Rumor Mill: WROC-AM Dumping Progressive Talk?

[dampier]

Rumors are swirling around the progressive blog community in Rochester that Entercom will dump Air America and progressive talk and flip formats effective August 1st. Local bloggers are asking listeners to call the station to protest starting this morning.

WROC-AM hasn't aired any progressive local programming since the first year of its flip to liberal talk, and has been running on autopilot ever since. The station has also suffered from near-constant technical problems, including dead air, leaving the CNN satellite feed audio up after the news allowing for multiple sources of audio to run for up to an hour at a time (automation fault), and even running off network shows like Democracy Now at half speed one night for an entire hour, making an already awful hour of radio into the equivalent of waterboarding the airwaves. When your local station is a computer in a closet, listeners figure it out soon enough.

Perhaps the last straw for many listeners was the station's indifference to Randi Rhodes departure from Air America. The station was one of few that didn't follow Rhodes to her new network, and has instead saddled its drivetime with the temporary, very low rated "Air America Afternoons." Even Entercom's Buffalo station followed Randi to Nova M and signed an affiliation agreement.

 

[Mark Giardina]

Rumors are swirling around the progressive blog community in Rochester that Entercom will dump Air America and progressive talk and flip formats effective August 1st. Local bloggers are asking listeners to call the station to protest starting this morning.

WROC-AM hasn't aired any progressive local programming since the first year of its flip to liberal talk, and has been running on autopilot ever since. The station has also suffered from near-constant technical problems, including dead air, leaving the CNN satellite feed audio up after the news allowing for multiple sources of audio to run for up to an hour at a time (automation fault), and even running off network shows like Democracy Now at half speed one night for an entire hour, making an already awful hour of radio into the equivalent of waterboarding the airwaves. When your local station is a computer in a closet, listeners figure it out soon enough.

Perhaps the last straw for many listeners was the station's indifference to Randi Rhodes departure from Air America. The station was one of few that didn't follow Rhodes to her new network, and has instead saddled its drivetime with the temporary, very low rated "Air America Afternoons." Even Entercom's Buffalo station followed Randi to Nova M and signed an affiliation agreement.

The question now remains is what format will WROC-AM use if they dump Air America?
There isn't really much out there for them. And if these rumors are true, it doesn't surprise me, considering the lack of an audience WROC had in recent rating books.

I've often wondered why WROC wasn't one of the stations Entercom wanted to sell as part of the deal to acquire the former CBS stations?

 

[FightingIrish]

Rumors are swirling around the progressive blog community in Rochester that Entercom will dump Air America and progressive talk and flip formats effective August 1st. Local bloggers are asking listeners to call the station to protest starting this morning.

WROC-AM hasn't aired any progressive local programming since the first year of its flip to liberal talk, and has been running on autopilot ever since. The station has also suffered from near-constant technical problems, including dead air, leaving the CNN satellite feed audio up after the news allowing for multiple sources of audio to run for up to an hour at a time (automation fault), and even running off network shows like Democracy Now at half speed one night for an entire hour, making an already awful hour of radio into the equivalent of waterboarding the airwaves. When your local station is a computer in a closet, listeners figure it out soon enough.

Perhaps the last straw for many listeners was the station's indifference to Randi Rhodes departure from Air America. The station was one of few that didn't follow Rhodes to her new network, and has instead saddled its drivetime with the temporary, very low rated "Air America Afternoons." Even Entercom's Buffalo station followed Randi to Nova M and signed an affiliation agreement.

The question now remains is what format will WROC-AM use if they dump Air America?
There isn't really much out there for them. And if these rumors are true, it doesn't surprise me, considering the lack of an audience WROC had in recent rating books.

I've often wondered why WROC wasn't one of the stations Entercom wanted to sell as part of the deal to acquire the former CBS stations?

If they are indeed seeking out a new format, best guess would be sports. Entercom seems to love the format, and has flipped progressive talkers in Sacramento, Memphis and just last week New Orleans (though there was an interim format on that station that time-shifted shows from WWL) to the format.

As for the station's ratings, in comparison with other 1,000 watt AM stations across the country airing a variety of formats, the numbers are in line with or even better than most. The ratings with progressive talk were likely the best that signal could possibly hope to get, as meager as they were (averaging around a one share).

http://ltradio.blogspot.com/2008/07/goodbye-rochester.html

 

[JakeLongwell]

If Entercom wanted to do sports on 950, they could do it "on the cheap" and simulcast WGR. This might work seeing as the major sports franchises in Buffalo have a strong following in Rochester.

The only alternative I could think of that would bring the company some decent money would be to convert the station to all brokered programming.

Or, they could put it up for sale. The question is, who would buy?

 

[The Voice of Reason]

The only alternative I could think of that would bring the company some decent money would be to convert the station to all brokered programming, or, they could put it up for sale. The question is, who would buy?

The answer: Nobody in their right mind. Why waste money on an AM station with poor signal coverage? Entercom could rent out 1280 to some religious or informercial types and maybe make a few bucks, otherwise the smart thing to do is turn off the transmitter and go dark. The money Entercom would save on electricity would more than make up for the lack of revenue WROC-AM generates.

 

[Bob1370]

The one format that might make economic sense for WROC-AM is some sort of contemporary Spanish language format. The Latino population in Monroe County has now just about crossed the 50,000 mark, and that's enough to form the critical mass for an economically viable niche station. They'd have virtual market exclusivity, since no one else is making a move to serve that audience with more than an occasional weekend specialty show. True, WROC has a lousy signal for overall market coverage. But since the Hispanic population in the market is largely concentrated in the city and inner-ring suburbs where the 950 signal is still competitive, that's not so much of a problem. Being on AM with a predominantly music-based format WOULD be a problem if there were an FM competitor--but none is likely to arise in the near future.

I don't know exactly how Entercom would program a Latino format station--they don't appear to have any, in any market, in their current portfolio. This would be a first for the company. But this might be a good market for them to start. They could offer locally originated news and music, adopt a full service community approach like WDKX, take syndicated material for off hours like late nights and overnights, and build a loyal audience sufficiently large to turn a losing station into something of a winner once more. And they could afford to make a few mistakes along the way because they'd be literally the only game in town for many years to come.

Others have speculated they'd do a sports format if they dump Air America. But since Clear Channel's got rights to ESPN Radio, Premiere's Jim Rome and the Fox Sports network programming locked up for WHTK, a sports station on 950 would be locked out of most available programming sources--including close to half of what Entercom programs in a given week on WGR in Buffalo--so there goes that WGR simulcast theory. And there's not enough sports programming left and available to the market, aside from maybe Dan Patrick's show, to enable you to build a viable alternative sports station.

 

[theradiokid]

For all you who think WROC will go sports, think again. I know nothing about Entercom's plans, but I've got a hunch. Ya ready? Sitting down? Holdin' on to your seats? Okay. I think the new format will be...,...,...,... STANDARDS!

Now, I know you're sayin': "Radio Kid, your crazy!" Well, okay. Let me lay out the logic for my mad theory:

*The 950 signal had been standards for years before going oldies, and the ratings for said format weren't that bad until 1999, when WLGZ came to be.

*Just this past year, WLGZ moved to FM, and, in the process, dropped most of the standards music it was playing, replacing those songs with songs from the seventies and early eighties. (Either that, or I'm losin' it.) This move has left fans of Sinotra and Bing Crosby without a radio station. (Anyone else see where I'm goin' here?)

Now, doesn't it just make since for Entercom to come back in and provide a station for those disenfranchised listeners?

Yup. Uh-huh. I know it's a risky move these days, but it just makes since. We won't know 'till the first, but I'm saying it right now: WROC is going standards. I'll even bet money on it!

--The Radio Kid
(AKA Oswego Jeremy, as nicknamed by George of the Radio Racket.)
My email: [email protected].

 

[Mike Sheridan]

Turn it off

I'm in favor of turning off all the underperforming stations that have been losing for years. Not that it would ever happen. AM radio would be in a much better position if there were fewer and more powerful stations on the band. One or two large AM's in each market. Each station would be allowed at least 50KW maybe more. I know that will never happen.

 

[Mike Sheridan]

Most large station groups are not looking for older listeners. Oldies is a hard sell, standards is next to impossible!

Not that I think it's a bad idea...

 

[theradiokid]

I just saw an update on: www.ltradio.com. Apparently, Entercom has told the Bill Press morning show that they ARE flipping format August 1.

--The Radio Kid
(AKA Oswego Jeremy, as nicknamed by George of the Radio Racket.)
My email: [email protected]

 

[scooterodell]

...waterboarding the airwaves...

That is perhaps the best term I've seen for letting an awful technical glitch go on without end. And the perfect thread to use it in!

 

[scooterodell]

Of all the formats out there, the only one that would make sense on its own would be something to serve the Latino community. Any other format would likely be chosen not because of what it could accomplish on its own, but because of what it could do to a competitor of one of their big signals. So who is competing with WBEE, WCMF, WBZZ, and/or WPXY? How might that competitor be attacked from a different direction? What format could be put on an AM signal to try to draw off some of that competitor's listeners without hurting their own station?

I would bet on an oldies station, to try to draw some of the listeners from WRMM, WFKL, and WLGZ. Another option might be a male-oriented talk station to go after WFXF and WHAM, but that might hurt them just as much.

 

[SirRoxalot]

Of all the formats out there, the only one that would make sense on its own would be something to serve the Latino community.

According to Arbitron, the Hispanic population of the Rochester metro is only 4.2% of the total. That would seem to be a pretty small target audience.

 

[scooterodell]

Of all the formats out there, the only one that would make sense on its own would be something to serve the Latino community.

According to Arbitron, the Hispanic population of the Rochester metro is only 4.2% of the total. That would seem to be a pretty small target audience.

Done right, a station serving the Latino audience would capture just about 100% of that audience. If you had a station that had 40,000 P1s, it would definitely be a money maker.

 

[Bob1370]

Arbitron's population estimates are a little out of date...at least a few years old when it comes to demo percentages. And of course they're talking only about 12+ population, which may tend to undercount total Latino numbers since they're younger on average than most ethnic groups and include more children per 1000 total population. The Latino population's growing significantly (people in the primary Latino neighborhoods tell me it's growing a lot faster than anyone realizes, largely due to northward migration from Florida and Puerto Rico as well as a higher birth rate than other groups) and Monroe County Latino population could be nudging 50,000 by now, double what it was 20-25 years ago. That's more than enough to support a Hispanic format station if it's broadly based and doesn't have any 24/7 competition, which 950 wouldn't have to worry about for years to come if it did go Latino now.

It surprises me no one's done it already.

 

[SirRoxalot]

Perhaps a "proof of concept" would be brokered programming on an existing AM. In Buffalo, WBBF (ironically) is now broadcasting largely Spanish Language programming (per Wikipedia):

The station is now a Spanish language music and talk station, operating under the name Fiesta Latina - La Voz de la Communidad. All of the Spanish Language programming on WBBF is locally produced in Buffalo, New York.

WBBF is also a Pacifica Radio affiliate, broadcasting the Democracy Now! news program with Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez weekdays at 8:00 AM. The Pacifica programming is supported by the community media group. Said programming was displaced when WHLD dropped its progressive talk format.

Spanish language, and Democracy Now!. It sounds like a combo that would make several posters happy if it were available in Rochester.

Whether it would make any money, or garner any ratings is another story. WBBF doesn't show up in the Buffalo ratings.

 

[cee]

In Buffalo, WBBF (ironically) is now broadcasting largely Spanish Language programming

There was a nightly brokered hispanic music/news show on AM 950 back when they were still playing Standards the rest of the time(they were WEZO at the time) - this was around the turn of the century. I think the guys who hosted, had previously done their show on the old WWWG(now Catholic Family Radio). I believe the show was dropped when Entercom launched The Buzz on 98.9 and moved Oldies WBBF to 93.3 and decided to simulcast on AM9 50 -- and returned that station's call letters to WBBF-AM. Don't know if they ever resurfaced locally. They were on AM 950 for awhile, so they must have been selling ads to pay their monthly bill to Entercom.

One question, would local hispanic listeners want to listen to their favorite music on low quality AM? Nobody else does. They can get better sound quality on their Ipods and portable/car CD players just like the rest of us. Maybe that's why the new WBBF in Buffalo doesn't show up in the ratings.

 

[Kent]

One question, would local hispanic listeners want to listen to their favorite music on low quality AM? Nobody else does. They can get better sound quality on their Ipods and portable/car CD players just like the rest of us. Maybe that's why the new WBBF in Buffalo doesn't show up in the ratings.

Hispanics listen to AM less than the general population. I don't know much about the Hispanic population in Rochester, but it's important to remember also that speaking Spanish is not a requirement of being Hispanic.

 

[aaronread]

FWIW, we run mostly Spanish-language on WHWS-LP down in Geneva. Beats me if anyone's listening, but it makes for good community relations. ;D

Of all the formats out there, the only one that would make sense on its own would be something to serve the Latino community.

Scott Fybush and I were talking about this tonight at the Batavia/Lowell game at Frontier Park...what about WEEI taking over WROC and making it a Red Sox station? It's a little far from home, but there's quite a lot of Red Sox fans in Rochester.

You'd want a little local flavor for covering the Red Wings and the Knighthawks and whatnot, sure. But hell, any station that's created to bring Sox games to a NY town is obviously targeting former Bostonians who think of themselves as expatriates from The Hub. So even if the programming was mostly a one-for-one repeat of WEEI and all it's Boston news and Boston sports, I don't think that'd be unwelcome to this niche audience.

Of course, I'm a foaming-at-the-mouth-rabid Sox fan, so I guess I'm a little biased. :

 

[mimic001]

According to a reliable source:

It will be flipping to an all-sports format, with ESPN as the lead network. They aren't sure about keeping Mike and Mike, which is a viable property, or trying to get a local morning personality. This will also leave WHTK (CC's 1280) without ESPN programming.

There is a strong probability, as one poster had mentioned, that some simulcasting with 550 WGR in Buffalo will be taking place. Down the road, they will hope to attract a local TV sportscaster to provide local talk.