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Storm Clouds on the Horizon

DavidEduardo said:


What unique skill set was required to schedule 14 songs and a coupla' extras in the Rick Sklar days of 77 WABC?

If things were as obvious and simple as you paint it, every McDonalds fry cook would be eligible to be the Chef de Cuisine at Le Bernardine in New York.
Click to expand...

I never said the problems were simple. Radio has been plagued by
Greed and stupidity for years. Now it has competition that didn't exist
20 years ago. CEOs who know the cost of everything and the
value of nothing share responsibility for the demise. They helped
make the product on the air valueless...
 
tbolt909 said:
I never said the problems were simple. Radio has been plagued by
Greed and stupidity for years. Now it has competition that didn't exist
20 years ago. CEOs who know the cost of everything and the
value of nothing share responsibility for the demise. They helped
make the product on the air valueless...
Click to expand...

Your Honer, please instruct the witness to answer the question.

What unique skill set was required to program 14 songs and some extras at WABC when it was beating everyone in New York and many adjacent markets with its shrunken Top 40 format?

(It's a trick question, since programming a very short list in any format requires great skill, while programming lotsa' songs demonstrates a rather limited skill set and produces rather limited ratings, too. Mr. Sklar was among the best.)
 
Gee, David, do you remember any of the jocks who performed between those 14 songs at WABC when it was beating everyone in NYC and many adjacent markets? And what demographic are you referring to when it comes to those ratings? Just what was the format that made Rick Sklar a genius?
 
There is a winter storm WARNING for Buffalo and the seven counties of
Western New York. Expect blowing, drifting snow, zero visibility and
temperatures plunging to well below zero. Hazardous driving conditions
are expected and travel is discouraged except in emergency situations....
 
tbolt909 said:
CEOs who know the cost of everything and the
value of nothing share responsibility for the demise. They helped
make the product on the air valueless...
Click to expand...

And yet, 93% of the public still listen, even with all the other choices. In Buffalo, Entercom and Townsquare seem to be getting the largest share of the audience, regardless of all the negativity you bring up. I really bristle at these vague generalities about greed, stupidity, and demise. Sure there's a percentage of that around, and some of it related to the OP, but the facts say that a lot of people listen and love what they hear.

My view for the people who are worried is to focus on what you can control, which is your work. If you do good work, if you connect with audiences, if you build value and a brand that is identifiable, you'll never have to worry where your next paycheck comes from. On the other hand, if you're just there for a paycheck & benefits, nobody cares.
 
TheBigA said:
I really bristle at these vague generalities about greed, stupidity, and demise. Sure there's a percentage of that around, and some of it related to the OP, but the facts say that a lot of people listen and love what they hear.
Click to expand...

Don't waste your time with those posts - he/she is a one trick pony, posting the same drivel no matter what is said. I (almost) feel bad for them as they have such a low opinion of the business but have to return here day after day to say the same stuff.
 
tbolt909 said:
Mr. Sklar died in 1992. Not sure if his 1960s formula
for success would solve all of today's problems...
Click to expand...

My point, which you absolutely missed, is that programming a station with a very short playlist takes the most skills of all, and can often result in the greatest audience.

Stations that think "variety" and "long playlist" are the same tend to loose, with often disastrous results. So your position that "playing 200 songs" takes no skill it the opposite of the truth.
 
SirRoxalot said:
Gee, David, do you remember any of the jocks who performed between those 14 songs at WABC when it was beating everyone in NYC and many adjacent markets? And what demographic are you referring to when it comes to those ratings? Just what was the format that made Rick Sklar a genius?
Click to expand...

... playing the right songs in the right blend with the right jocks and the right jingles and the right processing for the right demos on the right signal. Among other things.

In other words, it took immense skill to put all the ingredients together to make a good product, right down to the "right" first 5 notes of the jingles, the right amount of reverb and so many other details. It was perfectly programmed for its time, and shows how hard it is to make a station with a short list successful, particularly as broadly successful as WABC, which cumed nearly 50% of the metro population.

Yes, I know the names of Dan Ingram and Cousin Brucie and a bunch of the other guys and had the opportunity to meet a number of them and to chat with Rick Sklar on several occasions and even to be in the studio when the 90 minute "play the #1 song" alert went off. I even did several of the same jingle packages as Rick did for my own stations. And I had my markets best jocks, remembered by a whole generation even today... but it was no easy job to do it. And that is my point.
 
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I guess that my point is that the format was dependent on the talent and timeliness. It connected with listeners in a way that VT and automation can't. They became legends, and made a lot of money as WABC became legendary in its market and made a lot of money. Many of them on very successfully long after WABC was a shadow of its former self. We have precious little investment in timely, live programming that relates to listeners these days. The formats that actually do it - like talk - still generate better ratings over the long haul than the jukeboxes that simply crank out the same over-tested songs day after day. Talent makes a difference, and is generally a wise investment whether we're talking programming, sales, or management. Cumulus and iHeart have lost too much of it. At least Cumulus recognizes that, but it may be too late for them to recover.
 
SirRoxalot said:
I guess that my point is that the format was dependent on the talent and timeliness. ]
Click to expand...

No, the format was not just dependent on that. It was dependent on playing the right songs in the right rotations at the right moment, and the music was the main reason people came. But the glue that held the music together was the way the jocks, the jingles, the promotions and even the way the FCC required news and "other" elements were done.

Like a favorite recipe, it did not depend on one ingredient, but all of them blended and prepared just right.

The same jocks with poorly selected music would have failed.
 
And the same music with poorly selected jocks would have failed - and did, in a lot of markets.
 
SirRoxalot said:
And the same music with poorly selected jocks would have failed - and did, in a lot of markets.
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But it is not just the jocks or just the music or just the combination of the two... it is that and all the other ingredients right down to the clock structure, rotational mechanics, the audio, the contests and so much more. Like I said, it took a great recipe. The credit goes to the cook, not the ingredients.
 
I think both sets of reasoning expressed in the preceding two posts are valid. The clock was ticking on WABC, and the recipe, cooks and waiters were dethroned by a changing culture, music, and demographics shifts, as Disco 92 WKTU swept the ratings. It was inevitable. Sklar was great in his time, and passed too soon. Yet, great as he was, he wouldn't be able to prevent the seismic shifts. You can have a great recipe but when another restaurant does you one or two better, and people tire of your secret sauce, it's time to evolve. WABC became a talk station. IMHO, WKBW was a far better station, with better music and better air personalities. The same fate befell the Mighty 1520. Today, it's not even a mere shadow of its once great past.
 
So I see here in Buffalo all Cumulus stations are saving money to increase that stock price by turning off their HD txmtrs. I talked to the local PD and they have no plans to turn them back on. So I guess putting 1270 on HD2 or any new programming is out of the question. I know there is still a low adoption rate but it does not help any new receiver sales if it is off.
 
WJPYFM said:
So I see here in Buffalo all Cumulus stations are saving money to increase that stock price by turning off their HD txmtrs.
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This is not about the amount of money saved by turning off the HD transmitters, but is essentially a statement about the viability of HD, not a money saving step. What they will save in electricity, licensing rights and maintenance costs would not buy a low-end Kia.

I talked to the local PD and they have no plans to turn them back on. So I guess putting 1270 on HD2 or any new programming is out of the question. I know there is still a low adoption rate but it does not help any new receiver sales if it is off.
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Broadcasters do not make any money off of HD receiver sales. WHLD is such a terrible night facility and HD will not add, essentially, any listenership so what would be the point?
 
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So overall, about a dozen people will be disappointed by Cumulus' decision to turn off the HD. IIRC, only 103.3 and 96.9 broadcast in HD. 104.1 did not. BTW, 1270 AM isn't such a great daytime signal, either.
 
Element9 said:
So overall, about a dozen people will be disappointed by Cumulus' decision to turn off the HD. IIRC, only 103.3 and 96.9 broadcast in HD. 104.1 did not. BTW, 1270 AM isn't such a great daytime signal, either.
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:rolleyes: How many AMs at 1270 actually have a great signal?

And you are right... that one ain't one of them.
 
DavidEduardo said:


This is not about the amount of money saved by turning off the HD transmitters, but is essentially a statement about the viability of HD, not a money saving step. What they will save in electricity, licensing rights and maintenance costs would not buy a low-end Kia.



Broadcasters do not make any money off of HD receiver sales. WHLD is such a terrible night facility and HD will not add, essentially, any listenership so what would be the point?
Click to expand...

Next you're gonna tell me AM stereo was a failure. :rolleyes:

For quite a few years, I haven't known ANYONE if the bizz that didn't think the whole HD thing was a colossal waste of time and money.

Why were those in a position to make the big decisions so clueless about this?
 
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