Barrett Media
Author (when available): Dave Greene
The date was March 30, 2011—almost 14 full years ago—when then-Entercom, now Audacy, took a news talk station in Kansas City and put it on the FM dial at 98.1, finishing off its run as a soft rock station by playing Bonnie Raitt’s Something to Talk About. KMBZ-FM would initially simulcast what was already airing on their AM news talk station, but a few years later, it would split off and become its own as the local news talk station while the AM station aired nationally syndicated talk shows.
Bottom line: the station became a powerhouse in the market, both from a ratings and revenue standpoint. You couldn’t ask for a better, more consistent product than what that station delivered to the company year in and year out. I know because I saw it firsthand as a GSM for Audacy in Kansas City. And the entire time I was there, all I could think about was my friend Steve Moore at KMOX in St. Louis, whom I would eventually end up joining.
Now, let’s give proper context. Until recent times, KMOX never had a problem with revenue. That station has made a lot of money. But, oh, what could have been. And what should have been.
You probably saw the news this week that KMOX has (FINALLY!) added a full-market FM signal on 104.1 and will start broadcasting on the station on March 24. Congrats to Steve—he has worked long and hard to make this happen. He just never could have imagined it would take this long to make for Audacy to make the world’s easiest decision. And, of course, in typical big media fashion, it was done in the absolute worst way possible.
There are a hundred different reasons KMOX should have had a full-market FM signal a decade ago. Had they made that move, the company might not be in the position they are currently in in St. Louis. That position? A distant second place to Hubbard—as in, whatever a country mile is. And it’s all their own fault.
The same company saw what would and could happen less than 300 miles away. As AM listenership declined over and over again, Audacy and David Field sat on their hands, holding onto some really average FM stations that could have become KMOX and generated multiple times the revenue of whatever those formats were bringing in. Then, eventually, KMOX AM could have had more sports programming, becoming a de facto sports station—you know, the format Audacy thinks they are the masters of.
At a corporate meeting, I made the stupid decision to ask David Field and Susan Larkin a question about AM stations in a Q&A session. I did it because I genuinely wanted to hear what the company had in mind for AM stations—especially KMOX. Let’s just say, I’m still wondering.
Field blew off my question like it was ridiculous. He said something about the life left in AM and how Audacy wasn’t going to be the company that led the end of AM radio. I should have known that would be the answer—because Audacy would only do it after iHeart did it anyway.
Meanwhile, KMOX—the biggest, baddest radio station St. Louis has ever known—is finally going to be on a legitimate FM signal (it had previously been on a smaller FM station). And you know what’s interesting? It’s not nearly as big of a deal as it should be.
First of all, Audacy only did it because they can no longer afford to run the station that was on 104.1—an urban contemporary station whose entire staff was let go to make room for KMOX. Always great PR. That part of the story received more coverage and has come up in more conversations.
This should be major news and something the market is truly excited about. The station still does a great job with content and covers St. Louis better than anyone. They have St. Louis Cardinals baseball. And all of that is now on the part of the dial where the most people listen. I can’t help but think how this same story would have been covered had it happened ten, eight, six, or even just four years ago. KMOX
Instead, because Audacy hesitated (and hesitated), it could just be another footnote in the history of a mistake filled company.
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The Best/Worst Thing I’ve Heard/Watched/Read Recently
I love a good road trip and a podcast series, especially when it is a true-crime story which involves mystery, intrigue and the Mafia! If you are like me and have seen Goodfellas seven hundred times, you will love the podcast Crook County from Tenderfoot TV and iHeartPodcasts.
The podcast is the story of Kenny ‘The Kid’ Tekiela who was a Chicago firefighter, a husband and a father … who also happened to be living a secret double life as a hitman for the Chicago mafia. Tekiela was able to keep all of this a secret from his family and friends for 20 years.
The story is told from the very unique perspective of one of Tekiela’s sons who learns all of this information about his father, in detail, for the first time. If you have a Spring Break road trip coming up I highly recommend checking this one out and you can do so by clicking here.
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In Case You Missed It
Earlier this week Derek Futterman had a profile on David Samson, the former President of the Miami Marlins for 16 years. Since leaving the Marlins in 2017, Samson has transitioned into media, hosting the Nothing Personal with David Samson podcast amongst other media roles.
I liked when Samson talked about his credentials as someone who doesn’t just know the game and the behind the scenes information, he lived it. Samson said:
“All I’m telling [the audience] is the truth as I have lived it, as I’ve experienced it and as I know it to be because I’ve been in your shoes. I’ve done press releases that I know are misleading. I’ve spoken to the media about injuries or about performance or about revenue or about money in ways that I knew were misleading but were necessary from a P.R. standpoint.”
That is the kind of insight sports fans look for and Samson provides it on the daily.
You can read the full feature by clicking here.
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