Category: WKNR

PD LIKENS PROGRAMMING WKNR FULL-DAY JOB . . . MARCH 14, 1970

MarqueeTest-2From the MCRFB news archive: 1970

WKNR’s Broussard Makes Radio Programming Without Time Constraints While at Helm

 

 

 

 

DETROIT — It isn’t often you’ll see a radio station program director in a record store, let alone see one sitting there all day. And even less often you will see a program director there taking notes about what kind of people are buying what kind of records. Skip Broussard, a program director whose next job is to aid WKNR here and attempt to put it firmly into the ratings picture used information gained at record stores this way to built a pretty good success story in Knoxville at WKGN. He was involved in the same type of programming at WMPS, Memphis, until getting an offer for the Detroit job.

A WKNR music guide from March, 1970
A WKNR music guide from March 31, 1970

To gain a representative picture of the audience available in Memphis, Broussard surveyed record shops in all geographic locations of the city. “I found that in a area heavy populated with blacks, the stores would be selling some Beatles and other records by white artists. And, in a very posh area, the shop would be selling soul records. Some very high class whites were buying soul records especially high school kids and young adults of college age.

“There seemed to be a breaking down of the old barriers — at least in Memphis.”

Broussard spent at least one day each weekend for six weeks in local stores in Memphis. During the week, he sent his air personalities out to spend time in the record shops.

All of this data was translated into the station’s programming. Broussard admitted, “I was targeting a black and white audience. I was after the audience of the other pop station and the audience of WDIA, a soul station that has been No. 1 in Memphis for several years.”

The playlist under WMPS under Broussard’s direction became 50 per cent soul in nature, “but only the soul records that was selling to both white and black people. We were trying to avoid any ethnic image. If we could have gained both audiences, WMPS would have achieved giant ratings. And blacks listened longer so that would have helped ratings too.”

Research and Sales

WMPS based its playlist on the results of the in-store research, plus sales figures garnered by telephone and telephone requests from listeners. Each request over the phone was listed and identified by age. “Gradually, the black listeners grew as we added soul records,” Broussard said.

“This type of programming is a whole new untapped area. Many stations are afraid at the moment to play soul records — afraid it will drive off their white listeners. Bit I feel records don’t have to be considered black and white. Because black and white people are finally getting together. I can see it happening in the same degree that they’re digging each other’s music.

“The program director could play an extremely important role in racial harmony by giving both types of music exposure within the realm of good programming. When I get a black person requesting a record by a white, it makes me feel good. And the same goes for a white requesting a soul record.”

Broussard got his start in radio in 1961part-time working KSIG in Crowley, Louisiana, while attending the University of Southwest Louisiana at Lafayette. He later worked part-time at KALB in Alexandria, La., then became program director full time at KXKW, Lafayette while still attending school. In 1966, he joined WLCS in Baton Rouge , but after a year was called into the Army reserves for six months. Then he returned to WLCS for a year before joining WTIX in New Orleans as music director under program director Buzz Bennett. He was there two years and admitted he “learned a lot from Buzz Bennett during that two-year stint there.”

But after joining WKGN in Knoxville as program director, he took graduate courses in market research and the psychology of mass communications which also shaped his present theories on researching for programming.

“There are environmental factors in any market which stimulate and influence the people living there,” Broussard continued. “And these generally relate to music. In Memphis, there’s a heavy black population and it’s the home of the blues — these factors have influenced the whites towards the blues. A southern white animosity counteracts this slightly. But you’ll still find 50-60 percent of the records on WDIA’s playlist selling to whites, which would indicate some of their listeners are white. “WDIA,” he said, was playing such artists as the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and Dusty Springfield at one time. I admire them for that. I don’t know who was responsible, but he was thinking big.”

An unusual factor about Memphis was that soul records companies provided poor record service to the pop stations, Broussard said. “Stax Records really didn’t work the white stations. Same with Motown Records. And its unfortunate. I wanted to play their records. These companies were missing the boat. Not just in record sales alone, but something much more important was missed than just putting out a finished product.” END.

(Information and news source: Billboard; March 14, 1970).

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DETROIT RADIO SIDEBAR: WKNR-AM BILLBOARD NOTES

Motor City Radio Flashbacks logoFrom the MCRFB notebook: 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1971, and 1972

STATION MILESTONES

WKNR-AM

 

 

 

DETROIT (September 11, 1965) — Ted Clark, formerly with Miami’s WQAM, has joined WKNR, along with J. Michael Wilson, who was formerly with KBTR, Denver. WKNR has also promoted Paul Cannon to assistant program manager and Jim Jeffries, formerly with WKFR, Battle Creek, Mi., is replacing Cannon on the all-night show in the Motor City. END

DETROIT (January 15, 1966) —  Dick Purtan, air personality at WKNR, Detroit, reports all doing fine, especially doing mornings. Purtan took the place of Frank Sweeney, who switched to the other side of the radio business ans is now national promotion director for Monument Records with headquarters in Detroit. END

DETROIT (March 5, 1966) — The Supremes, hot Motown Records artists, recently made a studio appearance with Scott Regen, WKNR, the popular Detroit (7-10 p.m.) radio personality who feature interviews with record artists on his nightly show. The famous female recording trio were featured in a five-hour special marking their nightclub opening at the Roostertail recently in Detroit. END

DETROIT (September 17, 1966) — The “Motown Mondays” at Detroit’s Roostertail Supper Club are now being broadcast on WKNR, Detroit, each Saturday at 11:00 p.m. Scott Regen is host. Artists of Motown Records appearing on the show include the Four Tops, Jr. Walker and The All Stars, Marvin Gaye, Martha and The Vandellas, Smokey Robinson and The Miracles, The Marvelettes, and the Temptations. This is the first time in recent years that “live” music is being broadcast on WKNR. END

DETROIT (December 24, 1966) — Frank Maruca, program director of Top 40-formatted WKNR, said he’d been holding back on Christmas records until the week before Christmas. At that point, the station will institute a formula — the Saturday before Christmas, WKNR will play one Christmas tune an hour; on Sunday, two per hour; Monday, three per hour; at 3 p.m. Christmas Eve the station will switch to a temporary all-Christmas format that includes everything from “Jingle Bell Rock” to holiday songs by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. END

DETROIT ( February 18, 1967) — Steve Robbins, formerly with WKNR-FM, replaced Jim Jeffries on WKNR, Dearborn, Michigan, beginning February 6. Jeffries has been called to six-months of active duty with the Army. Dave Forster of WLAV, Grand Rapids, Michigan, takes over Robbins’ FM duties. END

DETROIT (March 11, 1967) — Scott Regen, heard nightly 7-10 p.m. on WKNR, Detroit, has written the liner notes for the new “The Supremes Sing Holland – Dozier – Holland” album; he also wrote the liner notes for the “Four Tops Live At The Roostertail” and can be heard singing along with the Tops on “Reach Out.” Regen also introduced the Temptations on the new “Temptations Live At The Roostertail” long-playing album. END

DETROIT (April 6, 1968) — There has been some big changes at WKNR in Detroit. Departing were Scott Regen, Jerry Goodwin, and Ted Clark. On WKNR now are J. Michael Wilson, 6-9 a.m.; Ron Sherwood (from WKNR-FM) 9 a.m. til noon; Dan Henderson (from WAIR, Winston-Salem, North Carolina), noon – 3 p.m.; Gary Mitchell (from CKLW, Detroit) 3 -7 p.m.; Bob Harper ((from WKNR-FM), 7 – 10 p.m.; Sean Conrad (from WOHO, Toledo, under name of Ron Knight), 10 p.m. – 1 a.m.; and Dave Forster (from WKNR-FM), 1- 6 a.m. New men on WKNR-FM include Jerry Taylor from WAIR in Winston-Salem, S. C., and Alan Busch from WTTO, Toledo. END

DETROIT (March 14, 1970) — Bob Green returns as noon – 3 p.m. air personality and as production manager in Detroit; Ron Sherwood has been promoted to music director of the Top 40 operation. The station is revamping . . . . Skip Broussard has resigned at WMPS, Memphis, to become new program director of WKNR, Detroit. Lee Sherwood has just resigned as program director at WFIL in Philadelphia to consult WKNR. Jerry Goodwin, who jocked at WKNR since 1963, has joined WABX-FM, Detroit. He attends Wayne State University. END

DETROIT (October 17, 1970) — Bob Dearborn is now with WCFL, Chicago, doing the all-night trick. He’d been Mark Allen at WKNR in Detroit and at WPTR in Albany and back at WIXY in Cleveland as part of the original Top 40 crew. He started 10 years ago at CKOC in Hamilton, Canada, but says WCFL is the greatest station he’s ever worked at. The Top 40 operation, incidentally, is experimenting with longer album cuts at night, playing, for example, the longer versions of “Closer To Home” and “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” and “getting fantastic response” to it, says Dearborn. END

DETROIT (April 24, 1971) — Harry C. Walker is the new general manager of WKNR and WKNR-FM in Detroit. Walker had been general sales manager at the station, Frank Maruca is out; Mr. Maruca had been with the station for many years, including its days as the market’s number one top 40 station during most of the 1960s. END

DETROIT (July 31, 1971) — Frank Maruca, has been named general manager of WKIX, Raleigh; he’d been general manager of WKNR, Detroit. END

DETROIT (August 14, 1971) — Bill Garcia has taken over as program director of WKNR, Detroit, and Bob Green is out. Garcia needs a heavy morning man, as a.m. personality Jim Tate is slated to leave the building for the very last time. Staff includes Robin Stone, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m., Pat St. John, 2-6 p.m., Mark Darwin, 6-10 p.m., Michael Stevens, 10 p.m. – 2 a.m., and Gary Kent, 2-6 a.m. Garcia is rating every record played and has plunged the station into a “very, very hard rock” format approach. Armed with a 40-record playlist and oldies dating back to 1954, including Chuck Berry and Bill Haley product, Garcia plans some excitement for the market. The station will be leaning towards LP cuts, and not just those cuts we think will become singles later, but cuts we know will probably be not be released as  singles.” END

DETROIT (March 4, 1972) — Bob Green, former program director of WKNR, Detroit, informed Billboard the bulk of the staff at KULF, Houston, were formerly with WKNR — himself, Jim Tate, and Ron Sherwood. Green stated he is looking for a young personality to add to his staff. Format is easy listening. END

(Information and news source: Billboard Magazine. All excerpts culled as was published from the dated editions noted above).

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