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Jesse Helms Dies - Blocked Stern From Z93?

R

RoddyFreeman

Former North Carolina Republican Senator Jess Helms has passed away.

According to a number of very reputable sources, when (the original) Infinity bought Z93, Mr. Helms made Mel Karmazin promise not to put Howard Stern on in Atlanta. Helms supposedly told Karmazin that he would file to block the sale with the FCC unless the promise was made.

It sounds a little fishy to me, but I've heard this from some people in radio who should know.
 
Just think if Jesse Helms had somehow prevented Susquehanna from purchasing Alabama 100 in Anniston and moving it near Atlanta, Jesse Helms could have affected Q100.
 
Why would Helms be so interested in keeping Stern off the airwaves in Atlanta? Certainly, Stern was on a few stations in Helm's home state of NC back in the day. I only wish someone had been able to keep Cousin Jesse off radio and TV in NC. We certainly would've been spared a boatload of bigoted hatetalk and intolerence.
 
I wish he had done something about John boy and billy.
 
fortmill said:
Why would Helms be so interested in keeping Stern off the airwaves in Atlanta? Certainly, Stern was on a few stations in Helm's home state of NC back in the day. I only wish someone had been able to keep Cousin Jesse off radio and TV in NC. We certainly would've been spared a boatload of bigoted hatetalk and intolerence.
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IIRC, Helms' edict applied to all of the stations that Infinity was buying at the time during the industry consolidation of 10-15 years ago (who owned Z93 before Infinity?), not just Z93.

And I agree about John Boy and Billy. FCC should fine CC for airing content so bad that it's obscene.

To be fair, JB&B is kind of the Howard Stern or Imus of the South. Some think that he's riproaringly funny. Others just don't get it, and not for being humor-challenged, either. I gather that it's an acquired taste, at best.

In how many markets besides ATL has JB&B fallen flat on their face?
 
IIRC, Helms' edict applied to all of the stations that Infinity was buying at the time during the industry consolidation of 10-15 years ago (who owned Z93 before Infinity?), not just Z93.
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Z93 was originally WGKA-FM, when WGKA-AM was at 1190 and was a classical music station. I seem to recall reading that WGKA-FM played classical at one time.

General Cinema bought 92.9 around 1971 or 1972, and changed the calls to WZGC. At some point General Cinema introduced a top-40 format, which of course gave WQXI-AM its first major competition in many years. Of course, Z93's top-40 format was hugely successful in the 70's and 80's.

Sometime around 1976, General Cinema sold WZGC to First Media, owned by the Marriott (hotels) family, and Z93 continued on its CHR track. What happened in the late 80's to basically destroy Z93's top-40 format has been well-chronicled here.

First Media (I believe) sold its stations, which included Atlanta, Washington and Las Vegas, to an Eskimo company called Cook Inlet Broadcasters. This was (I think) in the late 80's. Cook Inlet sold Z93 and WPGC in DC to Infinity.
 
Jesse Helms was a very good man. The Honorable Jesse Helms. He will be sorely missed. For whatever reason, I'm glad I have never heard Howard on an Atlanta radio station.
 
RoddyFreeman said:
First Media (I believe) sold its stations, which included Atlanta, Washington and Las Vegas, to an Eskimo company called Cook Inlet Broadcasters. This was (I think) in the late 80's. Cook Inlet sold Z93 and WPGC in DC to Infinity.
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This must have been in the early 90s, because I remember the discussion about Z93 picking up Stern and how that's not going to happen, and Z93 picking up the Greaseman instead in 1993 or so.

The Greaseman was funny for about a year...until he kept recycling his stories with the same old gags and punchlines. I mean, how many jokes about Deliverance (or cops, or soldiers, or alternate lifestyles, or the Roman Empire, etc.) can one man make and still keep it fresh? Kind of reminded me of your old grandfather who's telling you a "had-to-be-there" story for the umpteenth time.

He was pretty worn out by the time Z93 replaced him with Gary McKee(!)--a talent to be respected and deserves his space in the GRHOF but definitely in the twilight of his career at that point. Scary thing was, GMcK still sounded fresh compared with Grease at that point, even if he no longer had his fastball.

If you're going to have recurring characters or gags on your show, be careful...be very careful. Quit while you're ahead and leave the audience wanting more.
 
RoddyFreeman said:
Former North Carolina Republican Senator Jess Helms has passed away.

According to a number of very reputable sources, when (the original) Infinity bought Z93, Mr. Helms made Mel Karmazin promise not to put Howard Stern on in Atlanta. Helms supposedly told Karmazin that he would file to block the sale with the FCC unless the promise was made.
Click to expand...

I've never been a Helms fan, but I don't buy that for a minute...
 
RoddyFreeman said:
Former North Carolina Republican Senator Jess Helms has passed away.

According to a number of very reputable sources, when (the original) Infinity bought Z93, Mr. Helms made Mel Karmazin promise not to put Howard Stern on in Atlanta. Helms supposedly told Karmazin that he would file to block the sale with the FCC unless the promise was made.

It sounds a little fishy to me, but I've heard this from some people in radio who should know.
Click to expand...

This is urban mythology. Helms was on the Foreign Relations Committee.
 
No, it's not a good thing. That's called censorship, which tears at the very core of what a free society is supposed to be about. It's the reason there's more than one channel. I don't like Stern a bit, but I certainly am not arrogant enough to believe that I should be making listening decisions for everyone else.

If you don't like it, listen to something else, but don't assume that your idea of morality or what's acceptable is the same as mine.
 
Slider7, You and your entire family do not have enough money to pay me to listen to Howard Stern for five minutes. I like to think that I am a better person than that.
 
johnnyu said:
Slider7, You and your entire family do not have enough money to pay me to listen to Howard Stern for five minutes. I like to think that I am a better person than that.
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So if you don't like or agree with it; it should not be heard by anyone. That's exactly what Jesse Helms stood for.
 
Thank you for proving my point. The fact that you think that you are better than someone else because of what they listen to is exactly the type of self-righteousness to which I was referring.
 
IF Jesse Helms (and thats a big if) used any kind of influence to keep little Howie off the air, that is not censorship. That is just using influence to get your way. Stern was still on tons of stations. When the BBC used to prohibit songs from being played in the UK, that was censorship of the public airways. But they never stopped anyone from buying the songs, so it isn't really censorship at all. You really should be more concerned about the loss of freedom that county commissions take from us each day without anyone noticing. But no one cares.
 
Perhaps I'm so far removed from my days at the university that I'm rusty on interpretation, but, according to Mr. Webster....

censorship - n. - The institution, system, or practice of examination in order to suppress or delete anything considered objectionable.

Sure sounds like stopping someone from being broadcast on the radio because you don't like the content falls into "suppression or deletion of anything considered objectionable", but maybe I'm wrong. I suppose you could make the argument that Hitler burning books was "using influence to get his own way", or perhaps school superintendants in the 60's in certain parts of the country banning Catcher in the Rye as "using influence to get his own way", but I think a lot of people would call that censorship.

As far as my city council is concerned, I vote in every election, and, should I not be happy with the result, I have to option of living somewhere else. Kinda like changing the channel.
 
Actually Slider, I am very humble. I heard five or ten minutes of Howard Stern about fifteen or more years ago. That kind of garbage has no place on the public's airwaves.
 
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