I grew up in the 70's; an era that brought us Watergate, the end of the Vietnam War, Win buttons, Jerry Ford, Saturday Night Live, All in the Family and Archie Bunker.
Locally, we had our share of triumph and tragedy. The Milk-Moscone assassinations, Patty Hearst, the SLA, People's Temple, Guyana and the like. Fortunately, we had Herb Caen, Dr. Donald "D" Rose from the old KFRC and the Rockford Files to get us through all the bad stuff.
We also had a local listening board, a semi-virtual bar, a gathering place where we could all vent, celebrate, commiserate, and console one another. It was situated on the radio dial at 810 AM, yes that KGO Radio, the KGO which acted as our community liaison, our very own outlet whose hosts, like Jim Dunbar, Russ Coughlin, Owen Spann and Jim Eason would allow us time to express ourselves without the slightest bit of arrogance or disdain. We trusted them. More importantly, we trusted the station. They did, after all, provide for us that unique, almost unheard-of forum to gather and sort it all out, good, bad or indifferent. Most importantly, KGO was there for us. They were our comfort food, our grilled-cheese sandwich during the middle of the day or night when we needed them the most.
I won't soon forget 1978. I can still recall the horror of Jonestown and two weeks later, the murders of George Moscone and Harvey Milk. I was a junior at Skyline High in Oakland. Two of the worst weeks the Bay Area has ever endured. We were all shocked. Thank God we had a KGO Radio to express our shock and anxiety, our sadness, our disgust and later, our anger.
I remember those two weeks well. I still recall the day after the Moscone-Milk tragedy, life in the city was forever altered. Fortunately, we all had the availability of Ronn Owens to call and lay out how awful we all felt. Even though we were all in a state of shock, we were fortunate to vent our angst with Ronn. It was compelling radio. More so, it was comforting that we had a most valuable friend, KGO--a place that we could depend to let our emotions be heard. (I'll never forget the emotional Ronn barely able to conduct the show without obvious pain in his voice--truly one of his most memorable moments, albeit on a most tragic period of time.)
I'll never forget the December night in 1980 when John Lennon was murdered. I was at the Stevie Wonder concert at the Oakland Coliseum Arena. Wonder told the crowd what happened and an eerie silence swept the building.
I immediately dropped my girlfriend off and headed home. I turned on KGO and was listening to Russ Coughlin. Thank God for Russ, who took calls from saddened and shocked fans of Lennon, and even those who weren't Beatles fans to, yes, again, commiserate. See, it was that KGO we could all turn to and depend upon. A LOCAL outpost, OUR VERY OWN watering hole that gave us solace even in the most trying times.
That was when KGO was KGO. Could you imagine not having KGO the day of the '89 earthquake? The Oakland Hills fire conflagration of '91, and of course, 9-11 and the immediate days after? KGO was that special? Of course it was.
Now our community gathering place, our very own sounding board has been kidnapped by outside corporate raiders devoid of any real thought. They have systematically destroyed all the good will, the foundation of what we all depended on. They tore through our hearts without so much the slightest bit of courtesy and understanding.
We all know about change, sure, it's a part of our lives. And sure, KGO was and is a business. We all get that, but there was a time when WE owned the airwaves and our interests superseded theirs! That's the heart and soul of "community affairs", is it not? Then what's taken place is an outright injustice.
I feel for the elderly woman in the Sunset who misses Gene Burns. I'm sympathetic to the UC Davis fraternity guy who said John Rothmann's show was his virtual class on politics and discourse. I feel for the lady in Millbrae whose commute on 101 was enlightened with The Loya, Len Tillem, who made her laugh. I miss Bill Wattenburg even though I disagreed with his politics at times.
You want to know how all of this has shaken the community? You should see my e-mail. I can only speculate that I'm not alone. We now have a current kgo, but there was a time not long ago that kgo was KGO. They put a dagger through our heart, indeed.
Keep the faith.
*Follow me on Twitter
*Tips/Email: Rich.Lieberman@GMAIL.COM
Rich, Great Stuff.
ReplyDeleteWhen will Cumulus become Cunninlynguists radio?
Looking forward to the KNBR massacre, if its the same thing that happens to KGO, I would say most of the listeners would be quite happy.
ReplyDeleteRich, I remember all those events and how I felt at the time. Remember when Duane committed suicide off the Golden Gate Bridge and Ronn talked about it the next day? Never heard him so emotional. And when Pete Wilson died that Saturday morning not so long ago, Gene Burns was there to commiserate with us. How about the fund-raisers? Leukemia Society? Sacred Heart? What about the cookie contest that Gene hosted for years?? Joannie's Girls Night Out?? I am flooded with a lifetime of memories. KGO was indeed there -- when I went through my personal crises (closing down a company and "firing" over 50 people in October; my mother and father dying, on and on)as well as the good times. I automatically walk into my kitchen after work to turn on KGO radio, as well as have it tuned on in my car, while I bathe, as I'm falling asleep, getting ready for work). There has never been anything like it in the Bay Area, and sadly there won't be again.
ReplyDeleteBack in myyyyy day.... You are irrelevant. Shut up.
ReplyDeleteRich....why such angst over KGO and their switching formats....radio stations do this all the time. Maybe the Dickey brothers are jerks, maybe
ReplyDeletethey're not. Maybe the way the company went about dismissing people
could have been handled better but it's never easy however its done.
Only time will tell if the switch was a mistake or not...but the last time
I checked companies have the right to run their businesses as they see
fit. And just so you don't think I'm some corporate lackey, I got the boot
from one of the TV stations in town a number of years ago, so I know what it's like to be "on the streets".
People who earn Stanford MBAs don't act like bumbling idiots, unless, of course, there's an ulterior motive. The wounding manner in the way this went down was both passionate and calculated; pure evil incarnate. The Dickey Brothers strategy session:
ReplyDelete"Okay, y'all, in order to pull this off, we need the equivalent of a radio Pearl Harbor. First, we need the listeners to get soooo angry they will revolt by turning off KGO. To help that along, we need to overwork and stress out the remaining staff to ensure the on-air product reeeeally stinks.
If someone goes postal on us, well, that's just the cost of doin' business.
Next – and most importantly – we need to SHUT UP all those pot smokin', Obama-lovin', enviro-commies that phone in so we can take back the White House. They're all homosexual out there, ya know. Yup. Every last one of 'em. And it's called the White House, not the Black House, for a reason, pffft.
Finally, we'll need to have reeeeally stupid programming that insults their intelligence. Hey! How about the first night someone fills in for that token conservative Dr. guy we do a segment on losing your wallet, bwahahahaha!
Yeah.
In 6-months to a year, after the ratings plummet and sponsors drop off, we'll show losses on our balance sheets, and have the justification we'll need to fill the entire left coast airwaves with stupid, cheap, regressive, syndicated programming.
All male. All white. All day and all night -- ALL RIGHT!
By then, all those commies that used to spout off so freely will have moved on, and there won't be anyone around to challenge our FCC license. Heh."
I go back a bit farther. To the night in 1968 when Bobby Kennedy was shot and KGO stayed on the air all night so people could talk about it. (KGO used to go dark between 1 and 5 am) Or the day in 1968 when Martin Luther King was shot. A story 2000 miles away but in our backyard at the same time. There were litarlly hundreds of those times when KGO was our lifeline, helping us put events in context. I'm proud to have been a part of it.
ReplyDeleteplease don't brand Joanie with the responsibility for girlies night out..the stupidest thing in the world.
ReplyDeleteWe are limping along as best we can without the old KGO for brain food. https://www.facebook.com/FormerKGOListeners
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, we are reading a lot of Rich Lieberman too!
I was a big KGO fan for 20+ years who loved listening to the various hosts and their viewpoints. Although I did not always agree with their topic positions, many of the hosts kept me thinking (Dr. Bill Wattenburg, Gil Gross, Ray Taliaferro and John Rothmann) and one host (the honorable Gene Burns) provided weeknight wisdom unmatched by **anyone** on the radio within the last 50 years. I realize KGO's rating have suffered after Citadel Broadcasting Corp purchased the station, then undermined his leadership and forced Mickey Luckoff to resign. I also understand Citadel is a business which needs to make money, but Mickey was right in his October 5, 2010 comments to SF Gate when he said, "These aren't good people ... They don't treat people well. They undermine you at every turn." (source: http://articles.sfgate.com/2010-10-05/business/24111800_1_abc-radio-younger-listeners-blasts). The one high paid host KGO kept, Ronn Owens, treats people both on and off the radio similar to Mickey's comments about Citadel. Hence, no surprise Ronn remains employed.
ReplyDeleteFrom a "re-invent my business" perspective, what KGO did makes total sense. Firing all those hosts likely reduced the payroll operating expense budget by 50 to 60% which positions the business to withstand a sharp decline in advertising revenue through sharply reduced audience ratings. Once the emotion from this business decision subsides and a new base audience can be identified, expect the station to begin hiring "targeted" talk hosts who draw younger audiences like a Pat Thurston (for example). Had KGO replaced the now fired hosts on Friday with these same younger talk hosts on Monday, that same angry emotion would exist among the audience **PLUS** those younger talk hosts would have a very hard time being successful since they would be connected to the firing of the previous hosts.
I have no plans of reinvesting my time with KGO. I wish that station all the best in what I believe is a three year business plan to re-invent the station brand. I shall follow Gene Burns, Dr. Bill Wattenburg, Gil Gross, Ray Taliaferro and John Rothmann to whichever radio station they land since my 20+ year talk radio listening investment is with them.
Beautiful Post. That's all I can say.
ReplyDeleteJana from twitter.com/occupykgo
How much younger an audience do you think late 40 and 50-something hosts (Pat Thurston graduated high school in 1973) attract? Do you really think it is the age of the talk show host that attracts a particular age group? Age can represent knowledge and experience not being old and outdated. The audience commenting on Former listeners of KGO seems to be of all demographics. AND... this is not about losing money. This is a corporate take over for the benefit of the corporation. Serving the needs of the listener isn't their objective.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the December 8-9 reminder, Rich.
ReplyDeleteAs for the blood-letting, need to get rid of Karel & Fitz for starters. Then we'll see about the rest that are in danger. Shamefully, Tricky still keeps Karel and the Warriors still keep Fitz! ARRGH on both counts!
This should tell you what MR. Lewis W. Dickey is all about
ReplyDeleteChairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer
Cumulus Media, Inc.
Atlanta , GA
Sector: SERVICES / Broadcasting - Radio
Officer since December 2000
49 Years Old
He holds Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees from Stanford University and a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard University. Mr. L. Dickey is the brother of John W. Dickey.
Compensation for 2009
Salary $921,884.00
Bonus $469,900.00
Restricted stock awards $547,200.00
All other compensation $17,115.00
Total Compensation Way too #$%@^& MUCH
The KGO audience was trending too old. Advertisers prefer a younger demographic. After this all shakes out and they get their newsroom act together, I look for their ratings to rebound. There already are rumors that they are lining up a local FM station to simulcast their signal. That is the future of talk and news on the radio.
ReplyDelete1:07 sounds like Brian Sussman, or 1:07 uses some of the same phrases as Sussman, such as "getting the boot." Interesting. Dear Brian, scratch that, Dear, 1:07, the public airwaves are public, not corporate. They are to be operated so the public benefits, at the same time a COMPANY can make a profit. Yes, it can be done. I've run newspapers and news depts. in two radio stations. I'm not lackey, either. But, the corporate whore called crony capitalism is fast at work here, and while the nation was focused on Bill Clinton's sexual preferences, he was laying the foundation for the gutting of America's industrial might, the bankruptcy of its economy and the prostitution of its airwaves.
ReplyDeleteLet it go already... Sounds if you are getting suicidal over this shit. Get a hold of yourself man...Life goes on...
ReplyDeleteI have tried listening to the " new" news; the non-genuine black man; even some other programming. All of it is awful bubbly, shallow non-sense with too many commercials and cutesy remarks. Thank DOG for streaming radio channels from around the world.
ReplyDeleteBYE BYE KGO RIP
Richie, when does the license come up for renewal?
ReplyDeleteCumulus: Bringing small-market radio to the big city.
ReplyDeleteTwo years hence:
ReplyDelete7.1 Earthquake Strikes the Bay Area !!
KGO-810: "Bob, in Helena, Montana, so you, too, agree that Socialist Obama wasn't born in the United States."
To all the "get over it" people. You're probably not Bay Area natives. You probably didn't grow up with KGO. Some of my earliest memories are my mom getting my brother and I up for school, Owen Span on the transistor radio that she carried with her. Growing up I listened to KGO as much as Led Zeppelin. The hosts, whether I agreed with them or not were a part of my life. It's something that's been there for 42 years and in one fell swoop it was taken from me because a profitable station wasn't making "enough" for some bean counter. So yeah it's pretty shocking and something I'm not immediately going to "get over".
ReplyDeleteThank you for the Rich Liberman Report and your comments today. The dramatic hollowing out of KGO has sent me looking for a local radio alternative and got me thinking about the impact of media consolidation in a democracy and the repeal of the fairness doctrine. I understand the need for cost cutting and adjusting for demographics. Still, it is troubling in a democracy if media consolidation leads to thought consolidation. Unlike the #1, #2, and #3 syndicated talk shows nationally, KGO broadened my thinking. I've often found myself surprised to hear well-articulated views that are different from my own. And, I loved the way Gene Burns would pull me out of my workday and back to issues in our local community, our state, our country, our world. Syndicated content doesn't provide the local lens that can matter so much.
ReplyDeletefuck KGO when are the heads gonna roll at KNBR???
ReplyDeleteRich: You had a girlfriend in high school? Humm - don't seem to remember that :o))
ReplyDeleteKeep up the good reporting buddy..
All great posts, guess I'll put in my two cents worth from my experience with the old KGO.
ReplyDeleteI remember famous Prop 13 debate that took place on Jim Eason's program between Les Kelting (who was for) and Ray Taliaferro (who was against)the state wide measure in 1978. I have heard anything to match that in all my years of listening, now THAT'S what radio is all about! I could swear my truck radio was about to start smoking at any moment!
Also good radio were the Monday night debates between Berie Ward and Lee Rodgers wonderful radio indeed.
I for one intend to be in front of the station at 900 Front St. at 11:30 AM on the 15th of this month. Don't know how much good it will do but it will raise a little hell and help us all vent a bit. These are just a couple of cherished memories, there a lot more for another time.
I have to believe that the new owners planned this from the beginning. Recently if I had NOT LOVED THE HOSTS AND FORMAT I might have changed the station. There seemed to be a new format of to of more commercials and traffic on the "5's". Really on the 5's for KGO 810 on the dial.
ReplyDeleteI almost wonder if they really want to get the old format back and with most of the same hosts but just at 20-30% less cost in salaries.
I want the old station back but I hope these hosts will NOT RETURN if offered so much less.
I drove to a class last night and checked in just to see what had happened. What I heard was 10 minutes about a woman who had her cat and dog poisened. Not that I did not feel bad for her, but really, 10 minutes of a crying woman and the newscaster (loosely used term) just kept saying "oh that is too bad" My friend who has listened each day just to see what is happening says it is just awful like you said. Evidently even this AM the newspeople who now have to be there at 4:00 were making comments later in the day about being there for 4 hours with nothing else other to say over and over. She has also told me about the mistakes about KFOG and KGO Newstalk.
The new owners had to know the the listeners would revolt and advertisers would pull out. So, guess they wanted a tax right off. Too sad that we in the Bay Area and others on the internet will no longer learn about books, law, science and interesting local topics.
Thank you Rich for informing about what is going on with KGO now.
Open Letter to KGO Listeners from Ronn Owens:
ReplyDeletePlease, let's clear up some issues surrounding the programming changes
at KGO. I was as stunned as anyone to learn Gil, Gene, John,
Ray, Dr. Bill and Joannie would be losing their shows. I found
out last Thursday afternoon (Dec. 1), as did everyone else. Not
being in management, there's nothing I could have done previously
or could do now to change things. I'm under contract and
responsible for my program only. Period.
I opened the 9:00 hour with the shocking news
last Friday because KGO has been a family, not only of those who
work at the station, but of listeners as well. I hadn't planned
what I was going to say in advance, only that I would speak from
the heart. I did. I'm a realist. If a corporate decision has
been made, I accept it and move forward, hoping that the change
will be positive for everyone.
Some of you have voiced the opinion that I didn't
say enough in support of my former colleagues,
and for that, I'm sorry. That was certainly not my
intention. I value each of them and have been proud to call them
friends. They're all intelligent, provocative, and talented, with
loyal fans. There's no doubt they'll be back on the air somewhere
soon. They're all professionals who understand the radio
business. Any station would be lucky to have them on the staff.
In the meantime, there are a lot of other people who've been here
at KGO for years, and remain on the job. They're on-the-air and
behind-the-scenes, and they continue to work as hard as ever to
bring you a great product. And we have loyal advertisers, many
of whom are small businesses, who count on KGO to get their
message across to you. None of us deserves the kind of
cyber-bullying, name-calling, and threatening behavior that's
cropped up recently on web pages like mine. I've always been in
awe of the KGO listeners. They're the best to be found at any
station in the country. They're loyal, inspiring, intelligent,
kind, and thought-provoking. Unfortunately, some of the posts on
these pages haven't lived up to that standard. There have been
blatant lies about many things, including whether what I said on
the air was "planned", whether I betrayed my colleagues, what my
current salary is, how much annual vacation time I get, and
whether my current vacation was timed to avoid this.
I look forward to talking with all of you when I return. And, by
the way, I didn't go on vacation to escape the fallout from the
station changes. Anyone who's listened to me over the years
knows I always take time off in December. This year, I needed
the time off even more because my wife's mother died suddenly
less than two weeks ago, dealing a big blow to our small family.
Thanks very much for reading this and for your support of my
program over the years. I truly value our connection.
All the best,
Ronn Owens
Ron, I couldn't have said it any better. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteRadar
It's easy to attribute KGO's decline to aging demos and locally-programmed talk radio (other than conservative talk) being a thing of the past. However, I've lived in the Bay Area for less than 8 years. Fell in love with the station almost as soon as I got here. KGO remained king of the ratings for at least a couple of years after I became a listener. So, the decline has mostly been in just the past 3 years. "Trends" don't change things that quickly. In my opinion, they never recovered from the loss of Pete Wilson. That started an extremely prolonged period of musical chairs of fill-in hosts. Then, there was the whole Bernie Ward episode, followed by still more musical chairs. Then, Citadel takes over and plays games with the hourly programming wheel and spot clustering. Just one disruptive thing after another. Loss of continuity. Add to that Gene's long absences (more musical chairs) and his getting rather lazy (one topic for an entire three hours), keeping his first caller of the night on almost until the end of the first hour etc.
ReplyDeleteHey, Anonymous 1:02 pm: It's obvious you NEVER listened to quality talk radio. Too bad you missed the point. "Back in the day" was a week ago....!!!
ReplyDeleteKGO did not broadcast the 1989 earthquake due to its transmission towers falling over by the Dumbarton Bridge.
ReplyDeleteThis is probably the best thing you've ever written Rich and I've been no big fan of yours. You touch on exactly why people are having trouble dealing with it. It's been exactly one week since they killed KGO. While many have claimed it was like losing a member of the family, I know that's over-dramatized. But hey, people form attachments to radio personalities. Radio is a highly intimate medium as you outline in your latest post. To lose that forum IS a blow to the community at large, pure and simple.
ReplyDeleteThe manner in which it was done, the slapdash nature of the "new" format, and the utter disregard with which current employees are being handled is dispicable.
The terms of employment for many staffers literally changed overnight with no compensation. (even though they're all members of AFTRA) KGO, despite the high salaries of a handful of talk show hosts WAS profitable. These new owners are greedy, plundering creeps. This is not "business", it's borderline criminal.
KGO was an outlet, a live town hall for so many of us, and it was a way of life, and KGO was a representation of our Democracy. With all that gone, we face the complete destruction of our public air waves, life goes on, but what type of life? One that is devoid of intellectual debate? A life where there is no freedom of speech over the public air waves? A life where those who need to be informed are presented with one side of an issue, and that one side actually turns out to be harmful to most while protecting a few.
ReplyDeleteThis is serious, it is the final arrow, we have lost the LAST station in the COUNTRY that had the programming and reach that KGO had, and for that our lives have been changed.
Time to wake up: The renewal process for KGO starts next year, Sept. 1 until Nov 1 is our opportunity to fight this through the FCC, and it will take some heavy lifting, especially by our electeds.
Where does one now go to hear LIVE local issues discussed on the radio, presented by moderate or liberal voices? Syndication, NOT conservative talk, is what is the money maker for companies like Cumulus, and by pushing only ONE type of syndicated show these media corporations are controlling the air waves for their good and NOT the good of the public. So what you may say...
Well the air waves are owned by the PUBLIC. Conservative and liberal, and yet only ONE side is being served on the PUBLIC air waves.
Fight, fight, FIGHT like hell people, against the Telecomm Act of 1996, wake up because our democracy is creeping ever closer to an Oligarchy.
When the 1989 earthquake struck, I was working in Pleasanton but had just called my wife at home in Palo Alto to tell her I'd be late. We were chatting when she suddenly said "it's an earthquake, a big one," dropped the phone and went off to look for our young son.
ReplyDeleteAfter what subjectively seemed like about 45 seconds, the quake rippled out to where I was, wreaked havoc including breaking pipes in the ceiling and flooding our office ... but I was determined to get home as soon as I could, convinced that the quake must have been a lot worse at home since she'd felt it sooner.
So I drove my backroads route through Sunol Canyon, made it through Fremont on a route which fortunately involved a majority of right turns at intersections newly uncontrolled by traffic signals, and headed across a strangely deserted Dumbarton Bridge (little did I know the CHP would soon be closing it to check for damage).
One of the most arresting sights during this journey, apart from the boulders I dodged in the Canyon, was the three KGO transmitters by the bridge, all collapsed.
And one of the symbols of the slow recovery from the quake was their re-erection.
How stunning that they have now been made irrelevant.
As for the people who've posted saying "get over it," they would have made good trustys at Buchenwald.
Right on Rich! Remember listening to Duane Garrett as the Polly Klaas verdict came in against Richard Allen Davis? We were literally all crying as the guilty counts were read. I don't think the folks in Atlanta realize how a simple talk radio station played such a big part in the lives of its listeners.
ReplyDeleteRich you are shinning like never before. I have many, many KGO memories but the one that stands in my mind is 9/11, I still recall when Ed Baxter described what was happening after 6am on that day. I remember it like it happened yesterday. At night, I was hanging on every single word John Rothman said (Gene was in a coma as you may recall). Most chilling that night was how quiet and empty the sky was as all planes were grounded. KGO and especially John Rothman got me through the uncertainty of those historic days. KGO was a very important part of the community, so to all the assholes who keep telling us to get over it go f-k yourselves. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI listened to KSCO today, I did not know this is where Mark Silverman (Matress Boy Lowenstein's former producer) landed after the Voice of Treason threw him under the bus after the Whittman/Brown debate "debacle". Mark has his own show, I heard it for a couple of hours, he did excellently. His guests were Gavin Newsom, Mark Curtis and Peter Laufer. Excellent work, he even asked every guest about the KGO situation. It was good except the part where Mark took a shot at KPFA and its "two listeners". Mark, that station is listener supported. They raise well over a million dollars a year. Don't make smart ass remarks when you don't have any facts. I'd love to see you shine in a non-corporate environment. This is a time when there should be solidarity in the intelligent talk industry and you go and take an unnecessary cheap shot. Don't be a jerk! Anyway, KSCO's owner will be hosting a two hour show starting at 10am on Saturday pertaining to the KGO issues, he has invited every former KGO host to participate, not sure if anyone accepted yet.
ReplyDeleteLee Rodgers fixed my watch on the radio, and I am still a member of the church of the Holy Donut. Ira's bumber music put me to sleep in the late 60's. I will miss all my friends.
ReplyDeleteRich... it was KGO 81 not 810 in the 70's
ReplyDeleteWell said Rich. I know you're a radio junkie from way back, but you really got to the heart of the matter here and explained why the connection between the community and the local radio is so important.
ReplyDeleteOne of the biggest problems in our society today however, seems to be this rootless condition we've all fallen into. Many people no longer invest their time in their communities, but see their homes as piggy banks instead of homes.
Add to this the fact that almost everyone seems to be a 'free agent' when it comes to working for companies, as few show any loyalty in their employees anymore, and merely use them, abuse them and then release them for 'younger and cheaper' employees that they can further abuse.
The way business is run in America today seems to be all about making money now...not investing for the future of even four or five years down the line. What kind of short-sided thinking is that? This is not a sustainable model, and it may be unfortunately a major reason why American Capitalism is going through a terrible
period right now.
If you want to really see what's going on in America, you need look no further than Professional sports. Baseball, football, basketball and hockey are all classic examples of this constantly changing, dizzy carousel that Americans are now riding. With the extravagant, cartoon-like salaries and hippety-hopping (no pun intended!) free agent movement, and fans getting gouged at the gate by a product that is certainly not any better than it was 'back in the day' (what the heck does that sophomoric term mean anyway...."back before I was born?"),
there is no semblance of loyalty or community.
And this has certainly happened in radio, especially over the last 5 years. It's a darn shame, but we should all be ashamed it happened because almost all of us stood by and did nothing but continue to consume the 'crap' that we were being fed by these bloodless corporations.
SHAME ON US!
And shame on all of us for allowing this to happen!
Fuck you, Ronn. You've lost me as a listener you weasel.
ReplyDeleteFor anyone needing a KGO radio fix from back in the day:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bayarearadio.org/audio/kgo/index.shtml#listen
Well said, Rich. Times change, businesses change, radio stations change. But KGO was more than just a radio station. It truly was, as Dr Bill says, a college education on the airwaves. It was a member of the community. It was the kitchen table for the entire West Coast. It united us, inspired us, made us mad, informed, and entertained. It was the last of its kind in the nation. Now it's gone. Even if some of KGO's finest migrate to a new station, it will never be the same. Let's just hope something can rise from the ashes and come close to replacing it.
ReplyDeleteThe 1/10 of the 1% have won the mass media war. We need to find where these great talents have gone. Bill Wattenburg is over at KSCO discussing what is going on. http://www.ksco.com/good-morning-monterey-bay/27803-good-morning-monterey-bay-dec-7th-2011-bill-wattenburg-discusses-kgo-the-occupy-movement-and-more-part-1
ReplyDeleteThis is a corporate war on all of us. Flat out control the media, keep the flow of bribes to Congress and presto changeo, an occupy wall streeter gets a free rough handling trip to jail for camping out, that no financial uber criminal will ever get.
Enough of the trolling from Wattenburg and 95.7 people. You aren't fooling anyone.
ReplyDeleteI shudder at the thought of the USA engaging Iran in yet ANOTHER war and we don't have the intelligence and experience of the former hosts to discuss the ramifications of such a move. What do we have left? Lowenstein? He has no street cred left at all. He should pack it up and exit the stage with his tail between his legs.
ReplyDeleteOutstanding, very special piece here, Rich. Beautiful job--and so painfully true. Can you imagine if we have an earthquake and Peter Finch is on??? OMG! Please, NO!
ReplyDeleteTo Ronn,
ReplyDeleteYou are right that the remaining staff don't deserve the bad-mouthing that some are getting and we certainly can't judge your motives for what you said on Friday. You all have my sympathy. I would have loved to see you make the grand and noble gesture of quitting in outrage after giving a "Network" speech on air; however, in the current job climate, that is not realistic.
But please understand the level of anger and disappointment that is out here among former listeners. It isn't just what was done, it is how it was done. Remember Netflix? Remember B of A debit fees? The hubris of many big corporations that think they can do anything they want to increase short-term profit no matter how it degrades their product has shown us consumers that we can vote with our feet and go elsewhere. I predict that this will happen quickly to KGO and I truly hope that all the former hosts find a new station (or maybe buy one?) together where we former listeners can find our new radio home.
What's this railing at corporations? KGO was a corporate creation then and now. If there is a market for radio such as you'd like it a corporation will find it and market it. You will then complain about it being a corporation.
ReplyDelete