WLAC Storm Coverage

[nashbear]

FYI...

There's been talk about the storm coverage, or lack thereof, on Nashville's airwaves.

Steve Gill & the gang at WLAC have been covering the problems non-stop since about 10 Sunday morning.

Folks affected are calling in, interviews with Emergency officials & rescuers, and the latest on power outages, road & school closures.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

What was coverage like prior to 10 A.M. today.

I made a phone call to Huntsville, AL about 7:30 last night. I have a daughter in Nashville. The person I called has a daughter in Nashville. The person I called was zeroed in on broadcast coverage and Internet information and was telling me at 7:30 Saturday night about flooding, closed Interstates, and 10 to 12 inches of rain.

What was Nashville broadcasting doing Saturday evening and overnight?

 

[K4WRF]

From what I have heard of radio, 99.7WTN on again off again, 1510 WLAC the same,The rest are playing music. They both seem to on top of it now but thats about it! TV coverage has been very good...

 

[Wind]

This makes me sick! Radio has missed the boat on this big time!

 

[loves radio 2]

FYI...

There's been talk about the storm coverage, or lack thereof, on Nashville's airwaves.

Steve Gill & the gang at WLAC have been covering the problems non-stop since about 10 Sunday morning.

Folks affected are calling in, interviews with Emergency officials & rescuers, and the latest on power outages, road & school closures.

I tuned in after 10am and heard something besides storm coverage.

 

[loves radio 2]

What was coverage like prior to 10 A.M. today.

I made a phone call to Huntsville, AL about 7:30 last night. I have a daughter in Nashville. The person I called has a daughter in Nashville. The person I called was zeroed in on broadcast coverage and Internet information and was telling me at 7:30 Saturday night about flooding, closed Interstates, and 10 to 12 inches of rain.

What was Nashville broadcasting doing Saturday evening and overnight?

TV covered it. Radio didn't, except for 99.7 at times.

 

[KR4BD]

Really....What do you expect? Radio is almost totally automated and hardly anyone has a local news department anymore. I live in Central Kentucky, where it is flooding too, and noticed that WSM even had LIVE cut-ins overnight last night with flood warnings, etc. It was not "wall to wall" coverage, but WSM is usually on autopilot after midnight and to hear a LIVE voice with flood warnings is a step in the right direction.

 

[RadioNashville]

I personally tune into radio to hear music however, having done alot of driving around this afternoon seeing the unbelievable damage I needed talk and luckily got a lot of it from Butter on 107.5 The River. I know he had to be doing it all live because they were taking call after call from listeners describing the roads and conditions where they were. They had school closings, road closures even reporting that Nashville had been declared a disaster area. How can you get any more live and on top of it than that?? I heard them even air Mayor Dean's press conference. I know the River is a Clear Channel station so its sister station WLAC should be commended as well (I flipped over to them and there was plenty of coverage). With that I just want to say to you people that are slamming Nashville radio for missing the boat, should actually get in a boat and float on out of town. Kudos to 1075 The River and WLAC for being there live and in the thick of a still dangerous flooding situation.

 

[loves radio 2]

I personally tune into radio to hear music however, having done alot of driving around this afternoon seeing the unbelievable damage I needed talk and luckily got a lot of it from Butter on 107.5 The River. I know he had to be doing it all live because they were taking call after call from listeners describing the roads and conditions where they were. They had school closings, road closures even reporting that Nashville had been declared a disaster area. How can you get any more live and on top of it than that?? I heard them even air Mayor Dean's press conference. I know the River is a Clear Channel station so its sister station WLAC should be commended as well (I flipped over to them and there was plenty of coverage). With that I just want to say to you people that are slamming Nashville radio for missing the boat, should actually get in a boat and float on out of town. Kudos to 1075 The River and WLAC for being there live and in the thick of a still dangerous flooding situation.

I dont have to get on a boat and float out of town as I live in an adjoining county. ;D When I tuned into WLAC(and it was more than once) I heard NO storm coverage. Kudos to the TV stations for almost wall-to-wall coverage.

 

[jetfli]

We were without cable or internet for over 24 hours and the one place we had to get coverage (other than friends and family calling us) was by radio. Listened to the Kentucky Derby on radio. But no station we could find offered us storm/flood coverage.

 

[NashvilleNative]

I miss the days that WTVF ch5 was broadcast on 1430AM. When listening to 650AM it sounded just like a weather radio with recorded messages. i too was without power most of the day and would've liked coverage on the radio. Don't get me started on Dish Network's reliability this weekend.

 

[ShadowB]

At one time I was in radio and I am ashamed of the lack of info and coverage it is giving this disaster we are experiencing in Middle Tennessee!

 

[ShadowB]

Jet it was so nice to hear a ball game this afternoon..and music on KDF

 

[NashvilleNative]

I just turned on what I thought was 105.9-3HD (WLAC), but was actually 105.9-1 the rock with traffic/weather from callers. I'm not sure the "DJs" but one sounds like either Woody or Jim from sister station WRVW- I could be wrong on that.

 

[briancraig]

Local TV usually does an excellent job on severe weather coverage.

Do any of the radio stations have a relationship with one of the tv stations where they could just carry the audio of the tv coverage?

This would be a service for those who have lost cable or power and are depending on a battery operated radio for what could end up being life saving information.

 

[ShadowB]

WGFX and WKDF run weather forcasts but NOTHING for this!

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

Really....What do you expect? Radio is almost totally automated and hardly anyone has a local news department anymore. I live in Central Kentucky, where it is flooding too, and noticed that WSM even had LIVE cut-ins overnight last night with flood warnings, etc. It was not "wall to wall" coverage, but WSM is usually on autopilot after midnight and to hear a LIVE voice with flood warnings is a step in the right direction.

From your message I conclude you are willing to accept a condition within the industry that I am too old-fashioned to get warm and fuzzy with.

I clearly remember the day I say my first radio station automation machine. It was simple but it was a beginning. I have been a supporting advocate of automation benefits ever since that day in 1959. However, I am an even stronger supporting advocate of having the people, policy and planning in place to shut the damn thing off and put live human beings on the air when appropriate. That used to mean getting PEOPLE into the studio. Today I could sit here in my above-the-garage home studio, turn on the TV, get on the phone, and through the abilities of a properly designed automation machine go live with the kind of information people need to know when driving down the highway and over the next little hill they are going to plunge into water five feet deep before they can get the car stopped. Television is NOT the method to serve those people in that car.

As long a radio continues to exit we will have arguments about what should be included in the programming content. I would not want to be a station owner called in before a committee of The Congress (like the bankers were last week) to explain why, when my community was being pounded by 10 or 12 inches of rain in a short period of time why I chose to sit home and let some creature that is the current day descendant of a 1960s Seeburg jukebox that married a Burroughs posting machine from the local bank grind away like an iPod.

 

[radiorob2.0]

Allow me to add this dynamic.....

If you had power, then the information source was local television. But if you lost power, radio is all you had.

Remember, analog battery televisions are now paperweights. The few and far between battery powered digital televisions are oddball brands with sealed rechargeable battery packs. This could be a problem when the battery runs down assuming you would be able to receive a usable, consistent signal.

 

[JustinT]

I just turned on what I thought was 105.9-3HD (WLAC), but was actually 105.9-1 the rock with traffic/weather from callers. I'm not sure the "DJs" but one sounds like either Woody or Jim from sister station WRVW- I could be wrong on that.

WLAC has been simulcasting on 97.9 and 105.9 all evening - with 101.1 and 107.5 doing their own thing. One of the personalities acknowledged that they had a limited staff and greatly appreciated the listeners' input.

Over on the TV side, not sure if anyone noticed but with MetroCenter evacuated, WZTV was unable to do their 9 p.m. newscast tonight. WZTV/WNAB/WUXP surely have master control elsewhere since they're all still on with regular programming. Seeing as WPLN is right next door, they were evacuated as well, but since their overnights are satellite-delivered classical music there's no changes to notice there.

 

[w9wi]

Over on the TV side, not sure if anyone noticed but with MetroCenter evacuated, WZTV was unable to do their 9 p.m. newscast tonight. WZTV/WNAB/WUXP surely have master control elsewhere since they're all still on with regular programming. Seeing as WPLN is right next door, they were evacuated as well, but since their overnights are satellite-delivered classical music there's no changes to notice there.

A fair number of stations seem to be off the air entirely. I'm messing with a radio I've never tried to use for broadcast reception before (it's a ham rig) but it appears the following stations are off:

WNAZ 89.1
WPLN 90.3
WRLT 100.1
WNRQ 105.9

I've heard WFFI 93.7 is off but this radio is too deaf to tell. I'm not hearing Way FM 88.7, Jazz 89, WFFH 94.1, or 102.9 The Buzz but those too may be due to a deaf radio. This thing doesn't do AM. (and I'd bet I couldn't even get WSM in this buildingful of RF noise. Did note some TV footage of their transmitter sitxxxxx Lake Concord.)

Comcast is also in the evacuated area. Right now they're still up.

There's a fair chance the Sinclair stations are operating from Metro Center on unattended automation. I know we at ch. 4 could operate that way for at least several hours if we had to evacuate.

(but if we get flooded up here y'all better be well along with your ark-building.)