“THE SKY IS NOT FALLING, BUT YOUR HAIR IS ON FIRE”

Occasionally we get questions from readers about coverage of radio they’ve seen in trade papers and business publications. We received a request from a reader in Chicago to evaluate the veracity of an article that appeared August 15, 2019, in the Chicago Business Journal [link] about Classical station WFMT.

Above is the headline for the article by reporter Lewis Lazare as it appeared in the Chicago Business Journal online. You’ll have to agree that that the verbiage “WFMT-FM program director's abrupt exit raises new alarms about station's future” sounds pretty dire. The reader who contacted us asks if what Lazare says is true.

The premise of Lazare’s article is based upon (1.) WFMT’s Program Director, David Polk, resigned to move to New York; (2.) Classical music stations tend to have fewer listeners than they used to; and, (3.) Recently there have been changes in the management of WFMT.

Lewis Lazare

After reviewing the facts, we think Lazare draws unwarranted conclusions and is conflating unrelated and sometimes untrue assertions to create the appearance of a “crisis” situation. 

By doing so, Lazare’s words cause needless speculation. 

The reader who contacted us got the impression from Lazare's article that WFMT was about to change format or disappear.

We don’t know Mr. Lazare but he appears to have mashed together unrelated facts and his own self assumptions to create a zippy headline.

We have included Lazare’s article in its entirety at the bottom of this post. Also, we will publish Lazare’s comments about our review if he chooses to provide them.

LETS LOOK AT THE FACTS

• POLK’S RESIGNATION

David Polk

Lazare wrote: This week's abrupt exit of David Polk as program director at classical music-formatted WFMT-FM (97.8) once again has sounded the alarm about the future of the station and of classical music on radio in Chicago.

It is true that Polk did resign and he intends to move to New York. But, there is no indication that Polk's personal decision was "abrupt" or alarming. Polk's leaving has no bearing on the future of WFMT or Classical music on the radio.

• "CLASSICAL MUSIC IS A HARD SELL ON THE RADIO"

Lazare wrote: “It’s no secret that classical music has become a hard sell on the radio, as fewer stations can muster the necessary resources to keep the genre profitably on the air.”

This not true.

Millions of people enjoy Classical music on the radio, online and at concerts and events. It is true that Classical music fans tend to be in the older demos, but the same statement can be made about radio listeners in general.

Lazare seems to be unaware that Classical music is well suited to noncommercial public radio. The economics are different when a station success is not solely based on ad revenue. That is why former commercial Classical stations have become public stations including WQXR in New York, KDFC in San Francisco, WCLV in Cleveland and WCRB in Boston.

WFMT is actually a hybrid. It is licensed as a commercial station but it now uses many public radio attributes to bring in revenue.

Lazare implies that WFMT is not doing as well in the ratings as other Classical music stations. This is also not true.

Sparks News took a look at the Nielsen Audio PPM ratings trends for Classical music stations in the top five markets (chart on the right).

Three of these stations (WQXR, KUSC & KDFC) are noncommercial, listener-supported shops. WFMT and WRR in Dallas are commercial stations that are owned and operated by nonprofit organizations. All of these stations are successful by any measure.

They are also well suited for our multi-channel, multi-platform media environment. Super-serving a passionate, niche audience is the key and the ages-old appeal of the music drives listeners to give their support.

• THE MANAGEMENT TEAM AT WFMT IS NEW

So what? Lewis Lazare should give them a chance before predicting their demise.

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Original article:

 

https://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/news/2019/08/15/wfmt-fm-program-directors-abrupt-exit-raises-new.html

WFMT-FM program director's abrupt exit raises new alarms about station's future

By Lewis Lazare  – Reporter, Chicago Business Journal

Aug 15, 2019, 2:00pm EDT

This week's abrupt exit of David Polk as program director at classical music-formatted WFMT-FM (97.8) once again has sounded the alarm about the future of the station and of classical music on radio in Chicago.

In a Facebook posting, Polk announced he is leaving the station to seek his fortunes in New York City, and he asked his followers for housing tips in the Big Apple.

A memo to WFMT staffers from recently named general manager George Preston complimented Polk for his contributions, but made no mention about any search for a successor or what the programming game plan for the station would be going forward.

A spokeswoman for WFMT said Preston would be unavailable for further comment.

Polk was named program director at WFMT in late 2013, by former general manager Steve Robinson, who exited the station in the fall of 2016 after a long run.

Following Robinson’s exit, Polk and Tony Macaluso, the director of the WFMT Radio Network, were put in charge of the station.

Macaluso subsequently exited the station, too. That left Polk to run the show until Preston, a former on-air host at WFMT, resurfaced in March of this year as the new general manager.

It’s no secret that classical music has become a hard sell on the radio, as fewer stations can muster the necessary resources to keep the genre profitably on the air.

WFMT has for years relied on a couple of membership drives annually to raise a large chunk of its operating budget. To get people to cough up contributions, the station has offered a vast array of compact discs and other premiums. It’s unclear whether WFMT has thought through what it might offer in lieu of CDs as they become increasingly of no use to people under 60.

Polk, when he took over as program director, signaled he would help evolve WFMT-FM to make it a more appealing outlet to younger listeners. But over the years there were few dramatic changes. The biggest — the promotion of Dennis Moore to morning drive host a year ago — seems to have fizzled. Moore has not brought anything substantively different to the job. And perhaps tellingly, Moore every morning introduces a segment hosted by Carl Grapentine, who retired to make way for Moore.

Now with WFMT mired near the bottom of the entire radio ratings heap in Chicago, the pressing question is whether Preston can drive substantive change and keep WFMT alive. The answer, however, may not be so much in Preston’s court, as it is in that of Sandra Micek, a former Hyatt Hotels (NYSE: H) executive who in May of 2018 was named president and CEO of WFMT parent Window to the World Communications.

Micek is said to have been rethinking every aspect of the not-for-profit media company’s operations, which also includes public television station WTTW-Channel 11.

Micek has not yet entirely spelled out what she intends to do. But it’s clear the winds of change are starting to blow stronger with each passing day at WFMT, and Polk’s departure is the latest indication of that.