WGR's Howard Simon down to 3 days a week?

[flybynight]

Not exactly hot off the presses, but I just discovered this and hadn't seen anything about it on here, so....

Apparently Howard Stern---I mean, Simon, has worked out a deal with Audacy/WGR management to only come in on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays---at least until the end of the football season, and then it's anybody's guess what happens.

According to this article, he has been doing sports-talk for 30 years and is just plain exhausted from it. Not surprised to hear that coming up with things to talk about in a niche (yes, popular, but still a niche) format is a big headache.

Is Jeremy White capable of sustaining the morning show without him? White, who is certainly very well read in the sports realm, doesn't quite have the animated personality that Simon has. In the meantime, they're using Joe Dibiase on Wednesdays and Thursdays, but I am skeptical that they'll keep that pairing if Simon calls it quits altogether.

WGR Morning Host Howard Simon To Cut Down To Three Days Per Week - RadioInsight

Audacy Sports 550 WGR Buffalo morning host Howard Simon announced this morning that he will be cutting down to appearing only three days a week. Simon will continue to host mornings on WGR on Monday, Tuesday and Friday each week, while co-host Jeremy White will anchor the morning show on...

radioinsight.com

 

[SirRoxalot]

WGR's "formula" for sports talk is modeled after a couple of guys sitting at a bar talking about sports, not on real expertise. Lately it's morphed into as much fantasy and sports betting content as it is about the sports themselves. Think of Cheers with Norm and Cliff. Howard Simon has been a relatable guy who came across to me as honestly following the sports without trying to portray himself as an expert ala Norm. Jeremy White is more like the Cliff Claven character who has a wealth of stats that may or may not apply to the discussion or may not be interpreted correctly. Howard has been the steady host who annoyingly gets interrupted time after time by Jeremy White.

Maybe it's a generational thing, but I find Jeremy grating a bit too often. But, conflict is at the heart of most sports talk. Joe Dibiase will likely take on the role of the "average Joe" in the pairing with White, but he's a lot more conversant with stats and fantasy. We'll have to see how that works out when teamed with Jeremy. In any event, it will be a sad day at WGR when Howard hangs up the headphones. Maybe taking some more time off will rejuvenate him. Maybe it's the beginning of the end.

 

[tbolt909]

Sports Talk ain't Shakespeare. Maybe Simon is finally bored with it. I expect Audacy made him take a steep pay cut to stay part time. People who are listening to the station just want Bills content. They don't care who the hosts are...

 

[flybynight]

Joe Dibiase will likely take on the role of the "average Joe" in the pairing with White, but he's a lot more conversant with stats and fantasy.

Whenever I hear the "fantasy" stuff it depresses me. It's so childish and boring. I have the same reaction to people who play air guitar. Cringe.

 

[Oldbloodandguts]

Howard Simon tried to escape from WGR a few years ago, heading for more stability and better pay. It didn't happen then, so now he is being tamped down because they are cutting back. Likely it will be only Jeremy there and some real "cheapie" guests that would pay WGR just to be heard by their buddies who listen to sports in their pajamas.

 

[flybynight]

Howard Simon tried to escape from WGR a few years ago, heading for more stability and better pay. It didn't happen then, so now he is being tamped down because they are cutting back. Likely it will be only Jeremy there and some real "cheapie" guests that would pay WGR just to be heard by their buddies who listen to sports in their pajamas.

No way that's the situation. If they wanted to cut costs by cutting back on his services, they would release him---not say, "ok, you come in now on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays". That's ridiculous. I have no doubt this was his choice and for the short term, they are accommodating each other.

 

[tbolt909]

No way that's the situation. If they wanted to cut costs by cutting back on his services, they would release him---not say, "ok, you come in now on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays". That's ridiculous. I have no doubt this was his choice and for the short term, they are accommodating each other.

Audacy is in bad shape. Cost cutting certainly was a factor in this move. You may be right it was mutual, but it had to involve a pay cut. Instead of terminating a long time host, they can gradually fade him out. After football season ends, he could be gone...

 

[flybynight]

Audacy is in bad shape. Cost cutting certainly was a factor in this move. You may be right it was mutual, but it had to involve a pay cut. Instead of terminating a long time host, they can gradually fade him out. After football season ends, he could be gone...

I have no doubt there was a pay cut, but I'm sure that came after Simon made it clear he was no longer interested in doing 5 days a week. Haven't seen many stations cut the pay and hours of a major daypart, yet keep them on staff. Not good for morale, as that staffer will typically have a bad attitude going forward.

 

[tbolt909]

I have no doubt there was a pay cut, but I'm sure that came after Simon made it clear he was no longer interested in doing 5 days a week. Haven't seen many stations cut the pay and hours of a major daypart, yet keep them on staff. Not good for morale, as that staffer will typically have a bad attitude going forward.

Maybe the "lack" of money was the reason for his desire to go part time. I'm sure he sees the headwinds facing the company. The Bills finally seem to have a good team after decades of futility, so he should be energized by that. Company morale is likely not great except for newbies who aren't seasoned enough to know better...

 

[flybynight]

Maybe the "lack" of money was the reason for his desire to go part time. I'm sure he sees the headwinds facing the company. The Bills finally seem to have a good team after decades of futility, so he should be energized by that. Company morale is likely not great except for newbies who aren't seasoned enough to know better...

Could be. I don't know if his contract was up, but maybe if he couldn't get much of a raise, he decided in a very Stern-like manner, to do less days. Addition by subtraction in a sense.

Come to think of it, his explanation of why he wants to cut back doesn't jive with the current situation. He said that having to constantly come up with content in a niche format is exhausting---which I'm sure it is---but of all the years he's been there, THIS is probably the easiest it's ever been for show prep. The enthusiasm for the Bills is through the roof. I don't even think that the national spotlight was ever this favorable towards them as it is right now.

And THIS is when you want to go to 3 days? Hmmmmm.....

 

[Mark1981]

My God! The speculation here. I retired from full-time work when I was 55. I was burned out after a large portion of my career was spent heading up a radio newsroom. Ten years later, in the midst of COVID and wanting to enjoy my grandson, I retired from part-time work. Maybe it has nothing to do with salary…or the success of the Bills…or Audacy looking to cut costs. Maybe Howard is tired of getting up at 4am. Perhaps working a three day week is just right for him at this point in his life. Unless you have specific knowledge of the motivation behind his decision, just stop speculating. It’s maddening, and frankly, very unfair to Howard.

 

[SirRoxalot]

Finally, Mark1981 inserts some intelligent conversation. It's every bit as likely that Howard was ready to pull the plug at the end of his contract and they enticed him to stay on three days a week because he's the most popular host on that morning show. Is he likely making the same salary? No. Is he likely making more than 3/5ths of his former salary? I'd say yes. Most of the people speculating on this either haven't worked in radio for an extended period of time, haven't done a morning show for decades, or haven't reached an age where your kids are grown and doing well, you have fewer obligations, and you want more time to enjoy the fruits of having earned a lot of money over a long period of time. Time is the one thing you can't buy, and there comes a point in your life where you realize it's a finite resource. Perhaps Howard has reached the point where he feels that he has enough money to retire comfortably and he wants to enjoy life while he's healthy.

 

[tbolt909]

The last two posts are hypocritical. Let's criticize others and then proceed to make OUR own speculation. It COULD be a combination of all of the reasons that have been mentioned and is not unfair to the host. This is a public forum and guessing on any posters Radio experience is more speculation.

It appears that many people never get out of Buffalo and see what's happening in the industry (and Audacy specifically)...

 

[SirRoxalot]

It appears that some posters here have a lot more experience than others, and know the market (and people involved) better. And may actually have an outlooks somewhat more rosy than sour.

 

[Mark1981]

The last two posts are hypocritical. Let's criticize others and then proceed to make OUR own speculation. It COULD be a combination of all of the reasons that have been mentioned and is not unfair to the host. This is a public forum and guessing on any posters Radio experience is more speculation.

It appears that many people never get out of Buffalo and see what's happening in the industry (and Audacy specifically)...

Nothing hypocritical about my post. No speculation on my part. Howard himself said he was growing tired of the early hours and that this move was right for him at this point of his life.

 

[flybynight]

My God! The speculation here. I retired from full-time work when I was 55. I was burned out after a large portion of my career was spent heading up a radio newsroom. Ten years later, in the midst of COVID and wanting to enjoy my grandson, I retired from part-time work. Maybe it has nothing to do with salary…or the success of the Bills…or Audacy looking to cut costs. Maybe Howard is tired of getting up at 4am. Perhaps working a three day week is just right for him at this point in his life. Unless you have specific knowledge of the motivation behind his decision, just stop speculating. It’s maddening, and frankly, very unfair to Howard.

Sorry, I forgot that these forums are much better when they are more quiet.

You know how these things work, right?

 

[Radio-Bored-Op]

Audacy is in bad shape. Cost cutting certainly was a factor in this move. You may be right it was mutual, but it had to involve a pay cut. Instead of terminating a long time host, they can gradually fade him out. After football season ends, he could be gone...

How bad ? Bad enough they * finally *
spin off kb ☆ 1520 ?
or that jukebox on 98.5 ? TWO large salaries being eliminated would help...

WTSS seems to have license for broadcasting along with the license to print money. star 102.5 appears to balance local talent that this market "needs" and the things that people in Buffalo "want" ....

 

[SirRoxalot]

Audacy - and no other big group - is likely to spin off stations piecemeal. They'll sell a whole market cluster, not single stations. 98.5 is doing better than Star, so it's sure not going on the block. KB would be difficult to separate from WGR. They'll sell it when they drop AM altogether, and that's not happening in the short term. It will be a place to park syndicated content so they can sell national spots based on its theoretical reach.

Audacy's financial situation is very similar to iHeart and Cumulus in their run-up to bankruptcy. Neither group sold off stations. Stockholders, some investors, and some vendors took it in the shorts. Ultimately, they shed a bunch of debt and the main financial backers took control of the stations. Would the Field family hang onto their piece, or take it in the shorts like the Dickey family? That's the big question. Since David Field is the guy in charge he could get the blame and get moved out along with the family interests.

As far as Howard is concerned, it's more than likely that it's completely his decision on when or if he pulls the plug completely. Will he make less money for 3 days a week? Of course. Is he worth the comparative nickels and dimes he makes compared to a much less well known replacement? Absolutely. The only way they fire Howard for economic reasons is if they replace the morning show entirely with syndicated content. As long as they've got the Bills and Sabres that ain't gonna happen.

 

[Marchant26]

It's embarrassing that in a sports crazed city, GR is the sounding board. Idk what Allen Davis is doing or what he finds acceptable, but that afternoon show is a joke. They have no incentive and it shows. Good luck to Howard though, he's a good guy.

 

[flybynight]

It's embarrassing that in a sports crazed city, GR is the sounding board. Idk what Allen Davis is doing or what he finds acceptable, but that afternoon show is a joke. They have no incentive and it shows. Good luck to Howard though, he's a good guy.

I like the afternoon show. Both hosts are knowledgeable and fairly entertaining. Not sure why Schopp gets so much heat from people. I think he's got a terrific dry sense of humor.