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Death Tied to Entercom's The End 107.9?
- Thread starter Chris_Rose
- Start date
R
RussAllen
Guest
The Goodfellow said:
Welcome back, "be caller nine to win".
Re: Latest Radio Promotion Gone Bad
The entrants also have the ability to stop participating.
Kelly said:
The entrants also have the ability to stop participating.
S
Stage5Clinger
Guest
This just in...KCRA says that laywers for the family will be filing a wrongful death lawsuit against KDND and Entercom. Tom Duhain was talking about it at the top of the 6.
L
littlebigradio
Guest
I hope that Entercom loses it's license and the MM, DOS GSM, Jocks,.PD,and promotions people involved in this idiocy are never allowed to work in this industry again. Not only was this infantile and very dangerous, it was stupid! Oh well, what corporate radio won't do for that extra listener....that extra ad dollar. If you didn't think corporate radio was a bunch of [EDIT] before....waddaya think now? What's next???? Snake Handling?
[inflammatory]
[inflammatory]
http://www.news10.net/display_story.aspx?storyid=23480
To former KDND Staff: May the force (of potential prosecution) be with you...
To former KDND Staff: May the force (of potential prosecution) be with you...
> KCRA says that laywers [sic] for the family will be filing a wrongful death lawsuit against KDND and Entercom.
Of course, they are going to file a lawsuit. To me, the only questions are: the actual legal theory of the claim (e.g., Negligence, Intentional Infliction, etc.) and who they actually name as defendants.
A couple of us were kicking this around this afternoon. We predict settlement range (assuming the facts are as they are being portrayed -- and the facts just keep getting worse) to be $2 million to $3 million. Of course, we'll probably never know. When settlement comes, it will be for "an undisclosed amount," and there will be a confidentiality agreement.
I'll leave the criminal law issues for someone who know more about that topic than me.
I just hope Entercom decides to do the right thing and settle early. As I stated earlier, the PR bleeding is costing them. Big. They need to make it stop.
Sad. Gosh, this is sad.
DE
Of course, they are going to file a lawsuit. To me, the only questions are: the actual legal theory of the claim (e.g., Negligence, Intentional Infliction, etc.) and who they actually name as defendants.
A couple of us were kicking this around this afternoon. We predict settlement range (assuming the facts are as they are being portrayed -- and the facts just keep getting worse) to be $2 million to $3 million. Of course, we'll probably never know. When settlement comes, it will be for "an undisclosed amount," and there will be a confidentiality agreement.
I'll leave the criminal law issues for someone who know more about that topic than me.
I just hope Entercom decides to do the right thing and settle early. As I stated earlier, the PR bleeding is costing them. Big. They need to make it stop.
Sad. Gosh, this is sad.
DE
Most of the people who've responded to this blatant act of idiocy by The End's morning show have made good points. Even those who've questioned Jennifer Strange's decision to participate in such a contest raise issues that might be brought up and probed by defense counsel.
Have we forgotten that radio stations are licensed to operate in the public interest, convenience and necessity? Yeah, I know that's "old skool," but the licensee bears responsibility for its conduct on the air and in the community. A contest like this raises question's about the licensee's worthiness to hold the license.
Consider the decision making process: The station has a Wii to give away, the program director, morning show producer, morning show and other employees in position of authority and responsibility propose and approve a contest that endangers the health of participants.
When they were sitting around the morning show office eating cold pizza, drinking Red Bull and laughing about how cool this promotion would be, didn't ANYBODY ask, "what can go wrong with this promotion and what if something does go wrong? Maybe we shouldn't do it this way..." Very irresponsible and lacking oversight. The program director and general manager share culpability in this mess. There must be some very stupid, inexperienced or arrogant people who work at The End.
Yeah, hindsight is 20-20, butnobody ever died playing Cash Call or Hi-lo.
-9-
Have we forgotten that radio stations are licensed to operate in the public interest, convenience and necessity? Yeah, I know that's "old skool," but the licensee bears responsibility for its conduct on the air and in the community. A contest like this raises question's about the licensee's worthiness to hold the license.
Consider the decision making process: The station has a Wii to give away, the program director, morning show producer, morning show and other employees in position of authority and responsibility propose and approve a contest that endangers the health of participants.
When they were sitting around the morning show office eating cold pizza, drinking Red Bull and laughing about how cool this promotion would be, didn't ANYBODY ask, "what can go wrong with this promotion and what if something does go wrong? Maybe we shouldn't do it this way..." Very irresponsible and lacking oversight. The program director and general manager share culpability in this mess. There must be some very stupid, inexperienced or arrogant people who work at The End.
Yeah, hindsight is 20-20, butnobody ever died playing Cash Call or Hi-lo.
-9-
I
IndigoCoyote
Guest
Re: Latest Radio Promotion Gone Bad
"With God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly."
"With God as my witness, I thought turkeys could fly."
T
The Goodfellow
Guest
As the late great Harry Truman said "The buck stops here!" He is, from above, pointing to the highest exec who signed off on this!Element9 said:
Goodfellow!
A
AKLes
Guest
littlebigradio said:
Probably not as a contest but perhaps on a Sunday morning?
http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/Snakes.html
.
R
Radio-X
Guest
Element9 said:
THIS I can agree with. ANY stunt that's pulled, should be looked over with a fine-toothed comb. I tend to think any contest that has a good risk of danger should most certainly be nixed.
I still don't understand why this wasn't done with gatorade or Red Bull...plus, Gatorade makes you piss like a racehorse.
Radio-X
Re: Latest Radio Promotion Gone Bad
I work with Maureen (then Matthews) and I can tell you she was NEVER married to Steve Weed. She is married to another Steve who I also work with and he's a great guy.
Michael Rivers - Kramer
Los Angeles
xmtrland said:
I work with Maureen (then Matthews) and I can tell you she was NEVER married to Steve Weed. She is married to another Steve who I also work with and he's a great guy.
Michael Rivers - Kramer
Los Angeles
A friend of mine was telling me they used to work for a smaller group back in the mid 90s. They required any stunt/promotion/etc. be run through management if it was anything that would effect the body in ANY way.
Interesting policy, but may have saved them from the risks...
Interesting policy, but may have saved them from the risks...
This is, beyond any doubt, a tragic event. I can't even begin to imagine the pain and suffering that has ensued. Without throwing barbs at anyone, I ask this: Does anyone have any feedback as to how the former morning show members are coping? Though the audio may be damning, anyone in radio knows this was merely an exercise in "theater of the mind". I highly doubt that any of them wished or thought that this could happen and my heart goes out to them... as it does to the family of Jennifer Strange.
Element9 said:
I've heard both sides concerning this contest, and lest anyone think that I'm unsympathetic or otherwise insensitive to Ms. Strange's family, here are some thoughts to ponder:
Think of all the potentially dangerous contests that radio stations have done over the years for time immemorial. We've seen listeners eat live earthworms, get buried alive, race each other, and I could go on forever. This contest is nothing new than what's been done in years past.
Was there negligence among the KDND staff? Most definitely. I have seen no evidence of any staff educating any of the contest participants about any of the health risks that may be involved, and for them to sign a waiver holding the station harmless in the event of any health situations.
However, as an adult, you have to accept some responsibility for your own actions. THIS WAS OVER A VIDEO GAME SYSTEM. I don't think it's entirely fair to lay the whole of the blame here on everyone involved at the radio station. Some staff members connected directly with this matter, yes. What was Jennifer Strange's own health situation prior to this contest?
Many of you posters are calling for the revocation of KDND's license. Think about this...is it right or fair to pull the license of a radio station and take away the jobs of those not even involved? You can take the corrective action and fire those closely involved and save everyone else's job, but to close the whole place down is far from reasonable.
Ms. Strange's surviving family does deserve to be fairly compensated. I don't disagree with that. But remember...this tragedy arose out of negligence, NOT malice. The difference between the two is remorse. You don't often find it in the latter. I've worked with plenty of radio people in two decades and have seen my share of risky stunts. However, no radio professional I know of has ever gone forward with these contests with the intent to cause an individual any kind of bodily harm. I'm sure some of these people are married and have families of their own...and...they will have to live with this for the REST OF THEIR LIVES.
Many of you who have been in the business for any length of time also know that morning show personnel are now more than ever under ENORMOUS pressure to raise their ratings, and if need be, to do it at all costs. That involves risk-taking, and often, though tragically, details like this aren't carefully thought out.
The question that needs to be answered is how much money? How much is a human life worth? How much responsibility should KDND have to bear for this? Some or all? That'll be up to the attorneys to hammer out.
Know this though...no jury award will bring back Jennifer Strange.
Unfortunately, it's a case like this that sets a precedent for future on-air promotions. I can see medical professionals being consulted about contests like this in the future to find out potential health risks. Attorneys drafting waivers for listeners to sign. EMS personnel on-site during the contests. Though it would benefit future contestants, it doesn't change what has happened.
Now There is a Criminal Investigation
"Sacramento County Sheriff John McGinness assigned two homicide detectives Wednesday to investigate the apparent water-intoxication death of a Rancho Cordova woman who competed in a radio-station stunt to win a Nintendo gaming console."
Souce: http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/109690.html
"Sacramento County Sheriff John McGinness assigned two homicide detectives Wednesday to investigate the apparent water-intoxication death of a Rancho Cordova woman who competed in a radio-station stunt to win a Nintendo gaming console."
Souce: http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/109690.html
In an early report on this I had heard that the contestants were in another room or something and could not hear the callers. If this were true they would never have heard the nurse who called in to discuss the dangers of the stunt. I think that will be important in any investigation, if they could not hear those calls, and were not warned of the dangers ahead of time, then I can see a successful lawsuit.
As someone said earlier, you go into a contest with a certain level of expectation regarding the safety of the stunt. One would hope that the contestants would have been presented with all possible scenarios, and would've had medical staff handy. If they were expecting them to puke from this, then that's still the body's way of saying "something is wrong," and someone with medical experience should have been present.
All in all it is a great tragedy, and regardless of what happens, the termination of those involved was necessary. My heart goes out to Jennifer's family and to those involved who I'm certain feel VERY guilty over all of this. It will take a long time for all involved to recover.
As someone said earlier, you go into a contest with a certain level of expectation regarding the safety of the stunt. One would hope that the contestants would have been presented with all possible scenarios, and would've had medical staff handy. If they were expecting them to puke from this, then that's still the body's way of saying "something is wrong," and someone with medical experience should have been present.
All in all it is a great tragedy, and regardless of what happens, the termination of those involved was necessary. My heart goes out to Jennifer's family and to those involved who I'm certain feel VERY guilty over all of this. It will take a long time for all involved to recover.
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