Is WABE looking to expand to two stations?

[Mike Stroud]

Some of you may have heard the big news out of Nashville, Tennessee, where pubcaster WPLN has bought the nation's second-most-powerful college station, WRVU, the student-run voice of Vanderbilt University. With $3.3 million plopped down, WPLN has turned the alt-rock/diverse outlet into a 24/7 classical-formatted station, freeing up the main station to program NPR/PRI news/talk all day. The Vandy station had been on the bubble for about two years, due to declining student interest and the new media atmosphere.

I wonder if such a situation might be brewing in Atlanta, given that WABE has so far resisted the trend toward going news/talk in the daytime (excluding drive time, of course), keeping its classical format put between 9 and 3. As all of you know, your fair city has not one, but two, college/eclectic stations, Georgia Tech's WREK and Georgia State's WRAS (incidentally the highest-powered college outlet in the U.S.). Given that both schools are state institutions, it would seem like either or both GSU or GIT might be looking for a cash fix by selling their stations. With the Vanderbilt station, most students were apathetic, since many of the DJs were non-students (or alumni); they seemed not to have any vested interest in the protests the DJs and Nashville's large musician community (non-country, that is) made on the station's behalf. I would imagine that, since GSU is a commuter college and Atlanta has nowhere near the musicians per capita that Nashville has, that WRAS would be ripe for the taking if WABE wanted to put all its classical music on a separate station and convert 90.1 to news/talk on weekdays and the typical NPR/PRI/APM specialty and feature shows on weekends. WREK would be a more distant possibility, given the higher socioeconomic status of the students at Tech.

I am sure that WABE catches a lot of hell from the NPR news freaks, flustered that they have to put up with classical during their office hours. As market research has shown, pub radio listeners are much more into news/talk than music of ANY kind. Atlanta may be right now the largest market in the U.S. where there is no full-time news/talk pub radio outlet.

However, I do know that WABE's licensee, the city school board, is right now in the midst of significant turmoil, and none of the above scenario would occur anytime soon, probably. But do any of you think this could happen in Atlanta? Public radio trends sure suggest that it is likely.

 

[upstate29651]

But do any of you think this could happen in Atlanta? Public radio trends sure suggest that it is likely.

What happens in Nashville & Houston (KTRU) do not make "trends". Both of these situations were unique.

G

 

[jabba17]

Georgia Tech just popped for a new studio for WREK, and WRAS gets good ratings for a college station in an urban market with lots of competition.

I wonder if there is room in the noncommercial band for another station. I know that GPB would like to put a station in ATL--probably GPB's biggest hole (albeit with lots of incumbent competition including WABE).

If something like what you describe were to happen--which I don't think it is--WRFG or WCLK would be more likely candidates, or maybe WWEV out of Cumming. Those stations have weaker financial backing that the GT and GSU stations.

 

[w9wi]

Both of these situations were unique.

Isn't that contradictory?

Add Providence, RI (WJMF/Smith College to relay WGBH Boston's "All Classical 99.5"), and San Francisco. (KUSF/U. of SF to carry classical programming, fed from LA if I recall properly) We lost a second college station here in Nashville earlier this year when Trevecca Nazarene's WNAZ-89.1 went to Bott Broadcasting, a national chain of religious outlets.

Now, when a trend exists, that doesn't necessarily mean *everyone* will follow the trend! WREK & WRAS & WCLK may well be perfectly safe. Milwaukee lost its (commercial) classical outlet a few years back, but none of the four secular non-commercial signals there is showing any sign of interest in the classics.

But I do think it's reasonable to call what happened up here in Nashville yesterday to be part of a trend.

_________________________________________________

I wonder if there is room in the noncommercial band for another station.

Never say never, with modern software engineers have been able to shoehorn in stations where you'd never believe it possible -- but I'd be VERY surprised if there's room for another full-market signal in Atlanta.

 

[fortmill]

Unfortunately, Richmond is another market that does not have a NPR newstalk station---WCVE carries ME and ATC but plays classics the rest of the day. Richmond, however, has had a number of NCE FM channels open up in the last few years(mainly due to the elimination of analog TV channel 6), but fundamentalist "religious" organizations have gotten hold of all three of them. What a shame!

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

It makes for interesting conversation. As a listener I see WABE as a "well tuned machine" doing about as good a job as one could expect... if the orders you are given are to combine the Classical Music and the News and Information into one channel, one format.

I have always thought it a bit odd, a bit awkward that GPB has no Atlanta station but the longer I think about it and observe what they are doing, I hope they keep it that way. If they add an Atlanta channel, then they need to add some "Metro Centric" programming and that might not be an enjoyable and palatable meal for the listeners around the state who do not want to be Atlanta, they want to be rural Georgia.

If WABE could obtain a second channel we would learn what is the depth of their management and skills. Could they operate TWO programming genres with the polish and smoothness and the "comfortable sound" that they do now?

When I lived in Indianapolis I watched as the public school system agreed to spin off the public radio station they owned and let it become a separate, free-standing organization on its own. I don't know how much autonomy the Atlanta Board of Education grants the management of WABE and WPBA. As much turmoil and budget problems troubles schools in the Atlanta area (just like much of the nation) there could come a day when spinning off the broadcasting would be the right thing to do. But that idea has to be treated with some tender love and care. The citizens of Atlanta tend to be wary of the things that the rest of us want to take away from them... like the airport, for example. And after years of the suburbs NOT wanting to be part of MARTA, we are suddenly in an era when it is possible (remotely possible?) that the suburbs and the state want to transfer ownership and control of MARTA to some broader group. A heavy-handed effort to make WABE/WPBA independent would be very emotional.

I think most of us just want good radio. The name that appears on the FCC license is not our major issue.

 

[ssnake]

I assure you that WREK will remain controlled by Tech students

The 100kW DA upgrade is still pending, and the students have the funds for the new antenna. They already have the transmitter from a few years ago (Harris 25kW + HD) but will need a special antenna to build out the pattern. A modification to the current CP was just filed in February.

 

[Kilbasa123]

I listen to the NPR news/talk on WABE's HD-3 signal almost every weekday on the way home (Buckhead to Canton). The signal really holds up well for me. I live east of Canton, and the signal is solid until I get about 5 miles from my home.

 

[uncamark]

Both of these situations were unique.

Isn't that contradictory?

Add Providence, RI (WJMF/Smith College to relay WGBH Boston's "All Classical 99.5"), and San Francisco. (KUSF/U. of SF to carry classical programming, fed from LA if I recall properly)

Owned by a combine of USC and Public Radio Capital, but programmed in San Francisco by essentially the same airstaff as when Entercom owned KDFC's classical format. I suspect it will remain locally programmed for a long time to come, although some KUSC programs may air on the new KDFC.

 

[Mike Stroud]

Georgia Tech just popped for a new studio for WREK, and WRAS gets good ratings for a college station in an urban market with lots of competition.

I wonder if there is room in the noncommercial band for another station. I know that GPB would like to put a station in ATL--probably GPB's biggest hole (albeit with lots of incumbent competition including WABE).

If something like what you describe were to happen--which I don't think it is--WRFG or WCLK would be more likely candidates, or maybe WWEV out of Cumming. Those stations have weaker financial backing that the GT and GSU stations.

I know this thread has been dead for awhile, but it occurred to me that there would be a lot of controversy--extremely heated--over race if WABE decided to target WCLK for a takeover; don't forget that WCLK is also an NPR affiliate, and I suspect the powers-that-be in Washington would frown quite sternly over any move in that direction. Also, despite WRFG's lowly status, its followers are tenaciously loyal and would fight off any attempts WABE would make on it--the station is quite open about its left-wing politics and sees even NPR as an enemy of the truth.

WRAS makes sense because, even though ratings may be good, it is the closest in comparison to the situation with the Nashville NPR outlet's acquisition of the Vanderbilt station. WRAS is particularly attractive because of its strong signal--the strongest college station in the country, as I understand it. That would be ideal to maintain an all-classical station in relative comparison to the strength of the main WABE signal--Public Broadcasting Atlanta would want as close a match as possible there. WRFG and WCLK are not nearly as strong as WRAS. Further, it may be more vulnerable than one thinks, if Georgia's state revenue situation is anything to go by. Cutbacks to Georgia State could well be made up by putting the station on the block, and I doubt seriously that students at GSU are any more enthusiastic about "their" station than Vanderbilt's were. As has been stated, Georgia Tech's WREK is an entirely different matter, with a long tradition of strong student support and recent upgrades, as well as a signal well below WRAS'.

I'm not saying that I know anything about it, but I wouldn't be surprised if discussions were taking place under the table between PBA and GSU. It will depend, as was said before, on PBA's autonomy from the school board. And all of you know the trauma that is taking place with the cheating scandal. If the school board might be exploring spinning off PBA to deal with its more pressing problems, and PBA can get funding from whatever sources, it is a distinct possibility that shouldn't be discounted.

As for that small station in Cumming, that's a religious broadcaster. Everyone knows the animosity between public broadcasters and evangelicals--if approached, WWEV would literally tell PBA to go to hell (since that station's listeners believe NPR listeners are all secular, liberal heathens--that's no joke). The listeners of WWEV are almost to a person in favor of the Federal government ending CPB funding--a prime point in the "culture wars" as well as the "Tea Party" movement. WWEV's licensee would sooner shut the station down entirely and return the license to the FCC rather than sell the station to a public broadcaster, believe me.

 

[uncamark]

As for that small station in Cumming, that's a religious broadcaster. Everyone knows the animosity between public broadcasters and evangelicals--if approached, WWEV would literally tell PBA to go to hell (since that station's listeners believe NPR listeners are all secular, liberal heathens--that's no joke). The listeners of WWEV are almost to a person in favor of the Federal government ending CPB funding--a prime point in the "culture wars" as well as the "Tea Party" movement. WWEV's licensee would sooner shut the station down entirely and return the license to the FCC rather than sell the station to a public broadcaster, believe me.

And it's no secret that many religious broadcasters want to go after as many non-coms as they can to keep NPR at bay (conservative pundit Michelle Malkin even wrote a column a few years ago calling it the patriotic duty of religious broadcasters to limit NPR's reach). Public Radio Capital, the now-controversial broker that's been involved in most of the turnovers of the college stations, was in fact formed to be more proactive in protecting secular non-com signals.

 

[BarryATL]

GPB tried to get control of WREK and/or WRAS in the early 80s. Both schools fought and won. With that history and GPB not having an Atlanta signal, I do not think one of those licenses would ever go to PBA no matter how much money is involved.

 

[nightmanager]

With WABE part of the Atlanta Public Schools and international-level bad press attached to the APS name, you'd have to look hard to find a group with a worse reputation right now. Somebody I work with in Canada knew about it.

APS has shown little to merit handing them the keys to another station, and even if they had the money to buy out somebody -and a willing seller which is far from guaranteed; everybody is probably likely to fight tooth and nail- they have far more pressing things to worry about, like actually educating kids. Another radio station is not going to help that.

If anything, they might do well to put WABE up for sale and cash out to GPB or some other entity that could take the license and make a big PR deal about focusing on teaching rather than broadcasting. APS is going to need all of that it can get.