RE: Layoffs at WCVB??

["Hakim Madjid" <HMadjid@mindspring.com>]

Well as far WCBV goes, that's about par for the course mega-corporate media
decision making, cut back the locally produced public service shows, and
stuff.

As far as the state of radio goes, I thought that trend has been in place
for about a decade - radio is loosing listeners in general.

IMHO there are several factors in play here. Most of radio nowadays is just
plain boring - save for some of the news and current affairs programming on
the major public radio affiliates. I think radio is going to get more and
more boring in the future because the large media conglomerates are only
interested in putting lowest-common denominator programming at the lowest
cost they can get away with.

Secondly, there are lots of alternatives to turning listening to the radio
these days. The development of portable cassette, CD, MP/3 and other
assorted portable gizmos in the past two decades, mean that people can
listen to their choice of music pretty much anywhere they want, as opposed
to some radio stations' play list endlessly repeated. These days, even entry
level automobiles can be equipped with a CD changer - again playing back
one's own choice of music (some 7 hours worth), and with a computer based or
stand-alone CD burner one has the ability to create their own mixes to play
in the car. With all this why listen to music on the radio so much?

73, de Hakim (N1ZFF)

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-boston-radio-interest@bostonradio.org
[mailto:owner-boston-radio-interest@bostonradio.org]On Behalf Of Donna
Halper
Sent: Thursday, August 02, 2001 1:46 PM
To: bri@bostonradio.org
Subject: Re: Layoffs at WCVB??



I expect the cutbacks will be in the public service realm, because the
station can then put in something that is sponsored. "Five on 5" has
already been cut.  I expect other PSA oriented shows will be scaled back
too.  Sadly, that seems to be the trend.

On another front that is related to this list, a research study I was just
reading about radio listening indicates that consolidation may be great for
making conglomerates wealthy, but it seems to be driving away 12-24 adults
(the youthful generation needed to ensure that new cume occurs), especially
young males-- this demographic has begun to reject radio entirely,
according to the report.  Most common complaints (and explanations for why
they don't listen as much any more) are 'radio today has too many
commercials and too much mindless talk'; even young females are no longer
feeling they can relate to what they are hearing on the air and no longer
are loyal to one station, according to the study, contents of which were
summarised in "Inside Radio Fax."

I wonder if now we will see TV increase its commercial load even further,
with more infomercials, more Miss Cleo and more get-rich-quick stock tips
(gasp).