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Columbus: Former and current progressive talk station in ratings tie

S

SeanMGilbow

Guest
Granted, the two stations are at the bottom of the list. But unlike Clear Channel's WYTS, which dropped to no ratings at all in the last book, WVKO-AM went fully operational December 3 after more than a year off the air and a few months testing the signal with Spanish-language programming.

The differences between 1580 WVKO and WYTS in its former life as Progressive Talk AM 1230 WTPG are many:

1. Minimal focus of Air America. The Jones radio trio of Bill Press (new to Columbus), Stephanie Miller and Ed Schultz are leading the charge. Stephanie has been to Columbus, Bill Press arrives in two weeks, and Ed Schultz is scheduled to visit in July.

2. Local news, weather and sports during morning drive and at noon with Michael Alwood. Local weather twice an hour during the day.

3. Local talk headed by "What's What with Mike Cole" weeknights at 6, and shows such as "The Blue State Diner" and "Radio Outlook," the new radio show hosted by Michael Daniels and Chris Hayes the publishers of Outlook Weekly, Columbus' LGBT newspaper (premiering at noon EDT tomorrow followed by "Blue State Diner").

4. Columbus Clippers baseball. Progressive talk airs online when the Clippers play ball.

5. Local high school sports broadcasts, including the Ohio High School Athletic Association state boys' and girls' basketball finals.

6. A committed staff headed by General Manager Gary Richards, whose radio experience includes the launch of Columbus' locally owned alternative station WWCD (CD101).

7. Programs tailored toward Columbus' African-American community, which has been the target audience for WVKO during most of its broadcast history.

8. Supportive local advertisers from day one.

The success of progressive talk comes from the people behind programming it. Locally owned stations in places like Chicago, Minneapolis, Chapel Hill, NC are examples of that, but Clear Channel does get a share of the credit for its successes in markets like Portland, San Franscisco, Asheville, NC, and Madison, WI, where the company listened to the listeners and kept 92.1 The Mic on the air.

Columbus is on the verge of becoming the biggest success story for the progressive talk format. Stay tuned.
 
I'm sure you'll keep us posted on the continued performance of a small, obscure, low-rated AM station in a market that few people actually care about. Thank the maker that you're around, otherwise, who would take on the massive responsibility of informing us of this insignificant, irrelevant situation?

Do you have a blog or something I could subscribe to (or not) where you might provide more frequent, detailed updates? That would be AWESOME!

;D
 
B.B. Lean said:
I'm sure you'll keep us posted on the continued performance of a small, obscure, low-rated AM station in a market that few people actually care about. Thank the maker that you're around, otherwise, who would take on the massive responsibility of informing us of this insignificant, irrelevant situation?

Do you have a blog or something I could subscribe to (or not) where you might provide more frequent, detailed updates? That would be AWESOME!

;D
Click to expand...
Columbus is actually the 31st largest MSA, ahead of Vegas. So it's not a tiny inconsequential market.
 
Sean Gilbow said:
Columbus is on the verge of becoming the biggest success story for the progressive talk format. Stay tuned.
Click to expand...

With a .5 that is not really saying much.
 
Dr. Don, we're talking radio here.

Market Size
Las Vegas #33
Columbus #37 (Not insignificant, but not HOT either)

I appreciate Sean's enthusiasm, but it's going to take about four books to really get a feel for what's happening there. When you have a 0.5 share, the sample is probably incredibly small and therefore unreliable until you start to see a trend. Maybe that's why they call them Trends?

WTDA is holding on to 1.4 share, about where you'd expect. WYTS and WVKO are still way too small to call.
 
Don62 said:
B.B. Lean said:
I'm sure you'll keep us posted on the continued performance of a small, obscure, low-rated AM station in a market that few people actually care about. Thank the maker that you're around, otherwise, who would take on the massive responsibility of informing us of this insignificant, irrelevant situation?

Do you have a blog or something I could subscribe to (or not) where you might provide more frequent, detailed updates? That would be AWESOME!

;D
Click to expand...
Columbus is actually the 31st largest MSA, ahead of Vegas. So it's not a tiny inconsequential market.
Click to expand...

....and I didn't say that it was a tiny inconsequential market, now did I? I said it's a market that few people actually care about.

Do you dispute that?
 
To quote Stephanie Miller..."Don't fight. You're all pretty." :D

Having said that...A little background might be in order for B.B.

For much of its existence, WVKO was the voice of Columbus' African-American community. That was until its previous owner, Columbus attorney Percy Squires, filed bankruptcy a few years ago. For more than a year, the station was off the air. The plug was pulled when progressive talk was airing on Clear Channel's AM 1230, known at the time as WTPG.

In January 2007, Clear Channel pulled the plug on progressive talk and filled its schedule with the likes of Laura Ingraham, Michael Savage, etc.

In June 2007, the current owner of WVKO, Bernard Media, cranked up the transmitter at its new location on Columbus' north side with Spanish-language programming similar to WVKO-FM 103.1.

Through the efforts of some key leaders of the group Ohio Majority Radio, formed right after the announcement of Clear Channel's plans to drop progressive talk, and those of WVKO staffers such as GM Gary Richards, the new progressive talk format went online--literally--December 3. Columbus is the first market where progressive talk went away and came back.

This should explain the signifcance, B.B.

And yes, Dale, a 0.5 is not something to normally cheer, but it is a small victory under the aforementioned circumstances.
 
I'm an old Cowtown resident, and I'm glad that they have different political perspectives as opposed to all conservatives all the time. However, I think that getting a .5 is at best a moral victory, and moral victories are for losers. Get that station into the top fifteen, and
then you have done something. The only really liberal areas I recall are Whitehall and downtown, the inner city. Is there an upwardly
mobile base in any other part of town?
 
B.B. Lean said:
Don62 said:
B.B. Lean said:
I'm sure you'll keep us posted on the continued performance of a small, obscure, low-rated AM station in a market that few people actually care about. Thank the maker that you're around, otherwise, who would take on the massive responsibility of informing us of this insignificant, irrelevant situation?

Do you have a blog or something I could subscribe to (or not) where you might provide more frequent, detailed updates? That would be AWESOME!

;D
Click to expand...
Columbus is actually the 31st largest MSA, ahead of Vegas. So it's not a tiny inconsequential market.
Click to expand...

....and I didn't say that it was a tiny inconsequential market, now did I? I said it's a market that few people actually care about.

Do you dispute that?
Click to expand...
There are many much smaller markets on this board that are frequently discussed.

C-bus is Ohio's biggest single-city (not market).

Your sneering remarks made it sound like nobody cares. When in fact you are the one with the attitude.
 
barthgimble said:
I'm an old Cowtown resident, and I'm glad that they have different political perspectives as opposed to all conservatives all the time. However, I think that getting a .5 is at best a moral victory, and moral victories are for losers. Get that station into the top fifteen, and
then you have done something. The only really liberal areas I recall are Whitehall and downtown, the inner city. Is there an upwardly
mobile base in any other part of town?
Click to expand...

Barth, you've been away a long time...Add Upper Arlington, Gahanna, Worthington, Westerville, Clintonville, Campus area, German Village.

I could go on.

As for the loser comment...I'm the one who writes the checks that get advertising on the air. If you are one of the radio people receiving the checks, then you have no right to look down on those who write them. Comments like yours make me glad you left Columbus.
 
B.B. Lean said:
....and I didn't say that it was a tiny inconsequential market, now did I? I said it's a market that few people actually care about.

Do you dispute that?
Click to expand...

Your semantics don't affect your intent.
 
Sean Gilbow said:
barthgimble said:
I'm an old Cowtown resident, and I'm glad that they have different political perspectives as opposed to all conservatives all the time. However, I think that getting a .5 is at best a moral victory, and moral victories are for losers. Get that station into the top fifteen, and
then you have done something. The only really liberal areas I recall are Whitehall and downtown, the inner city. Is there an upwardly
mobile base in any other part of town?
Click to expand...

Barth, you've been away a long time...Add Upper Arlington, Gahanna, Worthington, Westerville, Clintonville, Campus area, German Village.

I could go on.

As for the loser comment...I'm the one who writes the checks that get advertising on the air. If you are one of the radio people receiving the checks, then you have no right to look down on those who write them. Comments like yours make me glad you left Columbus.
Click to expand...

Single cities don't matter - radio signals don't stop at city borders.

Sean: you're killing us. Your $500 a month may be the cat's pajamas over at 1580 (where I just heard their new liner: "1580 WVKO... right above the "O" in AC Delco), but it's no huge deal. Tiny nothing AM stations like this have to resort to the format of the month OR one that has a miniscule number of ardent followers like you who will pimp it at every turn. WTVN doesn't have to rely on message board posters to get people to know it exists. By the way, I've been trying to call WVKO's vaunted sales department for the past three weeks. Seems no one's ever over there. I guess my clients and I, with multi-million dollar annual budgets, will get locked out of all the excitement. But hey, as long as Bud's Flowers and More in Lancaster gets their buck a clucks ROS spots, that's what matters. Oh, that's right... you can't hear WVKO in Lancaster.
 
OK, I just have one question! Is that .05 12 plus, 25-54 or 35-64? The reason I ask is my station doesn't look that hot, but 25-54 and 35-64 we do better. We have also moved away from AAR now for the most part except at night.
 
MOVED: TIO: Columbus: Former and current progressive talk station in ratings ti

Some posts in this topic have been moved to Take It Outside.

[iurl=http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php?topic=99948.0]http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php?topic=99948.0[/iurl]
 
KJCB said:
Sean Gilbow said:
barthgimble said:
I'm an old Cowtown resident, and I'm glad that they have different political perspectives as opposed to all conservatives all the time. However, I think that getting a .5 is at best a moral victory, and moral victories are for losers. Get that station into the top fifteen, and
then you have done something. The only really liberal areas I recall are Whitehall and downtown, the inner city. Is there an upwardly
mobile base in any other part of town?
Click to expand...

Barth, you've been away a long time...Add Upper Arlington, Gahanna, Worthington, Westerville, Clintonville, Campus area, German Village.

I could go on.

As for the loser comment...I'm the one who writes the checks that get advertising on the air. If you are one of the radio people receiving the checks, then you have no right to look down on those who write them. Comments like yours make me glad you left Columbus.
Click to expand...

Single cities don't matter - radio signals don't stop at city borders.

Sean: you're killing us. Your $500 a month may be the cat's pajamas over at 1580 (where I just heard their new liner: "1580 WVKO... right above the "O" in AC Delco), but it's no huge deal. Tiny nothing AM stations like this have to resort to the format of the month OR one that has a miniscule number of ardent followers like you who will pimp it at every turn. WTVN doesn't have to rely on message board posters to get people to know it exists. By the way, I've been trying to call WVKO's vaunted sales department for the past three weeks. Seems no one's ever over there. I guess my clients and I, with multi-million dollar annual budgets, will get locked out of all the excitement. But hey, as long as Bud's Flowers and More in Lancaster gets their buck a clucks ROS spots, that's what matters. Oh, that's right... you can't hear WVKO in Lancaster.
Click to expand...

KJCB, whoever you are, you are a liar. You've been "trying to call WVKO's vaunted sales department for the past three weeks. Seems no one's ever over there." Oh really? Maybe you should try leaving a message. And by the way, you CAN hear WVKO in Lancaster. Try tuning in before sundown, genius.
 
Congratulations, KJCB. You just got the attention of the General Manager.

By the way, the station gained another tenth of a point in the most recent Arbitrends.
 
WVKO AM is beating Michael Savage and Laura Ingram in Columbus. Plus Three FM stations. It is poised to take over WRFD 880 AM and WTDA FM.
 
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