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WBEN a "Godsend"

D

dand5780

Guest
...according to callers this evening on the extended coverage of a storm in Buffalo's southtowns. The mobile WBEN Newsroom, operated by Tim Wenger, gave listeners live video of the Thruway and saved many callers hours of being stuck on it by getting off when they could.
 
...according to callers this evening on the extended coverage of a storm in Buffalo's southtowns. The mobile WBEN Newsroom, operated by Tim Wenger, gave listeners live video of the Thruway and saved many callers hours of being stuck on it by getting off when they could.

The New York State Thruway Authority a "Godsend"

That's whose cameras/video it is.
 
I don't care to get involved in the hate talk here....but there was live video reports on Periscope several times yesterday from WBEN. I and my wife appreciated the timely reports and thought they did a heck of a job!
 
As somebody who was stuck in that southtowns mess yesterday, WBEN did a good job of reporting on the main roads. Tim Wenger did indeed do live video of his ride home - or at least until he got stuck in traffic as he headed into the southtowns. Bauerle and Bellavia went pretty much full-time storm coverage, and they stayed live after 7 PM with Tom Puckett hosting. They did the job yesterday, and a lot of folks stuck in traffic rediscovered the AM band - at least for a few hours.
 
Give WBEN due credit for serving the public interest. But let's be plenty real. They were doing what they SHOULD have been doing and what they're EXPECTED to do as the self-proclaimed AM news leader in the market. When Wenger was stopped cold in his tracks, he became just another guy with nowhere to go. What little I listened to WBFO, I'd have to say they were outdone by WBEN. I'd have expected better from Buffalo's largest newsroom, as Brian Meyer proclaims on his self promoting promos. And as long as we're tossing roses around, social media was where the real reportage took place with countless users "going live" and updating not only their stati, but the conditions they were experiencing. Channel 2 and 7 did good work on their websites and OTA. If you think WBEN or WBFO owns the information market these days, you're sadly mistaken. It's not 1977 anymore. (Oblique reference to the Blizzard of....)
 
Give WBEN due credit for serving the public interest. But let's be plenty real. They were doing what they SHOULD have been doing and what they're EXPECTED to do as the self-proclaimed AM news leader in the market. When Wenger was stopped cold in his tracks, he became just another guy with nowhere to go. What little I listened to WBFO, I'd have to say they were outdone by WBEN. I'd have expected better from Buffalo's largest newsroom, as Brian Meyer proclaims on his self promoting promos. And as long as we're tossing roses around, social media was where the real reportage took place with countless users "going live" and updating not only their stati, but the conditions they were experiencing. Channel 2 and 7 did good work on their websites and OTA. If you think WBEN or WBFO owns the information market these days, you're sadly mistaken. It's not 1977 anymore. (Oblique reference to the Blizzard of....)

The sad thing is, as well as WBEN still does, they could be doing even better...and further into the future. They are still often the go-to source in weather emergencies, which helps their ratings a lot in especially bad winters. They have always had the crazy right wingers listening, but for some reason they decided years ago to go wall-to-wall wingnut and blow off many moderates. There was no need to do that. I could see if there was a challenger in the market, but there isn't.

Most conservative talkers are suffering badly nationwide, likely because they don't have the built-in weather factor that helps WBEN.
 
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Most conservative talkers are suffering badly nationwide, likely because they don't have the built-in weather factor that helps WBEN.

The ones struggling the most are the ones dependent on nationally syndicated hosts. The ones that are mainly local, such as WBEN, WGN Chicago, and WLW Cincinnati, are doing well. It's one reason why several major talk stations, such as WLS and WMAL, have dropped Michael Savage and replaced him with a local voice.
 
It's one reason why several major talk stations, such as WLS and WMAL, have dropped Michael Savage and replaced him with a local voice.

Well, Savage's especially nasty presentation didn't help. It rubs many people the wrong way.

That is not a biased opinion, as I have heard numerous people make that complaint about him. I actually find him far more entertaining than most conservative talkers because he isn't beholden to anyone, and his abrasiveness doesn't bother me.
 
The title of this thread is ridiculous. Evidently, people in Buffalo
don't exercise common sense. If Lake Effect snow is dropping at
4 inches per hour, you travel at your own peril.
One jackknifed tractor trailer or multi car accident and
motorists are screwed. You can count on accidents in those
conditions.

WBEN can certainly report on conditions, but sending some fool out
to get video is absurd. Les Nessman on WKRP wanted to make an
announcement that the station was off the air
(Station WAS off the air)...
 
That's a reasonable observation about drivers going out in perilous conditions. However, there were a lot of people already on the road as the snow fell and the intensity of snowfall increased and held. It's likely most people on the roads were going about their daily business, commuting or driving routines. Case in point, two school buses stranded as they attempted to take kids home in West Seneca; UPS drivers whose delivery routes include the south towns stranded on Milestrip Road in OP; parents who panicked when they heard that their kids were stranded on buses or in schools, and decided to get in their cars and pick up the kids, only to become stranded. A considerable number of listeners and potential listeners in the city and north towns had little or no snow. Many of them may have thought, "Sucks to live in the south towns" and tuned in their favorite FM music stations. Yeah, and titling this thread "WBEN a 'Godsend'" is mildly humorous... in a bleak way. But consider who initiated the thread.
 
This Lake Effect event was forecast in advance. People who live in
areas prone to Lake Effect snow should KNOW that conditions
can deteriorate rapidly. They always seem surprised that the
combination of bad drivers and bad weather results in chaos.

Climate change is producing severe weather everywhere.
Of course, WBEN wouldn't know anything about that...
 
Social media and TV aren't much help to people stuck out there in their cars. RADIO still works, and is instantly available to just about everybody. One big difference between this event and past events is that WBEN is the only station that went wall-to-wall with storm coverage. Were they the best? Well, yeah - simply because they were the ONLY. In the past, they would have be one of several.

We've seen the rest of the market abdicate on this. WBFO is the only other station in the market with a real news staff, but that doesn't matter if you don't break format.

A lake effect event was in the forecast, but nobody predicted the snow totals that dumped in the 'burbs just south of the city. I don't know of a single business or school that shut down Thursday morning because of the forecast. It's hard to blame people for going to work or school - or wanting to go home. How many of you monitor the weather outside while you're at work? I sure don't. A foot of snow in the parking lot when I left was a surprise to me - and a lot of other people.

We do have to get plows and salters out on the main roads sooner, and more frequently. We also need to establish some kind of "mutual aid" system among DOTs to keep the mains passable. That would go a long way to resolving these problems when they occur.
 
WBEN does a remarkable job in so many ways. From local news, to destination listening, to incredibly brilliant talk show hosts. WBEN probably spends more money on news staff, than tv stations do. For that investment ,WBEN generates great revenue and more importantly great results for advertisers and great content for listeners. WBEN is a consistent, trusted voice. A leader in the country. Revered by others across this great nation. I think one of the truly great reasons to live in Buffalo is WBEN. I could not think of many reasons to even live in this area, without WBEN.
 
WBEN does a remarkable job in so many ways. From local news, to destination listening, to incredibly brilliant talk show hosts. WBEN probably spends more money on news staff, than tv stations do. For that investment ,WBEN generates great revenue and more importantly great results for advertisers and great content for listeners. WBEN is a consistent, trusted voice. A leader in the country. Revered by others across this great nation. I think one of the truly great reasons to live in Buffalo is WBEN. I could not think of many reasons to even live in this area, without WBEN.

Did you say all that just to get a belly laugh?

From local news, to destination listening, to incredibly brilliant talk show hosts.

Their local hosts are misinformed or intentionally misleading. I don't know if intellectual dishonesty disqualifies a person from being an "incredibly brilliant" host.

WBEN probably spends more money on news staff, than tv stations do.

Wow. Anybody smell that? Having a bit of inside info on both realms, your statement is beyond hysterical. Well beyond.

I think one of the truly great reasons to live in Buffalo is WBEN. I could not think of many reasons to even live in this area, without WBEN.

LOL.

Just LOL.
 
I think one of the truly great reasons to live in Buffalo is WBEN. I could not think of many reasons to even live in this area, without WBEN.

It reaches (cume) only about 10% of the market. It's hardly a station of "the majority". It's just an ad medium, not a local treasure. You can't possibly believe this stuff you write; one thing is hyperbole and another is being delusional.
 
You have to remember that Buddy sells WBEN - and makes a very nice living doing it. His perspective is very different from that of the average listener. Those "brilliant" talk show hosts make him a lot of money pandering to a small but loyal portion of the general populace. If he worked for WYRK, he'd find bro-country to be "brilliant".
 
Rox, I do more than sell WBEN. I see the incredible results clients get. I am a radio listener, before a radio sales person. I worked for WYRK, on air, for 10 years. I never thought they were brilliant. WBEN is destination listening. Listeners do not change back and forth, perhaps only to our other station, WGR. WBEN is on top of everything that is newsworthy. I am there seven days a week, and I see the effort that goes into it. I also talk to advertisers who see the results of it. We get advertisers crawling to us from the other radio companies who get NO RESULTS, and say "Radio Does Not Work". All of the sudden, they are on WBEN, and everything works for them. IT's almost magical how WBEN has transformed the media in Buffalo. We have compelling content on online, on air, texts. While our competitors are cutting, and voice tracking, and syndicating entire weekends, WBEN is airing the best programming in Buffalo. You also left out that I have been on the air in Buffalo for 35 years. I continue to host Buffalo Means Business which was my concept. The show is through the roof for ratings and advertisers. Unless you are employed in the industry full time, in both capacities, like I am, I am not sure how everyone can make these accusations. As far as listeners goes, WBEN has a cume around 177,000. Somebody is listening to AM radio.
 
As far as listeners goes, WBEN has a cume around 177,000. Somebody is listening to AM radio.

The MSA is nearly 1.2 million. Do the math. Only about one person in every 8 ever listens to WBEN. Stations like WYRK and WKSE reach more. WTSE ties that number.
 
WBEN does a remarkable job in so many ways. From local news, to destination listening, to incredibly brilliant talk show hosts. WBEN probably spends more money on news staff, than tv stations do. For that investment ,WBEN generates great revenue and more importantly great results for advertisers and great content for listeners. WBEN is a consistent, trusted voice. A leader in the country. Revered by others across this great nation. I think one of the truly great reasons to live in Buffalo is WBEN. I could not think of many reasons to even live in this area, without WBEN.

Well said, and I also listen to your program on Saturdays. My only suggestion to the station is, they just added a new host Bellavia, and as great as that is, it would be nice to have more live and local programming for evenings or weekends.
 
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