Lisa Adams departs Star 101.5

[Kelly A]

Do you have actual data proving that the demographics of KJR's listeners are significantly different now that they're on FM than they were on AM?

I don't have access to revenue numbers broken out for that single station in iHeart's Seattle group. Other than iHeart corporate, or their GM, I doubt anyone else does either.
The fact remains that (and we've said this many times) sports radio is not an agency ratings buy. Agencies buy ads because sports target demo is 18-54M, so if a station does sports/sports talk, buys from automotive, online sports books, and beer, are automatically placed on these stations. And think about it for a second; the largest radio group in the country isn't going to sacrifice a valuable Class C FM station in a market the size of Seattle-Tacoma if it wasn't making money.

 

[fordranger797]

Okay true, I think I gave them until the start of baseball season this year, and they're still on FM. The point about 104.5 has to do with sports, last I checked KIRO-FM was talk. KMCQ could have easily been Seattle Sports 104.5 and KIRO could have stayed 710 ESPN Seattle. Do you have actual data proving that the demographics of KJR's listeners are significantly different now that they're on FM than they were on AM?

I think the assumption with KJR is that advertisers will be happy to see them on 93.3, which will help generate more revenue over time. Sports programming is valuable, and the perception of crystal clear FM works in their favor when working with advertising clients.

 

[Kelly A]

I think the assumption with KJR is that advertisers will be happy to see them on 93.3, which will help generate more revenue over time. Sports programming is valuable, and the perception of crystal clear FM works in their favor when working with advertising clients.

And I believe yours is a safe assumption. You make a move like this for the long game. For some reason, non-professional commenters on this site are always concentrating on a short game based on missing or faulty information.

 

[JackindaBox]

104.5 is K-LOVE so that won't flip as long as they are owned by EMF. If advertisers continue to dominate 93.3 it is likely that it will stay as Sports for a long time as rap fans go to 103.7 since KUBE will likely never have a third stint. It is very likely that Seattle will never have a current-based hip-hop station again unless 103.7 eventually decides to do that though I think they would keep the "Hot" name and still mix in older hip-hop. I think if 103.7 decided to do that it would be similar to how Jam'n 107.5 used to be before they decided to go toward older hip-hop since it had lower ratings.

 

[Kelly A]

104.5 is K-LOVE so that won't flip as long as they are owned by EMF. If advertisers continue to dominate 93.3 it is likely that it will stay as Sports for a long time as rap fans go to 103.7 since KUBE will likely never have a third stint. It is very likely that Seattle will never have a current-based hip-hop station again unless 103.7 eventually decides to do that though I think they would keep the "Hot" name and still mix in older hip-hop. I think if 103.7 decided to do that it would be similar to how Jam'n 107.5 used to be before they decided to go toward older hip-hop since it had lower ratings.

Uh, you do know that modern urban music features a lot of what's considered obscene language? Kind of hard to do a current urban music station when you have to bleep or blank a word potentially dozens of times per song.

 

[bobdavcav]

Not to mention that 107.5 Portland and 103.7 Seattle were actually quite similar in 2014-15. Back to the sports discussion, now that EMF has 104.5 they're not going to sell it, when was the last time you saw them selling a full powered FM? If 98.9 hadn't flipped, I could accept that 93.3 would stay sports, as there really wasn't another format opening, and they had at least gained back the numbers they had on 950. What I don't understand though is that everybody on this board says that nobody under 60 listens to AM, yet when looking at the available numbers, content is still king, not band.

 

[Kelly A]

Not to mention that 107.5 Portland and 103.7 Seattle were actually quite similar in 2014-15. Back to the sports discussion, now that EMF has 104.5 they're not going to sell it, when was the last time you saw them selling a full powered FM? If 98.9 hadn't flipped, I could accept that 93.3 would stay sports, as there really wasn't another format opening, and they had at least gained back the numbers they had on 950. What I don't understand though is that everybody on this board says that nobody under 60 listens to AM, yet when looking at the available numbers, content is still king, not band.

What you don't see in 6+ numbers, is how many of those are persons 60+. They're all lumped into one category.
And I don't think anyone is saying that 'nobody' listens to AM, but the numbers are declining yearly, with few under 60. and females.

 

[AceBiscuits]

Is it me, or does 101.5 kind of remind some of the late WPLJ? A brand that was weak for so many years and continuously got diluted until the product crashed and burned. That's the vibe I get from KPLZ.

 

[fordranger797]

Is it me, or does 101.5 kind of remind some of the late WPLJ? A brand that was weak for so many years and continuously got diluted until the product crashed and burned. That's the vibe I get from KPLZ.

It’s not just you. It really needs some revitalization (the type of which is up for debate).

 

[PB Randolf]

I know, right? Jackinthebox is gradually pushing this thread into 'The Outer Limits'.

The comment was in regards to them potentially coming into the market.

 

[JackindaBox]

Uh, you do know that modern urban music features a lot of what's considered obscene language? Kind of hard to do a current urban music station when you have to bleep or blank a word potentially dozens of times per song.

Ik that and I don’t really like to listen to it. Tbh they do do the clean versions of those songs on current hip hop stations even though the songs are already so bad. Hot 103.7 will probably keep their current version for now since it is working real well for them rn.

 

[JackindaBox]

Not to mention that 107.5 Portland and 103.7 Seattle were actually quite similar in 2014-15. Back to the sports discussion, now that EMF has 104.5 they're not going to sell it, when was the last time you saw them selling a full powered FM? If 98.9 hadn't flipped, I could accept that 93.3 would stay sports, as there really wasn't another format opening, and they had at least gained back the numbers they had on 950. What I don't understand though is that everybody on this board says that nobody under 60 listens to AM, yet when looking at the available numbers, content is still king, not band.

Basically they were similar around 2014 since both stations played currents and throwbacks though “Jam’n” was more heavy on current hip hop titles than Hot was and focused on less dance music that Hot focused on. Hot 103.7 eventually was similar with the “throwbacks” they played as “Jam’n” played/plays a lot of the same “throwbacks”. They are similar now too since “Jam’n” moved to a Classic Hip Hop direction.

 

[JackindaBox]

Is it me, or does 101.5 kind of remind some of the late WPLJ? A brand that was weak for so many years and continuously got diluted until the product crashed and burned. That's the vibe I get from KPLZ.

Star 101.5 I believe is continually tweaking the direction of its music until it works. They will probably do so again soonsince they have a 2.3 rating rn and KSWD is #3 in the market.

 

[JackindaBox]

It’s not just you. It really needs some revitalization (the type of which is up for debate).

Maybe they will try to go back to Hot AC but add some 80s titles or try it’s previous direction of Hot AC if it continues not to work.

 

[JackindaBox]

If, and this is a big if, 93.3 goes country, the programming on 950 will move back to 1090, and the programming currently on 93.3 will move back to 950. They're not going to kill off KJR for country, but I've argued for years that a well programmed AM can do just as well as a well programmed FM. Case in point, Bonneville could have easily purchased 104.5 to put KIRO on FM a few years ago, and they chose not to.

Idk if Seattle will ever have 2 country stations again… tbh.

 

[fordranger797]

Maybe they will try to go back to Hot AC but add some 80s titles or try it’s previous direction of Hot AC if it continues not to work.

They certainly can, but I doubt that will move the needle whatsoever. The problems run deeper than music. AC radio fans are not rabid, and won’t swear loyalty to one station over another based on a few different song selections. From what I’ve seen, the variety looks pretty good at 101.5. Time to rule that one out.

 

[OnAirDontCare]

Just throwing it out there.. Maybe they'll turn it into a Spanish format. I do remember the owner of Lotus swinging by after purchasing the Seattle stations joking that Star would be flipped in Spanish.

 

[bobdavcav]

I think that was discussed when Lotus came into the market, and I'm not sure Seattle can support a full market Spanish station. The areas of the market that can are already served with signals that cover those areas well. The comparison to WPLJ isn't one I've thought about, but one that makes sense. I think Star's fate will be quite different from WPLJ though.

 

[AceBiscuits]

Star 101.5 I believe is continually tweaking the direction of its music until it works. They will probably do so again soonsince they have a 2.3 rating rn and KSWD is #3 in the market.

My point is that the brand is so diluted that it may be best to scrap everything and start fresh.

 

[bobdavcav]

Well, could more changes be on the way? Moug & Angie Exit KPLZ - RadioInsight