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John Watson

J

jhguthlac

Guest
Throughout the afternoon, I hear numerous promos for the various conservative hosts and the morning show. How come there are not promos for John Watson? True, he is on 9-midnight. But ignoring this long time host seems a bit odd.
 
You're right. I haven't heard a promo for Watson since they moved him to nights. Previously, they'd plug the heck out of his show, now......nothing. Interestingly I tuned in to John's show a week ago as I was out in my car and he had callers, so someone is tuning in to hear him. Granted the numbers will be less than when he was daytime due to WILM's poor signal at night.

John's a professional, and he has a following, so those who can get him will still listen, also maybe he's getting listeners who now listen live online since they can't get him on the radio at night now. Of course Arbitron doesn't measure online listening, yet.

But to jhguthlac's point it is odd that this long time Delaware broadcaster (John's been at WILM a long time) is being ignored by his own station. Watson's show does offer some balance to a very heavy load of conservative talk that is now WILM's staple. Also, John is WILM's only live and local talk show during the week, so he brings the Delaware angle to the airwaves that none of WILM's weekday shows including Elliot offer.
 
Clearly, Clear Channel Delaware management thought - for community relations reasons, license renewal reasons, affirmative action reasons, and/or legal considerations - it was not possible to get rid of Watson outright.

So CC settled for putting Watson in this late night shift. Either he'd bring his following to that late night shift and persevere -- or quit.

However, in terms of station "branding" (which has been discussed on these boards before; ideology has become a "format" in talk radio), Watson obviously is the odd duck, very much removed from the rest of the station. So no point in promoting Watson on-the-air. It would complicate the "new" WILM image --- conservative talk. Heck, even the Wikipedia entry refers to WILM as a conservative talk station. (One imagines the Hawkins listen more to WDEL these days than to the station they used to own!)

Beyond that, it wouldn't be the first time a station didn't bother to promote program elements beyond P.M. drive... particularly a 1,000-watt station on a graveyard frequency such as 1450.
 
Regarding the WILM signal. At 4:30am, there are points in Newark where I can pick up WILM stronger than WDEL. In the dead of winter, I'll get the Canadian oldies station on 1150. Bottom line, WILM's signal is not that bad in some parts of the county.

Going in the other direction, I was driving my wife's Ford Windstar a few weeks ago in the Ridley Park area. WILM vanished and instead, I was hearing WCTC from New Brunswick!
 
True, 5,000-watt WDEL is directional southeast, and even more so after the pattern-change at dusk.

Many nights around the DE/MD line and further west into Cecil County, the 50,000-watt, oldies station from Hamilton - CKOC - will dominate the channel... even during the summer.

That's always been WDEL's Achilles Heel in terms of coverage area. WILM sounds stronger in parts of Newark than WDEL.

Conversely, try driving to Dover and points farther south while listening to 1450.

WILM first gets interference (from Atlantic City) around the Smyrna rest stop... recovers some, but then suffers bleed from 1410 (no matter now with the substantial simulcast!) in north Dover... then peters out for the last time around Dover Air Force Base.

(If you had a highly directional portable, you can still get it right along the beach areas past Broadkill Beach even to Rehoboth!)

WDEL pumps a decent signal into Dover, and is listenable from Ocean City, Maryland.

At night, WDEL sometimes makes it to the North Carolina Outer Banks. But, that same directional signal has great difficulty making it into Pennsylvania communities just northwest of the DE/PA line.
 
I can remember one time while on the beach (Cape Henlopean the bay side) and was able to pick up 1260 WNRK back when they still had their towers and studios on Walther Road. It came in great right there on the water. Of course when I drove inland, it faded out quickly.
 
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