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Programming When Kennedy Was Assassinated

B

BobOnTheJob

I grew up in Cincinnati & was just getting into being an avid radio listener at age 10 when President Kennedy was shot & soon thereafter passed away. Music Radio across the dial came to a grinding halt in Cincy...for about 5 days, there was no music. Every station, large and small, became a news talk outlet. When music did start returning, even the top 40 stations started reintroducing an occasional song by Tom Jones, Andy Williams & other 'safe' artists of the day. Anyone recall what Indy radio sounded like on Nov 22, 1963 & how they 'recovered' in the days that followed?
 
At WRIN in Rensselaer they had only signed on September 14.

The ap rang but nobody went to see what it was, and by his own admission, Bob Becker missed the assasination bulletin by over 30 minutes.
 
With voicetracking today many stations could miss a big story by hours. Was WIFE on the air yet on 11-22-63? If not WIBC was probably the closest thing to top 40.
 
As I remember it, all the Top 40 stations went to classical until after the man was laid to rest.
 
All of the TV stations went all-news coverage of the assassination.
So did most radio stations. WIFE was no exception. If I remember correctly, they had only flipped to Top 40 a few weeks prior to the assassination (Halloween night, 1963) . They played network news coverage 24/7 (I want to say it was ABC news, which was on several non-affiliates in those days) but I could be wrong. If any stations did play music, it was just for filler and was mostly classical, but most snatched up a network feed.
Even WTTV which had no network affiliation simulcasted WLWI's (Channel 13) ABC news feed.
I was very young and couldn't grasp the magnitude of what it all meant, but it was a long week with absolutely no entertainment programming on TV or Radio.
 
"but it was a long week with absolutely no entertainment programming on TV or Radio."

I was 13 years old and a radio and tv geek in Chicago.

While getting ready for Church with my parents, I saw Jack Ruby shoot Oswald dead, on live tv on Sunday morning.

I remember it a not as a whole week. Most places went back to regular programming following the JFK funeral on Monday.

Til then, unaffiliated stations (like WGN TV) showed a pix of jfk and played classical music. I DO believe wgn also used abc-tv funeral coverage. WTTW, Chicago's pbs station, used classical music and a slide.

You may Google JFK assasination tv and get the end of the CBS Evening News w/Walter Cronkite on 11/25/63. WOW!
On WLS, Chicago the moning dj, Clark Weber, said, "we have to get on with life" and the rock and roll started again. "Deep Purple" by Nino Tempo and April Stevens. On TV, I remember Garry Moore saying something similar to what Weber said.
 
jimbo700 said:
All of the TV stations went all-news coverage of the assassination.
So did most radio stations. WIFE was no exception. If I remember correctly, they had only flipped to Top 40 a few weeks prior to the assassination (Halloween night, 1963) . They played network news coverage 24/7 (I want to say it was ABC news, which was on several non-affiliates in those days) but I could be wrong. If any stations did play music, it was just for filler and was mostly classical, but most snatched up a network feed.
Click to expand...

IIRC, WTTS & WTTV-FM in Bloomington (then a simulcast) carried ABC network news from the first announcement until after the burial, when they went back to regular programming. I don't remember what WFIU carried.

Even WTTV which had no network affiliation simulcasted WLWI's (Channel 13) ABC news feed.
Click to expand...

WTTV had maintained a secondary ABC affiliation from 1957 until at least the early '70s, although I think this was the only time they used it. Back then, Channel 13's signal was so poor that it was essentially a rimshot to the south end of the market - it was almost always snowy in Bloomington. WTTV brought ABC News coverage into the Bloomington/Columbus/Bedford area.

I was very young and couldn't grasp the magnitude of what it all meant, but it was a long week with absolutely no entertainment programming on TV or Radio.
Click to expand...

I was 8 at the time. We weren't even told about it at school. I found out when I got home, turned on Channel 4 and wondered why ABC News was on instead of the usual kid shows, and wondering why ABC was on the "wrong" channel in the first place.
 
Legend has it that WIFE had just honored their last day of the old WISH radio contract with (I believe) CBS on November 20th,then had to scramble to play an off air feed of coverage from another station.
 
KeithE4 said:
jimbo700 said:
All of the TV stations went all-news coverage of the assassination.
So did most radio stations. WIFE was no exception. If I remember correctly, they had only flipped to Top 40 a few weeks prior to the assassination (Halloween night, 1963) . They played network news coverage 24/7 (I want to say it was ABC news, which was on several non-affiliates in those days) but I could be wrong. If any stations did play music, it was just for filler and was mostly classical, but most snatched up a network feed.
Click to expand...

IIRC, WTTS & WTTV-FM in Bloomington (then a simulcast) carried ABC network news from the first announcement until after the burial, when they went back to regular programming. I don't remember what WFIU carried.

Even WTTV which had no network affiliation simulcasted WLWI's (Channel 13) ABC news feed.
Click to expand...

WTTV had maintained a secondary ABC affiliation from 1957 until at least the early '70s, although I think this was the only time they used it. Back then, Channel 13's signal was so poor that it was essentially a rimshot to the south end of the market - it was almost always snowy in Bloomington. WTTV brought ABC News coverage into the Bloomington/Columbus/Bedford area.

I was very young and couldn't grasp the magnitude of what it all meant, but it was a long week with absolutely no entertainment programming on TV or Radio.
Click to expand...
We weren't even told about it at school.
Click to expand...
We were told about it over the school's PA system immediately after the shooting & before his passing and ***gasp*** we were asked to bow our heads & offer a silent prayer for him. That wouldn't happen today.
 
ten_four said:
Legend has it that WIFE had just honored their last day of the old WISH radio contract with (I believe) CBS on November 20th,then had to scramble to play an off air feed of coverage from another station.
Click to expand...

I have heard that as well. They paid someone in Dallas to place the telephone handset next to a radio tuned to KLIF. Also, 1310 possibly had an interim set of call letters between WISH and WIFE around the time of the assassination.
 
WAWE was the interim call.

I have a note that the first day for the WIFE call was December 2nd.

Can't be, my hand written note is "Finally, WIFE Noon December 2."
 
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