Current Mailbag - Mailbag Archive Index - DCRTV Front Page - Support DCRTV DCRTV Mailbag - August 18 to August 23, 2008 Latest messages listed first..... \/ August 23 Messages \/ That 15 minute commercial loop wasn't the only oddity in Snyderadioland on Saturday evening. Around 6:15 PM, I was darting between the AM'ers to hear what was going on. Naturally, programming was duplicated across 2 or more stations at a time. But here's what's weird: there was as much as nine to 10 seconds of delay from one station to the other for the same program material. It's all coming from one studio folks, so why the lag? Are they sending audio by telegraph now? (8/23/08) Channel 9 has more weathermen that any other station in the city. So what does clueless Brett Haber say to open the pregame show for tonight's game? "Tropical Storm Fay has spared Charlotte and......". Hello Brett. Tropical Storm Fay has only affected Florida and is no where near North Carolina. (8/23/08) Dave's response: Plus, Charlotte is pretty far inland and doesn't usually receive the brunt of the hurricanes that do hit North Carolina..... An interesting observation. Up here in south central Pennsylvania, the Ravens game is on WMAR-TV. I believe this is due to the fact that WBAL is showing the Olympics. It is also being shown on the MASN channel. This is the TV Guide channel but used for either MASN's Oriole games or National games. I noticed that the MASN banner is only shown on the MASN channel game and the game is about two seconds behind the WMAR game. Also, the WMAR game was breaking up badly during part of the first quarter.. JohnnyuinHanover,Pa. (8/23/08) Someone was complaining about the Redskins game. The COMCAST guide shows the Redsking game on CSN. But here in Hanover,Pa, they are showing a rerun of some college game. What's going on with that. Several days ago, the guide show the Redskins were playing but that was also a recorded college game. JohnnyuinHanover,Pa. (8/23/08) So I'm trying to watch the little league World Series on abc 7 and there was at least 3 times where they had long periods of dead air. I don't mind if they miss the annoying commercials but why do they cut off the action when they come back from the commercails? Is this a abc 7 problem? Does anybody know if they have board ops on weekends?....if so they need to wake up,...or are they fully automated...if they are they need to program it right. I planned to dupe the game from my dvr to tape but it looked too bad too keep. (8/23/08) What the fuck is going on with the Redskins broadcast right now?!?!?!? They have been looping the same commercials for over 15 minutes. They did manage to sneak in a John McCain commercial. It's been going on since about 7:30. Did they lose the feed? Did Danny Napoleon Snyder not pay a bill? Tony Rome (8/23/08) To the McCain basher: I am not a fervent McCain supporter but I can totally understand his wanting to check the right answer to how many houses he had before answering. Can you imagine the conniption the impartial (LMFAO) media would have had if he had given the wrong number instead of saying I don't know? Wealthy people frequently have property titled in different structures/entities for tax/estate purposes; if he, off the top of his head gave a 'guesstimate' and it turned out that a house that he thought they owned together was actually titled solely in her name, or vice versa, Olbermann would have a stroke right there on the set, even though no one would see it. Some of aren't 'trying to make ends meet'; some of us actually aspire to, dare I say it, become wealthy. I DO think out economy is fundamentally sound; there's plenty of opportunity if your eyes are open. I plan on making plenty of money over the next four years and I think that I stand to keep MUCH more of it under McCain that Obama, pure and simple. Everyone involved in the race for the White House is rich; your friendly Wal-Mart greeter isn't going to be the next Commander in Chief with a VP that's a fry cook at McD's. Get over your envy of others success and instead find positive things to focus on. Dave, sorry about the length and I hope dropping Keith O's name made it somewhat on point. (8/23/08) RE: [ " Again, quite legal. " ]......... Do you realize you contradicted yourself in the same paragraph??? First you said 53-1, which would be the correct designation for the Gainesville station, then you said digitally 28-1 at the very end! The FCC specifically REQUIRES the ANALOG CHANNEL # to be used, NOT the DIGITAL ONE! Nowhere in the marketing of this station is the analog channel mentioned, clearly a violation of FCC rules. Marketing a cable channel is a separate matter that the FCC has not taken a position on I don't believe but certainly the FCC has chimed in on whether a station has the right to market its analog vs. digital # and the decision was ONLY ANALOG # regardless of wherever on the dial the digital is. This is FCC policy. And if I'm wrong, then the FCC is even more screwed up than previously thought. The digital switch is definitely going to be a big mess and the FCC is going to be scrambling at the last minute to solve all this confusion and issues. Also, the FCC has failed to stop Comcast from making all kinds of false post-digital ad campaign claims that are also going to have cable customers fired up mad as well! Whatta mess the FCC is. (8/23/08) *** Yep, the Sunday Jazz Brunch with Al Santos on WLTT. That’s the show that introduced me to Enya *** Although called the Sunday JAZZ Brunch, (I referred to it simply as, 'the brunch' or the Sunday Brunch), it featured so many more styles of music... including some jazz tinged classic rock with which I grew up... not uncommon the hear, Traffic's "Low Spark Of High Heel Boys", Pink Floyd's "Us & Them", Jefferson Airplane's "Coming Back To Me", Fleetwood Mac's "Hypnotized" and many others including some very interesting George Winston remake (New Age) of several Doors songs("Crystal Ship", "Riders On The Storm"...) and even a great jazzy version of Neil Young's, "Old Man" performed by Brad Mehldau... so much awesome music... silenced! AL (silent Sundays) SANTOS (8/23/08) To the mailbag poster looking for Mark Russell... Don't flip on your HDTV, but for $20 ($22 with tax) you can catch his act at the Omni Shoreham Hotel on Calvert Street…two shows every Monday night, at 7 and at 9. The place is often packed, so reservations are advised. Sample of Mr. Ruslander's recent routine: "In Pakistan, the media was hoping to catch Obama off-microphone saying something embarrassing like, 'I haven't seen this many Muslims since my last family reunion.'" (Taken from his website www.markrussell.net) (8/23/08) A very HAPPY BIRTHDAY to old friend, Mark Russell. Mark was kind enough to have me as a guest on WTTG 5, back in 1974 when he was sitting for Maury Povich, which led to a 2 year stint for me, doing everything from Consumer News to sitting in on the Noon show, when they needed a fill in, Panorama. Mark is one of the funniest, most intelligent people in the business and one of the nicest too. Many happy returns and hope you have lots more of them Mark. Semper Fi! Pat Murphy (8/23/08) "Chuck Carroll gone..." - Chuck was instrumental as Producer of 'After Hours with Glenn Hollis' on WASH and in syndication on Premiere radio Networks. I hired him from promotions seeing his tremendous potential, and he continues to impress not only me, but others. Everything he does, he does well. Good guy with a whack sense of humor. Good luck, Charles! -Glenn Hollis (8/23/08) Joe, you might actually be able to erect those towers in between the swings if you live in Mont. Co. The historical society there prefers the generally short AM broadcast towers, and the grass that remains between them, over development with houses and roads. Yes, that's right, the same Mont. Co that hates cellular towers actually likes broadcast towers because they maintain green space. And, at 1500, they would take up half the space that was necessary for the never-will-be-built array of 700. Now, if we could just put low income housing in between the towers and find a way to harness the warmth of 50kW for free power to those homes, we might serve all the agendas. :-) (8/23/08) Question...with "The Sun" losing so many good reporters..and its paper shrinking...why is Ray Frager still being allowed to pen a stupid article about ratings for the Olympics...of course NBC had a great run, whats the news? Come on put Ray on something where he can actually do some reporting, instead of giving us the obvious. (8/23/08) Happy Birthday to Mark Russell, who turns 76 today! I've been out of the DC area for some years, is he still doing his specials on PBS? I remember seeing them fairly regularly when I lived in DC and then, the Midwest, but since landing in California at the turn of the century, I don't think they've been on PBS here. Many happy returns of the day,Mr. Russell! (8/23/08) Dave: I understand the valid points people have made regarding Dan Snyder's control of WTEM. However, can we simplify all of this. Having worked in several top 10 radio markets for over 12 years, the issue is too simple and people are really over- analyzing Snyder's problem. Snyder has the tools to control what's said about the Redskins but doesn't have the right people. The difference between WFAN/WIP/WEEI and WTEM is that all of the above powerhouse sportstalk station have respected people who do their homework and it shows on the air. WTEM simply has poor, unprofessional talent that constantly reads the sportstalk handbook. Steve Czaban is on the radio to stir-up controversy and give his opinions. He has no professional relationships with players or coaches other than with people who travel in the circles of gambling or fantasy sports. You may not like Mike Francessa boasting about his good friend Bill Parcells or Howard Eskin talking about his pal Ed Snyder but people listen to what these talent are saying and most of all, they carry plenty of respect from their listeners. EXCEPT for Coach Thompson, there's not one person at WTEM that meets the above standard. Dan Snyder should be guilty of hiring bad administrative people like Bruce Gilbert and Chris Johnson...and these people should be held responsible for keeping awful talent like Czaban, Pollin, Linn and Brian Mitchell. (8/23/08) (regarding a previous post) "Wow, Keith has got some 'balls' criticizing McCain for having multiple homes.... Didn't Keith just sell his multi-million $$$ luxury Manhattan apartment?" Well, Sparky, Keith Olbermann isn't running for president, now is he? The point of McCain's four (or five, or seven, or eight, or ten) homes, is how out of touch McCain is with the situation that many average Americans find themselves in. He thinks that the U.S. economy is basically sound - as tens of thousands struggle to cope with the Bush Economy and not lose their homes - and the rest of us are trying just to make ends meet. McCain is trying to come across as "Mr Everyman", but when you own multiple homes (one of which was featured as a cover story in Architectural Digest, after a huge, expensive renovation), you're completely out of touch with average folks. Two of the other homes are in ritzy Coronado California - certainly not a "low rent district". C'mon! We need this fraud as president like we need another four years of Bush-Cheney. (8/23/08) As long as you're at Hooters with your laptop... cgi.ebay.com (8/23/08) Brett makes some interesting observations, however, the issue, in relation to Washington television and radio, is that Dan Snyder controls the broadcasts of his games and also controls the primary media by which users follow sports. So far, he hasn't seemed to muzzle Steve Czaban, but he has with other announcers, and the tone of WTEM has changed from anti-Snyder to at best, neutral. Snyder knows anger at the team might not reduce ticket sales, but cuts off side sources of revenue, such as jersey sales. As long as there is no central voice to crystallize anti-Snyder feelings, this discontent remains in the background. With a central voice as WTEM used to be, discontent is channeled and becomes more prominent and powerful. Even a low-wattage station such as 1050 could serve this role. -- If the FCC were doing its whole job properly, Snyder would not have been able to buy six stations in one area. -- This is not the only reason why Snyder bought the station; he would rather control revenue by controlling the radio broadcasts of the Redskins. However, stifling dissent is a happy secondary effect for him. -- If there were any station in the area which decided to serve as a center of anti-Snyder feelings, it would get better listenership, especially during football season. -- My biggest gripe with the new WTEM besides Snyder's dominance is Mike and Mike. The show is too centered on New York and Boston. I think Mike Greenberg has a whiny voice. His metrosexual man-crushes set me on edge. Mike Golic has a shallow knowledge of sports. Their "theme music" is poorly written and has no wit. The whole country, and not only Washington, would benefit if ESPN canned this show. -- GAB in the Airless Cubicle (8/23/08) Last night, I took 1/2-hour to read the Dan Snyder "fallout" comments from his WSJ interview on DCRTV and I wanted to send along some comments. Without sounding pro Redskins or tooting Snyder's horn, I think people should step back and look at the big picture. In the Washington, DC area, we have average sports teams. On a given year, we don't know if the Wizards will have a good team or even make the playoffs. The Capitals are very unpredicatable and the Nationals have many issues, on and off the field. The only constant in this market is the Washington Redskins. Like it or not, Dan Snyder is the only person who has the money and influence to bring a winning team or championship to this market. Given today's rough economic picture, there are very few people who would ever spend the kind of money on a sports team or media outlet. I know he's said and done some pretty harsh things like charge fans to attend training camps and overcharge people for parking. However, other makets like Dallas{Jerry Jones} and Pittsburgh {The Rooney's} have probably done "unpopular" things but we don't always hear about-it. Yes, Snyder does/did hire some bad people like Schottenheimer, Spurrier and Larry Michael. However, we've all gotten through most of the agony and at times there have been some great moments. Have we all forgotten about the fact Snyder talked Joe Gibbs out of retirement? How about getting Portis and now, pulling-off a trade for Jason Taylor. Snyder's war with the Post is not "our" business and other media-type should stop fueling the fire. We know sportstalk radio in this market is terrible and the talent is dreadful. We all need to ride-out the pocket of turbulance and let things smooth-out and give Snyder some space. Brett (8/23/08) /\ August 23 Messages /\ \/ August 22 Messages \/ Wow, Keith has got some 'balls' criticizing McCain for having multiple homes.... Didn't Keith just sell his multi-million $$$ luxury Manhattan apartment? ~"kinky-neo-con" (8/22/08) Congrats to Dave Johnson on his award. He loves (local) sports and it shows. And there's no one who works harder. What a schedule. He deserves a sleep number. (8/22/08) JOE just tell the HOA covenantors that those are a Homeland Security project. Ever since WTOP abdicated that 50,000 watt, federally-certified emergency warning station on 1500 we are feeling a bit vulnerable, yes? Your task as a Good American is to re-locate that key resource to your back yard. Quick, before they put the transmitter on ebay for a tithe or two. (8/22/08) Re: the WorldClassRock site. If my memory is serving me right, which it’s probably isn’t. This belonged to Clear Channel Triple-A station(s) in Los Angeles. In 2000 those stations were sold and became Español, but the web-site continued streaming the local LA station for a very brief time until Clear Channel switched it to its KBCO in Boulder, Colorado – a Triple-A station. KBCO is one of originators and still one of the top stations of that format even though being bought by Clear Channel years ago. (8/22/08) Dear Dave: Well, I'm sure I could house a couple of transmitters in my backyard. The sight of several Blaw-Knox towers arising in between the grill and my two daughters slide would be breathtaking...and would be great conversation pieces at backyard barbecues. OTOH, there is the somewhat important detail of having this pass muster with the all-seeing, all-knowing, all-powerful, omnipotent HOA board in my neighborhood. I'd probably have to install several 200-foot trellises and grow some ivy on them to hide the transmitters. Enjoy the weekend everybody! Great site Dave! Sincerely, Joe Kasell (8/22/08) ..."I think they would have been quite successful in Norfolk as it is, if I'm not mistaken, the largest market in the country without any major pro sports team".....That is half true, Norfolk is the largest metro area ( and Virginia the largest state for that matter ) the largest without any pro-team now as far as TV markets goes...ah no. The Harrisburg-York-Lancaster, PA and Birmingham, Alabama TV markets are actually bigger than Norfolk's and those places don't have major league sports either. Don't know about Birmingham but I think its a safe bet to say had the Harrisburg market not being so close to Philadelphia ( or Pittsburgh or even Baltimore for that matter ), that area would have at least one major league team today considering that Hershey Foods as much money as they have ( and Hershey has gotten into the sports game before with the Hershey Bears minor league hockey team ), they most certainly have the money to bring a tmajor league eam there to central Pennsylvania. (8/22/08) Holy Moley: I finally typed Radio 1710 into Google and got the following info about a Part 15 radio transmitter in Illinois: "AM 1710 Antioch is an Old-time Radio Shows station located in Antioch, IL, a mile from the Wisconsin border and 20 miles inland from Lake Michigan. The AM transmitter is a micro-power part15 AM RangeMaster1000 transmitter. Our house is in the middle of town where the houses are densly spaced. Range is about 1/2 mile covering hundreds of households." Can this be what I have been getting at 6:30 PM in Columbia, MD? The website suggests that people buy a Part 15 transmitter and use software to be a repeater of these guys in Illinois and stick in their own ID at the top of the hour. So maybe someone in the Kings Contrivance area of Columbia is doing that, too.-- Carl in Olney (8/22/08) Yep, the Sunday Jazz Brunch with Al Santos on WLTT. That’s the show that introduced me to Enya. Roddy Freeman (8/22/08) The following was forwarded to DCRTV..... RTNDA admits major gaffe. Our box of Regional Murrow award plaques arrived in the mail earlier this week. I was expecting 3. We got 4. Seems we won the Regional Murrow for Best Writing for "Dave's Take" by WTOP sports director, Dave Johnson. RTNDA admits to failing to notify WTOP of the award and failing to post it on their website. So add another to the grand total for the year. The men and women of the WTOP newsroom are NOW proud to have won 33 major journalism awards in 2008. Michael McMearty, News Director WTOP Radio (8/22/08) Can Danny Snyder do the Sulu Dance like George Takei? ''Oh my! Suuuuuuluuuuu!'' Unfortunately, that's about the only funny thing on Howard TV. I'm really beginning if Sirius/XM will get him to re up when his contract expires. When Howard first got there, the radio show was AMAZING. Lately though, it's starting to run on fumes to the point where Howard's a bad parody of everything he always hated about radio. Bad ''bits'' and he seems like he's just rushing through the show so he can leave every day. AND LOTS of vacation time too. I'm starting to actually turn away to music more and more. It's still the best thing on any radio station but the gas tank is emptying quickly. Paul (8/22/08) As if Snyder's not taking it in the chops enough as it is, I just visited the 980 website and for laughs jumped over to the Jobs page. There's something called a Programming Internship program, where interested people might be tapped to run the studio board, edit audio, handle basic engineering and commercial log-keeping, and screen phonecalls for air. Essentially, all of the duties a paid technician/board op would handle. Is 980 et al being run entirely by unpaid interns? If so, just how cheap an operation can this continue to become? (8/22/08) Interesting Frequency stuff: 1) The Disney kids station at 640 in Cherry Hill, NJ, can often easily be heard in Columbia, MD. I can tell it's there if there is some interference on 630, usually in the mid- to late-afternoon. 2) Recently at 6:30 -7:00 PM in Columbia, I have been hearing old time radio shows like the Great Gildersleeve at a frequency of.. 1710 KHz ... This can't be a legal station. It gets blocked in Clarksville by Howard County Community Low Power Radio at 1700 on the dial. And by the time I get to Olney, it is still there at 1710 but very faint. So I haven't driven around enough to see if it is from Baltimore or closer to Annapolis or even Bowie, but it does not seem to be from the District or from Montgomery County. And finally, on the shortwave dials this week: the "Voice of Russia" laying into Sec. of State Rice, and "Radio Tehran" from Iran loud, clear, and repulsive. -- Carl in Olney (8/22/08) There is a notice on page 3 of the Post's Metro section today, August 22, saying that "John Kelly's Washington" is scheduled to return to the Post on Monday, August 25th. Please confirm for yourself, of course. This is good news, as the column is one of the Post's longest-running and most popular features, stretching back decades. --Matt. (8/22/08) Dave, you should be shot for linking to some blowhard as Jonathan Last, Philly this and Philly that. GO BACK TO PHILLY, the cesspool of Professional Sports Team Fans. If he really think Czaban has a good show, then he's been going to Flyers games dressed in NJ Devils Jerseys. (8/22/08) I hate to break up this oh-so-pithy political debate, but I thought this story (www.cnn.com) about former Philadelphia TV anchor Larry Mendte's legal problems was much more interesting. Have a great day, and mind your own damn business. Dave in Sterling (8/22/08) ** Dave Hughes: "Come on, CBS, make it Smooth Jazz 94.7 and it'll see an instant doubling in its lame ratings." ** Yeah, like I ain't suggested goin' down THAT road more than once. That'd put the REAL "Sunday Brunch", including many classic rock favs, like "Coming Back To Me" - Jefferson Airplane) back on 94.7 where it all began (for me anyway) back in 1987... A home-coming of sorts and the circle will be complete It'd sure make Sunday mornings in DC, special again... but, hey... what do I know? I'm just an old drag racin' hippie at heart! Al (SUNDAY! SUNDAY! SUNDAY!) Santos (8/22/08) (snip) Chuck Carroll...after six years at the CC-DC complex starts a new gig with the National Alliance On Mental Illness...(snip). DCRTV Dave - thank you - this was way too funny. (8/22/08) David, David, David......that was a cheap shot. I'm not a "party liner" But I am a realist. Barack is an elitist, just ask his people. LOL (8/22/08) You don’t really get more elitist than belonging to the Skull and Bones society at Yale. But of course, W was just a man of the people… the elite and privileged people. (8/22/08) Dave, “rich” and “elite” are not the same thing. McCain is rich (by most people’s standards). Obama is an elitist. (8/22/08) Let me see if I have this right: Daniel Snyder, who owns a franchise in the anti-trust exempt NFL, and who has begun flooding the Washington area with 24/7 'Redskin Radio' on six radio stations, and who makes 'unsympathetic' reporters do their standups in the parking lot at Redskin Park, etc etc etc -- THAT Daniel Snyder thinks the Washington Post, which competes in-market against the Washington Times and literally dozens of other smaller papers, is "a monopoly"? .....There's a reason they're trying to keep him out of the English Premier League: He's a rich, spoiled, spineless, rotten, loudmouthed jerk. He produces a lot of overpriced crap. I'm no huge fan of the Post, but they've actually treated Snyder and his failed impression of an NFL owner with kid gloves for years. I know Snyder knows how to suck every possible nickel out of his vast empire. But, when it comes to the team on the field, I think it's time the Washington Post said what so many Washingtonians have been thinking for years: Daniel Snyder doesn't know what he's doing -- and he actually DOES run a monopoly. (8/22/08) I wouldn't know Daniel Snyder if rang my door bell. I can't help but believe that all the comments about him are from jealous people who can't stand to see success in others. I've got more important things to worry about surviving in this world everyday. Juan Numero Uno (8/22/08) Re: your (gay Hooters) rant. Laptop = Lapdance? -Silvie- (8/22/08) Dave, funny you should learn about the plan to sell the real estate out from under WMAL once upon a time. NBC nearly did that with developer Joseph Della Ratta and the 980kHz property. Something a bit more recent is the Mormon financial leadership's feelers that were put out for the possible sale of property under WTOP's towers. According to a retired broadcast broker, this was in the works while the newspaper was crashing the place into the ground, and would have timed out nicely with the end of the joint venture. Alas, the economy and real estate bubble popped. That's why you now got this ad hoc substitute for WaPo Radio, because they're stuck with the property for a while until valuations turn around. There was no discussion of alternate tower sites, maybe because it was too early, but it makes me think they could have just unplugged the transmitter and turned in the license for 1500, since the property is worth way more than the license now that they've left the news business. (8/22/08) Dave's response: I still think we should use Joe Kasell's backyard out there in Ashburn as a tower farm for soon-to-be displaced DC area AMers. It's an excellent site west of the city, which would allowed AMers to blast their signals eastward to DC and the Atlantic, unfettered..... Seeing the media is having a field day with McCain and his seven homes...Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, Kennedy, Rockerfeller, Edwards, Gore...Even Barack, all RICH, RICH, RICH. I guess the saints can own the country but the Republican Candidate for President's wife is not allowed to be wealthy.BOBB (8/22/08) Dave's response: Well, if McCain is going to throw "elitest" rocks at Obama, he shouldn't live in a half-dozen glass houses..... This cool my radio pals are doing huge event tomorrow www.gazette.net for the Capital Area Food Bank. All day & night concert in Bethesda, go to www.musicforapurpose.org for more info. (8/22/08) Re: "This (Gainesville, FL) station is marketing itself as CBS4, yet has an analog signal on ch53 (which they already shut off), and a digital signal on ch28. Isn't this exactly the kind of confusion the FCC DOES NOT want to happen ???" The FCC has no input into a station's on-air positioning. As long as the station uses its legal call letters and community of license once per hour, they're OK. And as far as digital goes, as long as the station's PSIP (digital program information) resolves to its primary channel number, they're fine. (Presumably that'd be "53-1" for the Gainesville station.) A whole host of stations in various markets use a different "channel number" for positioning, usually a cable channel. Half the stations in San Diego do it, including the newly minted "FOX 5" (analog channel 69!). Pretty much the entire market does it in Palm Springs, CA and Fort Myers, FL. Do any DC/Balto area stations position by cable channel number?... It looks like the Gainesville station does indeed identify as 28-1 digitally, as per their own website: "WGFL-DT 28-1 CBS HDTV". Again, quite legal. (8/22/08) Dan Snyder's comments expose him yet again as a "little Napoleon". He probably hates the Washington Post because they had the audacity to expose Snyder's cutting of federally protected trees near his stately manor on the C&O canal and the fact that Snyder "agreed to donate an additional portion of his property to the Park Service" to make the deal go through. He also calls the Post a "monopoly". If it is (which it isn't), he helped make it so by cutting off game day access at FedEx Field to smaller metro-area daily newspapers that featured vibrant Skins coverage. He just uses his money to control the message. --Big Bill (8/22/08) Biff, the BG stands for Bearings & Gears as in what that magic elixer protects and preserves. Sounds like you may use it for something altogether different. Just remember your mileage may vary. (8/22/08) "Hey, I'm trying to find an old friend of mine, Lyn McIntosh. Does anyone know where he may be?" PLB, I think he is currently with Westwood in Affiliate Marketing. He is a classy gent. Jim (8/22/08) Pat Goss back to WJFK has a bright side. The tag on his uniform read "Greasemanelli" but the called him Sergeant Fury!!! That's right, the Good Ship Grease still sails on on Saturdays on DC 101, bladduh bladduh bladduh. Goss is a bitter man who is rude to callers and is essentially a shill for BG ("Bisexual Goss"?) flush systems, and can't go two calls without saying "throttlebody"... apparently if you're having car trouble, nine times out of ten it's throttlebody-related. On the bright side, it's a double-Sergeant Saturday, with El Jefe and Sergeant Spongetongue in the Treehouse, I mean Hideout on Saturday evenings on WJFK. Jim Rome is still a douche, but now it's just a countdown to September and the sweet release of Leykis. -- Biff from Burke (8/22/08) Just a correction: The Globe refers to itself by the oxymoron "World CLASS Rock." The term World Classic rock belongs to the website of a classic rock station in Colorado! They may have changed their format, because that website is no longer active, but they still own the righst to it! (8/22/08) Snyder is a prick and and a jackass, especially when it comes to fan friendliness. (Ironic that DC has one of the best in that, Leonsis, and one of the worst, Snyder). But comparing him to Angelos is wrongheaded because the Redskins have made the playoffs from time to time recently. Under Gibbs, the club did have some reasonable success. Not so for Balamer's Orioles. Danny Boy will get it right on the field sooner or later even if he will never understand why people hate him so. And people will still hate him when the Skins win another Lombardi. And he still won't get it. (8/22/08) Could someone knowledgeable explain to me how this is not a clear violation of FCC rules? www.mygainesville.tv... This station is marketing itself as CBS4, yet has an analog signal on ch53 (which they already shut off), and a digital signal on ch28. Isn't this exactly the kind of confusion the FCC DOES NOT want to happen ??? With stuff like this happening, boy is the digital switch gonna be a total mongolian cluster fuckup! LOL (8/22/08) 2 Points....... Boy just when you think the little man couldn't act any littler, he opens mouth, inserts foot, and proves why the Redskins are so poorly run, and why all his other business concerns seem to be failing (Johnny Rockets, Six Flags, Red Zebra Radio). It's astounding to me that a man with 2 monopolies, football & sports talk radio, could possibly in his crazy little head even have the balls to mention the word "monopoly", especially considering how many newspapers DC has. Talk a about a little man living in his own little world, geez! And yes, Skins fans are now officially the biggest suckers in professional sports as they've now eclipsed Orioles fans. At least Angelos has finally wrested control of the team from his rotisserie geek sons & the retired Orioles Hall of Famer who was better equipped to sign autographs, not talent, and has finally put the team into the hands of a true baseball professional. So far he even appears to not be meddling, something Snyder will NEVER do! The only thing that could be funnier about the Redskins right now would be if Joe Gibbs were still coaching now that he's been busted for NASCAR cheating! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA, suckers!...................... Secondly, not trying to keep us off topic, but no, Indianapolis was not a city in contention for the Expos, but they were a minor league affiliate at one time. MLB seriously kicked the Vegas tires, but the stadium financing plan just had too many holes in it, not to mention the gambling interests scared MLB to death. Portland also was interested, but Portland poorly supports its own minor league baseball team, which I believe was in financial trouble, not to mention no fully financed stadium plan. MLB would have loved Charlotte, but once again, no stadium plan nor much interest from Charlotte itself. Only DC had a stadium built for MLB, i.e., the old Senators, albeit with some maintenance & repair. If the DC council had botched or poison pilled DC's stadium plan, MLB would have moved the team on a trial basis somewhere like Norfolk or Monterrey Mexico or maybe gambled on the Vegas deal. Funny thing is, while I don't think the Nats will fail or ever move out of Washington, I think they would have been quite successful in Norfolk as it is, if I'm not mistaken, the largest market in the country without any major pro sports team. What else is there to do in Norfolk other than watch the Navy ships come and go? :-) (8/22/08) Re: "Aren't there enough empty heads [ most Faux 5 ''Anchors''] in this city as it is?" You forgot almost all the anchors on 4, 7 and 9. TV news in DC so pathetic. Every time I visit other cities in the US, I watch their local news. Almost always, their news presentation is so much better than ours. WRC's anchors are the WORST in the country. Who in their right mind at 4001 Nebraska Ave. keeps Babs "mumbles" Harrison and Pat Collins employed is beyond me. Dave in Fredericksburg (8/22/08) The Glob has really hit the old dinasore rock block, I heard "Stairway To Heaven" the other day. Albeit a live version. Actually for the most overplayed song on classic rock radio "Stairway" hasn't gotten all that much airplay in recent years. I don't think it's a bad song it's just them dull boring programmers just kept playing it and playing it and playing it over and over and over and over again. Kind of like the way The Doors and the Rollin' Stones get overplayed these daze. I've listened to The Glob quite a bit since it was announced they were steering back to dinasore rock and it sure seems like a very short playlist. Boob Seeger, huh. Actually I like some of his stuff before the mid 70's stuff that made him rich. Same goes for Steve Miller. And as for wee danny, I was going to lay off for awhile cause Zorn as head coach doesn't seem to be the debacle I thought it might be. I ain't thinking no NFC champion but hey I'd say close to .500 ball wouldn't be bad. According to wiki Wee 1's first job was at B.Dalton's, maybe with his business acumen he should buy Border's. He'll get them papers out from behind the counter but jack up the price into Wegman's range. Btws, rumor is the toothless fairfax Border's is getting rid of it's CD section already? And if wee danny is so concerned about the WaPo maybe he should buy The Washington Times and take on WaPo. Or maybe revive the Washington Star and dig up old Mo Siegel. Of course, hasn't lil' denny said he had interest in acquiring the WaPo in the past so maybe he's trying to drive down the value. And as for the WTEM purchase it still has a pretty poor broadcast range at night, how many games do the Dreadskin's have after dark this year? For all the money he's spent on the weak AM'ers could he have gotten a powerful FM in this market or the last decent AM stations 630 or 1500. And when is the D.C. area getting some johnny rocket's, the fast food pickings in these parts are mighty slim. And finally the Circuit City store in toohtless fairfax, off Jermantown Rd. is moving out to the old Tower store in Fair Lakes. My dream that a Tower might come back is now totally totally crushed. And Don Geronimo if'en your out there you might check up with Rob Grill of the Grassroots, he apparently is not feeling too perky these days and don't mean his legal problems of last year. And YAZ ain't too perky neither. Are the Buzz Babes fizzling out? (8/22/08) Dave's response: There's a a way to do classic rock with creativity, but, alas, the Globe seems to prefers dinosaur turds. Come on, CBS, make it Smooth Jazz 94.7 and it'll see an instant doubling in its lame ratings..... Special note to JPM re: Mr. Snyder and the Redskins... How shall I put this to most eloquently make my point? Oh, yes... YO MAMA, POINDEXTER! - Signed, An Eternal Fan (8/22/08) Two things, first, Re: Mr. Felling to Alaska. Didn't he start his media career back in the day as an intern on WJFK's "Don and Mike Show"? I believe he was one of the interns they nicknamed "Rockhead", though I can't remember which first name they used for him. And the presence of Westwood One host and DC area resident Jim Bohannon in the Mailbag leads me to wonder...does Bonneville plan to keep his show on 1500 and whatever other frequencies Federal News Radio will occupy (820?) starting in September? It would seem to be a no brainer to me, as I'd assume the "federal news" programming choices would be rather slim after 10 PM. I hope they do...Jimbo shouldn't be a victim of all this shuffling, and deserves a hometown affiliate! (8/22/08) Speaking of vinyl, anyone want to buy a 'virgin' copy of Henry Mancinni's version of The House of the Rising Sun (RCAVictor 47-8798)? Managed to save some decent stuff from my f-in-l's daytimer before he used the stuff for target practice. Somehow, one Oriole promo disk survived a high-speed .22 hit. (8/22/08) Dave here’s a great nostalgia photo for all of the “geezers” it’s a late night dinner with some of the really great legends of DC /Baltimore radio. Left to right: Joel and Ria Denver, Renee’ Connelly(WPOC Jock), Davy Jones, and Barry Richards and his lady at a late night dinner in Malibu CA. It was a wonderful time.PLB (8/22/08) /\ August 22 Messages /\ \/ August 21 Messages \/ Snyder can't be serious. He calls the post a monopoly? Why? Cause they criticize his franchise? Isn't buying up every weak ass AM signal and controlling all of local sportstalk so no one can criticize your team a monopoly? What a joke that douche is, why do people around here support that team and that owner so much? He's every bit as bad, if not worse then angelos, yet people have no problem filling that piece of shit stadium. -----JPM (8/21/08) PLB;o) Re: Lyn McIntosh...if we're talking about the same guy, he now works for Westwood One in Silver Spring (8/21/08) RE: Goss returning to WJFK. Add that to the (getting longer) list of things they have done right lately. (8/21/08) Correct me if I am wrong but when the Montreal Expos were looking for a new city to movie to, weren't they looking at Indianapolis and not Las Vegas? It seems that whenever a team in any sport is "looking" to relocate, Las Vegas is always brought up yet I never heard of anyone in Vegas making an effort in trying to get any team there. Well I take that back, I think somebody in Vegas made some comment about how the NFL should be there. I know that Norfolk was on the final list of cities for re-location for the Expos as was Washington and Indianapolis but the way Virginia is ( Independent city form of government, lack of a "major" metro area, poor TV and radio markets, etc..) even if DC didn't exist, no way Virginia could get a major league team in any sport. I have heard that Virginia doesn't allow naming rights for stadiums/arenas who use state money ( GMU's Patriot Center is an exception because I am pretty sure they don't get any money from Virginia ). I know that was an issue when the NBA and the old Charlotte Hornets wanted to move their team to Norfolk ( their first choice ) only to run into the "naming rights issue" and the "independent city" rule, where other cities in that region like Virginia Beach and Chesapeake by law could not support Norfolk in getting major league sports. No, if the Nationals were to move again ( which I doubt that will happen ), they would move to either Charlotte ( unless Wachovia Bank fails since they more/less run that town ) or to Indianapolis...like the old Baltimore Colts. (8/21/08) Dave, In response to your most recent Notable Quotable, my personal favorite pet name that Limbaugh has assigned to Governor Kaine is...The Eyebrow! (8/21/08) Dave's response: Ha ha ha. I hear Limbaugh likes hairy men..... Just when you couldn't hate Little Man Dan Snyder any more, he has to open his little BIG mouth. He should have said something about Joe Bugel's daughter dying today. I believe in karma, and what comes around, goes around. When you are Daniel Snyder and you are only 4ft 5in, it doesn't take long to come around. (8/21/08) I somehow really screwed the pooch on Rollison’s name. I know his as well as mine and I think I misspelled “Earl” and the automatic spell checker thought I meant “Ed.” My apologies… Earl Rollison is remembered as one of the good guys. Tom Gauger (8/21/08) With all the talk about cue burn, when I was at WBMD doing country in the early 70's we were so damn compressed that we simply jingled into the really burned 45's, those jingles held so well that you'd miss the burn all together. Unfortunately if doing a talk-over, you'd have to keep the pot down to keep the burn off the air. And, by the way, we had the old oil damped Gray Research tonearms with a quarter on them! I believe we had the CBS Volumax/Audimax combo before eventually going to the Urei 1176 processor. No wonder AM failed with all that compression, some FM's have never learned either, though processors are lightyears ahead of that old gear. Tom Conroy (8/21/08) Does DC really need a reality show? Aren't there enough empty heads [ most Faux 5 ''Anchors''] in this city as it is? Paul (8/21/08) See the reference to WTOP in this revised version... Hey guys, my seemingly bitter rant about the Nats is not quite what it appears. I was being facetious and the whole thing was really meant to be tongue-in-cheek. It's like the regular contributor on the Redskins Addiction site who a couple years ago got so fed up with the Skins' latest misfortunes he posted a lengthy diatribe and cursed the whole team up and down the field, lambasted Gibbs/Williams/Saunders, impaled Snyderrato, and solemnly declared he would never again watch Redskin games or have anything to do with the team or its web sites anymore. Period. And then at the very end he goes, "See you all tomorrow." Everyone else on line went totally ROTFLMAO, because after all, isn't that the way a diehard fan is supposed to act? No matter how much misery and pain his team/organization causes him over what could very well be his whole lifetime, they're still his lovable hometown losers and always will be. "Dem Bums" says it all. The truth is, I have been lukewarm about the Nats ever since they arrived. I already had a major league team, the O's, for the last 25+ years, and before that was a diehard Senators fan--for the several years they had remaining here. Man, that seemed like forever when I was 9. I still remember, after listening to Dan & John's postgame on WTOP describing another one in the L column, bawling my eyes out in the middle of a crowded department store, crying out to anyone within earshot, Why can't the Senators be like other teams and win more; why do they always loo---* * * sob sob * * * . So 40 years later, I didn't know how I'd react with two home french fries--er, franchises to root for. Turned out I ended up supporting both about equally, and not very passionately either, because both teams stunk. But sufferin' succotash, the Nats' current streak goes beyond that. Someone's gonna become the fall guy and get canned, whether it's Jim, Manny, Moe or Jack. Personally, I hope it's Manny; he's like a combination of Norv "We did some positive things out there" and Gibbs II "I don't know what the answer is." And yes, all the sentiments expressed in my previous post I have experienced. At times I feel like I mean every one of them. But take it with a grain of salt. KOF (8/21/08) Dave, I can't speak to the investment part of Billick to WNST but if Nestor was able to get that, good for him. I know he and Billick get along well. Anyway I do know for a fact that Billick loves the Baltimore area and plans to retire on the Eastern Shore where he has a place. I would not be surprised if he still has his Baltimore home and is living there. -Michael Popovec (8/21/08) If Brian Billick buys into a radio station that has no signal or listeners does anybody care? The Tooz (8/21/08) Dave's response: I'll forward your question to Mr. Snyder..... The Nationals aren't going anywhere. Sure, they're awful this year, but the Tigers were awful in 2003 and were in the World Series 3 years later. The Mets were awful in 1962, and won the World Series in 1969. The Orioles were awful in 1988 and were in the playoffs back-to-back years in the 90's. Anyone who would suggest that this year will have any impact on the future home of Washington baseball is either just stupid or short-sighted. Plus, contraction is off the table (it was never really on) and there's no place - and I mean NO PLACE - else to go in the US. They'll never go back to Canada, and they'll never go to Las Vegas. Oh, and Brian Billick is spotted frequently in the Reisterstown- Cockeysville area. His family loves it in the area. (8/21/08) There is a fabulous resource for vinyl collectors in Central Pennsylvania....It is the Record Connection in Ephrata, PA near Lancaster. The stock of lp's and 45's is the biggest I've ever seem, their prices are reasonable and they are real music people who know their stuff. They also buy collections. Go to www.recordconnectionpa.com for directions and details. Ray Thomas, (WIOO/WEEO) (8/21/08) For those of you who remember the "National Clean-up, Paint-up, Fix-up Bureau", here's a touch of Atomic Age hell to bring it all back to you: www.archive.org... Oh, and dig that craaazy music. (8/21/08) Dave I do not know about the Billick buying Into WNST rumor however Brian Billick does still own a home In the Baltimore suburbs and YES as far as I know he and his wife(Kim)still live In that home. He still resides In Baltimore so your source Is wrong on that point. (8/21/08) Hey folks!! You want a team to leave because they're LOSING? I never heard that in my hometown of Pittsburgh! They call for the head of a manager or a GM or an owner, but no one in Pittsburgh ever said they wanted the team to LEAVE the city! That's ridiculous. As bad as the Nats are playing on the field, they are still drawing over 29,000 fans per game.. that puts them AHEAD of about 9 other Major League baseball cities. If they start winning, imagine what the attendance could be. The Lerners and Major League Baseball have also finally realized something else.. that the Washington metro area is one of the most transient metro areas in the U.S. and there is a HUGE draw for visiting teams. Anyone who goes to games realizes the immense following for the Mets, Cubs, Phillies, etc... there are tons of baseball fans living here who used to live in these other places rooting for their beloved home team. Give it some time, and some winnings and a star player or two... and the fans will come, and the TV ratings will climb. (8/21/08) Uh, Tom Gauger....it's EARL Rollinson. PLB:0) (8/21/08) Want to know the value of old vinyl? www.moneymusic.com... I interview Mighty John Marshall the Record Guy frequently on my night show on AM-1500. there are lots of records worth a grand, and one Elvis record is worth $25,000. Jim Bohannon (8/21/08) Hey, I'm trying to find an old friend of mine, Lyn McIntosh. Does anyone know where he may be? We used to meet several times a year when he was with the old Mutual/Westwood group in Virginia. He retired and I lost track of him. If anyone knows how to find him, let me know. Thanks in advance-PLB:0) (8/21/08) Looking at the meaningless 12+ ratings for Baltimore just some things I noticed. What happened to WBAL & WIYY they seem to have fallen quite a bit over the past year or so. WBAL is close to being overtaken by WCBM in the next book with one bad book by WBAL and a good one for WCBM. WLZL with a good Baltimore Signal only pulls only a 0.6 rating and has been pretty much dead in Baltimore. Why isn't this station on a DC only signal like 106.7 and send WJFK to 94.7 or just replace the dead 94.7? Which would free up 99.1 for a totally new format. Why is it that Baltimore has it's own DC101 in Channel 104.3 but yet DC101 continues to get a 1.5 while WCHH gets a 1.8? CC should do something to attract the B-More DC101 lsteners over to WCHH. (8/21/08) Dave's response: Yeah, 99.1 is a horrible waste of a signal. Its excellent penetration into the Baltimore market generates no ratings kickback. As I've said before, CBS needs to move El Zol to Northern VA's 106.7 and put a restored real progressive rock WHFS on 99.1 - serving both DC and Baltimore, with JFK-FM's talk going to 94.7, which is better heard in College Park and the Baltimore metro. That three-way signal flip would better aim the signals at their target markets. And, heck, why doesn't Cheap Channel just relay DC101's signal on Baltimore's 104.3? It would be cheap and probably get better ratings than WCHH would. You're not thinking cheap enough, Hartley..... My thoughts on 94.7 The Globe going back to classic rock - a deep "hits' based format works. Not the small play list of Big 100.3, but the fairly large play list of 100.7 The Bay. They (100.7) stick to the main staples, but throw in a less common or 'deeper' hit a few times an hour it seems. Looking at the 12+ beauty numbers, 100.7 The Bay is just .1 behind 98 Rock up there - that's a big deal because 98 Rock is heritage with a huge clear signal and the 100.7 frequency has been everything under the sun and doesn't have nearly as good a signal as 97.9. I'd love to see the actual Arbitron breakdown between those two. My guess is that the 98 Rock morning show gets good numbers compared to the 100.7 The Bay morning show, but the rest of the day (at least in this trend) belongs to 100.7 The Bay. Anyone have that info? (8/21/08) "Where can someone sell some old vinyl LP's? My cousin has quite a few from the 50's, 60's and 70's, but can't find anyplace that wants them?" Answer: Joe's Record Paradise (Rockville); Crooked Beat (DC); RTX in Fairfax; CD Cellar (Arlington and elsewhere - yes they buy vinyl, too); And...Orpheus Records in Arlington (yes, they're still open - their landlord has been unable to re-let the building since giving them notice to close by 3/31 so they've been getting 1 month extensions all summer. But rumor has it that a lease is about to be signed with an Irish Pub chain, so their days are numbered). Dave's right, you won't get more than a buck or two for LPs in perfect/near perfect condition and that's for the good stuff (leave your Pablo Cruise and Firefall records at home). Occasionally, if you have a gem (Beatles original Capitol LPs in near mint condition, Hendrix LPs, etc.), you'll pull in some good $$$. (8/21/08) Both Katherine Kennedy and Krista Johnson of "Blonde Charity Mafia," are “Madisons,” www.madisonsdc.info. My wife calls the Madisons “one dress size lower than 'Late Night Shots,'” and “a Junior League crafted for lazy party animals.” Ouch! (8/21/08) RE: **Columbia 45s were made of polystyrene, which is naturally brittle, so they wore out quickly** I'd always wondered about THAT and NOW, after more than 40 years in radio the answer is revealed! The 45s put out on the UNI label were also pretty resistant to "cue burn" along with 45s from WEA (if memory serves me correctly) ...it's amazing the things you think about when you've got too much time on your hands... Al Santos (8/21/08) Dave's response: I always liked how those Capitol/EMI/Apple 45s often had those raised bumps around the label. And, how, if you were really drunk and put the needle down near the label, you'd blow out your speakers (and your ears) with the intense buzzing..... Wow! Nice to see Ed Rollison’s name on here recently. He was the finest record rep I ever knew. Instant replacement of Columbia product that got cue-burned or run over by the jock’s chair. He always had great seats for Bruuuuuce and I don’t think I ever heard him say “No” to anyone. Rollison, CBS producers Theo Macero and Goddard Lierberson (later CBS prez), and a flock of others made CBS Records dominant until the company was bought by Sony. The Capitol guys were great, too…just can’t remember a name. We could start a whole thread here about flacks who really helped us in radio. Flacks (or more politely, “reps”) take a beating but they were there to help their company and in the process, generally helped us. Most of them also knew not to push something on us that wouldn’t fly. Incidentally, Earl Rollison married WMAL Music Director Bonnie Smith. They kept their professional lives at arm’s length. Tom Gauger (8/21/08) Re: previous post about cue burn vs. company: Columbia 45s were made of polystyrene, which is naturally brittle, so they wore out quickly (and sounded rougher even when new). RCA 45s were vinyl, hence no cue burn. -*-*-*- To the poster looking to sell old LPs: Look them up on www.gemm.com to get an idea of what they may be worth. Or set yourself up as a dealer there, if you don't need the money all at once. ~~CA in BC (8/21/08) Dave's response: Wow, I've always wondered that from my youthful days as a 45 collector. Now, what about those 45s from labels like Bell, where the label info was actually "printed directly into" the disc (usually in grey or dark blue), and not glued via a piece of paper? Those 45s also seemed to be brittle and wear out quicker. As for selling your albums, even if you find a shop that buys old vinyl, it probably won't want much of what you have. Prepare to lug many of those heavy (!) record albums back home again..... (Dave's response: The server that serves our backup dcrtv.org and dcrtv.net addresses has conked out. Just change the "org" or "net" to "com" on the DCRTV page you're attempting to reach and all should be fine. This also affects some graphics plus video and audio files on DCRTV Plus. We should have the problem fixed soon. Please stand by.....) Can't help myself. www.youtube.com... Fferret (8/21/08) Dave's response: Cool, test pattern "porn." Is that our ABC or Australia's? "Mike Rifkin" doing the 9 AM news on WMAL. Gawd, what's his real name? Sounds a helluva lot like a former MAL newser! (8/21/08) (regarding a previous post) "tall, stalky plants with pointy leaves out behind the barn." Down at a certain southern Maryland station in the 70s, the consumer-ready version was found, from time to time. And over at Georgetown's WGTB, partaking of the evil weed was referred to as "taking transmitter readings." (8/21/08) Hi Dave, Wussup with the mailbag site? Did you get hacked by some asshole? At least from here, it isn’t available. --Tom (8/21/08) Dave's response: The server that serves our backup dcrtv.org and dcrtv.net addresses has conked out. Just change the "org" or "net" to "com" on the DCRTV page you're attempting to reach and all should be fine. This also affects some graphics plus video and audio files on DCRTV Plus. We should have the problem fixed soon. Please stand by..... One thing that Jim didn't mention in his article is that not only was TK already on XM, he was already on XM 144, which is morphing into the new Mad Dog channel or whatever it's being called. Hopefully, if TK comes back to radio in 2009, he can reverse the downward trends in ratings, maybe by bringing back more elements of the ESPN/980 years and less things from the Post Radio era. (8/21/08) Dave's response: Right. Tony's broadcast radio show was carried on XM. It seems that new Sirius XM head Mel Karmazin is big on exclusivity - talent that's only on satellite radio and not shared with broadcast. If Tony goes to satrad next year, he'd only be heard there. Also, I don't think his ratings were all that great on WTEM, compared with WaPo Radio/3WT. Maybe a little better, but not a lot. The big difference with Tony on WTEM was producer/sidekick Andy Pollin. He guided the show through the minefield of uninteresting topics that Tony is prone to wander among. The lack of Pollin at WaPo/3WT hurt Tony, as there was no one there to tell him to shut up or change course when he needed to. A la the way-too-long monologues on "American Idol"..... Regarding the poster who mentioned: Although I worked at more than a few stations in the 70s, 80s, & 90s none of them had this automation setup cgi.ebay.com... Did this kind of mechanical behemoth ever really perform reliably? It just seems like on-air chaos just waiting to happen. The behemoth never performed reliably. The carts jammed, or the machines failed to read tones, or one of a hundred other things went wrong with it. I worked with one up at WGNY radio in Newburgh, New York many years ago, and I'll never be able to forget the sales manager screaming at the engineer "we're doing make-goods on the make-goods because of this thing!" --Jill Nado (8/21/08) "My sources tell me that the Globe's playlist is down to just 300 songs," WHAT?!? That's it?? I have at least 5 times as many as many classic rock hits on my iPod. Sounds like the Globe/Arrow or whatever they're called should seriously consider heading to LimeWire. Not that I condone illegal peer-to-peer file sharing of music. (8/21/08) Hey Tom... Thanks! I just sent my package to Memphis on your advice. But, it would sure be hard for me to think about heading anywhere now that I'm back in The Land of Pleasant Living! The best thing about Key West was having the freedom to do odd things that were unique to our market. That lack of automatic formula was what made stations like WBAL and WMAL so dominant. I look at the KGO's, WOR's, KMOX's and WCCO's of the world and wonder why other managers don't get it. Don't turn the light off yet, Joyce. We may still wind up on some little carrier out in someone's cornfield yet! I sure hope so. Steve, Bob Lee was the PD when I worked at WAMD in 1970-71. He was SUCH a nice guy to work with and for. I did 9AM-12Noon and news on the morning and afternoon shows. Bob Orr did afternoons and found some tall, stalky plants with pointy leaves out behind the barn. Because I was 18 and had longish hair, he was convinced that I had planted the weed. It actually was growing wild. He kept asking me if he could take some and I'd laugh because it wasn't mine. And, every time I laughed, he became more convinced that it WAS mine! The ONLY thing good about Hiobs Lane was the cute blonde granddaughter of the lady who rented us rooms in the old farmhouse down there! And, please... everyone... check out Alexander Piela's www.misteroceancity.com... Otherwise, He'll keep spamming me! lol - ER (8/21/08) I agree with the Gentleman from Minnesota who just moved to the area. I'll take the Nats post game show on MASN over anything Comcast has to offer. Johnny Holiday and Ray Knight have class, humor and a great presence, unlike the ESPN wannabee's that Comcast shoves down our throats. One thing they never do is talk down to the viewers. Comcast has a long way to go in that area of their programming. Nats may be losing, but MASN gets my congratulation's for the way they handle a very difficult situation. (8/21/08) Where can someone sell some old vinyl LP's? My cousin has quite a few from the 50's, 60's and 70's, but can't find anyplace that wants them?.. (8/21/08) Dave's response: Try Record And Tape Exchange in Fairfax..... Reading about Frederick's WFRE HD-2 doing a "rockin country" thing, what about the radio stations in the Hagerstown-Chambesburg area? Winchester? Martinsburg? Harrisonburg? Any of those stations airing programming on their HD channels? In the case of Winchester and Martinsburg, a buddy of mine until recently worked at Winchester's Circuit City and he gave me a list of what those stations were "planning" on doing in HD ( I assume the store downloaded back when Winchester had their own site. WTRM-FM ( Spanish Gospel ), WINC-FM ( all 80's ), WDHC-FM ( Country Gospel ), WZRV ( no info but for some reason I seem to recall hearing "Jamin Oldies" for them ), WICL-FM ( WEPM sports ), WLTF-FM ( Christian Rock ), WKSI-FM ( Urban ), WFQX-FM ( Smooth Jazz and Blues ) , WUSQ-FM ( Classic Country ), WWRT/WWRE ( modern rock ) and WWEG ( 80's Metal ). Any of those stations doing those formats or has that been changed? WINC-FM I can see them doing 80s on their HD channel but WFQX doing Smooth Jazz? That I can't see..well hear !!! Boyd (8/21/08) With Lindsay Czarniak getting her second Olympics gig and now hosting a show on Oxygen, is it only a matter of time before she leaves for the "big time" ? (8/21/08) /\ August 21 Messages /\ \/ August 20 Messages \/ Hey there ED--the barn building was well before my time--but I have heard plenty of stories about that place. It is now a hair stylist, I believe. When I was running the place, I did come across some old pics of the Captain and Bob (I think Calahan--the last name escapes me) in the old studio, somehow they did radio back then with the transmitter humming in the studio (hehe). Although, I would have loved to have worked at the old barn building---anything beats driving down Hiob Lane! Steve Mann (8/20/08) First time dcrtv poster here. I read your rant about 94.7 The Globe. I hope that the recent music changes are just a first step in many changes to come for the station. While I did enjoy some of the alternative tracks that the station was playing, the music never seemed to have a cohesiveness or direction of any kind. to me Here are my 5 cents (inflation) on changes: 1) Yes, please, please move Weasel to the evenings. Even if I were heavily plied with espresso, his all-over-the map-edness is way too overwhelming for me during the wee hours of the morning especially with a far too long Washington commute. 2) Ditch Shelby and Albie. For me, they both seem to be all about themselves rather than the music and the listener. It should be all about the music and making and keeping loyal listeners. It is sad that I prefer to listen to a few (a scant few of them) of the part time weekend DJs on the station then the weekday staff. 3) Expand the artist list and play deeper tracks. While it is great to hear some of the artists again that they have added back in (Bob Seeger, for example), I don't need to hear him every hour just like I don't need to hear U2, The Stones, or Pink Floyd each and what seems like every hour. 4) Keep some of the special programming like the "Under the Covers" weekends or hours. I liked special programming where they played listeners playlists every hour. How about having a special show featuring tracks of local artists? How about changing the Acoustic Sunrise on Sundays so that it actually has acoustic music? 5) Have interviews with artists that the station plays. I could never figure out all the interviews with Shelby especially with artists that were in town but never played on the station. And somewhat related to that - how about when an artist that is on the playlist comes into town, how about running a special hour featuring that artists music an hour before the concert start time or around the time the concert should be ending? Concert-goers would definitely tune in to either get in the mood for the concert or to relive some of what they just heard. Well, that's a start. Mark in Centerville (8/20/08) Dave's response: My sources tell me that the Globe's playlist is down to just 300 songs, and the "World Class Rock" slogan will soon be history..... Ah, the ol' cue burns on 45's. Some labels were notorious especially Columbia. And getting replacements from record reps like Earl Rollison were next to impossible. RCA 45's seemed to never have a burn problem nor did ABC-Dunhill. Those were the good 'ol days. MD (8/20/08) To Ed Rodriguez, I understand that Entercom in Memphis is looking for a PD/Air personality, at least you'd still be down south! I'm still hanging in down here at WZBB, we got zapped with an EMP from a nearby lightning hit; a lot of damage happened as a result. I'm amazed in a smaller market that everyone multitasks, especially when something like this happens. As much as I loved working in Baltimore radio over the years, smaller markets often allow the personality and creativity that radio lacks, I love what I am allowed to do. Best of luck in your job search. Tom Conroy (8/20/08) (From DCRTV's Classified Ads:) MISTEROCEANCITY.COM: Hey everybody! Check out the new and improved tide charts at MisterOceanCity.com! You can see tides for Ocean City, as well as all the popular spots in Maryland, and even Delaware! Subscribe to the RSS feed to have the tides at your fingertips! To see the tidecharts, click the link here: www.misteroceancity.com (8/20/08) Hey Ed Rod and Steve Mann, here's another soul that added to the burn at WAMD. I remember the cue burn on "I Just Can't Stop Dancing" by Archie Bell and the Drells. Ed, so sorry that I didn't get a chance to work with you. Now, that Mann guy is another story. It was a pleasure and honor Steve. Blessings. Joyce Conroy (WHFC) (8/20/08) Hey Jeff.time is running out you better move New Talk to the FM . WCBM is ready to catch you in the next rating. If you move news talk to FM They will never catch up. John T. Henneman (8/20/08) “The only reason the Expos moved to DC is because RFK Stadium was the ONLY stadium in the U.S. immediately ready for baseball.” If you think RFK stadium was anywhere even close to being ready for baseball, you’re sorely mistaken. RFK took a massive amount of work to prepare for the Nationals, and it was barely finished on time. I was there, I saw it. RFK being “ready for baseball” had nothing to do with the Expos moving here, because it wasn’t. (8/20/08) Steve Mann... Remember, those "character scratches" on the WAMD library relics are the "museum pieces" of Mr. Allen's original Heathkit (No! I'm NOT kidding) production studio in the old "barn" building. And, thanks again for all the kind words from old friends, PLB, DT and Murphy a few weeks back. And even the anonymous grouch. Anyone who tells me to grow up at my age automatically becomes my friend, whether they like it or not! - Ed. "Will Voice for Food" Rodriguez (Hey... it worked for Mellman!) (8/20/08) The Nats aren't moving, gang, not with a 30-year lease and local ownership. Yes, the team is terrible and TV ratings could be a lot better, but Rome wasn't built in a day, nor will a baseball culture be built in this town overnight. Give it time...and yes, firing, Jim Bowden would help speed the process immeasurably. -- Vincent in Triangle (8/20/08) If the Nats would move, there is an empty stadium in Montreal. The only reason the Expos moved to DC is because RFK Stadium was the ONLY stadium in the U.S. immediately ready for baseball. Even Bud Selig was able to figure that one out. (8/20/08) (FCC Head Slams Cable Rates, Wants "A La Carte" Channels - 8/20) Dave: Seeing the story about the FCC head slamming cable rates made me think of passing along my experience to your readers: I just re-installed a tower and tv antenna with booster/amplifier and rotor at my home near Shepherdstown, WV, purchased a new HD converter box with my $40 government coupon, and for the cost equivalent of less than 5 months of cable costs, I now receive 53 (that's FIFTY--THREE) digital broadcast channels on my television! And the reception and picture quality is FAR better than cable. And it's all FREE. No money shelled out to the cable or satellite company--ever again! (8/20/08) I agree with the proposal in today's Rant that Weasel be returned to evenings and that he be given freedom to play what he wants, without being tied to the Globe's playlist. That would be good radio. (8/20/08) Props to KOF for the FLAMING EMBERS reference! (8/20/08) I think there was a raw nerve that was breached by the "WEAM Team Redcoat" posting by Ed Rod. from a while back. It implied that he was a "jock" during that period. However, he graciously explained his "Redcoat" association (and later work at the station) and I think most everybody appreciated the clarification. I'm glad to hear that Ed Rod is making some in-roads getting back into the local scene. (8/20/08) Go Nats. Yes, go. Skedaddle. Get outta here. Four years is enough to convince us that some things are STILL just not meant to be, like anything close to a winning major league organization in Washington. OK, I'll bite. I don't care anymore. Get your Manny's Acta together and take your miserable team and put it on the Westbound #9 express. Get all those 18-wheelers loaded, gassed up and runnin' and ready to roll out of SE D.C. Only wait till the middle of the night to do it to spare us too long-suffering dupes any embarrassment. Hey Jay, get your best Nats jokes prepared to unleash on the whole country after the Olympic torch is snuffed out. Ladies and gentlemen, say hello to the 2009 Las Vegas Streaks! A diehard fan of Dem Bums, KOF (8/20/08) Concerning "Sally Starr", "Gene London", "Pixanne" et al; there's no need to settle for faded memories. To get the skinny on all classic Philly kids shows, nobody does it better than Billy Ingram at TVParty.com... If you grew-up around Baltimore, Gary Helton has got you covered at CrabCityKidsTV.com... And for the Nation's Capital boomers, visit KaptainKidshow.com... (8/20/08) Dave's response: Anybody remember the controversy a few years back when Sally Starr sued a Philadelphia area radio personality for using the "l-word" to describe her? And I don't mean "liberal"..... Dear Dave: Just read your site for the first time and I must say, it's pretty darn impressive. I'm a huge sports fan and move to the area under three years ago from Minnesota and I just would like to say that people need to stop complaining about bad local and tv programming...try visiting the Minneapolis- St. Paul areas. Furthermore, I didn't realize how poor regional sports television is in the Washington/Baltimore area. CSN has some below average talent and they come-off like they know- it-all and we should listen to them like they're the authority on area sports. I'd rather watch a MASN postgame show after a typical Nats loss than watch that "Sportsnite" program. I don't understand why Angelos won't spent some money and have MASN start a "SportsCenter" type show and show the people at CSN how to do sports. From: BryceMac127 (8/20/08) I never thought I'd say this - but God bless you, PLB. You hit the nail right on the head. (8/20/08) RE: "There were plenty of days during WWII where there were thousands of lives lost in a single day or battle. I got the point. Apparently, some people didn't. It's about historical perspective." Ahh, but there are many of us who would say that this O'Reilly-inspired train of thought is, in fact, a journalistic train wreck. The man objects to his precise quote being used against him, arguing that it's OK to make up facts because "it's about historical perspective." Making things up is--pardon me in advance for stating a fact--lying. Making things up is also what's exactly wrong with Bill O'Reilly. (8/20/08) If Bob Woodward's new book (and the fourth in a series on the Bush Administration & the Iraq Invasion) will upset anyone in the White House, they've only themselves to blame. In this, as with all of the three previous volumes, everybody in charge of policy, planning and implementation of the ill-conceived Iraq misadventures, from Bush on down, was interviewed. Just on the basis of plain old common sense alone, they should grasp the notion that if you don't want anybody to know about something, don't tell 'em! Is it possible that Bush is so arrogant and incompetent not to recognize Bob Woodward as one-half of the team that uncovered the White House Horrors - as John Mitchell so aptly put it - which culminated in the Watergate break-in and cover-up? No, they knew who they were dealing with alright. The Bush Crew thought they were more clever than everybody else, but their hubris keeps biting them in the ass. Looking at the mess of the past five years in Iraq and the long term economic impact as far into the future as we can see, the Bush Legacy is guaranteed to be quite a large, smelly pile, with plenty of flies buzzing around it. latimesblogs.latimes.com (8/20/08) Here's a comment/question that may get quickly lost amid the ratings discussion, but as a wine drinker, I'm puzzled by the new wine columnist coming to the Washington Post. The move represents a demotion for the current two wine writers, who have been reduced to once-a-month frequency. But they pushed out Ben Gilberti about a year ago, and I liked Gilberti enough to write the Post. I received a response from one of the Food editors telling me he thought it was "time for a change." Now the column is changing again. I wish it would revert to Gilberti, who was doing a nice job. Christian (8/20/08) If you are wondering why Big O & Dukes are in a bad mood, look at their ratings today. 18-34: 1.5 in 14th place... 25-54: 1.4 in 14th place... (8/20/08) REGARDING : "By the way, the guy who said "we saw the loss of 3,000 lives DAILY" during World War II might want to check his math." : There were plenty of days during WWII where there were thousands of lives lost in a single day or battle. I got the point. Apparently, some people didn't. It's about historical perspective. You have none just like sportscasters turned pseudo-journalists like Keith Olbermann. That man wouldn't know historical perspective if it bit him in the ass! (8/20/08) (RE CBS paying to send BAL's Wykoff to conventions:) Makes sense. ABC Radio also borrows affiliate reporters. Local affil gets to brag they have a guy covering the big story but it didn't cost them. ABC or CBS expand their staff for bigt events with no payroll increase. Usual deal is net pays the airfare and hotel. The reporter works both for the net and for his home station. (8/20/08) If you are looking for more stuff about ratings today, here are some morning drive ranks: 18-34: (1st – 10th) WKYS, WWDC, WITH, WLZL, WHUR, WPGC, WMMJ, WJFK, WMZQ, WRQX..... 25-54: (1st – 10th) WHUR, WTOP, WMMJ, WKYS, WWDC, WRQX, WJFK, WASH, WPGC, WIHT (8/20/08) "DCRTV hears that Baltimore's WBAL radio (1090 AM) will be sending Scott Wykoff to both the Democratic convention in Denver and the Republican convention in St. Paul." - CBS Radio paid his way. (8/20/08) Diane Rehm's situation is not unique. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., who currently co-hosts "Ring of Fire" on Air America Radio with Mike Papantonio, also suffers from spasmodic dysphonia, the neurological condition that causes strained, difficult speech and makes one's voice sound quavery. (8/20/08) "Dave, Once Michael Phelps left the pool so have the ratings for NBC. After Phelps helped the network have their best ratings in over a decade once his events were over NBC is seeing a decline in the ratings. But NBC VP of Olympics David Neal told me from Beijing that this Olympics will be known for Michael Phelps and the cool technology that NBC has used. " Err, every Olympics always use the latest technology, it's a manufacturers prime showroom. However, in every Olympics before this year, they always managed to the sound to be in sync with the picture. This year it's been "How much can we screw the lip-sync?". That and how we can send too much detail through the HD encoder. Even my non-tech wife wondered why the divers looked mosaic when they dived. Scrambled eggs and lipsync errors, That is what the Olympics will be remembered for after the great Phelps achievements. Not that the young viewer cares, they're happy with a 2 inch picture jerking on a cellphone !!!! (8/20/08) I don't get it! EdRod has been a "player" in the broadcast game for decades. He always lands on his feet. He's been through some tough times, BUT he continues to work. Many of us don't. I don't know who the unsigned individual is that keeps on busting him, but I do wish you'd STFU. PLB:0) (8/20/08) Note to Daniel Snyder: 'Redskin Radio' is interesting for about five minutes and might be worth a listen during games if you replace that stiff Larry Michael. But, for the rest of the year -- that is, between games and for all of January-September, it is a gawdawful nightmare. Kind of like your team.....By the way, the guy who said "we saw the loss of 3,000 lives DAILY" during World War II might want to check his math. That would have been over 4 billion deaths during the war (depending on when you say it started -- the beginning of Germany's expansion, Pearl Harbor, etc), which was more than the earth's total population at that time. (8/20/08) re: automation in DC. When Outlet bought WHFS in 1983, the station ran a satellite programming service called Format 41, targeted at 41 year old females. The system required two 48-bay cart decks. I believe there were a few Otari 5050Bs in the rack as well, loaded with reels of backup music if the satellite failed. The idea was that the network jock would back sell the music set and then a localized cart with that DJs voice would fire with the station slogan, call letters or ID. Then a pre-programmed stopset would play. There were frequent problems with the system, but not from a lack of effort by engineers Dave Garner and Art Rose. Just too many things could go wrong -- bad network cues, automation system reboots, cart failures -- and they did. (8/20/08) Dave's response: I hear WMAL uses Format 63. No, not for 630 AM. It targets 63-year-old men..... On the local CW front, dc50tv.com is up as of Monday. Everett W. (8/20/08) Dave, Once Michael Phelps left the pool so have the ratings for NBC. After Phelps helped the network have their best ratings in over a decade once his events were over NBC is seeing a decline in the ratings. But NBC VP of Olympics David Neal told me from Beijing that this Olympics will be known for Michael Phelps and the cool technology that NBC has used. www.baltimoreexaminer.com... Cheers, Jim (8/20/08) Against my better judgement, I'll weigh in with my $.02 on WCEI. As far as the quality of their programming and jocks, can they be better? Yes, but with an infinite amount of resources, ANY radio station can sound better than they already do. Because of WCEI's signal strength and the potential to move it a little closer to the Western Shore, they could very well be another Baltimore/Washington area rimshot if they wanted to be, but they are not and folks in the mid-shore region should be thankful for that. If they were a rimshot, they'd likely have talent closer to the level of Baltimore/Washington and a more tightly focused format. However, given their location and marketing focus, WCEI does what they do very well. There are a few issues that I have with their programming and there are some things I'd do a little differently if I programmed it, but those issues are nitpicky. Whether or not you think they do a good job, the station is very successful and nothing is more important than that. Keith Thompson, WCTR (8/20/08) (regarding a previous post) Although I worked at more than a few stations in the 70s, 80s, & 90s none of them had this automation setup cgi.ebay.com... Did this kind of mechanical behemoth ever really perform reliably? It just seems like on-air chaos just waiting to happen. Back when 98.7 FM was WMOD and played oldies, didn't some commercial for an apartment complex in Montgomery County get stuck in repeat mode for an hour or more, one weekend? (8/20/08) Another unsigned poster /s/ - YOU are stirring the stew, sir. By even mentioning it, the bubbles rise to the top. Mr. Rodriguez was simply joking with another person, not validating employment to a BBS of people. Please, sir, let the flame extinguish. DT (8/20/08) Regarding a previous post which said in part, “Field Communications was a division of Field Enterprises, which owned the Chicago Sun-Times.” I believe that this was the same family which owned the Marshal Field’s chain of department stores, primarily in the Chicago area but in other mid-western cities, too. Alas, they have all become Macy’s stores. A great loss. Just ask anyone from Chicago. (8/20/08) I believe Diane Rehm's condition is called Spasmodic Dysphonia. Also, I think she gets periodic injections of botox or a botox like formulation into the muscles of her throat which deaden the overactive muscles from thrashing against each other, which otherwise leaves her with a voice which sounds like a 90 year old Katherine Hepburn warbling on about Spencer Tracy. She is a pro, and sounds a whole lot better than before her diagnosis years ago. IMHO she can still be a little tough on the ears, but before she was diagnosed and before the botox treatments she was becoming unlistenable with each show starting to sound like the host was doing a bad Stevie Nicks impersonation. (8/20/08) The correct comparison is Olberman to Coulter! Equally outrageous! Both are Colgate grads. (8/20/08) To Ed Rodriguez, re your recent post: we don't have to be reminded (again) that you really did work at WEAM. Still trying to stir the stew on this board, huh? Obviously, the process of validating your employment there sure hit a sore spot. Grow up and let it die, Ed. /s/ Another unsigned poster :-) (8/20/08) Damn, I thought Pat Goss (aka "Mr. Congeniality") might be gone from the airwaves since 3WT went under. Probably no such luck. Guess I'll have to continue to listen to Dave Serio on Saturdays. Just as knowledgeable as Pat Goss, and without the grumpiness and attitude. (8/20/08) Dave's response: Actually, that's what I like most about Goss's show. Like when he scolds a driver about using the wrong oil blend..... Stu Nahan as Captain Philadelphia on 48 vs. Wee Willie Webber's Colorful Cartoon Club on 17 vs. Sally Starr on 10 vs. Pixanne on (6?). Truly a great time to be growing up in Burlington County. -- J.J. Gertler (8/20/08) Dave's response: Yeah, where I lived from 1960 to 1968, Willingboro, was (still is) in Burlington County - NJ's largest county area-wise, I do believe. Sally Starr was on 6 and Pixanne and Gene London were on 10, though..... "OMG, Scott Fybush, a motel room in Edgewood, MD??? Geez, if I'd known you were coming, I'd have unlocked my shed for a better Baltimore living experience! :-) Joe in Essex" - Yup, THAT sure would have been an experience! For what it's worth, the only reason I was staying in Edgewood was that it was halfway between the Aberdeen Ironbirds ballgame Wednesday night and some Baltimore visits on Thursday, and all I saw of the town was the exit off I-95. And after all that, I ended up accidentally taping over my WAMD aircheck, too. A memorable visit, indeed... (8/20/08) WOW---ED! I remember that cue burn on "Don't Pull Your Love." My first radio gig was dubbing LPs to Cart when I first started at WAMD as a wee lad. When I came back to manage the place, the song was on the computer, and I still remember that cue burn from the LP. I also remember a horrible pop in the middle of the Guess Who's "Clap for the Wolfman." Hmmmmm, memories. Steve Mann (8/20/08) You know, voice tracking is expected, but at least make it sound live. Tonight (Tuesday) on Mix 106.5, the jock was talking up the wrong songs-and stepping all over the damn intros. Jesus, just go jock less. (8/20/08) Regarding Diane Rehm”s voice, I think that from time to time she has to have some sorts of shots or some another type of invective procedure on her vocal cords so the she can keep talking. Thank God she keeps talking. Her show is tops! (8/20/08) Hey radio freaks! Drop THIS in your basement den and watch the missus light up with joy! cgi.ebay.com... Su-uure she will... (8/20/08) WFRE's HD-2 is kind of a "rockin' country" format--not bad, actually. Mike in Bartonsville (8/20/08) /\ August 20 Messages /\ \/ August 19 Messages \/ "Woodward's New Book Comes Into Focus" Wow just in time for the Presidential election. What a coincidence. (8/19/08) Hey Sister Joyce! You sure struck a note about cue burn, hon. While our Chief Engineer at WASH was/is a genius, he was also such an audio purist that he would not allow us to go from vinyl to carts, well into the early eighties. To this day, I cannot hear John Denver's "Calypso" or Hamilton, Joe Frank and Reynolds' "Don't Pull Your Love" without hearing that "screackt" sound in one certain spot. In fact, "Don't Pull Your Love" had the cue burn in the exact same spot at WASH-FM and at WAMD in Aberdeen! BTW- to those nice people who asked (like you, HR) I am back from the Florida Keys in time for Hurricane Season and doing fill-in work at VOA MusicMix. And, I'm scouting around for any jocking, news anchor or traffic anchor work! And, I DID work at WEAM :D Thanks, friends! - Ed. Rodriguez (8/19/08) (From DCRTV's Classified Ads:) ON-AIR TRAFFIC REPORTER: We are looking for the right people to do traffic reports for radio stations in various markets. Previous on-air experience preferred; traffic reporting abilities a must. Other previous reporting experience will also be considered for this position; News, Weather, etc. We are a small traffic reporting business based in the Washington DC market, and we are expanding are reach to other markets across the country. Our staff consists of radio professionals with 15+ years experience in the field. Your delivery must sound professional, and you must have a good work ethic. We have a very laid back and friendly working environment. This position is for a possible future expansion into another market. It's part-time, and telecommuting may be possible. Full-time positions may be available in the future. Send an aircheck and resume to: traffic1502@comcast.net (8/19/08) Re: "Diane Rehm, host of The Diane Rehm Show, heard on more than 120 stations nationwide, will chat with listeners online at 1 p.m., E.D.T., Wednesday, Aug. 20, after her live daily broadcast" ... She's brilliant and a great interviewer, but what's up with the weird ultra-slow way she talks? I listen to her show daily, and it's still off-putting. Can anyone explain it? (8/19/08) Dave's response: Her condition has been widely reported. She suffers from something called dysphonia (I think), which affects the speech center of her brain, causing the vocal difficulties. I believe she's even written a book about it..... What happened to WSIX-FM that used to be on Channel 161 on XM? It was not on this weekend. Did it get moved? Dumped? (8/19/08) Dave's response: Clear Channel is making changes to its channels on XM. And that's one of them..... Re, Dave's note: "What's country WFRE, 99.9, running on its HD2 channel? If it isn't classic country it ought to be....." According to DCRTV's own HD radio page (dcrtv.com/hdradio.html), WFRE is running "rockin' country" on HD2. I believe it's Clear Channel's own "Mother Trucker" from their HD Radio Format Lab... www.iheartmusic.com... "Mother Trucker (CH 306) Good Ol' Boy country music and southern rock." (8/19/08) Dave's response: I love it when my website knows more than I do. Ha ha ha..... Regarding the person who stated this about WCEI "Go into any Mid-Shore business and they own it." Of course they do...how many radio stations can a cheap boombox or receiver in a business get in that area other than WCEI? They suck more than a two-dollar tramp! With a signal like they have they can do a whole lot better than the current schlock line-up that's been on for years. They need to get their heads out of the sand. (8/19/08) Hey Dave, was watching the CBS Evening News with Harry Smith tonight and the closing news story was one to make a record collector smile. Vinyl LP's are coming back. Apparently, there is a growing demand and lots of artists like REM are releasing songs on vinyl. As a vinyl-holic collector, I love it; however, many of the veterans can attest that working with LP's on air can be a bear. Anyone remember cue burn? Burt in Denton, thank you for the kind thoughts. Michael Phelps is some heavy competition. Blessings. Joyce Conroy (WHFC) (8/19/08) Dave's response: I still have about 100 vinyl record albums in my music collection. That's down from more than a thousand a few years ago. I've copied many over to CDs, bought the commercial CD version, or traded in record albums I no longer listen to..... Obviously Stu Nahan honed his interviewing skills at Ch. 48 in Philly rather well....remember the immortal interview with Jeff Spicoli (Sean Penn) in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" (an absolute classic!) - - - - - Larry in Luray (8/19/08) OMG, Scott Fybush, a motel room in Edgewood, MD??? Geez, if I'd known you were coming, I'd have unlocked my shed for a better Baltimore living experience! :-) Joe in Essex (8/19/08) What was the deal with McCain out on the drill-rig 'trying, trying' to give a quick campaign speech? (see note-card) Uggh, it was AWKWARD :-) I like "stay off my grass you dang kids" McCain, but he would not have passed my 6th grade public speaking class! And I too DESPISE, DESPISE THAT LIBERAL-ARROGANT-OUT OF TOUCH-BLOW HARD OLBERMAN (aka 'KEITH-O', like that other tv ass 'Bill-O' -LOL) "triad_spook" (8/19/08) Dave, Just wanted to let your readers know that, according to XM Online, CSPAN Radio has finally cleaned up their programming act.... Carl (8/19/08) Here's my experience with DTV while in DCRTV-land last month: I stayed in three locations in the area - a motel room in Edgewood MD, NE of Baltimore; in NW DC near the northern end of Rock Creek Park; and near the east side of Andrews AFB in PGC. I was using a Magnavox DVD recorder with built-in DTV tuner and a Silver Sensor antenna. From all three locations, I had little trouble seeing all the full-power DC and Baltimore signals - 4, 5, 7, 9 from DC and 2, 11, 13, 45 from Baltimore. The lower-powered signals from DC (14, 20, 26, 32, 50) came in OK at the NW DC and Andrews locations but not in Edgewood; the lower-powered Baltimore signals (24, 54, 67) came in OK in Edgewood but not at either DC-area site. With some tweaking of the antenna, I could see MPT on 22 from all three sites. WNVT-DT 30 (MHz) came in only at the Andrews site, and just barely. From the Andrews site, I could also see WBOC-DT (CBS on 16.1, Fox on 21.2) from Salisbury with the antenna positioned just so. From the NW DC site, I could just barely get MPT's Frederick DTV signal (WFPT-DT 28). No sign, at any location, of WNVC-DT 57 or of WPXW-DT. It will be interesting to see how all of this changes next year when 9/11/13 return to their VHF channels; I'll need a different antenna, for sure, since the Silver Sensor is UHF-only. (Though it produced adequate, albeit snowy, analog pictures on high-band VHF at all locations.) - Scott Fybush, fybush.com (8/19/08) RE: "How is it possible that Mickey from the 98 Rock Morning Show can miss countless air shifts a year, and still have a job? I remember when DJ's were fired or fined for just being late, or missing an appearance. Today's absence had to have put him around the 20 days missed mark." - I'm guessing you work at the station and not an actual listener of the show. He was on the show yesterday because he was at some golf tournament. I'm not too sure about today though. If you listen to the show you can tell that Mickey and his boss are cool with each other so he probably has no problem getting the time off when he needs it. I think Amelia Josh and Scott do pretty good together without Mickey there. Just not quite as good without Mickey there to keep everybody all fired up. (8/19/08) Re: Previous post about "Field Communications" - Field Communications was a division of Field Enterprises, which owned the Chicago Sun-Times. The company owned independent television stations in the United States, with Chicago's WFLD as its largest-market station. (Source: Wikipedia) (8/19/08) Re: "Wish Bonneville Suits Would Consider A Classic Country Format And Carry Nascar Racing Also On The820 AM Frequency Instead Of F.N.R." Uh, right. Bonneville is going to run a separate Frederick station on 820 out of their DC HQ, running classic country and NASCAR. Pigs may also start sprouting wings at some point...in other words, not happening! (8/19/08) Dave's response: What's country WFRE, 99.9, running on its HD2 channel? If it isn't classic country it ought to be..... I've never been as embarassed watching local news as I have been watching Joe and Babs showing off their ''skills'' last week. And how about CNN using Daughtry singing a worn out Forienger song for Campbell Brown's ''Erect...I mean...Election Report''? Way to dumb it down, CNN! Paul (8/19/08) This item from the NY Times takes an early look at who's winning, as FiOS rolls out ... www.nytimes.com (8/19/08) How is it possible that Mickey from the 98 Rock Morning Show can miss countless air shifts a year, and still have a job? I remember when DJ's were fired or fined for just being late, or missing an appearance. Today's absence had to have put him around the 20 days missed mark. (8/19/08) Re: "The box that I bought only has the 'auto-scan' feature - it won't let you try to pick out your own channels. If it would - maybe I could try to lock in on one from another town, but it only does the auto lock on the strong (i.e. DC) channels." If you bought the Insignia box at Best Buy, it'll allow you to manually tune/scan the channels. Just go to antennaweb.org or tvfool.com to learn the RF channel numbers underneath the digital "virtual" numbers, then go into the box's menus to find manual tuning. If you get a hit (or even if you don't), it'll allow you to store it. The Insignia box is a rebadged Zenith DTT901, and the Zenith/Insignia is probably the best digital tuner out there as far as reception. While you're trying to get Baltimore, make sure you're aiming your antenna in that direction. Digital TV is MUCH more sensitive to antenna aiming than analog is! (8/19/08) "The blood of 4,000 lives in Iraq are on your hands. BUTCH" Hey look! It's one of Olberman's 200,000 prime time viewers checking in. (8/19/08) Butch honey, don't forget to take your pill. Love Mom (8/19/08) Wish Bonneville Suits Would Consider A Classic Country Format And Carry Nascar Racing Also On The820 AM Frequency Instead Of F.N.R. . (8/19/08) Once Again Channel 2 makes another dumb decision. Its good to add a hour newscast in the morning, but anchored by 3 white people in a market that is 26 to 30 percent black is terrible. Management over there, plug your brain in. Same thing in the evening, why do I see to two white women anchoring the newscast. I am not a racist or anything, but Baltimore is a urban market and i'm not saying get all black anchors, but have some balance for crying out loud. This is my story and I am sticking to it. (8/19/08) Yes, Jim Vance was on Philly's olr 48. More on WKBS 48 Philly... en.wikipedia.org... I once picked it up in Baltimore on a hot summer night and saw it sign off as FIELD COMMUNICATIONS, apparently owned by Marshall Field dept stores of Chicago. (8/19/08) For the answer to "What happened to Father Joe and The Gospel Greats on Sunday mornings on WPOC?", click on www.wpoc.com. Basically, WPOC will no longer air "The Gospel Greats", and they've moved Father Joe's "Country Roads" show to their HD-2 signal and online. -Greg in Perry Hall (8/19/08) Dear Sweet, Lovable BUTCH...you obviously misread my post or didn't read all of it...after all the names I called Keith Olbermann (tongue in cheek, by the way), I said I LOVE him and agree with everything he says. Your apology is accepted. -- Bobbie (8/19/08) Actually WMAR has yanked its NOON news several times over the last 5 or so years, so its no big surprise. It's definitely been the bastard news child over the decades at WMAR. I remember for a short time they just had Rudy Miller doing the entire noon newscast all by herself from news, sports, to weather! HAha! :-) (8/19/08) Do you remember channel 48 Philly's newscast? One of the reporters....Jim Vance ... Sports, Stu Nahan (who also was Captain Philadelphia before heading to LA) plus a lot of other great broadcasters.They also hosted and aired live pro wrestling from their studios near Philly Intl airport. I remember heading down there to watch the matches with my friends... Ira Mellman (8/19/08) Dave's response: No, I don't remember Jim on 48..... And Butch... the blood of over 3,000 lives at the WTC, the Pentagon and in the Field in Pennsylvania are on yours if you think that our war effort is wasted. During World War II, which was arguably about causes and threats much farther away, we saw the loss of 3,000 lives DAILY! And, the dispatch of Richard Eaton as a correspondent for WINX. (See, Dave... I got it back on t topic!). Ike (8/19/08) RE: [ " Keith Olbermann of MSNBC is such a left-wing nut job, so pro-Obama, anti-McCain/Bush, not objective, transparent, wacky, screwy, opinionated, biased, looney, and I absolutely love him...I agree with everything he says...okay, he's the left's equivalent of O'Reilly...oh well...just what we need to stay balanced. " ]........... I don't often agree with O'Reilly nor do I like him but I think he's sane for a person so often wrong. However, I think the better comparison would be Limbaugh vs. Olbermann as I think they both have pretty well stocked medicine cabinets! And I gotta repeat my Olbermann prediction if McCain wins........ I honestly think Olbermann will pop a vein in his neck, take a quick cheap shot at his buddy O'Reilly, then say how dumb Americans are, storm off the set to the horror of Tom Brokaw, quit MSNBC (he's done it before for political/mental reasons), move to the south of France and join George Clooney and the Oceans 11 cast on Clooney's yacht to sip martinis, talk about Darfur, and agree with the French about all the things they hate about America! That's my prediction, I stand by it. :-) PS: Anyone with half a brain knows McCain has been a thorn in the side of the Bush family for decades. Stop reading from The Book of Olbermann or raiding his medicine cabinet. It's bad for your health. :-) (8/19/08) Hey Bobby, yeah Keith Olberman is a left-wing nut job,like Bill O'Rancid or Sean Handjob. Your just the person that put this country in the position it's in today. I bet your going to vote for a Bush third term. The blood of 4,000 lives in Iraq are on your hands. BUTCH (8/19/08) (I receive my TV signal over the air. I recently bought a TV with a digital tuner. I was told I didn't need the converter box with this TV. However I am not getting any of the digital subchannels) I have a digital tuner box that I bought from Best Buy (thank you for the recommendation Gary Chase - and for the turn-on to avsforum.com) to go along with my Sony HD capable set (you know - it can see the HD picture, although it does not have an actual HD tuner). I had a professionally installed "batwing" antenna at the palatial Germantown estate - and I do get the DC stations, and most of them reasonably well - but I was expecting more. I guess I was expecting it be like to "good old" days...when you could get Baltimore, and even Hag-town and Lancaster from here. The box that I bought only has the "auto-scan" feature - it won't let you try to pick out your own channels. If it would - maybe I could try to lock in on one from another town, but it only does the auto lock on the strong (i.e. DC) channels. Oh well. To PLB - I always preferred Marshall McLuhan when he hosted the Hollywood Squares. His interaction with Charley Weaver was second to none. (8/19/08) Dave – Since we seem to be on a good ‘furniture of the dead’ headline run at DCRTV – can you please let me know what became of Bernie Mac’s trash can? I checked eBay but nothing there. Perhaps they’re donating it to the Smithsonian or maybe just leaving it in his home office? PLEASE get off the Tim Russert non-news!!! Grumpy in Fairfax. (8/19/08) Dave's response: Sorry, but it is "news" in an odd, sorta sad kinda way..... "If the entire AM BAND switched to All-Digital (not this phony borderline nonfunctional analog/digital HD Radio mix crap), wouldn't that solve a lot of the AM BAND's problems?" -- That raises a technical question that I do not have the knowledge to answer...CAN the AM band put out good-quality digital (I will repeat, 'good-quality')? The frequency band is much lower than the FM band, hence (I surmise) less information able to be transmitted per second. -- "Marshal the dead media theorist is an intersting psudonym for someone bashing radio... Cowardly not to use one's real name when they claim to know so much." -- Since many of the contributors in this forum do not sign names (including yourself), there is no shame or cowardice involved in failing to do so. But using a pseudonym is a time-honored way of adding to public debate and public information while remaining (wink-wink-nudge-nudge) "anonymous". One of my favorite pseudonyms was 'Adam Smith', the writer of the great 1960s book 'The Money Game'. That writer (who wasn't trying to keep his true name a secret, just decided it would be fun to use a moniker) had another name picked out, but his editor decided people wouldn't accept that one (Procrustes, if you're interested. Research the name and you'll see why he thought it was perfect for a book about the stock market). Adding to the rationale for pseudonyms is the feeling that, since you are 'not identified', you can have stronger opinions and be more honest about your views on the subject. And I agree with you--Marshall McCluhan IS an interesting pseudonym for the subject of radio. Most importantly for my reading, he writes clearly, does not insult or curse, and tries to make clear, convincing arguments. That you do not agree does not obviate his wit and candor. But that's just me... -- Bob K. (8/19/08) Tuned into O'Meara show Monday afternoon and heard a discussion on identity theft. As the conversation went on I thought it sounded more and more like an infomercial for the person being interviewed. Is this what the former home of the DnM show has been reduced too? And then some constant plugging of the limo service and joint were they plan to get sloshed on Friday by O'Meara. And to think this idiot mailbagger use to constantly pick on the DnM show for lack of effort the last few years but geez if'en I'd only known it would come to this snore fest......speaking of the analog to digital transition for TV C-Span ran several times over the weekend a FCC forum held back in July concerning the early transition that is going on down in Wilmington,N.C. on Sept. 8. Here's the link to the forum at C-Span tinyurl.com. Found the discussion quite interesting. The more sub channels a station has, hey WETA, the weaker the overall signals. No wonder when I try any of the WETA channels they all pixilated constantly. Unwatchable! But suspect that is of little concern to folks at WETA. And I don't get too excited about a sub channel giving 24 hour weather. Wow it's free. No more audio from TV stations on the radio apparently. And heard the station engineer of some station in Wilmington say should be able to get all the stations on digital that got with analog but I find can not get any of the Baltimore stations nor Maryland Public TV. (8/19/08) Dave's response: Maryland Public Television, and its Channel 22/WMPT, is treated by most people and the press as a DC local TV outlet. Yet, technically, it's a Baltimore market station. So, the digital subchannels are not carried by Comcast's systems in the DC market. I think Comcast should make MPT's three digital subchannels, including V-Me, available throughout DC, Montgomery, Prince George's, and Northern Virginia since the cable giant already carries the analog signal of Channel 22 in those areas. And, in fairness, Comcast should make Channel 26/WETA's subchannels available to the Baltimore market..... ("Matt made me a better DJ, worked with me, was patient, encouraging and eventually gave me prime time fill in on the morning show and in afternoons where I gained invaluable experiance.") Too bad he didn’t give you remedial spelling lessons… BTW: I’ve heard you on the air – if you’re better now I would have hated to have heard you years ago. (8/19/08) The following link contains both a video and about 80 pictures from a soldier's funeral in Leonardtown on. August 11th. www.thebaynet.com. Believe there was some misplaced patriotism displayed, but the video did a good job of getting thru my thick hide. At least the poor guy had believed in what he was doing. At some point during the 1966-67 school year, got to watch WKBS from Philly fairly often in Leonardtown on the UHF loop of a $149 17" Zenith b&w portable (from EJ Korvettes). (8/19/08) Dave's response: I loved WKBS, Channel 48 in Philly. Saw it sign on. Was just a tyke in Willingboro NJ. Dad had just bought our first color TV. A Sears floor model with a round picture tube. And a rotory antenna on the roof. Soon after "Star Trek" left NBC's airwaves, it beamed over to WKBS, "Kaiser Broadcasting, Burlington/Philadelphia." Loved the station ID slide back then. Color bars with the "48" in "Kaiser lettering" at the bottom. Some dippy station logo music, too. Remember it oh so well. WKBS lasted until the mid-1980s or so, when Kaiser shut it down rather than sell it off. Good old 48 went dark for a few years until someone started a new station on the channel..... Keith Olbermann of MSNBC is such a left-wing nut job, so pro-Obama, anti-McCain/Bush, not objective, transparent, wacky, screwy, opinionated, biased, looney, and I absolutely love him...I agree with everything he says...okay, he's the left's equivalent of O'Reilly...oh well...just what we need to stay balanced. -- Bobbie (8/19/08) XM '60s on 6 to salute WEAM this Fri. xmradio.com (8/19/08) /\ August 19 Messages /\ \/ August 18 Messages \/ The ongoing discussion of additional FM channels is dead. Terrestrial radio would rather tank the entire industry than make the compromises needed to save it. The IBOC system of multicasting the low power digital signal on the analog carries was to guarantee the owners who paid a premimium for higher powered station---the same advantage in the digital world. In the digital world there would not be a need for one high powered transmitter (or a lower power class A). Like cellular liscensing; radio stations could be licensed to serve a specific geographic area. How they choose to do that would be up to them. One high power transmitter or several lower powered transmitters. Just a signal borderline. Perhaps one wideband didgital RF signal with each station having certain bandwidth on that signal. Build one system per market. Then allow broadcasters to purchase (or jointly own) the system and bandwidth. True full coverage non fade digital. Now if they could only figure how to program it. (8/18/08) "I receive my TV signal over the air. I recently bought a TV with a digital tuner. I was told I didn't need the converter box with this TV. However I am not getting any of the digital subchannels." Good luck. I find that over-the-air DTV is VERY fragile. The signal has to be very good for DTV to work. An indoor antenna may not hack it. I have to put the antenna on my balcony - and even then moving it a few inches means I can't see some DTV stations. I predict that there will be many upset people when analog is turned off. (8/18/08) Dave's response: I did say that if you can get a station's main digital signal you should be able to get the station's digital subchannels. However, there's a decent chance that you won't be able to receive all of the digital signals of all of the analog stations that you normally get..... My, oh my... how the unwashed have become more obtuse in my absence! First, one anonymous fool derides ME for "bashing radio" and using a pseudonym when I am trying to offer ways to save the medium and he/she/it will not even use a pseudonym OR sign their name as they are demanding! Fool. Then, a maniac who insists that scatchy remnants of the Roaring Twenties would be more viable than the hits of 40-60 years ago. How about a station that plays REAL nostalgia? You could have Civil War re-enactors singing campfire songs, Dixie and Battle Hymn of the Republic. What a treasure trove of hits that would be. I can hear the audience switching from FM to AM for that one right now. Anonymous, please read what I wrote and, this time, pretend that you have at least an eighth grade education. CA in BC, just buy an ipod and leave us all alone... the living and the dead... for you fit in with neither! ROFLMAO Marshall McLuhan... well, in the casket... not on the floor (8/18/08) Re: "PLEASE take a moment and look up Marshall McLuhan. I can't believe people don't realize they are responding to the dead." I knew it was a pseudonym, and I knew that he demonstrated that he can't read with comprehension or stick to writing about subjects he knows about. My real shame is in violating Ron White's Law by responding to him, so I'll stop. ~~CA in BC (8/18/08) Two Questions For Anyone in DCRTV-land: 1) What happened to Father Joe and The Gospel Greats on Sunday mornings on WPOC? 2) I receive my TV signal over the air. I recently bought a TV with a digital tuner. I was told I didn't need the converter box with this TV. However I am not getting any of the digital subchannels. Do I need the box to receive these? I am really bummed about not being able to see The Rockford Files on 7.3 :) (8/18/08) Dave's response: If you have a TV with a digital tuner and can receive the main digital signal of a local TVer, you should be able to get that station's digital subchannel(s). In DC, 4, 7, 9, 26, 56, and 66 offer subchannels. Navigate to your TV's "channel scan" menu feature and see what it finds..... Regarding a previous post who said in part, “What the hell? Who cares if NBC/Universal demolished Tim Russert’s office?” I couldn’t agree more. Do we have empty offices honoring the other greats of TV news? I don’t know of any at their places of business. Shrines should not be in businesses. If you think that NBC News (or any other news organization for that matter) isn’t a business about making money (though they all may not) then you are kidding yourself. If NBCU wanted to memorize Tim Russert maybe they could name the network’s Washington newsroom on Nebraska Ave. after him or put a big picture in a hallway. Of course, if/when ch. 4, the NBCU studios and the attached real-estate is sold and NBCU’s Washington bureaus move then this will be a moot point. Although I never met the man, I liked and respected Russert as much as anyone. But keeping his office intact so that the people who replace him can walk by with reverence and think of “what could have been” only diminishes the work that they are hired to do. Sure the new folks may have big shoes to fill with Tim’s passing, but let’s give them every opportunity to do so without Russert’s ghost, in the big office, looking over their shoulders. (8/18/08) A recent poll by the CEA found that respondents had "zero interest" in receiving terrestrial radios (HD included) as gifts. blog.ce.org... Note the guy who wrote it runs 2 FM stations. (8/18/08) What happened to Graham at WRNR?? I was listening to him yesterday afternoon from 3-5. He came on once in the 5 pm hour and he just never came back on.... I also couldnt find his name on the website? any ideas?? Ted - St. Michaels (8/18/08) (Dave's response: I realize that the media is "pressured" to downplay the US casualties in Iraq in order to encourage the view that we're "winning.") WTF you can't be serious Dave. (8/18/08) Marshal the dead media theorist is an intersting psudonym for someone bashing radio... Cowardly not to use one's real name when they claim to know so much. Anybody else done their homework on WCEI? Not just a midshore station. You can hear them in Annapolis, Baltimore, Delaware...darn good signal... But they will never have the ratings thanks to being in between markets of Ocean City and Baltimore. But they don't need it. Go into any midshore business and there are your ratings... they own it! A true 25-54 station that superserves the audience with local content...Which today is the key for survival. Unless you'd rather have XM or an I-Pod. Bash all you want. You know not of what you speak oh greatd dead theorist. (8/18/08) Thank you, PLB, for remembering and for trying to get some of these youngsters to open a book and learn about someone... not that I'm trying to toot my own horn but, based on my studies and teachings during my lifetime among you, the living, I believe I know a bit about the media. I never said that Matt Spence was Hitler. I did not even equate him with being a "bad" program director. I said that I believe he has "Peter Principled" in his current job. And, I think that his youth and lack of experience in larger situations have held him back and caused him to make some misguided decisions (anyone here remember the "Spence and Moody Show?" Or, Matt's pairing of the soprano-voiced Moody with Don Bumpus?). Some of those were decisions that my grandmother could have made. And, if you think I'M dead... well! Now, the solilioquy, "Certainly any 1920s record by The SixJumping Jacks with Tom Stacks singing would have greater appeal thanhearing Lenny Welch sob his way through 'Since I Fell For You'" proves my point. Will someone PUH-LEASE get this person a Heathkit transmitter kit so they can listen to "Yakety Sax" all day long in the fidelity c.1930? (sigh) Ahhh... but the person who wrote, "Of course the cost would be prohibitive, but maybe that's what we need,the weak links on the AM dial to just go away, making room for more powerful stations that can better serve their markets," was writing truth and genius! The medium now has too many outlets and too few owners. It's a simple formula... one that the Congress, Senate and President flushed down the toilet for special interest groups like the Mays family in 1996. It was bi-partisan and wrong. And, it contributed... no, expanded... my observation of "television as a vast wasteland" to radio. May I go now? It smells like formaldahide in here! Marshall McLuhan (8/18/08) Dave's response: Hey Marshall, loved you in "Annie Hall." That reminds me, go see the new Woody Allen flick, "Vicky Christina Barcelona." Fabulous. OK, Scarlett Johannson is an awful actor, she is quite nice to look at. Especially her kissing scene with Penelope Cruz! Yummm..... I really don't know if it's just naievity or ignorance. PLEASE take a moment and look up Marshall McLuhan. I can't believe people don't realize they are responding to the dead.(head)-PLB:0) (8/18/08) "the media can't wait to tell us about casualties and signs that we're losing and finding dark clouds in the silver lining, especially the AP. and prior to the last 6-9 months, who besides fox news gave any indication that we've been winning?" - I strongly agree with this poster and couldn't have said it any better. I second that emotion! mainly because it's true. (8/18/08) I hired “Magic Matt” Spence 15 years ago, and consider it the worst mistake I have ever made. He is a no-talent who has single-handedly brought down one of America’s great small market stations. I kid… Matt is great, both on-air and off. He is a pro who takes his job seriously, and is someone who can actually work within the parameters of small-market radio without losing his mind. Keep it up Matt! (8/18/08) (Dave's response: I realize that the media is "pressured" to downplay the US casualties in Iraq in order to encourage the view that we're "winning.") really? who exactly is "pressured"? the media can't wait to tell us about casualties and signs that we're losing and finding dark clouds in the silver lining, especially the AP. and prior to the last 6-9 months, who besides fox news gave any indication that we've been winning? (8/18/08) A response to "Marshal" and his attacks on Matt Spence and WCEI..... Where are you workin' dude? (8/18/08) I drive the Rt. 50 corridor west from Fairfax City to Ashburn frequently and the reception of ESPN980 is worse than ever. There is constant static; I've tried switching to 730 and that isn't any better. Is Snyder planning to improve the reception before the season or are we stuck with this for the football season? Any info would be appreciated... (8/18/08) Re: "Hey, if you're gonna talk about forgotten heroes, how about JOHN McCAIN!???" As far as I was concerned, Forgotten War Hero John McCain's pandering to the Bushes from 2004 and on, and subsequent war mongering, is absolutely equivalent (and more relevant to the man he is now) to Forgotten War Hero John Kerry's symbolic throwing away his medals 20 or more years before he ran for the same office. So little difference between the two of them - both Vietnam vets, both Senators, both published authors, both named "John," both love flip flops, both are more liberal than Hillary Clinton, neither will be President, and both are married into ridiculous wealth, but for some reason that's only a point of derision when it's a Democrat who has benefit from Capitalism. (8/18/08) Can someone tell MASN to put the ravens preseason games on in HD watching saturday's game against the vikings was horrible on standard def I end up watching the redskins & jets game and im not a fan of neither but comcast sports net had that game in HD and it was most watchable on my 1080i hd tv instead of the standard def ravens game (8/18/08) What the hell? Who cares if NBC/Universal demolished Tim Russert’s office? With all due respect, the guy was a talented, respected and trusted journalist. He had a special job and he did it very well. He was generous to his family, church and charities. Cherish the countless interviews he conducted, his quick wit and sense of humor; not his office or the furniture that was once in it. Time does not stand still when we are gone (whenever that may be), the traffic lights will still turn green, the birds will still fly, M Street in Georgetown will still be busy on Halloween night and someone else will sit in the seat we now occupy at work. People, let it go. (8/18/08) Sponsor identification was required by section 317 of the communications act back in the 1930s. It has been amended several times, but remains in effect. The amendment that applies to commercial mentions in a program (like Rush's) says that if you know it's a commercial than it is OK. If it is not easy to identify the content as commercial, than you must add the identification of the sponsor. Really is a gray area. Ed Graham (8/18/08) Diane Rehm, host of The Diane Rehm Show, heard on more than 120 stations nationwide, will chat with listeners online at 1 p.m., E.D.T., Wednesday, Aug. 20, after her live daily broadcast. The chat will focus on where people get their news and will take place on The Conversation, an online meeting place for listeners, producers, hosts, and reporters. Those interested in participating need only go to conversation.wamu.org and fill out a profile to join. The Conversation is WAMU 88.5’s social network for public radio listeners and fans. Launched on May 15, it meets two needs: the ever-increasing desire by consumers of all media to communicate directly with not only news professionals, but also with each other; and the need for a citizen journalism outlet that helps reporters and producers build networks of sources and ideas. For more information, go to conversation.wamu.org. (8/18/08) Hey, if you're gonna talk about forgotten heroes, how about JOHN McCAIN!??? Isn't he running for President or something? Wouldn't know it in The Post or The Sun or from the overall TV coverage, both local and national! LOL (8/18/08) Matt Spence gave me my first job in radio at WCEI back in July of 2004. Matt was nothing but a first class PD all the way. Matt made me a better DJ, worked with me, was patient, encouraging and eventually gave me prime time fill in on the morning show and in afternoons where I gained invaluable experiance. I still have all my old aircheck notes from him when I worked there. I also enjoyed teaming up with him to cover high school football for Easton High. Matt does not have an ego and pushed no one off the air, I know the reasons why changes were made and they are for none of the reasons that this Marshall claims. (I also enjoyed working with Don Bumpus and enjoyed him on the air. Don is also awesome at news and has an excellent background having worked in news departments...having him do news in the morning is a great idea.) There is no way Matt is over his head, he has a ton of radio experiance going back to his days working at Q105, Sports Talk 960 and My 106 in Salisbury/Pocomoke and at 3WZ I believe it was in State College. Matt knows his stuff and gets radio. He is a very hard working guy and a very nice guy at that. I know Stacy and Alex realize what a valuable employee they have there. I will always be indebted to Matt for everything he did for me. I consider Matt not only a former boss but a friend. -Michael Popovec (a.k.a. Mike Bradley-101.7 & 95-3 The B-Georgetown, DE) (8/18/08) I don't think anyone has questioned the mus