Steve Gregory and more fired from KFI

[ChannelFlipper]

House fires, car crashes, and other simple stories are a huge share of radio news coverage. These stories rarely require a pro to "connect with stakeholders." They rarely need context. There's no "overall theme." House burns down, people may or may not have died, and "no word yet on the cause". This ain't Watergate. I'm not expecting any yahoo with a phone camera to be Woodward and Bernstein. And if you want a bit more info on the fire or crash, plenty of agencies (sheriff's department, CHP, police, etc) already put on X and their websites info that's identical to what a P.I.O. tells professional reporters at the scene.

That's the thing. It is very common now for an interested listener to get the necessary information just as fast as the reporter. If the reporter is just reading a Twitter feed himself (nothing wrong with that, it may be the fastest way for him to get info), then a listener can do the same.

I also believe the need for a reporter to "put things in context" is very much oversold, especially in today's world where many of them are (ahem) a bit biased. The audience is smart; give them the (unbiased) facts and they can pretty well provide their own context.

 

[Gregg.]

I hate to say it but I think most KFI listeners will not notice much difference in how the station sounds. I've tuned in a few times since the massacre and things sound pretty much the same to me, as far as the news format is concerned.

--The 5 a.m. news hour is still there. The anchor talks to ABC reporters from Washington and around the world, since KFI is an ABC affiliate, although doesn't run its top of the hour news. I think she also will talk to reporters from print media. She just won't talk to KFI reporters anymore.

--The news-every-15-minutes schedule is still there. The talk hosts break four times each hour. Those breaks are still a few minutes of news, a traffic report and several commercials, then back to the hosts. That format remains. The initial report that EVERYONE in the news department was fired wasn't true. Several anchors are still there, doing these updates.

--The street reporters who once were employed by KFI are gone. But the iHeart 24/7 News reporters I suppose will pick up some of what the KFI staff used to cover. Or the anchor will just get it from other sources and read it him/herself. Each newscast is only a few minutes long. There's still sound from ABC and AP. Maybe you'll notice the anchors are reading more stories themselves rather than throwing to a reporter. Or maybe you won't.

 

[TheBigA]

I also believe the need for a reporter to "put things in context" is very much oversold, especially in today's world where many of them are (ahem) a bit biased. The audience is smart; give them the (unbiased) facts and they can pretty well provide their own context.

Maybe. There's also push vs. pull media. Sure, you can find the facts if you look for them. Not everyone has that time.

As for reporter bias, what if the sources those reporters (and the public) depend on are biased. I'm thinking of a particular former sheriff who once had a radio show on KFI. We live in a world where we're now being told there are no facts. What do you do with that?

 

[Tibbs4]

Hey BigA - I try to glance at things on here, but just don't have time to respond. I will go on the record and say I have NEVER seen one FCC issue about a news organization "violation" too keep a license in my various 40+ years of ruining radio. I will also suggest that the reality of radio 2024 is that the average listener of today is not engaging in the news updates like even a half decade ago. There is not much incentive to have an active in-house news team. Even local television doesn't have the ability too do much in-depth investigative reporting. Does NOT mean that "we" don't appreciate or miss the value of it. Michael's deep investment in local radio and love for local news is respectable, appreciated and honest. I tend to be emotionally in-love with all things "real" radio, too. Truth is, listeners want less and they are definitely getting that. I think the real issue is radio is delivering less in the wrong way. And that's why we are all on here, scratching our heads. #makelessmore2024

 

[Tibbs4]

L.A. is an AFTRA union market. Reporter contracts at any of the TV stations---KNBC, KTLA, KABC, KTTV---would have to be renegotiated and the talent compensated for appearances on KFI (KCBS/KCAL would probably be out of scope because of KNX's CBS News affiliation) if it were an ongoing part of their work product.

No, iHeart is fine with a more generic news product coming from their TTN/24-7 studio in Long Beach. That's the plan. iHeart doesn't think it needs a solution beyond that.

That sir, is the most painful true answer for why things have gone so far south. The unions literally fired their own members.

 

[radiofan2023]

The unions literally fired their own members.

what?

 

[TheBigA]

Truth is, listeners want less and they are definitely getting that. I think the real issue is radio is delivering less in the wrong way. And that's why we are all on here, scratching our heads.

I agree with everything in your post. (which is a rare thing for me to say). It's an interesting question you just asked. Here's my take: When you lose your exclusivity, and you're no longer the only way people can get information or hear music, the entire dynamic changes. What you would call "the right way" only works when people don't have other choices or when you have unlimited resources. It's harder to tell someone what they need to know or play music they need to hear. They just go somewhere else. Radio operates from strength when you know you have an audience, and you don't have to worry about revenue. That was how broadcasters have worked for years. The minute those two things change, then you're playing defense. That's kind of where radio is now. The old playbook won't work anymore.

 

[Tibbs4]

what?

Unions set the bar high on benefits, wages, time off, tons of rules and regulations. Look back at the old board operator rules. They did their jobs. Perhaps too well and look how many jobs became unfilled and unavailable. Jacor, CC, etc., all saw and learned you can operate with less and make more. Sure, technology advanced along the way. It's become as lean as they can get and it's still not enough cuts. The very thing designed to help the employees made it tough to become an employee. Didn't happen only in radio, obviously. I am not trying to say pay everyone minimum wage, etc. Maybe that made sense. Hard to say with my ramblings.

 

[Delete My Account]

In a way, the issues with some of what radio faces are sociological issues. Divided and shorter attention spans, disengagement, lack of critically engaging with information that affects things long-term.

I'm not saying I blame people, necessarily, they have their own struggles and lives. But one could argue we're seeing what a lack of civic responsibility and critical thinking based on fact play out in a number of ways. Healthy? Probably not. But it's the reality. Those of us who came up in the business when there was perhaps a bit more balance between the commerce and the community aspect of the business, at least with some operators, are nostalgic for it and value it.

Many others don't. They're free not to, but we can mourn it. Sure, later generations got more choices and continue to choose them, but doesn't mean it's always healthy for the society at large. And even if the facts are on our side, many people for whom this isn't their life or work, base their decisions on feelings. Human nature.

 

[TheBigA]

In a way, the issues with some of what radio faces are sociological issues. Divided and shorter attention spans, disengagement, lack of critically engaging with information that affects things long-term.

I agree. A big part of the blame for what's happening now in radio is because the radio audience has changed. One other thing I'd add to your list is declining tolerance. At one time, stations could play songs listeners didn't like. If you listen to the old AT40 shows, you'll hear lots of songs that never were hits. Yet they got airplay. Radio can't do that now. At one time, radio was all things to all people. Stations would play all genres, and also have a full local news staff. The listeners wanted more music and less news, so stations cut back on local news coverage. It wasn't just to save money. It was also to respond to demands from the public.

 

[Signal Geek]

The listeners wanted more music and less news, so stations cut back on local news coverage.

"WKRP: with MORE music, and LES Nesman" 🤣

 

[TheBigA]

Look back at the old board operator rules. They did their jobs. Perhaps too well and look how many jobs became unfilled and unavailable. Jacor, CC, etc., all saw and learned you can operate with less and make more. Sure, technology advanced along the way.

The main reason was technology. It improved to the point where you could schedule the whole station in automation and walk away. The FCC didn't require humans monitoring the transmitter because of changes in technology. That started in the 1970s. The unions have tried to mandate staffing levels. They're doing that in major markets, putting limits on the use of VT and syndication in union contracts. The problem is the revenues are declining, and forcing staff levels doesn't improve revenues. So the station can't afford the previous staffing level. We're seeing that where public stations have unionized. They mandate staffing and increase wages, and that leads to staff layoffs for non-union workers because there simply isn't enough money.

 

[davideduardo]

I agree. A big part of the blame for what's happening now in radio is because the radio audience has changed. One other thing I'd add to your list is declining tolerance. At one time, stations could play songs listeners didn't like. If you listen to the old AT40 shows, you'll hear lots of songs that never were hits. Yet they got airplay. Radio can't do that now.

As a sidebar to this interesting observation is my belief that music research has increased listener expectations.

When I began listening to Top 40 in the mid-50's, about a third of all songs were ones I hated. This 12-year-old did not like the Nat "King" Cole, Nelson Riddle and Gogi Grant songs, and he switched to another station as soon as they were played.

(Look at this list Billboard year-end top 50 singles of 1956 - Wikipedia and see Les Baxter, Doris Day and Dean Martin also in the top 10)

When stations began to actually research with listeners and not just watching record sales in the mid-70's, we found what "our" listeners wanted to hear and how often. Listener expectations increased because the best stations were following their own listeners' tastes. So bad-fitting songs were less common, and listeners came to expect "only" songs they liked.

That was the era when we learned that there were seldom more than 18 to 20 real hits at any given time. Anything deeper was either a new song that needed more time to build partisanship or a stiff.

At one time, radio was all things to all people. Stations would play all genres, and also have a full local news staff. The listeners wanted more music and less news, so stations cut back on local news coverage. It wasn't just to save money. It was also to respond to demands from the public.

And that was why "Middle of the Road" broad music formats became roadkill.

 

[TheBigA]

And that was why "Middle of the Road" broad music formats became roadkill.

A lot of older radio people remember those days and wonder why radio can't simply return to those days when stations had full local staffing and everyone got paid well. There's a thread here called "make radio great again." Hire full local staffs again and bring back full service AM formats. The problem is the audience moved away from that kind of radio 40 years ago. So sure, old folks who remember that kind of radio might listen. But that's about it.

 

[TheBigA]

There's an industry conference taking place called Forecast. One of the sessions dealt with cutbacks in local news:

LeGeyt, Portnoy, Paskalis Take Up The Fight To Save Local News - Radio Ink

At Forecast 2025, an intense talk unfolded around the critical battle to preserve local news and the vital role of advertiser support

radioink.com

The main topic opened with a stark reality: newsrooms across the country are shrinking or shutting down entirely, a problem driven by declining advertising revenue. Paskalis painted a grim picture, saying, “There are thousands of licensed radio and television stations in this country…serving their communities. But a terrible thing is happening…newsrooms are shutting down, and good people are leaving.”

 

[hotpatrick2004]

At least they didn't fire Debra Mark. I really liked her with John and ken. It was funny when Ken would call her Debbie. But she and John have good chemistry and are great together with her giving her opinion or whatever occasionally.

 

[KilowattKat]

At least they didn't fire Debra Mark. I really liked her with John and ken. It was funny when Ken would call her Debbie. But she and John have good chemistry and are great together with her giving her opinion or whatever occasionally.

They had to keep her, for the sake of the show. John's show needs a sidekick, now that Ken is gone. In fact, all of the shows are much better when there's a 2nd person or more for the host to banter with.

 

[radiofan2023]

They had to keep her, for the sake of the show. John's show needs a sidekick, now that Ken is gone. In fact, all of the shows are much better when there's a 2nd person or more for the host to banter with.

Handel carries a solo show (Handel on the Law) with callers

 

[TheBigA]

They had to keep her, for the sake of the show. John's show needs a sidekick, now that Ken is gone. In fact, all of the shows are much better when there's a 2nd person or more for the host to banter with.

If you've been following the cuts (not just at iHeart but at all radio) the co-hosts are the ones who get cut. When you think about legendary talk show hosts, from Larry King to Rush Limbaugh, they all figured out how to entertain without a studio full of other people.

 

[KilowattKat]

Handel carries a solo show (Handel on the Law) with callers

Handel on the law is a different talk format, callers in need of advice. Handel's AM show has Neil Saavedra, and Amy King at the roundtable. Gary and Shannon, the only show with 2 hosts. John has Debra to talk with. Tim Conway Jr. has Mark Thompson on Tuesday, Crozier and the female total traffic anchor. That's what makes the shows better, more interesting.