KGO, 810 AM at the dial and, at one time many moons ago, (2008) the #1-rated-station in the Bay Area for 32 years is about to do a reverse in open field...they are days away; maybe a few short weeks perhaps; from RETURNING to a "News-Talk" format, "live and local" and getting rid of the putrid lifestyle iteration, 415 Media has learned through various broadcast sources.It won't be the original, old KGO model more a hybrid of news and talk that will emphasize the news of the day, especially local news and yes of course, national news dominated by President Trump and his 24-7 news cycle extravaganzas --something I've been preaching since the last PD preferred to talk about food and romance as opposed to what everybody else in the country! was talking about, ain't that a relic.
(I'm not going to brag, yes I am, they read me and have finally succumbed to Captain Obvious)
How the new format is actually programmed is anyone's guess. I'll take a stab; The daytime platform (from 10-7 PM) will involve new and not so new hosts --Ronn Owens is a longshot on the board but not entirely out of the question. He's still battling a myriad of health issues but he's also local and is better than Captain Awful, Ethan Bearman, who is all but gone but nothing's official. As I indicated on Tuesday, Brian Copeland seems to have a gig back if he wants it but at what price? Ronn would work for free just to get out of the house and his wife (Jan Black) might even pitch in for some time alone.
John Rothmann, a favorite of mine because he's smart and sounds intelligent on the air and knows politics should be on a daytime roster --say, 1-4, because I'm hearing 7-10 PM is looking like syndicated island; anyway, Rothmann's political acumen is prime red meat for breaking news; NEWS-TALK spaghetti and meatballs summing up the all-day Trump shenanigans --it's not only obvious programming it IS ESSENTIAL and smart too.
I don't know what is in store for Chip Franklin other than he's got a contract and could either be bought out or trained to talk about other things besides sex and Billy Joel stories, the "7-F" deli variety that is being fazed out.
Pat Thurston is either going to be a host on the weekend or weekdays because she's a woman and KGO needs that demo. She's also controversial too (in a good way) and KGO needs a spark. Hell, anything that can wake up the carcass is in the mix.
For now, that's all I know but more on the horizon I'm sure.
Where is the NEWS coming from? They don't shuffle the DECK to get a new IDEA they shuffle the same hand. Without promotion and Marketing it's still secret. So sorry for this once great radio station. Cumulus Killed it, Blamed everyone else for it's failure and are still not willing to admit it's there fault. And wont spend any money or time to fix it. Every thing that made KGO Great is gone, fired or DEAD. Stop trying to revive it...Blow it up and start over.
ReplyDeleteHooray!
ReplyDeleteI would like to see them bring back Dr Bill for a few hours each week.
ReplyDeleteKeep the overnight airwaves "live and local" by bringing back the knowledgeable provocative Ray Taliaferro. When Ray is "on mike", callers (and sponsors) will come! And Rich, thanks for clarifying whether Mary Berner and Mary "Mounds" Turner, dj par excellence on "A Little Bit of Heaven, 94.7, KMET", are one and the same. Stands to reason that Mary could have evolved from DJ to Westwood One programmer to Cumulus corporate management. "Sometimes I wonder, other times I'm sure."
ReplyDeleteControversial in a crazy grandma coming to Thanksgiving dinner sorta way.
ReplyDeleteThe big hurdle is morning drive. Pulling the plug on A&G is a no-brainer, but who do they have for that slot? None of the people you mentioned could do a strong morning show.
ReplyDeleteIt’s also sad that 7-10 will be syndicated. I realize ratings after 6 pm aren’t that important, but a lot of news breaks late in the day, so it would be nice to have somebody good in that time slot to talk about it. If you’re going to be “live and local” that is. I’d even put up with Thurston and her Trump bashing at that hour, hoping she’d occassionally do other topics.
BTW, are you getting Trump fatigue? One tribe hates him and the other loves him. He’s not surprising any more. And if you’re on a station that hates him, there are many topics you can’t discuss anymore like the economy, jobs, ISIS and North Korea. You’re limited to old favorites like Stormy, Melania, racism and trade wars. I feel sorry for the folks at CNN who have to fill their air time with Stormy and how Trump compares to Hitler. You know they must be secretly hoping for another jetliner to disappear over the ocean again.
One of the great things about living in SF if you're a liberal...is that you can simply go on living your life w/o giving a damn about what Trump does. I cannot stand the man--yet I don't worry about him, his flock, or what the hell goes on in Washington. San Francisco is one of the rare cities in the country where one can isolate himself/herself. We have a liberal government that has the cojones to stand up to Trump and the Religious Right. We can do whatever the hell we want.
DeleteYeah--Trump supporters who read this will probably make some snide/snarky comments about illegal immigrants, homeless, and welfare cheats living here. Go ahead--I don't care. I'd rather my tax dollars go to "waste" on these people...than towards religious zealots (I'm athiest), racists (I'm not White; my parents emigrated illegally 50-years ago...and managed to carve out an upper-middle class life for them and my siblings--all while paying taxes), and rednecks (I love multi-culturalism).
I love San Francisco. Those who don't either don't live here...or should get the HELL out.
Is that what Rush told you to write? There are dozens of topics to discuss re 45* including the ones you say "you can't discuss": what looks like the end to the Obama economic recovery,how 45* was played by N Korea) in addition to the collusion,Russian election interference (and hijacking in at least 3 swing states), the daily tweets to discredit the FBI and other law enforcement in order to bias a potential jurors,picking another SC Justice to side with him when his case goes to the Court,obstruction of justice, money laundering,Russian $ to the NRA...
Delete8:11: Pulling the plug on A&G is not a no-brainer. Like 'em or not, A&G are top 5 in the morning. Good luck finding a morning show that will do better for KGO.
DeleteSo much anger and hate in 7:43 and 8:05.
DeleteOh wait, they're liberals. It makes much more sense now.
lol@"Obama economic recovery". I guess we'll have to figure out how to pay that 10 billion back to the credit card from the Bank of China now huh?
Well, at least they're talking about 45's transgressions and not blatantly covering them up/ignoring them like they did under 44. I would list them here however I have better things to do with the next 4 hours of my life.
DeleteThey elected a complete joke when they elected 44. The right said, rightfully so, "You want a joke? Fine, well give you an even bigger joke". And here we are. Don't gloss over the coddled clown and his merry band of hucksters that came before 45.
DeleteAs far as Trump and the GOP goes, it's beyond discussion anymore. If you can't see how destructive, immoral, lying and downright vile they are, then I don't know what to say. Don't you dare bring up Obama again, there is no comparison. Trump/GOP supporters, whether you know it or not, are mentally impaired. Just wait and see 2 years from now the state of this country and then you will know the truth.
Delete10 trillion, even worse. Honest typo.
DeleteObama had accomplished far less in his life up until point of election and was far more coddled by the overall media.
Deletemr anon, what exactly had trump accomplished beyond labeling stuff he doesnt own with his name and being a reality tv star? oh yea, he declared bankruptcy 3x...that is a great accomplishment
Delete7:43...Yes you do have a liberal government, the government that made it possible for Kate Steinle, a beautiful 30 year old woman to be murdered, shot in the back on Pier 14 while she was walking with her family. She died in her father arms, her last words were, "Daddy help me." The date, 7-1-15.
DeleteKate was "simply" trying to live her life!
I imagine there are more than a few people under 40 in SF who could do a decent job hosting a talk show. One of Luckoff's gifts was his ability to get interesting people behind the mike, whether they had experience in radio or not. Ray T., Thurston, Krasny, Copeland. I imagine there are more than a few podcast hosts in the Bay Area who would jump at the chance.
ReplyDeleteChange seem to already has come to KGO, I listened to Ethan Bearman for almost one and a half hour this morning, (a first) and not once did he mentioned diet, tofu, no carbs. Mostly political talk, is he trying to save his job, or has he been told to change format? Last night late I heard an advertisement for Ronn Owens 10 a.m. to 12 noon. I imagined it was a mistake, they have continued to run ads for Brian's show, but have never heard one for Ronn. Rich do you have more updated information?
ReplyDeleteanyone but bearman. and if rothman gets a daily gig, i will be in heaven.
ReplyDeleteAmen to Rothman being on 5 days a week.
DeleteI hope KGO keeps A&G, they have a solid show and they've got a loyal following.
ReplyDeleteI've also noticed some big changes with Bearman, he is now taking calls and talking one on one with listeners. I think the changes in his format will improve his show. I'd like to give him a chance to stay on KGO. Bearman is younger than the rest and KGO needs that younger demo.
You could be right about Bearman, I too notice his show has changed, I listened for over an hour today, and did not hear, diet, tofu, no carb once. I like when he interviews David Lazarus (who for a short time had a show on KGO, and was quite good). He is either trying to keep his job, or the new boss letting him know what he should talk about. He is still kind of annoying, scream into the microphone at times. He was on KSFO taking over after Barbara Simpson was let go, and he had a much more serious show then. As for A&G you can hear them on 650 AM Sacramento,
DeleteWhen you say Rothmann knows politics, that's an understatement. He is a scholar and an expert on presidential history. I think he belongs on one of the major networks like CNN. He dwarfs in knowledge the so called "experts" they use as consultants.
ReplyDelete