GBH slogan a bit too close to BUR's

[raccoonradio]

http://www.universalhub.com/2009/wgbhs_new_slogan_sounds_awfully_familiar

"Boston's NPR Station"
"Boston's NPR News Station"

The former is 89.7's new slogan while the latter is 90.9's longtime one.
BUR reporter Andrew Phelps tweets, "Pretty ballsy of WGBH-FM to rename itself "Boston's NPR Station." Seeing as that's our tagline."

 

[DanStrassberg]

"Boston's NPR Station"
"Boston's NPR News Station"

I thought I heard a much longer and more specific positioner for WGBH earlier this week: "Boston's NPR station for news and talk all day and jazz all night." I don't think that one gives WBUR much to complain about.

 

[aaronread]

WBUR has been "Boston's NPR News Station" for a long time, I know it had been the slogan for a least a few years before I started working there in 1996. IIRC, it was in the late 1990's that WGBH started going by "Boston's NPR Arts & Culture Station", and prior to that they were "Boston's Classical and Jazz Outlet" (or something similar to that). The "NPR Arts & Culture Station" slogan persisted for many years, until perhaps this year? I don't know for sure, but they were still using it when I moved out of Boston in late 2007.

I'm not going to pretend to know everything about how to properly brand/market WGBH to their audience, but I can't deny that "Boston's NPR Station" feels like a weak attempt to capitalize on WBUR's success. I would've been more impressed by a switch to "Greater Boston Public Radio" or even "Massachusetts Public Radio" Yeah, obviously they neither reach, nor care, about anything west of I-495...if that far...but WGBH *does* have signal over most of eastern Massachusetts now, so I could forgive them the largess.

The "(location) Public Radio" concept usually works pretty well in the branding department for NPR outlets; there's a reason why VPR, NHPR, RIPR, and CPR all use it. (That'd be Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Connecticut) Maine, too, although they go more by "Maine Public Broadcasting" because of their TV side. That's true even though CPR by no means covers all of Connecticut and has a lot of overlap with WSHU, much like WUNC (North Carolina Public Radio). Not to mention WAMC (North East Public Radio) and WSLU (North Country Public Radio), and, yes, WEOS (Finger Lakes Public Radio)...among many, many others.

 

[DanStrassberg]

The "NPR Arts & Culture Station" slogan persisted for many years, until perhaps this year?

To be precise, it persisted until last Tuesday, when the classical music moved up the dial.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

Checking it out briefly today, sometimes they say things like "Boston's NPR station for news and talk all day and jazz all night.", but often they just say "Boston's NPR Station".

What arrogance to try to imply or infer that they are the only one.

 

[aaronread]

What arrogance to try to imply or infer that they are the only one.

Arrogance? That's a bit harsh. I say that's just good marketing. Was WBUR the only station airing NPR news for the past decade? Quite hardly...WGBH had, what? Seven hours daily?

 

[Eli Polonsky]

What arrogance to try to imply or infer that they are the only one.

Arrogance? That's a bit harsh. I say that's just good marketing. Was WBUR the only station airing NPR news for the past decade? Quite hardly...WGBH had, what? Seven hours daily?

WGBH's new slogan is trying to infer that they are Boston's ONLY NPR STATION WHATSOEVER, not just only Boston's NPR News station. Both WBUR and WUMB are also Boston NPR affiliates. WGBH inferring that they're Boston's ONLY NPR STATION is a false claim, which is arrogant in my opinion.

 

[Don Juan]

What arrogance to try to imply or infer that they are the only one.

Arrogance? That's a bit harsh. I say that's just good marketing. Was WBUR the only station airing NPR news for the past decade? Quite hardly...WGBH had, what? Seven hours daily?

WGBH's new slogan is trying to infer that they are Boston's ONLY NPR STATION WHATSOEVER, not just only Boston's NPR News station. . WGBH inferring that they're Boston's ONLY NPR STATION is a false claim, which is arrogant in my opinion.

I think the slogan is moreso trying to infer that they take more NPR programming. i.e..."If your looking for an NPR show, it most likeley will be here!"

That's what the slogan would say to me....true or not.

How much NPR programming hours does WBUR take and air (not produce)...and how much does WGBH take and air?

 

[JustinT]

How much NPR programming hours does WBUR take and air (not produce)...and how much does WGBH take and air?

Seeing that Eric in the Evening is local, and Jazz with Bob Parlocha is distributed by WFMT/Chicago, there's 9 hours that are absolutely not NPR programming. Without doing the math, I would be very surprised if WGBH was running more NPR than WBUR.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

I think the slogan is moreso trying to infer that they take more NPR programming. i.e..."If your looking for an NPR show, it most likeley will be here!"

That's what the slogan would say to me....true or not.

According to your tagline under your "handle", you're one of us "radio geeks" who post here. That's why you would perceive it that way. I'm talking about the perception of the slogan by average casual and new listeners, who have no idea how much NPR programming airs on other stations in the market, or even if there IS any other NPR station in the market.

I'm guessing that WGBH's consultants have promised them a whole new hypothetical nebulous audience that will massively dwarf any numbers they've ever had before. Some (maybe many) of them stolen from WBUR, but also they are envisioning many who never listened to them before. I'd imagine they're hoping for young professionals moving to Boston and scanning the dial from the bottom up for an NPR station, landing on WGBH, hearing "Boston's NPR station", and saying; "This must be THE (only) NPR station in Boston. I don't need to keep scanning the dial any higher".

 

[Don Juan]

I think the slogan is moreso trying to infer that they take more NPR programming. i.e..."If your looking for an NPR show, it most likeley will be here!"

That's what the slogan would say to me....true or not.

According to your tagline under your "handle", you're one of us "radio geeks" who post here. That's why you would perceive it that way. I'm talking about the perception of the slogan by average casual and new listeners, who have no idea how much NPR programming airs on other stations in the market, or even if there IS any other NPR station in the market.

OK. Point taken.

But because someone has a slogan, does that mean it's hands off to everyone else?

I mean, it's not like a call letter (one to a customer). If someone thinks they can outdo someone going head to head, go for it. ;-)

 

[Eli Polonsky]

But because someone has a slogan, does that mean it's hands off to everyone else?

I mean, it's not like a call letter (one to a customer). If someone thinks they can outdo someone going head to head, go for it. ;-)

WGBH calling themselves "Boston's NPR Station" is not just an imitation, of sorts, of WBUR's "Boston's NPR News Station". It's not copying them head to head, because it's an implied false claim, one that WBUR never made. No other Boston NPR station has ever implied that they are Boston's ONLY NPR station. WBUR has never done that. They were "Boston's NPR News Station", while WGBH was "Boston's NPR News, Arts and Culture Station". Both slogans highlighted their respective station's formats, and acknowledged what set them apart from their competition. WGBH's new slogan, claiming to be "Boston's NPR Station" in the SINGULAR regardless of format, tries to imply that the competition, WBUR (and WUMB, also an NPR afffiliate), doesn't exist. That, in my opinion, is arrogant.

 

[DanStrassberg]

I think the slogan is moreso trying to infer that they take more NPR programming. i.e..."If your looking for an NPR show, it most likeley will be here!"

Umm, a slogan IMPLIES; it's the reader who infers! No slogan is capable of inferring anything. The ability to infer is a unique capability of humans.

 

[DanStrassberg]

WGBH has now come up with more positioners. One goes something like "New England's new NPR choice for diversity of opinion." The slogans that succeed in differentiating WGBH from WBUR all seem to be longer than five words. The only ones I can think of that make any sort of distinction in five words or less are "New England's new NPR choice" and "Boston's new NPR choice." The problem with both of those, however, is that they emphasize choice, which makes it clear that there is at least one other alternative. OTOH, is making it clear that there is another alternative such a bad thing? I find it hard to imagine that people who listen to WBUR or WGBH are unaware that they have alternatives.

 

[Don Juan]

But because someone has a slogan, does that mean it's hands off to everyone else?

I mean, it's not like a call letter (one to a customer). If someone thinks they can outdo someone going head to head, go for it. ;-)

hey were "Boston's NPR News Station", while WGBH was "Boston's NPR News, Arts and Culture Station". Both slogans highlighted their respective station's formats, and acknowledged what set them apart from their competition.

But that was then and this is now. Now they are similar and have similar slogans.

I think slogans are meant to be somewhat ambiguous. You don't have to take it as meaning singular....but then again, you could.

I think the slogan may be more of what they are hoping to become...than what they are now. WBUR has always stressed the "news" aspect, with there slogan...and their underwriting announcements. "...helps bring you the news."

WGBH may be promoting themselves as more of a talk station, that a news station. Outside of ATC and ME...most of the shows on NPR are talk shows...

WGBH wants to BE Boston's primary source for NPR programming...and they want to diffuse WBUR from being known as THE NPR station in Boston.

I see nothing wrong with that effort top dethrone WBUR (your employer).

Now, if NPR would adopt the comemrcial model of market exclusivity, then that would/could be a different story.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

WGBH has now come up with more positioners. One goes something like "New England's new NPR choice for diversity of opinion." The slogans that succeed in differentiating WGBH from WBUR all seem to be longer than five words. The only ones I can think of that make any sort of distinction in five words or less are "New England's new NPR choice" and "Boston's new NPR choice." The problem with both of those, however, is that they emphasize choice, which makes it clear that there is at least one other alternative. OTOH, is making it clear that there is another alternative such a bad thing?

There's nothing wrong with claiming to offer a "new choice". Those new liners must have been just added. I hadn't heard them yet, but I haven't been listening today. Unlike "Boston's NPR Station", they don't falsely imply that they're the ONLY NPR station in the market. There's nothing untruthful about claiming to offer a "new choice".

 

[Don Juan]

Unlike "Boston's NPR Station", they don't falsely imply that they're the ONLY NPR station in the market. There's nothing untruthful about claiming to offer a "new choice".

They do not say they are the ONLY NPR station.

 

[Eli Polonsky]

Unlike "Boston's NPR Station", they don't falsely imply that they're the ONLY NPR station in the market. There's nothing untruthful about claiming to offer a "new choice".

They do not say they are the ONLY NPR station.

Yes, they don't say the word "only", they say "Boston's NPR station", in the singular. That implies that there is no other, that they're the only one.

 

[Don Juan]

Unlike "Boston's NPR Station", they don't falsely imply that they're the ONLY NPR station in the market. There's nothing untruthful about claiming to offer a "new choice".

They do not say they are the ONLY NPR station.

Yes, they don't say the word "only", they say "Boston's NPR station", in the singular. That implies that there is no other, that they're the only one.

Not necessarily.

If I say "I'm Don Guilmette, Mary Guilmette's son". You don't have to necessarily infer that she has no others.

 

[PaulRAnderson]

Unlike "Boston's NPR Station", they don't falsely imply that they're the ONLY NPR station in the market. There's nothing untruthful about claiming to offer a "new choice".

They do not say they are the ONLY NPR station.

How about "WGBH, one of Boston's NPR stations"?

Paul