Every once in a blue moon, something will happen in the radio business, and my friends that still work in radio will ask for my insight into what is about to happen. This happens more when it is on a national level, but this week, one of the local stations here started stunting (in this case, all Christmas Music). The question was, what format do you think they will go to, and why?
Looking at the most successful stations in the area, and the other stations already here, I explained I thought they would go with a Hot Adult Contemporary format. I also said for it to be successful they would have to keep the drive time programming local and live, they would need to have an extremely focused music library, and they would have to position the station with something that would get people's attention, not just the cookie cutter "Today's Hits, and Yesterday's Favorites" type of dribble.
They flipped the station to "The New Mix 93, the station with MY Mix of Music" this morning. The same lame hosts, in some cases screwing up and calling the station by the old name, and I think some of that was voice tracked!!
The music is typical for programmers not used to real competition. "We're a mix station, so we should play stuff people don't usually hear!" I can hear the committee programming this station in my head like the nagging of a 90 year old off their meds. You gain audience by playing music people know and love, not an album cut off an obscure album that didn't have one song break the Top 100, much less a number 10, and most certainly not a number 1.
I am going to restrain myself here. Instead of going off on a tirade on cookie cutter formats, management cutting past the point of having the ability to produce a viable, creative radio, or about how all the people that are needed have left the business, I will change the subject.
I found out today that my hometown radio station has been sold to a religious company, and will be gutted and turned into a christian teaching ministry station. It is the station I first got on as a kid. I used to call the morning guy every morning and tell him cheeky jokes I would find in books from the library. I went home in 2004 as that station's program director and I put all my energy and focus into making it a great station again until they pulled the rug out from under us. I am saddened that my hometown loses this part of the community, but I know it is all a part of the cycle that radio is in now.
On the bright side, after 10 years as an engineer, I can still predict how things work in radio.
Drop me a line anytime: bigdaddy@ccwinteractive.com
I could spend hours going off on why this will be another station that will flip format in a year of so.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
My How Times Have Changed
I am sitting here trying to stay awake at almost midnight. I will stay awake until the live show in the studios is wrapped at 1AM. We had a couple of issues at work, and since Murphy is my friend, I know if I go to sleep something else will blow sky high.
I heard something on the way home after work tonight that really made me laugh. Sitting in line at the Seven 11 waiting to buy my liter of diet, and the two young women in front of me checking out were bitching that Obama's press conference was screwing up their favorite show. When I got home, I found out it also took out Idol and a few other shows.
It made me laugh because they got into a car with two bumper stickers on the back. Obama08 on one side and BUSH's LAST DAY on the other. They put him in office but now they are so concerned with what's going on that a show like American Idol is more important? It just boggles my mind.
I know I am showing my age, but I remember when there was only broadcast TV available in my hometown. The three majors; ABC, CBS, and NBC, two PBS channels, and one independent that ran wrestling and movies. When the President gave an address or news conference, everything stopped. Everyone ran it, and my dad could not be pulled from the set. He expected us to sit quietly, watch, and understand the importance of what was happening.
I don't know if you caught it, but trend used to be until this past January that unless it was a major address, only the news channels carried it. It has been that way for the past two presidents, as far as I can remember. I point this out to remind you that the way this president is covered is so much more complete that ever before. Every move, every speech, every comment, and it is all out there for everyone.
This extreme scrutiny is a double edged sword. Some would say it makes things transparent. That may be true, but it puts the person in an impossible situation. No matter how much the media loves this president, they will turn on him. It is just a matter of time.
Now the conservative media has already started to attempt to pick Obama apart, and anyone surprised by that should not be allow to drive a car, or operate heavy machines. Fact is, in some instances I agree with their assessments. It does seem like Obama is a little lost. It does seem like the job has really taken a toll on him. It seems he is following a liberal agenda. If you are surprised, again, please don't drive in my neighborhood.
I don't care your political affiliation, nor do I care if you like Obama or not. I remember when both Bush presidents first got in office. I remember when Clinton first got in office. All three had a few things in common with this president when they first took office. I remember the complaints that they all seemed a little lost. I remember the bitching about how they had an (insert political affiliation) agenda they were following. I remember watching all of them quickly age from the stress involved in being the leader of the free world.
Am I saying give change a chance? No, we need to watch everything going on and all different view points need to be expressed. Debate is a great thing. Bitching just to bitch does nothing productive. The goal needs to be a defined focused plan to move the economy, and more importantly, the country ahead quickly.
I hope everyone in Washington wakes up quickly and realizes most of us out here don't want to hear bickering, backstabbing, finger pointing, or posturing. I want answers. I want action. I want a solution. I predict if that doesn't happen, we will see the biggest house cleaning in congressional history during the next election.
I don't know about you, but hearing about what was inherited or what they were left with only pisses me off. You knew when you spent two years running for office that the economy was in trouble. You knew that you had a mess to clean up. You said you could make the change needed to correct and reverse the bad decisions, so stop making excuses and get to work!
Let me know what you think. Drop me a line at bigdaddy@ccwinteractive.com
I heard something on the way home after work tonight that really made me laugh. Sitting in line at the Seven 11 waiting to buy my liter of diet, and the two young women in front of me checking out were bitching that Obama's press conference was screwing up their favorite show. When I got home, I found out it also took out Idol and a few other shows.
It made me laugh because they got into a car with two bumper stickers on the back. Obama08 on one side and BUSH's LAST DAY on the other. They put him in office but now they are so concerned with what's going on that a show like American Idol is more important? It just boggles my mind.
I know I am showing my age, but I remember when there was only broadcast TV available in my hometown. The three majors; ABC, CBS, and NBC, two PBS channels, and one independent that ran wrestling and movies. When the President gave an address or news conference, everything stopped. Everyone ran it, and my dad could not be pulled from the set. He expected us to sit quietly, watch, and understand the importance of what was happening.
I don't know if you caught it, but trend used to be until this past January that unless it was a major address, only the news channels carried it. It has been that way for the past two presidents, as far as I can remember. I point this out to remind you that the way this president is covered is so much more complete that ever before. Every move, every speech, every comment, and it is all out there for everyone.
This extreme scrutiny is a double edged sword. Some would say it makes things transparent. That may be true, but it puts the person in an impossible situation. No matter how much the media loves this president, they will turn on him. It is just a matter of time.
Now the conservative media has already started to attempt to pick Obama apart, and anyone surprised by that should not be allow to drive a car, or operate heavy machines. Fact is, in some instances I agree with their assessments. It does seem like Obama is a little lost. It does seem like the job has really taken a toll on him. It seems he is following a liberal agenda. If you are surprised, again, please don't drive in my neighborhood.
I don't care your political affiliation, nor do I care if you like Obama or not. I remember when both Bush presidents first got in office. I remember when Clinton first got in office. All three had a few things in common with this president when they first took office. I remember the complaints that they all seemed a little lost. I remember the bitching about how they had an (insert political affiliation) agenda they were following. I remember watching all of them quickly age from the stress involved in being the leader of the free world.
Am I saying give change a chance? No, we need to watch everything going on and all different view points need to be expressed. Debate is a great thing. Bitching just to bitch does nothing productive. The goal needs to be a defined focused plan to move the economy, and more importantly, the country ahead quickly.
I hope everyone in Washington wakes up quickly and realizes most of us out here don't want to hear bickering, backstabbing, finger pointing, or posturing. I want answers. I want action. I want a solution. I predict if that doesn't happen, we will see the biggest house cleaning in congressional history during the next election.
I don't know about you, but hearing about what was inherited or what they were left with only pisses me off. You knew when you spent two years running for office that the economy was in trouble. You knew that you had a mess to clean up. You said you could make the change needed to correct and reverse the bad decisions, so stop making excuses and get to work!
Let me know what you think. Drop me a line at bigdaddy@ccwinteractive.com
In Your Corner on My Terms
For those of you that don't know, late last year I started a show on Blog Talk Radio. Being that one of my passions is wrestling, I kept the focus mostly on that, but did a little politics, and added bits I liked too. I did it through the holidays, and after my mom didn't make it here as planned, I kinda hung it up.
Truth is, having my mom cancel her plans at the last moment did put me in a depression. She is by no means the cause of me deciding to stop for at least a little while. I knew going in that to put together the one hour show I was doing, it was going to take at least 2 hours of prep to feel like I had the material needed for each show. I listened to the shows, and felt I was still stumbling too much and kept beating myself up for it.
The other part of this is I feel I need to change the focus of what I was doing. I need to talk about the things I want to talk about, and cover what makes me want to grab a microphone. So, I may wait another week or so and then I am going to start doing my show again.
This time I do what I want. This time I don't settle. From now on I don't try to please anyone but me. I know it sounds selfish, but I have taken the back seat, settled, and done it everyone else's way for way too long. It may only be a stupid Internet podcast that no one listens to, but it will be MY PODCAST.
Thanks for reading. Got a comment, send it to me at: bigdaddy@ccwinteractive.com but don't be surprised if I post it.
Truth is, having my mom cancel her plans at the last moment did put me in a depression. She is by no means the cause of me deciding to stop for at least a little while. I knew going in that to put together the one hour show I was doing, it was going to take at least 2 hours of prep to feel like I had the material needed for each show. I listened to the shows, and felt I was still stumbling too much and kept beating myself up for it.
The other part of this is I feel I need to change the focus of what I was doing. I need to talk about the things I want to talk about, and cover what makes me want to grab a microphone. So, I may wait another week or so and then I am going to start doing my show again.
This time I do what I want. This time I don't settle. From now on I don't try to please anyone but me. I know it sounds selfish, but I have taken the back seat, settled, and done it everyone else's way for way too long. It may only be a stupid Internet podcast that no one listens to, but it will be MY PODCAST.
Thanks for reading. Got a comment, send it to me at: bigdaddy@ccwinteractive.com but don't be surprised if I post it.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
The State of Radio
One of my best friends and I have been having an e-mail discussion about the state of the radio industry. The e-mails have been flying back and forth for about two weeks now. It's been a lively discussion, but way to many four letter words about too many specific people to post here.
Robert and I have known each other for the past 16 years. We have worked some of the same companies, and even teamed up for what I thought was some of the best performances I have ever been allowed to be a part of.
I will try to summarize here a few of the points we both agree on:
I could keep going but those two alone give you the core of where our conversation went. Radio, both personality driven talk, and the music formatted stations out there can become dominant again. They have to stop using the same lame formats and thinking. Evolve radio to match the interactive reality. That is step one, and without it, the rest won't matter.
The other part of the equation is to work to develop real talent, and give them to tools, respect, and leeway to develop the cutting edge programming that will bring today's listeners back to radio. 10 in a row, 20 in a row, even 100 in a row won't cut it anymore. Look at the stuff people go to in droves online. It is all personality driven, not music driven.
Managers have ignored, ridiculed, and even destroyed the people they need the most right now. The guys that can make what is needed left radio because too many corporate programmers wanted all their stations to be exactly the same. This edict left all the creative, talented, and progressive guys that could mould stations into legendary powerhouses out of the loop. They chose to walk away from the business they all loved so much instead of curse themselves for destroying their work with a cookie cutter.
Radio can evolve and survive. I hope to watch it do so soon.
Robert and I have known each other for the past 16 years. We have worked some of the same companies, and even teamed up for what I thought was some of the best performances I have ever been allowed to be a part of.
I will try to summarize here a few of the points we both agree on:
- Consolidation killed radio years ago. When companies like Clear Channel, Cumulus, Citadel, et al were allowed to come in a just repackage the same programming in a different logo across the country they took the soul that made radio special away. When the big companies came in and were allowed to undercut the competition (mom and pop owners) with dollar a holler and using voice tracking to cut costs, they ripped the guts out of all stations. Mom and pop had to turn to satellite or automation to make ends meet.
- There are too many choices out there. When you can pop up any news organization you want on your phone for the latest news, weather, or even music, radio now is in a bigger fight than ever to stay relevant in today's plugged in society. When you add that to skeleton staff, the lack of true personality in today's radio, and it's not hard to see why radio is becoming a secondary, or last resort entertainment choice for many.
I could keep going but those two alone give you the core of where our conversation went. Radio, both personality driven talk, and the music formatted stations out there can become dominant again. They have to stop using the same lame formats and thinking. Evolve radio to match the interactive reality. That is step one, and without it, the rest won't matter.
The other part of the equation is to work to develop real talent, and give them to tools, respect, and leeway to develop the cutting edge programming that will bring today's listeners back to radio. 10 in a row, 20 in a row, even 100 in a row won't cut it anymore. Look at the stuff people go to in droves online. It is all personality driven, not music driven.
Managers have ignored, ridiculed, and even destroyed the people they need the most right now. The guys that can make what is needed left radio because too many corporate programmers wanted all their stations to be exactly the same. This edict left all the creative, talented, and progressive guys that could mould stations into legendary powerhouses out of the loop. They chose to walk away from the business they all loved so much instead of curse themselves for destroying their work with a cookie cutter.
Radio can evolve and survive. I hope to watch it do so soon.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Crisis Management
I've sat and quietly watched since Janurary 20th with amazement at how the new President is working on so many different fronts all at the same time. With the 17 (so far) executive orders, "summit" after "summit" on issue after issue at the White House, and more press conferences than the Sham Wow guy has infomercial time, it is an understatement to say that President Obama has his hands full right now.
The thing that concerns me is we have a crisis on our hands. It's not just affecting the USA, but the entire world. Instead of taking the bull by the horns and facing this head on, giving this financial crisis the full undivided attention it deserves, it is only one of several items being taken on by the White House right now. Let's see, Stem Cell Research, Education, Health care reform, political (pork barrel/ear mark) reform, and RUSH LIMBAUGH (?) all seem to get the same attention as the one item that should be front and center.
Reminds me of the plate spinner at the circus. If you put a dozen or so plates all spinning on the sticks at once, it may seem OK to let one or two fall off and break in a million pieces. I mean, c'mon, the guy had 11 (or was that 10) plates all spinning on sticks at once! Give the man a round of applause!
You are the leader of the free world, Mr. President. You may want to tell Carville and the rest of the guys whispering in your ear to shut the hell up for moment so you can think. If you don't get the financial crisis turned around in quick order, you will reach a point of no return. Once there, the America we all know and love will never be the same. Some say we have already reached that point, but it seems to me that we have a very limited time before we get there.
Did anyone else catch the article from the New York Times (on drudgereport.com) about the banks wanting to give the money they got from the government back? It isn't because they have found the miracle cure to the issues that caused them to ask for the money in the first place. No, it's because the government is turning around and attaching more and more strings to the "free money" now that there has been public outcry about how the money was being used. Now, the government wants the banks that took money to stop foreclosures and restructure the mortgages. Wait, wasn't that what congress said they wanted the money to be used for when they passed this so called "stimulus" bill? So, let's see if I get this straight, you take the money because it is there, knowing that it is suppose to be used to stop the foreclosures and allow you to restructure mortgages, then want to give it back when the government says you actually do it? Have I got that one right?
The only focus of the White House right now needs to be getting the economy turned around. All this other smoke and mirrors stuff will make for something for the news cycle, but doesn't give this crisis the attention is needs. You can put band aid fixes together only so long before the fixable issues become insurmountable obstacles because no one was willing to step up and face the music. It doesn't matter who started it, or what was inherited, the only thing important now is that the crisis is contained, and the economy turned around before it can not be corrected.
The thing that concerns me is we have a crisis on our hands. It's not just affecting the USA, but the entire world. Instead of taking the bull by the horns and facing this head on, giving this financial crisis the full undivided attention it deserves, it is only one of several items being taken on by the White House right now. Let's see, Stem Cell Research, Education, Health care reform, political (pork barrel/ear mark) reform, and RUSH LIMBAUGH (?) all seem to get the same attention as the one item that should be front and center.
Reminds me of the plate spinner at the circus. If you put a dozen or so plates all spinning on the sticks at once, it may seem OK to let one or two fall off and break in a million pieces. I mean, c'mon, the guy had 11 (or was that 10) plates all spinning on sticks at once! Give the man a round of applause!
All of the other stuff being thrown up there are programs that can't be funded if we don't stop the hemorrhaging of the economy. It is disturbing to see company after company cut pay across the board by 10 to 20%, or lay off up to 20% of the workforce, or bite the bullet and just go out of business. The more people out of work, means more people that can't pay mortgages, and more people that are needing government assistance.
You are the leader of the free world, Mr. President. You may want to tell Carville and the rest of the guys whispering in your ear to shut the hell up for moment so you can think. If you don't get the financial crisis turned around in quick order, you will reach a point of no return. Once there, the America we all know and love will never be the same. Some say we have already reached that point, but it seems to me that we have a very limited time before we get there.
Did anyone else catch the article from the New York Times (on drudgereport.com) about the banks wanting to give the money they got from the government back? It isn't because they have found the miracle cure to the issues that caused them to ask for the money in the first place. No, it's because the government is turning around and attaching more and more strings to the "free money" now that there has been public outcry about how the money was being used. Now, the government wants the banks that took money to stop foreclosures and restructure the mortgages. Wait, wasn't that what congress said they wanted the money to be used for when they passed this so called "stimulus" bill? So, let's see if I get this straight, you take the money because it is there, knowing that it is suppose to be used to stop the foreclosures and allow you to restructure mortgages, then want to give it back when the government says you actually do it? Have I got that one right?
The only focus of the White House right now needs to be getting the economy turned around. All this other smoke and mirrors stuff will make for something for the news cycle, but doesn't give this crisis the attention is needs. You can put band aid fixes together only so long before the fixable issues become insurmountable obstacles because no one was willing to step up and face the music. It doesn't matter who started it, or what was inherited, the only thing important now is that the crisis is contained, and the economy turned around before it can not be corrected.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Where, Oh Where Do I Begin??
There is just so many juicy pieces to work on here, so this first one is going to be a doosey! I'll just stick to the national stuff for now. So let's see, who should I start with?
Nancy Grace - Why is this crazy ass woman still allowed to be on TV? This woman has badgered a person to the point where they killed themselves, and she didn't even feel one bit of remorse for her actions. Now, if by some strange, weird, twisted bit of fate Casey Anthony gets a mistrial, it will be because this bitch has a "fan" in the Sheriff's office in FL that keeps leaking the information. I know that a host has to be opinionated, but this woman is the only one out there that makes Gloria Allred seem NORMAL! Nancy, leave this case alone, move on, get a life, get laid, DO SOMETHING ELSE!
Octo-Weirdness - Brunella and I were watching the TV the other night when I started flipping through the channels and we started talking about this after my flipping through Jon and Kate plus 8, Little People Big World, and (can never remember the title) The Duggar Family's show. This woman isn't nuts, she thought that she would get PAID like all those other people did. You ever notice that these family's might give up privacy, but they all are spending the money they make off their show royalties and (thank you Mel Brooks) MERCHANDISING on the show. Jon and Kate moved to a bigger house, the Roloff's doubled the size of their house, and the Duggar's bought a new tour bus (OK, it's just a BIG VAN, but hell, it looks like a damn bus!) for the family. These people get PAID to open their lives to the cameras, and the smart one's have developed websites, merchandise, and even tours to maximize the cash income while they have their 15 minutes. Getting this type of show produced is MUCH CHEAPER than a sitcom (remember the 2MIL an episode per cast member for FRIENDS??). OctoMom just figured some sucker (oops! I mean producer) would come in and want to make her life a reality show. Then she figured that just like every other mom that has Octos, the "community" would open their hearts with free diapers, free care, and maybe a new house or van like has happened over and over again. Just google for octuplets if you don't believe me. This woman figured everyone would hand her everything she needed. I guess she didn't notice how jaded everyone has become over the past decade or so. I read she will be getting free "home care assistance" so not everyone is completely jaded yet. I personally think that she should not have been allowed to do this. I think it is wrong to bring kids into the world without a way to care for them. I struggle with the 5 we have, and always feel like I never give them enough of my time, or even the material things they always tell me they could care less about.
Fairness Doctrine - One of my favorite talk show hosts talks constantly these days about how we are slowly being turned into a dictatorship, and I have to agree. I've heard quite a few of my friends talk at length about this, and my take on it is just a little different. I think that if that want to bring back the fairness doctrine, it should be fair to all forms of media. You see, if they want to give equal time to liberal and Conservative view points on the radio, then that should work great for television, newspapers, and even American based blogs on the Internet. Now, the argument will be, "well the only one that is so Conservative is radio". OK, you got me, TRUE. But, television is completely stacked with liberal hosts that are even further left than radio is stacked to the right. So, if we have to make room for liberal shows on radio, then we should see an equal amount of slots open up on TV. I know quite a few hosts that would love to have a TV slot (in some cases again) to be able to counteract the crap spewed by Maddow, Oberman, Mathews, Cooper, etc. nightly. Oh, anyone else notice how the TV news ratings have tanked on those shows? I don't usually play swami, but I predict that IF (and trust me the court fight makes it a BIG IF) they get their way and force liberals on the radio, they will be on hundreds of stations and NO ONE WILL BE LISTENING!!! Liberal hosts have tried and failed for years to successfully break into radio. They have never been able to assemble enough of a core audience to survive, much less thrive the way that hosts like Savage, Limbaugh, Hannity, Ingraham, etc. have for years. The people have spoken, and you can try to force feed America the liberal agenda, but then you will just have stations lose money, unable to sell those liberal shows, because NO ONE WILL LISTEN.
Stimulus Package(s) - Hmmm, this one has so many different doors to walk through. First, I was so embarrassed to watch as our elected officials rolled the American public by adding all these earmarks to this stuff. It was the mentality of the ship is sinking, so no one will miss this deck chair if I take it with me on the lifeboat. I understand something had to be done, but the news today was that Citi Group is posting the best quarter in 3 years. Well, if someone would pay all my debts, pay off my mortgage, and stock my freezer and pantry I could be that doing well too!
This was suppose to stabilize the stock market, but instead, the DOW is at the same level it was WHEN I GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL!! There should have been a hell of a lot more planning beforehand, and a ton of oversight after the fact. We now have neither, and the banks will still expect us to pay when they got FREE MONEY from the government. Where the hell is Mathew Lesko when you need him???
I'll stop there for now. Be back on tomorrow.
Joey
Nancy Grace - Why is this crazy ass woman still allowed to be on TV? This woman has badgered a person to the point where they killed themselves, and she didn't even feel one bit of remorse for her actions. Now, if by some strange, weird, twisted bit of fate Casey Anthony gets a mistrial, it will be because this bitch has a "fan" in the Sheriff's office in FL that keeps leaking the information. I know that a host has to be opinionated, but this woman is the only one out there that makes Gloria Allred seem NORMAL! Nancy, leave this case alone, move on, get a life, get laid, DO SOMETHING ELSE!
Octo-Weirdness - Brunella and I were watching the TV the other night when I started flipping through the channels and we started talking about this after my flipping through Jon and Kate plus 8, Little People Big World, and (can never remember the title) The Duggar Family's show. This woman isn't nuts, she thought that she would get PAID like all those other people did. You ever notice that these family's might give up privacy, but they all are spending the money they make off their show royalties and (thank you Mel Brooks) MERCHANDISING on the show. Jon and Kate moved to a bigger house, the Roloff's doubled the size of their house, and the Duggar's bought a new tour bus (OK, it's just a BIG VAN, but hell, it looks like a damn bus!) for the family. These people get PAID to open their lives to the cameras, and the smart one's have developed websites, merchandise, and even tours to maximize the cash income while they have their 15 minutes. Getting this type of show produced is MUCH CHEAPER than a sitcom (remember the 2MIL an episode per cast member for FRIENDS??). OctoMom just figured some sucker (oops! I mean producer) would come in and want to make her life a reality show. Then she figured that just like every other mom that has Octos, the "community" would open their hearts with free diapers, free care, and maybe a new house or van like has happened over and over again. Just google for octuplets if you don't believe me. This woman figured everyone would hand her everything she needed. I guess she didn't notice how jaded everyone has become over the past decade or so. I read she will be getting free "home care assistance" so not everyone is completely jaded yet. I personally think that she should not have been allowed to do this. I think it is wrong to bring kids into the world without a way to care for them. I struggle with the 5 we have, and always feel like I never give them enough of my time, or even the material things they always tell me they could care less about.
Fairness Doctrine - One of my favorite talk show hosts talks constantly these days about how we are slowly being turned into a dictatorship, and I have to agree. I've heard quite a few of my friends talk at length about this, and my take on it is just a little different. I think that if that want to bring back the fairness doctrine, it should be fair to all forms of media. You see, if they want to give equal time to liberal and Conservative view points on the radio, then that should work great for television, newspapers, and even American based blogs on the Internet. Now, the argument will be, "well the only one that is so Conservative is radio". OK, you got me, TRUE. But, television is completely stacked with liberal hosts that are even further left than radio is stacked to the right. So, if we have to make room for liberal shows on radio, then we should see an equal amount of slots open up on TV. I know quite a few hosts that would love to have a TV slot (in some cases again) to be able to counteract the crap spewed by Maddow, Oberman, Mathews, Cooper, etc. nightly. Oh, anyone else notice how the TV news ratings have tanked on those shows? I don't usually play swami, but I predict that IF (and trust me the court fight makes it a BIG IF) they get their way and force liberals on the radio, they will be on hundreds of stations and NO ONE WILL BE LISTENING!!! Liberal hosts have tried and failed for years to successfully break into radio. They have never been able to assemble enough of a core audience to survive, much less thrive the way that hosts like Savage, Limbaugh, Hannity, Ingraham, etc. have for years. The people have spoken, and you can try to force feed America the liberal agenda, but then you will just have stations lose money, unable to sell those liberal shows, because NO ONE WILL LISTEN.
Stimulus Package(s) - Hmmm, this one has so many different doors to walk through. First, I was so embarrassed to watch as our elected officials rolled the American public by adding all these earmarks to this stuff. It was the mentality of the ship is sinking, so no one will miss this deck chair if I take it with me on the lifeboat. I understand something had to be done, but the news today was that Citi Group is posting the best quarter in 3 years. Well, if someone would pay all my debts, pay off my mortgage, and stock my freezer and pantry I could be that doing well too!
This was suppose to stabilize the stock market, but instead, the DOW is at the same level it was WHEN I GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL!! There should have been a hell of a lot more planning beforehand, and a ton of oversight after the fact. We now have neither, and the banks will still expect us to pay when they got FREE MONEY from the government. Where the hell is Mathew Lesko when you need him???
I'll stop there for now. Be back on tomorrow.
Joey
Wow! That Long Already??
I was sitting at work looking at some old e-mails and realized that it has been almost 3 years since I have done anything with this blog. I was suppose to use it to "keep my chops" as it were by continuing to write about the things out there that attract my attention. Well, life caught up with me, and next thing you know, two moves, and another kid later, I finally get back to it.
Well, now I work for the 2nd largest long form radio network in the USA. I came to Oregon as a Staff Engineer, and now I am the Chief Engineer. It has been a bit of a culture shock, going from spending most of my time at transmitter sites keeping things going to having to deal with all the politics and behind the scenes stuff to keep programming to hundreds of stations.
We've been here in Oregon for 22 months on the 22nd of this month. Weird, I know. The kids have adjusted well. It's not quite as bad as it used to be for my mom and dad with Tammy and I, with kids always roaming around, but all 4 of the older one's have friends they are constantly on the phone with, and I am sure as soon as Gabe can talk he will pickup how to spend all his time on myspace/facebook, or the phone too.
I will start writing to this blog daily again. Just to rebuild my ability to speak my piece like I used to.
Thanks for reading.
Joey
Well, now I work for the 2nd largest long form radio network in the USA. I came to Oregon as a Staff Engineer, and now I am the Chief Engineer. It has been a bit of a culture shock, going from spending most of my time at transmitter sites keeping things going to having to deal with all the politics and behind the scenes stuff to keep programming to hundreds of stations.
We've been here in Oregon for 22 months on the 22nd of this month. Weird, I know. The kids have adjusted well. It's not quite as bad as it used to be for my mom and dad with Tammy and I, with kids always roaming around, but all 4 of the older one's have friends they are constantly on the phone with, and I am sure as soon as Gabe can talk he will pickup how to spend all his time on myspace/facebook, or the phone too.
I will start writing to this blog daily again. Just to rebuild my ability to speak my piece like I used to.
Thanks for reading.
Joey
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