Just saw online that the two stations are fighting for rights to broadcast Tribe games starting next season. WTAM has an easy advantage because of its signal and history. WKRK, however, is more attractive with a younger demo. One disadvantage for The Fan, the 92.3 signal. Perhaps a move to 98.5 is planned after all.
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WTAM and WKRK Bid For the Indians
- Thread starter CleveFan
- Start date
CleveFan said:
Another wild card is WMMS.
Don't get me wrong, 1100 (should CC win the bidding) will still be the main flagship, but with this little experiment of simulcasting some Friday games on 100.7, how many more games could perhaps be on the Buzzard?
CC has that option of giving the Tribe some FM airplay (at least somewhat) to counteract The Fan.
Maybe some weekend games go to MMS exclusively. Who knows?
I'm not saying this is in the cards, but it isn't out of the realm of possibility either.
CC ain't gonna let the Tribe go without a fight
CleveFan said:
I would guess at this point CBS and Clear Channel will keep bidding until the highest wins.
The Indians don't have a flagship, per se...even in Cleveland. (though some may still use that term). They have affilliates. The team totally owns their own broadcast rites, and sells a station in every market they can for as much $$$ as they can get.
I would be shocked if the CBS proposal to the Indians didn't include a carrot to move TheFan to 98.5....MUCH, MUCH better NE Ohio coverage, if they get a long-term Indians deal (like 5 years+).
Major league baseball is the perfect play-by-play sport for a sportstalk station. As incredibly popular as football is in the US, it is primarily a TV sport (16 games -vs- 162 for baseball).
I would be shocked if the CBS proposal to the Indians didn't include a carrot to move TheFan to 98.5....MUCH, MUCH better NE Ohio coverage, if they get a long-term Indians deal (like 5 years+).
Major league baseball is the perfect play-by-play sport for a sportstalk station. As incredibly popular as football is in the US, it is primarily a TV sport (16 games -vs- 162 for baseball).
vjm said:
Its not just south. I live in Lorain County and cant get WKNR at night where I live. In some areas it does come in, but not in my area. Just sayin...
If 92.3 gets the Indians, would that be a blow to WKNR?? The Fan's share of the sports market place in town would jump signifigantly.
I would like to see 92.3 and 98.5 switch as I think that would be incredibly appealing to the Indians.
I said this both on the blog and here...CBS will "back up the Brinks truck" for PBP rights for The Fan.
That appears, based on the recent reporting, to be exactly what they are doing.
How much does CC want to spend to keep the Tribe on 1100?
I'm also looking for areas that can't really get a good signal out of 92.3 that don't have an affiliate option. 92.3 is spotty in parts of Akron, but WAKR is the option there. Southwest of Cleveland, 104.5 in Wooster is a viable option. One of our Twitter followers in central Portage County said that was a hole for a 92.3/affiliate combo, though maybe there'd be some combination of WAKR, WKBN and WHBC...
That appears, based on the recent reporting, to be exactly what they are doing.
How much does CC want to spend to keep the Tribe on 1100?
I'm also looking for areas that can't really get a good signal out of 92.3 that don't have an affiliate option. 92.3 is spotty in parts of Akron, but WAKR is the option there. Southwest of Cleveland, 104.5 in Wooster is a viable option. One of our Twitter followers in central Portage County said that was a hole for a 92.3/affiliate combo, though maybe there'd be some combination of WAKR, WKBN and WHBC...
The problem with depending on network stations to fill in the signal holes of WKNR or WKRK is that pretty much none of them broadcast every single game. On Friday nights in the fall, pretty near all of the stations pre-empt the Tribe for high school football.
As long as the Tribe stinks, that really doesn't matter.
But I remember in late August 1995, when WKNR/1220 was still the flagship, I was sitting in Oberlin covering a high school football game and the Tribe was in their 1st playoff drive since 1959. I could not pick up the Indians game on the radio. I'm still mad about.
I think that if CBS gets Tribe PbP, they must move WKRK to 98.5.
As long as the Tribe stinks, that really doesn't matter.
But I remember in late August 1995, when WKNR/1220 was still the flagship, I was sitting in Oberlin covering a high school football game and the Tribe was in their 1st playoff drive since 1959. I could not pick up the Indians game on the radio. I'm still mad about.
I think that if CBS gets Tribe PbP, they must move WKRK to 98.5.
With an ownership who won't "Back the brinks truck up" to field a competitive team, and a season ticket base that's 9,000 and falling...does it even matter. This is the Tribe I grew up on...empty stadium, out of it by July 4th, and fans clamoring for the start of Browns training camp. Even with the PBP on 92.3 (or 98.5) The Fan...will it make a difference?
With a new, passionate Browns owner and a billionaire Cavs owner who's driven to win in everthing he's ever done in Dan Gilbert....the Dolans may not have much of a choice but to finally step up a little, let some of the moths escape their corporate wallets...and take some risks in free agency, trades, and player development. At least make a serious attempt to build a winner.
If the Indians keep running their organization like they have for all but 2&1/2 years of the 13 years the Dolans have owned the team....forgive me, but: by being overly cheap...the Browns, and Cavs will get the area's lions' share of sports dollars spent andsports media attention.
CBS is indeed gambling on the long-term vision of the Dolans and the Tribe organization. It's likely a pretty good gamble.
Again...I'd be amazed if TheFan stays on the marginal 92.3 frequency if they get a decent Indians contract. Don't you guys agree?
If the Indians keep running their organization like they have for all but 2&1/2 years of the 13 years the Dolans have owned the team....forgive me, but: by being overly cheap...the Browns, and Cavs will get the area's lions' share of sports dollars spent andsports media attention.
CBS is indeed gambling on the long-term vision of the Dolans and the Tribe organization. It's likely a pretty good gamble.
Again...I'd be amazed if TheFan stays on the marginal 92.3 frequency if they get a decent Indians contract. Don't you guys agree?
Tim said:
Or, sell the team. Unfortunately, Dan Gilbert can't add the Indians to the Cavaliers due to his casino ownership - MLB has a bylaw against that. The NBA obviously doesn't, and in fact, Dan isn't even the only NBA team owner with casino holdings...the owners of the Sacramento Kings have long owned The Palms off the strip in Vegas, though with their financial problems, they may have lost it by now.
BTW, you can't bet on the NBA at the sports book at The Palms, due to the Maloofs' ownership of the Kings.
You're not the only person who thinks CBS might move the Fan to 98.5 if they get the Tribe, but I'm hearing no rumors or rumblings about it. If they moved WNCX to 92.3, they'd probably gut it Radio 92.3 style.
Why should CBS move WNCX to 92.3 and put TheFan on 98.5??? Sportstalk has a much higher advertising revenue (and audience size) potential in 2012+ than the rapidly aging classic rock format.
Classic rock stations have been concerned about their aging core demos for 10 years. What once was a solid 25-54 male winner, in 2012 is mainly men age 45-64...and trending/aging towards 55+.
If a station earns most of it's income from national and larger regional advertising buys, classic rock, oldies, and adult standards are not appropriate formats to be in 2012!
One rather well-known midwest CR station has tried to "young up" their c.r. format 3 times in 15 years with disasterous results in the ratings and eventually ad revenue each time they've tried.
It's tough to play music from 4 or 5 decades on the same station and get a large audience. You end up making most of everybody unhappy and you end up with a 1% or 2% share.
So, sportstalk to 98.5? Makes all the sense and cent$ in the world. The only thing that doesn't make sense is every day that WNCX stays on 98.5.
Classic rock stations have been concerned about their aging core demos for 10 years. What once was a solid 25-54 male winner, in 2012 is mainly men age 45-64...and trending/aging towards 55+.
If a station earns most of it's income from national and larger regional advertising buys, classic rock, oldies, and adult standards are not appropriate formats to be in 2012!
One rather well-known midwest CR station has tried to "young up" their c.r. format 3 times in 15 years with disasterous results in the ratings and eventually ad revenue each time they've tried.
It's tough to play music from 4 or 5 decades on the same station and get a large audience. You end up making most of everybody unhappy and you end up with a 1% or 2% share.
So, sportstalk to 98.5? Makes all the sense and cent$ in the world. The only thing that doesn't make sense is every day that WNCX stays on 98.5.
OhioMediaWatch said:
The Maloofs did lose control of the Palms in 2010. Their ownership level is down to 2%. And because of that, they just built a new sports book that does allow betting on the NBA. You can't bet on the Celtics at any Caesars owned casino because their CEO owns a stake in the team. Its also likely that you won't be able to bet on Cavs games there (last i heard, the gaming commission hasn't decided yet) any more either since Caesars now has direct ties with Gilbert and the Cavs.
The only way Gilbert could get around the MLB rules would be to have his wife buy the Indians or transfer ownership of the casinos to another family member. The Ilitch family does something similar in Detroit. Mike owns the Tigers while Marian owns the casino. It makes a world of sense for Gilbert to want the Tribe since he could then combine sponsorship and media rights into one large entertainment company. Baseball in the summer, basketball in the fall, it almost makes too much sense not to do it.
Don't forget that Gilbert also owns the Monsters, Gladiators and I believe the Crush. Why not have a near sports monopoly in the city? He also could leverage the fact that the two arenas are next to each other, the RTA walkway, etc.
Whatever happens, the Indians certainly don't need a Cleveland affilliate who covers up to 750-miles at night...since 95% of their fans who attend games come from an approximate 100-mile radius of Progressive Field.
Perhaps if what you're hinting...that the Tribe will re-up with WTAM....perhaps it's because CBS would not guarantee TheFan moves to 98.5. The 98.5 frequency now has about a 70-75 mile coverage 24 hours a day, -vs- WTAM's 125 to 150-mile coverage in the daytime, and up to an average of 750-miles at night.
No AM station can be heard in "38 states and half of Canada" 24/7.....that's a hype that's been said on WTAM for so many years, I think even the WTAM employees believe it. The reality is...it's simply not true. (unless you count streaming on-line...LOL).
For what it's worth...the only time WTAM does sports talk weekdays is after Indians/Cavs games are over. TheFan, if they moved to 98.5 for good coverage, is sportstalk 24/7. I'd think that would have far more benefit for the Tribe.
Perhaps if what you're hinting...that the Tribe will re-up with WTAM....perhaps it's because CBS would not guarantee TheFan moves to 98.5. The 98.5 frequency now has about a 70-75 mile coverage 24 hours a day, -vs- WTAM's 125 to 150-mile coverage in the daytime, and up to an average of 750-miles at night.
No AM station can be heard in "38 states and half of Canada" 24/7.....that's a hype that's been said on WTAM for so many years, I think even the WTAM employees believe it. The reality is...it's simply not true. (unless you count streaming on-line...LOL).
For what it's worth...the only time WTAM does sports talk weekdays is after Indians/Cavs games are over. TheFan, if they moved to 98.5 for good coverage, is sportstalk 24/7. I'd think that would have far more benefit for the Tribe.
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