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WBUF

Well, WGRD in Grand Rapids has had the format for years, and that station's street presence when it comes to concert events has been abysmal for at least five years. Their idea of "presence" is a folding table manned by an intern. I know, because I've seen it firsthand. It's been many years since a station branded concert occurred, and none of those were particularly good.

The two day Upheaval festival is happening a mile up the road from that particular radio station. Q106 in Lansing is giving it more on-air attention than WGRD.

Don't get me wrong - your suggestion certainly makes some sense. I've just not seen concrete evidence of any such thing happening on the rock side. Maybe next year?
 
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MarkW said:
Well, WGRD in Grand Rapids has had the format for years, and that station's street presence when it comes to concert events has been abysmal for at least five years.
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And despite that, they're the #1 rock station in town. Among the Top 5 in all formats. Not bad for a station that doesn't do much outreach. On the other hand, that's not the case at WBUF. Even if they can't get ratings with the format, they have to find a way to make money. If that's a priority, they've got a way to do it. You don't need ratings at a radio station to get people to show up at a big music festival with name acts. If the people running WYRK are also involved in WBUF, you can bet it's being discussed.
 
MarkW said:
Let's see:
-Same garbage morning show from Grand Rapids
-Different garbage syndicated show at night (the weekday version of Lamewire Nights plays nothing but watered down music, sounds very small market, and doesn't hold a candle to the vastly superior HardDriveXL)
-Probably a near replica of the same uninspiring playlist WGRD uses.

That being said, the station at least now has a market exclusive music format (not counting 97.7 from across the border). So, on a net basis, it's a change for the better despite the multiple shortcomings. However, this station could do so much better if it would actually put forth some effort in mornings.

At the end of the day, these changes will probably tack on an extra half share, maybe even seven tenths of a share.
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When WBUF first went to rock, I thought that they should have taken some notes from how 97.7 HTZ FM does the format. HTZ has done rock for over 3 decades. They've built up a hell of a lot of credibility in not only southern Ontario, but also WNY as well since the Buffalo market doesn't have a straight-ahead album rock station that plays current and classic rock in a good playlist and also has live and local(for the most part)airstaff. WBUF, as you noted, doesn't really have that.
 
The folks on the west end of the GTA have it much better than the folks on the east end!

CHTZ is a solid station and so is Y108 in Hamilton. 94.9 The Rock in Oshawa, meanwhile, is rather terrible.

I also have to say Q107 in Toronto has one of the more intriguing playlists I've seen from a classic / heritage rock station. There is an unusually significant classic alternative element to its playlist.
 
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Long time lurker on this board. I'm not sure what the target demo is for this station but I'm a 48 year old white male. I used to listen to Jack pretty consistently before they flipped to WBUF. I like classic alternative quite a bit and I'm glad WBUF is going in that direction somewhat. I may have a wider musical taste range than most people in my demo but I generally like any kind of rock from late 70's punk to the mid 2010's or so with a definite lean towards alternative. Grew up with CFNY, 101 1 the Planet and WEDG. The last 7 or 8 years I just don't connect with newer music as much, so my listening to WEDG and 107.7 (before it flipped) was a bit spotty and I mostly listened to Jack. I've heard about the Bridge and it certainly sounds like I'd like it but haven't listened to it yet. I admit I'm a fan of terrestrial radio over streaming. If they put The Bridge on 92.9 I'd probably be a regular listener
 
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MarkW said:
The folks on the west end of the GTA have it much better than the folks on the east end!

CHTZ is a solid station and so is Y108 in Hamilton. 94.9 The Rock in Oshawa, meanwhile, is rather terrible.

I also have to say Q107 in Toronto has one of the more intriguing playlists I've seen from a classic / heritage rock station. There is an unusually significant classic alternative element to its playlist.
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I'm not sure what went wrong with 94.9 The Rock in Oshawa.
They used to be good.
They are also one of the few independents left in Canada.
Q 107 & Y 108 are owned by the same company. (Corus radio)
CHTZ (HTZ FM) used to be a great radio station until Bell bought them and messed things up, doing things on the dirt cheap.
It's too bad Giant 91.7 (in Welland Ontario) doesn't reach out to Buffalo. That's also a possible choice for rockers.
They (for now) are currently independently run.
I really do wish WBUF would have given the station some creative new name though, like Wolf, Bear or even Hog. THAT draws attention. They could also do with some radio announcers...preferably live...AND LOCAL!
 
Earlier this thread, I joked that Alan Pergament wouldn’t write about the format change at WBUF because he wouldn’t know about it. For a long time, Pergy ignored radio, focusing nearly all of his attention on TV. Well, he has been paying attention to radio the past year or two. I assume Pergy reviews some of the radio trades and wrote about WBUF in his online column today. Good for him! I’ll admit I was wrong.

Still, Pergy was forced to cite Radio Insight because regional manager Mark Plimpton doesn’t comment on any of the TS formats. As Bugs Bunny says, “What a maroon!” It’s one of my pet peeves that the broadcast industry, which depends on others opening up to provide their content, is among the most tight-lipped when they’re questioned. Look, I get it. If Plimpton was questioned about a personal controversy, such as the one at WYRK last year, I can understand a no comment. But this is a format change that the powers-that-be at TS should be eager to spread the word about. Pergy is going to give you some free publicity. New active rock format! “Oh, we don’t want to discuss that.” With leadership like that, no wonder WBUF is flailing.
 
Mark1981 said:
Still, Pergy was forced to cite Radio Insight because regional manager Mark Plimpton doesn’t comment on any of the TS formats.
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It's possible TS is one of those companies that prefers its media inquiries go to the home office.

But here's a link to Pergament's column, which is mainly about the Jan 6th televised hearings:

buffalonews.com

Alan Pergament: Jan. 6 hearing a ratings hit in WNY; WUTV's owner reportedly made decision not to carry it

It is rare for any TV program to get a double-digit rating here these days, especially in the late spring and summer, Pergament says.
buffalonews.com buffalonews.com
 
Mark1981 said:
But this is a format change that the powers-that-be at TS should be eager to spread the word about. Pergy is going to give you some free publicity. New active rock format! “Oh, we don’t want to discuss that.” With leadership like that, no wonder WBUF is flailing.
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WBUF didn't change format. They simply swapped out some songs/artists. Town Square already knows this lifeless format has no chance. They're not going to waste money promoting it. Most people won't even see the generic blurb in the Buffalo News. It should have been mentioned in the Obituary section...
 
tbolt909 said:
WBUF didn't change format.
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Classic rock and active rock are two different formats. That's pretty basic. Just as alternative rock is a different format.

In Philadelphia, WMMR is active rock and is #1. WMGK is classic rock and it's #2. Both owned by the same company.

tbolt909 said:
They're not going to waste money promoting it.
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It doesn't cost money to do an interview or email a press release.
 
TheBigA said:
Classic rock and active rock are two different formats. That's pretty basic. Just as alternative rock is a different format.

In Philadelphia, WMMR is active rock and is #1. WMGK is classic rock and it's #2. Both owned by the same company.



It doesn't cost money to do an interview or email a press release.
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WBUF is still playing a lot of the same stuff they were before. If you don't believe me, look at the playlist. AC/DC, Ozzy, Nirvana, etc...

All of these Classic Rock/Hits formats have some overlap. Nobody will notice this change and the ratings won't budge...
 
tbolt909 said:
WBUF is still playing a lot of the same stuff they were before. If you don't believe me, look at the playlist. AC/DC, Ozzy, Nirvana,
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Take a look at WMMR Philadelphia playlist. Same thing. It's #1 in Philadelphia. Lots of 25-30 year old songs. "Who Are You." "Kashmir." "Teen Spirit." But it's classified as active rock because they play 25 or so currents. And it doesn't conflict with co-owned classic rock WMGK.
 
TheBigA said:
Take a look at WMMR Philadelphia playlist. Same thing. It's #1 in Philadelphia. Lots of 25-30 year old songs. "Who Are You." "Kashmir." "Teen Spirit." But it's classified as active rock because they play 25 or so currents. And it doesn't conflict with co-owned classic rock WMGK.
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That's great for the Philly station. We're talking about WBUF. The ratings are dismal and will remain so. Whether that matters or not is a different subject...
 
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