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The Buzz 1370

N

nephi1

Guest
Well my inside sources inform me the FCC has been out to visit Pottstowns only radio station. Seems they were a splattering all over the am dial and someone complained. They still have very few commercials. The morning guy does not rad the news very well. There is also an opinion that this poor excuse of a floormat they have on the air seems to be to get to the next unlistenable record. They are a bunch of hippies who have no clue how to run a radio station. I know a standalone am is a tough sell these days but sitting around wondering how people cant come to know this and sponsor this has come to thier latest idea which is wait for it. . . . . turn it into a non profit they are going to get grants from places like the Annenburg foundation and places like that so they keep this monstrosity on the air. They have no concept no one is buying spots now cant imagine them just giving them money and in return you would be linmited in what you can say about the business. I also forgot they are only at 500 some watts as thier backup transmitter is gone and the newer one is on life support. 24 hours a day was thier biggest mistake that transmitter was not built for it. Your thoughts.
 
I spelled the ambassadors name wrong it should be Annenberg.
 
If the radio station is as bad as the post, things are really bad!
 
This poster is lambasting the morning guy for a poor news read, yet his post has errors. Pot calling kettle black? If WBZH is having transmitter trouble, I'd hope they filed for an STA to run at 500 watts. Splatter could be caused by no NRSC filter, too much negative modulation cutting the carrier off. If indeed the splatter is spurious radiation, the transmitter may need to be retuned.
 
Sounds like WBZH needs to get someone out on the street and/or on the phone. The station needs to sell some block programming to garden places, lawyers, eye doctors, dentists, etc. If WCHE in West Chester can do it, there isn't any reason WBZH can't. Guess they're more worried about playing Fleetwood Mac.
 
Give this guy a shift at 106.9 --- Bwaahaaaa Macy!

Despite the neighboring and much-nearer WPPA 1360 in the Coal Mountains here, from the brotherly city of PottsVILLE, WPAZ/WBZH puts in a pretty nice, faithful, daily signal.

But if they can't generate any buzz, Dave Williams is right. Donate the darn thing to some glue-sniffing metal-heads or NASCAR fascists and glom the tax writeoff.
 
Yeah, that's what I'd like to hear. Blocks of time with lawyers, doctors, etc. Would the colon cleanse hour be far behind?
I'm not knocking anybody here, but if one station is already doing that type of programming that close in proximity, I'd much rather hear this station do something different. Their music mix and attention to local goings on is much more listenable.
I do agree with you though that they need to be out on the street selling. And the coverage they have locally should assist them in that. They are a Pottstown station that does seem to cover Pottstown and surrounding communities.
But following WCHE's model... I don't think it's necessary.
 
I'm rooting for this station. There still is a niche for local community radio! The biggest problem they have, aside from the serious technical issues, is the totally obscure selection of music! My family is from near Pottstown and I listen every time I'm in the area. It never fails, I turn it on and they are playing some song I've never heard of! And I've been a PD and/or music director (both country and pop) for over 35 years! If I've never heard of it, how many listeners have?? Pick an AM-friendly, adult-friendly format like Oldies, Soft AC, or Classic Country. And stick to it! Play ALL FAMILIAR HITS! Nothing wrong with a few specialty shows like a Polka show or a Bluegrass show on the weekends. But for the most part, PLAY THE HITS!!
 
Their music format is trending more and more local. If you're pulling for this station and you're pulling for local community radio, then try to get behind their support of local artists. This is far more palatable than a 'same old' format for an AM. Their guests are more local. Their community focus is local. School students get to follow games and even spotlight their own schools. And the music is local. Instead of looking for something familiar, maybe give something local to you music-wise a shot. (I mean this as a suggestion, not a wise-crack)
Cards on the table, I host a show there. Glad to see that there is still a willingness to give local radio some support.
 
But do you PAY to put your local show on the air? If the station doesn't have money coming in either thru brokered shows or local advertising then it doesn't matter, you have to pay the light bill. Do the local artist support the station in anyway? Do they bring in any revenue? Local sports would be a big help for them also, they should be working on that. Hope they get their act together sometime.
 
First of all, I admire and respect all the local features and community involvement WBZH is doing. We do the same kinds of things on my local station.

And all due respect for local music, I came from a family of musicians. But a FORMAT of mostly local, mostly unfamiliar music simply won't attract very many listeners. Large market stations spend hundreds of thousands of dollars doing focus-group testing of music to determine what to play. That's how important playing mostly-familiar music is to attracting an audience! That's not to say you can't have a "home grown" show as a weekend feature or play a cut by a local band once an hour, if it is properly promoted and pre-sold. (and fits the format) Even in the golden era of Top 40, stations played a "hitbound" new record once or twice an hour and all the rest of the music was proven and familiar!

To summarize, the music the station plays MOST OF THE TIME should have a cohesive identity to it...adult contemporary, country, classic hits, soft AC, whatever it is. A folk show followed by a heavy metal show followed by an alternative rock show just won't work. The days of block-programmed radio were over in the 60's or before. The only stations with this kind of format today are college radio stations. And they are usually non-commercial and have few listeners beyond the kids on campus. If you want to have advertisers to pay the bills who keep coming back because they get results, you must appeal to a mass audience. That only comes with a predictable, mass-appeal format.
 
1370am The Buzz

Nephi1, what happened, bubala? Didn't get a shift? What station are you on?

Methinks "sour grapes" applies here.

nephi1 said:
The morning guy does not rad the news very well.
Click to expand...
 
Dave, they do put on local sports. High Schools etc. I really wish you'd listen before commenting. They are trying to get their act together. Is it a slow process, yes. Do they lack experience, yes. But are they just sitting around doing nothing? No. They are not just rebuilding a station, but a local reputation.
 
@WCRadio says WBZH should "do something different."

@RayThomas argues that WBZH should "play ALL FAMILIAR HITS!"

Damned if you do...
 
Hah! Agreed Joe.

Also, the station's format strictly speaking is AAA. Which tends at times to encompass more than a single genre. Or at least casts a wider net.

I'm not arguing the fact a format needs to attract advertisers (actually, I'm not arguing at all), that's what it's all about... aside from sounding good. Depressing that sounding good seems to have to come second at least at the start of something.

I am glad that, so far anyway, WBZH hasn't had to compromise it's sound in favor of money. That may change, or have to change, who knows. But yes, I'd rather be different, offer something different, than be the same thing as the next guy.

It's easy for me to say, I know. It's not my money. But I am contributing to something I believe in. If it works I'll be happy. If it doesn't, at least I was part of something that tried to be different... I guess I am one of the hippies!

Charlie
 
There's a big difference between "Triple A" and "unfocused rock format." WXPN is the former, WBZH is the latter. While I applaud the local focus of the station, the songs played should be the "glue" that transitions the listener between local elements, not the jocks' favorite songs. In a market as small as Pottstown, you have a small, limited pool of listeners...and advertisers, to pull from. You don't want to chase away these precious listeners by playing niche music. This is BROADCASTING, not narrowcasting. Wanna play obscure rock and local music? Start a webstream at Live 365. If you want to make money (the whole point) of a commercial, OTA radio station, play songs that MOST people want to hear. For a station like WBZH, it's the local news, information and talk programming listeners are seeking out, not the music!
 
I'm going to use Narrowcasting on a tee shirt! I like that.

Broadcast radio (Music) seems to be either dying a slow death or entering a long dormant stage based on everyone playing certain familiar things. Besides, there are already many classic hits/oldies/MOR etc. stations.

I'm not saying you're wrong, it's just been done to death.

If it doesn't work out for WBZH, I'm happy to have been part of something different.
(I'm not ready to give up yet. I don't think they are either.)
 
I think you're confusing the current state of larger market, corporate owned radio with small market radio. I realize that over-researched mainline formats have become homogenized. But, small market local broadcasting is a much different animal.

I got my start in full service radio, which combined local news and information, talk, sports, and yes, music as part of it's overall presentation. Notice music is last on that list. If the format is done correctly, songs are essentially filler between all those other elements, along with (of course) commercials. The music is supposed to be mass appeal and non obtrusive to carry the listener between elements. It's not there to make a musical statement. There are PLENTY of these type of stations still active around the country, mostly in small cities and rural areas. The type of music they utilize may be different, country, AC, standards, classic hits, etc. But, the point of the music is not to be "the format" the way it is at a WMMR or WOGL.

There's many places listeners can go for music. There's not a lot of options for people who want local news & information about Pottstown and the surrounding communities. WBZH could own that position. But, if it looks at itself as a trippy rock station first and a local information source second, it will never get any traction.
 
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