SEATTLE MERGER: KUOW BUYING KPLU

A major change is coming to the Seattle/Tacoma noncom radio dial: NPR News is leaving KPLU.  In 2016 KPLU will emerge as a 24/7 jazz station with new, yet to be determined, call letters. KUOW will become the market’s only NPR News stations, ending years of robust competition between the two stations.

A KPLU COFFEE MUG THAT WILL BECOME A COLLECTABLE

KUOW agreed to pay Pacifica Lutheran University, the licensee of KPLU $8 million -- $7 million in cash and $1 million of underwriting for Pacific Lutheran over 10 years.  It is anticipated the purchase will be final in 2016 when the FCC gives formal approval.

Pacific Lutheran said in a press release that proceeds of the sale will go to the university’s endowment, which currently stands at more than $85 million. The Seattle Times reported KUOW is using $4.5 million from the station’s reserves and a $2.5 million loan from the University of Washington to pay the cash portion of the deal.

It is unknown whether most or all of KPLU news people will be let go but new jazz jobs will be coming. KUOW has been mum on its plans.

MIXED REACTION TO THE CHANGES

Some observers lament the loss of KLPU’s news approach. The SeattlePi.com news site said [link] about the transaction: 

The sale, and change of formats, will deprive the Puget Sound area of a first-rate news operation. KPLU has distinguished itself…with imaginative coverage…as well as in-depth features…

KUOW tried to put lipstick on the new all-music format and elimination of KPLU’s news division, conveniently overlooking recent cutbacks of its own local news talk programs.

Whatever its sugar coating, this marks the second gut punch this year to public affairs programming on public broadcasting outlets in the Seattle area.

In the early spring, KCTS-TV fired virtually its entire local production staff including camera operators who had been with the station nearly 40 years, and producers of acclaimed local programming. The purge came less than seven months after the public TV station had inaugurated a new weekly public affairs program.

The Stranger, a weekly Seattle newspaper commented:

KUOW Plans to Purchase KPLU and Make It an All Jazz Station. What Happens to Their Reporters?

There were once two dueling newspapers in Seattle. But in 2009, the left-leaning Seattle Post-Intelligencer shut down, leaving us with the Seattle Times, which employs some excellent journalists but is owned and published by old, conservative farts.

Still, we had two National Public Radio (NPR) affiliates in town—88.5 KPLU and 94.9 KUOW—each with their own team of reporters covering the city and state.

Until today.

KUOW posted more information and a survey for suggestions from jazz fans at [link].

 KUOW and KPLU both service substantial audiences according to the most recent PPM ratings data for October from Nielsen Audio:

 

PUBLIC RADIO SUPER REGIONAL: BUILDING SMALL STATION SURVIVAL TACTICS

Public station executives are being asked to participate in a survey now about best practices to assure sustainability for their organizations.  The survey is part of a workshop to be held next Wednesday and Thursday (11/18 & 19) at the Super Regional Meeting in San Antonio. You can see more about the Super Regional here [link].

The survey is intended for stations that have an annual budget of $3,000,0000 or less.  Stations reps can take the survey here [link]. Stations may participate regardless of whether they will be attending the Super Regional meetings.

The results of the survey will be presented at a workshop led by John Hess, GM & Executive Director of Boise State Public Radio; Scott Finn, Executive Director of West Virginia Public Broadcasting; Tom Michael, GM of KRTS, Marfa, Texas; and Mike Savage, GM of WBAA, West Lafayette, Indiana.

SMALLER STATIONS ARE REALLY GETTING SQUEEZED

We asked John Hess, who is compiling the survey, several questions about the Small Station Survival initiative.

  

[KM] Why are you doing this now?

[HESS] We started to discuss this topic as part of our Public Radio Regional Organization conference calls. The PRRO group is comprised of the presidents of the four regional organizations that represent public radio stations across the country: Eastern Public Media, Western States Public Radio, Public Radio in Mid America and California Public Radio. Many of stations are small to mid-sized operations.

[KM] What is changing at small and mid-sized stations you hope to address with the survey and at the workshop?

JOHN HESS

[HESS] Smaller stations are really getting squeezed in our competitive media environment. Many medium and sized smaller stations compete head to head with larger stations in big media markets. They are just surviving in this environment. Plus it is tough for smaller stations in rural markets. Many of these stations are the only source of news and cultural programming in the area. Small and medium sized stations also are suffering from decreased funding from university, state and federal sources.

[KM Note] We reported on CPB’s termination of the smallest stations last Friday [link]. We will be publishing a comprehensive update soon.

[HESS] Overall, these stations are not striving or thriving, they are just surviving. We need to come up with system-wide viable solutions. These aren’t large station vs small issues. The survey was designed to start a dialogue with stations and to determine top priority issues to begin working on.

[KM] What outcomes and next steps do you foresee?

[HESS] That is the question we are asking of the participants. Part of the agenda at the Super Regional next week is to determine the next action steps.  My hope is to keep the workshop group together after the conference. We will be rolling this process out in our regional groups and with organizations such as the University-Station Alliance (USA). These topics are “tipping point” issues that are important to the entire public radio system.

At the session we'll look at the results of the survey and then form break-out groups to examine the following pressure points: staffing, fundraising, local news and strategic collaborations.

Thank you for producing this blog, it really helps advance the dialogue in the public radio community.

You are welcome!

WNKU, CINCINNATI EMBRACES “MUSIC DISCOVERY” BRAND

WNKU [link] made industry news recently when it decided to drop almost all national shows and replace them with live and local hosts. Now WNKU manager Sean O’Mealy is taking the changes to the next level by adopting the “Music Discovery” format. 

In September, WKNU began playing more new music, focusing more on local music and increasing its ties to Cincinnati’s music scene.

“Music Discovery” is a format and strategy that is being promoted by Mike Henry of Paragon Media Strategies [link]. WNKU joins a growing roster of stations adopting the approach including WFUV, New York; KXT, Dallas; KUTX, Austin and The Bridge, Kansas City. 

Sean O’Mealy

“It’s a curated playlist for the musically curious along with carefully selected content that engages our listeners with us and the community, on-air and on-line,” said O’Mealy. 

It’s like hanging out with that cool friend you have who makes the best mixtapes. If you were to look at this list you might raise an eyebrow – but when you hear it, every song makes sense. One song flows right into the next. And every song is handpicked.

WNKU, like other “Music Discovery” stations, is designed to be competitive with online and mobile systems like Pandora, Spotify and Beats 1 Radio. WNKU’s advantages over those devices is hands-on curation (as opposed to algorithms), hyper local focus and involvement with live music events and venues. So far, listeners seem to like the changes. The fall WNKU had its biggest fund drive ever raising over $110,000. There were a record number of new members.

WNKU EVOLVED FROM DUAL-FORMAT IRRELEVANCE TO BECOME A MAJOR CULTURAL TASTEMAKER

For most of its early life WNKU split its schedule between NPR Newsmagazines and various types of music.  Twenty years ago Cincinnati had two other stations that took the same dual-format approach. WGCU was part-time NPR and part-time classical. WVXU was also part-time NPR combined with old-time radio broadcasts and jazz.  Nobody was being served very well.

By 2000 or so, WNKU’s then-PD Grady Kirkpatrick focused the music on Triple A but could never convince the licensee to drop news in favor of music 24/7. Around the same time WGUC and WVXU merged. WGUC became full-time classical and WVXU programmed NPR News around the clock. WVXU hired news director and reporter Maryanne Zelesnik – a terrific journalist – away from WNKU. Kirkpatrick left WNKU for a gig in the Rocky Mountains but his advice stuck.  WNKU then became a full-time Triple A with mixed results.

Subsequent management solved signal problems in the Cincinnati metro and added a high-powered repeater station, WNKE, reaching the entire Cincinnati trade area: 

WNKU was third in the Cincinnati noncom October Nielsen Audio PPM ratings, behind WVXU and WGUC:

UNLIMITED TIME BROKERAGE AGREEMENT RESULTS IN A $10K FINE

James and Ruth Campbell, Noncom Media Moguls

Some readers may recall our post last April [link] about who makes the most money in noncom radio. The top individuals were James and Ruth Campbell who are raking in the believer’s cash in Greenville, South Carolina. Mr. and Mrs. Campbell are the major players and benefactors of the Radio Training Network (RTN), a growing contemporary Christian music (CCM) network called His Radio.

According to RTN 2013 IRS 990, James Campbell was paid $581,183 that year. His wife, Ruth Campbell, is Mr. Campbell’s assistant secretary and made nearly $80,000 in the same year. $660,000+ goes a long way in Greenville. RTN’s net assets exceeded $22,800,000 as of 2013. The Campbell’s compensation is roughly 5% of RTN total annual revenue, three times the level of typical noncoms.

Now comes word that RTN and an associated company called Asheville Educational Association (AEA) must pay a $10,000 joint fine for a scheme that involved a “forever” time brokerage agreement (TBA) regarding the operation of WLFA-FM, Asheville, North Carolina.

The FCC’s Media Bureau’s consent decree said that the agreement between the two organizations amounted to an unauthorized transfer of control of the WLFA’s license.

In addition, the bureau found that both AEA and RTN improperly allowed RTN to assume control of the station without prior commission authorization, a violation of FCC rules. The investigation found that AEA improperly delegated core licensee responsibilities that it should have handled itself — such as retaining station employees at the main studio and maintaining station equipment.

Under terms of the 2013 agreement, AEA agreed to sell WLFA to RTN and in return would receive series of escalating monthly payments. According to the FCC decree, RTN agreed to pay AEA $6,750 per month in 2003. The monthly payment was to increase by 5% per year for the following four years and then again increase another 5% per year for subsequent years. By accepting these TBA fees, AEA violated the rules.

In addition, the bureau found that both AEA and RTN improperly allowed RTN to assume control of the station without prior commission authorization. AEA improperly delegated core licensee responsibilities that it should have handled itself — such as retaining station employees at the main studio and maintaining station equipment. Ultimate responsibility for essential station matters, such as personnel, programming and finances, remains the responsibility of the licensee. The FCC decree requires AEA and RTN to collectively join together to make a $10,000 civil penalty payment.

The FCC also said WFLA has been off the air since June 9, 2015. That was the date RTN and AEA terminated their agreement for RTN to provide 24/7 programming and full operation of WFLA. The license for WFLA will expire if the station does not resume broadcast operations by December 28, 2015, 12:01AM.

RTN IS aggressively adding new stations via purchases and LMAs. Accord to the His Radio website [link] operates over 50 stations and translators in six states:

RTN’s 50% share of the FCC fine is less than one percent of the Campbell’s annual conpensation.

DASH PRESENTATION: LISTENING TO FM & AM IN VEHICLES REMAINS STRONG

At the DASH connected car trade show last week [link], Westwood One and Cumulus Media presented new data on the power of radio to reach  listeners in vehicles. The info came from the latest Share of Ear research from Edison Media. Edison publishes quarterly estimates of listening to any audio from all sources.

The data confirms what we wrote in October [DASH: SEARCHING FOR PARADISE BY THE DASHBOARD LIGHT link]. The notion that connected cars are clobbering terrestrial listening in vehicles is a mixed bag. DASH's promise of A Survival Guide for Radio Broadcasters seems like hyperbole to sell tickets to the conference. Consumer adaption and use of new technologies in vehicles is more complex than it seems. Some consumers are embracing connected car features and many others are not.

Keep in mind that Westwood One and Cumulus Media are big commercial entities that are heavily involved in terrestrial broadcasting, so they want to make themselves look good. But the Share of Ear information lays out powerful facts that confirm radio’s robust share of in-vehicle listening. You can download the entire presentation here [link].

SLIDE ONE: LISTENING TO FM & AM IN ALL LOCATIONS IS LARGER THAN ALL OTHER PLATFORMS COMBINED

SLIDE TWO: LISTENING TO FM & AM IN VEHICLES IS OVER 70% OF ALL VEHICLE LISTENING

SLIDE THREE: MOST STREAMING AUDIO LISTENING IS DONE AT HOME, NOT ON THE ROAD

SLIDE FOUR: FM & AM LISTENING IN VEHICLES REMAINS SUBSTANTIAL

SLIDE FIVE: IN VEHICLE LISTENING TO STREAMING AUDIO COMPRISES A SMALL SHARE OF ALL AUDIO LISTENING

THE LESSON: THE BEST WAY FOR TERRESTRIAL RADIO TO CONTINUE TO BE KING OF THE CAR IS TO OFFER COMPELLING CONTENT THAT LISTENERS VALUE & NEED.