Jon Rish is leaving WEEI

[raccoonradio]

Rish wanted to tell Wolfe in person. "He was speechless." Rish is now, as Jerry Williams used to
say, getting out of the (radio) business and on to a new endeavour.

http://www.boston.com/sports/baseba...-quits-weei/T7rvzT5YDPhCk9rTyHwxPM/story.html

 

[OFFICENERD]

Just the latest in a string of WEEI/ Entercom screw ups. Can you imagine your boss telling you that your pay was being cut by 30% That's an automatic " Go F****yourself" reply!

 

[johnster]

Just the latest in a string of WEEI/ Entercom screw ups. Can you imagine your boss telling you that your pay was being cut by 30% That's an automatic " Go F****yourself" reply!

Not in radio today.... Happens every day.

 

[TravisWMLN]

Are Joe and Dave employees of WEEI or the Red Sox? and how much do you think they make? I've always been curious.

 

[thirdendorsed]

Congratulations to Mr. Rish for deciding not to take the abuse that is SOP for 'the business.'

Generations who have, to paraphrase Jim Bouton, eaten miles of their poop only to come back eagerly for more, salute you for standing up and saying No, he has four kids and he's not doing it any more.

"It’s a very difficult decision to explain to other people because calling Red Sox games is viewed as a dream job. it was not as difficult a decision for me as you might think. It was not a difficult decision to explain to my wife."

I am raising a glass of 'Gansett to Mr. Rish.

There goes a class act.

 

[dyeingeye]

The latest news is that the CEO of Entercom is visiting Boston on Friday 4/12/13. From BSMW http://www.bostonsportsmedia.com/2013/04/source-entercom-presidentceo-david-field-coming-to-boston-friday:

According to an industry source, in response to continued toxic atmosphere at Entercom Boston, including and especially at WEEI, Entercom Communications Corp President and CEO David Field will be in Boston on Friday to conduct a “town hall” style meeting with employees, presumably in an attempt to assuage hard feelings and improve morale. The source says the meeting is to tell employees that “everything is fine, and to enjoy the brand.”

Field is said to be taking questions from employees, but that such questions need to be submitted in advance.

 

[ArtSpooner]

Meetings like that almost always make things worse. In light of the dismissals/demotions of high profile people like Ordway, Arnold, Sheppard, Meter, et al , what is going to reassure the remaining employees? Are they supposed to come away thinking that they are not important enough to be in trouble? Not really a great self-esteem position.

 

[MassMusicMan]

Questions need to be submitted in advance? What a complete *****.

I have a good friend that works at my bar in Brighton that was a part-timer over there for some time until he left over pay as well. Hardest working kid I ever met. But he's not in that organization anymore. Instead, I hear things like a Giants-Dodgers game on opening day on 850, then hearing a 7 minute stopset 10 minutes later. What a terrible broadcasting company.

 

[Element9]

Meetings like that almost always make things worse. In light of the dismissals/demotions of high profile people like Ordway, Arnold, Sheppard, Meter, et al , what is going to reassure the remaining employees? Are they supposed to come away thinking that they are not important enough to be in trouble? Not really a great self-esteem position.

True. It serves no purpose for either party. Field, Weezie and the suck-up PD will take notes. The employees bold (or stupid) enough to trust the Q&A process will be out of a job in 30 to 60 days, labeled as malcontents. This is just another step in thinning the herd.

 

[reelyreal]

When the "satisfaction survey" came out at Clear Channel last month, so many employees refused to speak up that they had to have big conference calls FORCING people to take it. "Everything is fine?" Yeah, I dunno man. Everything isn't fine.

It's a tough gig. There's always the memories, and fortunately John will always have the memories of one truly fun job.

 

[geek-orama]

Meetings like that almost always make things worse. In light of the dismissals/demotions of high profile people like Ordway, Arnold, Sheppard, Meter, et al , what is going to reassure the remaining employees? Are they supposed to come away thinking that they are not important enough to be in trouble? Not really a great self-esteem position.

True. It serves no purpose for either party. Field, Weezie and the suck-up PD will take notes. The employees bold (or stupid) enough to trust the Q&A process will be out of a job in 30 to 60 days, labeled as malcontents. This is just another step in thinning the herd.

Field is notorious for having local managers fire employees 2-3 months after they publicly ask "the wrong type of questions." He smiles to their faces while his minions make out the hit list.
Staffers who want to keep jobs will silently stew and politely applaud the clueless King of the Serengeti .

 

[raccoonradio]

From the comments to the BSMW piece someone said "who do you call when your window's
busted?", a ref to Giant Glass pulling their ads. (I don't know if GG pulled them from Sox network
or just WEEI's shows) Someone wondered (paraphrased): OK you have one 50,000 watt AM no one listens to that runs ESPN [me: ESPN needs an outlet for its shows and play by play and Entercom
gets some $...satisfies advertisers...we do get to hear some pro/college PBP plus of course it's a home to "bumped" games when Sox-C's conflict, etc, the other option being Ent. could bump
them to RKO] ...they mentioned WAAF pretending to be a Boston station [thanks to 97.7 it is, though and it
must make some money] and the "what happens to RKO after Howie leaves" situation [me: but now
that TKK's gone where does Howie go after the end of '14? Can't picture him at WBZ--no room for
him and he's not their style; I can't picture the "immigrant car horn" on WBZ...]

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

Element9: "Field, Weezie and the suck-up PD will take notes. The employees bold (or stupid) enough to trust the Q&A process will be out of a job in 30 to 60 days, labeled as malcontents. This is just another step in thinning the herd."

geek-orama: "Field is notorious for having local managers fire employees 2-3 months after they publicly ask "the wrong type of questions." He smiles to their faces while his minions make out the hit list. Staffers who want to keep jobs will silently stew and politely applaud the clueless King of the Serengeti."

Haven't seen this level of EDS in quite a long time. Must be a cyclical thing.

I suppose you both have proof?

 

[TSBench]

Haven't seen this level of EDS in quite a long time. Must be a cyclical thing.

Perhaps you remember, as I do, the EDS epidemic of a couple of years ago. It started when WRKO started running ads for some colonic cleansing agent, ads that immortalized the line "like spackle or paste."

As the fever spread, these ads became primae facie evidence of WRKO's utter debasement and Entercom's desperate struggle for any billing they could get. It was a true EOTHAWKI moment.

Then, the same ads showed up on WBZ 1030. Luckily for WBZ, EDS-driven hearing impediments must have taken hold because they were never heard by EDS sufferers and the 'spackle and paste' meme just faded away.

CUE : crickets.....

Regards,
TSB

 

[Cap-n Spackle]

Haven't seen this level of EDS in quite a long time. Must be a cyclical thing.

Perhaps you remember, as I do, the EDS epidemic of a couple of years ago. It started when WRKO started running ads for some colonic cleansing agent, ads that immortalized the line "like spackle or paste."

Really? Never heard of that.

 

[thirdendorsed]

Meetings like that almost always make things worse. In light of the dismissals/demotions of high profile people like Ordway, Arnold, Sheppard, Meter, et al

Orway was high profile. Arnold was well known but not high profile. Sheppard and Meterparel were completely incidental players.

 

[thirdendorsed]

A long time newspaper salesman friend said something about publishers, the newspaper equivalent of radio GMs, and visits from the home office that I have never seen fail.

"If a corporate guy comes in alone, the publisher stays. If two or more come in, the publisher is gone."

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

Haven't seen this level of EDS in quite a long time. Must be a cyclical thing.

Perhaps you remember, as I do, the EDS epidemic of a couple of years ago. It started when WRKO started running ads for some colonic cleansing agent, ads that immortalized the line "like spackle or paste."

Really? Never heard of that.

Then either you haven't been here long enough or you haven't been paying attention. TSBench is quite correct. EDS is characterized by blindless and deafness when it comes to the misdeeds of other station owners.

 

[Fenway1912]

Rish explains his move

http://readwrite.com/2013/04/11/man-leaves-life-as-sports-broadcaster-to-become-software-developer

 

[Blackroc]

What will EEI have to look like, to remain profitable? Yes the RS contract is a problem but what's the alternative? They can cut personnel/salaries but the ratings are going to dip too.