Current Mailbag - Mailbag Archive Index - DCRTV Front Page - Support DCRTV DCRTV Mailbag - January 1 to January 7, 2008 Latest messages listed first..... \/ January 7 Messages \/ OH MY GOWD, Can we PLEEEAAASSSSEEE get passed Britney Spears???????????????? (1/7/08) I wonder how many hits the WWVB-FM website will now get from owners of "atomic" clocks who do a search for "WWVB"? Or, for that matter, perhaps the two will link websites to each other? Reminds me of the time in the 1970's when the FCC assigned the 'WTOW' call simultaneously to the 1570 in Towson, and to a station on Georgia! It went on for a month or so before the FCC corrected it. Unsigned Corporate Suit (1/7/08) Dave's response: Maybe they should call it "Atomic 99.3" and use the Blondie dance song of the same name as its theme..... Yawn..... WYSK changing fomats... 99.3 in Fredericksburg is the ever changing format wheel.... never keeps a format for more than a year or two. The wanna-be alt rock lasted the longest of any format on that stick since FLS resurected the station back in '94 or so - maybe 3 years. The alt rock format in general is on life support and FLS figured it out. So now its Urban hits & dance. I really wonder how long that will last? My guess is for about a year, then they'll swap it with the brokered Spanish format they have on 1350 AM. Just my hunch. Interesting to see what the next ratings book will bring. Now my question is what will they have on the HD2 channel of WFLS which had The Vibe format. Dave in Frederickburg (1/7/08) Cable says they have the most HD channels and satellite says they have the most HD channels. Who is telling the truth? (1/7/08) Dave's response: Most cable systems give you 20 to 30 channels in HD. Comcast adds that it also offers a variety of HD programming via its On-Demand service. Satellite offers about the same number of channels, however DirecTV is rolling out a new satellite which supposedly will offer up to 100 HD channels. But you'll need an additional dish and new gear to get it all. Oh, I hear that Bruce Springsteen is updating his old song "57 Channels And Nothing On" to "457 Channels And Nothing On." HD doesn't improve crappy programming..... "$50 Million is pocket money to sell the license of 1500. They could plow the towers under and develop that land for many, many times that amount." Speaking of such, I was driving along University Boulevard West in Wheaton Sunday for the first time in a while, and I note that the sign on 1500's transmitter building still reads "WTOP radio network -- 1500 AM, 820 AM, 107.7 FM," even though WTOP hasn't aired on that frequency since late March 2006. Shouldn't Bonneville update the sign? At least it could put the Nationals' and Capitals' logos on a new sign reading, "Hear the Nats and Caps on 1500 AM, 820 AM, 107.7 FM"? That would protect Bonneville in case it changes formats again, as I believe they have long-term deals with both teams for those frequencies. -- Vincent in Triangle (1/7/08) RE: "WWVB is a NIST time signal on 60Khz(ELF). Would the FCC approve those call letters?" They sure did! The station will get the WWVB-FM calls..... Robert Corbin/ VARTV.com (1/7/08) I hate to sound critical, but I have no idea what Anita Brickman has and Jennifer Ryan did not in order to get the 5PM and 7PM anchor gig. Personally, they are like clones. (1/7/08) To the poster who was shouting about WTOP being worth 300 to 450 million because of the old 10 to 15 times cash flow rule: Have you been asleep for ten years? This is the post consolidation era of 7 to 9 times cash flow deals. The WTOP network could be sold for around 250 million on a good day. If Bonneville could get 300 to 450 million they would sell the station tonight and walk quickly and quietly to the bank. The 1500 signal would be sold as a “stick” sale because the station has no worth or cash flow. Maybe they could get 15 million from a sucker. (1/7/08) WWVB is a NIST time signal on 60Khz(ELF). Would the FCC approve those call letters? (1/7/08) Don and Mike said no phones today because they are out at the studio...I am assuming some "communication breakdown" with incoming and outgoing phones...as the webstream is also off and on at the source..and for the last 15 seconds or so it sounds like an FM radio (old analog style) going up and down the dial on the stream - its probably some digital hash on their end - but it sounds sort of like the long opening to WKRP - currently its off... (1/7/08) ($50 Million is pocket money to sell the license of 1500.) listen stupid...$50 million is what WTOP bills in a year...not what they make in profit...let me clue you in...what they make per year is less than the $50 Mil you reference. But more importantly, $50 million is NOT what Bonneville would get for selling WTOP...it would be more like $300,000,000-$450,000,000 (at 10-15 times flow based on rumors of flowing close to $30 mil a year). So NO, they could not make that money back by plowing over the land and developing. More importantly, in case you have lived under a rock, WTOP is NO LONGER ON 1500!!!! WTOP is on 103.5 FM. So selling 1500 is an entirely different debate (and right now they probably wouldn't get $50 Million for 1500)...but the postings to which you are referring to are about selling WTOP. You must be the same rocket scientist that told Snyder to buy those 3 rim shots for $33 million. (1/7/08) YSK switch formats...Yawn...big deal. While I enjoyed the music and would switch to it during commercial breaks on JFK or 3WP or WTEM or whatever Danny boy's station is, I don't look at it as a big loss. I would prefer it to the urban dance station they have switched to but now I will have to change one of my presets on my radio... (1/7/08) "Dave's response: From now on, I'm calling it Mix 94.7....." Dave it's not about the music. It's about saving the earth man! (1/7/08) Just to be fair, Robert Johnson's ex-wife, Sheila Johnson, is a leading supporter and fundraiser for Barack Obama. Sheila Johnson endorsed Obama last March. Everett W. (1/7/08) Dave's response: Go tell that to Fox News..... WJFK - Just tuned into the online stream and it sounds like they have Big O and Dukes on instead of Rome. Brian (1/7/08) $50 Million is pocket money to sell the license of 1500. They could plow the towers under and develop that land for many, many times that amount. That almost happened (a real estate deal) when NBC sold WRC-AM. OH, gee, didn't NBC just completely build new studios for WRC before they sold it, too ??? Local management probably doesn't know the corporate mindset, that's why they pontificate that everyone should remain calm. Last thing they want is all the talent to flee before they're ready to fire them. (1/7/08) RE WTOP, Brian wants to sound like he knows what he is talking about, but he does not. Stations are purchased and priced off of “Broadcast Cash Flow” or BCF. The BCF of a given station does not include capital expenses. Signed: “Not a armchair quarterback” (1/7/08) (Maybe Joel and Jim have different goals than what the suits in SLC have. Hmmm.....) Yeah...Joel and Jim are going to make the MASSIVE changes they did without being on the same page with SLC? I don't think so. Remember Bonneville doesn't have that many stations (what, like 20-25?). Their CEO is involved and knows what is going on with anything major...not to mention, that WTOP is their crown jewel. no disrespect to the local managers, but the Bonneville cash cow gets plenty of oversight. (1/7/08) “Usually a capital expense is written off over many years and does not affect cash flow.” Wrong. Capital expenses are depreciated over several years, as you point out, but that depreciation absolutely hits the bottom line each and every year. “In fact, the new owner would end up paying for most of the expense.” Again, completely wrong. The contractors and vendors who are doing the construction and providing the equipment and furniture are getting paid NOW…from Bonneville. The only way Bonneville could recoup that cost from a potential buyer would be to increase the price of the station…which, as another poster correctly pointed out, is highly unlikely because the only thing a buyer is really paying for is cash flow. Armchair CEOs here can toss rumors around all they want, but that doesn’t make them true. Bonneville is not selling WTOP. -Brian (1/7/08) (In fact, the new owner would end up paying for most of the expense) Exactly. do you think that if Bonneville wanted to sell the stations, that they would approve an unecessary construction project so that the new owners would be required to pick up most of the capital expense??? the reality is that Bonneville isn't stupid and they aren't selling WTOP. pontificate all you want, suggest crazy new formats that won't make any money, dream about splitting up all the frequencies in silly ways that would succeed only in confusing the listeners more than Bonneville has up to this point...but the reality is, it ain't happening! As Jack Nicholson said in As Good As It Gets..."Go sell crazy someplace else...we are all stocked up here!" (1/7/08) Is it just me, or does 94.7 The Globe sound more like a Jack type station than anything close to what WHFS used to sound like? (1/7/08) Dave's response: From now on, I'm calling it Mix 94.7..... Actually, Mark Kessler was the morning man on WBIG when they were oldies. I believe he was there between Jim London and Dave Adler. He didn't really fit in with the format and went to 94.7 after that. (1/7/08) (1/7 - Shawn "Quinn" McIntire takes general manager position with Delta Radio in Mississippi) ... Another CSB grad done good! Congrats to Quinn! (1/7/08) (When they ended their news outlet on 1500 I knew the end was near) Yeah...WTOP moved their entire $50 Million operation to 103.5 because they were trying to unload the station?! that would make a ton of sense. I will say it took some big balls to move a station of WTOP's size off its heritage signals, but it also proved that Bonneville isn't all that dumb. Even though their overall share and rank hasn't changed much (went up big in the beginning, went down after that, and now they are back where they started...low 5 share, right?) their revenue and profits are UP over the past 2 years...in a down market. Couple that with the foothold they have now built (being an all newser on the FM dial) and you might want to change your comment to "when they ended their news outlet on 1500, I knew they were in it for the long haul." why else would Bonneville shake up it's DC billing and profit? they did it because they are NOT selling and what they did is something only a private company would do. Connie (1/7/08) Dave's response: Maybe Joel and Jim have different goals than what the suits in SLC have. Hmmm..... To the poster who doesn’t think you would be rebuilding the news room at WTOP if you were selling the station…Rebuilding the news room is a “capital expense” and not an operating expense so it falls below the “cash flow’ line. Usually a capital expense is written off over many years and does not affect cash flow. In fact, the new owner would end up paying for most of the expense. (1/7/08) So, will Johnny Carson and Ed McMahon...I mean Don & Mike FINALLY be returning today after their 3 1/2 week vacation? (1/7/08) Dave's response: I like to think of them as Arthur Godfrey and Julius LaRosa..... Dave: Love the flashback, but the copy states that “Yes, the Yankees and Dodgers will play the 1947 World Series.....” but the reference is “1950’s”. Keep up the good work, I read your site everyday. Rick (1/7/08) Dave's response: It's a time warp thing. Because the Earth passed through a Black Hole in 1958, we lost four years. So, that makes 1947 now part of the 1950s - relative to 2008, of course...... here we go again with the silly WTOP rumors/assumptions. I don't know anymore than most of you posting in here, but I do know that WTOP is weeks away from opening up their brand new, state of the art newsroom. From what I hear, this is some newsroom...a complete renovation of the entire floor, brand new equipment, a ton of bells and whistles. Bonneville selling WTOP? are you crazy? you don't spend hundreds of thousands on renovations before selling a radio station. it isn't like a brand new newsroom will drive the price up. only one thing will do that...cash flow. and a nice, pretty newsroom won't help drive up cash flow...just the opposite! BA (1/7/08) Dave's response: How about 103.5 becoming 1980s and 1990s electronica, The Probe 103.5, to compete against 94.7 The Globe. Move the WTOP news back to 1500..... Good Morning, Fellow Posters. I read that Mark Kessler was doing fill in work on WBIG. Did he do fill in work on BIG 100.3 in it's former format? Ed Jones, Bel Air MD (1/7/08) Dave's response: I doubt that he did fill-in work at Clear Channel's 100.3 when he was working at CBS's 94.7..... Allow me to provide some digital TV advice of my own to Channel 4: Please, for the love of God, get with the times and upgrade your newscasts to HD! And yes, I already know that HD and DTV are not synonymous. Didn't the WRC campus house the facilities for WHD-DT, the original model digital TV station? Between that and being an O&O, you'd think that they'd want to catch up on the technical side. -jason (1/7/08) Dave's response: Well, at least WRC could "stretch" the picture to fill the 16:9 screen and give us "Faux HDTV." Wendy Rieger with a wide, moon face. Scary..... I could do a whole routine on how TV stations replace and change their sets and formats to try to jumpstart ratings. The process takes just long enough for management to get vested in the retirement program before the owner says, "Wait a minute. We've changed every aspect of this operation over a 5 year period and nothing's happened. Maybe it's the MANAGERS." But by that time it's to late. McGinty has led a charmed life everywhere he's been without ever producting anythng of substance. Maybe it's HIM and not Tracy Neale et. al. (1/7/08) It would be hard to imagine Bonneville selling the WTOP network unless they sold the whole company. That being said, The TOP network could probably fetch somewhere north of 200 million in the open market which would mean that Bonneville would make a tidy little 150 million dollar profit on the stations they purchased in the late 90’s. A public company would ruin WTOP by slicing and dicing the network into oblivion. (1/7/08) Hi, Any idea why Fredericksburg AM 1230 is playing local interview show now instead of Glenn Beck? Theron Keller, Fredericksburg, VA (1/7/08) Dave's response: It probably has something to do with Beck's move to 3WT, which does cover the Fredericksburg area on 107.7 FM..... Sounds like Bonneville is making the books look pretty for a possible sale, and why spend money on convention coverage if you're not gonna own any payoff. When they ended their news outlet on 1500 I knew the end was near. (1/7/08) Dave's response: As I've said before, I wouldn't be surprised to see Bonneville sell their DC area radio stations and pull out of the market. The only significant asset remaining here is the "crown jewel" of WTOP and CBS certainly wouldn't mind adding that to WPGC, WLZL, WJFK, and WTGB. The 103.5 signal would bring B'ville big bucks. And 1500 would deliver a nice chunk of change, although it is an AMer and highly-directional. The rest of B'ville's local signals are kind of rimshotty and/or weakish..... Re: "The comment about your 'current antenna' being OK for DTV! Wrong!!!" -- Guess again. DTV is here, now, and it is working. Current antennas work fine. I can pick up distant DTV from stations whose analog signals are unwatchable. And DTV will not be UHF-only after the switchover, as you imply. A trial analog shutdown is not only unnecessary, it would be the biggest PR nightmare ever conceived. (1/7/08) You must've been blessedly spared the misfortune of owning a Pacer... a Pinto... o Maverick... or an Aspen/Volare! (1/7/08) Re: WTOP's "budget is bigger than last year and much bigger than it was four years ago, I hear. However, WTOP management tells me that they have no desire to spend resources on an event that is "nothing but a scripted stageshow." They can get all the coverage we want from CBS, CNN at the conventions." That argument makes little sense. If the conventions were nothing but a scripted stage show four years ago and they sent Dave McConnell and other staffers - on a budget that they admit is much smaller than it is today - and they also had access to CBS and CNN four years ago, then what has changed? Guess with that "much bigger budget" the pressure to cut Diane Kepley and Ira Melman a few months ago must have been enormous....not to mention that giant sucking sound known as (the late) PostRadio....four years ago they bragged about being the only radio station in Washington at the conventions.... (1/7/08) Now that's a dreamy picture of Mr. Kornheiser on ye olde mailbag page. Why I almost feel like he's talking too me with his eyes and that smile. And back to WBIG, they've been running an ad quite a bit by a Mr. Perez who's apparently a sales person at the WBIG. The commercial has Mr. Perez soliciting ad business for the WBIG with Salsa(jerry seinfeld says people just like saying "salsa") music playing in the background and concludes the ad with "Salud!" The commercial seems a bit odd for a 70's oldies station unless plans are in the works to make WBIG the second spanish station on the FM side in the D.C. area? I also find a prepared bit I keep hearing on WBIG quite interesting. It strikes me as a Clear Channel prepared bit that's probably been shipped out to Cheap Channel oldie stations across the country.(Say ain't Clear Channel also a station owner over in the U.K. these days?) The prepared bit waxed poetic about the Beatles 1967 Sgt. Pepper's album and nobody knows the Beatles like WBIG and then they play the same album cut off of Sgt. Pepper's each time I've heard the bit. I've don't recall hearing any other Beatle songs being played. Thing is I'd estimate that about 90% WBIG's playlist consists of mid-70's California rock . The Doors, gawd the Doors I can't take it anymore no more Doors, I don't care if Jim Morrison did go to high school in Alexandria I don't want to hear the Doors no more. And The Globe plays the Doors too much too! I want to talk to this computer that picks the music. The Doors now in same category for me as "Stairway to Heaven" and Supremes. I could go years with not hearing that music it's been so overplayed! Now the powers that be at WBIG might think well at least I'm listening but I've hit that wall I can't take it no more. I'm going to the Radio Shack and get me one of them MP3 players I don't care if the yuteful salesboy gives me that look when I ask a question. Now what the hell was "Dirty Harry" being shown on the History channel? Bring back the Hitler documentaries! Happy birtday Elvis! And Don and Mike begin the last lap......................... (1/7/08) Snyder could get around 15 to 18 million for the three signals he purchased in 2005. They had trouble getting loans to fund the operation a while back because the stations didn’t appraise anywhere near the purchase price. While Snyder is the majority stakeholder in the Triple X ill fated venture, he has many partners including many key Redskin executives and board members. The operation has lost millions during both years. Snyder is personally on the hook for a loan to fund the business. Mega had tried for years to dump the three signals for the 33 million price tag, but no one else would bite on the inflated price. Snyder was also advised by many broadcasting experts that the price was way too high and the signals were useless. He bought them anyway, and dragged his “friends” and associates down with him. (1/7/08) Dead trees calling? www.wtopnews.com (1/7/08) I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy New Year 2008! If you have not seen it, the people vote was in December 31st for the Best Of Toronto Media, that is from the readers of my blog. I hope you continue to log on to the only free, no pop-up complete media news and gossip blog in Canada. Below is the feed that went out New Year's Eve. Congratulations to all the winners. Carolyn Mackenzie, Francis D'Souza, Michael Kuss, Nalini Sharma, Melanie Martin, Chris Evans, Anthony Farnell, The Toronto Sun and CBC.Ca. Log on to the site to see the complete stories and photos. They are on the December 31st 2007 Postings. Bookmark the site and subscribe to our feeds at www.Keminications.com and check Monday's news. Sincerely, Olukemi "Kemi" Olunloyo Joshua (1/7/08) /\ January 7 Messages /\ \/ January 6 Messages \/ Thanks to Bob for correcting and talking a little sense to the Poster who directed the faux outrage at Parade Magazine. Besides his original comments flying in the face of commonsense, a minimum of effort on the OP's part could have spared us the silly hyperbole. Perhaps we know why you are a "former" journalist. To the UCS...Dude, you may know the "biz," but you don't know the Internet, any thoughtful Post is nullified by using a Star Trek analogy in the conclusion.//// And now for something completely different: When was the last time saw anyone one of these formerly common bumper stickers ? For me it was mid 70's Vega in 1989 (1/6/08) Dave's response: When was the last time anyone saw a Vega? Got to have been the worst American car ever made..... Dave, Re: "Well, 820 serves the Frederick 'market,' and maybe Beck had a deal with WFMD to air there, so 3WT has to air something else on that signal....." That is correct, as a quick check of the WFMD website shows Beck on their schedule...and in afternoon drive, no less! www.wfmd.com (1/6/08) Dave, a source at WTOP tells me that due to budgetary concerns it will not be sending anyone to the political conventions this summer. In election years past, it sent legendary Capitol Hill reporter and others - and boasted about its presence at the conventions. (1/6/08) Dave's response: I checked with a WTOPer and am told that there are no cutbacks. The station's budget is bigger than last year and much bigger than it was four years ago, I hear. However, WTOP management tells me that they have no desire to spend resources on an event that is "nothing but a scripted stageshow." They can get all the coverage we want from CBS, CNN, and Politico at the conventions, I hear. The all-news station wants to spend its resources on covering local stuff, and not duplicating what the networks will already be doing..... Dave, You mentioned Snyder won't sell the stations at a loss. Can you remind your readers what he paid for the stations in the first place? Marc in Connecticut (1/6/08) Dave's response: The reported price tag for all three stations, which were purchased from Mega in 2005-ish, was $33 million..... I saw the video of Tracey Neale giving her bye bye speech. So, was that it??.. The other anchors didn't get her a cake, or do a video of "memory lane" stuff?..Kinda lame. (1/6/08) I am hearing that NBC will be purging more employee's between the 18th and end of January. They are waiting until after New Hampshire. NBC in Washington is now offering buy - outs. This comes after denying that they existed for 6 months. When the announcement was made the network ended up with more requests than they expected. It turns out over 1/2 the staff asked to be bought out. WRC staffers are not participating in these buy - outs. But they wish they could. MSNBC has decided to stop all news coverage and only spend money on election coverage. It is all politics all the time. (1/6/08) (snip) At the very least, an antenna of tight beamwidth is needed because of the intolerance of the VSB-8 protocol to packet collisions. (end snip) ... uh... YEAH! What HE said! (1/6/08) Dave, any idea why 3WT decided to split its afternoon show? Its Beck on two frequencies and Rhodes on the 820 am signal. This means that, although the other programs will be heard on 820, 3WT will get no credit in the ratings because in order to be considered a simulcast, 100 percent of the broadcasting must be the same. Do they just keep shooting themselves in the foot over there or what? The Fan (1/6/08) Dave's response: Well, 820 serves the Frederick "market," and maybe Beck had a deal with WFMD to air there, so 3WT has to air something else on that signal..... 2008 is already here. Only 1 D.C. newscast in high definition still... no HD newscasts in Baltimore quite yet. I don't know about you. I get the feeling that ABC 2 and WBAL 11 must not be motivated to go HD. Again, 4 other Hearst-owned stations... and 5 other Scripps-owned stations are now in HD with their newscasts and local programs. The "new and improved" Early Show will be debuting tomorrow (Monday, January 7th)... no word yet on if the CBS morning program will be in HD yet or not. This would probably lead to growing speculation on whether CBS 13 will be going HD or not. I would really love to see 13 pull a fast one, perhaps becoming the first station in the Baltimore market to go HD with its newscasts and local programs... especially if 2, 11, and 45 don't seem to want to get their act together. WUSA 9 has been in HD since 2005. NBC 4, FOX 5, and ABC 7/NewsChannel 8 have yet to go HD. As for which station becoming the second station behind channel 9... remains a toss up. I could see 4 going HD, in an attempt to re-bound in the ratings... despite 7 fighting tooth and nail to claim ratings victory. This is sure to be very interesting though. Happy 2008! Eric from Atlanta (1/6/08) Dave, I went to the WRC-48 website about the upcoming "Digital Disaster" and saw one serious error before I said 'f--- it' and went elsewhere! The error? The comment about your 'current antenna' being OK for DTV! Wrong!!! While not everyone will need a 7' dish with a low-noise figure amp at the antenna with flexible hardline going to their TV or converter box, most people will find that their current UHF antenna & feedline are inadequate for the challenge of reliable DTV reception. At the very least, an antenna of tight beamwidth is needed because of the intolerance of the VSB-8 protocol to packet collisions. I recently saw an item in Broadcasting & Cable where a member of the FCC is suggesting doing a "test market trial" of an analog shutdown with only DTV being transmitted. I think this is a great idea! In fact, I suggest the D.C./Baltimore market for a seven-day test to see what happens. If seven days without analog works in a comparatively "DTV-ready" major mark! et like D.C/Baltimore, I then suggest a similar try in a medium market like either Richmond, VA or maybe Norfolk. If that test works, how about a small market like Hastings, Nebraska or Augusta, GA? I think the DTV transition will go smoother for the next President and the next Congress if it's proven that DTV works now, rather than have all hell break loose should it be proven all at once nationwide that it (DTV) simply does not work. Oh yes, I'd suggest the FCC do the test on a Sunday-Saturday basis with only a maximum of seven days notice to the broadcasters and the public. Unsigned Corporate Suit (1/6/08) Dave, Here is my column on the Skins playoff coverage. CSN was the big winner with Sean Taylor's father Pete being on set for the pre and post game shows he helped provide closure to the season and the team. There was a touching exchange after the game between Taylor and Skins coach Joe Gibbs that was a once in a lifetime TV moment, Once again CSN scored big providing total and in this case emotional coverage. Cheers, Jim www.examiner.com (1/6/08) ''So did WUSA do anything special for Tracey Neale for her last day there?'' No. BUT one of JC's wigs snarled at her on the way out the door. Paul (1/6/08) Regarding Howard's comments, including "First of all, Parade magazine should be censured or punished in some way for putting the article out without corrections or updates..." methinks he doesn't have much knowledge of the print publishing business. And to courteously correct you, Dave, Parade's print run isn't "tens of thousands" it's north of 30 million! To say it would be cost prohibitive to reprint them would be a massive understatement. Many of the 400 papers that carry Parade did include a Note to Readers explaining the situation. And if Howard bothered to check Parade.com he would note that their treatment definitely includes appropriate context regarding last week's events, as well as an open forum for comments on the situation. I dare say that the people who actually read the print version of Parade are probably intelligent and aware enough to be able to understand the nuances even if they didn't see their paper's Note to Readers or hit parade.com. "Censured?" "Punished?" We don't censure and punish agenda-driven media outlets who knowingly slant their news or - worse - create news out of whole cloth purely for their business or political interests basically doing what in any other industry would be called fraud. That in mind, not reprinting 30+ million copies of a newspaper supplement purely to insert two paragraphs of context is hardly worthy of censure or punishment. Bob in Forest Hill (1/6/08) I am disgusted that not only did Parade magazine publish a cover interview this week with Benazir Bhutto but also that the Washington Post went ahead and included it in its Sunday edition. The interview makes no mention of her assassination. Rather, it is as if she were still alive, and discusses what impact she will and can have. To me this is so unprofessional and unethical. It is also insulting. It is one prime example why people are turning away from the printed news. Here we have a major insert in the Post that's all about something weeks old, with no recognition at all that the person being featured has been killed. First of all, Parade magazine should be censured or punished in some way for putting the article out without corrections or updates. And locally, the Post should be ashamed of itself. If I had reasons in the past for turning away from the Post, I certainly have a major one now. As a former journalist, I am embarrassed. Howard (1/6/08) Dave's response: The Post did run a "correction" on the front page of its Sunday edition saying that the interview, which was done before her death, was printed in advance and could not be edited. It probably could have been re-edited, but the cost to reprint tens of thousands of copies of the nationwide newspaper supplement Parade probably would have been "prohibitive"..... The 630 WMAL Hummer will be missed. My favorite story about it was the time when former NSA boss Sandy Berger's car stalled in DC and the Hummer was passing by and came to its rescue. As the story goes, Berger didn't even know how to 'pop the hood'... he can steal sensitive documents from the National Archives and get away with it -- but he can't even pop a hood... amazing... -Silvie- (1/6/08) I heard Mark Kessler filling in for a few days on WBIG before Christmas. He's not a regular on WBIG is he? If not why not! I know he's the announcer for the Dreadskin's over in RalJohn but what's he doing the rest of the year. www.kessmedia.com and here's an article that apparently Mr. Kessler wrote on growing grape tomatoes searchwarp.com. Wonder if he knows Alice Sweet of Norfolk, VA? And speaking of the Dreadskin's, man that Seattle defense was something, was Saturday's radio broadcast the last for Sam "short end of the stick"Huff and Sonny" Yes it is" Jurgensen. I'm pretty sure Larry Michael is coming back cause lil' danny ordered Michael to take his kids to the Hannah Montana concert. Will it be Joe Theisman and Mark May next year or maybe instead of May it'll be Trevor Matich but please please please not ray brown. Also was Friday's showing of George Michaels Redskin's Report the last one with the forthcoming cuts at channel 4? And what about Coach Gibbs, was Saturday his last game? You know I can't quite figure what's the purpose of Heather Sanderson and the Brit Com block on Maryland Public TV. There was a time the Brit Com block didn't need a host. I also notice that since Ms. Sanderson has been at MPT on air that no "One Foot In The Grave" showings. Come on give Hyacinth Bucket a break and let's see OFITG back on the air! Good wishes to Dorothy Hamill, a long time Baltimore resident, hope things work out okay. Ah man take me back, sorry Pamela Brown she's more my age bracket. (1/6/08) Dave's response: MPT really needs to shake up its "Britcom block" with some variety. I mean, we've been through about 20 strait re-runnings of "Keeping Up Appearances" and "As Time Goes By." Both are marvelous shows, but how about some "One Foot" or "Good Neighbors" or "Butterflies" or something we haven't see in a while..... Looks like Roy Robertson needs a morning show...anyone interested?? - MORNING SHOW AND MORE Suburban Market of Washington D.C. (Southern Maryland)searching for talent for morning show. This is no "Cookie Cutter" radio show. Format is rock, and owner is same owner/market for 19 years and never selling out 5 station cluster. We are the last of the radio Mohicans. You will have artistic freedom within bounds, do production, remotes, live spots and live a secure, professional radio life. Looking for person stifled by corporate programming and is yearning to do it with "Talent". Paid vacation, medical, holidays and other fringe benefits. Rush tape and resume to : SOMAR Communications, Inc., 28095 Three Notch Rd., Suite 2-B, Mechanicsville, MD 20695, or e-mail to somarcom@aol.com E.O.E. (1/6/08) /\ January 6 Messages /\ \/ January 5 Messages \/ "Unsigned Corporate Suit (1/5/08)" Ponderous man….F’ing Ponderous (1/5/08) The Hummer is no Moore! Now, it's the time of the Explorer! Happy New Year from the Unsigned Corporate Suit! (1/5/08) As I await the pixelated HDTV coverage of the Redskins-Seahawks game, here are a few things I'd like to add to the forum's recent discussions... First, even though the NFL season is over, it's nice to see my prediction rgarding the NFL Network partially coming true with RCN. I think that one is just the beginning. The NFL has done a good job of reviving a declining sport with broadcast TV. Unfortunately, they don't understand Cable. And, that's why the NFL Network is dumped on tier 23 on channel 666, if it's carried at all. The reason? Sunday Ticket. It's that simple. The NFL decided to give Cable's arch-rival (DirecTV) an exclusive on it's "Tiffany" product. So, when the NFL came up with its network, who can blame the Cable folks for saying, "Why bother?" If the NFL Network is going to succeed, they're going to have to realize how the business of television works. Given that Sunday Ticket is an exclusive on Direct until 2009, I wouldn't hold my breath for the major Cable ops to give preferential carriage of the NFL Network anytime soon. Second, on the RIAA... I recently saw an item at the off! ice about the mom of one of those students being sued by RIAA, countersuing under the RICO statutes. I hope this one goes to trial. And, that she wins! Thanks in large part to RIAA and its antique views on licensing and royalties, they've seen progressively increasing declines in the sales of their members products, while on a world scale, putting American broadcasters (both traditional and Internet-only) an a fourth-world level when compared with those of other nations. No one denies that when a broadcaster receives income for airing or streaming recorded music, fair recompense is called for. However, eight cents per play (And, making it retroactive at that!) is out of line. Besides killing-off stores like Tower, and siliencing Internet broadcasting, this policy of paranoia has ruined the financials of the major "record" companies (And, killing-off the small/independent ones.), and choked-off the potential of so many new artists. Fair compensation would be on! a sliding schedule going from zero for a hobbyist who takes in no mon ey to five cents per play for a major station like a WCBS-FN, Mix107.3, etc, Will sanity come to this for everybody's benefit? I highly doubt it. One thing I've learned in my decades in the biz is that the players often show the logic displayed in the "Star Trek" episode where two men fight over a deserted planet following its decimation in a race war sparked over which side of one's face a given color is. It's amazing/educational/depressing over how hard chronological adults will fight so uncompromizingly over that which is ultimately so petty. Unsigned Corporate Suit (1/5/08) Ray Farkas, masterful video storyteller and God to many a news videographers passed in his sleep last night at the Community Hospice in Washington, DC. He will be missed. (1/5/08) Dave, This is it as all of Washington sports media is stoked on Starbuck's coffee as they are Sleepless in Seattle. Today's Redskins-Seahwks game will be a ratings winner for NBC4 and a battle of the news teams as 4, 5, 7 9 and CSN want that key interview and star player. But Triple X ESPN and Sports Talk 980Am will be locked in a radio coverage battle of there own. From 2:30pm till around 8pm the media and the town belongs to the Redskins. www.examiner.com... Have a good day and kudos on the good job done following the Casslebury story. Cheers, Jim (1/5/08) So Tracey Neale is leaving to spend more time with her family. Marginal journalist, was over-hyped at WTTG and they were probably glad to palm her off on WUSA. Shallow, no personality, and that plastic hair ! Her and Todd MacDermott the plastic "Ken" doll. Nine's only strong people any more are Topper Shutt and Tony Pann. (1/5/08) ("Good thing that there was a studio lit in Manchester, and that Gwen was dressed and made up. And, they left all of that mess in the 7pm feed, rather than re-doing the show live again at 7. I think this needs a DCRTV investigation!") That episode was weird, especially when Mark and David were whispering back and forth. I was really impressed when Gwen stepped in in relief and didn't miss a beat - a true professional. (Shawn in DC) (1/5/08) In case anyone missed it last night, here is the link to Tracey Neale’s farewell from the anchor desk… www.wusa9.com... mr (1/5/08) To the nut-soaker who thinks the Skins are in the playoffs due to senile Gibbs (hey, even my SISTER knew you can’t call two timeouts in a row! And you know he blew a nascar race in the same way….), are you saying it’s just a coincidence that when Todd Collins started playing we actually started winning? Todd knows the playbook, and maybe the other dummies, including Gibbs, don’t. So, go, Todd, go! Gibbs can go, too (into retirement as far as I’m concerned) and of course I wish nothing but ill to meddling shrimpo owner danny boy, the worst plague the Redskins have ever seen since smallpox. Happy new year, everybody! (1/5/08) Dave's response: Watch it! This is not a sports forum. If you wanna talk local sports media, that's OK.... So did WUSA do anything special for Tracey Neale for her last day there? (1/5/08) To the mailbag poster who thought Eddie Walker's talent for mimicry should have landed him a job aiding Jim Henson on "Sam & Friends", please note that the voices heard on that show in the '50s came exclusively from the throat of Jim. Although the S&F characters would lip-sync to phonograph records from time-to-time, all *original* dialogue heard on the show during the early days featured one of the 1001 voices of the Muppetmaster himself. For a nice sample Sam & Friends skit, (including a promo, a WRC-TV station ID, and an Esskay commercial), click on www.youtube.com... That film is one of only a handful of clips to survive from that innovative show, and they are part of a collection from KermiClownVideos.com. (1/5/08) /\ January 5 Messages /\ \/ January 4 Messages \/ Hey Dave, Funny that on the day that you mention Chris Lane's promotion -- I don't know him -- the News Hour had a major meltdown in the interview with Shields and Brooks this evening after the Iowa caucuses. Apparently, the whole VA studio lost its audio output, so that Mark in Iowa could hear David, who was in NY, I think, and vice versa, but no one could hear Jim in VA. They sent it to Margaret Warner in the VA studios to introduce a package, but she couldn't be heard either, so they just cut to the package, which ran fine. After that, Gwen Ifill in New Hampshire stepped in, and continued the Shields and Brooks interviews, until they got the VA audio squared away, after which Jim interviewed Gwen and wrapped up with Shields and Brooks. Good thing that there was a studio lit in Manchester, and that Gwen was dressed and made up. And, they left all of that mess in the 7pm feed, rather than re-doing the show live again at 7. I think this needs a DCRTV investigation! (1/4/08) The Redskins Report has to move to Friday once the NFL starts playing games on Saturday nights -- league rule which George referenced in the Dec. 28 episode. You can't have local show on opposite network coverage (in this case, NFL Network). Steve in Lanham (1/4/08) I have to agree with a previous comment. No one likes to see someone lose their job, but I believe Doug was always way out of his league in the DC market. He lacks energy and he’s an average story teller at best. The fact that Channel 9 had him in a key reporting position as long as they did, speaks volumes about the poor management and leadership at that station. Maybe he’d be better suited for Baltimore. (1/4/08) "Finally, can someone tell me why channel 4 switches George Michael's Redskins Report to Friday night from Saturday right at the end of the season? Seems pretty stupid since people get used to the prior time slot". Yes I can help you out. The Redskins play on SATURDAY NIGHT this week thus the Redskins report is on FRIDAY night. Not to hard to figure out. (1/4/08) The extra free digital channels that I get on my Comcast system right now with standard basic cable are Movieplex (uncensored movies I might add), Fox Business, ESPN News, G4, 25 or so music channels, a lot of foreign language networks, some of the local Baltimore digital TV channels (but surprisingly not all, noticeably absent is WUTB, WBFF's Good TV, whatever WNUV, WMAR or WJZ have on their second channels), and several horse racing networks I don't care about. But, what I've noticed is that Comcast seems to be testing and playing with this as every week or so it seems another channel magically appears out of nowhere when I re-scan (which I do often). I'm hoping Comcast has no intention of pulling the rug out from under its customers during the DTV switchover and removing all of these, because I for one will certainly be pissed, but not necessarily surprised! :-( (1/4/08) Tonight is Tracey Neale's last day on Channel 9. Guess she will arrive at Channel 7 just in time for the February book. (1/4/08) [regarding the Glenn Beck video] He didn't mention what the surgery was for. (maybe they were trying to remove his head from his ass!) As for the drugs he was given, it sounds like whatever chemical cocktail he was on made him drop his usual pretentiousness, and when he actually "saw" his soul -- he didn't like what he encountered. In his case, something like that would certainly be enough to drive a person to become suicidal! (1/4/08) RE: [ " Local cable giant Comcast carries FBC on its less-viewed digital tier. " ].......... One of the lesser known, rarely mentioned facts about the HDTV/digital conversion is that soon EVERYONE will get Fox Business Channel without having to pay extra for digital cable. In fact, all you need right now is an HDTV set and you don't need to pay extra for the digital tier at all to get FBC. I think few people realize this yet, but eventually it will put some of the smaller cable networks on a more even playing field. (1/4/08) Dave's response: A few weeks ago, I plugged my HDTV directly into Reston's Comcast Cable, without a digital cable box. And here are the digital channels that I got: 1-15 WNVC MHz5/Russia Today... 4-5 WRC... 4-6 WRC Weather... 5-1 WTTG... 7-3 WJLA... 7-5 WJLA Weather... 7-10 WJLA Local Point... 9-1 WUSA... 9-8 WUSA Weather... 26-1 WETA... 26-2 WETA Create... 26-3 WETA Kids... 26-4 WETA World... 50-2 WDCW... 50-10 WDCA... 56-7 TV Guide Prince William... 56-8 TV Guide Prince William... 56-9 TV Guide Reston... 56-11 WNVC Worldview... 56-12 WNVC MHz2/Russian... 56-13 WNVC MHz3/France... 56-14 WNVC MHz4/Nigeria... 56-16 WNVC MHz6/NHK... 78-1 A&E HD... 79-8 CSPAN2... 82-36 MusicChoice/Adult Alt... 89-2 TV Azteca... 114-7 Fox Reality... As you can see, I got Fox Reality free and clear but not Fox Biz..... TMU, they've made the playoffs two of the past three years. That's twice as many playoff appearances as they had in the 13 years of Gibbs' absence. So you worry about the under .500 record (caused, of course, by the 5-11 record last season). I'll take the playoff appearances. Fact is, Gibbs did a terrific job this season. You can whine and nitpick all you want, but the fact is that the Redskins were about as low as a team can get. Four straight heart-rending losses, the friggin' murder of the team's best player, two games in four days with a funeral in Florida in the middle, etc. And he somehow kept the team together for a four game run that saved the season. Remarkable. He deserves all the local and national accolades that he is getting right now. (1/4/08) Dave's response: Off-topic alert. This thread is over..... TMU, you must have missed the bucket of cold water. A leader is one that brings strength to others. Gibbs personifies this. He won in NASCAR, hi s overall record in his current sport is absolutely amazing. He brought a team back from the brink of disaster, he had them qualify for the play-offs when bimbos like you were busy trying to find fault. 4 wins in 4 games in the FINAL four regular season games, that ain’t bad at all. I can’t figure out why you can’t understand everyone that reads your posts knows *(not thinks) you’re an ass-hole. Try freezing your nuts, it might just jostle the brain into active thought, though I strongly doubt that.GOOBER L. (Mullens) (1/4/08) Boy, if Gibbs is such a great coach NOW, imagine how great he’ll be when his record in Gibbs II (The Restoration) gets OVER .500! Sorry, guys, he’s the same guy he was in the first twelve games this year. If four games means he’s a genius again, that’s a pretty low standard. Does that make Belicheat a QUADRUPLE genius? He won 16 games! Sincerely, TMU (1/4/08) RE: The Baltimore Sun / "The newspaper is not yet falling as fast as the Baltimore city schools".......... That was a joke right? :-) (1/4/08) Dave's response: I have tried and tried to get addicted to "The Wire" and just can't. The acting by the "local Baltimore celebs" is so, well, distracting (to put it kindly) that it makes the show unwatchable for me. I never had that trouble with the local talent used in New Jersey-based "The Sopranos," which just seemed to have a much higher quality of acting..... The RIAA may very well be disingenous,,,but they are not whack jobs. They have found a legal, although unethical monopoly on being a middle man. They are abusing this monopoly for all its worth. They get to control a distribution channel in the way that no radio station, newspaper, gas station or railroad was ever allowed to. Let's be clear on this. RIAA has nothing to do with protecting artists. RIAA represents recording companies, those who produce and distribute records. It is high time that the FTC and DOJ investigate these clowns. The equivalent to the RIAA and its tactics would be if Teamsters said you have to only use certain truck lines to get gas from the refinery to the station and that all gas has to be sold through stations served by their tanker trucks. The RIAA produces nothing of value except a distribution channel. There is no talent there. There should be no reason a talent cannot send their product direct to a consumer, just as Exxon is free to use their own trucks, or another truck, union or not, to get gasoline to you. The sad thing is the NAB doesn't get more active in lobbying against the RIAA mafia. (1/4/08) check out the glenn beck video www.3wtradio.com (1/4/08) GOOBER is right and TMU is wrong. Sure, the local columnists and reporters here have a lot of respect for Gibbs, just like the fans do, and he isn't criticized the way others would be (although he got ripped pretty good for that brain cramp over the time outs in the Buffalo game). Buut I firmly believe there is NO other coach that could have handled the Taylor tragedy better than Gibbs. I think it was Boswell who wrote a column this week that pointed out that Gibbs is best when there is the most unrest and disorder, be it player strikes, injuries or the Taylor murder. That was never demonstrated better than this season. He may have lost some of his edge on the xs and os. But Gibbs is still a great leader of men. Win, lose or draw against Seattle, this season may have been Gibbs' best coaching job of all.................... (1/4/08) Re: Mailbag item--"I don't necessarily find these ads offensive myself". Sure, I believe that--NOT! If you did, you wouldn't endlessly rant about them. You're doing a better job of advertising "The God Who Wasn't There" than the ads themselves! But then, I've never met a Christian who was willing to think logically about his religion. (If you'd care to dispute that, meet me on christianityforums.com. I go by the handle TruthIsScary.) (1/4/08) Boy, that cold water’s refreshing . . .Goober named himself, so that’s good – Goober, babe, if Gibbs is so wonderful, where has this been for 3-and-three-quarters years? And three-quarters of THIS year? And with Jason Campbell? So Gibbs was a lousy coach last year, and for three-quarters of this year, but rocks-and-rules for the last four games this year? OK . . . interesting definition of great coaching you have there. Helluva team at 9-7? Don’t know what that makes teams with BETTER records . . . helluvahelluva? Oy. Sincerely, TMU (1/4/08) Hey TMU soak your nuts in cold water. You, sir are a total idiot. A late surge in the season is the badge of great coaching. Yeah, Gibbs struggled early on...injury plagued, using new talent to play the game while the #one guys worked at healing, frustration, you name it Gibbs dealt with it. BUT the team LED by him won not one, not two, not three, but four in a row AFTER the tragic Sean Taylor murder, and they still made the play-offs to boot! Helluva a team, helluva coach. Better yet, soak your head in cold water. GOOBER (1/4/08) A few points: (a) Is it true that Tod Castleberry hits harder than LaRon Landry? (b) You can pick on Marc Fisher’s comments all you want – but I await the RIAA saying that it’s DEFINITELY OK for you to take your own CDs, and copy them onto your computer and your iPod, as long as you don’t share those digital copies. They ALMOST say that all the time, but they never QUITE say that. In fact (as Fisher points out), they’ve gone further than that in their court pleadings. Fisher’s more right than wrong on this one. (c) If Andy Polley is a little grinchy re: Joe Gibbs, it’s closer to reality than the pathetic cheerleaders at the Post, like Mark “Joe Gibbs As Coach Of The Year” Maske and Mike “Ooooh! The Skins Are The Nation’s Team” Wise. I’m sorry, at 5-7, Joe Gibbs was one inch from being run out of town. They had a nice four-game winning streak. Does that make EVERYBODY forget the horrible coaching decisions Gibbs made for the first 12 games? Apparently so, at least at the Post. Sincerely, TMU (1/4/08) Cold weather can't be guaranteed in Washington during the winter. Duh! The reason fans don't go to hockey games in DC is because the tickets are ridiclously priced. Sure, there are cheap seats in the upper bowl, but the lower bowl, forget it. You want to get fans, make all seats 50 bucks or less. That goes for the Wizards too. People are paying for the arena, and nothing more. Mike in Waldorf (1/4/08) Hey Dave, sorry to burst Jim WIlliams' bubble, but Jason LaCanfora on his Redskins Insider blog yesterday afternoon was the first to mention that Pedro Taylor will be on the CSN pre and post game shows for Saturday's game. Sorry Jimmy, try to be a little more quicker, and Dave, try to give some proper credit as to who reported it first. -- Tony (1/4/08) Dave's response: I think I simply said that Jim reported it, not that he reported it "first"..... I am glad that I am not the only person who wishes that Tony Kornheiser would stay off the DC airwaves. His whiney New York act has been played. Tony is over exposed and needs to take a break. He is just not that interesting to listen too anymore. I am sick and tired of Kornheiser and Wilbon talking to any available microphone or camera. Tony is like the Uncle we all had who used to be funny, and then we grew up and ran the other way every time we saw him coming. (1/4/08) Quote: "Core's playing today "Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead" at Mrs. Clinton's poor Iowa performance yesterday is way beneath his usually fair standards." Whatever *yawn*... I'm just glad he and Plante are back from holiday vacation. I was starting to get hives from listening to Kevin Wall and Austin Hill for nearly 2 weeks. -Silvie- (1/4/08) Mike in Fairfax: I have no confidence that people in Washington would go see an outdoor hockey game at RFK. Hockey is a great live sport, but for whatever reason, the Caps have trouble drawing here even though they play in one of the best arenas in the country. Why would people go see them play in the middle of winter in an outdated stadium with much poorer view of the action? As for Ovechkin, he's a restricted free agent. He goes nowhere else unless the Caps decide to let him go and get compensation from his new team. And given that Ovechkin is a huge superstar and has been made the face of the franchise and their entire rebuilding effort, I can't see that happening. Ted Leonsis isn't that stupid. (1/4/08) Frankly, I find the RIAA to be complete wack jobs. Those idiots are focused on suing kids for downloading mp3 files while technology is quickly causing a seismic shift in their entire industry. A classic case of not seeing the forest through the trees. I must admit that I readily believed Fisher's article that RIAA would take the extreme position that ripping CDs I purchased into a computer I purchased was illegal because those people are so misguided. (1/4/08) There was a piece on one of Channel 7's newscasts last night by a reporter on location in Seattle to cover the playoff scene there where she sought out and interviewed fans of the Redskins but not the hometown Seahawks. That seems like a total waste of airfare - sending someone 3,000 miles to find out what Skins fans think about the game when all you need do for that is walk outside the station's DC headquarters and stick microphones in front of a few passersby. Over at WTEM, Andy Pollin's starting to sound like the Ebenezer Scrooge of local sports talk radio. You'd think the Skins' inspirational run to the playoffs would get him to stop taking petty cheap shots at Joe Gibbs (at least for the time being), but he went out of his way on Sports Reporters to remark that the head coach deserves no credit for the successful '12 men on the field' challenge that may have preserved victory in the Minnesota game while continuing to harp on Gibbs' double timeout that gave Buffalo an easier game winning field goal a month ago. Hello - Gibbs himself has emphasized that assistant coaches in an upstairs booth detected that the Vikings had too many men on the field, and that last second loss to the Bills (in the wake of Sean Taylor's death) ended up being somewhat of a rallying point for the team over the final four games. So Pollin needs to give it a rest, although I'm sure he can't wait for the Redskins to get knocked out so he and Steve Czaban can start devoting entire shows to whether or not Gibbs should be back next season. I wouldn't be so quick to assume that Brian Billick will be hired for a network TV gig - he had a tendency to lecture the media in a condescending way during his tenure as Ravens head coach and there may be some lingering hard feelings over that. Regarding the outdoor hockey game in Buffalo on New Year's Day, the Times' Thom Loverro said on Sports Reporters the other day that it might not be a bad idea for the Capitals to play one at RFK Stadium. I'd have to agree - could be the type of thing that gives hockey a badly needed boost in the DC area. The NHL would probably want to showcase the team's superstar Alex Ovechkin the way it did Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby, although there's a possibility Ovechkin won't stay in Washington much longer if the team doesn't start making the playoffs and filling the seats at Verizon Center. Mike, Fairfax (1/4/08) I, for one, like Burd's replacement show much better than Kornheiser. I'll turn the dial when that obnoxious fool returns to 1500. As for the outdoor hockey, the problem is that the league prostituted itself for NBC. That's never a good thing. Finally, can someone tell me why channel 4 switches George Michael's Redskins Report to Friday night from Saturday right at the end of the season? Seems pretty stupid since people get used to the prior time slot. (1/4/08) I'm finding the argument between the Post and RIAA fascinating. Once upon a time I was a huge WaPo fan, but over the past few years I think my eyes have been opened. I've covered quite a few political and government stories in my little part of the DC area and have been bewildered by the Post's consistently inaccurate and/or misleading coverage of the same events. I wouldn't say there's a liberal biased being displayed, but rather a very lazy and self-righteous bias: they take the opinion of the first person they talk to as factual and dismiss all other opinions; then (as in the RIAA case), they stonewall any opposing viewpoints. The Post has been so wrong for so long on local issues where I live that it has me questioning their overall credibility. If they're willing to mislead the public in the Metro section, why not on the Business page, or the front page, or anywhere else in the paper? (1/4/08) (From DCRTV's Classified Ads:) Comcast SportsNet, Mid-Atlantic, located in Bethesda, MD, is seeking a Manager of New Media. Responsibilities: Creation of original art and content for editorial, marketing and advertising for web and print. Requirements: Superior art skills utilizing Photoshop, Flash and Illustrator; excellent HTML; database experience; college degree; flexibility in work schedule. Sample art portfolio required. If interested, please apply at Comcast SportsNet, Employment Opportunities, req# 56455BR and Email your URL(s) to: lcotton@comcastsportsnet.com. Comcast is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action/Drug-Free Workplace employer. (1/4/08) (Dave's response: I wanna hear who Chris Core is supporting this year. That man is Mr. DC Radio Paid Personal Endorsement.....) Dave, I e-mailed Core back and forth several months ago objecting to the tedious, and highly unpersuasive, drumbeat of all his ads on WMAL. He claimed he wasn't compensated for the commercials but that it was a contractual obligation (and presumably for the other station stooges) to do them, as though he were left without a choice. He even said his daughter jumped at doing that long-since pulled ad with him. To take a stab at your question, he must be supporting another guy who will say anything, Romney. (1/4/08) Dave's response: Love or hate Hillary, Core's playing today "Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead" at Mrs. Clinton's poor Iowa performance yesterday is way beneath his usually fair standards. Hey, God might be a woman and she might send some wrath Core's way in 2008. Like Imus in late mornings on WMAL? Hmmm..... Hi all! Just thought I would send out a note to let you know about a little project I’m undertaking. With the help of some wonderful people, I am getting serious about becoming healthier in 2008! To that end, I have set a goal to lose at least 80 pounds this year. I would ask that you pray for me (and my long-suffering family and co-workers!). I have decided to join the rest of the online world and have started a blog detailing my journey. If you get a chance, surf on over to: www.mikealleys80in08.blogspot.com. Gotta run the other way because someone just brought in donuts….. Mike Alley, Director of Live Events / Mornings with Tracey, Mike & Dave, WRBS 1230AM / 95.1FM, Baltimore (1/4/08) Dave, As the Redskins get ready to face the Seahawks Saturday in Seattle and it is good that is the "Coffee Capital of the US." The number of reporters headed to the great Northwest to cover the Redskins will need plenty of coffee or they will be sleepless in Seattle. By the CSN scored a major pre and post game guest. They will have Pete "Pedro," Taylor the father the late Sean Taylor as part of their coverage . Former Ravens head coach Brian Billick is still being courted by ESPN, CBS and the NFL Network, and once he gets over being fired there will be a chair on the set ready for him. I stand by my report earlier this week... www.examiner.com... - Jim (1/4/08) Ok, I waited until after the holidays for this rant........... But, now I gotta vent.......... EARTH TO DCRTV.com ............ If you watch the HISTORY or DISCOVERY or PBS Channels often, you'll see countless numbers of documentaries about a person in history named "Jesus", yet if you read DCRTV.com daily, you get barraged by phony ads saying "JESUS NEVER LIVED!" Dave Hughes, you need to step up to the plate and stop these phony ads for several reasons. #1, The ads are false advertising of the worse kind, i.e. religious hatred-based. #2, They totally destroy the credibility of your excellent website which we all love and need. Please do something. I don't necessarily find these ads offensive myself (if you read through some of these nutjob theories, you'll be guaranteed a good laugh), but during the holiday season, I think it's a bit too much, so much so that I think you need to do something Dave. Just some friendly advice from your friend in Baltimore. -- Joe in Essex (1/4/08) Dave's response: I have no control over the specific ads that Google AdSense serves DCRTV. Frankly, I wish Google would stop the "Jesus" ads because they receive very few "click thrus" and I make almost no money on them. The only way to stop them would be to pull all the Google ads off my website, and that would cause DCRTV a big loss in monthly revenue..... Perhaps it's just me. Lately; I've been watching News4 in the morning with Joe and Barbara. This used to be a pretty decent locally-produced morning news show. Now, I'm wondering if 25 in Hagerstown might not be a better product. Joe's making faces every time Barbara screws up. Barbara's attempts at hiding her age are becoming almost comical. Cues are sloppy; lots of copy mistakes...I mean, geez! I guess no one cares anymore. Time for accounting to calculate that severance...and Pat O'Donnell to cry foul! (1/4/08) "Someone get Chris Matthews a sedative....." I usually log a few minutes on MSNBC but mostly because I find it like watching a carnival. Matthews must have got your message last night. I think he slipped some to Olberman too as he wasn't foaming at the mouth and sounding like a resident at the county hospital for a change. But what the hell was that on Tucker's lip, a herpetic lesion? I'm sure we'll be treated to more dumb crap like this from the networks but this morning Fox was running an ALERT crawler along the bottom of the screen saying the candidates have now moved to New Hampshire. No shit! (1/4/08) Miss Pamela Brown is an attractive young lady and her on air ability ain't too bad for some one without lots of experience but I was wondering, I know her Dad hasn't owned KFC for many years but do you think she might have a life time pass too any KFC? Man I had some chiken strips tonite that must have been cooked last summer they were so dry. Has the size of the City Paper been cut? Not page wise but perimeter wise?I'm also finding it harder and harder too find. Has distribution also been cut back? Well the new newstand price of WaPo has hit. Instead of just grabbing a copy I do a quick headline read of each section and something has got to get my attention for me too buy. I noticed at my usual retail outlet a pile of unsold WaPo for the past week. Has WaPo put a dagger in their newstand sales? Wonder if the music director or the powers that be at WBIG have considered playing the occasional soul or r&b song from the 70's? This is one evil honky who misses those songs. About only place I can hear that music these days is Saturday afternoon's on WPFW. Thanks for info on Mr. Scott and Jim Henson. Was watching a show on A&E cable the other night about Jim Henson. I thought with Ed Walker's great ability with voices he might have worked with Jim Henson. WEHT former WMALer Charlie Warren? I remember that movie trivia show he did fondly. Get away from all the hot air on WMAL for an hour or so. Didn't Todd Castleberry work on Larry King's radio show? Was he allowed to sit at Mr. King's table at Duke Zeiberts? (1/4/08) "Left, right and whatever we want" on 3WT? Okay, but the left is getting stuffed in hidden corners while the right is getting the prominent slots on the prominent frequencies. 3WT is "left, right and whatever we want" only in the same sense that Fox News Channel is "fair and balanced." It's all about money. And nobody wants to listen to radical left wing socialists on talk radio. (1/4/08) Someone asked, "I understand that today's music programming is left primarily to the computer schedulers, but I am curious how those who are Music Directors or Music Directors get their training. If the machines are picking the music. how do you get trained to program the machines? I cannot imagine how the music directors learn their craft if they have no place to practice." That's certainly a fair question. Those "evil machines" tha pick the music are actually a very simple tool that music and program directors use to ASSIST them in scheduling; insuring artsts seperation, tempo, mix and flow. If anything, the music and program directors have MORE input into their playlists. After one starts a day's schedule, they must then peruse the list, quarter hour by quarter hour, to make sure that the flow is what they want it to be. They can even schedule liners and sweepers to match the tempo and texture of the music. Ultimately, the choices of the music and the elements surrounding the songs either work or don't work based on the programmer's choices. If a station sounds bland or lacks a sense of adventure, it's because the programmer is probably a nebbish and, in most cases, the general manager who hired them, is a nebbish. Consequently, it is imperative that all radio executives assuming managerial and programming roles from now on have a history of making whoopee in dangerous places, know how to ride a motorcycle and have at least SOME experience in sports car racing. Otherwise, we will be plagued by bland adult/contemporary "lite" stations that all sound alike! Sincerely, Your Triumph riding, Fiat and Triumph Racing, Eighth Floor Balcony Late Night Visitor, Ed. Rodriguez, Live from Key West and The Fabulous Florida Keys (PS-Yes, there was also a Jaguar involved, but it was my Dad's!) (1/4/08) /\ January 4 Messages /\ \/ January 3 Messages \/ RE: Coverage from Iowa…I know WJLA sent Emily Schmidt and Gordon Peterson to cover the events there, but I don’t know if any other station (including WTOP) has done the same. WUSA has been airing reports from network correspondents, and I’m sure WRC isn’t sending anyone with they way they’ve been operating lately. Not sure about WTTG though. Brian in Fairfax (1/3/08) I understand that today's music programming is left primarily to the computer schedulers, but I am curious how those who are Music Directors or Music Directors get their training. If the machines are picking the music. how do you get trained to program the machines? I cannot imagine how the music directors learn their craft if they have no place to practice. (1/3/08) (RE: Post Ombudsman Signs For Another Year - 12/26) I am not the daughter of the gubernational candidate Henry Howell. I am the daughter of the late Henry Howell, a well-known newsman and broadcaster in San Antonio, Texas. Please correct ASAP and let me know you have. - Deborah Howell, Washington Post Ombudsman (1/3/08) Dave's response: Sorry about confusing the two Henry Howells, Deborah. I have fixed the newsblurb. Now, maybe you could get the Post to run Style section local radio listings that aren't full of errors..... Dave's response: I can hear it now, 95.1 Baltimore & DC's Legendary Real Oldies with Steve Rouse, Ken Merson, Johnny Dark, Big Don O'Brien, Brian Wilson, Paul "Davy Jones" Bicknell, and Johnny Holliday. Put the religion on 1230..... No! Keep the religion on 95.1 (and 1230, and 780), but put the oldies on... 105.1! Unsigned Corporate Suit (1/3/08) BTW Dave, Gabrielle did the AM traffic and some weekend/holiday field reporting, never the weather, And 45 never had the Maryland Lottery drawings. Thanx for replyng, it took me a couple of days to get used to 08 ,too. -Chuck (1/3/08) I have noticed that Alison Starling has not been on the 5 PM news cast this week. I guess WJLA management is playing hard ball with her new contract and holding the evening position over her head as a bargaining chip. (1/3/08) Dave's response: Or maybe she's just on vacation..... Steve Rouse and Ken Merson available in the market...I sure hope some station is smart enough to pick those two up. (1/3/08) Dave's response: I can hear it now, 95.1 Baltimore & DC's Legendary Real Oldies with Steve Rouse, Ken Merson, Johnny Dark, Big Don O'Brien, Brian Wilson, Paul "Davy Jones" Bicknell, and Johnny Holliday. Put the religion on 1230..... [regarding Dave's comment] "There's an ad the local radio is running that features a doctor testimonial from his Australian-sounding wife. It's a terrible backfire of ad. I keep thinking, can't you find anyone to sing your praises but your wife? You must not be very good....." When it comes to spousal testimonials, this principle probably also applies to Hillary Clinton's campaign!" (1/3/07) Dave's response: I wanna hear who Chris Core is supporting this year. That man is Mr. DC Radio Paid Personal Endorsement..... [regarding a previous post] Willard Scott's autobiography is called "The Joy of Living". (1/3/08) On WTOP, I have been hearing these ads by John Cummuta. Mr. Farley I just want you to know that this guy is prolific spammer. How do you know if this spammer's debt program is not a scam? I realize that commercials pay your freight, what controls do you have to prevent a crook from advertising a fraudulent product? This is good example about advertising standards. Anything for a buck. Les in Adelphi (1/3/08) Dave's response: There's an ad the local radio is running that features a doctor testimonial from his Australian-sounding wife. It's a terrible backfire of ad. I keep thinking, can't you find anyone to sing your praises but your wife? You must not be very good..... Here's a program note for you bluegrass fans out there. A new bluegrass radio show will debut tomorrow (Friday) and it's called "Fitzgrass". It's on WEBR in Fairfax County,VA. That's cable channel 37 or in Reston, it's ch. 27. Also on the net at www.fcac.org. That's fridays live from 1pm to 3pm. The rest of you regular mailbaggers, please contain your enthusiasm...or at least correct my spelling. Have a Blue New Year! Fitz (1/3/08) (From DCRTV's Classified Ads:) DATE: January 3, 2008... JOB TITLE: Sales/Advertising/Marketing... CONTACT: WNAV Sajak Broadcasting Corp... DEADLINE: January 17, 2008... JOB DESCRIPTION: Advertising sales position with local Annapolis Radio Station. Sales experience required. Must be creative, energetic, self-motivated and organized. Knowledge of the local marketing area required. Fax resume to 410-268-5360 or forward to jobs@wnav.com. Earnings: Salary plus Commissions with Benefits package (1/3/08) Korny will debut his show on 1/21—the MLK holiday? Strange day to have a live broadcast when most take the day off. (1/3/08) (So the point is valid. Outdoor hockey is a stupid idea) I can't believe I am posting about Hockey, but I can't let these idiotic posts go without comment. Say what you want about Hockey, but, the results of this idea speak for themselves. The players liked it, the commentators liked it, the league liked it, the ratings were great (for Hockey), AND they SOLD OUT the 71,000 seat stadium...for a hockey game! I am not a huge Hockey fan, but I can give you 71,000 reasons it was a good idea. Must be a slow week for the local media scene if this is being talked about in the Mailbag. (1/3/08) In the mid-1950s, Willard Scott (but NOT Eddie Walker) was one of several WRC-TV staff announcers who did work alongside the young Jim Henson. In March '55, Willard and Mac McGarry co-hosted an innovative 45-minute weekday magazine show (the brainchild of WRC-TV Program Director Jim Kovacs) titled "Afternoon" that featured the Muppets, and which debuted two months before "Sam & Friends" hit the air. In his autobiography "Joy of Life", Willard writes about working with Henson and Kermit on the Saturday "Barn Party" show in early '54, but unfortunately his memories simply do not jive with the facts. (Henson didn't start at Channel-4 until much later in '54. Kermit wasn't created from Henson's mother's coat until 1955.) Actually, Henson's first big TV assignment was building the first puppets to be called "Muppets" for Joe Campbell's "Circle 4 Ranch". More details on early Willard at: KaptainKidshow.com... More details on Circle 4 Ranch at: KaptainKidshow.com (1/3/08) I have to agree with the previous poster on the boring breaks in action at NFL/NCAA football games during TV timeouts… The Redskins & Terps need to hire BASE Productions in NoVA, who produce the Caps’ (very entertaining) in-game elements as well as some top-notch sports series for ESPN, Discovery & FOX (Jim Williams are you reading this?) to create some entertaining distractions during those numbing breaks in the action… To paraphrase George Will: “Football embraces the two worst aspects of American culture: violence & committee meetings.” (1/3/08) Dave, re: your rant -- more disturbing about the FCC/FEC snafu and Hastert's legal bills is the fact that at the bottom of that news line is a blurb that Rep. Lantos is retiring due to cancer, which, in my humble opinion, should have been the top news there. (1/3/08) Dave's response: I hear that Lantos is Robb Spewak's favorite Congressman..... Let's get something straight...outdoor hockey ALL OF THE TIME is a stupid idea. Outdoor hockey once a year on New Years Day to generate a national interest in the sport, is a brilliant p.r. move and a good novelty idea for a sport than has been well below the national consciousnees for years. It's no different than a "Turn Back the Clock" night or a team celebrating it's history by wearing throwback jerseys. Hockey STARTED in the outdoors, the two teams playing were wearing throwback jerseys to add to the feel...get over it and loosen up, it was done for fun and novelty. Jez, lighten up people! (1/3/08) dave, are you going to run an item outlining who's covering live from des moines and when? (1/3/08) Dave's response: I wasn't planning to, unless it has some sort of local angle to it. I'm sure it'll be all over the national cable TV news nets. Someone get Chris Matthews a sedative..... Obviously, there is a difference between watching a game live and watching it on television. So anyone who would compare the two doesn't get it. And watching a game in a stadium is not as good as watching a game in an arena, just from the point of fan comfort and distance to the action. So the point is valid. Outdoor hockey is a stupid idea. (1/3/08) Gotta love The Globe, huh? They play a box of 25-year-old 'Modern Rock' hits, throw in two Jack Johnson records an hour and one Bob Marley disc every 24 hours and claim to play "all kinds of music." What a joke. Cerphe does great interviews, by the way: 'Say, you guys just did a concert. How cool was that? Y'know, you guys just recorded an album. How cool was that? Remember playing at the Cap Center in '75? How cool was that?' Brain dead radio for brain dead people. (1/3/08) Dave's response: Me thinks the station's programmed just a tad too much for the national and local ad folks who're buying time on 94.7 and not so much for we poor listeners. Please no more Joe Cocker. Oh God, why must we be punished like that..... I love when people pile on the sport of hockey, why? Why do you have such hatred for a sport? Have you gone to a game ?? Please go to one then post on here because had you been to one before I doubt you’d be posting negative things. It’s the best sport to see live, constant action at a fast pace. I know football is king in America, but have you gone to a game and just sat there wondering why everyone is standing around doing nothing every 4-5 minutes? It’s because of the commercials, BORING. The NFL has sold it’s soul to advertisers and the fans are the ones who pay the price. Here’s a football game --- commercial, kickoff, commercial, 3 and out/punt, commercial, interception, commercial, td, commercial … it’s a joke ----- Dave (1/3/07) Sorry fanboys, but former Fox 45er Gabrielle Abrerria announced on QVC this morning that she got engaged over the holidays..... (1/3/08) (re: "That outdoor hockey game was pathetic. Think about it. Why would anyone pay for a stadium seat to see a game when you can get a much better view by going to an arena?) Duh, I dunno. Why do people in Green Bay pay for a seat on a bench in below zero weather when they could see their beloved Packers all warm at home? (1/3/08) Mojo (of Mojo in the Morning) announced this morning that he and his wife have to attend to family issues back in Fargo, ND and that tomorrow is his last day on 97.7 The Rocket. Bummer! Dean in Southern Maryland. (1/3/08) Dave, John Riggins will be part of the FOX broadcast of tonights Va. Tech - Kansas Orange Bowl game on FOX at 8pm. He will join Chris Rose and Jimmy Johnson as part of the national pre and post game show. Also NBC SCORED big with hockey on New Years Day getting their biggest number in over a decade, seems like fans like outdoor hockey. Finally both Washington and Baltimore are talking football. the DC fans are talking playoffs keeping the phone lines going at Sports Talk 980 and Triple X ESPN. Meanwhile in Baltimore ESPN 1300, WNST and WBAL are talking about a new Ravens coach. So plenty going on around the area. www.examiner.com... Cheers, Jim (1/3/07) Been giving a listen to the Mix 107.3. To these jug ears does not seem to have a playlist much different from The Globe. Maybe a tad wimpier and no classic rock songs but still sounds similar. ZZZZZZZZZZZ Listening last week to a couple of "best of?" bits on Sport's Chunkies WJFK show. First was an interview with Late Night's Craig Ferguson(who I think is alright but still prefer Mr. Kilborn) When the hip and with it chunkies asked Mr. Ferguson to comment on brittney spears he responded by saying he stays away from jokes on Ms. spears cause he feels like there is something wrong with her and just not appropriate to pick on a wounded animal. Next bit on sport chunkies was some ancillary member of the chunkie zoo had spotted ms. spears at some La La Land hotel and stupid comments from the chunkies ensued. ZZZZZZZZZZZZz Surfed by Don and Mike show Wed. afternoon and heard bit about O'Meara's love of Florida. Don and Mike are FLA bound come Sept. '08? Has O'Meara also got a release on non compete part of contract? Later bit I heard was interview with Jon Voight. Now some catty yute made a sarcastic comment earlier in ye olde mailbag but I have enjoyed some of Mr.Voight's earlier work. He did seem to have some long dry periods in his career but still Midnight Cowboy, Deliverance, Catch-22, Conrack, Odessa Files are some mighty fine or interesting movies. I believe Mr. Voight studied theater at Catholic University. Plus he seemed a bit altered which I found amusing. Last night I gave a listen to WBIG. My what a talkative jock they have now. Voice sounded very young like he weren't born when most of songs he plays hit the charts. When I heard Spill the Wine by Eric burdon it did take me back to that summer of '72. In every boys life there's a summer of '42. Then he followed it with a song by Rush. Later returned to hear another favorite blast out of past harry chapin's "Taxi", how did that guy sing so High? But he chopped it off with some BTO. Still Mr. Globe I'd sure like to hear some Stranglers or The Damned once in a blue moon! The yuteful jock on WBIG was very good at integrating the silly patter with plugola. He's not related to Cerphe is he? Did Willard Scott and/or Ed Walker ever work with Jim Henson back in them early days? (1/3/07) Dave's response: That's been my complaint about The Globe all along - it sounds too much like Mix 107.3. And I hear that 94.7 morning man Weasel is even starting to look more like Jack Diamond each and every day. Strange..... 3WT: Live: Boortz, O'Reilly Delayed: Beck, Rhodes, Miller (1/3/08) Dave... I believe it was approximately two summers ago that DCRTV reported that Clear Channel had created a big, new "Master Control" facility from which it would be able to control almost all the functions of its cluster radio stations from one facility from its Rockville Pike headquarters. And in fact, that facility is the reason why WTNT (and WWRC, and to a lesser degree, WTEM) sounds as bad as it does. When you have one or two techs struggling to supervise the operation by server of the AM stations, which are essentially automated when they are downlinking satellite delivered syndicated shows, it really doesn't matter whether there's double-audio, or newscasts duplicated with spots, or whatever. NO ONE CARES. As long as the program logs show that the spots ran as scheduled, and can be billed as such, that's all anyone at Clear Channel cares about. The FMs like DC101, WMZQ and WASH essentially make the money with live programs that include music; the AMs are there to rake in cash from niche audiences who care about such things, and if a little glitch happens now and then, well, it doesn't matter, now does it? And most everyone knows that the real reason these AM stations exist is to prevent competing stations in the market from snapping up lucrative syndicated programs. So I suggest that if the sound of these shows is really that important to you, I would say go up to 1835 Rockville Pike, and knock on the door of whoever answers in the Clear Channel suite. You'll either find the drones back in Sales finding another way to squeeze advertisers out of another buck, or the cluster execs laughing all the way to the bank with their fat year-end bonuses and fancy cars obtained through another barter deal. Oh, yeah, and down the hall will be the techs trying to keep this ball of wax from melting til the next board meeting in Texas. Just remember: NO ONE THERE CARES. {Stepping off the soap-box in black denim miniskirt, heather-gray tights and red patent-leather knee boots w/3" heels from Steve Madden} Happy New Year, - Just Call Me 'Legs' (1/3/08) RE: That outdoor hockey game was pathetic. Think about it. Why would anyone pay for a stadium seat to see a game when you can get a much better view by going to an arena? Only people in Buffalo who have absolutely nothing else to do. Fact is, NHL Commissioner Bettman whored out to NBC and came up with a ridiculous concept which demeaned his sport and his league.. Obviously, Barry Melrose doesnt know what he is tking about when he said the NHL hit a home run a great day for the league. Talk to the players who almost all were quoted as saying what a great thing it was. IT wasa one day to promote a sport that has a hard time getting ratings as it is. It was INEED a GREAT IDEA and should be done once a year, every year (1/3/08) /\ January 3 Messages /\ \/ January 2 Messages \/ re: "That outdoor hockey game was pathetic. Think about it. Why would anyone pay for a stadium seat to see a game when you can get a much better view by going to an arena? Only people in Buffalo who have absolutely nothing else to do. Fact is, NHL Commissioner Bettman whored out to NBC and came up with a ridiculous concept which demeaned his sport and his league."..'....08 is off to a flying start, thats just the dumbest, most ignorant post of the new year...lol (1/2/08) KUDOS to ABC7's Pamela Brown!!!!! Was watching CNN this morning and what a nice surprise to see her reporting on the Laurel Hospital shooting. Her reporting was consistent and right on the mark (other then the helicopter noise) Glad to see that she is getting the exposure that she deserves, way to go PAM!!!!!!!!! (1/2/07) CBS is reformatting "The Early Show," ending the practice of letting some affiliates pre-empt for extended local segments in its first hour. The network now expects all stations (including WJZ) to run "The Early Show" as a full two-hour program, excepting only standard local breaks on the 25's and 55's. Everett W. (1/2/08) That outdoor hockey game was pathetic. Think about it. Why would anyone pay for a stadium seat to see a game when you can get a much better view by going to an arena? Only people in Buffalo who have absolutely nothing else to do. Fact is, NHL Commissioner Bettman whored out to NBC and came up with a ridiculous concept which demeaned his sport and his league. (1/2/08) Repeat after me, my friend... W-O-R-C-E-S-T-E-R. No "h" anywhere in there. :-) Good luck with the new mailbag! s (1/2/08) Just thought you may want to know looks like no more local news from 7-8am on WJZ-13. Have any idea why?? Tuned in this morning and got CBS Early Show instead... (1/2/08) Guys, WTNT is basically an automated money machine. There are no bodies in the studio. Clear Channel could give a rat's ass about the station and the quality of its product. Jesus, like clockwork at noon every day the Glenn Beck Show ran over spots. It was a trainwreck. I heard recorded newscasts run the same line over and over for five minutes because no one in the building was around or paying attention. Hell, I doubt they even have a live receptionist at the front desk! (1/2/08) Dave's response: I think we all can agree with "automated" and "machine" regarding WTNT. But "money"? Hmmm..... To Howie: Go read the piece Vanity Fair had the nerve to print a couple months ago about how the MSM screwed Gore over in 2000 with their coverage of him. It would've been funny if they weren't serious. I bring that up because in confidential polls, literally 90% of the Washington press corps admits to voting Democrat. And it doesn't get much better at any of the networks or outside the beltway newspapers. Imagine how Gore would've been treated (or how Bush would be treated now) if it were even close to 50/50. (1/2/08) WTNT didn't air Dennis Miller twice in a row. A George Mason basketball game aired at 3 p.m. today. If WTNT has a replacement show for that time, it would make more sense to introduce it Thursday without basketball getting in the way. Everett W. (1/2/08) Fox5 News at 5 just showed a photo of Natalee Holloway as they were going to a commercial. Problem is, the story they were going to come back to was about Chandra Levy. (1/2/08) That's strange! (Well, maybe "sloppy" would be a better word!) 'TNT's web site [www.wtntam570.com] still has Beck (with his picture!) listed from 12-3 and Miller listed from 3-6 (and apparently still on the air from 3-6!)! Sheesh! Brian/Reston (1/2/08) Dave's response: Clear Channel will probably get around to updating WTNT's website by March or April..... A Jon Voight live interview on Don and Mike today. Man, those "radio gods" really land the really big celebs, don't they! Whoa! (1/2/08) I will never understand why Channel 4 continues to allow Pat Collins to report on serious crime stories. On this evening's newscast, he and Jackie Bensen reported on the story of the escaped convict and the shooting at the Laurel Hospital and the ensuing manhunt. Comparing and contrasting their style of reporting, hers is far superior to his. I know, I know, he has a lot of excellent police contacts...blah, blah, blah. So does she, and her on-air reporting style is so much more professional than his. On the other hand, he is exceptional at asking Redskins fans who is going to win the next game. Channel 4 should limit his reporting to that kind of story. -- Bobbie (1/2/08) re: Howie's comments about CNBC, MSNBC, the NYT and others have "a wealth of conservative voices." Are you serious? I agree that some of those outlets occasionally feature a conservative, sometimes even prominently. Some of the papers do bury nominally conservative (usually centrist) columnists somewhere in their pages. And some of the networks occaisonally throw a bone to a conservative talking head for nominal balance. But a "wealth?" And beyond this, there is a great big difference between commentators/opinionists and journalists. The insidious nature of "journalists" who bake their liberal slant into every aspect of producting a piece (the subjects they choose and WHEN they choose them, the terms the use, the people they interview or don't interview) is much more damaging than a blustering Beck or Limbaugh who bloviate every five minutes that they are conservative. The lack of recognition of this ubiquitous, but subtle leftist slant is what we conservatives get so frustrated by. Study, after study, after study by universities, polling organizations, conversative and liberal thinktanks, and even the media outlets themselves has shown this bias repeatedly. Bernie Goldberg's great observation (and a decent bit of data) about the homeless only being covered when a Republican is in office is perhaps the most humorous of the bunch. The bias certainly isn't 100% of the time, nor is it intentional or mean-spirited, but it is present, real and has lived unchecked for generations until the 1990s. So, when liberals hold up FoxNews as something evil, or incessantly compare liberal journalism to conservative commentary as some how equivalent in purpose or role in the national discourse, it is both frustrating and predictable. At least Fox News and is pretty unabashed about their stance, even while featureing liberals regularly and prominently (Rivera, Colmes, Williams, etc). I also credit MSNBC for growing into the anti-FoxNews but adopting a decidently and overtly liberal stance, while still featuring some conservatives (Scarborough and - nominally - Carlson). At least they are approaching honest and seem to make a genuine attempt at a little balance regularly. Hardly the case for most of the others. And let's be honest: before Rush and Fox, there wasn't even the attempt of balance for any of the outlets you mentioned. So, while hardly a wealth, I credit directly Rush and Fox (and the internet) for forcing these outlets to at least provide a little lip service to something other than the lethargic left. Regards, Bob in Forest Hill (1/2/07) Comcast Math: Has anyone had problems getting an accurate final bill from Comcast? I called and cancelled service on November 7th; the service was disconnected almost 6 weeks later (after two complaints to the NJ Board of Public Utilities) after calls to Comcast resolved nothing. The final bill is for more than half-a-month's service. And I did not use the service after it was cancelled; having just checked to see if it had been disconnected. Frank-in-Fanwood (1/2/08) Anon said: "Poor babies complaining about 3WT. You make it sound like they were the last bastion of liberal programming... All you have to do to get liberal opinion is turn on NPR, or CNN, or MSNBC, or CNBC, or BBC, or ABC, or NBC, or CBS, or open up the Wash. Post, NYT, LA Times, USA Today, etc. There's no shortage of it." Ah, the typical right wing deflection. BTW, all of the places you mentioned have a wealth of conservative voices, or didn't you notice? 3WT has a slogan they aren't living up to. That's the point. I really don't care what they program (I don't even like Rhodes), although I was hoping that someone was actually going to try to break this "narrowcasting" formula that makes so much of radio unlistenable. And for other posters to claim that Burd and Korny's shows should count as "liberal" programming when they aren't political 90% of the time is just ridiculous. That's like claiming that the Elliker show on BAL is liberal. It isn't, it's just vapid. Howie (1/2/08) Just where does Ed Grahm get of? He's always sounding off about some grate programming idea. Just what are his crudentials? From all i can see.... all he does is sit on his ass and lecture the "others". Give us a break. Mr. grahm shuld go back to the pasture and milk his brane in lysol. Goober (1/2/08) It is so nice to wake up in the morning and NOT hear Steve Rous. By golly he really sukseeded in getting wurse. I had daymares every morning when i hurd his caned lafter and stubid jokes. Now the big gun W-no-Bals has him as a part-timer. Maybe he could do Dave Doorians nails on his breaks.cheers -Goober (1/2/08) ha ha ha, dave. i actually like the american idol stuff from TK, but only from him. (1/2/08) Poor babies complaining about 3WT. You make it sound like they were the last bastion of liberal programming. Go watch the barbershop scene from "Coming to America" where they're talking about boxers. Change the subject to biased news outlets, and every time you hear "Rocky Marciano", substitute in "Fox News". That's what it sounds like. All you have to do to get liberal opinion is turn on NPR, or CNN, or MSNBC, or CNBC, or BBC, or ABC, or NBC, or CBS, or open up the Wash. Post, NYT, LA Times, USA Today, etc. There's no shortage of it. (1/2/08) Will some kind soul at " Redskins Radio " kindly pull the plug on Bram Weinstein on the Redskins Lunch program. Not only is he " vocally challenged " but he rarely has anything insightful or important to say. Much of the time he acts as whipping boy for the likewise miserable Larry Michael.... Kinda reminds me of Rich " the coach " Gilgallon on " Kiley and the Coach " . Now Weinstein is doing " impressions " on the show.. if you call talking in a high-pitched voice an "impression" of Jessica Simpson. We need a would-be comedian on this show as much as we need one on Monday Night Fottball. I know.. if you don't like it, change the station. Regards Biff (1/2/08) Maybe 3WT should forget about Left and Right - - and try putting on a local entertaining and informative radio station. I blame Rush for teaching radio owners and managers how to get a one share. Ed Graham (1/2/08) Dave -- anything to the rumor that cutbacks at WTOP are causing it to not send anyone to this summer's poltical conventions? In prior election years, they sent large teams -- this year, no one, apparently, can afford to go. (1/2/08) (RE: 3WT...Since the Miller show is delayed and oft preempted, this station is basically one side only) Bird from 6am-8am. TK from 8am to 10am (I think he starts in a couple weeks) then again from 2p-4p. Boortz from 10a-12n. O'reilly from 12n-2p. Beck from 4p-7p. Miller from 7p-10p. that is 9 hours "left" and 7 hours "right". if/when Miller gets bumped for Nationals, it is still pretty even. sounds like 3WT has lived up to its promise of "left, right...") Your kidding right? Burd&Doyle - isn't that just a pop culture show? Never heard them, probably never will since 5:30am-8am is not a time I listen to the radio. Tony Kornheiser - sports, pop culture, boring. Neal Boortz - gawd! Right wing/libertarian - on his websites refers to single female voter and others as parasites and has refered to muslims as "sort of like cockroaches". O'Lielly - Right Wing talking head who says he doesn't call people names then calls people pin heads and worse. Plus the man would not know a fact if it came up and offered him a loofa. Glen Beck - Right wing hate monger. He has "called President Jimmy Carter a "waste of skin," Mexican immigrants "dirt bags" and "lawbreakers," Katrina victims "scumbags," Cindy Sheehan a "prostitute," and suggested using nuclear weapons against parts of the Middle East and Venezuela." Stephanie Miller when you can hear her and she's not prempted by sports - is a left wing comdeian. So your telling me one left winger is equal to two pop culture shows and three right wingers. I don't add Randi into this mix cause will no longer be able to hear her in the DC Metro are just on the Fredricksburg station. (1/2/08) On the way home from Pittsburgh yesterday (01/01/08), I heard the Pittsburgh Penguins radio announcers mention the possibility of a Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Philadelphia Flyers outdoor game...at Penn State. Possible attendance - 107,000 fans. (1/2/08) re:..."Sad fact is that such a game would work in Buffalo and Detroit but that’s about it for the U.S.NHL cities" Based on what? Your opinion? Sorry but the NHL would absolutly work with outdoor games from time to time in New York (Meadowlands-you mean to tell me that in a metro of over 11 million people and 3 hockey teams New York couldn't draw 50-70 large for an afternoon hockey game? puh-lease), Boston (Fenway or Gillette), Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Chicago??? Games might not all draw 71, 000 like in Buffalo but 35, 000 in Boston at Fenway might double their average gate. If the NHL were smart (and we know they aren't) they would have a few of these each season!! I LOVED watching the game (the atmosphere was incredible) and no, I'm not a regular hockey viewer. (1/2/08) Why did baseball columnist Hal Bodley leave USA Today 25 years. Dave (1/2/08) Dave's response: USA Today has had a batch of personnel cutbacks of late..... Big Head DC has learned that some staffers at the Washington City Paper, unhappy with recent (bigheaddc.com) decisions to lay off employees, have taken to digging for dirt on Ben Eason, the new president of the paper. Eason, who (bigheaddc.com) took charge last summer, is rumored to be unpopular with many staffers, especially the editor-in-chief of the paper, Erik Wemple. It is believed that staffers want to tarnish Eason's image in an attempt to get revenge on his recent decisions to streamline the publication. (1/2/08) (RE: 3WT...Since the Miller show is delayed and oft preempted, this station is basically one side only) Bird from 6am-8am. TK from 8am to 10am (I think he starts in a couple weeks) then again from 2p-4p. Boortz from 10a-12n. O'reilly from 12n-2p. Beck from 4p-7p. Miller from 7p-10p. that is 9 hours "left" and 7 hours "right". if/when Miller gets bumped for Nationals, it is still pretty even. sounds like 3WT has lived up to its promise of "left, right..." (1/2/08) ("Left, right and whatever we want" on 3WT? Okay, but the left is getting stuffed in hidden corners while the right is getting the prominent slots on the prominent frequencies. 3WT is "left, right and whatever we want" only in the same sense that Fox News Channel is "fair and balanced.") I totally agree. Just another way for the MSM to shut down voices on the left. Steph had good ratings on a station that was hard to hear and I know Randi is a love her or leave her voice but she has won some radio awards. To shove them to time slots that people can't hear them or off the station altogether for a right wing hate monger is just wrong. The station doesn't even seem sorry they aren't living up to there slug line, it's more like "Left? Right! And all the Fox News we want"... Mala (1/2/08) This is WTOP Sprawl & Crawl Reporter Adam Tuss, a die-hard Eagles fan. He has to wear the Redskins helmet all day long because he bet fellow WTOP-er George Moshos the Eagles would finish the season with a better record than the Skins. Look for him covering news conferences around town today wearing his Skins helmet. (1/2/08) Dave's response: Got the pic in the post below..... speawl and crawl reprter adam tuss lost a bet on who woyuld have the best record, skins or egles. tuss muts wear helemt all day (1/2/08) Dave's response: It seems that they're indulging in too many adult beverages over there at WTOP's California Pizza Kitchen Glass Enclosed Nerve Center today, judging by the poster's typing skills..... So, as of today, the 3WT slogan is "Right, more right, and whatever we want (as long as it's right)!" Since the Miller show is delayed and oft preempted, this station is basically one side only. Howie (1/2/08) It seems some of your readers are confused by anchors appearances, subbing etc. For many years, the practice at channel 4 was to use reporters who had anchor experience to fill in during vacation periods and holidays, etc. Chris Gordon did a fair amount of that, as did I and a few others. In the last five years (the new folks), management went to an "all-anchor" mentality. Only anchors filled in for anchors. That meant, on occasion, you had Joe Krebs or Barbara Harrison doing the early morning shows, then returning to do a 4 or 5pm fill-in, instead of letting a reporter co-anchor. And generally, the stations don't say someone is on vacation, but rather on assignment, so people don't burglarize their home while they're out of town. (1/2/08) Dave's response: I can hear it now - "Wendy Rieger is on vacation in Jamaica, but her pit bull Psycho is guarding her home while she's away"..... (Beck's move:) fewer and fewer reasons to listen to 1500 am. maybe you should start a countdown to the return of kornheiser. (1/2/08) Dave's response: One bit of advice to Korny this year - no "American Idol." Pleeeeeese..... "Left, right and whatever we want" on 3WT? Okay, but the left is getting stuffed in hidden corners while the right is getting the prominent slots on the prominent frequencies. 3WT is "left, right and whatever we want" only in the same sense that Fox News Channel is "fair and balanced." Everett W. (1/2/08) Any thoughts from your loyal readers about the outdoor NHL game yesterday?.. Great atmosphere with the snow but I was more than a little surprised that NBC didn’t rig up a “SkyCam” for an overhead look. The peacock does get some points for shooting the action for a short while like a tennis match… Hockey is a vertical game, why not shoot it that way?.. Unbelievable crowd of more than 71,000.. .Sad fact is that such a game would work in Buffalo and Detroit but that’s about it for the U.S.NHL cities.. (1/2/08) I'm "out"? Dang, don't tell my wife and kids!...At least Maynard gets to be "in." That's justice. Happy new year to you, Dave! --Paul (1/2/08) Dave's response: Yeah, we "outed" a lot of local radio and TV folks in our 12/31 Rant. Not that there's anything wrong with that..... Boy, you just gotta love the media, and specifically Sports Talk. On WNST this morning, Drew Forrester spent the entire show on how the Ravens were "deceitful, and how the media was "lied to", continually referencing a statement from a Ravens' Executive dated 12/27 that Billick was returning in 2008. How dare the Ravens owner make a decision without floating trial balloons, or leaking info to "The Media" first. Best call though, was when a caller discussed WNST's dismissal of on air talent without any prior notification to the listeners, nor explanations afterward. Mr. Forrester surprisingly "didn't get the connection" on that one. Amazing. Note to Mr.. Bisciotti:: Please make peace with the scorned "media" and include a member in your search committee for the new Head Coach. Geez (1/2/08) Happy New Year to all - We're hoping you had a good holiday and feel almost ready to get back into the flow. We at The Q&A Cafe are here to help, and on two fronts initially - politics and fitness. The '08 season of The Q&A Cafe begins next Wednesday, Jan. 9, with "the prince of darkness" himself, syndicated columnist Robert Novak. Love him or hate him, there's no denying he's a force in political media and a powerful Washington player. Our interview takes place just after the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. There will be a lot to talk about. A week later, on Wednesday, Jan 16, we take a break from presidential politics and look instead at the yeas and nays of our post-holiday fitness. I mean, who doesn't want to lose a few at the onset of a New Year, or get wise to the latest trends in health and fitness? Our guest, Denise Austin, has been at the top of the fitness business for decades, with a popular television show, books and DVD's. She's all about good health, and she's also all about business success. You can book seats for these shows directly with Jon Moss at 202.338.2000. He's available between 10 am and 5 pm weekdays. As always, the doors open at noon and the program begins at 12:30. The fee is $35, all inclusive, and is paid at the door. When relevant, Olsson's is on hand to sell books and DVDs. We have other interesting interviews scheduled and will be back to you with details soon. In the meantime, check the website listed below. Be well, Carol Joynt (1/2/08) The TV-radio page in WashPost Style section still lists 700 AM as "WGOP". It has been WDMV for a few years now. But given recent developments in Detroit, the strategic thing to so is resurrect the old calls and sloganize them as "We Go Out Punchin'!"... (1/2/08) Okay, I'm generally sympathetic to union issues, but the CWA is out in space on the Post. Of course those production workers haven't received a raise in the past 5 years, the dead tree edition of the Post has seen declining revenues during that period. They are lucky to still have jobs. A generation from now there won't be a dead tree edition for them to produce. Sad as it is, raises will only accelerate the death of the dead tree edition. (1/2/08) Dave, The Ravens might not want Brian Billick anymore but ESPN, CBS and the NFL Network all have been in contact with the former Baltimore head coach. The early favorite to land Billick is ESPN who would have him replace Bill Parcells who just left the network to accept a front office job with Miami. So while the Ravens might not make the playoffs the coach they fired could be part of the NFL Playoff coverage as soon as this weekend. www.examiner.com. Cheers, Jim (1/2/08) /\ January 2 Messages /\ \/ January 1 Messages \/ Yes, playoff time for the Redskins. I'm sure our alleged sports radio stations, t-e-m and x-x-x or whatever they are (I can't hear them anyway), will be doing RERUNS of shows. Who knows why but, they don't care, so why should we. I get my sports fix from The FAN in New York while riding around. Heck, over at WTOP on Sunday evening around 7:45 p.m. or so, the sports guy giving NFL scores said, "and Baltimore beat the Ravens" or "the Ravens beat Baltimore." So shocked at this unprofessional sportscast I can't quite recall which quote he said. But this way you get to read both. This DC radio market is so immature and unprofessional. (1/1/08) January 1st means it is time to apply for discount coupons toward the purchase of digital converter boxes so your analog television will continue to work. Congress only coughed up so much money to subsidize this program so apply sooner rather than later at www.dtv2009.gov..... www.ntia.doc.gov (1/1/08) I have been away for the past could of weeks and I was catching up on my reading today and found this in the Dec. 20th issue of the Arlington Sun-Gazette, “ (Arlington) County Board members have slated Jan. 26th for a hearing that could result in a 4th cable television provider serving Arlington. Cavalier IP TV LLC is seeking a Certificate of Public Conveniences and Necessary for cable television service in the county. If approved, Cavalier will join Comcast, Verizon and RNC Corp. in providing cable service in Arlington. Service is expected to begin mid-2008. Officials say the company plans to offer cable, television and Internet service. Because it will used leased lined, the new service will not requite significant construction throughout neighborhoods.” (1/1/08) "Being off today, I got to see the mid-day news and chose to watch WUSA9 and who's on there but JC Hayward. I thought I had read that she was leaving the noon news to do something else at channel 9. And maybe it's just a bad day for her, but I felt like I was listening to mumlbes Barbara Harrison considering how JC is fumbling all over her words. Get it together JC!!!" I believe JC is leaving around the same time Donnie G is - May 2008. Mike in Waldorf (1/1/08) Dave's response: I'm telling you, if I was running CBS-TV I'd do the "Don & JC" morning show. Instant hit..... Apparently time moves faster in Fredericksburg, Virginia as it’s already January 31st there, while across the rest of the planet it’s still January 1st. Hmmmmm. (1/1/08) An open letter to Channel 9 and new reporter Armando Trull. As we enter 2008, we can live without chauvinistic reporting with excessive sexual under and overtones. Using a term “junk in the trunk” was offensive and totally inappropriate, not to mention several other sexual references in his Hotel Washington report that aired during the 11PM newscast on December 31st. (1/1/08) Being off today, I got to see the mid-day news and chose to watch WUSA9 and who's on there but JC Hayward. I thought I had read that she was leaving the noon news to do something else at channel 9. And maybe it's just a bad day for her, but I felt like I was listening to mumlbes Barbara Harrison considering how JC is fumbling all over her words. Get it together JC!!! (1/1/08) Not seen much of this on the Baltimore TV news yet (hint hint), but it's certainly being ridiculted all over the architect/city planning geek sites (like Skyscrapercity.com) as a classic example of poor government planning, poor traffic design and a total waste of taxpayer dollars. So without further ado, I give you Baltimore's "The Spaghetti Bowl" (not to be confused with Washington's Mixing Bowl). It's 16 sky bridges, some as high as 100 feet tall and 500 million dollars worth of intricately designed planned traffic confusion to back up I-95 from Day 1 when it opens and for decades thereafter! YAY! You would think Maryland would have learned something from Virginia's F-ups with the Mixing Bowl design (which is still a classic traffic design joke that cost a fortune but still doesn't serve its intended purpose and instead contributes to traffic congestion by its very design). Amazingly though. Maryland decided instead to F-up i-95 even one better! Can't wait to be confused in my car on this 16 legged monster. :-) (1/1/08) /\ January 1 Messages /\ Jump to the Mailbag Archive Index.....