I was being serious (sort of). Every time any of us who believes in giving the JACK/V.H. format a fair chance at success, every sour grapes bitter-beer-face who never really made it in radio (or who's best days are behind them) hammers us relentlessly.
And what REALLY pisses them off is that, except for a few markets, the JACK-type stations are doing really well very quickly. "It's a fad" or "they don't have jocks" or "they don't take requests" or some other sophomoric reason they have to slam us who see why it's working- it gets old. Radio people are incessant about not being restricted into a creative box but when something that's outside their small circle of knowledge hits the air (and WORKS), they grapple to find reasons to hate it. You hate Jack-fine, move on. But get over it and allow the rest of us to debate it's virtues and shortfalls intelligently without having to muck through all the whining and bitching. If the Jack haters put as much time and effort into their radio shows maybe they wouldn't be so frustrated and critical.
And we wonder why radio's in the state it's in.
>
> To get a little serious, I think there is one group we
> haven't covered who isn't enamored with Jack--the type who
> think that Jim Ladd (or Vin Scelesa or whatever other free
> form jocks are still out there) is the king and that Jack is
> too hit-oriented and is not committed to bringing to
> listeners all of the wonderful music that is out there
> that's being constricted by the suits, etc., etc. There's a
> guy on a TV board I frequent who likes to take shots at LA
> Jack for that reason (that and the lack of DJs or "local
> involvement").
>
> On the other hand, there is a reason why Allen Shaw dropped
> "free form" radio on the ABC-owned FMs all those years ago
> and created AOR--because the problem with "free form" is
> that there were and are an extremely few DJs out there who
> could do it with taste and showmanship and with the knack
> and instincts to get the audience interested in the music
> they're playing--and outside of Ladd and Scelesa (and the
> deceased John Peel of the BBC), I can't think of too many
> others. Most of the "free-form" jocks back then were
> druggies playing mostly absolute crap because it was
> "non-commercial" (Exhibit A, although there are those who'll
> argue with me--that late 60s FM hit the long version of
> "In-a-Gadda-da-Vida").
>
> And in a devalued personality market, I'd rather have Howard
> Cogan sweepers than an inept liner card reader or a pre-fab
> "wacky" morning team and their lame prep service material
> any day.
>