Indy Star Radio story

[badstevie]

The Star ran a big story in the Sunday section today about local radio. While I thought the story was mostly accurate, a couple things stand out: With all the money we've dumped into HD radio, there is no mention at all in the article about HD. Nothing at all in the list of stations about the HD2 stations in Indy. Nothing. If we're thinking HD is going to save us, or even help, this is bad news if we can't even get the local paper to mention it.

Also, while much of the article dealt with how the perception of radio is old-fashioned and out-dated, it didn't help any to illustrate the Sunday section with an ancient, old tube radio from my (dead) grandparents' house. (A Westinghouse H-161 from 1948) This just perpetuates the idea that radio is dead.

Your thoughts on the article?

 

[miketurner]

This it?

http://www.indy.com/posts/4973

 

[badstevie]

Yeah, that's it. Sorry, should have posted the link. I think the comments by readers are interesting and valid.

 

[bigtime]

The first reader comment listed complained that radio plays "the same 10 songs every hour". That's far from reality, but it is perception. The stations that do turn the hits over fastest are the ones with the largest share of the young audience though. Not a surprise.

 

[Timewarp]

Once upon a time Cris Conner came to Indy. He didn't have a lot of experience. But he was a brilliant
programer. Then Bob and Tom came to town. They didn't have a lot of experience either. But they
too were brilliant.

Now days, who would give these guys a chance. Every station it seems wants to play it safe and
not take a risk. But if radio is to survive we have to take the risk and try something new and refreshing.
This is what the listener wants.

Bored with the same old, same old, same old thing!

 

[speakerman]

This beckons a similar tone to my comments I made to management back in the late 70s when I told them AM radio big numbers were over with the exception on the 50kW full-timers (they obviously did not want to hear it let alone believe it). FM was obviously the next technological progression as FM radios started getting very sensitive, most cars had them included and the sound was truly superior.

Look at this chart http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Ipod_sales.svg and it foretells the same technology shift. How many potential listeners are there in the country? People don't want to wade through a lot of commercials to hear music they may not care for. There are also so many media choices these days the shrinking market for radio gets further fractionalized.

Would you want to own an inefficient carbon unfriendly obsolete business like a newspaper? Distributing sacrificed trees by means of gas/diesel-guzzling delivery.

Current talk-radio like WIBC however will always have a place and should continue to flourish as it is interactive similar to the popularity of what you are doing as you read this post.

 

[smedge2006]

"He (Smulyan) mentions that even CB radios were once touted as a recreational listening device.

Sounds like not everyone's given up the old "internet is the CB radio of the 90's" argument.

I think the reader responses pretty well pegged this article as industry spin. Another great example of lazy reporting. Too bad the newspapers have pretty well cut out the designated radio columnist -- just as consolidation was wreaking havoc on the medium.

 

[PTBoardOp94]

Which medium? Newspapers were consolidating in the late 90s too.

 

[tomservo]

Look at this chart http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Ipod_sales.svg and it foretells the same technology shift. How many potential listeners are there in the country? People don't want to wade through a lot of commercials to hear music they may not care for. There are also so many media choices these days the shrinking market for radio gets further fractionalized.

Those numbers are global, not just for the US. Globally speaking, I'd guess about 3% of the population has iPods. While that particular player has over 70% of the US market, Apple doesn't seem to make US-only sales figures available. And since we have no idea about how many replacements and upgrades were purchased to take the place of old, unused units, how many 'free'-but-still-counted-as-a-sale-warranty units were sold, it is impossible to realistically asses how many ears radio has lost to the portable music player.

The only fact is that mp3 player uptake is highest with youthful demographics and those demographics are eroding for radio. There's even debate as to how much erosion and how fast. :

 

[bigtime]

For years, radio seemed to have no interest in fully serving the young audience. Even CHRs really wanted 25-54, not 12-24. The teen audience was taken for granted. That encouraged the erosion we've been seeing the last few years. Technology sped it up. It's not exactly a brand new thing though. The first MP3 type device (the Walkman) debuted 25 years ago.

 

[kirkiefan]

I don't get The Star but I do remember in the 70s Indy radio had some great personalities...


Steve Michaelss WXLW,WNDE,WTHR-TV

"Marvelous Mark" McClure WERK(AM) WNDE(despite his on air cussin')

Jackson Arrmstrong WIFE(AM) (the same one from WIXY,WKBW,KPRC and all the others)

Jay Reynolds WIFE(AM)

Reb Porter WIFE(AM),WIBC(AM)

Harry Andrews WIBC(AM) (including his reminices of "Stinky" Irwin...God rest his country soul)

Chad Hunt WERK(AM),WMEE(FM)

Stan Weil WGOM

Buster Bodine WNAP

Jim "J.J." Jacobs WHUT

Dave Gross WGOM,WNDE now at WLDE

"Spider" Harrison WTLC(FM) (...later of Nashville's WLAC)

 

[flashback]

also ron hofer ,wife(am), wgee(fm), and wfbm(am)

 

[1316wwood]

I have worked in Indiana radio and elsewhere for over 20 years until 2000. Loved radio and what it was all about. Radio is dead. There are a few talkers that are relevant but otherwise it is a medium whose days are numbered. No reason to listen anymore. The suits and consultants and their mindset have ruined it. It is a shame. But technology has evolved to the point that the reasons we used to listen are no longer of any importance. Does a teen wait for their favorite song when they can download it for free? Does the office worker listen to radio when they can call up thousands of websites of audio with no commercials? Or listen to their own playlist off of their iPod? Don't make the argument that an iPod can't raise money for a cancer victim. Radio has become irrelevant and the only people that come to a remote or a a fundraiser do so because it is free. Or it's because they can't afford a computer or it is some country bumpkin that is looking for a free t-shirt or refrigertator magnet. Every new car is going to have satellite radio soon. When that happens and XM and Sirius merge, I hope my old radio buddies have something else in mind to do.

 

[mouseman]

As long as there are consumers who prefer FREE entertainment, there will be FREE over the air broadcat radio stations [advertiser supported]. Subscriber-based Satellite radio will not replace over the air radio. Fee-based-uploads on I-pods and other new media consumption technologies will not replace FREE over the air radio.

This whole argument forgets or ignores the fact that there will always be a consumer base for FREE over the air radio; even poorly programmed, corporate cost-saving voice tracked with minimal local content to satify FCC license requirements, radio.

Every consumer driving a car will not be willing to pay for, or be able to afford, subscription radio. Every car equiped with 8-track players, then cassette players, then CD players, and now I-pod hookups or other mobile devices have NOT brought on the demise of FREE [advertiser supported] over the air radio. The where and when of over the air radio use has changed, but the fact remains [by most any research piece you look at] that the level of listenership to all available over the air FREE radio has barely changed in decades. And those consumption levels are strong, compared to any other entertainment media option.


The Sunday article was accurate in this regard; the larger companies in town will always be looking for the next "home run" format to tip the revenue scales in their favor. Even if radio advertising levels haven't grown locally in the past several years, it's still a local industry of close to $100 million dollars; No small chump change. These largest companies are constantly looking for "quick swing of the bat" success format/ratings wise to take a larger share of the overall industry revenue. There's very little patience for "organic" revenue growth; staying put with a format and growing it.

These kind of feature articles are always inaccurate in another way; they never tend to get feedback from the other end of the industry spectrum. Chris Wheat/Chuck Williams/Tom Severino will all have similar perspectives on the current state of the industry; a large coporate operator's perspective. What's Keith Smiley at WBRI-AM think? How about Bart Johnson; what's his take on the market, and where Oldies 101.9 fits? It's his station; get his opinion and not just the same "talking heads." Russ Dodge, is hispanic radio actually organically growing revenues in the market that aren't reported to the independent auditing firms? Radio Disney? That's a unique market and truly targeted product; think they're having an impact on the market the big guys would just as soon ignore as give any credence too? This industry is so much more than just the largest corporations.

 

[hoosier45guy]

i noticed that oldies 101.9 and 92.3 wtts were just referred to as "independents" on the chart accompanying the article.

i'm sure the attention-grabbing russ oasis would have provided some good quotes. he has in here. but there have been print articles recently about the recent wklu format flip and his daytona racing and the star may have thought any more might have been a bit much.

did the paper contact "world class rock" wtts? how about an exclusive interview with the very private owner tom tarzian? what about talking with general manager ron tarsi on his perspective? or even pd brad holtz? maybe it was a non-story because wtts has had the same format with the same calls at the same frequency since 1992.

it seems to me that this article was just about "corporate" radio in indy!

 

[ten_four]

I don't get The Star but I do remember in the 70s Indy radio had some great personalities...


Steve Michaelss WXLW,WNDE,WTHR-TV
"Marvelous Mark" McClure WERK(AM) WNDE(despite his on air cussin')
Jackson Arrmstrong WIFE(AM) (the same one from WIXY,WKBW,KPRC and all the others)
Jay Reynolds WIFE(AM)
Reb Porter WIFE(AM),WIBC(AM)
Harry Andrews WIBC(AM) (including his reminices of "Stinky" Irwin...God rest his country soul)
Chad Hunt WERK(AM),WMEE(FM)
Stan Weil WGOM
Buster Bodine WNAP
Jim "J.J." Jacobs WHUT
Dave Gross WGOM,WNDE now at WLDE
"Spider" Harrison WTLC(FM) (...later of Nashville's WLAC)

Joe Pickett WFBM(AM), WNDE (CALL CHANGE), WXLW, WIBC
Glenn Webber WFBM(AM), PIO Indiana State Police, WENS
Lou Sherman WFBM(AM), WXLW, WFBM(Noblesville 1110)

 

[Wazzie]

A dying medium (newspapers), reporting on a medium (radio), that nay-sayers are saying is dying. Hmmm...

Mouseman hit this one out of the park. FREE radio will always be around, in some shape or form. It's a shame that the big talents are no more. But somebody that is willing to take the risk (are you listening Randy Michaels) and shake things up... say starting in Cincinnati after CC drops stations for the Lee & Bain merger, CAN make this happen. The mega-corps can not make this happen. They are only concerned with the stockholders and the bottom line.

I would love to see newspapers report on how readership/subscriptions has declined over the past 10 years. AND give accurate circulation numbers. :-X