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B98.5 nixes Steve and Vikki Show but will Vikki stay on solo?

R

rho01

B98.5 has axed the Steve & Vikki Show. But Vikki, at a likely reduced salary, is being offered a possible solo gig after the current contract is up June 30. She has not decided what to do and has until next week to make a decision.

(I decided to start this new thread because the other headline was a wee bit vague. Plus, it gives me a chance to give you all the url for my blog entry on this, ahem)

http://blogs.ajc.com/radio-tv-talk/2010/02/25/did-b98-5-let-go-steve-mccoy-and-vikki-locke/
 
This is a perfect opening for CC to do something here. Convert one of their lousy ass stations and get competitive, hire Steve and Vikki for mornings, and kill B 98.5.
 
As good as Vikki is, I can't see her doing a morning show on her own. She would need someone. Maybe they could work Will into that someone.
 
I hate to see anyone get axed but I do think it's time to move on. They had a good run and let's leave it at that.
Change is good!
 
No..change is not always good, especially in the case of these two. Cox looking to save $$$$

And the belief that, because of PPM. more music in the morning is the way to go. That probably played a role in this as well.

Team shows, unfortunately, might be in trouble.
 
S&V never REALLY got a chance to do their act on B98.5. Agreed that their act SHOULD play on B, and do well. Best guess is doing their act in the confines of the "Cox way", they never had a chance to succeed. It's difficult to think of Vikki as an act on her own...no offense to her, but it would never be the same show. Even if a suitable co-host was found, there would be the inevitable comparison to S&V and the "good old days" at Star 94. And if S&V never got a fair shake to do their act, what are the chances Cox would allow any latitude to half an act with a new partner? Reducing expenses in this situation certainly plays into the equation. Kelly & Alpha aren't the answer either. From an audience perspective, been there...done that! It wasn't a great morning show nor a big ratings winner either.

I do agree with the poster who encourages new competition. B98.5 succeeds because there is no direct competition. Is CC the company who should blow up Bull or KLS and go after B? Maybe. Certainly when Peach/Lite was on the air that kept B98.5 honest (except for that hanging chad "voted best" crap...that got REALLY old) and more focused. Perhaps it should be CBS who flips Dave to an AC competitor. Except that when you look at the ratings in CBS markets where they have an AC, their AC numbers are always pretty pathetic compared to the competitor. Seems "Fresh" is now stale. San Diego and St. Louis are exceptions to the CBS AC incompetencies.

It looks like the question now is WWBD (what will Bob do). Stay tuned!
 
Money move. Steve and Vikki were just next in line. Having decent numbers clearly doesn’t matter anymore if businesses have no advertising dollars. If your contract is up in this economy…so are you.

Solo jocks, silly producers, and more repetitive music is the future of radio it seems. Hope they find something else, they are pros even though they have been at it for a while.
 
Seltzer said:
No..change is not always good, especially in the case of these two. Cox looking to save $$$$

And the belief that, because of PPM. more music in the morning is the way to go. That probably played a role in this as well.

Team shows, unfortunately, might be in trouble.
Click to expand...

I think money was a big concern here but let's face it...Steve and Vikki are retreads now and they had a good run like I mentioned. But nothing last's forever. It's over for them. People want music not silly chatter between songs.
 
amlover said:
Seltzer said:
No..change is not always good, especially in the case of these two. Cox looking to save $$$$

And the belief that, because of PPM. more music in the morning is the way to go. That probably played a role in this as well.

Team shows, unfortunately, might be in trouble.
Click to expand...

I think money was a big concern here but let's face it...Steve and Vikki are retreads now and they had a good run like I mentioned. But nothing last's forever. It's over for them. People want music not silly chatter between songs.
Click to expand...

Is it true that Vicki staying on solo is due to Steve needing to take a break due to blood clots.
 
caller10 said:
I guess this makes B98.5 FM the old home of Steve & Vikki.
Click to expand...
Using the Cox definition of "new" (see 97.1 The River), wouldn't it still be the NEW home? Even after they are long gone?
 
Odd, if Cox doesn't think S&V are necessary then why are they bent on trying to break them up.
Only speculation but if they can con Vikki into staying solo (with the remaining year of their contract) then the team is broken up in all likelihood and they don't have to worry about them coming back on another station. Nothing like having a company kick you in the butt WHILE also stabbing you in the back.
Times change. They don't feel they need a personality morning show on an all day not much talk music station. But why try and kill the career of two people who have succeeded as nice people, while also taking on every requested civic request along the way. Steve like a gentleman left quietly witih no comment. You think they could have pulled that off with Boortz?
Sorry, I thought Cox was the last of the class acts, and I guess I'm just wrong.
 
I agree with you, onetake, and I'll take this one step further.

What if the idea all along was to put Steve & Vikki on simply to keep CC, Citadel, Cumulus or whoever from birthing a new AC station, lock them up for a while, and then dismiss them in such a way as to make the show look like it failed (which it certainly did not, look at the numbers).

Of all the stations on the dial, which ones do you guys think might make a run at Steve & Vikki (or just Steve for t hat matter)? My votes are for something new on WZGC, or possibly Star 94.

onetake said:
Odd, if Cox doesn't think S&V are necessary then why are they bent on trying to break them up.
Only speculation but if they can con Vikki into staying solo (with the remaining year of their contract) then the team is broken up in all likelihood and they don't have to worry about them coming back on another station. Nothing like having a company kick you in the butt WHILE also stabbing you in the back.
Times change. They don't feel they need a personality morning show on an all day not much talk music station. But why try and kill the career of two people who have succeeded as nice people, while also taking on every requested civic request along the way. Steve like a gentleman left quietly witih no comment. You think they could have pulled that off with Boortz?
Sorry, I thought Cox was the last of the class acts, and I guess I'm just wrong.
Click to expand...
 
Somebody help me out here. How can this be a "money move" by Cox, if they're going to pay S&V thru the end of their contracts plus pay somebody to fill their airtime? ???
 
This is funny! Ironically around the same time when our #1 morning show on 99.9 KESZ, Beth & Bill, makes the announcement that Bill is retiring. I don't think Steve & Vikki have the same heritage on one particular format as Beth & Bill. I'm beginning to think that we should just do away with morning shows. KZON finally came up with a VERY bright idea - to do "more music mornings". According to the ratings, I see that I'm not the only one who thought this was a great idea. I don't know what happened to morning talent these days, but if mankind has evolved to the point where no one really knows how to make outstanding morning shows anymore, we might as well just stop making mornings any more important than any other time of day and give it a rest until the next advancement in broadcasting technology takes over. After all, I doubt that internet radio would follow the same "morning show" format, or have shows with the title "morning show", being that it will not be "morning" in every time zone that i-radio station broadcasts in.

I don't know what anyone else may think, but I doubt that Atlanta morning radio could be any better than what we have going on here and many parts of the nation, so the "more music morning's" idea and my reasoning behind it shouldn't seem to foreign to anyone reading this. Well, at least you still have the infamous Delilah.
 
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