We return to the world of the Up In The Air Digital TV Transition on a key day.The deadline was late last night for local TV stations to file notifications that they intend to shut down their analog signals on the original transition date of February 17, 2009 - which, looking at the calendar, is exactly one week from today.A bill passed by Congress and awaiting President Barack Obama's expected signature (today?) moves the date to June 12.Even if stations had already filed such notifications, … [Read more...]
Monday Potpourri
Posted on February 9, 2009 · Leave a Comment
It's Monday, and unlike some potpourri, ours is a mix of both palatable and unpalatable items. (We wish we could control the ingredients...)CUMULUS LAYOFFS: Looks like we start off with the unpalatable, as Cumulus Media dropped the layoff axe again late last week...and the company's two Northern Ohio markets were hit hard.We already told you about Toledo's job carnage on Friday...we'll fill in some of the names in a bit.And like in Toledo, if Cumulus keeps cutting like this in Youngstown, … [Read more...]
Digital TV Date Frustration, Part Two
Posted on February 8, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Here's the promised second update in our "When Will Ohio Stations Dump Analog?" series, covering markets outside Cleveland/Akron. This one is also getting too big, so we'll cover the remaining markets in Southern Ohio and Southwest Ohio later.Just as we cautioned Saturday, remember that stations will have to re-file their intentions to hold to the original February 17th digital transition date. The FCC will accept those filings through the end of Monday (just before midnight Tuesday).From what … [Read more...]
Northeast Ohio’s Digital TV Picture
Posted on February 3, 2009 · Leave a Comment
We don't have all the information yet, but we think we can take a look at the "picture" of the upcoming digital TV transition in Northeast Ohio...just two weeks before the originally scheduled mandated date for full-power TV stations to take their old analog signals dark.And yes, that phrase "originally scheduled" is becoming quite important.After fits and starts in Washington, it looks like the U.S. House of Representatives is about ready to approve a shift of the national digital transition … [Read more...]
Sports And Digital
Posted on January 27, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Your Primary Editorial Voice(tm) is "on the road" for much of this week, and our updates will be a little more sporadic than usual.But, we did manage to put some "breaking news" up here before it happened on Monday, didn't we? And as usual, our physical exit from Ohio prompted a major change...sorry, Columbus, we should have warned you!THE SPORTS HIT THE FM FAN: And as reported here Monday, Dispatch hot AC WBNS-FM/97.1 Columbus "Mix 97.1" faded into oblivion as scheduled at 4 PM on … [Read more...]
Digital TV Date Etched In Water
Posted on January 26, 2009 · Leave a Comment
It's been kicking around Washington for the past few weeks, but it looks like Congress may indeed try to stand in front of the speeding Digital TV Express Train, wave its arms wildly and shout into the train's loud whistle - "slow down!"A number of reports late last week indicate that a key Republican U.S. Senator, Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas (ranking member of the Senate's Commerce Committee), has ended her opposition to a move of the digital TV transition date from February 17th to June … [Read more...]
Format Changes We Missed
Posted on January 23, 2009 · Leave a Comment
Shortly after the start of every new year, some radio stations feel it's a great time for a fresh start...with a format change.Since they're not in our regular listening area, OMW missed two of them - but we've caught up with them a full week before the end of January, so we can say "this month"...W-WOW BACK TO TALK: The format wheel has been spun so often at one small Northeast Ohio station, WWOW/1360 Conneaut, we wouldn't be surprised to see TV's Vanna White around.Its most recent format was … [Read more...]
WNEO Goes Full Power
Posted on January 22, 2009 · Leave a Comment
OMW hears that Western Reserve PBS' Youngstown market outlet, WNEO/45 Alliance, has successfully raised its power to the post-transition 500KW level.As readers here already know, WNEO signed off its analog transmitter in Salem in mid-November 2008, going digital only with a 44KW authorization on its former analog channel, 45.But as station manager William O'Neill notes in a station press release, Western Reserve PBS quickly found out that 44KW was just not enough, and filed for a special … [Read more...]
Clear Channel Layoffs Day 2
Posted on January 21, 2009 · Leave a Comment
OK, as much as we tried to put it off, we have to dig in and share the fallout from the massive Clear Channel restructuring - and how it affects Ohio, as news of yesterday's 9% layoff at the radio giant continues to trickle down.Or, as the trade website AllAccess headline says: "Now, 1850 People Have To Restructure Their Lives"...YOUNGSTOWN: We have some word of the cuts made Tuesday at Clear Channel's South Avenue compound in suburban Youngstown.OMW hears two on-air names let go were actually … [Read more...]
The Clear Channel Cuts Item
Posted on January 20, 2009 · Leave a Comment
This item will no longer be updated tonight.Due to circumstances beyond our control, Wednesday's first update may be a little later in the day than usual, perhaps later in the afternoon. We'll revisit "what we know" about this big day of bad employment news, add any updates, and return to our usual cycle of other news (there is some of it!) as well.But it'll won't be "first thing in the morning".=========We'll continue to update this item through the day, bringing it to the top of this blog as … [Read more...]
