Tuesday, May 24, 2022

Ask Rich Lieberman

TV NEWS, Radio, Newspaper, Internet, Bay Area-centric, I will ANSWER your questions.

Please, name and city gets to the front of the line.

69 comments:

  1. TK from MV
    Where did VDLC end up going to?

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    1. https://twitter.com/ReedReports/status/1529149308414607362?s=20&t=McTzFtRjlMV0vHgYA7T4nA

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  2. A cable network called "Newsy" --I don't know much about it --haven't seen it or Veronica --but I'll try to get a glance.

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    1. Actually it' s over the air with rabbit ears antenna.
      Channel 65-5 or something.

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  3. Scott from Concord has 2 questions: 1. Bay Area local news stations have gotten quite unwatchable (IMO) as of late between the amateurish reporting/anchoring (KPIX being a nororious example, the newscast reminds me of watching "grade school" reports with lots of mispronunciations) and more fluff than insightful reporting. (Henry Lee's stuff on KTVU tends to be good, though.), My mainstay, KTVU, I have been watching less of (I am tired of the "musical chairs" anchors, also lots of typos and grammatical errors). KRON in the evening hours is getting better and I am now watching more (less "infomercial" ad segments seems to help as well). Is there any way that the local stations put on more "hard news" and less "fluff", plus improve the quality of the presented product?
    2. It is not just KGO, but all of Cumulus ratings for their stations are falling (except KNBR, due to the Giants). Do you foresee them unloading KGO &/or KSFO as well as KSAN("The Bone"), and if so, what will they change formats too?

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    1. TV News here is deplorable with KTVU and KPIX leading the awful pack. The business has become a marginalized mess with legacy stations becoming embarrassments. It's not going to get any better anytime soon, just reality.

      With regards to Cumulus, yeah, they have RUINED radio here (and elsewhere) but it was already in the crapper.

      As far as what's for sale, they're ALL for sale only problem is radio is DEAD so I don't know if they're worth anything anymore.

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    2. KPIX 11PM news anchored by Admiral Yamamoto and Captain Cook. The Lt Jessica thing is really dumb.

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    3. I heard an update on the KPIX sports desk. Col Sanders and Col Tom Parker are the finalists for Dennis's job. Heggen is mad becuase he's been bucking for promotion to Major.

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  4. Craig in San CarlosMay 24, 2022 at 9:35 AM

    Greg Papa's mom passed away and he still did his knbr show in a professional manner. That has to be tough. You know better than most the pain of losing another. Why would knbr make the poor guy do that? Rest in peace mama papa.

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    1. He probably wanted to do the show. Good for him. Everyone has their own way of dealing with grief and loss. I know my mom would have told me to go about my normal biz. Maybe Papa's mom felt the same.

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    2. assumes that broadcaster was unaware of "the show must go on"

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    3. Greg was already in Buffalo (his home) for a couple of weeks because his mother's health was getting worse (cancer). She was a big fan of the Warriors and was able to watch the game with Greg the night before she passed. He mentioned in his open that his mom would of wanted him to do the show. Also, if I would have stayed home, I would've been a wreck. He did a nice tribute to his mother Theresa Papa.

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  5. Laura Garcia Cannon was working from home for a week, and then they had her doing stories from the back of the studio for another week. Why was that? Does not seem like covid because she was at the studio. Was it covid or just PMS?

    Rem, retired in Fairfield

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    1. Probably a combination of both.

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    2. South Bay WatcherMay 24, 2022 at 2:14 PM

      Technically there is no studio right now. They're doing a remodel so what they did previously during COVID when it flared up in the newsroom...separate the anchors by more than six feet in the studio...is currently impossible because the main anchor desk was moved from where it was in order to do the remodel. So one anchor is at the desk and the other is in the newsroom. I expect this to continue for weeks until 11 decides to stop socially distancing its anchors. Besides NBC Bay Area, currently only ABC7 is doing this. Everyone else is back to normal with talent studio positioning.

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  6. Is there any chance you can return that 1979 issue of Hustler that I left in the Fresno gas station bathroom?

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    1. Sure thing, I'll get right on it.

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    2. I'll take the bullet for Rich.
      I have it...and will return it. Please be advised that several of the pages are now stuck/fused together.

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  7. Silky Johnson in AlamedaMay 24, 2022 at 10:07 AM

    I am in love with this Ginger lady field reporter on the bay area nbc morning news. Any info you can provide. Where did she come from? What's your analysis on her performance? And most importantly, how can I get an introduction?

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    1. Tweet her and tell her you're in love I'm sure she'll stop everything and get in touch with you, "Silk."

      Have a good day.

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  8. Did the powers that be decline to renew Tori Campbell's contract because of the Asiana crash and her reading of the fake crew names?

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  9. What was KCBS thinking when Alisa Clancy got canned from her cushy KCSM gig and decided to hire her? Terrible even when hidden on the graveyard shift.

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    1. PC run amok. That's all I could surmise.

      She's terrible. On the air. Giggles-voice and all.

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    2. Watching Mabrissa doing weather is “watchable” and beautiful “eye candy” to look at. There are times I get distracted by her beautiful body figure than concentrating on the weather...

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  10. Any thoughts on KRON weather lady Mabrisa Rodriguez?

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    1. Haven't seen enough of her but from what I hear, I ought to.

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    2. She's absolutely unlistenable!

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    3. I like her. She has an odd inflection in her speech, but I think it just adds to her charm.

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    4. I consider Mabrisa the best weathercaster in the Bay area. Concise, clear, unambiguous reports; easy to understand what she is sayiing even in a noisy environment; pleasant and inviting. My only quibble is sometimes her outfit is a little too colorful, clashes with the weather map background.

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    5. Obviously 4:20 has to be kidding. Mabrisa is the definition of what small market TV looks like.

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    6. Unsure what 10:19 PM refers. What I'm looking for weather-report wise, first priority, is someone who speaks clear, understandable English, and presents the weather report quickly, and concisely. By contrast many of the local weather reports include a considerable amount of dead air, mumbling, and otherwise irrelevant jabber. MR starts immediately with the report, covers what needs to be covered, and then ends. Exactly what I want.

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  11. Hi Rich,

    I'm curious to know why KCBS at 6:00AM has a click/pop noise?
    Is the station switching transmitters? I've heard this noise for years.

    Some days the way they run the station I wish they would just shut the station down.

    Thanks for your blog...enjoy it every day.

    Sweating in the East Bay.

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    1. Hi there Sweating/EB, thanks for the kind words.

      I have no idea about the noise but given it's KCBS, I'm not surprised --they just are a clueless operation whether it's technical noise or their own on-air ineptitude.

      It's a shame too because KCBS used to be quite a news outlet.

      No more.

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    2. Its called directional antennas. KCBS uses different patterns for day and night. In May, daytime begins at 6am. It will be 5:45 in June. The directional antennas keep the signal from wafting too deep into the ocean.

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    3. This is what drives me crazy about reading you, Rich. You posture as if you're an expert on the media, and especially on the stations you criticize all the time (KCBS being the perfect example). Then, when a reader asks a serious question with a pretty obvious answer, you use it as an excuse to knock KCBS without even trying to figure out what he's asking about. 11:36 is right, and if you'd asked the obvious follow-up question ("Are you listening on AM or FM?"), the answer would have been obvious, because if 10:43 was listening on FM, he would never hear the pattern change *every* morning (and also at sundown). Back in the old days, McElhattan or Hart might actually mention the pattern change just before the engineer (manually) threw the switch. A long-time listener like you really should have remembered that.

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    4. If you worked at KCBS you'd feel a little different. I don't pick on KCBS, they make it easy for me to pick on them, AM or FM.

      I don't know inside technical issues or signal stuff but I do have readers who are immersed in those areas of interest, and they answered the question asked.

      Have a nice day.

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  12. I see that Larry Beil seems to be missing from KGO7 for a while now. Any reason why?

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    1. Probably normal vacation time --just a guess. But I'll check.

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  13. Cumulus CEO Mary Berner stopped by on Monday to take a look at the office space consolidation project. She’s happy with the SF cluster and says the company is healthy. It’s the reason they didn’t accept the takeover bid.

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    1. Uh, sure, thanks for the update. I couldn't sleep.

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    2. This doesn't jibe with your bash KGO routine.

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    3. This speaks directly to the future of KGO/KSFO/KNBR. If Cumulus SF is better positioned now, that neutralizes a lot of the speculation.

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  14. I really like weatherman Mark Tamayo on KTVU. He's smooth, doesn't stumble, and his cat doesn't try to hog screen time. What do you really have against him?

    Peter from San Jose

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    1. Not a thing, Peter, maybe your mindset was invaded by the marine layer.

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  15. I listen to KNBR a lot. Probably too much, but I like sports. My problem is Susan Slutsher. She calls in all the time as a guest and is always trying to validate herself as a Giants writer, but she just got the job. Why didn't the chronicle give that beat to an experienced giants writer, instead of someone from the A's?

    Mr. Maite in Oakland. Thank you

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    1. Slusser covered the A's for over 20 years and was in line for the Giants beat when Hank Schulman retired.

      That said, I'm not impressed with Slusser unless you like a cheerleader reporter who seems more of a fan than beat writer.

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    2. She's just following Hankie's lead. He was a big cheerleader for the Giants. The problem is the media isn't objective anymore. They're more fans than anything else. No objectivity. Disgusting.

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  16. If 95.7 hires Larry Kruegger, do you think he gets paid in cash or beef fat chips from Pig In A Pickle?

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  17. Any thoughts on the Giants new Pre and Postgame host, Laura Britt? IMO, she seems to be a little better than her predecessors. And much better than Amy G!

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    1. She's better than average and I enjoy her, for the most part.

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  18. Thanks Rich and Anon 11:36 AM

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  19. I know most of us are not big fans of the Chronicle on here but I'm one of the few remaining actual paper subscribers. Like most people I get 98.99% of my sports news online but still find it frustrating that half the stories in the Sporting Green now state they occurred too late for press time and to go the website to read more. So how's this early deadline garbage working out for them? Do they still think it's a good idea? It stinks. Another sign of dying paper. The Warriors playoff game wins don't appear until two days later!!

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  20. Hi Rich: Out of the 5 bay area news stations KTVU Channel 2 is the worst when it comes to incessantly repeating fluff news stories already shown for 3 to 5 days. Examples being Claudine Wong's story about the 1st Vietnamese 1960's rock star who now at 77 lives in the East Bay. For Asian/Pacific Heritage month KTVU has been repeating this story ad nauseum on all their news platforms since last Friday. I saw it again this morning on Mornings on Two. Another blatant example is the story of the 68 year old Wisconsin man who has eaten 1 McDonald's Big Mac for the past 50 years & who has just been entered in the Guinness Book of World Records. I first saw this silly story last Friday on Channel 2 news at 4 pm & it also has been repeated ad nauseum for the past 5 days on all their news platforms. Maybe that is why KTVU's ratings are now in the Dumper-Lazy Amber Eikel: how about having your news reporters actually pound the beat & go out to report on actual news stories instead of the stupid fluff you keep repetitively repeating for up to 3 to 5 days.
    Rich: As you would aptly say "What An Abomination" Any thoughts Rich? Rich: You are the Absolute Best Bay Area Blogger! Cary SF

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    1. You said it about as well as can be stated, Cary.

      Thanks for your very kind words too.

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  21. Do you think Mike Mibach will get the blame for KTVU evening shows tanking? Gotta say I don't think it's on him. That station has been sliding for a while IMO. Just bad timing for Mibach.

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  22. Breathless Slusser reports on the Giants.

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  23. Rich, would you say John Rothmann asked an unusual number of softball questions to the DA the other day on his KGO radio talk show? If so, any speculations why?

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    1. As someone who wasn't listening that night, I try to imagine what softball questions he would have asked.. perhaps his favorite sandwich at Calmart,what he thought of steve Moskovitz tie selection, how many c crane radios he ordered,and what he really thought of henry Cabot lodge and the "stolen" election of 1960

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  24. Harry D. from Pleasanton here. You know, I appreciate what you do to tell everyone about how crappy the news media on all channels--print, TV and radio--really is in the Bay Area. The truth hurts and you have to be an idiot not to notice. However, what's the solution? Is there one? Does anyone care? Are we all zombies? Certainly the jugheads who run things know how mediocre everything is, yet no one does anything. You know the old saying about doing the same stupid thing and getting the same result. I'm sorry, but it applies here. It's frustrating. Do keep up the good work as someone has got to notice sometime, right?

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  25. Rich, I agree with your general sentiments regarding the solid work of Dan Ashley and Ama Daetz. I’m curious to know why they never seem to be in the same studio when they toss to Kimmel at the end of their 11p cast. Is this how they’re building a better Bay Area, are the still using pandemic protocols or have you heard something different?

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  26. Given spread of the new (Covid) variant, I think they're being cautious. Everyone should follow their lead.

    That's what I've heard.

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  27. Is Eric Thomas a permanent hire on KCBS? He stumbles over himself and self-consciously ad-libs trying to recover. He sounds like a high schooler.

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  28. Lamont and Tonelli, or is it, Lamont and Chasta on 107.7 The Bone? For a Traffic Reporter, she sure is on the mic an awful lot!!!

    Paul
    Los Gatos

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    1. Uh, she's a DJ and the Program Director.

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    2. She has HER OWN air shift, 10-2.

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    3. Oh no, don’t let a woman participate on the morning show!

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  29. Rich-Did you catch Jesse Gary doing the sport on KTVU earlier this week? Hard to watch given all the mistakes-wrong names, pauses/delays reading script with highlights-lack of overall knowledge of the sport/games. Did they not have anyone else their to cover? Matt/SF

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