The Morning Mess IS..

[RTibbs]

LF screwed up the S & V situation every way they could. Trying to sue based on spirit vs actual contract language is bogus and put them in the paper for more press and awareness. I think LF will give TMM at least through next summer to start showing promise. You can't replace a legend nor establish yourself as one of the top 40 morning shows out of the chute.

 

[littlejohn]

As long as they get the call letters correct, and spell the names properly, there's no bad publicity in something like this. Contrast what filing this lawsuit cost with the price of a half page on the front of the second section, above the fold. It was/is a bargain for everyone involved.

 

[RTibbs]

I don't understand how it is good publicity for Star because all I see is it promoting S & V.

 

[RadioFreeAtlanta]

I don't think it is at all unreasonable for LF to expect a good showing ratings-wise from the big Mess.

Remember when Frank Ski took over for Mike whateverhisnamewas on The People's Station/The Big Station V-103? He slipped right in at the #1 spot where his predecessor left off. There was no slippage in listeners. In fact, the whole handover was pretty seemless.

It is time to face the facts that the Morning Mess doesn't belong in Atlanta, no matter how many times Marco laughs at his own pranks on the 20s.

 

[sidechick1]

Agreed. Also, didn't Marco fire off an angry email to Rich Eldridge due to something he printed in the Peach Buzz? And didn't Kanov publicly apologize for its tone? Not the world's greatest PR move.

 

[RoddyFreeman]

I don't think it is at all unreasonable for LF to expect a good showing ratings-wise from the big Mess.

Remember when Frank Ski took over for Mike whateverhisnamewas on The People's Station/The Big Station V-103? He slipped right in at the #1 spot where his predecessor left off. There was no slippage in listeners. In fact, the whole handover was pretty seemless.

It is time to face the facts that the Morning Mess doesn't belong in Atlanta, no matter how many times Marco laughs at his own pranks on the 20s.

I don't disagree with you that the Mess will need to show some better ratings if they hope to stay here. But I think there's a significant difference from V-103. V-103 still was the urban monster when Mike Roberts left and Frank Ski arrived. Tom Joyner had chipped away at their mornings to some extent, but that station would have carried virtually any good morning personality to good ratings. And I'm not suggesting Frank Ski wasn't good. But aside from lower-powered Hot 97.5, V didn't have a direct competitor like Star 94 has with Q100.

The main point is that V-103 kept the same format, targeting the same demos. Star changed their target audience in the morning. They replaced an older skewing family-safe show with a young CHR show. If they didn't know they were going to drive Steve & Vikki's audience away, they should have. And this has nothing to do with my opinion of the Mess.

I think the most difficult thing for the Mess will be penetrating the Bert Show. The Bert Show is a great morning show and an established one. Pulling listeners away might take something really special.

 

[smblack]

Very well said Roddy!

 

[RTibbs]

I don't think it is at all unreasonable for LF to expect a good showing ratings-wise from the big Mess.

Remember when Frank Ski took over for Mike whateverhisnamewas on The People's Station/The Big Station V-103? He slipped right in at the #1 spot where his predecessor left off. There was no slippage in listeners. In fact, the whole handover was pretty seemless.

It is time to face the facts that the Morning Mess doesn't belong in Atlanta, no matter how many times Marco laughs at his own pranks on the 20s.

I disagree. Since Frank Ski started there has been probably 15 new morning shows(half on sister station Dave FM) How many premiered higher than their predecessor especially at such a lofty level as S & V were at. Also Frank Ski came in more polished and is in a demo, Urban, that has less options.

TMM is less original or polished. They are like a Berrt Show clone so how can they succeed. Also C and R are oldeer so moving them in to mornings might have scared Star that like S & V they would out-age their demo.

 

[RAD1]

Bottom Line: Cindy and Ray win with entertaining, relevant content and like-able personalities. To a point the music during C&R is an interruption or interlude between topics.

C&R are dedicated to show prep beyond the obvious and easy and it shows. Another guess: Cox knows the last day of their contract.

Oh come on, are you serious about this??? The music is the interruption between topics ECKKKK! Either you're realted, work for the station or have absolutely no idea what you're talking about! Perhaps all the above. It's not entertaining, it's annoying.

 

[100]

The morning crap...um mess...barely qualifies for Savannah radio much less here. Star made a bad hire and burned 700k to advertise it. They want to be the Bert Show but they simply are missing many ingredients. There is NOTHING appealing to that show and Star's advertisers are the most vocal about that. Star is helping Bert kill them as long as that "mess" says on.

 

[taylorengineer]

A few musings on the STAR morning show:

1. "The Morning Mess," as a morning show name,is terrible imaging. The morning mess is what you find in the baby's diaper.....it's the dirty dishes in the sink from the night before....it's your hung over face in the mirror on Monday morning. No one wants a "mess" on their way to work on Monday morning - that means traffic jams making you late to work.....or spilling your coffee on your dress/suit.
Any other name(well almost any) would create better expectations of a good morning than "morning mess."

2.) Where is the programming guidance??? These three people would do a perfectly fine morning show if someone would just tell them how to do it. The "pranks" do not even capture the imagination of teenagers who hope to do morning radio when they grow up....it's simply an immature, not very intelligent radio bit. Again.....it's a lack of programming oversight.
What ever happened to "Program Directors?" Is there no warm body at STAR who has a gut for showbiz/radio and has the nads to sit these children down and "fix" things?

3) Quit posting the pictures of these guys all over town. The thin guy looks like a grown version of Eddie Haskell, from "Leave it to Beaver." No one wants to look at the fat guy and the girl is just not billboard material. These are clearly "faces made for radio."

STAR should decide what they want to be and then let someone who understands the demo come in and program it. Stop letting the GM and sales weasels make programming decisions and put them back on the golf course teaching the slutty, new sales assistant how to putt.

 

[RTibbs]

They should have called it "The Marco Show". Regarding billboards, at least Marco doesn;t have a stupid frat boy haircut(reading this Bert), Superphat Maikey makes me feel good(hey I am not as fat as him I guess I can have a Chik-fil-a chicken biscuit this morning) and the slutty sidechick is just a little odd looking perhaps that strange haircut(she's no Jenn Hobby).

 

[RoddyFreeman]

They are not the first show to call themselves "The Morning Mess." Hot 99-5 in DC used to have "The Hot Morning Mess." And there have been others. But I have to agree that another name might have been better.

 

[Uriah]

A few musings on the STAR morning show:

2.) Where is the programming guidance??? These three people would do a perfectly fine morning show if someone would just tell them how to do it. The "pranks" do not even capture the imagination of teenagers who hope to do morning radio when they grow up....it's simply an immature, not very intelligent radio bit. Again.....it's a lack of programming oversight.
What ever happened to "Program Directors?" Is there no warm body at STAR who has a gut for showbiz/radio and has the nads to sit these children down and "fix" things?

Great point Taylor!

Personal attacks on the jocks are somewhat misguided. Top 40 Morning talent - as a rule - assume their purpose is to be funny - or in the case of AOR - shocking. Scams on the 20's, inside jokes, last nights TV, fart humor (even C&R dive to this on occasion) etc. are easy subjects and require very little prep. If there's no direction, it's what you're going to get.

Bert, however, is the master at visualization while setting up a premise. He also will pre-record, edit and fully produce "bits" versus being so dependent on a live call or interview being air-worthy. At the least he will dry run the content. When you hit the studio prepared, you're in execute mode. When you have to find the content, run the board and orchestrate the crew, it's very hard to have flowing creativity.

Imagine the pressure trying to be funny 6 times an hour, 4 hours per day! Long ago Imus once announced at a morning show panel discussion that, "If you're truly funny three times a week - your a F***ing genius!"

Today’s You Tube viewer created content sets a new bar for creative and expressing something from a completely new perspective. Goes to show too that consumers are sometimes more entertaining than entertainers. Three C students with a joke service, microphones, inflated egos and no direction have little chance of making an impact today. Exacerbating this issue is the fact that many PD's and Managers are afraid to be heavy handed with "franchise" show talent.

New rule: Drive Time talent may generate millions but must be accountable to improve and evolve their shows for the success of the entire brand. Support them with content sources beyond radio staples. Get them in a car; play them a break as you sit in traffic. Let them hear themselves laugh at their own jokes and note that they are still talking after 5 miles. You’ll be amazed at how fast the good ones get it.

 

[taylorengineer]

If you get paid hundreds of thousands of dollars you have to suffer through the personal attacks from the wannabes and troll engineers! It's just part of the job. I would love to be the one waltzing that big paycheck to the bank every week while you guys tell me how ugly I look on the back of a MARTA bus.
I heard Howard Stern for the first time on Sirius with his Dolly Parton edit. (I wouldn't listen to it if you paid ME - who in the hell is actually paying for that garp??) If that's the best radio has to offer.....then we are doomed!
Why is there no Bob Hope or Jack Benny on the radio anymore? Can anyone make us laugh without the juvenile fixation on sex and body functions? You would think we all have IQ's of room temperature by the radio we are offered - I'm not asking for a Mensa meeting - just give me something that is really humorous. If I want T&A I will stop by the Clermont lounge on the way to work and discuss the big bang theory with Momma Luchi.
Knocking the Mess 'cause they ain't pretty is kind of petty......There have been many times I wish I could "un-posted" an insipid comment I have made here.

 

[DashRiprock]

Why is there no Bob Hope or Jack Benny on the radio anymore?

There is. XM 164, Radio Classics. I listen frequently, when I'm not listening to shows that cater to my juvenile fixation on sex and body functions. Yeah, C'mon!

PS - Going to the Clermont every now and then don't make you a bad person...

 

[taylorengineer]

Going to the Clermont doesn't make you a bad person.....it does make you a person of questionable taste. I used to go occasionally before my wife took my lunch money away.
I re-freakin' refuse to pay for raid-yo. I pay for TV and get nothing but heartache......