Should These Stations Be Saved?

Would radio be better off with less stations? Do fewer stations, particularly mainstream FM music outlets, give the audience less to listen to and thus decrease listeners’ chances of choosing radio over other media? Or does a contracting dial make the radio business more viable for the stations that stay? Some broadcasters have been very vocal in their support of the latter scenario.

I still hear stations that make me feel good about the state of radio. But a few weeks ago, during my workday listening, I came across a succession of radio stations that were unhosted in middays. The stations were in a variety of markets and formats. At least one of them was not supposed to be jockless during those hours, according to its website; this being late August, it’s possible the station simply decided not to cover a vacation shift.

Sometimes these stations are not just unhosted, but feel untended. I often encounter a certain type of station, which in addition to being jockless, is also:

• Doing a mainstream format, one that is not exclusive to the market;
• In the low 2-share range, probably slightly better in demo;
• A chart reporter, but not playing any significant new music;
• Minimally imaged — mostly the positioner, maybe a “download our app” promo;
• In no way local — not even the now commonplace “names of suburbs” sweeper.

If I were to read about one of these stations being sold to religious broadcasters, repurposed to simulcast a mostly syndicated Sports Talk AM, or just shut down, I would be saddened. But hearing those stations are disheartening, too, particularly knowing that the minimally executed on-air product was not the likely sum of the owner’s ambitions in happier times.

Because I encounter this sort of station on an ongoing basis, as do most ROR readers, there’s no referendum on any single station intended by asking “are sustenance-level stations worth saving?” For roughly two-thirds of the Facebook friends to whom this question was poised, the answer is no.

“I’d shut it down. We are over-radioed in too many markets. Do we really need all the AM, FM, and HD channels we have? Fewer signals could mean more dollars for those who remain” – Now! Media’s Tony Garcia, whose Bob & Sheri show just announced its intention to leave broadcast radio for a subscription model.

“Every station that is turned off, if it is truly not making money, is beneficial to those that remain. Commercial rates could go up because the pea-shooters added to the band as far back as Docket 80/90 have jammed the [AM/FM] bands with stations that can’t be saved”—Cox Radio Dayton, Ohio, veteran Kevin Fodor.

“If it’s a terribly maintained station that shows no signs of improvement under the current ownership, my vote is shut it down and why even bother? … Let the stations thriving continue to thrive and be the standard” –KVOO (Big Country) Tulsa, Okla., PD Tanner Messer.

For some readers, the issue was that devoting a few more resources to a sustenance-level station wouldn’t make a difference. “Having 2% market share of any local industry is not a viable business. Hiring a local host or two won’t do anything meaningful,” says former Sacramento broadcaster Rico Garcia. 

Longtime Chicago PD Bruce Cole sees “the cost of maintaining the license” as “a break-even at best. So, unless whatever numbers I’m pulling are helping me in some ancillary way, please direct me to the plug, because I’m pulling it.”

There were readers in favor of seeing such stations sold, not shut down. “Love it or list it,” says veteran PD Fred “Smokey Rivers” Flanzer. “If you’re not going to invest, divest,” adds WEEI Boston’s KJ Carson. “There’s always the future … It could get bought by a company that believes in the format,” says WBHJ (95.7 Jamz) Birmingham, Ala., p.m. driver Sammy Mack.

The issue with waiting for a buyer is the likelihood of a station being taken out of the commercial mainstream as a result. “I strongly dislike these kinds of stations and wouldn’t mind them being sold off to KLOVE or something similar,” says Jason Steiner. But even for those who want to thin the herd, it’s rarely the rimshot or move-in signal that goes away. “More often than not, KLOVE buys from the smaller pool of good stations with a local presence.”

While KLOVE remains a specter for local broadcasters, it can be a model as well. “Take zombie stations and stop pretending to be local,” says Rubber City Radio’s Kurt Leibensperger. “Such a station would be much better off with a ‘live and national,’ or perhaps ‘live and regional’ format, such as what you hear in Europe, than as a ‘lifeless and local’ station,” says the Hit Momentum Report’s Matt Bailey.  

There were also readers who agreed with longtime programmer Allen “Cadillac Jack” Markesich that “as long as it’s on the air, the potential to change, build, and develop it further still exists.” “If I don’t have the option to crush it as a competitor, I would let it be. Someone likes it,” says WCBS-FM New York’s Dave Stewart. “We’re all radio people, so to us, this sucks. But if you take what you have and do something great with it, it can work,” adds Vinnie Marino.

Canadian reader Norm Fisher likes two Southern Ontario oldies AMs, one with some voice-tracking and one unhosted. “They both have decent playlists and are well worth listening to if you are into oldies. I would miss them if they disappeared,” he says.

What’s the upside for owners? Keeping a station in a broader cluster means that format is still in some way part of the sales portfolio. “The owner might be comfortable and happy with what he’s getting,” says Edwin Santiago. “If somebody’s still making a few bucks, no reason to shut down,” says Bill Schultz. “If somebody’s got a budget, pick the station you want to beat and we’ll do it,” he adds.

“A 2 share still means people are choosing that station,” says WTBC (Throwback 100.3) Chicago APD Rick Hall. “What worries me more is a station running with no real plan to get better. At that point, the ratings aren’t telling you what the format is capable of. Rather, that’s just an indication of what’s left after years of nobody’s trying. I’d hate to see good formats die just because they were run badly.

“So yes, it matters when one of these stations disappears. But the tragedy isn’t that it gets replaced by KLOVE or a simulcast. The tragedy actually goes back to the moment everyone in the room decided a 2 share was good enough and stopped trying.”