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At Rock WCCC/Hartford, night talent Slater departs. As a result, overnighter Craig The Pornstar moves up to nights.
One more reason why what remains of truly "local" radio is starting to lose its identity. There I was this afternoon reading up on radio news from an industry source, as usual.
There was a story about WCCC Hartford losing its night personality and moving up its overnight host to replace him. At least that's what it should have been. Maybe I'm too old school for today, but I seem to like personalities that have names. Even if they aren't the real names, I can accept "Tom Jones" or "Bill Scott", etc.
Well, not anymore. The night personality who departed - "Slater". Sorry, but I can't identify with that. Male? Female? First name? Last name? Name of a movie? If it is "Bill Scott", my mind is comforted because I can listen to or read about a man and his program, even if I have no idea what he looks like or what his "real" name might be.
It didn't stop there. The all night personality moving up to nights to replace Slater? According to the story from an official industry source, the new night personality on WCCC will be......
"Craig the Pornstar"
Now, I would get it if I were listening to his show and he used that once or twice as a fun bit or a joke. However, unless the station is totally in existence to serve teenage boys, using this as a regular moniker doesn't make a whole lot of sense.
How is a longtime Hartford area resident supposed to identify with Craig the Pornstar? Could you tell your friends that you listen to him? Would you really go to an appearance? So you might like the music and the station, but now this sort of a name takes away the identity of the person.
It's either that or listen to "Bill Scott" on a national show or satellite playing the music, with no references to your local community. Some choices.
And they wonder why the AM and FM audiences are not what they used to be?
A recent article in the Columbus Dispatch caught my attention, given its partial focus on the death of jazz radio stations.
I have nothing against jazz stations, but have long believed that these stations really attracted a small niche audience while many others found it hip to act as though they listen. Back in the early 80's, I was a partner in an upstart radio ratings service in the Midwest which reported specifically on in-car radio listening. That research confirmed my belief, even then, that people sometimes reported what they considered "hip" stations to make it appear they were listening.
There was one survey of more than 3,000 drivers showing what they were listening to at the moment of the interview, and it showed a grand total of one person listening to a jazz station. That was among the findings which were NOT in line with the diary system also in use.
Since the PPM method has been introduced, and as the article points out, several jazz radio stations have bitten the dust. It doesn't surprise me one bit.
Considering that audience measurement is primarily for advertisers and potential radio advertisers, finding the truth about listening habits is the most important gain.
Stations should not be concerned about the jazz format, especially with satellite and online channels playing jazz for the small and niche audience that wants it. Rather, they should be concerned with getting the audiences to return to radio. With the trend of tighter and tighter playlists, endless clusters of commercials, and reduced local programming, this is where the stations should be concerned.
http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/business/stories/2010/06/13/why-radios-changing-its-tune.html?sid=101
Another example of looking at this week's bottom line as opposed to months down the road. WWWQ Atlanta's morning show "The Bert Show" will be simulcast starting next week.
What's the big deal? The station that will also air it happens to be WNFN, which is in Nashville.
Don't these station manager's look at the possible consequences? Sure, this week they are giddy because they are paying for one morning show production and now airing it on 2 stations.
However, in Atlanta, listeners could either hear about Nashville, which is of no use to them in the morning, if that is the direction The Bert Show takes. If the show does include Nashville related content, it will totally bore the established Atlanta audience, which could scan the dial in search of more local content, and put the current success at risk. If the show does not include Nashville related content, then there is much less of an appeal to Nashville listeners. Instead they could compare The Bert Show to other syndicated content or stick with a truly local show.
Either way, this decision, albeit to save money now, could hurt the ratings for one or both in the long run.
Look before you leap.
