DJs MIA on KOOL FM

[oldiesfunhouse]

For the last several days, I haven't heard any DJs on 105.1 HD2 KOOL FM. It has just sounded like it does after Tom Robin usually ends his shift at 10 PM. I haven't listened for super long periods but I've listened enough that I think, if they were there, I would have heard them. I hope this isn't signaling the beginning of the end for KOOL. The music is still great but I miss the announcers. Thoughts?

[CAwasinNJ]

First would be the obvious. It's a new year and that's a pretty good time for contracts to expire. I'm listening now during the middle of PM Drive and I'm not hearing any personalities now either. This is the second most important shift that there is (after AM Drive). Does Broadway do traffic reports on any of their stations? I'm not hearing any on KOOL either.

I agree that I don't think this bodes well for the future of KOOL. No personalities, not even voicetracking, and the only commercials I've heard in the last hour were a short sponsored cross-sell for sports broadcasts on ESPN 700 and 101.5 The Eagle (probably a 30 second) and a single Progressive spot that was probably also a 30 second. It feels like Broadway's shifted KOOL to a fully automated station. The good news is that it costs them virtually nothing. The only cost of any significance I can think of is the music rights fee, and given the non-existent ratings they might be able to find that in the couch cushions in the break room. The bad news is that it doesn't seem like they're going to spend anything on improving the station, especially giving it an analog signal. Maybe I'm wrong and this is really a precursor to launching a different oldies station on another frequency, but I really doubt that.

I really don't understand what's going on at Broadway. They have one station that's in deep trouble (92.5 The Beat) and a second that should probably be getting more attention (101.5 The Eagle.) Torpedoing what's left of a station that is a viable replacement for one or the other makes no sense to me, and that's besides the perennial question of what they heck are they doing with 92.1...


And just as a side note, the automation needs tuning. They just ran a 'nobody plays more 60's and 70's' stager into The Police's Every Breath You Take, which came out in 1983.

[henry]

I still don't fully understand why they pulled KOOL off 105.5? It seemed like a good use of the frequency.

[David]

Jan 7, 2023 5:17:57 GMT -6 henry said:

I still don't fully understand why they pulled KOOL off 105.5? It seemed like a good use of the frequency.

Here's my take on why Broadway Media turned 105.5 into a simulcast of Bob FM: Demographics. KOOL FM 105.5 had more than double the current ratings of U92 when Broadway pulled the plug on the "pop, soul, and rock & roll" format last spring, but I can almost guarantee that the primary audience for KOOL was 50+ old farts like myself. As we've discussed at length on the board in prior threads, most radio advertisers don't want to buy time on stations where the primary audience is boomers. Right or wrong, the perception is that the 50+ demos are set in their ways and don't like to try new products or switch brands. I think someone at Broadway Media decided they could attract younger demos by moving Bob FM to 105.5, so KOOL FM got the boot. The same can be said of U92. The station has stuck with the urban/hip hop format for over a decade despite dismal ratings, probably because the core audience for U92 are in the coveted 18-35 demo. I can't think of any other reason why Broadway hasn't pulled the plug on KUUU yet. Even when KOOL FM had its highest ratings on 105.5, roughly 50% of their commercials were PSA's. That suggests to me that Broadway had a tough time selling spots for the station because of the primary demos. I suspect it's the same reason that KLO-AM didn't survive for even two years with the "America's Best Music" soft ac/standards format, and why iHeart dumped Easy 99.1 for Bloomberg Business.

The current "automated jukebox" format of KOOL FM is nothing new for Broadway Media. KEGA-FM was automated and had no DJ's for almost three years because of poor ratings, and it's only been about six months now since KEGA has had on air DJ's again. Even with the recent addition of air talent on KEGA, I believe the jocks are only on the air from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM Monday through Friday.

[CAwasinNJ]

David's right. The ratings for Bob did bump up after the addition of 105.5, though it wasn't a huge increase and it's impossible to attribute that to the new signal just from the public ratings. I'm also sure that the demos for Bob are lower than KOOL, and that means more ad dollars per listener. Unfortunately only the insiders at Broadway know how much money was gained or lost from the switch.

It's too bad KDWY got sold instead of being turned into a 105.5 Humpy rimshot like the original 05-243 plan called for. That could have been something.