• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

FM News/Talk in Charlotte?

J

JohnSells94

Over on The Future Of Charlotte Radio thread we have been discussing our dream dials. JoshB brought up something interesting. He put WBT on 107.9 with more of an all-news format like that of WTOP in DC. While I love the all-news format, I don't think the Charlotte area is large enough to support an all-news station. There just isn't enough going on. We have News 14 Carolina on the TV, but I see the same stories on there all day.

With more news/talk stations around the country moving to FM, does anyone think that the Queen City will one day get news/talk on FM. If WBT's news/talk format would move to 107.9, what would you do with 1110 AM? Could that 50,000 watt blow-torch clean WFNZ's clock with a sports format?

John Sells
Kannapolis, NC
 
I would hope newstalk does not invade FM in Charlotte---the area already has a shortage of FM signals relative to its population, resulting in a lack of diversity in musical offerings. The city of Charlotte has a population of about 650,000, and only 4 commercial FMs. Is there any other city in the US that deserves an additional FM allocation more than Charlotte? Of course, due to congestion, this will never happen. But concerning your comment about WTOP in DC---have you actually listened to that station? They do repeat the same stories OVER and OVER, just as you fear a Charlotte news station would. The real problem with an all news station in Charlotte is a lack of interest in whats going on (other than crime) on the part of listeners in this area. Yes, I would love to see a WTOP style station here, I just don't think it would fly. In any event, I would not trust WBT to air such a station, considering the crap they air on 1110 now. Well, there is always hope that WDYT will do something. HA! Yeah, I'm really looking forward to hearing FOX radio news there, on a station which will be very weak in Charlotte.
 
I remember years ago when 930 WSOC and later 610 WAYS attempted that format. It is a very expensive format to do locally, and doesn't do that well unless the metro is huge.
 
Z-100 said:
I remember years ago when 930 WSOC and later 610 WAYS attempted that format. It is a very expensive format to do locally, and doesn't do that well unless the metro is huge.
Click to expand...
Also Total Radio in 1997--WTLT 1480 (now Disney), WTLI 550 (now lite oldies from ABC and no I'm not going to call it standards which would be an insult to the great performers of that genre), and WAVO 1150 (now back to a WHVN simulcast).
 
JohnSells94 said:
Over on The Future Of Charlotte Radio thread we have been discussing our dream dials. JoshB brought up something interesting. He put WBT on 107.9 with more of an all-news format like that of WTOP in DC. While I love the all-news format, I don't think the Charlotte area is large enough to support an all-news station. There just isn't enough going on. We have News 14 Carolina on the TV, but I see the same stories on there all day.

With more news/talk stations around the country moving to FM, does anyone think that the Queen City will one day get news/talk on FM. If WBT's news/talk format would move to 107.9, what would you do with 1110 AM? Could that 50,000 watt blow-torch clean WFNZ's clock with a sports format?

John Sells
Kannapolis, NC
Click to expand...

Why on earth would they do that? Wow WBT as an all sports station...yep they could get that whopping 1.9 or whatever it is that WFNZ/WFNA has.

I'm not a sports fan so I really don't understand the need for a third sports station that would have no audience. How do Sports stations make money with such low ratings anyway? I must be missing something. ???
 
Amen, brother Mike. The combined ratings of the two (610 & 1660) doesn't even crack a 3 12+. I hear they own men 25-54, but there's only so many [EDIT] bars you can sell.


[EDIT-offensive content]
 
I'm not a sports fan so I really don't understand the need for a third sports station that would have no audience. How do Sports stations make money with such low ratings anyway? I must be missing something.
Click to expand...

Mike, you're letting the big cluster/multi-station company syndrome get to you! Sports is one of the least ratings-dependent formats in radio these days, thanks to the fact that Sports listeners are ACTIVE listeners. You do a remote and THEY'LL SHOW UP. Sports fans will actually tell advertisers where they heard the message, which makes them heaven for the local sales folks.

WFNA/WFNZ or any other Sports station will NEVER make it on agency business, but their listeners will shout and scream at the station 'til their faces turn red, and that translates to big bucks in any town.

Later....
Matt Smith
WGSR-TV
 
Sorry Matt...hate to disagree with you but a sports lineup is NOT an automatic moneymaker.
This has been proven in MANY markets, large and small. I know of two stations that went all sports
in a market with very little competition, and went FLUSH within 6 months. And that was WITH a
good sales staff.
 
Sports stations are not "automatically big moneymakers". It depends on what the station is doing, for one.

They do, however, sell "above their ratings", due to the ability to target a certain group of people (men, in particular, of a certain age).
 
From my personal experience, I've found Sports Talk to be one of the hardest formats to sell. Because of the niche demographic the format attracts, you are severely limited in the number and category of business you can sell to.
 
That's true, only so many jock-straps and ball batt companies to sell time too!! ::)
 
There is absolutely NO reason to move a successful AM to the FM band. WBT does well in the billing wars and it is unlikely they could to much better on FM. And certainly nothing they could do on AM in place of NT could generate anything close to the revenue!
 
Re: Sports in Charlotte?

spindoctor1 said:
Sorry Matt...hate to disagree with you but a sports lineup is NOT an automatic moneymaker.
This has been proven in MANY markets, large and small. I know of two stations that went all sports
in a market with very little competition, and went FLUSH within 6 months. And that was WITH a
good sales staff.
Click to expand...

Anyone remember earlier this year when WZNN went all-sports for about 5 minutes?
 
In order to compete with a far-superior signal with an established locally-focused ESPN affiliate. Yup.

This comment is not WZNN-related, but sports radio really just is NOT as profitable a format as many other options.
 
Johnny Caudle said:
vchimpanzee said:
Johnny Caudle said:
wncc said:
Anyone heard of 99.3?
Click to expand...

Heard of it...just can't hear it.
Click to expand...
You're not supposed to unless you're west of Charlotte and can't hear the AM at night. I do hear this station occasionally.
Click to expand...

I know. I was just...never mind.
Click to expand...
I didn't mean to dilute the impact of your message. I just wanted to make sure it was known that my belief is WBT never intended to make this station strong enough for Charlotte listeners.
 
vchimpanzee said:
Johnny Caudle said:
vchimpanzee said:
Johnny Caudle said:
wncc said:
Anyone heard of 99.3?
Click to expand...

Heard of it...just can't hear it.
Click to expand...
You're not supposed to unless you're west of Charlotte and can't hear the AM at night. I do hear this station occasionally.
Click to expand...

I know. I was just...never mind.
Click to expand...
I didn't mean to dilute the impact of your message. I just wanted to make sure it was known that my belief is WBT never intended to make this station strong enough for Charlotte listeners.
Click to expand...

Thank you, vchimpanzee. I know that 99.3 FM is there to help cover the western side of the metro. I was just exploring the idea of FM News/Talk in the Queen City. In my hometown of Kannapolis, 1110 AM sometimes gets covered up by power lines...then my wife says, "that's why I don't listen to AM, its annoying." and I then have to switch back to all-Christmas music for her.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom