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New Midday Host for KDKA

Like I said, having a local knowledge would be a benefit, but shouldn't be the be all end all. Using the taxi analogy, if someone were to move here, having driven cabs previously in another city and been shown to be a safe and proven driver and while not familiar with every local street, has in his cab a mapping program to help him find those streets he doesn't know or a competent dispatcher to help out, then sure, you may very well take him based on previous experience.

Similarly, if you are looking for someone to host a radio show and you have someone who has experience doing it and doing it well they should definitely be in consideration for the job. Most local issues tend to be nothing more than that which is in the paper that morning, which I would assume even an out of towner can read. Do you lose something in the selection? Sure, your new host probably isn't going to be able to tell you who was in the Steelers starting backfield in 1985, or give an analytical breakdown of the Caliguiri administration.

I am not saying you do not hire local, just that when you have an opening it should be for the best person for the job and ignore the parochial attitude that comes with hiring anyone for a high profile job in this town. That attitude has been a mixed blessing at best, for every Bill Cowher one could point to (hey, he's a Crafton guy) I will gladly point you to a Lloyd McClendon (well, he used to play for the Pirates).
 
Using the taxi analogy, if someone were to move here, having driven cabs previously in another city and been shown to be a safe and proven driver and while not familiar with every local street, has in his cab a mapping program to help him find those streets he doesn't know or a competent dispatcher to help out, then sure, you may very well take him based on previous experience.

I should learn to never, ever use analogies, as they always end up getting bogged down. But what the hell. In your illustration, you throw in a bunch of irrelevant stuff like mapping programs. Let's stick to just basics, OK?

How many times do I have to throw in qualifiers like "right now" or "this specific time"? Everyone keeps coming back with general statements about general rules or principles that are best generally speaking.

I'm not talking about a general rule of thumb. I'm only talking about the situation KDKA is in right now. I don't give a damn about what would have been the best move for a different station at a different time. I also don't give a damn about what might be the best move to make six months or a year from now. I'm talking about right this very week. The present. And I'm talking about KDKA -- the station that most participants in this forum have all said hasn't made the right move regarding any programming decisions in years.

I am not saying you do not hire local, just that when you have an opening it should be for the best person for the job and ignore the parochial attitude that comes with hiring anyone for a high profile job in this town. That attitude has been a mixed blessing at best, for every Bill Cowher one could point to (hey, he's a Crafton guy) I will gladly point you to a Lloyd McClendon (well, he used to play for the Pirates). .

ARRRGGGHHHH!!!!!!!!

This isn't about a football coach. One of the requirements to be the best person to host a local content talk show on KDKA and going on the air right away has to be an intense knowledge of the local area. When the Steelers hire a coach, they need someone with an intense knowledge of football. Worrying about local roots is irrelevant for that job. Hiring someone to be a heart transplant surgeon at UPMC required serious medical knowledge and surgical skill. Local roots are irrelevant for that job. Hiring someone to talk between records on any music format station in town doesn't require anyone to have any local knowledge, beyond learning that the place north of McKeesport isn't pronounced the same as the palace in Paris.

I predict that hiring this guy from Nashvile will turn out to be as smart a move as putting Steve Hansen in the chair they put him in.
 
Who said the show will be local content? We may want that, we may even think that is the direction should go, but that doesn't mean that they will or even that they want to. There certainly is a suspect track record in that regard, for all of the clamor of "local" content, even the local hosts here tend to focus more on national issues as they tend to generate more interest. The firing of Don Imus will generate a local show more calls and response than the city controllers race. Like I said in my last post, most local "knowledge" comes down to what is in the paper that morning. People tend to want to talk about what is current, not what happened 30 years ago, so if the new guy can read a paper, I am sure he will pick up on most of the local stuff that he needs to know on any given day.

The reason that I used the Steelers/Pirates analogy isn't based on a coach's knowledge of their respective sport, but the inane crap that goes with it, every time there is an opening of merit in this town, the first thought is who is local, not who is the best for the job. If doctors commanded the attention and spotlight that our local sports franchises do, I am quite sure everyone would speculate on the most qualified local doctor to get the next opening at UPMC, rather than the best person for the job. Thankfully that isn't the case and therefore that profession can go about acquiring the best available person, regardless of their city of origin.

I simply used the analogy that you did in the hiring of cab drivers so if the analogy is now irrelevant, then you really have only yourself to blame. All I said was that if I had an experienced driver with a record of safety, the knowledge of local streets is something that can be overcome, rather easily in this day and age, but I am sure you will survey 6 or 7 people that will disagree with me and that will be enough to prove your point.
 
Who said the show will be local content?

I confess that was an assumption on my part. Considering how expensive it is to have a live person sitting in your local studio compared to plugging into a satellite feed, I assumed that there would have to be a good, solid, compelling reason to hire a live human being. The only advantage I could think of in hiring a live human being to work locally would be to provide local content. Hiring someone to work locally on a show filled with the same content that could be obtained for far less money off of a satellite is a downright stupid thing to do.

But then, we're talking about KDKA, so maybe a downright stupid thing should be expected.

Like I said in my last post, most local "knowledge" comes down to what is in the paper that morning.

Considering how effective the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is at decent local reporting, the chances of anyone gaining much meaningful local knowledge from the morning newspaper are pretty slim. To really be able to host a good, local content talk show, it's not enough to read the morning paper. One needs to know a little about the history of the area to be able to understand current local events in their local context.

Sure, anyone can learn enough to host a good local talk show eventually. The issue is whether or not KDKA wants a host who can talk local right away, or someone who'll need six months to get up to speed. KDKA doesn't have the luxury of waiting until November of 2007 while some dude from Nashville learns the city. They're teetering on the brink as it is right now. Their numbers may be up a little bit in the short run, but the long-term trend for them is non-stop decline.

If they would have hired someone from out of town to replace Pintek back when he was fired, that probably would have been a good move. Back then, KDKA wasn't losing listeners at the pace they're losing them now. Back in the days when KDKA was the unchallenged #1, and the only significant talk station in town, bringing some out-of-towner along wouldn't have been a problem.

The problem is, it is 2007. It's not the 90's any more. It's not even the early 2000's anymore. What might have been a great idea a few years back, or might well be a good idea a few years in the future is different from what is a good idea right now, today.

We may want that, we may even think that is the direction should go, but that doesn't mean that they will or even that they want to.

That's a valid point. When anyone makes a decision, there's always a risk involved. No one knows exactly what will happen in the future. The best anyone can do is evaluate the risks and measure the odds. While it is not a sure thing that local content talk radio will be more popular than national content talk radio, it is a sure thing that those who want national content talk radio in the afternoon already have three syndicated talk hosts to choose from on local radio stations. And that includes Rush Limbaugh, the 500 pound gorilla of talk radio. The best that any station that attempts to compete head-to-head with the other three stations can hope for is to win a portion of the audience who wants national topic talk.

But, if KDKA counters the three syndicated, national topic talkers currently on the air with a local content talker, which is something totally different, then they should grab 100% of the audience portion that wants local talk.

If the best you can hope for is only 25% of one particular pie, or 100% of a different pie, then the safer bet is that the pie you can get 100% of will mean more pie for you, even if it is a smaller total pie.

Granted, sometimes the long shot wins. Sometimes the safe bet doesn't work. Sometimes you will successfully draw to an inside straight. But it's not a good idea to run a business by placing long shot bets.
 
If they would have hired someone from out of town to replace Pintek back when he was fired, that probably would have been a good move. Back then, KDKA wasn't losing listeners at the pace they're losing them now.

Not true at all. The losses have stabilized over the last few books. The decline was much more steep earlier.
 
Best of luck Kevin ;D

680 WPTF (Raleigh-Durham, NC) does not sound the same without you, although Jack Boston is settling in nicely.

Raleigh-Durham's loss :'( is Pittsburgh's gain :D

Stuart
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
 
When nothing you are doing is working, maybe its time to try something else. In this case KD had just about nothing to lose bringing in someone from outside and seeing what happens next. Maybe Kevin will grow into the market and maybe he'll blow up but at least they didn't just plug in the satellite and walk away from it. They've done that too often and are still paying for the results.
 
Snafu,
You are 100 percent right my friend ;D

Kevin was very well liked here in Raleigh-Durham.

Maybe he can return KDKA to "Someplace Special..."

Stuart
 
When nothing you are doing is working, maybe its time to try something else.

Or, if you're KDKA, just try the same old stuff you've always done, but with a new voice. Bringing in a generic talk show host, no matter how good he might be, isn't "something else". It's "more of the same".

Maybe he can return KDKA to "Someplace Special..."

I wouldn't recommend that anyone holds their breath waiting for that to happen.
 
"Kevin was very well-liked" ? By whom?!?!? When he showed up in Raleigh, the mass exodus from PTF was like a tidal wave; people couldn't get out fast enough. i never worked with the guy, but i know several people who did. Unless they were all lying, the consensus about miller was that he was arrogant, self-absorbed, prone to temper tantrums, and alienated virtually the entire staff, many of whom left and one who retired early just to get away from him. my prediction: he'll stink up the joint at KD for a year--two at the most--and then move on to another market where his personality is not known in advance
 
Comment by "dittohead1"

I do not know what goes on behind the scenes at a Radio Station, However, as a listener, I always liked the way Kevin handled the Morning News (Show).

A couple of years ago, he tried to lose weight as part of the Mayor of Raleigh's "Slim-Down Program". Kevin wanted to lose 100 pounds. (I do not think he quite made it, he did have a good loss ;D ). Once a week he would weigh in live on the radio and share his experience with his listeners. There were TV stories about him also many articles in the paper. A lot of people were behind him (no pun intended!)

My point is (it may be wrong), There are two sides to every story, you presented one side, and the other side would be Kevin's. Maybe WPTF was not the best "fit" for him. Maybe KDKA will be better. Only time will tell.

I am not a Radio Professional, However, I do know if his show is good, people will listen. As I read many times on many boards...
Many People=High Ratings!

Thanks,
Stuart
 
It's too bad but dittohead is correct. Ask the staffs at WERC, WPTF and SuperTalk in Nashville and you'll hear the same story. Maybe Kevin will change in Pittsburgh. I hope so for his sake and his PD's.
 
I have an honest question...How is Kevin Miller doing on KDKA

I have an honest answer. I do not know. If I didn't participate in this forum, I wouldn't even know he was on the air. I doubt if he's brought any new listeners to 1020 AM, though the people who were already in the habit of listening to KDKA might be enjoying his show.
 
So I guess that means there are no Kevin Miller billboards out there.

Maybe there are, maybe there aren't. I haven't seen anything about Kevin Miller in any advertising media. I also haven't gone out of my way to look for anything, either.
 
Is KDKA not doing any advertising to promote Kevin? ??? When I used to visit Pittsburgh, there were many signs advertising "Jack Bogut In The Morning? At that time Jack was very well established and I did not think he needed that much advertising. Even people new to the Pittsburgh Area would not know who Jack is.

Thanks,
Stuart
Chapel Hill, NC
 
And the last time anyone spent money specifically to promote a noon-3 slot that didn't feature someone named Limbaugh was?....
 
Stuart Greenberg said:
Is KDKA not doing any advertising to promote Kevin? ??? When I used to visit Pittsburgh, there were many signs advertising "Jack Bogut In The Morning? At that time Jack was very well established and I did not think he needed that much advertising. Even people new to the Pittsburgh Area would not know who Jack is.

Thanks,
Stuart
Chapel Hill, NC
Click to expand...

That's when Westinghouse owned KDKA. Completely different corporate culture there now.
 
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