KROI did well for itself under the "Praise" branding that Radio One rolled out to its stations. Given that Radio One ended it after five years for a news station, I was thinking that Clear Channel could revive the gospel format on one of its stations. This can be a given for the most underserved urban radio market here since CC has gospel stations mostly in the south which carry the "Hallelujah" brand (i.e. Memphis, Macon, Jackson, Montgomery, New Orleans).
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Could Clear Channel revive the gospel format again?
- Thread starter bringbackradio
- Start date
bringbackradio said:
Even one of the CC stations in CHICAGO is Gospel formatted. WGRB AM 1390.
OLD CHICAGO
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rbrucecarter5
Guest
Why would they? It failed on 92.1. The only real format hole in Houston is oldies, which are high in the ratings in most other markets, including Dallas and San Antonio. That is the most likely flip in Houston, I would think.
Someone recently reminded me of the two gospel outlets on AM in Dallas, perhaps it would be easier to put a niche format like gospel on AM. We seem to be over saturated with brokered and foreign language AM's - perhaps one could be picked up at a bargain price for gospel.
Someone recently reminded me of the two gospel outlets on AM in Dallas, perhaps it would be easier to put a niche format like gospel on AM. We seem to be over saturated with brokered and foreign language AM's - perhaps one could be picked up at a bargain price for gospel.
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purpledevil
Guest
rbrucecarter5 said:
Whoa, whoa, whoa...Praise did not "fail". Also, have you scanned the AM band in Houston within the last decade, bruce? Try 1360 on your radio. Fulltime live Gospel format. 24/7. 1140 and 1500 (when KYOK is on the air) also air the Gospel format, albeit as daytimers.
purpledevil said:
KWWJ is heavy on preachers. I think we're talking about a music intensive format.
Poor signals for both 1140 and 1500 make them virtually irrelevant in the overall Houston market.
WDAS-AM had the gospel format once as well in Philadelphia. At least Radio One's WPPZ picked up where WDAS-AM left off, albiet more contemporary gospel.OldChicago said:
"Halleljuah 950" would be a possibility. Get rid of one "faux pas" talk station, and a gospel format on here would have tremendous advantage over the three AM gospels we have. Houston is a hotbed for gospel talent (I went to a concert once where they proclaimed the city as the "Gospel Music Capitol").stan said:
You could ask Pastor Joel Osteen if he wants to buy a Radio Station, Since Houston is home to Lakewood Church. Lakewood could take 92.1 off Radio One's hands, or could purchase a Liberman station. Just a thought.
Money can be made since CC voice tracks everything now, but what is your target demo with gospel, Nu G(25-42) or the Mother Board(50+). That is the delimma I see.
rbrucecarter5 said:
Gospel is not a "niche" format. I understand it may not be your cup of tea, but it can be a money maker.
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rbrucecarter5
Guest
salemjedi54 said:
Oldies / (real) classic hits would make a lot more money. You have KLUV in Dallas. We got nothing like that here. Where doesn KLUV rate, compared to those two AM gospel stations in DFW? An astute broadcasting company would look at nearby cities and other major markets - what rates highly there - like KLUV, KONO, etc. - see the glaring format hole in Houston, and fill the hole. Not go for a minor, nichey format like gospel, which didn't rate that well on 92.1 compared to where KLUV rates in DFW, KONO rates in San Antonio, etc.
rbrucecarter5 said:
You can't say what works in one market will work in another market. You can't compare a full signal fm stick to a Daytimer and heritage AM station. Everyone gets caught up in ratings, but if the station is meeting budget and management is happy with its performance then not many changes are going to be made. Like I said in an earlier post, Gospel can be a money maker, you have to really focus on you target demo...Adults 25-45 or Adults 50+. The best bet is to have an AM/FM duo where you take the FM stick and have the more contemporary sound (all music) for the younger folks and let the AM stick serve the Mother Board, with some ministries. I know it can work.
rbrucecarter5 said:
Since KLUV is consistently down around 15th in 25-54, I'm fairly certain that it is not going to be held as the shining example for a format switch in Houston.
Like KROI's gospel format, KLUV has a format that swings old and is thus not the optimum choice in either market # 5 or # 6.
I could see CC going either urban rhythmic or urban AC than gospel. Don't see it happening anytime soon as CC isn't going to let go of either 99.1 or 94.5, and 93.7's officially out of the race since they just added the new morning show. Since they no longer own 96.5 or 101.1, that narrows the line.
KROI did not bill as an "urban gospel" format per se the audience, but rather it billed as "contemporary Christian" according to Arbitron ratings. That was for the purpose of not alienating audiences based on race or genre preference.bturner said:
bringbackradio said:
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rbrucecarter5
Guest
bringbackradio said:
It only took listening to one song to know it was a gospel station. My saturation point for any gospel format is about 2 or 3 songs, then it gets irritating. The Lakewood buses used to play it. Now they don't, and I appreciate the silence instead of irritating music.
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