WIQI News Fails, Here are alternate suggestions

[radioman148]

I think an FM talk station that has a Chicago focus could be a good idea. Perhaps an FM sports talk station. It could affiliate with the new NBC Sports network whenever it rolls out. Maybe even a talk/sports merger where it's regular talk in the day and sports at night and weekends.

Yeah, the Score sucks. It's just all Bears or all Sox ALL THE TIME. Cover the Hawks, Cubs, and college football for crying out loud. The Score also should change its callsign WCSR and call themselves Commercial Sox Radio. They have more commercials than actual sports talk on there. I really hate that station. WMVP has a huge opportunity to take a piece of their ratings but they are actually a bad carbon copy of a bad sports station, WSCR.

If done right a REAL sports station like you suggest might do OK.

The Score covers the Cubs a helluva lot more than WGN covers the Sox. They also cover the Bulls quite a bit. The Bears are the most popular team in Chicago and almost always the biggest sports story.
I do agree that their commercial load is ridiculously high, but as we all know it's all about the $$$$.

 

[audioguy]

I say make it classical. Chicago needs a classical alternative to challenge the snobs at WFMT. I'm a member, but I can't have that station on at work. Way too distracting-- too much obscure music. Something along the lines of the Classical 24 network would be awesome!

 

[uncamark]

I say make it classical. Chicago needs a classical alternative to challenge the snobs at WFMT. I'm a member, but I can't have that station on at work. Way too distracting-- too much obscure music. Something along the lines of the Classical 24 network would be awesome!

And please tell us how many markets are left with two competing commercial classical music stations. Hell, how many markets are left with *any* competing classical music stations, commercial or non-com, since MPR bought WCAL in the Twin Cities and flipped it to the Current? Classical's a dying format on commercial radio (and it ain't doing all that well on the non-com side, as well).

 

[audioguy]

I think it would be wonderful to have another classical station. A great city like Chicago deserves to have more than one station broadcasting classical and fine arts programming. Since people are expressing their opinions here, that is mine.

What I think we don't need: yet another pop/rock station, another station broadcasting oldies, another time brokered station, another religious station, another news station broadcasting the same crap over and over, another jock itch station, another angry talk station. Or another waste of valuable radio spectrum brought about by broadcasting the same program on two bands.

This is the problem with our broadcasting system. When it's all about the money, all you get is garbage. The media companies just think a broadcasting license is a money dispenser. They don't care about putting anything meaningful, worthwhile, or enriching on the air.

Incidentally, I do know of places where there are multiple classical stations in the same listening area. Thankfully.

 

[scanman1]

If Q101 can't make a comeback, how about a 70's, 80's and 90's Classic Hits format, done in high energy, Top 40 style. That type of programming would spend considerable time tuned in on my radio!

Isn't that called K-Hits? or 100.3? or the Drive?

No, K-Hits is based on the 70's. Rewind 100.3 is a bit on the boring side personality wise, and with its otherwise great ratings, could use a competitor. And, no, the Drive is Classic Rock not Classic Pop.

 

[aa9vi]

Why not a second country station?

 

[RadioVeep]

A second country station is a great idea, but not for WIQI. I think they need to stick with the news format and just tinker with it. The morning news in Philly is a good model IF you do eveything local and NOT out of New York. If I hearanother mispronunciation from their news guy I will throw a brick through the radio.

 

[MarkW]

I think they need to stick with the news format and just tinker with it.

Yeah, because there are SO many examples of major market stations that grab a 0.5 share or less for months on end that ultimately become success stories.

One of four things will happen:
--The station will evolve to a modern-day version of WCKG plus some news & service elements
--ESPN will purchase it. ESPN 1000's programming will move to 101.1 FM; AM1000 will become ESPN Deportes.
--Educational Media Foundation will buy it & move the K-Love format from 94.3 to 101.1.
--Either Hubbard or Cumulus will accumulate enough cash to buy it & add it to their existing clusters. (Would be very interesting to see Hubbard own 100.3 - 101.1 - 101.9; three stations next door to each other!)

 

[recto101]

OK how about Cumulus take over WIQI-FM, WEMP-FM and Keep the all-news format but make it more like WINS-AM and have more ABC-I content and make WLS run with the ABC-E affiliation.

 

[justpassingthough]

In Los Angeles, we have a rhythmic classics station in KDAY that largely plays 90s and early 2000s hip hop and r&b. I always wondered what it could do on a better signal. I think Chicago could support a station due to the ethnic and age compositions of the market. It apparently couldn't do much worse than the current format.