  DON'T FORGET TO "LIKE" BEE-OTCH OF THE DAY ON FACEBOOK!  Name: terrestrial radio Age: 91 Occupation: purveyors of broadcast media Last Seen: everywhere Bee-otched For: making the Detroit radio dial even dumber --- Sometimes, I have to thank the good lord that I never worked in radio. Especially in Detroit. In recent weeks, the Detroit radio dial has seen lots of activity, with everything from long-time morning man Jim Harper retiring from Magic 105.1 to WGPR flipping from Adult R&B to ghetto music. But things are getting worse. Last week, good 'ol Clear Channel decided to flip 106.7 once again from Rhythmic AC "The Beat" to Classic Rock as "106.7 The D", named after Detroit's nickname of the moment. The station's playlist mostly consistsof tunes from the mid-70's to the early 90's, and it's aimed at those who grew up listening to rock radio in the 80's. Core artists include Pink Floyd, AC/DC, Journey, REO Speedwagon and Boston. This is the fifth format flip for 106.7 in a decade, and its third rock-based format after the failures of Alice 106.7 (Rock AC) and 106.7 The Drive (Classic Rock with a few recurrents). Previously, it was the legendary WWWW "W4" Country station, which was a success for over 20 years. But stupid Clear Channel thought that it wasn't making enough money, and flipped it to Alice. Stupid, stupid, stupid, indeed. Yes, and let's not forget that 106.7 tried Country once more as "The Fox", which had no real jocks and was basically tighter than a Jewish banker budgetwise. Sadly, The Beat did show promise and was probably its most-acclaimed format since W4 died its untimely death in 2000. But Clear Channel felt that with CHR Channel 9-5-5 and Hot AC Fresh 100.3 under its belt, that their female audience was overserved. So, The Beat went bye-bye and The D was born. Since The D's birth last Friday, WRIF has apparently responded by cutting way back on its current product and is in many cases mimicking some of The D's playlist. Right now, Detroit has several stations that play a good deal of classic rock, including WCSX and Doug 93.1. And yes, there's a rumor that The D - which currently is jockless - might be getting a very well-known name to jump on board: Arthur Penhallow. Yep! The Grand Poobah hasn't been heard in the Motor City in quite some time after a contract dispute at WRIF knocked him off the air. Problem is, sadly, is that Arthur P. is in his 60's! Shouldn't he STAY retired? I mean, personally, when he parted ways with WRIF, he should have called it good. His best days are behind him. But, I would imagine that Clear Channel WOULD be wanting to pay him some good $$$ if he were to jump on board at The D. Pathetic, since already-cash-strapped CC just recently canned hundreds of jocks in cost-cutting measures. IMO, I wouldn't doubt it if Arthur would be the ONLY live jock on The D, especially if they use voicetracked jocks and their Premium Choice systems to program the station for their other dayparts. Even worse, Clear Channel's not the only radio company cutting corners. With Cumulus' recent purchase of Citadel Media - including Detroit stations WJR, Doug FM and WDVD - the heads are rolling there, sadly and truthfully. Some folks at WJR have been let go, and WDVD's night and overnight jocks - Scott Vertical and Jeanmarie Pavol - have been pinkslipped. Vertical had been with WDVD since their alternative "Planet 96.3" days in the 1990's. The sole remaining jock from The Planet's heyday still with WDVD is Allison Martinek, who co-hosts the station's morning show. Now, rumor has it that WDVD - like many other Cumulus stations - might be carrying Billy Bush's nighttime show. The show is cheap to carry - probably on a barter basis - and hey! Since the Dickey family's in bed with the Bushes, it's a perfect fit. Sadly, with big companies taking over radio these days, the rules are simple: pander to an audience that's eligible to be students of the Rachelle Consiglio-Wilkos School of Idioticism and you'll go far. Detroit's got a lot of thugs of all colors running up and down 8 Mile, so it's a win-win. I feel sorry for ANY good jock that had to work for either Clear Channel or Cumulus and has been shown the door, especially in these hard times. It's in the end that we've realized that we're all in the same boat, and even with people like me abandoning terrestrial radio a long time ago, they're making even worse mistakes than they were when I joined the satellite radio revolution seven years ago. Thanks, but Sal and Richard Swap Shop calls are way more funnier than Billy Bush trying to pander to anybody with an IQ perfect for the short bus. "BARRRRT! I've got a Tom Seaver, and it smells like fish, 'cause it was stuck in my wife's beaver...." --- Got a Bee-otch to nominate? E-mail us @ chuck69dotcom@gmail.com. All suggestions (except for me) are welcome! Bee-otch of the Day is a production of Chuck69.com, Grand Rapids' site for Stern, politics and more!     |
Monday, November 7, 2011
11.7.11 Bee-otch of the Day: terrestrial radio
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