Shop amazon.com via these links, pay the regular low price, and support DCRTV too: Radios - TVs - Electronics - XM Gear - Top DVDs - Radio Books

Current Mailbag - Mailbag Archive Index - DCRTV Front Page - Support DCRTV DCRTV Mailbag - November 30 to December 3, 2006 Latest messages listed first..... \/ December 3 Messages \/ DAVE I thought you saved those long-winded diatribes for your RANT'S!!!!!! Oh well, I guess I kinda agree!!! WERE'S CHRISTMAS AT K-MART when I need it!!!! RRRROOOOOOOOOTTTTTTTTTTBOYSLIM!!!! AMF (12/3/06) Up here, north of the Mason-Dixon live, The Redskins game was shown on Fox 43. I have no answer about D&M on WOYK. I've never listened. JohnnuinHanover,Pa. (12/3/06) Does any know if Former (9 weather guy Bill Kimall ever landed another gig after the news of his sex scandal broke? He was OIK in my book around here. Rusty Gibson (B/T/W Lisa Baden is a Hottie!) (12/3/06) Dave's response: I believe Bill Kamal's still in a Massachusetts federal lockup. Oik oik..... I love those who confuse the postings in the Mailbag with the content on the front page of DCRTV. It continues to amaze me the folks whose only, or best contribution to the Mailbag is informing us that they don't like the volume of posts on a particular subject, or a matter in which they have no interest. Strangely, most of these same folks never offer us anything new to digest, or comment on what interests them. These types prefer to spend their time telling others that their interests are worthless, instead of revealing their own interests, if they indeed have any. The Mailbag is a catch-all grab bag, and for the most part seems uncensored and unedited. I personally couldn't give a rip about MASN, WMAL,CC, or some plot of land where radio towers are located, but I realize some folks do....so I scroll past, or casually skim...often learning a thing or two in the process. Kinda like radio, don't like the station...spin the dial! Subjects die a natural death in the mailbag when topics fail to generate further interest,speculation, or a matter is resolved. Ongoing squabbles, dialogue, speculation, or commentary is a sign of people's interest, even though it may not interest you. The only person with discretion in matter is the webmaster, and he would be a fool to start culling,editing,or deleting posts too much as it's against his own interest to do so. And besides all that...have you noticed no one pays attention anyhow, so why bother? We get it..too much Don & Mike for some folks...click,click,click...scroll on down, I do it all the time. I would rather read a funny Borat take on Don & Mike, than some douche informing us that he has had enough of any given subject. And since everyone is a critic on the Internet, we will hear about D&M until their fans and critics tire, and subsequently we will hear from those with no passion and nothing to say, so they can bellyache about too much of this or too of much that in the Mailbag. The reality is the Mailbag would be pretty sparse if all the naysayers had their way. (12/3/06) It does make since that Don and Mike can't disclose or talk about what is going on with CBS radio. My theory is that new shows will air after yet a full month and a half more of best of. Is WARW a option, possibly if Don and Mike can run AM Drive. Just think of the potential for now. Don and Mike, Elliot, Opie and Anthony, Donnie Simpson, Tom Joyner, Doug Banks, Russ Parr and WTOP fighting it out to see who dominates AM Drive in DC. Hard choices, but WTOP, Don and Mike and Opie and Anthony I think would go 1, 2, and 3 for the race. (12/3/06) Stop listening to 100.3 FM? Did that long ago. Is that signal still on? That's a Cheap Channel signal. Must be automated/voice tracked from Siberia. (12/3/06) Skins were not on Baltimore TV today on either FOX45 or CBS13. I should know, I always watch to root against them with all those other Ravens fans from our phone booth! HAHA! I imagine this is because the playoff hunt is on and there were several AFC vs. NFC matchups today that had playoff implications for the Ravens, unlike the Skins game, which has no implications on anything other than stupid peoples' pocketbooks. Or was some arcane NFL TV rule at play here? (12/3/06) DAVE, where'z the dude w/no ravens /skins coverage???? I wanna beee under the rock that he's..under.. He didn't say 1 thing @ D&M............. SKINS LOST/SUCK...... RAVENS lost on thursday.. WHERE U ATTT!!!!!!!!!! AMF FROM DELMARA................ (12/3/06) What a strange NFL TV weekend. No Baltimore Ravens OR Washington Redskins on Sunday TV! UNBELIEVABLE! I feel like I'm on vacation. I just wish I really were. :-) (12/3/06) Dave's response: I caught the Skins on Fox 5. You didn't miss much. Bad team. Bad radio deal..... Hey DCRTV Dave have you ever watched "French in Action" shown with great regularity on NVCC (tinker toy tech) cable tv channel. The actress Varleri Allen is oh so HOT! Ow,la la! She's definitely loaded for bear. Does anyone know if she ever made any movies?.......the thing about the GMU and NVCC channels on Cox cable is the amount of original programming on both has declined considerably since they first started...seems to me even less courses on TV offered ........Johnny Holiday was doing the play by play of the Loyola (of Balt.) basketball game on MASN Saturday afternoon. Billy Hahn was doing the color. Do you think Gary Williams would rehire Hahn after the problems Mr. Hahn encountered at his last head coaching job? Loyola is almost UMCP north with Jimmy Patsos as head coach and asst Kovarik and Terrell Stokes and old Greg Manning's son( remember when Manning handled the color with Holiday on Terp broadcasts) is on the team. And some numbnuts said Chris Knoche was a failed coach at American University but imo you had a new school president who wanted to make his mark so he canned Knoche. Don't think that school president is at American anymore and Mr. Knoche does just fine as color man on Terp broadcasts......how did Ms. Rehm do with her Pioneer Aviation stock? Frankly, I could care less about Ms. Rehm's stock portfolio. Hey lots o' folks missed that boat. What I'd be curious is what Ms. Rehm made at WAMU and her staff and etc. for the rest of staff. heck I'd be curious to find out what they do make at public radio stations, especially when all these slackers say there's no room for music on public radio station's!....and finally Hey Dave( not DCRTV DAVE I'm talking about somebody else) can't think of anything else to say but cliched Don and Mike post. Practicing the old ennui, I see. but can't think of anything to post yourself."YAWN".............Bill Smith....bite me....poor robbay what will he do (12/3/06) Hello...my name Borat. I visit now your country, find very interested in voices in box from "Mike" and "Don". Extremely make me laugh like sick donkey when mention joke of penis....one time, so much laugh, make tear in eye and small splash of ludka in underpants. Ask your kind reportage, where voices go? I twist knob many many times...only find Gopher of Make Sexy Time Ship....gopher not so funny. What happening? In my country, man like Don have Sony clock radio, new plow and many young boys in harem. Man like Mike...not so many. One...maybe two. Please to inform...why away go voices? Where to go? (12/3/06) The Skins lose again....damn you WBIG 100.3! Damn you! -Ted in Fairfax (12/3/06) Has anyone else lost MTV2 in the past couple of weeks? When did Comcrap announce that they were getting rid of MTV2 on analog channel 58 in PG? So not only did we have to pay an extra $2 for MASN, but after that we lose another channel. Now channels 25 and 58 are static. (Lee in Forestville) (12/3/06) Oh, yes, Don and Mike, I think I've heard of them. Don't they have a show on ESPN? No wait, that's Mike and Mike! (12/3/06) My hopes for a revamped HFS come January 2007: Kirk and Mark 5 AM - 10 AM, Ed Norris Show 10 AM - 2 PM, Penn Jillette 2 PM - 3 PM (good show, concentrated into an hour so it dosn't get boring), and music the rest of the afternoon into the night and early mornings. Start having some music oriented specialty shows ala Transmissions, the Sunday night Reggae Sunsplash, indy-centric show of some sort, HFS Locals Only, and some sort of show that highlighted live shows ala the HFStival and other live events. Can Terps sports, can Ravens programming since there are 3 other stations doing some sort of Ravens programming, can the Saturday morning car talk show (ewwe, who the hell likes listening to this show anyways ?) can Don and Mike, and can the Junkies. As long as HFS keeps it's revamped playlist of new and old that's focused and non active rock the Baltimore numbers on a station with that lineup would be decent not only with the 12+ crowd but the 25 - 55 crowd as well. Problem is that people just don't know what to call HFS anymore. HFS needs to predominatly be an alternative rock station with an early daytime talk schedule. HFS-HD2 is a great idea, but who the hell has an HD Radio and who the hell knows what one is outside the industry ? Untill the userbase exponentially increases, 99.9999 percent still come to 105.7 for HFS music. When the userbase does increase, than I don't see a problem with HFS pulling an MTV and introducing a revamped HFS2 with all music, all the time and moving back to more talk and sports on 105.7. Problem now is that on 105.7 I never, ever, EVER hear commercials for HFS2. Who's gonna go out and buy an expensive radio without knowing what programming choices are available. HD Radio: discover what ? KeninEaston (12/3/06) gonna miss don & mike in york pa. heard a promo about the clowns being gone and no more endless best of show. (12/3/06) Dave's response: Have D&M lost their York station? Can anyone confirm? D&M ***YAWN*** Same yawn as the past 20 years...DAVE (12/3/06) Rep. Ernest Istook (R-OK) subbed for Jerry Klein today on WMAL. Klein is resting after having more complications regarding his back. Get well soon! -Silvie in Waldorf- (12/3/06) my hopes for Don and Mike are that they stay off the air until 2007. Come back in January with a revamped line up on WJFK in DC. O&A LIVE from NYC in morning 6 to 9, Don and Mike LIVE from DC 9 to 12, Ron and Fez LIVE from NYC 12 to 3, Hideout LIVE from DC 3 to 7 and the Junkies live from DC 7 to 11. A solid, all live, line up for the station means solid ratings for everyone, Hideout back on the air, Ron and Fez back on terrestrial radio and the Radio Gods with some solid shows around them. WJFK should be back on top and Don and Mike allong with them. Chris (12/3/06) Hello fellow radio enthusiasts! I am wondering if anyone has any information on a show called The Don and Mike Show? It seems that Don and Mike have not been live on the air for more than a week now. Does anyone know if Don and Mike are on vacation? When will we hear Don and Mike back on live? I for one would like to know what's up with Don and Mike. Are there any Don and Mike listeners here? Thanks for anything you can tell me about Don and Mike. (12/3/06) Dave's response: Never heard of 'em. No listeners here..... I hope Donald and Michael come back soon! (12/3/06) any other wizard fans finding Steve Buckhantz a little irritating, maybe a little arrogant in a sort of "shut up Phil, im right and youre wrong?" also, trying to watch Bryant Gumbel on NFL Network the other night...could he be any more boring? he just sounds so unenthusiastic in voice like he doesn't even want to be there! (12/3/06) Unfortunately webmaster Dave doesn't seem to understand that the reason his number of hits are up substantially this month is that people are clicking in to see whats happening in the real radio world. For example, the cuts your mailbaggers have been reporting are coming to CC. Dave, the last month of mailbag has been like a high cumeing radio station with a low TSL. People keep punching in hoping to get something, but leave soon when they don't get it. Enough with the DMRTV PLEASE! I lived in that area for 9 years and never once listened to Don and Mike and could give a shit less what happens to them. Look at the ratings of the miserable little radio station they are on! What an f'ing joke! WJFK does manage to beat out pipsqueak little co-owned DC-101 and WAVA and WFRE. Enough is enough, D(&M)ave. Bob in Tampa (12/3/06) Would like to "immediately jomp on on my "Magical History Tour". I do a "MHT" Moment Of The Year". at years end. And this year's choice ( despite he INCREDIBLE Johnny Dark, the marvelous Davy Jones ("PLB") along with the wonderful day with Johnny Holliday . But these days could not have happened withouth "DCRVDave" Hughes. Which is pricisely why " Diamond Dave Hughes" is the "MHT" "Moment Of The Year". But Tharnk you "JD, "PLB" and of course Mr. Holliday. Hey Pat Murphy, YOU'RE ERXT! ! Diamond Dave and ALL of my fellow "Mailbaggers" (We're all family 'round here) I LOVE ALL OF YOU - SCREW "D&M! Love, Rusty Gibson (12/3/06) I agree with a few posters. This mailbag is turning into a Don and Mike discussion forum. I couldn't find them on the dial if you paid me. Stop obsessing over two people you don't even know. Is there anything else at all you can talk about? (12/3/06) Well, I guess Dave's news regarding the real goings-on w/ Don and Dyke can put an end to the blowhards in this mailbag. I personally was getting sick of the "well a close source" bullshit and all the dumbass answers being thrown out here. Here's a suggestion, if you don't know something, don't act like you do. Just because you're a pathetic piece of dog dung does not mean you can fool us in here. (12/3/06) /\ December 3 Messages /\ \/ December 2 Messages \/ "This might as well be called the DON & MIKE mailbag. Isn't there anything or anyone else to talk about. This site is getting very boring. " And the topic if your note is about what????? (12/2/06) 1) On a new subject for this mailbag, it's refreshing to listen to Tammy Bruce back on WMAL tonight after so many Saturdays in a row that she was missing due to UMD sports broadcasts. 2) QUOTE: "No, that's your meds kicking in". Yea, and you're a chickensh*t 'cuz you don't even have the cojones to sign your name... kiss my culo. Love, Silvie in Waldorf (12/2/06) Dear Dave- Love the site, even though I haven't been in Northern Va for almost ten years...sad to hear about Arch Campbell, he was always a fun guy. What do you reckon is going on at JFK? I mean, if the station is being sold to the Midget, would they change the FreeFM format? How much does a sold station get shaken up? Right before they walked, They-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named were talking about how much crap the new format of their Miami affiliate was irking the old listeners down there (Pun intended). Also, it could have been Don bigging up his show, but were the Podcasts making JFK/D&M/Management that much money? I heard an unsubstantiated rumor that Mr. Ray's Hair Weave, Jhoon Rhee Self-Defense and the mighty Senate Auto Insurance are going to start advertising on the Podcasts as well...apparently then they can tell all of the negative posters to "KISS MY BUMPER!!! JUST KISS IT!! HAHAHA!!!" Or something. Thanks for the site! -JR (12/2/06) Dave's response: If Dan Snyder did buy WJFK-FM, it would most certainly flip to sports talk. The Junks could stay..... So, Michael Hughes told you about 10 days ago "Don and Mike will be back soon." Now we are hearing January, 2007. Does this revelation make Mr. Hughes a liar? Replace D&M with Didi, and watch the ratings soar, not, or sell the station to Danny Boy, move the junks to WARW, and be done with it. Merry Christmas, and I assume there will be no live reading of the classic "Hamburger James" this holiday season... (12/2/06) This might as well be called the DON & MIKE mailbag. Isn't there anything or anyone else to talk about. This site is getting very boring. (12/2/06) Who are Don and Mike? -- Bobbie (12/2/06) OK, I've officially lost interest in the Radio Dieties. I had gone 10 years w/o hearing them before, so I can do it cold turkey again. Whatever the reason(s) are, I just don't care anymore. (12/2/06) DAVE, unfortunately I see we are back to the constant coverage of DUMB & MIKE..Does anyone really care? I don't so it doesn't bother me that the 2 fat,overblown, no talent having asswipes are not on the air..What bothers me is the constant coverage that these 2 AAAAAAAAAA-HOLES seem to garner on your fabulous website..OOOHH WELL if you must report their everyday happening's that’s your choice.It's your deal,but soon oh please soon would a MOTHERSHIP come from out of nowhere and take these 2 worthless examples of what radio is and should be about and send them far off into there own space...ROOTBOY SLIM............... (12/2/06) Dave's response: Still a whole bunch of interesting rumors out there. Is CBS in the process of selling WJFK-FM to Dan Snyder?And when/if D&M return next year, will it be to mornings on WARW? Hmmm..... If Don & Mike are coming back on the air in January, it looks like they'll be just in time for their annual Elvis Birthday show. Let's not forget the annual August Elvis DeathDay show. Bring on the hotdog bun story. (12/2/06) Wouldn't it make sense that DnM were ordered to go back to their original broadcast station in lieu of Rockville. They declined(petty or not) and in doing so violated their contract somehow? In violating the contract a suspension/termination was ordered so now everyone has lawyered up and negotiating.Possibly now on a no pay vacation until the "flood problems" are fixed. This is not the first time they have been suspended and were on a "no talk" policy. You can guarantee that no matter how high Don thinks he is in the radio world,he is still under legal contract and cannot say shit. Even if after they come back the whole story will never be know.I need a life. (12/2/06) Aww I'm so glad D&M are working things out and they're coming back for more innovative programming in 2007. Just a month off on top of the other two they take every year. Don't worry, though--you can't tell the difference between the old shows and thew new ones!! I love that Bob Barker talk...edgy stuff Don. Please retire or eat yourself to death already.I would really make the case that you haven't been at all funny or relevant for most of your career--but especially now. Nothing is worse than an insecure 50 year old... (12/2/06) Glad to learn D&M aren`t fighting or breaking up. The on air chemistry between these 2 is amazing. (12/2/06) Do you really think that some salesperson from Westwood One would have a CLUE what is going on at WJFK. As far as we know they are not in the same building or state as WJFK. Don doesn't speak to the salespeople in Fairfax, so why would anyone at another company have any idea about what is really going on? Dave, I believe the latest blurb you have on your front page is probably the truth or the closest we will get. Give all of the speculation a rest until January when they are back. (12/2/06) Please allow me to correct several posters who were erroneous in their posts. First, WBIG can be heard and quite well here in the Borough of Hanover in the beautiful Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As far as the Ravens fan club meeting in a phone booth, there are a number of Ravens Roosts even up here north of the Mason-Dixon line. In the old days, there were Colts Corals too. JohnnyuinHanover,Pa. (12/2/06) AM 740 fans out of Toronto they are now streaming on the internet. Yeehaw! www.am740.ca... And also Buddy Rizer's WTRI 1520 am has gone all Xmas music! But it ain't all the same ones you hear on wash........Rene Poussaint was mentioned other day in mailbag...looks like she has some affiliation with U of MD. these days dealing with leadership training, seems to be in conjunction with Camille Cosby(Dr. Huxtable's wife) www.academy.umd.edu I also saw Ms. Poussaint the other morning on NVCC(tinker toy tech) educational tv channel she was hosting a show I think called "Democracy in America"( yeah right) and it was copyrighted 2003 so she has that going for her too........This thing with Don and Mike strikes me as unprecedented in D.C. radio history. Are we witnessing the break up equivalent of Martin and Lewis? Hey LLLLAAAADDDDYYYY! I thought Don Juan said this was his last contract or has he changed his mind? I think it's a break up meself. Don Juan is so angry these days and even more self centered than before the sad event and no one to call him on his B.S. anymore.........I guess this all means no Ham and Eggs Radio Playhouse production of "It's a Wonderful Life" this year? Rudy did you deliver them pills to Mrs. Blaine? And even sadder no Hamburgler James story, neither. Hey a big lump o' coal to you Don Juan........ Does anyone know when the David Bowie& Kevin Federline Crismus tv Special is on? I want to see the new version of "Lil' Drummer Boy"......Bill Smith....where's my short ended stick? (12/2/06) Dave's response: Oh, so you're the one who watches channel 19 on Fairfax County cable. Hey, is WTRI playing Root Boy Slim's "Christmas At K-Mart"? That's my all-time fav holiday tune. "Christmas at K-Mart must be Heaven, 'Cuz Hell is Christmas at the 7-Eleven"..... OH GOD! Anyone at 5 PM on 7 EXCEPT [Darling of Dull] Alison Starling. Yes, she's very pretty, but man that drone of hers would put a meth addict to sleep. How about someone with a pulse? Julie Parker would be perfect. Paul (12/2/06) In the Wasington Post Magazine They tell a story about Larry King, and his story about Sandy Koufax that he told on his radio show a long time ago. How he was friends with him as a young boy in Brooklyn New York. They went to New Haven Connecticut to get some ice cream. There was one problem, Sandy Koufax, calls on the phone a few days later, and says "Ive never been in New Haven. Futhermore he and Larry King have never been friends. He did not get to know him until after he left Brooklyn, and he was on the radio. He did live in the same neighborhood. Koufax ask Larry one time about this story. All Larry did was laughed. HA HA POOR LARRY! Funny Story! Have to read (12/2/06) OK so thanks for the update on D&M. CBS is keeping them on the sidelines. I’ll bet the affiliates are pleased. You know CBS really could mess up breakfast!! Brian – Flint Michigan (12/2/06) Dave's response: Hey, CBS kept Opie and Anthony on the sidelines for a couple of years after that "sex in a church" stunt..... Let's see. By my calculations, since the unmentionable ones have walked off their show - the sun has risen and set 18 times without fail ... Thanksgiving has been celebrated ... babies have been born ... items have been bought and sold ... and the war in Iraq (civil or otherwise) is still being fought ... and listeners are still tuning into radio stations (terrestria and satellite) all around the area. Hasn't had much of an impact on the real world, has it? It's time for the boys and their fans to get a grip on reality before they become irrelevant in that real world. And, by the way, the people who actually get and fill out diaries are not posting here to my knowledge. The truth of the matter is there's no way of telling whether they may actually like the "Best of" shows better than the real thing, or whether they may have already found something else they like better. And they, not the people who post here, are the ones who really matter to station ownership. The truth about the impact of this walkout will come out in a couple of weeks when the next trend is released, and a month later when the actual book comes out. (12/2/06) The White House can leak confidential memos about the Iraqi leadership but no one at WJFK can leak info about the Don and Mike show? WTF is right! Or more likely, Why the F do we all care! Eat my cheese Don and Mike! Kat, Southern Maryland (12/2/06) Don and Mike. It creeps me the hell out when people chew the ice in their drink. Don and Mike. -Danny Nevada (12/2/06) I agree with the guy about WBIG. How stupid is it to piss off the Redskins fans when you are a DC station. I mean, the Ravens are a good team, but it is a small market and I heard their fan club meets in a phone booth. WBIG is off my car radio push buttons. (12/2/06) Clear Channel Washington has a obvious vested reason for Big 100.3 to promote the Baltimore Ravens, the desire to build up audiences for sister station WTNT/570's airings of the games. It's not about bandwagon jumping, it's about business. Everett W. (12/2/06) To the poster who's hacked off that 100.3 is doing some Ravens-related promotion: WBIG roars into Baltimore like a local. To say it's "not heard in Baltimore" is simply incorrect. I live in northwest Baltimore county, less than a half hour from the PA line, and it comes in loud and clear. Rachet down the vitriol. It's pro football, not something really very important. (12/2/06) ("Uh, another joke. So funny. BWWWAAHAHAHAHA! *Sarcastic laughter makes me drool my coffee all over my pajamas*") No, that's your meds kicking in... (12/2/06) Unfortunately, I can confirm what the guy's wife says about the feud. My uncle is friends with the "greasy lawyer" in NYC that Don refers too. Don't appreciate that because I am Italian too. Anyway, the lawyers tried to get Bart during his Thanksgiving break, to visit with Mike to appeal to his better senses, and patch things up... They are now trying to get Buzz to step in, but he wants to wait "until the time is right." I was a big fan when they were here on WNEW, and I listen when I can on the web now, but it isn't looking good. I always liked Ron and Fez better. (12/2/06) I call for an immediate boycott of WBIG 100.3 . As a life long Redskins fan I am digusted by their promotion this weekend. "Jump on the Ravens Bandwagon" weekend. This is a DC station, not heard in Baltimore, trashing the Redskins. The worst part is the desicration of "Hail to the Redskins" with Ravens references. This is a no- no...Do you stupid crap on the Redskins weekend...fine...but when you trash "Hail to the Redskins" thats where I draw the line. So, to the 6 or so of you who actually listen to MINI 100.3, change the dial....now.....just don't change it to WJFK...there's nothing on that station now either.... (12/2/06) Media Max be right on. Inside scoop. Everybody at the BAL of radio reads DCRTV as if it be the Bible. Even Ed Kiernan checks it at 7 am before spending an hour in his private loo working on his comb-over. (12/2/06) QUOTE: "How about Mike (O'Meara) teaming up with Chris Core?" Uh, another joke. So funny. BWWWAAHAHAHAHA! *Sarcastic laughter makes me drool my coffee all over my pajamas* I think Core will swallow a whole bottle of painkillers before being teamed up with this guy. -Silvie in Waldorf- (12/2/06) I bet that Baltimore can kiss D&M goodbye on 105.7 Free FM, because it seems as if 105.7 will soon only broadcast local shows. Penn radio has been missing for the last two weeks, replaced, presumably, by an urban talk show that today referred to Caucasians as "pasty-faced" and discussed the three spellings and meanings of the n-word(s). Why 105.7 would run such offensive material instead of Penn radio is inconceivable. The K&M move to 105.7 would seem to bolster the view that 105.7 will no longer be free fm. Instead, it will be Bawlimer, hon. D&M & Penn lovers will have to listen elsewhere or be dumbed down by the projected programming. (12/2/06) I believe today (Dec. 1, 2006) is Kathleen Matthews's last day at ABC 7 and NC 8. I don't know if she bid farewell today at the end of the 5 p.m. newscast or not... If she did, I hope a Washington, DC resident may have recorded it, and maybe can have the video uploaded on YouTube. Friday's NewsBlues.com headline reads "D.C. 5 p.m. anchor signs off today". I see a job opening on WJLA.com for the 5 p.m. anchor position. I'm hoping that ABC 7 and NC 8 could and might be considering promoting Alison Starling to the 5 p.m. newscast. I believe Alison deserves to receive that promotion. As for who should be named morning anchor... I could see Susan Kidd coming to ABC 7, and being reunited with her former NBC 4 co-anchor Doug McKelway. IMO (in my opinion), she would be an interesting pick; however, I don't know if NBC would be interested in letting her go, despite the financial fallout at NBC, which has resulted in Arch Campbell, I.J. Hudson, and George Michael being canned... and I don't know if she'd be interested in coming to ABC 7 or not. (12/2/06) Dave's response: We did a whole bunch of news items on our Front Page about Kathleen's goodbye to 7, including coverage of her farewell on-air moments on 11/29..... Dave, Tell me If I'm wrong or not, or if someone else knows, but didn't not so long ago, maybe after a suspension or walking of the show. Don said they would never walk of the show again and not let listeners know what's going on. I just seem to remember a show with Don and Mike promising not to ever walk of the show. If I had to guess, I'm thinking it was after a fight with OnA. Joe B (12/2/06) Dave's response: Looking at all the rumors about why they're missing, the "feud" thing between Don and Mike seems to make the most sense. It's the only one that would produce such "silence" from the station and the D&M crew, being so incredibly personal..... While Mike O'Meara might have to pay child support, etc., even more important to him is the fact that his commute was lengthened by the move to Rockville... He knew that would piss him off before it happened, but he went along with the plan because Don was so gung-ho. In reality, after a while, it really pissed him off... Enough not to care... Just part of the puzzle, I think. ECS in Arlington (12/2/06) Dear Don and Mike and/or WJFK: Your loyal listeners are owed an explanation. To say otherwise is complete bullshit. What the hell is the deal? (12/2/06) D & M? WTF? BFD. AMF. (12/2/06) Great site. Too mean sometimes though. Criticizing is cool, anger/hate/jealousy is embarrassing. As a casual observer.....Kane is a great talent, but it is not showing up yet on Hot. Xmas music on LIFE just doesn't work when it's 73 degrees and muggy. Some stations just do holiday "hours" of music during the weekends and nights. That sounds like a better idea. That Troy and John experiment on HFS afternoons was very interesting on a couple fronts, whether you agree or not. Give Labruzzi(?) credit for taking a shot and although the Monday show was abysmal, the rest of the week was pretty damn impressive considering they just met each other, had no producer or production and no direction given. The segment "under the covers" was hilarious, when John Boeshe said "sex was like turkey dinner..When I'm done eating... I'm out. It's naptime!" I was in the car all week and laughed at new things. Great chemistry, could be a great show one day. Don and Mike are most likely past it being a stunt, but do not expect any explanation on the real deal. They seem to be more popular because of it. Strange but true. I like terrestrial radio because you get good and bad. And I do have XM. Robert Parkville (12/2/06) Hey Dave, Got an inside scoop on Don & Mike from (a) longtime show sidekick..... He believes numerous reasons have lead to the D & M demise: poor ratings, failed syndication, structured format, move to Rockville, etc. "They're just sick and tired of each other." Bottom line..... you probably won't see or hear them together anymore. Damn shame..... thank God for XM & Riggo..... which by the way is more than an adequate replacement for D & M for those of us who have a clear signal from XXX ESPN! Have A Great Holiday Season! Dave, Waldorf, MD (12/2/06) Dave, Was the "9 Has Hope For Tracey & Derek At 5 " item the most pitiful bit of PR you've ever seen? I think its the most pitiful I've ever seen outside of the National Lampoon's humorous "Buy this magazine or we shoot this dog" bit. Was it a mercy item? Perhaps Tracey or Derek (I caught his Mentos report on YouTube...fab, not) might consider offering one kidney or both to a child needing a transplant as a ratings bit next sweeps. Must be nice for the Bush administration to have something more comical in town! Best wishes for the Holidays, sean (12/2/06) /\ December 2 Messages /\ \/ December 1 Messages \/ Don and Mike feuding, huh?..Wonder what prompted THAT??..Maybe it was those young gals that they have.. (12/1/06) The WTF means "We're through, f**kers". How about Mike teaming up with Chris Core and Don and pair up with John Riggins? (12/1/06) What's the real deal between WJZ and WBAL? And is WMAR still even on the air? (12/1/06) You got a mention on WBAL Radio this morning during Dave Durian's discussion with Media Max of blogs about celebrities of all types. The young lady with the unique voice, Max Weiss, mentioned a number of sites and one of them was "dcrtv.net". Yes, unfortunately, she got it a bit wrong. But at least you got a mention as the disseminator of all things about DC/Baltimore radio and TV people. -- Carl in Olney (12/1/06) Dave's response: She was correct. You can access DCRTV at dcrtv.com, dcrtv.org, and dcrtv.net..... Guess what, Dave? Wolfman Jack HAS come back from the dead....... XM's 60s on 6 airs an hour of the Wolfman each weeknight at 10 PM and four hours worth on Sundays 7-11 PM. Let's see Don and Mike top THAT - - - - - Larry in Luray (12/1/06) Subject Change:How bout that wind out there.......wooooh....they say its gonna get cold too! Steve, VA (12/1/06) Dave's response: Enough wind to blow off Doug Hill's toupee..... Some sad news to impart. It appears "Thursday's" bar and barber shop in Fairfax City is no more. Some of you Ron and Fez fans might recall this joint as the home of Fezzie's Friday Night Lights. Seems shortly after he gave this up to move to the big time of satrad he had a heart attack. Oh, well all things must pass. "Thursday's" had a good long run for a bar and barber shop, more than 10 year's I think. Of course, I never did understand the barber shop and bar concept. In sadder news for me, Woody Paige has left the very Cold Pizza show on espn to write again for the Denver Post. Wonder if the Washington Post considered going after Mr. Paige? They seem to be in need of sport's columnists, with Jenkins and Wise doing a column every 3-4+ months and Mr. Wilbon acting like he wants a job in sport's TV and of course Mr. Kornheiser's work on MNF. Whatever happened to the Shirley Povich's that could write 2-3 columns a week for decades on end? Or heck even a Mo Seigel. Or Oscar Madison! Boy all this talk about the perils of Don and Mike. Why'd I'd think any 5 cent shrink could see one'em was headed for a crack up. As Major Bill use to say,"Boy, Satan has had his way today!" Leo Rosenberg, formally of Pittsburgh I met a man who came from Tennessee, he was headed to Pennsylvania for some plumpkin pie. I love that Xmas song. (12/1/06) People, People, People !!! (Round Two) In my previous post, I forgot to mention that for those of you who have portfolios, check them out and see if you own stock in any of Don & Mike’s advertisers. I did and I have Coca Cola (Coke). I wrote them to express your displeasure of the manner in which they are spending “my” advertising dollars and provided them with my identification as a stockholder. You can’t believe the telephone call I received from Coca-Cola in Atlanta. I suggest you try the same. For those of you who do not own stocks, spend some time on the internet (Thank you Al Gore for inventing the internet) and go to the websites of their advertisers (Shaw’s, GEICO, Free Credit Report.com, just to list a few) and write them something like “With this holiday “gift purchasing/giving” season upon us, thanks to Don & Mike’s immature and insulting treatment of you, that you have the advertiser’s name in your head when you go out shopping. Unfortunately, it is not a positive thought of your product or service, but I will be thinking of you. You could also direct them to the DCRTV mailbag, so they can see that your comments are echoed by several others. If you are truly insulted by their antics, and it appears you are, then tell their advertisers how you feel. PS = I also agree that this theorizing about Don & Mike is more entertaining than their show has been for months. Again Signed: Disappointed but not surprised. (12/1/06) I heard Don used one of those colon cleansing products advertised Saturday morning on JFK and it went horribly wrong..... (12/1/06) Go to www.cbsradio.com and send them messages about how you are upset with Don and Mike, the lack of communication from WJFK, and the “Best Of” hell the listeners have been put through. Let them know that you intend on boycotting the sponsors of the show as well as your local affiliate! -Rob (12/1/06) Hi - I saw your blog note. Any news on D&M? I noticed there were no new Podcasts posted on iTunes and started searching the Web and found your report. WFT? Thanks - Donald (12/1/06) Brilliant idea, Dave! Absolutely BRILLIANT of you to turn the DCRTV Mailbag into the D&MRTV Mailbag! I wish your new venture well. (12/1/06) I love the speculation that Don has fallen off the wagon again... do you think he's at St. Elizabeth's or at his mansion in Great Falls sitting under his computer desk with his left thumb in his mouth and his right hand down his pants. Or, better yet, he's sitting in a chair at his comptuer desk with dcrtv.com on the screen, his left thumb in his mouth and right hand in his pants spanking his wanky in excitement from all of the postings positive and negative in the dcrtv mailbag. You know how Don loves to play the reverse psychology game. "Bad press is good press as long as we're getting the publicity." Suck off Geronimo. (12/1/06) Click. BOOM. (12/1/06) No two tons of fun today - oh well there is always Bubba and the shit contest on Sirius... (12/1/06) It's just a theory but I suspect that Don and Mike are in the midst of the most amazing radio stunt in the history of the human race. Everett W. (12/1/06) Dave's response: Sorry, but Wolfman Jack has both Don and Mike beat. One day soon he'll show up back on the airwaves to reveal that his death several years ago was merely a publicity stunt..... Don and Mike bolted, and I mean "BOLTED," WAVA soon after the Salem deal was announced; Salem even allegedly promised to keep the format the same if they stayed, but Doni saw the writing on the wall. Frank Murphy then did the morning show on WAVA in the 1991 to 1992 time frame, with Sandy for a time, and, I believe, Dude for a little bit, until Salem took control and turned off the transmitter at midnight. Sandy went to WMZQ to do mornings. Frank went out to LA to produce. Now, Frank is in Tennessee, Sandy is back on the air in Atlanta, and Don and Mike are...Who the hell knows! (12/1/06) Dave's response: Maybe Don's missing because he's being "born again" and will soon resume doing mornings on WAVA. A new Christian Don, one with a more forgiving, kinder, gentler, less tormented soul..... Don got his new Green Bay Packers tattoo and married Janet in Atlantic City.... (12/1/06) Dave, I believe Don and Mike left the station a good while before Salem flipped it to Christian. I still have the tape recording of Power 105's final hour. D&M came on the next day and reminisced about the old WAVA, from JFK. I don't remember the exact timeframe, but I think D&M moved at least 3-6 months before the switch. Joe (12/1/06) It would be nice if Penn Jillette's show was on live and for longer than one hour a day. His show is now the best thing on WJFK. (12/1/06) Dave's response: No. Not better than "The Bald Truth"..... For this long-time (but now finished with them) D&M listener, the entertainment is indeed right here @ DCRTV - the "GODS" won't speak up for themselves (but I'll bet, if they are capable, there is much "spinnig" going on as we type...). So, we have to figure out what's going on on our own. Big fight either in the team or with CBS and the lawyers have control of the situation? Maybe, but I suspect, 'ol Donnie G. Sorce has blown a mental gasket. The show, even when Frieda was alive and a positive influence on Donnie G., had taken a very dark and confrontational stance with the callers - which was curious, since Don relied on them for input - goodness knows, neither D or M brought much original material to any show. In the post-Frieda period, the show has become much darker all complaing and bitching - coupled with flat-out abuse of callers, and generally anyone unlucky enough to not reside on "Planet Sorce". Donnie G.'s hysterical, screaming abuse directed at DCRTV was a particular mystery to me until I concluded that the guy wasn't thinking rationally any longer and couldn't keep even the smallest aspects of life in perspective. That's not sad, it's just bad radio. Now, I don't listen to D&M because the show is no longer any good, but I also don't listen to O&A because they exhibit many of the worse aspects the D&M show at it's nadir, and they should be ascending in their career, but if it weren't amusing comics to bail them out, those two zeros couldn't handle a show on their own for an hour. So it's the Junks in the AM, Monsters in the Morning on XM 152 when the Junks break every six minutes, Ron and Fez mid-days and XM music on the way home. DA_PJ_DJ_IN_VA. (12/1/06) I prefer to speculate that Don & Mike are on a man trip, a vacation where they are bonding and getting to know each other even better. Sort of like Dumb & Dumber, but this screenplay would be titled Fat & Fatter. I envision the blubber brothers drinking alcohol laced tropical drinks from the same large figural glass, but with separate straws. Lovingly sharing time in a sweat lodge, with only the tiniest of privacy towels. Relaxing on the beach with out a care, oiling each other and reading Erma Bombeck and Steve Allen books, casually trolling for more dynamic comedy ideas. Strolling down the beach hand in hand, not caring a wit about what sort of stereotypical conclusions strangers might draw. Now and then stumbling into the waves to frolic and to readjust their Speedo's. Simply complete relaxation, whilst they retool and recharge their comedic essence for the final assault on the remaining months on their contract. I predict they are going to return: tan, rested, and ready with a twinkle in their respective bungs. (12/1/06) Dave, my friend - Don and Mike were gone long before the switch to Christian on WAVA. They "trimmed the fat" in the morning - and I think Frank Murphy and Joe Friday hosted the morning show until the end... (12/1/06) People, People, People !!! Let’s review the Don & Mike case. Point 1 – They are not “Radio Gods”, they are mere entertainers, whose entertainment value is directly tied to whatever made up story they decide to tell or how they insult guests and listeners alike. Point 2 – Have any of you ever purchased something just because it was advertised on their show? Is that really part of your purchasing criteria? I couldn’t even tell you who their advertisers were before this most recent incident, but I can now. I have written their advertisers and provided my unfavorable comments about the current situation. Point 3 – I have had enough of the “Frieda Sympathy Card” trick. How can Don continue to reference her talking to him in the car and having her picture all over his estate and then talk to her family about “banging” his new squeeze? Frankly, I am more impressed by the fact that he has not been arrested for drugs since her passing. Point 4 – Do not give them the courtesy of listening from even 3:00 to 3:05. After all, how much courtesy have they shown you lately? Find out about this most recent “temper tantrum”, “ratings ploy”, “firing/punishment”, “lover’s quall”, “transition” or whatever it turns out to be by reading it or hearing it on TV. If you absolutely have to listen for those 5 minutes, at least don’t tell Arbitron about it. Point 5 – I just hope that all of you who have wrote that they are “Dead to me forever”, actually are men and ladies of your word. Talk is cheap. Point 5 – I have XM Radio and sincerely hope that if they do make the switch to satellite, that they go to Sirius and stay off of my XM. Signed: Disappointed but not surprised. (12/1/06) DCRTV MAILBAG LINE OF THE DAY: “Tell you this much: theorizing about why D&M are gone is actually becoming more entertaining than their show.” Classic!! (12/1/06) Click, Click, Click, Click…..3:02 on the dot…..see ya WJFK/HFS…. (12/1/06) Tick tock - time to tune into the best 2 minutes in repeated radio with the balloon knot boys!!! Where is my echo machine SORCE!!!?? (12/1/06) Deer carcass. Click. (12/1/06) Is there any question who would get higher ratings with their own show... Don or Mike? After listening to O'Meara's show the day he was bleaching his teeth, that man is the comedic crutch of the tandem. (12/1/06) More DnM speculation from someone with too much time.. It isn't too hard to piece together the insiders that post around town, IMO. Satellite radio? Or just a new local station? No network or WJFK $$ in how long? Hmm... Suddenly ceasing the wine enemas? Cutbacks or hushmoney? It would seem to me that any prudent company protecting their property would NOT want their cash cow to get too beat-up before going to auction, and vice-versa, right? And with this being the season of vacations anyway, well, hey. I think that the post about the fight is meat to the wolves.. or pigs, or volverines.. Christ, even Venom got leaked to the internet, and that is SONY..so come on. Who cares? When they went from WAVA to WJFK what was their shtick? If it ain't broke why call Goober. So, satellite?? - Signed, Larry that don't get tha internets (12/1/06) Dave's response: I seem to remember that when Salem announced it was buying WAVA from Emmis back in the early 1990s, morning men Don and Mike and the contemporary hits remained on the station right up until the day Salem took over. In fact, Salem wouldn't reveal any format changes before it actually acquired the station - which is pretty standard. When Salem actually got the keys to 105.1, it immediately went Christian and D&M headed down I-66 to afternoons on WJFK-FM..... Tell you this much: theorizing about why D&M are gone is actually becoming more entertaining than their show. I like D&M and have listened for years, but I can't do it the whole four hours straight through anymore...every show seems to have two or three segments that are too boring or too stupid or too bitchy to derive any pleasure from. If this is a radio stunt (which I don't think is likely) they're going to have a hard time following it. (12/1/06) Dave's response: Hey, there's an idea. Why doesn't Michael Hughes have Robbay, Buzz, John, and Joe in the studio to all speculate and take listeners' calls about the mysterious disappearance of Don and Mike. It might even get better ratings than the show with Don and Mike actually there..... Dave, you're right...makes no sense that WJFK management wouldn't say anything if Don is in rehab but then again, it's WJFK! Maybe both Don and Mike are in separate rehabs! (12/1/06) To whom did not like my joke: none of this is verifiable......You do not know what is really up with don and mike and everyone of you will listen if and when they return....cause they're FRIGGING great! steve in iowa (12/1/06) Although I don’t know if the D&M rumor is true, there seems to be a sense of plausibility. I’m only basing it on that on-air argument they had a few weeks ago (can be downloaded at their website), the fact that CBS/WJFK aren’t talking and does it take that long to fix their technical studio problems. But until proven otherwise, will be waiting (not necessarily listening to the best of) until something official is reported. Has anyone been to O’Meara’s for a comment?? Anyways, great board. HR of DC. (12/1/06) "a top-Channel 9 newser tells DCRTV that despite the "lousy ratings" (5th place in the November "sweeps") for the 5 PMer, it's "the best newscast on the air in DC." So in other words the viewers are just too dumb to notice? Tracey Neale on the other hand is just plain hot! I could watch her long time. (12/1/06) ("Dave's response: No no no. Too tasteless. Someone's put Don and Mike's faces on one of those notorious Abu Garib prisoner "leash" pics....") come on Dave.....I could use a good laugh. (12/1/06) Just read an interesting post on another site with yet another theory about D&M's mysterious disappearance from the airwaves...new theory: Don resorted to his old ways and is off the wagon and in rehab. Thus the silence from all parties. This might explain the lengthy absence and "no comment" from management or anybody else associated with the show. (12/1/06) Dave's response: If that's the case, it's certainly nothing to be ashamed of. Don's a public figure. Why couldn't CBS/WJFK-FM simply issue a statement explaining his absence? It would probably generate a lot of sympathy for him..... Re: " DCRTV Dave should stick to posting things that are verifiable, not some lame-ass joke from a guy in Iowa." Hey "Silvie in Waldorf", get your own damn website if you don't like it! (12/1/06) The biggest issue with the Don & Mike feud theory is the 'WTF?' on their own website. I would say the fact that they put the 'WTF there that it would indicate they have been suspended, fired or they are trying to create controversy ("Radio Stunt") to generate listeners. Don & Mike are still the best in DC!! They lost me for a little time when I really enjoyed listening to the Sports Reporters on WTEM. Now that the unlistenable John Thompson is on in the afternoons I only listen to 980 in the mornings. I choke down the Brian Mitchell show every once in awhile, but he makes too many verbal mistakes. All week he has called Cowboys kicker Mike Vanderjagt, Matt, and then he said North Carolina defeated Oklahoma State in basketball, it was really Ohio State, and no one corrected him. Another reason why ex-jocks should not be sports announcers!!! (12/1/06) ("Dave's response: No no no. Too tasteless. Someone's put Don and Mike's faces on one of those notorious Abu Garib prisoner "leash" pics....") Sorry, Dave....I thought it would not exceed the standards of someone who posts a pic of G. Gordon in a speedo (grin)....however, look on the bright side...you did score a first. I've never thought I'd see the names "Don & Mike" in the same sentence with "No...too tasteless"... THanks, Jeff (12/1/06) Dave: I read the rumor about D&M. I hope Mike O’Meara finds a way back on the radio. He can really do a show by himself with a few sidekicks and I hope radio management can team him up with someone good. I think his show would pull in better ratings than the former show did. We need you back Mike. Just find a way to get back on the air. Sincerely, Jeff from Richmond. Out! (12/1/06) If this Don and Mike thing really is a two week feud between the two of them, just think of enormity of the glorious 10 way make up sex when its all over! And what if they don't stop this feud? Will Don get the show Mondays and Wednesdays, and Mike get it Tuesdays and Thursdays, with alternating Fridays between the two? I can see an Arbitron nightmare here. And who gets primary custody of the children Robbay, Buzz, and the newly adopted Yanni? Will the other have full visitation rights? What happens to mutual friends; will Beth Ann, Homo Joe, Dennis, Tom, and Cheryl have to choose one over the other? Can you see the two of them sitting down with lawyers doing cause hearings, merits hearings, discovery, and trying to divide up the tapes and sound effects while arguing over who gets "Strip Trivia?" This can get very, very ugly. Perhaps, Mike, you don't have to go to your bar every night, and, Don, give him a little support while he is in the studio, that is all he asks. Before going down the "Big D road," could you two at least try family counseling first? Is Dr. Frasier Craine available? He would be perfect; he knows about celebrities, bowel problems, drinking too much, divorce, idiot Radio GM's, sitting at bars all the time, New England, four hour shows, dogs pooping in the house, and problems with radio producers. I can remember Oscar kicking Felix out several times as well, but I think that pretty much worked itself out. Can we get an intervention with Burt & Ernie? They seem to going strong after almost 40 years together in show business; perhaps Burt and Ernie can provide some much needed celebrity relationship advice to Don and Mike. There are options, Don, there are ways to get this behind you, Mike. Please for the sake of the children, work this out. (12/1/06) [RE: "Rush Limbaugh got all pissed off today about how media coverage of whales is too favorable and sympathetic."] Cut rush some slack....It's a well known fact within the animal kingdom that due to the specific gravity of whale feces, whales are the natural sworn enemy of bottom feeders. (12/1/06) To Steve in Odenton : As a neighbor and a fellow long time fan of D&M; I fear I have to agree with your diagnosis. My wife who never liked them and would roll her eyes when she heard them asked me yesterday what was going on. Even she has heard there is trouble in paradise. I told her that I think the two are dead to the radio world. Koo Koo Ka Joob. Mike is the walrus, They always put it out there that they didn’t care about the listeners and now they have proven this out. Funny, Don was there when I got screwed for the first time and now he is at the center of my latest screw job. Thanks Don, always good to get it up the rear from someone you have always been loyal too. Steve in Elkridge (12/1/06) I was listening to the John Riggins show on 730 am yesterday while raking the last of this year's leaves( and say Fairfax County powers that be are ye on course to make it a treeless county by 2010, SALUTE!) when suddenly it dropped off my walkman so I switched over to WARW and cerf...the same tired classic rock hits with a lot of jive and planted phone calls(say that one voice sounded like the old sam huff guy who use to call the DnM show) but cerf did a shout out for Kathleen Matthews and another for Arch Campbell and cerf went on to regale the listening audience how he, cerf, had run into Arch at many a concert over the last 24-25 year's...why he can remember running into Arch back in 1975, it appears cerf has same mathematical ability as Don Juan......you ever see how Anita Marks is busting someone's balls and then does that wicked smile at the end of the diatribe...she's the girl of my dreams ur nightmares.......and shout out to Mr. Bouche this morning and the Morning Mix on WEBR did not talk after every song...i.e. Dusty and Don McLean and the Letterman etc....I'll be tuning into the Magical History Tour this afternoon if I get back in time from my hardware store run in time....Mr. Gibson did you hear Weasal's box set the other night with George Harrison? It was excellent! Is Barbara Harrison related to George or is that name by marriage?....if we will be seeing Clay Anderson on NC8/WJLA has another weatherman exited from the staff? Shirlely not Ron Reilly? and why did Adam Caskey stop perming his hair?...... You know I've found out in this life's journey that getting an answer to all your question's can be a drag...takes all the mystery away......hey Don remember what Hootie said,"Can't we be friends?"......and is miguelito the "Walrus"...maybe he'll be playing "Bad Santa" at Manassass Mall to make a few exra bucks this holiday season....one of my favorite lines in all of cinema is when Lauren Graham is sitting on Santa's lap in the car and shouting....whoops, sorry Harv Moore, I won't go blue....this is Bill Smith....and say hey to Opus..gang code......Alvin, you were a little flat, WATCH IT! (12/1/06) BREAKING NEWS: U.S. ARMY RELEASES CONCRETE PROOF OF DON & MIKE IN IRAQ - Jeff in (Gotta love PhotoShop) Bowie (12/1/06) Dave's response: No no no. Too tasteless. Someone's put Don and Mike's faces on one of those notorious Abu Garib prisoner "leash" pics.... Rush Limbaugh got all pissed off today about how media coverage of whales is too favorable and sympathetic. Man, Rush, something's wrong. Really wrong. Go see a shrink. Now. (12/1/06) I might as well join the D&M feeding frenzy. When the thought of what happens if this is the end of the show comes up, I would much rather listen to a show with Mike O’ and Buzz than anything the egotesticle Geronimo would do with Robbay. Doni’s constant whining is tired. A show with Mike O’, Buzz and Penn Jillette doing some left leaning political funnies would have my radio dial tuned in daily. The D&M show is dead to me. Time to move on KHTK 1140 in Sacatomatoes, dump this mess now. (12/1/06) Dave Loudin, I have Google Earth, I know that PGC and DC-101 are about the same distance from my house within about a mile. And in point of fact, there are less physical obstructions towards WPGC from my location than DC-101 since Baltimore's skyscrapers are more of an obstruction towards DC-101 than WPGC from my location. I'm not going to continue to argue over this endlessly, but DC-101 still has a better signal and yes also better than WASH too. And I can't think of any other reason other than the huge tower height difference. I will agree though that WETA is probably more than 10 miles further, so you win some, you lose some. Funny how poorly that extra 52,500 watts WETA has over DC-101 travels that extra 10 miles though. What a waste. :-) (12/1/06) re: don& mike...i really hope this silly rumor is just that a silly rumor. it would break my heart to know that they are really fueding in real life!! i love them both equally and miss them both and hope that whatever is going on with the show, it will pass soon and we will get them back!!! forget the haters d&m, i still love and miss you guys!!!!! ~L in Salisbury (12/1/06) "DCRTV Dave should stick to posting things that are verifiable, not some lame-ass joke from a guy in Iowa." Most of us are able to tell the difference.... (12/1/06) So, regarding this promo I'm hearing all over WTOP for their website and urging us to "write it down, WTOPnews.com." Any chance if an Arbitron diary keeper happens to "write it down" in their diary does WTOP get credit for the entry? (12/1/06) Ok, I'm digging the feuding rumor but it just doesn't explain why they're not on the air. Surely a walkoff violates their contracts, and godnoze they've got enuff money coming to them that they sure don't want to do anything that will break those contracts, especially since they can't pull number 1 ratings anymore---UNLESS of course they are trying to break their contracts in order to jump to satellite. Like George Costanza when he was trying to get fired by the Yankees so he could jump to a better job at the Mets. Otherwise, if Donny simply wanted to dump Mike, he'd come on the air by his lonesome and do the show. Same with the other guy---nothing stops one from broadcasting when the other is off. We've even seen Mike do it recently, and he was great! We know that all that buddy-buddy affection on the show is strictly, well, for show, so what on earth could have happened to prevent them from continuing that facade? Maybe one wants to jump to satellite and the other doesn't? They've got the same agent, don't they? Couldn't he smooth things over between the fat boyz? (12/1/06) I do not buy that "explanation" for D&M's absence...No way...If you listened to the show that day...O'Meara...hereafter referred to as FD (Fat Drunk) consented to the walk off...As did Buzz...hereafter referred to as PC (Pinko Commie)....Not to mention...If that is the case...and thats whats happening...There is no way...I REPEAT..NO FUCKING WAY...Don or Mike will get on the radio and admit it!! Like I said weeks ago...O'Mearas need to pay alimony, child support and his failing dump in Manassas drive his NEED to be on the air....WB Centreville, VA (12/1/06) Maybe the "WTF?" on the front of donandmikewebsite.com isn't for what we think it stands for. Maybe it stands for Wait til February. (12/1/06) I saw Don and Mike at the hospital in the closet making babies and I saw one of the babies and then the baby looked at me. It looked like Robb Spewak.And, when the doctor said I didn't have worms any more, that was the happiest day of my life. (12/1/06) Regarding the newly hired Pamela Brown on WJLA. Her hire right out of college is a huge slap in the face to all the real reporters trying to get a break in the industry. As for her “experience” with MTV and VH1….these experiences were no doubt made possible by her affluent background, not her merit. It is very easy to sound educated, organized and up to speed when the news director is silver spoon feeding your stories to you each day. I was at a recent press event with Miss Brown where her inexperience was readily apparent. I would call it Paris Hilton’s interpretation of reporting. Miss Brown had to be corrected FOUR times as to the title of the elected official she was asking to interview. Not the brightest bulb. In response to her education at a top journalism school, any working reporter knows that your school doesn’t determine your ability. And yes, there may be jealousy among the other reporters, and they have every right to feel slighted. I myself am only 5 years older than Miss Brown, with plenty of experience in the DC market. I was told when applying to WJLA that I looked too young, and that they were looking for more seasoned reporters whose age makes them appear more credible. It is also nearly impossible to get on NewsChannel 8 these days even with inside connections, so I completely understand why those people are upset about her hire. (12/1/06) Hey Dave, how about giving us all a Christmas present and ban all postings on D&M until there's actually something to talk about. Of course, you could let this go on and let this become their message board. (12/1/06) Dave's response: For the past 10 years, the DCRTV Mailbag has been a "stream of consciousness" about what folks are talking about regarding the local media scene. At times, it does get "dominated" by a particular topic. My only advice is to hit the "scroll down" arrow and proceed to the next message..... I have a brother that served in Iraq who now lives in Rockville, and was driving his Ice Cream truck by the D&M studios the moment the gang last walked out. As they exited the studio complex in single file and in unison, he claimed that Don was out of step with the others and not wearing any shoes as they all crossed the crosswalk to the parking lot. (12/1/06) Talking about how short the DC TV towers are---I remember an attempt back in the early 70s to build a 1200 plus foot tower in Silver Spring. The proposed tower would have carried 4-5-7-9-20 and 26, and maybe the storied WOOK-TV14. The rationale was that TV reception was horrible in SE DC as the area was "shaded" from the NE transmitters. My memory is that the FAA objected to the tower, but I wonder if the Baltimore stations did not also object, since the new tower would obviously put DC signals deep into their territory. BTW, does anyone remember WETA-TV's attempt to move to channel 12 back in the 80s? (12/1/06) Hey Dave, make sure you fact-check before quoting The lowly Sun, they don't seem to have a clue half the time....... Oprah is on WBAL, NOT WJZ. Yes, Dr. Phil moved to JZ, but the gabfest ratings would show that WBAL is more the big winner. Last I checked The Ravens haven't been a news lead-in for, ummmm, NEVER! Geez, that story has so many inaccuracies, you'd almost have to believe Michael Olesker phoned that one in from his hot tub! Poor Sun, somebody please buy them soon. (12/1/06) Whatever happens with D&M, and if they do come back, then we are going to have to listen to 3:05 when we get sick of them bitching about all the rumors and stuff. Like 'em but hearing them bitch and moan is the last thing I wanna hear after comming home from a crappy day at work. (12/1/06) When I read the blurb claiming that Don and Mike are feuding, I remembered a curious combination of song snippets after a commercial break last week - Bill Withers' "Just the Two of Us" followed by the Grass Roots' "Two Divided by Love." Was that intended to give listeners some idea of why the show isn't back live? Were there already rumors about a feud and the show was simply playing with the rumormongers' heads? Or could that have had no intrinsic meaning at all? My point is that those of us on the outside of any situation like this can speculate all we want. But when the parties aren't talking to us, we delude ourselves if we believe we have the scoop. (12/1/06) Dave's response: And yesterday's rerun was from Valentine's Day. Hmmm..... Let's assume for one moment that Don & Mike are indeed "feuding" even after 21 years of working together in the radio business...that still doesn't excuse the silence coming from the show regarding why they are in Best-Of. The least they could do is have a pre-recorded announcement from Robb, Joe, or John saying something like, "Don & Mike are not getting along right now. We apologize for the inconvenience, but until the guys can work things out, enjoy these best-of segments. The boys will be back as soon as they kiss and make up." Then, we would at least feel like they respected us enough to tell us the truth and all of the BM-eaters like us who post on these sights could go back to blogging about which is better...Transformers or Go-Bots. G.K. in Reisterstown, MD (12/1/06) The nice thing about a little back and forth here in the mailbag is you always learn something! The downside is the lack of intonation and facial cues leads to misunderstanding. To my anonymous responder: no way was I equating DC and Baltimore TV coverage (remember the "whiffed it" part?). I suppose that my main point all along is that DC FM facilities are not so uniformly below standards, especially if you give a pass to 20 feet or so ;) I will have to keep calling you out, though, on using DC101 as a benchmark, since it is the closest DC FM to you. 'PGC is about 10 miles more distant. You would be better off using WASH. Regards, Dave Loudin (12/1/06) (quote) Don and Mike are in ...Vegas with Helen Reddy and Norm Crosby..... (end quote) Haha... "I am Don-ny, hear me whine..." (12/1/06) DCRTV Dave should stick to posting things that are verifiable, not some lame-ass joke from a guy in Iowa. Maybe then you should have a section solely for D&M "jokes". -Silvie in Waldorf- (12/1/06) According to The Sun www.baltimoresun.com Sinclair Broadcasting is in the midst of a huge battle with cable giant Mediacom that could potentially take Sinclair stations (many of which are FOX stations) & NFL football off many midwest and southern Mediacom cable systems. (12/1/06) Dave's response: We did a blurb on that yesterday..... To the Dummy that thinks he knows what WJFK's plans are for the linup. - "2. Junks and D&M - my information is that they have gone back and forth on where to move D&M. It's definitely AM Drive but not sure if it's going to be WARW or WJFK. The Junkies are going to PM Drive on WJFK (no word of the simulcast in Baltimore). They're not getting it done financially, i.e. they're not bringing in what they need to for AM Drive. " - So, the Junks aren't getting it done. I seem to remember Stern not getting it done the last 5 years or so in DC and they kept him around and he was pulling down more than the Mil a year the Junkies cost. Also, I like OnA just fine but to assume that they will do any better in the am in DC is a HUGE asumption. They didn't exactly light the world on fire the last time they were here. IE>YOU HAVE NO INSIDE INFO!-Mike in McLean (12/1/06) Can we get a disclosure statement when the Baltimore Sun writes a ratings article? WBAL-TV wins the 6 a.m., 5 p.m., 6 p.m, 11 p.m., and weekend newscasts and the article starts with WJZ getting a boost from the Ravens? That's like the Orioles getting beat 11-1, but the article leads with Tejada hitting a single and later scoring on a sacrifice fly. And this horrible sentence: "Ratings figures released yesterday by Nielsen Media Research show that the CBS affiliate still dominates the talk-show category with gabfests hosted by Oprah Winfrey, Maury Povich and Dr. Phil McGraw." Really? Oprah is on CBS? Does WBAL-TV become a CBS affiliate at 4 p.m.? I wonder what that does for the newscast at that time. Hmmm. The real question is what does WJZ provide to the Sun to get top billing in a ratings period article when they got shelled? OR does the Sun believe that WBAL-TV's continued dominance in the ratings make for a bad story? I guess if the Ravens go on a 10-game winning streak that they will start writing about the Bengals. -- Larry (12/1/06) Ed Schultz, the nation’s leading Progressive Talk personality is moving to a new time slot, putting him head-to-head with the nation’s top Conservative Talk host, Rush Limbaugh. Beginning Dec. 11, Schultz’s show will air Noon to 3 p.m. instead of 3 to 6 p.m. www.mediaweek.com (12/1/06) (re: Don & Mike feuding) Maybe it's just a modern incarnation of a grand radio tradition. There was a famous feud between Jack Benny and Fred Allen - of course, it was made up and all in good fun. C'mon guys, get off it and be pros for God's sake! Feuding?!? What horseshit! I can't imagine former radio teams like Walker & Scott or Harden & Weaver engaging in such nonsense! To call Don & Mike immature is like saying The Elephant Man suffered from minor puffiness around the eyes. (12/1/06) Actually a D&M feud isn't out of the question. There seems to have been tension. Remember when Don was mad Mike seemed to be paying more attention to his restaurant than the show? When Don was recently sick, there was a whole segment about how he said Mike was using the sound decks too much. The recent BO segments were critical of Mike's dealings with Joe. Mike use to not have to do the show alone until Freda died. It is a gut feel only, I have no insight whatsoever. So if it is the truth, well I listened to and enjoyed Don BM. I would stick with him and Rob. Sorry Mike, you have the most to lose, but Don is the genesis of the show, and would do pretty good with just Rob. You are very talent guy, so you will be ok too. Oh and for all of those complaining about nothing on their website ... grow up! The lawyers are now in charge of that now, don't even bother going there - if it is a feud or not. Yeah, they own the site, but they are also bound by a contract that has lots of $$$. You know, if you are a fan, that Don would love to say something, but he can't. Just your average long time listener. (12/1/06) Silvie in Waldorf asks, "...what's wrong with me?!?" Well, for starters, Sylvie, you listen to WMAL, and from your posts here, you seem to depend on it to tell you what your view on the world needs to be that day, just like all the other closed-minded, red-meat lemmings who constitute the station's audience. Now, as to Kathleen Matthews wearing a maid-uniform...if you'd bother to spend some time with other media other than WMAL (like most intelligent people), you'd know that the other day, the Washington Post reported that, as part of her training as a Marriott executive, she was required to work in a number of hotel support positions, INCLUDING housekeeping, Sylvie. Matthews was quoted as saying that the housekeepers she worked with were able to do everything they needed to prep a room in 15 minutes; she was barely able to make it in a little over 20 minutes, working really hard. I think its admirable that Marriott has its execs do this as part of their preparation for their new jobs, and that Kathleen Matthews was willing to do this as part of getting this job (trailed by a newspaper reporter and photographer, no less). The kind of job, I might add, that is most often done by the immigrants that you and the other self-righteous WMALsters arbitrarily villify, instead of showing some compassion for the majority of these people who just want to feed, clothe, and house their families. But I guess compassion is just a liberal, "politically correct" concept that's foreign to you people. As for all the Don and Mike "white-noise"...my god, you'd think the world had come to an end. Its just a freaking radio show, people, and, as many of you have noted, a not very good one these days at that. These guys are yanking your collective chain, and the fact that any of you care at all means the chain is connected to a brass ring attached to your collective noses. If they'd tried to do any of this in the years when I worked in radio programming, and then sales, they'd have been bounced out on the street so fast it would have given Don's fat white ass road rash. You people all need to get a life, and talk about things that are really important. - Call Me 'Legs' (12/1/06) Silvie: I heard Don and Mike are in Vietnam with Bob Hope! (12/1/06) Dave's response: No, they're in Vegas with Helen Reddy and Norm Crosby..... Silvie, me thinks you dost read DCRTV too much – and WAAAAAY to literally. I believe that our friend with the brother in Iraq was, well, spoofing you. I know for certain that D&M were not entertaining our boys in W’s sandbox. How do I know? Well, let’s just say that Mike is allergic to armed conflict (he donated heavily to Mr. Web’s campaign) and Don is far too self-absorbed to put himself anywhere near harm’s way. Ever since he narrowly escaped “dain bramage” in that car crash about which they’ve been best of-ing this week, he’s been hiding in his Bat-cave. Lest you think Donny’s gone soft, he has had an occasional dust up with the odd woman in a Range Rover at the supermarket. They may have done a USO benefit at O’Meara’s though, but I bet the proceeds went to “The Association of Clueless Radio Personalities” rather than our brothers in arms. Steve (the angry one) in Odenton (12/1/06) If Don and Mike are feuding, this might explain Mike's panic attacks. If this is true - too bad, but life goes on ... Kurt... P.S. Always like your site, Dave (12/1/06) Silvie: Best stick to squabbling over WMAL. Maybe if the poster had claimed that Bob Hope was sharing the bill with Don & Mike it would have saved you from burning up the Internet search engines, but I doubt it. MK: You are the perfect D&M superfan, unquestioning to a fault. Are you familiar with the folk tale The Pied Piper from Hamelin or the fairy tale The Emperor's New Clothes ? (12/1/06) Memo to 105.9 WJZW-FM: Christopher Cross' "Sailing" is Smooth F***ing JAZZ ??!? Since when??? Who put the Polonium in YOUR coffee??? (12/1/06) My only bitch about D&M being on their super long Johnny Carson-length Vacation is that they only play stuff from the past year. If they wanted to do that during their Christmas break, as kind of a ''Year in Review'' recap, that's fine. But whenever they've played best-of, it's always been Post Freda. And before that, it was Post FCC Crackdown. God bless them they tried playing the old stuff, but had to edit it (with that retarded sound effect), but then they just gave up. Since things seem to have ''relaxed'' a bit---indecencywise---you'd think they'd give the old bits a try again. I miss donkey basketball! I miss their trip to the set of The Price Is Right! I miss when they had the paint ball war! Anything from mid-ninties to 2002-ish.---Alex (12/1/06) [RE: "Most importantly, who in hell would pair D&M with Ms. Shields and Ms. Heatherton? -Silvie in Waldorf"] Silvie...Are you aware that the word "gullible" has never appeared in any edition of Webster's New World Dictionary? (12/1/06) If Don and Mike ever come back, please God let them revive "the SECRET SOUND" bit , along with all of the other contests...I wonder why they stopped giving away so many prizes, as a prize pig myself, I felt the loss...I love free stuff... Love, Roseanne Conner (12/1/06) A few amusing thoughts about this Don and Mike situation. Number 1--with a man as pathetic and self loathing as Don, there is a lot of dirt out there. Mike could ruin him--which is a funny thought. Number 2--it's a bummer that they're more entertaining when they're not on the air. Peter Rosenberg & Mike O'Meara doing drivetime...That's gold I tell you--gold! (12/1/06) re: Virginians, hold on to your wallets.. This writer has nailed it. When Republicans run to the center, they loose every time. (12/1/06) Dave's response: Speaking of wallets, as a self-employed schmuck, I have to pay for my health insurance via Kaiser. And the HMO just informed me that it's raising my premium 33.5 percent come early 2007 - $379 per month to $506. I'm not being singled out. Everyone in my demographic, plan, and location is facing the same hike. I can understand a yearly rate raise, but 33.5 percent?!?!?! You news directors at 4, 5, 7, 9, and WTOP really ought to take do some investigating on what's going on with Kaiser and the health care industry. Heck, maybe it's time for "Hillary Healthcare." Sheesh..... /\ December 1 Messages /\ \/ November 30 Messages \/ I don't listen to Don & Mike, but a poster said that he got a call from his brother in Iraq saying that he just saw them over there performing, along with Brooke Shields and Joey Heatherton. Why is there no news about this at all? Google & Yahoo searches come up with nothing about any of these people being overseas. With the unruly events this week in Iraq, along with Brooke recently returning from TomKat's wedding in Italy, I doubt that she's over there. Most importantly, who in hell would pair D&M with Ms. Shields and Ms. Heatherton? -Silvie in Waldorf- (11/30/06) Dave's response: Oh Silvie, Silvie, Silvie..... Everybody loves a good mystery, and at this point Don & Mike are providing one. I can't believe it's all some planned hype, as I believe some of the posts on this site do reflect a genuine disenchantment, and people who have and are willing to move on and drop some coin on pay entertainment. I did a long time ago. The speculation is fun, and frankly more interesting than their radio show, but I do have an interest in hearing what happened to the fat men. But other than that, it's business as usual, and since I signed up for SatRad these guys have always been less and less relevant to my radio listening. I won't make a phony pledge to never listen again for on occasion these turds have provided me with a laugh or two, but I have always despised their self importance which started with their grandiose plans years ago to craft themselves into national personalities ala Stern. It never happened, they failed virtually everywhere but for their base in Washington, and they have been passed over and disfavored by their own company for several cherry gigs. They are good local DJ's who add a little flavor and local humor in a time slot which is barren of anything remotely funny, but for years they have overestimated their own talent. Moving D&M to mornings simply puts them into a time slot where I would virtually never listen, as opposed to the few hours I catch per week currently. The Junkies got a listen when they were on at night, but I have barely logged an hour with them since they went to mornings at WHFS and now at WJFK. Finally, all these personality driven radio shows are stale when they run Best Of..... Since they walked off, I have logged about 10 minutes with D&M, which was the 3-4 times I remembered somewhere around 3 PM to check in and see if they were back on Live. If the post's here are a microcosm of the true fan's feelings, then no matter what the reason, this absence is testing their loyalty, and somewhere management and the fat men must be sensing this. The only way they redeem themselves is if they next surface on SatRad, claiming to have broken themselves free from the shackles and censorship of the man. (11/30/06) As a longtime listener of D&M, I seem to recall (over the years) some "education" regarding "Radio Stunts" from Don Geronimo himself; "It's all (scripted)...". I can also understand that a great deal of preparation is involved in providing a "show" that appears seamless or random in nature. I would place a bet that 80% of the material that seems "quick or off-the-cuff" has been well thought out in advance. In my humble opinion, I take the recent activities as, "How far can we go?...Let's run with it!...The LONGEST ride, the TALLEST building...See what happens". And then...weeks later, get on with it. Pure genius. I could be wrong...doubtful. MK (11/30/06) RE: Amazon ads, I'll agree with other posters. I don't save any coookies and here is what I got from the ads: Platinum Comedy Series - Dave Chappelle - Killin' Them... Dave Chappelle New $10.99 Best $6.01..... Nintendogs Dalmatian & Friends Nintendo New $29.82 Best $27.50..... GE 7-2887 Superadio III Portable AM/FM Radio General Electric New $44.08 Best $42.88..... I Love You, Alice B. Toklas! Leigh Taylor-Young... New $17.99 Best $13.08..... Which has gotta be funny in some odd way, because I'm quite sure that it doesn't reflect my buying habits, but read top to bottom makes for an interesting evening. Jim (11/30/06) Dave's response: These are the four amazon.com ads that come up on my browser..... To the post: WJFK WEBSITE DOWN: Must be somthing wrong with your internet. I just went to the the web site. Got the home page, it worked for me. Doug (11/30/06) I’ve been an avid D&M enthusiast since they appeared on KHTK in Sacramento in 1994 (or thereabouts). I am an outside salesperson who seeks entertainment to pass my time from place to place all day. Since 01/06 I have enjoyed my Sirius Satellite Radio – and Don and Mike as well as all the old programs I used to listen to have been replaced by the programming I have on my Sirius. I have only become aware of this crazy BS going down with the show by staying in touch with the show website and this one. My only comment is, as an avid listener for so many years, D&M became expendable with Sterns switch to Satellite and the other programs that exist on his stations (BBLS etc…) and others (Jay Thomas, Jim Breuer etc ….) because of the more compelling and uncensored content. Further alienating your terrestrial radio fan base for any reason seems suicidal to me. Whatever your problem is – get over it – or let everybody know what is going on or you may find yourself out of business for good. Tim – N.California (11/30/06) So, are we really supposed to believe that D&M are feuding??..And what would make their relationship so strained??.. (11/30/06) Dave's response: We report. You decide. Hey, Don and Mike both regularly read this site. So do dozens of folks from WJFK-FM and CBS Radio. If the husband of a Westwood One sales person's allegation isn't accurate about a feud between D&M, let DCRTV know and I'll gladly set the record straight..... What ever happened to Renee Poussant? I just saw a woman on a commercial who resembled her and that's what made me wonder. -- Bobbie (11/30/06) Two quick things: 1. CC Cuts - each sales staff has a mandatory meeting tomorrow. The Grim Reapers strike again. 2. Junks and D&M - my information is that they have gone back and forth on where to move D&M. It's definitely AM Drive but not sure if it's going to be WARW or WJFK. The Junkies are going to PM Drive on WJFK (no word of the simulcast in Baltimore). They're not getting it done financially, i.e. they're not bringing in what they need to for AM Drive. D&M's Westwood One problem isn't really a problem. The markets they were/are on, minus a few, aren't significant enough to worry about them when the majority of the salary is being eaten by WJFK. Tape delay, move to AM Drive, etc = no problem. The information about them not getting along? That's news to me. My source has them going to WARW moreso over WJFK simply because Arrow's revenue is pathetic and D&M garner ad dollars, plain & simple. This allows them to then put O&A on AM Drive at WJFK and between those two shows they should put a significant dent into Elliot in the Morning's show to hurt DC101's revenue and then in turn make some more on the Infinity side. They were supposed to do this now or right after Christmas. Looks like it's a January deal now. (11/30/06) To J Tino Anthony, Dropzone Media. I’m interested in hearing more about your Smart Business program. 703-272-7600 ext 113. Don at dcradio700.com (11/30/06) Virginians, hold on to your wallets and get ready for another cash grab from the Republican-led "We Don't Invent New Taxes -We Just Copy Other States Existing Taxes" General Assembly: Come January 1st, your bills for Satellite TV and Satellite Radio will be going up by 5%! What justifies the new tax? That the signals of the satellites are received in Virginia. That's it. Now, the lawmakers make a weak arguement about making a "level playing field" between Satellite TV and Cable TV because Cable typicaly has to charge 5% in PEG fees every month to the local franchasing authority, and that Cable systems typically have to pay for occupancy of and construction permit fees in public rights-of-way. Hold on here, guys... There is one thing missing here! Where does satellite use the public right-of-way or require a local franchise? It doesn't. Therefore, by not having those fees, Satellite has a price advantage over cable. But, cable has an advantage in that can do telepho! ny and offer a more practical broadband internet product. So, there's already balance. What we really have is a combination of Constitution-Ignoring Tax-Happy Republicans who've decided that the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constiution does not apply to Virginia and fleece the wallets of tech-savy Virginians to further swell the already bulging coffers of the Commonwealth. Next thing you know, they'll decide to go after "dodgers" of this tax by enacting an "entertainment tax" to "recover lost revenue" from those who only receive terresterial Radio and TV! I can see it now... the Commonwealth will hire antenna spotters to look for antennas on automobiles, houses, and businesses, looking for scofflaws of this tax. After that, they'll pull the old British GPO trick of looking for local oscillator emissions of those who attempt to avoid this tax by using indoor antennas. You know, I think WMAL has it all wrong. The Republicans didn't lose because of Bush (Although I make! sure my daughter eats broccoli at least three times a week because of what its absence in a child's diet can apparently cause!)or Iraq. It was simply that Republicans (Especially the so-called "conservative" ones!) forgot how to be Republicans. And, the Democrats simply learned to be more Republican than many Republicans were! Strange paradox, isn't it! (11/30/06) 106.7’s website is down. Maybe they are doing a redesign? (11/30/06) Dave, I have to ask if you checked out your "source" because when he posts to the mailbag and uses phrases like "gasbag Mike Source" [sic] it doesn't exactly come across as credible. (11/30/06) you are all wrong.....my brother called me from iraq at 3 in the morning. he just saw don and mike give a show for his outfit...with brooke sheilds and joey heatherton. So while you lazy son of a bitches have been ripping on them...they have been bringing comfort to our troops...i hope you all feel real good tonite.. all snug in your beds...aholes......steve from iowa (11/30/06) D&M have been part of my afternoons for as long as my son has been alive. During that 12+ years their presence in my car and recently on my pc speakers became a daily ritual. Sure, I weaned myself during their vacations since I’d already heard almost every live episode and contrary to the marketing spin, it isn’t better the second time. They have now been absent without explanation or communication for two weeks and I’ve found other things – not just local radio to occupy that missing “content” in my obviously shallow and unfulfilled life. I don’t think that if/when they come back that I will return to listening. As a matter of fact, like several other fans who have posted to this website I checked in today at 3:00 as I was picking up my son from school and he looked at me and asked if D&M were back. When I heard the reference to Donnie’s headgear and Valentines day, I said, “no son, I think they’re gone for good.” I think I’m on the way to recovery. 11 more steps… Steve in Odenton (11/30/06) There may be some confusion about how a "buy-out" works. As far as I can tell, none of the union-represented employees at Channel-4 are being "let-go" or "fired". Select employees have been offered a financial settlement to voluntarily terminate their contracts early. Just because one person is leaving and another is staying doesn't mean that the "survivor" is being favored. For every name we hear who has accepted the buy-out offer... there are undoubtedly others who have quietly declined the offer... and can expect to be shown the door when their contracts end. As Arch Campbell inferred in Wednesday's WaPost article, regardless of whether he accepted his buy-out offer, his contract would not have been renewed: "'They gave me a choice of taking retirement (or) taking retirement,' Campbell said by phone. 'So I took retirement.'" At the same time, one or more of the soon to-be-departing employees received NO buy-out offer because their contracts were already ending. (11/30/06) From www.fmqb.com... Bridge Study: Howard Stern A "Non-Factor" In Holiday Satcaster Sales... Bridge Ratings has released its latest update to the company's ongoing study of consumer trends for satellite radio in 2006. The newest data factors in Thanksgiving weekend shopping and projects the rest of the holiday purchasing trends. Bridge found that while overall electronics sales were up, satellite radio "was not among those items that caught fire" over the holiday weekend. Bridge found that while satellite radio sales were stronger than in previous weeks this fall, it was still down 31.5 percent compared to Thanksgiving weekend last year. The company expects retail sales to improve over the next few weeks, but year-over-year retail numbers will fall short of 2005's results and it is projected that satellite sales will be off between 23 and 25 percent for the fourth quarter. Of course, last year's satellite sales were greatly driven by Howard Stern's migration to Sirius. But this year, Bridge is calling him a "non-factor" in new satcaster subscriptions. Bridge has tracked weekly interest in Stern among new Sirius subscribers, with only 10 percent of them citing him as a reason for signing up - a new low mark in the study. Also, this month's offer of free online sampling of Stern's programming "does not appear to have impacted retail subscriptions, but it may have increased subscription sales on the Internet." Overall, Bridge is projecting a 25 percent decline in satcaster retail activity in 2006's fourth quarter when compared to last year's Q4 sales, a drop off of 500,000 units. (11/30/06) Ok, OK....let's face the truth, there is none at this time re: D&M. Speculation aside...bad blood is not part of the issue contrary to what's being spun. It's marketing..... M-A-R-K-E-T-I-N-G...The "dynamic" duo will definitely re-appear, though NOT in the same space. This is NOT negotiations to make peace, it's negotiations to get attention. And, man are they successful at that. After all, they are the only game in town! I read with amusement all of the speculations, the "inside story"...the FACTS??? C'mon..IRAQ is much more important put your efforts into the United States and use your energy to encourage the troops. ANG (11/30/06) 1) For the record, I did not post the blurb about "Bryan Nehman with his shirt off/hottie" stuff, even though it's right below my own post about him. 2) Am I the only one who thinks that Kathleen Matthews dressed as a Marriott housekeeper is a slap in the face to all the hardworking hotel housekeepers (mostly Latinas) who may not see the joke in this? I normally have a healthy sense of humor... what's wrong with me?!? -Silvie in Waldorf- (11/30/06) Dave's response: For the record, that Nehman "hottie" post came from a guy. And it wasn't Fred Grandy..... Months ago, folks were here grousing about non-competes in the Washington market. Now I'm seeing ex-WRC'ers and CC people turning up everywhere doing radio and TV. You mean to tell me all of these people are able to circumvent their non-competes? Who's their media agent? Sign me up. (11/30/06) good day, wondering if you know of any local radio stations that lease out radio time? I'm currently working on a program that leases time from clear-channel, but there is not alot of time avail. and I'd like to explore other options. the show is called Smart business. It started out kind of boring. Estate planning, investment portfolios etc. But in the last few months we have been profiling alot of area CEO's, and the show has become alot more interesting. my next move is to tape a cable televison version of the show and hopefuly gain distribution via Comcast, or one of the other cable systems in the area. any insights would be greatly appreciated. I would love to take you out for a " brainstorming lunch" sometime. From reading your profile, I think we have alot in common. thanks alot, in Progress, J. "tino" Anthony, Dropzone media (11/30/06) My wife works in sales for Westwood One, and she tells me that Don and Mike have ended their business relationship with each other. Apparently their strained relationship had been an open secret within the company for awhile, and it finally boiled over when gasbag Mike Source walked off the show. The speculation is that the company is trying to rectify the situation and get them back on the air to fulfill their contract terms, but their so pissed at each other that no one's talking. The scuttlebutt from inside her office has been very reliable before, so this could be true. (11/30/06) Dave's response: You know, I penned a sophomoric jest to that effect yesterday and received a rather sarcastic response from someone who I strongly suspect to be "you know who." Although it cannot be confirmed who sent it. Hmmm..... RE: [ " we foment enough hatred in America to equal anything they teach in Saudi Arabia. " ]..... My last word on this WMAL stuff.... Could it be, possibly, because we have FREE SPEECH AND YET STILL WE HAVE BIGOTS TOO, on TV and radio and in print!? You just noticed that? Wow, you're smart. None of the quotes you mentioned are U.S. gov't or U.S. state sponsored or through normal regular schooling, unlike many Muslim countries. In fact, if any of this discussion were occurring right now in most any Muslim country, not only would one of us be removed from a plane, but one of us would either be in jail or far worse, and I think I know which one of us if it weren't both of us! Yes, I'm angry and this is my last post on this subject. As a gay man, I've never in my entire life been accused of overly defending the Catholic church or the Pope or even right wing nutjob Christians, and I certainly will be the last person in the world to defend some of the people you mentioned, but I'll say one thing...... At least the Pope admitted his mistake of quoting an ancient text (not even his own words). And he didn't behead a single individual. Last I checked, no one at even WMAL's staff has beheaded or assassinated any Christian political figures, nor Jews, or Muslims, nor has even bigot Jerry Falwell or his bigot-buddy Pat Robertson. Nor are there widespread reports of this type of anti-Muslim hatred being taught daily in nearly ALL U.S. school system education programs nationally. You picked possibly the worst statements that could possibly be found in American media and STILL you came up short by far in comparison! How pathetic. And yes, you'd also have a hard time proving what good to the world George W. Bush has provided us all right now, but that's a whole OTHER topic and yes we're officially OFF-TOPIC! So we'll have to agree to disagree and that's what's great about America. Both of us will live long and hopefully prosper despite our disagreement. And you don't have to worry as I'm pretty sure at most, even Jerry Falwell has only committed character assassination! (11/30/06) Ok..so I cant get the Ravens game tonight, because I dont have the NFL Network, and my cable system doesnt carry Ch 2 from Baltimore. The NFL makes plenty of money, but they want to charge the cable companies more to put their network on a basic tier of stations. What is wrong with this picture? Or no picture? Burt in Denton (11/30/06) If you unite Nehman and Spewak, you get Kneewhack. KOF (11/30/06) It's Best of again today with a special Valentine's rerun. 30 seconds and I turned it off. Carol (11/30/06) The highest-rated radio program in my office from 3:00 – 3:02 p.m. once again, was D&M. Tune in; establish that nothing has changed; turn radio off; flip on iPod speakers. Right now, it’s Fiona Joyce, singing, “Cry Over You” on the Women of the World: Celtic CD. Strangely appropriate, but nobody’s crying. I think that the sympathy for D&M is wearing mighty thin. Sincerely, TMU (11/30/06) Thirteen years of Loyalty to the D&M show are the only reason that I give it until 3:02…..if they don’t make a statement by 3:02 on Monday, I’m done for good. This whole situation is sad and absurd….Kind of Ironic that WJFK is in the communication business and they can’t communicate with their listeners….I guess that they just take us for granted just like Don and Mike do….I manage websites for a living and it would take less than 20 seconds for them to change their WTF message on their site…..Get a clue D*cks!!! (11/30/06) Called the business office 703-691-1900 asked when D&M would be back live She told me soon. I clanked then I clicked... (11/30/06) OK, so, Don and Mike are moving to XM. Got it. Channel 20? Monday? The studio upgrades were to accomodate the satellite stuff? And with the drawn out self-prostituting way CBS and Howard Stern handled that whole deal, The big guy decided that the 'best' thing to do was just go dark and re-surface when all was finished? So, simulcast same time and then another show? Extra hour? Doni G spins the hits of yesterday and tomorrow? And ye say?? (11/30/06) Dave's response: That's funny. I thought the same thing when I put today's Front Page blurb up..... Okay, its actually time to do something other than complain… It has been mentioned before, but let me drive it home. Let’s start boycotting WJFK’s sponsors for the horrible programming as of late. Here is a short list of their sponsors that you can start not buying products from (Hey Sponsors, thank Don and Mike!): OldVirginiaTobacco.com, Charleston Alexander Diamond Importers, WhereTheDiamondsAre.com, Jim Coleman Toyota, Hard Times Café, Home Depot, Epson, Euro Motor Cars, The Art and Jewelry Exchange, Tomtom, Chicken Out, Mattress Discounters. -Rob (11/30/06) "This looks like the old WOOK-TV control room! Can anyone confirm? -Barlow T. Shagnasty" --- We, for two are APPALLED that you would print the rantings of a madman like Shagnasty! Does NO ONE here recall the pro-Castro messages he used to sneak in to the commercials on WFAN when it was at 100.3? He nearly drove poor Mr. Quinones and Mr. Myers mad, mad, I tell you. He was actually BANNED from the 1st Place, NE headquarters of WOOK-TV. He understands mind control and is very dangerous. I heard that he and that self-proclaimed "Village Idiot Program" host Ron Starr were boozin' buddies in the sixties. Do we need to relive those painful times again? Respectfully, Lou Goldfarb and Spike Averill (11/30/06) Open letter to INFINITY BROADCASTING, WJFK and Don and Mike: I understand that working 4 - 5 hours a day insulting listeners and management can be grueling work for millionaires who have no respect for their listeners. However I would like to thank WJFK, Don and Mike & Infinity Broadcasting for yet again, hanging their listeners out to dry with no explanation. Thanks for the respect guys. Good news is I have discovered the Dan Patrick Show and the John Riggins Show on ESPN RADIO http://www.triplexespnradio.com/ online as well as on 94.3 FM, 92.7FM, and 730AM. At least they show up to work and have respect for the listeners and sponsors. I don't care if Don and Mike play "best of's" but have the decency to address your listeners you ungrateful millionaires. I see now why D&M are not taken seriously in the radio industry. I see now why the Junkies got mornings. I see now why O&A get the push. I see now why D&M are always over looked. I see now why D&M never do Letterman or Leno. Frankly, I see now why Don and Mike are "small potatoes" in the biz. It's because of Don's ego. No wonder Mike and Buzz can't stand the guy. I wonder if Don ever takes a few minutes out of his life to think about someone else other than himself? I wonder if he EVER thinks about his co-workers? Or his listeners? It's obvious he wasn't mentally ready to come back to work. His ego wouldn't even allow him to stay off the air and grieve properly and I'm afraid he is now having a mental breakdown. IT WOULD GREAT if when they show back up for work, and Donnie starts in with his fake ass apology that their listeners give them a dose of their own medicine and not call in to the show. Lets see how good they are without the support of callers. Imagine that show? Don having to actually work for 4 hours WITHOUT the phones? They just expect us to be here when they come back and buy into their BS story or their "we cant talk about it" shit. I'm begging the idiots who continue to support WJFk and Don and Mike to NOT call in when they come back . And tune in to LIVE radio on ESPN RADIO. Pedro Front Royal (11/30/06) Wow, another day of D&M repeats. i have listed to them back when they were on wava. I have an annoucment.... "Today is my last day of checking to see if they are back live. I just give up. You lost a long time fan today. Here i come BUBBA THE LOVE SPONGE!!!!!! Jamie K (11/30/06) Happy Valentines Day! Click. (11/30/06) Who waits until 3:02? It's 3:00 and 45 seconds and I already clicked! (11/30/06) (I'd rather listen to the Korean news talk station (even though I don't speak Korean) than to listen to WMAL without Nehman and/or Chris Plante. -Silvie in Waldorf-) Who says Bryan Nehman has to leave WMAL? Wouldn't Rob fit right in at WMAL with his 'leanings'? He has the experience with marking people and armbands.... (11/30/06) Wheee! Can't wait for George Michael to be gone. Then we shall hopefully hear the real fans cheering and booing during sports highlights instead of the canned, phony stuff. How does he get away with that crap? (11/30/06) "Hit them where it hurts - their ratings" why not in the nuts?? (11/30/06) QUOTE: "Dave's response: My dream - uniting Bryan Nehman and Robb Spewak." I'd rather listen to the Korean news talk station (even though I don't speak Korean) than to listen to WMAL without Nehman and/or Chris Plante. -Silvie in Waldorf- (11/30/06) You gotta find a picture of Bryan Nehman with his shirt off. And as much of the rest of his clothing off as possible! He’s a hottie! (11/30/06) RE: "Before the out of town lemmings with agendas completely discount Don + Mike and begin reshaping WJFK to fit in Opie + Anthony lets not ignore how the first time Ope + Ant were on Washington radio that they did everything they could to demolish the station (1st to 18th)" First of all, I don't think that all the people bashing D&M are "out of town lemmings". By in large, I would guess that the large majority are people posting are from right here in D.C. But let's recap *WHY* WJFK dropped from 1st to 18th when O&A came on: LISTENER RAGE. They replaced a show that was a staple here in D.C. for what, 15 years? Unannounced, all of the sudden, those that we usually listened to -- D&M -- were replaced & moved to mid-days for these two out-of-town hacks O&A. The existing listeners of D&M were outraged -- I was one of them -- and most probably turned off O&A at 3 out of shear protest. Had they been slid into any other spot (shy of Stern in the mornings), I truly believe the results would have been better. But kicking D&M to the curb for their New York-based show was what sealed their fate. A rebellion, you might call it. Under the current circumstances, with D&M having less than 2 years on their contract, their propensity for just "phoning in" the show of late (especially since Freda's death), and now their walk out with no further word on when (or if) they'll be back, I believe that O&A would have a chance at making it in that same spot this second time around. Yes, they would be replacing D&M (again) in the same time slot they did before, but D&M's show has changed, and I don't think you have all of the "addicted like rats on crack" listeners that they used to. Especially after this last slap in the face orchestrated by Don. I think people have been getting past the show, and that shows in their ratings -- going from 1st to 15th back to 5th to 6th back to 5th -- and that it's time for some new blood in that time slot. So your comparison, sir, to a situation several years ago to today is like comparing apples to oranges. Just doesn't work. (11/30/06) Does Sue Simmons work at WNNNNNNNNNNNBC? (11/30/06) Dave's response: WNNNNNNNNBC-TV. The old WNNNNNNNNBC, Radio 66, where Howie Stern once worked, is now WFANNNNNNNN..... "Dave's response: Andy Parks, Bryan Nehman, Fred Grandy, Chris Core, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Chris Plante, George Noory - all (mostly) white guys. Need I say more?" So if I find a station that is all African American or other minorities, you will lead the push for them to hire a couple of white guys??? (11/30/06) RE: the Amazon ads......... People, stop being paranoid, its only the voices in your cookies talking! In this day and age, anyone who doesn't clear cookies after each online session DESERVES TO BE SNOOPED! People really need to start thinking about cookies as if they were money or credit cards. It's like dropping one of them at the mall and walking away and continuing to shop cluelessly. Seriously, think about it that way and change your browser settings to make sure cookies don't stay forever. By the way, I'm still not convinced this is happening as I'm getting books too and I'm illiterate. :-) (11/30/06) I'm not gonna lie and say I won't ever listen to Don and Mike again. But I can promise you this, if I ever get randomly selected to do an Arbitron diary, I WILL lie and write in another show instead of them. I suggest everyone else does this too. Hit them where it hurts - their ratings. Darren (11/30/06) Originally in the Baltimore area, the Washington TV channels used to be WRC (24, GONE), WTTG (25, GONE), WETA (STILL 26!), WJLA (27, GONE), WDVM (29, now WUSA, GONE), WDCA (30, GONE), and WHMM (32, now WHUT and moved). WDCA 20 lasted the longest of those now gone. As far as I know, Washington's channel 50 was never on cable originally and/or possibly ever in the Baltimore area. The Baltimore stations were WMAR (12), WBAL (21), WJZ (23), WBFF (35, later moved to 15), with all still in those same places today. The rotary cable dial (I kid you not) WIRED REMOTE ended before 40 if memory serves me correct and all you had to do was open the remote up with a pair of Radio Shack pliers and switch one red wire and you got HBO, SHOWTIME, and PLAYBOY for free. Please don't tell my mom. There was no WUTB 24 or WNUV 54 since 54 (like 50) would have been SUPER-TV and competing with cable-TV at the time. Could someone please explain to me how cable deregulation has helped this area. Wouldn't it have been better to have had an infomercial exclusivity rule so that I wouldn't have to watch the same damned infomercial on 5 different channels at the same time daily instead of a "network programming" exclusivity rule ? (11/30/06) Dave's response: I still remember my college days at JMU in Harrisonburg VA in the late 1970s. The old fashioned 12-channel cable system in the southern Shenandoah Valley town got four (!) NBC stations - DC's WRC, Richmond's WWBT, Charlottesville's WVIR, and Harrisonburg's own WHSV (which was ABC, too). Yet, at the time, the system carried only one "indie," DC's WTTG. But not WDCA, even though there was a blank channel on the system that, according to cable system officials, was "reserved" for WDCA. But which sat blank for years! Ah, the insanity..... RE: [ " A pair of rabbit ears will pick up Channel 2's relay of the game throughout much of the DC area. " ]........... And it'll do it a LOT BETTER than a pair of rabbit years will pick up WRC 4 or WTTG 5 or WJLA 7 or WUSA 9 in the Baltimore area! That's for sure! Dave Loudin.... From everything I have read, Baltimore's candelabra tower was built to be exactly the same actual maximum allowed height for each Baltimore network TV station (2,11,13) at the time so there would be no perceived preference of one over the other because the cost was split evenly between Westinghouse, Hearst/News American newspaper, and A.S. Abel/Baltimore Sun newspaper companies. Therefor, it is designed to be within the 1000 foot margin of maxed out facilities as understood at the time. Each transmitter was originally within 2 FEET of each other in actual height (997-999ft) because I remember reading the specs in Broadcasting Yearbook way back in the 1980s at the library. The only difference between the 3 HAAT heights was the calculations of average terrain due to the fact that it is a candelabra tower and technically, each of the 3 stations is in a different physical location atop a hill. So yes, they are now within 20-50 feet of their maximum transmission allowed as this has varied slightly with the installation of DTV facilities, towercams, FM transmitters and whatever else is up there these days. I think we're splitting hairs here arguing that the Baltimore TV stations are not built to maximum allowed powers. They are pretty darn close. In contrast, no Washington DC TV station is even within 200 feet of their maximum allowed transmission! And WPGC 95.5 is a near maxed out 50,000 watt/486ft HAAT FM station and it STILL has a significantly worse signal than WWDC 101 towards Baltimore at similar distances, so I fail to see how arguing that lower height and higher power is a winning argument. Otherwise, why would every other major east coast market have 1000 foot+ tower farms with the exception of the Washington market? Are you really arguing that Washington's transmission facilities are superior to every other market or even comparable??? Obviously, they're not by far. Why else would Tenleytown have even been proposed in the first place? I think I'm right on this one, but don't worry, you're still the best DCRTV tech guru. You da man! :-) (11/30/05) Hi Dave-The Amazon ads I see at the top and on the right of the mailbag feature items that directly relate to Google searches I have made with the last 48 hours. This is Minority Report odd. Exact products matching exact searches I made on a seperate search engine. Who do you REALLY work for, DAVE?! hahaha Talk to you later. Craig (11/30/06) [RE: "The last time I checked, the Catholic church and Catholic priests do not teach such things nor does any religious organization or even religious based school in the U.S. that I am aware of.."] You've got to be kidding. The leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Benedict, recently stated, "Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman." and before you go absolving American religious organizations of fomenting hatred, here's a few quotes from some of our more prominant leaders preaching that "old timey" gospel for you to chew on: Bailey Smith, president of the Southern Baptist Convention: "God Almighty does not hear the prayer of a Jew." Reverend Jerry Falwell: "AIDS is the wrath of a just God against homosexuals." And "homosexuals are brute beasts...part of a vile and satanic system that will be utterly annihilated, and there will be a celebration in heaven.* How about our old pal Pat Robertson on bombing the State Department offices in Virginia: "Maybe we need a very small nuke thrown off on Foggy Bottom to shake things up". Want something a little kookier? There's always a gem from Randall Terry: "I want you to just let a wave of intolerance wash over you. I want you to let a wave of hatred wash over you. Yes, hate is good. Our goal is a Christian nation. We have a biblical duty, we are called by God to conquer this country. We don't want equal time. We don't want pluralism. We want WAR*. and George Hawtin : "2/3 will have to die in the last days so that 1/3 might emerge pure." Now, put your finger back down...we foment enough hatred in America to equal anything they teach in Saudi Arabia. (11/30/06) Dave's response: We're getting "off topic" here..... The game tonight is not blacked out anywhere. The only network channel to get the game will be Baltimore's WMAR channel 2. Outside of the Baltimore market, one needs to have the NFL Network to get the game. Yet another reason to have DirecTV and not Communist-Cast. (11/30/06) I just noticed that Marc Fisher's "Raw Fisher" blog flags Fisher's upcoming "New Yorker" piece, which is also the basis for a chapter in his upcoming book about radio (in this case, it's New York radio, but he's a local journalist, so...): blog.washingtonpost.com (11/30/06) Dave's response: Marc promises a chapter on Don Geronimo in his new book, due out in January. Should be a very interesting read. But make sure to buy your copy via the amazon.com link below. And help support DCRTV, too..... Sorry, Dave, I missed the article on the front page the other day (about an possible XM/Sirius merger). Do I go 'In The Book' for being a bad web-page reader? Love your stuff. Tom (11/30/06) Dave's response: I'll give you a pass - this time. Ha ha ha. I didn't feel it was necessary to link to the NYDN article since that pretty much rehashed the Smart Money article that we did link to a few days ago..... I'm also getting customized Amazon ads. My theme appears to be books I recently ordered for a family systems class - somebody is definitely snooping. alr (11/30/06) So Clear Channel is about to cut staff? Why, then, do I keep hearing ads on WTNT seeking new CC sales rep's? Maybe they're replacing higher-priced employees with minimum-wage-type positions. The ad indicates that CC is looking for people who can't stop thinking about their jobs. The text goes something like this: "Do you find it hard to turn off your work late at night? Are you driven to excel?" Translation: We want you to work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, probably for very little money. And we want you to be happy about it! Christian (11/30/06) Dave's response: They fatten the reps up and turn them into Clear Channel Meat Stew. Yummy..... Dave, I just read an article in the NY Daily News (www.nydailynews.com) regarding a possible Sirius/XM merger. I always though they should be one company until they get a good market share, then split-off. IMHO, if all the programming were available at one place, they would crush terrestrial radio. Are there any regulatory reasons that you know of to prevent this? Thanks and keep up the great work. Tom in Crofton (11/30/06) Dave's response: Yeah, there's been a lot of media coverage of late on a possible XM-Sirius marriage. We did a Front Page blurb on it a few days ago..... DCRTV Dave - I recommend DCRTV to young people who are interested in a career in broadcasting, and to others who have an interest in the industry. The problem is, Amazon.com is "recommending" I buy such DVD's as "Sex Essentials," "Virgins of Sherwood Forest," and "Lolida 2000." These are listed on the right-hand side of the Mailbag page. Maybe I should rethink recommending this web site to young people. (Name withheld because my wife reads DCRTV as well.) (11/30/06) Dave's response: That right column Amazon ad specifically lists "erotic" DVDs. That's on purpose..... What is the real story with D&M. Has anyone heard anything from them, the station or CBS? (11/30/06) Dave's response: I sent Michael Hughes an e-mail this morning requesting an update about the D&M situation and have, so far, received no response..... About the "FBC" Network.... I actually watched the very 1st night of programming on the fledgling Fox Network and yes, I remember and can confirm that they did in fact initially use the logo "F B C" with Fox Broadcasting Company in small print underneath it as an identification on the very 1st broadcast day. Back then, the Simpsons were nothing but an interlude cartoon at commercial breaks during the Tracy Ulman Show and Married With Children was actually funny because it was "risque". I also remember watching the very 1st morning of Music Television (MTV) ever on cable when few people had it and the very 1st year of Home Box Office and Showtime. I believe HBO was originally only on at night (I was not allowed to watch certain movies of course) and Showtime actually had actual taped Broadway plays, and there was once a separate A.R.T.S. channel (Alpha Repertory Television Service) and an Entertainment Channel (with British BBC comedies)! And USA channel was 2 different networks day and night with mostly sports at night. There were odd long-forgotten networks like MSN (no not MSNBC, but Modern Satellite Network, probably watched about as MSNBC today though!) and SPN (Satellite Program Network) and all of the Washington TV stations were on Baltimore area cable with perfectly clear reception and Jim Vance was STILL on WRC NBC4! And wow, there were no openly gay people on Bravo, just opera! Imagine that! I remember I had to stay up all night long for MTV's debut because the cable company at that time did not announce what time the network was going to start programming from New York, just the date. And they only played music videos. Ahhhh, those were the days. Boy has MTV changed! Is there even any "music" at all on "Music Television" anymore? They really should change the name to "Teen Lifetime" or something. I even had an "I WANT MY MTV" sticker on my stereo because the cable company used to freely transmit all the cable channel signals over the FM dial at different frequencies so you could listen and watch MTV in stereo! It was soooo cool back then. God, I'm getting old. I think I'll just kill myself now. :-) (11/30/06) Dave's response: Reston, which was then served by Warner, which then owned MTV, got the then-music video network from "day one." I remember it launched in 1981 on channel B-3, and I was watching. Back in those days, we got Baltimore on cable here in Virginia: WMAR on channel A-17, WBAL on channel A-18, WJZ on channel A-20, WBFF (when it wasn't having its frequent transmitter troubles) on channel A-15, and WMPT on channel A-14. Those were the days. Baltimore has since been "removed." However, we still get WMPT on the local cable, now owned by Comcast..... There is definitely something going on. I've been wondering at the "coincidence" of the books advertised by Amazon.com in the space above the Mailbag. A few days ago I put similar books (all horse-related) on my Wish List at Amazon.com. and right after that these ads began appearing on my screen. I suspect that I am the only one who is seeing these "suggestions." Maybe this will be a clue for you as to what is happening. Leigh (11/30/06) Dave's response: Hmmm..... Rob Long of WNST has a column in this week's PressBox about nasty emails and phone calls he gets on his show-especially when the race issue comes up. www.pressboxonline.com... Howie (11/30/06) In the I-just-can’t-not-respond dept: Since no one else seems to care about the BIG picture in local TV News and basically just what happens at WRC, here are some cold hard facts. Fact: Despite the Post’s dismal report on 11pm ratings this November, W*USA 9 NEWS NOW was the ONLY 11pm news to grow in share year to year (HH, Mo-Su). Fact: there were also similar gains Y-Y in viewership for 9 NEWS NOW at 5, 6 and 7; in fact, W*USA was the only local station to gain viewers Y-Y Mo-Su in HH during those newscasts (except for WRC at 6). Oh, yes, and fact: Katie Couric may be in third place, but she’s also the only national news in DC to gain share year to year. To all those who criticize, she’s a work in progress and was not expected to be number one out of the box. Hey, a little context never hurt, right? OK, you can all go back to talking about WRC now. Happy holidays. (11/30/06) Before the out of town lemmings with agendas completely discount Don + Mike and begin reshaping WJFK to fit in Opie + Anthony lets not ignore how the first time Ope + Ant were on Washington radio that they did everything they could to demolish the station (1st to 18th) and that they haven't done anything respectable or impressive since coming back. CBS will stick with them because they have nothing else and they hope that by focring them on other CBS properties like Letterman and other CBS stations that they will someone really find the second coming of Stern.....ain't gonna happen! The Greaseman and Mark + Brian are theyre contemporaries no matter how much they cry. People can't honestly believe that a 3 hour (with commercials), watered down Gregg + Acne show is what will save WJFK in the mornings? HA! They arent funny on satellite and they sure as hell arent funny on terrestrial. They did next to nothing for XM when they first signed on with that joke of a premiere service (35,000 - yipee!) and since doing the dual shows they have done next to nothing in bringing on new subscriptions for the naughtier XM show ("Oooooh! LIL Jimmy just cussed when he told his same old tired put down this time! Ooooh! Ooooh! Let's go to our message board and parrot him! People will think we are funny too!!!!!") HA! Stay in New York or accept tape delayed status you humorless failures! This has been the year that you were finally made to put up or shut up and everyone finally got to see that not only didnt the emperors have clothes but that they were poseurs to begin with!! Never forget hairless ones.....O+A always whine in the end! (11/30/06) I don't understand how the Ravens game could possibly be blacked out on NFL Network anywhere but in Cincinatti, OH where it is a home game and I doubt that's the case because I'm sure the game is completely sold out. It's not a Ravens home game. Is it just because you do not have digital cable and your basic cable system does not carry NFL Network or WMAR 2 or is there some other NFL-carry rule here at work that I'm misunderstanding? And does this mean certain ESPN MNF cable games could conceivably be blacked out too in the future in a similar fashion in either Washington or Baltimore? Anybody know what the deal is? I have to admit, you got me wondering now. (11/30/06) Dave's response: Upon re-reading Thomas Heath's confusing article, I don't think that the NFL Network will be blacked out anywhere (expect, maybe, on RCN systems). If you live in the Baltimore market, you'll see tonight's Ravens game on NFL and C