More Questions Than Answers

[Jay_Surly]

Having read the many opinions on the WHLD-AAR thread below, it's clear there are more questions than answers. I found the thread informative and opinionated and conclude that we'll probably know more once Citadel Broadcasting makes an announcement or clarification regarding the format. At this point, it's not certain if WHLD will carry the entire AAR line-up or a few prominent shows.

As noted below, the best progressive talk radio seems to come from Ed Schultz.

As a pronounced NPR listener of WBFO-FM and WNED-AM, and being a political moderate who voted (for reasons too diverse to enumeriate, this is after all, a radio board) for ------ -.-. ----, ---- ------- and ---- ----- I think AAR will offer an interesting counterpoint to Bauerle, Limbaugh and Beach on WBEN as well as O'Reilly and Hannity on distant signal WLVL.

Having heard AAR in Rochester and XM, I don't expect the progressive talkers on WHLD to provide any more substance than those on WBEN which features live, local personalities that talk about issues germane to Western New York.

Curiously, Citadel has on its staff a few people from WGR Newsradio 55, Doug Young and Jim Pasterick. One wonders if they'll have any role in the WHLD presentation?

In the end, I suspect NPR will be the primary source of news, information and discussion for open-minded centrists such as me.

Best regards,

Janos Surlikevich

 

[Bob1370]

> As noted below, the best progressive talk radio seems to
> come from Ed Schultz.

Stephanie Miller (who a lot of us remember fondly from her days as Wease's co-host on WCMF 15 or so years back) is another host who deserves carriage on 'HLD, given her past success in markets like LA and her roots in Western NY. I think she'll do well in late mornings

< I think AAR
> will offer an interesting counterpoint to Bauerle, Limbaugh
> and Beach on WBEN as well as O'Reilly and Hannity on distant
> signal WLVL.

That's something WBEN should have done itself with its post-6PM programming by bringing on board one or two new local hosts with different views, since the syndicated stuff is no longer serving them well and the station needs new blood to bring in better night numbers and better overall demos (not to mention bringing .

> Curiously, Citadel has on its staff a few people from WGR
> Newsradio 55, Doug Young and Jim Pasterick. One wonders if
> they'll have any role in the WHLD presentation?

Don't know either man's politics. Jim Pastrick was an excellent talk programmer during WGR's days as a competitive general interest talker...and he presided over, IIRC, their best ratings of their post-1989, post-hot AC existence. I doubt he'd want to leave his plum midday gig at WHTT (and if I were Citadel's cluster manager I wouldn't let him). But maybe he can double in brass as a programming consultant to WHLD if Citadel is serious about doing more with it than just operating as a turnkey relay of AAR and/or some other national programming, like WROC-AM is now.

> In the end, I suspect NPR will be the primary source of
> news, information and discussion for open-minded centrists
> such as me.

Glad to hear it.

 

[dampier]

> As noted below, the best progressive talk radio seems to
> come from Ed Schultz.

Schultz's show doesn't appear to me personally. One, his voice is similar to Rush's which is weird, and two, his show isn't as entertaining as some others. My favorite host is Stephanie Miller because of the entertainment factor. I then gravitate towards Randi Rhodes. Al Franken sounds NPRish in his humor and delivery, but conveys a lot of information and has the high powered guests. Springer's show is probably the closest AAR has to an Alan Colmes program where conservatives aren't yelled over. Mike Malloy is the left's version of Savage. Majority Report is the lecture circuit on the airwaves. There's a range of shows for different tastes.

Ultimately, if it's not entertaining, nobody will listen.

> Having heard AAR in Rochester and XM, I don't expect the
> progressive talkers on WHLD to provide any more substance
> than those on WBEN which features live, local personalities
> that talk about issues germane to Western New York.

As I noted in the post below, you'll be right about this - AAR stations are mostly running the same kind of operation the secondary tier talk stations in a market tend to run - one satellite show after another.

> In the end, I suspect NPR will be the primary source of
> news, information and discussion for open-minded centrists
> such as me.

NPR has lost me as a listener mostly because their talk programming has been overrun with inside-the-beltway insiders, pundits, and the "circle of friends." Diane Rehm is a perfect example. It's like a private tea these days with all the same kinds of guests you are already soaking in on the other pundit shows - David Brooks, Bill Kristol, Tony Blankley + the news reporter/sub hosts like Susan Page. Then you turn to Talk of the Nation which should now be called Talk of the Nation for a Few Minutes since they ditched their one topic format a few years ago, and it's just not very deep or compelling to me.

Many NPR talk shows just don't reach out like they used to. For local talk, things are entirely different. Somehow I don't picture a local blowtorch news/talk commercial outlet bringing on a historian at least once a month to discuss things from the 1800s, as an example, as Bob Smith does. That is very compelling programming to me, but there is no time for that on the news talk authority from the corporate player when we need to dwell on what a new mayor is going to do or a show host falls for the ridiculous "is there a war on Christmas" theme.

For news I have my BBC World Service, and now with Sirius we can get CBC Radio One.

 

[JustPastBuffalo]

>
> Don't know either man's politics. Jim Pastrick was an
> excellent talk programmer during WGR's days as a competitive
> general interest talker...and he presided over, IIRC, their
> best ratings of their post-1989, post-hot AC existence. I
> doubt he'd want to leave his plum midday gig at WHTT (and if
> I were Citadel's cluster manager I wouldn't let him). But
> maybe he can double in brass as a programming consultant to
> WHLD if Citadel is serious about doing more with it than
> just operating as a turnkey relay of AAR and/or some other
> national programming, like WROC-AM is now.
>

Thanks for the compliment, Bob and Janos. Nothing's been said to me regarding AAR & WHLD and it appears the whole story was erroneous. Truth be told, I am busy and content with my "plum midday gig" [;-)] at WHTT and production at WHTT, 97 Rock and The Buffalo Bills Radio Network, working with Joe Kaus and Gordy Dysinger.

Regarding my term as program director of WGR Newsradio 55, much of the credit goes to the fine staff of talk show hosts, producers (such as "Your Guy Doug Young") news anchors and reporters, engineers and board ops, without whom WGR could not have been a success.

As to the ratings, my predecessors Chuck Finney and Daryl Parks were equally if not more successful in their tenures.

Jim Pastrick