I've been predicting KGO (old and new) would be either going Spanish language or become a taped financial package of KABCish/WABCish (LA/NY has-been radio stations) and now it's OFFICIAL.
Keep in mind, KGO has been dead for years now, since 2011 when Cumulus KILLED IT and only a sliver of its once-official greatness remained. So don't shed any tears now.
*Developing story...
*Update 1: 11:07 AM PT..
A former KGO talk-show host, Jim Wieder texted me the following:
"As someone whp worked there (KGO) 11 years (as fill-in), it's a sad day...KGO radio was the 'Mayo Clinic of radio. No other talk station was even close. Best staff, best ratings, most advertised, it's a sad, sad, sad, day."
*Update 2: KGO just posted this statement on Twitter:
"Today we say goodbye to the legendary KGO. Over the last 80 years, KGO has been here for Bay Area listeners covering and discussing all the news that has impacted our world and local communities. We thank you for your loyalty and for trusting KGO to be your source for information. We also want to sincerely thank all of the talented men and women that worked so hard over the years to produce award-winning programming on KGO. On Monday, 810AM begins a new era. We hope you will tune in." Gees, I can hardly wait.
*UPDATE and Exclusive: 11: 58 AM PT:
Just got off the phone with longtime KGO host, John Rothmann, who said he is shocked at the news. Rothmann told me no one at KGO called and he only now (via me) is aware of the KGO demise.
"I've been deluged with hundreds of emails and people telling me, 'what's going on? It's all unbelievable."
"ONE SHEETS" that state that the new station is "THE SPREAD 810AM" The Bay's Best Bet on Sports". The lineup is: 6a-9a Bet QL Daily 9a-12p The Jim Rome Show 12p-4p You Better You Bet 4p-8p Bet MGM Tonight 8p-12m CBS Sports Radio"
*Even by Cumulus standards, this is outrageous. And the Bay Area radio listener LOSES. Were we to have a real FCC, they would investigate this crap and take Cumulus to task.
What an utter insult and dagger to Bay Area radio.
I'm glad you posted this, because I was so confused. I was listening this morning at work, as usual, and I had to go into a meeting. When I came back to my office, KGO was playing clips of old songs, and nobody was talking, and I didn't understand what was going on. So that's it? No Pat Thurston today? No John Rothmann? It's just over, just like that?
ReplyDeleteDid the employees even know, were they given a warning ?
DeleteSome brief comments by Mark Thompson on Twitter
Deletemark thompson marktlive.eth
Lucky for him he never moved to SF...
Wouldn't have made any difference in the outcome.
Does this mean Craft isn’t getting the 10pm-1am slot?
DeleteCraft understood long ago that radio, thought lots of fun, is not a profession with any tenure. She's a lawyer..
DeleteI'll miss John Rothmann and John Batchelor. I'll still wonder what Pat Thurston's bra size is (you know, the one she put on the resume) but I honestly won't miss the rest.
DeleteA sports-betting station, apparently.
ReplyDeleteWell I do shed tears. Although KGO was not what it used to be it still had some good shows. I will certainly miss Pat and her interviews with David Katz, and many of her other subjects as well. I will miss John Rothmann, I know you turned sour on him, but he still had many followers and listeners. Mark Thompson was not appointment radio, but I listened when I was driving or at home, for the most part I liked his show, and some of his segments was really good. My concern is will there be a talk radio station in the Bay Area with a liberal bend, we have enough of right wing stations. I suppose we can get podcasts of liberal host, Tom Hartmann is one, but he is not local. KCBS gets boring to listen to for long as they repeat the same stories over and over.
ReplyDeleteAgree on all points. Saddened by the news. Apparently few if any knew what was coming.
DeleteI couldn't stand her interviews with Katz. Libs fawning over each other.
DeleteAs opposed to right wing radio hosts kissing Trumps pasty white ass?
DeleteOne minute Mark T. is talking and boom - C YA!
ReplyDeleteSee what happens on Monday - Please don't bring back Chip ugh!!!
Yeah, Chimp Franklin was a dud with his hanging up on people he didn't agree with. He's probably telling some story using his favorite word....ironic. Chimp, glad you're gone, a comedian who isn't even funny, just a dumb loud mouth!
DeleteAlso, who spilled the beans and told Brett to get out before the bomb dropped? His boring ass is at KCBS now, but at least he's still getting a paycheck. Smart move Brett. Now tell us who told you....
Hey Rich -- way to be sympathetic to all the people now out of a job. Everything you said was just fine right up to the "don't shed any tears". Not cool.
ReplyDeleteThey should have tried harder to be relevant.
DeleteSaw a thread on a radio mboard about KGO going poof. Got a feeling it'll be either a foreign language format or maybe religion.
ReplyDeleteSad to see an end to KGO. It was a top-rated station until cumulus ruined it over a decade ago.
DOA again
ReplyDeleteThank god no more housewives bull and fake local personalities. Shrieking leftists from Marin and hack fill ins doesn’t cut it, Air America anyone? Maybe they can all apply at Amazon and work for their hero.
ReplyDeleteSince you have such contemp for what you call fake personalities, leftists etc. why did you bother to listen? I don't spend my time listening to Sean Hannity or Mark Levin, other than for a few minutes here and there, however I don't advocate they be taken off the air. There should be something for everyone, then we can all decide what to listen to.
Delete@ 11:11 spoken like a true RWNJ cultist who grovels for tucker carlson.
DeleteFinally, the end of an era ends with a "???"
ReplyDeleteGood riddance to the moronic housewives and fake local weather man and the shrieking commie from Marin. Maybe they can all apply at Amazon or Air America???
ReplyDeleteAt least we won't have to hear that "Commonwealth Club" drivel they play every weekend. More like "Commie Club". So slanted its ridiculous. And some of the hosts and guests are complete morons with no basis in reality.
DeleteAmen brotha
Delete2:37 sounds like you are describing Mark Levin or Dennis Prager or some of the other right wing hosts. It seems in todays environment if someone have a different viewpoint, they are either liars, of dumb or a communist, can't you just entertain the idea that not everyone thinks like you? Or is that too much of a stretch for your brain?
DeleteThat leaves us with no real progressive voice in the Bay Area. Time to go full streaming on my app as the right wing continues to take over media.
ReplyDeleteGood. Progressive idiocy has no place in the real world.
DeleteTo those of you who says good riddance, first of all you don't have to listen if you don't like the host, second there are plenty of right wing station in this area, since most of the Bay Area can also get Sacramento stations. When you say progressive have no place in the real world makes me think you would be more comfortable in Russia or China. In a democracy all voices should be heard, then all of us can decide what to listen to.
DeleteYeah great. Now we can listen to canned syndicated right wing nonsense, with no local coverage at all. That's all there is on radio now. I for one won't be listening.
DeleteI'm with you halfway 11:40. You make good points. However its just all the self-righteousness that gets me. You get tired of it. And progressive holier than thou crap. See: Pat Thurston and Nikki.
DeleteOss, and slightly amusing that progressive hosts are not very popular in the progressive bay area.
DeleteThey were popular, Cumulus obviously don't care. When they changed format in 2011, they had great rating, they might have been down a little, but still good. Obviously ratings is not what is on Cumulus mind.
Delete2:40 I wrote the post at 11:40, Nikki was not one of my favorites, Pat could be a little annoying at times, but for the most part I like her show, and she is not anymore self righteous than some of the right wing hosts, or should I say most of the right wing hosts.
DeleteI think it's really bad look for Cumulus to so contemptuously drop a bomb on the whole office like this. No send offs, no goodbyes - nothing. Very disrespectful to the hosts and listeners. This is like coming home from work to find your locks are changed. Then your wife answers the door naked and tells you "oh by the way by it's over" then heads back in to her new boyfriend..
ReplyDeleteSincerely, Fuck You Cumulus.
It's broadcasting..it almost always ends this way.
DeleteExactly!!
DeleteThey did the same thing in March 30 2016 when they fired 30 people. They don't care...It's all numbers. And the people who they kept after the 30th. ALL got fired today. I really hope those folks (the ones they kept post 3/30/16) didn't think they got kept for their VAST talent. They were just the LOWEST BID. Rothmann and Thurston were part time overnighters at the ORIGINAL KGO...So you figure it out.
Delete@11:17- For real, right? Very bizarre
Delete@11:30- Pretty much yeah.... I think Gary Radnich and Mark Ibanez were the only people locally in recent history to get a chance to say goodbye and thank everyone who's supported them and worked with them over the years.
DeleteStarted listening to KGO 810 back about 1960 as a young boy then ten years old.
ReplyDeleteFirst talk host Les Crane....then Ira Blue from the Hungry Eye...
Despite its fall from glory, I still found KGO informative from time to time.
The station to turn to during times of crisis and national trauma.
Earth quakes and such.
To see what my fellow Bay Area folks would think.
Now I have a choice of angry Dan Bongino...or Dennis Prager (860).... AND KQED 88.5 essentially takes few calls and is predictablyk far LEFT on everything.
Mostly I'm worried about Steve Moskowitz... what will he do all day with the extra free time? How will the public get that FREE MONEY?
Not to mention Sherrod, Pat Thurston's "good friend".
Can he still count on Pat as his "good friend".
Can't wait for Monday to see what the ever "brilliant suits" at Cumulus have cooked-up.
My stay- at- home mother was a fan of Don McNeill's Breakfast Club broadcasted every weekday morning on KGO 810.
DeleteLen Tillem...Where are you now when we need you most...!
ReplyDeletelong dead
DeleteSJ MERCURY NEWS:
ReplyDelete"On-air promos at around 11 a.m. Thursday called the mysterious programming switch “the biggest gamble in Bay Area radio history” and made references to betting and money.
Songs played Thursday morning followed the theme: Pet Shop Boys’ “Opportunities (Let’s Make Lots Of Money);” followed by Pink Floyd’s “Money” and then “Take the Money and Run” by Steve Miller Band.
A subsequent promotion clip said, “Coming Monday: A radio station that covers ALL the action,” followed by the song “All I Do Is Win” by DJ Khaled."
This was on KGO web page with a black and white photo.
ReplyDeleteKGO 810
Today we say goodbye to the legendary KGO.
Over the last 80 years, KGO has been here for Bay area listeners covering and discussing all the news that has impacted our world and local communities. We thank you for your loyalty and for trusting KGO to be your source for information. We also want to sincerely thank all the talented men and women that worked so hard over the years to produce award-winning programming on KGO.
On Monday, 810am begins a new era. We hope you will tune in.
I doubt anyone that enjoyed the hosts on KGO will tune into sports betting.
DeleteIf I want the "News" I can get that 24/7 whether I want it or not.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I just want to be entertained and I will miss the Mark Thompson Show.
That show had me laughing out loud on most days and I will miss that.
Laughing-(Good). News 24/7- (Not so much)
Good comment. I liked Mark. Sometimes I forget we all have different tastes. I hope you find something else to enjoy. Cheers.
DeleteI hope they let Dave Morey have a chance to say goodbye
ReplyDeleteTotally classless. No warning, just shove them out the door. No chance to say goodbye to listeners. Cumulus says 811 begins a new era. What a load of BS. It will be syndicated garbage. It should last about a year or two and then be sold. Large corporations are ruining America. We are losing all local broadcasting. A very sad day. Cumulus is owned by right wingers and that is what we are going to get.
ReplyDeleteAlthough my parents have listened to KGO sometimes, more recently over the years my mom has been a big John Rothmann listener and enjoyed his shows at the times when we are able to drive.
ReplyDeleteNow the mystery is what is coming Monday, while I don’t care about it much, at least this is interesting to see where they are headed in terms of formatting.
One just has to look at Cumulus’ track record with KGO. “Hey lets compete with KCBS”. Oops, that didnt work, “lets go back to a talk station with no call-ins”. Oh, gee, that isnt working. Lets go back to the way it was before the KCBS disaster. Oops, well, that’s not working. I know, lets change to sports and get into gambling. That has to be a winner this time!! Any bets about how long that will last?
ReplyDeleteGlad I don’t own Cumulus stock
I feel bad for the talent that is not near retirement or has an another gig lined up, like Kim McAllister.
ReplyDeleteIt was interesting to hear the last few seconds of Thompson's show where he aprupttly said " This is KGO San Francisco, a cumulus station"
There was an opening at KSRO in Santa Rosa for the morning show host. I urged Kim to apply, she lives in Petaluma, but she decided to stay with KGO. Kim is well loved in the business and all of her friends will be trying to help her find a place to land.
DeleteIf I want the "News" I can get that 24/7 whether I want it or not.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I just want to be entertained and I will miss the Mark Thompson Show.
That show had me laughing out loud on most days and I will miss that.
Laughing-(Good). News 24/7-(Not so much)
Last time I checked Cumulus had outstanding debt amounting to North of $20 Billion. That means every nickel brought in has to go to service that debt. With interest rates going up it's going to take a bushel of dough to just service that debt much less pay it off - look for C to start unloading some of their poorer performing stations. Problem is they waited too long and there will be few buyers lined up...
ReplyDelete20 billion in debt....you sure about that?
DeleteNo, it was $2 billion and now it’s around $1 billion.
Deletehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KGO_(AM)
ReplyDeleteWOW What a History. Sad to see KGO GO!!!
Interesting Google search... I just entered - KGO radio dead
ReplyDeleteFirst look at "all" and then "images"...
Many memories and hosts.
ding dong the liars are gone!
ReplyDeleteDing dong you can then listen to the lying hypocrite Sean Hannity and grouchy Mark Levin
Delete810 used to be the third button on my radio - no more
ReplyDeleteNow it moved up to the first spot???
DeleteVery inhumane and disrespectful to pull the plug on KGO while Mark was speaking. I'm shocked but then again not surprised as there is so little respect and decency in the world these days. KGO kept my sanity during the Trump era & pandemic. It helped me keep up with what was happening the the world and locally. I enjoyed the guests too whether they talked about politics or movies. I have been listening to KGO for decades. KGO was like family. I wish all the hosts well and hope they find new formats. KGO's demise is very significant because there are no more smart, truthful, progressive radio talk shows in the Bay Area and only right-wing fascist radio that tells lies and spreads hate exists in the area. Thank goodness for progressive podcasts which I can access but not everyone has and can afford the internet, cellphones, computers and tablets.
ReplyDeleteI am shocked and saddened! You non-right-wingers in the Bay area are about to experience what it's been like living here in San Diego and trying to find a local talk show that does not cater to the Neo-Fascist, reactionary mindset. Talk radio here has become a caricature and parody of itself.
ReplyDeleteLegends such as Ira Blue and Jim Dunbar are turning over in their graves!
ReplyDeleteTurning in their urns...why assume they were buried like white privileged broadcasters usually are?
DeleteIn the mid '90's KGO gave out key rings that had a po.box listed in case you lost your keys...
Delete"If found, drop in any mail box" and your keys would supposedly be returned to you the owner.
What happened to that database of "key owners"?
If I lose my keys with that KGO keyring...will my keys still find the their way home?
I still have my KNBR club card.
Deletehorrible. the 96 telecommunications act was the worst thing to happen to radio.
ReplyDeleteFrom Gil Gross Facebook post
ReplyDeleteSo apparently, the last shovel of dirt has been thrown on KGO, interestingly after their best book in some time. From the teasers during the music stunting of songs about money and the stupid tease line "you can bet on it", it's going to be another robot run sports betting format which is all the rage among brainless, out of ideas, radio companies. It's interesting because sports betting, for the most part, isn't even legal in California and if the FCC was still a functioning organization, helping people break the law would be a license killer. But....there are two propositions on the ballot next month to make it fully legal so they're just a few weeks ahead of themselves.
KGO was a great station, that was still #2 overall and #1 35-64 when Cumulus decided that with little barely rated KLIV leaving the format, what the Bay Area really needed was a second all-news station.
R.I.P. KGO and my condolences to friends who still tried to carry on.
Radio is a tough business indeed. I recall Gil Gross's show awhile back, up the tuning dial a little from KGO. Enjoyed his discussion w/the callers day after day. Then tuned in one day, no Gil, & now it was Spanish language sports programing! I expect Gil has some funny stories to tell about that incident. ... lol ... I'll be listening to more of Gil's CBS content now.
DeleteI hope Pat Thurston and John Rothman can find a decent station. But there aren't many left. Podcast even.
ReplyDeleteA podcast would be great and they would not have to deal with asswholes like cumulus
DeleteDidn’t KGO used to advertise for online stock trading? Was that their way for laying the groundwork for sports gambling?
ReplyDeleteWill the tax lawyer sponsor get more clients from sports gamblers?
ReplyDeleteSo where they assuming that the sports betting Prop would pass and Cumulus would rake in big bucks on advertising? Turns out both of the gambling measures are way below water and unlikely to pass. It is so like Cumulus to make a move without thinking it through. If the sports betting encourages illegal online gambling, they might find themselves being sued. Just freaking amazing. I was there when they killed the talk show format and made us do all news with a third the staff of KCBS and they ate our lunch. I foolishly assumed they knew what they were doing. Then the built up an all news format, starved it to death and then fired everyone and tried to limp along with marginal hosts and a skeleton crew. Now... SPORTS BETTING! It took a lot to take the number one station to less than a one share, but damn Cumulus really has a can do spirit when it comes to killing great radio.
ReplyDeleteI wondered where the sudden interest in online sports gambling came from ... I guess we now know.
DeleteVote NO on 26 & 27 to stop the corruption of sports
DeletePretty much every other state already jumped on it. We're behind the times because the Indian tribes all have their hands out. It's inevitable. Every damn host is already betting using offshore accounts. Listen to KNBR any day and they talk about the wagers they had on games.
DeleteTurning KGO into a AM music station is a waste. No one will listen to it when you can listen to music in stereo on FM. Im amazed that those cumulus jerks would pull the plug on thurs mid morning in the middle of a show. Why not do it Friday evening at midnight?
ReplyDeleteThis is astounding! Will legendary broadcaster MZ step up and give Rothmann a new radio home on the mighty KSCO 1080 in Santa Cruz?
ReplyDeleteNo, he's not that stupid.
DeleteRich, With record inflation forcing a lot of retirees to scrounge for extra income, KGO will be doing its part by promoting sports gambling. What’s to complain about?
ReplyDeleteNo one is losing anything. KGO sucked, their ratings sucked and they lost money for over a decade. If people listened this wouldn’t happen but the only listeners are rich (who hated the station and everything else) and old ass people. It sucks to lose a historic station in American history but let’s not act like this is surprising or that listeners are losing. There were no listeners for the last 10 years. Get with the times
ReplyDeleteKGO should have followed the PBS model & they should have introduced fundraising drives. KGO's traditional listenership is older. Many have a few bucks. That includes me. I can afford to make monthly contributions. Together, with the help of a few with deep pockets, KGO could still get this model off the ground. However, until that can be implemented, some of the hosts should get together and put together a series of live podcasts. KGO is my primary source of information and I would listen throughout the day. To John and Pat: Please post somewhere including here that you are going to make something happen.
ReplyDeleteKGO management had ample opportunity here on your blog-site Rich, to see what you & the listeners thought for what was good and what was wrong w/the KGO programming content, and how to improve the situation. Many, many posts here with excellent and practical ideas. Or the management could just ignore the listeners ...
ReplyDeleteNot really saddened. As you day after day tell us good media is dead in the Bay Area and has been for years.
ReplyDeleteThese past few weeks I was meaning to text Clark Reid on what an exceptional talent he is and how lucky KGO Radio was to have him as a news announcer and talk show sidekick. But I guess this will have to suffice.
ReplyDeleteSorry that I'll no longer be able to listen to Pat and John. Hope they get radio gigs somewhere in the SF Bay Area.
Have been listening to KGO Radio since the 1970s. Local radio is now a wasteland, bereft of informative viewpoints and only open to Republican lies.
KGO made zero effort to hire a real San Francisco host. Somebody who actually knows where the Excelsior district is located. Instead the ratings crashed because an old fool that loves old iron sides episodes talked non stop about politics… I Am Outraged! Or some old bag that talks pro Union non stop. Look around idiots the demographics changed and you did not.
ReplyDeleteJohn and Pat had plenty of listeners and callers. Pat did not talk union non stop, she talked PG&E, homeless, politics, and other issues many local. John talked politics which is why many of us liked him. Hannity and Levin talks politics, right wing politics only. Your wording "old bag" tells me enough about you and your intelligence. Not everyone thinks like you, and we like to listen to hosts that are not spouting right wing talking points, and thinks Trump can walk on water.
DeleteI heard that it's going to become a sports betting radio programming. What the heck? Thurston and Rothman should take their severence package and retire.
ReplyDeleteSo likely Cumulus mat be placing their own bet that the November ballot proposition that expands sports betting will be a winner. Regardless sports seem to attract an audience. Sports can work to fill a 7-day schedule. Lets all breath a sigh of relief that Cumulus isn't going with a 24/7 local radio weather format...
ReplyDeleteCumulus Radio isn't done either. I head KNBR is next. Polish up those resumes especially you "Giggly Kopes", you might be out of a job soon. Can we all accept we're in a recession now boys & girls?
ReplyDeleteKGO's programming was largely dreck anyway. The hosts were idiots, airheads, and loons who lacked adult perspective on what is going on in the world and the ability to draw out a good give-and-take with callers. At least we won't have to hear Pat Thurston shrewing it up anymore.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree. An awful station with awful ratings. This is not a surprise.
DeleteThe hosts were neither idiots nor airheads, you just didn't agree with them. How much give and take do you hear on Mark Levin's show, or some of the other right wing hosts?
DeleteWhat a great state to live in. KGO bites the dust, META (Facebook) is downsizing, 200 Chevron employees are fleeing to Texas, the E-E-Scooter company Spin is laying off 200 people, we have a serial killer in Stockton, a family was kidnapped by a parolee who only did 8 years for his previous kidnapping. You can read all of this at SFGate (Yes, they had something besides restaurant reviews today). The incumbents running things need to go.
ReplyDeleteCumulus should have left it alone for a bit and got rid of lol the morons on KNBR except Papa and Tolbert (especially those two non talents in the morning), Just syndicated sports, live games and a Tolbert/ Papa show M-F 3-7. KGO not the greatest but had some good spots during the day and having different voices/viewpoints of all kinds is good for functional civilization rather than an echo chamber of Yes men and women
ReplyDeleteTry following this link to what I dub as ProgressivePods at Player.FM: https://player.fm/progressivepods/fm/all
ReplyDeleteHopefully this link will work for those without a Player.FM subscription (though subscriptions I believe are under $5/month). The link provides access to dozens of progressively leaning podcasts and many other politically oriented shows of high quality. The worst part of this solution is that few are live shows and none have breaking news throughout the day that is up to the minute. There is definitely a delay of up to 24 hours. Also, almost none of the shows include local information.
Cumulus should have gone with the PBS model. Many of its traditional listenership are older and many can afford to contribute monthly. Given KGO's extremely loyal audience, that format would have kicked butt.
BTW, be sure to vote no on the sports betting propositions in November! Cumulus has just shown us what those propositions will bring us! Sports betting will be worse than fentanyl to the airwaves.
I was going to vote yes on the proposition but now I'm voting no. This really has me pissed. I remember when KGO fired everyone, I felt the same way, but I remember how the talk show hosts went to other stations. I just wish they would consider going on Twitch or Youtube with a live show with call-ins. Make it a small subscription base or not.
DeleteUsing the same voice Gavin used when he was talking about gay marriage in front of the cameras..."It's going to happen (waves hands)...it's inevitable!".
DeleteIt seems like there should be sufficient critical mass of listeners in the Bay Area to warrant at least one very good local news / personalities radio station. Perhaps that reality will settle in for those in the business, and they will collectively create such a station. But that would have been more easily done if taking over an existing station, such as KGO.
ReplyDeleteIt was a great ride.This station got me through some rough times. Yet as much as I loved this station I haven't listened since Gene Burns left and I started with Ira Blue.
ReplyDeleteSports betting, you've got be kidding...
ReplyDeleteMaybe they could rehire all the KGO hosts to do gambling commentary?
ReplyDeleteThere may be hope for Rod Brooks and Larry Krueger.
DeleteFunny thing is they're turning it into a betting station when it looks like the morons are going to vote down both Prop. 26 & Prop. 27. Too many indian tribes with their hands in the pot.
ReplyDeleteSo are 96.5 KOIT and Alice @ 97.3 the last stations standing after KFOG, KOME, KSJO, KGO, Live 105?
ReplyDeleteOkay, so this is confusing, at least to someone not invested in radio, at least not enough to turn one on to investigate. KGO went off the air...then shortly thereafter started broadcasting other stuff, and allegedly Monday it becomes sports/sport-betting or some such. The transmitter will be on obviously. The callsign will remain KGO. So...KGO isn't "gone" after 80 years of broadcasting, it's just changing format, again, as it did a decade or so ago. So why is there this whole 'farewell to KGO' stuff?
ReplyDeleteThe new radio home of the Oakland A’s & Las Vegas Raiders. The programming is all coming from Audacy who owns BetQL and programs CBS Sports Radio. As far as saying goodbye, it’s broadcasting. Why do think they call it “pulling the plug”?
ReplyDeleteBeen listening to KGO since 1986. I've seen it go through lots of changes but this one is a shocker. They just pulled the plug without warning the hosts or listeners. Was looking so forward to John Rothmann's return tonight after listening to parts of that other guy last night. This could be a blessing in disguise. For years probably even over a decade, about how talk show hosts should do their OWN THING over the Internet. They can get on Twitch, Youtube and many other platforms. They would never have to worry about being fired and would have total control over content. There is a listener base out there for these hosts. I haven't listened to KGO on the radio in at least seven years, been streaming it on my computer and phone. There are hosts making tons of money online doing podcasts and live shows. Twitch would be an excellent platform for Pat Thurston and John Rothmann.
ReplyDeleteDon't know anything about twitch, but podcasts does not include calls from listeners as far as I know, so that makes it one sided, not that I wouldn't listen, especially if there are guests on, like David Katz on the Thurston show.
DeleteA sports betting station?!?! Yeah, that’s just what the Bay Area needs. (Insert eye roll). With Jim Rome as one of the hosts. When is the last time he was relevant?? Barf. Won’t be listening to any of that crap.
ReplyDeleteFarewell KGO. Not surprised that it ended the way it did because that’s what the nameless/faceless/gutless suits who own and run mainstream radio do. Absolutely clueless and paid well for their ineptitude.
Pat Thurston and John Rothman were the only ones I listened to from time to time in the drive. In a sea of right wing syndicated mush mouths trying to be the next Rush Limbaugh on other stations, those two were at least a refreshing alternative. One could sense the writing was on the wall though if u listened carefully. I mean how many hosts could Chris Merrill fill in for in one week? Yawn.
So satellite radio is where it’s at for me from now on. Can’t support the new gambling format which is going to contribute to an addiction as bad than fentanyl. Repercussions for California are coming. I’d encourage people to vote NO on the gaming initiatives on the ballot. If you think the homeless issue is a problem now. Just wait. These people are vultures who don’t give a damn about community. Much like Cumulous.
Rest In Peace, KGO. Ray Taliaferro just rolled over a few times for sure. With a few choice and well deserved words for the powers that be. Terrestrial talk radio as we know it with an emphasis on community is dead. Fasten your seatbelts as corporations continue to ruin…well…EVERYTHING.
I’d be interested in Christine Craft’s take on this sad milestone. She hasn’t posted in awhile that I’ve seen. Rich, any news about her?
ReplyDeleteGo to MSN. I click on articles over there and see her arguing all the time in the comments section.
DeleteI primarily streamed Bloomberg 960 anyway. But, isn't it time to dump the current 910 BIN crap and move talk radio there? Who the hell listens to BIN anyway?
ReplyDeleteI have been listening to 960 all the time now too. Great information with news, weather, traffic and sports. Not on the radio but streaming through my iphone.
DeleteI am surprised and saddened like everyone else here. I listened online to Nikki, Pat, and the great John Rothmann because I live in New York and talk radio here (WABC) has turned to crap. KGO was my oasis! So, so sorry this has happened. And...to do it like this - literally pulling the plug. John Rothmann didn't even know until a reporter called him for a statement. Shame on Cumulus. Thank-you to John, Pat, Nikki, and Mark. You all are terrific! All best...
ReplyDeleteAnd just like that, a once wonderful hub of entertainment for the entire West Coast (I used to listen nightly when I live east of San Diego in the 70's) is now DEAD. I can officially say it - San Francisco SUCKS.
ReplyDeleteSo what station is Rich going to kick around now? KGO was an easy target but now, after publicly giving up life as a "real" radio station, they've immunized themselves against most future kicks. Perhaps it won't be long before the reminiscing about the "good ole KGO days" back in 2019 - 2021 begins...
ReplyDeleteHe's currently preparing his first KNBR post as we speak.
DeleteNext week the January 6 committee holds its final hearing. Pat Thurston was planning to air it live during her KGO show. Maybe the Cumulus suits decided they would spare listeners from that fatally boring experience.
ReplyDeletethe hearings have had immense audiences..The final one will also, with or without KGO.
DeleteLOL 3:22!
DeleteWhat happens if sports wagering fails next month? A station on gambling with no way to place a bet?
ReplyDeleteSports betting on a 50,000 watt signal. Tells you were the world is heading doesn't it.
ReplyDeleteI remember the old KGO. Not so much the newest iteration. So I wont miss it.
There are generations of dead people, one-time KGO listers, turning in their graves today. Unfortunately, there are millions of live Bay Area residents asking, “KGO? What’s that?”
ReplyDeleteThat and what is Pat Thurstons bra size...
DeleteFirst, I feel horrible for me, you, Nikki, Kim, Mark, Clark, Pat, John and all the support voices/commenters that truly provided a realistic view of our crazy world locally, nationally, and globally. Kudos to this wonderful team. Shame on the station for being short sided and unprofessional. I know historically radio was a tough industry but I thought they were beyond that. As a listener, my heart broke and it is empty. Huge fan of all the pros. They just should have closed it down. The change feels so trashy. Dumb station management.
ReplyDeleteI think that the obvious disrespect shown to thompson was partly a result of his taking ANOTHER day off after just returning from an extended vacation. Also, the cummulus twats decided to cash-in on the show's popularity & it's listeners who await Mark's opening monolog.
ReplyDeleteRadio has ALWAYS been disrespectful of all on-air staff, never allowing public goodbyes, or even the news that after their yearly vacation's return that they are no longer employed. I hope there IS a special place in hell for narcissistic radio exec's. Bret left in the nick of time, LOVE IT!
Mark took a 4 or 5 day vacation, hardly extended, perhaps he was sick yesterday, or had an inkling of what was coming. I doubt Cumulus took notice, I'm sure this decision was made weeks if not months ago.
DeleteAlmost Friday and I was so hoping to listen to Tim Sika and Jan Wall tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteJan Wahl NOT being on the radio or television is not a bad thing. Talk about 40 miles of bad road and she never likes any movies. Hooray that your off the air!
DeleteWhat’s left on AM? KCBS? KNBR? They’re about the only two AM stations that are worth listening to and still on the air. The one time powerhouses… KFRC, KSFO, KEWB, KYA … all gone … killed in part by FM and corporate America (which is now doing a pretty good job of ruining FM as well).
ReplyDeleteAll the great R&B stations KDIA AM (a real community based urban station in the 70/80s) 98.1 KISS FM (helped launch Renel Brooks-Moon into Giants history) 107.7 KSOL (classic soul and gospel) gone too! Pretty much taken over by crappy hip-hop radio, pumping horrible music and negative messages into the minds of impressionable youths. Its no accident. The powers that be know exactly what they’re doing. Just like pumping lead water and dumping toxic waste in impoverished communities. The cruelty is the point.
DeleteAnd all the iheart stations are pretty much just payola on a plate these days. Where you hear artists like Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish every hour on the hour and thirty times on Sunday. And we’re supposed to just smile and pretend it’s good music. Blech. And don’t get me started on all the derivative country stations which pretty much follow the same playbook with a sexist twang of not playing too many female artists so as not to upset the Bubbas. Just chew tobacco spit. (Cousins run while you can.)
There is good music out there. But you generally won’t find it on any of these corporate owned crapfests. YouTube and satellite radio are somewhat of a haven. Is it any wonder why we’re all so divided these days?
These media conglomerates are just awful. Money and social engineering are really their only goal. However if Hurricane Ian and the orange sky we all witnessed a couple years ago during the wildfires are any indication, Mother Nature may have the last laugh on all their evil ways. Pity that those who can least afford it will have to suffer the most as a result. Until then, as George Michael so eloquently put it…’Maybe we should all be Praying For Time’.
It could have been worse. They could have turned all their time over to Doug Andrew and the Laser Fund, with occasion segments of Balance of Nature. Thank goodness cooler heads prevailed and they’re going with gambling instead.
ReplyDeleteThat’s 1-888…lol I could almost hear Pat Thurston throwing up in her mouth a little when she had to do a money segment with that guy. Thanks for the laugh. 😅
DeleteIf ever John was going to his kamikaze mission of bursting into the studios and holding everyone hostage while he did his 24 hour marathon now is the time..all the sucking up to steve Moskovitz by everyone didnt work either..and alas we may never the golden words again of " 415 80 80 810"/888 tax deal"..rest assured the raymond burr memorial bathroom still is in operation
ReplyDeleteLike Richie said, KGO actually died the day bean counters decided to fuck it up in 2011. Sports betting, sadly, is growing every day. Bad enough adults do it and some put themselves in a precarious financial situation by getting caught up in the hype and overextending themselves. But now kids are getting exposed to it. In the 1970s, people cried about society going to hell with permissiveness and drug use. But friends, what happened then is mild compared to what's going on now.
ReplyDeleteWORD. This is where the money is spent, generated and immediately adds to the bottom line, We may not like it but f- us… we’re not Cumulus and we don’t answer to Wall Street. They do and whatever it takes to get a rise out of The Street’s libido, they’ll do it. Crap, if they thought airing enhancement commercials all day would make more money, they’ll do it. If they thought putting Carmen Kiew on the mic would make more money (note-not a bigger audience), they’d do it.
DeleteAs Starkey would say, ‘yikes!’
Wait, what? No more KGO?!?.... What happens to Niners broadcasts on KGO early on in the season when the Niners are on at the same time as the Giants?
ReplyDeleteToday's Niner game will be simulcast on the SFO airport tower frequency. Please allow for takeoffs and approaching aircraft. When the plane lands, Greg Papa wil scream TOUNCHDOWN SAN FRAN- SIS COOOO!
DeleteLOL 5:02. And Otis maybe 1050?
DeleteQuestion: I was not listening when the station was taken off the air. Had Mark Thompson already started his show? Or did he just do the tease, then ABC news, and then the format change occurred?
ReplyDeleteAlso where is Lee Hammer in all this? Any comments from him?
He was in his monologue then around 10:15 he suddenly said something like " This is KGO San Francisco, a cumulus station" and then pink Floyd and money dubbed over another voice
DeleteTime to rise up and object to the FCC license to Cumulus
ReplyDeleteRaiders football!
ReplyDeleteRomey!
Teasers...parlays...over-unders...COOL! Count me as a fan who'll b be tuning i!
Ksco is having trouble too. I think this economy downturn is going to be massive . Anyone that was using low interest rates to survive are all going to go out of business, this is only the beginning of a very severe economic depression . Cumulus is barely surviving . I predict they will file for bankruptcy soon and go out of business.
ReplyDeleteHi this Joe Starkey, you're listening to the spread.
ReplyDeleteRadio is pretty much dead. Deregulation of the broadcast industry, which happened in 1995 started the process. Greedy, clueless mega- companies such as Cumulus and I-Heart bought thousands of radio stations around the country and begin syndicating and downsizing them. This is mainly how conservative talk radio got a foothold. Russ Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and the rest of these loathsome creatures who bloviatie, pontificate, insult and lie would never have made it were not for deregulation. Is it any surprise then, that Trump has a huge following? The Downsizing and dumbing down of our media has led to a poorly informed citizenry. Radio used to perform Public service and served its communities. Today? NOT!
ReplyDeleteThank Bill Clinton for signing it.
DeleteYou are so right about Hannity and Levin and many other right wing hosts. I do listen to Tom Sullivan at times (1530 Sacramento) he is conservative, but he takes calls from people who disagree with him, he is polite and he can be critical of conservative politicians, liked some of Trumps policies, but not his personality.
DeleteGreat…..another frequency with sports betting under the guise of sports radio. What’s left? Right wing BS, sports, and bible thumpers (including that catholic station), and yes I attend church every Sunday. The translation reminds me of listening to shortwave radio back in the Brezhnev era….music with no live host and 3 general secretaries within a few months all health until they weren’t. Well I can still fire up the shortwave radio and listen to Pyongyang… about as open minded as Hannity-Levin!!! Oh and another reason to kill prop 27.
ReplyDeleteI only hope that the surprisingly-funny, knowledgeable, faux-irrassible, and often candid, Mark Thompson, revives his abandoned podcast, and occationally includes a couple of KGO regulars.
ReplyDeleteThe "regulars" could be Chris Merrill, who Mark FINALLY gave respect to, and even practically embraced of late.
The hilarious boardman, Chris, is good for his inappropriate drops- "straight up, right in, no problem!".
Of course, Bret, the Aussie, Albert and the movie guy cannot be forgotten.
He had okay guests. It smelled like Radnichs last few years at KNBR with all the drops and fake laughs. Not for me.
DeleteDoes this mean the end of those horrible paid-for segments on the sports talkers, like when Damon Bruce had to jaw with some blowhard for 22 minutes about what number to call to get his Monday night lock?
ReplyDeleteAnd how fast will 810 start beating 95.7 in the ratings? 3 months?
Go woke, go broke. Rothman and co. spent all their time soul kissing the Democrat party's ass. Ignoring the fact that people were suffering. If Rothman could just listen to his own podcasts, he would see why KGO went belly up. I am a long-time listener and caller. (Don in Salinas) But lately they were so far in the tank of the left, that they would not even put me on the air to voice my opinion. (I was a MAGA cultist because I voted Trump). SIC SEMPER WOKETARDS!
ReplyDelete"WOKETARDS", seriously, what are you, about 14?
DeleteI'll miss the comedy provided by "don" and his fellow RWNJ cultists. Now they can bow down to tucker carlson 24/7.
Deleteso you say they wouldn't let you on the air, and then you say you were "don in salinas" . Wake up, indeed.
DeleteWhy even listen if you hate it so much? Seriously, there is plenty of right-wing radio out there. And I agree with 5:52, using words like "woketards" does not make you sound particularly intelligent or mature.
DeleteYou were an obstreperous idiot whenever you got on the air, Don from Salinas. Now you can listen to Mark Levine, Hannity et al. and continue in your narrow thinking. Also if you're so hot for Trump, did you ever bother to read the many books written about him starting in 1992? Trump was known as a liar and con man then. Only difference today is fools like you swallowed his BS hook, line and sinker without as much as reading up on him. And how much of your Social Security have you sent the old grifter anyway? Bet he sends you "gimme more $$$" emails and texts. And you think you're so special. Haha. The laugh's on you.
DeleteAmen 4:55!
DeleteJohn Rothmann is OUTRAGED over this and blames THE FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES!
DeletePat will sell some of her bras to raise money for various Democrat candidates.
Nikki will just get a job at Home Depot.
7:17 you are so right about Don in Salinas, there are plenty of right wing radio stations. John might have gotten impatient with you, but he listened. Sean Hannity ridiculed anyone not agreeing with him, and Mark Levin, usually tells those who disagree with him "get off my station you big dope" a real class act. Of course John's treatment of callers had nothing to do with the demise of KGO, it was a coporate decision.
Delete"Don from Salinas" as Rothmann used to like to bellow at you Excuse me, its the Democratic party, not the Democrat party..and whats he complaning about, he was on ALL the time, i used to hear more then once day calling in to several shows..maybe it had changed recently i dont know, but he got more then ample air time to make his points
DeleteTrump lost, get over it.
DeleteSorry for Kim. Always an uplifting voice in the dark radio wilderness.
ReplyDeleteLets get Gary Radnich and Tony Bruno back together!!!! Gary might need the money, what with all those kids and a greedy ex wife
ReplyDeleteThey were the best half-hour in radio, until lee hammer fucked it up. Even their callers were good entertainment.
DeleteTony fucked it up with the comment about the Giants illegal immigrant relievers on Twitter.
DeleteTony's twitter is a great follow. He is hilarious. He has a show on No Filter now where Eric Byrnes and Will Clark have a pretty popular show.
Meh Gary Radnich became a bitter old man during the later years.
DeleteWhat a cruel and heartless end to KGO. I feel so bad for the staff, and my heat breaks for the many listeners for whom KGO was a vital lifeline, news source, and companion.
ReplyDeleteIt's very disturbing that this format was so brutally destroyed - it was one of the few places on the air (on regular radio) where progressive ideas were discussed but also dissenting viewpoints and opinions were aired and there was an attempt at breaking down the hellish division in this country. Shame on Cumulus for silencing this important forum.
So sad to hear this. Been listening to KGO for over 20 years from Los Angeles (where AM radio has long since gone over to the dark side) and was so happy to have the familiar voices of John Rothmann and Pat Thurston during the isolation and uncertainty of the pandemic - especially in those first few months. I hope they'll consider doing podcasts. It would be great to hear some of the history-themed programs (including local history), interviews, etc., that were such a great feature of the old Rothmann overnight program. Enjoyed the Halloween jokes with his boys, too, and so did students I shared them with later at school. Thank you all, and thanks for the memories to the wonderful hosts of the past. God bless and God speed!
ReplyDeleteI can only imagine what KGO is going to have overnight with this new format. Probably since super-caffeinated weasel podcaster screaming: “ TAKE THE POINTS!” TAKE THE POINTS!”
ReplyDeleteHey man, are you saying bad things about my peeps??!!
ReplyDeleteStart stacking cash KCBS!
ReplyDeleteEveryone urging a podcast or Twitch show has no idea how much work that is. It's a life suck. It's a more-than-full-time job.
ReplyDeleteMost podcasters are doing the job of producer/engineer/editor/host/salesperson, all in one. There's a reason good talk radio has a minimum of three people working on a live show at any given time, and another person out there with the sole job of selling ads. Think about the toll it takes to do that five, six, or seven days a week.
Someone upstream mentioned that some podcasts are really pulling in the cash. That's like saying some actors are in hit shows. Sure they are, but most aren't - they're battling it out for bit parts and holding down three jobs in the meantime. Same with podcasts - most you'll never hear of, and a vanishingly small percentage of them recover their financial investment. And that's just breaking even.
KGO as we knew it is gone. I totally get the desires to rail at TPTB, to boycott Cumulus, to beg the real talents to get podcasts together. Better to take a moment to appreciate what we had, mourn it, and move on.
This sounds like Karel.
DeleteMaybe Nikki can get a tiny house from Libby and hang out on International.
ReplyDeleteAny company that would fire Gene Burns and hire Chip Franklin deserves what they get. KGO was dead to me very shortly after the purge..
ReplyDeleteI am so disappointed. I loved listening to Pat, especially about PG&E issues, etc. she always had a good handle on things, and John Rothman was always interesting. I enjoyed him a lot. Kim was a great news anchor. My 16 year old is happy because he's a Trumper...but I am personally really going to miss this station.
ReplyDeleteWhy is anyone in the least bit surprised? I guess none of you who listen to the radio realize what these mega-media companies have done to our industry in recent years? They don’t give a hoot about anybody but their shareholders, but even they can’t be happy because Cumulus stock has been flat lining for more than a few years. FYI, Cumulus has ruined hundreds of small market, media market and major market community oriented radio stations for over the 20 plus years. If anyone actually did a little simple research about radio and understood what happened when deregulation of the industry was passed by Congress and signed by Bill Clinton in 1995, maybe they wouldn’t be so surprised. Deregulation rarely helps for anyone in ANY profession who isn’t at the top of the food chain. Anyone who works in the radio biz knows that this kind of thing has been happening all the more frequently in the 21st-century.
ReplyDeleteIn the ‘old days’ of radio, you could get fired for a myriad of reasons but rarely was your job ‘eliminated’ because of consolidation. What’s been happening in the business world of America since as long ago as the 1980s finally caught up with radio about 10-15 years ago and has been getting worse each year. So sadly, what happened today at KGO is not unusual in the radio industry of 2022. .
Weill said. I was in the broadcasting industry for more than 45 years, on-air, program director, etc. After deregulation, (thank you Clear Channel) those small-medium market assholes bought-up ever station (group) they could get there hands on, however, had no clue of to manage their empire, let alone how to figure out how to handle the debt service.Before deregulation, the radio business waa a license to print money. However, thanks to investors who had no clue how to run a radio group, they destroyed an industry along with the FCC.
DeleteBold move, considering props 26 and 27 are destined to get crushed, per the LA Times yesterday. A sports wager radio station in a state that doesn’t legally allow sports wagers. Bravo.
ReplyDeleteThey are taking a legit gamble. People that live here probably won’t support it…. Maybe there is enough gamblers to sustain it… doubt it…. A 50,000 watt gamble.
DeleteGambling is inevitable. So many states have already legalized it and are raking in the money. The Democrats leading California are salivating over those billions. The problem is too many competing Indian tribes all with their hands out.
DeleteLet’s not forget Rothman during Covid he could not wait to count the dead bodies for ratings. I am outraged !!!
ReplyDeleteYou can find Thom Hartmann on You Tube or Free Speech TV from 9 am to noon. At the same platforms you'll find Randi Rhodes. Amy Goodman has a good progressive program on KPFA at 6 am with a repeat at 9am...
ReplyDeleteThank you, that at least is something, however it won't work in my car. When I'm home I have a portable radio and liked I could just take it from room to room, not so easy with the computer, but will make do.
DeleteI will miss the laughs listening to rothman and his choir of old lonely ssi recipients; will he still be “disgusted”, “outraged” and not able to believe it when no one can hear his voice?
ReplyDeleteHey maybe that sports radio thing can include some segments on bowling as well as horse and dog races that are happening around places. I betcha.
ReplyDeleteAlready miss that "Ronnn Owens" report.
ReplyDeleteR.I.P. KGO radio
December 1, 2011 was also a Thursday when almost all on-air KGO staff were dismissed with no warning.
ReplyDeleteAs for this massacre, I’m reminded of that line from stage and movie musical Bye Bye Birdie—something like “The day I knew would come at last, at last has come.”
Condolences to those out on their duffs. For John Rothmann, as it was in 2011, another case of being fired with no opportunity to do a final show and thank listeners.
Condolences also to anyone unlucky enough to tune in to 810 and quite likely hear nothing but that racket of song snippets and voiced intros dropping ultra-vague of what’s to come. Heck, maybe it will be 70s and 80s music.
In the 70s I was in the Air Force living in Idaho, and I was able to get a strong signal of Ray Taliaferro most nights. When I returned to the Bay Area in 1981, I continued my addiction to KGO, and for the next 30 years it was always tuned in on our kitchen radio, and in all the cars. My kids grew up with KGO, and back then they received quite an education on world events from intelligent and articulate 'communicasters'. Gene Burns, Jim Eason, Bill Wattenburg and Ronn Owens were the best, a group of once in a lifetime personalities, and all on one station, it was amazing! Over the past 10 years I've checked back with KGO on occasion, but found it to be a mess of amateurish 'hosts', with ridiculously leftist and woke-ish programs that would have been an absolute embarrassment a decade earlier. KGO appears to finally be gone, and I don't miss it a bit...for many of us the end was in 2011. The only person I feel sorry for is Kim McA, coincidentally a fellow Petaluman. I remember many years Bill Wattenburg saying that "Kim has such a captivating voice". How right he was. RIP KGO.
ReplyDelete"The Spread" really ? what are the odds on how long this going to last ? The new line up/format at the station formerly known as KGO should be called "the Joke" . Cumulus stock holders are going see their share prices decline as the corporate stupidity and debt at Cumulus snowballs. The best hope for Bay Area radio is for Cumulus to go bankrupt and be forced to sell their stations.
ReplyDeleteThe disrespect on display by Cumulus is just stunning.
ReplyDeleteAnd after 80 years, the local news had a 30 second spot about the whole ambush.
I suppose it's a mix of of not giving a solitary shit and fear that a host might unload.
Just classless assholes in suits.
I hope they lose their shirts in this sports betting money grab.
Once again Cumulus is killing free radio.
ReplyDelete