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Has Phil Zachary Screw Up Raleigh Yet??
- Thread starter A 94Z Fan
- Start date
Your ire for Curtis Media is matched only by your hatred of proper grammar.
Have you ever run into his more famous brother, Ed Zachary?
http://www.edzachary.com/2007/03/ed-zachary-joke.html
;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
http://www.edzachary.com/2007/03/ed-zachary-joke.html
;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Phil ran Rolling Stone Magazine rock station of the year, WRDU in the 1990s, and manages CMA station of the year WQDR. Oh yeah, and he took them both as also-rans and turned them into the top billing stations in the market.
Now I understand why you would ask "Has Phil Zachary Screw Up Raleigh Yet??"
Me No Think Phil Screw Up Raleigh Yet. Me Think Phil Good for Raleigh.
Who are you, Mongo Santa Maria (as played by Alex Karras)?
Now I understand why you would ask "Has Phil Zachary Screw Up Raleigh Yet??"
Me No Think Phil Screw Up Raleigh Yet. Me Think Phil Good for Raleigh.
Who are you, Mongo Santa Maria (as played by Alex Karras)?
N
ncairguy
Guest
I've got to agree with jaybo. Of course, I'm biased as I work for CMG which btw kept all of us employed even in the deepest part of the recession. Hardly any other radio group can say the same thing. That was no doubt a difficult thing for Phil to pull-off and also speaks to the loyalty of Don to his employees - many of which have been employed here for years - in some cases 25 years or more (again, not a thing you see with many radio groups).
You can say what you want about Phil's management style. Different people have different opinions about that but he is a creative genus - often coming up with some of the best ideas I've heard in my 30+ year career in radio. Also, its hard to argue with Phil's success with WQDR which is often at the top of the ratings & revenue and has won Large Market Station of the Year from the two major Country Awards organizations. Lately, he's overseen the success of Radio 961 which has earned terrific ratings (in demos not reflected in the 12+ ratings that you see on the radio boards.)
As I've indicated, I've worked for many stations - each of which have drawbacks - but I've got to say that this is one of the best clusters where I've worked. I've got no axe to grind for Phil or Don but I believe they are often unfairly criticized on this board by people who may not have all the facts. I'm guessing that some are disgruntled former employees. They of course have the right to their own opinions which are more informed by personal experience.
I've been let go or left countless over the years (including the cluster across the street in 2006) but I always try to not burn bridges. Case in point for why this is good strategy: I remember leaving one station and going on to another. The station that I left ended up buying my new employer. Also, one personal observation: when you harbor hate against any person you're probably giving them too much power over your life. I believe hate is harmful to one's health.
I've read this board for many years but haven't ever commented. I thank you for reading and consideration.
You can say what you want about Phil's management style. Different people have different opinions about that but he is a creative genus - often coming up with some of the best ideas I've heard in my 30+ year career in radio. Also, its hard to argue with Phil's success with WQDR which is often at the top of the ratings & revenue and has won Large Market Station of the Year from the two major Country Awards organizations. Lately, he's overseen the success of Radio 961 which has earned terrific ratings (in demos not reflected in the 12+ ratings that you see on the radio boards.)
As I've indicated, I've worked for many stations - each of which have drawbacks - but I've got to say that this is one of the best clusters where I've worked. I've got no axe to grind for Phil or Don but I believe they are often unfairly criticized on this board by people who may not have all the facts. I'm guessing that some are disgruntled former employees. They of course have the right to their own opinions which are more informed by personal experience.
I've been let go or left countless over the years (including the cluster across the street in 2006) but I always try to not burn bridges. Case in point for why this is good strategy: I remember leaving one station and going on to another. The station that I left ended up buying my new employer. Also, one personal observation: when you harbor hate against any person you're probably giving them too much power over your life. I believe hate is harmful to one's health.
I've read this board for many years but haven't ever commented. I thank you for reading and consideration.
I agree NCHairguy. I worked in Goldsboro for Curtis for four years and never had an issue.Fact is I saw Don maybe twice and Phil once. I enjoyed my time. One critcism is coming from someone who has no idea what really goes on inside a radio station. I have worked in some good situations and some not so good situations but most of the time if I had an issue it was my fault.The percentage of just plain jerks to deal with has been very small in my 29 years of doing radio but its that way in any business. Looking back the good far outweighs the bad and I have been very lucky.
nchairguy...that's a good one. thanks for the smile.
N
ncairguy
Guest
I had a few more thoughts over the weekend ...
These days upper management makes most decisions at nearly every radio group. For better or worse, that's just the way it is and reflects a desire to maximize profit (and probably in some cases, fear/not being able to let go). I've been a PD at several stations, including at 3 companies in this market (I now serve CMG in a different role), and I know the frustration of not being able to make decisions like in the good old days. (The good old days weren't always good; I once had a paycheck bounce.) I also know the frustration of not agreeing with an upper management decision but when you respect your superiors, you find a way to embrace the decision. (They often are made based on reasons you may not know.) Otherwise, if you can't stand the heat, you probably ought to get out of the kitchen and at times I have left stations due to GMs that seemed incompetent or indifferent (just occupying the chair) and in one case one was rather crazy.
I worked as an announcer at a 50 kW FM country station in the mid 80s and one day the GM fired the entire office, air and sales staff - except for some reason not me. He was a cocaine addict and he destroyed the market's clear revenue and ratings leader. The station was a 24-hour operation and this was in the days before automation. He did all the shifts that I didn't which was funny since he'd never been on the air before. One night in an unprovoked and unexpected fit of rage, he burst into the studio and threw a chair at me (I dodged it) while I was talking on-air. I can't imagine what the listeners thought was going on. Needless to say, I walked out on him and never again listened to the station - well, until years later when it had a different owner & format.
I digress.
For the most part, radio was much more fun before the FCC rule changes (I believe in 1996). In the age of post consolidation, that CMG has so many employees on the payroll for a company of its size, and has some staff on duty 24-hours a day, is rather remarkable.
Phil is deeply involved with each station. Some would say he is sometimes rough on employees but sometimes that's a necessity especially to motivate salespeople. He's really mellowed especially over the past year. Some would say that he's working too much, and worry that eventually the long hours may take a toll on his health but the hard work just speaks to his commitment. The company has often had awesome revenue over Phil's tenure - often with stations (mostly out of this market) which may have marginal signals. Clearly, he and other staff know what they're doing. In this market, take Pulse. It has puny power (and two nearly 100 kW competitors) yet the station does quite well in the ratings (in demos not reflected in the 12+ ratings you see on the boards). Pulse is still a work in progress and it'll be interesting to see how far it'll go. Or take WQDR which has fought off two formidable competitors.
Phil has made some fairly adventurous decisions over the years - many of which (like Radio 961) have paid off handsomely. Some unfruitful decisions will always be made in a company but for the most part, innovation breeds success. You're either evolving and growing or you're dying. One of the advantages of CMG being a smaller company is that managment can respond quickly to our market's needs. I think we have 25 stations now. The giant companies usually play it safe. From my experience at Clear Channel, I can say that decisions are usually made at the highest level in San Antonio, take time to filter through various management levels down to the local station, and don't necessarily reflect the local market's needs. I'm not bad mouthing CC. They clearly have had some good things going like at one time owning something like 1200 stations (no easy feat), then there's iHeartRadio, state of the art equipment & processing in many markets, and they remarkably have bounced back from near bankruptcy.
OK, that's a lot more than a few thoughts. Sorry for the long post!
These days upper management makes most decisions at nearly every radio group. For better or worse, that's just the way it is and reflects a desire to maximize profit (and probably in some cases, fear/not being able to let go). I've been a PD at several stations, including at 3 companies in this market (I now serve CMG in a different role), and I know the frustration of not being able to make decisions like in the good old days. (The good old days weren't always good; I once had a paycheck bounce.) I also know the frustration of not agreeing with an upper management decision but when you respect your superiors, you find a way to embrace the decision. (They often are made based on reasons you may not know.) Otherwise, if you can't stand the heat, you probably ought to get out of the kitchen and at times I have left stations due to GMs that seemed incompetent or indifferent (just occupying the chair) and in one case one was rather crazy.
I worked as an announcer at a 50 kW FM country station in the mid 80s and one day the GM fired the entire office, air and sales staff - except for some reason not me. He was a cocaine addict and he destroyed the market's clear revenue and ratings leader. The station was a 24-hour operation and this was in the days before automation. He did all the shifts that I didn't which was funny since he'd never been on the air before. One night in an unprovoked and unexpected fit of rage, he burst into the studio and threw a chair at me (I dodged it) while I was talking on-air. I can't imagine what the listeners thought was going on. Needless to say, I walked out on him and never again listened to the station - well, until years later when it had a different owner & format.
I digress.
For the most part, radio was much more fun before the FCC rule changes (I believe in 1996). In the age of post consolidation, that CMG has so many employees on the payroll for a company of its size, and has some staff on duty 24-hours a day, is rather remarkable.
Phil is deeply involved with each station. Some would say he is sometimes rough on employees but sometimes that's a necessity especially to motivate salespeople. He's really mellowed especially over the past year. Some would say that he's working too much, and worry that eventually the long hours may take a toll on his health but the hard work just speaks to his commitment. The company has often had awesome revenue over Phil's tenure - often with stations (mostly out of this market) which may have marginal signals. Clearly, he and other staff know what they're doing. In this market, take Pulse. It has puny power (and two nearly 100 kW competitors) yet the station does quite well in the ratings (in demos not reflected in the 12+ ratings you see on the boards). Pulse is still a work in progress and it'll be interesting to see how far it'll go. Or take WQDR which has fought off two formidable competitors.
Phil has made some fairly adventurous decisions over the years - many of which (like Radio 961) have paid off handsomely. Some unfruitful decisions will always be made in a company but for the most part, innovation breeds success. You're either evolving and growing or you're dying. One of the advantages of CMG being a smaller company is that managment can respond quickly to our market's needs. I think we have 25 stations now. The giant companies usually play it safe. From my experience at Clear Channel, I can say that decisions are usually made at the highest level in San Antonio, take time to filter through various management levels down to the local station, and don't necessarily reflect the local market's needs. I'm not bad mouthing CC. They clearly have had some good things going like at one time owning something like 1200 stations (no easy feat), then there's iHeartRadio, state of the art equipment & processing in many markets, and they remarkably have bounced back from near bankruptcy.
OK, that's a lot more than a few thoughts. Sorry for the long post!
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