Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, March 30, 1990 TAG: 9003300457
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: E3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Chuck Milteer
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Such seems to be the case with the recent switch made by the owners of WTOY (910 AM), who decided to drop the station's black-oriented urban contemporary music format for satellite-delivered business news and information programming. The station, which will have the call letters WBNI, starts its new programming on Monday at 6 a.m.
WTOY went off the air March 26 at 7 p.m.
But 'TOY isn't really dead. It's just moved. The owner of Salem's WSAY (1480 AM) announced last week that his station would change its format to an adult urban contemporary music mix similar to WTOY's. Earlier this week, owner I.L. Ward Sr., who is also a minister in the Church of God in Christ, announced the station would pick up the WTOY call letters along with the new format beginning Monday.
Ward has also hired former WTOY announcers Toni Winston and Tom Collins, so at least on the surface, there will be some continuity between the old WTOY and the new WTOY.
The main theme behind these changes is basic: money, and the desire to make more of it. The subplots, however, are quite complex.
Radio stations change formats all the time - it's the nature of the business. But when the radio station making the change is targeted at a minority segment of any area, reaction is often more emotional, and everyone involved is more sensitive.
This seems to be the case with the old WTOY.
A reader called the newspaper to voice his concerns the other day, but wouldn't give his name. He was very upset about the station's switch and upset about our coverage of it.
He complained that we really didn't explore the situation in depth and added that "if WTOY was a white station, you would have made sure you got the real story."
The caller said, "there is a lot not being told about the deal, such as the fact that WTOY has been leaning towards changing its format for years."
He added, "some black people feel robbed by WTOY leaving."
Those are pretty strong words, but the caller obviously has strong feelings. But the newspaper hasn't gotten many other calls or letters on the subject. There seems to be no widespread outcry from Roanoke's black community over the stations' switch.
"There aren't any broken hearts in the black community over 'TOY," said one former WTOY announcer who asked not to be identified. "The station was no longer an institution."
It seems to have been a vicious cycle: When the predominantly white ownership group bought the station, it wasn't making enough money to pay for top-notch programming and promotion. Because of that, the station didn't capture the majority of its potential audience. And when the station's listenership declined, it eventually further reduced the station's revenues.
Given that, it was not so much if, but when, the station's format would be changed.
The very decreases in audience that doomed the old WTOY will present a great challenge to the new WTOY.
Ward, who is black, said he hopes the format shift will help his station solidify its position as a broadcast voice for Roanoke's black community. "We don't want to exclude any potential listeners, but I accept that as part of our mission," Ward said.
But many of WTOY's young, black listeners have turned to recorded music or out-of-town radio stations to satisfy their musical tastes.
Greensboro radio station WJMH (102 Jams) has developed a fairly sizable audience in the Roanoke Valley and has even begun airing some advertising aimed at listeners here.
And despite the fact that the station's signal is coming in from long-distance, its high-quality FM sound and well-executed marketing will make it difficult for any station to reclaim WTOY's former listeners.
If you could take all of the old WTOY's audience and combine it with all of WSAY's audience, it would be a fairly significant chunk of the Roanoke listeners.
But it is unrealistic to expect that all of the people who listened to WSAY's gospel and inspirational programming will listen to the new comtemporary music. And it is also unrealistic to expect that all of the old WTOY's audience will make the switch.
Ward has said that in keeping with his religious background the new WTOY will not play all of the music that the old WTOY carried. The station has also had some technical problems and is generally perceived to have poor sound quality.
It's not going to be the same station.
Whether that is good or bad remains to be seen.
"I wish him well," said the former WTOY announcer of Ward's decision to try to re-create WTOY at a new dial position. "But I don't think it's a wise move."
Your opinion counts, too. If you've been a WTOY or WSAY listener, let me know how you feel. Call me at 981-3224 or write to: Airwaves, Chuck Milteer, Roanoke Times & World-News. P.O. Box 2491, Roanoke, Va. 24010.
***CORRECTION***
Published correction ran on Mar. 31, 1990\ Clarification\ Commonwealth Media, the company that owns the former WTOY radio station, had planned to launch its business news and information format under the call letters WBNI beginning Monday at 6 a.m. On Friday, station president Mike Waldvogel said the station, which has been off the air since Monday night, would not begin transmitting until Wednesday at noon.
Memo: Correction