First Review Of Chris Stigall And "The New Talkradio 1210"

[BRUSSTAR]

Only listening for a half-hour or so, and already I can tell this Stigall is very, very good. Great voice, well-spoken, great timing/pacing, and good interaction with callers. So far I'm very impressed. He sounds young, but "good young"-- not immature whatsoever. Quite frankly the station hasn't sounded this good in morning drive since Tony Bruno was the local host 21 years ago. This sounds like a younger, hipper, faster-paced version of the old Paul W. Smith show on WWDB. I only tuned in around 6:30 (so I may have missed it)-- but I have yet to hear pacifying garbage like, "Which 'Rocky' movie was the best?" or, "Who makes the best cheesesteak?" Good mix of interviews and conversation.

As for the station re-branding, my feelings are more mixed. I like the station's reverting back to the "Talkradio 1210" moniker (for at least the third time that I can recall). Actually, "The New" is being used. Given the station's ratings slide, aging demos, and stale sound, I like the idea.

The 839-1210 call-in number that's been around since the '70s has been retired, sort of. Instead of local Philly, Suburban, and South Jersey numbers, a single new toll-free 855-839-1210 is being used. Seems kind of counterproductive to roll out a "national-sounding" toll-free number (replacing local 215, 610, and 856 ones) while trying to hammer home the new "local" direction of the station. And what's the point? No one pays for long distance anymore, right?

I'm not quite sure why the station is doing this rollout in two separate phases, separated by two weeks. Seems kind of confusing for the listeners. I'm sure there's a good reason.

And most bizarre-- for a station clearly trying to re-brand itself, I'm still hearing the same tired sounders and beds for the legal ID, news, and traffic. And it's the same awful station voice (used since 2008 World Series) on the liners. Seems like a simple no-brainer here-- who re-brands without making those very basic changes?

One more thing-- every hour I'm hearing of "more live and local talk." Correct me if I'm wrong, but won't 1210 now have significantly FEWER live hours (specifically a pre-recorded afternoon drive)?

The station criticisms are minor. The new morning show is stellar. A great hire. With regard to the morning show, they did good.

I'm afraid to ask-- is Stigall here, or broadcasting over a line from Kansas City?

Stigall, Dom, and Rush will provide a solid lead-in for the one-hour Smerconish show at 3.

 

[PAJim]

Interesting how perspectives can be so different. My initial impression of Chris was that he's just another conservative echo-chamber for the same tired talking points that will be repeated over and over again all day on 1210. I hope this guy starts diverting from the talking points and just gets 'real'. If you want echo-chamber, just listen to Rush in the afternoon or switch over to the other talk station(s) that have the same format most of the day.

Chris did move to Philadelphia from Kansas City and has been her since early December from what I've read, but there's been nothing local about his show (at this point). We definitely have to give him time to learn about the local area... He's definitely not in Kansas (city) anymore!

I understand your confusion with the phone number change, but I think I know why they went to the toll-free numbers. The old numbers allowed the show producers to balance the calls coming in from the three regions. Changing to a single number wouldn't allow them to filter as easily especially with callers who have blocked caller-ID. The toll-free number automatically sends the callers identifying information (which is the price of using toll-free) which allows them to filter their numbers based on the callers location.

 

[fybush]

To my ear, especially as a non-caller, the barrage of phone numbers ("215-839-xxxx in Philadelphia, 610-whatever in the suburbs, 856-whatever in South Jersey") always seems like a lot of audio clutter when I'm listening to Philadelphia radio. Especially in a PPM world, anything that disrupts the flow of programming is frowned on, so it's not hard to see the appeal of being able to give a single phone number. And the toll-free line is probably no more expensive (and potentially a lot cheaper) than the FX lines from 856-land back to Bala.

 

[aindik]

George's point about long distance is a good one. Does anyone from Cherry Hill or West Chester pay extra to call a number in 215 anymore? Why not just keep the 215 number and kill the other ones.

 

[musichead1029]

George is talking about delivery and formatics, PAJim about content. Not necessarily different perspectives, but a different focus.

PAJim: the "conservative echo points" constitute 1210's format. Dom has always concentrated on national and regional issues from a conservative viewpoint as did Smerconish until he deemphasized the political orientation in an effort to squeeze into the crowded syndication market. Just because 1210 dropped two of Premiere's perhaps overpriced syndicated hosts doesn't mean they're changing formats. When it comes to format, Smerconish is the exception not the rule, and it will be interesting to see if Smerconish's numbers hold up in the afternoon, and how he handles his local hour vs the national broadcast.

1210 isn't changing from conservative talk to a lifestyle format. They're just shuffling hosts.

 

[PAJim]

aindik - Because the toll-free number allows the station to see where all of incoming calls are coming from. If they stuck with the 215 number they would have trouble with callers who have caller-ID blocking. Theses stations keep track of who's calling in and from where. I'm sure they also filter 'bad' callers once they know their numbers. The toll-free numbers don't allow users to block so I think this is the primary reason for the change.

 

[PAJim]

PAJim: the "conservative echo points" constitute 1210's format. Dom has always concentrated on national and regional issues from a conservative viewpoint as did Smerconish until he deemphasized the political orientation in an effort to squeeze into the crowded syndication market. Just because 1210 dropped two of Premiere's perhaps overpriced syndicated hosts doesn't mean they're changing formats. When it comes to format, Smerconish is the exception not the rule, and it will be interesting to see if Smerconish's numbers hold up in the afternoon, and how he handles his local hour vs the national broadcast.

Regarding Dom, it's just my impression that he somehow breaks the mold of the other talking-point oriented hosts. He also discusses plenty of local issues which is refreshing compared to the hyper-national focus.
Smerconish on the other hand has changed his focus and has given up (or lost?) his morning slot. If this was truely his decision, I think he will soon regret this change. If this wasn't his decision he better focus on the national syndicated scene because his current time slot is a totally different crowd.

 

[musichead1029]

Regarding Dom, it's just my impression that he somehow breaks the mold of the other talking-point oriented hosts. He also discusses plenty of local issues which is refreshing compared to the hyper-national focus.

True, but he's unapologetically conservative. He was all over the Joey Vento controversy, cohosting several events with Vento and at Jim's Steaks, for instance. He approaches regional issues from the station's conservative viewpoint.

Smerconish on the other hand has changed his focus and has given up (or lost?) his morning slot. If this was truely his decision, I think he will soon regret this change. If this wasn't his decision he better focus on the national syndicated scene because his current time slot is a totally different crowd.

I get the sense that Smerconish decided to focus on syndication and that he was able to bring 1210 along for the ride, suggesting he must still get some serviceable numbers in the morning. Whether his muted "no-labels" political approach will work on 1210 and how he differentiates his local hour from the syndicated tract will be interesting to watch. But Smerconish lost a lot of currency with listeners when he endorsed Obama and then started shying away from political stances in favor of lifestyle talk.

I think 1210 made the right move bringing in a morning host that appears to be adhering to PHT's conservative talk format, which is their bread and butter when the Phils aren't on.

 

[PAJim]

It would be interesting to see WPHT's Arbitron ratings by show/hour. The latest numbers clearly show WPHT in decline, but you can't tell where the decline is coming from. Does anyone have this information (besides the station, of course)?

 

[aindik]

It would be interesting to see WPHT's Arbitron ratings by show/hour. The latest numbers clearly show WPHT in decline, but you can't tell where the decline is coming from. Does anyone have this information (besides the station, of course)?

The decline is coming from the difference between baseball season and not baseball season.

 

[PAJim]

Ah, that makes sense. But it would still be interesting to see how each show does relative to the overall stations performance.

 

[BRUSSTAR]

Jim, I respect that you don't think much of Stigall or his views. But considering in the few short hours you've been here-- that you've already used (in my opinion) tired phrases like "conservative echo chamber" and "talking points" at least a half-dozen times-- it's pretty evident you've got a political agenda. Nothing wrong with that; I do too (and it's most certainly not in line with GOP "talking points"). Though I'm not quite sure what you were expecting. It was made relatively clear Stigall was conservative, and a quick search of his previous work gives a good snapshot of what he's all about.

I'm most intrigued by his abilities and potential as a Philadelphia host.

As for the phone numbers, the ability to reject Caller-ID-blocked calls to ordinary numbers has existed as long as Caller-ID itself. Since few if anyone pays extra for long distance anymore, I'd have dumped the unnecessary 610 suburban line (a throwback to days when-- as a previous postor pointed out, a call from West Chester to Philadelphia was quite costly unless one had the "Metropolitan" plan) and kept the other two. Lots of local stations have two on-air numbers. But I think there's more to it than that. Even if budget (for an 800 number) were not an issue, I'd still prefer to give out local numbers. Makes the station sound, well, local. Saying "Philadelphia" and "South Jersey" every few minutes (when giving out the numbers) serves as a underlying psychological promotional tool. Always felt that way. WNPV Lansdale has for years given out three different numbers, but that's because the three phone lines aren't trunked. It's the only way they can have three people on hold. I've long thought it would have made more sense to "designate" on for Lansdale, and maybe another for Bucks County for these same purposes.

I do agree that Dom employs the perfect balance of national/local topics. I'd prefer more local, but I understand why he (and presumably management) does what he does. Some local hosts just sound like they're just trying to compile tape for a syndication deal. If I'm paying a local host, I want him or her to at least do **some** local stuff. I do realize that the days of people giving a darn about township supervisors and city council members are over, but there are still plenty of regional topics that remain largely ignored by the WPHTs of the world.

My jury is still out on Stigall's sidekicks, but to be fair it was only the first day. The host-- regardless of political ideology-- is very good though.

 

[PAJim]

George - Don't get me wrong on Chris. I really hope he does well in Philadelphia. My intention for the use of terms like 'echo chamber' and 'talking points' is less about my political biases but more about identifying how many talk show hosts sound the same and lack individuality. I just didn't hear anything new, but I agree that he has a well polished show.

I still don't know if Chris has any intention on incorporting anything local and I think it was a fair criticism of his lack of taking phone calls. I'm sure that will all come in time. I also agree that we need to give his sidekicks some time to get comfortable. I'm sure they're just happy to have a job in this economy!

I can see your point with using the 215 local number since most local people have the national packages these days, but perhaps the toll free number was the best way to get around the caller-id blocking issue.

 

[philadelphiawx]

I listened between 7:30-8:15. He had Pat Toomey on...most of it was national parroting but they did have the Pennsylvania US Senator-elect so there was some local angle on it.

Felt he was where Glenn Beck was as a talk host before Beck went completely unhinged...some sarcasm, some wit, some attempts at being funny...wasn't terrible but for a first day it wasn't lighting the world on fire.

I would be curious to know Michael's #'s before he ditched the GOP compared to after (or local vs when he effectively ditched all the local angle) and if he lost a chunk of the audience because of either factor.

 

[Jay F]

@George I found it interesting that you appreciated that he stays away from lightweight topics. A year ago I discovered Chris Stigall by accident. I was randomly checking out morning shows on various talk stations. When I listened to KCMO-AM/Kansas City. I was in awe that the host was not talking about fluff topics but was actually talking about "the good stuff"...the most topical and interesting news/political stories of the day. This is unusual for AM drive where most talk stations feature happy talk or straight newsblocks. I have been a fan of his ever since. Yes, besides the content he also has a good delivery.

 

[PAJim]

@Jay/George - It's day 2 and Chris is still not taking many callers. I've been listening since around 5:45am and only heard one caller. Another agreeable type who agreed with Chris. He continues to ask for callers and keeps giving out the number though. I can't imagine that he's not getting callers but rather that he's highly filtering them.

@Jay - Did Chris take this few callers when he was on the KC station?

The good news is that he's given his co-hosts some time to talk this morning and introduce themselves.

*Update* Chris just took two callers at the end of the 6am hour (seems like a pattern) who where not so agreeable with him. He made an attempt to engage the woman but ended up laughing about it because he wasn't able to engage her and kept poking fun at her opening comment about Ed Rendell's eyes. The other caller simply stated that Sarah Palin had no chance of winning in PA and he had nothing to say. Welcome to Philly Chris!

 

[DToTheJ]

@George - If you like local call-in numbers being given, there's always WIP... wait, is there any chance that WIP will go the same route as WPHT and get a singular toll-free line? They take far more local calls than WPHT on any given day!

@All - Without having heard Stigall give the telephone number, I am willing to bet that the new number is "powered by Xfinity" or something... Am I right?

 

[imhomerjay]

Wrong. The number isn't powered by anything as of now.

Someone also needs to help Dom with his ability to adapt to change--he repeatedly ran through the old numbers and threw in more references to "The Big Talker" than the new slogan in the portions of his show I heard last night.

 

[MikefromDelaware]

I've not listened yet, but I've noticed that some here are upset that he hasn't taken more phone calls. During AM drive, do talk shows get many calls as folks are busy getting ready for work and driving to work and my not want to sit on hold a long time via their cell phone. It may be he's taking all the calls he gets.

 

[PAJim]

@MikeFromDelaware - I guess I'm the one complaining about the lack of callers. I've listened to WIP's morning shows and previously Smerconish, both of which take plenty of calls all morning. I just suspect that this isn't Chris's style. So far he simply runs through a list of daily topics, then asks for callers and takes 1 or 2 (at most) at the end of each hour. This is just lame to me. If this is going to be his style he could have stayed in Kansas City and delivered the show from an in-home studio. Still, this isn't a fair critique since he's only been on the air for two days. I'm definitely going to give him some time to grow on me. I actually thought todays show was better than yesterdays.