What is about Dan Ashley that I like? Well, for one, consistency. Ashley is just that and then some --one of the reasons why he's been at KGO-TV (ABC7) for almost three decades.That says a lot.
Ashley comes across as the proverbial anchor's anchor--let me explain: he's almost robotically too good but it's that very reason (among others) that I like watching him deliver the news.
He's got a knack for being the best when the story deserves seriousness and not looking and sounding impish and sappy just for the sake of such. He knows how to move it up a notch without coming across as insincere and he can tone it down and add the proper levity when the situation merits.
After the recent Lake County fires, a reporter filed the usual MOS interview with a woman who lost her house and was obviously distraught and in anguish. When the report ended Ashley paused several seconds--several, in TV time--and shook his head and was obviously touched. It wasn't at all disingenuous --you could see and feel Ashley's emotions and that doesn't happen a lot in TV News, let alone local TV News.
Ashley is also steady and calm, about as cool and collected as can be. Frequently, we look to our news anchors to set the tone and align the proper context for the story on the screen. That's why we take them into our evening routine and make them a part of our family. We do want to trust them.
Ashley can work the rope quickly and suddenly without having to go all technical-gizmo and stick to the basics. The San Bruno pipeline disaster was in full graphic overload when Ashley quizzed a PG&E official about what had happened. We all didn't know the specifics at the time but Ashely refused to take a blank answer and wanted more specifics. It was good, reliable TV journalism and it struck a chord with this observer.
Ashley is the best TV News anchor in the Bay Area. Hands down.
*John Rothmann's political tour de force has been featured on KGO Radio (7-10 PM) this week with a return to entertaining and provocative radio on 810 AM. Great insight, great callers, (for a change), excellent guests and analysis. What a treat. And kudos to the KGO suits for getting him on during this crazy election. *This might surprise you but at KPIX I've grown on weatherman, Paul Deanno who is smart as a whip and delivers no-nonsense forecasts devoid of sappiness --it's a fresh, compact style that is appreciated and respected.
Deanno isn't spectacular and he doesn't have to be--his style of breaking down the weather trends and so called, "Bay Area micro-climates", is good enough for me. *The hands-down winner for obnoxious radio ads --they never stop and are harmful to hear: the ubiquitous and awful, "DINOVITE" ads. Even the dogs and cats can't stand these pathetic sounders.
*Jack Swanson and I have had disagreement over the choice for some of the new KCBS reporters but Swanson is to be congratulated for keeping the all-news 24/7 station at its core: 24/7 news and information --consistent sports and traffic reports and the best option for breaking news when listeners need it the most.
*Normally, I'm not to keen on reporters who come off as overly warm and fuzzy--they reek of insincerity but ABC 7's Amy Hollyfield is the exception. Watch her reports: Hollyfield is as tough as nails in the field and her live packages are some of the most informative I've seen in this market.
*Then again there's KTVU's Jana Katsuyama: for some reason the Foxies think she's the star to present the opening segment on "10 O'clock News." I can't watch, never have warmed to Katsuyama but I guess it's all personal taster. *Ben Fong-Torres thinks it's 1978 again and that Rolling Stone has influence.
Someone had to say it.
*A diamond in the rough: KRON edgy street reporter, Charles Clifford.
*KTVU has 4 sports anchors. 4! Normally this wouldn't be such a big deal but when you take into account Fox's on-going intention to be more lean and mean (read: cuts) it puzzles you.
By the way, some reporters at KTVU are making far less than you might imagine. The good old days are gonno.
*Overexposed, not-funny, and about as inquisitive as a worn-out 1976 Highlites book in the dentist's office: KGO's oatmeal-infested, uber-bore, Chip Franklin.
Franklin is about as entertaining as used boat shoes.
*The painful thing about KNBR and its all-Giants content becomes all the more embarrassing when they have to play "Giants Replay" when the team has one of its more galling losses.
This all, courtesy of Larry Baer, the president of the Lee Hammer Society, who really runs KNBR .
I want to live a little longer so I'm not going to go into Baer on a 1000-word essay but let's just say it would be sort of interesting if you know what I mean and I think you do.
It would be nice if the Chronicle, say, did an investigative piece on Mr. Baer and some of his peccadillos but that would require good, solid reporting --you know, like a real newspaper? *If KQED continues to morph into routinely blowing off in-house tech personnel pissed off at all the gross incompetence with mangers then don't be surprised if there's a strike.
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*Rich Lieberman 415 Media
*Friday News, Notes and Comments
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Ashley is quality and always has the right delivery for each story. That smell isn't Milpitas (Dixon Landing Road), it's KTVU.
ReplyDeleteGood on you, Rich, for realizing what Paul's all about.
ReplyDeleteNow, if you'd just rethink your odd take on Allen. Jeez!
whats wrong with 4 sports anchors...kntv has 6 investigative reporters...when we know producers do more work.
ReplyDeleteThere is nobody who can come close to John Rothman when it comes to presidential politics, the electoral college, swimg states and history. However, having Gary Dietrick(sp?) as a guest adds nothing to the discussion. Dietrick has an unerring instinct to restate the obvious...again and again...without any edge whatsoever. Who the hell made him KGO's "political analyst" and why?
ReplyDeleteI tired of the political bias.
Deleteou issums? So you want to silence Rush, Levin,Hannity, et al? all the people right or left who have an edge? You wouldn't need talk radio then.
DeleteOnce again I didn't make your list. Le sigh. I'd leave my name but that would be cheating. :)
ReplyDeleteJoe Hughs siding with the Nazi's has not grown on me and I would think that any union person at KNBR would pretty much hate that guy. He's decided to beg and grovel his way to being noticed. By that,Radnich was taken aback to hear Joe had been there a decade "Seems like I just noticed you a couple of years ago". Radnich said..or something like that.
ReplyDeleteThe trend at KRON to go heavy on surveillance tape news of mostly black and latino criminals isn't really bothering me like I thought it would. Nah.
And last? KCBS needs to get it priority set when I'm looking for traffic news and they go on about the third round play of tennis with Gosucky Yunbitch defeating Magdelena Frigidbootyvich 6-3 6-5 7-6. Who cares??
> Joe Hughs siding with the Nazi's
DeleteSiding with the Nazi's what?
You should have heard the sniveler today "I would be PROUD to drive for you Gary".
DeleteI think as of now- Joe is brown nose brother no.1 in bay area media.
Love John Rothmann..but Gary Dietrich....master of parlaying boredom into a career.
ReplyDeleteI love listening to the Giants replay after a loss. Makes me want to tune in so I can get in a good laugh a second time!
ReplyDeleteIn regard to Deanno, I agree. He is competent, professional, and pleasant enough. Seems like a bright guy in general, and he also does a nice job during his field reports.
ReplyDeleteAll mediocrity and not worth paying attention to except Baer and Rothmann, and Rothmann, despite being sharp, puts on a dull show.
ReplyDeleteHolyfield is consistently good and glad you recognized her. I tweeted KNBR and told them I'm going to quit listening because they only talk about teams whose games they air, and now with the Warriors gone, it's going to get worse. Do we really need Krueg and Kipe's morning segments after baseball ends? I bet Baer's in that, keeping the Giants presence on the station even during the offseason.
ReplyDelete@1:38pm - The segments with Kruk (not sure if he's still doing them) and Kipe are the best pieces of content KNBR airs. Those guys are just two cool cats who are very comfortable in their own skin and enjoy talking baseball.
DeleteIf you read my post, you'd see I wasn't talking about baseball season. You should read an entire post before responding. Writing is thinking and discussing in print, and shouldn't be a reflex action.
DeleteMe and the Misses love that Dinovite. We mix it with our Grape Nuts cereal each morning. We both feel spry, and our dog has a nice coat also.
ReplyDeleteDINOVITE!
Meanwhile, another bad day at the Chronicle. The big story yesterday was that Wells Fargo was hit with a $185 million fine for a scam where they signed up customers for accounts, and billed them for it, without permission. Nearly every paper in the state made it their top story (check Newseum) except for the Chronicle, which buried it on the bottom of business, 1 column. Why? Editor Audrey Cooper (the idiot who thinks Rich isn't a journalist) didn't want to highlight the Wells Fargo story because the investigation that led to the fines was the result of a series of stories in the LA Times. So what did she put on the front page? A story about how the Libertarian candidate for president misspoke during an interview about Syria. Who cares? I mean the guy won't make the presidential debate (poll numbers too low) and will become an asterisk in history. But to Audrey, he's page one news and the unprecedented fine against a San Francisco bank is worth one column on the bottom of business. How long will it take for Hearst family members to get tired of this second-rate paper and pull the plug?
ReplyDeleteYou've got me wanting to tune into John Rothman again, but I'm afraid to do that. Why? Because, here lately, everytime someone good, talented and professional comes on the air as host, it never fails that seven, eight months later, they are gone! Nowadays, you usually don't even get the courtesy of hearing them say 'Goodbye'.
ReplyDeleteThe sweet candy is yanked out of the baby's hand, thrown on the soiled floor and stomped upon as Baby watches in shock and awe. In Other Words; to quote Rodney Dangerfield, "We don't get no respect!"
What I want to know is what brand of Espresso Coffee Chip Franklin drinks while (and as) he's on the air? The man is unbridled energy personified.
ReplyDeleteNo one gives a shit about any of these people
ReplyDeleteThen why'd you click, dick?
DeleteCool with the first three paragraphs.
ReplyDeleteI'm picturing dogs covering their eyes and maybe ears, while cats hear the radio ad and all run off into another room.
Impressed that Swanson is taking proper care of the format.
And not surprised that the Lockstep Larry louts are doing everything they can to intimidate Rich or any other impartial media outlets from exposing all the warts that need to be shown to the Bay Area public about the Giants not allowing constructive criticism of the team on the field and on the air. Me thinks we may have to tell Bam-Bam bye-bye, and of course, no more superstition excuses any more - even the Giants fans within my family and friends want Amy G gone. Team can't hit (must move on with a new hitting coach), dugout interviews inane as ever (cousin's best friend - a Giants lifer - flips the channel every time she comes on), flagship station just lost the local NBA team (preseason baseball over playoffs?)...and it's all hunky dory in the Lockstep Larry world.
And to top off this response, for those who miss football, still miss it. The heartbeat of football still hasn't returned to the air yet (the one concern Swanson has).
Thanks 3:27...I agree..couldn't have said it any better
DeleteI don't have a problem with Larry Baer. Without Larry, there's a decent chance the Giants would've been playing in St. Petersburg, Fla., and AT&T Park would likely never have been built. He was the catalyst in the transformation from the Candlestick-era Giants to what we have now...one of the premier franchises in American sports. As a long suffering Giants fan, I'm willing to trade the Barry Bonds love fest and the KNBR incest for the 3 Worlds championships.
ReplyDeleteafter the losses, the the post game guys start out all bummed and concerned, but very soon they're joking and talking. they've already got the ''post game loss concerned then happy talk.what else can they do? anyway, why isn't there a section at the ballbark for posey fans--you could call it ''the buster posse''. a takeoff on his name-you woder why no ones ever said that posey fans can be called the ''buster posse''. another ''panda'' type marketing idea.a panda , a giraffe...but the giants certainly don't want to become ...a White Elephant!
ReplyDeleteThe big problem is KNBR being controlled by Larry the Baer. That smacks of jaded journalism. We'll never hear anything bad about the Giants. We'll never hear any truths. Meanwhile, we'll have the two morning Hardy Boys, Fatnich, Rudy Ass Sucker and Fatto giving us the sports news. Puke.
ReplyDeleteBrian Hackney is the best weather reporter on KPIX. Paul Deanno is very good, but has to take second place compared to Hackney. Sorry, Roberta.
ReplyDeleteDeleted the word "weather" and make it all-around reporter (and anchor) and I'll agree with you 100 percent. The most talented man in Bay Area TV.
Deleteis there a chink in the bruce Jenkins armor? LOL! .well his image seems like a ''guy who can do no wrong''LOL...people have an image to some. he's like a more iconified version of ray woodson!. is ''iconified '' even a word?? ''hey bruce, some guy called you ''a more iconified version of ray woodson''...(Jenkins drops his pencil).''huh... that's a good one''...but really marty, I think casilla can start''(!).you should have a weekly ''readers 3 dot lounge''.maybe a new herb caen will be started here.
ReplyDeleteNow there's a phrase I don't hear very much anymore; "A 'chink' in the armor". Several visuals come to mind.
DeleteNot a fan of Bruce Jenkins style, "it says here" as if it's a proclamation from God himself, and he's often wrong, a month or so ago he had completely written off the Dodgers, but he does that every year simply to kiss the ass of Giants fans...
DeleteRich...you nailed Baer. There is so much more that could be said. Maybe someday...
ReplyDeleteAshley is better than anyone else in the Bay Area. Big deal. Certainly better than that Putz Ken Bastida. But what a low bar. Would rather look at Kristen Sze, really don't care what she says. Deano is a decent weather guesser, better than anyone else locally, but he is no Jackie Johnson. Amy Hole in the Head is marginal at best. But she put in an effort.
ReplyDeleteSadly more people listen to the Giants replay than to the live A's broadcast. Why is that?
ReplyDeleteThat's a stupid question. The Giants are constantly promoted the A's aren't. Can you add 1+1?!
DeleteNo, it's because the Giants have won three World Series in the last six seasons while A's ownership sucks MLB profits dry w/o any other effort to make the team better. When the A's are good, people come and they get pub.
DeleteAbsolutely amazed you like Ashley. He preens at the camera every second he can. It's like watching a thirteen year-old girl in front of her mirror. His asides and segues are moronic and inane. His hair coloring is as obvious as Godzilla in a wading pool. Paul, the weatherman, says "awesome" too much and is a dork. Rothman is fantastic.
ReplyDeleteAshley? I hope Frank Sommerville is taking notes...
ReplyDeleteI'd rather have a beer with Bastida than Martin, who gives off unpleasant vibes to me.
So PIX management thinks he's a "lightweight?" Who isn't these days, including the national anchors?
It's the Bay Area, FFS, a nice place, and SF is an internationally known city, but still not among the top tier in the world. We don't need Cronkite delivering what passes as "news" on local TV these days. (which is another topic altogether)
I have no knowledge of the inner workings of the Giants, but it seems to me they're doing exactly what a model franchise should be doing...fielding a winning team, playing in a nice venue (built in SF, no less!) in front of large crowds, and with a firm grip on their flagship media outlet. They're reaping the spoils of their success.
Compared to what Fisher and his figurehead Wolff are doing with the A's...collecting MLB welfare while acting as an unofficial minor league team developing players for everyone else to plunder? Good thing Walter Haas isn't around to see what happened to his team. Or even Finley, for that matter.
Or the Dodgers, who can't even be seen on TV by many of their fans during the great Vin Scully's last days?
Baer may be somewhat arrogant, but it's hard to argue with the job he's done.
Doth protest too much.
Interesting take on Dan Ashley and one I can really relate to. I rarely watch the local news anymore, but back in the day (not that long ago) when it meant something, my friends and I would often joke "If the world's gonna end, I want to hear it from Dennis Richmond." Dennis was awesome. Reading about him through the years I know he's a bit cocky, did not exactly bond with the rest of the staff, etc., but he was a pro. I always thought he would make a great national anchor, again, back when television news was big time. I don't even know if they still run the national news, I just remember feeling foolish watching three hour old news with all the advertisements for Rx drugs aimed at seniors. Still watched it though. Brokaw was awesome.
ReplyDeleteChirpy Franklin, a poser of the worst order. A neo-con down in San Diego, he comes up here and tries to change a stripe or two, but he's pure tripe.
ReplyDeleteThe other week I caught him stumble about trying to explain his bizarre belief that George W Bush was actually a good and decent president who has been unfairly maligned. That was it, I flipped him off, literally!
Larry Baer gave a commencement speech at San Francisco State. 99% of the speech was about him and his Giants. He gave the graduating class zero mention or advise. Just a self centered douche.
ReplyDeleteSwanson has no competition. KCBS is the only option. It's too bad most of their news has turned into fluff under his watch.
ReplyDeleteLarry Baer is a jerk-off who only cares about his beloved Giants, he's personally responsible for KNBR losing the Warriors...
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure Ashley is Olde English for treacle, especially on-air preening treacle.
ReplyDeleteAnd why the tease about Baer? For those of us out in the cold, you've forced the imagination to run wild. Does he devour children? Run white slave rings? A tad more info, please...
Ever since that incident with Larry Krueger and Felipe Alou the Giants have become a KNBR dictatorship. Pro Giants all the time
ReplyDeleteheard that this years sf election "pamphlet" is going to be 300 pages long
ReplyDeletekgo needs to keep rothmann on
oh, and here is some history about john that very few know about
http://www.jweekly.com/article/full/78302/time-tripping-through-san-franciscos-jewish-story/
the man is a legacy
I like Dan Ashley a lot but Eric Thomas and Ama Daetz together are poetry. Really like that pairing when he's filling in.
ReplyDeleteThanks Rich for finally mentioning how Larry Baer is hardly someone you'd want to admire or emulate. Yes, he's a very good businessman. Yes, he deserves a lot of credit for getting that beautiful new ballpark built. Yes, he has a wonderful front office and a terrific baseball operation. But this guy is one of the most disingenuous weasels out there and if you cross him, oh, you'd better watch out because he'll never forget. The way he and his cabal of white-wine sipping entitled co-owners disposed of the classy Bill Neukom was typical of the way this guy operates. Baer may not have engineered the coup, but some of the weasels who own shares of the club were evidently nonplussed that Neukom was getting all the face time on TV when the club won in 2010. Not worth mentioning their names because the ones who initiated that move are pretty contemptible. Baer would have gotten the job within a few years anyway, but he was so paranoid about not pleasing the other owners that he went along with this unnecessary backstabbing move. To his credit, Neukom never publicly complained or said a bad word about the organization. And the media didn't make a big deal about it because it was a bunch of rich guys basically screwing another rich guy. I mean who cares, right? But Larry Baer showed his true colors with that move. Hopefully some day, he'll end up on the wrong end of a royal screw job and feel the humiliation. He deserves it. The man is not a mensch, that's for sure.
ReplyDelete