onto something here. Wedding/party formats. Naw, I'm not a radio person, what would I know. Is someone in a program director position here to give this a thought?

Maybe a "Cruising" format can be tried. Everything from Chuck Berry to AC/DC, to Springsteen, to Melloncamp to the Bobby Fuller Four. Instead of standards and 50's, mix newer rock with old 50's and 60's rock-n-roll, paying attention to the remakes of old songs. Doing something like this would be a first in Buffalo and maybe nationwide.

Sorry for the rambling, but again, for me its about the music on the radio. I'm also drifting a little on this thread, sorry.

Joe

 

[alw]

WJJL
Like a lot of mom and pop stations, they operate in a dysfunctional way. They probably won't succeed unless they get some new investors.

I would suggest that, as far as Morgan & Phillips are concerned, they are an unqualified success already. They own a "pop & pop" radio station that affords them some kind of living, they do whatever they want, they play the music they like and they have been around longer than anybody would have ever given them a chance.
I suppose that success is driven by goals. If they wanted to be a radio sation with huge ratings...that was never going to happen....and I can't imagine that they ever thought otherwise.
If their goal was to own their own radio station and enjoy the fact that they did, regardless of what all of us think.......They Win!

 

[Element9]

I would suggest that, as far as Morgan & Phillips are concerned, they are an unqualified success already. They own a "pop & pop" radio station that affords them some kind of living, they do whatever they want, they play the music they like and they have been around longer than anybody would have ever given them a chance.

I suppose that success is driven by goals. If they wanted to be a radio sation with huge ratings...that was never going to happen....and I can't imagine that they ever thought otherwise.

If their goal was to own their own radio station and enjoy the fact that they did, regardless of what all of us think.......They Win!

There's truth in what you have written alw and to that extent, the owners of WJJL deserve some credit. Yet, the station is somehow devoid and detached from the community of license. It seems this is what tweaks some of us here, not because we're any better or that we hold some great altruism that must be adhered to, but that we know the station could be far better than it is.

The station's ownerhip doesn't seem to treat their property very well. It's akin to somebody who buys a fine Rembrandt and then treats it as if it was "Dogs Playing Poker," unable to comprehend the value of the Rembrandt.

WJJL is OK, I suppose, but it could be so much better and of so much more value. It seems as if the present ownership doesn't appreciate the value of their investment. They certainly haven't done much to enhance it, given the bankruptcy and FCC fines they've incured.


-9-

 

[Mike Sheridan]

WJJL
Like a lot of mom and pop stations, they operate in a dysfunctional way. They probably won't succeed unless they get some new investors.

I would suggest that, as far as Morgan & Phillips are concerned, they are an unqualified success already. They own a "pop & pop" radio station that affords them some kind of living, they do whatever they want, they play the music they like and they have been around longer than anybody would have ever given them a chance.
I suppose that success is driven by goals. If they wanted to be a radio sation with huge ratings...that was never going to happen....and I can't imagine that they ever thought otherwise.
If their goal was to own their own radio station and enjoy the fact that they did, regardless of what all of us think.......They Win!

Al, that's a very interesting and positive way of looking at it. Most of us will never own a station.

 

[cee]

I would suggest that, as far as Morgan & Phillips are concerned, they are an unqualified success already. They own a "pop & pop" radio station that affords them some kind of living, they do whatever they want, they play the music they like and they have been around longer than anybody would have ever given them a chance.

the above is true and I have all the respect in the world for small business owners, in general(not just small radio owners). however, wjjl management might want to take some pride in their product. whether they operate in west seneca or niagara falls, how hard is it to have an on-air signal that's listenable? and yes, they filed for bankruptcy, so the dream of owning a radio station isn't always as dreamy as it seems.

as far as owning your own radio station, pretty much all of us could own one if we so desired. down trodden am stations in smaller towns are going cheap. for the same price as a luxury car plus maybe an small business loan for capital improvements, you could have the honor of saying "i own a radio station."

i know people who have bought them, ran them as a micro business and programmed them with an emphasis on super serving the community. it can be done. i wouldn't be interested, but if you're focused on such a goal, it would happen(unless your credit is really bad).

 

[Philip_Airtime]

With all due respect to my friend and colleague Al Wallack, I wouldn't describe Phillips and Morgan as an "unqualified success." Any operation that has to file for bankruptcy shows the owners are perhaps "unqualified." But I'd like to expand on "Cee's" comments.

I once worked for a broadcaster better known in Rochester than in Buffalo by the name of Jack Murphy. He bought what was then known as WMNS and WUBJ in Olean in 1979 and took extreme pride in his operation. Granted, this was more than 25 years ago. But he cared about his operation. He lived in Olean. His reputation was on the line with his neighbors and friends. So, he made sure he ran a top notch operation that super-served the community.

However, Jack missed the bigger market and returned to Rochester, eventually selling the stations. He's now retired in Florida, and we keep in touch by email. But he's one broadcaster for whom I have the utmost respect. He treated me well, and allowed me to make the kind of mistakes that could have gotten me fired. I bring this all up because this was a case of a "mom and pop" operation (and that was the case here because his wife, Elaine, handled the station's finances) that was well run, as opposed to what we've seen at WJJL.

 

[alw]

Maybe I, once again, did not express myself clearly.

I only meant to suggest that -in their eyes- they might see themselves as rather a success. It was not my intention to comment on their talent (on or off the air), their ethics or whether, in fact, they are or are not successful broadcasters.

I myself have trouble balancing my check book, so I personally have some respect for anyone who has the nads start a business, or take a flyer at an iffy venture, or buy and attempt to run a radio station.

I don't really know those guys, and I don't know that If I were to find myself with the deed to a radio station I would do a better job of running it. But, I do know this...I'll never find out.