Butts on the Beach

[onair]

All Access says Mike Butts (former Pro-FM morning host) is out of work again. Just let go from a station in Delaware (WNCL Cool 101.3)

Hasn't had much luck since he left Providence. Will he return? Do people still remember him? Been over 10 years since he's been gone.

 

[wknd92]

Maybe Cat Country; but is that a headache that Hall wants to take on?

 

[McRadio]

Same things keep happening to the same people over and over.

 

[Silkie]

Same things keep happening to the same people over and over.

Some things keep happening with different people over and over.

 

[ScottBurns]

While there were always rumors about him, Butts was actually a good community guy and a good morning host. He'd be a good fit on Cat Country. I doubt, however, that it will happen.

 

[Skynet74]

While there were always rumors about him, Butts was actually a good community guy and a good morning host. He'd be a good fit on Cat Country. I doubt, however, that it will happen.

If he still has that Country accent, than I agree on him being a perfect fit for that station. I never understood the "good community guy" aspect of radio though. Probably one of the reasons I never fit quite so well into the business. But I'm not a phony person. I could never act like I cared about a community that I actually hated. At WSAR all the upper management at the time were a bunch of kiss asses involved in The Rotary Club. They wanted me to become more community oriented. Involve myself with the city. Schmooze with the people of Fall River and learn to care about the town. The station quickly learned that I wasn't going to pretend to care about that freakin dump. I couldn't even drudge up the fake enthusiasm for that city no matter how hard I try. I was in Fall River on Monday. Went there for the first time in years to meet with someone. It made me nauseus to even be there. I hate that place. When I decided to work in radio, it was to entertain my audience. Not to become Mr. Community Spirit. It's just not my thing.

Maybe some employers look down on people like me. Sorry if that's the way you feel. But I just can't be phony. Let the sales department schmooze. They are better at it. Don't get me wrong. I understand the premise of introducing the various station personalities into the community. Building a strong identity. Familiarizing your audience with the station lineup. Making your listeners feel like you really care about them. I know... I know. I'm not oblivious to the reasoning behind it. I'm just not good at it.

In any event.... I wish Mr. Butts well. Wasn't his on air partner also his wife? Now that is one sweet deal! To be able to have a fun gig where you also get to work with your significant other. That honestly sounds like it would be a blast! I admire anyone who can work themselves into that sort of job. I used to listen to Wild Bill Grundfest on WNBC. He and his wife used to sound like they were having a great time on the air. Awesome chemistry together. I think there should be more husband and wife teams on air. It seems to work well. Anyone remember the financial show that the husband/wife team "The Dolan's hosted? Even that was decent. Probably many more husband wife teams on the air all across the country. Only downside I see is if they ever split up. That sure could put a new unpleasant spin on things.

 

[fullabaloney]

Same things keep happening to the same people over and over.

Some things keep happening with different people over and over.

Yeah like you posting in markets you know nothing about for the sake of joining conversations

 

[wknd92]

While there were always rumors about him, Butts was actually a good community guy and a good morning host. He'd be a good fit on Cat Country. I doubt, however, that it will happen.

Scott, formerly working on the Trail during Butts' tenure, I know of at least 4 different HR nightmares involving him. While "a good community guy" may be a checkmark, there are more minuses in his jacket...

 

[mistermicrophone]

While there were always rumors about him, Butts was actually a good community guy and a good morning host. He'd be a good fit on Cat Country. I doubt, however, that it will happen.

If he still has that Country accent, than I agree on him being a perfect fit for that station. I never understood the "good community guy" aspect of radio though. Probably one of the reasons I never fit quite so well into the business. But I'm not a phony person. I could never act like I cared about a community that I actually hated. At WSAR all the upper management at the time were a bunch of kiss asses involved in The Rotary Club. They wanted me to become more community oriented. Involve myself with the city. Schmooze with the people of Fall River and learn to care about the town. The station quickly learned that I wasn't going to pretend to care about that freakin dump. I couldn't even drudge up the fake enthusiasm for that city no matter how hard I try. I was in Fall River on Monday. Went there for the first time in years to meet with someone. It made me nauseus to even be there. I hate that place. When I decided to work in radio, it was to entertain my audience. Not to become Mr. Community Spirit. It's just not my thing.

Maybe some employers look down on people like me. Sorry if that's the way you feel. But I just can't be phony. Let the sales department schmooze. They are better at it. Don't get me wrong. I understand the premise of introducing the various station personalities into the community. Building a strong identity. Familiarizing your audience with the station lineup. Making your listeners feel like you really care about them. I know... I know. I'm not oblivious to the reasoning behind it. I'm just not good at it.

In any event.... I wish Mr. Butts well. Wasn't his on air partner also his wife? Now that is one sweet deal! To be able to have a fun gig where you also get to work with your significant other. That honestly sounds like it would be a blast! I admire anyone who can work themselves into that sort of job. I used to listen to Wild Bill Grundfest on WNBC. He and his wife used to sound like they were having a great time on the air. Awesome chemistry together. I think there should be more husband and wife teams on air. It seems to work well. Anyone remember the financial show that the husband/wife team "The Dolan's hosted? Even that was decent. Probably many more husband wife teams on the air all across the country. Only downside I see is if they ever split up. That sure could put a new unpleasant spin on things.

Wow, where does one begin? You may have hated Fall River, but your AUDIENCE didn't, you know, that audience you wanted to "entertain". As for joining various community groups - Rotary, for example - it's about more than just "introducing various personalities into the community." A good portion of those members are in positions of influence at their respective businesses (if not owners of local businesses). Having a positive impact with those people could aid and assist a Sales staff when decisions about advertising are made...you know, how the stations that PAYS you MAKES money?? Plus, when the "show biz" side of the industry shows humility and humanity, it can make a difference on what station some of these people will listen to. You know, that audience you wanted to "entertain."

 

[Skynet74]

Plus, when the "show biz" side of the industry shows humility and humanity, it can make a difference on what station some of these people will listen to. You know, that audience you wanted to "entertain."

OK... Let me put it to you a different way. When you listen to your favorite radio show, do you honestly care if the host is a "good community guy"? I'm pretty confident that listeners don't care. They turn on the radio for entertainment. They want to laugh a little. Maybe learn a thing or two. That's it! I couldn't care less about what my favorite host does for the community. That is not why I turn on the radio. If you care about that stufff, than great for you. But why would you care? What is that doing for you? I can see why the radio station would care. But I don't really see why the listener would.

 

[Runrigger]

People like Salty Brine, Charlie Jefferds, & Gene & Gary DeGraide might disagree with you.

 

[Skynet74]

People like Salty Brine, Charlie Jefferds, & Gene & Gary DeGraide might disagree with you.

I am absolutely 100 percent positive that they would disagree with me. You are right. When you are a talented "good community guy" you honestly feel like it's making a difference to the listeners. Now I want someone here to tell me WHY it makes a difference. I don't get it. Would you think any less of your favorite program if the host completely removed himself from the community and just did his show?

 

[DG02816]

Here's why, at least from my 33 year perspective:We're not only entertainers, but we're also, to a LOT of people, the
FACE of the station, if you will. The impression people take from us becomes part of how they perceive the station.
Skynet, would you like to have your pissed-off-at-Fall River attitude be a part of how WSAR is thought of? Something like that could cause advertisers to say, We're not going to do any business here. That translates to lost revenue! At my present job, I always greet clients with a smile and introduce myself. It helps to build trust between you and those who pay the bills, so to speak. And when you meet the audience, as I have, it goes double.

 

[Skynet74]

Here's why, at least from my 33 year perspective:We're not only entertainers, but we're also, to a LOT of people, the
FACE of the station, if you will. The impression people take from us becomes part of how they perceive the station.
Skynet, would you like to have your pissed-off-at-Fall River attitude be a part of how WSAR is thought of?

I'm not pissed off at Fall River. I just don't like the place. I'm sure it has some great people. But the city itself has a total lack of appeal. If it had some redeeming qualities to balance out the bad, it wouldn't be such a dump. However I never got on the air and shouted how much I hated the city. You are right. That would have been a bad impression to leave. That's not what I did. I went on the air and had a lot of fun. My show wasn't an angry one. I just come here to be angry. LOL

Seriously though.... I have recently purchased the domain for a brand new website. I have plans to put all my recorded shows from WSAR online. Then you can decide for yourself what kind of attitude I had and whether I came across well or not. The website will have new content as well. Look for it in 2011 at http://www.angryman.com

P.S. That's not what the real address wil be. Just a little joke. ;D
Everyone will know the address once the site is up.

 

[Silkie]

Same things keep happening to the same people over and over.

Some things keep happening with different people over and over.

Yeah like you posting in markets you know nothing about for the sake of joining conversations

Maybe I do, and maybe I don't. But we know what happens when assumptions are made - and the attention still doesn't get called away from the facts.

 

[mistermicrophone]

People like Salty Brine, Charlie Jefferds, & Gene & Gary DeGraide might disagree with you.

I am absolutely 100 percent positive that they would disagree with me. You are right. When you are a talented "good community guy" you honestly feel like it's making a difference to the listeners. Now I want someone here to tell me WHY it makes a difference. I don't get it. Would you think any less of your favorite program if the host completely removed himself from the community and just did his show?

Why does it make a difference? It's about companionship; one of the most important factors in creating a bond with the listeners. Having pride in the community and relating to the listener and they're concerns/what's on their mind DOES make a difference.

It's clear why you hate radio, radio owners, PD, etc so much; you have the quintessential "they don't know what they're talking about" attitude and it's evident by your words in this post. True, not all listeners may care that EVERY personality is or isn't a community guy and the success of syndicated shows reflect that (Ryan Seacrest, for example). But as an employee of a radio station (NOT the rare syndicated star), especially a community station like WSAR, you are NOT bigger than the station as a whole. The people listening to WSAR do appreciate what hosts do for the community and that makes a HUGE difference, to answer your original question.

 

[wknd92]

Look at all the connection to MDA, CH 36, Meeting Street, Hasbro Children's Hospital, The Jimmy Fund/Dana Farber, Ronald McDonald House, ASPCA, Toys for Tots, American Red Cross, A Wish Comes True, Gloria Gemma Foundation, etc has to Providence Radio going back as far as I can remember (Salty, Larry, Charlie, Mike Sands, Mike Montecalvo, Paul Zangari, Mike Sheridan, etc hosting parts of the local telethons over the past 40 years....even though he was only here for about 2 years, Rocky Allen's Christmas Roundup raised HUGE amounts of money for women's shelters. While none of these (or any other charities) may affect you, it does other people in a large way. People are also interested in how the host may do other interactions with the community-blood drives, reading awareness in the schools, support of Toys for Tots, 9/11 Heroes fund, Haiti relief, RI Flood relief all touch different people in different ways and to say simply because you don't get it doesn't mean that it doesn't affect other people.

As someone who saw how my help with Toys for Tots, Meeting Street School, MDA, Ronald McDonald House, RI Blood Center, etc was welcomed not only by the organizations and people who those organizations may be helping; but also people who took pride that they were also contributing to those causes as part of the community, I think you missed the boat in that part of it.

 

[Silkie]

All of that said it seems there is a small time station with a troublemaker, given that people come and go, while that one person is still right there causing trouble. The problems were there before the Butts guy or his wife ever rode into town. I once saw a similar situation at a small market station; 9 people came and went in a very short period of time...while one little disc jockey caused all kinds of trouble. Then came her turn.

In the meantime, all of the others moved ahead and became important - just as I suspect they did in this case.

 

[Skynet74]

I have complete respect for people who do things to make this world a better place. They are heroes in my eyes. Myspace used to have a section to list your heroes. I listed Policemen, firemen and all those who help others. So trust me when I tell you that I understand and appreciate those who perform public service. All I am saying is that most people don't listen to a radio show just because the host is charitable. That is the simple point that I am trying to make.

 

[mistermicrophone]

I have complete respect for people who do things to make this world a better place. They are heroes in my eyes. Myspace used to have a section to list your heroes. I listed Policemen, firemen and all those who help others. So trust me when I tell you that I understand and appreciate those who perform public service. All I am saying is that most people don't listen to a radio show just because the host is charitable. That is the simple point that I am trying to make.

It's not just public service. Your blinders aren't allowing you to see radio as a whole, just your idyllic, fantasy radio show that lives on in your mind.