Miller, Schultz and Hartman off WWZN?

[vmorrison]

I just can not believe that CC bought 101.7 to move the Conservative Format to FM. The 1200 signal is just as good as FNX. I think they are smat enough to think that the ratings are going to have a significant increase just because the format is on FM.  I was told buy someone who works for CC that the plan to buy FNX came from CC Corporate and the Local Managers were not crazy about the idea. One could speculate that they are happy running two very successful stations but did not want to pick up another signal that they really did not think they could turn into another success.

I hate to appear like I am always criticizing talk hosts but I have tuned into Jeff Katz the past few days due to a long commute. He sounds like he is doing a satire of a conservative talk host rather than an actual show?

Does anyone know what his ratings are like?   

[DanStrassberg]

Donna said on b-r-i there is talk of Schulz showing up on a "bigger station in  Boston later this summer".

Who is on WTKK from noon to 3:00PM? WTKK has never (that I know of) had a real progressive talk host. Still, the station has more of an open-minded image than the other conservative talk stations in Boston. Unless WTKK is carrying someone who can't be moved in the noon to 3:00PM slot, 96.9 appears to me to be the station most likely to pick up Schultz.

[WNTIRadio]

CC running libtalk seems far fetched but who's to say? What would most of you say if I predicted, a little over a month ago
that WFNX would be sold (Hmm, maybe)...to,..Clear Channel...? (No way! Mindich would never do that!)

He had 14.5 million reasons for selling WFNX.  And you know what?  If I were in his shoes I would have done the same thing.  I'll also bet that most on this board would have done the same thing, no matter how much they whine about CC taking over radio.  14.5 million is tough to resist.   That's "you can relax for the rest of your life" money.

[raccoonradio]

Michael Smerconish out of Philly--whom I think got his start in radio via Grace Blazer now with WTKK.
Some moderates and liberals say they enjoy Smerc (who announced in 08 he was endorsing Obama).
I think even Donna did. Maybe that would be the slot, live, and poss. Smerc would be delayed till 6 pm (now
Wall St Wrap up show)

Agreed with WNTIRadio about Mindich though I'm sure some were surprised. As Jim Cramer said in a commercial,
"money talks...AND SOMETIMES IT SHOUTS!"

[WNTIRadio]

Smerconish is vanilla radio.  Boring as paint drying. 

When is the next exciting personality going to join the industry in talk radio??  Where's the next Bob Grant?  Smerconish, Dave Ramsey etc. are the most mind numbing things you can listen to.

Whether or not you agree with him, at least Savage is somewhat interesting when he goes off on a rant.  Hannity is dull and repetitive, Rush is phoning it in (half the phone tied behind his back), Beck is what he is (which I'm not sure what that is these days).  And locally there's what, McPhee?  THAT'S the best there is??  They could use her voice as the new audio form of water boarding.

[raccoonradio]

via the Boston Prog Talk yahoo group:
>>This statement is now posted on the WWZN website;
"Statement from the President on Program Lineup changes at AM 1510 Revolution
Boston: The syndicator for The Stephanie Miller Show, The Ed Schultz Show and The Thom
Hartmann Program ended their contract with AM 1510 Revolution Boston on June 9,
2012. We fought to keep these programs and are sorry that they are gone. We wish them
continued success...--Jeff Santos

also at
http://www.revolutionboston.com/news/statement-president-program-lineup-changes-am-1510-revolution-boston

[Kris4143]

Jeff Santos has been an embarrassment to Boston Liberals and by extension, to Stephanie Miller, by association for years. Santos is one of those folks whose ego is in direct inverse proportion to their talent. Since the new format began, Santos' morning show has been, as often as not, repeats, of a shows that were dull the first time around; he has replaced the first hour of Stephanie's infinitely more interesting show with yet more of his blather, and Rebuild America has extended that embarrassment to whatever few national outlets were willing to pick it up. The kicker was when Santos introduced Miller's show at the Wilbur last year, and was forced to clumsily read John Fugelsang and Hal Spark's names from a cue card! I wonder if this came to a head in some sort of fit of pique resulting from his pathetic attempt to rip off Miller's hugely successful 'Sexy Liberal Tour' with his lame 'Real Romney Tour', which played at Roots Nation recently. It seems especially suspect that Miller and Schultz were cancelled the day before Sexy Liberal played again in Boston. I am hoping that, since Miller isn't discussing this situation at all on the show (she's not generally shy about needling stations that mess with the format or move her time slot) that something big is in the works and that Miller, Shultz and Hartmann will finally find a home on a real, professional station, that will support them properly in a market that should be a natural for these shows.

[fmradio1]

Libtalk's big move? Dare I say it.....to WRKO?  Hey, why not?  If the rumors are true about Howie leaving this fall, what's left there to save?  McPhee?  Please.  Blow the rest out and go the other way.

They could run an all syndie lineup...Bill Press, along with Miller, Schulz & Hartmann, then possibly Norman Goldman, or even Randi Rhodes on tape delay.  Alan Colmes or Leslie Marshall could also be there.  Maybe even a local host.

It's obvious that conservatalk just isn't working in this market, and there's a lot of stations doing it if you include the smaller suburban signals.  With 1200 running the big national conservative hosts and WTKK going more local (on a full signal FM...with the possibility of adding Howie,) It may be time for 680 to give up the ghost and go to a turnkey talk format that could be run cheaply.  Entercom already does this with WWKB. 

[reelyreal]

You missed the news, Howie picked up for the forseeable future.  No libtalk on WRKO any time soon.

[fmradio1]

For now.  Notice they said "for the forseeable future."  Not even two or three years.  And there was no quote from Howie.  This doesn't sound like a long term situation by any means. If conservatalk doesn't bounce back, or declines even further after the election, particularly on AM, Entercom may have to look at other options for 680...either a sale or a format flip to birdfed or brokered programming.  They can't afford to keep paying Howie a reported million bucks plus a year while their revenues and demos continue to plummet.  Something will have to give eventually, and I think it will be sooner rather than later.