It is surprising/disappointing to see the news director of KFI, Chris Little, directly endorsing efax.com, and how their news department relies on efax.com....
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KFI CHRIS LITTLE DIRECTLY ENDORSING EFAX.COM
- Thread starter sdwulfdawg
- Start date
Why?
No, I mean why is that "disappointing"?
SimiRadioListener26 said:
Once upon a time it was considered unethical for "journalists" to do commercial endorsements. The idea was that they should be free of conflicts of interest in the event they had to cover news about any given business.
When I was at KCBQ many years ago there was some sort of bad news involving a company that had advertised on the station. I can't recall details, but it was something on the order of fraud. I ran the story, and the salesman for that account went ballistic and tried to kill it. The news department prevailed, but I am sure that in today's climate, the sales department would get their coverup.
And it's even MORE unethical for a new director to be doing it!! You don't see news directors at other new-talk radio stations in the country doing it - let alone TV news directors!
How classless, cheesy and desperate!
Hope this backfires in Chris Little's face!
How classless, cheesy and desperate!
Hope this backfires in Chris Little's face!
I haven't heard these endorsements. How do we know they are paid? How do we know he doesn't just really like the product?
I guess enough time has passed that now it can be told:
At KFXM, San Bernardino in the early 80s, Air Talent from FM sister KDUO had to record a 10 minute (correct) newscast that would play hourly on KFXM's overnight shift.
Very often, a big white card was to be read during the newscast. It was at least 60 seconds in length, probably longer, and it was to be integrated with the news. It was a commercial for a movie, but you wouldn't know it the way it was written.
There was no disclaimer. No "This has been a paid commercial announcement."
That's what they wanted, that's what they got. Just following orders.
At KFXM, San Bernardino in the early 80s, Air Talent from FM sister KDUO had to record a 10 minute (correct) newscast that would play hourly on KFXM's overnight shift.
Very often, a big white card was to be read during the newscast. It was at least 60 seconds in length, probably longer, and it was to be integrated with the news. It was a commercial for a movie, but you wouldn't know it the way it was written.
There was no disclaimer. No "This has been a paid commercial announcement."
That's what they wanted, that's what they got. Just following orders.
Bug on the rug said:
The Program Director at KOGO San Diego acts as the news director, I believe, and certainly poses as a journalist, including anchoring during big events and writing a "News Notes" column on their web site, on his twitter he is @MrNooz and on Linked-In he touts "San Diego Press Club, San Diego Society of Professional Journalists." He does endorsements.
For a long as I've been listening to KFI, they've had sponsors for the news reports at the top of every hour (either the anchor will mention the sponsor, or they'll play a brief ad for the sponsor, right before ending the news), so I don't see how this is anything new...
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Thomps2525
Guest
No, this isn't anything new. In the 1930s-40s there was Lux Radio Theater, Philco Radio Time, Pabst Blue Ribbon Town, Columbia Workshop, Palmolive Beauty Box Theater, The Chesterfield Supper Club, The Dodge Victory Hour, The Ford Sunday Evening Hour, The Longines Symphonette, The Bell Telephone Hour, The Chase & Sanborn Program and The Voice Of Firestone. Next question?
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Thomps2525
Guest
True, but Mister SimiRadioListener asked if Chris Little gets paid for endorsing eFax or if Little truly does like eFax. Nobody has answered that question yet, but on many of those radio programs I named, the stars did commercials for the sponsors and often even worked the commercials into the storyline. This practice was also done on television: Remember when Coca-Cola sponsored The Adventures Of Ozzie & Harriet? Ozzie would often be in the garage with neighbor Joe Randolph and they'd take Cokes out of a wooden crate and start drinking them. (Yes, the Cokes were warm!) And when Kodak was a sponsor, picture-taking (with a Kodak) was often worked into the story. Did Ozzie and Harriet drink Coke and use Kodak cameras in real life? Did George Burns and Gracie Allen really use Carnation Evaporated Milk all that much? We never thought to ask. But now we ask if Chris Little really likes eFax. I'd like to think he does.
By the way, what did you think of the Flintstones doing commercials for Winston cigarettes? Was Fred really a chain smoker? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bvt8skgm2l8
By the way, what did you think of the Flintstones doing commercials for Winston cigarettes? Was Fred really a chain smoker? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bvt8skgm2l8
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Thomps2525
Guest
Don't forget John Cameron Swayze's many commercisls for Timex watches: "It takes a licking and keeps on ticking." And of course Swayze is forever famous for the time he lost the watch during a live television commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NHq3Yze6s0
Always wonderful when everyone cites examples from 50-60 years ago as relevance for (almost ) 2013. I realize that much of the target market for some AM radio may still live in the 50s/60s, though I don't see much of an issue. Everything has a sponsor, including news. While KFI has its moments, for the most part, the extent of the journalism is pulling up the drudgereport, perusing breitbart's "news" sites, or watching the local news ("as reported on local station XXX"). If the news readers need some extra bucks or the station can generate some extra revenue with some advertising, more power to them.
SimiRadioListener26 said:
Actual news sponsorship as an adjacency is OK, but having the actual journalists endorsing products gets very iffy. Generally it is frowned upon in the broadcasting world when the sales department gets in bed with the news department, and the news department getting in bed with the sales department. Traditionally there has been a firewall between the two departments.
It comes down to what if an announcer advertises a certain company and the company gets into trouble somehow. it comes down to O B J E C T I V I T Y!
How much objectivity is there, really? For example as one poster has already noted, if a news story which adversely affected a major sponsor were to be on deck, how often have those stories been toned down or killed by management, read sales department. Because radio has become a major corporate empire, most stations are owned my mega conglomerates and none is more mega than Clear Channel the power behind KFI. So it all boils down to what part of the operation is generating it's share of revenues. So it surprises me not at all that they will be asked, probably with some not so subtle nudging, to sell what ever they can to reach the desired bottom line.
Even here in the backwater area I now live in the news departments of the local stations (usually one person each) are involved in promotions and often even host remotes at local businesses. And these are small locally owned stations. Even newspapers often feature articles which to my eye are thinly disguised advertisements promoting local businesses. This is not the world of Edward R. Murrow and Walter Cronkite and looking back how much were they objective? As I recall a sponsor's logo was usually prominently featured on the back drop as they reported the days events to us.
Even here in the backwater area I now live in the news departments of the local stations (usually one person each) are involved in promotions and often even host remotes at local businesses. And these are small locally owned stations. Even newspapers often feature articles which to my eye are thinly disguised advertisements promoting local businesses. This is not the world of Edward R. Murrow and Walter Cronkite and looking back how much were they objective? As I recall a sponsor's logo was usually prominently featured on the back drop as they reported the days events to us.
How are these any different from Video News Releases? Does radio have separate rules for these?
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