• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Capitol buys WDNC/WCLY; Curtis gets NCNN/WRBZ

K

kba

Guest
http://www.wral.com/business/story/5764696/

Big shake-up involving Curtis, Goodmon, and McClatchey. Curtis gets NCNN and 850-The Buzz (and plans to change the format to music).
Goodmon gets WDNC and WCLY (which will become ESPN Deportes.)
McClatchey exits the radio business.

Leaves two English and one Spanish all-sports stations in the market, both owned by Capitol.
WRBZ will pick up an unspecified music format.
I assume NCNN will be integrated into WPTF's news operation.
 
This is quite interesting on many fronts. Capitol operated WDNC under a local marketing agreement with former owner the Durham Herald-Sun Newspaper from 1994-97, but ceded the LMA to Curtis, citing (I believe) unprofitability. Curtis bought AM 620 outright in 2000. McClatchey is headed by Bill McClatchey, Don Curtis' son-in-law. Curtis orignally tried to buy 850 several years ago but couldn't due to ownership caps, so McClatchey bought it and LMAed WDNC.
Part of the original CBC/ Herald-Sun LMA involved WDNC's studios moving to the under-construction Durham Bulls Athletic Park, where they remained until McCLatchey moved the studios to Raleigh with WRBZ.

I'm curious about the "music" plans for AM 850. That's a pretty big signal, as Raleigh area AMs go. Will the WKIX call letters return here with an oldies format (freeing up 102.9/102.3 to do something else, maybe a WPTF FM simulcast), a popular standards "Hall of Fame"-type format similar to the music aired on WDOX weekends, or even beach music. I can even see a profitable business model in which the current WCLY format is retained on AM 850.

Speaking of WCLY, that purchase is kind of interesting as well...they have a very marginal signal outside of Raleigh, with a whopping 7 watts at night. They'll need a simulcast partner in Latino-rich Durham (WDUR 1490 would be a good fit for this).

This will be one to watch play out. I just pray there aren't any lay-offs as a result of this radio chess game.
 
I'm still trying to figure this sale out, but if Curtis Media was smart, WRBZ could become a sister "talk" outlet of WPTF, giving them a chance to add shows
like Micheal Smerconish, move Dave Ramsey to 850 when he airs "live"(like he did at 1030 when he aired here) which could open up to WPTF adding Glenn
Beck from 9am to 12 Noon(When He Is Live), Laura Ingraham from 9am till Noon on 850, and many others like Micheal Savage, and more.
 
tothedj said:
I'm still trying to figure this sale out, but if Curtis Media was smart, WRBZ could become a sister "talk" outlet of WPTF, giving them a chance to add shows
like Micheal Smerconish, move Dave Ramsey to 850 when he airs "live"(like he did at 1030 when he aired here) which could open up to WPTF adding Glenn
Beck from 9am to 12 Noon(When He Is Live), Laura Ingraham from 9am till Noon on 850, and many others like Micheal Savage, and more.
Click to expand...
Yeah, Raleigh-Durham really needs these far right-wing hatetalkers on the airwaves...Jeez....
 
fortmill said:
tothedj said:
I'm still trying to figure this sale out, but if Curtis Media was smart, WRBZ could become a sister "talk" outlet of WPTF, giving them a chance to add shows
like Micheal Smerconish, move Dave Ramsey to 850 when he airs "live"(like he did at 1030 when he aired here) which could open up to WPTF adding Glenn
Beck from 9am to 12 Noon(When He Is Live), Laura Ingraham from 9am till Noon on 850, and many others like Micheal Savage, and more.
Click to expand...
Yeah, Raleigh-Durham really needs these far right-wing hatetalkers on the airwaves...Jeez....
Click to expand...

right-wing talk work$
it's good for the radio
it's good for bu$ine$$
it's good for america
 
Jim Goodman gets WDNC. The Durham Bulls are owned by Capital B. and the station is at the stadium.
RBZ will change to "The Music of Your Life" format or something like Don plays on Sunday night on PTF.
Plus, with "The Buzz" changing format, it's a very good win-win for Goodman. 99.9 "The Fan" rules.
Most of the guys on "The Buzz" move over to 99.9. Another win for Goodman.
Curtis gets NCNN and that my friends is a "no brainer".
 
Hmm....OK, 850 is going to be a music format.

Wonder if Curtis will get the old WKIX calls and go classic country to go as a companion to WQDR. Seems logical to me, I don't know what other music format since they have classic hits on FM....unless it was gospel or standards.
 
Yeah, Raleigh-Durham really needs these far right-wing hatetalkers on the airwaves...Jeez....
[/quote]

...defined or "interpreted" by which camp you're in. If right-wing "hate" is so "hateful" why does it sell better than liberal talk?
 
Carolinaradio hit the nail on the head. If Curtis takes the station to a music format, classic country with the WKIX calls would be a great fit with QDR.
 
I wonder who is going to do the weather for the North Carolina News Network? WRAL's meteorologists handled that.
Does WPTF still get their weather from AccuWeather? Perhaps they will end up with the contract.
 
I would hope for a return to the classic sound of 85 WKIX...complete with Pat Patterson and Charlie Brown. Perhaps Shannon's True Oldies would work for the rest of the day.

Combo that with My 102.9...heyyyyy, that's KEWL.

Later . . . .
 
atlwxman said:
I wonder who is going to do the weather for the North Carolina News Network? WRAL's meteorologists handled that.
Does WPTF still get their weather from AccuWeather? Perhaps they will end up with the contract.
Click to expand...
WZTK has Randy Jackson (the meteorologist, not the American Idol judge).
 
The article at curtismedia.com detailing this week's big radio deal mentions that Curtis picks up a translator station in the Wake Forest/Wakefield area, but I've not been able to find any record of one owned by Capitol or McClatchey. Is anyone aware of what they're referencing here?
 
It's the new tower they built in 2006 for Capitol's Genuine Country station. It's about 8-9 miles down US1 toward Henderson on the left.
 
I saw the new proposed sports lineups for 99.9 and 620. I noticed the Fan's Canes expert/homer Mike Maniscalco is nowhere to be found. Any idea what will become of him? Didn't I hear that he and Salt from 96 Rock used to work together before Salt came down here? Maybe he takes over for Taylor Zarzour on PTF and 96 Rock.
 
I used to be able to pick up WKIX in Winston-Salem during the day. By that time the call letters were WYLT. I really liked the music.

There is a station with the same format that reaches winston-Salem, which I can pick up here at home. Unfortunately I no longer have the car, and the car I have now has a lousy AM antenna. In the city itself power lines pretty much obliterate any AM signal coming from somewhere else.
 
Is it true that all the Buzz people are moving over to 99.9?
 
FIDELIPACK said:
Is it true that all the Buzz people are moving over to 99.9?
Click to expand...

No, that's not true. The only people who have a job right now are Gold/Ovies, Dave Glenn, and the GM, Brian Maloney. The sales staff is very likely to be retained. Other on air hosts/producers, and support staff are completely up in the air right now.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom