WXYT shifts to conservative talk

**Hardhat** · August-22-11, 07:47 PM

Sounds like their host lineup is everybody who is too bombastic or lunatic fringe for WJR. Do we really need another conservative talk lineup in this city? Does progressive talk not have anything to say that's appealing to listeners? Personally, I hope they crash and burn, but I guess XYT figures there's an audience for this.
WXYT 1270 shifting to conservative talk, will still air game broadcasts

The Detroit News

WXYT 1270-AM is moving from sports talk to conservative talkbeginning Sept. 12.
Charlie Langton, the fast-talking and bombastic legal contributor on Fox 2, will host the morning show [[6-9), the only local show planned. He will be followed by Glenn Beck [[9-noon), who is carried on 400 stations nationwide; author Laura Ingraham [[noon- 3 pm); Todd Schnitt [[3-6 p.m.); Jason Lewis [[6-9 pm); and Rusty Humphries [[9-midnight).
WXYT currently simulcastslocal sports talk shows; those will continue to run on 97.1-FM The Ticket.
Both stations will continue to broadcast local play-by-play of Lions, Tigers, Red Wings and Pistons games.

From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/article/20110822/...#ixzz1VoAEkk2k

**Goose** · August-22-11, 07:55 PM

radio FAIL

**jerrytimes** · August-22-11, 08:12 PM

radio PASS!

**douglasm** · August-22-11, 08:14 PM

Keep in mind generally it's not a matter of corprate phlosophy, but one of dollars. Progressive talk does not draw the numbers that conservative talk does, and it's numbers that drive a format decision. Simulcasting sports talk on both stations was a waste of a frequency that could be generating a buck or two on its own.

**East Detroit** · August-22-11, 08:22 PM

More season ticket holders with expendable income in Oakland County, thirsty for some conservative echoing of their own opinions?

**Vic_doucette** · August-22-11, 08:27 PM

This is an attempt to peel away a small percentage of WJR's listenership at a relatively cheap price. I suspect it will work.

**canuck** · August-22-11, 08:29 PM

What bothers me is the lack of local talk rather than the conservative/liberal bias. I listen to some Albom shows on WJR, and it seems his show [[only 2 hours) is one of the few local interest talk shows
around on that station. I have witnessed the same lack of local voice on other stations on the internet.

The fact guys like Hannity or Limbaugh can throw a stinkbomb at Detroit and never set foot there is maddening enough. Dont these stations have a mandate to give local interest coverage above a certain percentage?

**douglasm** · August-22-11, 08:31 PM

Vic can probably talk more on that than I can, but I can't think right off hand of a station losing it's license over the issue. A couple of PSA's usually cover their ass.

**313WX** · August-22-11, 08:37 PM

I'm surprised it took Glenn Beck this long to get into Detroit's market.

He's on just about everywhere else across the state.

**Vic_doucette** · August-22-11, 08:46 PM

I think Beck was somewhere in the market -- WDTK 1400 AM, maybe? -- but got dumped.

The "local" requirement is a joke. Run a few PSAs for local groups and you're OK.

It's much, much cheaper to run national programming. In fact, in some cases it can be free, just run a couple of minutes of national commercials [[sold by the program syndication company and running during the show) and you get the program free, complete with spaces inserted for you to sell local commercials.

**detroitsgwenivere** · August-22-11, 08:58 PM

WJR has locals other than Album. There's Paul W. Smith and Frank Beckman in the morning M-F.

**firstandten** · August-22-11, 09:00 PM

Originally Posted by canuck

What bothers me is the lack of local talk rather than the conservative/liberal bias. I listen to some Albom shows on WJR, and it seems his show [[only 2 hours) is one of the few local interest talk shows
around on that station. I have witnessed the same lack of local voice on other stations on the internet.

The fact guys like Hannity or Limbaugh can throw a stinkbomb at Detroit and never set foot there is maddening enough. Dont these stations have a mandate to give local interest coverage above a certain percentage?

You just gave a huge reason as to why there is such a wide difference in conservative vs liberal radio programming, According to a report by the Center for American progress

http://www.americanprogress.org/issu...talk_radio.pdf

**canuck** · August-22-11, 09:08 PM

Originally Posted by detroitsgwenivere

WJR has locals other than Album. There's Paul W. Smith and Frank Beckman in the morning M-F.

Yes, that's right. How are the NPR stations in metro for current affairs?
I know about the Albom
controversy this year at the Free Press, but I listened in on maybe 15 shows and find him to be pretty good about focusing on Detroit and Michigan issues on top of his sports coverage.

**Jimaz** · August-22-11, 09:30 PM

LOL at the last two codespeak letters of the call sign: WXYT.

Citizens United aftermath is bursting at the seams.

Mo' money! Mo' money!

**detroitsgwenivere** · August-22-11, 09:30 PM

Originally Posted by canuck

How are the NPR stations in metro for current affairs?

Craig Fahle still has a show on WDET mon-thurs from 10-noon [[replayed from 7-9pm) and Fridays from 10-11:30. He covers lots of issues pertaining to the City of Detroit and the individual communities within. I don't listen to him very often, but I was interviewed on his show last year regarding development issues in Corktown, and he asked me several thorough questions so I figure he's pretty good. But I sounded pretty boring

**MrNittany** · August-22-11, 10:11 PM

These radio programs, fine. My question --- are there really people who listen to this non-stop throughout the day? [[probably)

I mean; Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity, Mark Levin, Ingraham, Neal Boortz, et cetera. They ALL sound like each other. They ALL seemingly appear on each others shows from time to time. It's a 24/7 Echo Chamber!

**detroitsgwenivere** · August-22-11, 10:27 PM

Originally Posted by MrNittany

These radio programs, fine. My question --- are there really people who listen to this non-stop throughout the day? [[probably)

Yeah, my dad is one of em. That's how I'm under 65 and know about who hosts on WJR.

**Jimaz** · August-22-11, 10:33 PM

Originally Posted by MrNittany

These radio programs, fine. My question --- are there really people who listen to this non-stop throughout the day? [[probably)

Nah. It's not anymore about what people want to hear. It's only about what money wants people to hear or not hear.

Americans Before Corporations

**Switchmanjim** · August-22-11, 10:34 PM

Michael Savage from 6-9
He's on 1600 in Ann Arbor but the signal is weak.

**dtowncitylover** · August-23-11, 12:25 AM

1300 WDTW has a local guy from 6-9...

**canuck** · August-23-11, 07:02 AM

Originally Posted by MrNittany

These radio programs, fine. My question --- are there really people who listen to this non-stop throughout the day? [[probably)

I mean; Limbaugh, Beck, Hannity, Mark Levin, Ingraham, Neal Boortz, et cetera. They ALL sound like each other. They ALL seemingly appear on each others shows from time to time. It's a 24/7 Echo Chamber!

Yes but be honest, there is some respite come commercial time.

**canuck** · August-23-11, 07:24 AM

Thanks detroitsgwenvere, I will listen to the Craig Fahle show this AM while I wait for my new fridge to be delivered and finish trimming my old cupboards for the fridge nest.

**Alley_Cat** · August-23-11, 07:35 AM

Originally Posted by dtowncitylover

1300 WDTW has a local guy from 6-9...

To be exact, it's 1310.

**Vic_doucette** · August-23-11, 07:48 AM

The WXYT call letters came about when the station, which had been co-owned with WXYZ-TV and WRIF-FM by the American Broadcasting Co., was sold to then-General Manager Chuck Fritz in 1984. He couldn't legally keep the WXYZ call letters after the sale; only co-owned properties can share call signs. So he changed them to WXYT. The "T" sounded a lot like "Z," and also stood for "talk."

Douglasm is right when he says that the typical radio/television manager is interested not in left or right, but in green. AFAIK, nobody has ever been able to make money with left-wing talk except in a small way in a very liberal community. Nationally, the left-wing-talk format has bombed. If someone can ever figure out how to do it profitably on a bigger scale, you'll start hearing more of it.

For that matter, if a radio station manager thought he could improve ratings by broadcasting an endless loop of geese farting on a foggy day, that's what you'd hear on the station. It isn't the format, it's the profit.

**DetroitPlanner** · August-23-11, 07:53 AM

The adding of Charlie Langton is making it less conservative in my book. This radio station has been mostly right leaning for a very long time. Even Paul W does not shy away from bringing out his republican flag even though he is less right wing than the average loon they have on this station.

Albom is fairly non partisan in how he handles his show. I am surpised he has lasted as long as he has. The show is more Detroit focused than it was a first. He was nationally sindicated at one time, but obviously thats not the case anymore or everyone else in the country would be bored to death by listening to his constant Detroit based subject matter.