Clearing the Air at KLSX (Los Angeles Times)

[4UH8SIMBKAGN]

I've got one thing to say about what Michael Harrison publisher of Talkers magazine says in this article. You're an idiot. You don't understand Los Angeles at all. The old KLSX format is perfect for a younger audience. With Los Angeles graduating from high school as little as 30% of students who come into the LAUSD system, Sex and Drugs, Wine and Women is exactly the kind of talkradio that will work in Los Angeles for a younger audience. Intellectual talk for a young audience Los Angeles...ya right. Only if you want to fail miserably.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2009/02/clearing-the-ai.html

 

[scooty430]

Well, clearly it wasn't working, or the station would still be doing its crass, bottom of the gutter talk format. (Glad to see it go, frankly, though AMP is not my kind of music at all.)

As for your "LA can't handle intelligent talk" comment, while LAUSD may not graduate too many people at some of its inner-city campuses, remember that LA is ringed by suburbs with decent school systems, and has a hefty private school population. Any big city is going to have low graduation rates in its urban core.

How about this statistic: LA has a higher per-capita book purchasing rate than San Francisco.

 

[westfield60]

Scooty430. Let's be clear, KLSX didn't flip because of a lack of ratings or content or 'gutter' talk as you put it. They were number One in the prized male 25-54 category. They flipped because they had a staff of hundreds (slight exageration) and everyone was being paid like kings. Now for the next month or two they will probably have one staff member and thereafter a skeletal team.

You can argue that Leykis, FHF and Danny are still being paid for the next 2 years so where's the savings? The answer is the salaries of all the support staff. Leykis had two, FHF had 2, Morning show had about 8, then Conway had 2. So yes it was a financial decision and nothing more. Plus as Bob Moore said their bonuses were based on ratings, so as FHF ratings grew last year so did their salary.

No amount of effective advertising could make up the drain of all those salaries. These days it is all about saving money. Look out there.

Larry Elder lost his gig because of money. True he had no ratings against John and Ken but he never did and KABC always kept him on. Only when this recession (or depression) hit is everyone losing their gigs based on salaries.

 

[4UH8SIMBKAGN]

Scooty430. Let's be clear, KLSX didn't flip because of a lack of ratings or content or 'gutter' talk as you put it. They were number One in the prized male 25-54 category. They flipped because they had a staff of hundreds (slight exageration) and everyone was being paid like kings. Now for the next month or two they will probably have one staff member and thereafter a skeletal team.

You can argue that Leykis, FHF and Danny are still being paid for the next 2 years so where's the savings? The answer is the salaries of all the support staff. Leykis had two, FHF had 2, Morning show had about 8, then Conway had 2. So yes it was a financial decision and nothing more. Plus as Bob Moore said their bonuses were based on ratings, so as FHF ratings grew last year so did their salary.

No amount of effective advertising could make up the drain of all those salaries. These days it is all about saving money. Look out there.

Larry Elder lost his gig because of money. True he had no ratings against John and Ken but he never did and KABC always kept him on. Only when this recession (or depression) hit is everyone losing their gigs based on salaries.

Agreement here. KLSX had some elusive male demos that can't easily be built. KLOS, outside of morning drive, does not and will never have these kinds of ratings. I will be surprised if Bob Moore does not at least bring some elements of KLSX over. Lots of talent would be happy to be paid just union minimum today and work with a skeletal staff.

There really is no surprise that Citadel is firing former ABC people right and left. This has been the plan since prior to the purchase or Reverse Morris Trust, whatever tax scam it was.

There is always money for talent, even now, if they want them no matter what the suits say. It's always been that way even in other economic downturns. Maybe it won't be as big anymore but there's all kinds of creative accounting ways to do so.