Idaho Radio News Etc.

I hear that a Boise-area station will start spinning Christmas tunes this afternoon.

Tis the… season? Already?

Update The tip said KTSY would start playing Christmas tunes Tuesday afternoon — I imagine this is only part-time? Anyone had a chance to listen?

Update 2 KTSY played some Christmas tunes Monday afternoon to promote their seasonal switch coming DECEMBER 1.

KSRV’s got a stunt planned…

Think you can hold on to a car or truck longer than anyone else?? YOU may Drive away with a used car or truck from Gentry Ford. Listen for details on “Lay Your Hands on Me” on 96.1 the Bull. Contest is Saturday, November 19th at Gentry Ford in Ontario.
Click on the car for details.

Thank goodness they aren’t asking people to put their lips on a 10-year-old Saturn.

From Billboard Radio Monitor:

It was bound to happen eventually: Crossroads Communications is launching “92.7 The Crock,� a country and rock station, in Terre Haute, Ind., on Nov. 1.

Station billboards feature the words “bite me� and “chomp.�

The blending of the two formats is based on a trend seen nationwide in music concerts, VP/GM Doug Edge told the Tribune-Star, and cited a recent Ted Nugent and Toby Keith concert in the market.

“This is a new format. There is nothing like it in the country,� Edge told the paper. “This will be the first market to ever hear a station that sounds like this.�

“We are taking ZZ Top, Aerosmith and the Eagles, along with Alabama and Garth Brooks – those guys that sing a kind of rock in a country sound and the rockers that sing more of a country rock song,â€? Edge said. “We put them together and gave the station a little bit of an attitude.â€?

It’s been a quiet couple of months for news. This is my semi-annual plea for tips: idahoradio@gmail.com

From KPVI:

Trick or treat on Z street sponsored by area radio stations will be taking place behind Edwards Theatre in Ammon. RVs will be lined up for children to knock on their doors. Trick or treat on Z street starts at 4 and ends around 7pm.

More precisely, it’s KFTZ – Z103.

Check your sites in Firefox! The CSS has issues and is causing black on black (or white on white) text all over the place (kinda hard to read). It’s a problem across the board — especially on KBOI.com.

I am suuuuuch a geek.

Update Ummm, there’s a “y” in especially. I knew that. Really.

Just before the Nevada game, KZMG played the Mad Ro song with Paul J. audio drops. My sister told me about it, but this was the first time I heard it… pretty damn cool.

MySpace is all the rage — especially with younger-skewing stations and their audiences.

This flew out of my fingers tonight:

Can’t you just see it?

Lindsay Lohan, Sean William Scott, Ashlee Simpson and that dude from the CapitolOne ads talking about MySpace, and how evvvveryone was on it.

It’s 2022, and you’re watching “I Love 2005!”

“I used to sit and watch Laguna Beach and edit my profile [hot pink was sooo the color].”

“My blog was the shit! And you should have seen all the surveys I filled out… I think the random 39 fat-bald Internet surfer knew more about me than my own parents… or as we called them back then ‘the ‘rents’”

“All my friends were on it — you should have SEEN the crazy photos I put on there. I think someone was drunk in every single one.”

“This one time, I let accepted a friend request from someone I didn’t know, and started getting all these creepy comments… I almost had to change my name!”

Will it be like the Rubick’s Cube and New Coke of our decade?

At the sparsely attended Neal McCoy concert on Thursday – something jumped out to a friend of IRN: which station got the prime opportunities.

The Citadel country sparring is as old as the hills — I get notes from people at both stations from time to time with little swipes at their colleagues down the hall. At the McCoy show, the KQFC folks intro’ed the warm-up act (described to me as a ‘couple guys with guitars’), while Kevin & Brenda got the honors of introducing McCoy.

My friend J over at KTIK (who I seem to run in to in the most random of places) is the latest Boise radio personality to start writing a blog.

If :60 seconds of every hour isn’t enough, J Bates of 1350 KTIK The Ticket in Boise, Idaho has his own little corner of the World Wide Web

And it links to idahoradionews.com to boot!

KZMG just did one of the coolest imaging tricks I’ve heard in a good long while.

Heading in to break — a teaser for the (at least!) 10 songs in a row promotion. Then — they played three audio drops with upcoming songs. It went something like.. ‘We’ll fire up at least 10 songs in a row next, you’ll hear — Kanye West (song clip) Mariah Carey (song clip) Fifty Cent (song clip).

Brilliant!

Syndie talker Glenn Beck will hit the COT (that’s City of Trees in MySpace speak… apparently) on December 13th.

The host, who is heard in Boise on KIDO will perform a one-man stage show at the Morrison Center. “Glenn captures the spirit of Christmas in this one man stage performance. He’ll make you laugh, he’ll make you cry and he’ll also make you realize what a special holiday Christmas is. ”

Tickets

Journal, CC & Citadel all lost ground this week.

Journal ended the week almost even, while CCU & CDL both lost about 2% on the week.

JRN reported a 27% drop in profit for the 3rd quarter of this year. The company blames TV advertising sales.

The Cabana is empty.

Cabana Boy Geoff is off the VT list at KISS-FM. The past few weeks, Kelly Ryan filled in — now another Kelly – this time from Z100 in PDX will join the robot lineup.

I just saw an ad on All Access for Mr. Food radio.

Nooooooooo!

Now that I’m back in the Boise market, I’m looking for some freelance web design work. Past clients include Moxie Java/White Cloud Coffee, The BBB, Boise River Festival, etc. I’m currently doing work for my employer (there’s a concept… work… for an employer…) — plus The Fall of ‘55 documentary site — and a certain radio news blog. Click here.

Maybe it’s just because the KCIX billboard featuring Mike & Kate is outside my place of work — but I seem to see it constantly. Downtown… Fairview.. State Street. I’m not seeing any other CC boards so far — so the powers that be must have decided that a strong outdoor buy will do the most good for Mix.

I’m not sure of the symbolism of Kate hanging off Mike’s arm though…

Also: An IRN reader writes in to note that at about 7:30 on Friday — the station became Star 98.5! Oops. Ahhh voicetracking.

Idaho Weather

KQFC is gearing up for a frightful Halloween — and it’s taking ten listeners with it.

The station will take the group to the haunted Long Branch station on Halloween night — and Idaho’s old death row at the old Idaho Pen. Fiberpipe will stream the morning show, live from the Pen. on November 1. Details.

First Down chant?

The folks at BroncoCountry.com are buzzing about a supposed WAC rule that has banned stadium announcer (and Journal GM) Bob Rosenthal from his traditional “And That’s Another Bronco…” call-and-answer during BSU games. The cheer was noticeably absent after the first quarter or so at Saturday’s game…

Update: KJ sums it up below…

Outside Bronco Stadium just before game time, the Citadel SWAT team was out in full force — with KBOI, KTIK & some of the FM’s lined up near the SW enterance. KTIK’s (new?) mini-semi was a popular place to be — with the USC/Notre Dame shootout on a large TV on the back. J & the Ticket Chicks (sounds like the name of a weird, weird band) were doling out prizes.

Everybody’s doing it.

All three Boise stations groups now have a nationally syndicated morning show in their midst.

Citadel has Bob & Tom on KKGL (to say nothing of KTIK), Clear Channel has Kidd Kraddick on KSAS — and now Journal is jumping on the bandwagon. As we noted Friday, the station has shuffled its lineup, scattering Big J, Melissa and Jackie off to other parts of the schedule.

Now (Eric) Mancow (Mueller) will hold down the fort on The X from his syndie-home of Chicago. The show starts at the bright-and-early time of 4am MT, and rolls through to 9 (live).

The Byl & Doug days on the station were near legendary – will the national show with its a-list guests start a spark?

KQXR is shuffling things around — Big J is taking over mid-days, Melissa Paul will still be around, but her KIVI duties have come calling… and “something” new is coming to mornings on Monday. Jackie slides back to weekends.

I think you’ll be surprised…

Follow Up — Our friend AJ from IdaScan.com says the new Boise Valley transmitter for KSRV-FM is moving ever closer to reality. (Original story). A foundation has been poured for the Deer Point site, and the signal could be up by next summer.

KSRV’s co-channel neighbor on 96.1 will be KID-FM — which, interestingly enough – also uses “The Bull” as a positioner. AJ notes that recent engineering data filings with the FCC could be over concern about interference where the two stations meet (their fringe signals would both cover Sun Valley resort under optimal conditions).