[BC] Two Commercial Free Hours,On WABC

[Cowboy]

On Sunday 25 December 2005 12:38 am, dean tiernan wrote:

>Well NO. I understand your point, however. I would rather listen to 2.5 
minute blocks of well produced spots than 1 minute of lousy spots. I am 
reminded of the days when we had local PDs who picked records. I KNOW you 
remember that. Several I worked for would "drop the needle" on the first 10 - 
15 seconds, then 10 -20 in the middle and the out. Given this attention span. 
Lead a short block of well placed spots with one that irritates in the first 
15 seconds???????? 

 I'm not at all saying your point isn't valid, or of no importance.
 A bad spot is and will be a bad spot no matter how or when it's
 programmed. It's bad radio, period.

 GOOD spots, like those found at www.radiosavant.com will attract and
 keep listeners, and ALL spots should be so entertaining, but that's not
 the world in which I live and work. ( sadly )

 However, I do think that even the kids who now hit the button within
 the first two seconds of a stop-set, or sooner when the "talent" stupidly
 announces that the next 6 minutes will be strictly stuff you don't want to
 hear, the commercials that are the necessary evil interfering with his
 otherwise super wonderful show, even those kids would be more likely
 to stay tuned IF they knew that the pain of that bad spot would be gone
 in 60 seconds or less.

 Not all of them, of course.
 Poor quality will ALWAYS hurt any business, and some will tune out 
regardless.
 I, myself, have heard some spots SO poorly produced that stations have
 lost me as a listener for extended periods. Weeks or more.

 I've even been held up as an example of how bad a spot was, when
 I tuned out the station *at the transmitter site*
 The station went off the air, and I didn't notice for about 5 minutes,
 even though I was being PAID to listen !
 Now, THAT's a bad spot !!
 When management is *so* interested in whoaring for Wall Street,
 then I don't care about the quality of their programming, either !

 The thing was, is, and I believe remains, that if it was ONE isolated spot,
 it would have been painful, but tolerable for that one spot duration !

 I still think that the stop-set is the worst programming possible in any
 circumstance, but as I say, that's just me !

 Now, the down side....
 If ALL shows ran like the Ole Jaybird did, then there is NO time when
 the carrier can be interrupted for a transmitter switch, or the like, and
 what I do could become MUCH more difficult, but that's what I get paid
 for, and so I'll adapt.

-- 
Cowboy

http://cowboys.homeip.net

If you took all the students that felt asleep in class and laid them
end to end, they'd be a lot more comfortable.
		-- "Graffiti in the Big Ten"