WYSP kind of flipping back to rock

Reports have been trickling out since yesterday afternoon that there's a format change in store for 94.1 WYSP today. According to this thread on Radio-Info, everyone at the station with the exception of Opie & Anthony and Kidd Chris were dismissed yesterday in a "bloodbath". Barsky, Matt & Huggy, Scotty & Alex, and members of Kidd Chris's show were reportedly shown the door as WYSP, which apparently saw the success of fellow former Free-FM station WXRK in New York (now K-Rock) and Philadelphia's WRFF 104.5 and decided the time was ripe to go back to playing music full-time.

The move comes at a good time for WYSP, as flipping formats in the middle of the NFL season will keep Philadelphia Eagles listeners aware of the change. In fact, their last true format change came almost two years ago in similar fashion, when the station originally switched to Free FM. Now, the gradual process of returning to the active rock format that existed when Howard Stern was the morning drive program is almost complete. The new format will be reportedly be almost the same as the old - except take out Howard Stern and replace him with XM competitors Opie & Anthony, and add Kidd Chris into the afternoon drive slot. The rest of the day will be filled with active rock again, which they had been playing in the early morning hours and on weekends. Check out a surprisingly detailed timeline of the shifting programming here on Wikipedia.

This will likely bring a temporary end to the identity crisis this station has suffered after losing Stern to satellite radio: in June they changed the logo to one that resembled the old "YSP Rocks" branding and completely eliminated the "Free FM" imaging from the airwaves, apparently in preparation for the moves they're making today. The new WYSP will, in all likelihood, be a hybrid of the Free-FM talk and the active rock -- a fusion of the new and the old. At least until they decide to cancel Kidd Chris, who must be pissed that he kept his job while his crew reportedly didn't. I vaguely remember hearing part of a show a few weeks ago in which Chris and his cronies cackled about all the stations they've been collectively fired from - and how Chris would never want to continue with a gig if the rest of his posse had been canned. If this part of the report is true, it will be very interesting to see what happens in the afternoons for the next few weeks.

The new/old WYSP will face stiff competition: when they flipped to Free FM, WMMR was the only modern rock station left in town, and they thrived because of it. Now, not only will 'YSP will have to lure back jilted "Mandatory Metallica" listeners, they'll have to hold their own against 93.3FM as well as a 104.5 alt-rock station that has seen quantum leaps in the ratings since they debuted. Maybe they'll take a cue from K-Rock, which played "Nirvana - All Apologies" as their first-song mea culpa when they ditched the Free FM programming.

More to come on this as we approach 5PM and have some definite answers. I've got some opinions on this move that I've learned to quarantine off into their own posts after the 104.5 debut post a couple months ago.

Links!
Opie and Anthony spilling beans... the rock returns today 5PM to YSP [ Radio-Info forums]
"Roots" Rock???? [ Radio-Info forums]
WYSP 94.1 FM BREAKING NEWS [ Radio-Info forums]
BREAKING REPORT: Barsky and others FIRED from WYSP 94.1 FM? [ Radio-Info forums]
WYSP - [ Wikipedia ]
WRKX - [ Wikipedia ]
WYSP set to announce a change in its format - [ Philadelphia Inquirer ]
WYSP eyes format change - [ Philadelphia Daily News ]
WYSP dumps talk shows, return to rock expected [ FMQB ]

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?