North Shadeland

[radio2100]

With Cumulus set to take over this week, have there been any people "let go" yet?

 

[radio2100]

Cuts are already happening at Susquehanna stations in Atlanta and Houston.

 

[MACK184]

It's likely that a number of people who have worked for Susquehanna for a number of years will find that they are no longer needed in the land of Cumulus. I feel sorry for them. They have been working for a Cadillac organization who's been bought up by Yugo.

 

[radio2100]

They have been working for a Cadillac organization who's been bought up by Yugo.

I have yet to hear anything good about Cumulus. I hear they are ultimate micro-managed company. Everything (and I mean everything) goes through CEO Lew Dickey.Let's take bets to see how long before they screw up things.

 

[k105mark]

Let's hope they don't screw up WFMS.

They have been working for a Cadillac organization who's been bought up by Yugo.

I have yet to hear anything good about Cumulus. I hear they are ultimate micro-managed company. Everything (and I mean everything) goes through CEO Lew Dickey.Let's take bets to see how long before they screw up things.

 

[Apollo7979]

Let's hope they don't screw up WFMS.

Hopefully, they don't mess WFMS up like they did with WVLK-FM (now WLXX) in Lexington, KY. That station was the #1 country station in the market for years, not to mention the ratings leader, until Clear Channel got rights to UK sports and decided to go head-to-head with them. They placed their "Bull" brand country format on an in-town 100,000 watt stick (evenly matched powerwise with WVLK-FM), played better music, and promoted the hell out of the station. In just a couple books, the Bull was number 1 and, after a couple years of dismal ratings, WVLK-FM had to completely rebuild their country format to stop the hemorrhaging. As WLXX, the station has rebounded somewhat, but "The Bull" is still the market leader.I can't speak for any of their other country stations, though. Hopefully, WFMS stays as-is with no major changes.

 

[N_D_Radioguy]

Too late -- Doom-ulus has already delivered the first blow.Just read on All Access that they canned the overnight dude, Rob Reel.Probably not the last head to roll either.

 

[radio2100]

I feel for everyone over there and I'm glad I'm not in that building right now.

 

[Apollo7979]

With all the downsizing, I wonder if we'll see additional changes such as format changes, etc.With WFMS being Indy's #1 station, I'd say it's safe to say they'll stay country, but how committed is Cumulus to formats such as adult hits and Christian AC?

 

[jmmt59]

In my opinion the best thing they could do is keep the country format the same and use one of the other two stations to go up against WHHH. I'm confident that with a decent CHR/Rhytmic in Indy the audience will go there. Also, how does Cumulus do with Urban type formats in other cities?

 

[HDwho?]

Gone- Johnny George- Creative Services Director. BIGGEST MISTAKE!!!

 

[k105mark]

WLXX was programmed by John Sebastian during their fall from grace. Sebastian now programs WSM in Nashville. Sebastian killed the cume in Lexington with his Classic Rock style of programming. He shut out his p1's by playing classic rock songs on the country station 2-3 times an hour.He also wouldn't let jocks talk up the ramp of records, choosing instead to again program it like a rock station. That's fine except for the fact that he says "we only stop the music twice an hour". They actually stop the music 5-6 times an hour with their jocks long incoherent ramblings in between the songs. He killed the cume in Lexington. So what does Cumulus do? Promote him.The truth is Bob Richards can program circles around John Sebastian but will Cumulus see that?

Let's hope they don't screw up WFMS.

Hopefully, they don't mess WFMS up like they did with WVLK-FM (now WLXX) in Lexington, KY. That station was the #1 country station in the market for years, not to mention the ratings leader, until Clear Channel got rights to UK sports and decided to go head-to-head with them. They placed their "Bull" brand country format on an in-town 100,000 watt stick (evenly matched powerwise with WVLK-FM), played better music, and promoted the hell out of the station. In just a couple books, the Bull was number 1 and, after a couple years of dismal ratings, WVLK-FM had to completely rebuild their country format to stop the hemorrhaging. As WLXX, the station has rebounded somewhat, but "The Bull" is still the market leader.I can't speak for any of their other country stations, though. Hopefully, WFMS stays as-is with no major changes.

 

[Kent]

>> I have yet to hear anything good about Cumulus. I hear they are ultimate micro-managed company. Everything (and I mean everything) goes through CEO Lew Dickey. <<My experience with Cumulus was that it was indeed a very micro-managed company. However, Lew Dickey wasn't the one calling all of the shots, especially in the programming department. It was the corporate brand managers who were in charge of our cluster who called most, if not all, the shots when it came to programming. The regional VP called most of the other shots, though it would make sense that corporate at least had an idea of what was going on and had a hand in everything. From what I was told by a couple of the PD's, the brand managers dictated pretty much everything, including which songs were placed into which categories. I don't know, however, if that's the case with every brand manager or just the one these PD's were working with. Only two were in charge of all of the music formats in the building. While I was pretty miserable working there, my misery had a lot more to do with local management than corporate. I may have felt differently if I were PD of one of the stations, though. I will also give Cumulus some credit for putting more live radio in the cluster where I worked. So, the company wasn't all bad.

 

[MACK184]

The bottom line will be of course.....the bottom line! Cumulus has taken on a giant debt-load to make the Susquehanna buy, and as always, the bankers will be standing at the front of the line. Susquehanna was well known for not being greedy, and being pretty good to it's people. Cumulus will come in and cut out the "fat" and when they're done with that, they'll hack out the "meat" and when they're done with that, they'll cut the bones apart and suck out the marrow. What had been Susquehanna will be nothing but a ghost and memory. Then someday, another company will come along and buy up Cumulus, and will take on an ever larger debt-load and then will come even more blood-letting. It is happening in every industry in this country. There's no reason that broadcasting won't follow the same path. What is likely to be a far more heart-breaking act will be when Citadel finally gets it's hands on ABC and begins the rip and ruin on some of America's greatest radio stations like WABC, WJR, WLS and others, The ABC Radio Networks, and some of the best talent in the industry. That looming disaster is almost beyond contemplation.

 

[countryradio]

I heard the Chief Engineer is gone and Eileen from the Song morning show is also out.

 

[ScatzerFan]

I've got to think all the former Susquehanna people that ended up across town over the last couple of years have to feel blessed that they are no longer on North Shadeland. These people took several paths out of that building (including being asked to leave when Gold flipped to Jack). It may not have seemd so nice then....but it must now.You've gotta listen to WINN!

 

[radio2100]

I've got to think all the former Susquehanna people that ended up across town over the last couple of years have to feel blessed that they are no longer on North Shadeland. These people took several paths out of that building (including being asked to leave when Gold flipped to Jack). It may not have seemd so nice then....but it must now.

I had the same thought.

 

[N_D_Radioguy]

Two words: Nuclear winterThose who survive the initial blast breathe a sigh of relief that they weren't among the dead.Only later, as they stare across the barren landscape, do they realize that they've been consigned to a more gruesome fate.Too late comes the revelation that the dead are the lucky ones.**You're listening 66-point-6, WHLL Hell...A Cumulus station**

 

[MACK184]

I heard the Chief Engineer is gone and Eileen from the Song morning show is also out.

I think Max Turner saw the writing on the wall and retired before Cumulus could send him packing. I'm not certain, but I believe that he was not only their Chief Engineer, but also Susquehanna's Midwest VP of Engineering.

 

[gr8oldies]

Apparently there was a bloodbath at Susquehanna's Cincy properties (check to Cincy board).