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Air America Radio Programming Moves

C

ChunHiPak

Guest
Just wondered what any of you think about Air America's dumping of "Morning Sedition" and handing the 5 to 7 am show to Mark Riley alone and the 7 to 9 am show to Rachel Maddow alone.

Rachel Maddow I get: she's bright, funny, engaging and entertaining. She can carry a show alone no problem. I really wonder, tho, about Mark Riley's ability to carry the first 2 hours alone. Is this going to work?

What say you?
 
> Just wondered what any of you think about Air America's
> dumping of "Morning Sedition" and handing the 5 to 7 am show
> to Mark Riley alone and the 7 to 9 am show to Rachel Maddow
> alone.
>
> Rachel Maddow I get: she's bright, funny, engaging and
> entertaining. She can carry a show alone no problem. I
> really wonder, tho, about Mark Riley's ability to carry the
> first 2 hours alone. Is this going to work?
>
> What say you?

At that hour, being 2-4am Pacific, most listeners won't even know what happened to him.
 
Air America Radio Programming Stuck

I say no way it's going to work.
Where to begin?

Mark Reilly, the doddering grandfather and his mubblings.
Wayne Gellman, sounding like Lurch on the Addams Family, blundering his way through wire copy.
Some guy who sounds like a 50's top 40 DJ trying to make lame jokes during the traffic reports, missing major back-ups and mispronouncing street names.
The heavy load of per-inquiry spots (while WABC TalkRadio77 goes commercial free).

Reilly and Maddow have already struck out (with Morning Sedition and Unfiltered, respectively), but here they are again. Maybe they work cheap. Maybe it's affirmative action or diversity. Maybe AAR figures it doesn't matter because the kind of people who lean toward progressive talk will be listening to a station with real news and traffic in morning drive in order to get caught up on things before they look for political rants.

I was never a fan of Bill Press on Crossfire but his morning show with Christine Harvey is light years ahead of what Air America has to offer. And in the New York market, the conservative-liberal chemistry of Curtis and Kuby is entertaining and involving radio: Two contrasting hosts on an equal footing (unlike the often-heard criticism of Hannity and Colmes) who put entertainment first and avoid being disagreeable (to each other or the audience).

Besides, it's winter. Before local sunrise most AAR full-times have less power than the lightbuld in my desk lamp.


> Just wondered what any of you think about Air America's
> dumping of "Morning Sedition" and handing the 5 to 7 am show
> to Mark Riley alone and the 7 to 9 am show to Rachel Maddow
> alone.
>
> Rachel Maddow I get: she's bright, funny, engaging and
> entertaining. She can carry a show alone no problem. I
> really wonder, tho, about Mark Riley's ability to carry the
> first 2 hours alone. Is this going to work?
>
> What say you?
>
 
Re: Air America Radio Programming Stuck

> Mark Reilly, the doddering grandfather and his mubblings.

Riley is 54 (several months younger than Rush Limbaugh) and doesn't sound like he's "doddering" to me. Mubblings? What are you talking about? BTW, Howard Stern will be 52 next month.

> Wayne Gellman, sounding like Lurch on the Addams Family,

Time to retire that line, which you have now used 1001 times.

> Some guy who sounds like a 50's top 40 DJ trying to make
> lame jokes during the traffic reports, missing major
> back-ups and mispronouncing street names.

For those of you who are mystified by the above, mwebster apparently lives in the New York City market and listens to WLIB, the only AAR station that carries this "guy."

> The heavy load of per-inquiry spots (while WABC TalkRadio77
> goes commercial free).

Commercial free? Surely you jest!

> Reilly and Maddow have already struck out (with Morning
> Sedition and Unfiltered, respectively), but here they are
> again.

No, Maron and Winstead struck out. Maddow is fine.
 
ABC Commercial Free

> For those of you who are mystified by the above, mwebster apparently
> lives in the New York City market and listens to WLIB, the only AAR
> station that carries this "guy."

Apparently you know whom I mean.

> > The heavy load of per-inquiry spots (while WABC TalkRadio77
> > goes commercial free).
>
> Commercial free? Surely you jest!
>

------
RandR.com

WABC/New York To Drop Commercials In AM Hours

In an unusual and unprecedented move for a major-market News/Talk station, ABC Radio flagship WABC will kick off 2006 by going commercial free weekdays from 5am-7am, beginning Jan. 3. WABC OM/PD Phil Boyce tells R&R the move is designed to attract new listeners to the station's already popular Curtis and Kuby morning show in the wake of Howard Stern's move to satellite-delivered subscription radio. Boyce also said the decision was made so WABC can better compete with CBS Radio's crosstown News outlets, WINS and WCBS-AM.

"We think there has never been a time when radio was more volatile," Boyce said. "We plan to take advantage of every opportunity, and there appears to be a huge one sitting right there." Boyce credits WABC President/GM Tim McCarthy for the idea and for the support it takes to go commercial-free in morning drive in any market, let alone in the No. 1 radio market in the nation. Boyce says that he and McCarthy aren't yet sure about how long they'll run with the experiment, but hints it could be as long as through the entire Arbitron winter ratings period, which ends in March.

----------

And don't call me Shirley.
 
Pre-dawn stunt by right-wing station

> > For those of you who are mystified by the above, mwebster
> apparently
> > lives in the New York City market and listens to WLIB, the
> only AAR
> > station that carries this "guy."
>
> Apparently you know whom I mean.

No, but I've heard a number of WLIB traffic reports and haven't heard any mispronunciations (which is not to say there haven't been any, but I doubt that's caused any turnoffs).
>
> > > The heavy load of per-inquiry spots (while WABC
> TalkRadio77
> > > goes commercial free).

So a pre-dawn stunt by a right-wing station in one market is going to have a significant effect on Air America? I don't think so. And yes, I know that Sliwa is paired with a liberal, but Kuby is the only liberal on a station that most liberals avoid like the plague. And besides, you're making far too much of the situation in New York City, as opposed to Air America Radio, the NETWORK. Maybe you should take your complaints about WLIB to the New York board.
 
> Just wondered what any of you think about Air America's
> dumping of "Morning Sedition" and handing the 5 to 7 am show
> to Mark Riley alone and the 7 to 9 am show to Rachel Maddow
> alone.
>
> Rachel Maddow I get: she's bright, funny, engaging and
> entertaining. She can carry a show alone no problem. I
> really wonder, tho, about Mark Riley's ability to carry the
> first 2 hours alone. Is this going to work?
>
> What say you?
>
I have heard Riley for a few minutes and he is unprepared and horribly underinformed. I had no idea how bad he would be. He should be planning for a short stay.

I agree on Maddow, but I don't know if she will play well from 7-9...I think she would be better for the 12-3 spot. I prefer her to both Franken and Hartman.
 
Re: Pre-dawn stunt by right-wing station

It's a light spot load time of year anyway, and I don't think AAR is what WABC is worried about with this move anyway.<P ID="signature">______________
Classic Christmas Jingle

http://www.thebig8.net/merry_christmas_from_cklw.mp3</P>
 
> Just wondered what any of you think about Air America's
> dumping of "Morning Sedition" and handing the 5 to 7 am show
> to Mark Riley alone and the 7 to 9 am show to Rachel Maddow
> alone.
>
> Rachel Maddow I get: she's bright, funny, engaging and
> entertaining. She can carry a show alone no problem. I
> really wonder, tho, about Mark Riley's ability to carry the
> first 2 hours alone. Is this going to work?
>
> What say you?
>

Im a little concerned that too many people are being so very very hard on Riley.
Shouldn't we wait to see how things will go before we send him crashing into the ground.....i don't expect anyone but mwebster to go for the jugular as he hates all AAR product....but like all shows, the hosts have to find their way or fail.....correct?

The same goes for Maddow as well....
 
> Im a little concerned that too many people are being so very
> very hard on Riley.
> Shouldn't we wait to see how things will go before we send
> him crashing into the ground.....i don't expect anyone but
> mwebster to go for the jugular as he hates all AAR
> product....but like all shows, the hosts have to find their
> way or fail.....correct?

The last time I checked, Mark Riley has been on the air for approaching two years. How long does he get to find his way? Randi seems to have "found" hers, as have others...
 
> The last time I checked, Mark Riley has been on the air for
> approaching two years. How long does he get to find his way?
> Randi seems to have "found" hers, as have others...

Not to mention Riley's long tenure at AAR flagship station WLIB/1190, though it's not quite the exact same format as it was as a local station...

-OA<P ID="signature">______________
Ohio Media Watch - <a target="_blank" href=http://ohiomedia.blogspot.com>http://ohiomedia.blogspot.com</a></P>
 
IT'S ABOUT MONEY - NOT POLITICS

Once again Scribbler, you demonstrate your bias. It's OK with you to talk about smaller markets like Seattle and Portland, where PT does OK; Not OK to talk about the situation in the number one market, the only market where AAR actually controls a station (and retains local sales revenue, if any).

You see things only through your distorted political prism. WABC is not a "right-wing" station. This phrase presumes the station is operated to advance a political agenda, like AAR and Salem do - like you would do if were you in a position to have your own radio station. WABC is a business, a bottom-line station (possibly this is an alien concept to you). Their agenda is good radio (which they have produced for decades), to create an audience (check the current numbers), to sell to advertisers, to make money. So far, this gives them almost nothing in common with AAR (except both can be characterized - for different reasons - as Mickey Mouse operations).

WABC has hired progressive hosts including Alan Colmes, Lynn Samuels (discussed in another thread), Joy Bayhar (who still works for the company as one of the hosts of ABC-TV's "The View"), and former Democratic mayor Ed Koch. However, in the Darwinian world of professional radio, they did not generate an audience and contribute sufficiently to the bottom line. This in contrast to AAR which hires and retains people based on political connections or to promote the cause of diversity, regardless of talent - or, more accurately, lack of talent, and regardless of performance.

WABC and its PD, Phil Boyce, tried various AM drive combinations over the years looking for the right chemistry. Apparently they believed that two people with some personal chemistry, disagreeing without being disagreeable, and not taking themselves too seriously might make interesting radio. For most listeners, it's certainly better than listening to the endless morning political rant of a self-righteous liberal preaching to himself (or a syncophantic co-host) that characterizes AAR (and Bill Press for that matter)in AM drive.

Whatever WABC's reasons for going commercial-free from 5 am to 7 am, this will likely affect the audience for Mark Reilly and Wayne Gellman - radio's poster children for affirmative action. These two couldn't get numbers in New York doing a local show on a local station with a political agenda. Now they are doing a supposedly national broadcast without local content, loaded up with PI spots since neither the local or network sales staff can sell straight time, minimal local wire service headlines once an hour, and infrequent, incomplete and sometimes inaccurate traffic reports (with very brief weather) pre-recorded in Philadelphia.

The picture for most PT stations in morning drive is almost as pathetic, but not quite as pathetic. Clear Channel PT stations do get local traffic and local news as part of a local station cluster, and carry network news on the hour instead of WAAAAAAYYYYYYE GELLLLLMANNN.

It is no accident that the station people on this board hold up as a success story for AAR, KPOJ in Portland, OR, has a real local host with radio expience, doing a real local morning show, with real local news, real discussion of local issues and interviews with local people. KPOJ's success may have less to do with AAR than with Thom Hartmann's LOCAL morning show.

AAR acts like radio is national and their morning competition is Bill Bennett. They also seem to think prime-time is middays because that's where Darth Rush (THE DEATHSTAR OF TALK RADIO) is. Sorry, guys: (1) RADIO IS LOCAL. (2) MORNING DRIVE IS WHERE THE MONEY IS.
 
Re: IT'S ABOUT MONEY - NOT POLITICS

> WABC is not a "right-wing" station. This phrase presumes
> the station is operated to advance a political agenda, like
> AAR and Salem do - like you would do if were you in a
> position to have your own radio station. WABC is a
> business, a bottom-line station (possibly this is an alien
> concept to you). Their agenda is good radio (which they
> have produced for decades), to create an audience (check the
> current numbers), to sell to advertisers, to make money.

"Good radio" is profitable radio, and that is all that phrase means. Critically acclaimed or high quality are not a part of that definition. Public radio and decent local news on the radio, especially during a disaster, is "good radio." Running profitable satellite talk is not necessarily good radio.

WABC is not a "right wing" station - they are running political talk that has a past proven track record and they will continue to do so until it is no longer bringing in the numbers that make it profitable.

WABC used to have a lot more local talk when they were competing with NBC's Talknet. Now a lot of their shows are national.

> WABC has hired progressive hosts including Alan Colmes, Lynn
> Samuels (discussed in another thread), Joy Bayhar (who still
> works for the company as one of the hosts of ABC-TV's "The
> View"), and former Democratic mayor Ed Koch. However, in
> the Darwinian world of professional radio, they did not
> generate an audience and contribute sufficiently to the
> bottom line.

Alan Colmes came along with Sean Hannity, which is where the dynamic duo got their start. Colmes was just as ineffective on WABC as he is today on Fox. Lynn Samuels had a slot in the early evening hours for awhile and then she was dumped on weekends, which might be fine if you're Ralph Snodsmith or The Dolans, but lousy for political talk.

None of the liberals WABC had on were really all that interesting. They reminded me of Ask the Governor with Mario Cuomo which ran for years when he was governor and it was all the usual sort of hand-wringing and acceptance that made for incredibly boring radio. If you want good libtalk, you need to get rid of the UN concept of talk radio or nobody will listen. Anyone recall Michael Jackson? He didn't draw flies either.

> This in contrast to AAR which hires and
> retains people based on political connections or to promote
> the cause of diversity, regardless of talent - or, more
> accurately, lack of talent, and regardless of performance.

Pot to kettle on telling Scribbler that HE'S BIASED. Please. It's convenient to forget the dozens, if not a hundred me-too parrot conservative talk show hosts that are playing on the second tier talk stations and a whole pile of local hosts who don't have their facts straight but try and play conservative talk show host anyway. The now-unemployed Unequalizer is an excellent example of that very thing.

These people play conservative angry host for a living and don't really have much depth to coherently argue their points. These shows are heavily screened and when the informed caller actually gets through to argue with them, they are promptly hollered over and dumped. We've all got one of these hosts in our markets. They are hired to fill out the schedule and are a dime a dozen. In Rochester, we had one that told people for years that AIDS could be spread by insect bites and that gays needed to be quarantined to protect the innocent people. He's bye-bye now. Too bad, so sad.

This "political connection" accusation is a new one. I'm not sure what that is supposed to mean. Apparently this doesn't apply to the Bill Bennett or G. Gordon's of the world.

The rest of your slash is a variation on the usual "libtalk will fail" and "nobody will listen to libtalk," and the "libtalk hosts are lousy." Meanwhile Randi Rhodes is 1/10th of a point behind Hannity in NY (according to her on the C-SPAN Q&A show) and hosts like O'Reilly have essentially disappeared in that city.

Talk radio hosts aren't born into the position, and if they had a history spinning records and reading weather reports, that doesn't make them any more qualified to be a host than someone who was a political pundit or comic. Ultimately, if people listen and stations see some good numbers, they stay on the air.

> Whatever WABC's reasons for going commercial-free from 5 am
> to 7 am, this will likely affect the audience for Mark
> Reilly and Wayne Gellman - radio's poster children for
> affirmative action. These two couldn't get numbers in New
> York doing a local show on a local station with a political
> agenda. Now they are doing a supposedly national broadcast
> without local content, loaded up with PI spots since neither
> the local or network sales staff can sell straight time,
> minimal local wire service headlines once an hour, and
> infrequent, incomplete and sometimes inaccurate traffic
> reports (with very brief weather) pre-recorded in
> Philadelphia.

AAR's news has much bigger problems that the people reading it. It's a throwawaycast with no actualities and bad copy writing. It's also biased. Most AAR stations are smart in carrying CNN instead. Even USA Radio does a better job.

As far as announcers go, have you heard Fox News radio? That is amazingly terrible with people mispronouncing even the simplest words, missed cues, dead air, biased writing, and an overall cheap feel to it. It's amazing Clear Channel can show its face carrying such a shoddy newscast.

> It is no accident that the station people on this board hold
> up as a success story for AAR, KPOJ in Portland, OR, has a
> real local host with radio expience, doing a real local
> morning show, with real local news, real discussion of local
> issues and interviews with local people. KPOJ's success may
> have less to do with AAR than with Thom Hartmann's LOCAL
> morning show.

We all know you're a big Thom Hartmann booster. I still think he's Mr. Bland because there isn't anything about him that stands out. He's competant but needs to develop something that sets him apart from the others. He is to be commended for doing a great local show for the Portland market when so many other AAR stations do absolutely nothing during morning drive.

> AAR acts like radio is national and their morning
> competition is Bill Bennett. They also seem to think
> prime-time is middays because that's where Darth Rush (THE
> DEATHSTAR OF TALK RADIO) is. Sorry, guys: (1) RADIO IS
> LOCAL. (2) MORNING DRIVE IS WHERE THE MONEY IS.

Afternoon drive is profitable as well and Randi Rhodes was put there specifically because of that.
 
Different Strokes

I think Hartmann's local show is better than his syndicated show. It's available online and if you have not listened (9 am to 12 pm Eastern), I invite you to check it out.
KPOJ Audio Stream:
mms://a368.l2005241825.c20052.g.lm.akamaistream.net/D/368/20052/v0001/reflector:41825

Yes, I do prefer hosts like Hartmann to the more arguementative pit-bull, Cross-fire variety. I am also a huge admirer of Michael Jackson for the same reasons. IMHO he is the best broadcast interviewer currently working and a true gentleman of the old school. His recent interviews are available on demand or by podcast subscription at:
http://podcast.medianext.com/stations/knx/

I have not watched Hannity and Colmes - I don't even have FNC selected as one of the channels I receive on my satellite receiver. I have heard his radio show and I wasn't impressed. He seemed rambling in his monologues, interviews and phone interactions, and not that well prepared. And he really doesn't seem interested in letting guests and callers talk (maybe he's trying to overcompensate for the lap-dog reputation he has with some of you). But he certainly is not obnoxious in the Hannity-Gallagher mold.

On the conservative side, I much prefer the Salem hosts (excluding Bennett) to the ABC/Premiere/TRN crowd. Same reasons. If working for a religious broadcaster forces hosts to be more civil, I put that in the plus column.



>
> We all know you're a big Thom Hartmann booster. I still
> think he's Mr. Bland because there isn't anything about him
> that stands out. He's competant but needs to develop
> something that sets him apart from the others. He is to be
> commended for doing a great local show for the Portland
> market when so many other AAR stations do absolutely nothing
> during morning drive.
>
 
Re: Different Strokes

> I think Hartmann's local show is better than his syndicated
> show. It's available online and if you have not listened (9
> am to 12 pm Eastern), I invite you to check it out.

Maybe he can work with White Rose or someone to get a running archive started, especially without the ads and non-pertinent stuff.

> Yes, I do prefer hosts like Hartmann to the more
> arguementative pit-bull, Cross-fire variety. I am also a
> huge admirer of Michael Jackson for the same reasons. IMHO
> he is the best broadcast interviewer currently working and a
> true gentleman of the old school. His recent interviews are
> available on demand or by podcast subscription at:
> http://podcast.medianext.com/stations/knx/

Unfortunately, his style works a lot better on something like NPR. Everything on commercial radio garnering the big numbers is confrontational.

> On the conservative side, I much prefer the Salem hosts
> (excluding Bennett) to the ABC/Premiere/TRN crowd. Same
> reasons. If working for a religious broadcaster forces
> hosts to be more civil, I put that in the plus column.

Including Phyllis Schlafly-Lite Janet Parshall? I was amazed at her performance with John Gibson which got the battle going between Olbermann and the Odo-Hair guy. She lays on the religious rhetoric extra thick crust (and stuffed with Bible quotes for even more religious flavor). I think she even surprised Gibson who then stuck his foot in his mouth with an outrageous intolerant remark about people worshipping the "wrong God." That's what happens when you play with these people. We know where Janet has her "finger of fire."

She still hasn't gotten over Randi Rhodes mopping the floor with her on C-SPAN, something Brian Lamb noted was, by far, the most attention garnering appearance during the entire 25th anniversary of call-in celebration a few months ago.
 
Apples and Oranges

Janet Parshall is on Salem's "Christian Teaching and Talk" network - not their news-talk network, which is what I was talking about. The hosts I was referring to were people like Michael Medved and Dennis Praeger (on their news-talk stations). Since Parshall is on religious stations, I wouldn't be surprised that she quotes scripture.

I am still trying to figure out whether you don't read posts to which you reply or if you twist things in your attempt to make a point. I don't listen to religious radio and in any case that's a topic for another board. I have never listen to Parshall and I don't consider her part of the talk radio format. You also seem to be making a reference to TV appearance and again, this is a radio board.





>
> > On the conservative side, I much prefer the Salem hosts
> > (excluding Bennett) to the ABC/Premiere/TRN crowd. Same
> > reasons. If working for a religious broadcaster forces
> > hosts to be more civil, I put that in the plus column.
>
> Including Phyllis Schlafly-Lite Janet Parshall? I was
> amazed at her performance with John Gibson which got the
> battle going between Olbermann and the Odo-Hair guy. She
> lays on the religious rhetoric extra thick crust (and
> stuffed with Bible quotes for even more religious flavor).
> I think she even surprised Gibson who then stuck his foot in
> his mouth with an outrageous intolerant remark about people
> worshipping the "wrong God." That's what happens when you
> play with these people. We know where Janet has her "finger
> of fire."
>
 
Re: Peaches and Herb

> Janet Parshall is on Salem's "Christian Teaching and Talk"
> network - not their news-talk network, which is what I was
> talking about. The hosts I was referring to were people
> like Michael Medved and Dennis Praeger (on their news-talk
> stations). Since Parshall is on religious stations, I
> wouldn't be surprised that she quotes scripture.

Parshall has been on more than just the religious outlets. Salem affiliates can cherry pick shows from multiple feeds. Parshall is one of Salem's "stealth Christian" hosts who does deal with religious topics but isn't saying it's a Christian show outright.

In fact, with Medved's "morals" hand-wringing over matters of faith and entertainment/Hollywood, he's not too far away from Janet in show topics.

> I am still trying to figure out whether you don't read posts
> to which you reply or if you twist things in your attempt to
> make a point. I don't listen to religious radio and in any
> case that's a topic for another board. I have never listen
> to Parshall and I don't consider her part of the talk radio
> format. You also seem to be making a reference to TV
> appearance and again, this is a radio board.

Janet Parshall is a Salem host. You didn't name the hosts you were speaking about, so it could include any of them. I'll let Janet know you don't consider her talk show with phone-ins suitable for a "talk radio format" even though that's exactly how Salem sells her show and that is how she describes herself.

Janet Parshall and Randi Rhodes are talk show hosts on RADIO. If they make an appearance on television, that doesn't change the fact they are still RADIO talk show hosts who were discussing their RADIO shows.
 
Re: IT'S ABOUT MONEY - NOT POLITICS

Phillip Dampier said:
We all know you're a big Thom Hartmann booster. I still think he's Mr. Bland because there isn't anything about him that stands out. He's competant but needs to develop something that sets him apart from the others. He is to be commended for doing a great local show for the Portland market when so many other AAR stations do absolutely nothing during morning drive.
Click to expand...

This about Hartmann about a year ago. How does Hartmann compare now to the AAR hosts of 2005? ;)
 
holy post-resurrection batman. ???

I've listened to Hartmann since his i.e. America days; what makes him stand out is he'll bring on guests he doesn't agree with and have a debate with them, provokes you to think and consider an angle you hadn't thought of before... he has a bigger audience to play to now when he covers for AAR hosts, ect and I think he's been developing to that well. Heck some days he'll do 10+ hours of radio and you wouldn't know it, the show would still be fresh.
 
Re: IT'S ABOUT MONEY - NOT POLITICS

Philip, you're the pot calling the kettle black for accusing ANYONE of being a "booster" of another show... all you ever talk about is how you want to drink tequila out of her navel.

And the bit on "informed callers"... of course, in Philip's world, any liberal is automatically "informed", and every conservative talk show host or caller is a savage who can only pray that some leftie will call and enlighten their boorish ways.
 
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