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Will Country Be Gone In Chicago Next?

DToTheJ

DToTheJ

New York: Market #1. Well over a decade without a country station.

Los Angeles: Market #2. Their established country outlet "MOVed" out last year.

San Francisco: Market #4. The most recent attempt at the format couldn't even "bear" going through.

Meanwhile, Chicago, Market #3, still has a country station.

But consider CBS, who launched their new "Globe" format in Washington, has intentions of bringing that format here, as 947theglobe.com and 995theglobe.com were both registered on the same day.

More info
 
DToTheJ said:
New York: Market #1. Well over a decade without a country station.

Los Angeles: Market #2. Their established country outlet "MOVed" out last year.

San Francisco: Market #4. The most recent attempt at the format couldn't even "bear" going through.

Meanwhile, Chicago, Market #3, still has a country station.

But consider CBS, who launched their new "Globe" format in Washington, has intentions of bringing that format here, as 947theglobe.com and 995theglobe.com were both registered on the same day.

More info
Click to expand...

CBS has more than a few properties on 99.5...

As far as I can tell, country in Chicago is doing great; "Globe" could really hurt WXRT and the company has bigger problems in Chicago with WCKG.

But with CBS, anything is possible!
 
WUSN bills very well

and if CBS brings their Globe format to Chicago, you can say bye bye to WXRT which would never happen.
 
I have serious doubts that CBS would blow up US*99.5 in the near future. Of course, this is the same company that runs the finest station on the dial, WCKG, and also brought the listening public shining stars like Rover and David Lee Roth. Having said that, CBS could very well blow up US*99.5 and 93XRT the same day and tell their shareholders it was yet another "bold move" that nobody else had the guts to do, reminiscent of when they swapped that Magic 104.3 loser for Jack FM.

Of course, some of us might substitute a different word for "guts."
 
Re: Will Country Be Gone In Chicago Next? the answer is NO

As for The Globe coming to Chicago.. WXRT and The Globe are both AAA - same format...but have different ideas (I like The green theme of environmental responsibility of DC's Globe) - BTW - WXRT is probably the BEST AAA station in the nation. I don't think CBS would want to invite more problems by messing with '93 XRT' - If they do, I will fly from LA to Chicago and protest among other XRT fans. I listen to XRT online ...more than Radio Paradise. DON'T MESS WITH XRT!! I think WUSN country is fine over there in the Bear den. GO BEARS!!! ;D - Peace, my friend. J G
 
WUSN has OK ratings and good billing. If NY, LA or SF had a country station as successful as WUSN country would still exist in those markets today.

If anybody switches to the GLOBE in Chicago it would certainly be WXRT,It would not surprise me if CBS declares GLOBE is "the next big thing" even before any ratings come out in DC.

My guess is that if CBS brings the format to Chicago they would keep the WXRT call letters to hang on to the heritage. Then they would completely evolve to the GLOBE format.

Unlike most posters on radio-info, especially on the DC board, I think that GLOBE will do horrible. This format is so over the top politically correct that the whole concept sounds like some kind of parody or comedy bit to me.

I predict that this format will do as bad as FREE FM does. It will be lucky to crack a 1 share. Heaven help any cluster that ends up having both FREE and the GLOBE in it.
 
Do you think the city could support two country stations? One like WUSN and then one like a country "Jack" format or a classic country station.

Could it work?
 
Reggiefan1945 said:
Do you think the city could support two country stations? One like WUSN and then one like a country "Jack" format or a classic country station.

Could it work?
Click to expand...

WKXK, Kicks Country, 94.7-FM, Tim and Willie, died a fast death.

The market doesn't need two country stations, and I doubt it would effectively support two country stations.
 
I think the market is served pretty well with the one downtown powerhouse on 99.5, and suburban/rimshot stations as a supplemental choice.
 
XRT and the Globe

They will not be bringing the Globe format to Chicago to replace WXRT. WXRT Program Director, Norm Winer is consulting the sign on of the Globe, as he did with the marginally successful Dave-FM in Atlanta.
 
LA and SF now have country stations; KKGO-L.A. features Shawn Parr in mornings with an HYSTERICAL show and a VERY wide playlist (everybodt from Steve Wariner to the Dixie Chicks, as well as all of the format's current stars.

95.7 The Wolf in SF (Entercom) is the latest launching of their very 'Wolf Country format, highlighted by KKWF beating longtime Seattle country powerhouse KMPS in adults 25-54 less than NINE months after it was launched.

WUSN isn't going anywhere; it has the highest cume of any country station in America, and CC isn't THAT stupid---I don't think!!!!!!!!
 
Marv-L.A. said:
LA and SF now have country stations; KKGO-L.A. features Shawn Parr in mornings with an HYSTERICAL show and a VERY wide playlist (everybodt from Steve Wariner to the Dixie Chicks, as well as all of the format's current stars.

95.7 The Wolf in SF (Entercom) is the latest launching of their very 'Wolf Country format, highlighted by KKWF beating longtime Seattle country powerhouse KMPS in adults 25-54 less than NINE months after it was launched.

WUSN isn't going anywhere; it has the highest cume of any country station in America, and CC isn't THAT stupid---I don't think!!!!!!!!
Click to expand...
Clear Channel doesn't own WUSN in Chicago, CBS radio does.
 
I agree that CBS won't change US99 from country. US99 continues to pull around a 3 overall, and that is too much of an audience to risk in the Chicago market. They are already getting burned by giving up oldies (WJMK) only to find WZZN now pulling over a 2.6, which is what they gave up for JACK-FM, which has yet to show that sort of share promise, even if reaching a slightly different demographic.

CBS won't risk having the number of people now listening to country go to another source, to the point of keeping US99 as a defense against that.

But I don't agree about not bringing in the Globe format to Chicago because of WXRT. Since WCKG has a 0.9 overall, let alone a 1 hour local show in the afternoon and other bizarre experiments, they'll have to do something with one of the best FM signals in the market.

The people that have listened to WXRT over the years probably won't move, but the people who listen to the other 25-54 music stations might just give the Globe format a try. And beating a 0.9 overall isn't exactly the biggest challenge for that format. Even if Globe were to pull a 1.5 on WCKG, they'd improve their ratings, have over a 3.5 "combined" AAA along with WXRT to offer national advertisers, increase their share among music stations in the market, and be able to include the Chicago market on Globe national buy combos.
 
I goofed about WUSN's ownership---CBS Radio does own it.

Nevertheless, WUSN isn't going to flip; sliding from 3.6-3.3 in the fallbook wasn't all that surprising, considering the run of 'Da Bears', major shakeups in the on-air lineup, record ratings in the market for an all-Christmas format, and jumping from #6 to #4 in mornings (non-ethnic) with a new morning show was pleasing for PD Mike Peterson, as he told Lon Helton earlier this year.

Jumping from 3.3 to a 4.7 in Women 25-54 in mornings (fourth non-ethnic) is a clear indicator that WUSN certainly isn't going anywhere anytime soon, especially with a HUGE cume with TONS of disposable income which advertisers are VERY addicted to!!!!
 
Marv-L.A. said:
LA and SF now have country stations; KKGO-L.A. features Shawn Parr in mornings with an HYSTERICAL show
Click to expand...

why do you push Shawn's "hysterical" morning show in every post?
 
WUSN=Not going anywhere. Its way too popular.


Maybe down the line (I doubt it) I could see WXRT revamping as "The Globe" but I don't think the dedicated listeners would take it well.
 
romer979 posted...
Quote from: Marv-L.A. on March 10, 2007, 06:30:57 pm
LA and SF now have country stations; KKGO-L.A. features Shawn Parr in mornings with an HYSTERICAL show

why do you push Shawn's "hysterical" morning show in every post?


Romer, I've noticed the same thing. He also tells us how bad KZLA's morning show was with Peter Tilden at the helm. It's like an obsession. But to be fair to Marv, Shawn Parr IS a HUGE improvement over Tilden. SP is THE ambassador of country music in SoCal. He was, as Barbara Mandrell likes to say, country when country wasn't cool. He's upbeat, very listener friendly, and his humor is more mainstream than Peter's. Now Tilden was a great talk personality, but he was very clueless about country music. He admits he never listened until he was hired at KZLA. It was difficult to listen to him on a country station. I also noticed on the old KZLA website that SP was everywhere, posing for pics with listeners, always with a smile on his face. On the morning show pics, Peter always had his shades on, and he never smiled, always looking like he'd rather be somewhere else.

Maybe Marv can answer this question: if PT's morning show was the lowest rated English speaking morning show in LA ( as you say) why did he hold the job for nearly 7 years. Why wasn't Shawn moved back to mornings from middays? Perhaps PT's ratings weren't that bad.
 
Mr1derful posted:
I also noticed on the old KZLA website that SP was everywhere, posing for pics with listeners, always with a smile on his face. On the morning show pics, Peter always had his shades on, and he never smiled, always looking like he'd rather be somewhere else.


I heard Peter Tilden going back to when he first did mornings in L A in the late 80's. Suffice to say, Tilden isn't the only one who would rather he be somewhere else! Maybe even he can't take hearing himself anymore.
 
chgodave said:
I agree that CBS won't change US99 from country. US99 continues to pull around a 3 overall, and that is too much of an audience to risk in the Chicago market. They are already getting burned by giving up oldies (WJMK) only to find WZZN now pulling over a 2.6, which is what they gave up for JACK-FM, which has yet to show that sort of share promise, even if reaching a slightly different demographic.
Click to expand...
Don't forget that both Landecker & Biondi love to play the same old songs over and over again, just like they did when they where on WJMK;when it used to be an oldies station. Thats why WJMK pull the plug on the oldies format and switch it over to Jack FM...
 
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