Purity Products

[dand5780]

I turned on WBEN at 5:03am today, Sunday. I heard the latest from the WBEN Newsroom, including a traffic report. Yes, there were still delays at the international bridge going back to Canada from the concert last night (which by the way, there were at least 3 reporters at the concert).

According to the schedule, Purity Products is suppose to be on, whatever that is. But I think it was an additional hour of Coast to Coast AM. I turned it off at about 5:10.

It looks like it is an infomercial? Is this show worth listening to?

 

[PTBoardOp94]

Purity is indeed a vitamin/colon cleanse infomercial. They have several different products but only talk about one per infomercial.

 

[dand5780]

Thanks

 

[SirRoxalot]

So, there was live body in the building over on Corporate Parkway? Woo-hoo. Thank you, "news leader". Saved someone from going to Google traffic, nittec.org, or bring up an app on their smart phone.

Is "Colon Blow" another example of "non-right-wing" programming, or more "right-wing" programming? Oh, wait, I DON'T CARE. It's just another example of BAD programming.

 

[dand5780]

Is "Colon Blow" another example of "non-right-wing" programming, or more "right-wing" programming? Oh, wait, I DON'T CARE. It's just another example of BAD programming.

I think it's more of an example of non-existent programming, at least on WBEN, as you can see above.

 

[dand5780]

So, there was live body in the building over on Corporate Parkway? Woo-hoo. Thank you, "news leader". Saved someone from going to Google traffic, nittec.org, or bring up an app on their smart phone.

Funny. I guess if the public radio stations paid for with taxpayer dollars can't handle their jobs, especially 1630AM, I'm grateful a private radio station picks up the slack. I don't need an app or website.

 

[SirRoxalot]

"Taxpayer dollars" account for a fraction of the funding for WBFO. They are not a government information outlet. They are not the "Voice of America". The government doesn't dictate their programming, but does limit their ability to make sponsor announcements.

The majority of their funding comes from local people and businesses who donate. Private radio stations have pretty much the same source of funds. Advertising pays their bills - and a lot of customers who don't listen to a particular station pay for the advertising on that station. With tax breaks, loopholes, and corporate welfare extended to broadcasters, they may get more taxpayer dollars than a typical public radio station.

I personally don't listen to the biased blather on WBEN. I prefer less slanted sources for my news, and a variety of opinions, not just a corporate company line.

 

[TheBigA]

It's just another example of BAD programming.

It's not programming. It's a commercial. That's all it is.

 

[SirRoxalot]

If it's on the radio, it's "programming". Particularly if it's program-length. Programmers think from a listener's perspective, not from sales perspective. Whether it's worth it to take the money for an infomercial is a management decision. Putting it on at 5:00 AM Sunday is a programming decision.

 

[TheBigA]

Putting it on at 5:00 AM Sunday is a programming decision.

They're not running it for programming reasons. They're not involved in the content, and they air a disclaimer that says so. It's a program length commercial.

When the morning guy calls in sick, that's a programming decision. When the GM says you're running an infomercial at 5AM Sunday, that's a commercial.

 

[b-turner]

And I might add 5am on Sunday morning is likely the lowest number of radio listeners all week long. Most every public affairs show for a music oriented station is placed at 6 or 7 Sunday morning because their audience doesn't care to hear it on their music station.

 

[SirRoxalot]

According to "BigA" logic, it could run in morning drive. The GM says "you're running an infomercial". When it runs is part of the ongoing negotiation between sales and programming.

 

[b-turner]

I guess you need to realize the first objective of a radio station is to make money. Granted, that's a bad way to do it, but when somebody is flashing cash and you can't meet payroll without it, what do you do?

 

[PTBoardOp94]

According to "BigA" logic, it could run in morning drive. The GM says "you're running an infomercial".

Any place I've worked, yep. There's not any negotiating between sales and programming. The sales staff sells 18 minutes an hour of spots? Then you'll be airing 18 minutes of spots.

 

[TheBigA]

According to "BigA" logic, it could run in morning drive.

It could, but that would be counter productive. Typically the sponsor isn't buying day-part. They're buying a market clear.

 

[dand5780]

It's not programming. It's a commercial. That's all it is.

They're not running it for programming reasons. They're not involved in the content, and they air a disclaimer that says so. It's a program length commercial.

When the morning guy calls in sick, that's a programming decision. When the GM says you're running an infomercial at 5AM Sunday, that's a commercial.

If it's paid programming, it could be a commercial, or it could be a program. Even regular programming could be a commercial (i.e. Buffalo Means Business).

For paid programming, the only thing they air says "the following is paid programming." But I can't say that I've ever heard an infomercial on this station so I don't know if it's different. So are they really not involved in the content, whether it's real estate or tax advice, or selling a colon cleanse? I mean, they know what's going on the air. They don't care what the tax lady talks about in the sense that the overall point of the show is somewhat different than what the home improvement guy talks about and the financial guy talks about. And what the colon cleaning folks will talk about.

I'm thinking they wouldn't want to put 6 hours of one topic on, though. Even though we are now up to 6 hours of Coast to Coast since they dropped Purity Products, part of it has to be re-runs and I assume they switch topics. I wonder what is on from 6-6:30?