The End is Fucking Nigh for Free FM

Apparently Opie & Anthony being suspended again was the last straw for CBS Radio, which has replaced their New York station's broadcast at WFNY with a message that they are flipping formats at 5PM today. WFNY's site has also been replaced by a giant ticking clock counting down to 5PM. What they are changing it to is a mystery at the moment, but don't be surprised if you see a return to rock music following the new Arbitron ratings showing WMMR as the station to beat in Philadelphia. (Arbitron started using new, more accurate PPM technology in Philadelphia earlier this year, and we're still the only city to get to use it yet).

What does this mean for 94.1FM in Philly? Well, Kidd Chris and Barsky better start packing their bags. WFNY was the flagship Free-FM station for CBS Radio, and that it's changing formats today is proof that the format created for Howard Stern cannot survive without Howard Stern actually present. In the wake of the Don Imus scandal, they're just as tired of dealing with asinine shock jocks to sell their ads as many other, smaller broadcasters.

I salute you, Free FM. You sucked pretty hard, but at least you were better at sucking than anyone else. You were committed to broadcasting shit. And while that is not exactly admirable, it is remarkable, to say the least.

update: apparently O&A are staying at WFNY, which is rumored to be throwing the switch to have K-Rock return from the HD-2 channel there. Everyone else there from the Program Director on down is getting the ax. Could 94.1 return to the rock format with O&A as the replacement for Stern in the mornings? Did Clearchannel see this move coming down the pike last week when they flipped 104.5?

104.5 flips to Alt. Rock

Rumba 104.5 (formerly Alice 104.5 a.k.a. Sunny 104.5 a.k.a. Star 104.5) flipped formats today, to what sounds like an alternative rock format aimed at YOUNG PEOPLE! Introducing Radio 104.5FM.



Not counting Skin Radio 1340AM and Y-Rock on XPN HD-2, this is the first alternative rock station in Philadelphia since Y-100 went off the air in February 2005. Why not count Skin Radio? -- because they're on AM, which is dumb for any music station. Why not count Y-Rock? --because no one has HD Radio (although they still sound great on the Internet stream).

Apparently ClearChannel moved the Hispanic dance format to WDAS 1480AM to make room on the FM dial for this. I've been listening to the Internet stream for just a couple minutes now, and I'm still withholding judgement until they get some real people on the air in a couple days/week. Don't get your hopes up, though: bets are that they'll just continue to automate their playlists. And it's ClearChannel (fuck them), which means don't expect very much variety from their rotation. It sounded pretty bland up until a minute ago when they started playing some old Gorillaz track -- they allegedly played "The Ramones - Do You Remember Rock and Roll Radio" as their first track.

It might turn out to be complete shit, but it's enough for me to bump something else off of my car's presets -- maybe I'll get rid of the WPVI simulcast. No more Jeopardy when I'm driving around aimlessly every night at 7PM!

"Your alternative to radio status-quo: Radio 104.5"

Oooh -- edgy AND imaginative!

Head over to my new hangout at radio-info.com where the Philadelphia forum heard this as soon as it went live and promptly posted five different threads about it.