Why Savage was axed at KNEW: It's all about the money

The immediate reaction on Michael Savage's sudden firing from KNEW was swift and to the point. His fans flooded the SF Clear Channel switchboard with disgust and anger; message boards on-line were riddled with threats of listener boycotts, and many of his core fans said they will erase 910 AM from their dial patronage.

Many people insinuated that Savage, (real name: Michael Weiner,) was somehow shown the door because of his ultra-rightist feelings on immigration, the Middle East, Barack Obama, to name a few, but in fact, politics had the least to do with Savage's axing in the nation's #4 market.

As in everything in life these days, Savage was let go because of one thing: MONEY.

There is no doubt that Savage has a very loyal audience and his unpredictable rants make for occasional appointment radio listening, (full disclosure: I was a guest on his show twice in the past few months) While he may have milked his personal UK ban-list story, (where Savage was placed on a list preventing him from entering Britain) and his frequent habit of taping bits and playing them as if they were live, his mix of humor, off ball rants involving what to order for dinner and tales about his dog, "Teddy", provided some of the most hilarious accounts on radio.

And Savage was paid an enormous amount of money befitting the third-most-listened-to host on syndicated radio. Industry analysis estimated his yearly income was around the $10 million range. In the big markets like NY and San Francisco, Savage's deal was paid directly by the local market station. His deal with Talk Radio network, the syndicate that distributed his show to other stations around the country, did not play a part of what transpired in SF at KNEW.

Savage's KNEW income hovered around the north of a million-dollar range. That's a lot of coin in a depressed economy with sagging advertising revenue. Combine that with a station that is owned by Clear Channel, which like many in the broadcasting business, is reeling under the worst economic climate in over a generation. This isn't intended to defend "Cheap Channel", as some industry people call them, but it does point to the reality that is major-market radio these days.

Savage indeed has a very loyal, core listener base, but with declining ad revenue and limited financial resources, no one, even Savage, is immune from getting a pink slip. And Savage isn't the first "name" air talent to get the axe and won't be the last. There are a lot of prominent local big-name talk-show hosts and FM personalities who are paid significant coin by the likes of Citadel and Cumulus who will get their taste of the Savage treatment sooner or later. And ratings have nothing to do with it. Savage's numbers were not that great in SF, but his national audience was huge and his show on KNEW was the most popular.

But in the end, KNEW simply lacked the financial resources to continue to pay Savage. That's all it in a nutshell and pretty much nothing else. And for those who are speculating about the prospect of another station in SF picking up Savage's show, good luck. KSFO? The station that unceremoniously dumped Savage ten years ago? Nada, besides, they're owned by Citadel, which could go BK any day now. The only other station? KGO? Right, dream on and I have a bridge to sell you if you believe that's going to happen.