AM 970 “The Answer”

[Phil Boyce]

OK I really should not be here.  I have not even looked at this message board in over 3 years since I left WABC.  I see nothing has changed. 

The thing is,  those that can do.  Those that can't post on radio message boards about those who can.  Not true about everybody here,  but it appears some are just disgruntled wannabe PD's.  It's the reason I stopped posting here,  and decided it was better for my sanity to move on. 

I did want to correct one misunderstanding on the part of WADIO about WABC's move toward syndication.  Just remember that Hannity and Levin were my local hosts that I gave to the network for syndication,  and in the process they made hundreds of millions of dollars for the company.  Hannity himself was easily outbilling WABC,  the station that spawned his show.  Since I was hired to make money for my company (shock of all shocks) that is a good thing. 

I do agree however that WABC became overly syndicated...now virtually the entire lineup is like that.  When I had Curtis and Kuby and Ganlbing 6am to Noon,  then Rush Sean and Mark Noon to 9pm,  it was an even mix of local and national.  And just to be correct,  my last rating book for WABC was the September of 2008 ppm,  and we hit a 5 share,  the highest in the stations history since going talk in 1982, and today they have a 3.2 share. 

As for the synicism about my changes from the Apple to the Answer,  I agree that it is an uphill battle.  The name the Answer works for all kinds of promotional positions.  My hosts give insight to the questions about all the days news and events.  We do have answers.  The examples I gave were just a few of the possibilities.  It's not just about News,  traffic and weather,  it's also about the issues and news events we talk about all day. 

The nice thing about being in this position is that I can actually come up with ideas,  and in a months time get them launched,  on the air,  and get people talking about AM 970.  Just that alone makes the job worthwhile.  I like being the underdog,  because I don't have to beat WOR or WABC to win,  we just have to beat ourselves. 

As for the comments about talking about New York,  we now have the capability to do that better than WABC,  with Curtis 7am to 10am,  and Curtis and Jeff 5-7pm.  These two shows are all over New York and New Jersey issues. 

For those of you who are reading this message board and can be objective and not turn into cynical negative wannabe's,  I encourage you to listen to the new lineup on Monday,  particularly the new imaging we have created for the station.  It is a lot of fun to put this stuff together.  I think the imaging we have created is better than anything on our competition right now.  If imaging was the only thing I needed to do,  life would be easy. 

There are a lot of things that I need to do to get The Answer noticed in NYC,  the most competive market for spoken word in the USA.  There are already 2 very good Talk stations,  2 established All News stations,  a new FM all news stations,  and two very good sports stations.  We have our work cut out for us,  but I like our chances.  There is only one place to go but up. 

Thanks for listening.  Unlike most of you, I post with my real name. 

Phil Boyce

[wadio]

Thank you, Phil, for an interesting and thoughtful response.  Two thoughts:

There are a lot of things that I need to do to get The Answer noticed in NYC...

First and foremost, get it flipped to 570 WMCA!  That's the answer.  If they can't hear you, you won't be noticed. 

There are already 2 very good Talk stations,  2 established All News stations,  a new FM all news stations,  and two very good sports stations.

I can understand why you'd say that ... no reason to burn bridges.  But let's be honest. NY has two mediocre talk stations, two solid AM all-news stations, one horrible FM all-news station, plus one great and one mediocre sport station. 

If it were not for WNYM's puny signal -- which stops just short of the Gold Coast of Connecticut (an important sales opportunity -- ask WCBS) -- you'd have the potential to shake up news/talk in the tri-state region in a big way.  If you can accomplish it on 970 you're a magician.  But I do wish you luck!   

[badjef]

Thank you, Phil for clearing up any misunderstandings and reminding us of the commitments and dedications that you have for the business of radio. You are one of the fortunate ones who, if counted, probably couldn't make up the number of players on a football field.

WABC is a station, I grew up with and it was the standard for what radio meant to the millions of us fortunate enough to listen to it. It says alot about you to take the time out to post as well.

My handle "badjef" is my name, it just distinguishes me from other Jeff Adams that are around. There are 3 in Sa-ra-so-ta!, alone.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

[Phil Boyce]

I am surprised I even remembered my old password,  it has been so long since I posted here.  Thanks to the time change,  I am up early this morning with nothing to do. 

WADIO says: 

First and foremost, get it flipped to 570 WMCA!  That's the answer.  If they can't hear you, you won't be noticed.

Very true, and something I suggested on my first day on the job.  The truth is WMCA is highly successful,  makes the company money,  and we have a commitment to the religious broadcasters who have bought time on the station and developed their audiences on AM 570.  It would be unfair to them to force them to move to a new frequency.  So I asked,  and the answer was no.  I learned a long time ago to worry about what you can control,  and forget the rest.  The AM 970 frequency is what it is. There are some things we can do to make sure we are getting the most out of the 5,000 watt night signal,  and I am working on that.  The daytime signal is 50,000 watts and reaches over 15,000,000 people.  I can't program to those who can't hear it,  but I can do better with the ones who can,  and it is still a significant reach. I moved Curtis Sliwa to 7am to 10am specifically because the 3 hours are within the 50,000 watt power hours.  Running him at 5am did not make sense to me.  Now,  if advertisers buy Curtis in the morning,  they are guaranteed of getting his show during maximum power. 

There probably is not one big thing I can do to make WNYM better,  but there are 100 little things I can do to make it better and these moves are some of those 100 little things. 

WADIO says:

If it were not for WNYM's puny signal -- which stops just short of the Gold Coast of Connecticut (an important sales opportunity -- ask WCBS) -- you'd have the potential to shake up news/talk in the tri-state region in a big way.  If you can accomplish it on 970 you're a magician.  But I do wish you luck!

Thanks for that.  The good news for my career is that I do not need to shake up news/talk in a big way.  As I mentioned before,  I do not need to beat WABC or WOR to succeed,  we just need to beat ourselves.  When I was at WABC I used to say that if I ever hit a 5 share I would be in hero country (and I finally did that).  But that meant 95% of the radio audience was not listening to us.  At WNYM the stakes to be in hero country are a lot lower.  I just need to be a little better than where we are.  I think I can do that. 

To Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta,  thanks for the kind words.  WABC was a magical place at a magical time.  I feel so fortunate to have spent 14 years there.  When I had to fire Bob Grant in 1996 I literally lost half my audience overnight,  going from a 4 something to a 2 something.  It took me 5 years to build to back to the 4 something and become the most listened to newstalk station in the nation. During my 13 PPM monthlies before I left WABC I never lost to another AM radio station,  and was #3 overall in NYC the day I walked out the door,  so I am proud of what we were able to do.  It is a painful thing to watch WABC be slowly dismantled.  But I still have many friends working there and I get no joy out of watching them decline.  I am also proud of the fact that after 11 years I was able to hire Bob Grant back.  In Detroit,  after they fired Ernie Harwell before my arrival,  I had the opportunity to hire him back as the voice of the Tigers.  Both are amazing stories and I am glad I was there for both. 

Somebody posted here that it is futile to attempt to be "young and hip" when you are on the AM band because nobody young and hip listens to the AM band.  I am well aware of those limitations,  with 80% of the 25-54's on the FM band today and few of them go over to the AM side.  But I have always been an AM guy and I refuse to give up on it.  I think in 5-10 years,  the band will be irrelevant.  We have to get ourselves out of thinking we are AM Radio people.  We are broadcasters and need to get our product out there where people can find it...no matter the transmission method.  Just because not many young and hip people listen to AM is no reason to be "old and stodgy" and not sound as good as you can sound. 

People may forget that I was the PD that put 1050 ESPN on the air in 2001,  with 21 days notice.  We went on the air the day before 911,  the same day we took Hannity into national syndication.  Many of the people I hired are still there,  and are doing fine.  I am so fortunate to be able to say I have now programmed 5 stations in top 10 markets:  WABC, ESPN 1050, WNYM, WMCA, and a long time before that:  WJR Detroit. 

I am very fortunate to have landed with Salem Communications.  I have been given the reins of not only these two AM's in NYC but also the 24 newstalk stations around the country,  the 40 Christian Talk and Teach stations,  and the 11 Business Talk stations Salem now owns.  All of the stations could do better from a ratings perspective,  and I am looking forward to taking what skills I may have to make them all better.  I am having a blast doing it. 

Phil B

[radiowizard101]

Phil... How about a 97DJ reunion show? Is Memorial Day open? A salute to WJRZ would be good. Even a classic WMCA reunion would be even better!

[jhguthlac]

Phil, you are one of two WABC PD's I greatly admire.  The other, of course, is Rick Sklar. When I read that you had left your last gig, I was hoping it was for a return to 77.  Alas, there is probably nothing you could do there in the new environment.

[Phil Boyce]

Jhguthiac says:

[Insert Quote
Phil, you are one of two WABC PD's I greatly admire.  The other, of course, is Rick Sklar. When I read that you had left your last gig, I was hoping it was for a return to 77.  Alas, there is probably nothing you could do there in the new environment.
/quote]

To be compared to the late great Rick Skar is high praise,  so thanks for that.  Rick also had a tenure of around 14 years.  I think I beat him slightly in years of service programming WABC,  but I can't be sure.  He was promoted to VP and gave up WABC while I was promoted to VP and maintained the job. 

Radiowizard101 suggests a WWDJ reunion show. 

I have thought about doing a rock and roll NYC radio reunion,  putting together the old airchecks of all three of the legendary NYC rock stations:  WABC,  WMCA and WWDJ.  I am not sure if there are enough air checks available for WWDJ to have their own,  but it's a great idea.  Combining all three into a "Rock Rewind Special" might be a lot of fun,  but I would need Johnny Donovan to help me put it together.  Nobody knows this stuff like him. 

Phil B 

[Phil Boyce]

Jhguthiac says:

Phil, you are one of two WABC PD's I greatly admire.  The other, of course, is Rick Sklar. When I read that you had left your last gig, I was hoping it was for a return to 77.  Alas, there is probably nothing you could do there in the new environment.

To be compared to the late great Rick Skar is high praise,  so thanks for that.  Rick also had a tenure of around 14 years.  I think I beat him slightly in years of service programming WABC,  but I can't be sure.  He was promoted to VP and gave up WABC while I was promoted to VP and maintained the job. 

Radiowizard101 suggests a WWDJ reunion show. 

I have thought about doing a rock and roll NYC radio reunion,  putting together the old airchecks of all three of the legendary NYC rock stations:  WABC,  WMCA and WWDJ.  I am not sure if there are enough air checks available for WWDJ to have their own,  but it's a great idea.  Combining all three into a "Rock Rewind Special" might be a lot of fun,  but I would need Johnny Donovan to help me put it together.  Nobody knows this stuff like him. 

Phil B 

[dd92251@aol.com]

I find it interesting that Bill Bennett will be the morning drive "host"...in light of the fact that Salem had him on several of their stations in morning drive years ago and later decided to go to a "Live" talk format for that time slot and eliminated Bennett...which as history bears out was a bad move.

Also obvious is the fact that most of the " big name" hosts Salem has brought aboard haven't proven to be all that much of a magnet for new audience. The Glen Beck and Dennis Miller shows haven't put any adrenalin in Chicago...

Sadly, Salem will always be playing 2nd fiddle to the experienced, ratings driven, group owned, stations in their market. 

[wadio]

WADIO says: 

First and foremost, get it flipped to 570 WMCA!  That's the answer.  If they can't hear you, you won't be noticed.

Very true, and something I suggested on my first day on the job.  The truth is WMCA is highly successful,  makes the company money,  and we have a commitment to the religious broadcasters who have bought time on the station and developed their audiences on AM 570.  It would be unfair to them to force them to move to a new frequency.  So I asked,  and the answer was no.  I learned a long time ago to worry about what you can control,  and forget the rest.  The AM 970 frequency is what it is.

That's a shame.  WMCA's signal, plus its legacy as a talk station in NY, would make your job a lot easier. 

Just thinking out loud ...

WNYM's signal pattern specifically nulls out lower Fairfield County Connecticut.  Any chance that Salem could be persuaded to find a repeater frequency to fill in the hole?   I've read that Sacred Heart University purchased WSTC, Stamford and WNLK, Norwalk, for a mere $500k for both.  They already own WMMM, Westport, so between WSTC and WMMM they've got lower Fairfield County covered (AM, daytime.)   Suppose Salem offered the university up to $500k for WNLK?  That would nicely fill in the hole and potentially pay for itself in ad revenue quite fast, unless there's an issue with changing the station back from non-commercial to commercial.