PBRTV - Pittsburgh Area Radio/TV Mailbag

PBRTV - Pittsburgh Area Radio/TV Mailbag PBRTV - Pittsburgh Area Radio & TV

PBRTV Mailbag January 1-15, 2004

Re: 770 Jeannette: They've changed call letters. It's WKFB this morning. "770 KFB". Clarke Ingram (January 15, 2004)

eric, just came across your call letter section for the first time. i own two radio stations in the pgh.metro that are not included. wonder why? if you would like to add them they are; WBVP 1230 --WMBA 1460 thanks, frank iorio (January 14, 2004)

Eric's Response: Purely by accident...small oversight and whatever else you want to call it. A one man operation can't possibly catch all mistakes!

Do you know what happened to "the Beat"? I hear that it's news radio now. Christina (January 13, 2004)

Eric's Response: Indeed I do. As has been in the papers and PBRTV for several weeks, The Beat ended it's reign and was converted to FM News Talk 104.7 WPGB on January 5. Jim Quinn in the morning and Right Wing talk all day long...or most of it anyway.

Greetings Eric - How are you? I'm fine up here in Lake Effect Snow Land. I saw your response about XM satellite radio in the mailbag & had to share my experience on it. I really enjoy the service & why I am willing to pay for it. The music variety on it is simply amazing. I usually go between the two classic country channels, the oldies channels, nostalgia & other formats that are or (in most cases) are not available locally. Plus they have a NASCAR channel on as well as Fox News Channel, which were a few more reasons why I bought it. Another is ESPN radio, which at times carried baseball games while the local ESPN affiliate had regular or another sporting event on. XM is also dropping commercials on all 68 music channels next month, definitely a plus in my book. I do listen to the local, regional & Canadian stations, but some of the local stations are becoming stale & predictable. Probably AM 740 out of Toronto & SE 93.3 out of Jamestown, NY are the only stations I still enjoy listening to. Yes XM is great for trips as well as local driving. My thoughts on this is that there is a service willing to play songs formats, etc. that the local stations are not playing. It will eventually become for the car & music what cable or satellite is for home entertainment that people will pay for. Take Care, Tom L. (January 12, 2004)

I've enjoyed reading this website over the past few years. I don't actually listen to any local radio stations ever since I bought xm satellite radio over a year ago, but it's still fun to read about all the politics in local radio. I was surprised about the 104.7 conversion, but I guess I shouldn't have been. I find one of the most annoying aspects of local radio to be the various morning shows. Even though satellite radio is a national service, it often feels local. Even with 1.4 million subscribers, it is quite easy to actually call up and talk to the dj's and get your song requests played. With the addition of local traffic and weather for Pittsburgh, I probably won't even tune to KDKA anymore. (January 11, 2004)

Eric's Response: I have had mixed feelings about ordering XM radio for my car. I guess it would be nice to have on the very rare occasion I take a long trip, I wouldn't have to change stations and wouldn't have to flip CDs and such. Yet at the same time, it's a lot more fun to see what local radio stations do. Granted, many of them sound the same now when you head from city to city, but there is still a sense of local flavor. You don't have to pay for local radio either...that is unless you opt to become a member of a public radio station.

Eric, Here's a little update on my situation. Monday, when I went into work, I received quite a surprise. I was informed by my employer (Keymarket Communications) that they are changing directions. They want to put more emphasis on local news and less emphasis on local talk. As a result my mid-day talker position at WOMP 1290AM Wheeling, WV/WSTV 1340AM Steubenville, OH is being eliminated and replaced with syndication effective 1/5/04. This move was not based on my performance. In fact the were quite pleased with me in the spring book where I pulled a 10.2 AQH share in Men 35-64 on WSTV.This is all part of the ongoing effort to consolidate and reduce overhead. This means that I am available immediately and willing to relocate. Anyone interested in a seasoned pro with both local and national experience may contact me at patcampbell@1st.net. Pat Campbell (January 11, 2004)

My name is Dino Cardamone, and I've been living in Pittsburgh all my life, which is 40 years long and counting already. So, I'm kinda tuned in to the ol' broadcasting tradition here. Also, my dad was pretty involved in the local advertising biz, so I've been exposed to the roots of Pittsburgh based broadcast media since I was a kid. I was just looking for some backup pages for my browser to list a variety of stations in the area when I ran across your page. I must say I was impressed at the love, care and energy you put into your work with media and the site here. It's really cool. I also happen to be a huge fan of the Saturday Morning Light Brigade and National Public Radio too, so I've recently been listening to WRCT, as they carry SLB now from 6 to 12 AM Saturday morns. That's a great station. I'll be looking for your news show there. It's great to see people not letting such prominent parts of local past worlds slip through the sieve of time. Thank you for your dedication and work here in preserving it as we transition into the digital age. Dino Cardamone Pittsburgh, PA USA (January 8, 2004)

Eric's Response: Well thank you...and thank you for tuning in. Please be sure to check the site often because the times when I do the news may change at the drop of a hat!

I just received you message. I enjoyed 104 the beat. There is no fm radio station that has the format of 104 the beat. WAMO and 93.7fm and 96.1 is hip hop focus and I don't listen to that. I am a 29 year old female and I don't enjoy what is on the radio (besides 1510am/1150am/at times 860am). If I want talk radio I would listen to NPR on 90.5fm. If I want talk radio I would listen to 101.5fm or late night on 860am. There is no r&b station. This is a big void and I want to inform others in your field that this is a problem for the african american baby boomers and others that enjoy this r&b selection of music. This is the 2nd time 104.7 made a change without regard to their listeners. The focus may be that you can not let others know the change in order for no one to copy, but to forget about the listeners is a severe problem. Raenell Jones (January 7, 2004)

Eric, thanks for your kind words concerning my involvement with 104.7. WJJJ had a solid 4 to 5 share 12+ for its first year, so Jammin' Oldies was a hit for at least a brief while. In fact, WJJJ's first book in the format ranks as the highest ratings in the 30-year history of 104.7, including WYDD. While Jammin' Oldies was probably the ultimate niche format, the continued success of the Cincinnati station (WMOJ, which has held a consistent 4 share 12+ for the past five years) suggests that WJJJ also could have continued to be successful under different circumstances. When the air staff and I were downsized in 2001, however, the station as we knew it was over. I think the new WPGB will be successful and do exactly what it is intended to do: pull decent ratings and take a few points away from KDKA so that their big dog, WDVE, can be #1 in the market. R.I.P. The Beat - it was a great ride for the first several years. (And until they take it down, you can still get a two-year-old blast from the past at http://www.wjjj.com/staff.) Regards, Clarke Ingram. (January 7, 2004)

I am trying to locate Larry Weiss who ran Renda's Pittsburgh properties until recently when Tony Renda, Jr. took over. He and I are old coworkers from Florida. Do you know where I can find him? Thanks Bob Clarke (January 7, 2004)

I want to say that I am very, very upset that The Beat 104.7 is no longer. I loved that station and it's R&B Oldies. Before it was The Beat it was the only smooth jazz station in Pittsburgh. Now I have nothing that I like to listen to here in the Pittsburgh area. Why do they always change things like this?? No notice before hand, just poof it is gone. If I want to listen to talk/news radio there are plenty to choose from here in Pittsburgh, but where am I going to get more Jammin Oldies or Smooth Jazz?? I am disgusted with radio here in Pittsburgh. I guess I will be playing more CD's and forget the radio all together! Susan (January 7, 2004)

Eric's Response: Again, this was not a surprise to those of us in the business. It also had been in the papers and here on PBRTV for the last month or so. Smooth Jazz never made a big hit here in Pittsburgh. Jammin Oldies never made a hit ANYWHERE. Many of the stations across the country that became JO stations in 1999 are now something entirely different. This is the way the radio business works...unfortunately. The bottom line speaks more than the format.

Dear Mr. O'Brien, I wanted to let you know that I am very upset in the change of the radio station. This is the 2nd time that this change has occured. They changed 93.7fm but it was the same format. Unlike this talk radio. I don't like it and very disappointed in the change. Raenell Jones (January 5, 2004)

Eric's Response: The fact is, this format change was a long time coming...and I mean a long time. I am surprised it took so long to be honest. I know they tried to make a go of the station with Clarke Ingram's expertise, but they foolishly let him go a couple of years ago. The station was on life-support as far as I could tell and this may be what it needed to jump start again. Do we need more right-wing, conservative talk? Probably not, but I have the feeling it will last a good while.

Hi, I know this is out of the Pittsburgh area but I was hoping you still could help me. I am living outside of Erie, PA and listen to WABC 770 from New York City. In the the evening the John Batchelor &Paul Alexander show is on. Recently it has become just the John Batchelor Show. Do you know what happened to Paul Alexander? I have looked on the internet until my eyes are crossed but no luck. Thank you for your time, Cathy (January 5, 2004)

Does anybody know what Maryanne Lewis, former late-night, talk-show host for KDKA-AM, is doing currently? A few years ago she was doing some interesting features for the Tribune-Review. I was receiving some tips from her on feaure writing. I was hoping she would revive her radio career? K.K. (January 3, 2004)

Eric here's one for the where are they now? page. Does anyone know what happened to Sue Peterson? She was the first weather girl whent wpgh 53 started the 10 o clock news. I believe her husband was a producer. But she disappeared and hasn't been heard from since. I loved her weather reports of "It's going to be really cold here, but it's going to be warm" John from Connellsville (January 3, 2003)

I was a guest on The Ricky and Copper Show for my 6th birthday. It was in October of 1960. I would like to know if there is anyone out there who shared this experience with me? Are there any old photos or videos in the archives? Beth (January 2, 2003)

Eric, through all of the changeover, we have heard nothing about the current airstaff at WJJJ-FM. Heard anything as to where they may be going? Curious where Brother Matt will end up ! Don from Imperial (January 2, 2004)

Eric's Response: So far as I know: Chris Reynolds is remaining with Clear Channel to be the Traffic Manager. Brother Matt may end up with 3WS...but who knows. It's not likely in situations like this that you WILL hear about where the airstaff goes...cause most of them usually don't know when the formats change.

Hi...just a note to anyone who was a fan or staffer of the old Great 98 in Fairmont, W.Va. I'm Al Mayo, a former staffer there, and I'm trying to compile a personal data base of anything regarding the old WFGM--Great 98. If you---or anyone you know, has anything at all from those days...giveaways, stickers, pictures, and particularly Airchecks...contact me at allenmayo@hotmail.com. (January 2, 2004)

Eric, I spent Christmas week with relatives in North Huntingdon and got to hear a lot of AM 770. They sounded fine. No commercial breaks. Only stop sets were for weather and top of the hour IDs. Also noticed all music played was long versions or album versions of the hits. Also got to hear Goose Goslin's goodbye on KDKA. It was refreshing to hear a lot of folks having fun on the radio! Many of his current friends and associates -- and some old ones, called in to say goodbye. Enjoy your retirement, Goose! Finally, the kids love to listen to AM 540 Radio Disney each time we travel 'home.' Birach does a much better job of running that station than they do their AM 700 property here in Walkersville, MD. Visitors to http://dcrtv.com are constantly complaining of dead air and late sign ons/sign offs, etc., at the poorly-run AM 700, WGOP. Tom Lacko, Frederick, MD (January 1, 2004)

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