(I used to write a bi-weekly
column, RadioRadio, for Players magazine in the Tampa Bay area.
The following story appeared in 1990.)
Profile: Boston Radio Tea Party
By
Bob Andelman
Spent four days last week in Boston for the National Association
of Broadcaster's (NAB) "Radio '90" convention, individually
schmoozing (at least it seemed that way) with over 7,000 of the
industry's top execs, managers, consultants and pitchmen.
The annual radio convention is a love and spit fest where
broadcasters profess their love for one another and all for one
spirit in the defense of radio against competing media and still
find time and energy to spit on their regional competitors.
I love radio: it's so schizo.
Under the category of spitting, Randy Michaels had a few choice
things to say about Tampa's Q105. Michaels, in case you've been
living under a mushroom, is chief operating officer and executive
vice president of Jacor Communications, owner of WFLZ (93.3 FM)
- the Power Pig - and WFLA (970 AM).
Here's what Michaels said in a seminar titled "How to
Use Programming Tactics to Get Good Ratings":
o "You've gotta think guerrilla marketing," said
Michaels. He claimed that just after going on the air, Power
Pig staffers went store to store in Bay area malls offering retailers
$1 to switch their radios from Q105 to Power 93.
o "I also do easy listening stations," he said.
"We hardly ever yell 'Eat me!' on the easy listening stations."
o When another member of the panel attempted to play a tape
and the audience of program directors was treated to silence,
Michaels cracked, "This tape is for sale after the session
- 'Recent Great Moments in WRBQ History.'"
Perhaps justice was served on Michaels. His seminar ended
prematurely when the fire alarm sounded midway through the session.
The Kids Are Coming! Top execs at the Imagination Station
in Orlando, which became available via satellite last week to
stations around the country, had an exhibit at Radio '90. They
all but confirmed rumors first reported here that all-kids radio
will soon be on WHBO (1040 AM) in Clearwater.
More on the Imagination Station in two weeks.
Retro Radio! One of the most interesting aspects of
Radio '90 was all the former Tampa Bay radio hotshots I ran into.
Here's a sampling of what old friends are up to:
Dave Macejko! The former general manager of the Power
Pig and WFLA (970 AM) was in Boston looking for a job. Still
living in South Tampa, he's trying to find a situation where
he can earn sweat equity toward ownership of a station. "The
Pig was a good experience," he told me.
Martha Wheeler! Anybody remember the Wheeler Family,
which put WFTS TV-28 on the air almost a decade ago? Martha and
her son Sean were attendees at Radio '90. They now own an AOR
FM radio station, WVGN, on St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands.
Jack Ellery! A short stint as a talk host at WFLA led
to a national run on the Sun Network (WEND 760 AM) for Ellery,
who is now back in New Brunswick, N.J. at his old WCTC stomping
grounds.
Yeah, Right! "This format has achieved the respectability
we never thought it would. There are now people who, five years
ago, never thought classic rock would last six months. They're
now making their living off of it."
That's a comment made by Andy Bloom, program director of WYSP
in Philadelphia, during the "Classic Rock Format Forum."
I sat through half of this format as the participants played
airchecks from classic rock stations around the country. A few
bits were fresh, most weren't, such as a promo from Bloom's YSP.
It was a direct ripoff of our own Power Pig: "The fact is,
WMMR (a competitor of WYSP) plays more commercials. Don't believe
it? Check it out ... We'll wait."
Tom Marshall, P.D. at WYNF (95 FM) in Tampa, sat two rows
in front of me. I sent him a note when I left, bored. It told
him I hadn't really appreciated YNF until I heard how awful classic
rock was around the rest of the country.
Carey Curelop! Outside the door of the Classic Rock
seminar, I ran into Marshall's predecessor at YNF, Carey Curelop.
He, too, was unimpressed with the presentation.
For anyone else who remembers Curelop, I must tell you above
all else that he looked almost unrecognizably dapper. It was
like seeing Charlie Logan with a crewcut. The denim pants and
jacket have been replaced by a snazzy black suit, bolo tie and
feathered haircut. Curelop says he's happy at KLOS in Los Angeles,
where his new station is number one in morning drive and pulling
its best ratings ever. No plans to ever come back to Tampa Bay.
He hasn't entirely left Tampa Bay behind, however. Former
YNF morning man Nick Van Cleve is doing utility work at KLOS,
just as his ex-partner Jeff Jensen is filling in at YNF. Former
YNF overnight hostess J.J. Lee is doing overnights on KLOS. And
one-time 98 Rock morning man Ted Pritchard is a board op/producer/part-time
air personality. "Sort of the Ed ("Fast Eddie")
Yarb of KLOS," according to Curelop.
The format of KLOS, he said, "is straight AOR. We probably
sound like YNF, though probably taking a few more chances because
we're in Los Angeles. We can play the Talking Heads and get away
with it. You couldn't do that in Tampa."
Now You Know! Satellite Music Network (SMN), which
provides programming to a number of Bay area stations, had an
enormous exhibit at the convention. One element of it was Prizm
Research, which asked for your zip code and provided instant
demographic analysis. My zip code, 33704, is 36% "Gray Power";
35% "Smalltown Downtown"; 8% "Middle America";
7% "Money & Brains"; 4% "Single City Blues";
and 3% "Pools & Patios."
With this info in hand, research assistants then suggest the
appropriate SMN format for your zip code.
What's right for 33704 in St. Petersburg?
"My recommendation would be 'Stardust,'" said Greg
Raab. "It's 35 and older, MOR. It features familiar vocals
by Streisand, Diamond, Sinatra and Vangelis."
Sorry I asked.
Unheard Of! That's the name of a weekly, one-hour syndicated
program that debuted at Radio '90. Leo Clark is attempting to
sell radio stations around the country on this collection of
unsigned regional artists.
"Stations get bugged all the time to play tapes by local
artists," said Clark, 32, who was once product manager at
Cherry Lane Technologies, manufacturer of MIDI products. "We
made all these great tools for people to make music but they
couldn't get it played anywhere. Now (the radio show) will take
care of it."
"Unheard Of" provides bio information and plays
demo tapes. The show hasn't been picked up in Tampa Bay yet,
but that shouldn't stop area bands from contacting Clark about
sending in tapes. The address: Leo Clark, Unheard Of, 12007 Red
Oak Ct. N., Burnsville, Mn. 55337. Or call him at (612) 894-8792.
Beeeeeeeeeep! There were a few serious moments at the
convention.
It's a shame more Tampa Bay are broadcasters weren't in attendance
at a disquieting seminar titled "How to React to a Disaster."
News and program directors from Hilton Head, S.C. and San Francisco
played audio tapes from their respective encounters with Hurricane
Hugo and the September '89 earthquake.
o "If you get in a disaster situation," said Ralph
Wimmer, program director of WHTK in Hilton Head, "there's
one one rule: there are no rules."
o Referring to San Francisco's brush with a 7.1 earthquake,
KGO News Director John McConnell said, "As bad as this was,
I can only believe it's a dress rehearsal for the Big One. We
learned, as a result of the quake, you cannot be prepared, that
government may not work, that '911' may not work. We were very
disappointed in what happened with the EBS (Emergency Broadcast
System). We didn't feel it was to be depended upon."
McConnell reversed himself and said stations can be
prepared in terms of equipment and supplies in the event of disaster.
"We were amazed at how many stations did not have back-up
generators," he said. "As a result of this, we now
have each reported required to carry several recorders, a two-way
radio and cellular telephone.
"The biggest thing we learned," said McConnell,
"is that no matter how talented your people are, if they're
not there in a crisis, you're going to fall flat on your face."
o Jack Swanson, operations director of KGO at the time of
the quake and now an exec with King Broadcasting, said the emergency
demonstrated the limited value to radio of cellular technology,
particularly its inability to address multiple parties simultaneously
as two-way radios can. He urged radio stations to take their
two-ways out of cobwebs and keep them serviceable and on the
road.
"The best preparation for disaster is to make money and
be a successful station," said Swanson. "We made no
money for seven days and didn't run commercials. That made me
feel good about radio. Safeway didn't give away any food. Sears
didn't give away power tools. Making money ahead of time and
having it in the bank takes the pressure off when it comes to
serving the community in an emergency. In my judgement, over
half the radio stations in our market let the community down.
I believe they were opportunistic bottom-feeders." He said
this of stations that went about business as usual, running commercials
and regular programming in lieu of public service information
and disaster coverage."
Swanson joined in the general condemnation of the EBS system.
"EBS is an important pipeline for Armageddon," he
said. "But I don't consider it to be their job to cover
my community as long as I've got reporters and talk hosts. We
didn't take anything from EBS. The information was repetitive,
it was late."
Zoom Me! Next week, we'll wrap up reporting from Radio
'90 in Boston with comments from former Q105 P.D. Steve Rivers,
an update on former WYNF G.M. George Sosson, a conversation with
the president of the National Black Network, excerpts from a
speech by FCC Chairman Al Sykes and ... an exclusive interview
with Paul Harvey.
In the meantime, keep your cards and letters coming. The address:
RadioRadio, c/o Players, PO Box 1867, Pinellas Park, Fl.
34664. Or, as always, operators are standing by to take your
faxes at (813) 578-1414.
---------
(This week we conclude coverage of the National Association
of Broadcasters "Radio 1990" convention held in Boston,
Sept. 12-15.)
In an exclusive interview with RadioRadio prior
to his general address to the convention, veteran newscaster
Paul Harvey discussed his work.
His trademark program, "The Rest of the Story,"
began when Harvey and his son Paul Jr. came to feel there was
something missing in the modern view of history. "We thought
history was cheating the history student by teaching the end
by the beginning," said Harvey in his unique manner.
During a convention marked by many broadcasters crying wolf
over the prospect of digital audio broadcasting (DAB) - essentially,
satellite radio - becoming a reality in the next decade, Harvey
was asked to reflect on how much the industry had changed during
his 72 years.
"I can remember some of our broadcasters chewing their
knuckles over television, saying it would destroy radio. And
I can remember the same broadcasters chewing their knuckles about
FM, that it would destroy AM," he said. "Competition
is the best thing that could happen to us. I'm not alarmed by
the new technologies. We're going to come out of this heat-tempered
and better than ever."
Harvey, looking remarkably fit for his age (sort of like a
red-haired Rudy Vallee), said that no matter how long he has
done his unique newscasts, the stories never get old or repetitive.
"I try to convince our little (research) group that we're
prospectors," he said. "It's easier to go to work in
the morning if you know you might find gold." As for the
irony voiced in many of his items, "I love to look for those,"
said Harvey. "The things that shouldn't happen that did,
the things that shouldn't happen that didn't. I find those fascinating."
On his way out the door, the interview over, Harvey turned
back and waved. "See you in a few miles," he said.
Profit Thrust! A seminar called "Retail Selling:
Your Profit in the '90s" was split between the importance
of motivating sales staff toward new business and the opportunities
that exist for commercializing program elements.
Sue Scallon of WGN in Chicago said the salesperson who invests
time in new business is investing in their career. "Developing
new business challenges creative thinking," she said. "Perhaps
the biggest payoff in developing new business is it's more fun.
It's like running your own business. You decide which
companies to call on, which industries to try."
Luring new business to a station could be as simple as creating
opportunities, according to panel member Nancy Benech, general
sales manager of WYNF (95 FM).
"Think about your radio station and use your special
programming features to bring promotional ideas to your client,"
said Benech. "Think of the things that make you different.
We fuel demand from clients to sponsor the things we're doing.
Look for ways to make your radio station more exciting to clients.
You say to yourself, 'We think we've done the best we can.' But
have we really?"
Benech made a slide presentation to a packed room, displaying
numerous YNF air personalities participating in community activities
such as blood drives, environmental projects and neighborhood
marches. It reflected well on the station and Tampa Bay.
Touch This! In an interview with RadioRadio,
National Black Network (NBN) President Jack Bryant talked
about the news and information source's philosophy.
"We believe that certain news and information pertains
to the population at large. Often there are certain programs
that are most appropriate to blacks that don't get enough exposure
through the general media. We highlight those stories that are
of particular interest and will have particular affects on the
black population of America. Quite often we're the first media
to break a major story with impact on the black community,"
he said.
Bryant said that after the Challenger disaster, the mass media
didn't focus on the black member of the space shuttle crew for
several days. NBN was on the story immediately; in fact, he noted,
NBN reported on the black crewman prominently before
liftoff.
"We try to highlight the positive achievements of blacks
while at the same time delivering the hard news," he said.
"If the typical newscast contains seven stories, three or
four on NBN are what you'd hear on the major networks. But two
or three would be different, of interest only to blacks. Front
page news is front page news. It's subjective what would be second
or third page news."
NBN has 125 affiliates, all black-formatted. Bryant said that
although the number is insignificant besides that of the major
nets, he claims greater reach in the black community than any
single, larger mass media competitor.
If you've never experienced NBN, check it out on the hour
at WRXB (1590 AM).
Most over-used phrase of Radio 1990! "Theater
of the mind."
Boston Herald Report! Dean Johnson, radio columnist
for the Boston Herald, knew where the nighttime action was in
his town during Radio '90. For instance, he found Paul Simon
previewing his new album The Rhythm of the Saints for
radio execs at Syncro Sound, a Beantown recording studio. Simon
said he will start a year-long tour in November. According to
Johnson, when the last cut ended Simon told the gathering, "So,
that's my latest problem for radio."
Johnson also spotted Bruce Hornsby, Dick Clark and Wolfman
Jack individually making the rounds.
Hey, Dude! TV and radio talk show host Larry King -
heard locally on WTKN (570 AM) - will be heard in an upcoming
episode of The Simpsons. He'll provide the voice of God.
Emergency Checklist! A number of readers on the professional
side of radio expressed interest in comments from the Radio 1990
seminar on dealing with emergencies. Here's a list of supplies
- reprinted from Radio & Records - that the experts
in Boston recommend stations have on hand at all times: non-perishable
foods; water; flashlights and batteries; extra blankets and bedding;
remote broadcast equipment; backup generator for studio and transmitter;
detailed local and statewide maps; cellular phones.
Also suggested is a list of phone and fax numbers for the
following: local emergency preparedness organizations; Red Cross;
police; fire and paramedics; hospitals; governor's office; mayor's
office; state and county planning offices; chambers of commerce;
local ham radio operators; other local radio and TV stations;
churches, schools and shelters; network news bureaus; Salvation
Army and Goodwill.
It was also suggested that stations keep a master printed
list of this information as well as a copy on computer in case
the electronics crash or aren't readily available.
Report from the Chief! FCC Chairman Al Sikes told a
breakfast meeting that there are now 9,230 commercial radio stations
in the United States. (And still nothing to listen to, I can
hear some of you snickering.)
Other highlights of his speech included word of the Commission's
intentions to expand the AM band soon instead of continuing to
shoehorn new stations into the existing spectrum, which is increasing
interference. ... Sikes also said the FCC will soon take up the
allocation of possible satellite frequency allocations for digital
audio broadcasting (DAB). DAB was the talk of the convention,
from engineering to programming questions. FM broadcasters feel
particularly threatened by the new technology, which may capable
of delivering digital-quality sound via satellite.
Flashback! Remember the good old days of the Q Morning
Zoo? Cleveland Wheeler and Terence McKeever? Okay, maybe those
weren't the best days, but they had their moments. I saw the
station's program director of that era, Steve Rivers, in Boston.
Rivers is now PD of WZOU-FM in Boston, where he won a local
achievement award from Billboard. During the NAB convention,
Rivers sat on a panel titled "How to Be a Better Programming
Manager." Among his seminar comments:
o "The general manager has to be the person who sees
the big picture. ... The GM has to back the PD. There are times
you're not going to agree on things and that's okay, that's healthy."
o "One station I was at, (one) person had a serious drinking
problem and we sent him to rehab. To his credit he came out (publicly)
about where he'd been. He became a celebrity. ... But three or
four months later he turned up on the evening news as a DUI.
"We decided to keep the guy. I don't know if that was
right or wrong. But he embarrassed the station."
The unnamed person in question was clearly Q105's former morning
man, Terence McKeever, whose much-publicized bout with alcoholism
was as difficult for the public - which wanted to be supportive
- as it was for the station. Maybe the Q should have let him
go, but it was an ugly situation no matter which way the station
turned.
After the seminar, I asked Rivers what he thought of what
has happened at Q105 in the past year.
"I just know what I read in the trades," he said.
"It's too bad it happened. Time just caught up with the
station. There were some things that went unchecked for a long
time. There was a tremendous void in the market that was waiting
to be filled. The problem of being number one is you have to
constantly attack yourself."
George Splits! WYNF lost a powerful ally in top management
at CBS in New York a few weeks ago when George Sosson resigned
as president of the corporation's FM radio division. Sosson was
GM at YNF in the mid-'80s, ahead of Shawn Portmann. He's now
president of Win Communications, which owns six medium-market
stations around the country.
Why'd he live CBS?
"It was a chance at some equity, a chance to grab the
brass ring, a chance to be an entrepreneur," he told me
in a chance meeting in the hallways of the Hynes Convention Center.
"CBS is great, but you can't get rich working for a company."
Live or Memorex!?! Ever hear a disk jockey talking
to a "celebrity" but the questions and answers sounded
stiff? That may be because they're not really talking to each
other.
I picked up literature in Boston for the Copley Radio Network's
"Wireless Flash" service. Among its features are pre-recorded
celebrity interview with the questions edited out so the local
guys and gals can seem to be asking the celeb directly what their
favorite color is.
Certainly, no Tampa Bay station would sink so low, right?
We'll see. (Spies, get to work!)
Hermannnn! Butch Patrick - remember Eddie Munster from
the old TV show? - is now part of the morning team at KWTX in
Waco, Tx. In case you're ever passing through.
Second Most Over-Used Phrase! " ... out there
in Radioland."
Attention, B. Eric Rhoads! The meter is running.
Tampa Bay Notes From All Over! Hey, Tramonte!
You never call, you never write. RadioRadio hears you
actually landed a job in Tampa Bay again. But who can be sure?
... Good luck, Charlie Ochs, wherever you are. ... Q105
is one of several stations around the country sending weekly
tapes to the USO Morning Show Network in the Middle East. The
90-minute tapes contain listener dedications, news and entertainment
from home. ... Lisa Logan, one of W101 (WUSA FM)'s on-air
weekend warriors, wrote us a note wondering why this column never
gives any news about her station. We will, we promise. ... By
the way, are Homer and Jethro still the morning team?
Haven't listened in a while. ... One-time WNLT (95.7 FM) air
personality Audrey Lynn has turned up in Miami at WJQY-FM.
... WPSO-AM in New Port Richey has been sold by Lowery Communications
to T.G.A. Communications for $229,000. It was the fourth try
to sell that darn talk station for Lowery, which announced three
separate, unsuccessful deals in 1988 alone, according to Broadcasting.
Hey, You! Got a gripe to get off your chest? Got a
chest you'd like to show us? Seen some radio star hanging out
at one of Joe Redner's bars? Talk to us. Keep your cards and
letters coming to: RadioRadio, c/o Players, P.O. Box 1867,
Pinellas Park, FL, 34664. Or fax it to us: (813) 577-1414.
Misguided! As we were going to press, 98 Rock VP/GM
Dan DiLoreto and PD Greg Mull put out a press release announcing
that 98 was behind the billboards around Tampa Bay proclaiming
rock music is poisoning our youth and that we should ban T-back
bathing suits, among other things. Unbelievable.
This was the stupidest idea associated with radio since Les
Nessman dropped live turkeys out of a helicopter on "WKRP
in Cincinnati." To quote an associate, rock music isn't
poisoning our youth, marketing is.
So 98 Rock is the mysterious "Coalition for Universal
Thought," huh? They must be out of their minds.
"The billboard messages were specifically designed to
raise social consciousness on the issues of censorship and youth
stereotypes," according to the station's press release.
"The Coalition for Universal Thought name was also chosen
to be absurd enough to create an atmosphere of 'parody.' Our
mission was accomplished. When confronted with these narrow thinking
messages our community was concerned that the 'Coalition for
Universal Thought' could actually exist.
"Now anyone who actually thinks 'Rock 'n roll is the
devil's chamber music' will think twice before sharing those
thoughts."
Are they kidding? What pomposity! What a waste of money!
We're as anti-censorship as the next editorial type. Want
to fight small minds that carry big sticks? Urge your listeners
to vote. Register them. Sponsor debates between rockers and those
who would silence them. Devote air time to education on relative
issues "in a language everyone can understand" ("Cult
of Personality," Living Color). But don't waste our time
on bogus, transparent efforts to sell 98 Rock as our social or
moral conscience. It doesn't wash. "Livestock I" was
clever. This is pathetic.
The "Coalition for Universal Thought" may have seemed
clever in a late-night brainstorming session over a few brews
but it was nothing more than ill-conceived hype. It's the kind
of thing that makes me embarrassed that I listen to 98 Rock as
much as I do.
©2003,
All rights reserved. No portion may be reproduced without the
express written permission of the author.
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