Name: Cumulus Media
Age: 22
Occupation: media giant
Last Seen: Atlanta, GA
Bee-otched For: proving that they need to fix WJR
-Age: 22
Occupation: media giant
Last Seen: Atlanta, GA
Bee-otched For: proving that they need to fix WJR
Once upon a time, there was a big, 50,000-watt radio station out of Detroit called WJR.
"The Great Voice of the Great Lakes" as it was called was a powerhouse that appealed to young and old. Unlike most AM giants of their time, the avoided the Top 40 trend, knowing that competing stations like WXYZ, WKNR and especially CKLW could have the kids to themselves. WJR had variety even after the age of Network radio died with the advent of television.
For decades, WJR had J.P. McCarthy, a smooth, laid-back morning host who was well-loved and rated. Sadly, he died in 1995 at the age of 62. To some, his death marked the beginning of the end for WJR.
Like many radio stations, WJR has been bought, sold and merged over the years. Some of those names include Capital Cities, Disney/ABC, Citadel and now, Cumulus. At one point, it was owned by George Richards, who also owned the Detroit Lions football team.
But now, that golden tower sticking out of the Fisher Building should be sold for junk.
In the latest Nielsen book, WJR scored probably its worst rating ever: a 2.0. Somewhere, the ghost of the old 97.1 Extreme Radio is shouting, "howdy, neighbor!" After all, that station's rating was similar to what WJR's is now.
Like most AM talk stations, WJR's hosts are angry old white men and their listeners are the same. Christ, they carry that morbidly-obese junkie Rush Limbaugh ferchrissakes! They also carry Mark Levin and Michael "Savage" Weiner.
WJR does have a good deal of local talk, though, you guessed it, it's all angry old white men. One of those guys is 70-year-old Frank Beckmann. His show airs from 9 am to noon weekdays. Recently, Southpaws co-host Jack Prince called up Beckmann live on his show. He talked about young people being riddled with college debt and Beckmann replied with, "why should I pay for their debt?"
Here's the reason why: BECAUSE WHEN YOU WENT TO COLLEGE, IT WAS CHEAP! ADJUSTED FOR INFLATION, THE AVERAGE AMERICAN GOT PAID MORE BACK THEN THAN TODAY! THE MINIMUM WAGE HASN'T GONE UP ONCE IN TEN YEARS AND WHEN REAGAN WAS PRESIDENT! WHEN THEY LEAVE COLLEGE, STUDENTS HAVE SIX FIGURES OF COLLEGE DEBT AND CAN'T GET A JOB! AND HERE YOU ARE, MAKING SIX FIGURES PER YEAR ON A RADIO SHOW WITH NO LISTENERS BITCHING ABOUT THEM?!? NO WONDER WHY YOUR STATION'S AT A 2.0 IN THE RATINGS. JESUS CHRIST ON A DILDO-FUCKING HARLEY!
Folks, this is Cumulus we're talking about: the same assholes who banned The Dixie Chicks from their stations over Natalie Maines' slamming of George W. Bush. A company that is selling radio stations left and right to solve their debt. And now, a company that's stuck in Detroit with a station with no ratings and don't share the same political leanings with most Detroiters.
With more and more cars not being equipped with AM radios and Cumulus rumored to be prepping their Detroit stations for sale, only time will tell how long WJR will last. Hell, maybe an FM simulcast with 93.1 - currently the faltering NASH FM - could be in the works. Who knows?
BTW, the top station in Detroit is WCSX while new rival WLLZ is consistently at a 4 share. Together, the two are at a 10 share, providing that Detroiters love their moldy Classic Rock. WRIF is at a 4.6, though I wonder how 89X is doing after their recent switch to Active Rock.
At the end of the day, I think WJR will sink lower as their listeners age and Cumulus will prep their Detroit cluster for a sale. Their other station is 96.3 WDVD, which plays soccer mom music. Who knows? All I know is that as long as Detroit stays to the left, there's no room for those who use a 50,000-watt stick to kiss Drumpf's ass.
It's not video that killed the radio star, it's shooting its own ass.
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Bee-otch of the Day Archives can be seen on http://beeotchoftheday.blogspot.com
Bee-otch of the Day is a production of Chuck69.com, Grand Rapids' site for Stern, politics and more!
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