KGO Wins; KKSF & KCBS Blow in Local Breaking News

[DavidKaye]

The story of the day locally was SF sheriff Ross Mirkarimi holding a press conference saying he would not resign after pleading guilty to false imprisonment and battery charges (actually misdemeanors). This was followed a couple hours later with mayor Ed Lee holding a press conference saying that he gave Mirkarimi a chance to resign, but since he won't he's suspending him according the city/county charter, and appointing an interim sheriff to take his place.

Why is this news? Why should anyone care? Because this is a local story with wide implications because a sworn officer of the law is defying that law and forcing the hand of another branch of government to remove him. And now, according to SF's charter, 9 out of 11 members of the SF Board of Supervisors must agree with mayor Ed Lee to remove Mirkarimi from office, which may be a tough thing to do.

But the sheriff is an elected office, so it's actually a rare situation for a mayor to be able to (or need to) suspend a sheriff. Sheriffs in SF as in most counties are elected, not appointed by the mayor, so the best and "most consitutional" method is a recall election.

I don't think that this kind of action has ever happened anywhere in California in the 20th century, and certainly not in the 21st. THAT is why it's important news.

The Ratings:

KGO 810: A
KCBS 740: C
KKSF 910: D-

As usual, KGO's afternoon anchors, Brett Burkhart and Chris Brecher were at the top of their game, asking the question -- what does this mean, can the mayor really remove the sheriff? They had two reporters at city hall, Jeffrey Schaub and I forget the woman; I've never heard of her before. They covered it extensively as the news story it is.

KCBS dropped the ball. They mentioned the story casually, but didn't go in-depth on it. Also, if they had someone on duty at city hall I don't remember hearing a cutaway to them. I might be wrong on this. But there was no analysis and no questions asked about what this means in terms of the law.

KKSF dropped the ball down the rabbit hole. As is usual, John Rothmann was more concerned about some presidential primary, but not only that, he was more concerned about a remark some wag made about the first lady, something like "Can America elect a white first lady" or something else equally lame. KKSF was stupid radio at its best.

I'm not blaming Sebastian Kunz for this. I'm sure he was on top of it as he always is, but I also have a feeling (speaking as an outsider, mind you) that aside from his two newsbreaks per hour he otherwise talks at the pleasure of the talkshow host. And Rothmann wasn't about to let him do much to report on the REAL story of the day, the local one.

To their credit, KKSF 910 DID air the sound bite of Ed Lee's press conference, though after the fact, and after several false starts. But did Rothmann talk about the "crisis of law" that exists here? KGO was wise to bring in a law professor to talk about it. Rothmann went back to talking about the "white first lady" nonsense.

Had Gil Gross been doing the KKSF talkshow, things might have been better, since Gil was first and foremost a news reporter, and he knows about the "crisis of law" Mirkarimi is forcing on Ed Lee and the Board of Supervisors.

Again, a nice big box of chocolate kudos to KGO for a JOB WELL DONE!

--dk

 

[recto101]

KCBS740/106.9 went at least 2 minutes on the Ross Mirkarimi story while KGO 810 went 10 minutes on that story. I know that KCBS did a little bit of Ross Mirkarimi and went more on the Romney election in Illinois. I think the fear for the news departments was that if we cover Ross Mirkarmi over 2-5 minutes then it would sound too tabloidish as in the NY post or TMZ. But I understand this had to be aired because the Sheriff has broke the law by holding his wife in a harsh way.

 

[MC]

If someone lives in San Jose, San Bruno, Oakland, how important is it that one boring local news story about San Francisco politics is covered for 2 minute or 10 minutes, or comes on the air one hour sooner or later. Often, people get their news from the TV or the Internet or smart phone .

Are there jobs available now for cheerleaders for local radio news stations now?

"Go, GO, KGO!"

" K, K, KCBS Our news is the BEST!"

....and for your an educated information junkie, a longer more in depth discussion of the issue, and how a story like this might impact other communities and government in general would be more important. That is why KQED does so well in the ratings.

 

[recto101]

I say the San Jose Budget issue, the Stockton Bankruptcy issue and the Vallejo Bankruptcy issue and Occupy Oakland would take bigger issue but I would have to listen to KPFA, KALW and KQED for details of those stories Or the web for those stories.

But when you cover the Ross Mirkarimi case for 5-10 minutes you kind of wonder if you will end up like Nancy Grace covering 1 hour for 1 crime case or any cable and radio "propagandists" that covers 2-3 hours straight covering the Election.

 

[DavidKaye]

If someone lives in San Jose, San Bruno, Oakland, how important is it that one boring local news story about San Francisco politics is covered for 2 minute or 10 minutes, or comes on the air one hour sooner or later.

The definition of news is "what is new". There's nothing new about Mitt Romney winning a few Republican primary votes here ore there; he's been doing that for months. But it IS news when a sheriff who pled guilty to a crime, especially a crime for which he is responsible for imprisoning others, refuses to step down. When someone in another branch of government is compelled to suspend him -- a situation which likely hasn't happened in over 100 years, THAT is news.

Does it apply to other communities? Actually, yes it does. The same scenario could happen in if the Santa Clara county sheriff had pled guilty to a similar act and then refused to step aside. In that case the county board of supervisors would have to step in.

But there's also the wider question: How legal is this? The sheriff is an elected office, so it seems that a recall election is the most lawful way to get rid of a sheriff.

This story has implications far beyond SF. The Mitt Romney story is just yesterday's story repeated over and over again; hardly news.

 

[recto101]

If someone lives in San Jose, San Bruno, Oakland, how important is it that one boring local news story about San Francisco politics is covered for 2 minute or 10 minutes, or comes on the air one hour sooner or later.

The definition of news is "what is new". There's nothing new about Mitt Romney winning a few Republican primary votes here ore there; he's been doing that for months. But it IS news when a sheriff who pled guilty to a crime, especially a crime for which he is responsible for imprisoning others, refuses to step down. When someone in another branch of government is compelled to suspend him -- a situation which likely hasn't happened in over 100 years, THAT is news.

Does it apply to other communities? Actually, yes it does. The same scenario could happen in if the Santa Clara county sheriff had pled guilty to a similar act and then refused to step aside. In that case the county board of supervisors would have to step in.

But there's also the wider question: How legal is this? The sheriff is an elected office, so it seems that a recall election is the most lawful way to get rid of a sheriff.

This story has implications far beyond SF. The Mitt Romney story is just yesterday's story repeated over and over again; hardly news.

The RNC Primaries should be on the same microscope as X-Factor, American Idol and Got Talent. the reason is that these people are trying to prove that they are a good enforcer to the constitution. While the Simon Cowell Talent brands is where the candidates are trying to prove that they are a good singer. The difference is that registered voters for the state and nation decide who gets the white house. While the Cowell Brands anybody with an app or web access can decide who is the best singer.

But in the case of the of Ross Mirkarimi. I'm Glad Ed Lee made the right decision to have the Board Of supervisors impeach him over these charges.

 

[DJBigOne]

>>the reason is that these people are trying to prove that they are a good enforcer to the constitution. While the Simon Cowell Talent brands is where the candidates are trying to prove that they are a good singer. The difference is that registered voters for the state and nation decide who gets the white house. While the Cowell Brands anybody with an app or web access can decide who is the best singer.

But in the case of the of Ross Mirkarimi. I'm Glad Ed Lee made the right decision to have the Board Of supervisors impeach him over these charges.

Enforcer? So the U.S. Constitution is a bad thing? How 'bout "up-holder"? Imagine if the only radio station you could listen to was the government station...like in Venezuela, Cuba, or China.

If a local station spends too much time on one subject, such as borrrrrrring primary news, then the ratings should suffer. In the free market, consumers will decide which station succeeds or fails.

As for Mr. Mirkarimi, the board of supervisors should decide. If citizens who elected the supervisors want him removed, or kept on board, the supervisors should reflect the wants of the people. If that doesn't satisfy the electorate, then a recall should be in order.

Personally, I believe this position should not be elected. If elected, it's filled by nothing more than a political hack. Wouldn't it be better if someone earned the position based on qualifications? Instead, the winner will be the one with the most money for ads, image, etc. Hmmm! Kind of sounds like our presidential race.

 

[DavidKaye]

Personally, I believe this position should not be elected. If elected, it's filled by nothing more than a political hack. Wouldn't it be better if someone earned the position based on qualifications? Instead, the winner will be the one with the most money for ads, image, etc. Hmmm! Kind of sounds like our presidential race.

The two previous sheriffs, Michael Hennessy and Richard Hongisto were NOT political hacks. I worked on the campaigns of both because both were reform-minded men who brought a lot of hope and training to the inmates. The reforms they put into place have been emulated all over America. Just think about this the next time you get picked up for drunk driving.

BUT BACK TO THE BROADCASTING ANGLE: KGO did themselves right. I don't know if this will make up for the rest of the broadcast day, but the KGO afternoon news block continues to be EXCELLENT radio with the anchors, Britt Burkhart and Chris Brecher ALWAYS asking the right questions of their guests and always coming up with the right people to ask in the first place.

I just with that KGO could spread this excellent newscast out to the rest of their broadcast day because the segments hosted by Peter Finch, John Kessler, and the rest are piss-poor. They're really really bad, not only with technical glitches, but neither Finch nor Kessler should even be behind the mics. They're THAT bad.

Sure, Peter Finch was probably OK as a DJ, but news requires someone who can read cold, who can pronounce words properly, who can ad-lib sensibly, and most important, to actually KNOW something about what they're talking about. Neither Finch nor Kessler seem to have grasped this. Thus, KGO's news coverage outside the drivetime blocks is really bad.

 

[DJBigOne]

The two previous sheriffs, Michael Hennessy and Richard Hongisto were NOT political hacks. I worked on the campaigns of both because both were reform-minded men who brought a lot of hope and training to the inmates. The reforms they put into place have been emulated all over America. Just think about this the next time you get picked up for drunk driving.

I stand corrected. I didn't mean to imply anyone is a bad person. Politicians just tend to be hack-ish. Doing whatever it takes to be elected.

Working in radio, in Alaska, I interviewed the gentleman who ran against Sarah Palin in the governor race. He was a nice enough guy. As soon as the mic was on, he went into political speak. Hack?

I know this issue is important to Bay Area listeners. It is even being covered in Sacramento radio. You are right to commend KGO for good coverage.

BTW, I would never drink and drive. My biggest fear is not a DUI. Though I would lose my job over that. The worst thing that could happen, in my mind, is hurting someone. Can you imagine?

Sure, I had a few drinks at the Top-O-The-Mark. Afterwards, I just walked next door to my hotel.

 

[LKellerIII]

I can tell you that before I lived in San Francisco, and resided in Bay Area suburbs, I was always interested in San Francisco news and politics. That was so long ago that you're talking Mayor Joe Alioto, Supervisor Dianne Feinstein and Sheriff Richard Hongisto, not to mention others like John Barbagelata (an actual conservative Republican Supervisor) and Supervisor Quentin Kopp - the "town grouch." Now see, I'm getting nostalgic!

Even though SF is no longer the largest city in the Bay Area (San Jose is), the City is still dynamic, important, and newsworthy.

And the Ross Mirkarimi story is in some ways a classic domestic abuse story, with his wife, Eliana Lopez recanting, the neighbor she confided in taking heat for going public (Lopez's lawyers are talking about suing the neighbor), and now the ongoing story of Mayor Ed Lee's attempt to remove Mirkirimi from office...which reminds me (perhaps sadly) of Mayor Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk's tragic end after refusing to return Supervisor Dan White to office...not that I think Mirkirimi would do something so violent.

San Francisco politics and news has always been fascinating, and this story is too, and I'm sure I'd think so if I still lived in Marin, or wherever.

 

[DavidKaye]

Working in radio, in Alaska, I interviewed the gentleman who ran against Sarah Palin in the governor race. He was a nice enough guy. As soon as the mic was on, he went into political speak. Hack?

That doesn't necessarily mean anything, either. Some people just fall into these speaking patterns because they're nervous and it's easier to go into autopilot. I used to have to struggle with that myself as a DJ. When you're uncomfortable it's just easier to rely on something you've said dozens of times before.

 

[LKellerIII]

I know what you mean. There was a fill-in and weekend DJ at KFRC in the Oldies era who introduced or back announced practically every single song the same way - "A little ___________(fill in name of group) for ya...Kay Eff Arrr-Seeee!". I could not stand listening to the guy.

As for politicians, even the great ones do it some of the time. I heard an Kai Ryssdal interview with Obama on NPR yesterday. He started out being frank and interesting, but his responses to the last few questions devolved into the same old Democratic talking points, with very little new substance. It was like he was working off a checklist.

 

[1069_KIFR]

Or he was working off a teleprompter!!!

 

[DJBigOne]

I know what you mean. There was a fill-in and weekend DJ at KFRC in the Oldies era who introduced or back announced practically every single song the same way - "A little ___________(fill in name of group) for ya...Kay Eff Arrr-Seeee!". I could not stand listening to the guy.

As for politicians, even the great ones do it some of the time. I heard an Kai Ryssdal interview with Obama on NPR yesterday. He started out being frank and interesting, but his responses to the last few questions devolved into the same old Democratic talking points, with very little new substance. It was like he was working off a checklist.

I found myself doing intro's the same way when voice-tracking. For example, at one station I was evening host, and assisant engineer. I was supposedly hired to be on-the-air first, assisting the chief engineer second. Once I arrived, it became the opposite. So I had little time to voice-track. Less than an hour to VT a 5 hour shift...or a couple day's shifts. That's why VT-ing is rarely as good as live. I didn't even like hearing myself on-the-air. I became "sing-songy" (to borrow a term from PD's).

Working at a different cluster, I prided myself on my voice-tracks. I was live in the morning, and VT'd nights on a sister station. I used show prep, etc. It was a resort area, so CalTrans plow drivers used to call in commenting on my voice-tracks.

You can pretty much tell when someone is VT-ing. It usually sounds generic. Stations withheld to protect the guilty.

As for the talking points, I hate hearing talking heads from either side of the aisle spouting rhetoric. God! I hope I don't do that!

 

[DavidKaye]

You can pretty much tell when someone is VT-ing. It usually sounds generic. Stations withheld to protect the guilty.

It doesn't have to be. Go listen to the station breaks throughout the day and night on KQED Radio 88.5 and tell me when they're live and when they're voicetracked. Chances are you can't. I happen to know, but otherwise I wouldn't know, and I consider myself to have quite an ear for this.

 

[recto101]

WTOP-FM in Washington DC has the highest Cume for all-news radio stations in the country its at 6.7-7.4
KCBS-AM 740 and 106.9FM in San francisco has the second highest cume for the all News Stations in the country from 6.0-6.6.

But this is at the mist of KCBS beating KGO in the San Francisco Books in February
KGO at a 2.7
KCBS at a 6.6

in San Jose Books
KGO at a 4.3
KCBS at a 3.2
KLIV is at a 1.6

For Washington DC
WTOP got a 7.5 in the books

WNEW got a .7

In NYC for February for all News

WINS gets a 3.5

WCBS gets a 2.8 in the books

WEMP .7

In east long Island for February 2012

WCBS 3.8

WINS 2.6

 

[davideduardo]

WTOP-FM in Washington DC has the highest Cume for all-news radio stations in the country its at 6.7-7.4
KCBS-AM 740 and 106.9FM in San francisco has the second highest cume for the all News Stations in the country from 6.0-6.6.

You posted this mistaken information in several different market groups, so I am posting here a copy of what I wrote in the DC forum with the suggestion that you spend a lot more time reading and learning the terms and conventions of radio before forming wild or mistaken opinions using terms incorrectly.

6.7, 7.4, 6.0 and 6.6 are "shares."

"Cume" is the total number of different people reached by a station in a week. The NYC news stations get cumes in the millions.

WCBS (AM) cumes on average about 1.9 million and sister WINS does about 2.3 million. KCBS does about 1.8 million. WTOP has about 1.2 million (a tie in cume with KNX in LA) and WBBM CHicago cumes on average about 1.9 million.

"Share" is the percent of people who are actually using radio at a given time period who are listening to a specific station. "Rating" is the percent of the universe listening to a station and tends to be about 1/10th the share number.

 

[davideduardo]

In east long Island for February 2012

WCBS 3.8

WINS 2.6

Correcting more of the simply wrong data you posted all over these boards, here are the facts:

There has not been an East Long Island book for several years. It's a tiny market, about 120,000 and usually called Riverhead / Hamptons. It was, when measured, below market 200. And, in any case, it was an embedded market, which means it was totally inside the larger New York market.

You are likely referring to Nassau/Suffolk, which is, except for Queens and Kings boroughs, all of Long Island... and it is an embedded market inside the New York metro survey area.

 

[recto101]

In east long Island for February 2012

WCBS 3.8

WINS 2.6

Correcting more of the simply wrong data you posted all over these boards, here are the facts:

There has not been an East Long Island book for several years. It's a tiny market, about 120,000 and usually called Riverhead / Hamptons. It was, when measured, below market 200. And, in any case, it was an embedded market, which means it was totally inside the larger New York market.

You are likely referring to Nassau/Suffolk, which is, except for Queens and Kings boroughs, all of Long Island... and it is an embedded market inside the New York metro survey area.

Thanks for the corrections!

 

[norcalvet]

Just to be clear, reporting the facts is news...going on for 10 minutes about the possible repercussions a story might have on local politics is commentary and should be left for a specialty host to comment on, not a news person.
KGO-"F"
KCBS-"A"