Jimmy Baron Column in AJC

[RoddyFreeman]

Jimmy Baron wrote a very good remembrance of 99X that's in today's editorial section.

I want to add that 99X was one of the great stations in Atlanta radio history.

I remember when 99X was born in 1992 (and I wasn't living in Atlanta), reading in the Radio Business Report about how surprised observers were that conservative Susquehanna would put a modern rock format on a major signal. But 99X went on to have a huge influence on radio. Modern rock stations popped up all around the U.S. And the popularity of modern rock influenced the music on hot AC stations.

99X brought alternative into the mainstream in terms of ratings, beating out stations such as Star 94 in the mid-nineties. The station broke new artists. People such as Brian Philips and Leslie Fram contributed a lot to 99X and to radio in general.

I know most of this has already been said, but I wanted to add my 2 cents.

 

[deadman]

It was a great column.

 

[dittohead1]

and heeeeeeere's the link:

http://www.ajc.com/search/content/opinion/stories/2008/01/22/barroned0122.html

 

[FakeFlam]

Nicely put - I'm glad Jimmy wrote this.

I think I'm still in denial that my favorite station for the 14 years I've lived in Atlanta is going away. Even though the recent incarnation of the station fell way short of the glory days, it's still tough to say goodbye to an old friend.

 

[taylorengineer]

The reason Susquehanna was successful was because in everything they did they did it to the best of their ability.
They had the best equipment, the best engineers, the best talent, the best staff, and the best management. It was always....even back in the Power99 days....the station of the highest quality and reputation.
It seems that businesses which really concentrate on being the best....being the best in all respects....are the ones that are profitable and have lasting power.
For a company that made dishes....they were right honorable as a broadcaster.

 

[RoddyFreeman]

Radio-Info.com, where a good engineer is just a click away.

 

[makemineblatz]

Now that's funny!

 

[taylorengineer]

Now Roddy.....don't be clickin' at Littlejohn....it gives 'em a rash.

 

[midtownjohn]

It would have been nice if Barnes, Leslie and Jimmy look back and reflected on 99x's radio history....if not together live, but in pretaped segments.

I guess radio does not believe in Reunion Radio.

 

[SalesWeasel]

It would have been nice if Barnes, Leslie and Jimmy look back and reflected on 99x's radio history....if not together live, but in pretaped segments.

I guess radio does not believe in Reunion Radio.

That would have been a hoot. "Hey guys, sorry about that lawsuit I filed against you."

 

[raptusregaliter]

Sounds to me like Jimmy wrote this column in a rocking chair with a blanket over his knees at the old folks home. But that's just me. For all you nostalgia buffs, I guess it must have given you a big warm 'n' fuzzy.

BTW, does anyone know if Lisa Baron has been canned from The Sunday Paper? She has vanished from the print version and the online version has only a bunch of her old columns buried in the archives.

 

[rho01]

Lisa indeed ended her run with Sunday Paper last month. She's now doing monthly columns for Atlanta Parenting magazine.

 

[raptusregaliter]

Thanks for the info Rodney. I stumbled across a copy at the library (they're free at a bunch of locations around town), and there's this really funny/scary pic of Lisa where she looks like Madame of "Waylon Flowers and..."

As for her column, well...um... I guess when a baby-worshipping mom is left to her own devices she really needs a heavy-handed editor to save her from herself. That didn't happen.

 

[JimV]

As for her column, well...um... I guess when a baby-worshipping mom is left to her own devices she really needs a heavy-handed editor to save her from herself. That didn't happen.

I disagree. The Sunday Paper column came into its own in the last year or so of it's run. It usually takes a while for a columnist to find his/her voice. You may not be compelled by the content (the life of a local semi-celebrity, new mom, married to a local celebrity) but Lisa's execution of it had become pretty good.

My guess (truly a guess, no inside knowledge) is that the SP column was initially 90% about cross-promotion and 10% about content. The fact that it thrived, long after Jimmy left the air, is a testament to how popular it had become on its own right, as is the fact that Atlanta Parenting picked it up.

 

[raptusregaliter]

I disagree. The Sunday Paper column came into its own in the last year or so of it's run. It usually takes a while for a columnist to find his/her voice.

Jim, I was referring only to her inaugural "Parenting" column. A sample: "Micah Baron [their infant son] is a sweet soul with soft blue almond shaped eyes, perfectly delicious ears and a sugary sweet round face that I am surprised isn't chaffed from all the kisses he endures daily from his father and me." The rest of the column continues in a similar vein [vain?] and reads like a big step backwards from what she used to do in TSP.

 

[wooder]

I disagree. The Sunday Paper column came into its own in the last year or so of it's run. It usually takes a while for a columnist to find his/her voice.

Jim, I was referring only to her inaugural "Parenting" column. A sample: "Micah Baron [their infant son] is a sweet soul with soft blue almond shaped eyes, perfectly delicious ears and a sugary sweet round face that I am surprised isn't chaffed from all the kisses he endures daily from his father and me." The rest of the column continues in a similar vein [vain?] and reads like a big step backwards from what she used to do in TSP.

Dude, it's a column about her experiences as a first-time mom that's published in a parenting magazine targeted at women. Of course it's gonna be softer than Sunday Paper fare. What exactly were you expecting?

 

[RTibbs]

I disagree. The Sunday Paper column came into its own in the last year or so of it's run. It usually takes a while for a columnist to find his/her voice.

Jim, I was referring only to her inaugural "Parenting" column. A sample: "Micah Baron [their infant son] is a sweet soul with soft blue almond shaped eyes, perfectly delicious ears and a sugary sweet round face that I am surprised isn't chaffed from all the kisses he endures daily from his father and me." The rest of the column continues in a similar vein [vain?] and reads like a big step backwards from what she used to do in TSP.

Wow what a loser Lisa Baron must be that she would right a glowing article about the feelings of first-time parents for their child. What does she think she is doing writing for a magaazine aimed at parents??? Oh wait......

 

[MikeinKennesaw]

As for her column, well...um... I guess when a baby-worshipping mom is left to her own devices she really needs a heavy-handed editor to save her from herself. That didn't happen.

I disagree. The Sunday Paper column came into its own in the last year or so of it's run. It usually takes a while for a columnist to find his/her voice. You may not be compelled by the content (the life of a local semi-celebrity, new mom, married to a local celebrity) but Lisa's execution of it had become pretty good.

My guess (truly a guess, no inside knowledge) is that the SP column was initially 90% about cross-promotion and 10% about content. The fact that it thrived, long after Jimmy left the air, is a testament to how popular it had become on its own right, as is the fact that Atlanta Parenting picked it up.

Oh please JimV!

I photographed an event that included you and Mrs. Baron. You hounded me for pictures of you with Lisa Baron. I think your wife may have told me you have the hots for Lisa Baron.

Admit it, you're in love with Lisa Baron.

 

[JimV]

I photographed an event that included you and Mrs. Baron. You hounded me for pictures of you with Lisa Baron. I think your wife may have told me you have the hots for Lisa Baron.

Admit it, you're in love with Lisa Baron.

Naw...I'm actually just a big Ralph Reed fan.

 

[raptusregaliter]

Dude, it's a column about her experiences as a first-time mom that's published in a parenting magazine targeted at women. Of course it's gonna be softer than Sunday Paper fare. What exactly were you expecting?

Wow what a loser Lisa Baron must be that she would right a glowing article about the feelings of first-time parents for their child. What does she think she is doing writing for a magaazine aimed at parents??? Oh wait......

I always love it when people insist on arguing from a position of weakness since they haven't even read the article. The content of her new column isn't the point; the point is that the column reads like a fourth-grader's diary entry. The example I included merely provided a sense of tone. I also could've shown you the multitude of comma splices, sentence fragments, etc. that really don't belong in a published magazine article. Thus the need for an editor. Which, again, was sorely lacking.