Questions about AM FM and nostalgia stations and public radio stations

[SuperRabbitRadio]

Hello!
I have a few questions that I’ve been wondering for a long time about the differences between AM & FM radio stations in regards to nostalgia adult standards stations and public radio stations.

Please help me out here if you know the answers to my questions….
Thank you

(1) I know a few small suburban nostalgia adult standards stations out in the boonies and they are power AM stations. They’re way too many rock stations on the FM band, and so why aren’t there these nostalgia adult standards stations are on the FM frequencies?
For example:
WSQR 1180 AM Sycamore, IL Nostalgia
WCSJ 1550 AM Morris, IL Nostalgia
WCGO 1600 AM Chicago Heights, IL Nostalgia

(2) I had notice that WBEZ 91.5 FM in Chicago is like an all talk and news-talk station since they dropped their evening jazz music, even though that WBEZ is a public radio station. Why is this type of station is on the FM band, when it sounds like an AM radio station?

(3) Last question: Why are their so many rock stations on the FM band, when there should be more of a variety of music, rather than there too many rock stations on the FM band? Why is that???…

I hope that I’ve made my questions clear to understand than rather not knowing what I’m talking about or what I’m trying to say…

Thank you very much
Super Rabbit Radio

 

[Link]

Hi Gramps,
The answer to your question #1 & 3 is all about money.
A bi-partisan group of us congressman (dem's & republicans) and persident bill clinton signed a law that allowed radio properties to be consolidated under a single owner.
This caused the price of radio stations to increase to irrational levels.
Later the need for spanish spoken radio stations kept afloat the irrational price of radio stations.

There is a great AM station now available for a nostalgia format. WAIT 850 would be that station, however its owners spent apprx 12 mil to buy it a few years ago. I think that means they would like to make about $1 million a year in operating the station. The owners of radio stations in general don't think they can make that much money operating a format catering to older adults. That is the bias that they have. They prefer to do other formats.

Rationality is coming back to radio pricing. Clear channel is selling its clusters in smaller markets because they were not profitable enough. PPM ratings will bring more reality to what listeners actually listen to. However it will be a slow process to bring station prices back to reality. In fact in my opinion the catholics just overpaid significantly for AM 950 in Chicago a few months ago.

In regards to the little stations. One of them (1600) is just waiting for approval to turn it off for an ethnic brokered station to increase its power. The other are the result of one owner who likes that format. I listen to 1180 and don't hear many significant local commercials.

 

[Link]

Part 2.

It might be possible to support a local station with a different funding model. In some places educational radio stations are doing nostalgia / formats aimed at older listenings soliciting contributions directly from the audience. This is apparently working at WJIB in Boston Area.

It would be a risky endeavour, how many listeners do you need to donate to support $1 million dollars a year for an AM station? Basically the price of radio stations are just too high. FM stations have sold for as high as around $200 million in Chicago I believe. So you would be looking at soliciting listener donations of a lot more if it was an FM station.

 

[radiotower40]

Link, you are hittin right on the money in your post(pun intended ;D). If the stations were not so inflated maybe someone would
be more willing to put on a nostalgia station. Super Rabbit I noticed on your profile that you run a part 15, are you still running it?
if so What do you play? Do you get any range out of it? If so is there a certain area where I could listen to the station? If you do
not want to disclose the location I understand. The reason I am asking is because I am on the far southwest side of Chicago and I
am trying to get my part 15 off the ground, right now I am just expirimenting with some cheap equipment so I would like to hear
another station to see how it sounds and what your playing.

 

[KeithE4]

Hello!
I have a few questions that I’ve been wondering for a long time about the differences between AM & FM radio stations in regards to nostalgia adult standards stations and public radio stations.

Please help me out here if you know the answers to my questions….
Thank you

(1) I know a few small suburban nostalgia adult standards stations out in the boonies and they are power AM stations. They’re way too many rock stations on the FM band, and so why aren’t there these nostalgia adult standards stations are on the FM frequencies?
For example:
WSQR 1180 AM Sycamore, IL Nostalgia
WCSJ 1550 AM Morris, IL Nostalgia
WCGO 1600 AM Chicago Heights, IL Nostalgia

Because that format isn't viable on FM. The only audience for a nostalgia (Adult Standards or MOR) format is the over-65 folks that grew up strictly on AM. Advertisers don't target folks over 50 (which I am, BTW, so they're not targeting me either - see my comments below on that). This format will probably disappear from the airwaves completely in another 10-15 years.

(2) I had notice that WBEZ 91.5 FM in Chicago is like an all talk and news-talk station since they dropped their evening jazz music, even though that WBEZ is a public radio station. Why is this type of station is on the FM band, when it sounds like an AM radio station?

WBEZ was ahead of its time, but not for the reasons you might think. In the early '90s, the movement to make WBEZ all liberal-leaning talk started because of the mostly-conservative bent that WLS had at the time (Roma and the late Bob Lassiter being notable exceptions). Being a non-comm, they weren't out for the money, but from what I remember, they had influential supporters that were absolutely aghast at the success of Don Wade and Rush Limbaugh on 890 with almost no alternative viewpoints to counter them (they apparently never listened to Lassiter). They weren't going to get that from corporation-friendly and entertainment-oriented WGN or the all-but-irrelevant and soon-to-disappear WJJD.

Now in 2007, a number of AM news and/or talk stations are moving to FM. Bonneville led the way with WTOP Washington and KTAR Phoenix moving from AM to FM, and flagship KSL Salt Lake City currently simulcasting. WIBC Indianapolis (owned by Emmis) will be following suit next month.

I wouldn't be surprised if WLS gave FM talk another shot sometime in the next few years (yeah, I know they've tried and failed before). In fact, I think that the time has come to move the talk to 94.7 and bring back The Big 89 for those old f*rts like me who grew up on it. WLS is one of the few AM stations that could get away with it. Its core audience would be people like me, 45-64 years old, a demo that is increasing in numbers and isn't like that age group of decades past. In other words, advertisers can and should still target us.

(3) Last question: Why are their so many rock stations on the FM band, when there should be more of a variety of music, rather than there too many rock stations on the FM band? Why is that???…

Because they're successful and make money. Period. If other formats could make money then they'd be on FM as well. As I said earlier, talk is migrating there now.

I hope that I’ve made my questions clear to understand than rather not knowing what I’m talking about or what I’m trying to say…

Thank you very much
Super Rabbit Radio

You did fine. ;D

 

[radiotower40]

KEITHE4 I like your idea for the WLS swap. For one I am in my 20's and I remember the big 89 when I was a kid it was all my parents listened to and I would love to hear onthe radio again. The second reason is Chicago is now with out an FM talk station since WCKG
went away and with Roe Conn they would do very well on FM. They could also tweak the format a little bit maybe bring back Garry
Meier for the 9am-11am timeslot and I have been hearing rumors that they eventually might want to replace Don and Roma with
Imus which probably do allright on FM.

 

[SuperRabbitRadio]

Super Rabbit I noticed on your profile that you run a part 15, are you still running it?
if so What do you play? Do you get any range out of it? If so is there a certain area where I could listen to the station? If you do not want to disclose the location I understand. The reason I am asking is because I am on the far southwest side of Chicago and I am trying to get my part 15 off the ground, right now I am just expirimenting with some cheap equipment so I would like to hear another station to see how it sounds and what your playing.

Yes and no, but however, I do operate during the holidays on FM 89.7 and I do play adult standards and othere nostelgia stuff only during the evening hours, because I work long hours during the daytime and I have a long commute to and through from work.

My transmitting rang can vary from 2 to 4 city blocks long depending on the weather conditions and if the conditions are right.

 

[SuperRabbitRadio]

Hello!
I have a few questions that I’ve been wondering for a long time about the differences between AM & FM radio stations in regards to nostalgia adult standards stations and public radio stations.

Please help me out here if you know the answers to my questions….
Thank you

(1) I know a few small suburban nostalgia adult standards stations out in the boonies and they are power AM stations. They’re way too many rock stations on the FM band, and so why aren’t there these nostalgia adult standards stations are on the FM frequencies?
For example:
WSQR 1180 AM Sycamore, IL Nostalgia
WCSJ 1550 AM Morris, IL Nostalgia
WCGO 1600 AM Chicago Heights, IL Nostalgia

Because that format isn't viable on FM. The only audience for a nostalgia (Adult Standards or MOR) format is the over-65 folks that grew up strictly on AM. Advertisers don't target folks over 50 (which I am, BTW, so they're not targeting me either - see my comments below on that). This format will probably disappear from the airwaves completely in another 10-15 years.

I am 48 years old, almost pushing 50 and I am not much of a FM'er myself except I listen to WDCB 90.9 FM and they play a little of everything in a jazz format. Sometimes I can catch a Sinatra song or two here and there. other than that at night I can catch CHWO AM 740 out of Toranto Canada if the conditions are right. and that's a nostelgia station also.

 

[Julius Leonard Marx]

FM is where the (remaining) listeners are.
Look for more talk stations to migrate to FM. Look for music to disappear from terrestrial radio. All music, not just nostalgia and oldies. People will go to satellite radio, iPods and the Internet for music.
Public radio stations go to talk because talk listeners pony up more during pledge week.

 

[SuperRabbitRadio]

Hello!
I have a few questions that I’ve been wondering for a long time about the differences between AM & FM radio stations in regards to nostalgia adult standards stations and public radio stations.

Please help me out here if you know the answers to my questions….
Thank you

(1) I know a few small suburban nostalgia adult standards stations out in the boonies and they are power AM stations. They’re way too many rock stations on the FM band, and so why aren’t there these nostalgia adult standards stations are on the FM frequencies?
For example:
WSQR 1180 AM Sycamore, IL Nostalgia
WCSJ 1550 AM Morris, IL Nostalgia
WCGO 1600 AM Chicago Heights, IL Nostalgia

Because that format isn't viable on FM. The only audience for a nostalgia (Adult Standards or MOR) format is the over-65 folks that grew up strictly on AM. Advertisers don't target folks over 50 (which I am, BTW, so they're not targeting me either - see my comments below on that). This format will probably disappear from the airwaves completely in another 10-15 years.

(2) I had notice that WBEZ 91.5 FM in Chicago is like an all talk and news-talk station since they dropped their evening jazz music, even though that WBEZ is a public radio station. Why is this type of station is on the FM band, when it sounds like an AM radio station?

WBEZ was ahead of its time, but not for the reasons you might think. In the early '90s, the movement to make WBEZ all liberal-leaning talk started because of the mostly-conservative bent that WLS had at the time (Roma and the late Bob Lassiter being notable exceptions). Being a non-comm, they weren't out for the money, but from what I remember, they had influential supporters that were absolutely aghast at the success of Don Wade and Rush Limbaugh on 890 with almost no alternative viewpoints to counter them (they apparently never listened to Lassiter). They weren't going to get that from corporation-friendly and entertainment-oriented WGN or the all-but-irrelevant and soon-to-disappear WJJD.

Now in 2007, a number of AM news and/or talk stations are moving to FM. Bonneville led the way with WTOP Washington and KTAR Phoenix moving from AM to FM, and flagship KSL Salt Lake City currently simulcasting. WIBC Indianapolis (owned by Emmis) will be following suit next month.

I wouldn't be surprised if WLS gave FM talk another shot sometime in the next few years (yeah, I know they've tried and failed before). In fact, I think that the time has come to move the talk to 94.7 and bring back The Big 89 for those old f*rts like me who grew up on it. WLS is one of the few AM stations that could get away with it. Its core audience would be people like me, 45-64 years old, a demo that is increasing in numbers and isn't like that age group of decades past. In other words, advertisers can and should still target us.

(3) Last question: Why are their so many rock stations on the FM band, when there should be more of a variety of music, rather than there too many rock stations on the FM band? Why is that???…

Because they're successful and make money. Period. If other formats could make money then they'd be on FM as well. As I said earlier, talk is migrating there now.

I hope that I’ve made my questions clear to understand than rather not knowing what I’m talking about or what I’m trying to say…

Thank you very much
Super Rabbit Radio

You did fine. ;D

I am 48 years old, almost pushing 50 and I am not much of a FM'er myself except I listen to WDCB 90.9 FM and they play a little of everything in a jazz format. Sometimes I can catch a Sinatra song or two here and there. other than that at night I can catch CHWO AM 740 out of Toranto Canada if the conditions are right. and that's a nostelgia station also.