Should WBZ consider doing their News on FM?

[almaniac27]

@Cranky Yankee--It's not that young people don't know how to switch to AM. It's that they believe there is nothing for them there.

In modern portable consumer devices (smartphones, MP3 players, etc.), there's no AM to switch to. If the device has a radio circuit at all, it's FM-only.

I've often toyed with the idea that AM broadcasting could fall into favor with the twentysomething "hipster" crowd once all the major broadcasters exit the band, which will probably happen within the next ten years. Vinyl became cool again a few years back and remains fairly popular with people my age. Cassette tapes are also becoming trendy lately, although that could easily be attributed to nostalgia from 90s kids. All I'm saying is that the old, crumbling technology behind AM broadcasting could become (maybe ironically) attractive to the creative class and if not revive the band, at least re-purpose it somewhat. The only obstacle I see is that it is still too cost-prohibitive for the average Joe to obtain an AM radio station, especially if it switches patterns and the towers sit on prime real estate. But get a few analog geeks interested and I bet they could have fun programming tiny AM stations that otherwise would just disappear.

 

[raccoonradio]

Maybe--the stations that would still be in English...or the ones who aren't doing the next
Harold Camping rapture prediction.

On WRKO the talk hosts just now were playing a bumper (not sure what artist) and mentioning
the likes of Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr. (Quinn Garrett show...next up is Avi Nelson who is a bit older! )

 

[DanStrassberg]

I was unaware of a WPLM sale? Isn't it still owned by the Campbell's??

I never said that WPLM had been sold. AFAIK, it is still owned by the Campbell family, who have owned it for decades. I was comparing WPLM, which rimshots both Boston and Providence, to a station that CBS just bought for 8.5 million. It is licensed to Annapolis MD, I believe, and it's a full Class B that rimshots both DC and Baltimore. WPLM is, similarly, almost a full Class B whose 60 dBu contour reaches two large markets (one of them in the top 10), but does not fully encompass either one. The $8.5 million price for the Annapolis station was considered a steal by several knowledgeable observers, but the reason given for what seems to be an absurdly low price--even in today's market--is the incomplete coverage of two large markets. If the Annapolis station is considered to be comparable to WPLM, WPLM may be worth a good deal less than many of us had thought. However, as long as Ms Campbell refuses to sell, the amount she might get for WPLM if she could ever be persuaded to sell is purely of academic interest.

 

[klutch00]

@Cranky Yankee--It's not that young people don't know how to switch to AM. It's that they believe there is nothing for them there.

In modern portable consumer devices (smartphones, MP3 players, etc.), there's no AM to switch to. If the device has a radio circuit at all, it's FM-only.

I've often toyed with the idea that AM broadcasting could fall into favor with the twentysomething "hipster" crowd once all the major broadcasters exit the band, which will probably happen within the next ten years. Vinyl became cool again a few years back and remains fairly popular with people my age. Cassette tapes are also becoming trendy lately, although that could easily be attributed to nostalgia from 90s kids. All I'm saying is that the old, crumbling technology behind AM broadcasting could become (maybe ironically) attractive to the creative class and if not revive the band, at least re-purpose it somewhat. The only obstacle I see is that it is still too cost-prohibitive for the average Joe to obtain an AM radio station, especially if it switches patterns and the towers sit on prime real estate. But get a few analog geeks interested and I bet they could have fun programming tiny AM stations that otherwise would just disappear.

I've commented elsewhere that I think this is what needs to happen with particularly marginal AM stations. The problem is will the big-wigs (corporate broadcast lobbyists) try to lobby the FCC to shut the band down once most if not virtually all of their broadcast interests have migrated to the FM band? I would hope that there'd still be life left on the band and that particularly marginal interests could have their interests met with such facilities. Right now, I don't see this happening. Wishful thinking here, but I say try to get the prices of such outlets down at least to the tens of thousands. Then try to utilize a hybrid-revenue model in which both advertising and donations provide station earnings.

 

[aaronread]

I very much doubt that Harvard wants to sell their college station that they have had for well over 50 years. Since it's a commercial allocation with a transmitter centrally located in a major market, I have heard that they have been fending off lucrative offers from corporations for many years.

More importantly, it's not Harvard University's station to sell. It's owned by Harvard Radio Broadcasting Company, Inc...whose board of directors is, AFAIK, exclusively comprised of Harvard University (and WHRB) alums. Maybe some Harvard students? I'm not sure. Either way, I cannot see any situation where they would EVER choose to sell the license. Not as long as FM broadcasting remains viable as an industry-wide concept.

Granted, Harvard could, if it so chose, put a lot of pressure on WHRB to do things...including sell the license...if they wanted to. There's significant intellectual property involved. And Harvard provides a lot of infrastructure to WHRB for free (studios, utilities, etc). But even in the face of significant fiscal deficits, Harvard nevertheless expends tremendous resources to maintain a certain image. One they are effectively trapped into maintaining because, well, they're Harvard. Forcing the sale the license would run counter to that image, so I just don't see it happening.

The problem is will the big-wigs (corporate broadcast lobbyists) try to lobby the FCC to shut the band down once most if not virtually all of their broadcast interests have migrated to the FM band?

Excellent question, and I think to some degree we can look at our cousins to the north for a glimpse of our own future. Canada has steadily moved its broadcast outlets to FM and shut down its AM outlets. Until this past month, when Scott Fybush's NERW mentioned that Canada is seeing a handful of new AM stations coming to pass. It will be interesting to see if these new stations survive. If they don't, it could very well be a bellweather for the future of AM broadcasting.