D/FW Radio; The talent pool is dry, and it has been for a while.

[SaveDFWRadio]

“Zero added value” is the phrase that comes to mind as I peruse the Dallas/Fort Worth radio dial. The more I listen, the more it becomes abundantly clear that the people I am listening to (and I have been up and down the dial) have absolutely nothing to say.

Where are the personalities? What are stations and their disc jockeys doing to pull the listener into the conversation? Where are the creative and interesting individuals who entertain and provoke thought and discussion?

We don’t have them here. We have song teasers who spew out station call letters two and three times every time they crack open the mic. Call letters, their name, title and artist of what they just played or what they are about to play, maybe a time check and they are done.

Music, traffic, time and weather? I can get that anywhere. My cell phone for starters.

Voice Tracking and Syndicated Shows is the 5th largest market in the country?
Cindy Spicer, Tom Kent, Ryan Seacrest, etc. Why are these people here? I'm sure most will say that cost is the primary motive for carrying these shows. They are here because there is no talent here. If there was, stations would gladly fork over the dollars to pay for someone who listeners wanted to hear.

Go to the websites, KVIL.com and KLUV.com for example. They are nothing but advertising portals. Large, screen filling graphics for Booth Eye Care and 24 hour fitness. Further proof that the have nothing to offer.

It’s sad to see this happen here. Dallas/ Fort Worth was better than this. How do we get back to those days? Or is the day coming where every show that I listen to is “previously recorded” by someone who knows nothing about the people and the places here.

 

[board monkey]

What your seeing is stations in this market have been turned over to the sales department and consultants. Programmers/programming department have no say in anything here anymore. Radio is an advertising business now.

 

[MikeShannon914]

“Zero added value” is the phrase that comes to mind as I peruse the Dallas/Fort Worth radio dial. The more I listen, the more it becomes abundantly clear that the people I am listening to (and I have been up and down the dial) have absolutely nothing to say.

Would you like some cheese with that whine? ;D (Sorry, couldn't resist.)

Bring back a radio industry that actually PAYS for talent, and you might get some talent. Most of the heavy hitters I know of have bailed out for something more stable. You can't blame them. Most of the "personalities" you hear nowadays are being paid $8-$15 per hour, part-time with no benefits, and certainly no guarantee of a job the next day. You just can't attract top talent under those terms, though I know of many who still give it their best shot regardless. I tip my hat to them. It's a thankless job these days.

Then again, you still have a few in this market, albeit a dying breed, that hang in there and entertain or provide something interesting and compelling. Hal Jay for one, and Larry Dixon, Bo and Jim, Terry Dorsey, Debi Diaz, John Summers, even Jody Dean. Sure, some of these folks are under old contracts and will retire when the contract's up. Maybe they don't suit everyone's tastes or are God's gift to comedy, but they still hang in there, providing something LOCAL on the airwaves each day.

Yes, syndicated shows and voicetracking and piped-in stuff...that's just the reality of a near-bankrupt industry that has no clue about how to reinvent itself or to survive another 10 years in its current form. As Board Monkey said, it's the sales department and consultants that drive it now. Corporate sends down its mandates to the clusters, with no regard for what works in a given market. Overpaid talent, no matter what their ratings are, get cut. It's all about the bottom line-- programming and "public service" be damned.

And it's not going to improve, or recover. Radio's done. Listen in sometime on ALL the Top 5 markets...it's not just us.

 

[dakareedog]

It's not that there is no talent here. It's just that "the product" (what comes out of your speakers) just doesn't matter, at all, anymore. Anyone who was worth a damn and making more than 50k a year has been put on the beach and most of us don't even want to get back on the air. Whereas there used to be appx 180 on air positions in D/FW (conservative estimate), now there are less than 50. I wasn't allowed to be a personality (with the exception of the Ticket) since I was at Q-102 in the mid eighties. That's freakin' 20 years.
What can you expect from a voicetracker?? Exactly what you mentioned, Calls, liner (if the station provides it), front sell, back sell, time? weather? nope it's voicetracked. The principles of radio entertainment have been buried by the sales depts. As Gordon McLendon once said (paraphrasing), Once the product is no longer #1 the station will fail.
Guess what Dallas radio stations, in nearly ALL cases, YOU HAVE FAILED!!!

 

[scrtr84]

Good points from Mike. Even the most recent personalities have been shown the door. 2008 is one of the worst years I have seen, in terms of loss of what little was left in the way of personality. And you cannot use the sagging economy as the lone reason for that. The economy simply sped up what was already in the works that began in the post-deregulated era of radio.

Very sad.

 

[SaveDFWRadio]

Sorry for the whine Mike ☺ Just getting a little frustration off of my chest.

I need to be a little more clear about one of the things that I said in my original post. When I said that there is “No talent here”, I wasn’t saying that there are no talented people here in D/FW. They are here but they are just not on the radio anymore.

I’ve worked in radio since my late teens and left the business years ago to pursue other interests. I was only a part timer but more importantly, I was always a fan of the people that were on in this market.

All of the responses are very well taken. It’s an embarrassment what they have done to this industry in the name of profit. They’ve stripped this vehicle down to virtually nothing and are insistent on running it into the ground.

Maybe they can playback tapes from what this market sounded like in the late 70’s and 80’s. It would be less expensive than VT and would be a whole lot more entertaining.

 

[greencougar7]

DFW radio has a prime location at Laureland. Its over..sad to say. The new MEGA makes it very clear. There is no true, creative, original and appreciated talent anymore here or radio in general.

 

[board monkey]

Whats goin on in radio today reminds me of the new Jack in the Box commercials. The ones where Phil the #2 says "I have a radio in my car so I feel I can do fairly well". It actually takes a broadcaster to do well in radio. Just because you've heard radio before doesnt mean you can do it well. Unfortunately a lot of these exec's making the BIG decisions only have a radio in their office and have never sat behind a mic and console. I just heard Chris Ryan do the typical frequency, call letters, back sell, name, front sell the morning show and sign off. Total liner card script. Sad this is one of my favorite stations. I like Chris ryan too. Been listening to him since the 80's. Just sad how radio is taking the freefall with no parachute cept for the executives.

 

[txchipk]

Bring back a radio industry that actually PAYS for talent, and you might get some talent. Most of the heavy hitters I know of have bailed out for something more stable. You can't blame them. Most of the "personalities" you hear nowadays are being paid $8-$15 per hour, part-time with no benefits, and certainly no guarantee of a job the next day. You just can't attract top talent under those terms, though I know of many who still give it their best shot regardless. I tip my hat to them. It's a thankless job these days.

Then again, you still have a few in this market, albeit a dying breed, that hang in there and entertain or provide something interesting and compelling. Hal Jay for one, and Larry Dixon, Bo and Jim, Terry Dorsey, Debi Diaz, John Summers, even Jody Dean. Sure, some of these folks are under old contracts and will retire when the contract's up. Maybe they don't suit everyone's tastes or are God's gift to comedy, but they still hang in there, providing something LOCAL on the airwaves each day.

Yes, syndicated shows and voicetracking and piped-in stuff...that's just the reality of a near-bankrupt industry that has no clue about how to reinvent itself or to survive another 10 years in its current form. As Board Monkey said, it's the sales department and consultants that drive it now. Corporate sends down its mandates to the clusters, with no regard for what works in a given market. Overpaid talent, no matter what their ratings are, get cut. It's all about the bottom line-- programming and "public service" be damned.

Outside talk shows, the average listener's primary care is about the music mix the station is playing and not the personality behind it. Look at the people on this board complaining that a translator is blocking reception of KMAD-FM 102.5, a station built of "piped-in stuff" "programming and 'public service' be damned" because they like it more than the mix on KZPS and KDBN despite "overpaid talent" of Bo & Jim or other local jocks. This isn't anything new...AM top 40 stations died off in most markets to FM stations with lesser talent decades ago.

The hosts on "The Hardline" just signed a new contract with KTCK. So, I'm not sure high paid talent get cut "no matter what their ratings are" is true. Overpaid talent with respect to the revenue they bring in may be cut. High priced talent that can bring in high revenue probably aren't going to get cut. I'm guessing, according to the Observer, with KRLD-FM making a play for the show, the hosts didn't have to settle for $15/hour either.

 

[little1]

Then again, you still have a few in this market, albeit a dying breed, that hang in there and entertain or provide something interesting and compelling. Hal Jay for one, and Larry Dixon, Bo and Jim, Terry Dorsey, Debi Diaz, John Summers, even Jody Dean.

Outside talk shows, the average listener's primary care is about the music mix the station is playing and not the personality behind it. Look at the people on this board complaining that a translator is blocking reception of KMAD-FM 102.5, a station built of "piped-in stuff" "programming and 'public service' be damned" because they like it more than the mix on KZPS and KDBN despite "overpaid talent" of Bo & Jim or other local jocks. This isn't anything new...AM top 40 stations died off in most markets to FM stations with lesser talent decades ago.

The hosts on "The Hardline" just signed a new contract with KTCK. So, I'm not sure high paid talent get cut "no matter what their ratings are" is true. Overpaid talent with respect to the revenue they bring in may be cut. High priced talent that can bring in high revenue probably aren't going to get cut. I'm guessing, according to the Observer, with KRLD-FM making a play for the show, the hosts didn't have to settle for $15/hour either.

Chip nails it.
You people seem to forget we're in the biggest recession in decades. It just happens to be hitting radio at a point where major groups were cutting costs in a desperate attempt to pay off the debts of LBO's, VC sales, buying sprees, etc.

Add in cutting costs to a drastic downturn in ad revenue, and it's easy to see why companies are cutting costs. But as Chip noted, the Hardline disproves your rule. As i said, Chip nails it, stations are willing to pay for talent that can attract listeners/advertisers, they're not willing to pay ridiculous salaries to jocks that get mediocre ratings.

And Mike- Hal Jay? Dixon? B&J? Summers? Dixon? Dorsey? Do you realize that Debi is the one person listed that isn't already holding an AARP card? Most of those guys are about eligible for social security. And none of them are at all interesting or compelling to the average 25-35 year old listener.

Want to know why Movin flipped? The hispanic population is the fastest growing group in DFW. KLNO is/(IIRC)/was the number 1 station P25-54 in the last few PPM monthlies. You guys are so focused on your old favorites, that you don't see the new trend starting in front of you...

 

[board monkey]

[/quote]
And Mike- Hal Jay? Dixon? B&J? Summers? Dixon? Dorsey? Do you realize that Debi is the one person listed that isn't already holding an AARP card? Most of those guys are about eligible for social security. And none of them are at all interesting or compelling to the average 25-35 year old listener.
[/quote]

little1 you nailed it here about these guys. I'm 32 and could care less about any of them on the air. I wont listen to WBAP till 8:30 just to avoid Hal Jay. And forget the rest. I dont listen to those stations.

 

[radioisalive]

I agree with this post. I moved here 8 years ago and have seen the steady decline in this market and the lack of talent on the air in this market. I used to be a very big fan of talk radio, but there seems to be no one worth listening to these days. Some of the syndicated shows are worth a listen, but local? Forget it! I have turned the dial away from local talk in this town. KLIF a few years back had some promising new talent in both drives, but they failed to deliver. Ankarlo left town and was replaced by Bolten. He isn't the greatest, but a heck of a lot better than the clown they have on their afternoon drive. Where on God's green Earth did they find that train wreck? He needs to either retire or go back to where they found him. This market needs serious help.

 

[jondavidvox]

They found me right under the highest ratings the station has had in the last 20 years.

Jon-David Wells
The Wells Report

 

[analog78]

I miss the days when Dallas wasn't as BIG as it is now. I think the Dallas market peaked in the late '80's as far as talent goes. And with more and more of that talent no longer on the airwaves, we are left to suffer to the war of the Voice-tracking and automation giants...

 

[radioisalive]

They found me right under the highest ratings the station has had in the last 20 years.
Jon-David Wells
The Wells Report

Doesn't say much for the past 20 years. Ratings is just numbers for revenue. That's the problem with this market and many around the country, it's all about just making money rather than having quality talent and programming on the air. All the stations care about are their paychecks and not the listeners. Very sad indeed.

 

[jondavidvox]

OK....Always willing to learn.

Um, where will I find your ratings-independent, quality-laced, Top-5 Market PM Drive Talk Show?

J-D
TWR

 

[radioisalive]

You proved my point exactly with a very intellegent rebuttal. Again, "Ratings" and "top 5 market"? Obviously, all that matters to you and your station is ratings and ranking. Besides, Dallas has been a top 5 for years. You had nothing to do with it. If you want to defend yourself, defend your talent. Oh....wait....you can't defend something that is absent.

 

[board monkey]

You proved my point exactly with a very intellegent rebuttal. Again, "Ratings" and "top 5 market"? Obviously, all that matters to you and your station is ratings and ranking. Besides, Dallas has been a top 5 for years. You had nothing to do with it. If you want to defend yourself, defend your talent. Oh....wait....you can't defend something that is absent.

ZZZZZZIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!!!!

 

[jondavidvox]

Wow...You really got me there.

Man! What a SLAP!!

Oooh!

.....aaah!!!


Now....Where can I find your quality-laced, ratings/revenue independent, Top-5, PM Drive Talk Show? Stop dissembling and start showing the skins on the wall. C'mon...Someone with the temerity to throw those kinds of shots (OK, from the cheap seats) must surely have something besides an alias to back herself up.

Well?

J-D
TWR

 

[radioisalive]

Well...here you go. The name is Don Bender of Frisco (formally of North Dallas). My email is texdjb1957@verizon . Anything else? Oh? and "Herself"? For the record I am a himself. Always have been since 1957. Look, whether you are who you say you are, I am just voicing my opinion. That is still a right in this country as of lately. Being in the public eye, learn to take some criticism. Not everyone is going to like you. Instead of whining about it, prove us wrong. I do believe radio is alive. So prove it to me. That is all I am going to say.