CBS BLOWING UP 'FRESH' TO SIMULCAST WBBM-AM NEWS

[radioman148]

Remember, WBBM means "World's Best Broadcast Music"!

I think WBBM originally meant "World's Best Battery Maker" in reference to the Mallory Battery Company. Over the years, WBBM was also known as "We Broadcast Better Music" and "World's Best Broadcast Medium."

Perhaps this could be clarified by someone who was around back in 1923 and remembers when the FCC assigned the original call letters.

The WBBM call letters were sequentially assigned. All call letters in the W-series were W*B*, after exhausting the W*A* series earlier. The slogan just happened to fit what the Department of Commerce (the FRC wasn't created until 1927; the FCC replaced it in 1934) gave them.

WMAQ was also sequentially assigned (part of the W*A* series). The slogan "We Must Ask Questions" just happened to work out for them. IIRC, the Feds didn't allow requested callsigns until 1924. WGN and WLS were requested by the Chicago Tribune and Sears, respectively, that year.

And WCFL stood for "Chicago Federation of Labor"

 

[Rusty Muck]

So what is next? Cumulus flip flops 890 and 94.7 or simulcast the talk format on 94.7 and blows up oldies. If either happens WGN might have a problem.

If Cumulus blows up oldies they're stupid, but they've been stupid before.

I think he meant putting the oldies/classic hits format on 890, and putting the talk format on 94.7.

That might not be a dumb move, considering that WLS was smart enough to ax the IBOC failure completely. And the heritage for WLS is still there, moreso than the other 'legacy' ABC O&Os... even WJR!

 

[radioman148]

So what is next? Cumulus flip flops 890 and 94.7 or simulcast the talk format on 94.7 and blows up oldies. If either happens WGN might have a problem.

If Cumulus blows up oldies they're stupid, but they've been stupid before.

I think he meant putting the oldies/classic hits format on 890, and putting the talk format on 94.7.

That might not be a dumb move, considering that WLS was smart enough to ax the IBOC failure completely. And the heritage for WLS is still there, moreso than the other 'legacy' ABC O&Os... even WJR!

Do you really think oldies would work on AM, even on "89 WLS?"

 

[BRNout]

Do you really think oldies would work on AM, even on "89 WLS?"

I know that you didn't direct the question to me, but I'll interject with my uninvited 0.02......

The answer is no. AM oldies have been tried in larger markets (including Chicago) and sadly they never seem to work. Too few people will tune in to an AM station for music nowadays. Yes, you do see them in small markets around the country but still, none are rousing successes. They can do okay in that environment of more limited choices, but they never seem to prosper.

Furthermore, from a business standpoint, a swap would be very foolish. WLS-FM is bringing in good ratings and, from what I can tell, solid revenue. Move it to AM and that's going to be all gone. Meanwhile, 89 WLS is doing okay - albeit with graying demos. Bring that format to FM and you'll pick up some listeners - yes. But not nearly enough to compensate for the lost revenue from blowing out WLS-FM. Not by a long shot.

This is a totally different scenario than that faced by CBS with 780 and 105.9. In that case, you have an owner with a significant cluster (unlike Citadel) who has a chronically underperforming FM signal and a superstar AM signal that's losing a few of the younger listeners.

The simulcast idea should have been a no-brainer as far as CBS goes. Not so for Citadel with the WLS AM/FM combo. IF Citadel owned more signals in the market, they'd have more wiggle room within which to exercise options. But the idea of music on an AM signal in a market like Chicago is a non-starter. As much as I like the nostalgia of it, the concept simply doesn't work any more.

 

[Tom Wells]

Music on WLS AM is a very good shot. It's in the center of the midwest, and such a format WILL be listened to
in many states. Not that that matters to the market-based business equations.

On the basis that there hasn't been anything like a vanilla oldies format station on AM actually in Chicago in.....
since.....maybe ever...there's still 3 hours on WEEF AM 1430 on Saturdays...but no station that just
does "oldies" on AM.

The last would have been WGCI 1390, then WLIP Kenosha.

WGTO 910 Cassopolis/Dowagiac is a weak signal..

None of these could ever reach the mass appeal of oldies over a wide area that WLS could.
If the new owners can figure out how to prove value over a wider area than books measure,
meaning more ears counted for ad $, then oldies on 890 is a gold mine waiting to happen.

 

[radioman148]

As cool as it would be to hear Dick Biondi playing music on AM89 again, the station that he helped start, music on AM is a dead issue.
As BRNout said, the FM is doing very well. In fact I believe that in the latest ratings they had their best ever book.
No reason to mess with it. What worries me is when Cumulus takes over.

 

[Drucifer]

As cool as it would be to hear Dick Biondi playing music on AM89 again, the station that he helped start, music on AM is a dead issue.
As BRNout said, the FM is doing very well. In fact I believe that in the latest ratings they had their best ever book.
No reason to mess with it. What worries me is when Cumulus takes over.

Cumulus definitely knows how to screw things up...

 

[radioman148]

As cool as it would be to hear Dick Biondi playing music on AM89 again, the station that he helped start, music on AM is a dead issue.
As BRNout said, the FM is doing very well. In fact I believe that in the latest ratings they had their best ever book.
No reason to mess with it. What worries me is when Cumulus takes over.

Cumulus definitely knows how to screw things up...

That's for sure.

 

[BRNout]

Gentlemen, I concur: I have ZERO faith in Cumulus' ability to run a good radio station. The best thing that can happen is that the deal falls apart.

 

[radioman148]

Gentlemen, I concur: I have ZERO faith in Cumulus' ability to run a good radio station. The best thing that can happen is that the deal falls apart.

We can hope.