Merlin Media, the group owned by former radio whiz kid and head of Clear Channel Randy Michaels, has cut its losses and shut down its all-news format FM stations WEMP in New York and WIQI in Chicago after horrendous ratings and universal disdain from critics and Internet radio boards--WEMP is back to modern rock (before Merlin bought the station from Emmis, it was adult alternative WRXP) and WIQI is Jackish "adult hits" "i101" (the former modern rock format at 101.1 FM and the WKQX calls are at Merlin's 87.7, technically a low-power TV station)--most of the two stations' staff, including people poached in New York from legendary all-newser 1010 WINS and in Chicago from WBBM Newsradio (which started an FM simulcast in response to WIQI) and WGN, are on the street: http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/108232/merlin-brings-alternative-back-to-new-york-adult-h?ref=mail_arbs Merlin's other stations in Chicago, including classic rocker WLUP "The Loop," are staying the same--in Philadelphia, the recent startup WWIQ is continuing with its FM news-talk format built around high profile syndicated talkers Rush Limbaugh (taken from CBS' WPHT), Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck and Mark Levin. This could be considered Michaels' second failure in a row after his stint as Tribune Co. CEO under bankruptcy owner Sam Zell, where he tried to do to WGN what he did to WLW in Cincy 25 years ago (young it up, rowdy it up and right wing it up), but failed horribly, and got run out of the Trib after a NY Times article about his predelicition for having booze, dope, poker and hookers parties in the former office of Col. Robert McCormick in the Tribune Tower in Chicago. I'd link to Time Out Chicago's Rob Feder's blog post, but not even Michaels deserves that much bile.
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