WORST Tennessee stations of all-time

[NotSoClearChannel]

[I suppose, like the rest of you, that WCMT is good at what they do, but they would never make it in the big city where they actually had some real competition.  Like so many small-town stations, they are a big fish in a small pond.

Absolutely!  You have to give it to Paul...he knows how to work the small town angle.

NSCC

[firepoint525]

It's worth noting that because of me, WCMT has now gotten mentions on both the best AND worst Tennessee radio stations threads!  I should further point out, however, that my mention here primarily refers to WCMT-FM, particularly during the 1980s and early 1990s.  Not to say that that WCMT-AM was well-programmed during that time, but it didn't make sense to continue to program the AM live (while continuing to automate the FM) after most of your listeners had migrated over to FM.  The afore-mentioned WALR (for example) gave up its diet of automation and elevator music in 1980, which was probably early for a small-town FM station.  WCMT-FM, meanwhile, was still hooked up to the machinery at least as late as 1992.  At least, beginning then, Paul began moving the live djs off of WCMT-AM.  The AM's broadcast day (after that vaunted "good times in the morning," anyway) is now largely made up of Rush and Sean, with the evenings and overnights also now primarily given over to the satellite-fed network talk shows.  Makes more sense than having live djs when you're only pumping out 54 watts.

[Bat Fastard]

  Yeah, the place sucked...but it was RADIO, man.  I would have worked for free.

If you had worked there after Tinkle took over, you would have just about had to!  He probably puts in something like 100 hours a week into the station, including selling ads, high school play-by-play, and those oh-so-boring remotes, and he expects his staffers to have that kind of dedication, too, only without the pay.  No wonder turnover was always so high there!

Somehow, this doesn't surprise me.  I AM surprised that this is the path Paul took for his career.  I would have guessed that he would pursue life in the radio bigs.  That he chose to remain in his home town perhaps isn't surprising to some, but it is to me.

I talked with someone who worked there and confirmed the micro-managing.  They said he tends to "hover" over you while you worked.  I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want to live like that.

Credit where it's due:  he's been successful and in some circles, that's all that's important.

In some circles.

[firepoint525]

Paul has now been with that station for more than half of its history.  They came on the air in 1957, and he joined them (permanently, this time) in 1981.  He also briefly worked for WCMT while he was in high school in the early 1970s, this according to the station history page on the WCMT website.

[firepoint525]

Any of the dollar a holler stations that are owned by FW Robbert: WNQM and WWCR shortwave in Nashville, WMQM and WLRM in Memphis. They also bought AM 730 in West Memphis, AR, but I think they're still sports talk for now, and I think they have a station in Knoxville as well.

Their mission is to "get out the word," yet most people, at least here in Nashville, have never heard of them.  So much for "getting out the word"! 

A former sales manager at the station tried to get station management to increase the station's visibility in the community.  Save for power increases, that never happened.  How can you listen to a station if you don't even know that it exists? 

[anotherguy]

They probably don't care if nobody listens as long as they're gwetting paid for the airtime by anybody who's willing to flash enough money in their faces. On the Memphis board a former employee has said before their god (little "g") is green. 

[firepoint525]

They probably don't care if nobody listens as long as they're getting paid for the airtime by anybody who's willing to flash enough money in their faces. On the Memphis board a former employee has said before their god (little "g") is green. 

I can tell you that at the Nashville office, the same mindset applies.  However, it seems to me that if broadcasters don't get at least some monetary feedback from their listeners, then they won't be broadcasting with them for very long.  Evidently, they encourage their own congregations, followers, etc., to listen in, thus bringing in a "built-in" audience with them to support them with $$$$.  But it seems to me that they could leave out the middleman, and accomplish the same thing by "passing the plate" at church.  But hey, maybe that's just me.

[firepoint525]

[I suppose, like the rest of you, that WCMT is good at what they do, but they would never make it in the big city where they actually had some real competition.  Like so many small-town stations, they are a big fish in a small pond.

Absolutely!  You have to give it to Paul...he knows how to work the small town angle.

I talked with someone who worked there and confirmed the micro-managing.  They said he tends to "hover" over you while you worked.  I'm pretty sure I wouldn't want to live like that.

Credit where it's due:  he's been successful and in some circles, that's all that's important.

In some circles.
NSCC

And therein lies the paradox of how WCMT has made the list of "best stations in Tennessee," while also making the list of "worst stations" here in the volunteer state.

[firepoint525]

They probably don't care if nobody listens as long as they're getting paid for the airtime by anybody who's willing to flash enough money in their faces. On the Memphis board a former employee has said before their god (little "g") is green. 

I can tell you that at the Nashville office, the same mindset applies.  However, it seems to me that if broadcasters don't get at least some monetary feedback from their listeners, then they won't be broadcasting with them for very long.  Evidently, they encourage their own congregations, followers, etc., to listen in, thus bringing in a "built-in" audience with them to support them with $$$$.  But it seems to me that they could leave out the middleman, and accomplish the same thing by "passing the plate" at church.  But hey, maybe that's just me.

To add to what I posted earlier:

We once had an infomercial advertiser who (apparently) complained about the lack of response to one of his infomercials.  These guys swoop down on unsold airtime like vultures, and then they have the aducacity to complain about the LACK of a response?  They might want to consider asking themselves why the airtime was unsold, in the first place! 

[RadioGaGa75]

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned WBCR 1470 in Alcoa, TN.  All of that crazy ultra-conservative right wing militia programming that makes Rush Limbaugh look like the poster boy for the NAACP along with a bad signal and bad production, and what a stinker!!!