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Talk Radio Wars in the Tri-Cities

P

Pratte4Life

It seems the only time we ever hear about the Tri-Cities radio scene it is to bash Electric, but I would like to talk about the WJCW-WFHG-WPWT wars, especially because WFHG is now No. 1 according to the latest book.

Why is that? I find Mark Bernier to be a bore and the fact that he does his show from Florida and tries to talk local issues seems to be patronizing. Perhaps the re-hiring of John Quaintence has something to do with it- after 10 years you figure he has a following- but then again Quaintence always tries to talk above his audience and usually comes off the worse for it (I remember once when he kept trying to compare hunting to NASCAR. Let's just say Quaintence doesn't relate to the common man).

Could it be that WJCW has never figured out really what kind of a station it wants to be? Is it a sports station- or is it news/talk? I realize that you can have sports programming on a news/talk station and most news/talk stations do- but aside from Limbaugh the news-talk part of the station is extraordinarily weak.

Meanwhile, Power Talk no longer is in the ratings book, their programming seems to be extraordinarily weak across the board, and their website isn't even up. WHAT IS GOING ON THERE?

Thoughts?
 
Even though you and some of the rest of us tend to find Bernier a bit of a bore, he somehow still finds a way to relate, and from general listening, his caller volume is increasing.

He does have a way to get the callers involved.

The fact his being in Florida has always been a sore spot, and at one time I heard a rumour that he was in negotiations with management to move him up here. But my sources say that that didn't transpire because of money.

Quaintance has never related to the common man. He comes off somewhat aloof, but listeners do like him, and he has a following.

It boils down to something really simple. WFHG has the FM signal.

Prior to the acquisition of 92.7 WFHG's AM was in the same sad shape as WJCW and WPWT's numbers wise.

Once again, the ownership of BBC fell in horse crap and came out smelling like a rose.

I am surprised that Quaintance is settling for a one hour per day slot at the very end of drive time. What gives with that??? When I had heard that his contract wasn't renewed at Citadel; I knew that it would just be a matter of time before he was back at BBC. They ousted Jody Lee to put Quaintance in that slot (my assumption). Heard her on WPWT one day begging for callers.


Just my .02 cents worth
 
> Even though you and some of the rest of us tend to find
> Bernier a bit of a bore, he somehow still finds a way to
> relate, and from general listening, his caller volume is
> increasing.
>
> He does have a way to get the callers involved.
>
> The fact his being in Florida has always been a sore spot,
> and at one time I heard a rumour that he was in negotiations
> with management to move him up here. But my sources say
> that that didn't transpire because of money.
>
> Quaintance has never related to the common man. He comes
> off somewhat aloof, but listeners do like him, and he has a
> following.
>
> It boils down to something really simple. WFHG has the FM
> signal.
>
> Prior to the acquisition of 92.7 WFHG's AM was in the same
> sad shape as WJCW and WPWT's numbers wise.
>
> Once again, the ownership of BBC fell in horse crap and came
> out smelling like a rose.
>
> I am surprised that Quaintance is settling for a one hour
> per day slot at the very end of drive time. What gives with
> that??? When I had heard that his contract wasn't renewed
> at Citadel; I knew that it would just be a matter of time
> before he was back at BBC. They ousted Jody Lee to put
> Quaintance in that slot (my assumption). Heard her on WPWT
> one day begging for callers.
>
>
> Just my .02 cents worth
>

Might as well add WKIN into the mix as well since they utilize ESPN Radio during non-simulcast times with WJCW.

To me, it just seems like there are too many AM stations in the Tri-cities competing for the same news/talk audience with different programming from tiny sticks. Like a previous poster said, probably the main reason why WFHG does so well due to the fact that they have an FM signal that be heard over a good portion of the Tri-cities. Supertalk's performance probably has nothing really to do with program content as much as it does with reception. Going by the schedules for each station, it seems like WJCW has the strongest line-up. (Note the fact that I couldn't see WPWT's program line-up since their website doesn't exist)
 
I'm not sure I agree

The reason why is the success of WGOC- and WJCW all told. If you look at the old books, for instance in the summer of 2004, lots of politics going on- both local and national- and WJCW had an audience DOUBLE that of WFHG-FM.

What I look at is this-

Imus vs. Tom Taylor- Not even close. Taylor might give a local view but says about as much as WFHG does with their news and sports updates inserted during Imus' show. With Imus you have cutting edge humor and political talk in a manner not usually seen in the market.

Bernier vs. Mike Gallagher. I'm not a Bernier fan- I don't think he's nearly as bright as he thinks he is- but he does relate to the audience better than Gallagher does. WFHG wins this one by default.

Bortz vs. Limbaugh. Both are extremely right wing, but in this market that's a positive. The thing here is that Limbaugh is much more charming while making the hard comment. This has been the key to his success and has made him the No. 1 talk show host of all time. WJCW wins this one hands down.

Hannity vs. Bill Meade. Now we're talking! Where WFHG comes up short is that they don't put Hannity on until 4 p.m. He's the hottest national talk show here right now- one that fits in to the Tri-Cities' political beliefs very well- and they don't pick up his first hour. What's up with that?

Meade has been around a long time and is for my money a local legend- but it just seems to me he's grown stale. My main gripe with him is that he will criticize national sports figures but treats local ones with kid gloves.

There was no criticism of Buzz Peterson. He's too close to local high school coaches and to listen to him you'd think Phil Fulmer was Martin Luther King. His lack of criticism of ETSU sports is terrible- they are in the tank but you'd never know it to listen to him.

Still, and this doesn't speak well of the Tri-Cities, he's the best in the market- not just for what he does- but he is the best local talk show host period. Nobody relates to the audience- in any format- better than Meade locally. Still, he's not the personality Hannity is.

Hannity is coming up on Limbaugh hard as far as who is the No. 1 talk show host in the nation, but WFHG doesn't utilize him. Therefore, this one is a tie.

Quaintence-Savage vs. Southern Sports and the Braves/Bucs/high school game. If you're a sports fan, you take WJCW. If you're a political fan, then you take WFHG.

The thing that boggles my mind is that Quaintence is about as laid back as they come and then you go directly to the Mag Dog Savage here.

WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE-

Tell Bristol Broadcasting to spend the money- dump Bortz- and go get Rush. Put Hannity on 3-6. They'd have No. 1 sewn up forever.

With WJCW- I'd just take the ESPN feed and put it on WJCW full-time. It's stronger programming than Taylor/Gallagher/and whatever is on overnight. You have a solid audience and the programming is a better listen than what they have now- so I think the audience would follow.

Move Taylor back to WKIN- have that be the Kingsport news and information station. The ratings you'd lose would go to WJCW and you then have every buisness in Kingsport as a target advertiser.

Keep Limbaugh from 12-3 on WJCW, perhaps even simulcast it with WKIN, but go all-sports for the other 21 hours on 910.

And both stations should utilize the weekend to develop local talent.

This is where WPWT could make strides. I realize it's cheaper to get national programs, but name me one WPWT national show that anybody listens to.

They have nothing to lose. A left-wing talk show- hey there are some Democrats out there in the market! Maybe Jim Rome for a change of pace in the middle of the day? Developing some local talent and promoting it with some publicity stunts?

It's worth a shot.
 
Re: I'm not sure I agree

Gentlemen,
Could a decent 5k to 10k station come in with a strong
news/talk format and do any damage?
Curious,
The Spindoctor


The reason why is the success of WGOC- and WJCW all told. If
> you look at the old books, for instance in the summer of
> 2004, lots of politics going on- both local and national-
> and WJCW had an audience DOUBLE that of WFHG-FM.
>
> What I look at is this-
>
> Imus vs. Tom Taylor- Not even close. Taylor might give a
> local view but says about as much as WFHG does with their
> news and sports updates inserted during Imus' show. With
> Imus you have cutting edge humor and political talk in a
> manner not usually seen in the market.
>
> Bernier vs. Mike Gallagher. I'm not a Bernier fan- I don't
> think he's nearly as bright as he thinks he is- but he does
> relate to the audience better than Gallagher does. WFHG wins
> this one by default.
>
> Bortz vs. Limbaugh. Both are extremely right wing, but in
> this market that's a positive. The thing here is that
> Limbaugh is much more charming while making the hard
> comment. This has been the key to his success and has made
> him the No. 1 talk show host of all time. WJCW wins this one
> hands down.
>
> Hannity vs. Bill Meade. Now we're talking! Where WFHG comes
> up short is that they don't put Hannity on until 4 p.m. He's
> the hottest national talk show here right now- one that fits
> in to the Tri-Cities' political beliefs very well- and they
> don't pick up his first hour. What's up with that?
>
> Meade has been around a long time and is for my money a
> local legend- but it just seems to me he's grown stale. My
> main gripe with him is that he will criticize national
> sports figures but treats local ones with kid gloves.
>
> There was no criticism of Buzz Peterson. He's too close to
> local high school coaches and to listen to him you'd think
> Phil Fulmer was Martin Luther King. His lack of criticism of
> ETSU sports is terrible- they are in the tank but you'd
> never know it to listen to him.
>
> Still, and this doesn't speak well of the Tri-Cities, he's
> the best in the market- not just for what he does- but he is
> the best local talk show host period. Nobody relates to the
> audience- in any format- better than Meade locally. Still,
> he's not the personality Hannity is.
>
> Hannity is coming up on Limbaugh hard as far as who is the
> No. 1 talk show host in the nation, but WFHG doesn't utilize
> him. Therefore, this one is a tie.
>
> Quaintence-Savage vs. Southern Sports and the
> Braves/Bucs/high school game. If you're a sports fan, you
> take WJCW. If you're a political fan, then you take WFHG.
>
> The thing that boggles my mind is that Quaintence is about
> as laid back as they come and then you go directly to the
> Mag Dog Savage here.
>
> WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO SEE-
>
> Tell Bristol Broadcasting to spend the money- dump Bortz-
> and go get Rush. Put Hannity on 3-6. They'd have No. 1 sewn
> up forever.
>
> With WJCW- I'd just take the ESPN feed and put it on WJCW
> full-time. It's stronger programming than
> Taylor/Gallagher/and whatever is on overnight. You have a
> solid audience and the programming is a better listen than
> what they have now- so I think the audience would follow.
>
> Move Taylor back to WKIN- have that be the Kingsport news
> and information station. The ratings you'd lose would go to
> WJCW and you then have every buisness in Kingsport as a
> target advertiser.
>
> Keep Limbaugh from 12-3 on WJCW, perhaps even simulcast it
> with WKIN, but go all-sports for the other 21 hours on 910.
>
>
> And both stations should utilize the weekend to develop
> local talent.
>
> This is where WPWT could make strides. I realize it's
> cheaper to get national programs, but name me one WPWT
> national show that anybody listens to.
>
> They have nothing to lose. A left-wing talk show- hey there
> are some Democrats out there in the market! Maybe Jim Rome
> for a change of pace in the middle of the day? Developing
> some local talent and promoting it with some publicity
> stunts?
>
> It's worth a shot.
>
 
Re: I'm not sure I agree

> And both stations should utilize the weekend to develop
> local talent.
>

WFHG does have some local weekend programming. Byrd is doing the Outdoors show from 7-9am on Saturday's. Indications are that he has a pretty good following with the hook and bullet types. He's promoting kids in the outdoors, and NRA's Women On Target stuff. Or he was when I listened a while back.

I had lunch with the ole boy a few weeks ago. He's doing the morning news on WXBQ. Says it has his body clock all screwed up. I knew him in the old days. Helluva a promotions guy.

Barbara Mcfadden is doing her thing from 9-11 and about 1:00pm Worley (the OMs husband) is doing a book review show. Worley has filled in for Bernier at least one time that I heard....not too impressive.

WPWT could take advantage and get some local stuff on. It would be interesting


Mr. Spindoctor. If a 5-10k stick came in with the right promotion and line up it could make a dent.
 
Re: I'm not sure I agree

> Mr. Spindoctor. If a 5-10k stick came in with the right
> promotion and line up it could make a dent.
>

Thanks for the input.
WBCV is for sale at a pretty good price and I hear it's upgrade-able
to 10k. What if it was flipped to News/Talk with a great lineup?
And is anyone carrying Hannity, Glenn Beck or Laura Ingraham in the
Tricities?
I'm info gathering.
The Spindoctor
 
Re: I'm not sure I agree

As I said, Hannity is on Super Talk WFHG.

Ingram is on WPWT the last I heard, but why bother? Her show is done.

Beck has not been picked up by anyone.

With WBCV- however- you have this one problem. A few years ago WETB was going to be sold and move to all sports. It was a format needed in the Tri-Cities.

At the last moment, though, the sale fell through.

The reason? The buyer got cold feet at the end. I'm almost positive that a bunch of bible thumpers called the old ownership of WETB- a religous station- and said "You can't sell out the Lord's voice for BALL!"

It would be interesting to see if the buyers of WBCV are faced with the same thing- and if they have the guts to change the format.
 
Re: I'm not sure I agree

I noticed that WBCV has just went through a stock sale. Are they still on the market?
 
Re: I'm not sure I agree

Mr. Spindoctor:

WFHG is carrying Hannity. No one has Beck or Dr. Laura

THis sounds interesting.

Very interesting indeed.


> > Mr. Spindoctor. If a 5-10k stick came in with the right
> > promotion and line up it could make a dent.
> >
>
> Thanks for the input.
> WBCV is for sale at a pretty good price and I hear it's
> upgrade-able
> to 10k. What if it was flipped to News/Talk with a great
> lineup?
> And is anyone carrying Hannity, Glenn Beck or Laura Ingraham
> in the
> Tricities?
> I'm info gathering.
> The Spindoctor
>
 
Re: I'm not sure I agree

> I noticed that WBCV has just went through a stock sale. Are
> they still on the market?
>
Yes, they are still on the market.

I didn't mean DOCTOR Laura, she's a few inches shy of a foot.
Who I meant is Laura Ingraham, intelligent and has her act together.
Is she on anywhere?

I'm not too sure whether there would be a format issue with the current
ownership. I can't imagine once the station sold that there would be
much discussion about who controlled the output. But then again, I'm not
considering an all speed-metal-hippity-hop-balls-to-the-wall-crank-out-the
demon-raising-hellified music format either.

I just think it may be time for a quality news/talk station in the Tri-Cities.
(No offense to the current stations doing their utmost to produce a quality
product.)

The Spindoctor
 
Re: I'm not sure I agree

>
> I just think it may be time for a quality news/talk station
> in the Tri-Cities.
> (No offense to the current stations doing their utmost to
> produce a quality
> product.)
>
> The Spindoctor
>

Spindoctor:

You could have a winner there with a good line up of syndicated shows...but concentrate on local programming. And, I mean local programming. Spend some money on a good news department. Local News and Local Talk.

CH
 
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