Metheny and Cumulus were about to lay the gauntlet on KGO's weekend hosts --David Weintraub was the first to be fired and got the boot Wednesday night. Weintraub was stuck in the Death Valley time slot of early Saturday and Sunday Morning, (he's being replaced by out-of-towner, syndicated, John Batchelor); in fact, that is the MO: weekends on KGO will largely become "block" programming; most of the content will consist of syndicated, taped and out-of-town programming; that's both cheap and most of it Cumulus, (think Red-Eye reruns, real-estate shows, etc. ) Weekend talk hosts are understandably nervous and they should be; I reached out to one who was so chagrined they didn't want to talk just yet.
The format ahead-- Monday-through-Friday- will include a combination of news and "live and local" talk shows. Metheny's death has placed a lot of the changes coming on hold as Cumulus decides who will run the KGO/KSFO stations.
*Every weekend talk host is on the hit list. That doesn't mean they blow out all the tonsils but since KGO/Weekend is a wasteland anyway, the block shows will save a lot of cash and allow Cumulus to begin implementation for the weekdays.
*KSFO and its few on-air staffers are in limbo. The station is very much for sale as Cumulus tries to rid itself of a content bleeder.
*Developing...
*Follow me on Twitter
What is meant by "a content bleeder"?? So far as I was aware, KSFO got a breath of reprieve when it inherited the "other" right-wing syndicated talkers recently; Metheny himself said as perhaps his last official words regarding 560; it's the "Conservative Talk All-Star Game." With a roster that reads like a who's who in syndicated talk radio, and a decent crop of weekend shows -- many of whom bring their own advertisers -- it seems hard to believe that the station is not a profit center for Cumulus. If they sold the station tomorrow, how much would they recover in operating costs? The board ops don't cost much for satellite shows, the engineering is still needed for the rest of the cluster, so aside from whatever they pay Sussman, all they'd save really would be the electricity to run the transmitter. And they'd have another windowless closet where the studios were, so what?
ReplyDeleteMetheny hated Weintraub from the outset. He should wear that as a feather in his cap. You're right Rich the weekends are going to be block programming and cheap. The is The Lew Dickey system. I know they want to lay it all on the dead guy but this has been the plan long before Metheny arrived. Of course it'll fail.
ReplyDeleteI don't agree that KGO week-end hosts are a wasteland, some are. I don't understand why the fired David Weintraub (although I rarely listen due to the hours he was on) and kept Maureen Langdon, she has gotten better, but she still is hard to take for any length of time, the same with Karel. Matt Ray is okay, has good subject, seems like a nice guy, he states his opinions well, but he is weak with callers, don't challenge them even when the caller obviously disagree with him or has totally outrageous opinions (he needs to listen to some tapes of Gene Burns show),a talk show host is suppose to have strong opinions and be able to argue them. I like Brian Copeland (I know that is not popular on this blog) but he often has a different take on subject, he can engage the caller and get a good discussion going. I definitely like Pat Thurston, some times she is a little to liberal for me, but she is and intelligent woman, and there are so few liberal hosts these days, I hope she stays, the same for Brian. From the sound of your blog it seem like instead of trying to upgrade the station and get some interesting first rate programming, they are going to downgrade and have crap on that very few people will listen to. What a shame.
ReplyDeleteI like Michael Finney the best on the week-end, hands down the most interesting and informative show. I like Brian, too. Pat is hard for me because I don't agree with her, but she is intelligent and a good host. I like the first hour of the travel show on Sunday morning. That's about all I listen to these days. Except for Finney and 1 hour of the 3 on the travel show, that's it. Oh and I try to catch Brian.
DeleteIf they have any brains, they'll put Copeland and Thurston into Mon-Fri timeslots.
ReplyDeleteOf course, that's IF they have any brains.
I could be wrong, but I don't think either can carry a M-F show full time especially three hours. They both are too locked in with narrow liberal views. Pat can be good when taking on broader issues like city revenue grabs (i.e. parking tickets), and with selective criticism of the administration, but many times she falls back into the trap of reciting liberal talking points.
DeleteI like Brian as a comedian and he is great with Ronn on the R&B joke hours, but I don't think he is objective enough and seems to get too emotional and has a low tolerance for opposing views. I think as a host you have to realize and respect that there are very smart people on both sides of an issue and make that work for your show and the listeners. Ronn understands that concept very well.
Weintraub was better than the other weekend hosts so I can't imagine they're going to keep the old time weekenders in lieu of a person who can speak to the younger demographic. He's the first to fall since they have Batchelor all set. More will follow. My expectation is they will blow them all out.
DeleteRonn is as they say "on Top of the Fence" he wants most of the time to MIDDLE everything!
DeleteTo 11:12, and no right wing host repeat republican talking points? Right. A good talk show host don't need to be objective, is Rush, Sussman, Savage, Hannity objective? Not that I think they are that great. I think not. Was Gene Burns objective? No, and that is what made him interesting, and yes he was great. As for low tolerance of opposing view, it depends. He has low tolerance for callers with racist and way out there callers. His low tolerance as you call it, is nothing compared to Levin's, Rush or Savage's low tolerance for an opposing view.
Delete10:26. As it has been pointed out many times in Rich's blog and in the ratings, Liberal talk radio does not work for some reason. If it can't work in the bay area not sure where it can work. Gene Burns was great and a very outspoken libertarian, not a liberal. I like Brian and Pat depending on the topic, but I don't think they are the answer to the KGO's M-F woes due to their predictable views . I know this is unpopular and strange (and this is not Karel writing), but I think Karel (big time lefty) would actually be a better fit in a night time M-F slot as he not at all predictable, is actually pretty funny, and gutsy which could capture a wider audience (or at least an audience). Gene Burns was definitely not predictable. thanks.
DeleteI agree. Copeland is the only reason I tune in, which means since football season started, I' m not listening. Used to listen to Thurston but during a cover for Ronnnnn a few weeks ago, she sounded like a lunatic so done with that. The guy who comes on before Brian pretty good. There is nothing much there for me but I'm not the demo they want anyway. Not young, not white, not conservative.
Delete"KGO/Weekend is a wasteland anyway"
ReplyDeleteSo you're saying Ryan Scott (yes), Pat Thurston, Brian Copeland and Michael Finney are a "wasteland"? And that most of them are gone?
Will Copeland and his "Headliners on the headlines"....wait, I mean "E listers that never headlined on the headlines" be gone?
ReplyDeleteI hope they keep Copeland and his Headliners on the Headlines. I like it.
DeleteI just looked at the program schedule at KGORadio.com...there are several time slots with nothing scheduled...and, most curious, Ronn is listed from 3 to 5am in addition to 9 to noon? Are they re-running his shows?
ReplyDeleteRonn at 3 to 5am is rerun obviously. Probably the rest will be syndicated re-runs.
DeleteRight...but why? (I checked the "7 Day Archives" and yesterday it was still some kind of Bloomberg content at 3am.)
DeleteI have tried to listen to Bloomberg, but the high pitched voices and the speedy delivery is very annoying.
DeleteThe only KGO radio show I make a point to listen to on the weekends is Michael Finney. Hands down the most relevant and informative show on KGO. I am disappointed when it is preempted by Cal football. I hope Finney is in the future plans or does his show on another station if it works for him.
ReplyDeleteI adore Finney. Best person on the week-end and maybe one of the few interesting shows all week.
DeleteI know we can never go back to the old KGO ... but I wonder how much money the radio station would have been pulling in now under the old format versus what the station is making now.
ReplyDeleteI bet it wouldn't be profitable. Radio advertising rates are way down and that KGO talent was not cheap. (Remember ratings were in free-fall before the big change too)
DeletePaying the old hosts would not be profitable at all. Local ad rates are in the tank, especially when you have no ratings. And the old hosts were fading anyway. The companies know their demographic was dying off so they made a change. Unfortunately for KGO Cumulus made an awful change. They easily could have brought in newer and younger talent in an effort to compete with KQED and other talk outlets but we're talking about Cumulus. Run top down by out of towners. Next thing you know they'll hire Randy Michaels to give us his "Women Talk" programs. Don't be surprised if you see that. Right now whatever they're paying Owens is an albatross so it's no surprise they'll try to get as much as they can out of him by re-airing his pedestrian program.
DeleteThe Pet Show with Christine Craft, Saturdays at 10 am on KayGeeOh! Brought to you by Purina Dog Chow.
Delete5:17..I get it, it upsets you that some 50+ horses who are starving and dying in plain view in Morgan Hill are getting media attention. Thanks to ABC 7, KSBW, KGO radio, the MOrgan Hill Times et. al, some of them have made it to the Equine Rescue Center near Watsonville and are recovering. The Santa Clara DA is investigating, but is taking its sweet time to facilitate the rescue of the remaining, suffering animals. Animal control in Santa Clara doesn't have the know-how or space to deal with so many, very sick animals. There are solutions and there are lots of horse lovers in Northern California, excluding yourself. The demonstration tomorrow, should others want to help, can be better understood by checking out two FB pages...Morgan Hll Horses in Need, and the Equine Rescue Center. There are pictures as well of the dying horses. In any event, As far as purina anything goes, you are aware of the role of rendering plants in those common commercial foods, yes? I know it's a dog eat dog world, but not at our house. Do you favor your own morning oatmeal(or poptarts) sprinkled with cremains?
DeleteIt's just a matter of time before they are a 24/7 "Radio Trade-io" station with a smattering of Real Estate and Seniors Finance shows.
ReplyDeleteThe first one I'd fire is Matt Ray. To call what he does a "talk show" is false advertising. All he does is keep reading the story over and over and doesn't take any calls. I have quit listening to him on Saturday morning. Also, a few weeks ago Maureen Langdon was in the Bay Area and filled in for Ronn O. (if I recall correctly) and she wasn't all that bad.
ReplyDeleteYes she was, she is no match for Ronn, Christine, Pat and even Matt Ray. Matt has promise if he would learn to challenge the callers more, He does take calls. Eathan Bearman on KSFO is annoying, he still elongates his words, and more annoying he sounds like he is talking down to his listening audience. I don't think he gets along with Katie Green, don't know who is most annoying. But he tried to get Katie to make a guess at something, when he was filling in for Sussman, she refused, he kept goating her, but she stood firm. I sense tension on the set, not a good copy for a show. Same when Melanie came bag you could sense the tension over the radio. Very uncomfortable.
Delete10"34 PM, If what you observed is true; Katie remaining rather chilly On The Air with The Bear, she was probably showing her loyalty to Brian S. "I'm Brians Second Banana, not anybody elses', least of all you. You can bet that Brian listens to the show on his days off specifically for any signs of unauthorized 'co-mingling of emotions'.
DeleteIf she is a true professional what feelings she might have about the fill in host should not come through on the air, the hosts are there to inform, engage and entertain the listeners, whatever personality conflicts they might have should not make it to the airwaves.
DeleteTime for a reality check here, 8:36. The reason that Matt Ray repeats the same story over and over, and doesn't take any phone calls is that he's not RECEIVING any phone calls.
DeleteI've witnessed the same kinds of activities on other KGO talk shows as well. As a result, the hosts keep drifting from one topic to another and repeating those same topics over and over.
It's no fun being a talk host and having zero calls coming in. You get to come up with hour after hour of monologue, to prevent there being nothing but dead air.
Contrary to what Lieberman and others say Maureen Langdon does a pretty fun show. It's not intellectual or anything like that but she's pleasant and somewhat funny. I thought she and Weintraub were going to be the future of the Monday to Friday programming because they came from such different perspctives even though they were both east coast. I don't think programming decisions are made in San Francisco unless they were letting Metheny make decisions. If they fired Weintraub then they don't care about his show or what he was doing. He was just a person on a late night show that was in the way of their programming ideas.
ReplyDelete<<< I thought she and Weintraub were going to be the future of the Monday to Friday programming because they came from such different perspctives even though they were both east coast.>>>
DeleteWell, you proved yourself wrong didn't you? Pretty fun, no ratings, a third level comic (both of them), "somewhat funny" and the "future"? Come, now. It's AM Radio. Karel is 15 years past his good day at KFI as a "unique breed of radio character of himself," and Weintraub is a snarky small market radio guy from New Jersey and hasn't done much on the air, period. Here, he produced Michael Savage and got fired for it because he couldn't get along with Savage. He then "counseled" other hosts like they didn't know what they were doing. Not good. He then got on Rene Bakos wrong side with a battle of "who knows more, me or you?" and Cumulus corporate said, "That's enough, kids. Let's fire someone as we go to different directions" and Weintraub lost.
As was mentioned days and days ago, Bakos will probably get the choice to lead because the times are right. New rating period underway - the most important of the year in the revenue making 4th quarter, the fall and winter are biggest times for talk radio, mid-term elections, sales down, morale in the toilet and corporate on the skids at $3.80 a share and dicey at best.
Metheny made "tweaks and adjustments", not calling the shots. Cumulus Atlanta did with that book that Rich talked about here. They didn't care what Weintraub was doing, that's the problem. It was two hours less of Bloomberg Radio from New York. Now, Bloomberg is in the market full time. Weintraub had no chance from day one in his daypart of midnight to two twice a week. Nor did the "vagina twins" on a couple of weeks ago. Cumulus is lost in a corner right now. Langdan is better than she was, a little, and has creedence because she can plug into WABC as needed in New York between comedy sets. She's not making waves here, either.
As the saying goes - "Langan has her fans, just not enough of them." Karel, too. Chef Scott as well. The ship slips slowly beneath the sea.
DeleteMr Weintraub wrote about it on his blog although he didnt say that much about what happened.
ReplyDeletehttp://davidweintraub.blogspot.com/2014/10/getting-fired-kinda-blows.html
I'm certainly no media expert - but all of this - at least with regard to Cumulus - seems to be directly related to MAKING MONEY. But if you don't have a loyal listener base that brings good ratings (KGO in the "old days"), how do "you" (as a station owner) get decent advertisers to be interested in "the product", and bring in the revenue??. It has seemed, since "the purge" in 2011, that Cumulus has had absolutely no clue what the demographic is in their listening area, and/or what the listening audience wants to hear. So if they don't listen - what happens??
ReplyDeleteGod you are making too much sense, I like you am no media expert, but I know in ANY business you have to have a product customers want, and having loyal customers is the life blood of any business, while at the same time try to bring in new customers. To do that you have to have a product people want
DeleteThey die, period. The idea of "sales" versus "ratings" really are irrelative. The ratings show overall popularity. Sales is a creator content to accellorate revenue for the sponsor and the radio station(s). In the case of KGO, advertisers have too many other "media" choices to consider that are more efficient. Internet, tables, smartphones, etc etc etc. An AM station which hasn't changed - not so much. One that relates to younger demos - not so much there, either for KGO.
ReplyDeleteThen, as you point out, the "efficiency" of that audience is what makes it all come together for sponsors. Does KGO hit the "core" audience of what an advertiser spending $600 a commercial really gets in the door? Probably not - not when the ratings skate downhill full steam ahead. Do young people relate to AM radio - especially AM talk? No. Sports? Yes. Music? No. News and traffic? Little. They have smartphones and tablets that do that efficiently and quicker -- right down to traffic, earthquakes, etc. "Look mom, no waiting for weather or traffic on the fives!:" Information is on demand.
To couple that with unpopular programming, then you have problems. Sure, KGO has it's sales strengths. "We're #1 from 7am to 7:08 am Mon-Fri." Well, that's not a help if the next quarter hour rating takes a dive to #19. People don't "need" what KGO once was anymore. Younger demos today were born with cellphones in their hands, not transistor radios, boomboxes and no FM. In fact, we download our music our way. No more CDs, tapes, etc.
So, poor programming, with older audience programming that charges $500 or more a spot, on AM, doesn't look so hot anymore.
What to do? Reinvent the wheel, sort of. Better communication with social media is a must, now. On demand programming. Sports. Go for the best, not the worst of the equation. That's why a Karel doesn't work. People don't 'need" him. Nor do they "want" him. Advertisers say, "I'll buy elsewhere." A Ronn Owens is still the best that KGO has and gives. He's a still good "legacy." Others, not so much.
Corporate doesn't know how to manage major market radio - never has. Never will.
It used to be "The Times They Are a-Changin'" from Bob Dylan. Too late for that now. The times have long changed. KGO has not, nor has Cumulus, stepped up with those changes when they could have. Too lazy and sat on its laurels. Now, a mere shadow of itself. Going to FM won't help them now like it could have. It would be more protection from the flank if anything. A tough road ahead. Audiences don't need AM radio anymore.
The FM solution still would benefit them tremendously. Even an 1.0 share (conservatively) added to their paltry 2.1 suddenly makes them respectable and in the middle of pack. Combined with the tremendous cost savings of flipping KFOG or the Bone, why wouldn't you? Doesn't that play right into their cost cutting?
DeleteJohn Batchelor appeals to the target young demographic? Seriously?
ReplyDeleteI am reading between commentors' lines, but I think there is interest in a Bernie Ward program, whether out of nostalgia, train-wreck-gazing prurient interest or desperate boredom; it could be a sort of counter-intuitive programming hit!
No. Batchelor does not appeal to a young demographic. That is not what was said. Batchelor's show is owned by Cumulus Media. Their "target" is to get the show cleared on stations and in markets across the country. To do that, Cumulus Media uses their stations, as would CBS Radio, iHeart Media, or other "syndicator" like Premiere Networks to interest other stations outside to put the program on the air on interested stations and markets on an exclusive basis. Then, the bigger the stations that Cumulus can show to advertisers and other stations, the more interest in the program.
DeleteIt looks impressive to a station in Boise or Flip Switch, Nebraska that Batchelor (or other show) is "good enough" to be on a 50kw KGO in San Francisco, a WABC New York, WLS Chicago, etc etc etc so that advertisers will say, "Sure, we'll invest to grab that potential market, no matter how old or young the demo or audience." Batchelor hapens to be good, well prepared and interesting. So, good sized - highly rated stations and markets, good advertiser base and high advertiser revenue and a star is born. Whether it's Rush, Hannity, Noory, Art Bell on weekends, syndicated CBS or NBC Sports Radio, ABC News Radio, etc -- the game's the same.
Cumulus is looking for some things here at KGO: 1) prestigious huge 50kw station, legendary news/talker, top 7 market clearance in San Francisco, some 80 affiliates or more coast-to-coast, plus great stations already in New York, Dallas, Chicago, etc. The ad revenue comes in during times when local stations can hardly give away commercials to local advertisers and you have a winner.
Imagine your product on 100 to 600 radio stations every day, cheaper than if you could bought stations one at a time and a show that was respected.
Cumulus doesn't have many of those. Batchelor happens to be one of them, perfect for a middle age on up late night audience and widely known and respected. Very little maintenance, as, say, a Rush, Hannity or others. Not as many stations, maybe, but Batchelor holds his own and is a good lead in to Red Eye Radio in, both, SF, Reno and dozens of places. Cumulus also owns Red Eye Radio out of Dallas and makes a good living off of trucker ads all over the country for that audience. The local stations make money from 5 am to 7 pm, generally, with some national inventory as a "trade" for the program and/or an additional monthly cost that can be very high.
It's how money is made.
And it's not for free.
Cumulus could care less about demographics on their shows. They preach "reach and frequency". How many stations in how many cities with how many available listeners can YOU reach by being on Red Eye or Batchelor?
Lots.
Give me 20% of your daytime audience at night all over the nation and you'll make lots of money.
Getting Fired Kinda Blows
ReplyDeleteI think the headline probably gives this away, so yeah, my radio station cut me loose.
I'm fine with it. I had been contemplating quitting for a number of weeks, so now that decision was made for me.
I really came to like a lot of people at Cumulus-SF. I think I developed a personal relationship with nearly everyone in the building, and that means something to me. For I liked nearly everyone there, and made it a point to get to know people. I'm truly interested in other peoples' lives, and trying to be a positive influence in their lives, even if I show it in strange ways.
Paul Hosley, Jared Hart and Ron Escarsega gave me a chance to do something I love very much, in a big market. And while I was not always the easiest person to work with, I really did appreciate that they are/were professional radio people who truly love the medium. We had our ups and downs, but creative people will.
When the people who gave you a shot leave, or get blown out, it's usually not a good sign for yourself.
For the sake of the employees at the station(s), I hope it works out for them too. The radio business these days is not what it was when I began, and on many levels it's hard to watch it change from the inside. That said, I believe in radio, and think the right people will find solutions to what has become a self-created problem. But please, stop hiring the people who helped caused the problems, and tasking them with fixing the problems. It is not going to work.
As for now, I probably need to take a step back and focus on my writing (things are late; people are angry). Maybe I'll continue the pursuit in radio, but the more I think about it in light of the environment, the less appealing it seems to me. But maybe that changes when the dust settles? We'll see.
Thanks for listening (if you did) and being supportive.
And thanks to all the people who wrote, called, and reached out. It's appreciated. But believe me, I'm okay with it. I was resigned to this weeks ago.
You did your best. .. They did not appreciate it. . .F--k them. Good Try, Mr W. ..
DeleteCompare the above to the following rant by the same David Weintraub on this blog on 7/2/2012 after his disastrous first show on KGO: "Last night was my first show in 6 years. Do you think you could do better? Trust me, you can't. No guests. Took 5 calls. I have shit to say, and I'm gonna say it.
DeleteAs for my flaws, I should have been more prepared. I decided, wrongly, during the week to limit my exposure to the news because I wanted what I said to be top of mind. When I got calls they were ill-timed. When I wanted calls, they weren't there. I don't present topics like, "So, what do YOU THINK of this health care bill? Is it going to work? Will it cost money?" Fuck that. That's not me. That's lame. There's enough day time, lame-ass radio in this town (and elsewhere), and I'm not going to do it.
I'm a vicious, asshole, liberaltarian. That's who I am. I got my feet wet last night. I'm a huge critic of my own work, and I'll get better every time. I'll out work every motherfucker on the planet, every day. Because I think people deserve and want better radio. I don't think the medium is dead.
I've fucked myself in this business 6 ways from Sunday, 7 times over. I've got an opportunity here, and I'm not going to relinquish it.
You don't like my shit, don't like my shit. You think I'm some other guy? Put that guy on the air with me, or in a room with me, and have us square off in a "talk off." See what happens.
As for Phil, he's someone I admire tremendously. One of the few people who gets it. It's entertainment.
As for me, I'm not him, he's not me, and if he think he invented "drops", again, you're a moron.
I'm not blaming Blues Travelers for playing G, C, Am, D during "Runaround", nor am I blaming Melissa Etheridge for using it during "Come to My Window." Because there's only so much shit you can do at some point, and this is how I'm doing it.
If I'm not crushing it within half a year, I'll hate myself more than you hate me right now.
But if what you're hearing in this city right now is what you want to be listening to, power to you.
Thanks for listening at all, and thank you for prompting me to write my second ever radio-message-board post. The first being after one of my station's fired me years ago.
It's cathartic. - David Weintraub"
It's amazing the guy lasted this long...
It would have been nicer had he been able to avoid grammar and spelling errors, not to mention poor sentence structure, inappropriate language, unprofessionalism, etc. I wouldn't let him run a hot dog stand.
DeleteAs was predicted some time back, KGO picked up John Batchelor late nights after he was pre-empted live by a delayed Hannity and Beck at KSFO. He adds a little class to the feeble attempt at the almost all news effort at 810 AM. He apparently starts October 27th although their website lineup indicates he's already been added. Why repeat Ronn Owens at 3:00 AM. They can put the aging Don IMUS in there live to add a little relevance for the early risers. When Cumulus fired the likes of Burns, Rothman, Gross and others, one of the survivors, Thurston I believe, commented that KGO had simply lost its way and were headed in a new direction. Actually, I think she was predicting the future. The glory days were in the past!!
ReplyDeleteYou can listen to Batchelor on WABC live or listen to his Podcasts (Podcast Republic, free or paid, has 'em on Android). That way, you don't have to bother with KGO. Yes, I realize WABC (New York City) is Cumulus-owned. I actually listen to it on weekday mornings when I have time, except for Imus.
DeleteBernie Ward? Seriously? Talk about "instant death" for a radio station. I really don't think even clueless-Cumulus would be blind enough to bring him back on the air. There are too many other far less risky options. It's even kind of creepy just typing this about him...............
ReplyDeleteI would enjoy having Bernie Ward as well as Ray back. Bernie and Ray kept the KGO machine going throughout the night.
DeleteI loved the old KGO, but it's all about biz/$, baby
ReplyDeleteAd revenue is down not solely because of the economy but mostly.
I hate the Cumulus programming but its their right to do as they wish. What's telling about the old KGO is if that biz model still worked why wouldn't Mickey and Jack ex-KGO executives launch something... because it won't work in today's economy.
These small time operators like KSCO aren't the answer.
Celebrate the old KGO, as I do, as an nostalgic reference. Loved KGO in it's hey day, Ray T aside.
If KGO had any friggin brains they would put DR. BILL back on in the weekends.
DeleteHe doesn't need the money so they could get him cheap.
DO IT!
Wholeheartedly agree that little outfits like KSCO are not the answer unless the audience thinks endless hours of vitamin infomercials are entertaining. The morons who focus on "the young" demographic" are way off base too and it is embarrassing. God bless MZ and what he has done with KSCO but the guy recently said he hardly listens to what's on his own station. No wonder quality sucks! (Aside from Lieberman Live and Ruth Copland). It is truly embarrassing that a non profit radio station like KPFA has more pofessionals on air than a for profit operation like KSCO.
DeleteWhat a way to destroy a landmark of infotainment .. I am looking forward to listening to Batchelor again . ( Good post . .Rich You are the best. )
ReplyDeleteJack sent his wife off to work in Sonoma County LOL.
ReplyDeleteOV is there as well.
I never hear anything about what Melanie Morgan is up to. I cannot receive that station. Is the Sonoma Station enough to keep her busy? Mel is very skilled in studio production. Good to hear OV and she are working together here and there. Happy Together.
DeleteOV who no longer uses that name, he did for awhile, but is now back to using Tom Benner, he does traffic and some news on 910 am, it is possible he does something for the Sonoma Station, perhaps under the name of Officer Vic, if he is a contract employee he can do that.
Deleteyes! it's great to hear Mel and OV together on 1350 mornings!!! maybe she'll get her own talk show there in time. KSRO is a treat with it's lower commercial load and more laid back style!
DeleteKGO needs to get rid of Copeland. How long is he gonna milk the " Hey! I'm a black guy, bah blah blah" crap?
ReplyDeleteThe guy is simply not funny or entertaining in the least. Rather listen to an Emergency Broadcast Signal.
Well, then listen to something else you idiot. Brian simply brings a different perspective to his show because he is black. As a middle age white, European born women, I find his show for the most part interesting. There are so few black host it is refreshing to get that point of view, if you don't like it don't listen, listen tot he emergency broadcast signal, you seem to paranoid about race to listen to Brian.
DeleteFrom other middle age white woman from Euro country, I am thinking Copeland is the lame. The fact that Olga not have Black folk back in Ukraine do no make his relevant. Send him to radio Gulag. I missing weekly Kremlin report. And signal of emergency broadcasting as well. And, da, I very paranoia about racing.
Delete"and after Chernobyl my penis is falling off"
Delete7:11 PM
DeleteWhat is your program? Is Copeland's broadcast above your IQ? I believe that it is otherwise you would understand his conversation. You have a right to like and dislike. Being black enables one to give a different point of view as well as white.
Copeland is tedious and thinks he's so special, when in reality Brian performs
Deleteas a self styled fictitious Minstrel Character, one who is as limited in his templete of responses as a wind up doll.. Ironic, yes.
So this is why there haven't been any updates to the podcasts... Ronn said they were having an issue with the podcasts, guess we all know what it is now. Rats.
ReplyDeleteI think everyone's missing a big clue, and it's in this fragment from the end of the entry: "*KSFO and its few on-air staffers are in limbo. The station is very much for sale as Cumulus tries to rid itself of a content bleeder." (Though 4:27 did mention Hannity and Beck.)
ReplyDeleteHaving just re-acquired Rush, Beck and Hannity, if Cumulus does manage to sell KSFO, those shows, and Savage and Levin, need somewhere else to go. The logical place is 810. Add Batchelor and Red Eye Radio, and you have close to 24 hours of weekday programming. Just add a morning show, shake and (half-)bake.
That's the *only* logical explanation for (1) keeping Sussman plodding away on KSFO mornings, (2) keeping the almost-news half-a-format on KGO, and (3) keeping Ronn on mattress duty. They're all marking time until a deal's in place to jettison 560 and move all the syndie crap over to 810, at which point most of the headcount will get two weeks of severance and a swift kick in the ass.
Add the obvious value of 810 as an overflow outlet for Niners games in the early season while the Giants monopolize 680, and for Cal games, and you have some semblance of a strategy. Not a great one, but something better than the smokin' pile of dreck they have now.
The only other piece is, who buys KSFO? I still think a logical buyer would be Bloomberg. Instead of running their programming on the very-inferior 960 signal leased from iHeart, they could own 560 and actually reach the entire market. (Of course they'd lose the 103.7 HD2 simulcast, but it would be shocking if that accounted for more than a few dozen listeners at most.)
So they fired David Weintraub and I tuned in to listen to John Batchelor and what do I get? A guy who sounds just like the nasal Weintraub: Casey Bartholomeu broadcasting from a remote location. Awful radio at its worst. What's the deal?
ReplyDeleteWas Weintraub talking about ISIL (now ISIS) in 2010? John Batchelor was. Also had lots of experts on. His guests are stellar. I'll take the "remote sound" any day over what KGO was offering.
DeleteI was obviously not clear. John Batchelor was NOT on last night. In place of Weintraub they had a guy named Bartholomeu. Awful radio!
DeleteI think 10:15 nails it. Except for the 2 weeks severance bit; this Cumulus we're talking about: you come in for a "meeting" and an HR away team is there; you are stripped of your credential, handed your walking papers, and your eMail account is deactivated while you are in the room. A security goon escorts you to your desk or workspace where you are watched as you assemble your meager possessions, and then they escort you to the door or parking garage exit. The implication is there that if you come back, they will call the police. That's about it.
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