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December 20, 2019 11:01 am  #1


CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

CFRB is touting a commercial-free Christmas music-themed Xmas eve and day. Presumably they could not find anyone to buy the ads

 

December 20, 2019 11:26 am  #2


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

One way to do "commercial free" is a sponsorship that has bought all the hours or some... Top Hour ID followed by a quick This hour of commercial free music brought to you by...  Not really commercial free but you have to ID anyway.

 

December 20, 2019 11:27 am  #3


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

Ad buys slow right down after this week, but they never go to zero. But the logs are light enough that you can move a bunch around for a commercial-free stretch like this.

 

December 20, 2019 11:46 am  #4


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

Sorry if this sounds like a Grinch, but this is the kind of abandonment of the format that drives me crazy. If you're a talk station, be a talk station. I realize it might be tough finding callers on Christmas, but why switch to a format your listeners would never normally turn to you to hear? Especially with a CHFI playing nothing but Yule tunes - and in FM stereo. Not to mention most of the other stations in town.

I would think there must be podcasts that can be run or rerolls of generic topics that could be prepared. Or even special programming that relates to the holiday but doesn't destroy the basic format. Who listens to CFRB to hear Christmas music? Stay consistent, even if it's hard.

I should add here I'm not anti-Christmas, just very, very pro consistency. An old P.D. of mine drilled into me with laser-like focus that when a listener turns on your station, he or she should hear exactly what they're expecting. Over the years, I've come to agree more and more with that philosophy.   

And remember that an increasing population in the city is of other religions and does not celebrate the holiday. They are essentially being abandoned for several days so that the powers-that-be at Bell don't have to come up with anything more creative than the same old Xmas songs everyone else is playing. 

For people like me who consume a lot of radio during their day, it's going to be a very long 24-48 hours come Dec. 24-25th. Just, it seems, like every year!

 

December 20, 2019 12:52 pm  #5


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

RadioActive wrote:

Sorry if this sounds like a Grinch, but this is the kind of abandonment of the format that drives me crazy. If you're a talk station, be a talk station.

It's totally ironic. Many years ago on Christmas day CFRB used to put callers on the air that would call people in far off places wishing their friends and family a very Merry Christmas. (saving the caller some money on their phone bill)

Now CFRB is OWNED by a phone company and they don't want to do that???


RadioWiz & RadioQuiz are NOT the same person. 
RadioWiz & THE Wiz are NOT the same person.

 
 

December 20, 2019 1:16 pm  #6


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

 CFRB does have hosts for all of these hours of Christmas music, so it's not just rolling music with no talk. And they still have their news/traffic updates.  As I recall John Moore would host a few hours with memories of Christmas past in his family and would talk to another on staff about a memorable Christmas or thoughts on the New Year, might read a Christmas story etc. When I did hear a few breaks it wasn't that bad actually. And depending on the host, some shows were lighter or funnier than others.  Sort of showed the personality behind the personality on air.

I remember working at a station that did their regular talk show on December 24th  that turned into a bit of a disaster. The topic was harmless enough.."What was your most memorable Christmas.."  Calls were non existent at first, so the host related about his most memorable. When he was done he asked me (the call screener/operator) about mine. And of course we had next to no commercials to play.

Finally someone called in, but it quickly morphed  into  "What was your saddest Christmas." The first caller talked about when uncle George had the massive stroke on Christmas eve and died the day after Christmas. The next caller who started off alright eventually told about losing a newborn right before Christmas and ended up crying on air.  It was dreadful, depressing and the host struggled for about an hour. As the screener I was directing people away from sad stories to something lighter or happier. 

We did get some better calls eventually, but what a time.  A few listeners called the newsroom asking why we would have something like this on air right before Christmas, even though the host made it very clear the topic wasn't about the saddest Christmas.

Christmas Eve/Day, I personally give talk stations a pass, same as a few hours on a holiday Monday.  On a holiday Monday I don't care if two hours are the best of John Oakley from the past week. When I was working full time I rarely had a chance to hear him live.  And I likely wouldn't bother listening to the podcast. So if it came on, I really enjoyed listening sitting on the deck with a beer since I hadn't heard any of the show in the first place.  

 

December 20, 2019 1:31 pm  #7


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

Radiowiz wrote:

RadioActive wrote:

Sorry if this sounds like a Grinch, but this is the kind of abandonment of the format that drives me crazy. If you're a talk station, be a talk station.

It's totally ironic. Many years ago on Christmas day CFRB used to put callers on the air that would call people in far off places wishing their friends and family a very Merry Christmas. (saving the caller some money on their phone bill)

Now CFRB is OWNED by a phone company and they don't want to do that???

Because it is now virtually free to call overseas.

 

December 20, 2019 1:47 pm  #8


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

personally, I think this is poor forethought.    Listeners for News and Talk are not there for music, especially music on AM radio in 2019.   It's cheap, affordable programming, which is why they are doing this I'm sure, but I think they would be better to run re-runs for 2 days OR run a talk based show that is provided via syndication than throwing listeners there for talk and news to other stations that will be either LIVE over the Christmas run (680) or running talk like (640).    For a small market, I wouldn't have the same view, but for Toronto?  Just doesn't seem wise, and is a decision made for accounting only. 

 

December 20, 2019 1:56 pm  #9


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

paterson1 wrote:

 I remember working at a station that did their regular talk show on December 24th  that turned into a bit of a disaster.

Interesting you would relate this. I've told this story on one of the incarnations of SOWNY before, but I had the exact opposite experience. I was doing a late night talk show on Dec. 24th many years ago and we tried to figure out beforehand what we should do - go with semi-regular programming and incorporate Christmas into it or just go full fuel Yule. 

We decided to do a trivia-type show with regular and Christmas and holiday questions thrown in. (This was long before CFRB's Sunday morning effort.) It was just for fun, with no prizes and we had no idea if anyone would call in. 

Well, in those pre-Internet days, the phones went crazy. I remember screening calls from listeners who told me, "Thank God someone is doing something entertaining on the radio! I'm sick of everyone playing the same Christmas music and I've seen all those movies on TV." In fact, we probably had one of the biggest responses we ever did that night. 

Would that happen today? I'm not sure, but I learned a big lesson that night about living up to audience expectations. And according to what they told us, we made a lot of people's Eve a lot better. 

(And by the way, we also did that phone-someone-far-away type thing. That was a big hit, too. Not such a big deal now, but it was expensive back then and we got to listen in on people's live phone calls. One guy wound up calling his aunt in New Zealand. It was pretty interesting to hear how they celebrated the season in Kiwi-land.)

 

December 20, 2019 2:06 pm  #10


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

radiokid wrote:

Listeners for News and Talk are not there for music, especially music on AM radio in 2019.

Won't surprise anyone that I agree with this 100%. Imagine turning on CHUM-FM Dec. 24th and hearing classic country being played for 24 hours. Not what you expected and not only would you be disappointed, you'd probably tune elsewhere. If you're a talk station, you're a talk station - and that includes on a difficult-to-program day like Christmas. 

That said, I think Coast-to-Coast has a tradition of being live on Xmas Eve, so that, at least, will be normal programming if CFRB chooses to carry it. I suspect GNR 640 wll do the same old 24-48 hours of old time radio shows. Unfortunately, I know by now how "A Christmas Carol" ends, and the way the radio version of "It's A Wonderful Life" concludes. And they'll play them over and over and over until Dec. 26th or 27th, just as they do every year.

 

December 20, 2019 2:07 pm  #11


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

RadioActive wrote:

paterson1 wrote:

 I remember working at a station that did their regular talk show on December 24th  that turned into a bit of a disaster.

Interesting you would relate this. I've told this story on one of the incarnations of SOWNY before, but I had the exact opposite experience. I was doing a late night talk show on Dec. 24th many years ago and we tried to figure out beforehand what we should do - go with semi-regular programming and incorporate Christmas into it or just go full fuel Yule. 

The best Christmas eve talk show ever, Johnny LaRue's Street Beef




 

     Thread Starter
 

December 20, 2019 3:14 pm  #12


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

Actually, I heard Marc Patrone on Friday say there will be "best-ofs" airing during the holidays, even on Christmas.  

 

December 20, 2019 3:28 pm  #13


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

Back when AM 640 was located on Jessie & Gene Way, north of Sheppard Ave., SOWNY contributor Marc Weisblott (editor of 12:36) took calls on Christmas Day.    Callers included prominent Toronto business people.   

Riveting radio.     That was some 20+ years ago and am still riveted
 

 

December 20, 2019 5:49 pm  #14


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

RadioActive wrote:

paterson1 wrote:

 I remember working at a station that did their regular talk show on December 24th  that turned into a bit of a disaster.

Interesting you would relate this. I've told this story on one of the incarnations of SOWNY before, but I had the exact opposite experience. I was doing a late night talk show on Dec. 24th many years ago and we tried to figure out beforehand what we should do - go with semi-regular programming and incorporate Christmas into it or just go full fuel Yule. 

We decided to do a trivia-type show with regular and Christmas and holiday questions thrown in. (This was long before CFRB's Sunday morning effort.) It was just for fun, with no prizes and we had no idea if anyone would call in. 

Well, in those pre-Internet days, the phones went crazy. I remember screening calls from listeners who told me, "Thank God someone is doing something entertaining on the radio! I'm sick of everyone playing the same Christmas music and I've seen all those movies on TV." In fact, we probably had one of the biggest responses we ever did that night. 

Would that happen today? I'm not sure, but I learned a big lesson that night about living up to audience expectations. And according to what they told us, we made a lot of people's Eve a lot better. 

(And by the way, we also did that phone-someone-far-away type thing. That was a big hit, too. Not such a big deal now, but it was expensive back then and we got to listen in on people's live phone calls. One guy wound up calling his aunt in New Zealand. It was pretty interesting to hear how they celebrated the season in Kiwi-land.)

Maybe it was the time of day. Our talk show was at 9am on December 24th, and we were not a talk station, just had a talk show mid morning.  This station also did the calling a relative thing but it was limited to Canada and the US.  The trivia show you mentioned was a great idea. Gives people a break that have had their fill of Christmas.

 

December 20, 2019 6:44 pm  #15


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

RadioActive wrote:

I should add here I'm not anti-Christmas, just very, very pro consistency. An old P.D. of mine drilled into me with laser-like focus that when a listener turns on your station, he or she should hear exactly what they're expecting. Over the years, I've come to agree more and more with that philosophy.   

I completely agree with this philosophy. However, in this case, ratings will likely show virtually nobody listening to CFRB on Dec 25, regardless of what they program Best I remember from last year, there was CHFI, CBC, and nobody else registering much of anything. If a handful of people enjoy their commercial-free music programming, they've done their job and it's not going to create any brand confusion.

Whatever's the least expensive, because you're not getting any return regardless. 
 

 

December 20, 2019 7:13 pm  #16


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

In the old days  PD's and station managers worked us 6 days a week and stats. (We'd get either Christmas or New Year's Day off. Take your pick. Preference for Christmas went  to the "married men because they have families.")  When we balked they'd say, "Well, it gives you a chance to reach a new audience: people who don't  get a chance to listen during the week."  We'd acquiesce of course, because we loved the business  so much, and that's how even small stations were live 24/7. 

PS -- that was the era when the way to make more money was to improve the product and get better ratings. And they made TONS of money!   T O N S.  Now of course some bean-counter at head office highlights a name and hits delete and replaces that person with C2C or some other drek.

Last edited by potentiometer (December 20, 2019 7:14 pm)

 

December 20, 2019 8:21 pm  #17


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

potentiometer wrote:

In the old days  PD's and station managers worked us 6 days a week and stats. (We'd get either Christmas or New Year's Day off. Take your pick. Preference for Christmas went  to the "married men because they have families.") .

Are you bragging about being taken advantage of?
 

 

December 20, 2019 10:30 pm  #18


Re: CFRB commercial-free Christmas eve / day

Wow!  That's an interesting take.