Air America displaces black talk radio in NYC

WLIB in New York has long been one of the few media outlets in the New York region dedicated to the black community with programming ranging from Carribean music to talk.

However its ratings paled to other black-oriented stations such as WBLS which has an all-music format. Since ratings translate into advertising dollars, the owners found themselves unable to maintain the community-based format and have leased airtime to Air America from 5AM to 12 Midnight. From midnight to 5AM, Living is Black (LIB) radio will reclaim the airwaves.

Not only has the black community lost a media voice, but the change means layoffs for staff of the station.

It is sadly ironic that as the progressive community gains a much needed voice in New York, another community is silenced.

Someone almost always ends up getting "screwed" one way or another.

?

Air America will certainly provide a more open forum for black issues than conservative talk radio. Still that is not the same as the community-based talk radio that was provided by WLIB.

He's black isn't he?

Randi Rhodes (i think) talked about this yesterday. She said the former staff were really cool about it and were very supportive of what they were doing.

and immediately changed the format from progressive talk radio to a third sports station in the market (whose ratings have never been enough to register), a bulkhead for WEPN Radio.

I feel sadness for the listeners of WLIB as I did for the death of WEVD.

There is one other Carribean format, WWRL, streamable at http://www.wwrl1600.com. Most of the format is talk radio that concentrates on issues for the Carribean communities in New York and brokered programming.

WLIB has been on the skids for years. "Liberation Radio" does doesn't have the kick it once had, and Percy Sutton's been pressured on what to do about it. More Ska, less talk wasn't cutting it.

Me, I'll miss the Carribbean music. Have to put my Mighty Sparrow albums on CD, I suppose.

I'm in north-central NJ, and I can't get it.

The station's coverage is pretty spotty West and South of the Brunswicks.

I'm in Northern Bergen County. Reception is fair during the day though the signal is pretty noisy in some spots. Nighttime listening is impossible since it's a shared frequency with WOWO in Indiana.

It's frustrating. Almost enough to get me to sign up to XM but I spend so much already on "communication" services.