New York's K-ROCK Undergoes Format Flip

By Ian Rice
Arts and Lifestyle Editor


New York City's K-ROCK Radio (WXRK-92.3 FM) has flipped formats, effective this morning. The station, which has been adhering to the "modern rock" format since it dumped "classic rock" in 1999, will now be operating under the "all rock" banner. Under this moniker, the station will sport a more varied and elclectic playlist that encompasses every facet of the rock genre. A message on the stations official website also notes that the new playlists will be "bigger" than any other competing station's playlists, which are typically limited to about 40-50 songs in continuous rotation.


The format switch, revealed during the regular AM broadcast of "The Howard Stern Show," comes hot on the heels of Philadelphia's Y100 (WPLY) doing a complete shift from "modern rock" to "urban." Y100 was Philadelphia's last rock holdout until it played the final notes of Pearl Jam's hit single "Alive" just before the clock struck midnight on February 24th and they assumed their new name, The Beat. Y100 had served Philadelphia rock fans for twelve years, exposing them to such popular artists as Beck and Weezer. Their format flip caused a tremendous public outcry from its faithful listeners, who have mounted an Internet campaign to bring their format back to Philadelphia.


Rock radio has seen a considerable decline over the last year, with many longtime stations carrying the genre closing down. In the last six months, Washington, D.C., Miami and Houston have all waved goodbye to their rock-oriented frequencies, in most cases replacing them with "urban" or "hispanic" formats. Those within the business cite poor quality music with the sharp decrease in rock listenership and ratings figures. "Some good new bands are getting airplay," WBCN-FM (a Boston station that plays a mix of rock similar to K-ROCK's new format) program director Dave Wellington told Rolling Stone magazine. "But nothing has really emerged as the new grunge, a single style that creates a massive radio movement."


As far as K-ROCK is concerned, the format adjustment is coming just in time for their biggest commodity, "The Howard Stern Show," to leave for the burgeoning satellite radio market. Stern recently signed a deal with Sirius, which will welcome him to their airwaves in early 2006. The popular host's departure will strike a huge financial blow to parent company Infinity Broadcasting, which Stern's show generates the largest advertising revenue for. Infiniti Broadcasting recently suffered another financial blow when they cancelled the popular "The Opie and Anthony Show" (which broadcasted as a part of the now defunct WNEW-FM "extreme talk"format) amidst a slue of controversy in late 2002. "The Opie and Anthony Show" has since moved to satellite radio (on Sirius superior XM), a move which perhaps opened the door for Howard Stern and other edgy, talk-based programs to join the format.

Quote from WBCN Program Director Dave Wellington from the 3/24/2005 issue of Rolling Stone magazine.