This is a very well-written post about something many people are going through these days.
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Mark Watkins blogs about being laid off
- Thread starter arnoldevns
- Start date
M
MikeShannon914
Guest
Wow, talk about a Shakespeareanesque soliloquy. Of course, I feel terribly for Mark, and can sympathize. I just hope that Kurt Johnson is not the one Mark is waxing into deism. If that's the case, Mark's read THAT book totally wrong, or maybe the local powers-that-fire have successfully deferred all the blame onto a non-tangible "corporate" villain.
His boss' consolation of "If there's anything I can do" should have been met with, "Well, yes, if you're genuinely sorry, and you're truly concerned about your people and your on-air product, you can give up half your annual salary and put Brad and me back to work."
His boss' consolation of "If there's anything I can do" should have been met with, "Well, yes, if you're genuinely sorry, and you're truly concerned about your people and your on-air product, you can give up half your annual salary and put Brad and me back to work."
MikeShannon914 said:His boss' consolation of "If there's anything I can do" should have been met with, "Well, yes, if you're genuinely sorry, and you're truly concerned about your people and your on-air product, you can give up half your annual salary and put Brad and me back to work."
Well said Mike.
Mike I apologize as I travel greatly...when did you leave WBAP? If were let go I am appalled. They did not keep Dan Lewis did they? I am in Pakistan this evening.
M
MikeShannon914
Guest
Old news now! On June 30, the contract Citadel had with Traffic.com ended, and Citadel signed on with Metro instead of renewing with Traffic.com. So that put me, Debbie Alcocer/Douglas, Ben Martin, Alan Barnes, Michael T. Parker/Moser, Jennifer Hart, Matt Wuntch, Marina Brett, John Scott and a few others, completely out of a job...plus two pilots and a maintenance crew at Love Field. Monty Cook, Michael Scott and Randy Fuller were cut, but were hired at Metro. Laura Houston was on the staff at WBAP, so she went wherever the contract went...but since then, WBAP's dropped her and Metro now pays her check. Ben Martin, as of late, has been doing some fill-in work at Metro doing WBAP's weekend traffic. (He's already on CBS' payroll anyway, pulling down his usual 3+ radio jobs.) The folks who were cut from Traffic.com were ones whose jobs were specifically tied to WBAP, Platinum and KSCS, or ones who were farmed out to the WBAP newsroom but paid by Traffic.com (a la MetroSource.) Me, I got a very generous severance package and they're covering my benefits for a while. Most of us came out ok, the former full-timers at least, aside from now dealing with the grim job market.
Why did this happen? Two theories...one was that Traffic.com made a weak offer, and was never even given the opportunity to discuss/negotiate/compromise an agreement with anyone at Citadel...which was HIGHLY unusual. The other theory...I can't air it out without making some folks a little angry. Let's just say it has to do with behind-the-scenes politics, and not at Traffic.com...
Either way, there are no more traffic helicopters flying around DFW anymore, as of July 1. No one can afford them anymore. Metro's strictly using planes now (or should that be "plane"?) and Traffic.com has no airborne support now.
About the only "plus" I can see that anyone got out of the deal is that my pal Ben Laurie is back on WBAP, doing weekend traffic. The replacement crew...well, listen for yourself. It's not my place to judge that. I know we had a strong, consistent, experienced, long-tenured team of reporters at Traffic.com serving WBAP, but I guess that didn't really matter to local Citadel management after all.
Dan Lewis quit WBAP on his own, back in April I believe. Again, another case of behind-the-scenes politics. He hasn't been an employee of Traffic.com in a few years.
And, strangely enough, despite the few on this board who take delight in telling me, "It's just traffic," I've had so many nice emails and phone calls of sympathy and support since all of this happened, I heard from folks as far away as Kansas and Nebraska who used to listen to my reports (not exactly sure why,) and my mother's dentist's wife is ready to tear WBAP a new a##hole over the change! All I can do is wean them all over to "The Hi-Fi Club" now. We're still shooting straight and keeping our word over there.
And thanks for YOUR sentiments...much appreciated.
Pakistan?? Take cover!!
Why did this happen? Two theories...one was that Traffic.com made a weak offer, and was never even given the opportunity to discuss/negotiate/compromise an agreement with anyone at Citadel...which was HIGHLY unusual. The other theory...I can't air it out without making some folks a little angry. Let's just say it has to do with behind-the-scenes politics, and not at Traffic.com...
Either way, there are no more traffic helicopters flying around DFW anymore, as of July 1. No one can afford them anymore. Metro's strictly using planes now (or should that be "plane"?) and Traffic.com has no airborne support now.
About the only "plus" I can see that anyone got out of the deal is that my pal Ben Laurie is back on WBAP, doing weekend traffic. The replacement crew...well, listen for yourself. It's not my place to judge that. I know we had a strong, consistent, experienced, long-tenured team of reporters at Traffic.com serving WBAP, but I guess that didn't really matter to local Citadel management after all.
Dan Lewis quit WBAP on his own, back in April I believe. Again, another case of behind-the-scenes politics. He hasn't been an employee of Traffic.com in a few years.
And, strangely enough, despite the few on this board who take delight in telling me, "It's just traffic," I've had so many nice emails and phone calls of sympathy and support since all of this happened, I heard from folks as far away as Kansas and Nebraska who used to listen to my reports (not exactly sure why,) and my mother's dentist's wife is ready to tear WBAP a new a##hole over the change! All I can do is wean them all over to "The Hi-Fi Club" now. We're still shooting straight and keeping our word over there.
And thanks for YOUR sentiments...much appreciated.
Pakistan?? Take cover!!
T
thunderradio
Guest
I got to concur, if it was Kurt Johnson Mark waxed poetic about,then Mark I have to disagree with you. Based on his attitude over several year and many stations, KJ was anything but sincere and caring about employees. Why CBS still has him on payroll Is beyond me. He has had more failures than successes with stations in many markets.
As far as Citadel's change in traffic providers it just lost one preset in my car and many others.
As far as Citadel's change in traffic providers it just lost one preset in my car and many others.
tested said:This is a very well-written post about something many people are going through these days.
http://recessionmama.wordpress.com/
It amazes me that so many people these days feel they have a job for life. It isn't the 1960s when 3 generations worked for IBM or Lockheed. The graffiti has been on the wall for decades that the game has changed; employees must either look out for their own interests first or become entrepreneurs and sell their services to many companies (as a number of talkshow hosts have).
One is always sad at layoffs, but the fact of this economy is no secret, and what's more, radio revenue has been falling for some years.
MikeShannon914 said:His boss' consolation of "If there's anything I can do" should have been met with, "Well, yes, if you're genuinely sorry, and you're truly concerned about your people and your on-air product, you can give up half your annual salary and put Brad and me back to work."
Well said Mike! And we should apply that philosophy to similar ordeals with veteran broadcasters in this market.
thunderradio said:I got to concur, if it was Kurt Johnson Mark waxed poetic about,then Mark I have to disagree with you. Based on his attitude over several year and many stations, KJ was anything but sincere and caring about employees. Why CBS still has him on payroll Is beyond me. He has had more failures than successes with stations in many markets.
As far as Citadel's change in traffic providers it just lost one preset in my car and many others.
Boy, people certainly do not miss a chance to drag Mr. Johnson's name thru the mud in this forum. I have spoken with him personally several times regarding the layoffs since the economic downturn and I can tell you he is either broken up about the things he has had to do or is just a very good actor. I prefer to believe the former, and I'm sure I'll get ripped into now, but I just wanted to remind you all these decisions are made in NY and not TX and I firmly believe they are disturbing to CBS's DFW management.
M
MikeShannon914
Guest
Where to start...and be forewarned, this is MY opinion and also drawn from stories I've seen, and been told firsthand and secondhand. I make no guarantees on their accuracy:
Kurt reportedly signed off on my termination when I had my Radio-Info "tiff" with Russ Martin. I won't rehash that story here, but it was simply ANOTHER case of management cowing down to Mr. Martin's crap. Dave Siebert was of no help, either, but at least Siebert socialized with everyone, regardless of their position at the cluster. Kurt kept to himself, only socializing with management, and never with those "beneath him." At station events, I tried several times to be friendly, but was snubbed.
Kurt was the one who took over PD duties at The Oasis, after his APD Bret Michael started adding some slow R&B to the mix (which is what brought ME over as a listener, and, as evidenced by the 80/20 mix of black vs white listeners showing up at events, brought in a huge black audience that management and sales refused to acknowledge.) Even after KOAI beat both KVIL and KLUV in 12+ one book in early 2003, Kurt fired Bret. I don't recall the specifics, but it had to do with the format adjustment, IIRC.
I worked with Kurt's wife for many years at Traffic.com, and she's a gem. But when he attended Traffic.com functions with her, he kept them away from the others, even sitting in the corner away from all the activity a couple of Christmas parties ago, despite McCarty and others trying to make him feel comfortable.
He was also the one that promised Barb Smith the world to return to DFW from Kansas in early 2001 so she and Ken Barnett could take over mornings at KVIL after Ron left for KLUV. When the project failed after a few months, Kurt wouldn't go to bat for her, denied any obligation to her, and she had to sue the company to get her contract honored. At one point, CBS attorneys told Barb, "We have more money...we can outlast you...we can drag this thing out forever...you need to settle." She did.
KVIL and KOAI PDs Nikki Nite and Charley Connolly were reportedly shown the door by him with no warning, and Tempie Lindsey was forced out when he wouldn't even go into contract negotiations with her a couple of years ago. Tempie was already being cold-shouldered by management months before her contract ended, so she had at least some clue about what she was going to face. Sure, she's back now, but not fulltime.
Sure, most of these are not my battles to fight, but it's just showing you a slice of what you're dealing with, Ben. The atta-boys and the pats on the back are quickly replaced with "What have you done for me lately"'s. David Henry runs the show the same way. Generally, successful local management, from what I've personally seen, is more effective when that person is a BUFFER between the corporate end and the employee: Corporate hands down an edict, and local management looks it over and decides how to implement it in a way that his employees will understand and respond to. John McCarty, for one, knew how to do that. But when you become a yes-man for the corporation, and don't give a damn what the employees think, you've drawn a very thick line in the sand. THAT'S the attitude I speak of here.
And yes, Ben, after my issues with Russ Martin in 2003, a company-wide rule was implemented stating that CBS employees are not to engage in posting any company-related issues or commentary on any blog or internet site, or to make disparaging remarks about any CBS property or employee on the web. That should be in your employee handbook!
(and yes, I'd miss you on here if you take this to heart, but that's what resulted from that Radio-Info slugfest.)
Kurt reportedly signed off on my termination when I had my Radio-Info "tiff" with Russ Martin. I won't rehash that story here, but it was simply ANOTHER case of management cowing down to Mr. Martin's crap. Dave Siebert was of no help, either, but at least Siebert socialized with everyone, regardless of their position at the cluster. Kurt kept to himself, only socializing with management, and never with those "beneath him." At station events, I tried several times to be friendly, but was snubbed.
Kurt was the one who took over PD duties at The Oasis, after his APD Bret Michael started adding some slow R&B to the mix (which is what brought ME over as a listener, and, as evidenced by the 80/20 mix of black vs white listeners showing up at events, brought in a huge black audience that management and sales refused to acknowledge.) Even after KOAI beat both KVIL and KLUV in 12+ one book in early 2003, Kurt fired Bret. I don't recall the specifics, but it had to do with the format adjustment, IIRC.
I worked with Kurt's wife for many years at Traffic.com, and she's a gem. But when he attended Traffic.com functions with her, he kept them away from the others, even sitting in the corner away from all the activity a couple of Christmas parties ago, despite McCarty and others trying to make him feel comfortable.
He was also the one that promised Barb Smith the world to return to DFW from Kansas in early 2001 so she and Ken Barnett could take over mornings at KVIL after Ron left for KLUV. When the project failed after a few months, Kurt wouldn't go to bat for her, denied any obligation to her, and she had to sue the company to get her contract honored. At one point, CBS attorneys told Barb, "We have more money...we can outlast you...we can drag this thing out forever...you need to settle." She did.
KVIL and KOAI PDs Nikki Nite and Charley Connolly were reportedly shown the door by him with no warning, and Tempie Lindsey was forced out when he wouldn't even go into contract negotiations with her a couple of years ago. Tempie was already being cold-shouldered by management months before her contract ended, so she had at least some clue about what she was going to face. Sure, she's back now, but not fulltime.
Sure, most of these are not my battles to fight, but it's just showing you a slice of what you're dealing with, Ben. The atta-boys and the pats on the back are quickly replaced with "What have you done for me lately"'s. David Henry runs the show the same way. Generally, successful local management, from what I've personally seen, is more effective when that person is a BUFFER between the corporate end and the employee: Corporate hands down an edict, and local management looks it over and decides how to implement it in a way that his employees will understand and respond to. John McCarty, for one, knew how to do that. But when you become a yes-man for the corporation, and don't give a damn what the employees think, you've drawn a very thick line in the sand. THAT'S the attitude I speak of here.
And yes, Ben, after my issues with Russ Martin in 2003, a company-wide rule was implemented stating that CBS employees are not to engage in posting any company-related issues or commentary on any blog or internet site, or to make disparaging remarks about any CBS property or employee on the web. That should be in your employee handbook!
(and yes, I'd miss you on here if you take this to heart, but that's what resulted from that Radio-Info slugfest.)
T
thunderradio
Guest
I have to concur with Mike about Kurt. I have witnessed many "stand offish" attitudes about KJ. His stature was like a stalag commadant.He didn't care who you were,unless you were a well known name in his directory. You were beneath his feet and he could and did fire you at anytime.
He has had more failures than sucesses and the majority of those successes were built by his predecessor, NOT him. It's one of those Earthly mysteries how he has managed to stay employed with CBS all these years. He must have a secret formula for boot polish.
He has had more failures than sucesses and the majority of those successes were built by his predecessor, NOT him. It's one of those Earthly mysteries how he has managed to stay employed with CBS all these years. He must have a secret formula for boot polish.
E
EbolaMonkey
Guest
It's one of those Earthly mysteries how he has managed to stay employed with CBS all these years.
It's no mystery at all. His is exactly the kind of management CBS values.
Through an upper management bonus structure that rewards cost cutting rather than ratings success, CBS's NY leadership is milking the company's coffers for as long as it can. Dividends through gifted stock are another avenue for diverting CBS assets into its leadership's personal bank accounts.
In the coming years, the radio arm of the company will utterly fail. And there will be a fire sale sell-off of the stations.
Bankruptcy will be declared and loans defaulted on, and the Kurt's and Purdy's of the company will slink into the sunset with fat bank accounts.
I don't buy for one minute that DFW management is crying anything more than crocodile tears after these layoffs.
I know for sure after one round of layoffs a few years back, Kurt shrugged them off afterwards by telling an employee, "I'll sleep tonight."
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