Current Mailbag - Mailbag Archive Index - DCRTV Front Page - Support DCRTV DCRTV Mailbag - October 12 to October 17, 2007 Latest messages listed first..... \/ October 17 Messages \/ Dave, Thanks so much for the nice plug on your site. Of all the times to have trouble with the site......this is the worst. I've been trying all day to fix it, but it's going to be awhile until it can be repaired. The problem is that my Domain name, www.wtoptv.com is not pointing to my site, which is www.lookoutlee.blogspot.com... If you would be so kind as to change the link on your site I would be grateful. www.lookoutlee.blogspot.com will get you to the site. Again, thanks for the mention! -Lee (10/17/07) TMU: talking Redskins all the time is what SOME people want. Leonsis' point, which you seem to miss, is that there is a underserved market of baseball, soccer, hockey, basketball fans that Czaban and Pollin are ignoring. The question is whether the legion of Redskins fans are going to turn the show off if Czabollin spend 30 minutes a day talking about things other than the Redskins or whether those fans will hang in there and they will attract more baseball, soccer, hockey fans whose favorite sport is no longer treated as a joke by those two. Obviously, the answer is the latter. Which is why Leonsis was correct and why shows on WTEM other than Czaban/Pollin do pay attention to a broader variety of local sports. (10/17/07) Whoever was looking for the Baltimore numbers between 98 Rock and HFS, here they are. HFS is horrible. DC101 only covers 1 county in Baltimore and don't play to the city at all and they beat HFS. 18-34: 98Rock - 2nd, HFS - 10th, (DC101 - 5th)... 25-54: 98Rock - 2nd, HFS - 13th, (DC101 - 12th)... (10/17/07) If Beauchamp was smart, he'd call in Brian Wilson. He knows Baltimore and Baltimore knows him - especially the WBAL audience from all the times he filled in for Smith. Way better talk show host and entertainer than Bruce Elliott. Why isn't his name mentioned when this comes up? Wilson on noon-3 sounds like a perfect fit. What gives? (10/17/07) Dave's response: And there's always Allan Prell and Bob Enrlich. I mean that - as a new midday team..... Dear Jazz Fan: We recently became acquainted with Al Julian and Improvisational Promotions and he was nice enough to send us several new releases for our music library from talented artist he represents. We will therefore focus our programming on these artists during the coming week. Our musical variety will include Illinois Jacquet, Ali Ryerson, Judi Silvano, Bob Stewart, Rich Wetzel, John Blount, Ben Aronov, Jay Leonhart, Luther Hughes, Joan Watson-Jones and all the other usual suspects that make up this great musical art form. We encourage you to listen daily and tell a friend. jazzradiodc.com... Do check out the entire JAZZRADIODC.COM site . Thanks, Carl David (10/17/07) Did you notice in the arb ratings for Fredericksbugh that were posted in RandR station WBQB wasn't even listed. Was that a mistake or where they delisted? Just curious! Alvin (10/17/07) Dave's response: My guess is that Radio And Records just goofed up and left WBQB off the list. It's probably in second place, right below WFLS, as usual..... Ohhhh....plenty of classic "BA" today...still miss hearing Major Bill segments when they go best of! (10/17/07) To the Sportstalk980 hater: The station makes money. The station sells ads. Why? Because this is a Redskins town, world without end, amen. Nobody has less respect for Andy Polley’s knowledge of sports outside of football and basketball than I do (and his lurching, desperate, sad attempts to talk baseball kind of sound like your grandfather trying to discuss hip-hop), but there’s no doubt that he’s giving the audience (except for the cranky hockey and soccer fans, who will NEVER be satisfied) what they want. Personally, I can’t stand it when Andy defaults to Redskins talk in the middle of June – but that’s what the people want. Sincerely, TMU (10/17/07) TMU, what do hockey ratings on television have to do with WTEM? WTEM is a RADIO station. But putting that aside, I agree with the poster who says you unfairly represented Leonsis' point. He was responding to Pollin and Czaban ridiculing soccer fans and his point was that a poorly rated station should not be alienating potential listeners. Hard to argue with that, but Pollin and Czaban do seem to have alienated soccer, hockey, baseball, college basketball and other fans through their nastiness, sarcasm and unwillingness to deal with most local sports. Which just may be why their ratings "suck", as you concede. (10/17/07) TMU: you're twisting what Leonsis said. His comments weren't directed at hockey. They were directed at Pollin and Czaban taking shots at DC United's sold-out game with Beckham's team. And his later blog posts made clear that he was taking those two clowns to task for ignoring most of the pro and college sports in DC other than the Redskins. He was clearly correct. At least Triple X is honest about being pretty much all Redskins. Fact is, Pollin and Czaban are in no position to be writing off baseball fans, soccer fans, hockey fans, basketball fans (other than Maryland), etc. And the ratings demonstrate that. (10/17/07) Wow...not even a peep out of Joe Ardinger or Robbay at the beginning of the segments during the B.O.D.A.M. session today...must be serious! (10/17/07) Dave's response: Damn, damn, damn, I miss BA..... To the writer below taking shots at WTEM because Ted Leonsis doesn’t like them . . . do you REALLY think that more hockey talk (which is what Ted wants) would improve the ratings? Really? Have you SEEN hockey ratings on television? Here’s a clue . . . neither has anybody else! NOBODY watches hockey. The WNBA beats hockey. WTEM’s ratings do suck, but they pull a number with men, and that’s their job; check out their ads, and try to figure out the audience. It’s not that complicated. Sincerely, TMU (10/17/07) There was an awkward moment on ESPN's Monday Night Football telecast the other day when comedian Jimmy Kimmel was a guest in the booth. After Mike Tirico welcomed those viewers who'd just tuned in after the end of a baseball playoff game, Kimmel chimed in with "and I'd like to welcome Joe Theismann watching in his living room with steam coming out of his ears." Tirico and color analysts Ron Jaworski and Tony Kornheiser ignored the remark and continued doing the game as if nothing had happened, but it couldn't have been very comfortable in the booth. Clearly, the suits at ESPN have gone too far in emphasizing entertainment values over football in their MNF production, and this time it came back to bite them. The station Kornheiser will probably be returning to early next year is 3WT, which could be referred to as the radio home of teams Sports Talk 980 doesn't care about - Nationals, Capitals, Navy football and GW hoops. If this were a 24 hour sports talk station, it would be in position to lure a lot of disgruntled listeners away from WTEM by talking more Nats than Redskins and more Caps than Wizards. I understand that TBS got disappointing ratings for its coverage of the recently completed NLCS between Colorado and Arizona. Perhaps that's not surprising inasmuch as two of the games started after 10 PM here in the east and the network didn't do a very good job promoting the series or selling the improbable story of the Rockies (who've lost exactly one game over the past month) to the national audience. While the NCAA basketball tournament gets a lot of mileage out of unheralded schools like George Mason making Cinderella runs, ratings success for postseason baseball seems to depend too much on high profile teams like the Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Cubs or Dodgers being involved. Mike, Fairfax (10/17/07) Can’t wait to seethe Baltimore numbers. I’m really interested to see how HFS did against 98 rock in the Am. (10/17/07) Anyone have the numbers between AM drive for B-More? Curious as to who is higher, WIYY or WHFS? Is KMS still dragging... Chris in York (10/17/07) Interesting. I believe this is the first ratings book since Ted Leonsis took Czaban and Pollin to task for their poor coverage of, and nasty attitude towards, anything other than the Redskins and Maryland basketball. Same old lousy numbers for WTEM and Czaban/Pollin. Leonsis was clearly correct. (10/17/07) Dave, Congrats to WMAL on a Killer Summer Book. Since WTOP left the AM dial, WMAL is the last thing left on AM radio. Chris Berry and Paul Duckworth have to be given real credit for doing so very well swimming upstream against the FM current. You may not like the station, Dave, but give the management there its due. A DCRTV Fan (10/17/07) Dave's response: I like Fred Grandy, Bryan Nehman, Chris Core, and Ric Edelman. The rest of 630 can be dumped in the Dumpster..... Looks like another great ratings "book" for WWRC! I don't even see them listed; I guess it is another "vast right wing conspiracy"! ari (10/17/07) Dave's response: The listing I got doesn't even have Progressive Talk 1260 listed. It's that bad..... Let me guess ... O&A's ratings were too microscopic to report? Oh wait, they get no ratings because they are on tape delay except in those markets where they are on live, and still get no ratings. O&A, always WHINE in the end. I predict they are off the airwaves, both terrestrial and satellite by this time next year. (10/17/07) Thanks for making me lose my appetite. The thought of Marty Chickawhiner Davis doing porn? EEWWWWWWWWWW Hell I'd rather see Marty Bass do porn...hon (10/17/07) Dave's response: Make a $1,000 donation to DCRTV and "Hard Ass Bass" will be on its way..... Only a DEDICATED D&M hater can jump in when the book says they’re #1 among men 25-54. That’s dedication. Now, does anybody know why they’re in Best Of today? Sincerely, TMU. (10/17/07) Dave's response: My 106.7 sources are being mysteriously silent on D&M's disappearance today. Let's hope it won't be another November 2006 walk-off that lasted three months. But, damn, it is nice hearing BA again. Real nice..... Is there some reason Don & Mike are in Best-Of today? Did Mike go off the deep end when the Red Sox lost last night to fall behind the Indians 3 games to 1? Or is Don on his annual 13-week end-of-the-year vacation/nervous breakdown? One thing's for sure...we fans will be the last to get any info from anyone there! GK in Timonium (10/17/07) I don’t see anything wrong with Plotkin asking a question of the wife of a public official. That’s his job. That being said, he doesn’t have a lot of class, is kind of nasty in person and sometimes it’s reflected in the way he interacts with others. (10/17/07) By God, coming from 13th to 10th, that sure is something to jump and shout about! Those two over the hill hacks are done, finished, stick a fork in them....WOW! 10th.....LOL-BOBB (10/17/07) Dennis Kucinich and Ron Paul = two peas from the same nut-job pod. I guess Ron Smith makes three peas in the pod. Can you have three peas in a pod? And I don't know about the toupee but Kucinich's wife is, ah, well, what is she? (10/17/07) I'm not sure if you'd know, but I figured I'd give you a try... For NFL games, normally, if Washington and Baltimore have games at the same time, the Baltimore game gets blacked out in the DC area... well, this weekend, this seems to not be the case, as both Baltimore and Washington are playing at the same time.... I inquired with WUSA and they claim that DC is a secondary market for Baltimore, and they are able to play at the same time... well, this doesn't always seem to be the case, as Baltimore games have been blacked out before... Do you know how DC/Baltimore Markets work? or are they both secondary's for each other? any clarification for this issue would be great... Thanks.... - Tim (10/17/07) The Baltimore ratings just prove that radio is the one medium where baseball is still important. BAL has collapsed and HFS has risen based mauinly on that. The numbers were still pretty good for WBAL right after the Rush cancellation, but the loss of the Orioles and the turnover in the lineup-first the addition/deletion of the dreadful Rob Douglas, then the departure of Chip Franklin-have killed the station. I think Chip is an awful host, but I'll admit he pulled decent ratings. BTW, Ron Smith is Ron Paul, not Dennis Kucinich. Howie (10/17/07) THE RRRRROTZKIN SPOTZKIN IS MOTSKIN IN THE PLOTKIN!!! Fred Flintstone (10/17/07) I just read Mark Plotkin's exchanges with his readers and listeners yesterday. His thin skin and defensive answers were astoundingly unprofessional. He displayed the manners of a rutting boar! Murrow, Donaldson...even Winchell were able to ask their toughest questions without sounding like a drunken gutter urchin! No matter how long you live here, Mr. Plotkin, you will NEVER be a Washingtonian. And, Messrs. Farley and Oxley might want to consider someone other than the winos gathered outside of the 12th and New York bus terminal for their "Political correspondents!" Now, would someone please get Plotkin a long beard, a filthy robe and a sign that says, "The End Is Near" so he can continue his rants. Sincerely, Fred Unfriendly (10/17/07) Here are some more in-depth numbers for the book that came out today. Morning drive: 18-34: 1. DC101, 2. WPGC, 3. WKYS, 4. Hot 99.5, 5. WHUR... 25-54: 1. WHUR, 2. WTOP, 3. WPGC, 4. WMMJ, 5. DC101... Afternoon drive: 18-34: 1. Hot 99.5, 2. WPGC, 3. WKYS, 4. WHUR, 5. DC101... 25-54: 1. WHUR, 2. WTOP, 3. WJFK, 4. WASH, 5. WMMJ... (10/17/07) The poster is right about WRNR. Those of us who love the station and want to save it should begin protesting to local merchants who advertise on that station and tell them we will boycut them if they dont bring RNR back to the great ANNAPOLIS station that it was. and, someone should make bumperstickers and tshirts that say FREE WRNR. That would be great. I would help. (10/17/07) The reason no one has mentioned that WQSR is playing Greatest Hits on HD-2 is because no is wasting money to hear HD. (10/17/07) Dave's response: I have an HD Radio and can't get the HD signals of any Baltimore area station at my location in Northern Virginia. Even though WQSR's analog signal comes in just great..... Is Sterne going to deliver Nationals sport shows in that stupid-ass, bloody awful, weak attempt at an English accent? (10/17/07) Dave's response: I assume so, unless it conflicts with his contract to "voice" the Geico gekko..... Re: "Don and Mike jump from 13th to 10th in the overall age 12+ numbers and re-take first place among men age 25-54." Funny how many blockheads fill the Mailbag with "D&M never get good ratings" flames between books and then clam up when "first place among men age 25-54" shows up. As for "The banner at the top of your page for Chickaboomer screams: CHEAP! Does portraying that website with basically a porn shot make it anything but CHEAP?"....is there really anything better than cheap porn? I think not. Dave in Sterling (10/17/07) Dave's response: Hey, I put that ad together for Marty "Chickaboomer" Davis using pics she sent me. You should have seen the pics I didn't use. Hmmm..... Zoby just reported that Bush's approval number is at an all-time low of 24 percent. I guess he should fire Fox News and Rush as his PR firms. (10/17/07) ("Surprised no one has mentioned that WQSR-HD 2 is running the Greatest Hits now having dropped the simulcast of ESPN Radio 1300"...) It's about time CBS Baltimore got a brain and put Classic / Greatest Hits on WQSR HD2. Now they just need to hook up an online steam of it. Since they are using both wqsr.com as a relay to 1027jackfm.com for Jack they should consider making wqsr.com it's own site for the HD2 channel. Also with WCBS being up to a 3.7 overall in the summer book compared to the 2.0 of Jack in the Spring book. Could this be the very beginning of the end for Baltimore's Jack? Espcially if the ratings stay flat, and CBS-FM does well with PPM's? Also WBAL needs to start thinking of ways to pull the ratings in maybe they should try to find a way to snag Ed Norris from 105.7. You would've thought at first that Norris would be a pretty crappy radio show host yet from parts I've heard he is actually pretty good. Chris in Hanover, PA (10/17/07) WRNR's ratings have dropped significantly in the past year. After letting go personalities Joe Duley, Jarvis, Melissa and most recently, Damian, all who were free-thinking DJ's who played their own music RNR's ratings have dropped. Interesting correlation. (10/17/07) after a bunch of blogs posted transcripts from a junkies show the other day, they're now flaming the bloggers on air....awesome.... awfulannouncing.blogspot.com..... blog.washingtonpost.com/dcsportsbog (10/17/07) If the numbers are true about WBAL (I sure turned them off so maybe many others did as well) maybe it wasn't wise to can Rush then force Chip Franklin and Rob Douglass out the door. Couple that with Ron Smith re-inventing himself as Dennis Kucinich and it's no wonder the joint is tanking. Constant change kills loyal listeners. That Beauchump guy is a real programming genius. (10/17/07) Dave's response: Ron Smith looks absolutely terrible in that Dennis Kucinich hairpiece..... (Politico To Launch Sunday TV Talker - 10/17 - Allbritton Communications' Politico Capitol Hill newspaper and website will launch a Sunday political news and commentary show on co-owned Channel 7/WJLA this fall. DCRTV hears that the program will be more youth-oriented than the current crop of Sunday DC political talkers via ABC, NBC, Fox, CBS, and CNN.....) Well, that would mean forty-nine-year olds considering the median age for "political talkers" must be fifty. (10/17/07) Changing of the guard.. DCRTV was the first place to report it and boy were they right.. Losing Rush and the Orioles had a HUGE impact on them as Ed Norris crushes them and becomes the top talk show in town. The new talk leader in Baltimore is 105.7. WBAL is nowhere to be found as a top station in Baltimore. From Summer '06 to Summer '07 they are down 42% from a 3.2-2.3. 12+ they went 5.8-4.4.. clearly they are leaking fuel quickly as they slide into obscurity. (10/17/07) Dave, The banner at the top of your page for Chickaboomer screams: CHEAP! Does portraying that website with basically a porn shot make it anything but CHEAP? Makes ya wonder... Marty Davis...brainy? Hmmmm, what a cheap way to drive people to your site (Chickaboomer, that is). Sad.... D (10/17/07) What's really kind of funny is that some bozo on Air America actually thought that the "vast right wing conspiracy" took them seriously enough to want to beat up Randi Rhodes. Everyone knows that know one listens to any of those people. (10/17/07) Apparently, broadcasters are going to spend $700 million to remind the 20 million people in the US without cable or a digital TV that they are going to have to buy an $80 converter which the government is going to subsidize. Since they are going to spend about $35 per uncabled person, why don't they just give the $700M directly to the people without cable/digital directly and guarantee that everyone has a converter? Rather than waste $700M, I think each station could spend 85 cents to let people know: Just say something like "Channel 32, WRLP-TV Greenfield, remember to get a converter if you don't have cable," as their ID. (Personally, I think the broadcasters really mean they will have announcements and that they "could have billed" $700M for all those 30-second spots.)-- Carl in Olney (10/17/07) Dave, Thanks again for the banner on the DCRTV website. Wish you could have made it opening night of the 2007 Spooky Movie Film Festival; it was very cool. We aired some rare Captain 20 footage, as well as Bozo clips with the first appearance of Count Gore (35 years ago this month!), not to mention a 1975 interview with Arch Campbell back to back with the 2006 interview - and, of course, the Count live with an audience, and a videotaped greeting from Steve Niles ("30 Days of Night" creator/and fan of Count Gore) - all went well. It was a dream audience. Take care, Curtis (10/17/07) Surprised no one has mentioned that WQSR-HD 2 is running the Greatest Hits now having dropped the simulcast of ESPN Radio 1300...Also Matt Tacka who of course used to work for CBS, most recently doing afternoons at Delmarva Broadcasting's oldies station Cool 101.3 WNCL has moved to Philly to do news at either KYW or WPHT... (10/17/07) Quote: "Re: The NAB's Digital Deadline Awareness Campaign: Quote from the TV spot: "digital's so much better that, by law, ALL broadcast TV has to be digital by 2009". Ah, let the misinformation begin!" I understand that TV translators and Class A TVs like WDDN-LP and WZDC-LP can continue in analog. However I note that WDDN has a DTV allocation. (10/17/07) Don't know if many of you know who he was... but Harris Sullivan former manager of radio frequencies at NBC4 went missing this past saturday... apparently his plane crashed on the way back from the bahama's to Florida.... www.sptimes.com (10/17/07) saw Wizards radio will have the color guy doing the postgame show as well. Looks like old Abe taking a page from Danny Snyder to control the medium. The postgame host will be employed by the team!!! Wow that will make great apologetic post game radio. I can't wait. (10/17/07) Re: The NAB's Digital Deadline Awareness Campaign: Quote from the TV spot: "digital's so much better that, by law, ALL broadcast TV has to be digital by 2009". Ah, let the misinformation begin! There's also nothing in the spot to help people like my great uncle who's been convinced by a salesman that he _has_ to buy a new TV, even though he gets everything from cable. (10/17/07) Holy smokes, Batman; the team is reunited! Joe Krebs is back on News 4, am. Babbles Harrison has her wingman back! (10/17/07) Andrew Siciliano no longer occupies any time on wtem as he has been replaced by the dan patric show. (10/17/07) Twenty one years ago, Buddy Belote started a luncheon get together of retired WTOP engineers. The event, held every year at the Cozy Inn in Thurmont, Maryland (Camp David is near there) began to attract others who had worked for that great station. It came to be known as "Thurmont" and is still going strong. (Tuesday's) THURMONT 07 was one of the most successful ever. There were a couple of complete surprises by two first time guests: Pick Temple's son Park showed up, and this website's videologist Bob Bell (aka "Kaptain Kidshow" who has created a mind boggling website that details every TV Kid Show ever seen on this area's TV sets) Bell gave everyone an original "I've Been on the Ranger Hal" shopping bag. Truly amazing! And of course, Buddy Belote, the Thurmont Event's founder was there looking healthy as ever and full of more energy than most of us have. (How many of us can play 18 holes of golf, as Buddy did last week, and not even be winded!?) Take a look at these snapshots that Tom Buckley took at today's luncheon, and enjoy! - Lee Shephard (10/17/07) "MASN maybe trying to appeal to the NC market by carrying Appy State." That's fine, but put that game on tape delay and put a real I-A game on live. App. State's 15 minutes are over. (10/17/07) Diane Kepley leaving wtop is crazy her voice was so smooth and reassuring. Who's running that crazy place WTOP??? (10/17/07) Shame on a broadcast veteran like Tom Gauger wishing someone else, in this case, a classy broadcast veteran like Mike Moss be fired INSTEAD of Diane Kepley. YOU should know better than to wish ANYONE be fired in this business, except for cause. Grow up and stop spreading hate. Ken/Bethesda (10/17/07) /\ October 17 Messages /\ \/ October 16 Messages \/ So, if Randi Rhodes told police she was mugged as the news reports say, and now we find out she fell. Does that mean she filed a false police report? And if so, will the same jerks that demanded a perp walk for Limbaugh be equally outraged and demand similar justice? Didn't think so... (10/16/07) I don't know what an STA is nor do I care, but I do have a significant problem with whoever this coward is attacking WDEL from behind an anonymous name. I don't even know what it is you're spouting off about but I'm assuming it's all incorrect just because of your claim that WDEL hasn't had a permanent transmitter site "for many years." I have worked at WDEL for the better part of ten years and have lived five minutes from the towers all my life. They have not gone anywhere. The transmitters attached to them, on which I have taken meter readings for 10 years, have not gone anywhere. Both the AM and FM transmitters were replaced in the last five years, which is likely the reason for any of this supposed ongoing STA stuff you're worried about. There is no AM in the market more committed to local programming than WDEL. Over the past several years, all the regular weekday syndicated programming has disappeared and been replaced with local news and talk. Meanwhile, the other major AM in the market keeps adding more, and recently axed its 5:30 - 6:00 AM news block for more syndicated programming. That station has Rush Limbaugh pontificating about how great he is for three hours a day; WDEL has local hosts in the studio talking about local issues. So, whoever you are, if you'd kindly shut up, it'd be appreciated. --Brian Smith (10/16/07) Hey Dave - I'd love to get your predictions on how the summer book will turn out tomorrow. My guess is that several cluster leaders,GM's and GSM's will be pissed. Yea, they'll all say "it's only a summer book" but NOT to THEIR BOSSES. Just wait until the PPM's debut this time next fall. EVERYTHING will change. Hope those bosses are renters and not owners... (10/16/07) Dave's response: I suspect the top stations will, as usual, be WPGC-FM, WMMJ, WHUR, and WTOP. You'll probably also see a big jump for new gospel outlet WPRS. With WERQ and WPOC tops in Baltimore. Other than that, I really can't say. We posted the latest PPMs for Philly in our 10/11 newsblurb at our NYC/Philly news page and adult contemporary WBEB is at the top, as usual. The only change I can see is the relative weakness of the stations gearing to the urban/black audience, with both urban WUSL and urban adult WDAS outside of the top 10. Philly has a substantial African-American radio audience (like DC and Baltimore) and that seems a bit odd..... I echo Tom Gauger's sentiments about Diane Kepley. Good things happen to people who love and live with Cocker Spaniels! And Tom, I'll have official news on my own "Taste of the Key Lime" very, very soon... Ed. Rodriguez (10/16/07) FYI - you had a short note on 10/9 about Jon McGann apparently going bye-bye as the PD of WZBA (100.7 The Bay) - well, just in the last day or so, his picture (which had been in the "Ask The PD" link on their website) has been pulled - the link still goes to his last entry (about their recent "Classic Rock A To Z" promotion), but with his name/picture gone, that seems to confirm his departure. Any other details about why he's gone, replacement, etc.? I like the station, they do more things there than WARW ever did while they were a similarly-formatted classic rocker. - Brad... P.S. keep up the great work on the website, I read it every day! (10/16/07) Dave's response: Thanks Brad. I reported what a source told me. I know no more. Anybody know more? Diane Kepley is one of the best. Years ago she anchored at UPI Radio and now (I hear) that she is rejoining other ex-unipressers like Shirley Smith and Craig Smith at AP Radio. I’m really glad that she bounced back although she should never have been let go from ‘TOP. It’s hard to imagine what cause the separation and ‘TOP’s afternoon drive suffers in her absence. Why wasn’t gas bag Mike Moss let go? Tom Gauger (10/16/07) Dave...any idea if there is something up with 94.7's signal today?? When I am out driving about it seems like there is some very high frequency overmodulation going on over everything on their air signal. Just curious...because it's quite annoying! Thanks, Brian (10/16/07) Dave's response: I've listened to the Globe on and off today and haven't had any problems with the signal. Don't get me started on the music..... So Randy Rhodes was a victim of a "hate crime"! It simply amazes me that the true hate mongers start to engage in smear tactics before ANY evidence is corroborated. Now the truth comes out. She tripped and fell while walking her dogs -- some right wing conspiracy? ari (10/16/07) STA = Special Temporary Authority. Lot's of radio stations apply for this when they are doing maintenance on transmitters, especially if it's going to take an extended period of time. In most cases, it means a station is broadcasting at a much lower power than they are licensed for and probably can not transmit the licensed signal coverage for the area they're supposed to cover. There are exceptions, like some people have mentioned here, but that is usually the most common reason. The reason I've complained about it is that there are radio station operators who are letting their facilities basically fall apart and they keep applying for these STAs and abusing them like "FREE PASS WAIVERS" to just hold onto a broadcast license. Many radio operators are abusing the STA priviledge and wasting valuable spectrum space and of course, it is the public's airwaves. If you're not going to use it, then you should lose it. The FCC has a reckless history of letting companies, especially AM radio station operators, to just warehouse stations and their frequencies, while not actually serving the public or transmitting at their licensed power for extended periods of time. This was NOT the original intention of the STA. It is being abused and certain companies are just holding onto these licenses like you would hold onto stock and hope it increases in value so you could sell it. That is, in my opinion, what WNWK AM1260 Newark, Delaware successfully did for nearly a decade and it's why I've been critical of STA abuse! It's been abused so many times to simply waste the public's airwaves for no public good whatsoever. (10/16/07) Congrats to Diane Kepley: has been a while since I've actually listened to you on air..but my memories of hearing you do "news" go back to the early days of WPOC; you did a good job then..and I'm sure that hasn't changed! Tom in Denton, MD (10/16/07) Of course the NY Daily News report skimmed over the fact that O&A finished second to last in the last ratings book (they have also been canned in Detroit and Pittsburgh). Face it pests, the "virus" is more like a sniffle and no one is listening to the boyzzzzzz. I am sure Mel has a pink slip waiting for them once the ink is dry on the SIRI takeover of XM. (10/16/07) From Rockville, a few lunch-hour Dashboard DX loggings on the AM band: 530 khz - Washington Metropolitan Airport Authority - parking info, but I couldn't hear which airport, Reagan National or Dulles; 880 khz - WCBS, New York, all news, all the time, first daytime logging this season; 1070 khz - WPBJ/WPDD, Montgomery County Dept. of Transportation, all traffic, all the time; 1690 khz - WPTX, Lexington Park, Headline News, right off the cable, local news just before the hour; 1700 khz - Arlington County Emergency Management in English and Spanish, really strong here in Classic Rock-ville. Mike from Frederick and the DDX crew. "...and the lamb lies down on Broadway." (10/16/07) Re: "What is an STA and why does everyone have their panties in a bunch over it?" The FCC grants Special Temporary Authority (STA) to permit immediate or temporary operation of certain private radio facilities outside of their normal specifications during emergencies or other urgent conditions. See www.fcc.gov. And as far as the posts here go, one guy's got a hate on for this one station in Delaware. I just move on to the next post. (10/16/07) dave feldman, kelli johnson, tony reali, lindsay czarniak, russ thaler and lots more will be doing karaoke at a bethesda bar next week....... blog.washingtonpost.com (10/16/07) One of the things that really blows about this business are the phantom ads for jobs. Last week DCRTV posted an ad for Managing Editor at MarketWatch. Today comes the announcement that that job has been filled through promotion... it was probably never going to an outsider. How many times do NPR or PBS or VOA run ads for position that nobody outside of "the system" has a snowball's chance in hell at getting? I realize that email makes it much easier to apply for positions but please, those rare broadcast companies still hiring, don't get our hopes up by running false or misleading ads for positions that have already been filled internally. By the way, in going back to the archives and to the classified on this site, I see that the ad for MarketWatch has been changed to the call for a "News Reporter/Producer". Probably John Wordock's old job and maybe even a real offering (of a lower-level position). While I'm on the subject why does someone with 10,15 or 20 years of broadcasting experience need to show proof of a college degree? What would that person have learned in college that's relevant to today's workplace? Editing tape? The magic of 1" or even 2" video? Experience is what counts in this business, not your sophomore essay on The Lord of the Rings. Brad (10/16/07) Congratulations to talkradioing.com from turning news of Randi Rhodes unfortunate assault into an assault on Republicans. More sickening "vast right wing conspiracy" lunacy from the left. Anyway, I hope Randi losing a few teeth this doesn't keep from continuing to lie through her teeth. Truly, I hope they find the attacker. We need to find him and try to get him help. Its clear that the perpetrator hasn't received the proper help and aid from the government. It's all George Bush's fault. If he would have spent the billions on these poor and homeless people instead of the war this would never have happened. I hope that Randi Rhodes will lead the effort to rehabilitate that mugger. She should rise above the assault on her and provide him with a clean home, food and a job at Air America radio. (10/16/07) Hello Joyce Conroy - yes, fellow BIMer and HOH member, I am the same guy whom Robin Quivers mentioned in her book. I keep that book handy to remind me of the good old days! Nice to hear from you - Mark Clark (10/16/07) I'm hardly worried about being sued by WDEL, the FCC recs clearly show multiple STA extensions starting in 2003 up until somewhat recently and they appear to not be intermittent as has been suggested, but continuous extensions, meaning lower power. Obviously, the state of AM radio infrastructure is in decline. That's why it's important for the FCC to hold firm on regulations and stop stations like WNWK 1260, again in Delaware, from not serving the public at all! Since WDEL has applied for upgraded transmission facilities, it appears they intend to invest in WDEL. But let's not forget the lesson of WBIS 1190 Annapolis, which held 50,000 watt permits for years and years with extensions and never built ANYTHING! By the way, I don't see any such STA pattern with WCTR or with many other stations but it's true, they could just not be reporting such info. But then again, that would be illegal and could potentially cause a license revocation. :-) Finally, I can always tell when I've touched a nerve here at DCRTV. Someone (usually a gov't employee) comes out of the woodwork to defend the FCC and a "disgruntled employee" of such & such company magically appears to state how great such & such company is despite his grudge! Thanks as always for the laugh. :-) PS: It still amazes me that both FCC people and the general media people that post on DCRTV defend long-time STA offenders that are just warehousing licenses. I guess it just proves the old adage "Don't bite the hand that feeds you." :-) (10/16/07) I'm not an engineer, or even in the broadcast biz, so forgive my ignorance. What is an STA and why does everyone have their panties in a bunch over it? (10/16/07) Note to "MASN SUCKS" : MASN maybe trying to appeal to the NC market by carrying Appy State. I think they're also producing it themselves, so it gets priority over a game from ESPN Plus. Hey, CSN gives the CAA priority over games they just pickup from FSN, too. Howie (10/16/07) (RE: they're finally back to 5000 watts after such a long time.Obviously Delaware is full of more blatant examples of warehoused AM signals that serve practically no public good or even transmit a signal at all!) That may be but WDEL isn't among those stations. It's not "back to 5000 watts," it has always been using 5000 watts. Did it ever occur to you that someone who reads these posts actually works there? Signing off now. Jim in Delaware (10/16/07) Reminder: Mark Warner, the Virginia democratic Senate candidate, and former Governor, and a politician comfortably ahead in polls and fundraising, and who as yet does not have a GOP opponent, will be the guest tomorrow at The Q&A Cafe. Reservations: Jon Moss at 202.338.2000. Fee $35, all inclusive. The show will air Saturday at 6 p.m. and Sunday at 11 p.m. on News Channel 8. Hope to see you there, Carol (10/16/07) With local TV, radio, & print coverage of a Special Session and the current Maryland budget crisis looming, what local media outlet or TV station would like this story? My street with about 25 or so houses is once again being completely dug up and re-paved (they've done this many times always to my amazement). People often talk of government waste and it's often defended as useful services to the public and that is often true. So why should I complain? Well, my street barely has hairline cracks in it, certainly no potholes, it looks fine, and more importantly, it's a DEAD-END STREET! And to add insult to injury, the next block of my street that is not a dead-end, you know, the blocks that actually have a lot of public traffic on them, are NOT BEING RE-PAVED! No, they're not digging my street up for sewer problems or the many other possibilities, I've checked. They are just MAKING A DEAD-END STREET LOOK PERFECT with wasted tax dollars, while leaving nearby streets that badly need re-paving untouched! It's totally non-sensical. I always knew my street was getting "special treament" from the convoy of snow-plows that often go around in circles on my dead-end street every winter. Then I'd get out of my street and often find other streets & even major highways still snow-covered, even I-95 one year! So what media outlet would like this story? I'd love to take pictures of my beautiful new street that all of YOU just paid for. I figure it has to cost nearly $100,000 if not more. It looks fantastic! Divide that by 25 homes and that comes out to $4000 per household. Thank you for the $4000 Maryland taxpayers! (10/16/07) Dave, The question about the Pann's, I noticed you didn't say where Mary Ellen works, she is at FOX 43 in Harrisburg on weekends. Jeff in New Freedom, PA (10/16/07) I thought Randi Rhodes died in a plane crash several years ago. Black Sabbath never was the same. WOCKA WOCKA John, Annapolis (10/16/07) Dave, are you going to correct your front page blurb about Randi Rhodes' so-called "mugging"? Drudge is now reporting (as of 1:30 p.m. ET) that Rhodes was not mugged; that she just fell. All this hysteria by her fellow liberal radio colleagues for nothing. Where's Media Matters when we need them the most? And some people were claiming that this is a "right-wing conspiracy"... perhaps a right-winger dropped ice on the sidewalk and that made her fall... or maybe her dog is a Republican & he's the culprit... I've got two words: Tawana Brawley. -Yours truly, Silvie in Waldorf- (10/16/07) It is now claimed that Randi Rhodes' attorney is indicating she wasn't mugged at all, but rather "fell down". Genghis Cohen says "What's the Frequency, Kenneth" indeed…. (10/16/07) Randi Rhodes not so mugged? www.nydailynews.com... New York Daily News seems to indicate that "Rhodes' lawyer told the Daily News she was injured in a fall while walking her dog. He said she's not sure what happened, and only knows that she fell down and is in a lot of pain. The lawyer said Rhodes expects to be back on the air Thursday. He stressed there is no indication she was targeted or that she was the victim of a "hate crime."" Liberals a bit touchy on the trigger finger to point at conservative hate? Not that conservatives aren't just as bad, but this kinda says something about those whose first thought was that it was a conservative looking to sil ence her. As was said by a blogger in the Daily News piece: "To jump to the conclusion that she was mugged by someone on the right is bigotry of another kind. Think not?" (10/16/07) Attention movie fans: Sad to announce the passing on Saturday Oct. 6 of Philip Dodds; former engineer of the ARP synthesizer company, recent resident of Annapolis MD, and the young nervous-looking dude who played the five alien notes on the synthesizer in "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." Bio info can be found at wikipedia. (10/16/07) Hey WDEL STA guy....get a grip...you are not going to win. DBC is one of the only truly by the book companies in the area. I know for a fact that that station has been broadcasting at it's licensed power. As for serving thier community of license, they do this rather well. So, get back to the unemployment line and collect your $200 a week. Bye now. (10/16/07) 'Is this an attempt by the right wing hate machine to silence one of our own," he asked. "Are we threatening them. Are they afraid that we're winning. Are they trying to silence intimidate us." Give me a break. The libs will try to spin this thing as a hate crime to increase their pathetic listener base. While I have never heard of this person it is extremely doubtful that a "hate crime" suspect would go to the trouble of tracking down her address, waiting for her to walk her dog, and then punch her in the face. It is obviously one of the hundreds of robberies that happen every week in New York. (10/16/07) My friend is the Operation's Manager of a small little station in South Carolina. He's got an STA to run the station at only 250 watts instead of it's licensed 1000 watts because there's a problem with his transmitter. Once the problems with the transmitter are fixed the station will be back up to it's licensed 1000 watts. (10/16/07) You scooped Drudge! When I checked Google News just now (7:25 Pacific time/10:25 Eastern time), the "timestamp" shows that the Randi Rhodes mugging was posted on Drudge only 33 minutes ago! (10/16/07) Dave's response: We did link to the Talking Radio blog article before Drudge did. Hardly a "scoop" for us..... "Whether the WDEL towers have been standing for 60 years or not, the FCC STA requests prove that WDEL has NOT been operating at 5000 watts day & night for over quite a long period for whatever reasons, most likely transmitter problems due to the age of the equipment". As someone who is a former employee of Delmarva Broadcasting and has issues with the company, you make me look like a happy camper. What the FCC STA states is that WDEL likely got temporary authority to broadcast at a lower power to do routine maintenance work on the equipment and towers. WDEL went back to full power, long before the STA ran out. DBC is a by the book company and actually went through all the FCC filings for what was simply routine maintenance work. A lot of other broadcast companies would just lower the power for a day or two for routine maintenance work and not file an STA with the FCC (I'm not even sure a station is required to file with the FCC for routine maintenance). Whoever you are, you have no idea what the Hell you're talking about and everyone else who reads the mailbag knows it. In fact, some of what you say could be interpreted as slanderous if DBC felt you were important enough to contact their lawyers over. The more you post, the more ignorant you appear to be. Keith Thompson, Operations Manager WCTR (10/16/07) Randi Rhodes mugged in Manhattan? “What’s the frequency, Randi?” (10/16/07) Speaking of RSA (Remain Silent Authority), guess who's using those requests now??? Yep, The Hope Christian Church of Marlton NJ for at least 2 of its translators in the Baltmore area so they won't be able to re-transmit their New Jersey FM station for awhile (they don't have enough signals to connect the dots from NJ to MD as it stands now). So, it would be interesting to know if anyone is hearing WVBV "Hope FM" from New Jersey yet. :-) (10/16/07) I'll be hosting a 50's and 60's oldies show tonight from 8 PM to 11 PM ET on www.topshelfoldies.com. I invite you to tune in and to log into the chat room. Top Shelf Oldies features different deejays every evening, with rare recordings, live interviews, and requests. This program will be simulcast and rebroadcast on www.wgay.fm. -Ken Carpenter (10/16/07) Whether the WDEL towers have been standing for 60 years or not, the FCC STA requests prove that WDEL has NOT been operating at 5000 watts day & night for over quite a long period for whatever reasons, most likely transmitter problems due to the age of the equipment. And we can rule out Cuban interference here, thank you. Geez. Finally, I wasn't suggesting WDEL is the absolute worst STA offender & it's great to know they're finally back to 5000 watts after such a long time. Obviously Delaware is full of more blatant examples of warehoused AM signals that serve practically no public good or even transmit a signal at all! WNWK 1260 was sold last April and hasn't transmitted a signal since day 1 of that sale nor has it been broadcasting at its licensed power for more than TEN YEARS! Enough is enough! What a waste of not only valuable spectrum, but the public's airwaves. Not to mention a missed opportunity to clean up the noisy interference-laden AM band. The FCC needs to crack down on companies holding licenses on paper only that aren't really broadcasters and have no intention of ever meeting their license requirements to broadcast. The STA & RSA revolving door needs to stop. Rant over. (10/16/07) (Randi Rhodes:) She's 3WT's afternoon drive host. They say the definition of a conservative is a liberal who has been mugged. Think she'll change? (10/16/07) "Air America Radio host Randi Rhodes was attacked while walking her dog near her New York City apartment on Sunday night...." A page out of Morton Downey Jr.'s playbook??? (10/16/07) WTOP operated with an STA that allowed higher power than authorized in some directions for more than ten years. Frequent trips to other cities were required to monitor the interference generated to others. (10/16/07) link to article that was left off yesterday's note about sirius needing 4 satellites www.dogstarradios.com (10/16/07) The STA-hater appears to not read the actions he links to. The first action he linked to is actually a DISMISSAL of an STA because this application (fjallfoss.fcc.gov) was approved (follow the "Get Authorization" link for details). In other words, WDEL is operating its FULLY LICENSED facilities. Please drop this nonsense now. Regards, Dave Loudin (10/16/07) Dave, who are the couple in Baltimore who were both Meteorologist in the late 90's. Wife worked at Fox 45 and husband somewhere in DC TV? Who was the Former NBC President that died recently as reported by NewsBlues in late September? I appreciate you! Kemi in Canada (10/16/07) Dave's response: Tony Pann and wife. He still works at 9..... I'm now officially on the "MASN sucks" bandwagon. Instead of showing Mississippi State-West Virginia live at 3:30 Saturday, it's showing Georgia Southern-Appalachian State instead. MSU-WVU will be shown on tape delay at 11 p.m. I guess showing a I-AA matchup with two teams that aren't even close to being considered local is better than a I-A game with a top 10 team. Not to mention all the WVU alumni all over the region. What a poor excuse for a "sports network." (10/16/07) Happy Birthday wishes to the Legend Johnny Holliday. Best wishes for many more years of good Health and good broadcasting for one of Washington and Baltimore's favorite Radio and Television personality's. Go Terp's and Go Nat's!! (10/16/07) (RE: I checked FCC records, maybe you should too! WDEL 1150 has not had a permanent transmitter site for years, and they've not been transmitting at their licensed power for that same amount of time either.) I don't need to check FCC records to know that WDEL has a permanent transmitter site on Shipley Road in Wilmington. It's been there for 60 years, and operates with 5000 watts, day and night. Jim in Delaware (10/16/07) Air America Radio host Randi Rhodes was attacked while walking her dog near her New York City apartment on Sunday night. Jon Elliott, who hosts a late night show on the liberal talk radio network, said last night that Rhodes was pretty badly beaten up and lost a few teeth. It is not clear whether the attack on Rhodes was a mugging or a hate crime. In any case, it is just the latest of several attacks on liberal talk stations and hosts. Talking Radio has all the details. www.talkingradio.blogspot.com (10/16/07) /\ October 16 Messages /\ \/ October 15 Messages \/ From Multichannel News: Consumers are finding new and creative ways, both virtually and in person, to express their “cable rage” over botched installations, price increases and rude customer-service personnel. The Internet is the favored tool for everything from personal blog rants, to virtual petitions to whole Web sites designed to criticize poor providers, as well as generate a dialogue that may resolve an individual’s problem. But even such a low-tech tool as a hammer was recently used in person by a Virginia woman, to signal her disgust with her provider. (10/15/07) The first clue that the R&S article cited by a misinformed poster below is suspect is when it refers to satrad audio as “CD quality”. Anybody with 2 good ears who has listened to XM or Sirius on a decent sound system can tell you that the audio is nowhere close to CD quality. And anybody who actually knows anything about the transmissions systems and the bandwidth involved would never claim that XM and Sirius offer audio fidelity approaching CD quality. Ouch. (10/15/07) RE: [ " Dave's response: Amen..... " & Political signs]........ While we're at it, let's not forget the weekend sprees with Realty companies, housing developers, and big apartment complex companies. All of these types of companies successfully SPAM the roads & highways with illegal advertising signs and some of them are even big companies. How do they do it without being caught? Very simple. They know that most government employees don't work on weekends and you can't be fined in most counties under most current laws unless a county employee actually sees the sign in place. That's why you often see people on Sunday nights driving around and picking up all of these signs up as a method of evidence destruction. And that's why none of these COMPANIES ever get caught or fined and continue to do it over and over again. Sad but true. (10/15/07) One more thought for STA Guy: you might be interested to know, since you obviously don't, that the FCC can and does even issue STAs for *higher* power than that shown on a station's license. There are several AM stations in Florida (WDAE 620 Tampa is one of them, for certain) that have been operating under STA for over a decade, with renewals every six months, specifically to allow them to use TWICE their licensed power at night so as to overcome Cuban interference. By your bizarre understanding of STAs, you'd apparently claim that those stations, too, are getting some sort of "free pass" and not serving their communities? Sheesh... (10/15/07) Dave, The best reason to get XM starts Thursday at noon. 'IT' is every Top 40 charted song beginning in the 1930's, ending with todays songs over the Thanksgiving Holiday. I love 'IT'..... many songs you've never heard any station play; some great ones you may have forgotten, others well... maybe not. Nevertheless, IT makes for great (historical) listening! All The Best, Dave in Waldorf, MD (10/15/07) Unsigned Corporate Suit here… Don't knock radio stations in "chicken shacks"! One of the best Top-40 stations ever originated from a "chicken shack": KACY-1520 in Port Hueneme, California! They were 10KW (later 50KW) day and 250w night with a truly bizarre DA to protect a nearby U.S. Navy electronic research facility. Strange coverage and strange ownership back in the day. But, they sounded oh so good! A lot of top talent went through that place, too: "Shotgun" Tom Kelly hung his hat there for awhile (OK, so he was still "Bobby McAllister!) and Bob Eubanks, amongst others. KACY is one of the most under-represented "great" Top-40 stations on that Internet treasure that is ReelRadio… (10/15/07) Hi Brian From Bel Air. I am trying to find an old radio friend. Does anyone know were John Allen may be? John was the PD at The Beach in Delmarva and later at WBAB in Long Island. Thanks. (10/15/07) Hi Bert in Denton. You had mentioned podcasting of Oldies Block Party. As a guy who plays around on the engineering side a bit, and certainly has moved more studios than I care to mention, I know very little about podcasting. So much for keeping up with technology... I am open to any information relating to what's needed downdstream from the studio processing and DA to make podcasting happen. We are fortunate to finally have somewhat reliable high speed internet service down here in the sticksfrom our home studio in SW Va. All recording is done with Adobe Audition. I would assume that the MP3 files are sent to a server somewhere for distribution. I also have FTP capability. I appreciate any information about how to make this possible. I'm sure Joyce would love the possibility. Even better would be a way to get 3 hours of programming to WHFC electronically, instead of mailing CD's. Thanks, Tom Conroy (10/15/07) To our STA Hating Friend, There are several reasons why a broadcast facility could apply for a Special Temporary Authority. (Scott Fybush, you’re comments were well stated). If you’re such a frequent visitor to the FCC website, look up the definition of STA. It might be helpful to you. The WDEL I listen to is extremely community involved and is the only real source of local news from Wilmington. They have several local reporters and do an excellent job of covering local issues. There is no local TV service in Wilmington so they tend to be the only outlet for what is going on in Wilmington. I moved from there a few years ago and now live in Seaford, DE. I still listen to WDEL all the time from 90 miles away. If they are on low power, I don’t hear it. Also, the tower sight has not changed. Please don’t lump WDEL in with some of those “fly by night” broadcasters. You could put DEL in Washington and it would be very competitive. I used to work for their competition and I have to admit that they do a great job. We did better at WILM (ha ha) but they run a very professional organization. You can listen online at www.wdel.com and hear for yourself. As for the chicken houses, I like ‘em. Bak Bak Bak Bak, CHICKEN MAN! He’s everywhere, he’s everywhere! (10/15/07) To the poster who returns to this board every few months and slams WDEL's STA as some kind of excuse to operate a light bulb power facility: KNOCK IT OFF...you clearly don't know what you are talking about. I don't know what the STA is for but I can testify that the station still reaches into White Marsh, Md. (70 miles from the towers!!) with the same signal strength as it has always had, even before the STA app in '03. You are clearly confusing WDEL with the more generous STA granted to 1260 in Delaware (which, last time I checked, was only getting out in a very localized area up there). (10/15/07) Dave, I agree with you about the political signs in the median strips and such. The worst part is when they obstruct visibility at intersections to the point where a hazardous situation is created. One of these days there's going to be a horrific traffic accident caused by these signs. If that happens, I hope that the (ir)responsible politician is either sued into well-deserved bankruptcy or held criminally liable for the accident for failing to forbid their campaign to engage in this on their behalf. All that crap is nothing more than litter-on-a-stick at best, and highway SPAM at worst. The proliferation of signs is for nothing more than name recognition bought on the cheap and dirty. That's why you see so many for the same candidate in such proximity to each other. And, like you, I'm not voting for any candidate who has such little respect for my vote as to exploit a loophole in the law (Political campaign signs are specifically exempted by State law from VDOT removal.) and advertise where other products and services are not allowed to. (10/15/07) Dave's response: Amen..... RE: [WDEL 1150 Wilmington, DE]..... From the FCC records to the chicken shacks in Delaware, Click here fjallfoss.fcc.gov , here fjallfoss.fcc.gov , here fjallfoss.fcc.gov , here fjallfoss.fcc.gov , here fjallfoss.fcc.gov , and here fjallfoss.fcc.gov... Unless I'm missing something, obviously WDEL 1150 has NOT been broadcasting at its licensed power for an extended period of time over the years and I would imagine that many people in that licensed area have NOT been able to receive the station for extended periods off time during that period, if at all. So why should WDEL be granted a power UPGRADE now that impacts other AM stations that have been PAYING to operate at their own licensed facilities at great cost when Delmarva Broadcasting has been getting a free pass from the FCC ?!?!?! (10/15/07) Dunno who the poster is who seems to have a bug up his/her posterior about STAs, but he/she doesn't appear to have a clear understanding of what an STA even is. Yes, they can be used for operation from temporary transmitter sites, as the 1260 and 1600 in Delaware have been doing...but they can also be used for other purposes, too. Without looking closely at the WDEL STA (I have better things to do with my afternoon), I can safely speculate it's for something much more minor than that. The WDEL towers still stand, quite solidly, on Shipley Road - and not only is WDEL using them to serve its community of license (and then some), it even has a pending application to boost its day power from 5 kW to 10 kW. Heck, there are even pictures of their site on my site - www.fybush.com - for anyone who doesn't believe me. It's an insult to the good folks at Delmarva Broadcasting, including the late Charlie Slezak, who gave me my WDEL tour, to post this kind of libelous "ad-hock transmitter/chicken shack with the weather vane atop it" misinformation. (And, Dave, maybe it's time for our anonymous STA-hating friend to either uncloak him/herself if he/she wants to keep posting this nonsense?)- Scott Fybush, NorthEast Radio Watch, www.fybush.com (10/15/07) DAVE, WHAT CHANNEL IS FOX BUSINESS CHANNEL ON COMCAST DIGITAL CABLE IN BALTIMORE COUNTY? (10/15/07) Dave's response: When Comcast gets around to adding Fox Biz on your system, it will be on digital channel 106..... To Burt and Tom: Guys, thank you again for all of your support. I really appreciate it. Regarding podcasts of "Oldies Block Party", it is certainly a thought for the future. WHFC is working on many possibilities; however, so much will depend on our fundraiser at the end of the month. Michael Popovec that is a handsome picture. Is a return to ESRTV in the works perchance? Also, a hello to fellow BIMer Mark Clark. Mark, are you the guy that Robin Quivers mentioned in her book Quivers: A Life. The Wikipedia article on Robin also mentions The Broadcasting Institute of Maryland. Blessings. Joyce Conroy (WHFC) (10/15/07) To Burt In Denton: In regard to Joyce podcasting her show..it'd make things simpler for me as I'm usually not home on Saturday nights. Therefore, if I'm to hear "OBP", I have to record it! Since I don't have a recording program on my computer, this means I must use my VCr (which isn't really a problem)..except for one thing: if there's something I want to record from my satellite dish (like Grand Ole Opry Live)..well..can't do it..not in the way that I want to)..so, how bout it, Joyce? Any possibilities oof "Oldies Block Party" being podcasted (or otherwise recorded for "shift-timing?" Tom in Denton, MD (10/15/07) Re: I checked FCC records, maybe you should too! WDEL 1150 has not had a permanent transmitter site for years, and they've not been transmitting at their licensed power for that same amount of time either. So, unless you live VERY CLOSE to their ad-hock transmitter/chicken shack with the weather vane atop it, you wouldn't have heard a PEEP! :-)" I used to work at WDEL in 1998 and those towers looked awfully permanent back then. What's changed? And WDEL is still putting a good signal into central Delaware, even during critical hours, so you're wrong about their transmitter power, too. John- Delmarva (10/15/07) So I called up DirecTV today to find out what I had to do to add the new Fox Business Channel to my DirecTV for Business account. Turns out FBN is only available to residential customers of DirecTV, not to businesses! WTF?? That would be like not letting sports bars get ESPN. (10/15/07) Not to beat a dead horse a 2nd time, but everyone knows the proposed Maryland county name for DC is CURRENTLY "Columbia". BUT, going back to the late 1700s/early 1800s, there was ANOTHER proposed county name for the land that now contains Georgetown, Maryland. I'll give you a hint, it is a name that is currently in use, but it has nothing to do with Washington or Columbia. I bet Mac McGarry knows the answer. :-) (10/15/07) Marty Bass...Short, Bald Guy...Pulled Pork. Hmmmm...Why am I getting about a thousand really dirty jokes in my head? I'll....just be moving along. Paul (10/15/07) RE: [ " WDEL in Wilmington, DE hasn't been serving it's community of license with even a signal: Why don't you tune in the station and listen for a while? You might find that it actually is on the air 24 hours a day, and has live, local talk programs, news and sports. Please give it a listen before you post such mis-information. " ]......... I checked FCC records, maybe you should too! WDEL 1150 has not had a permanent transmitter site for years, and they've not been transmitting at their licensed power for that same amount of time either. So, unless you live VERY CLOSE to their ad-hock transmitter/chicken shack with the weather vane atop it, you wouldn't have heard a PEEP! :-) (10/15/07) (Regarding today's Rant about 88.1 and WYPF:) And in a certain listening radius in P.G. County, 88.1 is STILL WMUC-FM, broadcasting from the University of Maryland at College Park. (10/15/07) I thought this crap about which satellite radio company had the better tecnology was a thing of the past. I had XM first, and was horribly disappointed in the sound quality. (I understand that they recently got an audio upgrade, but I can't say whether they caught up to Sirius.) Besides the improved sound quality from Sirius, reception has been better for me in the B-W corridor. The angle of the XM satellite signal results in more dropouts from bridges, trees, etc. Why is it supposed to be a good thing that XM's technology is "simpler"? Two tin cans on a string (which is a good analogy to the way XM sounded to me) is simpler than VOIP, but is it better? The bottom line for the radio listener is listening. I didn't have any experience with either company, which is why I made the mistake of choosing XM first. The soporific content drove me to Sirius, which is when I discovered better sound and better reception. Unfortunately, Sirius has been downgrading their content a lot, and if the merger goes through, I fear it will become worthless very quickly. (10/15/07) Dave's response: I don't know about Sirius, but if you listen to XM through a home stereo system like I do, it sounds quite "tinny." The compressed audio bandwidth for many of the talk and popular music channels sounds like a high quality AM signal. Definitely not FM..... I've been away for a couple of days, so I hope this isn't seen as beating a dead horse. The proposed county name for DC territory returned to Maryland is "Columbia", and has been floating around for decades. That being said, Plotkin is still an ass, and his increasingly obnoxious behavior has been the source of comment for awhile now…..Geghis Cohen, finally using this seemingly trivial piece of information after 20 years... (10/15/07) "If satellite radio is losing money at the "rapid clip" that the previous poster notes, how long can it survive in the marketplace?"...the same way satellite TV and cable compete in the television marketplace, by providing customers with a wider variety of channels with features and choices not available via the commercial market. GK in Timonium (10/15/07) Nice to see that the "inventor" of Sirius admits that "her" system is more complicated than XM. I have been saying that for years!! I guess that lays that arguement to rest once and for all. So much for the KISS principle. Incidentally Sirius is now looking at the possiblity of needing to launch a 4th satellite to attempt to fill in the holes that the first three birds dont cover. That means Sirius takes TWICE AS MANY BIRDS AS XM. Here is a nice link that shows just how much more complicated it is. But more interesting is her claim to have invented satellite radio. Oh really now,,,I think Motorola, American Mobile Satellite Corp. and the folks at WorldSpace might differ with her. American Mobile, from which XM and WorldSpace diverged to separate companies, predates Sirius by at least five years and the application of the core technology by at least 10 years. Sirius grew from CD Radio, but did not use the name Sirius nor petition the FCC for consideration of Digital Radio until 1992, which was AFTER American Mobile had already created the American Mobile Radio Corp. division that was merged with other interest to create XM. The WorldSpace division was even further along at that time and actually began service before either US SatRad company. Here again, the technophiles confuse issues. This "Dr." may very well have devised the system for Sirius, but she certainly did not invent satellite radio. The use of quote from the HS show as any sort of technical journalism lacks all validity anyway. At the time of the petition to the FCC, the research behind and the company called XM were much farther along than either the name or the technology of Sirius. The Dr. should go back to reinventing herself rather than history. (10/15/07) Political TV advertising to hit $3 billion. So says CNN. Well, that ought to make broadcasters very happy. But what does it say about voters? They largely choose who will be President by measuring who gets slimed the least in TV ads. Come on, voters, crack open a newspaper or book from time to time, will ya? (10/15/07) Dave's response: I'm counting all the political road signs I see here in Northern Virginia. And the candidates with the most signs will NOT get my vote. Stick it there, politicos..... If satellite radio is losing money at the "rapid clip" that the previous poster notes, how long can it survive in the marketplace? JOHN IN STAFFORD (10/15/07) To the person who earlier posted that WDEL in Wilmington, DE hasn't been serving it's community of license with even a signal: Why don't you tune in the station and listen for a while? You might find that it actually is on the air 24 hours a day, and has live, local talk programs, news and sports. Please give it a listen before you post such mis-information. Jim in Delaware (10/15/07) (RE: “Monday Morning Radio Lesson” It is not how long, or often you listen that counts. The secret is remembering what you thought you listened to when you complete the Arbitron Diary. Lisa Baden is a consistent, memorable voice and talent in the “cluttered up” traffic world...) Don't know who wrote this, but clearly somebody who understands the Arbitron game. This is somebody in the business (and probably good at it) (10/15/07) Glad to see my satrad post opened up all kinds of technical discussion of the systems. I’m not an engineer, just a listener, but would swear that when Martine (the transgendered inventor of satellite radio, Dr. Martine Rothblatt) was on Howard on 3-1-2007 she said she had invented it to cover all those frequencies that the FCC then split up. But I can’t find a record of it. I did find this from marksfriggin.com: “Howard said that Martine was able to figure out the way they could have the satellites doing a figure 8 up in the sky so they could keep the signal going with cars driving around. He said he came up with that after thinking about satellites all the time. Martine said he came up with the SIRIUS thing and tried to get that up and running but he ran up against the NAB and they were actually calling him the anti-Christ and saying that they couldn't do this whole thing. Martine said that the NAB has been trying to stop satellite radio for over 20 years now. They're the ones with the monopoly. He was also saying that they have a better technology than XM does and he thinks that they have better radios than XM does. He said that he's very happy with where SIRIUS is now and he's very happy with what Howard has done with the service. “ and this from HowardStern.com “Martine reported her initial supporter for satellite in the 1980s put up $50 million for the company, and that she also figured out how to arrange the satellites in space so that their signals could be picked up through trees and other obstacles. Martine then recalled the National Association of Broadcasters once referred to her as “the antichrist” because of the threat satellite radio posed to terrestrial radio. Martine said that, although SIRIUS was the first satellite company, XM launched its first satellite before SIRIUS because its technology wasn’t as “complicated” as the system she invented. Martine then claimed XM “freeloaded” off her designs for SIRIUS, which she added was a reason why she hoped the merger between the companies went through.” And Dave, I get your point BUT coke and pepsi are both making money hand over fist, whereas both Sirius and xm are losing money at the same rapid clip, so I think NAB is just being a hateful monopoly that doesn‘t want a lick of competition. Eff them! Long live satellite radio! (10/15/07) Congratulations to Mike Popovec on his move back to the eastern shore. I only got to here you once or twice on WNST, but thanks for letting us know you have made a job change. Most of the time, people just disappear from the radio or TV stations, and unless DCRTV reports on their whereabouts, we have no idea where they may be. I wish you well Mike, and hope to hear you on the air soon. Burt in Denton (10/15/07) Dave's response: Michael sends along his latest pic (right). I guess he's tired of us running the WJZ screen grab..... Well another Saturday night has passed and I spent the evening listening to most of the oldies program on WHFC 91.1. That has to be the best oldies show around! Joyce, have you ever thought of making the programs into Podcasts, would love to be able to download the programs and listen at any time on the computer or portable player. Just a suggestion to expand your show ever further( and another way to avoid listening to regular radio in the car). Burt in Denton (10/15/07) Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Indeed. Nice little PDF there on the R&S analyzer. Too bad the tech support and customer service at R&S just plain sucks. Back to the topic at hand. As often happens with technophiles, the poster missed the point. First of all, the article does not address the transmission method at all. It mentions the frequencies used and the data methods. That is a channel and a payload, such is not a transmission method. That same channel and payload can be done over fiber, microwave or a repeater to a suitable receiver. I never said the receivers were incompatible. I said the satelite antenna systems and FRONT END of the receivers would have issues. The test system shown only test receivers, injecting a signal similiar to the satellite downlink. That's nice in the lab professor. Now back to the real world. If you get outside the technical arena and read something such as the Wall Street Journal, you will find that this disparity, the need for two satellites on Sirius vs. one on XM is real and has been reported to the financial community. Sirius, minus one bird, can serve at best 60% of the US over a 24 hr period. Their system requires three birds, any two of which may illuminate some portion of the US at some point in time. That is why it is a diversity system. XM, on the other hand, minus one bird, can serve greater than 70% of the US over a 24 hr period because their two birds continuously illuminate their assigned locations. Yet, you only need to see one of the two XM birds to have full reception. Mel knows that his tech model has issues. That is why the merger seeks to move the Sirius operation to DC. They need the XM birds to replace the Siriusly flawed tech model. They also need a plant as functional as Eckington if they expect to double the throughput. I suspect that what is really going to happen is that the vastly superior XM transmission system will be split in two, with the redundant transponder on each XM satellite being given over to Sirius programming. Then they will migrate Sirius users to new radios under the guise of interoperability. Eventually the Sirius birds will just be dog stars twinkling in the night waiting to burn up upon reentry when they fall out of their decaying orbits. You can bet Mel will let them decay until NORAD calls because he is probably chafing right now about the cost of maintaining three birds for Sirius vs. the 33% saving at XM from having to only maintain two birds (not including any orbiting spares). (10/15/07) Here is a link that explains the difference in the satellite transmission technology and why the poster with his R&S article is wrong, wrong, wrong. Note that the article indicates it will take years to integrate the transmission systems even though the frequencies used are contiguous. www.aviationweek.com (10/15/07) “Monday Morning Radio Lesson” It is not how long, or often you listen that counts. The secret is remembering what you thought you listened to when you complete the Arbitron Diary. Lisa Baden is a consistent, memorable voice and talent in the “cluttered up” traffic world. Traffic and weather reporting is all about frequency not accuracy. If you broadcast the information enough times with a memorable voice you win the ratings game. Station managers have purchased millions in TV commercials during the key Arbitron surveys to influence around 6,000 Diary keepers to remember the stations. If they actually listen, that is just a bonus. The PPM will probably change all this, but for now the system is all about memory. (10/15/07) Big boo-boo in my edition of Post Style this morning. In "The Reliable Source" column, Connie Morella's last name is spelled "Morello" in two places. Regards Biff (10/15/07) Quote: "Without going into tech details, the short version of the conflict is this: XM uses geostationary orbits, requires seeing one bird, with optional diversity. Sirius uses an elliptical orbit, requires seeing two birds, and diversity is an absolute must." Wrong, wrong, wrong. Sirius receivers would never work if they required two satellites to be in view at all times - since they won't be as one drives around. This link is a discussion of the RF signals sent by the two systems: *tinyurl.com... While the discussion is five years old, the systems haven't changed since then. (10/15/07) Re: "WUSA running children's programs on their digital channel 9.2." As of Jan. 1, 2007, each digital subchannel must carry 3 hours of worthless E/I programming per week, just as the main channels must. This is not a case of WUSA shoving off their E/I requirement where no one can see it, but each and every digital channel, main and sub, must do their 3 hours in government-mandated hell. This is the reason Sinclair dropped The Tube at 12:00am on Jan. 1, because they didn't want to be bothered inserting E/I programming into the feed. As you can tell, I am no fan of the E/I rule, and not because of The Tube and Sinclair--the crap that gets foisted on the kids because of this rule could only exist because of a government mandate. More evidence why the government should NEVER be allowed to dictate content. Funny, but still deplorable, is how some channels twist the rules: I've seen the 50s TV series "Judge Roy Bean", starring Edgar Buchanan-- and obviously played from dollar-store DVDs-- labeled as E/I programming on one channel, presumably because of its obvious and tremendous value in teaching history. (10/15/07) Caught Linseed Czarniak's act Saturday 11 pm channel 4 broadcast. She called the Kentucky victory over LSU the biggest upset of the year next to Appalachian St. beating Michigan. Huh? Ain't Kentucky ranked and had been ranked all season? I don't understand why that makes it a bigger victory. And say wasn't the Stanford over USC a pretty big victory? Has the sport's writing department of channel 4 been slashed so much there ain't somebody competent to write czarniak's material too hide she don't know much about sport's? ......picked up the CBS college basketball yearbook magazine and they have bio's of the CBS college basketball broadcasting team and there is one for Gus"and a good time was had by all" Johnson. A graduate of Howard but geez he had less on air experience than czarniak before getting the gig on CBS. He must know someone to go from obscurity to such a prime gig with so little experience, right?......ellen chang on channel 5, did she go to the same head movement classes as ms. yancy?.and ms. gurvir she's sporting braces on her teeth ain't she, still think she's going to get whiplash the way she whips her head around, hey low cut blouse, oh d9mn prime directive violation, my bad ...i'm still for the furniture guys from the old Discovery channel show as replacements for Don and Mike! So we're agreed at this point o'meara won't be carrying on after donnie "uuhhhh" g. leaves.....quit picking on Sam Huff you big short end of the sticker! (10/15/07) What was WTOP thinking this moning? At 6:35 a.m., there was a feature on Halloween haunted houses, in which a human head was mentioned as barbecued. One of the announcers joked, "I want my eyeballs rare." Oh, this was just the sort of thing we wanted to hear during breakfast! There goes our appetite!--GAB in the Airless Cubicle (10/15/07) Dave's response: Were they Paul Farhi's eyeballs - plucked by squirrels encouraged by Tony Kornheiser? I do not know who the anonymous poster was who offered the explanation of the XM/Sirius technical incompatibility, but nicely done…you are right on. A true rarity and a pleasant surprise in this Mailbag – somebody who actually knows what the hell he or she is talking about. (10/15/07) /\ October 15 Messages /\ \/ October 14 Messages \/ On the Redskin post game show some college-age genius called in to specifically complain that the game wasn't on Comcast in PG County and he wasn't able to watch the game. And I notice that someone posted on here about the same thing. Did it ever occur to you people that you simply have to disconnect your cable connection and hook up a coat hanger to get 4, 5, 7, 9, 20, etc? The game was on 5. (10/14/07) As usually happens with Congressional desires and FCC policies, the laws of physics get in the way. Such is the case with compatability between XM and Sirius. It does not matter if a common chip set can, would or should be made for the receiver. The transmission methods are distinct enough to make it very difficult, if not impossible, to make an affordable common antenna and radio front end that will receive both. Without going into tech details, the short version of the conflict is this: XM uses geostationary orbits, requires seeing one bird, with optional diversity. Sirius uses an elliptical orbit, requires seeing two birds, and diversity is an absolute must. It may be some time before a solution appears. What the law requires cannot be achieved. Everyone involved with the tech of SatRad knew the law was flawed from the start. (10/14/07) So there they are, Sonny, Sam and Larry. And Larry asks in the latter stages of the game, "What do the Redskins do now?" Sam says, "Play better." Great analysis, Sam. Just great. Sam, you were a great player. You were a fair football announcer. The key word, "were." Sonny is just fine. As for Larry, on one particular play, he said a Redskins receiver "fumbled" when what really happened was that the receiver never caught the ball. It was an incomplete pass. Hey Larry, if you don't have possession of the ball you cannot fumble it. (10/14/07) Hey Dave: Just wanted to give you a shout out. Was walking through the parking lot of Fair City Mall on 10/13 when I spotted the "DCRTV Mobile" parked. The giveaway was the DCRTV.com tags. Rock On!!! Mike in Alexandria (10/14/07) Dave's response: I was at the Cinema Arts catching the new (and very good) George Clooney flick..... Mel already stated he is interested only in commerce, not arts and crafts. He has no regard for the content, only the gross receipts. Three things you can bet on if the Sirius/XM merger happens..First, .price for each service stays the same, but a bundled price would be 20% off. Mel is in love with that percentage on everything. Second, half as many music channels, removing redundancy and the cost of royalties. Music channels cost money. Third, all the vacated music channels get talk/sports/infomercials etc. channels, because, as Mel clearly stated, these are the channels that can accomodate the 'second revenue stream' of advertising. These are the channels that make money. He expects to raise that by 10% on each service,,,thus increasing advertising time and revenue by 20%. If this merger goes through, I hope the oil companies, broadcasting companies, railroads and every other business that is prevented from a monopoly sues the Fed. (10/14/07) Quote: "Satrad was originally set up to use the full spectrum of frequencies that XM and Sirius collectively use, and the Solomon-like FCC split the baby, ensuring that you could only use one kind of equipment for one service, another kind for the other." WRONG. The FCC required that the two services get together as soon as practical to come up with a receiver that would work with both services. XM and Sirius have completely ignored that requirement. I'll wager that a design for such a chip really does exist somewhere. (10/14/07) Regarding replacing D&M with Crystal Koons and Tammy Darvish, have they gone on that show Extreme Makeover??..Especially Crystal Koons..I don't know who did her make-up, but she looks like a clown!!! (10/14/07) Before going to church this morning, I noticed WUSA running children's programs on their digital channel 9.2. Does running programming required by FCC Rules & Regs count towards fulfilling license commitments when it's probably not promoted and cannot be seen by >90% of the audience in your coverage area? I make that last comment because not everyone has a digital TV, and the only way I found out about it was by doing a scan of the channels. This is in addition to the fact that the average DTV station on UHF has a reliable and stable coverage area equivalent to the early analog UHF stations. I think the DTV stations that plan to stay on UHF better lobby the FCC really quick for some serious power increases! (10/14/07) Dave, I disagree with you on the SATRAD merger. Satrad was originally set up to use the full spectrum of frequencies that XM and Sirius collectively use, and the Solomon-like FCC split the baby, ensuring that you could only use one kind of equipment for one service, another kind for the other. That part is already a nuisance and expense to us consumers, as is having to have two sets of subscriptions (tho I only have Sirius, for Howard—and four subscriptions at that!). One of the thing’s that’s hurting xm and Sirius right now is both having to spend TONS to advertise against each other, and at the very least the merger would cut that in half, plus they’d shed redundant overhead personnel (think HR, marketing, ½ the VPs, etc.) so it might not even mean having to kill any of the channels. Now, they might go to a different service model, like a cafeteria plan of “pick any 160 channels’ or something, and then demand (or lack thereof) might be the ultimate determiner of who lives and who dies (including Donnie G, who we hear has signed onto XM sans mike or robbay or buzz.). Or the combined sirusxm might become strictly a content provider and would just lease content to whomever wanted to make their own satellite company (maybe with packages of different groups of channels or something). The NAB is NOT worried about you or I having to pay higher subscription fees and/or getting crummier programming; if they were, they’d have spent that $30 million PUSHING the merger instead of fighting it, since I think it’s pretty well known that higher fees would pretty much doom satrad into obscurity. (10/14/07) Dave's response: You say - "One of the thing’s that’s hurting xm and Sirius right now is both having to spend TONS to advertise against each other." Um, couldn't that also be applied to just about every other competitive aspect of what we call "capitalism." Think of all the ad dollars saved and management/manufacturing cuts that could be made if Pepsi and Coke were to merge, Ford and GM were to become one, or if Miller beer bought Coors (I know, ha ha ha). I do agree with you that the NAB ain't particularly interested in the interests of we lowly radio listeners. But then, again, corporate radio isn't, either..... Anyone know why Comcrap in PG County is not showing the Redskins on WTTG? All I see is static. But Dish does have WTTG with the game. Diane in PG (10/14/07) Dave's response: I am watching the game on 5 via Comcast here in Reston. Obviously a problem with your local cable system..... It's nice seeing Andrea McCarren back on the airwaves on WJLA, ABC 7. Good strong investigative reporting is hard to find in our local tv stations, almost non-existant. McCarren is a welcome site! WELCOME HOME ANDREA! (10/14/07) Too bad Plotkin never hollered to Hillary what she thinks of her husband having (or not having, depending on the meaning) sex with a woman/girl a fews years older than their daughter in the Oval Office: now that would have been appropriate. NOT! What an asshole Plotkin is and we can only hope that he has a daughter that Klintoon hits on some day. (10/14/07) Apparantly, giving up hope against a resurgent WBCN with Opie & Anthony in the AM Drive slot, WAAF has focused thier efforts on the battle grounds of New Hampshire. Going to battle with heritage NH rockers WHEB and ROCK 101 WGIR FM, both whom are owned by Clear Channel. However their efforts have appeared to be failing. WAAF has lost every foot battle with the NH Active Rockers. In fact, at the very popular music venue The Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom, only two rock shows were considered neutral due to a behind the scenes political push to the record companies. Neither one of those shows sold out. Consequently, every show that WHEB & WGIR have had the "Presents" for have sold out. WAAF PD Ron Valerie has also lost the naming rights to the very popular Local-Bazooka Concert to the NH Active Rockers. A yearly concert for the past 10 years featuring Boston's brightest and hungriest rock bands. To make matters even worse, WHEB's & WGIR's simulcast morning show, Greg & The Morning Buzz pulled in a 3.6 rating in the lastest Boston Arbitron book, which is pretty impressive since they're coming in from over the NH border. (10/14/07) (re: Plotkin's question) I strongly object to calling that question "inappropriate." You can question the timing, but it's much more inappropriate for journalists *not* to ask questions. That's our job. And he wasn't asking her about some personal issue. It's a legitimate topic worthy of public discussion. I think you need to reword that. (10/14/07) Dave's response: I guess I should have said "allegedly inappropriate." According to the White House, the event Plotkin was attending was to honor the students from Ballou High School and not a forum to ask questions of the First Lady. So, in that respect, it was "inappropriate." Kind of like if Plotkin wore flip-flops to the event..... "Legs" and her 'that time of the month' crack...it sounds like every day that ends in Y is that time for her.... (10/14/07) If Don and Mike retire soon, will Kidd Chris and Thomas on WYSP in Philly replace them? If they did it would be Great! (10/14/07) Dave's response: I hear that Michael Hughes is thinking about replacing Don and Mike with Crystal Koons and Tammy Darvish..... Mel Karmazin bought our company (American Radio Systems) and killed it. He merged it with Viacom and killed us. Summer Redstone fired his greedy no-nothing ass, and he hired Howard Stern for 500 million at Sirus and killed us. When is Wall-Street and Radio-Joe's like us going to realize that Mel Karmazin is Radio Trash and should be put out to the curb for Waste Management to pick-up? KARMAZIN - RADIO TRASH. (10/14/07) Dave's response: I really believe the same fate awaits XM if Karmazin's Sirius "merges" with the DC satradder. The only folks who will make out on the deal are XM's stockholders and management. The poor slobs who work there are going to get shafted. And, in the long run, subscribers will suffer with higher rates and fewer music choices with no meaningful satrad competition. Mark my words! The NAB isn't always right - but it is in this case..... /\ October 14 Messages /\ \/ October 13 Messages \/ To Bob, asking about WEEL and Jack Gale: According to the FCC website, WEEL has been off the air August 3rd due to a "Remain Silent Authority" Application. The reason given was "Financial". From what I am able to find, it is only temporary, but they haven't returned to the airwaves yet. Tybois Uphold (10/13/07) If Plotkin really wants to solve the “Taxation Without Representation” problem, why doesn’t he support eliminating federal taxes for DC residents? As Dave would say, “A big Hmmmmmmmm.” (10/13/07) Hey Dave, great publicity move with your recent selection of contenders for your Battle of Local Media Hotties: Don Geronimo and Jack Diamond. I can only imagine how many times DCRTV is going to be mentioned on Donnie's show this week..Haven't listend to Don & Mike for quite awhile due to my work hours, but would be quite interested in how this week goes. (10/13/07) "Baden's voice is very similar to the sound of a dozen flaming cats" NICE ONE thanks for that. And you are probably right that the anchor criteria include a strange speech pattern. Diane Kepley was a solid news voice. Gone. Mike Maus, a pewker, still there (although fired from WAPO Radio, that was a good start), Adrienne Mitchell, ex-VOA and wonderful voice, gone. Connect the dots. (10/13/07) That Washington Post article profiling Lisa Baden (and Metro Networks) that "Legs" mentioned can be read here: DCMemories.com... As a DC native, I find the origins of our Nation's Capitol fascinating. Our founding fathers intended Washington, DC to be just one of three distinct cities within the District of Columbia, which also included Georgetown, DC and Alexandria, DC. Washington was envisioned as a tiny, neutral, NON-residential federal enclave *within* the larger District, (not unlike the Vatican in Rome). The voting rights issue gets fuzzy because the city we know today... home to almost 600,000 residents... is not that tiny enclave as originally envisioned. (10/13/07) If Laura Bush is such a Rose Garden ornament, why was she giving testimony about democracy in Burma before a Senate subcommittee last week? If she can make official pronouncements about democracy in Asia she can answer a reporter's legitimate question about democracy for the children of the city where she enjoys free public housing. What shocks me is that Mrs. Bush, a trained educator, would initiate this ugly undemocratic action, ejection of a reporter, in a room full of children. Nice Civics lesson, Mrs. Bush. BTW: when the Constitution was written every American lived in a state -- there was no DC yet and no territories or possessions. When written the Constitution provided every American voter then living with representation in Congress. Congress never amended the document because it wanted DC as a playhouse and this abuse of power made DC a shambles from the get-go. Andrew Jackson tried to fix this in 1831 and 1832 but Congress ignored the President and the intent of the founders. Look it up. Mike Licht (10/13/07) What does Anita Brickman have that Jennifer Ryan or Leslie Foster don't? I think the root of the problem for WUSA's 5 and 7 shows would be: Mr. McGinnity. I predict that one year from now: Jennifer Ryan and Leslie Foster will both be at different stations. I also predict that Channel 9's evening newscast will remain at the bottom of the list. On a side note, Laura Evans looks stunning! Submitted by: Chewy. (10/13/07) I want to thank Joyce, Tom and Steve for their nice comments. I am sure some are wondering why I would leave Baltimore to head back to the Eastern Shore but it basically came down to this...I knew coming into WNST sales would be required but its just not a passion of mine nor something I wanted to do. It got to the point where I had a tough time motivating myself everyday. At the end of the contest I had to reassess things. I wanted to focus a lot more on the radio end of things (which is my strength and what I am good at) than having sales be a big part of my job. I could not continue to be unhappy with my job other than my 2 hrs on the air. It was starting to affect my mental well being and it was not fair to WNST that I was not giving my best with sales. It was one of the most difficult decisions I have had to make. I will miss everyone there who I all looked up to especially Rob Long who was a big influence. I wish Nestor and WNST nothing but the best. I will forever be grateful to WNST (Nestor, Paul, Debbie) for the opportunity and experiances. The thing is I have no regrests, I proved to myself I could do sports talk radio and do it well in a big market. I have been so very blessed in my life and the opportunities that opened themselves back on the Shore for me will leave me busy doing radio including some sports radio. I have the best of both worlds now with music and sports and being able to live at the beach. I know the Eastern Shore market as well if not better than Baltimore and have picked up right from where I left off back in March. This week has been so much fun. Its been nice to have so many welcome back calls and e-mails on The B. It was nice to know that I was missed. -Michael Popovec (10/13/07) I was a big fan of Neal Boggs that read the news and gave just the facts but he was not so pleasing to some folks eye's on the tube and lost his job some years back. Because of this now on all stations the news is all sugar coated one sided and good on the eye's but I would rather have Neal, and just the facts and not the charm. I think that 9 News continue to go down the tube, so please tell me was there or is there anyone better than Doug and his old man Mike Buchanan at getting at the opposing point of view when it comes the news? Good Luck Mike, you did a dam good job. Peace and Love, Billy Ray (10/13/07) Did anyone else catch Mel Karmazian being interviewed by Charlie Rose on PBS on Wed or Thurs night? It was fun watching Mel squirm when he said that he took over Group W and Charlie corrected him, saying that Infinity was sold to Westinghouse. Mel tried to reword it again, and Charlies corrected him again. It was beautiful. Mel also noted that he expects to raise the 'second revenue stream", AKA advertising, on Sirius from 3 or 4% to 10% after the merger. Mel noted that he thinks terrestrial radio has no growth, but it is still a cash cow for those who get paid on commission. Tell us something we don't already know!!! A clip was played of an interview with Sumner Redstone, talking about Mel, in which Sumner says that while Sumner didnt care about a lousy quarter, he wants the long view, what is best for the company, while Mel is strictly about the next quarter and serving the largest shareholders (aka Mel). Some of what Mel had to say spells trouble for the merger, but also says much about how he feels towards those he works with. He specifically said he only cares about the "commerce of business" and has no interest in the 'arts and crafts' which is his term for programming and engineering. Great leader,,,NOT!!!! (10/13/07) (Re: "we're still waiting for you to come up with something IMPORTANT to discuss, aside from your PERSONAL likes and dislikes. - Just Call Me "Legs"') Everything I've mentioned has been on topic: Local radio and TV. All you brought to the table is your PERSONAL dislike of me. Dave in Sterling (10/13/07) If Mark Plotkin wanted to be perfectly subversive without descending into agitprop, he should have had one of the Ballou bandmembers ask Mrs. Bush about voting rights for the District. After all, one senses this was merely a noblesse oblige event by the administration, which only cares for largely black D.C. residents when they're unquestioning Negroes who play and dance for us at football games and in parades (sarcasm intentional). Had one of the students asked her about voting rights in Congresss, that would have thrown her for a loop. -- Vincent in Triangle (10/13/07) As a couple of posts suggest, the issue of voting rights for D.C. has been framed by advocates in a misleading way. It's not that D.C. residents have been somehow unjustly denied voting rights. The Constitution says full membership in the House and Senate is granted to STATES. Americans who want full House and Senate representation are free to move to a state, otherwise they shouldn't complain. Americans who live on Guam or in the U.S. Virgin Islands don't have House and Senate representation either, but they choose to live there. The House has decided at times to amend its internal rules in a way that lets the D.C. delegate (and delegates from the territories) vote on bills on the floor, but you can bet that if that single vote broke a tie the legality of the vote would be challenged in the courts and probably lose. The Davis bill was flawed for this very reason. Making the District (minus the federal property) a new county in Maryland makes perfect sense, yet the idea never gets any traction. Apparently, it's too sensible for politicians to act on it. (10/13/07) RE: [ " To the person that suggested that "DC needs to be ceded back to Maryland," there is a bill in Congress that would do just that - H.R. 1858. " ]....... Wow, that's a great bill, except for one thing... Why would Maryland want to keep up all of DC's infrastructure around Federal property when the Feds will reap all of the tourism revenue?! DOH! I read somewhere that there was an original county name proposed in Maryland for where then Georgetown, Maryland and now DC exists. Does anyone know what it was? (10/13/07) RE: "The White House wants to honor DC students who do well, but politically the President thinks they should remain less than full citizens."---fine, then ask the president. Bad move, Plotkin. (10/13/07) www.hear2.com... The ongoing tragedy of HD radio Supposedly, it costs a manufacturer about $50 to implant an iBiquity HD chip into a radio, thus transforming it into an HD radio. That $50 (or so) is the fee the manufacturer pays to iBiquity. The actual cost of this technology is, of course, likely to be a few dollars at most. Is it any wonder why the cheapest HD radios aren't so cheap? And, more importantly, will it ever be possible for the $15 dollar clock radio you buy at the CVS to be, by default, HD-powered? Anyone in the radio industry knows that the average listener tunes us in on a crappy-ass radio, not on a fancy-pants premium acoustic device. You spend more on your weekly coffee than on your bedside radio. Witness this tone creeping into reviews of HD radio products, like this one from Business Week: "It's true that the RadioShack Accurian is the most affordable way into the appealing new club that is HD Radio, but it's costly for all the wrong reasons. One look underneath the base of an Accurian explains its $200 [now $150 on sale] price tag. There, a sticker reads: "HD Radio Technology Under License From iBiquity Digital Corporation." Instead of developing a radio capable of superior sound quality, I'm guessing that RadioShack paid iBiquity a fortune for the license, cheaply put together a subpar product, and passed the licensing cost on to consumers." Ouch! Let me say this clearly: The Radio industry must subsidize the cost of HD radios, not simply market the heck out of the technology on-air. HD must transparently appear everywhere. And the only way that will happen is if it's feasible to build it into a $15 dollar clock radio. The "HD advantage" must be free and invisible to consumers. This is not about better content, better distribution, or more committed promotion. It's about the tragedy of creating spreadsheets instead of creating markets. End of rant. (10/13/07) the VO for Britches Of Georgetown, Raid and Oxy-5 was Ken Bryan; real name W.B. Brydon. He was in "Trading Places;" he played the bank manager who took Dan Ackroyd's wallet away from him. sean hall (10/13/07) Geez, no matter how much we all can't stand Bush, the liberal nutjobs defending Mark Plotkin should be ashamed of themselves and feel dirty. Laura Bush is the wife of the President, that's it. She's not planning a commission to change our health care system or probably has she ever discussed DC statehood policy at any public event and who knows, maybe not even in private to her husband! At least in THIS administration, the First Lady is simply a SPOUSE with a few ceremonial duties, hardly like Hillary Clinton was as First Lady, right or wrong. Face it, Mark Plotkin made an ass of himself. And for it, he'll probably now get a fat lib-cat job at The New York Times or CBS News now! A great asshole stunt for money and publicity, that's all it was. (10/13/07) Mark Plotkin’s question to Laura Bush might have made for an awkward moment, but it was far from inappropriate. Sure, asking about voting rights at an event to honor the Ballou High School Marching Band has a skunk-at-the-garden-party quality to it, but so what? He was just bringing into the open the obvious contradiction inherent in the event. The White House wants to honor DC students who do well, but politically the President thinks they should remain less than full citizens. Republican Congressman Tom Davis has called the city’s lack of voting rights “an historic wrong”, and he’s right. You put it correctly, Dave. Plotkin, annoying as he may be, was simply pointing out another "inconvenient truth," that we're fighting a war to establish democracy in Iraq when our own citizens don't have it... P.S. Plotkin wasn’t booted from the White House because of his question. The event was over. He and the other reporters then left. (10/13/07) Dear Dave: I had a similar Plotkin experience years ago when I interviewed George Bush 41 for WJLA TV. Except I didn't want to ask the question. It was a sit down interview with Bush. The EP at the time, Bill Cosmos, made me ask the DC statehood question. I simply got it out of the way straight away. Is it appropriate for DC local radio or TV reporter/anchors to raise that question at any opportunity to buttonhole people like the prez and first lady? Depends on the venue and the event. Had Mr. Plotkin been invited to a one-on-one with Mrs. Bush, then the question could be deemed appropriate. Marty Chickaboomer (10/13/07) To the person that suggested that "DC needs to be ceded back to Maryland," there is a bill in Congress that would do just that - H.R. 1858. (10/13/07) Does Anita Brikman remind anyone of C J Craig from "The West Wing?" (10/13/07) Laura Bush has injected herself into democracy issues in Egypt recently, why should she get a pass on democracy issues outside her front door? By the way, DC voting rights are not "unconstitutional;" carve out the "Federal City" part of DC as the founding fathers saw it at the time, and correctly label the rest of DC a state, and DC residents should be given Congressional representation. (10/13/07) Regarding Mark Plotkin, What part of DC residents not being able to vote don’t you Liberals and the poorly educated DC residents (good ‘ol $9000 per student, dumb as rocks and we need more money..)understand? DC, the District of Columbia, formally Washington City was laid out and designed to be a “Federal City” and it’s residents are constitutionally barred from voting. Don’t go comparing this to Iraq, since our Founders decided upon this and it’s FAR from comparable. I’m so glad Virginia took back its share of the Federal City! But you can have “diverse” (i.e. illegal hiders) sanctuary city Arlington. Besides, Iraq, (ala Gulf War II) was a continuation of The Gulf War, since that was a CEASE FIRE (was is not “over” per se.) in 1991 and Saddam and the Iraqi Army continued to violate and we had not one, not 2 but 13 UN resolutions condemning Iraq. Even Billy Clinton wanted to go back there..remember? Oh wait, that was during his wag-the-dog days of playing tough on TV and playing nice with UBL when Morocco had him & oh, those 17 or so dead sailors on the USS Cole thank you too Billy…Way to not let them die in vain. You did nothing but run and hide! (10/13/07) I'm sorry if this has already been reported, but I couldn't find anything on your website about this So I was settling in to listen to the NLCS on WQSR-FM HD2 on my HD Radio last night thinking it was still the relay of WJFK-AM, and was surprised to hear that it is now "102.7 WQSR, HD2, The Greatest Hits of All Time." No DJ's, just pre-recorded liners giving the positioning (102.7 WQSR, HD2, The Greatest Hits of All Time). Sounds like its mostly 60's-70's, run of the mill oldies/classic hits type of station so far, but I've only been listening for an hour. Do you have more information on this? (10/13/07) Dave's response: I have an HD Radio, but I can't pick up any of the Baltimore HD Radio signals from my location in Northern Virginia. Although I get the analog signal of WQSR just fine..... (Re: It's not HER home, it's the PEOPLE'S house.) Actually, it is her home; she sleeps there. And it's not the people's house. That would be the House of Representatives, which you are free to enter -- provided you don't talk, take notes or (per the rules) even READ. Heaven forbid you should dare to open your mouth inside the visitor's gallery, and you will be forced out -- not by an unfriendly press aide who walks you to the exit, but by an armed police officer who will threaten you with arrest. You won't get any argument from me, my fellow DC residents and I should have a vote in Congress. But access to the White House is by invitation only. And by being impetuous and berating the First Lady, Mark Plotkin wore out his welcome. (10/13/07) Who was th VO Artist that voiced the Britches of Georgetown and OXY 5 radio spots? (10/13/07) I had missed the passing of Tom Phillips in the local paper! I had the pleasure of working with Tom back in the early 80's when he started his "SOUNDS OF JAZZ" show on WGET-AM/FM...Saturday nights 9 - 12 Midnight. I was the "operator on duty" (our engineer wouldn't let him alone in the studio because he didn't have a license) so I spent three hours every Saturday night listening to the show and talking to Tom, hearing about all the jazz greats and getting my introduction to jazz at the age of 22. He would send me for pizza (I'll buy, you fly)and we would sit and talk about the days when "music and musicians were king". I grew to love jazz of all types because of Tom's program and influence. The one thing he always used to do at the end of his shows was play the "Airport Love Theme" by Living Strings (from the movie "AIRPORT") at the end of each show and his sign off was "Good night, blue eyes"....I asked him who that was, but he would never tell me. When I left the station (and he had already moved on with his show) I took that album from the station's library....I always would play it now and then when I got in a nostalgic mood. I'll play it again this weekend...more than a few times. Thanks Tom , for being a nice guy to a young kid in radio. The radio world, the jazz world, and the world in general has lost a good man. DANNY CARLISLE WGET/WGTY 1982-1985 (10/13/07) Its amusing to find that most of the traffic on the old 'bag is about one of the only real radio stations left to listen to in Washington, and that's WTOP. To the person who says " DC voting rights are unconstitutional." Oh, yeah? Please enlighten us, with the exact citations in the U.S. Constitution, where the right to a vote is specifically denied to any U.S. Citizen. I dare you. Here's the truth: The right to a vote was taken away from D.C. Residents in the late 1800s when the city administrator got way carried away with massive civic improvements that provided the Nation's Capital with paved streets, sidewalks, and (most importantly) a sewer system. The problem was, the costs way exceeded what the city brought in. In exchange for a Federal bailout, the city's residents were stripped of their right to vote for a local government; this over the years was expanded somehow to strip out the right to vote for President and members of Congress. It is NOT in the law, anywhere. Now: I defy anyone to argue with me with the logic of what I'm about to say: D.C. Residents pay their federal taxes like anyone else; they are asked, or volunteer, to serve in the armed forces, and some of them return maimed; others dead, and yes, in Shrub's little oil war. Tell me exactly why it is RIGHT for these people not to have a vote for a Congressman and Senators like everyone else in the United States? I don't always agree with Plotkin, but sometimes you have to speak out when something is just RIGHT. Its called speaking truth to power, and I'm glad there are people like Plotkin who are willing to put themselves on the line for something that is just so morally correct that it defies any meaningless nonsense that the mostly conservative crowd flings out about denying voting rights to D.C. residents. And to "Dave in Sterling": Poor "Dave"...must be that time of the month for menstrual supplies, from the amount of bellyaching we're getting from you. Know what, I will take a great deal of PLEASURE in knowing just how much it pains you to hear Lisa Baden in the morning. Here are two bits of reality for you to stuff in your pipe and smoke: 1) She isn't going anywhere. As long as Jim Farley and Joel Oxley run WTOP, Lisa is going to be on the air at WTOP in the mornings doing the traffic as long as she wants the job, and keeps doing a good job.. Why? Because she is doing what she is asked to do: deliver the traffic, and do it with a certain amount of personality and charm, and still be informative and all-business when it mattes. 2) There are a lot more people who like her (a.k.a. THE MAJORITY) than people like you who don't (the tinny minority). She may not be the only reason a lot of people lisen to WTOP, but she is one reason why lots of people tend to spend a lot of time WITH WTOP. (When you get a chance, go to the Washington Post website, and search for the feature article written about her several years ago. It will fill in a lot of gaps about how she came up with the particular presentation that she uses today.) My friends who are in the audience research and analysis business say that her "Q" scores among both listeners (and in the last few years, viewers to Channel 7) in this area are amont the highest for name recognition, and positive for the impression she leaves with the people who are asked. I had a chance to meet her at the WJLA/WTOP blood drive at Tysons Corner this past Summer, and she's as nice in person as she is on the radio, and that explains a lot of her appeal on the air. If it so pains you people to hear her, I have a suggestion: there are other radio stations to listen to in the D.C. area. Push another button, and move on. In the meantime, "Dave in Sterling", we're still waiting for you to come up with something IMPORTANT to discuss, aside from your PERSONAL likes and dislikes. - Just Call Me "Legs" (10/13/07) Ah, how time has a way of leveling the playing field and making the players forget which sides they once held dear. Let us go back, gentle reader, to a time, sublime, when the White House belonged to those who oppose what is now mine. Oh wait, didn't you just say, that House de Blanca belongs to the 'people' and is NOT the private residence of the President nor the exclusive domain of the party at reign? Yes, i do believe a poster just noted so. Then tell me, oh wise one, how is the house public when Mrs. Bush is having a event, but some how private when Willy Billy was getting a BJ just off the Oval office? How was Bill entiteld to privacy and respect, and yet Mrs. Bush is entitled to neither? Perhaps its just because she is a lady that you feel she should be held to some higher standard? I wonder, does that make you sexist, or just a hypocrite? I wonder if you would have felt the same and jeered, or rather pumped fist into the air and cheered if Hillary had a Fox Newser removed for an inappropriate question? You know, just like the Democratic Party defenders of First Amendment rights have college students removed by force. Plotkin was out of line for being a bore and deserved to be shown the door. Now this was my idea of how to bring back the Fairness Doctrine. Given the recent poll, reported today, that shows liberals believe, as we know, that the media favors their side of the story, this was equal time. Today was a good day. (10/13/07) /\ October 13 Messages /\ \/ October 12 Messages \/ I had the very great pleasure of working with Tom Phillips at WCTN 950 AM in Potomac in 1974. Although his day job at the time was real estate, he enjoyed spending time behind the mic on weekends. The station was situated among doctors and lawyers offices above the Seven Locks Shopping Center and the only Men's Room was shared with the building's other tenants, down a common hallway. You quickly learned that if nature called when that single toilet was occupied, you had to just grin and bear it. Well... Tom would say "count your blessings" because when WHFS first went on the air, they had no toilet at all. Breaks were timed to allow a sprint to a near-by gas station. In fact, Tom claimed that (on at least one occasion) he delivered the official WHFS sign-off by stating "with facilities located at Smitty's ESSO." (TP, May you R.I.P.) (10/12/07) "Pissweaker"? Hah, you can always tell the amateur operators and engineering freaks by the terms they use. Wonder when someone will use the terms "peanut whistle", "coffeepot" or "nightlight" to suggest a low-power signal. (10/12/07) Understand Tom Phillips - most recently heard on WGET (1320) Gettysburg passed away in September. From WGET web site... "Tom Phillips started his radio career in Washington D.C. in 1947 and became known as an authority on big bands and jazz through his program, THE SOUNDS OF JAZZ, heard on WGET & WGTY, later on WTHU in Frederick County. He also wrote a monthly column, "Keystone Komments" for JAZZNEWS Magazine from 1984 until 2002, and wrote liner notes for several CD's of jazz performers. He was a drummer for several bands, including Bill Dayton Orchestra & Combo, Cathy Chemi & Friends, and his own group, "The Partners in Time." He played throughout D.C., Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, retiring in mid 1994. His program was named THE SOUNDS OF JAZZ by Music Director, Marlin Taylor when the program aired on the Nation's first FM-Stereo Staion WHFS. Marlin is now Music Director for XM Satellite Radio in Washington D.C." I was just a teenager when "Washington's High Fidelity Station" went on the air in Bethesda...and remember Mr. Phillips inpressive knowledge of Jazz...a musical tradition I little understood at the time. Sincerly, Carl (10/12/07) DC voting rights are unconstitutional. So all the hoopla is for nothing. Folks in DC who care just need to move to VA or MD. It's pretty elementary. And reporters like Plotkin who don't follow the rules that are set down at any appearance ought to get thrown out on their asses. (10/12/07) "Mrs. Laura Bush is not an elected official, or even a public employee. She is a kind and gentle woman who was hosting neighbors and members of the press at her home." #1 It's not HER home, it's the PEOPLE'S house. #2. like Dave said, it is quite a shame that we are fighting in Iraq for democracy and yet, people get thrown out of the PEOPLE'S house for asking a simple question. SHAME on Laura Bush, SHAME on George W Bush SHAME on the person who decided that Mark Plotkin deserved to kicked out of the PEOPLE'S house. I applaud Mark Plotkin for what he did. People have the right to question the President, the First Lady, anyone involved in public service. For Christ sake, just give DC a voice in Congress. Do you realize what a laughing stock the capital city has become? (10/12/07) To Bob..whoever you are..thanks for asking about me. Yes, you are correct, I bought an AM in Dothan, Alabama, and called it WEEL, The Big Wheel. Later got an FM. Both stations are in the process of being sold, and we moved back to our home in Lecanto, Florida. The 15 hour days were just too much to handle for an old guy like me. I'll be 82 in November. Now I just do national commercials from my home studio each day and spend time with my wife of 60 years, Lovey. Thanks so much for remembering. I appreciate it. Jack Gale (10/12/07) If Ann Colter had been a Democrat and made the same stupid comment about Jews I bet that Fox News, the New York Post, Drudge, and Rush would have been all over her, condemning her idiotic remarks. But they're all silent about it today. As Dave would say - hmmmmmmmmmm. (10/12/07) I agree 100% with Plotkin on the issue of DC voting rights. But the man is not a reporter, he's a one-note advocate. I also agree, 100%, that reporters should ask questions that the people they're interviewing might not want to hear. But shouting a virtual non sequitur at an elected official's spouse during a photo op for a totally unrelated issue is just goofy. Dave in Sterling (10/12/07) RE: [ " President Bush has opposed changing the law. " ]....... I'm hardly a Bush fan, but what a stupid statement. It's not a simple legal issue or just something Bush has done, it's a constitutional and congressional issue. Even CONGRESS or the STATE legislatures haven't been able to pass such a law or constitutional change. And why whould they? DC Gov't is a total mess and it's an artificial entity with few checks and balances. DC needs to be ceded back to Maryland as an independent city governed under Maryland, from whence it came, just like Arlington was ceded back to Virginia. That solves everything. And then DC can go from embarrassing license plates to the even uglier plain Jane Maryland ones, arguably the ugliest license plates in the nation! :-) (10/12/07) Regarding your "Rant" on 3WT, I couldn't disagree more. I prefer David Burd and Jessica Doyle' s' program to listening to Grandy, Andy, and Nehman. Aside from the 3-5 minutes at the top of the hour for ABC network news and the local news, what do you get from WMAL- biased opinion from Fred, Andy, and Bryan. Who cares if it is without commercial interruption! Burd and Doyle are more entertaining and informative, along with not being afraid to bring on varied viewpoints. For whatever reason, WMAL no longer draws on ABC news resources such as Anne Compton. 3WT has it weaknesses, but it takes time to build listenership. WMAL is living off the fumes of the Harden and Weaver/ Gauger glory days. David in Hyattsville (10/12/07) Dave's response: I really do like David Burd. And I think his pairing with Jessica Doyle ain't bad. But mostly I get to listen to his Tony substitute hosting from 8 AM to 10 AM. And there, it just don't work. He seems to be trying too hard to be Tony and falls flat on his face. It might be better for 3WT to "do" Dave and Jessica from 6 AM to 10 AM, and forget about Dave "playing" Tony after 8 AM. If Tony comes back in January or February - fine. But, until then, 3WT needs to let "David be David." That's what he does best..... Any reporter has the right to ask any question. However, people in the public eye, whether they are politicians or spouses, have no obligation to answer any question. What I find interesting about this case is that the story being presented by WTOP is all about Plotkin, and secondarily about the rights of DC citizens and their representative in Congress. He and his employers seem to be using the incident to draw attention to themselves. Good journalists report stories and allow their listeners or readers to form opinions about issues. They do not allow themselves to become part of the story. When that happens, it is no longer objective reporting, but rather grandstanding for a cause. Plotkin's actions, while interesting from a civil debate point of view, reflect negatively on a station which theoretica