Sorry, this is what I thought of... :0)
Posted on 01/04/2010 4:23:26 PM PST by God'sgrrl
To Our Loyal Listeners...
We regret that Rush Limbaugh is no longer a part of the Curtis Media Family, effective, December 31st, 2009. However, please know the following true facts:
1) The decision to move Rush from WSJS was NOT ours.
2) Rather, that call was made by the programs’ syndication company, Premiere Radio Networks. We were afforded no opportunity to discuss the matter, let alone renegotiate a new deal. Instead, we were given a 90-day notice of cancellation back in September.
3) Premiere Radio Networks are controlled by Clear Channel Communications, the same company that owns five of our competitors in the Greensboro Triad Metro area. This latest move is one of seeming desperation. At one time, the stations under their Triad umbrella dominated the marketplace. Now they receive a much smaller percentage of overall advertising revenues available in our market and are attempting to try, yet another format change, this time entering the NewsTalk arena in which there are already 4 NewsTalk stations. This is new ground for them.
We’ve enjoyed a long, fruitful relationship with Rush Limbaugh, and we hate to see him go. WSJS was among the first affiliates to air Rush's show, but it's time to move on. We’ll always be proud of what we have accomplished together and what we have provided our fans.
It concerns me that so many WSJS listeners think we’re arrogant (or dumb) enough to purposely drop a successful show like Rush Limbaugh. While we’ve made our share of bonehead moves over the years, I can assure you this isn’t one of them.
I can also promise you that the other quality components you’ve come to expect from 600/1200 WSJS, The Triad’s News Radio, will remain in place….with experience and talent with the likes of J. R. Snider, Smith Patterson, CBS News, Accu-Weather, Wall Street Journal Reports, Charles Osgood, Triad Traffic, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Dave Ramsey and just added to our lineup, Dennis Miller and Jim Bohannon.
More national, regional and local news coverage, more local talk, more of what WSJS has stood for since 1930 and, unfortunately, no more Rush Limbaugh.
I know I can speak for the entire staff at 600/1200 WSJS when I say how much we’ve appreciated your listening to Rush over the years. I hope you will continue to tune in throughout each day for the finest news coverage and variety of unique features unlike anything you’ll find on your radio dial in the Piedmont.
Thank you for reading, for your understanding and the very best to you & yours in 2010 and beyond!
Tom Hamilton
General Manager
WSJS/WSML/WMFR
336 777 3900 x1342
thamilton@curtismedia.com
Why would there be a decision to keep Levin and Hannity, but drop Rush?
Well, you slit your own throats, revenue wise.
They stated in their article that it wasn't their decision.
For $6.95/month or about $72 a year Rush can be delivered directly into your brain via your iPod, AND you get to keep the show forever ! I bought my first iPod and a subscription to Rush when he first started podcasting in June ‘05
I know. That’s why I didn’t write ‘why did they decide’. I’m talking about the decision from the top.
Stupid move. Rush is the most listened to radio program n the nation and that means you can charge more for advertising. Anything else means you have less revenue.
typical liberal-kill the cash cow to prove a lame point..
That stinks, and I doubt it has anything to do with ratings, but rather with the confused nature of AM radio ownership rules and frequency allocation, as created by the FCC. Whenever I am in Greensboro, I listen to Rush on streaming audio on my computer, either on WGIR (my home station in Manchester, NH) or on KARN in Little Rock, AK, which has a very dependable audio stream.
There is a Little Rock in Alaska, too? Who knew? :)
I am a Rush 24 member. My friends cannot believe this decision. If any area of the country needs to hear Rush right now, it’s RIGHT HERE. I’m shocked.
and a Las Vegas, New Mexico.
Sorry, this is what I thought of... :0)
Exactly ! :)
New ownership of the Premiere Radio Network is trying to garner more listenership, WSJS must have a solid enough audience that they can “move’ Rush to the lesser performing stations to try and gain some additional listnership.
Rush is on the internet......not as convenient as listening at lunch....but you can read every word spoken by Rush.
Sounds like Obama Chicago style politics hidden in the weeds somewhere.
Sign on to Rushlimbaugh.com on the weekends during the cold winter, and catch up on the week.
The headline is misleading. It has it backwards. Rush, or at least his syndication people, dropped the station.
Seems I recall hearing the owner of the Rush syndication also had some ownership in another station in the market and simply moved Rush to their own station. That’s pretty common in the world of broadcasting.
It’s not a pretty world, especially when it comes to AM stations.
Gee...just when Rush was about to sit in for the regularly scheduled guest host for a couple of days.
Quick Google, I found this.
http://triadwatch.blogspot.com/2009/11/fm-945-will-be-new-radio-station-for.html
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