All Access: New CHR rumored for Norfolk

[Slinky]

Since I posted about the need for a CHR in Norfolk in the "Another Big Market Station Changes To Sports" topic below, and suggested that 92.1 would be a good candidate to flip, I thought I'd follow it up with this item from All Access:

"ALL ACCESS has learned that CLEAR CHANNEL Urban WOWI/NORFOLK and THE SUPREME TEAM morning show have parted ways. No official word on who will replace them. Could they possibly be thinking of moving DOUG BANKS from sister station Urban WBHH (92.1)?

And, is WBHH about to pucker up and "kiss" the format wheel with a move toward Top 40? Also, there are strong indications that Smooth Jazz WJCD (107.7) will move the format wheel and land on Urban AC."

[EvanJ]

WBHH is way behind Clear Channel Urban WOWI so that would be a good format change. Clear Channel is doing okay with CHR/Pop in Richmond and could try it here.
I wouldn't change Smooth Jazz WJCD. There are already two Urban AC stations including WSVY owned by Clear Channel who owns WJCD.
These changes would challenge the second, third, and fourth most popular Entercom stations, Urban AC WVKL, Hot AC WPTE, and CHR/Rhythmic WNVZ, with Hot AC and CHR/Rhythmic being the formats on the two sides of CHR/Pop.

[Slinky]

I'm now reading on VARTV.com that Gospel will be the format on 107.7 (WJCD).  Clear Channel would be challenging the established Gospel stations, WXEZ (Star 94.1) and AM WPCE.  It would be hard for 107.7 to topple 94.1, because the 107.7 signal isn't that great, but it may take enough listeners to make the other Clear Channel stations move up a bit.  That might be a better move than Urban AC, as it wouldn't compete with WSVY.  It would still deprive the Hampton Roads of Smooth Jazz, but WJCD hasn't been doing very well anyway. 

On the other hand, if Clear Channel was going to put another Urban AC on 107.7, they could put the squeeze on 95.7 (WVKL) by focusing 105.3 on new R&B and 107.7 on R&B oldies, or vice versa. 

[tico]

I'd be willing to bet that Clear Channel will call this gospel station "Hallelujah". They do for Birmingham, Memphis and Jackson.

[Slinky]

Both 92.1 and 107.7 went to Soft AC as "Lite-FM". Looks like Norfolk is still CHR-less.

[tico]

I wonder what prompted their decision not to go CHR.

[EvanJ]

Well Adult Contemporary WWDE is up 0.7 to a higher rating than it had in all of the last four books before Fall 2003. WWDE is second and 0.1 behind first. Because WWDE is the top station without a competitor, I can't complain about changing one station to AC (that station being WBHH). However, I would have liked WJCD to remain Smooth Jazz or change to CHR-Pop as opposed to making a simulcast. Clear Channel may be able to keep some former Smooth Jazz listeners but would need to take a lot of listeners away from other stations for the simulcast to get a higher rating than the stations are currently getting individually.
I've seen simulcasts being created and destroyed but this could be the first time I've seen two stations create a simulcast of a different format than either one was originally.
The market has Arbitrends embargoed and only gets updated every three months. Today is Day 54 out of 84 for the Winter 2004 period. If the ratings don't change the formats until Spring 2004 because it is more than halfway through Winter 2004, we won't get a rating for the simulcast until the Spring 2004 ratings come out in July and August.
Two wrong rumors.

[EvanJ]

On radio-info they posted that WBHH was one of a few all Hip-Hop stations.