WOR is one of the oldest, most well-regarded radio brands in New York and the nation. It was once a sister station to WGN Chicago, when both were owned by Mutual. When we think of heritage radio stations, we think of these two and of course, KDKA Pittsburgh.
All three of the heritage radio stations broadcast on 50 kW clear channel signals and can be received far from their home markets. WOR, unfortunately, has run into an issue with Cuba, no less! When WGBS Miami, which like WOR, broadcasts on 710, flipped to Spanish talk during the 80s, a station from Cuba started broadcasting on that frequency with 100 kW. This impacted WOR's coverage in its home market. WOR's nighttime reception in Ocean County, NJ has been compromised, though it's still easily receivable during the daytime.
Then there's the programming. WOR has long been perceived as being a "geriatric" format, with programming that goes back to the 20s and 30s. Except for the time when John Gambling III was at WABC, the Gambling family has ruled AM drive on WOR for nearly the entire history of the station. Joan Hamburg has been there for nearly five decades.
WOR chief competitor, WABC, as we all know, is 100% syndicated Mon-Fri, featuring Rush, Sean, Mark Levin and others. Little attention is paid to New York area issues. Rather than plug the gap that WABC is leaving wide-open, WOR also airs mostly syndicated programmming, with Gambling and Hamburg being the only live and local shows on the station. Much of their programming is on the WOR Radio Network, which has far fewer stations than competing networks such as Premiere. WABC's consistently outrates WOR.
WOR is like an old building that needs to be refurbished, but has potential. The programming needs to be updated, taken local and migrated to FM. This needs to be done if the station is to have a future.
All three of the heritage radio stations broadcast on 50 kW clear channel signals and can be received far from their home markets. WOR, unfortunately, has run into an issue with Cuba, no less! When WGBS Miami, which like WOR, broadcasts on 710, flipped to Spanish talk during the 80s, a station from Cuba started broadcasting on that frequency with 100 kW. This impacted WOR's coverage in its home market. WOR's nighttime reception in Ocean County, NJ has been compromised, though it's still easily receivable during the daytime.
Then there's the programming. WOR has long been perceived as being a "geriatric" format, with programming that goes back to the 20s and 30s. Except for the time when John Gambling III was at WABC, the Gambling family has ruled AM drive on WOR for nearly the entire history of the station. Joan Hamburg has been there for nearly five decades.
WOR chief competitor, WABC, as we all know, is 100% syndicated Mon-Fri, featuring Rush, Sean, Mark Levin and others. Little attention is paid to New York area issues. Rather than plug the gap that WABC is leaving wide-open, WOR also airs mostly syndicated programmming, with Gambling and Hamburg being the only live and local shows on the station. Much of their programming is on the WOR Radio Network, which has far fewer stations than competing networks such as Premiere. WABC's consistently outrates WOR.
WOR is like an old building that needs to be refurbished, but has potential. The programming needs to be updated, taken local and migrated to FM. This needs to be done if the station is to have a future.
