Monday, February 13, 2012

New round of Cumulus layoffs coming soon; Syndication rumors abound; Armstrong and Getty badmouth ex-KGO hosts; Late Monday PM poster

A few Monday PM notes...

More and more word of another round of Cumulus layoffs, not just at KGOne, but KNBR and FM outlets too, and not just on-air people, but all other departments. This, amid a tumultuous feeling at 55 Hawthorne, (where Cumulus has its SF hdqrs. and is readying KGO Radio for a March/April move from its Embarcadero studios.)

Stay tuned.

*The rumor mill is once again buzzing that KGOne will eventually go all-syndicated programming, with a few news blocks and updates. Specifics aren't ripe, but just think a lot of Geraldo, yes that guy!...The Cumulitis effect is not merely limited to SF. Larry Elder, a black, conservative talk host and KABC tonsil has disappeared from the LA station's template amid a series of cost-cutting moves. These are bad times in the radio biz.

*Tacky award to "Armstrong and Getty", the Sacramento-based morning duo on 'NewsTalk 910', who upon returning from vacation, read "listener e-mail" mostly bad-mouthing the KGO fill-ins that worked last week.

Tacky. Tacky. Tacky.

You never embarrass your own talent and colleagues, that's the first rule of professional broadcasting. I'm not beholden to the ex-KGO hosts and their current job status--I've written about those I like and don't like, but that's not the point here.

If Armstrong and Getty are that insecure about their own gig as to openly read critical letters essentially lambasting their co-workers, then they read the handbook again. It's simply not professional, nor prudent either. Maybe they'll get a memo soon.

*Jared, the brown toilet paper is ever-increasing at your inner-office depot at KGOne.

*Henry Wofford, to answer your question on Twitter, I both rip and give props to all TV people. I'm an equal-opportunity ripper and lover. You want more "credentials", call my agent, Blugo Blogger. This much, Henry, I'd like you more if the voice shtick weren't so orchestrated and contrived, but you're getting better.

*Pray for ex-KCBS veteran anchor, Al Hart.

*Follow me on Twitter






35 comments:

  1. Never considered anything Armstrong and Getty did as funny or entertaining. Why they remain on the air is a mystery to me.

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    1. The fill-in hosts were a BIG improvement over the reruns of previous (and therefore not timely but old news) Armstrong and Getty shows. I've only listened periodically since the Dec. 1 KGO firings, and I've heard the SAME reruns twice. A&G are a bit silly and juvenile for my taste, not always, but often, and I can't say they do much to inform or educate. Loud, back and forth entertainment of their style in the morning doesn't work for me. Duos who laugh at each other's jokes, etc., are not all that riveting radio. I think their schtick is intended for a different audience than much of the previous KGO audience.

      I do agree with you, though, that criticizing their replacements is classless. After all, management hired them; it's not as if they just showed up and took over the studio.

      Delete
  2. Tired of the all the syndicated stuff. Armstong and Getty are not entertaining, and Im sure they are afraid of the better talent that filled in for them. Syndication making me turn on my radio les and less..

    Hey Rich, what about that LOCAL story NBC BAYAREA did on MAYAR REED in San Jose. I thought it was pretty good investigative type reporting, LOCAL TOO! Mayaor Reed is A LIAR and a CHEAT! I thought you might comment on the KNTV story?? You can see it on their web site.

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  3. Which on-air talents will Cumulus lay off at KNBR?

    Murph and Mac are signed for 6 years. (besides,even if they weren't signed to an extension, they wouldn't be let go because Cumulus has no one to replace the 5-9 shift) Ralph and Tom aren't going anywhere; Ralph re-signed to a new contract, and Tom is valued by Culumus. Fitz's salary is still paid by the Warriors.

    This leaves Gary, Larry, Brooks, Damon and Brynes as the candidates.

    Cumulus will probably leave Damon alone. He has done KNBR and KGO--both cumulus-owned stations--multiple favors, while subbing for the Jim Rome show. He's cheap talent, a value that is envied by Cumulus and other radio corporations. He will likely stay, but will, in his words, be "radically underpaid."

    They might set their eyes on Gary, whose on-air celebrity gossip and his out of touch sports knowledge causes listeners to lose interest. But it might, in effect, cost Larry his gig because he's paired with the "great raddu" (I'm spelling it wrong on purpose) Then again, Larry could be paired up with Damon; they work well together.

    As for Brooks, he'll probably stay on with Fitz but might be asked to reduce his salary.

    Brynes...listeners know he's pretentious and that he doesn't have any sports opinions. He just makes it look like he does, by BSing. But his pretentiousness comes out with his BS, spiraling ratings. Brynes could also be replaced by Larry, if he is not paired with Damon.

    Brynes and Gary will likely receive the pink slips, because they drive away ratings.

    After these hosts are given pink slips, the new lineup might look like this:

    680:
    Murph and Mac (5-9)
    Larry/Damon (9-12)
    Fitz and Brooks (12-3)
    Razor and Mr.T (3-7)
    Larry/ Damon (7-10)

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Brynes and Gary will likely receive the pink slips, because they drive away ratings.


      Ratings have very little to do with these decisions. It's all about getting rid of salaries.

      Delete
  4. Henry and Jim Kozimar are heavily influenced by Radnich and feel they are filling a void when the old man retires. Like Radnich,they feel sports talk is based on entertainment over substance.

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  5. Who are Armstong and Getty?

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    Replies
    1. The best radio hosts in Northern California!

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    2. Some idiots from Sacramento who think they are funny..too bad they are the only ones

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  6. The only time I hear the A&G show is during snippets they play when I tune in to Tillem's show on iHeart radio. They sound like a couple juvenile imbecils. If those highlights are the "best of A&G" then they suck. No wonder they attacked the exKGONE pros...they are fighting to keep their shitty show on air...

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  7. I would like to listen to 910, but those incredibly long and repetitive promos drive me insane.

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    Replies
    1. Agreed! I have 910 on from 3pm-7pm and if I have the promo for A&G memorized..."if it doesn't have alcohol, don't call it a cocktail" God help me. And please, 910, your timing is off. After every promo or commercial, they cut back to the host in mid sentence.

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  8. Like 08:39, above, I'd also like to listen to AM 910, especially at night. But the night time AM 910 signal in North Fremont sucks. It's marginal during daylight hours, but in the evening it's hard to separate their signal from background hiss, signal fade, and crosstalk. And after 10 p.m., well you can just forget it entirely... so, I do.

    When I tried to make a switchover from KGOne, I never expected AM 910 to be a 50,000 watt blowtorch; but neither did I expect them to be a 10 watt refrigerator lightbulb.

    Regarding Armstrong & Getty, I've listened to them at times when they were pretty darned funny, though somewhat sophomoric. However, whenever the one with the higher-pitched voice goes on an agitated rant, I simply can't tolerate that shrill voice that reminds me of an ex-girlfriend who suffered from PMS (and made me suffer, as well). So, I switch over to either AM 960, or AM 740. And I never listen to AM 910 when "Mr. Limbo" is spouting his vitriolic crapola.

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  9. I avoid any shows whose primary purpose is mean-spiritedness for its own sake. I'm not sure who those shows are trying to appeal to, maybe to those who enjoy feeling like they are participating in a bully mob when they listen. That would seem to be a very low mentality.

    But meanness and harsh criticism targeted at sources of apparent corruption or gross incompetence exhibited by those in positions of high power is a different matter entirely. It could help society.

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  10. I heard Henry Wofford of Comcast Sportsnet Bay Area hosting a show
    the other day on 'The Game.' His bloviating style is really annoying and I don't understand why he thinks that's going to attract an audience.

    Management at 'The Game' however seems to like to use all or many of the Comcast sportsnet hosts (like Kozimor and Papa), and I wonder if it's because they're getting these guys for cheap.


    In any case, I'm not at all impressed, and I don't think many other listeners are either, by the 'Game's' mostly lame and irrelevant programming. I thought they were going to push KNBR, but the only thing they seem to want to to is brag about how they're not 'old and tired' like KNBR. Hey guys...get a clue! and also having a team on your station other than the Oakland A's
    (who very few people even follow anymore) might help your ratings!

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  11. A & G were simply addressing the fact that most of THEIR listeners did not care for KGO-Lite as fill-ins. Gil "aahhhhhhhh" Gross is unlistenable. Special Ed and Rosie bickered at each other. Rothman was the OK, but these people are not geared for A & G's audience.

    You can't force feed a liberal agenda on right thinking folks.

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  12. Armstrong and Getty are not going anywhere. Sure, they are idiots but they have ratings. I can really see one of the old KGO guys lighting it up in the morning on 910-AM, as soon as 610 goes back to Top 40. Won't ever happen.

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  13. The "game" is run by east coast cronies who do not know anything about this market. The worst is that crony BT, his sports knowledge is despicable. Has no idea about hockey or any other sport besides football and a little baseball. I went back to old and busted. 95.7 will not be a sports station by the end of the year.

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  14. A&G's appeal is to the coveted young demographic. The crowd that gets news from John Stewart rather than Huntley and Brinkley or Walter Cronkite. They know they are pretty well screwed, listening to Baby Boomer radio icon's is not where they are at. Very odd move putting exKGO hosts on as fill for A&G. The younger people want the silly, sophomoric, South Parkish stuff. They are conservative and not interested in stilted old liberals.

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    Replies
    1. but those youn-uns voted overwhelmingly for Obama and will again....so the meme that they are conservative...just isn't so.

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    2. Will they vote for Obama if the "popular" thing to do is to vote against him? Will they vote at all if they can't jump on the trendy bandwagon? Obama was youngish, mixed race, more hip than McCain, used all the latest technology etc. Did they vote for him because of his policies or just his image? How interested in politics are they anyway? There was an awful lot of effort put in to register these young voters. They didn't take the initiative to register on their own. So we'll see IF they vote and who they vote for.

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  15. I have listen to Armstrong and Getty for years, they are more conservative than I am, but not as meanspirited as Brian Sussman and Melanie Morgan, they can be funny, often have decent guests on, such as Chris Matthews and Anderson Cooper, they are conservative, but still try to be fair. I think they are a good morning show, not in leque with John Rothman, Gil Gross or Gene Burns, though. I rarely care for best of re-runs, often the subject is old by then, or if I have already heard the show, I have no interest in hearing it again.

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  16. What a low class, unprofessional move on the part of A&G. When KGO was in it's heyday, not that long ago, reading negative emails about another host would never be done. Since people have different tastes, I am sure that people, at times,wrote an email to one host, bad mouthing another. KGO then was a class act. I'm wondering about 910. It's one thing to split the station with hosts from different ends of the political spectrum, another to allow mean spirited, unprofessional behavior towards other hosts. No excuse for management for allowing this a second time.

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  17. The liberal doctrine: I hate Armstrong & Getty but I listen anyway.

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  18. I heard A&G reading the listener comments and it hit me wrong. I have been listening to A&G for several years and like them for the most part. Just very disappointed with their judgment on this one.

    Finding myself splitting afternoon internet radio time between 910 and 640-KFI. 640-KFI has John & Ken 3-7pm. A&G remind me of a John & Ken lite.

    Never knew listening to the radio would ever be this difficult.

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    Replies
    1. I never would have thought so either! Also: KFI 640 (which you can hear over the air on Venus on a clear night) used to broadcast A&G on weekends so that listeners could have a "lite," as you say, version of John and Ken...and by the way, as a part-time KFI listener, I think, and maybe you do too, that whether you agree or disagree with J&K's views, you have to give the boys a lot of credit for doing their homework, knowing their subjects, and--to use a vastly overworked term--for having what seems to be "passion" on their show. They do give it their all.

      Delete
  19. Gary routine is so freaking old, he has such a bad chip on his shoulder. and does not follow sports. Byrnes is unlistenable too along with Fitz and Brooks. Fitz is like flies on shit, as much as we want to give him the boot, he seems to be kissing asses mgment, don't understand why this moron is still doing play by play for the Warriors.

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  20. Have been listening a bit to A&G over the last month and a half. They actually remind me of programs on the radio in uber conservative northern Penna. and central NY (not near NYC...) in the 1950's. Have memories of my grandfather milking the cows and listening to the same kind of idiotic banter in the barn. I'm not sure that the cows even enjoyed it. Even though I was a young kid, it sounded pretty stupid to me, even then. How far does their program carry...is it just Sacramento and SF? Seems better suited to Wisconsin, Michigan, midwest than California. No "couth" and ripping the KGO hosts shows it.

    Yes, agree, who knew that listening to the radio could be so difficult!

    Rich, we've been able to keep partial track of a lot of the KGOone hosts, but does anyone know the fate of all the "non air" people that were also axed...producers, screeners, etc. I often think about them and wonder if they've fared any better.

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  21. What's wrong with Al Hart? I hope he's okay...

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  22. I second the question by 04:01: What's up with Al Hart? I did a Google search and nothing of note came up. In fact, most of what I found went back several years to his retirement from KCBS to aid in his wife's care. Thank God that Al Hart is no Newt Gingrich. When his wife was suffering, he honored his marital vow to remain faithful "in sickness and in health." And then there were his weekly Wednesday morning visits to the newsroom with fresh snickerdoodles and his enjoyable banter with John Madden, that accompanied the visits. Truly a gentleman's gentleman. I miss his presence in morning radio, though I think that today's "me first... screw you" younger generation would find him boring.

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  23. I LOVE A&G and am not in the younger demographics at 56. I heard the whole show on Monday morning. They were reading The Mailbag, which they always do. Sounded like most of the letters were regarding the fill-in hosts. A&G kept saying how these fill ins were the top talkshow host of the Bay Area. I never heard them say anything personally bad about the hosts.

    That said, I love John Rothmann, but he isn't a good fit for 6:00 in the morning. I don't think I appreciated how much I enjoy nonsense and humor to wake up to each morning. None of the hosts were a good fit for A&G. They should have made more of an effort to go a bit lighter; most specifically John.

    Evidently we all have a different sense of humor. I find something to chuckle at frequently each morning. I've been listening to them for almost as long as they have been in Sacramento and feel like I know them well. They are both "good people."

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    1. I am a 44 year old teacher and A & A are the best. All they did was read listener feeback and stated the weeks hosts were a little dry. Which they were. Stop spreading false rumors Richie.

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  24. Is Henry Wolford trying to sound like Don Cornelius (RIP)

    Is Wolford really 5'4 inches tall?

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  25. Please get rid of Byrnes. I can't deal with the screaming.

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  26. Hey...management at the "Game." How about hiring a credible,
    professional announcer who actually knows what is going on in the area and has some familiarity with Northern California.
    Oh I forgot! That formula is 'old and tired.'

    Guess what...you're young and irrelevant...no one is listening to you and no one cares about the Oakland A's!

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