Newspapers-Electronic Media Ownership

[Mark Giardina]

National Public Radio reported Wednesday that the FCC is considering a motion that would allow newspapers in the top 20 markets to right to own radio & TV stations. That of course would preclude the Rochester and Buffalo papers from such a venture.

What I did find interesting in the interview is a guest bringing up the point that before allowing newspapers the option to buy radio and TV stations that the FCC first address concerns about localism. I wish I heard the name of this person so I could give him credit on here, but he brought up some very interesting points.

He said, and I agree, that localism could bring listeners back to radio because in many markets out-of-town ownership has, in this person’s words, “diluted radio to where it’s nothing but sound coming from a box.” He added “the absence of local ownership means the reduction, or in some cases the elimination of local talent and especially local news.” Another key point this person raised is that “surveys and studies have shown that locally-produced radio shows tend to have more listeners than those stations that solely rely on just music and jingles.”

Wouldn’t it be nice if the FCC decided to finally address the issue of localism, which in turn might lead to the eventual repeal of the Telcom Act and deregulation?

I know that there are those who profess that before deregulation radio was a dying industry; I couldn’t disagree more. My generation did and still does listen to radio, while younger people have turned to other means of entertainment. I still believe one of the reasons for the decline in radio listenership is due in large part to the plain and simple fact that if one desires to hear the same music over and over again, why not just buy CD’s and play them in your car or home?

Call me old fashioned, but I miss hearing personality radio and especially local news, not just during morning drive, but all day long.

 

[Bob1370]

"Call me old fashioned, but I miss hearing personality radio and especially local news, not just during morning drive, but all day long."

Clearly you're not alone, Mark; latest Arbitron numbers show total use of commercial radio by 12+ listeners to be at the lowest levels since they started measuring those things in the late 1980s. They may still be listening some...but they're not spending nearly as much time with radio as they once did, and that's especially true among under-35 listeners who will be the future core of our customer base.

But there's hopeful news. Look at the meteoric rise of stations like WCBS-FM in New York, which has shot back to the top 3 in 12+ and all the key demos, getting back all its lost audience and then some, by bringing BACK personality. That's been noticed, and it's only a matter of time before other broadcasters figure out they can get a big chunk of their audiences back by going back to the tried and true method of programming with personality and quality. Dan Mason at CBS figured it out; surely other broadcast execs will get the message soon, if only by seeing the results he got.

 

[Mark Giardina]

Bob,

It would be nice if Rochester had a WCBS-FM type format, but I highly doubt the current group of conglomerates is willing to spend what it would take to staff a radio station with local people. Besides that, New York City and Rochester are in two different leagues.

The only salvation I can see for Rochester radio is that whoever comes in and purchases WRMM and the two other FM’s from CBS will, as you put it, come to realize that personality radio should make a come back.

It’s very sad when one remembers how competitive the Rochester radio market was years ago compared to today.

 

[therealjm12]

The only salvation I can see for Rochester radio is that whoever comes in and purchases WRMM and the two other FM’s from CBS will, as you put it, come to realize that personality radio should make a come back.

Mark, I don't have any inside info on this but don't be surprised if Entercom/CBS pull what recently happened in Utica. That is, selling the three stations to a religious group to take them out of the competion. Maybe that is what is taking so long for the deal to go thru. They want to find the right group.

 

[Mark Giardina]

Mark, I don't have any inside info on this but don't be surprised if Entercom/CBS pull what recently happened in Utica. That is, selling the three stations to a religious group to take them out of the competion. Maybe that is what is taking so long for the deal to go thru. They want to find the right group.

No pun intended but God help us if that happens.

Besides I just can't imagine that there isn't some media group that would want to get their hands on WRMM.

I think what might be holding up the sale, and I could be wrong, is that the FCC would want a buyer to own all three stations; not just keep WRMM then try to sell off the other two FM's.

 

[AndrewLawson]

There is a very basic, yet complex reason the CBS-Entercom transaction has not moved forward. It has everything to do with spinning off the properties, potential financing and the attractiveness of the market given the substantial price tags of the properties in question.

The suggestion that "a religious broadcaster might be interested" in the properties is not far off the mark. Whether this was an educated guess by posters who may know more than most or simply a shot in the dark, it's not out of the question according to responsible, well-placed sources close to both companies. Whether the stations are in fact sold to a religious broadcaster is anybody's guess. Conjecture is the coin of the realm not only on this board, but in higher echelons of broadcasting companies across America (Beasley, Citadel, Clear Channel, Crawford, Cumulus, Emmis, Entercom... et al.)

There are other underlying issues as to why the sale isn't progressing, including the bloated salaries of a number of airstaffers at WCMF and WPXY. But these issues are secondary to the primary issues at hand. While it is true that Entercom and Clear Channel have made money doing business in Rochester, the market is not considered (at this time) to be a prime market in which to invest the amount of money required to purchase one Class B and two class A signals.

Still, given all the aforementioned variables, a sale could be announced sooner than anybody expects. Objects at rest tend to stay at rest, objects in motion tend to stay in motion. While the situation is static at this time, a small spark may be all that's needed to ignite the process.

Finally and regretably, IF these properties are sold, it's more than likely they WON'T be hiring staffs that are chock full of personalities and stocking new departments with anchors and reporters. It's just not the way things are done these days. Again, regretably.

 

[Bob1370]

Warm 101's value is not primarily its signal (if it were, its asking price wouldn't be what's reportedly a premium compared to some other full B's in the market). It's the brand equity built by its current lineup, which a new owner would be nuts to mess with.

I don't know how much spare cash the Langston family has in the till, but if they could afford to buy Warm 101, I'd advise them to make a run for it and put WDKX's callsign, personality lineup and intellectual property on that 101.3 signal. Then they could take their current 103.9 signal and turn it into the market's fulltime Latino format outlet. DKX is a major player with a big suburban 12-34 audience that could only get bigger with a full-market signal. And 103.9 would have more than enough signal to serve the relatively concentrated Latino population in Rochester, which tends to live pretty close to the city center and needs a signal of its own.

Of course, they could finance that in part by spinning off the 93.3 and 94.1 signals to someone else. God knows who that would be, but the net result would be to strengthen one major player and bring another new signal to serve a currently ignored audience that's reaching critical mass.