Hey...whatever did happen to Chris Jones

[zoneguy]

Forgive me if missed this earlier, but I just realized everyone's favorites miscreant, charity robbing, client cheating, alleged substance dealing, sports talk show host is no longer on the WTAN schedule.

Did I miss an arrest, assault or something?

 

[ynot2k]

Zone,

Mr. Jones JUST made the news this week for continuing his antics down in Sarasota.

Go to: http://www.tbo.com/membercenter/contactus/8oys.htm, click on the Video Reports tab, and, if it doesn't come up automatically, click on the "Bucs need help" story.

Talk about never changing your act...

 

[smedge2006]

If any of the people who've been ripped off by Jones would have actually bothered to listen to his show, would they have given him their money?

A host who does his show over the phone every day, who offers no insights beyond cliches ("They...uh... really came to play") and whatever somebody has written in the sports section? Would anyone believe that he's some sports guru?

 

[MisterNews]

I believe he also claims to have played for the Bucs and the Eagles. Neither team has any record of the guy ever being there. While he was at Wagonvoord's Tan-Talk 'network' ("for less than the cost of a stick of gum you can have your own radio show...") Channel 8 did an expose on Jones, ambushing Waggie who cussed at them, threatened to call the police and almost socked the cameraman. They were really made for each other (Jones and Wagonwheel). :

 

[billyboyblue]

Said he used to play Tight End at Pittsburg and caught passes for Dan Marino. Also claims to have played for the Atlanta Falcons. Says he also played in the USFL.

B

 

[Bored Op]

It was actually Channel 28 that did two reports on WTAN and Chris Jones... ambushing both Dave & Lola both times. In the second report, the reporter and cameraman were following them down Cleveland Street (with tape rolling), when Dave turns around and calls the cameraman a sonnofabitch and knocks the camera to the ground. It was great TV. The Wagenvoord's knew Jones' MO all along, and still let him on all of these years, but I think they were starting to feel the heat and broomed him out the door. The whole FBI 'involvement' was rumored as long as nine months ago. Funny thing is, even though The Wagenvoord's knew about Jones' scam, they'll be the first to tell you that he's a liar and a crook. There are a lot of folks that would love to see him do some prison time.

 

[Wazzie]

He leaves Tan-Talk when the heat is on and moves his dog and pony show to WWPR in Bradenton. The heat is on again so you folks in Punta Gorda and Fort Myers should be on the look out for this jerk.

 

[tampalistener]

Hey there. I've posted this before, but I'll post it again -- a 1998 clip about Jones from the Tampa Tribune.

I'm fascinated by the whole Chris Jones topic because I was the editor of a weekly sports magazine the Trib used to publish back in the late-1990s, and as far as I know, we were the first to write anything about this guy, even though we only covered the tip of the iceberg at the time.

I'm no longer with the Trib now, but even so, it still amazes me that the public hasn't caught yet, even almost 10 years later. This is from the what-we-hear sports gossip column that we did.


HED: Keeping Up With the Joneses
The Tampa Tribune / October 2, 1998

It's the basic rule of journalism: Check the facts.

That's what we did when we heard Chris Jones, co-host of "Inside the Locker Room with Derrick Brooks" (Sunday, 9:30 a.m., WTOG-Ch. 44), had played in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons.

First, the Atlanta media guide: Jones was not listed on the team's all-time roster.

Next, a call to the Falcons' P.R. people: No one had heard of Jones.

Then, a conversation with WTOG production manager Greg Blackburn: "From what I understand," he said, "Chris played for the Falcons for eight years."

[EDIT]


[EDIT-post truncated because originating material is copyprotected. Unauthorized use of copyrighted content is in violation of Radio-Info's TOS. Please provide correct URL(s) for this and all future use of copyprotected material.]

 

[zoneguy]

Interesting that Channel 8 did not mention that he had run this scam at WTAN in Clearwater for years and that a similar investigative reporting piece sent him scrambling. I guess this key fact to his history in the area is not as important as giving Channel 28 any props for getting to him first. Channel 28 also got him for diverting funds meant for a non-profit, if I'm not mistaken.

It would not have hard for Stacey to go ask Dave and Lola why they finally stopped doing business with him. They also then could have asked 1490, that if they new this charlatan's history, why did they agree to take his money and put him on.

But again, all of that good journalism goes out the window because it would have meant tipping your cap to a competitor...

 

[tampalistener]

Hey there. I've posted this before, but I'll post it again -- a 1998 clip about Jones from the Tampa Tribune.

I'm fascinated by the whole Chris Jones topic because I was the editor of a weekly sports magazine the Trib used to publish back in the late-1990s, and as far as I know, we were the first to write anything about this guy, even though we only covered the tip of the iceberg at the time.

I'm no longer with the Trib now, but even so, it still amazes me that the public hasn't caught yet, even almost 10 years later. This is from the what-we-hear sports gossip column that we did.


HED: Keeping Up With the Joneses
The Tampa Tribune / October 2, 1998

It's the basic rule of journalism: Check the facts.

That's what we did when we heard Chris Jones, co-host of "Inside the Locker Room with Derrick Brooks" (Sunday, 9:30 a.m., WTOG-Ch. 44), had played in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons.

First, the Atlanta media guide: Jones was not listed on the team's all-time roster.

Next, a call to the Falcons' P.R. people: No one had heard of Jones.

Then, a conversation with WTOG production manager Greg Blackburn: "From what I understand," he said, "Chris played for the Falcons for eight years."

[EDIT]


[EDIT-post truncated because originating material is copyprotected. Unauthorized use of copyrighted content is in violation of Radio-Info's TOS. Please provide correct URL(s) for this and all future use of copyprotected material.]

The rest of the clip, before it was helpfully truncated, goes on to say that Jones summarized his playing career as: a backup quarterback at Jefferson High (Class of '79); backup tight end at the University of Pittsburgh (1979-83); training camp player for Falcons (1983-86). He admitted he never was rostered with the Falcons but insisted they "brought me back for two or three years" during training camp.

Still, our reporter searched Falcons media guides from 1983-86 for a reference to Jones among players signed as free agents but couldn't find anything. Jones also is not on Pitt's all-time list of lettermen (Christy Jones, 1933, was the closest match).

There ... that's the rest of the story.

 

[MisterNews]

Just the fact that this crook can run the same scam year after year after year, at station after station, is testament to the greed and poor judgement of station owner/operators. Putting public DISservice like this on your air USED to be held against you at license renewal time- but not in GOPworld.

Just another way that radio owners continue to deconstruct all that is good and unique about the medium.

 

[bsce96]

I remember listening to this guy on WTAN when he had bought air time for his sports talk show. The show devoted about 5 to 10 minutes of his thoughts on sports, but the remainder of the show was devoted to his sponsors (local mortgage brokers). In one word.... garbage!!!

To make matters worse, he did the show from his phone. This guy should have never been granted air tiem, even if he was paying for it.