Re: Globe story on 'GBH-FM

[mwaters@wesleyan.edu (Martin J. Waters)]

<snip>
>Unfortunately, the writer also parrots
>the old war-horse that the adults standards audience is dying off.

        As NERW mentioned in its ratings roundup the other day,
WWCO/Waterbury, Conn., just did a great leap forward in its local ratings.
It's still relatively recently that it began simulcasting WDRC (AM)
Hartford with the mostly locally programmed / part satellite adult
standards format. And WDRC (AM) is doing OK, too.
        The audience-dying-off argument is just plain lame. This format
keeps updating to go along with the passage of time. Tonight I heard the
Righteous Brothers on one of the music-of-you-life type bird feeds (go
ahead, make ME feel old!) The real issue is the old problem that
advertisers don't want to buy this format, no matter how many people are
listening, because supposedly they're the wrong people (i.e., mostly 55 and
over). In fairness to radio programmers, IMO, you can't expect them to
single-handedly change this viewpoint in the advertising and marketing
world. It also pervades TV, newspapers, magazines, every sort of media.

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