The Ten Best Markets For Radio Listeners: # 10 - Louisville
Written Nov. 11, 2007 by Sean Ross in Content + Ten Best Markets with 6 Comments
We promise that there are going to be some contrarian choices in our Top 10 Best Markets For Radio Listeners, but this one won't come as such a surprise to anybody familiar with this market's history (one of the great Top 40 battles of all-time in WAKY vs. WKLO, and distinguished alumni that include Dan Mason, Gary Guthrie, Gary Burbank, Bob Moody, Mike McVay, Buddy Scott, Lee Masters, etc. It's often dangerous to invoke a market's legacy when discussing today's radio, but Louisville is more informed by it than most others. WAKY vs. WKLO plays on in this market in a number of ways:
1. The Top 40 battle between WDJX and WZKF (98.9 Kiss FM). Louisville was one of the early markets for both Country and R&B crossovers--so it was nice to look up at WZKF's playlist earlier this year and see "Before He Cheats" next to DJ Unk's "Walk It Out." Both stations, as well as Urban WGZB (B96), are also capable of playing an actual local hit from time to time as well.
2. The return of WAKY on former suburban Oldies outlet WASE, which has revived many of the classic jingles, runs a broad playlist, and brought back former PD Johnny Randolph for afternoons. WAKY certainly qualifies as a station that sounds like it's market--one of the criteria here. And it's made some ratings inroads in recent months even though there's already a longtime oldies outlet, WRKA, which sounds the best it has in a while as well. And there aren't a lot of markets that can offer listeners an FM Oldies battle.
What else makes this a great market for listener choice?
* Heritage Country powerhouse WAMZ and longtime PD/p.m. driver Coyote Calhoun as well as Cox's WPTI (New Country 103.9), one of the few truly current- and recurrent-driven Country stations.
* A strong, enduring R&B/Hip-Hop outlet WGZB (B96). The only downside for R&B listeners is that there's Mainstream R&B and Urban AC (WMJM) here, but not a second of either.
* WFPK, the noncommercial Triple-A sister of NPR outlet WFPL and Classical WUOL.Check out "Live Lunch Fridays."
* If you're a fan of Bob- and Jack-FM, one of Clear Channel's most successful and enduring entrants into the sweepstakes is here in WLUE (Louie 100.5). There is also a heated Classic Rock battle (WQMF and WSFR).
What's not there: The market recently lost the Spanish La Preciosa network. A market with this Country legacy could also use a major Country Oldies station. And while there are two young-end rockers (WLRS and WTFX), both have signal issues.
Reader Comments
Your 2¢, in chronological order — add your comment below.
I agree with most of the article but The Fox is much better at rock then WLRS.
WLRS is stuck way back in the '90s with all that grunge; it is a station that does not change with the times. At least the active rocker, WTFX, has an alternative music show once a week and also a syndicated mashup show and a newly added indie rock show. WTFX does seem to change with the times.
Louisville is indeed a great Top 40 town and one that doesn't know or care for cookie cutter "chart driven" Top 40. During my two year tenure as MD of 'DJX, the market supported more than one non chart hit: "Who I Am" by Jessica Andrews being one that tested well for weeks on end. It's a great market for programmers who love to program to the market instead of "the format".
Wow! You managed to scan the Louisville radio spectrum without noticing 840/WHAS, the station that (even in the good old days of the WAKY/WKLO Top 40 Wars) has been #1 or #2--behind co-owned WAMZ--since God was a pup. Today, too.
Not to mention the top biller.
Sort of like touring Manhattan without noticing the tall buildings.
Or viewing "Baywatch" but missing Pam Anderson.
Or... well, you get the picture.
Think of the diversity in the Christian Market . . . Catholic AM, A couple of teaching AM's, Urban Gospel, Christian Adult Contemporary on three main channels a Teaching, Inspo-Southern Gospel FM and a Christian CHR coming soon. Very diverse, even if Salem bails out of the market (as rumor has it).
I was pleasantly surprised that Louisville made the top 10 list. Sadly, our heritage station, WHAS has decided to mimic so many other Clear Channel stations and put on syndicated programming junk. They actually took off the local Joe Elliott show (9pm to midnight eastern) in favor of playing a tape-delayed Michael Savage show! Ironically, when did a talk-show format become a listen-only format? Clear Channel's reason for removing Elliott's show was a cost-saving move. Even management agreed that Elliott does an outstanding job and has agreed to keep him on as local host of the "Sunday Morning Talk Show". I'm just wondering how long it will take for CC to discover that there are cost-savings and there are idiotic moves. There had been local programming in the evening on this station since the early 1960s with Milton Metz, who pioneered the radio talk show. Over the years, the nation heard listeners phone in comments and concerns about political, health, and severe weather issues. During floods, winter storms, tornados, riots, elections, and terrorist attacks, WHAS had been there to get the message out and to calm our fears. Of what value does a tape-delayed broadcast of a syndicated program have for me as a listener to that station? I have moved on and perhaps in the next Arbiton ratings period the PD will realize what a mistake he has made. We had trusted our local personalities and counted on them as friends, and if CC removes them, then we have no reason to tune in.
Dan B. nailed it. I was happy to see Louisville on the list, but what Clear Channel has done to WHAS is most disappointing. It is almost to the point where, due to the glut of syndicated shows, that once-proud station sounds like any other.