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Bloodbath at Nova M/KPHX

Ultimajock

Ultimajock

...surprised nobody's mentioned this here, since it's been taking place throughout the last week. Apparently, Nova M owners Shelly & Anita Drobny have fired CEO John Manzo, program director/afternoon drive host Jeff Farias, sales director Kim Macias and webmaster Billy Foster. Manzo has been hired by Randi Rhodes for her show's independent production team; it looks as if Nova M is claiming that Farias left to pursue another offer made to him and Foster quit in protest, but Farias is himself claiming they were all fired. Leonard Clark, a one-time commentator on Farias' show, has put up a website, http://www.bringjeffback.com/, in support of Farias' side in the situation...

...and, strangely, the new CEO at the "liberal" Nova M is Art Mobley, who was quoted by UPI at http://tinyurl.com/48varl a few months ago as a John McCain ally (shades of Evan Cohen)...
 
Lots of loose and damaging talk floating around those other boards...that's really too bad.

Interesting reference to the Mobley/McCain connection: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0408/9429.html

"Trying to get the first black-owned radio station on the air in 1992, Mobley ran into resistance from the Arizona National Guard, which claimed the signal would cause interference problems. McCain stepped in, he said, and helped get KMJK on the air."

McCain has been an advocate for minority and alternative voices in broadcasting, including important initiatives in LPFM. But I'd personally think twice about supporting him (for President).
 
Legend City said:
Wow, what will their eleven listeners do? ::)
Click to expand...

Ha ha maybe their eleven listeners can link up with "Energy 92.7's" two listeners and then they'll have a lucky 13! Just leave the banal lame disco crap at home!

Good riddance to Manzo. He was of the odd opinion that a station's coverage area is of no importance. I seem to recall a similiar bloodbath when the Beer Baron Fred Von Weber canned anyone left of center many years ago at KFYI.
 
Bill Drake said:
Ha ha maybe their eleven listeners can link up with "Energy 92.7's" two listeners and then they'll have a lucky 13! Just leave the banal lame disco crap at home!
Click to expand...

Can't recall the last time I heard a disco song on Energy.
 
justthenumbers said:
Bill Drake said:
Ha ha maybe their eleven listeners can link up with "Energy 92.7's" two listeners and then they'll have a lucky 13! Just leave the banal lame disco crap at home!
Click to expand...

Can't recall the last time I heard a disco song on Energy.
Click to expand...

I can't remember the last time I heard music - not some canned corporate slop - on a station that has less listeners than Sarah Palin has ovaries.....

You can call dung honey but it still smells like dung.....
 
"I seem to recall a similiar bloodbath when the Beer Baron Fred Von Weber canned anyone left of center many years ago at KFYI."

You are mistaken. I'm no fan of the Beer Baron, but I was there when many left-of-center talk hosts were on the air. To accuse him of sweeping liberals out of KFYI is just not true.

Leykis quit (on-air) and was not fired. He did not bring huge ratings for KFYI, in any case. Jami McFerren was more moderate, but likewise was let go for weak ratings. Earl Baldwin would probably object to being called a liberal, but he was not exactly a conservative, either. He was on KFYI for many years, but was let go in one of many cost-cutting moves.

On the other hand, John Dayl was a libertarian and was let go for weak ratings and eventually brough back time and again for weekend work.

Jack Cole was fairly liberal, but he also had problems with substance abuse, and was let go... again, for ratings.

At no time did Fred "clean house" of the liberals at KFYI. In fact, you could argue that a classic KFYI lineup could consist of Barry Young in AM drive, Bob Mohan in early midday, Jami McFerren in late midday and Tom Leykis in PM drive. That lineup existed for a time and it was not designed for political views, but for entertainment value.

It should also be noted that Fred Weber (I can't believe I'm defending this guy...sheeesh) did an on-air editorial calling for Republican Gov. Ev Mecham to resign. He was the first boradcaster to editorialize to that effect.

The assumption that KFYI became a right-wing station because of the political views of Fred Weber is erroneous. Fred was about one thing: KFYI and Power 92 making money. It they got ratings and revenue, Fred would put Rosie O'Donnell, Bill Maher, Keith Olbermann and Cindy Sheehan on the air.
 
You left out Mickey Pedorr, and the terrible Victoria Jones, both were quite liberal and on KFYI during the Weber years.

It was a much better station back then.
 
Bill Drake said:
Good riddance to Manzo. He was of the odd opinion that a station's coverage area is of no importance. I seem to recall a similiar bloodbath when the Beer Baron Fred Von Weber canned anyone left of center many years ago at KFYI.
Click to expand...

...Manzo also had the previously unheard-of notion for a commercial radio station (to me, anyway) that air personalities who were asked to move to Phoenix from outside the state to do a weekly program on the station shouldn't be paid. When one of my online listeners in Kansas City emailed the Drobnys in June asking why I and another weekend host weren't being paid, Manzo responded by cancelled my show...
 
buster2 said:
"I seem to recall a similiar bloodbath when the Beer Baron Fred Von Weber canned anyone left of center many years ago at KFYI."

You are mistaken. I'm no fan of the Beer Baron, but I was there when many left-of-center talk hosts were on the air. To accuse him of sweeping liberals out of KFYI is just not true.
Click to expand...

Tom Leykis quit because Fred Weber forced him into an untenable situation. You conveniently forgot Mark Williams, Victoria Jones and John Giese. Weber was p.o.'d because he was taking a lot of flack for the liberals at the station. FYI, that little Judas Barry "not his real name" Young was the stooge who fronted for Weber in forcing Leykis out.

Whatever, after the purge, and it WAS a purge (go back and read the newspaper accounts of the time), all credibility for KFYI fell into the toilet.
 
Ultimajock said:
Bill Drake said:
Good riddance to Manzo. He was of the odd opinion that a station's coverage area is of no importance. I seem to recall a similiar bloodbath when the Beer Baron Fred Von Weber canned anyone left of center many years ago at KFYI.
Click to expand...

...Manzo also had the previously unheard-of notion for a commercial radio station (to me, anyway) that air personalities who were asked to move to Phoenix from outside the state to do a weekly program on the station shouldn't be paid. When one of my online listeners in Kansas City emailed the Drobnys in June asking why I and another weekend host weren't being paid, Manzo responded by cancelled my show...
Click to expand...

I have heard that quite a few of the live locals at KPHX were volunteering their time. Pretty strange way to run a station. I can see dedication to a cause as a driving force to do a show but STILL it takes time and effort to produce a decent hour, two or three and to expect someone to do it for free?

It will be interesting to see how Nova M (mis)manages their 1190 acquisition, which I am told was a purchase and not another LMA. For now I will give them the benefit of the doubt....
 
Bill Drake said:
Ultimajock said:
...Manzo also had the previously unheard-of notion for a commercial radio station (to me, anyway) that air personalities who were asked to move to Phoenix from outside the state to do a weekly program on the station shouldn't be paid. When one of my online listeners in Kansas City emailed the Drobnys in June asking why I and another weekend host weren't being paid, Manzo responded by cancelled my show...
Click to expand...

I have heard that quite a few of the live locals at KPHX were volunteering their time. Pretty strange way to run a station. I can see dedication to a cause as a driving force to do a show but STILL it takes time and effort to produce a decent hour, two or three and to expect someone to do it for free?
Click to expand...

...the other program host named in the email (who is apparently still on KPHX) told me that, like me, he'd moved to Phoenix from East of the Mississippi River, and came out here under the impression that he would at some point be getting paid enough to join AFTRA; like me, Nova M hadn't bothered to tell him that they had no intention of paying him anything for his show. For the rest of my 13 months in Phoenix, he complained (away from the station) that KPHX wasn't even providing him a Valley Metro pass for the bus rides between his apartment and the KPHX studios...
 
justthenumbers said:
So is it true that Fred Weber really chose the KKFR call letters for 92.3
because they represented his first name? :eek:
Click to expand...

I don't recall if the KKFR calls were followed by "the fire station" slogan or
the slogan came on board along with the calls, but "the fire station" was
used early on.

KKFR had a TV spot showing the staff and a dalmatian on a fire truck,
but the spot (or a second spot) also showed Phoenix "on fire" and one
of the shots was of the Westward Ho burning--this upset the elderly
residents of the "Ho" (it was--still is?--a retirement hotel) and the spot
was pulled much earlier than anticipated.

Hmmm...if the Westward Ho was burning, then it was likely the KKFR/KFYI
studios around the corner would also be (631 North 1st Avenue, ex-KPHO
910 and also KPHO-TV before they built the plant along I-17).
 
Maybe people should check out the terms of an employment deal before uprooting themselves. Most people in this business do. Are these KPHX hosts 19 year old girls who think "he'll change if only I do a great show"? There are plenty of people paying to do political talk shows both here in Phoenix and elsewhere. The medium has changed (sorry). Besides, there were always plenty of people who would work for free at a low-end AM station like KPHX to get experience. AFTRA? What?!

The ironic thing is I'm not voting for The Chosen One, but I act like much more of a liberal than the people running KPHX. On any number of levels, including the fact that people who do work for/with me have health insurance and don't have to worry about me abruptly tossing them out on their cans.
 
Bill Drake said:
buster2 said:
"I seem to recall a similiar bloodbath when the Beer Baron Fred Von Weber canned anyone left of center many years ago at KFYI."

You are mistaken. I'm no fan of the Beer Baron, but I was there when many left-of-center talk hosts were on the air. To accuse him of sweeping liberals out of KFYI is just not true.
Click to expand...

Tom Leykis quit because Fred Weber forced him into an untenable situation. You conveniently forgot Mark Williams, Victoria Jones and John Giese. Weber was p.o.'d because he was taking a lot of flack for the liberals at the station. FYI, that little Judas Barry "not his real name" Young was the stooge who fronted for Weber in forcing Leykis out.



I didn't conveniently forget any of those people (or Micky Padorr, or Stan Major, or Dewey Hopper, or Frank Baranowski, or Joe Abodeely, or MaryAnn Watkins, or Bill Heywood, or Heidi Folgesong, or Michael Dixon, or Ron Kilgore, or Charlie Van Dyke or Bob Grossfeld, or Diana Stauffer, or John Moynihan, or Ed Walsh, or Stan Barnes, or....) You want me to go on?

Whatever, after the purge, and it WAS a purge (go back and read the newspaper accounts of the time), all credibility for KFYI fell into the toilet.
Click to expand...

What credibility? That's the last thing KFYI had at the time because it was a revolving door. I don't need to re-read the newspaper. I worked there at the time.

Leykis left because he had a pi**ing contest with Fred. THAT must be a first in radio. In fact, most everyone who left KFYI had a pi**ing contest with Fred and Fred always won. It wasn't about politics. The same thing happened to PDs and high-priced talent at Power 92 (Tim Hattrick, Bruce Kelley, etc. and those guys aren't political.)


Mark Williams is a libertarian, not a liberal. I really liked Victoria Jones, but I don't know that she would be considered a left-winger either. John Geise was a great talent, but he was let go in cost-cutting since Fred wanted to save money at night.

It's just radio, man.
 
buster2 said:
John Giese was a great talent, but he was let go in cost-cutting
since Fred wanted to save money at night.
Click to expand...

Do you remember what year that was? It sounds like the CBS
oldies classic hits stations in 2008!

Who replaced him on air--a syndicated talker? (Or Tom Kent? ;D)
 
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