Stunting (broadcasting)
Encyclopedia
In radio
broadcasting
, stunting occurs when a station
abruptly airs programming that is seemingly uncharacteristic compared to what they normally play. Commonly used as a sort of publicity stunt
when a station is about to undergo a major change — such as a change in format
, branding, frequency
, ownership or management, or even the acquisition of a high-profile new program — the tactic is intended to generate a greater amount of media and audience attention, by virtue of its shock value, than a straightforward format change.
Depending on the station, stunt formats can last anywhere from a few minutes to a week or more before the permanent change is launched; in one noted case, a station in Ohio
aired a stunt format for eight full months. On occasion, a station may also stunt for a few hours as a prank, especially in connection with April Fool's Day, and then return to its previous format later in the same day.
in Chicago aired two hours of ocean wave sounds between 5pm and 7pm local time, and then switched from rock music
to beautiful music
. An even earlier stunt was when XEAK (later XETRA-AM, now XEWW
) played the same song, "Mope-itty Mope" by The Bosstones
, for 72 hours straight in 1961 before unveiling an all-news format, one of the first in North America.
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
, stunting occurs when a station
Radio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
abruptly airs programming that is seemingly uncharacteristic compared to what they normally play. Commonly used as a sort of publicity stunt
Publicity stunt
A publicity stunt is a planned event designed to attract the public's attention to the event's organizers or their cause. Publicity stunts can be professionally organized or set up by amateurs...
when a station is about to undergo a major change — such as a change in format
Radio format
A radio format or programming format not to be confused with broadcast programming describes the overall content broadcast on a radio station. Radio formats are frequently employed as a marketing tool, and constantly evolve...
, branding, frequency
Frequency
Frequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit time. It is also referred to as temporal frequency.The period is the duration of one cycle in a repeating event, so the period is the reciprocal of the frequency...
, ownership or management, or even the acquisition of a high-profile new program — the tactic is intended to generate a greater amount of media and audience attention, by virtue of its shock value, than a straightforward format change.
Depending on the station, stunt formats can last anywhere from a few minutes to a week or more before the permanent change is launched; in one noted case, a station in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
aired a stunt format for eight full months. On occasion, a station may also stunt for a few hours as a prank, especially in connection with April Fool's Day, and then return to its previous format later in the same day.
History
One of the earliest known radio stunts occurred on March 15, 1975, when WCFLWMVP
WMVP is the callsign of a commercial radio station in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It is owned by ABC. Its transmitter is located in Downers Grove. The station broadcasts live sports talk, both locally and nationally. Daily programming consists of talk shows that are both national and local...
in Chicago aired two hours of ocean wave sounds between 5pm and 7pm local time, and then switched from rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
to beautiful music
Beautiful music
Beautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
. An even earlier stunt was when XEAK (later XETRA-AM, now XEWW
XEWW-AM
XEWW-AM are the call letters of a border-blaster radio station licensed to the Tijuana / Rosarito area of Baja California, Mexico, with additional studio facilities in Burbank, California, United States. They are a high-power station, with their 77,500 watt signal sometimes reaching as far as the...
) played the same song, "Mope-itty Mope" by The Bosstones
The Bosstones
The Bosstones were an African American musical group in the 1950s who performed in the instrumentally-sparse, a cappella-based harmonic style known as Philadelphia doo-wop....
, for 72 hours straight in 1961 before unveiling an all-news format, one of the first in North America.
Types of stunting and noted examples
- A station begins airing music outside of its normal format, but which is also not consistent with the planned permanent format. For example, a soft adult contemporary station which is planning to shift to a contemporary hit radioContemporary hit radioContemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
format might suddenly play nothing but novelty songsComedy musicComedy music is music that is comedic or humorous in nature, encompassing a wide variety of music genres. Popular types of comedy music include parody music, novelty songs, comedy rock and comedy hip hop.- Notable comedy musicians :...
, television theme songs or country musicCountry musicCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
for 24 to 48 hours before its relaunch.- In 2009, WVHT (Hampton RoadsHampton RoadsHampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
, VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
) and CIGM (Greater Sudbury, OntarioOntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
) both stunted a Chinese pop music format branded as "Kung PaoKung Pao chickenGong Bao chicken , a late Qing Dynasty official. Born in Guizhou, Ding served as head of Shandong province and later as governor of Sichuan province. His title was Gōng Bǎo , or palatial guardian. The name "Kung Pao" chicken is derived from this title....
". - Madison, WisconsinMadison, WisconsinMadison is the capital of the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Dane County. It is also home to the University of Wisconsin–Madison....
country music station WWQM-FMWWQM-FMWWQM-FM is a radio station licensed to Middleton, Wisconsin and serving the Madison area. Owned and operated by Mid-West Family Broadcasting, the station has aired a country music format since 1981. The station is simulcast on WWQN, at 106.7 FM, which is licensed to Mount Horeb in western Dane...
stunted with various formats during a 3-1/2 day period in July 2009, only to emerge post-stunting with an adjusted country format. - On December 29, 2010, WMVXWHLKWJQM is a radio station serving Madison, Wisconsin and surrounding areas. The station is owned by Mid-West Family Broadcasting and launched a Rhythmic Contemporary format as "106.7 Jamz" in January 2007 before the move to 93.1 FM in October 2008....
(Cleveland, OhioCleveland, OhioCleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
), which three days earlier finished a Christmas musicChristmas musicChristmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
stint that began on November 12, dropped their long running Hot AC format by playing a deliberate wide selection of music. The artists ranged from Destiny's ChildDestiny's ChildDestiny's Child was an American R&B girl group whose final line-up comprised lead singer Beyoncé Knowles alongside Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. Formed in 1997 in Houston, Texas, Destiny's Child members began their musical endeavors in their pre-teens under the name Girl's Tyme...
, Merle HaggardMerle HaggardMerle Ronald Haggard is an American country music singer, guitarist, fiddler, instrumentalist, and songwriter. Along with Buck Owens, Haggard and his band The Strangers helped create the Bakersfield sound, which is characterized by the unique twang of Fender Telecaster guitars, vocal harmonies,...
, Beethoven, Alice in ChainsAlice in ChainsAlice in Chains is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1987 by guitarist and songwriter Jerry Cantrell and original lead vocalist Layne Staley. The initial lineup was rounded out by drummer Sean Kinney, and bassist Mike Starr...
, polkaPolkaThe polka is a Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia...
s and TV and movie themeTheme musicTheme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
s. The station emerged on January 3, 2011 as adult hitsAdult hitsAdult hits is a radio format, popular in the early 2000s, that does not adhere to a specific music genre, but instead draws from a wider playlist...
"106.5 The Lake."
- In 2009, WVHT (Hampton Roads
- Parodying the trend, common in the 2000s, of radio stations temporarily shifting to an all-Christmas musicChristmas musicChristmas music comprises a variety of genres of music normally performed or heard around the Christmas season, which tends to begin in the months leading up the actual holiday and end in the weeks shortly thereafter.-Early:...
format as much as six to eight weeks before Christmas, some stations have also stunted a Christmas format at a time of year when it was unexpected, such as the middle of the summer.- Starting on October 8, 2007, WNOU (Indianapolis, IndianaIndianapolis, IndianaIndianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
) started airing Christmas music (under the temporary callsign WEXM) before parent company Emmis CommunicationsEmmis CommunicationsEmmis Communications is a media conglomerate based in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company owns radio stations and magazines in the United States, Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria.-History:...
moved sister station WIBC to WNOU's position on the FM dial; that move took place on December 26. WIBC's owner, in turn, sold the intellectual property of WNAP to Radio One, which relaunched the format on one of their existing signals. - In May 2008, WSMJ (Baltimore, Maryland) dropped their smooth jazz format to play all-Christmas music before relaunching as WCHH, with a modern rock format.
- In August 2008, CHAMChamCham may refer to:*Cham Albanians, also spelled as Çam, a people originating in northern Greece of Albanian descent*Cham , a people living in Vietnam and Cambodia**Cham language, the language of the Cham people...
in HamiltonHamilton, OntarioHamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, OntarioOntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
stunted a Christmas format from August 29 to September 2, when it debuted a new talk radioTalk radioTalk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
format. - Alternatively, a few stations have shifted to an all-Christmas format at the same time of year as other stations, kept playing Christmas music for at least a week after Christmas, and then relaunched in the first week of January with a different format than they held before flipping to Christmas music. In Charlotte, North CarolinaCharlotte, North CarolinaCharlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
, WSSSWKQCWKQC is a CBS Radio adult contemporary radio station in Charlotte, North Carolina. The station goes by the name "K 104.7" with the slogan "Cool Songs."The station receives exceptional interference from another 104.7 in Columbia, just 75 miles south...
(classic hits-formatted "Star 104.7") did this in 2003, before its eventual flip to Soft AC as WKQC ("K104.7") the next year. In Albany, New YorkAlbany, New YorkAlbany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
, adult contemporary-formatted WBZZ (Buzz 105.7) began playing Christmas music on November 1, 2010 and continued until January 3, 2011, flipping to an all-90s format as WQSH (105.7 Crush FM). - Other stations have also abruptly ended their Christmas music before Christmas Day to launch a new format, such as WUBL (Atlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
) which flipped from AC to country.
- Starting on October 8, 2007, WNOU (Indianapolis, Indiana
- A station may mix musical selections from both its old and new formats for a period of time. This works best if the formats have little to no normal overlap in their playlists, such as a shift from country musicCountry musicCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
to rhythmic contemporaryRhythmic ContemporaryRhythmic contemporary, also known as rhythmic top 40, rhythmic contemporary hit radio or rhythmic crossover, is a music radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip-hop and R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary rarely uses rock music or country music in its airplay, but it may...
or alternative rockAlternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
.
- Repeating the same song over and over again; two variations of this theme exist:
- The first is to play a song that somehow relates to the new format.
- WBUFWBUFWBUF is an FM radio station in Buffalo, New York. Its transmitter is located in Buffalo. It is owned by Townsquare Media and broadcasts on 92.9 FM. The station signed on in 1947.-Programming:...
(Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo, New YorkBuffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
) changed from discoDiscoDisco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
to active rockActive rockActive rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock plays contemporary rock artists with a mix of songs common in the classic rock radio format.-Format background:...
in 2001 by playing "We Will Rock YouWe Will Rock You"We Will Rock You" is a song written by Brian May and recorded and performed by Queen for their 1977 album News of the World. Rolling Stone ranked it #330 of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004, and the RIAA placed it at #146 on its list of Songs of the Century...
" by QueenQueen (band)Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
repeatedly for an entire day. - WOLF-FMWOLF-FMWMVN is a Rhythmic Adult Contemporary radio station serving the Syracuse market. WMVN operates at 100.3 MHz on the FM dial. A separate translator, W243AB, serves the city of Syracuse, New York on the 96.5 frequency...
(Syracuse, New YorkSyracuse, New YorkSyracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
) changed to country music as "The Wolf" in August 2009 by playing "Hungry Like the WolfHungry Like the Wolf"Hungry Like the Wolf" is a song by the British New Wave band Duran Duran. Written by the band members, the song was produced by Colin Thurston for the group's second studio album Rio . The song was released in May 1982 as the band's fifth single in the United Kingdom...
" by Duran Duran for a full day. - WPHR-FM (Cleveland, OhioCleveland, OhioCleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
) changed from CHRContemporary hit radioContemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
to modern rockModern rockModern rock is a rock format commonly found on commercial radio; the format consists primarily of the alternative rock genre...
as WENZWENZWENZ —branded Z 107.9—is a mainstream urban commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio serving surrounding Northeast Ohio...
"The END" in May 1992 by playing "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)"It's the End of the World as We Know It " is a song by the rock band R.E.M., which appeared on their 1987 album Document, the 1988 compilation Eponymous, and the 2006 compilation And I Feel Fine... The Best of the I.R.S Years 1982–1987...
" by R.E.M.R.E.M.R.E.M. was an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills and drummer Bill Berry. One of the first popular alternative rock bands, R.E.M. gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's...
for a full day. This was repeated in May 1999 when the station changed to mainstream urbanMainstream UrbanMainstream Urban is a term used to describe a radio format similar to an Urban Contemporary format. The format differentiates itself due to two factors: playlist composition and target demographic...
. - On October 23, 2011, 107.5 WGPRWGPRWGPR is an FM radio station in Detroit, Michigan brodacasting a Mainstream Urban format. Owned by the International Free and Accepted Modern Masons and operated under local marketing agreement by Radio One, the station operates on 107.5 MHz....
(Detroit) changed from the Urban AC format that it had for 47 years to an Urban Contemporary format after the International Free and Accepted Modern Masons, the owners of WGPRWGPRWGPR is an FM radio station in Detroit, Michigan brodacasting a Mainstream Urban format. Owned by the International Free and Accepted Modern Masons and operated under local marketing agreement by Radio One, the station operates on 107.5 MHz....
, leased out the station to Radio OneRadio OneRadio One, Inc is a U.S. company which owns and operates 69 radio stations in 22 American cities. The company is headed by Cathy Hughes, Chairman and her son Alfred Liggins, CEO. The company's target listeners are African Americans in urban areas...
as they wanted their current Urban AC station, Hot 102.7 WHTDWHTDWPZR is an urban gospel formatted radio station licensed to Mount Clemens, Michigan, and serving the Detroit metropolitan area...
, to have a stronger signal. During the transition, following the end of Alexander Zonjic's show Doin' The D on October 23, the Boyz II MenBoyz II MenBoyz II Men is an American R&B vocal group best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are the most successful R&B group of all time, having sold more than albums worldwide. In the 1990s, Boyz II Men found fame on Motown Records as a quartet, but original member Michael McCary...
song "It's So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday" looped repeatedly with promos encouraging listeners to switch to another Radio OneRadio OneRadio One, Inc is a U.S. company which owns and operates 69 radio stations in 22 American cities. The company is headed by Cathy Hughes, Chairman and her son Alfred Liggins, CEO. The company's target listeners are African Americans in urban areas...
-owned Urban AC station, 105.9 Kiss-FM WDMKWDMKWDMK is an FM radio station in Detroit, Michigan broadcasting at 105.9 mHz, owned by Radio One. The station is positioned as 105-9 Kiss, Detroit's Best R&B with a current-based Urban Adult Contemporary format playing mostly current R&B with some Neo Soul and a little old school mixed in...
, in between, until October 26 when the transition to Hot 107.5 was complete. Meanwhile, when Hot 102.7 completed its transition on October 26 to Hot 107.5, the plans were for the 102.7 frequency to become a Gospel station (Praise 102.7). However, it wasn't planned to launch until October 31, 2011. So Hot 102.7 essentially used the same type of stunt 107.5 used during its transition, though slightly different. Instead of the promos appearing in between the breaks in their song, the promos played over their song (an old school hip-hip song) as it continuously repeated.
- WBUF
- The first is to play a song that somehow relates to the new format.
-
- The other is to use a completely oddball novelty song.
- In 2007, KBVBKBVBKBVB is a radio station broadcasting a country format. Licensed to Barnesville, Minnesota, it serves the Fargo-Moorhead metropolitan area. It first began broadcasting in 1980 under the call sign KDLM-FM at Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. The station is currently owned by Radio Fargo-Moorhead, Inc. All...
(Fargo, North DakotaFargo, North DakotaFargo is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Cass County. In 2010, its population was 105,549, and it had an estimated metropolitan population of 208,777...
) and KXLPKXLPKXLP is a radio station licensed to Eagle Lake, Minnesota and serving the Mankato area and the Minnesota River Valley. The 94.1 FM frequency went on the air September 21, 2007, airing a classic rock format that migrated from a sister station at KATO-FM...
(Mankato, MinnesotaMankato, MinnesotaMankato is a city in Blue Earth, Nicollet, and Le Sueur counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The population was 39,309 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth largest city in Minnesota outside of the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area. The county seat of Blue Earth County, it is located...
) both repeated the song "Tie Me Kangaroo Down, SportTie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport"Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport" is a song written by Rolf Harris in 1957 which became a hit across the world in the 1960s in two different recordings . Inspired by Harry Belafonte's calypsos, it is about an Australian stockman on his deathbed...
" by Rolf HarrisRolf HarrisRolf Harris, CBE, AM is an Australian musician, singer-songwriter, composer, painter and television personality.Born in Perth, Western Australia, Harris was a champion swimmer before studying art. He moved to England in 1952, where he started to appear on television programmes on which he drew the...
for multiple days. - From 1994 until 1995, WJMPWJMPWJMP AM 1520 is daytime only radio station licensed to Kent, Ohio and serving the Akron, Ohio radio market. WJMP operates with a maximum power output of 1,000 watts, using a six-tower, daytime-only directional antenna pattern....
(Kent, OhioKent, OhioKent is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the largest city in Portage County. It is located along the Cuyahoga River in Northeastern Ohio on the western edge of the county. The population was 27,906 at the 2000 United States Census and 28,904 in the 2010 Census...
) played a continuous loop of "Take Me Out To The Ball GameTake Me Out to the Ball Game"Take Me Out to the Ball Game" is a 1908 Tin Pan Alley song by Jack Norworth and Albert Von Tilzer which has become the unofficial anthem of baseball, although neither of its authors had attended a game prior to writing the song. The song is traditionally sung during the seventh-inning stretch of...
" for the entire duration of the 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike in a protest move - 57,161 times in total. The stunt earned WJMP an entry in the Guinness Book of Sports RecordsGuinness World RecordsGuinness World Records, known until 2000 as The Guinness Book of Records , is a reference book published annually, containing a collection of world records, both human achievements and the extremes of the natural world...
, despite the fact that WJMP only operates during the daytime hours.
- In 2007, KBVB
- The other is to use a completely oddball novelty song.
- Playing a variety of songs by the same artist for at least 24 hours straight. In this case, the chosen artist may serve as either a clue to the new format or a tribute to the departing format.
- From October 20–22, 1986, CHRContemporary hit radioContemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
-formatted WGCL-FM (Cleveland, OhioCleveland, OhioCleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
) played 72 straight hours of music selections from The BeatlesThe BeatlesThe Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
before relaunching as WNCXWNCXWNCX — branded 98.5 WNCX — is commercial radio station in Cleveland, Ohio, broadcasting a classic rock format. The station's studios are currently located in Cleveland's historic Halle Building, in the Playhouse Square District...
, with a rock/CHR format. - In 2006, CHMT-FMCHMT-FMCHMT-FM is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 93.1 FM in Timmins, Ontario. The station, owned by Haliburton Broadcasting Group, broadcasts an adult hits format as Moose FM....
in TimminsTimminsTimmins is a city in northeastern Ontario, Canada on the Mattagami River. At the time of the Canada 2006 Census, Timmins' population was 42,997...
, OntarioOntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
ended its country musicCountry musicCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
format with a 24-hour marathon of songs by Timmins native Shania TwainShania TwainShania Twain, OC is a Canadian country pop singer-songwriter. Her album The Woman in Me , brought her fame and her 1997 album Come On Over, became the best-selling album of all time by a female musician in any genre, and the best-selling country album of all time. It has sold over 40 million...
. - Previously brokeredBrokered programmingBrokered programming is a form of broadcast content in which the show's producer pays a radio or television station for air time, rather than exchanging programming for pay or the opportunity to play spot commercials...
station WHLDWHLDWHLD is an AM radio station licensed to Niagara Falls, New York with an adult standards format. The station resides at 1270 kHz on the dial and is owned by Citadel Communications.-History and programming:...
(Niagara FallsNiagara FallsThe Niagara Falls, located on the Niagara River draining Lake Erie into Lake Ontario, is the collective name for the Horseshoe Falls and the adjacent American Falls along with the comparatively small Bridal Veil Falls, which combined form the highest flow rate of any waterfalls in the world and has...
) played exclusively Frank SinatraFrank SinatraFrancis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
songs for several days leading up to its change to adult standardsAdult standardsAdult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens...
in August 2010.
- From October 20–22, 1986, CHR
- Using a limited playlist featuring only a selected number of songs, usually a preview of what to expect with the station's new format.
- WJJZ ("Smooth Jazz 97.5") in Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
played the same 15 Hot AC songs over and over again, prior to its re-branding as WNUW ("Now 97.5").
- WJJZ ("Smooth Jazz 97.5") in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Sometimes a series of audio clips and sound effects centered around a certain theme are played as well. Known as a sound collageSound collageIn music, montage or sound collage is a technique where sound objects or compositions, including songs, are created from collage, also known as montage, the use of portions of previous recordings or scores...
, the theme under which these bits of audio fall may or may not have something to do with the previous and / or new format.- WCBS-FMWCBS-FMWCBS-FM is a CBS-owned radio station in New York City. The station's studios are in the combined CBS Radio facility at 345 Hudson Street in Manhattan, and its transmitter is located on the Empire State Building....
in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
played a sound collage featuring sound effects, audio clips from movies, and songs with the word "Jack" removed. This went on for half an hour before the station flipped to Jack FMJack FMJACK FM is the alternative name and on-air brand of 60 radio stations in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Russia. Jack stations play a mix of 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s hits with some current hot adult contemporary singles. Jack's slogan "playing what we want" can also be...
at 5:00 PM on June 3, 2005. It has since dropped the format in favor of its current oldies/classic hits offering. - In March 2010, WXKS (AM)WXKS (AM)WKOX is a radio station in the Boston radio market, licensed to Everett, Massachusetts. The station is owned by Clear Channel Communications and carries a Spanish Hits format.- History :...
in Boston, upon changing formats to conservative talk radioTalk radioTalk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
, played a sound collage featuring highlights of the shows they were going to play along with patriotic speeches from American history. - That same month, WXKS was one of three stations (the others were KCARKCAR-FMKCAR-FM is a radio station broadcasting a comedy format. Licensed to Baxter Springs, Kansas, USA, it serves the Joplin area. The station is currently owned by American Media Investments of Pittsburg Kansas...
/Pittsburg, KansasPittsburg, KansasPittsburg is a city in Crawford County, in southeastern Kansas, United States. It is the most populous city in Crawford County and in southeastern Kansas. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 20,233.-History:...
and KPMZ/Dallas-Ft. Worth) that used clips and speeches by former President of the United StatesPresident of the United StatesThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Ronald ReaganRonald ReaganRonald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
as part of their stunts.
- WCBS-FM
- A moment of silence (more commonly known as "dead airDead airDead air is an unintended interruption in a radio broadcast during which no sound is transmitted.The term is most often used in cases where program material comes to an unexpected halt, either through operator error or for technical reasons, although it is also used in cases where a broadcaster...
") may occur before a station changes formats, and can last from a few seconds to several minutes. This brief period of silence may or may not be preceded or followed by sound effects signaling a change in format, such as a test patternTest PatternTest Pattern may refer to:* Test Pattern , a Canadian game show* Test Pattern , an album by Sonia Dada* Test pattern or test card, a television test signal...
, an explosionExplosionAn explosion is a rapid increase in volume and release of energy in an extreme manner, usually with the generation of high temperatures and the release of gases. An explosion creates a shock wave. If the shock wave is a supersonic detonation, then the source of the blast is called a "high explosive"...
(to "blow up" the previous format), or the sound of a flat-lining and/or beating heart rate monitorHeart rate monitorA heart rate monitor is a personal monitoring device which allows a subject to measure his or her heart rate in real time or record his or her heart rate for later study...
(signifying the death of one format and the birth of another). An announcement from the station's general manager about the upcoming changes may also precede or follow the silence.- A classic example of this (minus the general manager announcement) occurred when KLSX (Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
) changed from hot talk to CHRContemporary hit radioContemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
as KAMP "AMP Radio" on February 20, 2009. The 'explosion' was provided by The Tom Leykis Show upon its conclusion and cancellation (fittingly, the show's slogan was "Blow me up, Tom!"). The top-of-the-hour station ID was wrapped around a flat-lining and beating, then followed by a three-minute montage of Top 40 acts and LA-centric soundbites, leading up into the launch of "AMP." - An extreme example of this (again, without the general manager announcement) occurred when WCTZ (Stamford, ConnecticutStamford, ConnecticutStamford is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 122,643, making it the fourth largest city in the state and the eighth largest city in New England...
based AC station "96.7 the Coast") was planning to both change call letters/format to WKLV, a K-LOVEK-LOVEK-LOVE is a Contemporary Christian music radio programming service in the United States operated by the Educational Media Foundation. As of January 2011, K-LOVE's programming is carried on over 440 FM stations and translators in 45 states. K-LOVE claims an audience of 250,000 people each week via...
contemporary Christian station and move 20 miles away to New Rochelle, New YorkNew Rochelle, New YorkNew Rochelle is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States, in the southeastern portion of the state.The town was settled by refugee Huguenots in 1688 who were fleeing persecution in France...
. To coordinate the physical move, the frequency went completely silent at midnight on May 19, 2011 and did not come back on the air until 11 days later, on May 30, 2011.
- A classic example of this (minus the general manager announcement) occurred when KLSX (Los Angeles, California
- After acquiring rights to The Rush Limbaugh ShowThe Rush Limbaugh ShowThe Rush Limbaugh Show is an American talk radio show hosted by Rush Limbaugh on Premiere Radio Networks...
from a rival station in early 2008, WRNO-FMWRNO-FMWRNO-FM is an Interactive Talk formatted radio station serving New Orleans, Louisiana. The Clear Channel Communications station broadcasts at 99.5 MHz with an effective radiated power of 100 kilowatts.-History:...
in New Orleans stunted under the brand "Rush Radio", airing exclusively repeats of the show for a full week before returning to a schedule which integrated a single daily broadcast of Limbaugh's show into the station's normal program lineup. WPTIWPTIWRKA is a radio station broadcasting a Classic Country music format. Licensed to Louisville, Kentucky, USA, the station serves the greater Louisville area. The station is currently owned by Cox Radio, Inc.-History:...
in Greensboro, North CarolinaGreensboro, North CarolinaGreensboro is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third-largest city by population in North Carolina and the largest city in Guilford County and the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. According to the 2010 U.S...
repeated this stunt in January 2010. Both stations have since kept the "Rush Radio" slogan.
- Announcing a fake format change.
- On October 2, 2009, WVMV (Detroit, MichiganDetroit, MichiganDetroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
) dropped their long-running smooth jazzSmooth jazzSmooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
format by playing a montage of jingles and airchecks from a prior format on the station, album-oriented rockAlbum-oriented rockAlbum-oriented rock is an American FM radio format focusing on album tracks by rock artists.-Music played:Most radio formats are based on a select, tight rotation of hit singles...
WLLZ "Detroit's Wheels." However, the first song played ("Welcome To The JungleWelcome to the Jungle"Welcome to the Jungle" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses, featured on its 1987 debut studio album, Appetite for Destruction. It was released as the band's second single on October 3, 1987, and reached number #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number #24 on the UK Singles Chart...
" by Guns 'n Roses) abruptly cut out with Kayne West's 2009 MTV Video Music Awards outburst, segueing into "Sweet DreamsSweet Dreams (Beyoncé Knowles song)"Sweet Dreams" is a song by American R&B singer Beyoncé Knowles from her third studio album, I Am... Sasha Fierce . Originally titled "Beautiful Nightmare", the song leaked in March 2008, eight months prior to the album's release. Written and produced by Knowles, James Scheffer, Wayne Wilkins, and...
" by Beyoncé. The station immediately switched to a CHR format initially dubbed "98.7 Takeover" (eventually titled "98.7 AMP Radio"). - In May 2009, WSKS (Utica, New YorkUtica, New YorkUtica is a city in and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The population was 62,235 at the 2010 census, an increase of 2.6% from the 2000 census....
) announced it would change its format from CHRContemporary hit radioContemporary hit radio is a radio format that is common in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by the Top 40 music charts...
to beautiful musicBeautiful musicBeautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
, similar to the one heard on sister station WUTQ. Within two and a half hours of the supposed change, most of that time including kayfabeKayfabeIn professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
complaining from the morning show about the change (such complaints would normally get a person fired from the station), the station flipped back, though not without a new morning host. Within a month, the new morning host was fired. - In July 2008, WRKAWQNUWQNU is a radio station broadcasting a country music format. Licensed to Lyndon, Kentucky, USA, the station serves the Louisville, Kentucky, area. The station is currently owned by Cox Radio, Inc.-History:...
(Louisville, KentuckyLouisville, KentuckyLouisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
) dropped their long-running oldies format with a long farewell montage. After some fake static (in which the conclusion of "BeginningsBeginnings (song)"Beginnings" is a song written by Robert Lamm for the rock band Chicago and recorded for their debut album The Chicago Transit Authority, released in 1969. Lamm also provided lead vocals...
" by ChicagoChicago (band)Chicago is an American rock band formed in 1967 in Chicago, Illinois. The self-described "rock and roll band with horns" began as a politically charged, sometimes experimental, rock band and later moved to a predominantly softer sound, becoming famous for producing a number of hit ballads. They had...
could faintly be heard), the station was "relaunched" as "News Talk 103.1 WRKA," with a fake newscast similar in tone to sister station WSBWSB (AM)WSB — branded AM 750 and 95.5 FM News/Talk WSB — is a commercial radio station licensed to Atlanta, Georgia broadcasting a news/talk format. The station transmits with 50,000 watts of nondirectional power day and night, enjoying clear-channel status on its broadcast frequency according to the U.S...
in Atlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
. (WSB's imaging voice, Jeff Davis, even voiced the station ID and a promo for "Louisville's Morning News.") Three minutes later, the 'newscast' slowly became interference-ridden while airing a "Breaking Fox News alert" of power failures around Louisville before fading into fake static again, to be followed by the unveiling of a country musicCountry musicCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
format as WQNUWQNUWQNU is a radio station broadcasting a country music format. Licensed to Lyndon, Kentucky, USA, the station serves the Louisville, Kentucky, area. The station is currently owned by Cox Radio, Inc.-History:...
.
- On October 2, 2009, WVMV (Detroit, Michigan
- Temporarily changing formats, after another station changes to the same format, to gain publicity.
- In response to WOLF-FMWOLF-FMWMVN is a Rhythmic Adult Contemporary radio station serving the Syracuse market. WMVN operates at 100.3 MHz on the FM dial. A separate translator, W243AB, serves the city of Syracuse, New York on the 96.5 frequency...
's change to country musicCountry musicCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
(that also included stunting with a novelty format), WPHR-FM (Syracuse, New YorkSyracuse, New YorkSyracuse is a city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, United States, the largest U.S. city with the name "Syracuse", and the fifth most populous city in the state. At the 2010 census, the city population was 145,170, and its metropolitan area had a population of 742,603...
) temporarily changed its usual urban adult contemporaryUrban Adult ContemporaryUrban adult contemporary is the name for a format of radio music, similar to an urban contemporary format. Radio stations using this format usually would not have rap music on their playlists. The format was designed by Barry Mayo when he, Lee S. Simonson and Bill Pearson organized Broadcast...
format to country as "Young Country 106.9." The station changed back at the end of the weekend. Usually, this type of stunt happens as part of a hedging effort: a dominant station in the market, who is being threatened by an upstart, will use a sister station to change to a similar format to sap away listeners; in the case of WPHR (now operating at 620-AM), it is the sister station of market leader WBBSWBBSWBBS is a Country music formatted radio station serving the Syracuse area. The Clear Channel Communications outlet broadcasts at 104.7 MHz with an ERP of 50 kW and is licensed to Fulton, New York.-History:...
.
- In response to WOLF-FM
- On July 15, 2011, WEMP-FM in New York CityNew York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
changed from alternative rockAlternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
station WRXP into an AC format called "New FM". What made the change unusual is that while it was complete with news, traffic, weather, on-air personnel, and even a Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/pages/1019-FM-New/121347444626615; it was simply an unusual form of "stunting" as the station gradually went to an all news format (called 101.9 FM News) on August 12. http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/95014/is-wemp-new-york-soft-launch-imminent http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/95030/wemp-new-york-wakes-up-with-news-friday
- During Memorial DayMemorial DayMemorial Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May. Formerly known as Decoration Day, it originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War...
weekend 2010, Milwaukee, WisconsinMilwaukee, WisconsinMilwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
smooth jazz station WJZX-FM stunted as "Tiger FM", playing songs about forms of adultery in reference to the alleged extramarital affairs of Tiger WoodsTiger WoodsEldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods is an American professional golfer whose achievements to date rank him among the most successful golfers of all time. Formerly the World No...
. The station was expected to change to a Top 40 format with the "Now" branding after Memorial Day (and petitioned for a related call signCall signIn broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign is a unique designation for a transmitting station. In North America they are used as names for broadcasting stations...
change to WNQW). A competing station, WQBW, beat them to the punch and abruptly adopted their own "Radio Now" radio format while WNQW was still stunting. As a result, WNQW stunted for over a week, morphing from "Tiger FM" to patriotic and American-themed music (for Memorial Day) and to an all-Beatles format, until eventually settling on a permanent classic countryClassic countryClassic country is a music radio format that specializes in playing mainstream country hits from past decades.This genre generally follows one of two formats: those specializing in hits from the 1920s through the early 1970s, and focus primarily on innovators and artists from country music's Golden...
format. WQBW changed their calls to WRNW as of June 10; WJZX is now WZBK.
- On November 18, 2011 KROIKROIKROI is a radio station licensed to Seabrook, Texas and broadcasting from studios in Greenway Plaza in Houston, covering the Greater Houston area. The station is owned by Radio One and airs an all-news format.-History:...
in Houston, TexasTexasTexas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
began stunting while in transition from a gospel musicGospel musicGospel music is music that is written to express either personal, spiritual or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
format to an all-news radioAll-news radioAll-news radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcast of news.All-news radio is available in both local and syndicated forms, and is carried in some form on both major US satellite radio networks...
format. The broadcast content consisted of construction sound effects (sawing, hammering, etc.) interspersed with spoken audio segments describing and promoting the forthcoming format change. An eight-minute recording of KROI's stunting broadcast created by the author of this article can be found here: http://www.zshare.net/audio/96396414de5f1771/