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Sheridan Broadcasting Sells WAMO to Religious Organization

corporateradiosucks said:
Jay F said:
It's interesting to get the reaction to this story from non-radio people.

www.city-data.com/forum/pittsburgh/649982-wamo-sold.html

I love those idiots that keep saying "you can get Pandora on your iPhone!!" How can people not understand that not everyone has or can AFFORD the latest stupid toy out there.

To say nothing of the fact that some of us prefer not to have the latest stupid toy out there.
 
I guess the only conclusion is that Radio One didn't want it. Also, if there is more money in this than what somebody else is doing, then somebody will bring it back.

WAMO was playing R&B , doo-wop, and Soul before 1960. They had 3 jocks, 2 of whom were African-American and were considered a "race" station in the parlance of the day. Although the type of music evolved, the format concept never changed. WDVE came much later and KDKA has had multiple formats during that time including MOR, AC/CHR , and News/Talk. WAMO is the winner for timeline, although WPIT has always been religious as least as long.

I loved WAMO back then and Porky was always the first pre-set in my Ford Falcon Futura.
 
I'm surprised that CBS or Steel City didn't swoop in and grabbed the trio, but then again maybe they wasn't interested in it either.
 
Well.

I suspect that what we're seeing here is the beginning of the transformation of FM radio into a niche medium.

It goes without saying that radio is not the mass-appeal medium it once was. For the past 50 years (longer if you count the era of the big bands), radio has been the public's primary music delivery medium. That is no longer the case.

Moreover, there is little entertainment value left between the songs, except in morning drive (and sometimes, not even then).

Listen to the AM dial today. That's FM in another decade or so.

Hope I'm wrong, but I don't see anything being done to save it.

C.
 
only1moore said:
I'm surprised that CBS or Steel City didn't swoop in and grabbed the trio, but then again maybe they wasn't interested in it either.

CBS might not be able to own another station here under FCC rules. Not sure.

Urban is not in Steel City's comfort zone. I doubt they would have bid.
 
Silkie said:
corporateradiosucks said:
Jay F said:
It's interesting to get the reaction to this story from non-radio people.

www.city-data.com/forum/pittsburgh/649982-wamo-sold.html

I love those idiots that keep saying "you can get Pandora on your iPhone!!" How can people not understand that not everyone has or can AFFORD the latest stupid toy out there.

To say nothing of the fact that some of us prefer not to have the latest stupid toy out there.

No data charges to use the radio. ;)
 
Ron Davenport only sold because he had to. His cash flow has been gone in this market for some time now and he could no longer risk his remaining assets to keep this alive. Davenport is many things, but a foolish businessman he is not. This sale isn't really that stunning.

There are just about zero radio entities with enough cash flow/credit vehicles to make major purchases anymore. This is the beginning of a new trend where non-traditional owners and former owners with an itch to scratch are headed back into the marketplace at bargain basement prices.
 
Pittsburgh is about 8% African-American according to the survey on this site. Tampa Bay is about 10%. When I moved to Tampa, there was no Urban station. CBS had ( and still has) a successful CHURBAN . It seemed to be sufficient for the market.(My daughter and her friends chose it as their first preset). Then CC flipped Hot AC Star 95.7 to the "Beat " format . It started out live and local, but I don't think much of it is now. Both get good numbers 12+ which is all I get to see. Again, I think if WBZW can't pull even with Kiss, it could trend churban like Wlid or B96 in Chicago or WPGC in DC used to be. This makes sense to me, especially since they still have Star to be a HotAC/CHR .

Also Tampa has an Urban AC on AM and a rimshot FM that carries Tom Joyner and other programming which is probably mostly off the bird. They are jockless overnights. Again, it seems to me that another AM ( 540,620, 1320) could go to this. It is locally owned too.

St.Pete also has 24/7 Urban AC/ Gospel outlet on 1590 which covers the area during the day and the city only at night.

To me, I see a few options.
 
I say good riddance. The "music" that's played is detrimental to the community. I'm also not reading much on how the Davenports pretty much painted themselves into this corner when they took Clear Channel money and ran to Beaver Falls. As far as I'm concerned, they can start the religious broadcasting immediately.
 
There seems to be a lot of ignorant attacks on the music played on WAMO-FM on this board. I'm not sure if the ignorance is cultural or intellectual but nevertheless...it's wrong.

How is the music on WAMO detrimental to the community?
Where is this so-called "gangsta-rap" that WAMO plays?

Due to the nature of the comments made here I am led to assume that the people attacking the music are either afraid to step out of their cultural comfort zone...or they simply are not hip enough to understand what is being said on the songs played on WAMO.

WAMO was always involved with the community and didn't glorify gang or "gangsta" music. The subject matter of any song on WAMO can be found on any of the other major radio outlets in town. You can't always assume that just because an artist happens to be black and talking too fast for you to understand that he's destroying society. Is it any wonder that the population of Pittsburgh is shrinking while other cities are growing? Your backwoods/backwards mentality is DETRIMENTAL TO THE COMMUNITY.
 
johnknapik said:
There seems to be a lot of ignorant attacks on the music played on WAMO-FM on this board. I'm not sure if the ignorance is cultural or intellectual but nevertheless...it's wrong.

There's no ignorance in anything I typed. I've listened to enough "music" from that frequency to know about what I am speaking. I am "hip" enough to understand the garbage that is being fed to the youth in the Pittsburgh area from that frequency. And by the way, having a pic of a woman with an afro doesn't qualify you as hip nor does it qualify you to classify anyone as backwoods/backwards. You don't get an automatic ghetto pass because you are married to a woman of color. You also don't get to be the sole judge of what is or isn't detrimental to the community. In fact, I'd say growing up in a town of 337 people in Commodore, PA qualifies you as being from the backwoods/backwards mentality.
 
I don't know any of you people who just posted here, but what about dubious themes in other music:

1) Positive lyrics about fighting, pot, moonshine, adultery, and speeding in SOME country music and classic rock

2) Racist pro-white lyrics in SOME Classic Rock and some Eighties groups like GNR

3) Drinking, smoking, and womanizing in lyrics sung by Fifties crooners

4) Hidden agenda songs by Elton John.

5) Anything by George Thorogood

Let's make all music faith based. Better yet, let's copy the Taliban and ban all music. tHis community would be better for it. Oh, lets ban kite flying and health clubs too.
 
MsMusicRadio said:
Pittsburgh is about 8% African-American according to the survey on this site. Tampa Bay is about 10%. When I moved to Tampa, there was no Urban station. CBS had ( and still has) a successful CHURBAN . It seemed to be sufficient for the market.(My daughter and her friends chose it as their first preset). Then CC flipped Hot AC Star 95.7 to the "Beat " format . It started out live and local, but I don't think much of it is now. Both get good numbers 12+ which is all I get to see. Again, I think if WBZW can't pull even with Kiss, it could trend churban like Wlid or B96 in Chicago or WPGC in DC used to be. This makes sense to me, especially since they still have Star to be a HotAC/CHR .

Also Tampa has an Urban AC on AM and a rimshot FM that carries Tom Joyner and other programming which is probably mostly off the bird. They are jockless overnights. Again, it seems to me that another AM ( 540,620, 1320) could go to this. It is locally owned too.

St.Pete also has 24/7 Urban AC/ Gospel outlet on 1590 which covers the area during the day and the city only at night.

To me, I see a few options.


Where the Tampa comparison falls apart is that Tampa Bay also is nearly 13% Hispanic, and many of those listeners prefer Urban programming. Besides, it's Florida.... hip-hop and party music are just the soundtrack to daily life down there. Here it's DVE.
 
corporateradiosucks said:
Jay F said:
It's interesting to get the reaction to this story from non-radio people.

www.city-data.com/forum/pittsburgh/649982-wamo-sold.html

I love those idiots that keep saying "you can get Pandora on your iPhone!!" How can people not understand that not everyone has or can AFFORD the latest stupid toy out there.

Yeah, but I just read today that Pandora will soon be available in the car. That won't be good for radio!
 
Dear Partimer:

You are probably right except the soundtrack to my life is Q105 in Tampa and 3WS in Pittsburgh. What does that say?
 
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