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Observer blogger and Fan host says Russ heading to Eagle Mornings

I'll be working again before Russ is, thank you! And thanks for the kind words. Ego-boosters are ALWAYS appreciated! :-*
 
Its funny how many of the people bashing the decision to put the RMS back on the air are many of the same that said there was absolutely no possible way Russ Martin would ever make it back on the airwaves in DFW. Funny how your argument has shifted. I think that those of us who listened to the RMS know why Mike Shannon has a beef with RM and that's fair enough, not sure what the rest of you people's problem is with him. Seems to be mostly perception, and if it is that's really pretty sad that you can't differentiate perception from reality. If you worked with him or met him before and he was an ass then I guess maybe there's some (not much) validity to your venom. But you know what, I was behind a guy at Subway the other day that didn't say please or thank you when he ordered his sandwich, and I didn't right a blog or post somewhere that the guy doesn't have any manners. Could have been having a bad day is all. My point is maybe RM is an ass, don't know, don't particularly care. I do know that I enjoyed his radio show for the most part. If he comes back on the air and the show sucks, I won't listen. I won't make it an appt to turn on 97.1 like I did 105.3 for so many years at 3:12p. But I also wont come on here and bash someone for doing something I don't like. I know it will never happen, but why can't we just see how it plays out with bashing something before it starts? Opinions are fine, but hatred is a waste of time. IMHO. Carry on.
 
tex192 said:
Its funny how many of the people bashing the decision to put the RMS back on the air are many of the same that said there was absolutely no possible way Russ Martin would ever make it back on the airwaves in DFW.
I don't think I said ever.
Funny how your argument has shifted. I think that those of us who listened to the RMS know why Mike Shannon has a beef with RM and that's fair enough, not sure what the rest of you people's problem is with him.
What if I just don't think he's that funny? As Shannon noted upthread, with a 3 share, there's still 97% of the audience that isn't listening to him. That doesn't think he's that good.
My point is maybe RM is an ass, don't know, don't particularly care. I do know that I enjoyed his radio show for the most part
. And more than 95% of the listening audience didn't enjoy his show. Station I used to work for shared a TON of listeners with Live 105.3. SO I listened because that was one of our main competitors. And for a casual listener, he's a hard listen. Too many in-jokes, too many bits that go on way too long for the average listener, etc. Not a lot of resetting, so you tune in and it takes a while to figure out what they're talking about, what kind of bit they're doing, etc. And that's reflected in the ratings. Russ gets a small audience (p-1's) that tunes in for a LONG time, but doesn't get a ton of casual listeners (p-2's and p-3's)

And just a note- I love the people that claim 'Russ was #1 when they took him off". I want a link. I want the specific Arbitron report that shows that,what month and what demo, because I got news for you people. He wasn't. THAT is why they took him off. A million dollar salary with 'meh' ratings. Still respectable ratings (God Knows he's probably tripiling or quadrupiling what the Fan is now getting. But #1??? No way no how. Despite what Russ might be telling you
 
tex192 said:
I think that those of us who listened to the RMS know why Mike Shannon has a beef with RM and that's fair enough,
Thanks for giving me credit for that, but hey, I'm letting this turn into something personal and that's not fair to anyone, including Russ. I'm just going to step back and let things transpire and reserve comment for then. If this does work out, that's one point in radio's favor in general. There's just not enough compelling radio out there today to keep people interested in radio itself. If Martin can pull something off, in spite of the odds against it, well, so be it. If things work out, then perhaps some radio group(s) will sit up and take notice, and start putting value into live-and-local again. I think that's something we'd ALL like to see...and hopefully to benefit from in some way. I know a lot of good, solid radio folks who are out of work, or doing something way beneath them or completely unrelated to the industry they gave their best years to.


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[EDIT-reference to deleted material]
 
tex192 said:
I think that those of us who listened to the RMS know why Mike Shannon has a beef with RM and that's fair enough...

I am a relative "newcomer" to the whole RMS thing... what's Mike's beef with Russ? Did Russ tease him and make him feel bad? Awww
 
MikeShannon914 said:
tex192 said:
I think that those of us who listened to the RMS know why Mike Shannon has a beef with RM and that's fair enough,
Thanks for giving me credit for that, but hey, I'm letting this turn into something personal and that's not fair to anyone, including Russ. I'm just going to step back and let things transpire and reserve comment for then. If this does work out, that's one point in radio's favor in general. There's just not enough compelling radio out there today to keep people interested in radio itself. If Martin can pull something off, in spite of the odds against it, well, so be it. If things work out, then perhaps some radio group(s) will sit up and take notice, and start putting value into live-and-local again. I think that's something we'd ALL like to see...and hopefully to benefit from in some way. I know a lot of good, solid radio folks who are out of work, or doing something way beneath them or completely unrelated to the industry they gave their best years to.


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[EDIT-reference to deleted material]
Just cause you say it doesn't make it true. You are not an expert and don't have a crystal ball. Again I ask what market did you succeed in? Since "This is the only market Russ could".
 
Out of the woodwork, as this proves.

Opinion, conjecture, personal viewpoints...all part of a BLOG. This is a BLOG. If you want to take it as gospel and God's honest truth, that may explain your obsession with Martin. Hanging on every word, craving direction and meaning. That's really not my problem. These are my OPINIONS. Don't like 'em? Skip 'em. Go somewhere else. Find a place where you can sing to your own choir. Take up your cause with someone who legitimately gives a damn.
 
Brandon1980 said:
I have zero connections to the radio industry, just depend on it to make my work day a little brighter.  He's hated on this board though, a radio INSIDER board.  He isn't looking for you guys to listen anyways, it's the masses he's looking for. 

The thing is, the masses didn't listen to him.  Don't get me wrong, I was an avid listener and once he comes back, I will continue to be a loyal listener, I love his show...But the rating don't lie (well, for the most part).  He had a small cume (audience) with an extremely large TSL (time spent listening).  His mass was made up of a small population who listened for long periods of time.

Frasier Crane once held a party at his Elliot Bay apartment for all of people in his fan club (after he was fired from KACL) only to find out that it contained just three members...Russ' last band appearance was at his car shop, I was told only 35 people showed up.
 
And that's why I said early that mornings are going to be an adventure. Listening habits are a little different in mornings- more going on, more distractions, less TSL, etc.

Where he could stretch a bit over an hour or 2 in the afternoon, and have a good chance of keeping people intrigued, if you've got to punch into the GM plant by 8am, you got to punch in by 8am. You can't really get away with 'well, this radio guys was blowing up his boss's office, and I' couldn't miss the end of it..."
 
little1 said:
You can't really get away with 'well, this radio guys was blowing up his boss's office, and I' couldn't miss the end of it..."

I think the Observer article exposed Russ as being a fake. Do u really think listeners are gonna buy the whole " blowing up the boss's office" bit anymore?
 
ead061 said:
little1 said:
You can't really get away with 'well, this radio guys was blowing up his boss's office, and I' couldn't miss the end of it..."

I think the Observer article exposed Russ as being a fake. Do u really think listeners are gonna buy the whole " blowing up the boss's office" bit anymore?

kind of makes you wonder why the blog was written by the same person who wrote that article too.
 
little1 said:
MikeShannon914 said:
And, really, isn't Hot Talk a dead format now?
Not necessarily, but it' s just easier now to counterprogram against it.
Here's why- if you have a news station, a sports station AND a hot talk station in a market, the first 2 KNOW who their audeince is. The news listeners want to hear news, talk politics (for the most part) etc. The sports listeners want scores, opinions, sports news, etc.

What does the hot talk listener want? Well, to be entertained, sure. But what specifically are they tuning into listen to? Survey an audience and people will tell you they want country music, or R&R, oldies, what have you. People aren't going to tell you 'I want engaging local personalities to discuss whatever interests them, no matter what it is, no matter how irrelevant it may be to me, etc..."

Now Russ CAN be very engaging. But at some point, he crosses that line to 'irrelevant to the listener". A lot of people aren't going to care about a movie that they're never going to make, a bar they're never going to open, or whatever. Most people want to hear about what interests them, not what interests Russ. Or fellow practioners of that format.

And that's where the counter programming and imaging comes in. Easy to describe your station as being what the listener is interested in, and the other station as being all about Russ. Or Big Dick Hunter. Or Leykis, or whoever the hosts are. With news and sports you have a built in audience of fans. With hot talk, it's all about how engaging the personalities are...

Little1, no offence, but in my humble opinion, I really am beginning to think you don’t know what you are talking about. Haven’t you ever heard of a “Soap Opera”? That’s exactly what Russ created with his show. Day in and day out people tuned in to hear what is going on in the lives of the people in “The Treehouse” as it was called. So yes, people did want to hear about that movie he never did make, or that bar that he never did quite get open…or anything else that was supposedly going on in his life (and the lives of others on his show for that matter). He made people think that they were included in the show because he gave the illusion that he was sharing something with his audience that was real…even if it wasn’t.

Your statement that you have a built in audience with the other types of programming is just false. Case in point, look at The Fan (a sports station). That station never has done any better than a 1.7 (and that was just after if flipped to sports) Where are their fans or listeners? I’ll tell you….they never had them. They have constantly alienated their fans time and time again to the point that very few people tune in to listen. Your thinking that you are going to have instant listeners just because you are a sports station, or because you are a news station is not only irresponsible, but it reflects the mentality of management in radio today. No matter what your programming is…you got to work for those listeners. Nothing is a given.

Yes…Russ still had a pretty decent following (even in the end) 10th overall in the ratings in his target demographic isn’t bad considering all the other choices out there. What were his ratings in other demographics that were not his target? What were the OVERALL ratings of his show? Like it or not, the man did a good job getting people to tune in. Sometimes the most “simplistic at best” thoughts are often the most correct.
 
DFW_Radio_2000 said:
Brandon1980 said:
I have zero connections to the radio industry, just depend on it to make my work day a little brighter. He's hated on this board though, a radio INSIDER board. He isn't looking for you guys to listen anyways, it's the masses he's looking for.

The thing is, the masses didn't listen to him. Don't get me wrong, I was an avid listener and once he comes back, I will continue to be a loyal listener, I love his show...But the rating don't lie (well, for the most part). He had a small cume (audience) with an extremely large TSL (time spent listening). His mass was made up of a small population who listened for long periods of time.

Frasier Crane once held a party at his Elliot Bay apartment for all of people in his fan club (after he was fired from KACL) only to find out that it contained just three members...Russ' last band appearance was at his car shop, I was told only 35 people showed up.

I was there....it was about 100 people. Some cool cars as well, but still, it was a pretty dismal turn out. In all fairness to Russ, it was over 100 degrees that day, and I feel most people opted to stay home in the comfort of A/C and not walk around in a hot parking lot. In many ways, I wish I did that day. I almost had heat exhaustion.
 
I think the Observer article exposed Russ as being a fake. Do u really think listeners are gonna buy the whole " blowing up the boss's office" bit anymore?
[/quote]

wow, you're dumber than the guy who thought it was real. Theater of the mind?? It was the Russ Martin SHOW. Umm if you don't understand, the key word is "show".
 
Nothing like starting a brawl and then ducking. This thread has been entertaining.

I do have a question, though, about cume and tsl.

Martin's rise and fall on afternoon was based on fewer listeners over longer stretches. As his schtick got old, ratings slowly declined.

Now, he has been off air for a while. He'll be coming back with a new crew, forcing the development of new material to go along with old bits. And he is going into a shift when plenty of people are surfing the dial, but few are listening for hours at a stretch. (Unless 75 turns into a parking lot that is.)

So if he can get a big enough splash and start strong (a big if,) won't shorter listening inetrvals avoid the exact burnout effect which lead to his slow decline in the afternoons?

In other words, if the average listener is only catching 15-30 minutes a day vs 1-2 hours a day, won't it take them that much longer to get bored, which is what many of you claim happened to him on 105.3?

Again, I don't have a dog in the fight. My morning commute is either the Musers or KERA. But I'm curious how y'all can be so sure he will fail again when the new time and format will help him avoid the very factor y'all claim caused him to slip in the first place. The logic escapes me.
 
JRG440 said:
Your statement that you have a built in audience with the other types of programming is just false. Case in point, look at The Fan (a sports station). That station never has done any better than a 1.7 (and that was just after if flipped to sports) Where are their fans or listeners? I’ll tell you….they never had them. They have constantly alienated their fans time and time again to the point that very few people tune in to listen. Your thinking that you are going to have instant listeners just because you are a sports station, or because you are a news station is not only irresponsible, but it reflects the mentality of management in radio today. No matter what your programming is…you got to work for those listeners. Nothing is a given.
The Fan is also competing with 2 direct competitors. THAT is why their ratings suck. The point I was trying to make is that in general, politics and sports have built in audiences. That's why every major market has political leaning talk stations, and sports stations, but a lot fewer have 'hot talk' stations. A lot of people care about their taxes, or how good/bad Obama is doing, or how their local team is doing, but less care about a local DJ's cover band. And I didn't say that any of those stations would have 'instant listeners', just that they will probably have an easier time cross promoting and finding an audience than a hot talk station would...

Yes…Russ still had a pretty decent following (even in the end) 10th overall in the ratings in his target demographic isn’t bad considering all the other choices out there. What were his ratings in other demographics that were not his target? What were the OVERALL ratings of his show? Like it or not, the man did a good job getting people to tune in. Sometimes the most “simplistic at best” thoughts are often the most correct.
10th sucks when you were once first.
 
Old Jack said:
So if he can get a big enough splash and start strong (a big if,) won't shorter listening inetrvals avoid the exact burnout effect which lead to his slow decline in the afternoons?
In other words, if the average listener is only catching 15-30 minutes a day vs 1-2 hours a day, won't it take them that much longer to get bored, which is what many of you claim happened to him on 105.3?
Again, I don't have a dog in the fight. My morning commute is either the Musers or KERA. But I'm curious how y'all can be so sure he will fail again when the new time and format will help him avoid the very factor y'all claim caused him to slip in the first place. The logic escapes me.
I haven't said he'll fail, I'm just not so sure that he's going to be an automatic success like some of the Russ fans posting here are assuming.

And you've got a valid point. If morning TSL is shorter, there will be less chance for burnout. But that is a 2 edged sword. Russ generally had low cume and high TSL. If he's fighting TSL battles, he's losing what was his strength at Live 105. that's why I said it's going to be an adventure. His "formula" was low cume plus high TSL + good ratings. If he doesn't draw a bigger audience, AND he's fighting for TSL, he may not be the ratings success he was in the past.
 
And the other thing- if people are listening for less time (average commute in dallas, 25 minutes)
http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=1980
Then these bits that would last a whole show probably ain't gonna fly. There's a reason why news stations do traffic and weather every 10 minutes, and why talk and sports station recycle topics from early in a show back again later in a show. Becuase the listeners change, the ones at 6-7 am aren't the same ones still listening in the 8 or 9 am hours.

If he's doing his old formula, a lot less people are likely to be able to hear it 'all'. Therefor making it less compelling. After a couple of weeks of no payoff (no fireworks, no burning of Spittles desk, whatever) I would think people would be less intersted in listening...
 
little1 said:
And the other thing- if people are listening for less time (average commute in dallas, 25 minutes)
http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=1980
Then these bits that would last a whole show probably ain't gonna fly. There's a reason why news stations do traffic and weather every 10 minutes, and why talk and sports station recycle topics from early in a show back again later in a show. Becuase the listeners change, the ones at 6-7 am aren't the same ones still listening in the 8 or 9 am hours.

If he's doing his old formula, a lot less people are likely to be able to hear it 'all'. Therefor making it less compelling. After a couple of weeks of no payoff (no fireworks, no burning of Spittles desk, whatever) I would think people would be less intersted in listening...

OK- that makes more sense. I see where you are coming from.
 
little1 said:
And the other thing- if people are listening for less time (average commute in dallas, 25 minutes)
http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=1980
Then these bits that would last a whole show probably ain't gonna fly. There's a reason why news stations do traffic and weather every 10 minutes, and why talk and sports station recycle topics from early in a show back again later in a show. Becuase the listeners change, the ones at 6-7 am aren't the same ones still listening in the 8 or 9 am hours.

If he's doing his old formula, a lot less people are likely to be able to hear it 'all'. Therefor making it less compelling. After a couple of weeks of no payoff (no fireworks, no burning of Spittles desk, whatever) I would think people would be less intersted in listening...

I sure would like to know if this is ONLY people leaving their house in the morning. It doesn't say. I'm sure that they are taking in account the numerous people who work 2nd and even 3rd shifts. So yes, their commute will be shorter thus in turn, bring down the average time spent commuting to work. Ever get on 635 at 8 am headed from say Mesquite to Addison? 24 minutes....GOOD LUCK. Better add another hour to that time. Morning rush hour in the metroplex is a nightmare. I would like to know if there is anyone you know who has to get to work for 1st shift where it only takes them 24 minutes to get to their office. Maybe if they live within walking or biking distance, other than that, then they are in their cars or riding DART longer than 24 minutes.


And can one honestly believe that it takes the average New Yorker only a half an hour to commute to work....in the MORNING? Again, this has to be an average for everyone polled, no matter what the time they leave the house to go to work. That I would believe.

So to think that bits on the radio won't work because people are only going to be in their cars for less than half an hour well....again just isn't factual. Don't take stock in everything you read. Polls are never exact, and numbers can always be skewed to reflect the result you want (or don't want)
 
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