There's been an ongoing topic on another popular New York radio message board about this - so why not start the topic here, too. And while I admit that I don't even drive, after hearing a so-called "traffic" update yesterday afternoon, I certainly feel the pain of those who have complained about the lack of valuable traffic details, thanks to the almighty dollar.
Here's the content of a one-minute traffic update I heard at around 5:50 PM on WABC from Heather O'Rourke - and you really can't fault the messengers in these instances, they're just doing what they're told.
0:00-0:03: Tease of a traffic incident on the West Side Highway
0:03-0:23: "This report is brought to you by..." (Sponsor name and sponsor message)
0:23-0:36: The traffic report
0:36-0:56: "This report is also brought to you by..." (Different sponsor name/sponsor message)
0:56-1:00: Anchor sign-off
I timed it with my watch, I couldn't believe it. A whopping thirteen seconds of traffic in a one-minute period reserved for traffic - wedged between two sponsor reads of twenty seconds. Apiece! And if you're lucky, you might be able to get a few more seconds of traffic information squeezed out - but I suppose that the two live reads in this "report" this time around were a little too long to close with a reminder to tune in "right after the I-man [to hear] Joe Crummey, 10-till-Rush," so she simply closed with her name and the station ID. (And that's another pet peeve of mine - Joe Crummey being promoted as being on "10-till-Rush." I realize that you're giving the listener awareness that he's leading into El Rushbo, but it's not as if Crummey is coming back on the air at 12:02 after the ABC News TOH news update with a few more minutes of content. But I digress...)
Anyway, back to the topic at hand - traffic updates (or lack thereof) on New York radio. Have they transformed into nothing more than traffic reports masquerading as surreptitious banner advertisements? And who's the worst offender? Granted, WABC's traffic updates are given only a certain number of times per hour during Hannity show breaks, so if listeners or commuters wanted traffic updates, they would either go to WCBS 880 or 1010 WINS (usually the latter by default when the Yankees are on the air). There was a traffic situation in Jersey on Easter Sunday that these stations were mum on details of and got flak over on the NYRMB. But there are other examples, I'm sure...Of course, with live reads being a top priority, many a report leave a lot to be desired. :
Here's the content of a one-minute traffic update I heard at around 5:50 PM on WABC from Heather O'Rourke - and you really can't fault the messengers in these instances, they're just doing what they're told.
0:00-0:03: Tease of a traffic incident on the West Side Highway
0:03-0:23: "This report is brought to you by..." (Sponsor name and sponsor message)
0:23-0:36: The traffic report
0:36-0:56: "This report is also brought to you by..." (Different sponsor name/sponsor message)
0:56-1:00: Anchor sign-off
I timed it with my watch, I couldn't believe it. A whopping thirteen seconds of traffic in a one-minute period reserved for traffic - wedged between two sponsor reads of twenty seconds. Apiece! And if you're lucky, you might be able to get a few more seconds of traffic information squeezed out - but I suppose that the two live reads in this "report" this time around were a little too long to close with a reminder to tune in "right after the I-man [to hear] Joe Crummey, 10-till-Rush," so she simply closed with her name and the station ID. (And that's another pet peeve of mine - Joe Crummey being promoted as being on "10-till-Rush." I realize that you're giving the listener awareness that he's leading into El Rushbo, but it's not as if Crummey is coming back on the air at 12:02 after the ABC News TOH news update with a few more minutes of content. But I digress...)
Anyway, back to the topic at hand - traffic updates (or lack thereof) on New York radio. Have they transformed into nothing more than traffic reports masquerading as surreptitious banner advertisements? And who's the worst offender? Granted, WABC's traffic updates are given only a certain number of times per hour during Hannity show breaks, so if listeners or commuters wanted traffic updates, they would either go to WCBS 880 or 1010 WINS (usually the latter by default when the Yankees are on the air). There was a traffic situation in Jersey on Easter Sunday that these stations were mum on details of and got flak over on the NYRMB. But there are other examples, I'm sure...Of course, with live reads being a top priority, many a report leave a lot to be desired. :