Get Ready For The Second Coming Of Michael Jackson Radio Marathons

noah | August 25, 2009 10:30 am

Michael Jackson would have turned 51 on Saturday, and to celebrate the fallen pop star’s memory, New York dance-pop station WKTU will flip to an all-Michael format from 5 p.m. Friday all the way through Sunday evening. I’m sure that the ratings spike WKTU saw in the wake of Jackson’s death, when it switched to a similar programming strategy, has nothing to do with this flip!

WKTU started playing wall-to-wall Michael music when he died in June, and listener response increased the station’s ratings almost 20% for the month of July.

Right. Anyway, WKTU is a Clear Channel-owned station, so look for this special programming to possibly be syndicated to a Hot AC station near you this weekend. (Other New York-area radio outlets will also be airing Jackson-themed programming in the coming days, with one station relegating his honors to the not-very-prime 3:30-6 a.m. slot.) [NYDN; HT scroll]