As the decade began, most of the early ’50s members continued their participation in AIMS, while numerous new members appeared, bringing the group, at times to its 20 member capacity. 1963 was the year this writer, as a partner with Bill Fleckenstein (WHOT/WJET) became associated with AIMS. Several major cities of Canada were represented, enhancing the international flair of AIMS. They were: Vancouver’s CKNW (Mel Cooper), Toronto’s CHUM (Allan Waters) and Montreal’s CKGM (Don Wall). Dale Moudy, a former Todd Storz chief engineer-turned manager, came into AIMS with WING Dayton. With growing revenues, several members improved their AM facilities, including WHOT Youngstown, where it took 11 towers and two transmitter sites to achieve full time (WHOT was a day-timer until 1963)…well worth it, as the station soared to 30 and 40 shares, despite intense format competition.

With the release in 1963 of the FCC’s report and order for the first time assigning specific FM channels to individual communities in various classes and power levels, quite a few members took full advantage, following a dismal failure in the 40’s and 50’s. FM seemed to slowly be taking hold. Stereo, authorized by the FCC in the early 60’s, became a catalyst to FM growth.

Most important for AIMS, the ’60s brought a number of new members from important markets. Lester Smith of the Kay-Smith stations; Danny Kay in the Northwest plus Cincinnati and Kansas City. Steve Lubinski, WMCA New York, gave AIMS its first and only look at radio in the Big Apple and Gene Chanauet (KYNO) Fresno brought Bill Drake to the group and the RKO stations.

As the decade ended, some members began to see results from their FM investments, though AM continued to pay the bills and bring in the profits. With the English invasion of the Beatles, some members expressed serious concern for Top 40 formats. Coincident was a downturn in Top 40 listening in many markets (circa 1964).

In terms of economics, the ’60s was the decade when radio’s second “golden age” solidly confirmed this medium was here to stay. There remained little memory of the dark days in the late ’40s and ’50s when many proclaimed radio was a dying medium.