Santa Claus is Coming to…a Radio Near You
You better watch out. Thanksgiving is next week, and you might hear Christmas music on the radio without warning, all Christmas music that is.Maybe I’m overreacting because things have calmed down since several years ago. I remember hitting the Peach 94-9 button one October and hearing a Christmas music preview weekend. (Or maybe that was one of the years when they weren’t supposed to say Christmas, so it might have been a holiday music preview weekend.) The temperature outside was in the mid-eighties, and I was not ready for what I was hearing; although I recognize that people in places such as South Florida are used to that.When I was a kid, stations started ad

Atlanta’s CHR Face-Off
Star 94 (WSTR-FM) had a tumultuous 2008 and early 2009. The station brought back JR Ammons to be PD, and he made a number of changes. Q100 (WWWQ-FM) recently altered its music clock, most likely in response to summer gains by Star 94.At this point, both of Atlanta’s CHR stations have their product in place, and it’s probably an appropriate time to take stock of where they are.Atlanta, much to the frustration of CHR devotees, is an unusual market in that both stations go head-to-head on the adult side of CHR. Star 94 and Q100 leave out a slew of songs that are monsters nationally, and they both continue playing certain songs long after they are hits, at least in o

CC’s Mays Demotion Has Implications
The financial troubles of Citadel, Clear Channel and Cumulus have been well chronicled. The companies all have mountains of debt that they probably will not be able to service by 2010. You might have been dreaming about station clusters being dismantled and sold to smaller operators who are broadcasters and not conglomerates just using radio as their money-making vehicle. I certainly have. Unfortunately, from what I've been reading in the past few weeks, that will not happen in the short term.The three C’s—and CBS Radio is not included—are apparently negotiating with their lenders behind the scenes. What most likely will happen are debt-for-equity deals through which banks

Atlanta Radio’s Best & Brightest
Atlanta, like all other radio markets, is somewhat stripped down these days. Yet, bright spots still abound across the dial. This issue contains our selections for the top on-air talent in town. The picks are strictly my opinion, and you probably will not agree with all of them, and you might feel some folks are missing.The criterion for being eligible for selection is broadcasting from an Atlanta radio station. No personalities voicetracked from another market were considered. Syndicated shows are eligible if they originate from an Atlanta station.So here we go, starting with the low end of the FM dial. After the FM choices, we’ll move to AM.Steve

Will Atlanta Get Into The Groove?
A change had been rumored for a couple of years, but when it finally happened yesterday, it evoked some mild surprise. For anyone who does not know, Clear Channel flipped 105.7 from Viva, a Latino Hits station, to The Groove, a Rhythmic AC format.On at least some levels, the move made consummate sense. Will 105.7 The Groove (or The Groove at 105.7, depending on when you’re listening) bear fruit for Clear Channel? My answer is an emphatic maybe.The original frequency for Viva was 105.3. It got some good ratings straight out of the gate and soon replaced Oldies purveyor Cool 105.7 on the higher frequency. The reason? The 105.7 signal booms into Gwinnett County, a hot