SiriusXM: 50s on 5 and 90s on 9 Go Jockless

[jon]

Ouch! This one really hurts as 50s on 5 is my favourite channel. And Pat St. John my favourite DJ on any of the SiriusXM channels.

I actually wondered, and worried about, more about his health, after not hearing the pride of WGAR, Norm N. Nite, on the weekend. He did a great live show each weekend afternoon from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

Sirius XM dumps disc jockeys on 50s on 5 and 90s on 9 channels
Loss of Jim Kerr, Pat St. John, Norm N. Nite and others is one more blow to listeners who like DJs with their music
New York Daily News
Wednesday, February 5, 2014, 2:00 AM

In a move that’s modest but still frustrating, SiriusXM satellite radio has taken the disc jockeys off two more music channels, 50s on 5 and 90s on 9.

As it happens, this erases several jocks that New York listeners know, including WAXQ (104.3 FM) morning man Jim Kerr, Pat St. John and Norm N. Nite, all of whom hosted shows on the ’50s channel.

SiriusXM saves a few bucks in salaries here. The main goal, presumably, is making those channels music-intensive — a trend that has permeated all of music radio over the last 10 years.

The thinking is that listeners want music, not voices.

Me, I like both. I like the idea, even when it’s an illusion, that a person rather than a machine is sharing this musc with me.

To relics like me, a good jock is as much a part of radio as the music itself, and I suspect someone at SiriusXM knows it. From Outlaw Country to the Elvis and Springsteen channels, hosts still talk, and I assume that’s because listeners want them. They’re part of the package, part of the deal we’ve always had with the radio.

That’s why stations like Z100 and Hot 97 keep jocks in the mix even when they want the more-music brand.

The disappearance of more jocks at SiriusXM also feels disheartening because it takes satellite radio another small step away from what make it so distinctive in the beginning.

XM, in particular, positioned itself as an alternative to terrestrial radio. It played a wide range of music you’d never hear on commercial stations, and it hired jocks like Matt the Cat, a young guy with an old-time personality.

When XM and Sirius merged, a lot of that got squeezed out. Playlists tightened, hosts vanished, older and less well-known music was replaced by newer and more popular. It felt as if someone had hired a top-40 consultant and was holding focus groups.

Since satellite radio used to lose money and now makes money, you could argue these have just been smart business decisions.

It also must be noted that satellite remains a good alternative to commercial radio. It still has music and hosts and programs you won’t hear elsewhere.

It just has fewer of those things — and every time it whacks jocks, especially on the channels whose audience grew up on jocks, it loses a little more of its "radio" feel.

[pave]

For what it's worth, it may be a good idea to understand that Sirius, Pandora et al are, essentially, just what they seem - music streaming services.

It is now incumbent on radio to supply a better and more varied set of programming. I have always submitted that radio (terra) has but one option - generate many more "personalities", and to get them on the air much more often.

This will be no small chore. In fact, for those who execute the transformation poorly, it could be an abject (and expensive) disaster.

[PMC]

Sirius has reach... all here, seem to assume it is about music and jocks, however, the signal could be used for other forms of transmission.

Cutting costs, saves money, losing product can also sink their boat, here on the rock... it will be the consumer that decides their fate... this simple fact is the tragedy of the economics system, that we choose to use.... or is there a conspiracy to end radio broadcasting as we know it, and that I am not aware of

[pave]

No conspiracy here that I know of, PMC. But, I know of a place where one could be floated and get all kinds of dipping-dog reactions.

Besides, terra-radio is doing everything it can to cripple its own damn se'f - and doing a right fine job of it, too.