Shawn Stewart fired at KMTT

[RockTheGlobe]

Regardless of what this industry's product is (entertainment and music), it's still a business, and the owners/financial backers tend to be concerned about the bottom line.

May I suggest purchasing a flame resistant suit?

I fail to see why I should be insulted for speaking the truth of the business world. Not that I condone it, but all the things that have been going on in radio that have been viewed negatively -- voicetracking, increased use of syndicated shows, layoffs -- have been done to benefit a company's financial standing, which includes satisfying the investors behind them.

Radio is a very unique business where what we do is more fun, more creative and builds an emotional connection with the listener in ways other industries only dream of doing -- but it is still a business, and if people just did things for the fun of it without a care of getting paid or increasing their profits, there'd be tons more people working as video game players and sports enthusiasts. It speaks volumes for the broadcasting industry that most GMs (and I said "most," not "all" because there is always the exception to the rule) came up through the sales ranks, not the programming department.

 

[AQH]

May I suggest purchasing a flame resistant suit?

I fail to see why I should be insulted for speaking the truth of the business world. Not that I condone it, but all the things that have been going on in radio that have been viewed negatively -- voicetracking, increased use of syndicated shows, layoffs -- have been done to benefit a company's financial standing, which includes satisfying the investors behind them.

Radio is a very unique business where what we do is more fun, more creative and builds an emotional connection with the listener in ways other industries only dream of doing -- but it is still a business, and if people just did things for the fun of it without a care of getting paid or increasing their profits, there'd be tons more people working as video game players and sports enthusiasts. It speaks volumes for the broadcasting industry that most GMs (and I said "most," not "all" because there is always the exception to the rule) came up through the sales ranks, not the programming department.

That comment wasn't offered as a slam to you.

Others have come and gone and pointed out the business nature of radio and have gotten thoroughly trashed on this board. By the same people who offer an unlimited supply of bravado and hyperbole (especially from Whatcom County), yet little to nothing in the way of practical solutions to fix things.

 

[RockTheGlobe]

That comment wasn't offered as a slam to you.

Others have come and gone and pointed out the business nature of radio and have gotten thoroughly trashed on this board. By the same people who offer an unlimited supply of bravado and hyperbole (especially from Whatcom County), yet little to nothing in the way of practical solutions to fix things.

I can understand that... I'm not saying that I agree with it, but I'm just saying I understand why things happen in radio due to financial motives.

And I can also understand that it's difficult for people to offer practical solutions to fix things. It's hard to offer any at this point without proposing a radical course change for the industry in general, given the nature of the bigger companies holding so many properties (especially in major markets), and I don't see anyone coming along with tens of millions of dollars to start buying small handfuls of stations, especially without being beholden to banks or investors who want to see quick returns on their cash. The last person who did that is currently sitting on a pair of stations in New York and Chicago that have less than a full share point 6+ combined. Deregulation kind of helped wreck this industry, and you can't really stuff the toothpaste back in the tube at this point.

Given a station under moderately independent control with a good signal, the basic framework of what made radio good should still work, since compelling entertainment is still compelling entertainment, no matter what medium it's on. I hate to be one of those people who says "well, if it were the '80s/early '90s again...," but radio did excel then. It is frustrating to constantly hear people bitch and moan about that without coming up with anything to make it better, but without major change coming from the top...

Can someone please give me a winning Powerball ticket so I can buy a nice signal in a top 20 market somewhere?

 

[ksradiogeek]

KMTT is done for. Period. Entercom usually is good at running their stations, but in Seattle's case with 103.7, well, that's an exception. I wish we had a good rock station to listen to when me and some friends of mine come to Seatown in May.