The Southern Ontario/WNY Radio-TV Forum / Sudden Change To All-Sports Format Rattles Detroit Radio

**Posted by RadioActive** August 15, 2023 12:08 am

I know we have some Windsor folks here and they've probably already heard about this - Detroit radio station WFDF at 910 AM that has catered to an urban Black audience for years has announced it's suddenly switching formats to all-sports, throwing several controversial talents off the air.

And the audience who listened to them is not taking it lying down. In a remarkable piece on WDIV-TV (when was the last time a TV station covered any radio story?) a former staffer accuses the owner of being racist, dishonest and having an ulterior motive. The man in question is already being investigated by authorities for allegedly not paying his taxes and many audience members don't trust his motives.

There are suspicions the sports format is just a cover for what he really wants to do with his station.

Details here and make sure to watch the embedded video.

**Posted by paterson1** August 15, 2023 8:46 am

Detroit area radio already has 4 all sports stations. Two of them had a 0.1 share in the last rating. Doesn't look like there is much of a market for 5th all sports station.

Some on the Michigan Radio and TV Buzzboard are saying that the station should have gone to a classic Motown/Soul format. Seems strange but in the home of Motown and so many classic soul artists, nobody is doing this in Detroit. For oldies Detroit listeners need to tune in two out of town stations with CKWW being one. And CKWW as an oldies station is likely not long for this world.

**Posted by RadioAaron** August 15, 2023 1:24 pm

The programming on the station was all paid or brokered, but probably pretty high maintenance - requiring ops and studios and such.

A switch to one of the sports syndicators would be a much leaner operations with decent revenue if they get in with some of the sports betting programming.

**Posted by haydenmatthews14** August 15, 2023 8:15 pm

RadioActive wrote:
I know we have some Windsor folks here and they've probably already heard about this - Detroit radio station WFDF at 910 AM that has catered to an urban Black audience for years has announced it's suddenly switching formats to all-sports, throwing several controversial talents off the air.

And the audience who listened to them is not taking it lying down. In a remarkable piece on WDIV-TV (when was the last time a TV station covered any radio story?) a former staffer accuses the owner of being racist, dishonest and having an ulterior motive. The man in question is already being investigated by authorities for allegedly not paying his taxes and many audience members don't trust his motives.

There are suspicions the sports format is just a cover for what he really wants to do with his station.

Details here and make sure to watch the embedded video.

Link doesn’t work for me

**Posted by turkeytop** August 15, 2023 8:25 pm

Why do stations do that? They abandon a small but loyal niche audience and chase after the same audience that is already being served by other stations.

**Posted by RadioActive** August 15, 2023 8:25 pm

haydenmatthews14 wrote:
RadioActive wrote:
I know we have some Windsor folks here and they've probably already heard about this - Detroit radio station WFDF at 910 AM that has catered to an urban Black audience for years has announced it's suddenly switching formats to all-sports, throwing several controversial talents off the air.

And the audience who listened to them is not taking it lying down. In a remarkable piece on WDIV-TV (when was the last time a TV station covered any radio story?) a former staffer accuses the owner of being racist, dishonest and having an ulterior motive. The man in question is already being investigated by authorities for allegedly not paying his taxes and many audience members don't trust his motives.

There are suspicions the sports format is just a cover for what he really wants to do with his station.

Details here and make sure to watch the embedded video.
Link doesn’t work for me

Interesting. The link is correct - I checked it myself. But yes, the story appears to be gone. I strongly suspect the guy in the video that was embedded in the story may have said something that could get them sued and they took it down. I checked their site and it's no longer there.

That was why I suggested watching the video, because you rarely hear anyone openly accuse a former boss of being a crook and a racist on TV.

I wonder if a lawsuit threat led to it being removed.

**Posted by RadioAaron** August 15, 2023 8:33 pm

turkeytop wrote:
Why do stations do that? They abandon a small but loyal niche audience and chase after the same audience that is already being served by other stations.

Not being profitable will do it.

It’s this case, the hosts paying him was no longer even breaking even.

**Posted by ckg927** August 15, 2023 8:46 pm

RadioAaron wrote:
The programming on the station was all paid or brokered, but probably pretty high maintenance - requiring ops and studios and such.

A switch to one of the sports syndicators would be a much leaner operations with decent revenue if they get in with some of the sports betting programming.

WFDF is fully affiliating with ESPN; they already carried its programming in the overnight hours.

**Posted by RadioActive** August 16, 2023 7:20 am

RadioActive wrote:
haydenmatthews14 wrote:
RadioActive wrote:
I know we have some Windsor folks here and they've probably already heard about this - Detroit radio station WFDF at 910 AM that has catered to an urban Black audience for years has announced it's suddenly switching formats to all-sports, throwing several controversial talents off the air.

And the audience who listened to them is not taking it lying down. In a remarkable piece on WDIV-TV (when was the last time a TV station covered any radio story?) a former staffer accuses the owner of being racist, dishonest and having an ulterior motive. The man in question is already being investigated by authorities for allegedly not paying his taxes and many audience members don't trust his motives.

There are suspicions the sports format is just a cover for what he really wants to do with his station.

Details here and make sure to watch the embedded video.
Link doesn’t work for me
Interesting. The link is correct - I checked it myself. But yes, the story appears to be gone. I strongly suspect the guy in the video that was embedded in the story may have said something that could get them sued and they took it down. I checked their site and it's no longer there.

That was why I suggested watching the video, because you rarely hear anyone openly accuse a former boss of being a crook and a racist on TV.

I wonder if a lawsuit threat led to it being removed.

Here's an alternate article for those interested in this story.

Radio station in Detroit fires Black hosts, cancels shows

And then there's this rather provocative headline:

White millionaire abruptly pulls plug on predominantly Black talk radio station 910AM

**Posted by paterson1** August 16, 2023 11:09 am

This again from one of the Detroit radio forums (Radio Discussions) mentioned that WFDF a few years ago had a weekly cume of 30,000 listeners. One paper had reported that listenership had plummeted to as low as 2,200 and the station had very few advertisers. This is a 50,000 watt outlet. Don't really understand why the owner just wouldn't sell the station or close it down and sell the building and land. With four other sports stations in the Detroit area, can't see how a fifth would be a success.

**Posted by RadioActive** August 16, 2023 11:43 am

Some of the articles I read noted the ex-employees don't believe it will be all-sports for long. They think the owner is secretly planning to switch to a Conservative talk station in the near future, perhaps as soon as this Fall. They say the sports thing is just a temporary place holder. We'll see.

**Posted by ckg927** August 16, 2023 6:29 pm

RadioActive wrote:
Some of the articles I read noted the ex-employees don't believe it will be all-sports for long. They think the owner is secretly planning to switch to a Conservative talk station in the near future, perhaps as soon as this Fall. They say the sports thing is just a temporary place holder. We'll see.

That would be JUST as dumb as giving Detroit a 5th sports talk station. Because, you see, Detroit already HAS a conservative talk outlet, WDTK/1400(with an FM translator at 101.5); it's owned by Salem.

**Posted by RadioAaron** August 16, 2023 7:26 pm

What many posters here are missing is that there are stations in the states whose success has nothing to do with ratings or format holes.

The brokered programming model is based on the number of people within the broadcast range, not the rated listenership.

The TV sub channels work well the same way. You sell clearance, not actual audience.

**Posted by RadioAaron** August 16, 2023 7:29 pm

ckg927 wrote:
RadioAaron wrote:
The programming on the station was all paid or brokered, but probably pretty high maintenance - requiring ops and studios and such.

A switch to one of the sports syndicators would be a much leaner operations with decent revenue if they get in with some of the sports betting programming.
WFDF is fully affiliating with ESPN; they already carried its programming in the overnight hours.

Which makes sense. I don’t know where people are getting the “Detroit has 5 sports stations” talking point from when ESPN affiliation is available.

**Posted by paterson1** August 16, 2023 9:11 pm

Which makes sense. I don’t know where people are getting the “Detroit has 5 sports stations” talking point from when ESPN affiliation is available.

Nielsen lists that Detroit currently has 4 all sports stations. Although one is an AM repeater and another a streamer for WXYT FM. Not listed however is ESPN 104.5 The Team in Detroit. So there is an ESPN affilation but they must allow another for AM.
https://ratings.radio-online.com/content/arb011

Last edited by paterson1 (August 16, 2023 9:57 pm)

**Posted by Marc1178** August 16, 2023 10:59 pm

Right now, Detroit has the following Sports radio stations.

1. WXYT-FM, 97-1 The Ticket,
2. WCSX-HD-2 and 93.5 W228CJ, The Roar
3. WXYT AM 1270 The Bet (Gambling)
4. WFDF 910 AM with ESPN

104.5 FM would be impossible in Detroit due to WOMC being one channel away. In the radio ratings 1130 WDFN is still listed as a Sports station, which is incorrect. That must be why people thought there was a fifth Sports station. It became a B.I.N. affiliate in 2020.

**Posted by RadioAaron** August 17, 2023 4:41 pm

So there is one sports radio station going for ratings in the market.

**Posted by mace** August 18, 2023 1:28 pm

RadioAaron wrote:
So there is one sports radio station going for ratings in the market.

Correct. WXYT "The Ticket" currently sits 3rd with a 6.7 share. Their stream has a 1.8 share in 18th. The "Competition" WXYT has a 0.1 share and is tied or behind the streams of WWJ, WJR, WOMC, WDRQ, WDFN, WYCD and WRCJ.

**Posted by RadioAaron** August 18, 2023 5:39 pm

mace wrote:
RadioAaron wrote:
So there is one sports radio station going for ratings in the market.
Correct. WXYT "The Ticket" currently sits 3rd with a 6.7 share. Their stream has a 1.8 share in 18th. The "Competition" WXYT has a 0.1 share and is tied or behind the streams of WWJ, WJR, WOMC, WDRQ, WDFN, WYCD and WRCJ.

And WXYT(AM) isn't even meant to get ratings, it's a 24/7 infomercial, and sister station to The Ticket.

**Posted by paterson1** September 1, 2023 10:33 am

The sports programming on WFDF 910 Detroit was short lived...it is going conservative talk on Sept 5th. So the suspicions of the sports programming being just a cover were true.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/adell-media-announces-debut-of-910-am--detroits-news-talk-superstation-301915177.html

Last edited by paterson1 (September 1, 2023 11:15 am)

**Posted by RadioActive** September 11, 2023 4:48 pm

paterson1 wrote:
The sports programming on WFDF 910 Detroit was short lived...it is going conservative talk on Sept 5th. So the suspicions of the sports programming being just a cover were true.
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/adell-media-announces-debut-of-910-am--detroits-news-talk-superstation-301915177.html

The outspoken and controversial owner insists the change he made has nothing to do with racism or catering to a Black audience. Instead, it was all about green, the colour of money.

“It has nothing to do with race,” [Kevin] Adell tells Metro Times. “I’m not a Republican. I don’t have one red tie in my closet. I don’t say the Pledge of Allegiance. I don’t have an American flag hanging at my house. But I realized there was money to be made. It’s all about the money.”

He claims his decision, which roiled local radio in Motown, was inspired by high powered and legendary WJR dropping most of their conservative talk show hosts and too few listening to the format he dropped.

"When he pulled the plug, the station was only getting 2,100 listeners a month...

“I didn’t kill 910, the African Americans not supporting it, killed it,” Adell says. “I didn’t silence the African American community. They silenced it themselves.”

His next plan is to buy an FM signal in the market and transfer the station to that band to gain more listeners. But the people he so suddenly left behind doubt any of those motives and feel they've lost a voice in the community that isn't being replicated anywhere else.

910AM owner says he ‘hates’ politics, but plans to expand conservative format to FM radio

**Posted by paterson1** September 11, 2023 7:02 pm

WFDF only had 2,100 listeners per month? Didn't know they could measure numbers that low. On some given days or weeks they would have nobody listening. Hard to believe that an AM station with good dial position and 50,000 watts in a market of over 3.5 million could be tracking so poorly. So this owner Kevin Adell has been losing money for years?

**Posted by RadioAaron** September 11, 2023 7:09 pm

paterson1 wrote:
WFDF only had 2,100 listeners per month? Didn't know they could measure numbers that low. On some given days or weeks they would have nobody listening. Hard to believe that an AM station with good dial position and 50,000 watts in a market of over 3.5 million could be tracking so poorly. So this owner Kevin Adell has been losing money for years?

They didn't participate in ratings, so he may have been trying to extrapolate from streaming numbers or using some other research tool.

Regardless, he probably made money for a while since most hosts paid for their shows.

**Posted by RadioAaron** September 11, 2023 7:15 pm

Also, the racism accusation seems weak.

Either:
-He isn't racist and this was a business decision, or
-He is racist, but setting up or buying a Black-oriented talk station in the first place was a business decision in itself

**Posted by RadioActive** November 3, 2023 11:34 am

After all the controversy, they've now added an HD signal.

WFDF, Detroit Begins Simulcast on HD Signal

**Posted by RadioActive** May 1, 2024 6:54 am

Marc1178 wrote:
Right now, Detroit has the following Sports radio stations.

1. WXYT-FM, 97-1 The Ticket,
2. WCSX-HD-2 and 93.5 W228CJ, The Roar
3. WXYT AM 1270 The Bet (Gambling)
4. WFDF 910 AM with ESPN

104.5 FM would be impossible in Detroit due to WOMC being one channel away. In the radio ratings 1130 WDFN is still listed as a Sports station, which is incorrect. That must be why people thought there was a fifth Sports station. It became a B.I.N. affiliate in 2020.

The latest update to this old story is that WXYT will be abandoning its all-betting format and instituting something a bit different for Detroit radio - an all Black-hosted all-sports radio station.

Detroit’s 1270 WXYT To Debut As ‘Sports Rap Radio’ On May 16

**Posted by darcyh** May 1, 2024 11:30 am

If I recall correctly WFDF started off as a Flint Michigan station. It was purchased and moved to the Detroit area. A new 8 tower array was constructed to facilitate a directional 50KW day and 25KW night pattern. This is a relatively new transmitter facility. When it went on the air I seem to think Radio Disney was the content.

After some time Disney sold off their AM stations including WFDF. It was probably sold at a great loss considering how costly AM transmitter sites are to construct.

WDTK 1400 AM operates with 1KW and its signal does not get out all that well. I recall being in Windsor and at night the signal had a lot of noise behind it.

Last edited by darcyh (May 1, 2024 11:30 am)