Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Random Items of an Interesting Nature

Some stuff that's been kicking around our heads, and we hope we remembered right at the keyboard tonight:

SPRINGER GONE?: We've been expressing doubt about the status of Air America Radio-WSAI/1360 Cincinnati host Jerry Springer's mid-morning talk show, even before Clear Channel moved it and the liberal talk format from 50,000 watt powerhouse WCKY/1530 a while back.

Is "Springer on the Radio" history, soon?

A message board post brought this Boston Globe profile of Air America evening host (co-host?) Sam Seder to our attention. Seder's been hosting AAR's "Majority Report" with comedienne Janeane Garofolo since the liberal talk network started, but Garofolo is now either gone, or not showing up regularly, or...who knows?

Here's the line that caught our eye in the Globe profile:

Most listeners had never heard of Seder, whose ``Majority Report" was promoted this week to the midmorning slot -- 9 a.m. to noon -- on more than 70 stations across the country, including New York and Los Angeles.

9 AM to noon? Hey, that's Jerry Springer's time slot!

You see no sign of this on Air America's own website, which still lists "Majority Report" (with both hosts) 7-10 PM Eastern, and which still links to "Springer on the Radio" and its own site. And Springer co-host Jene Galvin isn't whistling in the radio graveyard there...at least now...

Springer's radio show is but a memory for most Northeast Ohio radio listeners, as it hasn't been heard here since WTAM/1100 dumped it in Cleveland a ways back - filling the time slot with local conservative host Bob Frantz.

"Majority Report" has never been heard live on Clear Channel liberal talk WARF/1350 Akron, which carries a delayed airing of AAR's Randi Rhodes in that time slot. But in a piece of what must be considered trivia by now, Media-Com's WJMP/1520 Kent-Akron-Cleveland-Mars-Jupiter aired it in place of Springer's show in the daytimer's brief time as an AAR affiliate...

CLEVELAND EMMYS: A regular OMW reader sends us word of the upcoming 37th Cleveland Emmy Awards, hosted by the Cleveland regional chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. More at the local NATAS chapter's website.

The September 9th event at Westlake's LaCentre Conference and Banquet Facility features former Cleveland TV news names Martin Savidge and Kelly O'Donnell as hosts - who are both toiling in the world of network TV news these days.

The group will recognize Cleveland TV stations for their combined efforts to raise money for victims of the Asian tsunami and of Hurricane Katrina.

The Emmy Awards presentation also features the Silver Circle awards. This year, WTAM/1100 sportscaster/morning co-host Casey Coleman will be honored, along with long-time Indianapolis TV anchor Mike Ahern. (The Cleveland regional chapter of NATAS includes the Indianapolis market.)

And as far as we know, Casey will be on the sidelines for the Browns Radio Network the following day, September 10th, as the Browns open up the regular season against Reggie Bush and the New Orleans Saints...

NO AKRON/CANTON NEWS ON EX-ADELPHIA, YET: Time Warner Cable "Akron/Canton News" anchor-WKYC/3 Akron/Canton bureau chief Eric Mansfield talks about the upcoming addition of the local newscast to the Time Warner systems formerly owned by Adelphia.

On his "DiscoverNEO" blog, Mansfield doesn't have any news for those of us in Former Adelphia Land, yet, other than to ensure us that the newscast will be seen on the ex-Adelphia system at some point in the future.

Our message to TWC - we can't figure out what is preventing you from offering "Akron/Canton News" on the former Adelphia system...at very least, on your newly repopulated "On Demand" system, which saw added TWC content from day one of the takeover...

Mansfield also has some "inside" tidbits on the recent massive job loss in the Akron Beacon Journal's newsroom.

And he makes a very good point - don't expect a number of those losing their jobs to end up at the competing Cleveland Plain Dealer. That newspaper has also had to pull back in the job department, mostly by offering early buyouts to workers to cut costs.

Our advice to the Beacon staffers? Get out of Dodge, or rather, Northeast Ohio...at least if you want to continue working in the newspaper business. The combination of the area's lagging economy and the newspaper industry's declining fortunes has borne fruit here...hmm, sounds like radio, doesn't it?

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Not surprising on Springer. Clear Channel has been trying to kill Air America on all its stations. I have heard they charge more money to advertisers vs. the neocon stations.

With corporate control of the media and santiation of content, I suspect liberal thought will result in people getting shot in the back of the head in the middle of the night in the next decade or so.

Anonymous said...

That post must be a joke.

Anonymous said...

One can only hope it was..

Anonymous said...

The basic fact is that Liberal talk radio doesn't work in most markets. How many times have we seen stations try and fail with an all liberal talk format? Quit blaming the failure of liberal talk radio on advertisers charging more. The fact is it is BORING.