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What in the WORLD happened to radio?

Bob1370 said:
Count me as a believer that "if you program it, they will come." A top quality spoken word format with strong people presenting it, is still a winner in any decent sized market. People can talk about AM being demographically impaired. but in towns like San Francisco, Boston and Detroit, well programmed AM talkers and newsers are making out like bandits with 25-54 listeners. And anyone would love to have WFAN's demos with 25-54 men in NYC.

A truly good news or talk format station with a full market coverage signal and even a modest sustained promotional budget can make it bigtime on either AM or FM in damn near any market, and draw demos advertisers want.
Click to expand...

I'd love to be a believer, because in my heart, I love those grand old AMs, too. I love the "sound," just like Pastrick wrote.
But even some of those enormously successful AMs have moved their programming or are simulcasing on FM: KTAR, KSL, WTOP, KMJ (Fresno), and most recently, KCBS in San Francisco. They've recognized that's where the desirable demos are.
In Los Angeles, it's only a matter of time before KFI, a hugely succesful and creatively programmed AM, appropriates one of the Clear Channel FMs.

A top quality spoken word format, as Bob 1370 suggests, will attract listeners to an AM station...but, honestly, for how much longer?

Nick Seneca
 
Bob1370 said:
A truly good news or talk format station with a full market coverage signal and even a modest sustained promotional budget can make it bigtime on either AM or FM in damn near any market, and draw demos advertisers want.
Click to expand...

I can't think of an example, but maybe someone can, of an AM station that was able to attract large numbers of NEW listeners to their format. Typically, the heritage AMs have mainly retained their listeners, rather than attracted new ones.

The most stunning example was when WTOP-AM, the #2 station in Washington DC, moved its all-news format to FM, the new frequency quickly became #1 (by a large margin) in the capitol. While its former frequency dropped to the bottom.t

What I'd love to see is an AM station come up with a format that will atract large numbers of under-40 listeners. Other than Radio Disney.
 
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