I am far from an expert on the Contemporary Christian format, but I am a keen observer of the radio ratings scene. You are likely aware of the recent sale of the Salem music stations to EMF, soon to be known as K-Love, Inc.
One of the bigger and consistent success stories has been the station formerly known as The Fish in Atlanta.
The station not only won with its regular format, but it was also the only station of note in that market to flip to the all-Christmas music format. While they did not dominate the ratings like a KESZ or WBEB, there was a noticeable lift in their numbers across multiple demos.
The content creators at that station were blessed to be able to conduct a month-long farewell tour. That NEVER happens in radio. They handled it with professionalism and compassion, but their demise will leave an emotional mark. Will that matter?
The next morning, the former station’s fans were greeted by a whole new cast of characters. I would assume the music was not dramatically different, but the focus certainly was. No longer would the content have anything to do with the issues and interests of the people of Atlanta.
The question is – will that matter? We know that fans of the Contemporary Christian format are passionate about both the music and the mission. While the Air1 format now airing on that frequency will cater to both of those listener passions, will that be enough?
The ratings will tell the story. The upcoming January survey will only rate about one week of the new format so it will be too early to tell how the audience reacted. Factor in that this will also be the first book under the new three-minute rule plus the inevitable audience decline that occurs in January for every single holiday music station. We won’t get a good picture for a few months as to how the changes played out.
Probably. It could be sooner because PPM is pretty good at recording changes in near real-time.
This is an intriguing scenario – will mission and purpose trounce local content?
One thing we can be certain of? There are ongoing discussions at stations like WSRV, WSB-FM, and others as to whether they will pick up the holiday music mantle.
Watch this space.
