Just read them both. Mw had a 5 year plan with today fm but with any business if the $$ are not in or not getting results sometimes you just have to cut losses. Its always the staff doing the hard yards that suffer
Also think the writing was on the wall once the programmer boss left ,any top level support was gone
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It sounds as if Cam Wallace and Dallas Gurney both knew the station was about to be shut down so resigned (on the same day, according to Rachel Smalley). Unfortunately for Dallas he was still there to watch it happen.
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Northlandās former TodayFM frequencies are now airing The Breeze. I wonder what they will do with the other frequencies where they have their full gambit of Mediawork stations?
I see a-lot of juggling in the future
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I think Auckland may be the only market that has the full gambit. George and Mai will be the benefactors no doubt which is probably what Leon Wratt has always wanted.
Would have been nice for Radio Dunedin to get the old 96.6 Today frequency but George FM has already taken it over, I believe the day announcer role on Radio Dunedin may have been axed as well leaving Mediaworks without a paid employee on the station. Breakfast is shared with The Breeze and evening and weekend shows are done by volunteers.
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Might be worth just selling the frequencies if they were allowed to or retain them and lease them out to independent players
Ie online stations or community stations
Yes, thatās correct. In order to enable Today FM on 90.2 there were a chain of changes in the Auckland market leading up to March 2022.
- Chinese Radio FM 104.2 closed and was replaced by Humm FM (acquired by Mediaworks late 2021)
- Humm FM was replaced on 106.4 by The Rock which also simulcast on 90.2 until March 2022
Some options:
- Unwind the 2021/22 changes so The Rock moves back to 90.2, the frequency it occupied 1999-2022, and Humm FM moves back to 106.4. 104.2 could be leased to a non-competitor, e.g. Waatea (recall that has been suggested), Rhema Media, BBC
- Shut down synchronous frequency 93.8 and move The Sound to 106.2 to give better coverage. Also avoids the switching between Auckland and Hamilton programmes on 93.8 in vehicles on the edge of reception.
- Leave The Rock on 106.2 and move The Sound to 90.2.
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George FM began broadcasting to Dunedin on the high powered frequency of 96.6FM and to Southland on 94FM.
Meanwhile, whereas the majority of the Waikatoās radio stations is being broadcast from the Ruru transmitter (except RNZ Concert, Radio Tainui, Life FM, The Hits, RNZ Concert and PMN 531, where they are being broadcast from the Mt Te Aroha transmitter), Magicās 104.2FM signal only broadcasts from the Hamilton Towers transmitter and does not reach the entire Waikato region. George FM broadcasts to Hamilton on the low power frequency of 107.3FM.
I have been listening to Magicās music in recent years and in order to attract more listeners in the Waikato, Magic would replace Today FM on 100.2FM and George FM would move to 104.2FM.
Iām led to believe The Breeze has taken the AM frequency in Christchurch off Today.
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Yes, as reported on Friday evening. The Breeze 738 Christchurch and 1233 Wellington - website has been updated to reflect along with Northland and Gisborne for the FM frequencies
Oops missed that - thanks.
Donāt believe Southland has had a George station before. If not, itās nice to see we finally have it.
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@LiamP If you click the Wikipedia link below, you may have noticed that George FM broadcasts to Southland on the frequency provided.
Someone has made an update this afternoon against the former Today FM frequency as they anticipate it will be George FM. Noticed that George website has not been updated for that but it has for 96.6 Dunedin
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So from what patterns have emerged with station shuffling it seems certain the frequencies will simply be harvested for MWās other radio brands. A sad and bitter fate to their time in talkback radio.
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Now we have hindsight, did Today FM start too hard and too fast?
Was it necessary to start big and with a bang, or should they have done a slow burn morphing the Magic Talk-style into what Today FM ended up being grandually?
Or was it set to fail from the start, because as Mitch Harris said, āyou got to go for blue-collared, conservative, working-class peopleā, and Today FM didnt?
I like Mitch but his comments come across as bitter and not for the first time. He had his chance, didnāt gain too much traction with his turn either. Martin Devlin on breakfast was a poor decision, Michael Laws fired his audience up with the usual low hanging talkback topics and there was that highly out of place Kerry Smith show in the afternoons.
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I dont know much about him, but I added it because I agree to a degree.
I donāt think so. It just needed time and a reason for people to tune inā¦ I think they needed to hire (more?) investigative journalists - to break the news, as they say. It should have become MWās flagship brand, but instead itās closure has reminded everyone of the ongoing problems MW has had.
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I spoke to a friend who was a today fm fan and is sad of its demiseā¦he was a duncan garner fan and found him refreshing as opposed to kerre on zb
He thinks its sad there is no
Choice in the talk back genre and all we get now is 1 opinionā¦
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Donāt you also have RNZ talkback/news stations? Just curious as to what alternative to ZB they offer?