I can't figure out what M-10 is trying to do with 1370. Methinks this new move will fail just like all of their previous attempts. There were other directions they could've gone, but chose not to.
Granted, some things must be understood about 1370's situation. To start, the station has a horrible nighttime signal. That 7,700 watts is totally ineffective as it is highly directional and gets 'stomped on' mostly by WXXI in Rochester NY. Even with the power boost to 24,000 watts, I still question how effective it will be. I think that it might've been better to keep the daytime frequency and power but retaining the 1360 frequency and 1,500 or so watts for nighttime operations. True, the signal wasn't all that great, but it was more effective. Next, with an AM station that's not a major player (as 1370 is) you had better damned well have something worth tuning in, or you're toast! With WJZ AM/FM being major players, with WNST having some respect as a small operation and with WBAL while far from having a full-time sports format still having some respect in that arena, you had better have some trick up your sleeve if you're to ever make it in such a tight market. When you consider that 1370 had the lowest ratings of ALL of Baltimore's Sports stations, it speaks volumes. Even Washington DC, a bigger market than Baltimore, has only three full-time Sports stations.
Frankly, I think that the oldies format they had didn't need so much a replacement as much as it needed 'tweaking'. Other avenues that the powers that be should've considered include classic country, a traditional MOR not too dissimilar to that of either WROW Albany NY or the new WKCW Warrenton VA, or maybe an affiliate of the 24/7 Comedy Radio Network
http://247comedy.com/.
With all this said, my suggestion to the Mangiones would be to seriously consider the direction they intend to take 1370 for the future and NOT resort to some half-assed decision! This is just what has happened since they dropped the oldies format a few years ago.
