I use to really like kabc not anymore

[hotpatrick2004]

I moved to los angeles in the summer of 2000 and i was getting to really like kabc they were moving more to the middle with there lineup.I really liked john and ken doing mornings on there but that did not last long now several years later all but 2 shows on there doug mcintyre and al rantel will be syndicated that is sad!!!Did not agree with all or larry all that much but nice to have local peeps reguardless of views.

Good luck to larry and what will all the eldorado's do

A sad time for all in this thing we call radio except for ryan seacrest who makes a bazzillion dollars a year.

HOTPATRICK OUT

 

[nmoore6676]

There is not that much local talk anymore, anywhere; we have more here in LA than most. KFI has three local shows, KABC, now two. KRLA has shows that are local but also syndicated (2 I believe). KGIL has none. As to John and Ken they have a freer reign to be what they are at KFI which is why they went back. By their own account they were miserable at KABC, I think a contract dispute with KFI led to that brief defection. They get pretty much the right to rule the roost, the only thorn being Handel who they can’t get fired (like Ziegler) but other than that they are the fair haired boys of AM640.

Forgot KTLK, Stephani Miller is done locally but like the shows on KRLA is also for national syndication.

 

[4UH8SIMBKAGN]

Kevin James is local only on KRLA.

 

[david]

Kevin James is local only on KRLA.

And he is not an LA caliber host. This is major league radio here, yet he seemed to be an inferior presence when he was brought in to replace Doug McIntyre on KABC's Red Eye Radio.
I thought his embarrassing appearance on CNN would harm his cred as a talkradio host, but somehow he has endured on KRLA in late evenings for several years now.

 

[SuperRadioFan]

Kevin James is local only on KRLA.

And he is not an LA caliber host. This is major league radio here, yet he seemed to be an inferior presence when he was brought in to replace Doug McIntyre on KABC's Red Eye Radio.
I thought his embarrassing appearance on CNN would harm his cred as a talkradio host, but somehow he has endured on KRLA in late evenings for several years now.

I think it was MSNBC, not CNN. Chris Matthews absolutely undressed James who didn't know the relevance of Neville Chamberlain to the prelude to WWII. I agree about the caliber part, but that says more about KRLA than about Kevin James.

Re. KABC, how far they've fallen. Its nightime in NYC there starting next week and those streets are not too safe. Wonder what they're going to do with O'Reilly's shift and next week what are they planning for 11-11:45 am? Or does Al Rantel not mind keeping split shifts?

 

[hotpatrick2004]

In my hometown of louisville ky the cc station that ziegler use to work at 840 whas they also have a few local shows left 9-noon 3-7 a sports show from 7-9 but then last year they replaced the 9 till midenight show that was local with michael savage i will not listen out of principle.But the local show they got rid of was local for as i had read 40 years or so. But it really is sad how all these companies think we don't want local non piped in talent. I do i would much rather have local jock or talk show host then some voicetracked out of new york or syndicated talk show dude or dudette doing the shift.

I am home for the holidays but like la radio so much better

It is just sad to see where radio has been heading the last decade just breaks your heart.

 

[Michael Rivers Kramer]

I wish KABC was more like KGO. LA doesn't have a centrist News/Talk station, just a bunch of Right Wing talk radio and Lefty KTLK (which I do like).

 

[snickers]

And he is not an LA caliber host. This is major league radio here, yet he seemed to be an inferior presence when he was brought in to replace Doug McIntyre on KABC's Red Eye Radio.
I thought his embarrassing appearance on CNN would harm his cred as a talkradio host, but somehow he has endured on KRLA in late evenings for several years now.

I disagree. According to Wikipedia, Kevin James has the fastest growing show in L.A. He's not Doug McIntyre, that's true. (Doug was the very best in that time slot----he had plenty of time to talk about whatever he wanted. He has an amazing wealth of knowledge, and it was always enlightening. McIntyre in the Morning is not so good---they try to do the whole morning zoo thing, and it doesn't work. Although I do love Rob. Rob and Mr. K were hysterical together. ) Kevin is a tremendous advocate for local causes. And I do appreciate his "prosecuter's instinct"---most times he is right.

I will miss Larry terribly. I was there from the beginning, when Dennis brought him on his KABC show. Let's face it, the Golden Days of KABC are gone. They had Michael Jackson, Dennis Prager, Dr. David Viscott (!) Larry Elder...

Now they should just go ahead and say they are a simulcast for WABC.

I know times are rough, but now would be a perfect opportunity for them to build that station. Bring in some new voices, focus on local, make it fresh, funny, and go for it. Really go for it.

 

[DavidKaye]

I wish KABC was more like KGO. LA doesn't have a centrist News/Talk station, just a bunch of Right Wing talk radio and Lefty KTLK (which I do like).

KGO has also built its reputation on respect for the audience. Most hosts even answer calls with, "Hello, [name], WELCOME to KGO." Welcome. That's a word you don't hear on many talk stations but KGO. but it's a very powerful word that says inclusiveness and respect.

 

[nmoore6676]

And he is not an LA caliber host. This is major league radio here, yet he seemed to be an inferior presence when he was brought in to replace Doug McIntyre on KABC's Red Eye Radio.
I thought his embarrassing appearance on CNN would harm his cred as a talkradio host, but somehow he has endured on KRLA in late evenings for several years now.

I disagree. According to Wikipedia, Kevin James has the fastest growing show in L.A. He's not Doug McIntyre, that's true. (Doug was the very best in that time slot----he had plenty of time to talk about whatever he wanted. He has an amazing wealth of knowledge, and it was always enlightening. McIntyre in the Morning is not so good---they try to do the whole morning zoo thing, and it doesn't work. Although I do love Rob. Rob and Mr. K were hysterical together. ) Kevin is a tremendous advocate for local causes. And I do appreciate his "prosecuter's instinct"---most times he is right.

If he had one listener and he went to two that would definitely be a big increase. Kevin James is unlistenable and I imagine that his is a brokered show for which he or his producers are paying KRLA for the air time.

 

[4UH8SIMBKAGN]

And he is not an LA caliber host. This is major league radio here, yet he seemed to be an inferior presence when he was brought in to replace Doug McIntyre on KABC's Red Eye Radio.
I thought his embarrassing appearance on CNN would harm his cred as a talkradio host, but somehow he has endured on KRLA in late evenings for several years now.

I disagree. According to Wikipedia, Kevin James has the fastest growing show in L.A. He's not Doug McIntyre, that's true. (Doug was the very best in that time slot----he had plenty of time to talk about whatever he wanted. He has an amazing wealth of knowledge, and it was always enlightening. McIntyre in the Morning is not so good---they try to do the whole morning zoo thing, and it doesn't work. Although I do love Rob. Rob and Mr. K were hysterical together. ) Kevin is a tremendous advocate for local causes. And I do appreciate his "prosecuter's instinct"---most times he is right.

If he had one listener and he went to two that would definitely be a big increase. Kevin James is unlistenable and I imagine that his is a brokered show for which he or his producers are paying KRLA for the air time.

I don't believe he's brokered unlike all weekend hosts such Terry Anderson (lots of local shows though). If you listen to the webstream, you'll notice Kevin James is always the voice of the spot that airs before the stream starts.

 

[4UH8SIMBKAGN]

I wish KABC was more like KGO. LA doesn't have a centrist News/Talk station, just a bunch of Right Wing talk radio and Lefty KTLK (which I do like).

KGO has also built its reputation on respect for the audience. Most hosts even answer calls with, "Hello, [name], WELCOME to KGO." Welcome. That's a word you don't hear on many talk stations but KGO. but it's a very powerful word that says inclusiveness and respect.

We don't greet people with niceties like that in L.A. Respect? I'm not sure anyone in L.A. knows what that is but they'll certainly tell you if you disrespected them. Would not work in L.A.. The KFI style is what is Los Angeles.

Incusiveness is a liberal word that would only work in a nutty place like San Francisco.

 

[westfield60]

I for one am really happy watching this meltdown of this once great station. I started listening to KABC in the early eighties and really loved the station under George Greene. Then new management then took over (I think Maurine Lesourd was the first of these idiots) and everything changed over there. Michael Jackson, Ira Fistell and David Viscott were out and in came political hacks and loudmouths. In the meantime KFI was making a killing with Leykis, Rush, Laura and then John and Ken. All during this time KABC watched it's numbers go down the toilet each and every quarter and yet management did nothing to stop the ratings slide. The arrogance of the KABC management over the past decade is directly to blame for the fact that KABC barely registers on the ratings meter anymore. They purposely destroyed this staple of Los Angeles. Larry Elder never had a decent ratings showing and yet it took them 15 years to make a move. This is why the station is dead for all practical purposes. They (the management) are so full of themselves they have never admitted to their inability to program something for the local Los Angeles audience. Larry was always talking about Clinton or some other nation issue, even when John and Ken became the number one talkers by talking about local issues. That's what Los Angeles wants.

And now the station is fighting for it's life by trying to buy every two bit syndicated host in an effort to save funds. Too late. They might as well turn into a Spanish Music station and earn more revenue that way. RIP KABC.

 

[Michael Rivers Kramer]

I wish KABC was more like KGO. LA doesn't have a centrist News/Talk station, just a bunch of Right Wing talk radio and Lefty KTLK (which I do like).

KGO has also built its reputation on respect for the audience. Most hosts even answer calls with, "Hello, [name], WELCOME to KGO." Welcome. That's a word you don't hear on many talk stations but KGO. but it's a very powerful word that says inclusiveness and respect.

We don't greet people with niceties like that in L.A. Respect? I'm not sure anyone in L.A. knows what that is but they'll certainly tell you if you disrespected them. Would not work in L.A.. The KFI style is what is Los Angeles.

Incusiveness is a liberal word that would only work in a nutty place like San Francisco.

If the affluent, educated and sophisticated Bay Area is a nutty place, I'll take a nutty place.

The KFI "style" is what talk radio in "middle" America is... flamboyant and conservative... While I know that the LA region is not as liberal as the Bay Area, it's not nearly as conservative as mainstream America.

With nearly 18 million people in this 5 county area (( I know...LA Arbitron Metro (LA and Orange County) stops at Pomona and in only 10.9 million 12+...yadda yadda)), there would be room for a talk station with some balance. KTLK probably appears to liberal to the mainstream.

If the argument is that KABC's signal is inferior to KFI, then I say...Great. KABC's signal is strongest in the market's more liberal areas.

 

[ChannelFlipper]

How about getting a clue? Liberal radio does not rate, period. Not on KTLK, not on Air America, Not on that green radio nonsense, not on Michael Jackson's show, not on Leo Terrel's show.

There is one person who can do it, Stephanie Miller. The thing is, she is a personality - not a station, not a format. Going liberal now would be suicidal free fall into oblivion. At least now they are just an also-ran, but are not in oblivion status. Coming soon though with suggestions like this one.

 

[westfield60]

ChannelFlipper is exactly right. It is all about Personalities who entertain. Stephanie Miller, Bill Handle, John and Ken, Tom Leykis, Howard Stern, Rush Limbaugh are masters of this and the reason they succeed. Larry Elder and Al Rantel who are conservatives failed since they have no personality. The program directors have to keep in mind that personalities and Entertainment is key.

What genius decided to put Fred Thompson on the air. Talk about being dead on arrival.

 

[SuperRadioFan]

What genius decided to put Fred Thompson on the air. Talk about being dead on arrival.

Haha I had the same thought.... What did they think, that he can "act" his way to be exciting? All they had to do was look at how Fred ran his lackluster presidential bid ho hummm