Radio Wish for Christmas and 2008

[Nu_Roo_2]

Well, my overriding wish would be that Columbus completely swaps frequencies and formats with any of the following similar-sized or smaller markets:  Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Dayton, Cleveland, Louisville, Fort Wayne, St. Louis, Kansas City, Milwaulkee, Buffalo, Rochester or Harrisburg.  Or just about any other.

Not gonna happen, so next in line would be two specific Columbus wishes:

1.  93.3 changes.  To just about anything.  But the best possibility -- which would allow it to change a lot while staying in the AC realm, remaining a thorn to Sunny, and maintaining a safe distance from cash-cow NCI -- would be to adopt the super-successful approach of sister Mix 107.7 in Dayton.

2.  The Blitz finally gives it up and finds a new way to use one of the market's top signals.  Since Howard left, they are going nowhere.  There may be a couple other big-signal stations below a 4 12+, but they may have more saleable demos.  Unless the Blitz is somehow optimizing revenue without the ratings, its continued insistence on sticking with Active Rock may reflect personal preferences or agendas on the part of key players, rather than rational management.  Other local stations/companies/company outposts get accused of that (rightly or wrongly), but my gut is that this mom-and-pop may actually be one of the worst offenders in that regard.  There's a difference between persistence and obstinence.  They sure didn't have that kind of patience with Classic Rock, which the PD admitted he wasn't a fan of.  Unfortunately, my cracked crystal ball sees the obstinence continuing to win out in this case.

What are your wishes for Columbus radio in 2008?

 

[SeanMGilbow]

Well, Roo, the big wish I got December 3. So where do we go from here?

1. Gary gets the satellite issue resolved.
2. All the advertisers on WVKO make a profit and reinvest accordingly.
3. Jones Radio buys out Air America so Thom Hartmann and Ed Schultz both can air live on WVKO.
4. CC Goldwater and Stephanie Miller make a campaign appearance in Columbus.
5. Big Eddie's son David plays in the Memorial.
6. Rachel Maddow is Grand Marshall of the Pride Parade and emcee of Stonewall Columbus' Pride Celebration.
7. Bill Press pays a visit--what a wake-up call that will be.
8. I can sponsor a visit by the Reverend Welton Gaddy (of Air America's State of Belief) prior to the 2008 Elections.
9. Bob Fitrakis and the Columbus Clippers return to the WVKO airwaves.

And the biggest wish:

10. Ed Schultz and his investor friends get enough money to buy WVKO that Bernard Media would want to sell, not just lease.

Of course, there are other things I'd like to see, like JohnBoy Crenshaw turning WYTS into Radio Disney, but I digress.

Roo...Happy Christmahanukwanzakuh!!

 

[xmusicmatt]

Of course, there are other things I'd like to see, like JohnBoy Crenshaw turning WYTS into Radio Disney, but I digress.

I don't agree with a lot of things you say on here sometimes but I will agree on that one! "Radio Disney 1230" Sounds like a good idea and it would be very cheap to run!

 

[Nu_Roo_2]

That's quite a list, Sean.  If everyone comes up with a list that long, then Santa and the Hanukuh Fairy (?) and the Kwanza Wishgiver (?) will have to wish for more disk space to store them all.

Seriously, though, I'd say there's a greater chance that all ten of your wishes will be granted than my #2 alone.

Whether they are are not, Happy [whatever-that-was-you-said] to you, too -- and to everyone else!

 

[david9396]

roo and sean

like glenn beck says to the burl ives melody--have a ramahankwanzmas.....

seriously take time to remember WHO we celebrate for Christmas and be a blessing to your circle of concern in the new year.

david9396 formerly david5258

 

[Josh.B]

What are your wishes for Columbus radio in 2008?

The best gift I ever got out of my radio was around this time last year.....And it was taken away.


Deep Sigh.

I try every day not to live in the past. It is easy to remember the days of WXGT, the WTVN that had music, and all the rest. That is over, it will not change. I accept that, I think. But HKC was a gift that made me believe in local radio again. I hope it finds it's way back someday.

 

[SeanMGilbow]

roo and sean

like glenn beck says to the burl ives melody--have a ramahankwanzmas.....

seriously take time to remember WHO we celebrate for Christmas and be a blessing to your circle of concern in the new year.

david9396 formerly david5258

Glenn Beck says it's ramahankwanzmas. Stephanie Miller says Christmahanakwanzakuh. Same difference.

That said...My biggest expenditure this Christmas was nearly $100 in donations of canned vegetables, soap, cake mix and frosting for Neighborhood Services, Inc., whose food pantry was one of those hit hard by a drop in donations. On Monday, I helped pack 220 food boxes for NSI, which serves the needy in the OSU campus area.

I'm not into gift-giving at Christmas, especially when so many families aren't able to celebrate. :'( True gifts are given to those without the ability to give for one reason or another.

While I will be spending a quiet Christmas in Akron with my parents (no real gift exchange, small tree--you get the idea), I will be attending the Blue Christmas Mass at the St. Thomas More Newman Center (across the OSU campus on Lane Avenue) at 8 p.m. That's the Mass I will be attending until we once again have peace and prosperity. The first step toward that is bringing our troops home.

 

[Nu_Roo_2]

What are your wishes for Columbus radio in 2008?

The best gift I ever got out of my radio was around this time last year.....And it was taken away.


Deep Sigh.

I try every day not to live in the past. It is easy to remember the days of WXGT, the WTVN that had music, and all the rest. That is over, it will not change.  I accept that, I think.  But HKC was a gift that made me believe in local radio again.  I hope it finds it's way back someday.

Yes, that was indeed a nice present.  I'll join you in one of those deep sighs.  It's kind of ironic that Christmas tunes seemed to sometimes pop up on 91.5 long after Dec 25 -- almost all the way until Cinqo de Christmas, if memory serves.   It was almost like a reminder of what a nice present this was for the community -- and for a lot longer than anyone expected.  It was sad to see it end, but that was greatly overshadowed by the human loss that came as a shock to most of us.  I hope Robb Case's family is coping well well during the holiday season -- or better yet, having a joyous one.

It almost seems callous to flip right back to radio gripes here, but...Given the nature of this market in terms of both the ownership/management and "technical" landscapes, I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for anything approximating the WHKC of 11 months ago.  We'd have a much better chance if Cox -- or even Emmis or Entercom or Greater Media -- were a local owner.  Or, for that matter, if we were transformed into any of the cities mentioned in the first post of this topic instead of Columbus (not that I'd prefer to live in, say, Cleveland or Cincinnazi, despite better radio signals and formats).

 

[Bill Harmonic]

The one statement that truly describes the state of radio is that "it's the best of times and the worst of times". Our evolution has been astounding as we continue to define the boundaries and refine our products and ideals through shifts in music, resources and ownership. We started out so innocent (long ago in a mindset far far away) with every day bringing another question but our hearts were always in the right place and we continued to nuture new formats and directions that would grow into viable entities. But along the way our hearts became less of the equation as other areas took on more prominence. Now don't get me wrong because without the research, marketing and promotion, we would probably not have come as far as we have as an industry. But at what price? Even "Star Trek's" Mr. Spock knew when to listen to Dr. McCoy! I know these are fictional characters but the lesson is clear. I've been in this business for over 34 years now and for the first time, I'm worried about out future. We have left out what got us to the game. I have heard many stations that are well researched, promoted, and marketed but they have NO soul or passion. The life has been squeezed out and if it wasn't for the promotion and marketing, no one would be listening and a lot of that has disappeared also. Where are the new sounds? Where are the new formats? Where is the chance for someone new to get into this business? Instead of feeding off each other and pointing fingers, why can't radio and the recording industry work together in forming a synergy that is profitable and rewarding for everyone? We became a great industry by lighting up that creative spark inside of us and taking chances and that has been and will always be our greatest resource. Let's look inside and get back to following our hearts. That's what made it all worth it in the beginning. I'd like to believe that everything comes around again (I have ties and pants to prove that). I just hope the light and spirit that drew us into this business in the first place gets another chance to breath again because if not, it will vanish in the near future.

My Christmas wish is for new formats to be tried in central Ohio. If it's such a great test market for food, why not radio? I would like to see ownership that has the nads to take a chance, especially the "local owners" who are staying with products because that's what they've always done and it appeals to their friends at the cocktail party. I applaud "loyal" but not stupid. I want to see a company in this market win with their people because they realize that they are their greatest asset. I want a company to think out of the box but also color outside the lines. I want a station that does not go where the path may lead, but goes where there is no path and leaves a trail. My time may be over (I may actually have to get a real job) but I'm thankful for every minute in this business because there has been nothing else like it. Lets hear a Triple A, a Modern Standards, a dance/rhymic, a hip chill/ez. Let's try something different and not because it's different, but because it's good! Happy holidays to all and let's hope 2008 will be better!

 

[CBusDave]

Of course, there are other things I'd like to see, like JohnBoy Crenshaw turning WYTS into Radio Disney, but I digress.

I don't agree with a lot of things you say on here sometimes but I will agree on that one! "Radio Disney 1230" Sounds like a good idea and it would be very cheap to run!

Ditto here but mainly for selfish reasons. I have two young children that generally like listening to music but I don't ever have the radio turned on for them because they aren't interested in anything but the kind of stuff that Radio Disney would play. I am so sick of the same CDs over and over again, it would be nice to have a radio station to tune to that has some new stuff sprinkled in too.

This being said, WWMK doesn't even appear in the latest ratings in Cleveland so I'm guessing it's not a real attractive format to boost WYTS ratings. Personally I would think certain advertisers would FLOCK to a station geared toward children that would beg their parents to buy them crap.