Current Mailbag - Mailbag Archive Index - DCRTV Front Page - Support DCRTV DCRTV Mailbag - May 25 to June 1, 2008 Latest messages listed first..... \/ June 1 Messages \/ Dave's right... The new media will not be arriving at our homes by the same old conduits. We will PULL the content of OUR choice down the 'net, instead of letting overpaid suits PUSH the content of THEIR choice via traditional airwaves. For example, where else but the web can you go when faced with the decision: "Nightclub? ... Church?" www.youtube.com (6/1/08) "..........SHUT UP!........." What purpose did that tirade serve? Couldn't you just point out the mistake without telling people to shut up? What has this board come to? It seems that as soon as WJZW changed formats, everyone has been acting like animals. Lots of people have made mistakes around here, but we love them all. I respect anyone who has suffered in this business. They have a right to make mistakes once in awhile. (6/1/08) I was listening online to KNX-Los Angeles just now, trying to get an update about the big fire at Universal Studios. During a spot break, there was a promo for AllNumberOneRadio.com. It's apparently a format on an HD channel of a CBS station in Los Angeles. According to the promo, they only play tunes that were #1, from the 60s to Today. allnumberoneradio.com... This kinda reminds me of a syndicated program that somebody was offering, back in the 80s, called "Sunday At The Memories". It was a weekly show that only played tunes that were million sellers - and the songs were presented alphabetically, by title. (6/1/08) Geez, I get back from out of town after months and the kids have taken over the candy store at WJZ 13 !!! Can Adam May just please stop gazing at Bernadette's meteorological wiccan jewelry or whatever the hell she has wrapped around her neck? And I won't even go into how many S's were lost to audio compreTHen in Derek Valcourt's story! Geez, WJZ weekend news looks like WMDT 47 in Salisbury these days! (6/1/08) Uh, the last time "Baltimore" was used on the Orioles' road uniforms, WBAL, not WFBR, was the team's flagship. The change to "Orioles" was made in 1973, I believe. -- Vincent in Triangle (6/1/08) RE: [ " Another AM station already controls 1300's old WFBR call letters " ].......... SHUT UP! The company that OWNS the radio rights to The Baltimore Orioles is already using retro branding on MASN for Orioles radio broadcasts and ESPN 1300 promotes that same branding since it's a CBS sister station and a sports/talk station. I've been posting about W F B R for more than 2, maybe 3 YEARS now and in that time, the WFBR call letters have been vacant at least once if not twice! Otherwise, AM 1590 wouldn't have them now! Yet people in this mailbag, I guess CBS Baltimore lapdogs and suck-ups, keep posting OVER and OVER in response to my request with, THEY ARE NOT AVAILABLE! BUT YES, THEY'VE BEEN AVAILABLE MANY TIMES! And if the Orioles and their radio network care about retro marketing...... DUH!!! (6/1/08) Another AM station already controls 1300's old WFBR call letters, precluding any such quick reversal. AM 1300 doesn't even air the Orioles and is better known now by its ESPN branding anyway so the retro move wouldn't mean anything. I do grant though that the WJFK identifier no longer make any sense. Everett W. (6/1/08) Re: "BRING BACK W F B R ! ! !" There are 5.6 million people in the state of Maryland, and only one of them cares one bit about AM 1300's call letters in Baltimore. Give it a rest, Joe! (6/1/08) "Triple Beam Up" - These things always happen in "threes". I think this is the first time I've seen it happen with three people so closely connected. This seems to qualify as a Celebrity Death Trifecta! Robert Justman - Producer who was one of the creative forces behind the original "Star Trek" television series of the 1960s as well as the 1980s-era "Star Trek: The Next Generation". Died May 28th. www.latimes.com..... Joseph Pevney - Film and television director who directed some of the most popular episodes of the original "Star Trek" TV series in the late 1960s. Died May 18th. www.latimes.com... Alexander "Sandy" Courage - Emmy Award-winning, Oscar-nominated arranger who composed the soaring theme for the "Star Trek" TV series in the 1960s. Died May 15th. www.latimes.com (6/1/08) Regarding the video DJ Khalid at KYS, many will thimk I'm absurd many will not but is this what radiio has become? (6/1/08) WOW, THIS JUST IN.... The Baltimore Orioles radio network is now using the old Orioles cartoon bird logo during MASN broadcasts, The Baltimore Orioles are adding "BALTIMORE" to their road jerseys for the 1st time since 1973!, The Orioles have re-shot a brand new "Orioles Magic" video, and Baltimore's AM 1300 is NOT CALLED WFBR ????? What's wrong with this picture? Unbelievable. If Clear Channel Baltimore had half a brain or cared about being local at all, they'd use the excellent WCAO 600 signal to start a sports/talk station or make a deal with Nasty Nestor and move Sportstalk 1570 to AM 600. Meanwhile, when will Labrozzi and Phillips at CBS Baltimore get the boot for marketing stupidity? WJFK? Isn't that the old Don&Mike station, the former DEADSKINS station? BRING BACK W F B R ! ! ! ! ! :-) Joe in Essex (6/1/08) Poor Wolf Blitzer, he has breaking news on low turnout in Puerto Rico which helps Barack Obama and his CNN correspondent refers to PR as a "STATE"!!! Gotta love it! Oh, she's hot though, so I guess CNN will get ratings anyway but seriously, just how dumb of a bimbo correspondent will the news channels hire these days?!? LOL (6/1/08) RE: [ " The demand for content will always be there. But content providers that have put all their eggs in a particular "delivery basket" will be out of luck. The internet, as it ramps up to wireless and high-speed everywhere, changes everything... " ].......... Add one more thing...... because the demand for content will always be there, there is no real reason that terrestrial content cannot compete except for the fact that most AM/FM content, ummmm, SUCKS! The funny irony about radio/TV industry consolidation into Clear Channel type conglomerates that are now in trouble is that all of the mergers and acquisitions were sort of based on the false premise that they WOULDN'T have as much competition. WRONG! The internet moves too fast for these dinosaurs. As you said Dave, the internet changes everything and many of those conglomerates are struggling to compete against a competition the don't understand or own enough of. The NEXT big thing to watch for in antitrust concerns is going to be internet content as any website, even like DCRTV, really needs to be considered right up against WRC4 as competition. (6/1/08) Dave's response: I agree. Like how radio and movies changed when television came along, broadcast radio and television will most certainly survive the rise of the 'net. But they will have to adapt and will probably be quite different from what they are now. You know, 15 years ago it simply wasn't possible to run a website like DCRTV. Today, this one-man, homegrown news source dominates the particular "niche market" at the dismay of the biggest of the journalistic or trade pub dinosaurs. DCRTV and other local sites like Wonkette and DCist provide unique content that the "big boys" simply can't..... I agree with nearly all of Marc Fisher's last "Listener" column. And to think I once tried to revive "Forecast FM!". (To think we once _had_ a magazine called Forecast FM!) Sadly, broadcast TV is in much the same state; WJLA's Local Point channel is the only real sign of life in the area. (6/1/08) Dave's response: We no longer need to get our audio via broadcast radio. We no longer need to get our video via broadcast television (and soon cable/satellite television). We no longer need to get our news via print newspapers (or broadcast radio or TV). We no longer need to get our movies or music on shinny little discs that we buy or rent. The demand for content will always be there. But content providers that have put all their eggs in a particular "delivery basket" will be out of luck. The internet, as it ramps up to wireless and high-speed everywhere, changes everything..... Dave, A follow up on your Tim Conway , Ernie Anderson comments......did you know..Johnny Holliday replaced Ernie Anderson on WHK in Cleveland (read it in Hollidays book "From Rock to Jock"), and Holliday and Tim Conway were the commercial voices for all the Manners Big Boy Restaurants throughout Northern Ohio. Tim was a terrific athlete at Chagrin Falls High School and for many years would always return to his school to be part of the annual athletic awards Banquet. The Conway-Harvey Korman dentist bit is a classic!! (6/1/08) "Dave's response: I did try something with Cafe Press a few years ago, but it generated such a little amount of revenue for the site that I discontinued it." Discontinued or stopped linking to? www.cafepress.com/dcrtv is still there. Is that not you? -MtP (6/1/08) Dave's response: Yeah. Didn't know that was still active..... /\ June 1 Messages /\ \/ May 31 Messages \/ "I have thoroughly enjoyed Johnny Holliday stepping in for Bob Carpenter on Nats games this past week" One problem. Johnny has gone home and MASN flew Ray Knight out to Arizona to do the color while Don Sutton is doing the play by play for tonight's game. I swear I heard Johnny say that he was going to be doing the rest of the road trip. What's up with that? (5/31/08) Just saw this quote on the site by WaPost writer.....and the same could be said of newspapers...... "Radio, shedding talent as fast as it loses audience, is rapidly becoming irrelevant to the younger generation..." Keep up the great work on your dcrtv site. Brooks (5/31/08) Dave's response: Thanks! So, if the Post won't be covering local radio, I guess that'll mean more space for Lisa de Moraes and her 35-paragraph daily round-ups on quality network television like "American Idol." Sheesh..... Robert C: Thanks for the Jack Lacy memories. I remember listening to him on both WINS and WBAL. "listen to Lacy the guy with a smile" jingle is still etched in my memory bank. Of course as a NYC high school kid I remember listening to Johnny Holliday on WINS. I love reminding him of that every time I see him. BD (5/31/08) I have thoroughly enjoyed Johnny Holliday stepping in for Bob Carpenter on Nats games this past week.Johnny and Don Sutton seem to get along quite well and Sutton sounds even better with Johnny setting him up. Got a big kick out of listening to Paul lo Duca fill in for Don Wednesday. Lo Duca;s got a shot at doing some analyst work when his playing days are over, he was very good!!! Shawn, Bethesda (5/31/08) To Robert and Jack: thank you, guys... CORY HABER, ENGINEER, NBC TELEVISION NETWORK, WASHINGTON, D.C. (5/31/08) Al Gore's press secretary from some time back - Marla Romash - has anyone seen or heard from her lately? She'd pop up on TV every now and again on behalf of her boss. Is she still in DC, and what is she doing these days? (5/31/08) could anyone in the "DCRTV zone" :-) -DC/VA/MD/national-international 'politics-press' explains to me why it is 'VERBOTEN' to "talk/mention" something or anything related to "Israeli Nuclear Weapons"? -I find it 'amusing' since I'm a student/'junkie' of "national security/international relations/intelligence studies" & the media... (I kinda know the back-story ;-) just curious... -Arthur S. "kinky-neo-con" (5/31/08) Re: Channel 4 sloppiness. TV and radio stations are sloppy with the facts these days because constant cutbacks mean no copy editors poring over words, no fact checking, no double sourcing. Whatever is written often goes straight to the prompter, or on the radio. Every TV and radio station in town is guilty of cutting cormers and is shortchanging their viewers and listeners. Yet they all run hubris-fueled ads proclaiming themselves to be "Washington's news leader" or words to that effect. It is sad and it is dangerous. (5/31/08) In response to the post about newspapers, and columnists, being reviewed on the radio, the poster said that he or she couldn't remember the last time he or she heard such a show. I do remember the last time I heard that kind of show. It was G. Gordon Liddy when he was on WJFK. He used to spend the first part of his show reading the commentaries by columnists from various newspapers. I don't know if he's still reading newspapers on the air, wherever he's working now. JOHN IN STAFFORD (5/31/08) I was trying to remember when I last heard a radio program that regularly reviewed the newspaper writers like Marc Fisher. Then I realized no one ever bothered. Today's journalism is on television, not newspapers with yesterday's news. (5/31/08) RE: Clear Channel Spent $760K On CapHill - So THAT's where my salary went. Count me first in line to subscribe to the merged sat service. I hope once in hell, CC suits are forced to listen to nothing but the watered-down CC programming drivel from their own stations. You know they don't listen to their own stations now. I would love to see XM and Sirius post the names of the local, regional and national suits for terrestrial radio that subscribe to them. Of course that would never happen...you know, honour among thieves. Ken U Smellit (5/31/08) Um, if you doubt that 980’s a bit tougher on the Skins than the TTDSRN (Teeny Tiny Danny Snyder Radio Network), recall that Czaban and Pollin were so tough interviewing Gibbs that the Skins basically blackmailed the station into replacing them with BramWeinstein on the Gibbs interviews (not that Gibbs ever had anything to say, of course). No, nobody’s as big a kiss-ass as Larry Michael, but I hope that’s not the standard, because Larry Michael is a bleeding sore. Sincerely, TMU (5/31/08) Marc Fisher’s column regarding the declining present and future of radio reminds me of something missing from television that has gotten little attention. Remember the pre-cable days (as late as the 1980s) when local stations would run almost any kind of content to keep a presence on the air after the midnight hour? We could see very old comedy shorts with nearly forgotten stars (Wheeler and Woolsey), music shorts (Rudy Vallee), movies, documentaries (Bonnie and Clyde), and lots of interesting commercials whose sponsors couldn’t afford ads during normal hours. Regrettably, today’s post-midnight programming is as formulaic and predictable and dull as what we are offered the rest of the day. Bob in Pikesville, MD (5/31/08) in fairness, Fisher mentioned ONE radio station as an exception - "With the strong exception of public radio and a handful of all-news local stations such as Washington's WTOP, radio has largely gotten out of the news business -- too expensive." (5/31/08) I wonder if Marc Fisher is feeling sorry for himself because of the obvious decline of newspapers including The Post. Misery loves company? (5/31/08) (To CORY. re: JACK LACY.) During the 70's and 80's, I worked with Jack Lacy at WBAL in Baltimore. Yes, Jack worked in New York at WINS before coming to Baltimore, and sometime during the 1980's, he retired and moved to Spain to be with his daughter. He passed on a few years ago. Jack was a good person with lots of talent. Robert C. Allen (5/31/08) I agree with a previous mailbagger that the likes of Riggins, Sheehan, Braun and Weinstein were plenty critical of the Redskins, including Coach Gibbs, over the past couple of seasons. But I believe Joe Jacoby in the post game shows, both when he did them on WTEM and now at XXX, was very protective, often obnoxiously so, of Gibbs. Hopefully he can be a bit more objective now that the team has a new head coach. As a fan, however, I'm hoping there's less to criticize. (5/31/08) Watching that clip of DJ Khalid at KYS get behind the turntables makes me wish that electronic dance music was as popular as it was back in the late 90's. I remember listening to "Mutations" (or was it the "Mutant Dance Party") on HFS on Saturday nights with Gina Crash (who I believe got behind the turntables herself) along with a whole slew of guest DJ's like Dieselboy, Scott Henry, Feelgood, DJ Micro, the list goes on and on. Eventually HFS got smart and started doing "Live from Buzz", a show that gave us a direct feed of the main room in one of the hottest dance clubs on the east coast. I forget though, and maybe someone on here can help me out: Mutations was on Saturday nights, the Buzz parties were on Friday nights at Nation. Was "Live from Buzz" a Friday or a Saturday night show? If it was Friday, it would have been live, but Saturday would give us a taped show. Also, at DC101 the closest thing (around here anyways) to a show like "Mutations" is "Flounder's Mash-up's", a show that plays chopped up "mashed" songs that are normally a mix of 2 or more songs at once (usually a hip hop track mixed with a rock track). Does anyone know if "Flounder's Mash-up's" is done on a set of turntables, either old-school Technic 1200's or new school Pioneer CDJ's? It probably isn't because I don't think they beat match tracks and mix, but it's been a long while since I've listened. KeninBrooklyn. P.S.-I'm still listening to Channel 104.3 and I still like it. It's pretty awesome living in B-More and getting WCHH, WRNR, WIYY, WQSR Jack, DC101, the Bay, and the Globe in certain parts. Lots of rock to listen to nowadays. (5/31/08) Channel 4 says it's "Washington's news leader" -- this morning their stupid, young and inexperienced producers, writers and anchors said that Vice-President Dick Cheney "would speak tonight" to Virginia's GOP convention in Richmond. MEMO TO THE DOLTS AT CHANNEL 4: CHENEY SPOKE LAST NIGHT. EVEN WORSE, THEY USED THE SAME SCRIPT IN A SUBSEQUENT NEWSCAST. Click - no more watching Channel 4. (5/31/08) When I called to subscribe to the Washington Times again after a couple years of not getting the paper, I expected to be quoted the rate of $60 a year. When the woman offered me $40 a year, I knew something was up. She explained, as you reported today, that the Saturday print edition was going away, but that there would be an e-edition each Saturday sent to an e-mail address I gave them. I'm not sure how the e-edition will differ from the Times' new Web site. The Saturday Times, while always on the thin side, was always my favorite daily edition of the Times because it had a small Arts section with a Gary Arnold film essay each week. A couple of years ago the Times launched a Friday Arts section that was a little more robust in terms of movie coverage, and moved Arnold's film essays to its Thursday Washington Weekend section. Alas, those Arnold essays seem to have become less frequent. Oh, one more thing: Here's a link to the Times' own coverage of the Bill Gertz subpoena story, in today's edition: www.washingtontimes.com... Christian (5/31/08) "Why aren't you talkin about Big O and Dukes being with Mike O'Meara all day" How could Elijah Dukes be on the radio when the Nats are in Arizona? Are they doing a remote hookup? (5/31/08) Hey Dave, Saw the post about t-shirts. Go to Cafe Press.com and you can create and sell a shirt there. You could upload all of the old station logos. People would eat that up. Cafe Press also can do bumper stickers, mugs, whatever you want. It would be a nice way for you to make some money for the site AND have people promote your site. mdogg (5/31/08) Dave's response: I did try something with Cafe Press a few years ago, but it generated such a little amount of revenue for the site that I discontinued it. The t-shirts they offered looked kind of ordinary and run-of-the-mill. A DCRTV t-shirt should be something really special. You know? I have to admit, the "party for the sake of the party" atmosphere at WJFK Friday is so refreshing. The entire station seems be energized these days. Big O and Dukes have become a perfect compliment to the station and the Mike Omeara Show has really picked up the energy level as compared to the old Don and Mike. Having everyone in the same building gives the station a much more cohesive feel. Everyone is cross promoting everyone else and the whole station benefits. My only gripe is that the local programing doesn't always extend until 10PM. The Hideout isn't great, but they could get alot better with some guidance. Throw them on from 7-10 and let the other guys teach them the ropes. Let's keep the party going! (5/31/08) There were a lot of upset Nationals fans in Prince William County as I wrote this, because at about 12:05 a.m., Comcast for eastern Prince William turned off the Nats-Arizona game on MASN2 as it was entering the top of the 9th to revert to the C-SPAN channel it normally carries there. Keep in mind the first pitch was at 9:40, which meant less than 2 1/2 hours had elapsed, and most games these days take longer than that. And since the Baltimore game went long, the Orioles' post-game show was still being carried on MASN. Ouch. Fortunately, Comcast restored MASN2 in the bottom of the 9th, and viewers could see Jon Rauch close things out for the save...provided they hadn't switched off the set in anger. -- Vincent in Triangle (5/31/08) I don't know if anyone has noticed or not. I notice that Gannett has very recently improved the web-sites to most of its television stations, thus far. DC's WUSA 9... www.wusa9.com. Viewers will be seeing more news stories, more videos, and more blogs... WUSA news personalities also contributing to the site, along with the web-site producers. 2 other Gannet-owned stations that have recently improved their web-sites... which look strikingly similar in layout to WUSA 9's. WXIA and WKYC. I expect that other Gannet-owned stations (e.g. - WTSP, KPNX, and KUSA, among otheres) could soon follow suit. (5/31/08) Oh my god... WJFK is quickly approaching how great it was in 2000-2002, when it was Stern, D&M, O&A, and the Junkies, all at or near their primes. Today was just incredible radio. Anyone who heard it should realize how rare this is, especially in this day and age. (5/31/08) In response to the notion that Dan Snyder is looking to control the sports talking message, I've listened (not easy with Redskins Radio) to both sports talkers and I don't think 980 is any more critical in their coverage of the Redskins than Triple X. Czaban and Pollin can be harsh but it's also obvious that they are just frustrated fans like many of us. Walker and Mitchell can be very harsh but they have expertise. Just as often, I've heard Riggins and Sheehan at Triple X turn on the home team. Sheehan and Jacoby spared know one including Gibbs if it was justified during the postgame show. Fans in this city aren't stupid. They won't listen to a cheerleading sports talker. (5/31/08) /\ May 31 Messages /\ \/ May 30 Messages \/ The infighting at WJFK...that must be why they stick around and stay on the air on each other's shows. (5/30/08) Did anyone record the XM 60s on 6 tribute to WCAO today? I attempted to record, but messed something up on the timer function on my computer. If anyone has it, I'd sure appreciate it. Thanks. (5/30/08) Dave's response: Damn! It completely slipped my mind to listen. Is there a podcast somewhere? Why aren't you talkin about Big O and Dukes being with Mike O'Meara all day? (5/30/08) You listening to the chaos and hilarity that is the Big O and Dukes and Mike and Buzz marathon? Chad and Oscar hung out during Mike's whole show, and then decided "what the hell, let's stay on until 10 tonight." (5/30/08) To Joyce Conroy...thanks for the nice post. You, me and lots of other folks will always love the music, radio personalities of the 50's, 60's and 70's. We had a lot of good times at WAMD in the late 90's doing our best to bring back as much of the essence of the era as we could. What else other than good times would you expect with a crew which included owner Captain Jim, Buddy Deane on weekends, J.B. Brown, Ron Hunt, Dennis Hill, Joe ('Two-Name Joe') Roberts, Steve Herold, Craig Fader, Warren McCoy and Joe Evelius along with a great support staff in the office. It was a cast of characters to be sure. I was talking with Evelius recently about his Saturday gig from back then on Oldies 97. Joe used to play vintage unscoped airchecks in the 11 o'clock hour as a part of his midday shift. One such morning, he rolled 30 minutes of KHJ from 1965 and in the aircheck was a news update breaking the story about 'angry young negro youths' rioting in Watts. I believe we got a few calls on that one. And then there was the time we did a double remote for a supermarket. We were doing 11 am-1 pm at the Aberdeen location, and then 1-3 pm in Edgewood. Orioles pitcher Sidney Ponson appeared at both of them to do a 'meet and greet'. The Edgewood location was down in a null which killed our already-challenged day signal to the south. So Evelius was given authority to go to 'night power' for those two hours so the client could hear the broadcast air monitored at the site. When I got back to the station, Joe was playing requests for Baltimore listeners who were excited about finding this new oldies station on the AM dial. One more person was there as our intern...and look at him now. None other than Steve Mann who now handles PM Drive at Lite 101.9 and Q107 on weekends in DC. Awhile back...Steve posted here and commented on the 'good and bad' he learned when he was with us up in Harford County. I trust he's disposed of the latter and has found the former much more useful. I guess we can't call him 'Boy Wonder' any more, huh? Joyce...come on down to Mt. Vernon if you can on the 22nd and we'll teach you how to do the Madison. Your pal and mine Jimmy Dewald knows it from 'A to Z'. Once you master that...we'll teach you how to do Jack Gale's 'Sloppy Madison'. God Bless you, Tom and Greg. - Bob Mathers (5/30/08) Hey Dave. Why don't you do the story on the tremendous amount of infighting going on behind the scenes at WJFK? Most of The Junkies, including their behind the scenes guys, are fed up with JP and would like to see him removed. But, since they all know so much about each other, that could lead to some serious problems... Most of the on-air, programming department is really down on The Mike O'Meara Show thinking that it brings the station to a halt. And, Big O And Dukes are getting cocky and running out of supporters. (5/30/08) To: Cory: There was a Jack Lacy (sp) at Baltimore's WBAL 1090 (radio 11) for a number of years. I never met him but he did have a great voice. Perhaps Ed Graham or Jack Gale might have known him. God knows, they even worked with The Andrews Sisters. For some odd reason, many many years ago I would punch in WBAL and hear the flip side of current hit ballad. Why they never played the hit side, I'll never know. You remember 45's. Guess it was the pd or md's idea. Thanks, Jack Edwards (5/30/08) You gotta love The Super(drunk)Station WJFK. First, you've got EB from the Junkies, late and drunk as hell this morning. Then you've got Big O and Dukes hanging out with The Mike O'Meara Show on a cocktail Friday. Then, they come back to reprise their night show for one night only...with Mike and Buzz! This is how radio should be, FUN! The only bad part about it is, I stopped drinking! (5/30/08) Dave's response: How about calling it "WRPR, Rat Pack Radio 106.7, Your Station For Gambling, Booze, And Other Legal Vices"..... Question to the Jack Edwards. As a kid I grew up in New York City. I listened to a dj on WINS RADIO.His name was Jack Lacey. I believe when WINS went all-news Jack went to Baltimore,maybe WBAL. Is that right?,and did you know him? CORY (5/30/08) Very interesting that Citadel is now airing the "Jack Diamond in the Morning" commercials again after pulling them weeks ago. Also interesting that Carson has an updated website now that ol' Jack may be staying after all. Washington radio is just one big soap opera. I just want to know what naked pix of Citadel execs Jack Diamond has that may have saved his gig. There is no other explanation for him keeping his gig when he's not even in the top 10 and has a very bloated, expensive morning show staff. (5/30/08) Why doesn't The Post's Paul Fahri just admit he gets all of his information off of DCRTV? He just may have the cushiest job in DC. He writes a radio column about things that you're on top of Dave, weeks before! I just read on allaccess.com, about Red Zebra's possible purchase of the CC AMers.... as reported by the Washington Post! Even though we all disagree on many things, many times on this mailbag, I think we can all agree that Dave has ALWAYS got the scoop first. Fahri's a thief, and the man must be stopped!!!!! (5/30/08) Dave's response: All Access, Radio And Records, and several other radio trade sites got their Snyder-WTEM story info not only second-hand but also two days late from the Washington Post. A top DC radio guru told me today that there's no question that DCRTV "owns the DC radio/TV news market." And, being ignored by those other guys is actually a form of praise and respect for DCRTV. Imagine getting scooped day-in and day-out by a one-man site. It must be humiliating..... I have to admit I'm surprised Hearst/Argyle's WBAL-TV is spending lots of money on HDTV News as WBAL TV is the big loser in the HDTV signal race in Baltimore. What I mean is more people receiving WBAL-TV 11 analog will lose reception as a result of the digital conversion than any other Baltimore TV station. It's TRUE! If you compare the FCC plots from WMAR 38, WJZ 13, WBAL 11, and the others, WBAL loses LOTS MORE viewers comparatively. Virtually all DTV stations will lose some, but WBAL 11 is the big Baltimore loser by far. Somebody in the Hearst Argyle engineering dept. should be fired for allowing that to happen. And I'm pretty sure the FCC has frozen signal improvements at this point before 2009 without a strong case. Why Scripps Howard isn't moving to HDTV News with WMAR in advance of the conversion is beyond me. WMAR-DT 38 will have lucked into 1 of the best DTV signals in the DC/Baltimore area at 1000kw non-directional from TV Hill when all the dust settles on '09. Who would have thought that a year ago? (5/30/08) Re: "Tim Conway's radio career in Cleveland also included a team-up with Ernie ("LLLLLove Boat!") Anderson. Both headed west to make their mark in Hollywood. Tim scored as a comic actor and Ernie racked up the bucks as an in-demand voice talent. I found that out about eleven or so years back while writing Ernie Anderson's obit for Radio World." Ernie is actually better remembered in many parts of the country as one of the Founding Fathers of Horror Hosts - his character, "Ghoulardi" debuted on Cleveland television, and is right up there with Vampira and Zacherly as the most influential local late night television personalities from the golden age of television. Tim Conway appeared with Ernie on that as well. These days Ernie is also remembered as the father of Paul Thomas Anderson - the Oscar nominated filmmaker behind BOOGIE NIGHTS and THERE WILL BE BLOOD. (5/30/08) The Tenleytown tower debacle is like a perfect example of why DC is such an F'd up place. And now come Feb 2009, all the poor people and their neighborhood associations will be crying poor about not being able to receive TV reception anymore!!! HAha! ONLY in WASHINGTON can such wonderful ironies occur! Meanwhile back in Baltimore, they have, what, 4 or FIVE 1000+ foot radio/TV towers (& 1 like almost 1300 feet tall!) while Washington, the nation's capital, the 8th largest market in the country, has NONE! UNBELIEVABLE, REALLY! (5/30/08) I WANT A DCRTV T-SHIRT TOO!!! -- Joe in Essex PS: But, hmmmm, will it increase my chances of being mugged near CBS Radio Baltimore, the FCC, or Dave Loudin or Marty Bass's home? :-) (5/30/08) I checked out the San Diego announcers on the Padres/Nationals game yesterday afternoon (XM uses the home team's feed for all MLB broadcasts) and heard something kinda wacky. Their lead guy, Ted Leitner, who is quite good BTW, read the standard disclaimer ("This broadcast is the property of the San Diego Padres...all descriptions and accounts of this game are...etc. etc.) and then said "this disclaimer is brought to you by the law firm of..." In other words, their sales staff SOLD THE LEGAL DISCLAIMER SPONSORSHIP!! I don't think it was a goof, either, because it sure wasn't the firm of Dewey, Cheatem and Howe! Reminded me of Ricky Bobby selling ad space on the windshield of his stock car in "Talladega Nights," the Wil Ferrell NASCAR spoof. Damn, I hope Dan Snyder doesn't get any ideas from this because if so, I want a finder's fee!! Can't you just hear it now? "This Larry Michael passage of gas is brought to you by Lysol." Oh wait, Redskins Radio isn't too far from that already - - - - - Larry in Luray (5/30/08) I was wrong about that towerr!!!!!!! Former Western Union microwave radio station: the "Tenley Tower" Tenleytown, Washington, DC This distinctive facility is located at the corner of 41st St. and Wisconsin Ave. in the Tenleytown neighborhood of northwest Washington DC, near the highest elevation in the city. It was the first common-carrier microwave communications station in the city, and one of the earliest in the United States. Beginning service in 1947 and named the "Tenley Tower" by its owner, the Western Union Telegraph Company, this installation was part of the company's "radio triangle" - a network of microwave radio-relay stations linking Washington, Pittsburgh, and New York City (see 1957 map). The inauguration of that system marked the first use of microwave radio for commercial communications, carrying traffic originated by the public. The Tenley Tower was featured on the cover of a Western Union recruiting brochure. The building is a cast-concrete structure, approximately cubical in form, with an adjacent, attached octagonal concrete tower topped by a turret. The turret is sheathed in opaque plastic which allows radio waves to pass through. It housed microwave antennas used for various communications experiments. During the Cold War, the Tenley Tower was a relay point for the Washington Area Wideband System and other national-security communications networks. Today it is owned by a tower-site leasing firm, American Tower Corporation, and is a cellular telephone cell site. The building appears to be in generally good condition, but the rooftop tower is quite rusty. Until around late 1999 or early 2000, there were three steel-lattice radio towers on the site. The apparently oldest tower, still standing, is the four-legged self-supporting structure atop the building's roof. It held two pairs of pyramidal horn-reflector microwave antennas (similar to those used by AT&T), plus three parabolic "dish" antennas. The second tower was a short, guyed tower on the roof of a small red-brick building at the southwest corner of the property, supporting two small radome-covered parabolic microwave antennas. That facility, used by the Washington Gas utility company, was demolished by American Tower in preparation for the construction of new multi-use tower on the site. The third tower was a three-legged self-supporting tower in the Western Union building's front (west) yard. During the period of Western Union ownership, the tower held a variety of microwave antennas, including several conical horn-reflectors. Later, a cellular antenna array (not present at the time the photos were taken), multiple vertical VHF/UHF antennas, and a parabolic antenna were added. That structure was removed by American Tower, and its active antennas were transferred to the rooftop tower. In early 2000, American Tower began construction of a tall tower in the front portion of the lot, occupying the space which previously held the three-legged tower and the Washington Gas building. The new tower is intended to provide digital television (HDTV) broadcasting for several stations in the metropolitan area, and to support more than 100 antennas for various wireless communications services. Work on the new tower was suspended in the fall of 2000, when residents who objected to the tower persuaded the city to revoke American Tower's building permit. As a result of that action, the new tower stands partially completed, and it appears that its future will be decided by ongoing litigation. For a detailed explanation of the Tenley Tower's architecture, history and significance, see the draft National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, a well-researched report by consulting historian David S. Rotenstein. (5/30/08) I really take offense at the attack on Keith Mills. He was addicted, he is a JUNKY..he could make no rational decisions, he needed a "fix" anywhere he could find it. Unfortunately he had a neighbor that filled the craving. He made a mistake, he's paid for that mistake and he's now building his mind and body back into a healthy and stable situation. I've been a neighbor of his, I see him weekly at the gym and he looks and seems to be really doing well. Addiction is EVIL. Those that throw stones have never walked the walk. Dave, I hope your associate is also winning the war. PLB (5/30/08) I've been trying real hard to want to enjoy Mike O'Meara's show. However, I'm pretty much done. I can't figure out exactly what makes me cringe more. Is it the idiot callers in the beginning of the show or is it WAY too much Beth Ann. I LIKE Beth Ann too. Just not in heavy doses daily. I feel like I'm abandoning an old friend after many years of happily being together but I can't take it anymore. When will there be any sort of ratings or indication of how the show is doing? Paul (5/30/08) Dave's response: We should get an early indication next week when Arbitron releases another monthly Arbitrend radio ratings round-up for DC..... So, the last time I was down that way (2001) I happened to notice the DC101 sign on the Ct. Ave. building. I thought that was pretty odd myself. Here we are 7 years later and it's coming down now? WOW! So now it's going to Rockville Pike...do they have a sign heaven for their former signs? I'd love to know what happened to the famous World Building call letters! But we won't open that can of worms! Your Brother Site, E. O. (5/30/08) If a Baltimore jock who's a fan of yours wanted to score a DCRTV shirt, how might said jock go about doing that....hypothetically? Thanks DH! ps... i love watching my boss pretend that he doesn't check your mailbag every five minutes.... (5/30/08) Dave's response: We don't really have DCRTV t-shirts available. I could hand-make you one if you're interested..... How many times an hour must we hear ads for the BK Wrapper on Redskins Radio? From noon 'til 1 today there were at least 4 ads for it. Of course we were treated also to the frequently-run testimonial ad for it by Gary " Big Time " Braun. "Hi, I'm Gary Braun from the John Riggins show ." I can't fucking stand the testimonial ads on this station. Do you think I'm going to buy a car from a dealer that gives Bram Weinstein and Larry Michael free use of a car? Fuck no. Do you think I'm going to pay big bucks to a buying service that gives Kevin Sheehan a free membership? I think not. The ads with Larry Michael and the HVAC dealer are also the pits. The ad selection on this station is just ridiculous-the plumber's union?..the air traffic controller's union?.. a plastic company that wants you to move to Front Royal?.. another that wants you move to Martinsburg?..ad nauseum. Let me finally say that the female voiceover on the station is the worst. Why do we need an electronically altered monotone voiceover? Is she supposed to give all of us erections? She misses by a few inches. I know..don't listen. Regards Biff (5/30/08) When Ed Graham got his first color tv set,(Muntz 10 inch), Howdy Doody was all the rage. Ed told me that someday he wanted to be just like Clarabelle or was that Mr Bluster. I remember that Ed had a crush on Princess Summer Fall Winter Spring. No strings attached. Thanks, Jack Edwards (5/30/08) Wow, I remember DC 101 in DC and that sign like it was yesterday. In my college days, we took the shuttle bus from U of MD to the Silver Spring Metro station just to get to DC 101 and pick up a prize. Well, me and my buddies also heard a rumor that that area was DC's redlight district, I won't lie. hehe. Truth be told, we never got laid there, never met Howard Stern (I think Grease was already there), but it was a great college stop for buying beer to take back to Maryland! (DC was 18 then) (5/30/08) when you own a beat, you make news (kinda like DCRTV even though the Post won't give you credit) (5/30/08) So, XM's freelance subcontractors are complaining about not being paid. Is XM cheap or in financial trouble? Which satellite radio company is in worse shape, XM or Sirius? Are obituaries for either or both companies in the cards? JOHN IN STAFFORD (5/30/08) Regarding XM, isn’t it becoming clear what Kevin Martin’s plan has been all along? Delay the up-or-down vote on the XM-Sirius merger for so long that at least one – if not both – runs out of money and has to shut it down. Then it becomes a moot point. From the looks of things, he won’t have to put it off much longer: at the rate it’s going, XM won’t last the summer. (5/30/08) ("Dave's response: DCRTV hears that Keith Mills was recently seen on Charles Street wearing a DCRTV t-shirt. How cool is that!") I don't know why 98 rock, DCRTV or anyone else would want to be associated with a loser who buglarized an old woman's house and stole her pain medication on numerous occasions. Oh, did I mention the woman was in severe pain from chemotherapy and dying from cancer. I wonder how the people at 98 rock and DCRTV would feel if this was their mother or grandmother that was victimized. And don't tell me he was an addict. We all know plenty of people with drug and alcohol problems that don't resort to such low-life, inhumane and selfish behavior. Cool indeed, this idiot should be in the cooler. If you or I committed such a heinous act, that is exactly where we would be...not on the radio or strolling down Charles Street. (5/30/08) Dave's response: Addiction is a disease. I have a close relative who has been battling prescription drug abuse for more than a decade. And, I do believe that she's finally overcoming it, via a lot of pain and suffering - detox, rehab, courts, etc. It's a tough battle for her and her family, but it can be done. If Keith is going through anything like what my relative has gone though - and has paid his debt to society via the legal system (which he has, as we've reported) - then I wish Keith all the best. That is not to excuse what he did while affected by his addiction. Something Keith would probably not dispute. In fact, if he stays clean, Keith will probably become a better person, more compassionate and more enlightened for all the suffering he's been though. Look, I know this Mailbag has been the venue for plenty of comments about Keith and his past problems. It's not the time to rehash all that. Let's move on..... During his online chate today, Washington Post movie critic Stephen Hunter fielded numerous questions about his decision to take the Post's buyout offer. He's an amusing guy. www.washingtonpost.com... Christian (5/30/08) Ah, the sweet smell of journalism, courtesy this headline from WTOP's web site: "Guy gets 25 years for making sex videos of boys." I'm sorry -- "Guy"? What are you clowns doing, trying to save the trouble of typing the longer word, "Man"? Non-standard English in headlines seems amateurish, but I guess, coming from a station that refers to police as "cops" and the President as "mister," I shouldn't be too surprised. (5/30/08) "Verizon is raving about how it has a better picture than anyone else, yet they seem to offer the fewest HD channels of any provider out there?" The picture is great. I seem to be getting over 300 channels. The HD is really good, and I expect there will be many added over time. When I got my first color set ther were only about three shows in color. Bonanza - - Dinah Shore - - Perry Como. Maybe a few more. Dinah Shore could have had me. Ed Graham (5/30/08) www.leadershipprofiles.com... It appears that 105.9 is a real bare bones operation. That would explain why it sounds so bad. (5/30/08) Sorry to ruin the line of Snyder bashing and sports talk radio boo-wooing. Chickaboomer?! ? PLEASE take down the headshot of the Joker. It's scaring the straights!! -skimmell (5/30/08) We "dumped the Dish" last fall because Verizon FIOS is available and less expensive. Less HD channels but save for a couple, we didn't watch them all. Who does? FIOS is just a bit clearer but now we don't have the unsightly dishes (2) on the roof. No problems with Dish just that we're saving quite a bit on the change. FIOS does not presently have MASN HD. (5/30/08) You can add me to that list of XM subcontractors waiting for paychecks. I do voicework for one of the channels, and my contract states there is a 60-day turnaround on payment. I have yet to be paid for work done in Feb. and March. Nice to see it's not just me. This sucks, particularly since I was one of the original program directors when the place opened in 2001, and it's sad to see what's happening there. (5/30/08) Maybe Farhi had to actually, you know, check his sources before reporting on the possible sale of WTEM to Snyder. Since you are such a journalism expert I would think you would know that. Did you double-check your sources before reporting it? Maybe you are the one that is pathetic. (5/30/08) Dave's response: Yes, I did consult several sources on the Synder-WTEM story. And, it shall be known that Farhi, pillar of journalism that he is, did not quote any sources on-the-record in his article, either. Oh, one day Farhi will get his just reward. That "Kornheiser squirrel" will show up on his doorstep..... If Dan Snyder purchases the three Clear Channel stations, isn't he simply buying the frequencies and not the programming and talent (just like when he acquired the three Spanish language outlets to launch Triple X)? So WTEM could either fold up the tent or look for another frequency to air its sports talk lineup, although I suppose Snyder would have the option of offering continued employment to anyone now on the staff there. The other day on Sports Reporters, they were making thinly veiled references to the impending takeover with Steve Czaban remarking to Andy Pollin: 'I guess you'll have to start calling him Mr. Snyder soon.' By saying 'you' instead of 'we', could Czaban have been hinting that he has no plans to hang around and serve as house man for Danny but Pollin's willing to do so? Regarding 3WT, Tony Kornheiser already works there and could perhaps be talked into devoting more of his show to sports (as was the case when he worked for WTEM). Maybe Pollin could rejoin him as sidekick and even take over as host during the months when Mr. Tony's preoccupied with Monday Night Football. If Bonneville's willing to ditch the syndicated political fare it airs on 1500-AM and convert the station into a 24 hour sports talker, a decent local lineup could be patched together with some combination of Kornheiser, Nats postgame hosts Marc Sterne, George Wallace and Byron Kerr, Caps host Jonathan Warner and perhaps a few current 980 personalities like Thompson, Koken, Walker and Wood. Brian Mitchell's been an outspoken critic of the Redskins front office and coaching staff since joining WTEM two years ago, so it's a bit difficult to envision him signing on with Red Zebra. What's disturbing is the real possibility of independent sports talk radio in Washington, DC falling victim to Snyder's desire to control the message. He can talk all he wants about John Riggins, Kevin Sheehan, Gary Braun and (formerly) Bram Weinstein having complete freedom to voice their opinions about the team on his stations, but nobody can convince me there isn't a line they're not allowed to cross. Mike, Fairfax (5/30/08) Dave's response: If I ran the FCC, it would be against the rules for any owner of a professional sports team to own a radio or TV station in the same market. There's something seriously wrong with a team owner owning the media that covers his team. Smacks of anti-trust or something awfully close to it..... I disagree about missing Don. Truth be told? Don came back too fast after Freda and tuning in quickly became "As the Dial Turns" I got really tired of being told how we didn't understand his pain. More importantly I got tired of listening to him talk about the audience with complete disdain. Not the bits about window lickers and Starve Sacramento, those were funny. I'm talking about the fact he really seemed to resent the audience. Even him goodbye show seemed disingenuous, because it felt obligatory. In reality, it felt like him saying goodbye to his last hold with Freda, as opposed to saying goodbye to us. We wanted to be entertained by him. The crew on Mike's show has fun, it reaches out to it's audience. It makes me remember what I enjoyed about listening to talk radio. I feel like I want to tune in to this show to see what I'll find entertaining. I like not knowing who will make me laugh hardest because everyone gets to contribute now. Adam (5/30/08) Goddamn, I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone: Steve Rouse and Keith Mills is on 98 Rock, Kirk McEwen and Mark Ondayco (of 98 Rock morning fame), Brian Wilson (of B104 morning fame), and Troy Johnson (of 92 Q morning fame) are on a "male talk/sports" formatted WHFS, 104.3 is an alternative rock format similar to what WHFS was, the oldies station WQSR is titled "Jack"- meaning they don't have Jack for DJ's and plays 80's music like WQSR played 50's music in the 80's, and gas is $4.00 a gallon. What in the hell is going on here? I am seeing a pattern though: what doesn't work for one company on one station may work for other companies on other stations. And when you have an former oil man president the price of gas skyrockets. KeninBrooklyn/GlenBurnie (5/30/08) Dave's response: DCRTV hears that Keith Mills was recently seen on Charles Street wearing a DCRTV t-shirt. How cool is that! Well if the Weather Channel merges with NBC's weather channel, they'd better make the most out of Samantha Davies, WOW. I scroll through WBAL's cable weather channel just to see if she's on. www.weatherplus.com (5/30/08) I have a question for all who have Verizon FIOS...Verizon is raving about how it has a better picture than anyone else, yet they seem to offer the fewest HD channels of any provider out there? Is it worth the move from Dish Network to FIOS even though I'll lose a good bit of my HD channels? Also, does Verizon offer MASN in HD? Just curious, I'm trying to decide between moving to either DirecTV or FIOS and I'm weighing the options. Thanks, Greg in Reisterstown (5/30/08) "The art-deco limestone structure, built in 1945, stands at the rear of a lot where the American Tower tried to erect a 400-foot telecommunications tower, before the city pulled back building permits." Dave it was built in 1845....was used in the Civil War....that's why it is so historic (5/30/08) Dave's response: They didn't build art-deco stuff in 1845, did they? That info was straight from the Current newspaper, as credited..... Tim Conway's radio career in Cleveland also included a team-up with Ernie ("LLLLLove Boat!") Anderson. Both headed west to make their mark in Hollywood. Tim scored as a comic actor and Ernie racked up the bucks as an in-demand voice talent. I found that out about eleven or so years back while writing Ernie Anderson's obit for Radio World. BTW, there is a Tim Conway Jr., and on the radio sounds like a young version of his dad. -al p. (5/30/08) "There is limited Minor League Baseball coverage this year, tonight is another installment of the Bowie Baysox package WNAV 1430-AM..." But if you tune to 1520-AM you can hear the Buffalo Bisons of the International League almost every night. Howie (5/30/08) Is there really all this gnashing of teeth over 980 and its rumored purchase by the Danny? When the hell did anyone care? All of the sports stations around here are terrible, predictable, and uninteresting. And I say that having known a voice or two on those mics. DC may not be a great sports town, but its also never had even a half-way mediocre sports station. It's all syndicated bullshit mixed with the occassional half-witted local "celeb" who can't be bothered to learn about more than one sport. If none of the weakass sports stations want to try and be a legitimate sports station, why the hell is anyone even trying to tune them in? I sure don't. And don't think that WJFK is going to go the sports route. The minute they can get an evening show that fits the rest of their format, Jim Rome (who I do like to listen to on occassion, I said occassion) will be gone. So all you burgeoning talk show hosts, send your tapes to Main Street in Fairfax! Sign me as Brad Bell's Hairpiece. (5/30/08) HD news is almost here for FOX 45. That still picture of FOX 45's new HD set, with Jeff and Jen sitting behind the anchor desk looks good to me. Speaking of high definition... I believe 5 debuted a new weather toy last week... High-Def Doppler Radar. I'm guessing that HD news hasn't fully materialized for FOX 5 quite yet... it was rumored that 5's news would be going HD in May. Unless FOX is aiming for a June debut instead... hoping that FOX 5 viewers will be seeing HD news any day now. (5/30/08) I have often admired the Western Union concrete pedestal that may be declared an historic site. It must be located at one of the highest points within The District. Any remote truck with mast must be able to rise high enough to "see" an antenna in that direction. Kind of a shame people got exercised over the tower that was being constructed there. What? It was likely to fall over on their houses? Likely to decrease property values? No such concern at 5202 River Road, in Bethesda. Or in the parking lot of 4D (the Fourth District Police Station), off of Georgia Avenue. (5/30/08) Too bad if Dan Snyder buys WTEM. Then again, the only thing I regularly listen to on 980 is Phil Wood's Saturday morning baseball show, and I fear Danny will wipe it off the face of the map; Phil probably doesn't have enough "attitude" for the audience Snyder covets. My wish would be for Bonneville to ditch the newstalk on 3WT and turn it into an all-sports station. It already has the Nationals, Capitals, Navy football and GWU basketball. Get a lineup of radio pros (no former athletes or coaches, such as John Riggins or John Thompson, as hosts!) to complement the play-by-play programming, build an environment where there are no sacred cows, and create some professional-level sports radio, the D.C. equivalent of WFAN. BTW, Dave, if you ever write an autobiography, "I Was Bathed By Tim Conway" would be an ideal title... -- Vincent in Triangle (5/30/08) Dave's response: Did you know that Tim Conway's real name is Tom. But since there was already an actor named Tom Conway, he took the name Tim. After the Army, Tom, er Tim went back to his native Cleveland, where he quickly became a popular comedy radio personality, which led to his move to Hollywood and his very quick rise to stardom on "McHale's Navy," which also starred Gavin McLeod, who later captained "The Love Boat," which featured Fred Grandy, who now does mornings on WMAL. Hmmm. How's that for "Six Degrees Of Tim Conway." Linking me with WMAL in six "jumps"..... How about this? If the wee one takes over 980am WJFK hires Czaban and Pollin for the afternoon slot. I find more laughs in one segment of the Sports Reporters than an entire MOMMIE show. Doesn't HAL work overnites on the true Oldies? Did Ernie Borgnine diaper the infant DCRTV after the bath? Shirley Mr. Borgnine won't be starting a new trifecta any time soon! Good bye Sydney Pollack! Jeremiah Johnson, 3 Days of the Condor! How do you know they'll print it? Alas, for that day. And another giant in TV history just passed away and the old Secret Handshake Club is getting smaller and smaller EARLE HAGEN. Man them pillows of mine are just getting too tear stained. (5/30/08) /\ May 30 Messages /\ \/ May 29 Messages \/ Dick Martin, Sydney Pollack, Harvey Korman…the trifecta is complete. RIP. (5/29/08) Dave's response: No! If it were Harvey Korman, Lyle Waggoner, and Tim Conway that would be a proper trifecta. By the way, as an infant, I was bathed by Tim Conway. He and my dad were in the Army together at Fort Lewis in Washington state..... "There is limited Minor League Baseball coverage this year, tonight is another installment of the Bowie Baysox package WNAV 1430-AM is doing this year. Baysox and Altoona Curve at 7:05" - I guess the "limited" coverage is after sunset when you have to sit in the parking lot of the station on Admiral Drive to hear the rest of the game. (5/29/08) (snippety doo-dah) Most stations of any format do not run live programming overnight (snippety-ay). Imagine if Larry King were trying to launch his career today, starting at that Miami station. We'd have never heard of him. (5/29/08) Dave's sarcastic response: Gee, hard to fathom a world without Larry King..... I'm starting to like Baltmore's new Channel 104.3. It's not the old HFS, but even the last incarnation of HFS on 99.1 is a plus to my car radio, not to mention soon having a better signal around Baltimore, especially southwest. By the way, even Clear Channel's own FCC app shows that most of the reduced interference is to Clear Channel's OWN Radio 104.5 alt rock station in Philly, where 104.3 gives up almost ALL of Cecil County to the Philly station! The interference reduced to 104.1 is rather small and virtually insignificant. In fact, even new interference is created in some places for 104.1. And yes, the FCC plots do show better 104.3 reception in places like Rockville, Germantown, and parts of Frederick county. Anyone know when the 104.3 transmitter move happens or has it already happened and being tested? (5/29/08) ".......Nothing "odd" is going on at True Oldies. Most of the music stations in the country are NOT live overnight. Some are voice-tracked and others simply run music........." ".......The great Tom Grooms is "rockin' in the grooveyard" all night/every night on True Oldies 105.9 with Washington's ONLY LIVE all night show! ....." I think the point the original poster was trying to make was: what happened to Tom Grooms? (5/29/08) Hello, I am reading everything about Comcast. I went to Comcast to return my remotes and cable box as I am no longer with them My condo is now hooked up with FIOS. Everyone in line at Comcast was complaining about the issues that they are having. A former Comcast subscriber (5/29/08) In reference to the Washington Mystics, WWRC/1260 carried the team's radio broadcasts in recent years. For whatever reason, the audio broadcasts are only being carried this season via webstream. I imagine if broadcasts were still airing on WWRC, the play-by-play commentator wouldn't have taken a break last Tuesday by telling his audience that "nature calls." Everett W. (5/29/08) Dave's response: It would be real interesting to know just how many people are listening to DC's 1260 at any given time. It would surprise me if it was more than a few dozen or so..... Nothing "odd" is going on at True Oldies. Most of the music stations in the country are NOT live overnight. Some are voice-tracked and others simply run music. In fact most stations of any format do not run live programming overnight. Another "brilliant" way to cut the bottom line for station owners. (5/29/08) Some things to keep in mind about plots of radio and television coverage... What signal strength defines local coverage (level required to the community of license) and protected service area is different for low-VHF, high VHF, and UHF analog TV; digital TV; and FM radio. The technique for predicting signal strength used is not suited for point-to-point calculations - it is meant to predict the reliability of receiving a given signal over an area (not sure the exact size of the area.) This method does not predict effects of terrain around the receive location on signal strength. For a detailed prediction of television reception at a single location or over an area, check out tvfool.com. Regards, Dave Loudin (5/29/08) "As is, minor league baseball and Washington Mystics broadcasts have already disappeared from local radio." Who used to carry the Mystics? (5/29/08) www.trueoldies1059.com... Clearly, something odd is going on at True Oldies. Someone posted that there is indeed someone live overnight. Just out of curiosity, I listened all night. All I heard were station breaks. Then I checked out the station website. No one is listed for overnight. Why don't they simply sign off? (5/29/08) WOW--Mike in Waldorf...great question. They are running the same spots cause you are listening to the stream. Over the air spots are not susposed to go over the net--so there are different spots for the net. That is why you are hearing the same spots every break-cause they are cover=ups on the net, which CAN BE SOLD-but I guess aren't. (5/29/08) Re: Comcast email hack... Tried accessing a couple of my Comcast email accounts which I have bookmarked and was sent into the Twighlight Zone so after a bit of investigating, I copied and pasted the mile long mess in the address bar EXCEPT for everything after ".net" and all was well with the my world... except I'm still outta work, my back is killing me and I can't get my car to run below 13.8 in the 1/4 mile. alfradio santos (5/29/08) Dave's response: God bless you, Al. Gee, I hope Citadel won't send me a "lawyer letter" for saying that..... My Comcast e-mail was impossible to access around 7:30 this morning. When I saw the DCRTV report, I called Comcast to ask about possible hacking. They have a recorded message up saying that they're aware of trouble on Comcast.net and are working to fix it. When I asked a rep point-blank whether the site had been hacked, she replied, "We don't know." When asked, she did say that Comcast would send some kind of message to subscribers after the problem is fixed. (5/29/08) Dave's response: I use Comcast and have had no trouble with web or e-mail access. Although, the comcast.net site doesn't seem to work..... There is limited Minor League Baseball coverage this year, tonight is another installment of the Bowie Baysox package WNAV 1430-AM is doing this year. Baysox and Altoona Curve at 7:05. (5/29/08) Les in Adelphi here who forgot to sign his name: I was the one that wrote about "Core Values" and didn't like the reference of Bill Clinton as president for life. Not to get off topic and to answer questions , ten years ago there was a budget surplus, a stronger dollar, considerably less demand for oil. The high price of oil is due to a weak dollar, exorbitant cost of insurance in war zones, and high demand in India and China. Yes there is market driven speculation and manipulation of prices but there is in everything. It doesn't help that there was a consolidation of oil companies. It is the republican administration not the congress that has messed up the economy. I had no problem with the commentary not to give pub to islamofascists. To get on topic, I liked Mike Buchanan humorous commentary and miss it. PS, Dear DCRTV Dave please don't post spoilers of current movies. (5/29/08) Maybe Unsigned Corporate Suit can explain this, why does MIX 107.3 run the same commericals several times an hour? Is the sales people not doing their job, is it a contract issue w/the particular vendor? Bear in mind, I am listening on the stream, so I don't know if that makes any difference. Mike in Waldorf (5/29/08) Interesting to note that if Snyder buys Sports Talk 980 he has a written obligation to air the ESPN programming. The exception is afternoon drive on the primary signal. The primary signal would be 980 which would mean all of the current shows on that station would be relegated to the weak stations. That means that John Thompson, Rick Walker and the Sports Reporters would move to the pea shooters. They may decide to pull the plug on the million dollar Riggins show which could clear the way for Andy and Steve. All that being said, any Redskin game that is on the air after 5pm in November in December would be difficult to pick up on any of the AM signals. (5/29/08) I don't know if you use Comcast as your ISP, but it seems as if the cable evil empire has had it's comcast.net and email domains hacked overnight. Both are down. There is evidence here: www.dslreports.com to the effect that the hacking came from Germany and might take 48 hours to correct. At the price of their service, to be without email for that long means that I'll be looking for some relief on next month's bill. (5/29/08) In Chris Core's selective history of WMAL he neglected to bring up one of the biggest mistakes in the station's history; hiring that idiot PD Randal "We don't cover Chocolate City" Bloomquist. Randal bought in the liar Michael Graham for evenings, then middays, destroying the station's credibility, and also forced inane topics on Chris including "should we have a holiday for Martin Luther King?" Low days for the station, and I am sure a lot of people bailed on the talker back then as a trusted news and information source. (5/29/08) It will truly be a sad day if lil' danny takes over WTEM. the last place to hear an objective opinion on the Dreadskin's. Well maybe the WaPo but I read that less an less as it becomes a tird rate paper letting all that experience go out the door. Too me Czaban is the best one in town to be funny and sharp in his comments. I had been listening to Czaban a lot in the mornings lately since the Imus shadow was so mediocre, although yesterday morning it actually sounded a lot like the good old show of last year. Hey nerd nicks listen to the conversational flow of Czaban's morning show versus the almost retarded"silly" discussions of the "Spork Chunkies" and there pretty much the same age ain't they? And oh yeah the Big Oh and Dooks are good cause they talk very loud and fast and laugh at their own crappy comments and keep telling their winder lickers just how good they are(not) drink drink drink that Cool Aid you nerd nicks now do the old boring shout down. And as for the big MOMMIE show are these really the same people who worked with Don Geronimo all those years or we got replicants who have been deprogramm ed into whacky Zooista's? I've given up and gone over to Czaban and yes tame Andy Pollin in the afternoons instead of the big fat MOMMIE show but I guess now with lil' danny and his evil ways those days are coming down to a precious few. It just seems to get worse and worse. I think most folks with any talent and creativity have pretty much given up, left or never tried in today's media and we're left with myopic boring piles of waste running it. Hey Chris Core what semi frequent guest on the old Two For The Road show wrote a song about cannibalism that zoomed up the Top 40 charts in the 1970's? But I don't want to be a pirate! I scream headache... (5/29/08) Someone was paying attention. Don Sutton, whose voice has gone south the past few days, is taking Wednesday night's game off with the injured Paul LoDuca filling in. Perhaps, LoDuca can break another story on the air. He was the one who told everybody about Zimmerman's shoulder problems. (5/29/08) A headline you won't see anywhere else except the MAILBAG (not newsworthy enough for the more meaningful headlines on the front page, like obscure book reviews from the Washington Post) of DCRTV. Fox (aka Faux) News Network is #1 for 77 straight months. TVNewser. An awful lot of Faux people must be watching. (5/29/08) If Comcrap sells any “isolated” systems, let Reston be one of them! Internet was off for over three fuckin' hours tonight. And, it was the second outage of the day! What I got a laugh at was seeing their technicians in cherry-picker trucks. I guess they must send them from Manassas, Dale City, or even Woodbridge because I bet the system here is probably 99% (or completely) underground. I bet if a real cable company bought the thing, outages this long wouldn’t be tolerated, let alone accepted. Maybe if they actually had a technician here, things could get fixed faster. But, I guess when you’re the biggest on the block, you feel like you’re the baddest on the block, and don’t really need to care. (5/29/08) /\ May 29 Messages /\ \/ May 28 Messages \/ Like the seasons turn, it's time again for some of the un-indoctrinated to make demands for a kinder and gentler Mailbag. Usually, the calls for civility or for webmaster to correct some perceived unfairness are followed by a threat not to donate to DCRTV. Thankfully, DCRTV Dave has never risen to the bait. The posts which use an abundance of "bad" language are actually far and few between. As a long time lurker, I like a few examples of humorous mudslinging between members of the gaming generation who still don't know that a woman's breast doesn't feel like a bag of sand. So, in between radio professionals writing 1000 word essays to each other, radiophiles discussing the location of this tower or that tower, MASN, 3WT, CC, XXX...and the rest of what I usually scroll past, I like a good slap fight between those who can't spell or have to fall back on the most common expletives after their creative writing crash lands because their 100 word vocabulary has been exhausted. I mean where else can you get the entertainment value of a guy complaining about naughty words in the Mailbag, then throwing up his cyber arms in disgust and proclaiming it's "rediculous." (5/28/08) The Radio Locator FM coverage maps are "real" FCC curves, but the contours are optimistic. The inner red curves are 60 dBu which is realistic for listening on a wide variety of radios in a congested urban area. Re: WSMJ, you can bet Clear Channel did the preliminary engineering, but the application engineering was done and vetted by an outside independent firm. Clear Channel is more than capable of doing this application in house, but made the wise decision to have it done outside. (5/28/08) Speaking of 104.3...I used to live in Bethany Beach, DE-and 104.3 would stop the scan on my radio. It would come in louder than most OC area locals. So-you can hear 104.3 from south of Columbia to Newark, DE without much interuption, from Frederick to the Ocean without much interuption. I traveled to Delaware this weekend and compared 104.3's playlist to Radio 104.5 from philly--almost a complete mirror! (5/28/08) Johnny Dark is on XM6 THIS FRIDAY from 4 until 9 representing the old WCAO in Baltimore. Also, this broadcast can be heard free on the Internet at www.xmradio.com where you can get a free listen on the 60's channel at that time! Best Wishes, Dave in Waldorf (5/28/08) Uncle Bobby, I miss you so much. It was great to see your post. I owe you so much in the way of a "thank you" for introducing me to Buddy Deane. The days working with you, Buddy and the gang at WAMD will always remain special. I may just join you and the Committee at the block party in Mt. Vernon. However, please don't make fun of me doing The Madison. It's the Wilt Chamberlain hook that always does it. I am definitely not going to be in front of Bruno, Len and Kari anytime soon. Bob, thanks for all that you do to keep vintage rock and roll alive and well. It's in your heart and in your soul my friend. You do it with class. Love and blessings. Joyce Conroy (WHFC) (5/28/08) While we’re discussing the coverage plots shown on various websites, what about the DTV ones published by the FCC? Do they refer to RF coverage area only or does the plot indicate “reliable reception” with a "typical consumer receiver/converter and antenna"? I ask this because while 60dBu coverage is sufficient for decent analog TV reception regardless of UHF or VHF, the vagaries introduced with the VSB-8/ATSC signal may make this “time-tested standard” a moot point with DTV. I’d especially like to see Dave Loudin’s thoughts on this one. Thanks! –Unsigned Corporate Suit (5/28/08) As much as I complain about WTEM I will still make this promise to Mr. Snyder. If he buys WTEM and turns it into all (or even partial) syndicated crap I will never listen to any of the stations. I'll listen to a Korean station before I will listen to a Jim Rhome or Dan Patrick or whatever the hell else is out there. (5/28/08) (Yes, I know young people hear worse in their daily lives, but I'm not going to direct them to a site where it allegedly is condoned.) Ok Mr. "Career Day in Broadcasting" (yes...I AM laughing)...you use the phrase "allegedly condoned" regarding the use of profanity in the Mailbag. If its "alleged", doesn't that mean that its neither been proven true or false? Sounds to me like your being "Mr. Censor" by not recommending DCRTV to your students which would totally be against any broadcaster's First Amendment right to free speech. Way to go, professor! (5/28/08) Yes on the 5pm news today, WBAL TV's Donna Hamilton showed the old set being torn down and the new totally digital full green screen sports and weather segment backrounds that have been hung on a wall. But not ONCE did I hear her say "HD" or "high definition" news coming soon so maybe this is not going to be as ambitious a digital conversion as what WBFF FOX 45 is doing? Anyone know to what extent Hearst has done HD in other similar size markets? By the way, WBFF FOX 45 is now running an advertisement as soon being FIRST with Local News in High Definition in Baltimore so at least somebody's already predicting a winner in the Baltimore HD race. :-) (5/28/08) To the ad-hominem arguments: 1) doesn't matter who created radio-locator - they use the database extracts published by the FCC which are secondary sources. The FCC's plots use 360 points where radio-locator uses 72 or 36, so even with the same data, they will look different. Radio-locator is the only source for AM coverage plots using ground conductivity, however. 2) If you think that the allocation study I linked to is tainted becasue it came from Clear Channel, then we might as well toss out all the engineering submissions to the FCC since they use the same standards. Sorry, this is a well-engineered request that improves service where it is needed and, in total, reduces interference. Regards, Dave Loudin (5/28/08) And let us not forget how wonderfully Bill Clinton responded to the attack on the World Trade Center. In 1993. And how he stood down the 24/7 Air Force patrols of the coast and dismissed the Marine guard from the White House. Those coastal patrols could have and would have prevented 9/11. Now there is a legacy of leadership and protection for him to be proud of. Anybody heard from Babs Streisand lately? How about Prince Bandar? How about Riggs Bank? (5/28/08) Dave's response: Getting off topic. That's where I've got my money, the Johnny Riggs Bank..... I read the attack on Chris Core and just couldn't resist this addition: In 2000, Clinton is one who signed a bill allowing for energy trading deregulation which has allowed the current speculators/manipulators from driving the price of oil and gas sky high......got this from a U of MD professor....if we had somebody watching the trading, then the price would be a lot less. If you credit him for $0.99 gas, then you also have to acknowledge the above information. (5/28/08) hi Dave...just a quick note to mark the fact that sunday was the sixteenth anniversary for a full time sports talk radio station in dc....Kiley and I started up the engine right after the indy 500....He is in Dallas working with Michael Irvin..I am still out here in the desert of southern california...We spoke last night and really could not believe that it was that long ago...congrats to all the guys who are still working there.....Rich "da coach" Gilgallon (5/28/08) The impending monopolization of D.C. sports radio is an appalling prospect for fans of multiple local sports teams. With WMAL and WJFK unwilling to air sports play-by-play on any significant level, only Red Zebra and Bonneville could be left as viable access options for local college and pro sports teams. As is, minor league baseball and Washington Mystics broadcasts have already disappeared from local radio. I fear that the likes of George Washington, George Mason, American U. and D.C. United may be forced to follow their brethren off the terrestrial radio airwaves. Everett W. (5/28/08) Can anyone stop snyder from buying these stations? If this happens, then no one will be allowed to criticize that poorly run team. All his XXX people do is fluff the team as much as possible including lead man larry Michael who is just brutal with his ass kissing. This can’t happen. (5/28/08) Because I work in radio, I am invited to speak at career days about jobs in broadcasting (stop laughing). I used to recommend DCRTV to students as a way of finding out about the industry from those in the know. However, with the proliferation of questionable language, I have ceased doing that. Yes, I know young people hear worse in their daily lives, but I'm not going to direct them to a site where it allegedly is condoned. (5/28/08) I had to go to Dover AFB yesterday and I kept 104.3 to at least the Delaware line along the mid-Shore crossing MD 302/454-DE 8 corridor. According to Google Maps, that's 48 miles by way of the crow (compare to 45 to Easton, where another poster said the signal was coming in well). (5/28/08) Is it me or is the type of language on this site deteriorating? Some of the vile obscene content is getting old. I'm no prude, but this is rediculous. My parents always told me that if you had to resort to "foul language" you had no skill with the spoken word. I agree. All the "f'n, a'hole, a'wipe..and now the Mary Jo c**t." Come ON...let's be adults here if that's possible. There are so many GREAT ways to convey the message TWITS-BOBB (5/28/08) "Snyder Close To Buying SportsTalk 980" Dave, I just don't see how they can do this with the big sale pending.......... (5/28/08) Dave's response: Maybe an LMA with Snyder until the big CC deal buyout deal closes? I could see Snyder using 980 AM with his current rimshot FMers 92.7 in far-suburban MD and 94.3 in far-suburban VA. That would be an excellent pairing, since 980 is directional at night and doesn't hit some of the outer suburbs too well. I don't know what Snyder would do with AMers 730, 570, and 1260 - all of which have severe signal limitations. Maybe put Spanish sports talk on all three. That would free up Michael Savage for WMAL or 3WT..... Geez....three more radio stations for Dan Snyder to F*** up and on the AM band to boot. Does this mean no more Sports Reporters, Phil Wood, John Thompson, Al Koken and the rest of live programing will get the boot? Let's pray to God that the sale to Snyder ISN'T approved by the FCC Snyder should have bought the FM signal when he had the chance. Yo Snyder wake up! AM radio is nearly extinct. The area already knows he can't run a football team!!! (5/28/08) Not to beat a dead horse, but even the FCC plots for the new 104.3 from TV Hill show increased signal to places such as Rockville, Germantown, and Frederick county. And Radio-Locator was originally created by the clever folks at MIT. If I had to bet the farm on an MIT grad or an FCC employee, well, I think you know which one my money's goin on! :-) (5/28/08) “Chris Core, what did you hate when Bill Clinton was president? $0.99 gas or a strong housing market.” If you want to give President Clinton credit for the things you mention, please share with us what he did that brought these about. Of course I’m sure it’s occurred to you that the housing crash and $4 a gallon gas has come about since the Democrats have taken over Congress. Any accountability there? (5/28/08) Whoa, if the Danny is really buying 980 to add it to the TTDSRN (Teeny-Tiny Danny Snyder Radio Network), gotta wonder what the future holds for Andy Polley and Steve Czaban . . . can they get aboard the Larry Michael "Never A Discouraging Word" train? Slightly seriously, would the Danny just dump all the local programming except for the Larry Michael Oral Satisfaction Redskins Hour? Would this open up the possibility of more sportsyak on 106.7? It wouldn't take much to beat pure ESPN/Larry Michael on 980. Sincerely, TMU (5/28/08) Just got back from a trip to Easton and 104.3 was booming! I must say the playlist is pretty close to the old HFS...now when do we get live jocks? G.E. (5/28/08) Last I heard about WBAL-TV's HD plans, the studio shots will be in HD; but liveshots, packages, et cetera will be shot 16x9 standard def. (5/28/08) On his D.C. Sports Bog, Dan Steinberg has started doing sports media approval ratings during what he regards as a down time for local sports - "perhaps you've noticed that hot D.C. sports blogging topics are fairly non-existent from May through August." He's decided to begin with WTEM talk show host Steve Czaban - "I figured we should choose the most polarizing, most controversial ... figure in the D.C. Sports Media. Then I realized that linchpin ... was most likely Steve Czaban. Which probably tells you all you need to know about the D.C. Sports Media." Some out-of-town media outlets have been taking shots at the Washington area for not packing Nationals Park on a regular basis. In particular, I understand that one of the Milwaukee announcers was really outspoken on the topic when the Brewers were here - "perfect weather, a brand new ballpark and they don't come close to selling it out on a holiday weekend - are you kidding me??". Hello - the Tampa Bay Rays are clearly the surprise team of baseball this season. A franchise that's never had a winning season in its history suddenly sports the best record in the American League, yet they draw a whopping 10,511 for a home game against Texas last night. A new stadium alone can't guarantee repeated sellouts. Attendance at Detroit's Comerica Park and MIlwaukee's Miller Park wasn't all that great before those two teams became contenders. Camden Yards in the 90s was the exception - a trend setting ballpark in a town where the Orioles were the only major pro sports team at the time it opened. So let's not be dumping on local fans for not turning out in blockbuster fashion for a last place club with little prospect for on-field success this season. Given the circumstances, Nats attendance has been more than respectable thus far. As the Capitals recently showed, this town supports winners and the Nationals Park ticket is sure to become very hot once the team's good enough to contend for titles. The link to Steinberg's blog - blog.washingtonpost.com... Mike, Fairfax (5/28/08) I think Pacifica has a faulty memory of its own ultra-left-wing bias. Back in 1968, Robert Kennedy was considered by the left to be merely a younger version of "The Establishment"; left-wingers only wanted Eugene McCarthy for President. However, Mr. McCarthy was not assassinated, so Pacifica can't memorialize him next month. They have to pretend that they care. Sen. Kennedy, the carpetbagger New York Senator (apparently the state loves carpetbaggers; or at least the southeastern part does) was actually murdered because he wasn't left-wing enough: apparently, Sirhan Bishara Sirhan thought he was too pro-Israel, something that the Pacifica radio station's leaders would agree with, though certainly not the method used. And while I certainly do not think the same thing should ever happen to Sen. E. Kennedy, I am outraged, but not surprised, t hat no reporters talk about how he weaseled out of a manslaughter charge all those years ago by being a "man of the people" (I guess MJ Kopechne was not one of the "people"; she was just a c***). (5/28/08) "This Just In: MSNBC Leans Left" that's all the MSM will cop to at the moment because it's so obvious. (5/28/08) Dave Loudin is correct once again... I am absolutely certain that Clear Channel would never supply advantageous data to the FCC and certainly the FCC inspected those Channel 104.3 signal plots and docs AT LEAST as well as the FAA inspected those Southwest planes, correct? :-) (5/28/08) "Maybe there is someone there live pushing buttons, but no one went on the air. " This person is correct. No one has been live on WJZW for over a week. Maybe more. Not that it really matters. The program director must be on a junket. How difficult would it be to play a Scott Shannon tape? (5/28/08) June 4th is the 40th Anniversary of the Robert F. Kennedy assassination.The Pacifica Radio Archives is offering audio recordings of RFK for free to scholars, churches, artists and non-profits. Won't you helps us get the word out? Thank you, Brian.... A young and vital Democratic United States Senator battles to win his party’s nomination for President. He speaks out against an unpopular war, environmental destruction, racial inequality and mounting economic injustice. About to deliver a pivotal speech, he was assassinated on June 4, 1968 at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, California. “For all of our wealth, and all of our power, all of our statistics of our gross national product [GNP], cannot make up the satisfaction, the purpose, and the dignity of our lives… [The]s gross national product…counts air pollution, jails, the destruction of the redwoods…the equipment for police to put down riots, and television programs that glorify violence in order to sell toys to our children.” Robert F. Kennedy, June 4, 1968 RFK’s words convey a relevance and urgency as true to us now, as they did 40 years ago. In the temperature and humidity-controlled vaults of the Pacifica Radio Archives in Los Angeles are his compelling and prophetic words as broadcast on the first alternative, listener-supported radio stations in the nation: KPFA (Berkeley), KPFK (Los Angeles), WBAI (NYC), WPFW (D.C.),KPFT (Houston, TX). The Pacifica Radio Archives (PRA) has recently discovered and restored three historic reel-to-reel audio tape recordings which capture and transmit RFK’s message 1. June 4, 1968, moments before his assassination, Ambassador Hotel, Los Angeles... 2. May 24, 1968, with Republican business executives at the Beverly Hilton, Los Angeles... 3. April 19, 1968, speech at the Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles before business and financial executives sponsored by the Town Hall of Southern California. Includes Q & A.... These recordings are available to students, scholars, educators, authors, artists and documentarians. For more information about these, and other recently restored recordings from the Pacifica Radio Archives, check out the 1968 Revolution Rewind Project on your local Pacifica Radio station, or go to: www.pacificaradioarchives.org (5/28/08) Dave's response: Sounds like it will be of particular interest to Hillary Clinton..... So here's a question...why is it, when the Orioles are playing on MASN in HD and are simulcast on WJZ, the WJZ game is in standard definition and not high definition, even on WJZ's over the air HD feed? Dish Network doesn't offer MASN in HD because they're too busy giving us the World Fishing Network in HD, so I noticed that last night's game against the Yankees was also on WJZ in HD, except it wasn't. Are the Nationals games that are in HD on MASN also in HD on WDCA 20? Just curious, Greg in Reisterstown (5/28/08) Dave's response: Anybody flip by Mojo HD during the half hour before a MASN game comes on? They run these cool MASN HD animations - kind of the HD version of a test pattern. Over and over and over. I could sit there with my vodka tonic and watch 'em for hours. Highly entertaining..... Re: “The question is-will CC dump money into 104.3?” Hahahaaa...hahahaaaa...(make them stop)...hahaha,heheeee, woo, woo, woo...ah...let me catch my breath...wooo That was a good one! Did you hear the one about the priest and the rabbi who were in a bar—and the priest says...? (5/28/08) It is painful listening to Don Sutton trying to do the broadcast of the Nationals game in San Diego. He has been battling voice problems the past few days and I know he's a gamer but perhaps there is a d-l for broadcasters, afterall. It might be a good idea to have Charlie or Dave come over from radio to help out or have Ray Knight fly out west and allow Don to rest his vocal cords. (5/28/08) Here we go again with the ranting about 104.3's move-in to Baltimore proper. Please, the FCC's site is the best site for depicting FM coverage. RecNet and radio-locator are secondary sources that make mistakes, especially with directional antennas. The REAL data is in the filing submitted by Clear Channel here. Impacts to other stations are thoroughly discussed. These are the closest things to facts in allocation studies. Regards, Dave Loudin (5/28/08) According to earlier posts, there is supposed to be someone live overnight on 105.9. I listened for a half hour between 3:45 am and 4:15 am and all I heard were station breaks and music. Did I miss something? Maybe there is someone there live pushing buttons, but no one went on the air. (5/28/08) /\ May 28 Messages /\ \/ May 27 Messages \/ Dave, My dad and sister went to Foxborough, MA for the NCAA Lacrosse Final Four as my cousin plays for Hopkins. I e-mailed my sister a list of stations to listen to and she raved about the new 101.9 WRXP out of NYC on their way up to the Boston area. She knows music as well as anyone that posts on here, she knows ten times more than I will ever will so her praise of the station and their variety says something...Also heard Bob Shannon mention that WCBS-FM is doing really really well with listenership, he can't quote numbers but they are real happy about things up in NYC. Z-100 might be number #12+ but where it counts CBS-FM is kicking ass. -Michael Popovec (5/27/08) Doesn't all this talk about 104.3's signal also have to do with one's car radio to some extent. Some radios seem to be stronger than others or at least has been my experiance. 104.3 has always come in great on my radio in most areas. Yeah some issues in HC because of 104.1 but other than that the station has rocked my radio in Baltimore when I lived up there...Ken in Easton-The question is-will CC dump money into 104.3? Unless its temporary the fact that Elliott is on in the morning shows that they want to keep costs to a minimum. Seems to me they will probably add a live afternoon person then the rest will be out of towners to v/t middays, nights, weekends. Its not a slam but just seems to be what they are doing nationally. Clear Channel-Baltimore should be a model in terms of holdings for them across the marketplace. Own just a few stations in each major market (no more than three or four), pour in resources to those few, that way you can maximize the product you are putting out and make a lot of money. Will it be less overall, sure but obviously they have suffered with owning too many...Dave Hill shouldn't be worried. Hearst spends money and is committed locally. Yes 98 Rock is a very local station and popular. I did an event recently with Stash and not one person didn't know who he was and 98 Rock. They are a Baltimore insitution as was WQSR for years only 98 Rock lives. -Michael Popovec (5/27/08) Far be it from me to get between two 13 year old girls snapping each other's bra straps, but driving home I scanned WJFK, only to hear O & Dukes talking about the latest Indiana Jones installment. I raised my own voice to block the discourse as I fumbled to quickly change the station. Not knowing or caring about what had been said earlier in regards to a warning, I managed to avoid any spoilers to a movie I may still see. Judging by the response which indicates that ample warning and disclosure were given to the audience, and knowing that I managed to hastily change the station to avoid any snippets of how our favorite fedora wearing senior citizen is whooping ass, I assess the original complainant as a troll or of very low IQ. (5/27/08) Dave's response: I saw the new IJ flick last weekend. And while it is an entertaining thrill ride, the plot is pretty standard and predictable. You could see just about everything coming about 30 minutes before it happened on the screen..... Chris Core, what did you hate when Bill Clinton was president? $0.99 gas or a strong housing market. There was no war in Iraq. How's Dumya working out for you. Your core values commentary of Today was a pile of crap. Was Bill's BJ worse than lying about WMD? How do you know Hilary wouldn't be a great president? You jumped the shark when Trumbull retired. (5/27/08) www.rnntv.com... RNN TV seems to have strayed from " all infomercial, some news" programming. They have now added reruns of " Law and Order - Criminal Intent" in between local news blocks and "Richard French Live". (5/27/08) COMCAST GIVETH AND COMCAST TAKETH AWAY....... (An update to a previous mailbag post)...... Yes, Comcast has removed the Washington DC ION (formerly PAX) station from its Baltimore County cable system, and in usual sleazy Comcast fashion, their TV Guide channel still lists the station on channel 20, not weeks, but MONTHS after removing the station! Yes, it's been quietly moved to digital and another analog channel has disappeared most likely for good. I almost wonder if this has to do with fooling county officials who might inquire as to why Comcast is no longering deliverying x number of analog basic cable stations as per their cable license agreement. I could see where the digital conversion could get them into some serious legal trouble if they've not re-negotiated their county agreements in time. I can think of no other reason for such constant channel games other than it being a deliberate planned act. Sorry, inept just doesn't cut it. Also, my condolences to those MLB fans who enjoyed the MLB package for the entire month of May FREE FROM COMCAST on their HDTV sets! Sorry, it's gone as of today, but Comcast is now promo-ing the TENNIS Channel and UNIVERSAL HD for FREE as a consolation prize. I have to say I really enjoyed watching the YES network, Mets, Red Sox, Angels, Dodgers, and other regional sports channels' local game coverage, some I'd never ever seen before, but I doubt I'd pay all that money for it. Oh well, it was great while it lasted. BaBYE MLB Package! (5/27/08) "Congrats to those ASSWIPES Big Zero and Douche for ruining "Indiana Jones" that came out 4 F**KING DAYS AGO!!!!!!!!!!!!! You know, there are some people who don't run out and see a movie the god damn day it comes out!!! Way to go you useless hacks!!!!" For someone who hates the show so much you seem to listen quite a bit. Maybe I had you wrong, maybe you are an avid listener of the show, why else would you know about this right now? Well, either way I guess you don't listen very well so let me give you some more help, but you should really listen more carefully! :) Here is a link to the podcast www.wjfk.com, it is titled "05-27-08 Seg 05 - Chad did not love the new Indiana Jones movie " and it is the 6th one down (just encase you are as good at reading as you are at listening.) If you listen you will hear that they gave ample time and multiple warnings that they were going to spoil parts of the plot line. They even said on Friday that they were going to talk about the show, that is why I went out and saw the movie this weekend! And as a bonus for you the segment was MMA free, as was most of the show. I hope this helps, and you should really break this nasty habit of selective listening, I am sure there are support groups out there. Cheers, Erik (5/27/08) Chris Core mentions several contributing factors to his demise at the station all of which are true proven factors. What is not proven is that he lasted so long because old people left their radio on all day and he kept his job by default. The truth is he lasted so long because he was good at what he did. He still had a loyal audience. An audience so loyal that Citadel gave him a chance to say goodbye on the WMAL website after the fact. This of course was done to make the parting look more professional than the cheap ax job that it was, but why after the fact? Simple. WMAL was flooded with angry phone calls and emails wondering what had happened to Mr. Core. Chris Core over 3 decades attracted a slew of local advertisers who spent big money to advertise on WMAL. He was a proven talent, a guy that knew and still knows Washington and helped anchor that still sinking ship that is WMAL. His replacement, for example, Chris Plante could not be any more mediocre and just horrible as an interviewer and a talk show host. Although Mr. Plante may be less expensive he is proof that cheap is not always better. And in this case, it is much worse. I wonder what Citadel's payoff will be in 18 or 24 months after this move? What will they have saved with talent that doesn't draw big ratings, high billing, or even know of the market they are broadcasting in? I get the feeling that that this move will cost Citadel more in the long run than it gained in the short term. I think Chris Core will be the one that ends up coming out ahead on this one. (5/27/08) I think it's premature to make any decisions about whether you'll be able to receive Baltimore's new WCHH Channel 104.3 alt rock station until somebody can confirm that FM 104.3 is actually transmitting from Sinclair's TV Hill WBFF FOX 45 tower or not. Obviously, from Kingsville (the pre-existing location), it would be difficult if not impossible to receive the station in Fairfax or most of NoVA. Anybody know when the transmitter move is happening? (5/27/08) DCRTV Dave - the country station you heard underneath Baltimore's 104.3 is most likely 50kw Country KCY out of Harrisonburg (a sister Cheap Channel property). Chances are in order to protect KCY, the Bawlamer station won't be able to upgrade their signal very much toward DC. Now pass me a Natty Boh, hon - - - - - Larry in Luray (5/27/08) Dave's response: That's a strong probability. I often can get Harrisonburg's WQPO better than the Baltimore area's WZBA here in Wild West Fairfax on 100.7..... Regarding a mention in a previous post, what ever happened to Joel Spivak who was on WRC radio when it was talk? I got to DC in late 1983 and enjoyed listening to him. Also, what is Allen Prell doing these days? I know that Allen has a liberal point of view (but I sure enjoyed listening to him on WBAL) and most of the talk stations go for the conservative line, but Prell would be a good counterpoint, and if he is still in NOVA, a good LOCAL guy to have on the air again! (5/27/08) Happy Birthday to Ramsey Lewis, who turns 73 today! His instrumental jazz classic, "The In Crowd", was recorded live at the Bohemian Caverns club, in DC. It was a crossover hit on the pop and the soul record charts, too. (5/27/08) John (confused, obviously) wrote: "why are not the nba playoffs on a local radio station? why would triple X (redskins radio) air the NHL playoffs instead of the nba playoffs?" The NBA IS on Redskins Radio (92.7, 94.3, AM-730) -- all the way through the Finals. It's ClearChannel that has the NHL. Monday's game was on WTEM (AM-980) because the Orioles played in the day. The rest of the hockey is slated for AM-1260. Steve in Lanham (5/27/08) Dare I say, I'm slightly 'impressed' that FOX'News' even mentioned that 'Israeli Nukes' comment by Carter... FOX'News' is well known for censoring stories it/management doesn't like; i.e. Israeli nuclear weapons (cant embarrass those Jews! :-) ~Arthur S. (5/27/08) It's great seeing the posts about Morton Downey Jr. During his time at WRC, my former partner Gary StOurs and I were auditioning for a spot on WRC, we were competing against Brian and O'Brian and some others. We did a week, and from what we were told did very well. The problem was, that they had already decided on the end result. We relieved Mort daily. To both of us he was a nice, funny and very impulsive Talk Jock. He used to stay around for a few minutes after his shift and shoot the breeze with us. He'd make jokes about Joel Spivak...to Gary and to me he was a nice guy. Never once did he show any of the "anger" had a beautiful (wife too)..I think she was his wife..not sure. PLB (5/27/08) OK. Raise your hands if you're genuinely shocked that some dope at Faux News ''slipped'' and said something about ''offing'' Obama. Paul (5/27/08) hey jerk, Chad and Oscar told everyone about 50 times throughout the segment that if you didn't want to hear about Indiana Jones to turn your radio off. It's your own fault if you stumbled in halfway through and were to stupid to figure out that they were having a discussion about how crappy the movie was. Besides, if you were some big fan you would have seen it Thursday-Mon. Everybody is tired of your bitching about them here in the mailbag section. (5/27/08) Heard former morning guy Joel Kabik(sp?) on WAYZ on this past Sunday afternoon. What a nice treat. Was this a one-time deal subbing for someone because of the holiday? Tom in Silver Spring (5/27/08) Well, I am certainly enjoying the posts regarding Bawlamer radio and such. Great memories, and nice folks who are sharing them. Speaking of which....Everyone's invited to a couple of Oldies events in Baltimore in the last week of June. FIRST, I'll be spinning the tunes at a special Oldies Party featuring the Buddy Deane Committee members on Sunday June 22 from 4 - 8 PM at Charles and Biddle Streets in Mount Vernon. Yes indeedy, right out on the street. We're going to try to get a block-long 'Stroll' line going (and play our special 15 minute looped version by the Diamonds to get everybody through one time). The gig is promoted by Monumental Life Insurance as a charity event to raise money for the Maryland Mentor Program. Admission is free. Rain date is June 29....SECOND, I'll be hosting a 5 hour oldies dance at the Glen Burnie American Legion Post 40 on Saturday June 28 from 7 to Midnight. We're about 75% sold out (tix are $25 each) but if anyone wants to go contact me at bobmathers@hotmail.com. Had opportunity last week to talk to a man Baltimore old-timers know quite well. Jack Wells treated me to a two-hour lunch in Beverly Hills. The food was okay but the conversation was much better. The man will be 85 later this year and is sharp as a tack. Jack hosted TV shows for 7 years on WJZ-TV in Baltimore (along with Buddy Deane) and then moved to Hollywood where he acted in TV soaps and series in the 60's and 70's sandwiched around hosting a talk show for 5 years on KABC in Los Angeles. What a talented man and nice guy. Thanks to the likes of radio pros Ed Graham, Joyce Conroy, Gary Helton, Sam Beasley, Jack Edwards (and many others), and the folks who post here who love that era and how important it still is for so many today. Thanks too to WNAV in Annapolis and The Wave on 92.1 FM in Ocean City for picking up my weekly Ultimate Oldies Countdown show. We're just having fun with something called radio. Bob Mathers (5/27/08) I agree with Ed Jones of Bel Air. Lori Lewis is a class broadcaster who will be missed on local airwaves. We still mix smooth and classic jazz each morning from 7 to 9. Give us a try Ed. Regarding Morton Downey, Jr., I commuted to DC with him each morning during my Amtrak years. I'd get on the train in Aberdeen. Mort, who boarded somewhere north of there, would nearly run me over trying to get to the station platform to cop a smoke. He seemed to be nothing like his tv persona. I remember he always wore red socks. A programming note, Big Jim Charvat will begin subbing long term for Steve Cochran on "The Roots Cafe" starting in early June (Mondays 4-6p, & Sat. 7-9pm). Steve's battling some health issues and we've been airing encores for the past several weeks. Also Ed McBride's "Reflections of Ireland," formerly on WTMD, is now on 91.1 every Sunday from 4-6pm. Gary Helton, WHFC, Bel Air (5/27/08) (regarding a previous post) Here's a surprise twist about Indiana Jones that will probably ruin it for you too: Otto Rahn - a gay Nazi archaeologist - was the inspiration for Spielberg's big screen hero. www.telegraph.co.uk (5/27/08) Just saw a blurb on AllAccess's job page for a night slammer at Mix 107.3 - and it mentioned that they have America's best talent, including Jack Diamond. (5/27/08) The discussion hereabouts on Mort Sahl spiked my curiosity, so I did some Googling. Frankly, I was shocked to learn that 81-year-old Morty still walks this Earth. (I think I may have become confused when I only half-heard of the death of Mort Sahl, Jr., his 19-year-old son.) If you can believe his own words in a 1978 interview, Sahl's show on News-Talk 98 was merely meant to be a stepping stone to a major presence on NBC-TV. However, he only graced the WRC-AM airwaves from October 1978 to March 1979, and the TV gig didn't materialize. You can read that article and a second article that reported Sahl was breaking his radio contract at: DCMemories.com (5/27/08) Congrats to those ASSWIPES Big Zero and Douche for ruining "Indiana Jones" that came out 4 F**KING DAYS AGO!!!!!!!!!!!!! You know, there are some people who don't run out and see a movie the god damn day it comes out!!! Way to go you useless hacks!!!! (5/27/08) I left my car radio on 104.3 last night and when I got in this morning I found myself listening to Eliot and actually enjoying it. Is there a cure for this? I have a job interview tomorrow and I'm very concerned. (5/27/08) In re: Don't Go Back to Rockville, my girlfriend never liked that particular REM song until she brought her Ohio-bred self to Maryland. Now she has a new appreciation for how Michael Stipe's college girlfriend would indeed have been wasting another year. (5/27/08) I remember listening to Mort Sahl on WRC in the '70's. Initially, he was very funny and fresh but as time went on he became increasing angry, irrational and paranoid. He constant harped on the JFK assassination and declared the 1978 Jim Jones Jonestown mass murder- suicide to be a CIA backed plot as mind control experiment using poor blacks as guinea pigs. He was soon taken off the air and replaced with Pat Buchanan and Tom Braden in their CROSSFIRE radio talk show (pre-CNN incarnation). I had been a big fan of Sahl based on his comedy record albums from the late -50's and early '60's but his on-air slow motion meltdown showed me a another side of the guy that wasn't very appealing. (5/27/08) why are not the nba playoffs on a local radio station? why would triple X (redskins radio) air the NHL playoffs instead of the nba playoffs?......as an ESPN affiliate, triple X has the 1st rights to the nba playoffs???...yet they do not air them?....and they aired the stanley cup game #2 last night instead of celtics vs pistons? John (5/27/08) Ok, here's my take on "Channel 104.3", Baltimore's new "Alternative Rock" station w/ Elliot in the Morning. I've been listening to the station non-stop all weekend long including Monday up until Monday when I had to tune to Mickey, Amillia (sans Amillia, plus Steve Rouse), and Spiegel just to get a feel for the playlist. I like it, and I think that Baltimore needs this type of station full time too. It's basically the same format DC101 has been following for quite a while, with an important difference. I heard a couple songs on Channel 104.3 that I haven't heard on DC101, 98 Rock or WRNR yet. After FINALLY being able to get to the website (which had been down all weekend), there's a couple cool features pointing you to new, unsigned music. I was able to find out who the artist were that I heard for the first time through the "on-demand" feature on the site. You know, it's funny, when we lost 99.1 as a rock station, alot of people were saddened that the station that they loved or once loved (an f-in institution to some) was gone, yet most admitted that DC101 had turned into a better version of that type of station with that type of music. The problem was that CBS Radio didn't have it's heart into the station anymore. They were for the national corporate playlist, which is fine since that's been proven over and over again that that's what alot of people want, but there wasn't any "heart" into it. No direction. WHFS at that time had it's sights on being DC's rock station, even though Baltimore gave better numbers, and was losing. Shit, they lost. Forget about what WHFS became after the fact as a half take-over of Live 105.7. That was just filler until they could get more local talk and local sports programming. Alot of people didn't even know that 105.7 had turned into WHFS for quite a while, and by the time they figured it out, they canned the music and went full force with talk, sports (Go O's!), and infomercials (the worst kind too. The ones that seem like real radio shows. Yechhh.). Ok, sorry, but to get to the meat: HORRAY! BALTIMORE FINALLY HAS AN ALTERNATIVE ROCK STATION THAT HAS A GOOD SIGNAL WITH A POPULAR MORNING RADIO SHOW TO ANCHOR IT ALL! I don't care if it's corporate Clear Channel that runs it, radio is big money corporate stuff anyways. I love 98 Rock because it's a Baltimore rock station, but Dave Hill's comment made me laugh. He may be a cool boss to the very cool folks at 98 Rock, but it isn't like Hears Broadcasting is just so freakin' local and hip. Give "Channel 104.3" a chance, let them get the DJ's (pppplease get Johnny Riggs and some cooler people DC101's staff. Hopefully B-morons of some sort), let them get the promos, the events, the CONCERTS, and let them get the kids, teens, young adults and thirty somethings) listening. Talk to the teens around here: they'll tell ya. They DON'T listen to 98 Rock or the radio, period. Channel 104.3 has an opportunity to win some of those folks back with cool music shows. Hey, who am I anyways? I'm a nobody, a fan, a listener, shit, a CUSTOMER. All I know is that Clear Channel saw a market that hasn't been served 100% and is now COMMITTED. Good for them. KeninEaston/Brooklyn/GlenBurnie (5/27/08) Channel 11 has been anchoring from the newsroom for the past few days, any word on then building a new HD set? And any word on the new abc 2 news director? (5/27/08) interesting that the post has nothing on the clem florio obit yet. perhaps later, but florio was a huge part of the sports section for decades. makes no sense. (5/27/08) Dave's response: Or how about the Sun not yet reporting the WSMJ flip to WCHH. I guess if it's radio news that doesn't involve Marc Steiner, it ain't worth reporting. I've looked all over the site and haven't seen anything..... Seth Warner's fill in work is headline news? He has been doing fill in work at WRQX since the very beginning of the year. Little slow on this one Dave. (5/27/08) Seth Warner has been working weekends at Mix 107.3 for several months now. (5/27/08) One of the reasons for the many format changes at 104.3 was the poor signal and NO BUDGET. It was possible to get a 3 share or better with some kind of specialized music flow, but when the format worked, someone with a budget would copy it and advertise. We would then have to change it again. The bad signal was made worse by the move to a new site (one rumored to have increased the bank account of the then manager). My favorite format was "Non-Stop Stereo Rock" a blend of Album Rock, R&B, and Pop. Had a 3.7 share and was home grown automation. When Scripts bought the station, I asked Dick Jansen what he was going to do about the signal problem. He said, "What signal problem?" Seems the manager drove the signal with Dick, and really drove the signal. Joel Denver was the first new PD for Scripts, but the real success of B-104 came from a very big budget, and lots of promotion. An improved signal would be the best thing that has happened to that frequency. By the way, the only photos that I have are with Al Martino, and Peter and Gordon. My Stevie Nicks photos were lost in the fire - - and stop making fun of my time tapes. Ed Graham (5/27/08) RE: [ WCHH Channel 104.3's move to TV Hill and effect on Signal towards DC ]........ I predict YES, Better signal towards DC, but there seem to be differing opinions on this. DCRTV Tech Guru Dave Loudin says less interference to 104.1 and less signal to DC and the documentation provided to the FCC by Clear Channel says similar language. FCC maps BEFORE www.fcc.gov and FCC maps AFTER www.fcc.gov... However, other sources disagree..... RecNet.com 104.3 BEFORE recnet.com RecNet.com 104.3 AFTER recnet.com.... Radio-Locator.com www.radio-locator.com also shows a significant signal increase to the DC area for Baltimore's 104.3. My theory is that terrain will be the big difference since downtown Baltimore skyscrapers & buildings will no longer block 104.3's signal towards DC anymore. There's probably a clear shot from TV Hill to the Washington Monument. However, downtown Baltimore will still block to some extent 104.3's signal towards 104.1's transmitter in southern Maryland. 104.3 has an advantage over 104.1... 104.3 is licensed to Baltimore, 104.1 is NOT licensed to DC, only the normal signal protections apply and I think CC was very clever in this app. -- Joe in Essex reports, you decide. :-) PS: Obviously the Orioles PR dept also remembers the WFBR AM 1300 Orioles Magic days too or they wouldn't have gone to some expense to SHOOT an Orioles Magic VIDEO that's playing at Camden Yards every day! DUH! I wonder if 105.7 or ESPN 1300 will play the song now or would that be just way too embarassing for CBS Baltimore management. The only thing more funny than the idiots running CBS Baltimore is the DCRTV mailbag lapdogs that attempt to go to ridiculous lengths to support these clowns. Pathetic. (5/27/08) Is Seth Warner back at Mix 107.3? I remember he did some weekend work there after he left WMZQ the first time, and I heard him on Mix over the weekend - I believe the Sunday evening shift. Any idea what's going on? (5/27/08) To the poster hoping to pick up 104.3 in Fairfax--Forget about it. Praise 104.1 broadcasts digitally, and the sidebands wipe out your reception. I'm convinced that's one of the attractions of the digital system for broadcasters: blocking out-of-town reception. Plus, there are rumblings of increasing the power of the sidebands (because as it is now, the digital system doesn't even work very well), which means even more splatter onto other stations. (5/27/08) Dave's response: I was trying to listen to Baltimore's 104.3 here in Northern Virginia on the car radio and all I could get was Praise 104.1's digital hash, occasionally interrupted by country music. Probably some station in downstate Virginia..... A couple of things - Morton Downey did broadcast from, well, not DC - but Silver Spring - high atop the World Building. He was a trip. Joe in Essex - I don't think Dave is giving the deceased folks identities - but everyone knows (living and dead) that you are the only person that gives a shit about the WFBR calls returning to 1300. The calls changed to WLIF in 1990 to match the FM. I'm pretty sure that decision was made while Dave LaBrozzi was spinning the carts in Pittsburgh. I like the suggestion of playing Joe Evelius' airchecks. Seems to make sense. Finally - nice to hear out of Joyce Conroy, hon! Glad you are well. Signed - a fan. (5/27/08) Re: A couple of points directed to "Doc Holliday"... Morton Downey, Jr., was the 9 to noon guy on WRC in the early 90's. He was on until just after the Democrat Convention, then his show was dropped. Sometimes, Downey would stay over for a few minutes and engage Spivak in some funny conversations, where Spivak would sometimes refer to Downy by his true first name, Sean. Mort Sahl must have been on WRC before I arrived in the area. Doc Holliday (5/27/08) Let's face it, WMAL cut Chris Core because he's past it. He's not that talented anyway and trying to re-invent himself for modern radio did not work. He was too expensive for the station to keep him because he was not producing the revenue it takes to pay his salary and make a profit for the company. He was never really that good and only stayed around because old-timers set their radios to WMAL and left it there the entire week. He blames evrything but the fact that he was not a powerhouse talent but an old sweater that everyone wore until it had too many holes in it. Goodbye Chris; enjoy your retirement. (5/27/08) Hi, Dave. You've said it first. I can't remember the date, but you did say in a past posting that the Smooth Jazz format's days were number in Baltimore, when True Oldies 105.9 came on the air. I didn't know anything about 104.3's format change until I turned it on Saturday evening to listen to some Smooth Jazz. I listened for 3 seconds and said, "This isn't smooth jazz". When I came to work this morning, I read the details in DCRTV. I'll miss Lori Lewis, because she was one class act and a great broadcaster. I guess the handwriting was on the wall when they fired Randy Dennis, and kept Trish Hennessey on for minimal assignments. Well, Smooth Jazz lasted for almost 5 years on 104.3, which was good. Also, I haven't heard Jason Kidd on MIX 1065 for over a couple of months. Was he let go again? TJ Roberts the host of the Saturday night Show "In the MIX" has been doing Jason's shift. Ed Jones, Bel Air MD (5/27/08) As one who worked at WRC during its late 70's-early 80's transition from all news to newstalk, I can assure you that both Morts were there: Mort Sahl and Morton Downey, Jr., although not at the same time, as I recall. Sahl angered a lot of listeners by putting down the whole town as "sick", but Downey seemed to have mellowed from his early days in Florida radio, when he once punched out a guest on the air. Downey was also considerably the nicer of the 2. Sahl was extremely full of himself. (5/27/08) This comes from the dailyvoice.com: Did that really happen? First Huckabee and then Hillary. Now a Fox News commentator jokes about assassinating Barack Obama. "And now what we have what some are reading as a suggestion that someone knock off Osama, uh Obama...Well, both would be good." That was Liz Trotta, a former editor with the Washington Times and reporter for the Chicago Tribune and Newsday, appearing on Fox News on Sunday, interviewed by host Eric Shawn. Trotta was discussing the controversy surrounding Hillary Clinton's gaffe last Friday in which she seemed to be suggesting the possible assassination of Senator Barack Obama as a justification for her continuing her campaign. Trotta laughed after making her remark and the host, Shawn, quickly jumped in with a sarcastic reply: "Talk about how you really feel." See it for yourself in the link directly below: www.youtube.com (5/27/08) I have read several posters talk about the impending move a 104.3 to "TV Hill" to increase their signal. Any chance this move will help 104.3 reception in the Washington DC area? Anyone know when this move is taking place? Id love another rock station in these neck of the woods. Unfortunately, I cannot pick up the signal in wild west Fairfax (5/27/08) /\ May 27 Messages /\ \/ May 26 Messages \/ If Chris Core wants to talk about not working at WMAL anymore - he is more than welcome to. After spending 30 years in the same place and seeing the station get gutted from a solid local community LEADER to the disaster that it is now while the whole time maintaining his composure - I think he is more than entitled to speak out. That was his home away from home. I think the corporate mindset that we most move on immediately after being tossed to the curb because we got too expensive is nonsense. He got too expensive for a reason. The reason is he was good at what he did. Love him or hate him, he was clearly good enough to be in the same place for 30 years. It's a real shame what happened to that station. He should not have to apologize for fondly looking back and wondering why did it have to happen. Some of us wonder the same. (5/26/08) Joel A. Spivak, speaking, is a spokesman for the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, based in Washington. I spoke with him most recently last year, and he's doing fine with a worthy cause. He's a little melancholy about the way he and "broadcasting" parted ways, but he knows it's the nature of the business, not the quality of his work. I had the pleasure of doing the last newscast on his last show at WRC 980Kc, as NBC prepared to sell the station it had owned since 1922. (5/26/08) A couple of points directed to "Doc Holliday"... 1) I think you may be remembering Mort Sahl on WRC-AM, not Morton Downey, Jr.. Unless I'm mistaken, Downey, Jr. never regularly broadcast from DC., although his syndicated TV show was carried here. 2) You've accidentally left off Joel's true last name... When he aired weekdays on News-Talk 98, he invariably referred to himself as "Joel A. Spivak SPEAKING." (5/26/08) Update on Joel A. Spivak. An honorable activity. www.tobaccofreekids.org (5/26/08) Doc Holliday, I posed that question several weeks ago on radio-info.com. The only reply that I received was that according to laradio.com, he is now an internet consultant. JohnnyuinHanover,Pa. (5/26/08) For what it's worth, the Rockville in REM's "(Don't Go Back to) Rockville" is indeed our own 20850 - as is explained here: en.wikipedia.org (5/26/08) Watching WBAL TV 11 this morning and afternoon, the newcasts were broadcast from a temporary set in the 11 Newsroom. Speculation is the Hearst Argyle NBC affiliate has begun the process of tearing down the current news set and building and HD ready set. Possible HD Debut in the summer for the Olympics? Maybe... H/A Affiliates WCVB, KMBC, WTAE, KCRA, already have brand new sets. Hopefully BAL is following suit and will be in HD very soon. (5/26/08) Happy Memorial day to everyone on the Mailbag. Hey Beave and Helicopter Scotty, thanks so much for your post. I am surrounded by so many remarkable people on the Mailba