KNKX programming changes

[Rob Piotrowski]

Buh-bye, "Car Talk" (it was going away anyway, but the programming gurus decided to pull the plug now).
See ya around, "Star Date".
Hello, "The New Cool" (Saturdays at 3p)

There's more - check out http://knkx.org/post/knkx-adds-snap-judgment-debuts-new-saturday-programming for the 411.

 

[crainbebo]

Glad they are keeping All Blues. That has been on KP...I meant KNKX forever.

 

[staggmovie]

If it makes Car Talk fans in Seattle feel better, WBEZ in Chicago also stopped airing repeats of Car Talk when they changed their programing schedule most notably week nights, and weekends which they pushed back an hour Wait Wait Don't Tell Me from its then 9:00 AM airing. And it makes sense to end repeats since Tom Magliozzi died almost 2 years ago. But fans can always still hear the podcasts on NPR's website.

 

[Bongwater]

Car Talk was LONG past it's shelf life and it really should have ended syndication long ago. I can understand it's popularity, but times are really changing. And so are cars. Snap Judgement is an excellent program. Glynn Washington is one of the best storytellers on the radio today. And The New Cool is going to be interesting.

I like what I see (and it's rare I say that for any radio station these days.) Kudos KNKX.

 

[staggmovie]

Bongwater

So am I taking it correct that you are saying that Car Talk should exited syndication after Tom and Ray Magliozzi retired. And I haven't been a long time fan of it, I might have listened maybe once if best twice ever in my life. But it still does give fans a chance to hear old segments even through Tom is dead. And I would think ratings might still be strong for it.

 

[AQH]

So am I taking it correct that you are saying that Car Talk should exited syndication after Tom and Ray Magliozzi retired. And I haven't been a long time fan of it, I might have listened maybe once if best twice ever in my life. But it still does give fans a chance to hear old segments even through Tom is dead. And I would think ratings might still be strong for it.

NPR and its stations are facing a problem of an aging audience. Car Talk lingers at a time NPR sorely needs to freshen up its sound. The other moves NPR has made recently show they are trying to change things up.

 

[Radio-X]

Bongwater

So am I taking it correct that you are saying that Car Talk should exited syndication after Tom and Ray Magliozzi retired. And I haven't been a long time fan of it, I might have listened maybe once if best twice ever in my life. But it still does give fans a chance to hear old segments even through Tom is dead. And I would think ratings might still be strong for it.

I wondered why they never bothered to do that with "A Prairie Home Companion". Now that Keilor is free to make batches of Powdermilk Biscuits on weekends...why not give the Sunday "repeat" to more classic episodes and leave the live spot on Saturdays for the new fish?

I understand wanting to keep the show going as it's one of the few non-religious "old-timey" radio programs left (though it is Keilor's show through-and-through) but if Car Talk and Peanuts still recirculate well after their creator's demise, why not give the Sunday APHC matinee to older episodes?

Radio-X

 

[bobdavcav]

I love Car Talk, been listening for almost two years to the best of podcasts. It's my weekly laugh. As far as the KNKX programming changes, they're certainly interesting.

 

[TheBigA]

I wondered why they never bothered to do that with "A Prairie Home Companion".

I get the impression that Garrison wants to do something new, and wants his part in the past to disappear. After 30 years, sometimes hosts get wording in their contracts that give them a certain level of control in how their work gets used. So my guess is that Garrison nixed the idea of Prairie repeats.

Then again, if you're Chris Thiele, how would you feel about competing against the past?

 

[Radio-X]

I get the impression that Garrison wants to do something new, and wants his part in the past to disappear. After 30 years, sometimes hosts get wording in their contracts that give them a certain level of control in how their work gets used. So my guess is that Garrison nixed the idea of Prairie repeats.

Then again, if you're Chris Thiele, how would you feel about competing against the past?

I feel bad for him...Doubtful this gentleman will be anything but 'second fiddle' so-to-speak for awhile...no matter how well he does.

As for Car Talk...meh...once all the depressingly boring cars on the 'Stump the Chump' segment can officially be registered with classic tags, then you'll see the show disappear off NPR's lineup. It's tough to work on cars these days, and most NPR types aren't the ones to change any oil or fluid in their cars without a dealership doing it. So, no replacement in site...

Then again, in 20 years, hipsters may be buying 2003 Corollas with a vengeance looking for its nostalgic value...

Radio-X

 

[AQH]

After 30 years....

Those three words epitomizes NPR's problem.

 

[Bongwater]

Bongwater

So am I taking it correct that you are saying that Car Talk should exited syndication after Tom and Ray Magliozzi retired. And I haven't been a long time fan of it, I might have listened maybe once if best twice ever in my life. But it still does give fans a chance to hear old segments even through Tom is dead. And I would think ratings might still be strong for it.

I'm not discrediting Tom and Ray. Car Talk was an excellent program. But they've retired and one has passed on. And the show is starting to show it's age. Public radio is supposed to be fluid enough to change and adapt (It HAS to be.) Car Talk will live on in podcasts. But it's time to move forward.

A Prairie Home Companion has a new host. I'm not much of a fan of it. But that show still makes new episodes and Car Talk has not.

Again, nothing personal. But Casey Kasem is gone as well and his Classic American Top 40 reruns will one day disappear too. And something else will take it's place. That's just the way it is.

 

[TheBigA]

But that show still makes new episodes and Car Talk has not.

You're right...it seems to me there MUST be a couple of funny car mechanics out there. The History Channel seems to find them. But not NPR.

 

[johndavis]

You're right...it seems to me there MUST be a couple of funny car mechanics out there. The History Channel seems to find them. But not NPR.

I think it would be a travesty if NPR were to try to reboot Car Talk with different hosts. I never listened to Car Talk to hear about cars; I listened for Tom & Ray.

But NPR knew this day would come, if not when they retired but certainly when Tom died - yet it has never seemed to look for a new program to offer in its place. Even now when they've put a sunset date on the reruns, there isn't a show that has been groomed to replace it. They've left the ball in the court of the member stations.

Car Talk came about because WBUR needed a show and they ended up with something quirky - which grew into something that NPR jumped upon and took national.

The first step is for the member stations to start producing more of their own shows again. You can't re-create Tom & Ray, but if you make something for your town that's really good, you just might find a worthy replacement.

 

[TheBigA]

I think it would be a travesty if NPR were to try to reboot Car Talk with different hosts.

That's not what I was suggesting.

But NPR knew this day would come, if not when they retired but certainly when Tom died - yet it has never seemed to look for a new program to offer in its place.

That's not how NPR works. It's pretty obvious that they don't have a program creation or development department. They're not like NBC. Fixing Car Talk was WBUR's problem. Just as fixing Fresh Air is WHYY's problem. When Terry Gross retires, they have to decide what the future is, and clear it with NPR. NPR just distributes those programs. That's all.

The first step is for the member stations to start producing more of their own shows again.

When did that stop? From what I can see, stations continue to produce lots of local shows. The problem these days is getting OTHER stations to carry them. That's why NPR hasn't been able to launch any new shows. There are so many other options from so many other sources that they're not motivated to carry NPR shows. The bigger problem is the cost associated with NPR shows. It's cheaper to launch a local show than to carry an NPR show.

Getting back to Car Talk, one possible reason no one else has come up with a replacement show is that Car Talk was already taking up the space. Just like the suggestion about running repeats of Prairie Home. If you have Garrison still on the air, it makes it difficult for Chris Thiele to do his job, and take the show in a new direction. Because the ghost of the past is still on the air. Now that Car Talk is going away, it opens the way for another similar show, most likely with a different name. I doubt it will get NPR distribution. But at least the hole has been created where someone will try the format again.

 

[bossbill]

The past is a great place to visit, but...

 

[staggmovie]

I'm not discrediting Tom and Ray. Car Talk was an excellent program. But they've retired and one has passed on. And the show is starting to show it's age. Public radio is supposed to be fluid enough to change and adapt (It HAS to be.) Car Talk will live on in podcasts. But it's time to move forward.

A Prairie Home Companion has a new host. I'm not much of a fan of it. But that show still makes new episodes and Car Talk has not.

Again, nothing personal. But Casey Kasem is gone as well and his Classic American Top 40 reruns will one day disappear too. And something else will take it's place. That's just the way it is.

I guess that is one thing that if a show is your brain child, that you can get to choose of whether a new host takes over or just air repeats, and i doubt that Ray will ever come out his retirement to host new shows by himself, Garrison Keillor himself did create and shot the show, left and came back to host until his retirement, maybe they had to go on with the show. I don;'t know if Tom and Ray had in their contracts to do Car Talk when the time came for them to retire, if they had in their contracts nobody else take over as host and instead just air repeats. I am sure as a fan you can get tired of listening to repeats but since I have never been a listener of the show on a regular basis so it really doesn't matter to me. I know in the film version of
A Prairie Home Companion they had Garrison Kellor retiring as host, and doing one last broadcast as an fictional version of the final show ever, where of course they didn't happen in real life. There is one thing that they do say in show business and that the show must go on. Between 2012 and 2016 there have been retirements of either a host of a show or another person on a show that doesn't serve as host. In 2014 saw the retirement of Carl Kassel as the announcer and score keeper of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, and the very next after his last show Bill Kurtis took over as announcer and score keeper. Even through Peter Sagal is the host, but he is only 51 years old which would be young to retire, but at some point he might decide that he might want to leave as host and do something else, which is doubtful at this point, but you don't know what the future will bring.

 

[Bongwater]

I'm not discrediting Tom and Ray. Car Talk was an excellent program. But they've retired and one has passed on. And the show is starting to show it's age. Public radio is supposed to be fluid enough to change and adapt (It HAS to be.) Car Talk will live on in podcasts. But it's time to move forward.

A Prairie Home Companion has a new host. I'm not much of a fan of it. But that show still makes new episodes and Car Talk has not.

Again, nothing personal. But Casey Kasem is gone as well and his Classic American Top 40 reruns will one day disappear too. And something else will take it's place. That's just the way it is.

I guess that is one thing that if a show is your brain child, that you can get to choose of whether a new host takes over or just air repeats, and i doubt that Ray will ever come out his retirement to host new shows by himself, Garrison Keillor himself did create and shot the show, left and came back to host until his retirement, maybe they had to go on with the show. I don;'t know if Tom and Ray had in their contracts to do Car Talk when the time came for them to retire, if they had in their contracts nobody else take over as host and instead just air repeats. I am sure as a fan you can get tired of listening to repeats but since I have never been a listener of the show on a regular basis so it really doesn't matter to me. I know in the film version of
A Prairie Home Companion they had Garrison Kellor retiring as host, and doing one last broadcast as an fictional version of the final show ever, where of course they didn't happen in real life. There is one thing that they do say in show business and that the show must go on. Between 2012 and 2016 there have been retirements of either a host of a show or another person on a show that doesn't serve as host. In 2014 saw the retirement of Carl Kassel as the announcer and score keeper of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, and the very next after his last show Bill Kurtis took over as announcer and score keeper. Even through Peter Sagal is the host, but he is only 51 years old which would be young to retire, but at some point he might decide that he might want to leave as host and do something else, which is doubtful at this point, but you don't know what the future will bring.

If Peter Sagal wants to retire or not, that's his decision and no one is forcing him out. Car Talk is an entirely different situation. Wait Wait Don't Tell Me is an ongoing show still in production every week. Car Talk has not made a new episode since October 2012. And one of their hosts has passed away two years ago. Ray and no one at NPR has publicly considered reviving the show thus far. That kinda spells doom for a show that hasn't had a new episode in four years no matter now popular it is.

Secondly, NPR ITSELF is ending Best of Car Talk next year. If it wasn't going away now, it would a year from now. And finally, you can find Car Talk on podcasts. So that's where you will find your Car Talk fix.

NPR has a legacy of long running shows. A few running perhaps longer than they need to be. But Diane Rehm is retiring and Terry Gross is 65. There will be more changes coming beyond Car Talk. And when these changes happen is up to NPR, it's affiliates and the respective hosts. As sad as it is to see it all change, it all will eventually. Nothing stays the same on ANY network. It can't. Times change.

Casey Kasem's Classic American Top 40 is Sunday morning fodder on countless Classic Hits stations and still has a respectable following with younger Boomers and older Gen-Xers. For those people (myself included), Casey Kasem was our radio hero. But there will come a time when iHeart will pull it out of syndication as well. Not many people are going to like that either. But it will happen one day as well. I may be wrong, but I really can't see the old AT 40 reruns still going 10 years from now. By then, it would REALLY look ghoulish to have a guy who's been dead for 12 years holding down Sunday mornings. And like Car Talk, it will likely have a permanent home on the internet (it already does.) And that's fair.

http://www.cartalk.com/

http://www.iheart.com/live/classic-american-top-40-6545/

 

[TheBigA]

NPR has a legacy of long running shows. A few running perhaps longer than they need to be. But Diane Rehm is retiring and Terry Gross is 65. There will be more changes coming beyond Car Talk.

Like Car Talk, those are local shows that NPR distributes. As opposed to NPR shows like All Things Considered and Morning Edition. When Rehm retires at the end of this year, WAMU will obviously replace her, but unless it's someone with similar heritage, it will take a while to catch on. Chris Thiele has had a long relationship with PHC, so the show's listeners know who he is and what they can expect from him. They had a break-in period for a few years. Not so with Rehm, unless they replace her with Rene Montaigne or someone like that, which come to think of it is a good idea. Except she'll have to move back to DC from the west coast.

 

[bobdavcav]

Classic AT40 shows will probably eventually be replaced with what is now the current AT40 weekend broadcast as Classic Hits evolves. My biggest issue with those shows is they're not about the music anymore. Casem never had artist interviews, gossip about festivals, movies, or what have you on the show. Now, you can't find a count down show without that stuff.