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Among The Victims: David Mello

B

BurnedOutOnTheBoards

For years, KFBK’s main overnighter, David Mello, kept the Clear Channel Sacramento Cluster stations running and broadcast the news/weather/traffic updates.

According to his Facebook page, like apparently hundreds of radio pros, CC dropped him yesterday.

As a former overnighter myself, I know those of us who usually work late nights and weekends, frequently with no one else in the building, normally get little credit or even acknowledgement they exist.

So here’s a tip of the cap to David – I hope he finds new employment soon.
 
BurnedOutOnTheBoards said:
For years, KFBK’s main overnighter, David Mello, kept the Clear Channel Sacramento Cluster stations running and broadcast the news/weather/traffic updates.

According to his Facebook page, like apparently hundreds of radio pros, CC dropped him yesterday.

As a former overnighter myself, I know those of us who usually work late nights and weekends, frequently with no one else in the building, normally get little credit or even acknowledgement they exist.

So here’s a tip of the cap to David – I hope he finds new employment soon.
Click to expand...

Wow, just wow.

While I found him a "bit odd", he filled a gap (worked for chump change) and did a lot for the stations overnight.
 
Merry Christmas from Clear Channel

Its clear they're doing some cut backs this holiday season.

In Sacramento both Alan Eisenson and overnighter David Mello have fallen victim.

Any others?
 
Re: Merry Christmas from Clear Channel

stewie said:
Its clear they're doing some cut backs this holiday season.

In Sacramento both Alan Eisenson and overnighter David Mello have fallen victim.

Any others?
Click to expand...

Two other board ops, so far. There will be a replacement for Alan.
 
I used to do overnights for a local station cluster, and yes...underpaid and under appreciated. I did a live show for one, while voicetracking another, doing commercial production, scheduling breaks in the auto system, and making sure all the other stations kept on the air with no issues. Not to mention setting up with morning show music etc so they could just pop into the studio and get a running start

I mean really, one person doing handling that many stations when no one else is in the building is pretty damned important. Sad to see another one go.

Speaking of which, I just got laid off (along with 100's of others) from my non radio gig. Any tips for a broadcasting or non broadcasting gig, shoot me a PM
 
It's strange why they would lay off a board op. Won't they need to hire and train someone else? Unless its consolidation and another staff is willing to take the overnight shift? You're still paying someone to run the board either way. ???
 
Big D......

Since KFBK is a major EAS player, I'm sure they cannot automate everything, so I'm betting the next board op won't make one penny over minimum wage - and, chances are, the station will sound like it.

Stewie.....

Yeah, when I worked with David, I thought he was, well, a bit different, but I'm sure he thought the same of me....in fact, all of us overnight vets are probably warped in some ways. But in the time I was at BK with Mello, he always showed up and did his job - and that's a hell of a lot more than I can say for quite a few others in that kind of gig. What was kinda funny was how he just raced through newscasts like he was trying to set a word-per-second record until just a couple of years ago, when I could hear him deliberately slowing his pace down...hell, I could even hear what news stories he was reading for the first time!
 
It is so clear that no one at CC cares about anything. KFBK, KSTE and the lousy AM in Stockton (KSWX?) are no longer important to them. KFBK is such a shell of itself. Watch out CC. I hope CBS decided to do news radio and clobbers CC. They are asleep at the wheel.
 
BurnedOutOnTheBoards said:
he always showed up and did his job - and that's a hell of a lot more than I can say for quite a few others in that kind of gig. What was kinda funny was how he just raced through newscasts like he was trying to set a word-per-second record until just a couple of years ago, when I could hear him deliberately slowing his pace down...hell, I could even hear what news stories he was reading for the first time!
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more! Well put.
 
BurnedOutOnTheBoards said:
For years, KFBK’s main overnighter, David Mello, kept the Clear Channel Sacramento Cluster stations running and broadcast the news/weather/traffic updates.

According to his Facebook page, like apparently hundreds of radio pros, CC dropped him yesterday.

As a former overnighter myself, I know those of us who usually work late nights and weekends, frequently with no one else in the building, normally get little credit or even acknowledgement they exist.

So here’s a tip of the cap to David – I hope he finds new employment soon.
Click to expand...
I have known David since his days in Eureka back in the early 1990's. He also did a stint at KUBA-1600 Yuba City before going to CC Sacramento. He is also a big pro wrestling fan! Sad to happen to such a good guy.
 
If what I heard on the air yesterday was any indication, they've made a huge mistake getting rid of any board ops. It was a total train wreck in PM drive.
 
radiovictim said:
If what I heard on the air yesterday was any indication, they've made a huge mistake getting rid of any board ops. It was a total train wreck in PM drive.
Click to expand...

I think I heard some of this. Ouch.

I always respected the product KFBK produced 24 hours a day...

Sad to see them take the road traveled so often by other CC stations. The plan was probably in place when they decided to rebuild their studies and their present location.
 
Everybody is missing the point, namely that the business model of our industry changed forever in the wake of deregulation. Aided by technology, the model is now to produce product (spoken word, music or whatever) in one virtual space. Individual signals are simply distribution platforms; and on a par with the Internet, iTunes, live events, texting, etc... Each platform offers multiple revenue streams to be exploited, and without the expense of having to man each signal individually, it's all gravy.

That is our new reality, and no matter how much we kick and scream it is not going to change.

David is a very nice and gentle man. But the very sad fact of the matter is that he got and held onto that job because he was a dependable warm body. Pre-consolidation I doubt seriously that even a small market radio station would ever have let him near a microphone.
 
talkerguy said:
Pre-consolidation I doubt seriously that even a small market radio station would ever have let him near a microphone.
Click to expand...

Have you worked in small market radio? He wasn't THAT bad. Not missing the point at all, the wheels started in motion in the mid 90's with the start of consolidation. Many have fallen victim since then. KFBK, at it's previous facility, was not setup well to be fully automated.

It obviously is now. David was the dependable warm body they needed to "keep things running". The fact he could crack the mic was a bonus.
 
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