Idaho Radio News Etc.

Revenue for Journal Communications pulled back in the 3rd quarter – though the company did see a profit. Profit dipped 23 percent – but they think things will get a bit better in the all-important 4th quarter.

“We are looking ahead to next year when we hope we will see improved business conditions for our customers, a recovery in the ad spend in our core markets, as well as the lift that additional political and Olympics spending will provide,” Chief Executive Steven Smith said on a conference call.

Here’s the story

KIZN/Kissin 92.3 is helping the Disabled American Veterans group raise some cash to fund new wheels. DAV helps disabled vets get around – and the station is hoping to get them on the road with a new ride. Details here

“Daisy” dropped this in comments:

Lisa is the FIRST WOMAN PROGRAMMER IN BOISE…. Please tell me if I’ve missed one. In fact, has their ever been a woman programmer in the entire state of Idaho?

My memory is certainly less than all-encompassing, but Daisy makes a good point – can anyone name a single female that’s been running the show for a radio station or group on the programming side? Adams is now programming KXLT/107.9 Lite FM and KAWO/WOW Country 104.3.

It’s a rather staggering thought…

And here’s a goofy video that outlines a few of the changes. The best part? Our video is now embeddable!

Word on the street is that Christmas music will start coming from many Treasure Valley radios soon. And by soon… I mean before October is over…

I don’t really understand this story… especially the entirely bizarre first sentence:

Those newspapers, sponsored by third parties, have little value to advertisers, the Idaho Statesman said.

I’ll refrain from my usual blah blah blah here… and let you dissect for yourself! Feel free to comment…

A new KTVB.COM launches next week.  Be back soon!

Hmmm. Not sure what to make of this:

@931hits: Special advertising sale going on til 5pm today! Save up to 75% on regular rates! call 336-3670 and ask for a rep from 93.1 Hit Music Now!

KCIX/Mix 106 has a series of billboards around town for Mike & Kate.  The thrust of the ads are that the show is “12 listeners strong.”  While that’s a (common) inside joke on many radio shows… is telling people that no one listens the best way to… gain new listeners? Thoughts?

A couple of weeks ago, I noted the Boise Weekly’s annual survey of the Best of Boise. I kinda left something out as you might have noticed. The readers of this blog were kind enough to vote IdahoRadioNews.com as #2 in the “best blog” category. We were sandwhiched between TreasuredValley.com and a tie between Betsy Russell and Mike Boss. While BW put my name on its pages – this blog is only partly my endeavour.  The readers – you all – make this possible – with your comments, your pageviews,  your tips and responses to my questions. I’ve already written more than I wanted to — but the bottom line here: thank you.

Oh, and since I’m saying thanks – another one goes out to the excellent Amy Atkins for her write-up of our “Dicks” post.

McClatchy – owner of Boise’s Idaho Statesman had a good quarter, and was able to turn a profit, despite shrinking revenue. This from the AP:

Newspaper publisher McClatchy Co. rode a wave of traumatic cost cutting and a one-time tax adjustment to a higher third-quarter profit, overcoming yet another jarring decline in revenue.

McClatchy earned $23.6 million in the quarter. The company was able to turn a profit despite the decrease in revenue by aggressively cutting costs (and, unfortunately – jobs).

There’s one very sober line in the AP piece:

McClatchy probably wouldn’t be making money if it hadn’t been dumping payroll and other costs more quickly than its revenue eroded.

But, the company’s online revenue grew by about 3% in the quarter.

OK…. we try not to delve into potty humor here too much — and I realize we were right on the edge with the post last week about DJ David and Lucky tha DJ — but this is too funny not to share.  If you aren’t offended by a clinical name for a part of human anatomy… click below. (This is the “etc.” in Idaho Radio News Etc.)

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Remember when I said KZMG/Magic 93.1 Hit Music Now was trying to put lots of listeners on the air? Check out this tweet from @LuckythaDJ just a few minutes ago:

Trying to put 2000 people on the radio tonight and I need your help ! Call me at 208 384 1033 ! ANyone counts

The war is on…

- Coy promo for KRVB/94.9 The River’s morning show – specifically… its hosts

This is about a month old (you know, back when it was summer, instead of winter) – but interesting to see the Shelman (KBOI) to Miller (KIDO) handoff here:

Peak SVP Kevin Godwin helped shed a little light on Lisa Adams and her new duties with Peak – and what it will mean for other stations in the cluster.

Adams will take on on-air shift at KXLT/107.9 Lite FM – but they have not decided where she will land quite yet. She interviewed for the KAWO/WOW Country 104.3 job when it was posted, and Godwin says it made sense to give her oversight for Lite too.

Jason Wilmot will still be in the mix for Lite – and keep his other duties.

“This gives Jason more time to concentrate on the KIDO and KCIX brands and work with the talent on each station,” Godwin said. “Jason will work with Lisa more as an OM on KXLT, and focus on the KIDO, KCIX, the BSU brand and our talent, which he is terrific at.”

Does this mean Lite will be movin’ toward Movin’ – or something else? No.

“Lisa was hired because she is a talented broadcaster that has a winning track record,” he said. “Great PD’s can win in any format. We have no plans to change formats.”

Nine years and one month ago, KSAS/103.3 Kiss FM signed on the air – designed to destroy KZMG/Magic 93.1. It took nine years and a raft of changes (and maybe a little help from Wild 101), but Magic 93.1 is dead. Not dead like this – but gone.

In its place – Citadel has launched… a similar station. 93.1 Hit Music Now hit the air this week – and is a bit like Magic 93.1’s sister. It lives in the same house (at 93.1), has the same parents (Rich Summers and Don Morin) and looks sorta the same (lots of pink and black) — but is different somehow.

The new 93.1 kept the same staff – including Tom Collins, Matt “MJ” Johnson and DJ Dickman (though he now goes by DJ David, more on that here). But what had been a tired, listless presence has been chucked out the window. Now the station seems insanely focused on three things: playing lots of music, putting a ton of listeners on the air and throwing elbows at Kiss FM.

Kiss FM seems to be the girl that everyone wants to date. Wild 101 took to the air and quickly started throwing sharp elbows at Kiss. It worked. While KSAS retained much of its ratings, Wild saw a big boost – and became the top pop station in Boise — fast. Now, in a bit of a “me too” move, Magic — er — 93.1 Hit Music Now — is mocking Kiss.

“It’s good to know 93.1 Hit Music Now plays more music every hour than Kiss FM,” one liner reads. That liner is read… by… you guessed it… Kiss FM’s old voice guy. Now passing around a voiceover talent like a piece of used chewing gum isn’t that strange – there’s something else about it. When KSAS switched this guy for someone new about two years ago – they didn’t evolve much. The current talent sounds pretty similar. So now the two stations have twin voice guys, but 93.1’s guy is still saying “Kiss FM” — a lot.

93.1 has also given its music an overhaul. It’s still pop, sure – but it is all very upbeat and happy and — well — poppy. Song after song of tunes with a high BPM rate. Even downbeat songs like Kings of Leon’s “Use Somebody” get a magical makeover – with a dance version subbed in for the traditional cut.

The station is working very hard to deliver on the promise to play a lot of music. 12, 13 even 14 cuts an hour. It has revamped its clock structure – with one long stretch of spots at about 20 after the hour. DJs are limited to reading short liners, seguing between songs – or teeing up an audio drop from a listener.

Those listeners are on the air a ton. Not for long, mind you – usually quick drops. “I’m stuck behind a train and the only thing keeping me going is 93.1 Hit Music Now,” etc. Several drops an hour ask for people to “pick up their cell phone and call 424-9300.” MJ even asked for folks from a specific city to call in during the 6pm hour.

Several of these goals run into one roadblock: Kidd Kraddic in the morning. Kraddic’s show is low on music and high on chat. Low on listener interaction and high on host to host interaction. Magic did make one change – swapping out the 9am hour of the Kraddic show (which was actually the first hour of his show playing out of sequence — after the hosts had already said goodbye) for… music. And listener interaction. And shots at Kiss.

The station had to do something. It was more than time. A parade of program directors and of morning hosts and of philosophies and styles stopped working. The Magic name – however heritage – was outdated. Magic is something that conjures up images of Siegried and Roy or a card trick or… well… not really anything hip. Citadel has never changed format on a station in Boise – ever. You can almost imagine a meeting of top Citadel managers trying to decide what to do with KZMG. Look around at the landscape – what would you flip the station to? Maybe there’s a great idea out there – but right now one last Hail Mary with pop seems like the only option available.

OK, I’ve tried to write this about three different ways without it sounding weird. Whatever. Radio managers don’t seem to like the idea of having someone named “Dick” on a pop station at night. KSAS/103.3 Kiss FM night jock “Lucky tha DJ” used to have a slightly more… suggestive… name. Before he moved to Boise, he went by “Dick on the Radio” on KQQB. Somewhere between Boise and Spokane, he ditched Dick and got Lucky.

Now, KZMG/93.1 Hit Music Now night host DJ Dickman has also dropped that somewhat suggestive name. Dickman (his real name) is now “DJ David” (also his real name… though just a different part – a part that doesn’t make you think of a, well, a… part).

KZMG/Magic 93.1 was – until yesterday – one of the longest-surviving brands in Boise radio. It was in the ranks of J-105 and call-letter names like KQFC and KBOI – with nearly two decades on the air.

No more.

KZMG is now “93-one Hit Music Now.” So far, we don’t know a lot – other than the station has revamped its imaging. Syndicated Kidd Kraddic and local anchor Tom Collins are still in place this morning. A temporary placeholder website is up – 931hits.com.

The TV spot on the site features a verrrrry familiar voice guy… Take a listen.

Boise Community Radio is playing up a big $227,000 grant from the government – earmarked for broadcast equipment.

But the money comes with strings: They have to raise $75,000 from local donors in the next 18 months to get the cash. No local match, no dough from the feds. Jeff Abrams’ plea for donations is after the jump.
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Neither of these are directly tied to the Idaho Statesman – but are interesting McClatchy items:

• The United States Olympic Committee is trying to stop Statesman sister The Olympian from getting a trademark on… well… its own name. McClatchy filed a trademark in 2006 – but last month the USOC filed an objection. They have a Congressional mandate that gives them control over a slew of Olympic-related trademarks, of which “Olympian” is one. But McClatchy says there’s a carve-out for businesses related to the Olympic Mountains in Western Washington. Pretty bizarre story — and it seems odd that the USOC would try to stop a well-established newspaper from trademarking its own name. The USOC says it could cause confusion… but you’d have to be pretty dumb to think The Olympian newspaper was named for the Games.
• The Charlotte, NC News & Observer has hatched a new scheme: Any employee who sells a subscription will get a $50 kickback. That’s right, another attempt by a newspaper to try and fix its past instead of focusing on the future. McClatchy Watch has the memo… and a great quip comparing this scheme to Amway.

The flurry of news releases from Peak Broadcasting lately continues – with today’s news of the pickup of Lisa Adams.

• Adams has been looking for work for the last year – something she chronicled on her Twitter page: “Got to keep the faith…it will all workout soon!” and “It’s been a nice 365 day vacation but I’m ready to get back to work! I hate moving….”
• Her last gig was a two year stop at CBS Radio in Portland. She appears to be the Northwest’s “Movin’” expert – she oversaw KQMV/Movin’ 92.5 in Seattle before she landed at KVMX/Movin’ 107.5 in the Rose City.
• Adams’ gig seems to be a fusion of two announced positions. Peak posted a KAWO PD job – then a KXLT/KCIX program director spot. Does this leave Jason Wilmot in charge of KCIX? I’ve got some questions out on this looking for answers.
• What does Peak plan to do with Lite? The station has been jockless for a while now – and its ratings haven’t been lighting up the charts. I’m guessing nothing would change before the end of the Christmas music season… but is there change in the wind?
• Kevin Godwin at Peak has been very good about sending out news releases of late. This makes my journalist heart happy – but it’s smart. I can’t think of the last time I saw a news release from another group. KTVB picked up the Austin Hill/Glenn Beck story – and I happened to notice that it was at the top of KTVB.COM’s most read stories box that day (wink wink). People seem interested in radio stories. (In case I’m being too coy: Bob Rosenthal, Don Morin and Darrell Calton should send out more news releases… hint hint).

Peak has hired Lisa Adams to helm KXLT/107.9 Lite FM and KAWO/Wow Country 104.3. More on this later – find the Peak news release after the jump
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Tom Collins sent along this pic of himself and Curt Caldwell atop the then-KF94 boombox in the 4th of July parade in 1994ish.

Also – Darrell at Impact says his group steam cleaned the inside to “get rid of at least the last decade’s collection of germs,” and he says they are putting in a sound system and video screens for the iPod windows.