By Adam R Jacobson
RBR + TVBR
With less than 48 hours to go in one of the most tumultuous, gut-wretching, mudslinging U.S. presidential election campaigns in history, one of Washington, DC’s biggest radio and digital news entities is gearing up its journalists for a big day.
What’s not so big?
The political dollars that have come in during 2016.
That’s fine, says Joel Oxley, GM of Hubbard Radio‘s top-rated all-News WTOP-FM in Washington, D.C.
Why?
Oxley may as well have a desk at the Bureau of Printing and Engraving, thanks to an AM sibling’s sales success.
What’s the lesson here for C-Suiters across the nation with a flailing News/Talk situation on their hands?
Be local, just like this National Capital giant.
“We’ve got the issues … but we don’t get much political dollars,” says Oxley, who also oversees Federal News Radio, which uses WTOP’s former 1500 kHz signal (now WFED) and the HD2 signal of two of the suburban FMs that simulcast WTOP’s main 103.5 MHz programming.
“With Maryland and D.C., it is a forgone conclusion — these are Democratic areas,” Oxley explains of the local political landscape. “While Virginia can go either way, Northern Virginia is Democratic.”
Thus, election-oriented ad buys have been underwhelming.
“For our local TV stations, there are very little presidential dollars coming in,” Oxley says, noting that this was a bit of a disappointment for his television brethren.
As Election Day arrives, the one race that has generated the most revenue for WTOP is a Congressional battle in Virginia’s 10th district between Republican incumbent Barbara Comstock and Democratic challenger LuAnn Bennett.
Bennett happens to be the third ex-wife of former Rep. James P. Moran, who retired in 2015 and represented Virginia’s 8th district.
“It’s not extraordinary,” Oxley says of spending for the race.
But, it’s something. With no big ballot initiatives in the region and Trump and Clinton putting their dollars in key battleground zones such as South Florida, Oxley is pleased to take the extra income.
“For us, we weren’t surprised,” he says of the political ad trickle. “It’s moreso for TV.”
Overall, Q3 was good for Hubbard Radio/Washington, D.C.
Thank the unique category of “Federal” dollars, and Federal News Radio, for the healthy report.
“It’s a different category for us,” Oxley says. “Companies such as Lockheed and General Dynamics are good and strong. Federal News Radio is something that can only happen in Washington. It’s almost like a trade journal serving federal government employees, but on the radio.”
It’s also a great example of a radio company responding to a local need, and delivering.
One of WTOP’s primary competitors — American University’s Nielsen-rated leader in Washington, NPR-affiliated WAMU-FM 88.5 — adjusted its programming to meet listener needs. Oxley commends them for it.
“In Washington, traffic is terrible and the weather is unpredictable, and we’ve put a major focus on this,” he says. “WAMU asked themselves the question, ‘What makes listeners connect to us?’ The answer was high-quality NPR programming, and not short-form news, or traffic.”
WAMU famously dropped traffic reports and said goodbye to veteran reporter Jerry Edwards one year ago. It put an end to morning traffic reports after noon-time updates were curbed.
“Traffic reports weren’t the expectation of those listeners,” Oxley says.
That’s why he gives the following advice for those in the C-Suite that may be struggling with their spoken-word AMs or FMs.
“Look at each market individually,” he notes. “What are the dynamics of that market, in particular?”
In the Nation’s Capital, the answer for Hubbard Radio has been “distinction and digital,” with WTOP.com a major draw for local news against the nationally focused lean of The Washington Post and NewsChannel 8, which has seen a diminished presence in the D.C. region in the last six years and is set to become a Sinclair Broadcast Group property, along with ABC-affiliated sibling WJLA-7.
That’s why, no matter who wins all of the races on Election Day 2016, WTOP will come out a winner.
