Left In Lowell

As Sean of Dracutforum pointed out, recent rating information show that 980 WCAP’s listenership has increased to 35-40,000. I am in total agreement with him when he says “The concept of local interest, local hosts, local sports and promoting the communities is the direction radio must go to survive. In the Merrimack Valley, 980 WCAP is leading that effort.”

Back in late 2007, when the radio station was sold to a local group, I had both words of encouragement and gratitude as well as some criticism. I was concerned that the radio station was not “serious” enough. But the new management told me be patient, and that it was a work in progress.

So here we are 1 ½ years later and the locally-owned and operated station is working hard to provide local coverage. A little bit of everything and something for everyone.

The live blogger’s discussion on Monday morning (7:10 – 8:00 a.m.) is fun for those of us who participate. I also like the weekly interviews of the City Manager, Bernie Lynch and the Superintendent of Schools, Chris Augusta Scott. But my favorite segment by far is the one that features reporters from the weekly papers that service the adjoining towns. I am learning a lot about Billerica, Westford, Chelmsford and Tewksbury and developing a greater understanding of the Greater Lowell community.

Last fall when the paper reported skewed Arbitron rating figures, I and others wondered what motivating factors were in play.

And speaking of the paper, this past week in his Saturday Chat Column, Kendall Wallace wrote “The Sun was the best in the state of Massachusetts for holding its circulation numbers, according to recently released figures from the Audit Bureau of Circulation. While metros like the Boston Globe and Boston Herald were down 14 to 17 percent, respectively, The Sun was down 0.5 percent.”

That information is correct but Kendall is also the eternal optimist. At least once or twice a month he reminds us that the Sun is doing well and it is here to stay but Kendall knows the major problem with the newspaper industry is not just the lack of readers, but it is the lack of advertisement and the debt service carried by parent companies of newspapers such as the Sun. I wish he would write a column on where the newspaper industry is heading; where does he see the Sun in 2 years and in 4 years. An honest assessment of the state-of-affairs from someone who has been in the business for over 50 years could be helpful.