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Expected format flips in the next few months?

TV Choppers are rare these days. I think there is only one operating these days in the SF/Oakland/SJ market, shared by the ABC, NBC and CBS stations, and it is operated by a contractor to the TV stations.

Most markets outside the top 20 no longer have a TV news chopper.
Cleveland has one [SKYFOX] and possibly 2 or 3 [maybe WEWS & WOIO?] I noticed that a almost all of them are using drones now.....way cheaper than operating a chopper. Might use a chopper if they have to get somewhere in a hurry to cover a breaking news story and then send a crew by car to get there whenever. The thing that kills me is during snow storms they all say "Do NOT drive on any of the roads or you may crash and die a horrible death" but they have about 15 crews out and about in their "Stormtracker" vehicles driving here and there reporting that "There's snow on the roads along with salt and brine and a few lumps that we assume are dead animals."
 
Do you see Audacy selling off any of its large market stations. And is KLLC a top biller in the SF market
AMs, maybe. But only if they are not strategic contributors to cluster sales strategies.
 
Nobody put a gun to David Fields' head and forced Entercom (as it was named then) to acquire the CBS O&O radio stations. (Nobody forced Moonves to sell them either, but that's not the point.) Fields' ambition and greed-to-grow and be a major player seems to be what motivated him. And, IMO, he should not get a pass from the obligations he bought into when he made that deal. Save money somewhere else. Or sell the stations to someone who understands what public interest actually means.

A lot of dumb things happened in the era of easy, loose money, and not just in tech. Now that money is tighter, and likely to be tighter even still, the ability to refinance, issue new stock, etc. is vastly reduced. In the case of Audacy and others, the value of the assets they bought has also dropped considerably. So their choice is either to cut costs - even at the risk of creating a downward spiral in value - or sell assets - with a similar risk. In the terminology of economics, the monetarists are back - the money supply matters.
 
Here is KSFO's coverage of the earthquakes.

Featuring safety instructions and other vital information from Bill King, who was about to broadcast Game 3 of the World Series from Candlestick Park!
 
The airport would be the best option. Helicopter pilots fear towers, since the guy wires are had to see and a wind gust can be disastrous. They are glad to lower an antenna onto the top of a tower from above, as they are in free space. But next to a tower is going to be a deal breaker for most.

Parachutes work, though.
No need for that, David. Like I said, an airport is next door. And if they wanted to save time, the road to the airport is paved and right outside the transmitter site's main gate (it turns to gravel at that point).

And failing that, there's a boat.
 
TV Choppers are rare these days. I think there is only one operating these days in the SF/Oakland/SJ market, shared by the ABC, NBC and CBS stations, and it is operated by a contractor to the TV stations.

Most markets outside the top 20 no longer have a TV news chopper.
I'm pretty sure there are 2, based on watching ADSB Exchange when big newsworthy events are happening, there will be 2 covering. N75TV and N42SL . I used to see N7QY (Painted as KGO7) but haven't alerts for it in a while and digging around looks like it was sold last year.
 
I'm pretty sure there are 2, based on watching ADSB Exchange when big newsworthy events are happening, there will be 2 covering. N75TV and N42SL . I used to see N7QY (Painted as KGO7) but haven't alerts for it in a while and digging around looks like it was sold last year.
Don't know the specifics in San Francisco, but in Phoenix, the company the shared chopper was leased from also had a designated backup chopper for when the main one had to go in for maintenance, some of which can be multi-day affairs.

The backup bird was available for other uses and customers but reserved for those scheduled maintenance dates so news could be covered.
 
Forgot, N62TV "Skyfox 2" KTVU was also flying around until the end of '21
N75TV and N42SL don't have any specific station painting last I checked.
 
Forgot, N62TV "Skyfox 2" KTVU was also flying around until the end of '21
The decline of the TV chopper has been pretty swift. 10 years ago, just about every station in a top 50 market would have one, possibly shared with another station in the market. Five years ago, sharing was very common. Now there are many top 50 markets with no choppers.

The rise of drones for spot news and plenty of traffic cameras controlled by state departments of transit have certainly been part of it.

The high cost of helicopter coverage is the other big part. Would you rather have one hour of helicopter time, or pay two junior reporters for a full week?
 
The decline of the TV chopper has been pretty swift. 10 years ago, just about every station in a top 50 market would have one, possibly shared with another station in the market. Five years ago, sharing was very common. Now there are many top 50 markets with no choppers.

The rise of drones for spot news and plenty of traffic cameras controlled by state departments of transit have certainly been part of it.

The high cost of helicopter coverage is the other big part.
Three of the four men killed in the 2007 mid-air chopper crash between KTVK and KNXV in Phoenix were friends of mine, and I had spent hundreds of hours myself aboard NewsChopper 3 in my 14 years at that station. I also flew, less frequently, in the replacement chopper that KNXV purchased after the crash.

Even shared choppers (which most of the Phoenix market went to after that tragedy) are expensive. When I was at KTVK, every hour airborne was $500 for fuel alone. That was 1986-2000, so that has certainly gone up. Talented, qualified pilots are not cheap and neither is maintenance. Insurance costs go up with every year, with or without incidents.

Apart from the speed of reaching a scene that's some distance from the station, there's very little a drone can't do in terms of pictures that a chopper can.
 
Would’ve been wrong, haha. It’s not classic alternative. It’s past, present and future. Pretty new concept isn’t that?
hahaha! I was a little off. This is a good move to be honest. It’s the least expensive option of trying a wheel of formats and conducting research to see what could work for this signal. It’s a format and name people recognize that could bring a boost since the brand was gone for six years
 
Speaking of KRBQ, maybe they should go after KMEL with a Rhythmic or R&B/Hip-Hop format. Would improve the ratings.
KMEL needs to return to it's 90's roots. This stuff they call music today, is just noise. I use to listen to "hip/hop and R&B. Somewhere along the way, hip/hop merged with rap, and now it's rap crap with a familiar beat (usually w/ the old school rhythmic beat). Today, KMEL would look no different from the old KSOL of yesteryear (which was mostly rap back in 90's). Maybe, if KMEL flipped to old 98.1 KISQ format.

KOSF is perfectly fine where it sits.

We could use a another Jazz station in the Bay area.

We need more "variety" on the FM dial. I know this is a sensitive (and sometimes political) subject, but we have plenty of Spanish/ethnic and religious stations. Demographic "European" or may I say "white" listeners are leaving the FM dial, for the lack of variety. Many leave the region altogether for a slew of factors, including, but not limited to there chose of OTA local radio. For instance, having one, lonely country station (94.5) in the bay area is frankly BS. The bay area deserves two good country stations.

I would like to see a few stations flip. I, myself have almost given up on terrestrial radio (and I'm of European decent), for the constant changing of formats and language.

Lastly, as I said above, this is a very sensitive topic, but if you plan to come to the USA and call this land home, you should learn English (assimilate). Nothing wrong with tuning into your home language, but that's why there is an open variety of formats and listening options at the lower end of the FM dial (87-91.9). The bay area does not need 8 Spanish stations, 12 religious stations, and then throw in one classic rock and one country station just to keep everyone happy (I'm exaggerating the numbers for an example).
You can't have an extreme at one end (12 religious stations tying up the FM dial) without the augment for the other. Picking on religious stations for a moment, when is one to many? 10, 15, 20, or when "your" station is next to get the ax?

So, we need more variety on the FM dial in the Bay Area. What will flip next, i do not know, but we should distribute the listening options evenly for all.
 
KMEL needs to return to it's 90's roots. This stuff they call music today, is just noise. I use to listen to "hip/hop and R&B. Somewhere along the way, hip/hop merged with rap, and now it's rap crap with a familiar beat (usually w/ the old school rhythmic beat). Today, KMEL would look no different from the old KSOL of yesteryear (which was mostly rap back in 90's). Maybe, if KMEL flipped to old 98.1 KISQ format.

KOSF is perfectly fine where it sits.

We could use a another Jazz station in the Bay area.

We need more "variety" on the FM dial. I know this is a sensitive (and sometimes political) subject, but we have plenty of Spanish/ethnic and religious stations. Demographic "European" or may I say "white" listeners are leaving the FM dial, for the lack of variety. Many leave the Lastly, as I said above, this is a very sensitive topic, but if you plan to come to the USA and call this land home, you should learn English (assimilate). Nothing wrong with tuning into your home language, but that's why there is an open variety of formats and listening options at the lower end of the FM dial (87-91.9).
This isn’t a sensitive topic, that’s an outright bigoted stance. I don’t think that makes you a bigot or a bad person, but it’s just not something I think should be advocated for.

I’m a white adult male and I’m no different than someone who worked their ass off to come to this country and build themselves a life. I live in one of the most Hispanic populated towns in the bay areas, and the immigrants largely speak English or are actively learning it. They’re kind, they’re considerate, they aren’t disrupting anyone. If they want to hear Spanish formatted radio and the format is successful, why should I give a crap?

Cumulus tried country on 92.3 and ended up not purchasing the station after a tough run. The demand largely comes from the South Bay or the far northern area of the market, which is why KBAY is such a fantastic signal for the format.

I like country, quite a lot - KBAY is a great station. It fills my needs. The Live 105 KITS revival fills my needs for some modern-ish rock. My desire for KSAN to sprinkle in some of the stuff like an active rocker is biased and hopeful based on repeated poor ratings and an already served competitor in KFOX.

Would I have liked for 92.3 to become something id listen to? Sure. Do I care that they’ve found a successful format in a language I don’t speak? Not in the slightest. It doesn’t affect me and we aren’t entitled to have the dial be our perfect fit. It is called mass media. I’ve been the one who was moarning EMF operating 3 non commercial FM’s that cover my daily life driving area but at the end of the day, they own those fair and square and were the best suitor for the station. If I win the lottery I’m going to send KLVS 107.3 an offer though they can’t resist! Haha.

You can make a case 105.7 KVVF is a flop, and I’m sure Univision is aware of that. What happens next there anyone could guess. Anything else? It’s not changing. There’s a happy audience there.
 
We need more "variety" on the FM dial. I know this is a sensitive (and sometimes political) subject, but we have plenty of Spanish/ethnic and religious stations. Demographic "European" or may I say "white" listeners are leaving the FM dial, for the lack of variety.
Oooooh, boy. You got problems.

Let's see. There are four (or five, depending on how you count) Spanish-language FM stations. Are you saying Spanish-speaking audiences don't deserve to have formats that serve their needs and desires? What about speakers of Asian languages? On the FM dial they get one, count 'em, one translator. There was a second, but that was hounded off the air by privileged Peninsula classical listeners claiming interference to the KDFC repeater on 104.9, leading KEST to give up on a translator. Given the demographics of the Bay Area, do you think that's enough? I would find that hard to believe.

You want country? There's satellite radio. There are online stations from aggregators. Need I say more?

I'm personally not too thrilled with over-the-air choices available in the Bay Area. This market has been dull as dishwater for at least the last 25 years. So I listen to a lot of streaming. One is now able to hear "stations" from all over the world. The choices are out there if only you go looking for them.
 
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