Julius May's Thoughts on WPHT

[FredLeonard]

CBS woulda been better off trying to keep the audience they already had with Beck, Rush etc, imo.

Apparently, that wasn't an option.

 

[JH_Radio]

CBS woulda been better off trying to keep the audience they already had with Beck, Rush etc, imo.

Apparently, that wasn't an option.

Why wasn't it an option?
Did merlin offer premier more $$$ than CBS?

 

[FredLeonard]

CBS woulda been better off trying to keep the audience they already had with Beck, Rush etc, imo.

Apparently, that wasn't an option.

Why wasn't it an option?
Did merlin offer premier more $$$ than CBS?

Clear Channel/Premiere Radio have gradually been moving their right-wing talk shows to FM, hoping to pick up younger demos. The audience the had is old and advertisers aren't buying.

Ratings for right-wing talk have been slipping. Beck and Hannity weren't doing as well as they used to and CBS dropped them. Then Clear Channel pulled Rush.

CBS has been slower than other major radio owners in shifting spoken word formats to FM (other than HD sub-channels). But they have started (as with WIP).

CBS' problem is they replaced the syndicated shows with guys doing the same act.

 

[JH_Radio]

CBS woulda been better off trying to keep the audience they already had with Beck, Rush etc, imo.

Apparently, that wasn't an option.

Why wasn't it an option?
Did merlin offer premier more $$$ than CBS?

Clear Channel/Premiere Radio have gradually been moving their right-wing talk shows to FM, hoping to pick up younger demos.

ok, so we move beck, shawn etc to FM. why would a younger person listen? it doesn't matter if the shows on AM or FM, they'll still attract the same demmo, right? Now say IQ put different shows on (and didn't put Beck, Shawn, rush) choosing instead to go with local hosts or younger-leaning hosts (are there any?). then i can see the station attracting younger demmos. My point is that rush and shawn are gonna attract the same demmos no matter which band they are on, right? or wrong.

 

[FredLeonard]

CBS woulda been better off trying to keep the audience they already had with Beck, Rush etc, imo.

Apparently, that wasn't an option.

Why wasn't it an option?
Did merlin offer premier more $$$ than CBS?

Clear Channel/Premiere Radio have gradually been moving their right-wing talk shows to FM, hoping to pick up younger demos.

ok, so we move beck, shawn etc to FM. why would a younger person listen? it doesn't matter if the shows on AM or FM, they'll still attract the same demmo, right? Now say IQ put different shows on (and didn't put Beck, Shawn, rush) choosing instead to go with local hosts or younger-leaning hosts (are there any?). then i can see the station attracting younger demmos. My point is that rush and shawn are gonna attract the same demmos no matter which band they are on, right? or wrong.

I don't say their plan works. I just say that's the plan. Unless the big group owners/syndicators can get younger demos listening, the clock is running out on their big time hosts and on the conservative talk format. The gravy train is getting close to the end of the line.

Moving to FM is the only plan that doesn't require the suits to do something different, original and creative. It's also the only plan that doesn't require new talent. And radio is getting new talent that's ready for prime time. All those small and medium market station where new talent once developed and learned it's trade are running syndicated shows. If Rush were getting out of high school this year, he'd have to find some other line of work because guys like him have taken all the steps off the ladder.

 

[JH_Radio]

CBS woulda been better off trying to keep the audience they already had with Beck, Rush etc, imo.

Apparently, that wasn't an option.

Why wasn't it an option?
Did merlin offer premier more $$$ than CBS?

Clear Channel/Premiere Radio have gradually been moving their right-wing talk shows to FM, hoping to pick up younger demos.

ok, so we move beck, shawn etc to FM. why would a younger person listen? it doesn't matter if the shows on AM or FM, they'll still attract the same demmo, right? Now say IQ put different shows on (and didn't put Beck, Shawn, rush) choosing instead to go with local hosts or younger-leaning hosts (are there any?). then i can see the station attracting younger demmos. My point is that rush and shawn are gonna attract the same demmos no matter which band they are on, right? or wrong.

I don't say their plan works. I just say that's the plan.

If rush, etc wanted to maintain there listener bass as a starting point, WPHT could have said "TO find rush turn to this station..." in a promo. except they'd never do that. First IQ and PHT compete, and second IQ isn't a sister station to CBS Radio .
Of corse, getting new listenres to rush, bec etc I think would be the goal right? The other school of thought is that the people who are now 50 and older listen more to FM than the people who were 50 and older say 15 years ago. Therefor moving to FM would be a way to maintain your listener bass at that age range. hmmm... I dunno. Just speculation on my part.

 

[Jul]

not happy that WPHT did not gain any ratings for the current period, despite having Dick Morris and the Phillies. is this station in a serious ratings crisis?

 

[radioguy39nj]

CBS has been slower than other major radio owners in shifting spoken word formats to FM (other than HD sub-channels). But they have started (as with WIP).

Don't forget CBS' all-news simulcasts in San Francisco and Chicago. Many of CBS' all-sports outlets are now on FM.

 

[satech]

not happy that WPHT did not gain any ratings for the current period, despite having Dick Morris and the Phillies. is this station in a serious ratings crisis?

They're in a serious programming crisis. WPHT has turned into the "blame everything on Obama all the time" station -- and they don't even deny it; the station promos call it "a reliable viewpoint".

For example, Dom Giordano didn't even talk about the Oklahoma tornado today, because he couldn't find any way to blame it on Obama; so instead, he spent a whole hour talking about Benghazi again.

The few callers that Dom gets mostly disagree with him, and yet he still claims that "a silent majority" of his listeners are on his side. I think the ratings will prove otherwise...

 

[Jul]

They're in a serious programming crisis. WPHT has turned into the "blame everything on Obama all the time" station -- and they don't even deny it; the station promos call it "a reliable viewpoint".

For example, Dom Giordano didn't even talk about the Oklahoma tornado today, because he couldn't find any way to blame it on Obama; so instead, he spent a whole hour talking about Benghazi again.

The few callers that Dom gets mostly disagree with him, and yet he still claims that "a silent majority" of his listeners are on his side. I think the ratings will prove otherwise...

its sad what is really happening to the station, it really is.

 

[Jul]

For example, Dom Giordano didn't even talk about the Oklahoma tornado today, because he couldn't find any way to blame it on Obama; so instead, he spent a whole hour talking about Benghazi again.

The few callers that Dom gets mostly disagree with him, and yet he still claims that "a silent majority" of his listeners are on his side. I think the ratings will prove otherwise...

that's shocking. What happened in Oklahoma major news and 1210 should be talking about. I know that Rich Zeoli talked about it last night on his show.