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DRC-FM

T

TheJudge

Guest
I'm not privy to the inner workings of DRC-FM and their decision making processes, but from an outsider's perspective it seems to pretty haphazard.

Every since moving away from a pure oldies format it seems like they've been "tinkering" with the format rather than taking a decisive, objective stake and sticking with it.

In fact, after taking a bath in the Summer '05 book they looked like they were beginning to trend up. The Fall '05 book still looked like a loser but if you compared the third part for that book to the first two, there was evidence of a strong uptick. But now, judging from reports on these forum pages, it looks like they're tinkering again and taking a step back to an older skewing
presentation.

I seriously doubt that there's any professional research being done. From what I hear, the "research" is pretty much the opinion of the station's currently "in-favor" personnel. In other words, those who suck-up the most are the ones who get heard.

Personally I've never been a big fan of "research" as far as radio programming. Radio programming is a creative endeavor, not a scientific one. So for DRC-FM to eschew professional research is not necessarily a bad thing. But in lieu of that research, you've got to have some experienced, creative people on staff, and they just got rid of two of their best people late last year.

Hartford is a very bland market as far as radio-programming. At one-time it was an exciting and innovative place to work. The consolidation of the stations into a very small mix of ownership has been the major factor in this staleness.

But as someone pointed out in one of the threads below, Buckley Broadcasting is a very small group compared to the others and you would think there would be more room for flexibilty and creative thinking. Unfortunately that's not the case. Creativity has got to start at the upper management level. But DRC-FM has a GM who came up through the engineering ranks and who was never
a programmer. Nothing wrong with that... unless the GM continues to delude himself that he has any creative programming instincts. Being a creative GM means having the ability to recognize creativity in others and having the wisdom to delegate programming to those who know how to do it.
A jockey never races a horse... he rides the horse. But the greatest jockeys are the ones who know how to bring out the greatness in the horses they ride. The synergy is what creates the famous winners. There are no winners at
DRC-FM.

I know what going to be said...just another negative post. But I feel so sad when I look at a group of stations... DRC-FM and the four AM stations they have in the CT group... and the potential these stations have of doing something new and innovative in this tired and dull market.
Potential that's going to waste.
 
OK, I'll bite again!

Research is a misuderstood concept among many radio people, from what's left of the talent farm system to oldtimers who are nostalgic for the days when you made everything up from scratch as you went. Research doesn't have the glamorous ring to it that many associate with being on the air. Then again, what is it other than getting an idea of what your potential audience wants to hear? If you wait for the Arbs, it may be too late.

Even in the old days, WDRC had music directors like Bertha Porter and Jim English behind the scenes giving Big D that sense of having its finger on the pulse of Connecticut's baby boomers. I haven't been anything close to a DRC insider since being music director in the late nineties. After that, there was still plenty to do on the airshift while others decided what was a power cut and what wasn't. Show prep, editing requests and a respectable performance (batting average, if you will) were still important. I also didn't miss the days when we searched through index card files, bins of 45's or walls of carts figuring out what to play with 30 seconds left on the previous song or spot.

All across Connecticut, there are people on the air and behind the scenes still serious about getting it right while making it sound like it beats working for a living. Whether or not they're your cup of tea, this applies to Larry, Doug, Beth and anyone I remember from WDRC AM or FM. There's no heavy lifting or brain surgery involved, but it is work. Could they all be running east to catch a sunset? That's a fair topic for discussion.


> I'm not privy to the inner workings of DRC-FM and their
> decision making processes, but from an outsider's
> perspective it seems to pretty haphazard.
>
> Every since moving away from a pure oldies format it seems
> like they've been "tinkering" with the format rather than
> taking a decisive, objective stake and sticking with it.
>
> In fact, after taking a bath in the Summer '05 book they
> looked like they were beginning to trend up. The Fall '05
> book still looked like a loser but if you compared the third
> part for that book to the first two, there was evidence of a
> strong uptick. But now, judging from reports on these
> forum pages, it looks like they're tinkering again and
> taking a step back to an older skewing
> presentation.
>
> I seriously doubt that there's any professional research
> being done. From what I hear, the "research" is pretty much
> the opinion of the station's currently "in-favor" personnel.
> In other words, those who suck-up the most are the ones
> who get heard.
>
> Personally I've never been a big fan of "research" as far as
> radio programming. Radio programming is a creative
> endeavor, not a scientific one. So for DRC-FM to eschew
> professional research is not necessarily a bad thing. But
> in lieu of that research, you've got to have some
> experienced, creative people on staff, and they just got rid
> of two of their best people late last year.
>
> Hartford is a very bland market as far as radio-programming.
> At one-time it was an exciting and innovative place to
> work. The consolidation of the stations into a very small
> mix of ownership has been the major factor in this
> staleness.
>
> But as someone pointed out in one of the threads below,
> Buckley Broadcasting is a very small group compared to the
> others and you would think there would be more room for
> flexibilty and creative thinking. Unfortunately that's not
> the case. Creativity has got to start at the upper
> management level. But DRC-FM has a GM who came up through
> the engineering ranks and who was never
> a programmer. Nothing wrong with that... unless the GM
> continues to delude himself that he has any creative
> programming instincts. Being a creative GM means having
> the ability to recognize creativity in others and having the
> wisdom to delegate programming to those who know how to do
> it.
> A jockey never races a horse... he rides the horse. But the
> greatest jockeys are the ones who know how to bring out the
> greatness in the horses they ride. The synergy is what
> creates the famous winners. There are no winners at
> DRC-FM.
>
> I know what going to be said...just another negative post.
> But I feel so sad when I look at a group of stations...
> DRC-FM and the four AM stations they have in the CT group...
> and the potential these stations have of doing something new
> and innovative in this tired and dull market.
> Potential that's going to waste.
>
 
It appears while the Connecticut cluster of Buckley stations have their own bucket of problems, it's quite clear that Buckley corporate is in need of some decent management people, as things are far from rosy with the problems they have at WOR-AM (which I'll save for a New York board rant).

Clearly, DRC-FM is becoming the Radio Titanic (a phrase used during the dying days of WNBC 660AM). Unclear programming choices as well as losing legacy on-air talent - either through their own stupidity or they becoming smart enough to jump ship. The programming is like a drunk on the highway - it's all over the place! And gawd, that damn processing!

All the research in the world isn't going to put that place back together, but they sure as hell better try to get their act together fast! I worked at an AM station that was so damaged by missteps and negativity that the only way out was to donate the station to a local educational concern. When things get that bad there's very little one can do to breathe life back into it.

The only way I give DRC-FM a fighting chance is if they get someone up in management who will grab the bull by the horns and make some clear decisions as well as perhaps taking a little risk to move into the 21st century.
 
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