W-G-N

[Prais]

I believe I heard that the Hawks have renewed on wgn radio.

 

[KeithE4]

One thing WGN did that was smart was have custom apps made for the iPhone, Android, and Blackberry. The next generation of WGN listeners will be listening online, either through one of these apps or on their laptop's media player, and not as much on AM 720 (although they certainly won't be turning that transmitter off anytime soon).

But if they're serious about attracting a younger audience for something other than sports, they'll have to abandon the more geezer-friendly programming (at least that midday suburbanoid-drivel from Kathy & Judy is gone!). But there's no reason they can't remain 100% Chicago unless the ad base just dries up and they just can't afford to do it anymore.

BTW, the Android app works great! Can't speak for the others as I don't have an iPhone or Blackberry. These smartphone apps, either single-station ones like WGN or WBGO, or multi-station apps like StreamFurious (it has most, if not all, public radio stations in the US, plus ShoutCast), are the way to go - especially if an AM station can't get on FM like WGN (which is, of course, meaningless in the online world).

 

[radioguy39nj]

I believe I heard that the Hawks have renewed on wgn radio.

I think it's for three more seasons through 2013. With the Hawks in the Stanley Cup Finals, it's just as well WGN got it done early. If the Hawks win the Cup, those rights will be worth more.

By 2013, there will likely be an FM sports outlet in Chicago. That could change things dramatically when the Hawks radio rights are again up for renewal.

 

[Tom Wells]

I believe I heard that the Hawks have renewed on wgn radio.

I think it's for three more seasons through 2013. With the Hawks in the Stanley Cup Finals, it's just as well WGN got it done early. If the Hawks win the Cup, those rights will be worth more.

By 2013, there will likely be an FM sports outlet in Chicago. That could change things dramatically when the Hawks radio rights are again up for renewal.

Yes, the most dramatic change would be the loss of coverage for an FM compared to the multi-state coverage of WGN.
As dramatic as blacking out the games entirely, for a great number of listeners.
70 miles vs an easy 500?

 

[davideduardo]

Yes, the most dramatic change would be the loss of coverage for an FM compared to the multi-state coverage of WGN.

The business model of some teams gets benefit from not having a wide coverage flagship station, allowing many local stations to join the network. Since some of the local markets outside the team's home are rated, and buys are not generally made on outside stations to reach local markets, there is benefit for each affiliate station, too.

 

[Prais]

David,
WGN has BOTH a great signal around the midwest - and many local stations for a baseball network..

They treated we network affiliates like GOLD, wined and dined us in the city, great custom local Cubs promos voiced by Harry Carey, great tix to 10 games, hotel stays during the "Cubs Convention", and about HALF the spots in the game were ours, satellite delivered for a few barter spots. Also, lots opf Cubs "stuff" to give away on our air.

We were making close to our weekly gross AGAIN broadcasting games in Cubs season.

Our station was about 100 miles from Chicago, but we creamed wgn in all 5 of our counties.

 

[KeithE4]

I still find 720 a bit boring.

+1. Except I find it MORE than a bit boring most of the time.

In the last 15 minutes, WGN went from interesting talk about the BP oil fiasco to uber-boring "Is it raining where you are?" blather. Oh, well... gotta keep Aunt Edna in Palatine happy before the Cubs pregame comes on.

 

[cyberdad]

I still find 720 a bit boring.

+1. Except I find it MORE than a bit boring most of the time.

In the last 15 minutes, WGN went from interesting talk about the BP oil fiasco to uber-boring "Is it raining where you are?" blather. Oh, well... gotta keep Aunt Edna in Palatine happy before the Cubs pregame comes on.

Proving my original point. Right up there with my last trip to Motown, where I found that CKLW had been reduced to a discussion of garbage pickup dates.

 

[davideduardo]

David,
WGN has BOTH a great signal around the midwest - and many local stations for a baseball network..

Not too many stations have the advantage of great ground conductivity, low dial position and 50 kw clear channel status. WGN has all three.

I was thinking more of sports, professional and college, in general. I was PD of the Crimson Tide flagship station (AM, 5 kw, 960, bad conductivity) and was operating officer of the station that was the "Voice of Seminoles Sports" in Tallahassee (Class C FM) and saw that the teams or their marketing organizations liked non-overlap a lot. While the advertiser would benefit from whoever carried the games as long as there was audience, I think they got the best terms from local stations by not having overlap. In a sense, I think the network sales were enhanced by sheer numbers of stations, even if some of them were really limited AMs in towns with a few thousand population.

I do think that the usefulness of fringe coverage is much exaggerated and your success with local audience and sales would point this out, although I suspect your station was well known and well respected and was considered to be the place to go for this type of programming.

I wonder how profitable baseball is in smaller markets today... Cadillac, Petoskey, Traverse City, Alpena, Ludington, Manistee, and similar places?

 

[Prais]

Keith said, "In the last 15 minutes, WGN went from interesting talk about the BP oil fiasco to uber-boring "Is it raining where you are?" blather.

Oh, well... gotta keep Aunt Edna in Palatine happy before the Cubs pregame comes on."

Well, what may be "uberboring" to YOU may be interesting to ME. Thats why I like them often changing topics.

Yep, I LOVE those "regional weather" type discussions because here, where I live (across the lake from Milwaukee), the forecasts and the media delivering the forecasts are BAD - so I can put things together myself, and often do.

What BORES me on wgn is when Brian Noonan (weekend overnight) "thinks he is funny" by dissing people/subjects that I (personally) respect. Mostly, he is ok, but on occasion he gets very STUPID. Also, there are times that I really cannot understand "Simon Rendezvous" and his thick French dialect. WGN is stilll the very best, and has been since the late 50's when I started listening there (as a kid).

I enjoy everyone else on the station most of the time.

 

[Prais]

David asked....
I wonder how profitable baseball is in smaller markets today... Cadillac, Petoskey, Traverse City, Alpena, Ludington, Manistee, and similar places?
____
I'm not sure. No baseball on local station in Ludington. Both are automated music. The Detroit Tigers are hot on Michigan stations. The Cubs only have 1660 in Kalamazoo. The Tigers are on In Cadillac, Petoskey Manistee and Traverse City, even in Angola, IN (quite a hot top 40 station, there).

25 + years ago, my NW Indiana stations customers LINED UP to be in the Cubs games. Today, they have ony the White Sox (on FM) not on am, but the business climate in the city has evaporated and there is alot more radio competition (and no Major League baseball).

 

[davideduardo]

sure. No baseball on local station in Ludington. Both are automated music.

That is sad. I met Ray Plank, who I believe built the 1450 AM in Ludington from scratch... an early Lingo tower that looked like a 200 foot tall guyed standpipe.

The Detroit Tigers are hot on Michigan stations.

I was briefly on the board during summers on WCCW when it was a daytimer and signed off later that part of the year. Most of the staff enjoyed it when WTCM had the Tigers, as it did not seem they had much of a following in the area; Detroiters were "fudgies" and barely tolerated.

25 + years ago, my NW Indiana stations customers LINED UP to be in the Cubs games.

Is that just what radio has become today, or is the interest in baseball less? Or is advertiser interest in things like that changing? Or, as you say, is it the invasion of the Big Box and the elimination of local merchants?

I was talking to the manager at a big box pet store this weekend in northern AZ and he said now that most of the veterinary clinics are now corporate owned; between the economy and most vets' lack of desire to deal with the ever-increasing burdens of official paperwork, insurance issues, HR and OSHA and all the other things, nobody wants to run a smaller local business.

 

[Prais]

I think that the Big Box stores have squasjed LOTS of local businesses. The radio station college town is FULL of empty buildings that were once small retail, antique stores, etc. It's quite sad.

I know a retired teacher who blogs (better info than the local newspaper). I haven't investigated the town for about 5 years, and I'm really blown away by the deaths and the business move-outs.