Boring Morning Radio.

For the first time in many years I switched the band to FM and tuned into MJ and Bubba this morning. I didnt make it 3 mins in to either show. Then I switched back to AM.
AM Tampa Bay and The Big show are like watching paint dry. But what choice do I have?
Everyday Mike Reeves plugs the show and talks about how its getting better everyday and no one has ever done a show like this before. Maybe there is a reason for that.
I need something thats going to fire me up in the morning.
Most listeners of AM talk radio fall somewhere on the right. Thats why right slanted shows do well and left slanted show do not. ie the failure of Air America. Its pretty clear what people want to hear.
I understand there are money issues and 820 can not afford a talent like Larsen. But there has to be a better choice.
I could care less what Reeves politics are. Hes a seasoned radio talent and im sure he could put togeather a show that people want to listen. What ever you want to call the Big Show the theme of the show is boring, bland, and dry.
Im not the best at articulating my opinion. But im trying to be constructive in my critisism and not be rude.
It seems like station management makes programming decisions without considering what people want to hear.
I understand radio is a business and theres a bottom line that has to be meet. I can get over the eye doctor show. I like Glen Beck so I just switch the dial. But I would like to stay loyal to 820. A year ago I never changed the dial. I think 2 hrs of Dennis Miller would be much better then Laura Ingrown and his show would be live in that time slot. I personally thought the Dennis Miller show was awesome.
So pretty please Big Show get your act togeather and give us a real show with some fire and not the fluff you've been producing.

Point taken! We'll try harder to please our one former listener. Ever tried to do radio yourself? Just wondering, you make it sound like it should be so easy a caveman could do it. I do lean to the right...always. Mike is a libral (spelling), but so was Larson. We just try and entertain. There is enough bashing and bad news to go around. Why should we have to go there? Is that what you really want to hear. I would rather laugh on my way to work and be informed than listen to something that just gets me depressed about the way things are in this world. Radio is an escape and theater of the mind. Nothing to be taken so serious about. And nothing personal.

Im not a former listener. I just switch back and fourth now. I would love to try and do radio. But im sure I would be horrible at it. The few times I have called in and got on the air, what I had to say sounded better in my head then what acctully came out of my mouth.
I like to be informed, entertained, and laugh. But the Big Show or any other show on in the Morning right now is just not cutting the mustard. At least for me.
Mark Larsen is a tough act to follow. You have inherited all of his "cherised and valued listeners". So maybe that would be an indication of the type of show we want to hear. I dont want you to try and totally copy his show. But take into account who your audience is.
The show seems to have alot of fluff talk that dosent inform me about anything.
I really had an issue with the high speed rail interview the Big Show did. Another listener wrote the show and there letter was read on the air and it sumed up what I felt.
If your going to interview people. Ask them hard questions put them on the spot and make them squirm.
You guy are the seasoned radio professionals not me. Im a listener, a fan, a customer of sorts. Just like at a resturaunt if I dont like the food I order im going to complain. How would it be if the chef asked me Ever tried to be a chef?

Well...number 1, you paid for the food, you have a right to complain. I have all the respect in the world for Mark. I've listen to him for years. As I've said before on this board, I used to listen to Mark on 1090 KAAY in Little Rock, after I got through with my afternoon shift at 56/WHBQ in Memphis. Keep in mind that even though Mike, Shayna, Roger and myself have worked in the same building from time to time, this is the first time that we have all worked on the same show. And we have only been doing this type of show for 5 weeks. Give us some time to gel. Mark was and still is a one man radio wrecking machine on morning radio. I ran his board for his last week at 820 and was just amazed at how he did it. He's been doing talk radio for 20 years. We've been doing it for 5 weeks. Mornings we've been doing for 20 years and 35 years on the air for me. As I said, give us some time to get it right. I know that we'll make mistakes and stubble from time to time, but it's all part of the learning to walk a different walk. As for the high speed rail. I'm against it and I said so. I told him that I would never use it. $10 per person to go to Orlando is far to high a price. Plus when I get there I have to rent a car. Believe me, I ask him the hard questions and yes I did make him sweat about it. I just hope that you'll give us the time to get it right that you gave all the other people that you named in your earlier post. They all had to start somewhere. We're just starting at 820 and we've got a few more tricks up our sleaves to pull before it's over and I don't think you're going to want to miss them. I look forward to talking to you and having you as a listener and a fan. If we can make you smile just once a day, our job is done. That's the way I see it.

To give you some props. I really enjoyed the interview you did with the guy who got you in to radio. I like inside stories about celeberties of the past like Elvis. Thats one of the reasons I like Dennis Miller's show so much.

[EDIT-Rickrolling]

That interview was my idea, because George had just written his first book on Elvis. Geroge was best man at my wedding 25 years ago and was at Elvis wedding too and yeah, he did get me into this crazy business. Glad you like the interview, I think you would love the book. it has alot of inside stuff about Elvis that has never ever been brought up, and it's all good. George would never say anything bad about his best friend. Again, thanks for the comments and I hope you'll continue to listen and give us a chance.

Android181 said:

[EDIT-Rickrolling]

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Wow, now that's a first!

I would like to interject here with my thoughts. AM radio has become a destination band for those that like to hear conservative talk. So thats the way to go, at least if the goal is ratings as opposed to brokered product selling. A show relying on humor and funny non-political bits is probably best suited for FM. Liberal talk just doesn't make it, not because there are no libs out there, but they just arent as interested in listening to talk radio. The conservative mindset is much more interested in hearing thought like theirs- and they think about politics and issues when sitting and staring into space- its radio that fits the lifestyle. The liberal mindset often doesn't really think much about politics- unless its brought to their attention, so the desire to tune in to hear their sentiments broadcast on the airwaves just isnt there. Those that vote democrat are often poor, and are more involved with survival and "feeling good", - therefore seeking out liberal radio isnt even a passing thought.
Conservative minded folks like myself, are confident that our ideas are beneficial to all, and we want to perpetuate those ideas and discuss them. We love to make fun of those that pander and purchase votes with handouts, because it really does drive us nuts. We like to know somebody else out there feels the same way.
Good luck with that BIG SHOW, and yes, being somewhat familiar with putting a show together, 5 weeks definitely is not enough time to have discovered the magic formula and format yet. Without an opinionated conservative leading the way though, it may be a tough sell.
Just all my humble opinion

It appears that Android181 and JerkyBoy33707 are part of the P1 WWBA audience and are evidence for the contention that it's the "red meat" outlet for the hardcore conservatives who think 970 is too mainstream. I have a feeling they won't be happy until 820 goes back to 24-7 Obama-reaming. Have to take a moment to address some of the misconceptions they repeat and attempt to perpetuate:

Several progressive talk radio shows are alive and well in syndication. You just don't hear them in Tampa. Which is ironic because -- and shame on someone with 33707 in his handle who doesn't realize this -- Tampa is a historic spawning ground for liberal hosts and liberal talk radio. Bob Lassiter is the best example, but Lionel, Jay Marvin, Harrison (Harry Dangler, Carroll Sudler, formerly of KTLK), Jon Grayson, and Nicole Sandler all have career roots here.

Air America failed because of mismanagement and the fact that it didn't own stations as Salem and Clear Channel (parent of Premiere) do. There is also a major groupthink in talk radio management. Phil Boyce, Randy Michaels, Gabe Hobbs, Daryl Parks and Ken Charles (just to name a few current and recent giants in the field) are anything but liberals. Conservative media report and celebrate the death of liberal stations yet conservative stations fail regularly. WAMT in Orlando -- sister of 820 -- bailed out and went to sports in Spanish. WROW -- Glenn Beck's affil in Albany NY -- just flipped to a music format. There does seem to be a limit to how much conservative radio a market can support. 820 and 860 have never been anything but marginal players in this market. Maybe the market for conservative talk radio is just tapped out in this town? That would explain 820 trying to broaden its audience, but it's clear the red-meat crowd will never accept that and so this experiment will fail. Android wants "Big Show" to "get its act together" -- which to him means the hosts (at least Reeves) not being themselves and just parroting whatever right-wing boilerplate the true-believers want to hear. That's pandering, it's not genuine, but it's definitely an "Act." You'd be surprised to find how many of your beloved conservative hosts are faking it in just that way.

There are a lot of folks like JerkyBoy who attempt to come up with broad-brush, one-size-fits-all explanations after-the-fact about conservative talk vs. liberal talk. Conservatives are so anxious to talk down liberal talk that their "explanations" are often contradictory. Example: "Liberal shows are too serious and don't have any fun or entertainment." "Liberal shows spend too much time being funny and aren't serious enough about the issues." Both those explanations I have seen from "pundits" on the right, and they CONTRADICT each other! Jerky opines that liberal talk doesn't work because liberals are poor -- which contradicts the other conservative position that would-be liberals are all rich Hollywood types who think radio is passe. This is sort of like all the people who said the Bucs coulen't win on the West Coast or couldn't win when the temperature was below 43 degrees -- until they did.

Right now AM radio is two things as far as successful formats: conservative talk and sports. There's a limit to how many of each a market can support, and since each format has three, that's probably too many for Tampa. The medium has to develop OTHER audiences if it is to survive (and a lot of people think it won't). AM doesn't have to serve only those two audiences -- it can do anything that isn't music -- but developing liberal talk and other potential formats into successful alternatives is darned near impossible when there are so many people outside and INSIDE the industry determined to naysay it into oblivion and come up with any explanation to support an ideology rather than what makes good talk radio (which didn't used to be judged solely on political slant).

Blame the failure of Air America and liberal talk radio on anything you want. The fact is radio needs listeners. The huge majority of those who vote that way are not very well off financially- many of them voluntarily. They are worried about the moment and collecting whatever they can for free. Not concerned with making things better for society as a whole , not concerned with job creation/business growth. Much of conservative talk radio deals with growing the economy. Radio does nothing for the dependent class- they dont want to hear about becoming self reliant. Even the most charismatic entertainer isnt going to bring in listeners who dont give a crap about anything. As for the rich snobby libs? they are by far the minority group of Dem voters, and many are interested in keeping the dependent classes dependent, disguising it as a "helping hand". Smedge talks a big game but doesn't really know much

smedge2006 said:

Several progressive talk radio shows are alive and well in syndication. You just don't hear them in Tampa... WROW -- Glenn Beck's affil in Albany NY -- just flipped to a music format...

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And many of the comments on a Times-Union story about the format change are suggesting that it was a "government job," in that Beck and other right-wing talkers make controversial comments about the Obama administration. You should read it, it's hilarious:
http://blog.timesunion.com/business/wrow-to-abandons-talk-radio-programming/17730

Blame the failure of Air America and liberal talk radio on anything you want. The fact is radio needs listeners. The huge majority of those who vote that way are not very well off financially- many of them voluntarily. They are worried about the moment and collecting whatever they can for free. Not concerned with making things better for society as a whole , not concerned with job creation/business growth. Much of conservative talk radio deals with growing the economy. Radio does nothing for the dependent class- they dont want to hear about becoming self reliant. Even the most charismatic entertainer isnt going to bring in listeners who dont give a crap about anything. As for the rich snobby libs? they are by far the minority group of Dem voters, and many are interested in keeping the dependent classes dependent, disguising it as a "helping hand". Smedge talks a big game but doesn't really know much

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Putting aside all the ideological boilerplate, many have suggested that the "poor" are the only economic group that will continue to listen to radio AT ALL, as those with more $ turn to IPods, IPads, and any other new technology they can afford.

And, by the way, I think you're right. The Big Show will probably fail because the few people who listen to 820 are the true-believer tea party types. The fact that it's spilling whatever it grows into the Eye Doctor show will kill any benefit for the station anyway. But you won't get your conservative fire-up show in the morning because the station can't afford it. You'll get Mancow live (at best) or some brokered show because they so desperately need revenue that they have been completely unable to generate with all-conservative, all-day.

Yes, radio needs listeners -- and it has already tapped out the conservative market, I contend, that's why 820 and 860 have been unable to grow and 970 is stuck right where it is. Otherwise, JB, keep it up: TIO is waiting.

Yes I also believe the market is somewhat tapped out. I did like a firey Mark Larsen though. He told it the way it was and I think the guy is trustworthy. I wouldnt mind listening to brokered radio if it were genuine opinion and not trying to sell me some herbs, vitamins, or glucosamine. I've considered it myself just because I love radio and would try to make it into a business of selling me and not a "product". And how about THE GOLD SHOW. HAHAHAH. Funny stuff. WWBA has taken qute a fall, but I guess its understandable with the market the way it is.

The Gold show's been off the air for a month...just thought you might like to know what' really happening.

I don't want to get kicked outside again, but I worked with people living below the poverty level for 37 years and I'll debate any "conservative' talkin about self-reliance, but we would be kicked outside . I am your standard issue knee-jerk Liberal and I get my Liberal fix from TV. I like oldies on the radio cause it reminds me of the Great Society when Liberals got things done. Mason would probably cringe if he knew I listened.

Honesty though....someone at Clear Channel has to do something with 570 WHNZ. That station is run by Gordon Byrd and how many times can you listen to the A/C report or the Herbal Doctor. Granted these people pay to be on the air for their time slot, but it certainly cannot outweigh that station being off the air. It has to be a financial disgrace and liability to Clear Channel.

Pursuit Electronics said:

Honesty though....someone at Clear Channel has to do something with 570 WHNZ. That station is run by Gordon Byrd and how many times can you listen to the A/C report or the Herbal Doctor. Granted these people pay to be on the air for their time slot, but it certainly cannot outweigh that station being off the air. It has to be a financial disgrace and liability to Clear Channel.

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570 is owned by Salem.

Pursuit Electronics said:

Honesty though....someone at Clear Channel has to do something with 570 WHNZ. That station is run by Gordon Byrd and how many times can you listen to the A/C report or the Herbal Doctor. Granted these people pay to be on the air for their time slot, but it certainly cannot outweigh that station being off the air. It has to be a financial disgrace and liability to Clear Channel.

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You haven't turned your radio on in awhile, I reckon.

There's always the Dan Sileo Show!

druidhillsradio said:

There's always the Dan Sileo Show!

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Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!