WKNR Programming Changes

[kosar]

The job of a good talk show host is to envoke emotion. Goldhammer is doing just that. You all seem to have a negative response to his content. I hate to tell you this, that's how it works. You'd be suprised how many liberals listen to Rush everyday.

The real issue here isn't his talent. TRBS has been finishing top 3 persons 25-54, the show is working.

Just be honest and straight up, you can't stand the fact someone had a connection to get a job (which happens everywhere btw) and works in radio while you sit on the sidelines.

Be fair, be honest, the kid ain't bad and it pi$$es you off.

Thanks for joining us, Ned.

All kidding aside, if Hammer is so great, why are they (supposedly/allegedly/hopefully) going to cut down on his role on RBS?

Because PEOPLE CAN'T STAND HIM!

Think about this way...Would any radio company not named Good Karma take a flier on him, much less let him get away with what Craig Karmazin and company allows him to?

As far as sports takes go, Cleveland radio has had "contrarian" types going back to Peter Brown during WKNR's infancy 20 years ago. It's when you compound that with Aaron being a genuinely annoying, spoiled, elitist brat that thinks his presence is a gift to "the great unwashed", that's where you get just pure out and out hatred from the listeners.

People want to listen to RBS for Rizzo, and Hammer (with Fedor along for the ride) used the fact he was teacher's pet to turn the show into his own little playground.

And pre August 29, 850 was the only game in town for local sports talk at that time of day, so it was RBS or nothing.

WKNR is obviously feeling the heat from The Fan, or else they wouldn't be going through all these changes.

The fact they're taking Ned off RBS, and cutting down on Hammer should tell you that 92.3 is putting a hurting on them, and that even the previously untouchable "Bratty Bunch" is feeling the effects.

CK wouldn't bump R & R to late evenings, bring in Bruce Hooley for PMD, and overhaul RBS if things were rainbows and lollipops at the Galleria.

Frame this post. Exactly right.

 

[kmt]

I don't really care about Aaron's dad, how he got the job, or even how many perceive his talent. (Is "slimy lawyer" an oxymoron?)

The bottom line is performance... meaning ratings. Whether people say they don't like him, etc. is inconsequential. Maybe tRBS is like an auto race, are listeners waiting for the accident? Major market controversial radio talent will tell you that people say they don't listen or that they hate the show, but they do listen.

I think is it safe to assume that Good Karma didn't like what they are seeing in the weekly numbers and have elected to make a change. That's a good thing... it keeps the market more competitive. (Would you rather them just sit around and do nothing?)

Without seeing any data I would GUESS that Adam the Bull is thrashing WKNR's PM Drive show. I'm still not convinced (without data) that the "talking heads" are strongly trouncing tRBS. (I like the "talking heads", it's just not overly compelling radio).

I don't know what happens to KNR's signal during late afternoon in the winters.. I would guess it gets bad since sunset is earlier. So it is probably wise for them to adjust the PMD show when the signal is still reasonable.

Now, if tRBS is doing poorly, as an ex-programmer I can point out about 25 things that could be done differently on that show in addition to adjustments to the sidekicks. So I don't think it is fair to dump the entire problem at Aaron's feet (whom I have never met).

I don't wish ill will towards anyone, I just want good, entertaining, informative, fun radio!

 

[kmt]

A couple more thoughts...

How hard is it going to be for Reghi and Roda to get pumped up to do a show at 9pm with WKNR's night pattern?

Could Good Karma's execution of the changes have been done better? Wouldn't it have been better for them to say, "hey, we are making a change in PMD, the new show starts now."

Instead they are giving the impression that they are shaking up their entire schedule, moving everything around... essentially outwardly acting as if they are in panic mode.

Afternoon drive shows change all the time, let's just not make it seem like a panic. Rizzo could have stayed in his 9-1 spot, the new pm drive show could have started, R&R would be on at 9pm. All very clean.

Finally, I think radio listeners are smart... I don't think they fall for this "we want your input" and we will create your radio station. That is juvenile, and very 70's - 80's. Today's radio listener is smart, and should be treated that way.

I do believe in counter programming... so what would YOU do with PMD to counter Bull/Fox? What would sports listeners prefer in that time slot? How would you adjust the program flow? Breaks, etc.?

WKNR has to step it up, both programming wise and professionalism.

They appear to be unprepared by the effects of 92.3 The Fan. How could that be? If they had been reading Nathan and OMW they had plenty of time to develop multiple strategies.

As we say, "Proper Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Production" aka "the 7 p's".

 

[kosar]

Listening this morning, tRBS is doing their "survey Wednesday". A guy calls and is answering the sports questions. Then they get to "should Aaron have a reduced role". This guy who called in is well-spoken, and says that Aaron can have his opinions, but the problem most people have is that he hangs up on people WAY TOO OFTEN and seems beneath him to take calls, AND THEM #GOLDWIMP RUNS HIM.

I honestly don't think they get it. Rizzo laughs about it, saying "you knew that was coming", and that stuck-up, whiny, POS goes on and on about how's that's his thing.

That has NOTHING to do with his "opinions", and balancing out the "homerism" is this town. That's being a complete and utter ASSHOLE, and people are SICK OF IT.

92.3 is saving sportstalk in this town.

 

[kmt]

"kosar" - I and probably most other listeners find "inside" talk annoying. Talking about GKB, Craig, Aaron, and back office stuff on the air is hack, not of interest to the listener. It's a SPORTS station, talk sports. There is plenty of other "lifestyle" and "entertaining" things to talk about to make the show interesting.

Kill the inside stuff and program to the audience, not the staff.

(The % of listeners versus those who call is VERY low, regular listeners do like to hear callers get hung up on, adds to the entertainment.)

 

[kosar]

(The % of listeners versus those who call is VERY low, regular listeners do like to hear callers get hung up on, adds to the entertainment.)

Wow, you lost me there.

I think the changes WKNR is making and the "reduced role" of #Goldwimp is proving otherwise.

 

[vjm]

I don't really care about Aaron's dad, how he got the job, or even how many perceive his talent. (Is "slimy lawyer" an oxymoron?)

The bottom line is performance... meaning ratings. Whether people say they don't like him, etc. is inconsequential. Maybe tRBS is like an auto race, are listeners waiting for the accident? Major market controversial radio talent will tell you that people say they don't listen or that they hate the show, but they do listen.

I think is it safe to assume that Good Karma didn't like what they are seeing in the weekly numbers and have elected to make a change. That's a good thing... it keeps the market more competitive. (Would you rather them just sit around and do nothing?)

Without seeing any data I would GUESS that Adam the Bull is thrashing WKNR's PM Drive show. I'm still not convinced (without data) that the "talking heads" are strongly trouncing tRBS. (I like the "talking heads", it's just not overly compelling radio).

I don't know what happens to KNR's signal during late afternoon in the winters.. I would guess it gets bad since sunset is earlier. So it is probably wise for them to adjust the PMD show when the signal is still reasonable.

Now, if tRBS is doing poorly, as an ex-programmer I can point out about 25 things that could be done differently on that show in addition to adjustments to the sidekicks. So I don't think it is fair to dump the entire problem at Aaron's feet (whom I have never met).

I don't wish ill will towards anyone, I just want good, entertaining, informative, fun radio!

An oxymoron is two words with opposite meanings that cancel each other out (i.e. bittersweet) "Slimy Lawyer" would be redundant.

And I don't have any hard numbers in front of me, but common horse sense would say that Talking Heads is taking away at least a decent chunk out of the RBS ratings, thus the need to tweak it.

Is it fair to dump ALL THE ILLS of RBS on Hammer? Maybe not.

But, he brings a lot of heat on himself with the way he carries himself on the air. He acts like daddy got him the job, and knows he can't be touched, thus he treats everyone else like dirt.

A lot of the blame for RBS' woes can be directly laid on Chris Fedor. He has an attitude of "if it comes out of my mouth, it's the undisputed gospel truth", and takes disagreements personally, as if to say "You're disagreeing WITH ME?!?! How dare you?!?!"

Add on top of that he's a disingenous front-runner who hitches his wagon to the flavor of the month, and you have RBS turn-off #2.

Past RBS members Josh Sabo and Jeff Thomas were popular because they were actually likable guys who helped take some of the Hammer taste out of people's mouths. When those 2 buffers left and were replaced with Fedor, it opened the flood gates for Hammer to take an even bigger role on the show, WITH adding Ned's garbage on top of it.

And the 8 million live reads doesn't help things, neither does 20 minute segments disguised as commercials for the "Free Food Friday" caterer of the week, or the Radio Disney bumper music, nor past elements like resident jock chaser/gossip queen Sabrina Parr (who recently left RBS to try out for the Cleveland Crush Lingerie Football League team).

 

[VODood]

It's like those who say "I can't stand/hate Lanigan. Did you hear what he said today?". Lanigan has had that his entire career in CLE. And what a career at that.

 

[CleveRadioInsider]

Aaron Goldhammer would not have a job at any radio station if not for his dad's connections with Karmazin's dad. That is the bottom line. Those surveys were bogus where Karmazin came on the air and said 95% of the people loved Aaron and Fedor. He knows now the gig is up with 92.3 the Fan being on the air.

 

[Tim]

It's "jig"...."the jig is up".

 

[Rusty Muck]

It's like those who say "I can't stand/hate Lanigan. Did you hear what he said today?". Lanigan has had that his entire career in CLE. And what a career at that.

I equate Lanigan to talk host legends like Neil Rogers (aka Neil GOD) in Miami, Neal Boortz in Atlanta, Bill Handel in LA, Bob Grant in New York, and Gary Dee. They were/are all irreplaceable personalities that clicked with the audience, and even if they were despised on a daily basis, they all commanded a high level of respect.

Aaron's main issue is he can't attain that level of respect even with the daily controversy. Whether it was by accident (i.e., he just can't grasp the "stage act vs. real life" concept that Gary Dee, Lanigan and Triv have mastered pretty flawlessly) or by intent, this is what Aaron has to deal with.

 

[Rusty Muck]

So it's come to this.

Rizz, Hammer and Fedor don't mention me by name per se, but this was a Jaz McKay "Gilly has NO TALENT" moment.

 

[former interm]

I don't care about any of the "negativity" by Fedor or Hammer. Back in the day Peter Brown was considered "negative" but he had a great show.

Fedor and Hammer are not good. Period....

Have you ever listened to them on the weekends. it's bad; have to turn it over to Sirius after 5 minutes.

It sounds like college radio with those two. It's just not professional with them

 

[vjm]

I don't care about any of the "negativity" by Fedor or Hammer. Back in the day Peter Brown was considered "negative" but he had a great show.

Fedor and Hammer are not good. Period....

Have you ever listened to them on the weekends. it's bad; have to turn it over to Sirius after 5 minutes.

It sounds like college radio with those two. It's just not professional with them

Peter Brown was actually a professional, unlike the Bratty Bunch.

We all know Aaron's story.

Fedor actually started at KNR in the tail end of the Salem era.

He began as an intern after graduating from Baldwin Wallace, and worked his way up to weekend producer.

When GKB took over, Chris became Kenny Roda's producer during his 6-9p show.

Then Craig put Fedor in the role of NFL Draft and fantasy football expert (KNR had previously had outside contractors in these roles, such as "The Fantasy Consaultant" Nathan Zegura, who is now seen on "Tailgate 19" on WOIO).

Chris started reading all of ESPN.com's analysis, and all of the sudden, he actually thought HE WAS an expert.

"C-Fed" (a name he gave himself BTW) then got promoted to the afternoon shift with Michael Reghi.

Add on top of this, GKB began cutting veteran KNR staffers such as Josh Sabo, Bob Karlovec, Jeff Thomas, and Darryl Ruiter to cut costs, and "Ned" jumped at the chance at more visibilty, as he's so in love with his own takes and his own voice, he was willing to work 20 hours a day for Ramen noodles just so KNR could be all Ned, all the time.

4 hours on RBS + coming back at night to frequently host "Gamenight" before "Xs and Os" expanded to 2 hours + working 4-5 hour weekend shifts as a host.

It was a win-win for all involved--GKB got a lot of cheap labor, and Ned got to play big time radio guy and hear his own voice.

I take that back...it wasn't win-win for all involved.

Us listeners had to pay a price.

 

[OhioMediaWatch]

So it's come to this.

Rizz, Hammer and Fedor don't mention me by name per se, but this was a Jaz McKay "Gilly has NO TALENT" moment.

Gotta say, Nathan...they had a lot of fun with it, and you gave them material, so what's their beef?

And it's all yours...I haven't heard anything about Hammer's role on tRBS, reduced or otherwise. But own it and be proud of it...in this entire thing, you've owned it from top to bottom.

Since there's been a bit of confusion about the blog, what it is and how it's made up among those at the Galleria, an OMW primer.

-----

Ohio Media Watch (OMW) started in August 2005, as a different platform for yours truly based on many years of posting here on this board (and others).

I joked at the last time that I became "the last human being on earth to blog", and joked that some dogs and cats beat me to it.

"I", for various personal and professional reasons, decline to sign my name to the blog. (I was "OldAkronite" here on R-I, referring to my former ties to the Akron market at the time.)

At some point, life intervened and at times, made it difficult for me to update the blog on a regular basis.

I don't remember how it happened, but the idea came to me to ask Nathan Obrai ("long-time OMW tipster/contributor") to fill-in for me as "Secondary Editorial Voice(tm)" during long hiatus periods.

In keeping with my own status, Nathan wasn't initially identified, but eventually did so here on this board and on Twitter of his own accord.

Unless he posts under the "Secondary" handle on the blog, all material you see on it comes from me. I also have sole control of the OMW Twitter/Facebook presence, and I'm the only one who can access E-mail (I forward to Nathan if needed).

What you see here by Nathan, or on the @myronfalwell account, is his own posting and reporting. In this recent case, I wasn't even around or "in pocket" for much of it. I finally got to Twitter in mid-afternoon via my smartphone.

While it may seem siily to have "@myronfalwell" reporting on Twitter what "sources" have told him...we've learned from the 92.3 The Fan reporting that he has pretty good sources, many of them dovetailing what we saw (facts wise) on this side of the blog.

So, at the heart, there are two people: me, and Nathan, who helps out and fills in for me if I'm not around.

----------

As far as reporting "obvious" known information - i.e. announcements made on air or elsewhere by station personnel, like one Craig Karmazin made (he's got another announcement of this whole thing on Friday)...

A) Neither Nathan or myself can listen to WKNR 24/7.
B) If we miss a 15 minute announcement that airs on the station's midday show and never gets repeated, we have lives.
C) In the case of R&R's move, on the most recent blog post, I did find and quote Kenny Roda's own tweet on the move.

-----------

Is what OMW does a bit silly? Well, Fedor spent most of that segment making fun of the emphasis of "media news reporting" (one could also skewer sports radio in that way, but that's another matter).

I've been doing this thing for 6 years now.

When a major local media event happens - a radio format change, a big new TV change, a morning show personality disappears - our numbers go up, a LOT.

When I'm logged into WordPress after such an item is up (most recently, the "92.3 The Fan" launch), I can pretty much see the traffic come in via a graph.

We got something on the order of 3,600 unique views that day, or so WordPress tells me. So, at least that many care enough about such reporting to click links from Twitter/FB, or do a Google search.

In the end, it means not a lot to me. It means some attention from people in my chosen field from time to time, but the number of readers who know me is roughly in single digits.

I make no money off the thing, and haven't tried. There are times I've considered packing it up and leaving the "keys" to Nathan.

But all in all, it's still a pleasurable experience for me...and though I AM NOT PERFECT, I really try to get things right.

 

[AllMightyVoice]

One thing is clear from reading all of this, there are some people on this board who REALLY have it out for KNR. As if 850 can do absolutely no right while The Fan walks on water. Thankful for some posters like kmt who seem to at least be able to look at things a bit objectively. Seems as though both stations do some things well, and both stations do some things not so well. Funny that people on here hate on Goldhammer because he was supposedly born with the silver microphone in his mouth, and then turn and hate on Fedor because he worked tirelessly to get where he is now.

That being said, from what I was able to hear, Rizz actually sounded very good doing the PM Drive slot solo the past three days. Doesn't seem like its an option for KNR to move him there full time though. Doing so would look like full on panic mode, blowing up what was your star show (TRBS) to immediately fire your biggest gun right at Bull & Fox. But boy would it make for some great afternoon talk radio here in Cleveland. Slip Brinda and Bruce to the midday slot to battle with Talking Heads. KNR wouldn't do that.....would they??

 

[Rusty Muck]

That being said, from what I was able to hear, Rizz actually sounded very good doing the PM Drive slot solo the past three days. Doesn't seem like its an option for KNR to move him there full time though. Doing so would look like full on panic mode, blowing up what was your star show (TRBS) to immediately fire your biggest gun right at Bull & Fox. But boy would it make for some great afternoon talk radio here in Cleveland. Slip Brinda and Bruce to the midday slot to battle with Talking Heads. KNR wouldn't do that.....would they??

You have to wonder if Rizz's afternoon experiment was a tryout to see if he had chemistry with current R&R holdovers Will Burge and Dave DeNatalie. Of course, Will has nothing to worry about because he's now the Browns beat reporter... but Dino is losing his current slot as afternoon update anchor (remember: he's still both a WKNR producer and an embed for Metro) in the process.

It was proven during a one-day only stunt that Rizz cannot sustain a four-hour-long solo show all by himself. The impending loss of Fedor AND 'reduced role' for Hammer means that someone will HAVE to be plugged in to replace them.

My educated guess: Dino becomes Rizz' new primary sidekick, and Hammer is reverted back to the initial role he had upon tRBS' launch... of simply the producer and minor sidekick, or now just the producer and update anchor, or all three. And Hammer will probably still be billed as a co-host just like Fedor will be with the "Hooley, Brinda and Fedor" show... but have a lesser role this time.

"Reduced role" also probably meant that he was told not to monopolize tRBS ever again - something that the presence of "consultants" allowed Craig K. to do as a CYA with Joe G. After all, he has others to pin the blame on for this "reduced role" now... basically passing the buck.

 

[Tim]

Unless we have some seriously deranged people on this board (always possible, I guess)....I don't think most people have "it in" for WKNR.

Anybody with even the slighest bit of media background or appreciation of what makes "good radio" realize WKNR has been drifting badly for several years.

Nobody I know of has said 923TheFan is a perfect sportstalk radio station. But, it's obvious they are highly professional, entertaining, and trying to get better and better.

And, now, at least the folks at WKNR are attempting to right the ship....and react quickly to 923The Fan. Good for WKNR. I wish them the best. They had it all to themselves for years, now there's serious, heavyweight competition.

Hey, it'd be great to have two excellent sportstalk stations here. This is great for us as sportstalk fans. I for one hope that happens!

P.S.: A side comment...I wonder if WTAM feels any of the heat? (obviously they are mostly talk, not sportstalk, but just wondering....).

 

[DToTheJ]

...Major market controversial radio talent will tell you that people say they don't listen or that they hate the show, but they do listen...

Case in point:

The average radio listener listens for eighteen minutes a day. The average Howard Stern fan listens for – are you ready for this? – an hour and twenty minutes.
How could this be?
Answer most commonly given: “I want to see what he’ll say next.”
All right, fine. But what about the people who hate Stern?
Good point. The average Stern hater listens for two and a half hours a day.
But… if they hate him, why do they listen?
Most common answer: “I want to see what he’ll say next.”

;D

 

[vjm]

One thing is clear from reading all of this, there are some people on this board who REALLY have it out for KNR. As if 850 can do absolutely no right while The Fan walks on water. Thankful for some posters like kmt who seem to at least be able to look at things a bit objectively. Seems as though both stations do some things well, and both stations do some things not so well. Funny that people on here hate on Goldhammer because he was supposedly born with the silver microphone in his mouth, and then turn and hate on Fedor because he worked tirelessly to get where he is now.

That being said, from what I was able to hear, Rizz actually sounded very good doing the PM Drive slot solo the past three days. Doesn't seem like its an option for KNR to move him there full time though. Doing so would look like full on panic mode, blowing up what was your star show (TRBS) to immediately fire your biggest gun right at Bull & Fox. But boy would it make for some great afternoon talk radio here in Cleveland. Slip Brinda and Bruce to the midday slot to battle with Talking Heads. KNR wouldn't do that.....would they??

I can't speak for evryone on the board, but I never knocked Fedor for coming up the ranks.

I make jokes about Chris being willing to "work 20 hours a day for Ramen noodles", but that's because GKB tried to make the veteran holdovers (Karlovec/Thomas/Ruiter/Sabo) do it, and they said no because they actually had lives and wanted to get paid.

Fedor jumped at the chance and took it...not knocking him for that, but the end result was simply lousy radio.

My beef with Ned is his cocky, front running, "smartest guy in the room" attitude, and that a lot of nights KNR had 6 hours worth of it (4 hours on RBS, and 2 hours by himself on Gamenight prior to the Xs and Os expansion). He's just not that good of an on-air personality.

Now as a producer/update guy, he's actually not that bad, but as a focal point of a show...ugh!

Hammer and Ned together on one show for 4 hours a day is just flat out too much, and it made RBS unbearable.

As I said, I can only speak for myself, but any criticism I have of him is as "Negative Ned" the radio personality, and not Chris Fedor the kid trying to make a buck.

Now Hammer is a whole new ball game...not only is he a horrible radio personality, but he IS ALSO a genuinely arrogant, spoiled little punk who thinks his fecal matter doesn't offend nasal sensibilities.

Think about this with Hammer...

He was horrible as assistant PD (or "@$$ PD" as Rizz called him), so they replaced him with Jason Gibbs. He was awful at running the board on RBS (Rizz was always riding him for poor sound levels and rudimentary things like that), thus Fedor was brought in for that role.

It really is almost like they know he's not worth the trouble, but because Poppa Joe helps pay the bills, they have to keep him around.

As far as Rizz in PMD goes, it'll never happen due to 850's nighttime signal (especially in the winter time).

His little foray in the slot this week probably was to see how well Tony, Dino, and Burge interacted for if/when the latter 2 get bumped up to RBS.