It no longer registers cachet on the local broadcasting scene; its once-dominant ratings are now declining and any upswing is masked by a management team that seems to be incapable of mapping out a plan, or at least a vision of what's to take place in the future.
From this corner, I don't think they're merely buying time. For what? Clearly, the present business model is a holding pattern at best.
*The ratings, that is, the 6 AM cluster until 7 PM are stagnant at best, in the dumpster at worst. The all-male doldrums are just that. Mediocrity rules the day.
*Chip Franklin (4-7 PM) may have the edge in influence with the suits but his show is formulated around old, tried-and-trued, AM radio melba toast. There is no fire, no momentum, nothing particularly move-the-needle content. And Franklin, and by extension, KGO, seems to think that giving REO Speedwagon tickets to listeners will draw an audience. Not. In addition, Franklin's reliance on a giggling, inane, news woman who couldn't induce emotion if her hair caught on fire, helps the program. It only hurts and it borders on ridiculous when they're talking about stupid topics and the world is burning down and Trump is freaking out.
*The future of RONN: One of these days, Owens Ronn, is either going to retire, be forced out, or eaten by cockroaches. Either way, Ronn's ratings are in the toilet and although he still makes money for the company, it's mostly pennies now and used to pay off the coffee machine budget. I'm being facetious about the latter but Mr. Softie is in the rear-view mirror.
*KGO's evening 1-2 punch consisting of Pat Thurston and John Rothmann, according to a source, want some sort of notice from the suits as to their status. Like, for instance, "what are your plans for us?" The current practice of temporary scheduling is both frustrating and inadequate. The managers might like it but Thurston and Rothmann are not that crazy about it and have led it be known, again, according to a station source.
"Mr. Softie" as you refer to him carried KGO on his back for decades. I feel ole Ronnie can take all the time in the world he wants, he earned it. Stay frosty, Rich.
ReplyDeleteMr. Softie is 10 year past his prime. Time to put him out to pasture. And for years it was the supporting cast at KGO that made it what it was, not just Ronnnnnnn. If he had any spine he would of taken a stand before the dismantling back in 2011 and maybe KGO would of stayed relevant. Its too late now. The re-arranging of the deck chairs won't save this sinking ship.
DeleteDoes anybody at all listen to that Ethan Berman, KGO noon to 2 pm? Other than perhaps the first 5 minutes where he does a news of the day summary, it's the most boring content I've heard in years. The UFO/BigFoot station is way more interesting. Noon to 2 pm is KCBS time for me. Just a press of a button to rid the sound of talk about carbs vs protein, the best internet site for pricing cars, or how to make a burrito with whole wheat wraps, just a button press to content much more interesting. No complaints. To each their own. Maybe there's somebody in KGO listener-land who wants carbohydrate talk. But for me, at minute 6 of the Ethan Berman show, one single button press, Ethan vamoose!! OK, maybe I'm missing something. What's the number one item of merit on the Ethan Berman?
ReplyDeleteHis sidekick girl, Please stop saying "like" This program is like, you know, like..unlistenable.
DeleteBearman is in the Drex, Langon, Franklin mold- light weight, uninformed, insignificant, and, cheap. Just another in a long line of flops as the station tries to sell us they are the new generation Kgo. How laughable. What crap.
DeleteActually I think Bearman can do much better, he is smart enough, he seem to be well educated and well informed, he is often on Fox and CNN as well as a commentator. When he tackles a serious subject he does fine. Problem is the changing of subjects all time, and his giggly producer is annoying, even when what she comments on makes sense, and I agree with 2:02 it is so annoying. When Ethan Bearman was on KSFO for a few months, he was much more serious, didn't jump from subject to subject, so I have to wonder it is not a management decision? He use to be really annoying, always sounded like he was talking down the listener, and elongated his words, but that seem to have changed, at least majority of the time.
DeleteBearman is almost unlistenable. Cooking tips and authors of books no one reads. Might as well put re-runs of Coast to Coast, aka Big Foot talk, in his slot.
DeleteAgree whole heartily 5:09pm poster.
DeleteI was a big fan of Ethan Bearman when he was at KSFO, but since his leap to KGO, his show is a complete bore.
No I not want to hear about diets or the latest Tech news.
I'll listen to KNBR (mind punishment).
Thursten can take a hike with her rabid hate for Trump. No, no love for him myself but she can't control herself to keep an open mind to other opinions and goes complete bat shit on the issues. Very unprofessional. Pat, we get it, you hate Trump. Move on. Show some class for a change. Rothman, yes all the way.
ReplyDeleteTrump is an evil, lying POS. Tough to have an open mind with this guy.
Delete6:45, I agree with you 100%. It is Pat's way or no way. The subject today was "Has Trump met your expectations?" knowing full well the whiners would call in, and they did. While I cannot stand him, I am not going to get sick worrying about the sky falling. He is the president period. He is Pence's puppet. I would rather a Trump than Pence. We are stuck.
DeleteI frankly find Trump humorous. Might as well enjoy the ride, as the Dead sang.
At one point, Ronnnn was the only guy in the country beating Rush.
ReplyDeleteWhat the hell happened?! Too many commercials? Or are listeners just sick of Ronn
Has Thurston's weekend show been cancelled? The KGO schedule has her on weekdays 7-10 p.m...
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I'd like to see Rothmann get a chance. Put Thurston on in the afternoon. Get rid of Copie the Byron Allen wannabe. Yeah, we get it you're a persecuted black buy. We don't care. Your shtick is tired.
The big problem KGO had when Cummulitus took over is that they had no plan. First they fired all of the veteran talk show hosts, alienated half of their audience and went all news. They tried that for three years and it didn't work. How could they expect to make any headway vs KCBS who had that formula down for decades?
ReplyDeleteSo then they slowly sliced bits and pieces of the news department…first cutting the weeknight anchors and reporters, then the morning sports person, then the afternoon news, and then the weekend news. Finally they chopped almost the entire morning news staff off at the ankles.
They still have a modest skeleton of folks from a once respected news staff, but the station is a ghost of what it was. Cumulitus has ruined radio stations in a similar manner throughout the country.
Back in the late 1990s, they helped begin the alarming trend of destroying the small and medium market stations which were the traditional 'minor leagues' or training grounds for the big markets. Then they graduated to the big leagues in the early 2000s and systematically began to ruin stations in major markets including San Francisco.
They are truly horrible company, run by bloodless cretins who know nothing about radio and who are only interested in making money, (which they are not very good at doing either!).
No wonder so many Americans have become misinformed, and 'dumbed down.' Cumulitus refuses to offer public service, knows or cares nothing about upholding the high standards of broadcasting and have shown a callous disregard for those folks who put in years of hard work and effort in helping to make those stations what they once were. A truly sad state of affairs.
One can only hope they go bankrupt very soon. Then we can have a minor, modest celebration. But it will be a hallow victory because they've pretty much helped to ruin local radio forever.
Perfectly said. As all predatory companies they make money the old fashioned way: buy, blow product up, fire personnel, hold onto properties for as long as possible, and finally make their billions in profit no matter whether they sell or go bankrupt. Frankly, anyone who's employed by them should be ashamed to work for them.
DeleteRothmann is a talent worth having, Thurston, not so much.
ReplyDeleteThey are "free agents", they can control the action by getting an offer elsewhere and either taking it or seeing if KGO responds.
Pretty simple as I see it.
KGO?! Who cares?! Entercom-CBS wow!
ReplyDeleteI'd like to see Thurston and Rothmann locked in to those time slots, too.
ReplyDeleteHowever, they, along with listeners, should be used to the "nothing definite" state of affairs. Even under Luckoff/Swanson, the were among the handful of sit-ins during the campaign to find a permanent replacement for Bernie Ward. That went on for well over a year.
I would like to see Rothmann on KGO in a permanent spot. Thurston, not so much. She is a shrill uber liberal, so hearing even a modicum of common sense from Rothmann is refreshing in comparison. He is calm, listens to his callers (even if they are nut cases), treats his listeners with respect, and is smart, and is balanced.
DeletePat Thurston is not a liberal. She's a progressive. There's a big difference. Her voice is only "shrill" when she gets worked up and squawky. She could easily tame the voice with a few good voice lessons, and perhaps a primer on the Constitution would also help. The two of them(John rothmann.
Delete) were brought in when Bernie Ward departed for federal prison. The ratings never approached the levels Bernie had seen, ever again. This was long before the cumulus bloodbath. Both hosts are concerned about serious things usually and at least don't batter the audience with endless quiz games and tickets to concerts and events few care about. There's that.
I stop watching TV to listen to Rothmann. He is a keepper.
ReplyDeleteClue-u-less is inept at radio broadcasting.
ReplyDeleteThey are also inept at making money.
What, pray tell, are they good at?
@ 9:55 PM:
DeleteCume-less is EXTREMELY GOOD at irreversibly converting what was once a stable investment into a penny stock. Their relatively recent 8:1 reverse stock split elevated the per-share price to a tad over $4 for about a week. Now, a few months later, CMLS is back to being a penny stock in danger of delisting again. The funny thing is that most of their stock is held by hedge funds. God only knows why anyone who's sane would buy that stock now. Kind of blows to hell the concept of hedge funds being great places to get rich.
Cumulus Media ought to print their stock certificates on either pre-pasted wallpaper, or toilet paper, so at least it has some tangible worth. LOL.
P.S. Watch for the appearance of my new book: Broadcast Media Wisdom of the Wealthy: How the Über Rich Are Brightening the Visage of Terrestrial Radio and Television. It should be available in local bookstores any day now. It's a lavish, leather bound, gold embossed volume of 112 blank pages.
I can't speak about Ronn Owens contract status, but one thing I do know, it is the day after the Super Bowl and expect Ronnie to devote his entire show to Super Bowl commercials.
ReplyDelete