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Should Radio One dump Z-93?

There's still a hardware store there.



(I tried to e-mail you but it bounced..could you drop me an email at gr8oldies at yahoo dot com? thanks!)
 
Dirty_Harry said:
alans613 said:
I was looking at the Fall ratings the other day and noticed that WGTZ/Z-93 did a 2.4 in the fall book. Should Radio One dump 'GTZ's Top 40 format and go with something else? With the power of that signal, it shouldn't be doing a little over a 2 share. This is a station that did a 13 share in 1989-90. My how this station has fallen... :'(
The need to dig up some old Great Trails people and put them back to work on that station.

Some of those Great Trails people are still around...and could take this station back to prosperity with the right owners/budget. Unless Radio One sells it, expect the same crap to come out of your speakers. :'(
 
alans613 said:
Dirty_Harry said:
alans613 said:
I was looking at the Fall ratings the other day and noticed that WGTZ/Z-93 did a 2.4 in the fall book. Should Radio One dump 'GTZ's Top 40 format and go with something else? With the power of that signal, it shouldn't be doing a little over a 2 share. This is a station that did a 13 share in 1989-90. My how this station has fallen... :'(

The need to dig up some old Great Trails people and put them back to work on that station.

Some of those Great Trails people are still around...and could take this station back to prosperity with the right owners/budget. Unless Radio One sells it, expect the same crap to come out of your speakers. :'(

I don't know who their consultants were or whether it was just a matter of having the right people in house, but I always thought 92X and Z93 were both great-sounding radio stations. They hit the "sweet spot" between pop, rock, dance and what they called "crossover" in those days. The jingles were great, the imaging was great. It was a very upbeat-sounding radio station and perfect to my ears.

I don't know about Z93, but a lot of people who were behind the microphones at 92X ended up doing well in larger markets ....... Chris Shebel and Baltazar are two of many who come to mind. It's too bad that the likes of broadcasters like Great Trails had to go away in favor of the glorified Muzak we get from corporate radio these days.
 
Great Trails was a great company to work for at one time.

Unfortunately, by the late 80's/early 90's, the company was horribly, horribly in debt.
Many good people lost their jobs. 92X changed format to oldies largely because the
company could no longer afford to play the "big bucks/big promotions" game with WNCI,
and oldies was, simply, a cheaper format to run.

Z-93 survived a bit longer, but its' expenses ate up every single available dollar of the
GTB Dayton budget. Then add to the mix the fiasco with the deparature of Alan Kaye,
the addition of WAZU (which became WING-FM)...and, by that time, the writing was on
the wall. Great Trails needed to sell...badly.

I enjoyed my days there and am grateful for the opportunities. But, I sure would have liked
to see the company in better straits than it was when I worked for them.
 
KevinFodor said:
Great Trails was a great company to work for at one time.

Unfortunately, by the late 80's/early 90's, the company was horribly, horribly in debt.
Many good people lost their jobs. 92X changed format to oldies largely because the
company could no longer afford to play the "big bucks/big promotions" game with WNCI,
and oldies was, simply, a cheaper format to run.

Z-93 survived a bit longer, but its' expenses ate up every single available dollar of the
GTB Dayton budget. Then add to the mix the fiasco with the deparature of Alan Kaye,
the addition of WAZU (which became WING-FM)...and, by that time, the writing was on
the wall. Great Trails needed to sell...badly.

I enjoyed my days there and am grateful for the opportunities. But, I sure would have liked
to see the company in better straits than it was when I worked for them.

Well, at least you have one fan here who loved both stations and appreciated what they were all about. It was Top-40/CHR, but with an upbeat flavor to it. In fact, at one point in the late 1990's, before the switch to Rock 40, I remember 92X tweaking its format to add new jocks and more dance/alternative type tunes. I also liked that version of the station as well.

One thing that's kind of curious to me about the business these days .... I remember many of the jocks that blew through Columbus on their way to bigger and better things ... again, I mention Chris Shebel and Baltazar and J. Parker Antrim from WCOL. The people behind the mic changed every so often and it was fun to listen, because their personalities came through on the air. In the current era of voice-tracking and automation, that doesn't seem to be happening so much ..... and we won't even begin to discuss to lack of personality.

One of the reasons I DON'T much listen to radio these days is because there really isn't anything out there that compares to the old 92X. Again, 92X and Z93 were BOTH great stations to my ears. WNCI is the same lame middle-of-the-road station it's always been, and other stations are too "black" to my ears. I thought Kiss 107 started off on a good note, but these days they sound like WNCI when I listen to them.
 
From what I understand, WDKF has no pd right now. One of their guys is telling people that he's in charge now, but nobody is really in charge from what I hear. So maybe that station still has a chance with some decent leadership. If that's the case, then maybe Radio One will need to dump Z93.

From what I have heard from reliable resouces, Drake is the new PD at 945. He has taken that station and made it sound a hell of alot better. They have went up in 2 straight trends since he's been in charge.
 
Ray D Yo said:
From what I understand, WDKF has no pd right now. One of their guys is telling people that he's in charge now, but nobody is really in charge from what I hear. So maybe that station still has a chance with some decent leadership. If that's the case, then maybe Radio One will need to dump Z93.

From what I have heard from reliable resouces, Drake is the new PD at 945. He has taken that station and made it sound a hell of alot better. They have went up in 2 straight trends since he's been in charge.
 
From what I've heard, Mark Anderson is actually the PD and working on 945 from Cincinnati. Drake is the MD and carries out Mark's orders on scheduling music and clocks. There were no changes in the product since Wes McCain left months ago, except for Drake filling afternoons when Wes left.
 
Ray D Yo said:
From what I've heard, Mark Anderson is actually the PD and working on 945 from Cincinnati. Drake is the MD and carries out Mark's orders on scheduling music and clocks. There were no changes in the product since Wes McCain left months ago, except for Drake filling afternoons when Wes left.

Not what Clear Channel is saying. I called them up to find out, and talked with there GM. He said Drake was the PD, and Mark Anderson was his brand manager. Again, know the facts before you spit them out falsely kid!
 
Man you guys are some jealous crazy people. I was reading though this post in disbelief. Obviously you all wish you had a gig in radio and don’t. Z93 is one of the least sounding corporate radio stations out there. With all these stations around the country sounding the same at least Z93 has kept things real. They have people working from them that actually sound like they care about the job they are doing. The morning show is not the best but at least it has never been syndicated and has always been live. And when I am in the area I always flip on Z93. The night show at Z93 is outstanding. Not many people put effort into a show like that night show. I have met Frye Guy once and he will give anyone the time of day. He does not have a big head and is very level minded. Very hard to find with people who have been in radio for quite some time. The horn game he plays is hilarious and if you want to admit it or not it is original. I think you are knocking on a station that should not be torn apart the way you people are treating it. That station has given the community something solid for years though several different owners and hard times in radio. The people that work there give it their all and for you to say such crap about the station shows that you are the geeks and losers. Try enjoying a show on the station for once and stop picking a great station apart.
Another thing, someone posted something about how a station should sound streamlined….not using the Scott’s Studios and they should use next gen. That obviously shows you have never worked in radio. IT should NOT be up to a computer to make a station sound good. It should be the skill of the jock on the air. That is how things used to work…a complete retard can program a computer to make a sweep sound good it takes a jock with skills to do it by hand. I bet if you took any jock off the air staff on Z93 and put them up against any other jock from the stations around Dayton…give them CD’s and good old carts they could out perform anyone. The people left working on Z93 have skill. You all are haters and a cause for proof the corporate radio is a failure to the public. You have all knocked a station that try’s its best to beat the corporate way even though they are owned by a huge company.
I live in NC now and I truly miss listening to Z93. You all have no respect for radio and obviously no clue on how things really work.

David
 
dayray1 said:
I live in NC now and I truly miss listening to Z93. You all have no respect for radio and obviously no clue on how things really work.

You must be talking about the old Z-93, truly a great radio station. The Radio One version IS corporate radio at its worst, and it sucks pretty bad.
 
dayray1 said:
Man you guys are some jealous crazy people. I was reading though this post in disbelief. Obviously you all wish you had a gig in radio and don’t. Z93 is one of the least sounding corporate radio stations out there. With all these stations around the country sounding the same at least Z93 has kept things real. They have people working from them that actually sound like they care about the job they are doing. The morning show is not the best but at least it has never been syndicated and has always been live. And when I am in the area I always flip on Z93. The night show at Z93 is outstanding. Not many people put effort into a show like that night show. I have met Frye Guy once and he will give anyone the time of day. He does not have a big head and is very level minded. Very hard to find with people who have been in radio for quite some time. The horn game he plays is hilarious and if you want to admit it or not it is original. I think you are knocking on a station that should not be torn apart the way you people are treating it. That station has given the community something solid for years though several different owners and hard times in radio. The people that work there give it their all and for you to say such crap about the station shows that you are the geeks and losers. Try enjoying a show on the station for once and stop picking a great station apart.
Another thing, someone posted something about how a station should sound streamlined….not using the Scott’s Studios and they should use next gen. That obviously shows you have never worked in radio. IT should NOT be up to a computer to make a station sound good. It should be the skill of the jock on the air. That is how things used to work…a complete retard can program a computer to make a sweep sound good it takes a jock with skills to do it by hand. I bet if you took any jock off the air staff on Z93 and put them up against any other jock from the stations around Dayton…give them CD’s and good old carts they could out perform anyone. The people left working on Z93 have skill. You all are haters and a cause for proof the corporate radio is a failure to the public. You have all knocked a station that try’s its best to beat the corporate way even though they are owned by a huge company.
I live in NC now and I truly miss listening to Z93. You all have no respect for radio and obviously no clue on how things really work.

David

Just a few points after reading your post -- most of which I agree with.

1) Every place I've worked, the people put their all into it and want nothing but the best, and success. At the same time, as in all businesses, there are a few people who don't pull their weight, or aren't as willing to jump up and help when it's needed. That's just how people and the businesses they work in happen to be. Bottom line, no one &wants* to do a bad job, but the team and the support they get from ownership makes all the difference. Management sets the tone, and people will rally behind a good leader.

2) I agree that the kind of automation that's used makes only a little difference with a skilled jock. But let's not forget the control surface either, and all the back-end things (processing, transmitter, etc) that make the sound more than the sum of its parts. Or less, for some stations. I *don't* agree that even a retard can program an automation system well. Knowing how to manipulate the technology is a skill set in and of itself.

As a self-professed radio geek, I tend to listen differently than my mother or the next door neighbor (duh). You can generally tell who's running their board and who's letting the computer do it for them. Automation, no matter how slick, has a mechanical and defined sound that's different from a human's analog input and output. Good jocks have a sense of timing and can fire the elements in a way that a computer can never match, because it's cannot be subjective.

As to the general "who cares" statements about how small the share these stations have is, all I can say is that ANY competition is good. It makes you work harder. I think it's particularly refreshing in this day and age of sales-driven (as opposed to program-driven) radio.

In looking at the numbers, which is what the corporate suits see and go by, I'd guess that Clear Channel would be happy to do just enough to knock Z93 down a peg or even better two. That would leave them two Cox and two R1 stations to concentrate on taking share away from, while making a nice sales package thanks to dominance in the top 10 or 11.
 
Yes they should dump Z and the whole staff as the station sounds as if someone has taken a DUMP all over it anyhow. :D
 
Dirty_Harry said:
dayray1 said:
I live in NC now and I truly miss listening to Z93. You all have no respect for radio and obviously no clue on how things really work.

You must be talking about the old Z-93, truly a great radio station. The Radio One version IS corporate radio at its worst, and it sucks pretty bad.

Yes, you hit the nail right on the head. The old Z-93 from the 80s and 90s is long gone. The days of John King and Jeff Ballentine and Kevin Kenney as PDs are long gone. I am listening to a tape from August 1990 and the station sounded AWESOME...great imaging, great crossfades, great engineering from the legendary engineer Will Bevis, and great jocks. Also gone are the days of Wilbur Wright, Sean Roberts, Dani Steel, Jeff Wicker, Kim Faris, Rockin Ron Scott, Randy Ross, Alan Kaye, Dr. Dave, and Joe Mama. This station has never, ever sounded as good as it did when Great Trails owned it. Radio One doesn't give a damn about the heritage of Z-93 or where it should be in the Dayton market...That huge signal should never be below Top 5 12+. All Radio One cares about is 102.9 and 92.1, and that's all they've ever cared about(That and sending Ronita Saunders and the old U-92 to bankruptcy court so they could own Dayton's Urban radio market). They could care less about the non-urban-leaning stations...Just ask the poor folks that lost a great heritage alternative station in Philadelphia when Radio One flipped Y100 to Rhythmic. I'm surprised Z-93 has lasted this long...I'm suprised they didn't put Rhythmic on Z's monster signal and dump Z's format altogether, and put Gospel on 102.9, (much like Power 107.5 in Columbus and Joy 106.3) but it's not like I want to give Radio One any ideas. ;D
 
NO!(provided)

Add the urban hits what DHT and ROU isn't playing...ala "Wild 93.9" up in Lima.

Z can make a comeback if the R&B is mixed in.. WING did the same thing back in the day adding R&B hits to the Top 40 rotation in the 60s and early 70s.
 
If I were running Z, I would position it as more of a Hot AC-type station with a Pop lean, EXACTLY like Q-102 in Cincy, who, last time I checked, were once again beating CC's Top 40 in Cincy, WKFS-FM Kiss 107 FM. If I was 'GTZ, I would try to spend my days trying to knock off 'MMX or Lite or K-99 and stop worrying about winning a 2-share battle with a pea-shooter like 'DKF. I would let them think they've won the battle by Z leaning more Hot AC, and then laugh my butt off when I squashed them in the long-run with my 50,000 watt monster signal, which serves 2 states and 26 counties(Remember when they used to brag about that in their imaging?), while 'DKF is lucky if they can make it into 6 counties, even with their recent "upgrade" to 6,000 watts. ;D
 
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