UPDATE 12:10 AM 10/11/12: Jim Davison tells OMW that he will continue as operations manager of WHTX/1570 Warren, which will continue in its current standards format as "The Fabulous 1570" and retain its current staff and features. Jim also confirms that WYCL/1540 Niles has changed from classic country to a Spanish-language format as of Tuesday afternoon... ----- We're catching up again with a wide variety of media items, both in kind and location... DISH DEAL: Viewers to Gannett NBC … [Read more...]
From Sports To TV To New Radio
Posted on October 3, 2012 · 3 Comments
The title says it all. And as usual as of late, some of these are brand new, and some are catching up over the past few days... INDIANS STAYING ON WTAM: So, we hinted about this both on our social media presence and earlier this week right here on the blog, on an item we posted last week: "Before we dive into this item, one note: Don’t print those “92.3 The Fan/Indians” bumper stickers just yet..." We got a little "back patting" flack pointing back to this on Twitter, but really, we were far … [Read more...]
Major League Catchup
Posted on August 28, 2012 · 5 Comments
No, that's not something the Cleveland Indians are about to try, based on their dismal play as of late. It's something we're going to try now, after an unplanned Life Intervenes(tm) hiatus for about two weeks. (Note: We'll have a planned hiatus for personal reasons, right after the Labor Day holiday. Or, maybe we'll be more active...) Anyway, on with the show... OTHER SHOE DROPS: We already told you that now-former Ohio News Network Cleveland bureau reporter Cristin Severance had found a new … [Read more...]
A Pile Of Items, Released
Posted on August 16, 2012 · 9 Comments
UPDATE 8/16/12 10:05 AM: If you read this before 10 AM, scroll down for an additional item... -------- As per usual, important items pile up in a clump of anywhere from three to a half-dozen. This update doesn't cover everything in that pile, but we'll get close enough to doing so. And coming 'round the bend sometime in the next few days - "Couch Burner, The Followup". Yes, as reported here and by the Akron Beacon Journal, John Denning has taken over the 10 AM-3 PM time slot on WNIR/100.1 … [Read more...]
Late July Mixed Bag
Posted on July 24, 2012 · Leave a Comment
In which we update some stuff, bring on new items and more... 87.7 BUILDING BLOCKS, BUT WHEN?: We're hearing some details surrounding the launch of Venture Technologies/Murray Hill Broadcasting's WLFM-LP 6/87.7, which will operate as a radio station under the name "87.7 Clevelanders Rock". First, an appearance by station operators Tom Wilson and Tom Embrescia on the soon-to-be-extinguished "Good Company Today" on NBC affiliate WKYC/3 shed at least some light on what shape the soon-to-launch … [Read more...]
87.7 Clevelanders…Audition?
Posted on July 17, 2012 · 3 Comments
The off-air buzz in the Cleveland radio community is about the curious way new quasi-radio station WLFM-LP "87.7" is going about its upcoming launch. We have heard that the station, operated by Cleveland radio veteran Tom Wilson with help from his old ownership partners, has been working behind the scenes to staff up. In fact, OMW hears that at least one key staffer has already left the operation, before it even has hit the airwaves. But simultaneously, the station now calling itself "87.7 … [Read more...]
The 87.7 Bombshell
Posted on June 26, 2012 · 6 Comments
So, we were right to be skeptical of talk (and even some rumors, not connected to us) that Venture Technologies could LMA WLFM-LP/87.7 to local sports radio operator Good Karma Broadcasting (WKNR/850-WWGK/1540) to simulcast their operation on the FM band. No, as it turns out, we should have paid attention to these curious, anonymous comments on our own item about the so-called "Franken FM" radio station, posted the night of June 14th by an OMW reader named "Kate": Interesting new FM Cleveland. … [Read more...]
WLFM-LP…Let There Be Video
Posted on June 13, 2012 · 8 Comments
The most talked about radio station in Cleveland this week is, of course, actually a TV station. And now, Venture Technologies' WLFM-LP 6/"87.7" has turned on the video that comes with, well, having an LPTV station as your base. And thanks to OMW reader Scott Chumley's upload to YouTube, you, too, can watch what's going out over TV channel 6 while the loop of sports theme songs and the Michael Stanley Band hit "My Town" is airing over the audio portion of the signal. [youtube … [Read more...]
A Franken FM Is Born
Posted on June 12, 2012 · 19 Comments
For some time, we've told you to expect a new "radio station" on the FM frequency of 87.7 in Cleveland...dubbed by some industry wags as a "Franken FM", because it is the byproduct of the audio carrier of analog TV channel 6. Tonight, Venture Technologies' WLFM-LP has made that creation a reality. WLFM-LP is most assuredly testing at this point, and the sounds coming out of 87.7 on the FM radio dial are a collection of historic "fight songs" for the city's three professional sports … [Read more...]
Alt Rock “99X” For Cleveland Translator?
Posted on May 23, 2012 · 14 Comments
UPDATE 5/23/12 12:02 PM: As expected, alt-rock "99X" has launched on the 99.1 translator known legally now as W256BT (due to the move from 99.7 to 99.1). Debut song: "Gold on the Ceiling" by Akron's Black Keys. UPDATE 5/23/12 11:15 AM: There's word out of Oak Tree that this may launch on 99.1 FM as soon as 12 noon today. We noticed what we think is a dead carrier on 99.1 a little earlier, replacing a distant, scratchy pickup of what we believe was BAS Broadcasting's WFRO/99.1 "Eagle 99.1" … [Read more...]
