A Sign of the Times

[Aramondo]

What are the two most likely rated dayparts a station might switch from live to voice-tracked as a cost cutting move?

 

[Roger]

Mid-Day like on WBHT and WKRZ and Mid-Nights

 

[Nokmo True]

Sign of the times? Whatever.

It'd be Mid to 6AM first, then 7 to Mid, then middays. Drive times means the towel has been thrown in.

 

[The Sigon]

In light of the employee buyout story emerging at Times Shamrock (on another blog) and this thread beginning a month ago, was it coincidence, titled intentionally, or did the original poster just get lucky and have a moment of prescience?

And if there's anything to the buyout tale, does anyone know if it includes their radio properties or just the newspaper?

If radio is included I think it'll be fascinating to see who might jump ship given the chance. Do they leave just to get out or leave for fear of not making a next round of cuts should it come but might not include another buyout opportunity.

Would anyone be safe? D and W, probably but also probably the biggest drain on revenue as far as salary goes. Would they even get a chance at the buyout? What if they took it or what if only one of them did?

Afternoon drive was Prospector, now Dave, D and W's former board op. Surely he got a bump when he moved to afternoons but probably not making huge money.

Still, do you disturb drive-time or just hope middays, nighttime, and overnights sees the handwriting on the wall? And what about Prospector who is still there in some sales related capacity last I heard?

Then there's management. Are they top-heavy? Is management also eligible to take the money and run or do they just hang on and hope for the best?

Or did radio escape the newspaper's financial woes?

Discuss.

 

[Prospector]

The Radio division has not escaped the economic realities of the rest of the world.

Who knows what is gonna happen, but some one has left the building and I for one was very sad to see that. This person worked hard and was a huge help for me day to day. I wish everyone who has suffered from this recession all the best. It's tough out there and it doesn't look like its gonna get easier out there any time soon.

I am still at the station, working in our interactive media department. Not really doing sales, although I have done the 4 legged sales call here and there.

Prospector

 

[The Former Mac Austin]

When I moved to Southern MD back in 1996, the stations I worked at were live in morning drive only and voicetracked in the afternoon. The rest of the dayparts were classic automation. I have heard of quite a few stations taking that route as well.

 

[SharkeySharkDog]

A cash buy out is so much better than the "perp" walk, at least it feels a little better. Good luck and God bless to all my friends on the 5th floor.

Nobody mentioned it, but Citadel also had cuts recently, Mark Lindow, the PD of JR 93-7, is gone as well as a sales person or two.

Eric, that was mean, we're all wondering...who left?

 

[Vepster]

When I leave the place it'll be feet first.

Don't know when that'll be but I do know it'll probably be with my wrists wrapped in a cable tie behind my back and a sheriff's deputy on each arm.

 

[SharkeySharkDog]

Vepster...didn't that happen to the Woody guy?

I think you could do one better though, how 'bout the cops from Reno 911 or even better the Rock 107 snow bunnies. ;D

Thanks for keeping us smiling!

 

[The Sigon]

When I moved to Southern MD back in 1996, the stations I worked at were live in morning drive only and voicetracked in the afternoon. The rest of the dayparts were classic automation. I have heard of quite a few stations taking that route as well.

I'd agree. This is not just a Shamrock Times thing though that's what this thread is turning into.

Still, generally speaking, when things get tight (and they're pretty tight!) mornings will be safe (even mornings, I'd be willing to bet only 75 maybe 80% safe) until the company literally has one foot in the grave.

Afternoons, maybe safe. Chances, probably 50/50.

Middays? Nights? Overnights???

If I was working anything but mornings I hope someone would try to talk me out of rationalizing "They'll want to keep me" because that's what radio people do. "Nah, not me!" I know, I was one.

Well no, they won't want to keep you. Don't let your ego cloud your judgment. It's why there's a buyout being offered! If you're not a franchise player, take their money and go. They want you to leave, they just don't want it said that they had to let you go. It doesn't mean they DON'T want to let you go, they just don't want it said. The last chance company has to save face is "Hey, they left, we didn't fire them." Believe me. Been through it.

Ask yourself this question. You're pulling down 35k in a non-drive slot...if you're lucky.

For 6 dollars and change A DAY (one hour or less) a part-timer can voice-track your show. Company is literally scratching it's ass trying to make ends meet. Figure that part-timer gets paid for three hours a day, being generous. That works out to about 1500 dollars A YEAR!!! to replace your nothing special show with nothing special and save 33.5k?!? C'mon!

And nothing personal in that, I just mean unless you have a high-profile you're interchangeable. If you don't agree you're not being honest with yourself.

The question?

"Why wouldn't they want to keep me?"

Take the money and run. The economy and everything that goes with it is going to get worse before it gets better. Turn the buyout down now and wait for the other shoe to drop? Then it'll strictly be unemployment compensation and you know the layoff is coming. Don't be stupid.

 

[Nokmo True]

(snip)

Take the money and run. The economy and everything that goes with it is going to get worse before it gets better. Turn the buyout down now and wait for the other shoe to drop? Then it'll strictly be unemployment compensation and you know the layoff is coming. Don't be stupid.

Good advice I think. Old expressions don't just happen without a reason. The one that comes to mind? "Get while the gettin's good."

 

[Aramondo]

It's sad but all too true. Radio, newspapers, even local TV to a large extent, going to be extinct or at the very least unrecognizable in the near future.

This won't be "get out and come back when the economy picks up". This is attrition. Even if/when the economy does come back, show me a radio owner who, getting by on the DIRT cheap, is going to start hiring back expensive live help. Getting along just fine, thanks.

If I were offered a buyout and wasn't in the cat bird's seat, ie:, big number producing show, etc., I'd be gone. To hang around is just slowing the morphine drip. But be realistic, how much morphine is left in the bag? If you have a chance to bail, bail! Or wait until you're invited to bail and walk out the door for the last time but without any of that spending money they were offering three months earlier.

 

[The Sigon]

Well I wouldn't wish having to choose between walking away or waiting to be walked away on anyone.

That said, what about the other TS radio properties? They have like ten or so other stations around the country, don't they? Are they cutting there too?

Locally, I don't think there's a warm body associated with any of their stations but 107.

Still, I'm sure 107 could survive with a voice-track mid-day and 7 to midnight without too much difficulty. It's not like these are personality shows. Those shows are mostly music, and classic rock fans don't care what nonsense gets burbled or by who or at ALL in between Freebird and Summer of '69, poor bastards.

 

[NT3]

Still, I'm sure 107 could survive with a voice-track mid-day and 7 to midnight without too much difficulty. It's not like these are personality shows. Those shows are mostly music, and classic rock fans don't care what nonsense gets burbled or by who or at ALL in between Freebird and Summer of '69, poor bastards.

But what will our regular callers do without someone to rattle off conspiracy theories and strung out stories to?!?!

 

[waunderlust]

Still, I'm sure 107 could survive with a voice-track mid-day and 7 to midnight without too much difficulty. It's not like these are personality shows. Those shows are mostly music, and classic rock fans don't care what nonsense gets burbled or by who or at ALL in between Freebird and Summer of '69, poor bastards.

Wow Sigon, you've been out of the loop for a while. After denying it for so long, consultants have come up with a brilliant idea that what is between the music does count. Unless that's just to save their jobs. LOL!

 

[Aramondo]

Wow Sigon, you've been out of the loop for a while. After denying it for so long, consultants have come up with a brilliant idea that what is between the music does count. Unless that's just to save their jobs. LOL!

Consultants count on the stunted attention spans and short memory's of program directors who are all too willing to leave the responsibility of "what we should do next" to them. I suppose it's some ass backwards way of justifying the money they cost and that doesn't even touch on the luxury it affords management of having someone to point the finger at when it's too soon to fire the program director.

Consultants, like country music, work in cycles. X is the trend now, oh wait, Y is the trend now, oh hang on, now we're doing X with some Y and, woops, it's Y and almost no X and we're, hey, definitely no Y, all X.

If what's in between the music is important now, it won't be so much in four books when the consultant returns. But if it is, it can be every bit as important if it was left in a series of 25 second verbal ejaculations on a hard drive recorded five hours prior to a show and a thousand miles away from the city of license at a fraction of the cost of a fulltime liner reading button pusher.