By John Eckberg
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Radio personality Bubba the Love Sponge, who visited WEBN-FM 102.7 in Cincinnati in 1996, was fired by WEBN's parent company after it paid fines linked to his national broadcasts. Enquirer file

Chris Lynn in the broadcast studio Wednesday at WRRM-FM 98.5 (Warm98) in downtown Cincinnati. The Cincinnati Enquirer/GARY LANDERS

The radio-raunch war and the resulting crackdown by the Federal Communications Commission have been good for at least one Greater Cincinnati radio station.

"WRRM 98 has been No. 1 with women 25 to 54 for the last six-plus years," boasts Dan Swensson, market manager vice president of Radio Cincinnati Inc., a division of Susquehanna Radio Corp., a York, Pa., communications company.

"That is no accident. We have provided a safe haven for families with children. We have bonded and welded ourselves to their interests and live by standards that others only talk about."

The battle for radio advertising dollars in Greater Cincinnati has a new twist. Broadcasters who play up raunchy programming to attract desirable demographic groups are finding themselves under federal scrutiny while competing stations are playing up their apple-pie appeal to commuters to draw lucrative drive-time dollars.

So while the Dawn Patrol morning show on WEBN-FM 102.7 and Howard Stern at WAQZ-FM 97.3 battle for Cincinnati listeners with adult jokes and off-color asides, Radio Cincinnati stations stick to soft rock, country or oldies formats.

"About two-thirds of a station's revenues are generated from morning or evening drive-time programming," said Robert K. Riggsbee, president and chief executive at Inside Media, a Newtown-based media planning, buying and management firm. "It's where the most ears are. Ratings equal revenues."

Some stations use adult humor during drive time so fast-food, soft-drink, and electronics companies, as well as concert and movie promoters, can reach the coveted bracket of men 18 to 34 years old. But with raunchy radio on the defensive, many of those advertisers may soon turn to less controversial programming, Riggsbee said.

Family-friendly stations, on the other hand, seek women age 25 to 54 years old, a desirable demographic for advertisers such as grocery stores, automotive companies and retailers.

"If shock is what helps make a station successful, without shock, common sense tells you that a station is going to be less successful," Riggsbee said.

"It all goes back to Janet Jackson baring her breast. In my opinion, she single-handedly sparked the government crackdown."

The ribald humor of personalities at WEBN came under scrutiny again last week after the Cincinnati group Citizens for Community Values recorded and submitted 11 examples of what they believed to be indecent material to the FCC.

The citizens group wants the FCC to levy stiff fines against Clear Channel Communications Inc., owner of WEBN, for airing commentary that included scatological humor and detailed descriptions of sexual acts.

Calls by the Enquirer to Clear Channel, based in San Antonio, WEBN management and on-air personalities at WEBN were not returned.

Federal rules prohibit indecent radio broadcasts between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. and provide for a fine of $27,500 for each transgression.

The FCC on Thursday fined Detroit radio station WKRK-FM $27,500 for airing a July 2001 Stern show that offered a variety of sexual commentary.

"I decline to comment on all that Howard stuff. Our lawyers will review it," said Karen L. Mateo, director of communications for New York-based Infinity Broadcasting, which owns WAQZ-FM.

Clear Channel recently reined in its shock-jocks by pulling Stern in some markets and firing Bubba the Love Sponge after paying a $775,000 fine linked to his nationally run broadcasts.

So far, said Phil Burress, president of Citizens for Community Values, Stern's broadcasts are not in the CCV crosshairs.

The group has received numerous local complaints about Stern but not at the same level as the complaints received over the WEBN broadcasts, Burress said.

"We're not a police department," Burress said. "We don't scan the dial looking for something to object to. We respond to complaints about Stern. I'm not going to say we're not going to start taping Stern, but I think we're going to take a wait-and-see.

"Our next step is to meet with officials at Clear Channel. He's (Stern's) being fined in so many other markets. We need to see if they get the message."

E-mail jeckberg@enquirer.com