Air America loses another Clear Channel Station

[Rick Myers]

Madison, WI's 92.1 The Mic will dump AAR AND Jones Radio's Steph and Eddie effective 31 Dec 2006.

The are switching to FOX SPORTS RADIO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:grr:

[hlthe2b]

1. 'Sorry, Madison... This sucks... but

at least it affects "Big Eddie" this time around, so that he can't just carp at how stupid AAR is vis a vis, how "smart" a business man HE is....:eyes:

I wish a consortium of BIG TIME progressive donors could get their act together to buy Clear Channel.... Soros? Ted?

[Bluzmann57]

2. We are losing our progressive talk here too.

Yep, you guessed it. Clear Channel station. It was bought by some alleged religious guy. He wants to change it over to "religious talk", whatever that means. He also graduated from Bob Jones University. Satellite radio, here I come.

[maseman]

3. Where's "here?"

[Bluzmann57]

5. Quad-Cities of Iowa and Illinois

Sorry, I guess I should have said that in my original post.

[Greyhound]

6. Did the same thing here. Fortunately we have Dr. Mike and they got a

new station (and if you cock your head slightly to the left while pointing the antenna true north, during a lunar eclipse, you can pick up the signal) to call home. But same thing, numbers were taking off and suddenly a Xtian media company buys the station out from under them.

After AA's bankruptcy they became Novamradio and carry most of the AA programs plus Mike Malloy.

[Kolesar]

4. The new "digital radio" stations should pick up AA instead of the Classic Rock ....

...clones of the original channel that they seem to be adding. The Cleveland market has about 5 stations noting a digital channel and none of them are profoundly different from their "main" format.

[KharmaTrain]

7. And you get a digital radio where?

Digital radio is a bust-out...joining AM stereo as a major waste of money. Also try finding a radio. Ibiquity, the company that owns all the copyrights to the digital system, has only car radios available and those are either on back-order or will set up back #400 a throw. And for what?

Air America will probably vanish early next year and many of the affiliates are making their plans now. Also, unfortunately, some have suffered from very poor ratings, no promotion and revenues. Clear Channel now looks like it'll be sold to a vulture capital firm and most of their stations will either be sold or shut off. Next year will be an interesting one in radio.

Also, be looking for IPODs and Cellphone streaming to finally get to the U.S....providing a cheaper digital alternative...and will make it easier for people to listen to no just AAR but a wide variety of programming that is currently out on the internet and soon will be fed wireless to a worldwide audience.

[Kolesar]

15. There's the $250 Boston Acoustics table radio, IIRC

I was going to wait until the prices fell. Considering how they are promoting digital radio on the Crutchfield commercials, I thought this was a go.

www.crutchfield.com www.ccrane.com

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-8Kl3Dqed58n/cgi-bin/prodview.asp?i=065HDRADIO&g=84400&search=HD+Radio

[KharmaTrain]

16. Too Little Too Late...

This reminds me of the AM Stereo mess...stations invested thousands in equipment and radios were impossible to come by. It flopped...and if Ibiquity doesn't loosen up their licensing and get more of these radios out on the market they're doomed as well. Most people I know don't know know about Digital Radio...many think its Internet Broadcasting or Satellite Radio...and then when I explain the typical answer is "what do I need this for...my current radio is fine".

For the longest time those radios were on 6 week or longer back order...looks like it's in stock. I'd buy one just to add to my collection of old and obsolete radios.

The good news is there new technologies that are coming online...and eventually all these will converge...radio, television, internet, satellite...we're starting to see it happen. This is a threat to the "old world" broadcasters like Clear Channel who spent billions on stations that are depreciating and have invested heavily in technologies that have yet to see a significant return.

Cheers...

[LTR]

17. HD Radio

Circuit City just started selling equipment for it, starting at $150.

And putting AAR on an HD sub-channel is not an unheard-of concept. There's a station in Sheridan, WY doing that currently.

I'll give it a little time before I condemn it to the world of AM stereo. But I agree that the rollout has been pretty sloppy.

I think what's really going to hurt radio is the expansion of Wi-Fi. There's already portable radios out there designed for picking up streaming audio, and the sound quality of streaming audio is rapidly improving. Once Wi-Fi is widespread, we really won't need to rely on terrestrial radio.

[AllieB]

8. Stephanie Miller said it's the #1 station in Madison

and they're going to an all-sports format? :shrug:

[maseman]

10. She's nearly correct

It is the number one rated Talk station. But their ratings are VERRY impressive. I could't believe it when I saw Clear Channel was dumping it. It was clearly NOT due to ratings.

[valerief]

9. Well, after all, there really isn't enough sports on radio nowadays.

NOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:mad:

[Strelnikov_]

11. Commercial Progressive/Liberal Radio Is Not Viable

Why people expect power to support those talking truth to power is beyond me.

There is a ready market of over 40% of the populace in even the reddest of areas that are not currently served by political talk radio. What every business model requires, a ready-made market.

Problem is, the money boys (advertisers, station owners) are from the other side of the political divide, and most apparently would prefer to lose money. Even worse, they are now apparently buying up AAR affiliates with good numbers in order to push them off the air. No station, no problem.

So much for the free market.

Instead of trying to ‘fight the last war’, that is, model progressive talk radio after Reich-Wing radio, a different (and not really innovative), approach is needed.

This approach is . . . . use the NPR model.

In larger, left leaning cities, commercial Progressive radio will be viable due to the critical mass of advertisers. In smaller, or redder, markets, where most of the advertisers are prejudiced, funding would come from the ‘Corporation For Progressive Radio’ to offset losses.

As Liberals/Progressives, we would need to donate $100/200 a year to the corporation (I used to donate this much to NPR). If 1/6 of Kerry voters donated $100/yr., $1 B a year could be raised.

My belief is that until those in the Red areas (Phoenix, Missoula, Atlanta, etc. etc.) are provided access to an alternative to Reich-Wing propaganda radio, Progressive politicians will make limited inroads. Some discount the effect of Reich-Wing propaganda radio on the political shift, and dumbing down, of the electorate, particularly the ‘working class’. I do not. Radio is low cost (for the consumer), convenient, and pervasive among the ‘working class’.

One other change is that the on-air ‘personalities’ would need to accept that they are part of a movement, and park their ego, and need for $1 M/yr paychecks, at the door.

My experience with all cities, and particularly ‘Red’ cities (St. Louis, Kansas City, Denver, Des Moines, Albuquerque), is that the older/university neighborhoods are ‘Blue’, surrounded by ‘Red’ suburbs which are the enclaves of the middle and ‘working’ classes. That is, the part of the electorate that has been consistently voting against their best interest. Therefore, the primary strategy would be to ‘serve’ these areas. The ‘Blue’ would provide a critical mass of funds, with the CPR providing funds to keep the enterprise ‘just in the black’.

A secondary strategy would be a salient into smaller markets with larger universities (Columbia, MO, Springfield,. MO, Iowa City/Cedar Rapids, IA, Fort Collins, CO) and therefore a younger demographic. The dynamic in these smaller cities would be similar to the larger cities, with the relatively large progressive base proving the revenue to operate nearly self-sufficient.

A third, and probably most important, strategy, will be an air-drops into (typically ‘Red’) smaller cities that are rural regional centers (Quincy, IL, Topeka, KS, Waterloo, IA, Quad Cities, IA). These operations would probably require the most funds from the CPR.

Parallel to all of the above, ownership of stations should be the priority, or the sorry situation in Missoula, Phoenix, Davenport, madison, etc. etc. will simply continue. With an adequately funded CPR, when a station comes up for sale, they would be ready. On-line funding drives could even be effected to raise funds to outbid the Christo/Corporatist oligarchy.

[Tinksrival]

12. My progressive talk in Chicago

is all PSAs now. I don't hear any advertising. With that corporate black list how can it compete?:mad:

[Mika]

20. In Miami, Al Franken show has almost no advertisers.

Most of the breaks are the show's Grateful Dead filler. It can't last much longer. :(

All of the other shows on Miami's AM 940 have adv support.

[LTR]

21. Ed Shultz has been talking about the positive advertiser support in Miami

Even named a few on-air (see post #19).

I get the feeling that Franken will be gone from radio soon. He's rumored to be leaving in December, and several stations have replaced him with Thom Hartmann.

Glad to hear WINZ has advertisers, though. I've heard the station is doing very well.

[Wesley Lake]

13. outrage sells

Consider AAR a failed experiment & an example of how not to do progressive radio in terms of management & programming. The good things about AAR will be taken up & used in subsequent progressive radio concepts. The idea of a 24/7 progressive station may not be commercially viable anywhere, & certainly not in a state that banned gay marriage and civil unions with 59%. Even a lot of the "liberals" there must be pretty screwed up. But a lineup of popular syndicated liberal talk shows is possible. I think a commercial context pushes hosts to be more, not less, outrageous. Outrage sells. I'm all for borderline libel, wild accusations & the spreading of unfounded rumor as long as they are directed against the right.

[VOX]

14. Clear Channel really should check out the latest election returns...

It might be in their best interests to *liberally* (heh heh) ADD Air America programming to their stable. :rofl:

[SouthernBelle82]

18. It's really interesting

because Miller said that the station was number one in Madison. :shrug: It doesn't make any sense.

[LTR]

19. I've heard her show is #1 in the timeslot

When compared to other Madison talk shows.

I haven't seen any data to back this up, but I do know that WXXM kicks ass during the daytime hours. Overall, 6AM-Midnight, they are ranked #11 in the market with a 3.7 share. And more importantly, they do extremely well in demographic breakdowns.

If management is blowing this station up due to a lack of ability to sell it, it's not the format's fault - it's the fault of management and account executives. I was listening to Ed Schultz yesterday, and he said he got an email from a listener who was trying to advertise on one of his affiliates (a progressive talk station). The account executive tried to steer him away from that station and toward one of their other stations. The client was livid and declined. Schultz, who works hard at cultivating relations with his sponsors (as he damn should be doing), said that if that salesman worked for him, he and his manager would be out of a job! Do Chevy salesmen try to sell Fords? Of course not! Granted, AE's should try to work out a promotion plan to best suit the client, but if the client wants specifically to advertise on the station of his or her choice, then the AE should respect that, period.

On a semi-unrelated note, perhaps the demise of The Mic could be due to their sales manager, who is a hardcore Republican, according to Dane 101:

http://www.dane101.com/current/2006/11/14/stephanie_miller_on_losing_madison_audio_included

Here's the mp3 link of Schultz talking about the email and advertising on progressive talk stations:

http://audio.wegoted.com/podcasting/111406Hr2Seg3.mp3