Current Mailbag - Mailbag Archive Index - DCRTV Front Page - Support DCRTV DCRTV Mailbag - December 1 to December 8, 2008 Latest messages listed first..... \/ December 8 Messages \/ WUSA feels very "UHF" based on the cheap-looking commercials in the 7PM newscast recently. Like some backwater Ch. 57 still in B & W. Tonight, the Chia Pet was bad enough. But nearly back-to-back commercials for some guy in a top hat with a religious symbol in the background is not only creepy, it's a sign of desperation. Can't they sell ad time ? Next will be the guy playing a stack of ribs. Then Ronco's Pocket Fisherman. NOW how much would you pay? But wait, there's more ... if you send before midnight tonight. Thanks, I'm here all week. (12/8/08) Not only could all of the WUSA graphics be used in other cities, the graphics most likely are made in another city (Denver). Not only is are the graphics standardized across all of the Gannett stations, the new system they use to make them (Axis) was sold to them on the fact that every graphic for every newscast for every city can be made at one central office. www.tvnewsday.com... (Ironically, I think the new Gannett graphics are worse than every single old graphic sets in use beforehand at every single Gannett station. In fact, KUSA in Denver still uses a remarkable amount of their old pre-Axis graphics, even though the new graphics system is based in their station.) (12/8/08) Channel 7’s new look actually looks “local!” A good thing! WUSA opens could be used anywhere (and are) in any city, pretty much the same with WRC. My only beef is that the Channel 7 logo on in the extreme lower right side with the time and temperature is only about three-quarters visible. It needs to be moved to the left a bit. I looked at Channel 9 and some other HD stations to make sure my picture was not off, but Channel 7 was the only on with this problem. (12/8/08) Dave's response: Yeah, it was sharp enough that I could even read the WWTD-LP on opening graphic..... (Dave's response: There's nothing wrong with your set or a problem at NBC4. Many of the programs and ads on the digital signals of local TVers are in plain old standard-def.....) NBC4 does not download either of these shows in HD. They supposedly have the equipment, but are forbidden to use it by NBC mandate. There was some talk of this at avsforum's Washington/Baltimore thread (www.avsforums.com). WUSA also does not air syndicated programs ET and The Insider in HD as they don't even have the equipment yet to do so. (12/8/08) Dave's response: Comcast gives me the Sci-Fi Channel in HD, but many of the shows on the network, like the BBC's "Dr Who," involve an HD aspect width program being transmitted in SD, with big black bars on the sides and top. Very annoying..... (from Front Page) DCRTV told you ...Dennis Israel ... WMET ... will be gone as of 12/31. Not because of the economic slump. (end paraphrase) So, then, why? Where's he headed and who's taking his place? (12/8/08) Dave's response: We reported what Mr. Israel told us. Go figure..... More discussion about NBC4's digital signal..(not that this a tech board or anything!) I bought a hi-def set for my kitchen and am successfully using rabbit-ears to get hi-def signals. My question is-- Ellen and Dr Phil are supposedly available in hi-def but don't seem to be on my set. They are are certainly not wide screen. Is this problem NBC4's or mine? Regards Biff (12/8/08) Dave's response: There's nothing wrong with your set or a problem at NBC4. Many of the programs and ads on the digital signals of local TVers are in plain old standard-def..... I can vouch for 980 not being a daytimer. While I no longer listen to them because I am not a Cowherd fan, and my prime time for terrestrial listening is 11 a.m.-1 p.m. before I switch over to my XM, when I would turn my stereo on at night, I would often get a signal from 980 that was listenable as WABC or WBBM. OK, so it's not THAT great, and it would fade in and out a bit (like WABC and WBBM), but there was something there.... Charles in Winchester (12/8/08) (Dave's response: Exactly. It's a righty smokescreen, just like all this nutty talk about Obama's birth certificate. There is absolutely no way the "FD" will come back. And, in fact, many Dems are against its resurrection, too.....) the birth certificate issue has been poo-pooed for a long time by major righties, such as michelle malkin and ed morrisey. as for the fairness doctrine, some democrats are against it, many are for it. people like, you know, chuck schumer. it's called projection. kind of like how the left howled about how bush was going to bring back the draft, but the only person in congress pushing that kind of legislation is charles rangel. and how the republicans are nothing more than klan members without the hoods, but the only member of congress to fit that description is robert byrd. (12/8/08) Dave's response: Many Americans (not just Dems) are for more "fairness" in the media (not the "Fairness Doctrine" per se), everywhere from CNN, Fox, and MSNBC, to the Washington Post/Times, NPR, and WMAL..... Re: WRC's aspect ratio problems-- This sounds suspiciously like the problem I posted about here last week... Except it was over on WBAL Baltimore as seen on DISH Network. In their case, they seem to have an issue with what they're providing satellite services with. For well over a month now, a majority of their local promos, commercials, syndicated shows such as "Oprah" and "Ellen", and many local newsbreaks appear to have a "zoomed-in and stretched" ratio. Yet the NBC network feed looks normal, with the exception of SNL and Conan O'Brien (which is supposed to be seen in wide-screen, even on a standard 4:3 set.) None of this flaw shows up on the soon-to-be-defunct analog signal. It's pretty obvious that whatever's causing it comes from something the local stations may be having a problem with. Perfect example of this I've seen several times now-- as WBAL transitions back to programming out of the warped-ratio commercials, for a split second at the end of the ad, the picture pops back into 4:3 mode before the show comes back--as if its something being purposely switched. And even weirder, during a broadcast of "Ellen", as they ran a small Lottery promo in the lower right corner, the picture momentarily corrected itself to 4:3, then as the promo faded, the stretched ratio returned. *I'll note again, this is what I'm seeing with Dish Network, on a TV set with traditional 4:3 picture. (12/8/08) Dave, Let me share a conversation about the Fairness Doctrine I had with my liberal Brother-In-Law over Thanksgiving. He brought up the topic and I told him it was a horrible idea because it would mean that the broadcast media would shy away from covering issues rather than giving everyone equal time. Needless to say we argued back and forth with him arguing that broadcasters have a responsibility to air all sides of an issue with me arguing that you can't define what equal time means and that broadcasters would rather not deal with controversial issues than to deal with the logistical headaches and possible lawsuits from the various groups that want to get their message heard on the air. When my Brother-In-Law pressed me for an example, I told him that in the past we've had folks on the air talking about events associated with Black History Month. I told him that if the Fairness Doctrine was in place, I could guarantee him that the KKK would demand equal time on our air to get their message out. He told me that he didn't believe that anyone could force us to put the KKK on the air. I told him probably not, but do you think my station really wants to deal with a possible KKK lawsuit demanding airtime? He said, probably not. Then I asked him if he now saw why the Fairness Doctrine was a bad idea and he said yes. Keith Thompson, WCTR (12/8/08) Dave's response: I remind you again, I am against any government regulation of the program content of radio and TV programming..... WJLA completely botched the HD launch at noon. The HD signal did not work for the preshow tease or the show open, after some scrambled video, the SD video was used. Then about three minutes into the show, there was no video at all for several minutes, just a black screen with the time and temp logo and audio. After the first commercial break, squeezed HD video with wings were on for a couple of minutes, finally the HD signal was found, but no audio for the rest of the block. About 12:20, they did manage to get audio, but it was with an echo which lasted until the end of the show, lets see if they can manage to get it on clean for the 5PM show. (12/8/08) ("But, maybe we wouldn't even be having this discussion if radio management suits like Berry (who canned longtime MALer Core earlier this year) made a half-assed attempt to have some sort of diversity of opinion on their stations. Take WMAL. Every single talk host on the station, from 5 AM to 1 AM, is a middle-aged or older white man who leans to the right. No women, no blacks, no lefties.") then don't listen to the station or buy products from their sponsors. pretty simple. there's a reason i don't watch MSNBC-obama, especially in the evenings- there's nothing but left-wing opinions. (12/8/08) 97.5 has been around for years and years. I believe they broadcast from Mount Pleasant/Columbia Heights, not Adams Morgan. They used to broadcast every night, but I live west of Rock Creek Park and have a harder time picking them up than when I lived in Mount Pleasant. Dischord Records even released a benefit CD for the station about five years ago. For as long as they've been broadcasting in the FCC's backyard, you'd think they would have been shut down by now, if somebody wanted it so. I also hear a pirate station on 88.1 or 87.9 occasionally. It seems to be on the air only when there are major protests or other political events in town. (12/8/08) Dave's response: If WASH on 97.1 and 98 Rock on 97.9 don't care, then I guess the FCC won't try to shut down the pirate on 97.5. Cool..... Weight control is a very sensitive issue. Regardless of whether a specific individual is fat, we all wake up in the morning and look in the mirror as we brush our teeth. On the other hand, most of us (and I stress most) have control of what we put in our mouths and how often we exercise. Maybe the person in question has some sort of gland issue? Of some of the things I have read on here, calling a person “FAT” has got to be the meanest. It digs deep at the inner core. (12/8/08) What's the deal w/ the Globe ? One week it's Weasel, then it's Albie D, then it's Chris Emery, and now it's Albie again. Can't make up your mind ? As if anybody at CBS cares, I vote for Chris. Hamboy (12/8/08) Re: "980AM is a day timer and the games are played at night!" Well, no, 980 is not a daytime station. (Or a "day timer", which I believe is a paper-based daily planner.) It does put out 5,000 watts at night. The problem, of course, is that many people in the Northern Virginia part of the market have trouble hearing it due to 980's lower powered, directional nighttime signal. And the 94.3 Warrenton signal is not quite powerful enough to substitute for many listeners. I'll totally agree that Danny should have sold all the rimshots and former Triple-X signals and somehow gotten a full power FM (say, Clear Channel's WBIG, Salem's WAVA or similar). (12/8/08) For those looking for work, laid off or otherwise interested in bettering their employment options ... Future of Journalism job contest: publish2.com... Best, Tammi (12/8/08) Asked how he would describe Obama, this is how Dana Milbank responded: washingtonian.com... "He's a shaman," says Milbank, "believed to possess magical powers. No one knows the source of these powers, but it's widely believed that on January 20, he will walk on water—across the Tidal Basin. He will perform the miracle of the loaves and fishes on the Ellipse. "Anything less," Milbank says, "will be a great disappointment to the nation." (12/8/08) OK, “Rock n Roll Part 2” by Gary Glitter update: Anyone see the Army-Navy game? George Bush, the Commander in Chief comes out- and they are playing Rock n Roll Part 2 !!! And even better, the crowd- largely made up of cadets and plebes-- add in the “YOU SUCK!” that’s been discussed here. OK, so who’s the genius who chose that song for that occasion??? (12/8/08) Dave's response: I hear that since Rupert Murdoch has been so supportive of Bush over the past eight years he's bought the naming rights to the current economic downtown. It's now officially "The Fox News Recession." All journalists should take note and make reference in future news copy..... ("Well, just look at the freshly released Arbitron PPM ratings and you might be able to guess how they feel") Those freshly released Arbitron PPM ratings cover the period 11/06 - 11/12. The story is yet to be told. (12/8/08) re: "this is actually for all the WASH DJs....Im curious to know how you feel about all xmas all the time?" Well, just look at the freshly released Arbitron PPM ratings and you might be able to guess how they feel. (12/8/08) Dave, No one is talking about the Fairness Doctrine except for bloggers, righty talk host trying to drum up outrage and righty think tanks trying to drum up money. It's a false issue. Howie (12/8/08) Dave's response: Exactly. It's a righty smokescreen, just like all this nutty talk about Obama's birth certificate. There is absolutely no way the "FD" will come back. And, in fact, many Dems are against its resurrection, too..... Anyone else try and listen to the Redskin game last night on the radio? Anyone else try and listen to the game wrap up this morning? Red Zebra has three signals, and none of them are strong enough after the sun goes down, and before the sun goes up. Since most of the Redskin games have occurred at least partially after sundown you can forget ever listening to the game on the radio. My question is this…do the Redskin sponsors know that very few customers are actually hearing the commercials? Everyone always says that Dan Snyder and his band of miserable henchmen are so smart. His team may never be successful on the field but he is a “marketing genius” What kind of a ”marketing genius” buys three inferior pea shooter signals, and then makes a bad situation worse by purchasing 980 for another 25 million? 980AM is a day timer and the games are played at night! I don’t know who is the bigger business idiot here…Snyder for creating this mess, or the clients who fund his madness through advertising sponsorships. (12/8/08) We have not watched WUSA 9 news for probably well over a year, but after the Skins game Sunday night, my husband flipped by channel 9 and there was Haber, bigger than life. And I do mean BIGGER. Wow, has he packed on the pounds. The buttons on his suit jacket were buckling under the pressure. Even when he stood up for the final segment, my husband said the jacket still looked like a 38 short on a guy who needs a 44 long. And his tie was dangling out the bottom of his coat too, giving the illusion his fly was open or something. Maybe it was just an off night for the one-time ESPN golden boy, but it looked sloppy. (12/8/08) Dave's response: Yes, Brett is getting fat..... I did some quick research after seeing your Twitter post about 97.5 in Adams Morgan... I present to you, 97.5 on a Silver Platter. These guys are bold enough to have their own web site: www.radiocpr.com... They even have a Wikipedia entry: en.wikipedia.org... Pictures of their old studio, live remotes, and even their stickers are at: www.radiocpr.com... As an FYI... I live in Dupont Circle and can pick them up quite clearly with full quieting at 17th & R St NW... (12/8/08) Tribune talking bankruptcy insidecharmcity.com (12/8/08) /\ December 8 Messages /\ \/ December 7 Messages \/ Very short and very correct. Thank Dave(Huges) for setting the record straight. I’m not, I don’t want to be and I thank you for clearing the air about the post that claimed I was Penis Mightier. I might have been Granny, I might have been others but I am now and will always be PLB. (12/7/08) Happy Birthday to Chris Core! He his birthday is December 8th. Not sure how old… just old.... TIME NOW FOR A FEW CHOICE WORDS ABOUT CHRISTOPHER CLAYTON CORE....OR AS HE IS KNOWN BY HIS CLOSEST FRIENDS...."MR. CORE"... MR.CORE WAS BORN IN A SMALL TOWN WEST OF HERE...THEN HE WAS RAISED AS A CHILD..MUCH TO THE SUPRISE OF HIS COUSINS, MR. CORE REACHED PUBERTY AT THE AGE OF SIX..THEY THOUGHT HE WAS A GIRL.... TO PROVE HIS MANLINESS, MR. CORE HIT UPON HIS NEXT DOOR NEIGHBOR..MRS. BUTTERWORTH....WELL, SHE WAS HIP TO HIS MOVES AND SLAPPED HIM SILLY...SIX WEEKS LATER, MR. CORE'S CHEEKS WERE STILL STICKY.... MR. CORE LIKED PULLING PRANKS...ONE OF HIS FAVORITES WAS STICKING THE PIGTAIL OF THE GIRL IN FRONT OF HIM INTO HIS INKWELL...ODDLY, MR. CORE WAS IN COLLEGE AT THE TIME.... UPON GRADUATION, MR. CORE WAS CITED...BUT HE DECIDED TO PLEAD GUILTY AND WAS PUT UNDER HOUSE ARREST FOR THE NEXT THREE YEARS...MR. CORE ENJOYED THE ANKLE BRACELET SO MUCH THAT UPON RELEASE HE BOUGHT ANOTHER ONE FOR HIS OTHER ANKLE…. TIME PASSED….ONE DAY MR. CORE WAS READING AN ISSUE OF LIFE WHEN A WOMAN ENTERED..HE HAD NO IDEA WHO SHE WAS…. SOON, MR. CORE FOUND HIMSELF..BUT THAT’S ANOTHER STORY…I MEANT TO SAY. SOMEHOW, HE FOUND HIMSELF WORKING AS A NEWSCASTER OF SPECIAL ENGLISH AT VIOLA AMERICUS …UNFORTUNATELY, PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD KEPT COMPLAINING SAYING…”WHY DOES HE SPEAK SO SLOWLY”…??.. MORE TIME PASSED AND WHEN THINGS GOT ROUGH, MR. CORE WOULD WALK THE STREETS OF CHEVY CHASE MARYLAND WEARING A PLACKARD WHICH SAID..”WILL NARRATE FOR FOOD”…. MR. CORE HAD A MIRIAD OF HOBBIES..WHATEVER THAT MEANS…BESIDES WRITING MRS. BUTTERWORTH’S PHONE NUMBER ON MEN’S ROOM WALLS, HE ALSO ENJOYED PATTING HIMSELF ON THE HEAD…. BECAUSE OF A WAR INJURY, HE COULDN’T REACH HIS BACK.... THIS MONTH, MR. CORE WILL REVEL IN THE BIRTHDAYS OF SOME FAMOUS PEOPLE LIKE DAN BLOCKER AND DOROTHY LAMOUR AND SOME LESSER KNOWN DEAD CELEBRITIES…. AT THIS POINT IN HIS LIFE, MR. CORE CAN BE SATISFIED WITH REACHING HIS LIFE LONG DREAM OF KEEPING ESKIMOS FROM PLAYIING HOCKEY…AND TO HIS DAY, THERE IS NOT ONE ESKIMO IN THE N.H.L…EXCEPT FOR THAT GUY ON THE BENCH EATING A WHALE SUB.... AND NOW, JUST ONE GOAL REMAINS…THAT OF WALKING THROUGH THE DC AREA HOPING TO HAVE SOMEONE JUMP OUT BEHIND THE BUSHES AND SAY.. “HEY MEESTER….WANT TO SEE SOME DING”…????... HAPPY 60TH… SINCERELY, BOB (12/7/08) The SNL problem was only during program. Commercials and promos were like normal. This was viewed on Cox cable, but I doubt they had anything to do with this since it was bad during the network feed. (12/7/08) Either NBC or WRC goofed up on the Standard Def version of SNL last night. Instead of letterbox like normal with NBC, it was zoomed in as though someone set the aspect ratio converter wrong. Charlie / Springfield (12/7/08) Dave's response: Could also be a satellite or cable company goof..... Dave, Give me a break. I sign my posts 99% of the time when I write you. I wrote my post about your lefty views this morning as I was walking out the door to church. For some reason you seem preoccupied with WMAL and WMAL demographics are not to the left but to the right. I do read your rants on a daily basis or when you have them and enjoy reading them but even you have to admit you seem a lot harder on the right than the left. I do not care you are a lefty but Dave Berry? He has many places he could end up in town besides WMAL where people could enjoy listen to him. Scott in Alexandria (12/7/08) Dave's response: Dave Berry? I was mentioning Chris Berry, the GM of MAL..... Very sad news about Mike Kavanagh! A fine newsman (what a voice) and an even finer person. It was a privilege to work with him. Bob Duckman (12/7/08) Wake-up folks. "Penismighter" is simply another alias of that self-confessed alias king and attention whore "PLB". Unbeknownst to PLB's friends who steadfastly defend him, Paul is busily debating himself; and having a hearty laugh at the rest of you rubes. How do I know this? If PLB truly wanted to cease the endless Bicknell bickering, he would stop replying to the Penis person! Funny how he persists in fanning the flame war, don't 'cha think? Almost makes me yearn for the good old days of Commander Bunny. (Oh, and by the way, Commander Bunny was still ANOTHER alias of Good Guy Davy Jones.) (12/7/08) Dave's response: I'm pretty sure that "Penismighter" and "PLB" are two different people. Pretty sure..... I thought DCRTV readers who remember him as Eddie Gallaher’s newsman on WASH would want to know that Mike Kavanagh has passed away at the age of 57 after having a heart attack in his home yesterday. Mike has been in Atlanta radio for a number of years, spending most of that time with WSB. In recent years, Mike limited his WSB activity to a 2-hour weekly financial advice show because his financial planning business, his other occupation, had taken off. I got to know Mike, and he was a truly caring person as well as one of the best news people in the business. Roddy Freeman (12/7/08) Isn't it cute how RK types? Look at how he presses those keys! L'il Tommie Curtis was a bossjock back in the day. Know your history. On another topic, Dave responded: "My Rant was directed at all radio stations, not just WMAL. WAMU and WOL should put more conservative voices on the air. Why not! All I'm saying is that the private owners of every talk radio station (not the government!!!!!) should strive to allow all points of view to be heard from all kinds of people..." Bravolllllinnnngusss to you Sir, for your no-gummint stand. But don't hold your breath for station owners to make more than a token effort to air views other than their own. Still, it's so cute when they try. Additionally, government shouldn't subsidize broadcasts (except VOA) which means a radically different business model for NPR and PBS. But don't count on any dimunition of subsidies under the incoming administration (Meet the new Boss). Historically, right voices on the radio have done better in the marketplace than left voices. Lefties rely on contributions (good) and gummint support (bad). Air America was a valiant try, but poor ratings and shady business dealings were its downfall. Al Franken is a big fat idiot. Oh, also incredibly lack of talent in the broadcasting booth except for Randi Rhodes. It was worse than college radio. Similarly, when WMAL gave their "pet liberal" a slot he did a decent show (google Jerry Klein's 2006 Radio Experiment) but then he squandered it when he devoted a whole show to the evil Christians who tried to force their religion down his throat by leaving a poinsettia outside every door in his apartment building WITHOUT DETERMINING THE RELIGION OF THE RESIDENTS OF EACH APARTMENT. Remind you of anyone? (think mustache). I guess Ward Churchill (hey, there's someone who could do a good radio show) would call him an extremely tiny Eichmann. Peanut Butter 'n' Bicknell in the Morning! Shoutout to a l'il fella whose website is sorely in need of the stern but loving attention of a competent editor. I'm just sayin'. It really is --- The PenIsMightier (12/7/08) Diversity in talk radio? Dreamer! Radio doesn't DO diversity. Imagine if there were some diversity on the _music_ stations: some Liszt next to AC/DC, a little Jazz Butcher next to Celine Dion. The world would end! The talk stations are just following the same rule book (that just happens to be killing off radio). ~~CA in BC (12/7/08) I don't know when this happened at MSNBC but it sure is funny...Pat R. www.break.com (12/7/08) There is no chance that the Fairness Doctrine will be revived. All this talk on the radio of reviving it is just conservatives using a boogie monster to rile up their listeners ("Oh no! They're going to take my radio pundit away!") to a cause that coincidentally lets them bathe in the glow of listener worship. Obama is against the FD. Most of Congress (on both sides) are against it. It would just as rapidly hurt liberal talk radio as it will conservative talk radio (yes, Air America is against FD). We might as well be spending this time talking about the threat of overthrow of government by psychic chipmunks, which is about as likely to happen as the reintroduction of the Fairness Doctrine. (12/7/08) Wow, it looks like the Mailbag is getting 'freeped' this morning. Google 'freeped' and you will understand. Jake (12/7/08) Dear mr. “Mightier”, I cannot figure out what you have got against Mr. PLB, but it is stupid whatever it is. You mentioned Tom Curtis? I don’t remember him. Was he the guy that ran the clubs for “dates for the desperate” in DC. If that is him, who would want to shine his shoes? I would guess you would. I have had enough of you, PLB and your childish diatribes. Give it a rest. RK. (12/7/08) DCRTV, With all of the leftist outlook we get from Federally funded National Public Radio, and the leftist line from CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN tv and radio shows, why does little old WMAL need to spout the same left-wing drivel. If I wanted leftwing I'd listen to NPR or Air America with its boring and whinging folks (who I do tune into on occassion). The "fairness doctrine" is from when there were just 3 networks and not today's many sources. The re-introduction of the 'fairness doctrine' is just a coverup to drive off the radio waves those with a non-leftist viewpoint. Besides, didn't the last election supposedly show that Limbaugh/Hannity and all the other rightwingers were ineffective, by the statements of Pelosi and other leftist leaders. Frank in Ft. Washington (12/7/08) Dave's response: Hey, Frank, did you actually read my Rant? I said I do NOT want the government, in any way, to impose program content regulations on radio and TV stations via the so-called "Fairness Doctrine." In fact, I don't even believe the FCC should fine stations for so-called "indecent" themes and language. If you don't like what NPR or WMAL or any other radio or TV station is airing, turn it off or go ahead and listen/watch but "turn off" its underwriters/sponsors...... (.....Dave's responses: My Rant was directed at all radio stations, not just WMAL. WAMU and WOL should put more conservative voices on the air. Why not! All I'm saying is that the private owners of every talk radio station (not the government!!!!!) should strive to allow all points of view to be heard from all kinds of people.....) Dave in all fairness you never mention any of the leftest radio stations in your rant. You single out WMAL which is your right, but if you want to make a point express yourself saying other radio too. People who read your rant will think you are singling out rightes. We as your fans know you are a lefty, but you seem generally to single out rightes and leave lefties alone. (12/7/08) Dave's response: Hey guy who didn't sign his post, go read my Rants some time and see how many times I slam NBC, Chris Matthews, CNN, the Washington Post, CBS, etc. You might be enlightened. I focused my latest Rant on WMAL because of Chris Berry's comments on Chris Core's Channel 50 show..... Anyone naive enough to believe the libs on the hill want the Fairness Doctrine to get more "women, blacks, lefties" on the air? They already exist. It's about muzzling the dominant talkers on the right. If it was about "Fairness" these Stalinists on the hill would apply it to liberal dominated media like TV news and print (newspaper/news magazines) too. Funny how that always gets left out of the discussion eh? (12/7/08) Peanut Butter 'n' Bicknell, although I remember your air name, I don't remember your voice. What does that tell you? You couldn't buff Tom Curtis's shoes. --- The PenIsMightier (12/7/08) I am stunned and saddened to hear the news of the passing of Matthew Connor. Does anyone have any information on how he passed away? In the short time I worked with him, he was incredibly fun, kind-spirited and extremely talented. (12/7/08) Holy crap, did you just see (WUSA's) Armando Trull? He looks like he got punched in the face? He's got a bruise under his right eye!! Anything to this? (12/7/08) “Take WMAL. Every single talk host on the station, from 5 AM to 1 AM, is a middle-aged or older white man who leans to the right. No women, no blacks, no lefties.” OK, take WOL. How many right-leaning white men – of any age – do they have on that station? ……………. Didn’t think so. Take WAMU. How many right-leaning people – men or women – do they have on that station? ……………. Didn’t think so. I suspect Radio One would be about as likely to have a Chris Plante, Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity on WOL as WMAL would to have a Joe Madison, Al Sharpton or Warren Ballentine. (Even Cathy Hughes can only seem to find 30 lousy minutes a week to put a female on the air!) (12/7/08) Dave's responses: My Rant was directed at all radio stations, not just WMAL. WAMU and WOL should put more conservative voices on the air. Why not! All I'm saying is that the private owners of every talk radio station (not the government!!!!!) should strive to allow all points of view to be heard from all kinds of people..... WJFK Studios for Sale.....Worried Much?? www.trustpropertiesinc.com (12/7/08) Dave's response: I'm told that WJFK just signed a two-year lease on its space in the Fairfax building. The building itself or other space within it may get sold, but JFK is staying put, I hear. As I've reported, CBS will be moving the WTGB studios from Silver Spring to its Lanham broadcast complex (with WPGC and WLZL) by February..... /\ December 7 Messages /\ \/ December 6 Messages \/ Charlie in Springfield - the WJZW-FM HD was on at 3pm when I checked... loud and clear. (12/6/08) Rodney……Yeah baybee…I don’t know why either….I seem to get along just fine with “them” it’s “those” that get a bug up their ass. ZL…you are sooooo on target. He was an amazing person and one of my best friends up until his passing. We communicated every Holiday Season. Thanks for the humbling message Oislander to you…PLB :0) (12/6/08) PLB here, I admit I have not really taken the time to read many of Silvie’s posts. I guess that FATAL post re: Silvie, seemed to come out of left field and I guess it did. What I have noticed is that Silvie herself has not bothered to get involved, and that to me says a lot about her. The person that ID’s as Penis..etc seems to be the one that wants to continue to stir the “pot”. I’m over it. I usually submit my ideas and thoughts on what I know about. But, like others at times, step out of my element. My pseudonyms were just for the fun of it, and it did what I thought it would do…”tweaked” the thin skinned. I hope my friends have a wonderful holiday season, in fact I hope those that detract have the same. PLB (12/6/08) Am I the only one who finds Craig Melvin, the new weekend anchor, annoying? He just seems to try waaay too hard at reporting a story.. (12/6/08) Give me a freaking break. Channel 4 has "team coverage" of the snow flurries as just announced by their new pretty boy weekend anchor. People stationed around town talking about bull shit. The only sane person is Steve Villenueava who correctly said that this is event is "only a snow shower". (12/6/08) Will any of the local tv stations be starting their morning news at 4:50 a.m. in the near future? How about 4:45 a.m.? Has WTOP ever considered dropping the news and going all weather and traffic with more time checks? Do the power problems at WJFK explain why so many of the Maryland Terrapin football games sounded like sh8t on WJFK with the sound dropping off constantly? Don't you know even with the additions to the Red Zebra network the Dreadskin games still sound like sh8t especially with so many games coming after dark. Is the radio broadcast becoming irrelevant in the Dreadskin game plan for media coverage? Lil' danny sure spent some bucks for a lot of nothing (12/6/08) Comcast in Reston..You need to go whine to Reston's "Government", not Fairfax County. (12/6/08) Dave's response: Reston is little more than a fancy zoning district within Fairfax County. Apart from the Reston Association, which maintains the park-like common areas, there is no city or town government..... Enough already of the Silvie/PLB shit. I'm tired of reading about it. The real purpose of this forum is being obscured. I mean, can't we all just get along? /s/ Rodney King (12/6/08) Why is everybody always pickin' on PLB? Paul, the best way to handle this situation is to twirl your eyebrow hairs and keep in mind "WWZD"....(what would zack do?) Z.L. (12/6/08) My first comments: I don't know if PLB enjoys starting arguments, but his last series of exchanges (mostly with himself) regarding the opinions of Silvie, had an element of a guy alternatively wearing a Happy, then Sad mask while pontificating into a mirror. Silvie has been posting her opinions here for a long time, as has he, and it's clear she is a woman from the content of her prior posts. Also, her photo has been posted at least a couple of times in the Mailbag. For a guy who continually graces us with his own opinions and apparently uses several pseudonyms to do so, according to one of his own recent postings, it all seemed more odd and pointless, than argumentative. The guy lobbed an out-of-the-blue cyber attack, and then spent the next 48 posts moving laterally, backwards, and dancing with himself, without giving a clue to the impetus or reason for the original attack. Stirring the pot is one thing, smoking it is another. (12/6/08) I'm listening to the Oldies Channel 105.9, and for the last 2 days their HD is off. Actually sounds better at home on my Samgean radio. Charlie / Springfield (12/6/08) It’s not the Kevin Martin is “intellectually bankrupt”, it’s that Comcast is so pitifully horrible a service provider. Case-in-point… I live in Reston which, thanks to the Fairfax County government, merely gives a wink and a nod to Comcast’s abysmal service and allowing them to make Reston the technological red-haired bastard stepchild of the county by having one cable TV company for Reston (Comcast) and another for the rest of the county (Cox). I have friends less than a mile away in Herndon who have Cox and get better service (I just had a >12 hour internet outage, with the rep telling me (after 30 minutes on hold) that the earliest available service call would be Monday, while my neighbors can get same day service from Cox), more channels, more video on demand, and a choice if internet speeds all at lower prices than Comcast. Why this near-redlining apparent discrimination by Fairfax County is legally permitted to continue is mind-boggling. Oh yes, yesterday’s outage was the second Comcast Internet outage I've had in less than a month. I bet that if Cox had Reston, this would not happen because they would not allow it to happen. An earlier post mentioned Comcast’s consumer satisfaction record. Well, last year, Consumer Reports did an article on telecommunications. And, of the large cable TV companies, Comcast did turn in a notable performance: Dead last. Who was first in the majors? Cox. Why Fairfax County forces residents of Reston to suffer with “worst” when the rest of the county is allowed to have “first” is a crime. Or, at least should be. As for phone service, I have Cavalier. Why? Back in the day when I was doing remotes, the old C&P’s Radio Center was infamous. (It epitomized the terms “Cheap & Pathetic” or “Cheap & Pitiful”…) Thus, when deregulation came along, I jumped at the chance to have someone else. However, I’ll never ever have Comcast’s phone service since it’s VoIP and thus dependent upon the reliability of their IP service. Which is non-existent. Hmmm.. Pity Marcel Marceau has left the Earth. He’d probably have been a great ad spokesperson for it! (12/6/08) “I think its funny that PLB uses this forum to start arguments, can't win them based on facts, and then has his real life friends jump in and defend him.” First of all PLB does NOT start arguments that he can’t defend, secondly his friends seem to jump in because they agree with him. Thirdly, I think it’s kind of nice to have friends like that, and they’re all pros in the radio business too! You also so posted: “I also think it's funny that he says he "broke bread" with somebody that he kept attacking and then says he's not into that whole ego thing anymore.” He didn’t say he broke bread, what he said was: “As far as breaking bread with Penis Mightier….any time. As I have said I’ve buried all that crap…ego, anger, hatred etc.” I’ve known PLB for over 30 years and he’s one funny “pot stirrer” , and he sure does get some people up-tite! P.M. (12/6/08) "Keep thinking all Big O and Dukes talk about is MMA, Gaming, and B Movies." I am not going to say that is all they talk about but MMA is talked about on their show regularly. But something they still can't seem to understand is that no one really cares about MMA." No, you don't understand because you do not care about MMA. Just because it is too complicated for Tony K and Mike W to understand it does not mean people do not care about it. Quit with the geezer mindset. Have you ever tried to watch MMA or do you think baseball is compelling. Get with the new. Paulie G. (12/6/08) I think its funny that PLB uses this forum to start arguments, can't win them based on facts, and then has his real life friends jump in and defend him when he keeps getting beat. I also think it's funny that he says he "broke bread" with somebody that he kept attacking and then says he's not into that whole ego thing anymore. Truth is, the ego is larger the man itself. He's also full of shit. He claimed to have multiple names on this site just for the hell of it when in fact he stopped because he was being called out on all of them. The man is just an endless windbag. I'm not surprised his broadcasting career is over. (12/6/08) " The DC cluster of Trekkie fans are going nuts over the new Star Trek movie due for release next year. Still set in the future, still flying from planet to planet (yawn)... If they wanted to do a Trek that was *really* different, let's put 'em back in Victorian times and give 'em a steam-driven ship! Now THAT I'd watch! ... " How's this? I love being a Trekkie. I met my wife at a convention and proposed to her at a convention! I love you, Sharron! - GAB in the Airless Cubicle (in space, no one can hear you snore) (12/6/08) Dave's response: I took my niece Kate, back when she was 12 or so, to several "Star Trek" conventions in the DC area. Some people there were a little strange, but they were all very friendly..... this is the latest (on the NBC cuts)... Cork, Faw, Ohm fired... Thorp gets a buy-out... Wendla Wilkerson and Brady Daniels given until Jan 20th to take the deal or be fired.... Susan Lasalla will take a buy-out on Jan. 21st... Ron Thorp will also be taking a buy-out shortly... Al Zoden was given a early retirement by WRC-Tv... Education Unit and Dateline units have been dismantled in D.C... Also 6 News desk people in Ny fired... (12/6/08) Twitter - Glad to see you're joining! Perfect place for you. I'll be sure to be your follower. (12/6/08) /\ December 6 Messages /\ \/ December 5 Messages \/ this is actually for all the WASH DJs....Im curious to know how you feel about all xmas all the time (12/5/08) (".....We're told that the economic slump has been hard on stations that sell time to individual programmers, like WMET.....") How on earth does WDMV stay in business? I can't even pick them up. Every time I pass the 50 West building, I think of them. (12/5/08) Not all FM radio sucks…WFUV 90.7 FM is Public Radio Station Originating from Fordham University in New York City. Check out their new indie music service “The Alternate Side”. I’m jamming to Michael Franti and Spearhead right now and they just came out of Calexico, Fountains of Wayne and Lucinda Williams. www.thealternateside.org (12/5/08) dslreports.com: It's clear that Comcast has never liked FCC chairman Kevin Martin. The FCC boss rarely sees a baby bell position he doesn't like (in part thanks to more sophisticated lobbying by AT&T and Verizon), but has consistently been a thorn in Comcast's side about everything from P2P throttling, to most recently, high cable TV prices. While Comcast generally hides their disdain pretty well, Martin's likely departure next year has apparently loosened their tongue. In a week where Martin is once again probing high cable pricing, Comcast gave the FCC boss a verbal smack: Tuesday, Julian Brodsky, a founder and vice chairman of Comcast, said the FCC chairman was "intellectually bankrupt," at the OnScreen Media Summit, put on by Multichannel News and Broadcasting & Cable at the Edison Ballroom in New York. He said any chairman installed by the incoming Democratic administration of president-elect Barack Obama "couldn't be any worse." Comcast, who pretty consistently comes in last place in customer satisfaction rankings, is an easy target for Martin, who is pursuing a post-FCC political career in North Carolina. Given Comcast's low popularity, and a general public disdain for high TV prices, Martin's cable "investigations" (whether it's his failed cap on cable growth or his investigation into Janet Jackson's breast) are a nice way to earn brownie points among certain voters. But you'll notice one recurring trend: they almost always fail to actually accomplish anything (which also pleases those in his base who believe that deregulation is the path to telecom nirvana). But Martin isn't dumb -- the commissioner is generally considered one of the more politically savvy and ambitious FCC bosses in the agency's history. Either way, Comcast will be happy to be rid of him. Well, maybe not that happy, given the team Obama has tasked with finding Martin's replacement is unapologetically pro-consumer. Whomever they pick might actually launch investigations and inquiries that aren't just stage-dressing. The bad news for Comcast is that the vetting of Martin's replacements could last up to six months. Quick tip: wait until after the key regulator who oversees your industry leaves office before very publicly calling him a moron. (12/5/08) To the poster who said that Mike O'Meara is getting paid too much: Mike is NOT getting $1.5M. Remember when he couldn't go to work one day in the Spring because he had just heard how much they were going to pay him and it was so low he was embarrassed to look at Don? I believe he may have been getting $1M when he was part of the D&M show, now I am assuming it has to be half or 3/4 of that. Also, the station is no longer paying for Don to waste our time on the air so I am guessing they are SAVING $1.5-$2M (12/5/08) RE: [ " WNUV's digital signal on channel 40 is unaffected by the change... " ]........... So that means WNUV's digital signal will just keep skipping and freezing along as normal during primetime in an unwatchable state? HAha! What a joke Sinclair is! They should be fined by the FCC! Now NEITHER their analog NOR their digital signal will be operating as licensed! Un-frikken-believable! Why does the FCC allow these shenanigans? It's bad enough the FCC allows Sinclair to even OWN WNUV. Yeah, I know, they technically don't own it. BULLSHIT! (12/5/08) Sing: "Cel - e - bration, come on. OJ and O'Reilly are gone. Cel - e - bration, come on. OJ and O'Reilly are gone. We're free, free, free. Free of OJ and O'Reilly, come on!" Ahhhh, the cleansing of radio and even TV. Can voice-tracking be far off from going away, forever? Probably not but there is hope. (12/5/08) (regarding a previous post) "Jessica Savitch is by far the biggest bitch I ever encountered. Just my personal experience." Metaphysically speaking, the person who is ultimately responsible for YOUR experience of her, is YOU - NOT her. (12/5/08) Since we can't sent Christmas cards to Walter Reed Army Hospital, can we send them to O.J.? (12/5/08) RE: [ Jessica Savitch ]............ When you hold a grudge against a dead person for decades because that person was a "bitch" or other petty stuff, it says more about YOU than about them, no matter what that person was truly like. -- my 2¢ (12/5/08) (Notable Quotable - 12/5 - "I have two different birth certificates with two different names on them." Citadel's WMAL late morning host Chris Plante, talking about his own situation during his Friday show. Which focused on the possiblity that Barack Obama's Hawaii birth document is invalid and that the president elect is not a US citizen.....) WRONG! The dispute is whether he is a NATURAL BORN CITIZEN, which is WHAT THE CONSTITUTION SAYS is one of the three requirements to be President. of the United States. There is no doubt at all that Barack Obama is a United States Citizen, the question is whether he was born in the United States and not somewhere else...that's all! There is a difference between the two, get your terms right! (12/5/08) did you happen to catch how the 24-hour news channels covered the sentencing of Orenthal James Simpson? After the verdict, MSNBC stayed with the story, as did Fox, which had a huge panel of pundits standing by. CNN almost seemed to be making a statement by going back to other news (what's left of the U.S. economy) pretty fast. What a diff. 10 years makes. (12/5/08) (Many have quoted the Junkies numbers as being poor, which may be true, but isn't their target demo MEN, 12-54, or more specifically, 18-54? They will never get any female numbers, but if they dominate the male demo, I think they would be happy.) It doesn't matter what demo you do well in as long as they drive adults 25-54 up. That's the biggest sweet spot for sales, adults 25-54. If you are in the top 10 25-54 you are making money. If not, you are struggling these days unless you have a niche (WFED for example). And maybe not top ten anymore....maybe only the top 5 25-54 are making money in this tough economy. (12/5/08) What a joyous Christmas it will be. Bill O'Reilly off radio and OJ going to prison. Pass the fruitcake. Paul (12/5/08) Pia, your maniacal and weird obsession with Steve Dahl is as unhealthy and disturbing as my addition to poker. You scare me. Please seek professional help. Love, EB. (12/5/08) More than 33 years in the business (out of Philadelphia) and Jessica Savitch is by far the biggest bitch I ever encountered. Just my personal experience. (12/5/08) From WTOP online: A post surveying Washingtonian's least looked-forward to Christmas songs: www.wtopnews.com... ...Hmm. Interesting... *look to the right-- look back again* Gee, I guess it depends on who you ask, doesn't it? (12/5/08) Big O and dukes now have their own iphone app - itunes.apple.com (12/5/08) "Keep thinking all Big O and Dukes talk about is MMA, Gaming, and B Movies." I am not going to say that is all they talk about but MMA is talked about on their show regularly. But something they still can't seem to understand is that no one really cares about MMA. Regarding them "bouncing back" currently they are in 19th place even if they bounce back as you say maybe they get 16th and if they are really lucky 14th and thats still not good. Also the thing that is really telling about Big O and Dukes is that when the new ratings system came out and showed that no one listens to the show they have done nothing to try and improve their ratings. Over the past weeks here are some of the segments 11-17 the play by play voice of the george mason patriots, 11-18 Kelly Slater phoner, 11-18 Chads friend has no game, 11-18 Luke Thomas from Bloodyelbow, 11-19 Benito Martinez interview(that guy from The Shield), 11-20 Set Up Tiki interview, 11-20 Tiki Barber interview, 11-20 Kelly Slater Interview replay, 11-21 JBL Phoner and this is only 4 days. The list became to long to continue but other segments from the past 3 weeks include 4 segments about cast members of the show, no less then 3 MMA fighters on the phone or in studio, and a segment about someone eating a hot dog. Within 5 months Big o and Dukes will no longer be on wjfk. (12/5/08) (regarding a previous post) "JS (Jessica Savitch) was known more as a fame hungry drug abusing megalomaniac, than a well versed reporter". After working at the Ithaca College campus radio & TV stations, and at an AM station in Rochester, Savitch worked at WCBS in NYC, KHOU in Houston and KYW in Philly. She went on to become a DC-based reporter for NBC News and the weekend anchor for the NBC Nightly News. Later, she anchored 'Frontline' on PBS. To besmirch her memory and to bash her, dismissing her as "a fame hungry drug abusing megalomaniac" is not only in supremely bad taste - it's really unfair - since Savitch is dead and cannot defend her work and reputation. What a truly small person, the poster must be! (12/5/08) Boy Paul Harvey is really sounding frail. (12/5/08) Bob Mathers mentioned that WITH applied for a power increase to 1,000 watts because GM Jake Embry was aware of the exodus to the suburbs. Another factor played a role in WITH’s power increase application. The FCC had just passed a rule that class IV stations could increase their daytime power to 1,000 watts. Prior to that, they were restricted to 250 watts day and night. WWIN increased its power to 1,000 watts at the same time as WITH. Roddy Freeman (12/5/08) Oh, Dave, don’t pick on Loo. Besides, two-person morning acts add a little “personality” to a format (AC) that otherwise is sleep-inducing. Although I think I detected a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor in your rant, you have touched upon a subject that may surface within the next few days as a major topic in radio. Just this morning in one of the “other” industry online rags, it was suggested that Clear Channel’s new bosses—the private equity firm—may be pushing to “network” programming across all formats. So let’s crack out the calculator. Roughly 10 formats. Five to seven “personalities” per format. 70 jocks should cover the 900 stations, don’tcha think? (12/5/08) Dave's response: I've always loved Loo. And, yes, my Rant was in jest. And, yes, I think it did "strike a nerve"..... Wow. Was it cold in the room when Anita Marks had that shot taken? Shoutout on a good lookin' Friday to Peanut Butter 'n' Bicknell in the Morning. It was fun to watch him roll around and fling poo while other people who weren't me took him to task for his incomprehensible response to my criticism of his insane and petty attack on Sylvie. It really is --- The PenIsMightier (12/5/08) Steve Dahl a radio legend from Chicago, just said goodbye on the air. He worked for JACK FM in Chicago, a CBS station. This is the end of an era in radio. Pia (12/5/08) RE: Union -vs-Citadel...While Downsizing seems to have become common practice in all businesses I simply don't understand how anyone can think it's right to lay off someone and then not live up to the contract that was signed a year or years before. A contract is in place to outline and guarantee certain expectations of both the employer and employee. So the company can expect YOU to honor the contract but you shouldn't have those same expectations from your employer? We can not enforce a contract by the change of the seasons or the way the wind blows...we are all suffering from the mistakes of Wall Street and the economy and none of us can predict the future but a contract was signed and BOTH the company and the employees are expected to honor that contract until it expires...at that time if the company wants to renegotiate it's terms then by all means sit down and try to work out a new deal. (12/5/08) Come on, Dave, a dozen hits or a dozen oldies? I'm no apologist for the sorry state of radio, but I have to speak up for True Oldies and Jack, both of which have genuinely deep playlists and spin songs on a daily basis that I haven't heard in years, if ever. Which is much, much more than I can say for the Globe or BIG. On 101.9 NYC: so in your opinion, is the audience just not there for this sort of format, no matter what? Or would any level of tweaking, promotion, new talent make any difference? What would you do as PD? (12/5/08) Dave's response: My comment about "a dozen or so" was to illustrate a "relatively limited number." I didn't really mean "12." As for WRXP, I really haven't listened long enough to the new NYC rocker to give a fair critique..... RE: "Oh and I know you think that Iceberg is coming but the station is still growing, as an example recently wjfk has broken the record of web hits twice in one month and are quite up there in web hits in the CBS family, well above stations in well known markets. Things will bounce back, and Big O and Dukes are not going anywhere, I guess much to your dismay." Someone doesn't understand business! Who cares about web hits? How much advertising can you put on a web page? And...how do you know who's on it? The bulk of ad $$$$$'s come through high end :60, :30, and :15' spots. When you're constantly hearing nightclub commercials, make goods, promos and not high end products, something's wrong. Now granted, we are in an economic crisis, and radio ad sales are down....waaaay down. Regardless, you can't sell a show sitting in 19th place 25-54. Potential advertisers will just laugh at you, (ask the WJFK sales department)! So, from a business standpoint, why WOULDN'T you save yourself anywhere from $80,000-$100,000 per year? You can just get a syndicated show and stay in 19th place 25-54. So unless they catch fire and melt it, that iceberg REALLY is coming. It's just business. Ask some FORMER NBC and Viacom staffers! (12/5/08) Thanks to the individual who posted the link to Baltimore's aerial population snapshot from 1957 & 1964. He (She?) is right on the mark with the observation. I grew up in southwest Baltimore and everything we needed was right in the neighborhood. Heck, nearby Irvington was by comparison an adjacent town and Ellicott City was a day trip. Buddy Deane lived in Point Pleasant just off Furnace Branch Road in Glen Burnie and he said he needed the better part of an hour to get up to TV Hill to do his show because the majority of the traffic went through the city (Ritchie Highway was the main route into Baltimore from the south, the Beltway was still being built in the south end). When we had the WITH Radio Reunion weekend back in March of 1996, Former Station Manager Jake Embry mentioned how the station was number 1 for years on 1230 AM with just a 250 watt signal. Nevertheless, he was aware of the exodus to the suburbs in the late 50's and by the early 60's applied for a power increase to 1000 watts to anticipate the need to go outside of the city and reach those areas. Embry said the station took out a large ad in Broadcasting Magazine proclaiming an increase of 4 times the power, but it actually backfired when national agencies asked what the wattage was before the upgrade. The station was such a powerhouse at 250 watts for decades that agency reps were surprised when they discovered WITH's low power compared to rival WCAO. By 1966, the exodus to the suburbs had greatly accelerated and WITH was losing the Top 40 battle to WCAO and its 5000 watts. On Labor Day Weekend of '66, WITH called it a day with contemporary music and went to a Beautiful Music format that it employed until the late 70's when the station returned to an AC format. - Bob Mathers (12/5/08) Union vs. Citadel, I enjoyed what the poster said "This may not be in precise legal terms," but the prospects for what he hopes will follow are poor. Organized labor doesn't have much chance against corporate beggars these days. You watch, the Detroit automakers will soon disconnect themselves from those expensive promises they made for health care & pension as part of beseeching for a federal subsidy. Citadel, with others, are simply taking the same angle to avoid normal, legitimate costs of downsizing such as obligatory severance and vested pension plans. (12/5/08) The DC cluster of Trekkie fans are going nuts over the new Star Trek movie due for release next year. Still set in the future, still flying from planet to planet (yawn)... If they wanted to do a Trek that was *really* different, let's put 'em back in Victorian times and give 'em a steam-driven ship! Now THAT I'd watch! (12/5/08) Nice sentiment sending cards to Walter Reed, but save your postage. All you’re really doing is filling up their recycling bins. www.snopes.com (12/5/08) The only problem with a single DC/Baltimore sports market is...that it isn't one. It probably is a single broadcast market, but unless you can really change the minds of the next generation of fans, it isn't one market for sports. The only real common ground is the Terps. The first Baltimore radio station that talks Redskins 24/7 will be the first one to go silent. The first DC radio station to become Ravens Central...ditto. There are quite a few NBA fans in Baltimore, but they're just as likely NOT to be Bul...Wizards fans (of course, so are NBA fans in DC). And I may be the only hockey fan left in the Baltimore area. As for the TV, why does MASN even need a news division? SHOW ME THE GAMES. I'd rather have them show a local basketball/football game then have them show me highlights I could have seen ten hours earlier on ESPN 6. And if a Raven/Redskin/Nat/Oriole/Wizard/Cap/United/orevenBlast player pulls a Plaxico, I'm sure I can see the highlights on 2,4,7,9 etc. Howie (12/5/08) It was great to hear Howard Stern talking about the DC101 days. The Histroy Of Howard Stern. GREAT RADIO. (12/5/08) DCRTV Dave: Please remove the letter from the mail bag, where a well-intentioned DCRTV mailbagger requests Christmas cards for "Any Wounded Soldier" at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. This is "not" a scam in the true sense, but the Defense Department will refuse to accept the letters, because of the anthrax scare. If people would like to remember our heroes this holiday season, get in touch with a VFW or American Legion Post. These organizations have programs in place to remember our wounded men and wormen. Regards, Al McGilvray (12/5/08) So Citadel and AFTRA go to arbitration today over Citadel's bullshit move regarding severance pay and the former employees it laid off. This may not be in precise legal terms, but I hope AFTRA bitchslaps the shit out of Citadel... (12/5/08) RE: [Puh-lease!!!!!! It's being used in a promo for a contest awarding listeners money for a "holiday bailout."] Thanks for 'splainin' that Lucy! That makes it sound a whole lot less tacky! (12/5/08) "You couldn't have said it better! Since even their WHFS days, this show has lost it way. I'm a P1 listener, they don't have to impress me. It's the P3's and P4's that they are alienating. Imagine being a casual listener of the show, and every time you tune in, you're hearing that (as Cakes would say), drivel! Next station! And, BTW, who are the engineers at WJFK? Off the air during segments and spots for minutes at a time? BUSH LEAGUE! Embarassing....And speaking of embarassing, or just plain clueless, Big O and Dukes are the Sarah Palins of WJFK. They walk into mediocre numbers, and drop them, and then watch O'Meara go back up in the 25-54 demo. THIS shit will not fly! Unlike Palin, they're not women or hot. Like Palin, they're clueless. All the B-movie talk, gaming, MMA....This may be what their core audience wants to hear, but as eveidenced by the PPM's, they'll never GROW their audience. What a disaster! The iceberg is just yonder..." Keep thinking all Big O and Dukes talk about is MMA, Gaming, and B Movies. Things like that are maybe a couple segements through out the week, look at today there was none of that! And I am sure Golf and Poker is so much more riveting and popular then MMA or Gaming, you may not be into those topics but that are subjects that are growing at a rapid clip, maybe your age is just showing a tab bit. Right now WJFK has the greatest line up in recent history and you are saying that they need to drop Big O and Dukes for what? Ol' Bill again? I can not remeber when the station had this synergy and vitality. And I see you bring up the ratings, most anything in the "mens talk/hot talk" format has taken a hit with this new PPM rating system, includinging the Junkies. I think you should not be so quick so throw out the new ratings system as ammo... Oh and I know you think that Iceberg is coming but the station is still growing, as an example recently wjfk has broken the record of web hits twice in one month and are quite up there in web hits in the CBS family, well above stations in well known markets. Things will bounce back, and Big O and Dukes are not going anyware, I guess much to your dismay. (12/5/08) I, too, find the idea of using bailouts as part of a marketing or on-air contest highly offensive. Do the people on Idaho Avenue really have no idea that making light of the near collapse of the national economy is a bad idea? Maybe if they were more concerned about making mortgage payments or the longevity of their jobs they might not make jokes about the situation. What next, Dialing for Taliban Dollars? Maybe they'll come up with something really clever like Anthrax Monday or Intifada Friday News Blocks. Try coming out of the glass-enclosed clueless center and mixing it up with the real people. PUUUHHHLLLLEEESE (12/5/08) FYI, Robert, and everybody else...the information about sending a Christmas card to "A Recovering American Soldier" c/o Walter Reed Hospital is inaccurate, according to Urban Legends (Snopes). I have checked this out because I've received e-mails containing the same information. Although it sounds like a wonderful idea, according to Snopes, the US Postal Service will not deliver mail addressed to anonymous soldiers due to security reasons. There is a way to send cards to troops through the American Red Cross, and you can obtain information about that on Snopes...search on "Christmas cards to US soldiers," or I guess on the American Red Cross website, although I have not checked that site. -- Bobbie (12/5/08) "A BIG wow seeing Jessica Savitch. I had a huge crush on her AND I thought she would be such a great broadcast journalist, time to come. She was 34 in that interview. Tom Brokaw, she notes, was never called a "news boy" as she had been called "news girl," even though they were only eight years apart. I got a confident, intelligent, determined person completely overwhelming Letterman, which itself is saying something, control freak that he is. Thanks for the link. Reminds all of us what's important in journalism." whoa...that poster who wrote the love letter to Jessica Savitch must not have ever seen her in action----or talked with anyone who ever worked with her. JS was known more as a fame hungry drug abusing megalomaniac, than a well versed reporter. She did have "it" however, and once the red light was on she (usually) was captivating. But good reporter? I don't think so. She wanted to be a "star," not a journalist. In her case, what's "important in journalism" was looks. (12/5/08) Many have quoted the Junkies numbers as being poor, which may be true, but isn't their target demo MEN, 12-54, or more specifically, 18-54? They will never get any female numbers, but if they dominate the male demo, I think they would be happy. I also heard that fat sports turd that they had on in the last hour. All he did was cackle at nothing, I thought that I was listening to idiot in the morning for a minute.-Mike (12/5/08) Hey Ed Graham PLB Et al. Here's a great website that can explain the incredible ratings of Balltimore AM radio stations in the 50's and 60's. www.historicaerials.com. Look at the aerial photographs from 1957 and 1964 and notice that there were virtually no suburbs more than 15 miles from city center. These include the future suburbs of Randllstown, Reisterstown and Owings Mills, Glen Burnie and Timonium and Cockeysville. Baltimore am stations were designed to cover the area inside the beltway, before it was built. I'm not dismissing talent just talking geographical demographics. Just think when WCAO started, would anyone have thought that they should be reaching listeners way out in Hunt Valley. To this day you can't pick up WCBM in the parking lot at Wegmans after sundown! I just love AM radio history. (12/5/08) I agree with you, Dave, about the need to give Weasel airtime on 94.7. Give him 10 pm - 1 am and let him play whatever he wants. He can't do worse than what they've got now. It's worth a shot. Come on 94.7, take a small chance and give it a try. (12/5/08) Dave's response: Exactly. CBS needs to build a cool station FIRST, and then the listeners and advertisers will follow. The sad thing is that with weekly PPM numbers, GMs and PDs won't have time to "build" anything. They're going to, instead, go with "safe" (bland) formats that will immediately appeal to listeners and advertisers. Let's face it, commercial music radio is pretty much dead. A dozen or so top hits or a dozen or so well-worn oldies. That's about all you're gonna hear from now on..... /\ December 5 Messages /\ \/ December 4 Messages \/ A BIG wow seeing Jessica Savitch. I had a huge crush on her AND I thought she would be such a great broadcast journalist, time to come. She was 34 in that interview. Tom Brokaw, she notes, was never called a "news boy" as she had been called "news girl," even though they were only eight years apart. I got a confident, intelligent, determined person completely overwhelming Letterman, which itself is saying something, control freak that he is. Thanks for the link. Reminds all of us what's important in journalism. (12/4/08) When doing your Christmas cards this year, take one card and send it to the address listed below. If we pass this on and everyone sends one card, think of how many cards these wonderful special people who have sacrificed so much would get..... A Recovering American Soldier, C/O Walter Reed Army Medical Center, 6900 Georgia Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20307-5001..... Thank you, Robert (12/04/08) (Kind of tacky, in my opinion, about a news station, using such a relatively serious/sensitive subject (bail outs) as one of their frivolous on-air slogans/contests....) Puh-lease!!!!!! It's being used in a promo for a contest awarding listeninrs money for a "holiday bailout." (12/4/08) Note to channel 9: If you're not going to actually show most of the Pagent of Peace why bother having your anchors sitting there blabbing over most of it. Another thing 9; Lesli Foster is a beautiful woman and does a great job on that ''Living'' segment but she is DREADFUL as an anchor. She has 0 chemistry with the rather sultry Anita Brikman, Bret and Topper. She's painful to watch. Give the 5PM to Ms. Brikman alone. Paul (12/4/08) Dave, I'm 48 and I BOUGHT Britney Spears ''Circus'' CD and.............I like it. Nothing wrong with that. LOL. HOWEVER, if I'm ever seen buying a Beyonce CD, please feel free to have me placed in the nearest mental health facility. Paul (12/4/08) Man, I just clicked through the Globe and they played Don Henley "All She Wants to Do Is Dance" followed by "Don't Ask Me No Questions," Lynard Skynard. I don't fault anyone for trying out an Oldies or Classic Rock format, but those songs sounded lifeless and tired 20 years ago. Who's putting together the playlist over there, Lawrence Welk?!? (12/4/08) Dave's response: Both 94.7 and 100.3 play some of the dullest, most unimaginative classic rock/hits out there. It's embarrassing for the whole DC radio biz..... Look, I'm the biggest Weasel fan on earth. I listened to his 'HFS show religiously and have rooted for him every step of the way. But I have no faith in WTGB. None. Not only is it an awful, awful station; they have sucked all creativity out of Weasel as well. I have no doubt that the 2008 version of "The Weasel Who Stole Christmas" will sound like everything else the station does: AC/DC, followed by Rush, followed by AC/DC, followed by Rush, followed by AC/DC. The station is dead in the water. Like I said, I'm the biggest Weasel fan on earth...but I can't bring myself to tune in to what has been the most disappointing, under-achieving Washington radio station of the past 40 years. Dave in Sterling (12/4/08) Dave's response: I think there's something wrong with me. I find myself listening more and more to Hot 99.5 (for music) and less and less to the Globe and DC101. Is there something wrong with a 40+ year old dude liking "Womanizer"? Man, Britney rocks with that one. As for Weasel, I agree he might not have been right for morning drive. But the Globe needs him on the air. Why not a "deep tracks" classic rock evening or night show? It seems like such an obvious move. Or let him program 94.7's HD2. Call it "Weasel's Musical Wonderama"..... FYI: I don't know about that particular program, but thepiratebay.org is largely pirated versions of copyrighted material and generally a place to steal copyrighted media. Of course, it is a shame that there is no place to get some of this material otherwise, but I'm not sure that excuses the illegality. (12/4/08) Kind of tacky, in my opinion, about a news station, using such a relatively serious/sensitive subject (bail outs) as one of their frivolous on-air slogans/contests.... The mind shudders to think what they might have come up with when the 2 snipers were doing their handy work a few years ago. Just an observation... Nothing more. (12/4/08) RE: “Dave Hughes or Robert Corbin could very very easily do their sites DCRTV & VARTV say from the mountains of Wyoming or the sunny beaches of Florida…” Whatta ya say, Dave? We set up shop in Miami?? Bob Corbin/VARTV.com (12/4/08) Dave's response: I could be a real life Dexter! Except, of course, with a corporate radio bent. Cool..... While Googling around for information about the late Bill Drake, I came across "The History of Rock & Roll: 1955-1977". This version of the program aired over a four-day period and it takes quite a while to download the 6.12GB file - even with a highspeed DSL internet connection - but it's one helluva show! thepiratebay.org (12/4/08) RE: "It seems like every time I tune into the Junkies show they are bragging about their lobster dinners at the Palm, extravagant media rooms with lots of plasma tvs, and luxury cars. I immediately turn their show off when this happens." You couldn't have said it better! Since even their WHFS days, this show has lost it way. I'm a P1 listener, they don't have to impress me. It's the P3's and P4's that they are alienating. Imagine being a casual listener of the show, and every time you tune in, you're hearing that (as Cakes would say), drivel! Next station! And, BTW, who are the engineers at WJFK? Off the air during segments and spots for minutes at a time? BUSH LEAGUE! Embarassing....And speaking of embarassing, or just plain clueless, Big O and Dukes are the Sarah Palins of WJFK. They walk into mediocre numbers, and drop them, and then watch O'Meara go back up in the 25-54 demo. THIS shit will not fly! Unlike Palin, they're not women or hot. Like Palin, they're clueless. All the B-movie talk, gaming, MMA....This may be what their core audience wants to hear, but as eveidenced by the PPM's, they'll never GROW their audience. What a disaster! The iceberg is just yonder.... (12/4/08) Dave's response: Who was that sports guy in their last hour of today's show? Gawd, I was just hoping and praying that one of the four Junks would have taken off a sock and stuffed it in his mouth. Really annoying..... dave---your rant on radio being in big trouble is a little TOO close to the truth for comfort...as a matter of fact right now i am watching the auto industry execs being grilled by self righteous congress types....and it occurred to me how the respective states of the both the auto and radio "industries" are so similar. Both were once proud, uniquely American entities. Both have lost users by not recognizing the need to continually evolve and embrace new technologies. Both are using outmoded and nearly obsolete business models. Both have seen stock prices plunge and seem powerless and nearly clueless on how to stop the slide... it is truly sad and depressing to see these companies slowly drown..struggling to keep their collective heads above water. It won't be much longer before we see radically different worlds of cars and media companies..which is not neccesarily a bad thing....but it is a sad thing to watch happen and right before our eyes. (12/4/08) RE: Your rant. My favorite WMAL ad these days is the one about the face cream that promises to reduce crows feet and wrinkles within thirty days.... hmmm, I might actually try that one. In reference to the colon cleanser ad stating that it removes 25 pounds of crap, let's just be frank about this: it's not 25 lbs. of 'colon buildup' one should be worried about -- just admit that you're a fat hog. Seriously, people. -Silvie- (12/4/08) I will not comment anymore on what the person making comments about Big Don anymore. If he/she wants to continue, thats fine, maybe that person needs to email or write Big Don. WCEI seems to be changing announcers rather often these days, could a change in format be next? Burt in Denton (12/4/08) A quarter century has elapsed since the tragic tortured passing of Jessica Savitch on a wet and foggy October night outside Philly. If you think you knew Jessica pretty well, I invite you to watch the interview she did with an impossibly young David Letterman without getting a tear in your eye: www.youtube.com... (She absolutely breaks my heart when Dave states that time is running short, and Jessica APOLOGIZES as if she had been wasting Letterman's time.) (12/4/08) WJFK has gone completely off the air twice in the last hour and now the signal is so weak that it is unlistenable. When will they ever get done fixing the transmitter/tower? (12/4/08) Dave, Re Rant: Dude – That’s a wicked attitude during the Christmas season. Let Andy Parks’ fat ass ride another month or two. m (12/4/08) Glad to see that people in the DC area are getting it, as evidenced by the increase in the Caps t.v. ratings and the spike in the attendance at their games. Ovechkin is a once in a generation talent and people are really missing out if they don't pay attention. And the rest of the team isn't too bad either. I mean, when Tom Boswell writes a column about the Caps (see today's Post) you know something must be happening. (12/4/08) REF: Poster's comments on KRTH in LA... "Sattelite KRTH from LA for a weekend and see what happens! Get a chance...listen to their streaming audio anytiime of day or nite...it IS America's BEST radio station and should be shared by all." Right on the mark...I've listened to KRTH FM and HD2 and they sound great, the way a radio station should sound. They are running little Bill Drake tributes and playing great music...no dead air or any of the many other problems we hear locally. (12/4/08) This is an opportunity for radio stations in those markets who do news... 'Several Cities' Could Have No Daily Paper As Soon As 2010, Credit Rater Says www.editorandpublisher.com (12/4/08) This isn’t exactly local except cable subscribers may be able to see it, but pretty cool nonetheless; particularly what WGN is doing. Taken from today’s “Cynopsis” newsletter. “The iconic holiday Yule Log is back via iN DEMAND Networks and Comcast, Cox Communications, Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks VOD subscribers can tune into the televised log as well as two new offerings: Winter Green and Snowman beginning December 8 through the end of the month. iN DEMAND has jazzed up the Yule Log, which originated in 1966, by producing a hi-def version with crackling sound effects; Winter Green is a snowy, pine forest scene; and Snowman shows off a dapper snowman bravely standing in a snowstorm. All three VOD titles are accompanied by holiday music and are available free to customers. “Viewers may (want to) choose the Yule Log offered by WGN America as the network will air Yule Log: The Golden Age of Christmas over nine hours beginning December 24 at 9p through 6a on December 25. This Yule Log footage uses the fireplace of Colonel McCormick, the former Tribune Company President and Editor/Publisher of the Chicago Tribune, from his office at Tribune Tower in Chicago. This commercial-free holiday special will present classic radio programs such as It's a Wonderful Life, Burns & Allen and Fibber McGee & Molly and more.” (12/4/08) Dave...I totally agree with your latest rant. Actually I can take that one step further, if all the local radio stations went to a format that didn't include jocks, I highly doubt one ( outside of the biz ) would even notice. Take a look at what has happen in the areas to the west of us. When Front Royal's WFQX several years ago went from being live 24/7 to satellite..not one person notice. Dittos with Williamsport, MD's WICL ( the old WKMZ and WYII ). From a full airstaff to Scott Shannon's True Oldies. Nobody knew the difference. Even Hagerston's old WARX 106.9 fm went they went from live 24/7 to being voice-tracked mainly by out of town jocks, from what I have been told the listneners actually liked the later. The jocks really mean nothing nowadays. Same more/less goes to other media as well. I know Sinclair's so-called "News Central" failed but still say NBC4's Jim Vance or Bob Ryan decided to move down to Charlotte and do their news and weather from there, I doubt few if any would notice that or even say have Don Slater at WAVY-TV 10 down in Hampton Roads do the weather for NBC4 and do the DC weather from there...who really would notice? Heck the same could go for media websites too. Winchester's now defunct Btvonline for a brief time came out of PITTSBURGH ( Uniontown, PA to be exact ) and nobody in Winchester noticed that. So with that being said, Dave Hughes or Robert Corbin could very very easily do their sites DCRTV & VARTV say fromthe mountains of Wyoming or the sunny beaches of Florida and with all the stations having websites and streaming the audio now, chances are one would not notice if DCRTV came out of Northern Virginia or Miami... (12/4/08) Honestly, Dave, with PPMs and the evident weakness of JFK and others, what are the odds of DC getting something like NYC's 101.9, "The NY Rock Experience"? Listened in NY over the holiday and it sounded pretty good - and the mix of new and classic alternative and album rock seems more likely to succeed than watered-down AAA/Hot AC of the Globe's last format. There's absolutely nothing like it in DC right now. They've got Matt Pinfield, ex of MTV and Sirius, doing the morning show, and maybe a simulcast of that could match or beat some of the current guys here for a lot less $$... (12/4/08) Dave's response: RXP is a great station. However, I'm hearing lotsa rumblings that NYC's "original Globesque" adult alt rocker will soon be scrapped due to poor PPM performance. Look for an FM sports talker soon on the Big App's 101.9..... Other ideas for job/budget cuts. The stories on WTOP seem to run around :30; why not stretch them out to :40 and run them for maybe an additional hour? You could then reduce your reporting staff by 15% and no one would notice. Channel 4 could keep sending their reporters (most of whom already work without benefits) out with all their own gear, have them keep on shooting and editing everything themselves. A few more techs could go out the door and no one would notice. Channel 7 could keep on hiring kids, paying them less and less each time. Every station could get rid of someone making the princely sum of $75K and replace them with two kids willing to work for $35K. We're in a race to the bottom, folks. The content is always being diluted and, like a paper cut, it's not too bad and no one cares. But too many of these small cuts and the product really suffers. It's sad. (12/4/08) Regards the Jim Williams' article about how the Baltimore-Washington "sports market" has-should become one. We need to keep reminding ourselves about the fact that there's bad radio/TV talent in both areas. Because of the tough financial climate, there are a few people like Scott Garceau, Andy Pollin and Steve Czaban who can report on both markets' sports team and present knowledgeable in-sight on various teams. Dan Snyder should be looking to buy one of the CBS-Owned Baltimore stations and simulcast ESPN980. If he does so, this could signal the beginning of a dual market empire. Here's the draw-back, radio would be fine..it's the TV side that's going to suffer. Comcast Sportsnet will always be cheap and always have cool talent that thinks they're trying-out for ESPN. MASN can't afford to start a news division because that would get in the way of airing Mt.St.Mary's basketball. Therefore, a merger is what we're headed for... however, it translates well for radio but fall short on TV. (12/4/08) RE: "RE: to :"whoever the hell that is" who mocked my comments about Big Don. It was only meant as a little wake up call to Big Don.". Hey Mr. Denton, Big Don doesn't need a wake up call, he doesn't care, or else he would have left the computer at WCEI in AUTO and wouldn't have let that fuck up happen. See-when a DJ messes up in the studio with the music, etc--it is from stupidity--cause if you don't know the music, let the computer run the tones. Its that SIMPLE! (12/4/08) Re: "RE: to :"whoever the hell that is" who mocked my comments about Big Don. It was only meant as a little wake up call to Big Don." Well, OK. My apologies, sincerely. But honestly, ordinary, single listeners can't provide "wake up calls" to radio personalities. Either you listen, or you don't. Big Don's future doesn't depend on your approval. If enough people feel like you do, both he and the station will get the message (ratings or otherwise), and he'll be elsewhere. "I seriously doubt anything bad would happen to Big Don because of some comments in this mailbag. Funny how people can get sarcastic and nasty and not sign their names. Burt in Denton" But I'm not signing my name because I'm just like you, another listener no one has heard of. I apologize for getting a bit sarcastic towards you, but the above is still true. A random listener proclaiming "he'd better shape up" is akin to me railing at NBC for a bad programming move. (12/4/08) (From DCRTV's Classified Ads:) Share Your Knowledge of Media History and Have Fun Doing It... The Radio and TV Museum is looking for Docents. Currently, we have openings for individuals looking to volunteer at least one Friday, Saturday or Sunday per month. No real technical knowledge required only a love of radio and Television. The Museum will train applicants and hours are flexible. For more information contact the Museum at 301-390-1020 and leave a message. You may also contact Ms. Pam Williams of the City of Bowie Museums on 301-809-3089 to learn more. The Museum is located at 2608 Mitchellville Road in Bowie Maryland. The hours are Friday 10am to 5pm and Weekends 1 to 5 pm. (12/4/08) If the Redskins & Ravens want to play the one market game, they should practice what they preach. After all, it was the Snyder-owned Red Zebra that forced Ravens broadcasts off WTNT/570 radio in metro D.C. Let's hear Redskins radio in Baltimore (not just Annapolis) and Ravens radio in Washington again before the franchise owners start lobbying again on the television side. Everett W. (12/4/08) Interesting rant Dave, don't give the corporate radio folks too many ideas! Let's hope the sandals, sweats and T-shirt corporate staff at DCRTV have not found a way to automate postings either! It seems everywhere you go, we hear doom and gloom, and how everything is going to hell in a hurry. If we all just turned off network news, or they backed off on the hype, then things would eventually turn around. All the economy hype is biting the media in the ass. Sure, the ratings may be great, but at whose expense? Certainly the economy has problems, but the media can also help turn it around since they have so much impact on how we spend (or don't). Tom Conroy (12/4/08) "Here are some more specific PPM numbers. For the month of November, here is how bad it is for WJFK. 18-34: Junkies 11th, Big O & Dukes 16th, Mike O'Meara 17th... 25-54: Junkies 16th, Big O & Dukes 19th, Mike O'Meara 17th..." Wow. That is stunning. How can CBS/WJFK possibly continue to justify paying the Junkies and O'Meara such big salaries ($275,000 for each of the 4 Junkies and $1.5 million to O'Meara) with such terrible ratings? It seems like every time I tune into the Junkies show they are bragging about their lobster dinners at the Palm, extravagant media rooms with lots of plasma tvs, and luxury cars. I immediately turn their show off when this happens. And this is happening more and more. They sure have changed a lot since I started listening to them when they were on at night as the Sports Junkies. (12/4/08) I am in total agreement with everything this morning...Amazing that DC has a such a HUGE lack of 'local' programming! EVERY major city has at LEAST ONE GREAT..at least good morning, or mid-day talk show...NYC has several..Chicago, Detroit, Philly...LA, San Francisco...on and on....Just another thought..CBS radio could TOTALLY dump 'The Globe' and 'BIG' could shut down and no one would even notice...they are programmed so so poorly! Here's an idea...Sattelite KRTH from LA for a weekend and see what happens! Get a chance...listen to their streaming audio anytiime of day or nite...it IS America's BEST radio station and should be shared by all.....CBS is losing badly in many markets...THIS format works...KHJ proved that thirty years ago..and it still works! Just my rant. (www.krth101.com)... Any word on that 'Spanish Pirate' I mentioned several weeks ago operating on the low end of the FM band? All the best! (12/4/08) Dave's response: That's why I keep saying that CBS should resurrect WHFS because that's something that was totally unique to DC radio - at least the way it was throughout the 1980s and early 1990s. It's a heritage that should be restored. As for that "pirate," that Spanish stuff you hear on 87.7 FM is the audio frequency of a licensed (not pirate) low-power channel 6 TV station from Arlington..... Rod Zimmerman may be happy to talk holiday music, but one thing the CBS Radio executive isn't discussing right now is the future of Steve Dahl at CBS Radio-owned WJMK-FM (104.3). This week rumors swirled in the local radio world that Dahl's exit from the adult hits station is imminent, but Zimmerman wasn't talking. Still, Zimmerman has demonstrated he can move abruptly and decisively, as evidenced by his swift removal last week of another pair of longtime radio hosts from CBS Radio's Top 40 WBBM-FM (96.3), namely Ed Volkman and Joe Bohannon. Dahl, who once upon a time was about as much of a popular shock jock as Chicago radio ever had, now has two things working against him -- low ratings and a relatively huge salary. At cash-strapped CBS Radio, these two factors no doubt are what will force Zimmerman's hand, sooner, it appears, rather than later. (12/4/08) Steve Bischotti and Dan Snyder support DC/Baltimore as one market for ONE simple reason: MONEY & EXPOSURE! It would force the NFL to air each and EVERY game of BOTH teams in BOTH markets. Currently, that is not the case. And I think if the fans had to decide this both in DC and Baltimore, in both markets fans would overwhelmingly like to see other NFL games from time to time at the very least. Even with the current situation, we get constant gripes here of too much Skins in Bmore, too much Ravens in DC. I have a feeling though that eventually Snyder and Bischotti will get their way regardless of what the fans want. Afterall, that's the NFL Way. LOL. Dave (12/4/08) Hey Dave, did you catch the Junkies going nuts about WJFK continually going off the air because of a power outage problem? They said it's been going on for months, and they're resigned to the fact that they will soon be leaving WJFK. How are the engineers not embarrassed by that popcicle stand? Power outages? Seriously? Get a generator for God's sake. (12/4/08) Dave's response: JFK's been operating from its aux transmitter on 66's tower in Fairfax Station (south of Fairfax on Route 123) while the main "goal post" tower in Merrifield, at I-66 and the Beltway, gets a digital upgrade from tower owner WNVC-TV. I'm telling you, CBS needs to move JFK to 94.7, put El Zol or the Globe on 106.7, and resurrect progressive rock HFS on 99.1..... There are two types of newspapers; a broadsheet, like Washington Post, New York Times, and Baltimore Sun, and a tabloid, like the Examiner, Boston Herald, and Newsday. Content has nothing to do with the technical definition. The Post's Ombudsman, Deborah Howell, may soon be gone? GREAT! she was a worthless, know it all, hack, who screwed up a lot. I suggested the Post get an ombudsman to cover their ombudsman (Ms. Howell) after her Abramoff, Libby, women shouldn't vote, and prostitution advertising screw ups. It will be good to see her finally get out of town. (12/4/08) Dave's response: The problem with having an ombudsman is that Post management/staff largely ignored what she recommended, anyway. So, what the fuck? RE: to :"whoever the hell that is" who mocked my comments about Big Don. It was only meant as a little wake up call to Big Don. I seriously doubt anything bad would happen to Big Don because of some comments in this mailbag. Funny how people can get sarcastic and nasty and not sign their names. Burt in Denton (12/4/08) Will Robinson To WFRE - "Budget cuts! Budget cuts! Danger, Will Robinson, danger!" (reference to "Lost in Space" for those too young to remember) (12/4/08) Referring to the Washington Examiner as a "freebie tabloid" is misleading. I know that formal definition for tabloid is a paper half the size of an ordinary paper that contains news in a condensed format. However, most people associate tabloids with the National Inquirer and salacious stories which is not the Examiner. (12/4/08) Dave's response: Well, at least the National Inquirer is halfway interesting. The Examiner is one of those papers that I don't miss when I can't find it, which is about half the time..... "FAUX 5 was the only station that bothered to help/explain the test and @ their 10:00 newscast they mentioned that Verizon/FIOS was experiencing some problems. How is that possible at this late stage of the game???" Verizon and other cable companies have been relaying the Fox 5 and other analog over-the-air signals straight to the viewer, instead of a center-cut version of the HD feed, or a dedicated standard-def fiber feed to the cable headend (like WETA). Looks like Verizon hasn't switched over, yet. To all with FiOS: All their TV channels are digitally encoded by Verizon, then sent to you; their July DTV transition was only to open up room for some cable HD channels like ESPN U HD. Unless you have an HDTV (and don't have an HD box), you don't need to do anything. "$125 a month isn't REALLY all that bad... might even be less expensive than mass transit?" If you're in reach of Metrobus or especially Ride On, mass transit looks pretty good. You can get a monthly "all-you-can-ride" Ride On bus pass for $25 at some Giant locations, or a one-week Metrobus all-you-can-ride pass for $11 at most Giant and Safeway locations. Even the 7-day Short Trip Pass for Metrorail looks pretty good if you're within walking distance of a Metro station whose regular rate to Friendship Heights is less than $2.70. I'm lucky to live near a Ride On route 34 stop -- if I needed to go to the studios, the 34 could get me to the Friendship Heights Metro station, one block away. Sincerely, Mike in Kensington (12/4/08) From Harrisburg...Looks like WPMT, Fox 43 News Director Jim DePury is out... Tribune website has his job posted. Station got new General Manager a couple of months ago. (12/4/08) RE - WCEI "Unless the computer was having issues, everything should work A-OK" - unless, of course, Big Don decides to stop the computer and try to do his own "thing". He's known to do that... (12/4/08) For the anon poster who asked about DTV stations hiking transmitter power to restore their former coverage areas: It’s not that simple. What happens, is that when you raise your TPO with VSB-8, the intensity of your delayed packets will be proportionately increased. You will increase the coverage area of this phenomenon and could actually reduce your primary service area! Is it not any wonder why you see fewer engineers than lawyers in Congress? DTV will be right down there with the 1970’s “Seat Belt Starter Interlock” for cars as another of the worst ideas to come out of Congress! Also, if 720p is “HDTV”, the French had public HDTV broadcasting beginning in the late 1940’s. OK, so it was analog and a spectrum hog with AM audio. But, if the ATSC 720p standard is HDTV, then so was the old French “819p” standard. Unsigned Corporate Suit (12/4/08) /\ December 4 Messages /\ \/ December 3 Messages \/ The attached graphic shows what happened when CNN.com's interview of a Therapist got a "Videos like This" pop-up tab at exactly the wrong time and wrong place. (12/3/08) Re: "WCEI is one of the best sounding stations on the shore, so Big Don needs to get his act together." Yeah, Big Don, if you're reading the DCRTV Mailbag, you better get your act together! That's a direct warning from, umm, let me look, "Burt in Denton". Whoever the hell that is. Hope you don't disappoint "Burt in Denton" next time you're on WCEI, Big Don! There'll be hell to pay... (12/3/08) Ed Graham, Jim Bohannon. Thanks for the kind thoughts and sincerity mixed with terrific humor. I must say to both of you. Those that know me, really know me, and that is sincerely appreciate. As far as breaking bread with Penis Mightier….any time. As I have said I’ve buried all that crap…ego, anger, hatred etc. That is a waste of time. Again thanks Ed and Jim Bo….true friends. Now, let’s medicate…LOL! PLB:0) (12/3/08) "Would someone please get Mark Gnoller an oxygen bottle?" Maybe he can borrow Imus's. (12/3/08) WCEI like just about every station now is just a giant Ipod, meaning it's all in a computer and it runs on auto pilot. The music, the spots, the promo's, etc. It just stops when the jock is supposed to speak. Yup, it is just that easy! Unless the computer was having issues, everything should work A-OK. (12/3/08) Big Don must hold the record for number of radio stations he has worked for over the years. Not only that but i can think of at least 3 TV stations he has also worked for as well. I too have noticed that he seems to have issues on his programs. And as of Monday, his picture was still listed on the WINX FM website. WCEI is one of the best sounding stations on the shore, so Big Don needs to get his act together. Burt in Denton (12/3/08) Re: the NOVA loop on 1630 AM, I found out via an FCC search it is WQHK899. They apparently have a signal for each campus (well at least Woodbridge and Annandale) that plays campus-specific messages in a loop. DLP in Woodbridge (12/3/08) Here are some more specific PPM numbers. For the month of November, here is how bad it is for WJFK. 18-34: Junkies 11th, Big O & Dukes 16th, Mike O'Meara 17th... 25-54: Junkies 16th, Big O & Dukes 19th, Mike O'Meara 17th... (12/3/08) FYI... There is no ‘L’ on Ovechkin... The neilsen article has it misspelled (12/3/08) CBS Radio Reporter Mark Knoller's medical condition is a reminder to all of us to take better care of ourselves. An extraordinary communicator, he is also **the** factoid repository for just about anything news-related out of the White House the past 20 years. Let's wish him the best in his time ahead. (12/3/08) Re: I heard Big Don Monday night. I remember him always seeming to have "equipment problems" on WINX, and it seems they followed him to WCEI also. He seemed to be having issues where commercials wouldn't play, abruptly ending songs. One time he ended a song before it was completely over, said something like "here's another" and started playing something else. Usually WCEI sounds pretty good, especially for a small town station, but it didn't seem as smooth with Big Don at the wheel. I tuned by WCEI around 2 P.M. Monday afternoon (Big Don would have been just coming on)..but I noticed the same thing (he seemed to not know quite which button he was supposed to hit! I chalked it up to learning a new board at a new station. Tom in Denton, MD (12/3/08) (From DCRTV's Classified Ads:) Small Market Radio Operations Manager/Morning Opening 90 minutes from DC Metro - Allen Media Strategies is looking for the next Morning Personality and Operations Manager at WDHC/WCST in Berkeley Springs, WV, a beautiful mountain resort community about 90 minutes from Washington and Baltimore. The salary is small, but the stability is terrific: the current morning talent is retiring in January after 18 years with the station. WDHC is the country FM, WDHC is News/Talk AM. The station is locally owned and operated, and this is a big step away from corporate radio. The Operations Manager will do a little bit of everything: host the morning show, work with air talent, handle production, host remote broadcasts, and (very importantly) make sales calls for the stations. Market cost of living is extremely low, about 1/3 of the DC metro. Interested to find out more? Email your resume, references and aircheck to aaron@allenmediastrategies.com. (12/3/08) Those PPM's are showing the true colors of WJFK it appears, the Junks have not been and are not in the same league as Elliott and the PPM's show it. 20th place in 12+, Morning Drive, and Afternoon Drive are nothing to brag about especially with the salaries of the Junks & O'Meara even if it is just the 12+ ratings. (12/3/08) CBS to power Yahoo's online radio service news.google.com (12/3/08) You should take a look at that forum on Press Box Online - one just started on Ravens Radio... I'm getting a kick out of this guy! www.pressboxonline.com... We have an office pool going on who Ballin' is. Some are betting Jon Buren, some think Chuck Harmon and we have multiple guesses for Jerry Coleman trying to get some buzz started for Fox 1370. (12/3/08) RE: "Would someone please get Mark Gnoller an oxygen bottle?" Mark Knoller from CBS News is one of the hardest working, best connected reporters in the business. He also has severe asthma and it seems to be getting worse. Give the guy a break. He signed on for the second Bush term although I would imagine his health probably would have been better if he hadn't. All those overseas flights and late nights sitting around waiting for something to happen have got to take a toll. I hope Mark can catch his breath, literally and figuratively, during the new administration. Steve (12/3/08) I know it's unethical and I shouldn't comment, but I have been selling PLB his Meds for years. What he doesn't know is they are placebos. PLB has his own internal lab. To Tom, Jimbo, and PLB - - at least we were in radio when it was important in every one's daily life. It's hard for me to say, but that kind of radio is dead. when formats fragmented the end began. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but programming to a 3 or 5 share caused the listeners to grow apart. I once had a 78 share (Pulse) on WCAO in the late fifties, and my last book at WBAL (80s) was a 15.9 (ARBITRON). That can't happen now. I even remember when PLB (Davey Jones) had double digits on WPGC. It was great to hear your station on every car radio. People could name all the DJs and tell you what time they were on. They even knew most of the personalities on the other stations. The business has changed so much that it will never be the same. Ed Graham (12/3/08) Shari on WBAL needs to stop getting her topics for the day's show from the Drudge Report. I usually can look at Drudge in the morning and figure out exactly what she's going to talk about that day. On Tuesday, she spent at least an hour talking about Drudge's headline claiming Obama was buying his wife a $30,000 ring. Only problem, it wasn't true. (12/3/08) Dave's response: Ditto with Grandy and Andy on MAL. Sometimes it just seems they use the topics on Drudge for about 75 percent of their show..... I saw this TODAY on a PR list I subscribe to… it might be worth checking out: Top that off with the news from Peter Dykstra at CNN that, "Our entire Science/Tech/Environment team had our positions eliminated today." (12/3/08) I am a FIOS customer since January of this year, and about 6 months ago, I received a letter from Verizon saying that we needed to make sure we were ready for the DTV, and implied indirectly that we might need to call the company to make sure we have everything set for the change. I thought nothing of it, since I had heard before then that cable customers don't need to worry because of reasosn already explained. Yesterday, I saw the test and low and behold, I saw the message. So, I now have to call verizon to make sure everything is up to date. I hope I don't get charged for newer converter boxes. (12/3/08) RE: "Pay for Jenifer Street parking." I recall kiddingly saying to myself each month when parking passes were issued (regarding employment 'security'), "Hot damn! Safe for another month!". Sure, FREE PARKING is better but, $125 a month isn't REALLY all that bad... might even be less expensive than mass transit? I dunno? Oh, as far as job security, my last parking pass (for March '08) was issued around February 26th... so much for, "Safe for another month!" (Ha-Ha-Ha!) (12/3/08) Since BIA has never been right with their industry predictions why should we believe them now…they projected a 3% drop this year, and it looks more like a 7% drop. Yesterday they reported that 09 would be down another 10%.. They can’t even get the actual station, or market revenue correct after the fact. They send out some bogus email, or fax, to a station to fill in a few blanks, and then tell everyone who will listen about their predictions. What station or network are the BIA people working at? They are not qualified, and they never have been qualified. (12/3/08) Would someone please get Mark Gnoller an oxygen bottle? He may be a great reporter but it takes my breath away just listening to him when he tries to say more than a couple of words at a time. Ed in Fredericksburg (12/3/08) Mr. DCRTV Guy, You mentioned in a recent post that you watched the DTV test on a portable black and white television… was it perchance the ever-popular PXL 2000? I have one and I love that thing, even though it's severely old school. :) I actually hooked one of the DTV adapters up to it… it's somewhat surreal watching Digital TV on such a device. -Greg K (12/3/08) Dave's response: Actually, it's a Radioshack "Portavision" battery/plug-in model that I bought about eight years ago for about $40. It takes something like 10 D-cells, so I never bother to have it stocked up for use during power outages. It has AM and FM, so it won't be completely useless after February 2009. Plus, I guess I'll still be able to watch low-power analog TV on it after the DTV deadline, a la Unison on 6, Daystar on 23, and WJLA on 49..... Tom G. I'll happily take whatever meds have made PLB who he is. Your meds, too. Jim Bohannon (12/3/08) Just about everything that DCRTV reports, I take as gospel truth. Everything somewhere else, I'm not too sure. I just read on another site that Howard Stern is leaving Sirius in June to return to FM. JohnnyuinHanover,Pa. (12/3/08) Dave's response: What site's reporting that? I find that hard to believe, unless Sirius XM won't be here next summer. Hmmm..... "Its me again. The guy who picked up the very strong signal for the NOAA weather radio broadcast from Hagerstown on 1630AM while in the Rockville area." Normally, on 1630 in Rockville,there is a Maryland Highway Advisory Radio (HAR) station, WNVY507, running a loop. Have yet to hear the Nova loop on that freq. I listened yesterday and barely heard the NOAA wx under a very strong carrier. I think the "engineers", or whomever is responsible for the HAR transmitters, sometimes rebroadcast the weather channels, as I've heard them on HAR frequencies before. Can't give any reason why they'd do it, though. Mike from Frederick and the Dashboard DX Society, looking for more cowbell in all the wrong places… (12/3/08) Does PLB ever have to mention "local media issues" to get posted in the Mailbag, or does that rule only apply to the rest of us? (12/3/08) Sometime last fall I was driving thru downtown Rockville and the 1521 kHz het was coming in so loud that at one point the signal overpowered KB Radio and for several seconds I heard what sounded like a Muslim prayer chant. KOF (12/3/08) In the holiday spirit of "Peace On Earth, Goodwill To Men", wouldn't it be nice if PLB and Penismightier could stop their squabbling long enough to sit down together for a innocent snack: www.youtube.com (12/3/08) RE: Mike in Kensington. thanks for the heads up. I didn't spring for FIOS HD yet because I wanted to wait for the transition. But even my regular channels had that AWFUL message. FAUX 5 was the only station that bothered to help/explain the test and @ their 10:00 newscast they mentioned that Verizon/FIOS was experiencing some problems. How is that possible at this late stage of the game??? I’m not sure I can make it to my roof to re-hook the antenna....HAHAHAHA Mark/bethesda (12/3/08) Tom(Gauger) We've known each other for over 30 years. It was a joke, not gibberish...I thought the post by P-mightier was kind of funny, his analogy to Murph, you, me and Jim Bo. That's all. Also, I have been released and don't need meds anymore.LOL:PLB:0) (12/3/08) 1) Dave, I commend FOX5 for their public service in informing viewers many days in advance of the DTV test at 5:28 p.m. yesterday. This needed to be done, especially to inform the elderly, who basically have no idea what is going on. Even my 8-year-old son reminded me about it as soon as he came home from school. He stopped doing his homework a few minutes beforehand to watch the process. 2) I've been listening to Curtis Sliwa on WMAL for the past few nights and he's been extremely enjoyable. I'll take Sliwa any day before listening to the Noory/Bell daily incoherent diatribe. Most of all, I've got a newfound respect for Sliwa after he detailed last night, step by step, on how many times he's been the target of mob killings (4) and how many broken bones he's suffered in the process. The thing about him is that he doesn't want the listener to take pity for him - he's still talking tough against the mob even though the threats are still there. He said on-air that he's got about 6-8 new affiliates nationwide. -Silvie- (12/3/08) With are this talk about these so-called mass firings and such happening in the big markets, wonder when will we see the same thing happening in the smaller markets like Harrisonburg, Winchester, Martinsburg, Hagerstown, and Frederick? I noticed the other day Winchester's WINC-AM 1400 has dropped their live morning program in favor of syndication after how long? 6 months? Just yesterday my husband was visiting friends in New York and heard the ESPN Mike & Mike morning show telling a listener from Western Maryland that their show is coming soon to the Hagerstown market on "Espn Sports 1340". That is Martinsburg's WEPM so if Mike & Mike is right I guess that means WEPM will be dropping their live content in the mornings as well. Q102 I have heard rumors that after the first of the year only Chris Mitchell and Chuck Carroll will be the only live voices left at Clear Channel Winchester as everything else will be tracked from elsewhere.Why is it I suspect that within a year WINC-FM will be down to two announcers as well. Front Royal's WZRV and the Winchester area's WWRT/WWRE, format changes? What on earth could they do? Nassau in trouble? I read elsewhere that they are so that makes me wonder if some sort of "bloodbath" is coming soon to Hagerstown and Frederick. Has there been much in the way of layoffs in the Hagertown-Chambersburg & Harrisonburg markets? Charlottesville? Or is the economy in those areas in fair enough shape that such things aren't needed..yet anyway? (12/3/08) If you google the phrase "Norelco PCP-90", you should find a Google Books excerpt of "The History of Television, 1942 to 2000" by Albert Abramson with a wealth of information on the early days of so-called Electronic Journalism or Electronic News Gathering. The expense of $180 to $200k per PCP-90 camera is even more impressive when you realize that the typical broadcast journalist of the day was only making a bit more than 1/10th of that figure in annual salary. A February 1974 article in the Post titled "Washington Salaries " showed that WRC-TV's Emmy-winning reporter Lee McCarthy only took home $24k that year, and Willard Scott only made $45k/year for doing the Channel-4 weather. (Don't feel sorry for Willard. In 1975, his yearly salary was doubled to $80k and he reportedly accepted over $200k/year to join NBC's The Today Show in 1980.) (12/3/08) I noticed that Matt Spence is back on mornings at WCEI in Easton. Does that mean that Kenny Campbell is out? Also I heard Big Don Monday night. I remember him always seeming to have "equipment problems" on WINX, and it seems they followed him to WCEI also. He seemed to be having issues where commercials wouldn't play, abruptly ending songs. One time he ended a song before it was completely over, said something like "here's another" and started playing something else. Usually WCEI sounds pretty good, especially for a small town station, but it didn't seem as smooth with Big Don at the wheel. (12/3/08) (clip from earlier post) I understand why it took so long to dump the film equipment for video. (end clip). Are any of those old 16mm cameras still out there anywhere? I've never wanted to own one, but always wanted to handle one to see what the old shooters had to wrestle with. What was the preferred camera that was in use here in DC? Canon Scoopix, B&H, Bolex, Beaulieus? (12/3/08) Talking about digital TV coverage, the poster said "the near-universal 70 mile radius coverage area enjoyed by many analog TV's shrinks to about 25 miles or so." SO, by the time a station boosts its digital transmitter power to compensate, there will be no savings in electricity. Moreover, with the new HD standard of 720p, there will be no improvement in picture quality. Just five mediocre channels' worth of it per station. Some efficiency, that. (12/3/08) Dont let the door smack yew in the ass goin' by, Unkie Mel... www.247wallst.com (12/3/08) GAB: All the heterodynes you hear may be caused by stations from across the Atlantic. I've seen reception reports for a high-power Saudi station on 1521 kHz at sunset just before WWKB comes rolling in the past few days. I've heard a tone on WWKB that could be from that station last night. (Stations outside of the Americas are 9 kHz apart, so most of them do not line up with ours. In the case of 1520/1521 kHz, the interfering station may be too weak to hear any audio, but the 1521 kHz carrier will be demodulated by a receiver tuned to 1520 kHz as a 1000 Hz tone.) Regards, Dave Loudin (12/3/08) I remember the WRC-TV promos for the Norelco's PCP-90 camera's featuring Jim Vance when they first got them (I think Glenn Rinker may have done a couple, too). I also recall that most of their remote footage was still being shot on film for quite a while after that. Now that I know what they cost in 1974, I understand why it took so long to dump the film equipment for video. (12/3/08) Dave Loudin's example of WBBM 780's protection area does seem to show that there could be a nighttime signal for WAVA 780 AM if Salem wanted to do it. But, I bet they'd have to build 3-6 towers on expensive land to pull off even a low-power directional nighttime signal and it most certainly wouldn't be worth the ridiculous expense. However, more than doubling WAVA's current daytime signal to 12,000 watts and adding a good chunk of Baltimore to their coverage area certainly is cost effective and increases the value of the station with minimal investment. Also, regarding DTV......... the vast majority of UHF TV stations in the U.S. are actually going to save energy costs significantly regardless of where they land as a DTV station as many are currently running with as much as 2 to 5 million watts! (12/3/08) WNBC as a "content center.' WRC to follow? It makes you want to cry about the future of local television journalism. Everett W. www.variety.com (12/3/08) RE: "I'll post to YouTube in the next day or two." Here's the link to the DTV test: www.youtube.com... Dave in Fredericksburg (12/3/08) /\ December 3 Messages /\ \/ December 2 Messages \/ Mark in Bethesda -- you probably aren't tuned to the digital and high-def version of Fox 5, on channel 505. All cable and satellite companies (except DirecTV) have special channel numbers for the high-def digital content. Sincerely, Mike in Kensington. P.S. With FiOS, NBC4 is on 504, ABC7 is on 507, and WUSA9 is on 509; all HD channels (for that big TV) are above channel 500. If you get no picture on any of those four channels, Verizon didn't give you an HD box; give them a call in that case. (12/2/08) How much longer will it be before somebody like George Soros comes along and buys enough of Citadel to take it private??? (12/2/08) Weren't there article in Monday New York Times about more mature anchorman getting canned at many local tv stations around the country because of budget constraints? Jim Vance or Gordon Peterson possibly on the chopping block? Is it true Mike O'Meara bought Donnie G.'s house cause he wanted to get out of Debile Town? Personally I think the low ratings of the MOM show are attributable to the curse of Lil' Tommy Gavin and his firing from the show! I swear that turkeys can fly. So if JACK radio dissappears in Baltimore any chance 100.3 or 94.7 in D.C. might give that format a chance? My vote for biggest lump of coal in D.C. radio is Michael Hughes and Chris Kinder! Big ho and Dukes trying to talk politico yuck they should be mainly sports like the rest of WJFK should be! Dump O'Meara put Big Ho and Dukes in afternoon and Dan Patrick mid days (12/2/08) Dave's response: I frequently hear Tom Gavin on Mike O'Meara's show..... Hey Jim Bohannon! Is PLB off his meds? The last part of his post was gibberish. Tom G. (12/2/08) C’mon gang… WETA’s “HD” signal is anything but. It appears that all PBS stations in the Washington-Baltimore area have decided that 720i is high definition. It ain’t, folks. WETA downgraded the beautiful video at 1080i way back when to put more channels of programming on. What a mistake! Tom Gauger (12/2/08) I MONITORED ALL OF THE LOCALS ON COMCAST, RCN, OVER THE AIR THRU SEVERAL OLD FASHIONED ROOFTOP ANTENNAS WITH DTV CONVERTER BOXES, AS WELL AS DISHNETWORK/ECHOSTAR FOR THE LOCAL STATIONS. TWO OBSERVATIONS, FIRST, OF ALL THE LOCALS, ONLY WTTG TREATED THE DTV TRANSITION SERIOUSLY, I.E.: WITH A PANEL OF "EXPERTS" ANSWERING THE PHONES AT THE PHONE BANK IN THEIR STUDIO & REPORTER TOM FITZGERALD MODERATING THE DISCUSSION. THE OTHER STATIONS SIMPLY HAD REGULAR PROGRAMMING AS USUAL. WTTG HAD A FULLSCREEN GRAPHIC INDICATING THE DATES AND TIMES OF THE NEXT THREE DIGITAL TESTS THAT THEY ARE RUNNING, IN ADDITION TO TEL. #'S FOR THE FCC OR WHOMEVER IS SUPPOSED TO BE IN CHARGE OF THE DTV TRANSITION. THEY AIRED THIS SEVERAL TIMES THROUGHOUT THE BROADCAST. THE ONLY BROADCASTS THAT I DID NOT RECEIVE (WJLA & WUSA) WERE THE DISH NETWORK-ECHOSTAR SATELLITE BROADCASTS... (12/2/08) (RE Tuesday's DTV test:) Kudos to WTTG, they actually interpreted literally the section of the language in the FCC license to broadcast about operating: "...in the public interest, convenience and necessity..." Shame on the rest of the broadcasters. The way WTTG did this should be a model for stations in every market nationwide. (12/2/08) "(C) GAB's grumblings about interference to WBBM here will fall on deaf ears, regulatorily speaking. DC is well outside WBBM's skywave service area (see page 16 of this). Regards, Dave Loudin."-- Not to worry. I actually hear WBBM 555 most nights. Its the heterodynes I keep hearing on WCBS-880 and WBAL-1090 that are puzzling me. -- GAB in the Airless Cubicle (what's all that garbage I hear on the radio? Oh, it's the programming...) (12/2/08) I wonder how many cable systems "failed" the DTV test with WETA? Cox in Fredericksburg "failed", but with good reason. The analog signal does not necessarily match the DTV signal. WETA runs HD programming on their 26.1 channel 24/7, regardless what's on the analog channel. So cable companies still run analog WETA, not a converted digital signal. I wonder when WETA will run the same programming on the ATSC side and NTSC side at the same time, or wait until Feb. 2009 and then run SD & HD programming on the ATSC channel? BTW - I captured the DTV test message - I'll post to YouTube in the next day or two. Dave in Fredericksburg (12/2/08) Dave's response: I'm pretty sure that my Comcast system does not take an off-air signal of analog 26 (the main signal) since it has programming from 2 AM to 6 AM, when the air signal is usually off the air. Must be some sort of feed directly from the station..... The 1974 WRC-TV "News4" three-man crew shown in the photo on Dave's DCRTV Plus page are utilizing one of Norelco's PCP-90 "backbreaker" cameras that actually was developed by competitor "CBS Labs". (Carry that equipment around with you all day long and you'd definitely NOT be high on PCP!) The cost of just one of those tube cameras in 1973 dollars was $200,000! (You'd best not drop it.) I imagine it was mortifying for RCA's Broadcast Division to have to admit that CBS Labs and Norelco (the Dutch Philips conglomerate) had beat them to the punch with a truly portable unit. That being said, can you imagine hauling a VTR around in a suitcase strapped on your back? By the way, the copywriter for that ad couldn't have seen the accompanying photo, as they wrote:"... a portable live camera/videotape recorder that goes anywhere two legs will take it." (12/2/08) ATSC works at channels 2-6 in some topographic-specific situations. Such as the Great Plains or in places like Philly where the “man-made topography” is benign. At a recent conference, the CE’s of some “legacy” V’s were anxious for the transition so they can go back to VHF. Why? So they can shut-off their power-hungry UHF DTV rigs and go to VHF where the power levels are a whole lot lower. (This is in addition to not having to feed two “hungry” transmitters.) What stations (Especially in rural areas) are finding is that the 100% duty cycle of a DTV rig is expensive in power consumption. Of course, in an analog TV station, only the aural transmitter sees a 100% duty cycle. But, the power consumption is lower because of the lower TPO compared to the video rig… usually about only 10%. The only saving grace here is that for sake of simplicity, the DTV rig is much more efficient compared to the “hybrid” of a class AB variant video/class C aural transmitter, Unfortunately, “efficiency” (As Dave Loudin will probably agree) doesn’t translate automatically into lower power consumption. And, in many rural areas, electricity is much more expensive than is typical in urban areas. The sad thing in all this is that the FCC is only computing RF coverage in defining its 60dBu coverage areas for DTV’s, as opposed to a “reliable service” (or similar) area. The reason for this is that at present power levels combined with the limitations of the ATSC format, the near-universal 70 mile radius coverage area enjoyed by many analog TV’s shrinks to about 25 miles or so. Yes, this is really one of those “your mileage may vary” situations because if you are in an area that is free of packet collisions, dropped packets, or other nasties, you can actually get decent DTV reception at surprising distances. Sinclair was right in trying to get COFDM (Coded Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing) for DTV in the U.S. as it copes much better with the packet collision scenario. Unfortunately, COFDM is also power-hungry (more so than the ATSC VSB-8 standard) at transmission and is susceptible to pulse interference, such as auto ignitions. However, COFDM is part of the pan-European DVB-T standard. And, thanks in large part to higher percentages of subscription to pay services via either cable or satellite than seen (OK, bad pun!) in the U.S., the digital transition in Europe is so far going better there than here… Unsigned Corporate Suit (12/2/08) Does anyone know if the digital t.v. check done by the local channels was a one time thing?..What about those people who weren't home when the local channels did their their digital t.v. check? Are there plans to do this again?..There are people out there who genuinely don't know if their t.v.'s are digital (possibly some seniors and others) and if they want to capture as many people as possible, they may want to repeat this test maybe weekly, early in the morning or on the weekend when more people are home.. (12/2/08) Dave's response: They are planning several more tests this month, but I forget the dates/times..... YO DAVE WTF?? I watched in Horror @ 5:28P.M on FAUX channel 5 as my overpriced big screen T.V and my pay out the ass Verizon FIOS service showed the dreaded warning that I wasn't ready for the Digital transition. What gives??? I thought if you had cable/satelite you were good to go?????? Shit I guess I gotta climb back on the roof and hook up that big ass antenna again and pray for the end of analog to be SLOWWWWWWWWWWWWWW.. MARK/bethesda..... (12/2/08) This aircheck is for sale on eBay. It's listed as "Johnny Roe" at WEAM, 01/01/68. I remember Johnny Rogue, but not Johnny Roe. cgi.ebay.com (12/2/08) Dave, Is it possible channels 20 or 50 could have a 30 min local news that would be broadcast either at 7 or 7:30 pm for us who are not able to make it back for the 6 pm broadcast? Scott in Alexandria (12/2/08) Dave's response: Channel 50 did once have a 7:30 newscast produced by Channel 4, but it was a failure in the ratings. Channel 9 does have a 7 PM local newscast. And there's always NewsChannel 8..... Just stumbled upon your site. I thought I'd add a little and see if anyone recalls my days in the DC area on the radio. I was born in Norfolk, Va in 1945 and after WWII, our family moved to the family hometown of Washington. I went to Alice Paul Jr. HS and Woodrow Wilson HS on Nebraska Ave and lived nearby off of 45th and Mass., NW. In '65 and '66, toward the end of my high school years and later into college at American Univ., I worked full time in broadcasting at WINX radio in Rockville where I was Bob "The Duke of" Earl working morning drive, afternoon drive and evening slot form 7pm to midnight. WINX was owned at the time by Pierre Eaton and his father. Pierre was a dynamic guy and I wonder where he is now. I was hired away by WEAM in '67 onto the "WEAM-Team," where I stayed for several years prior to moving onto Boston. AT WEAM, I was forced to use the air name of 'Johnny Rogue' by the station manager. My very first radio job was at WHMC, a brand new daytime station only in an unheard of place in the country of Montgomery County...Gaithersburg. I would love to hear from old friends in the DC area especially those who worked in broadcasting or were listeners of mine during the days at WINX and WEAM. Today and for the past 35+ years have lived in Cherry Hill, NJ. My contact is rmsnj@aol.com. Bob Silverman (Radio air names: Bob Earl, Johnny Rogue, Bobby Mitchell) (12/2/08) Tom in Denton- WINX-FM began as WFBR licensed to Trappe MD. The calls became WINX-FM in 2002. Around 2003 the owners CWA changed the community of license to Cambridge MD. The station ID's itself as WINX-FM, Cambridge, Easton. The guy leasing the station started ID'ing it as WINX-FM, St. Michaels MD. But the FCC still lists the COL as Cambridge MD. (12/2/08) Pen-is-mightier. Me thinks you don’t seem to care about my feelings. Understandable, nice to know your “out”. My obsession with the male anatomy only comes alive when I see my buddys Tom G and Jim Bo..with their heat pumps up and running, particularly liked the “feebasing Viagra, Jim, hilarious. As for agreeing or disagreeing as mentioned previously, it doesn’t matter. The last word doesn’t matter and you well, you don’t matter either. Now you can have the last word. You’re a bit too pushy so post on and on and on and on. PLB:0) (12/2/08) A tip: DO NOT turn on Ch. 5 news and you won't have to deal with the idiocracy of tabloid, self-promotion, partial stories "with more details later" and crap such as that. Check out NewsChannel 8 at 10:00 p.m. and that's all you need. I have not watched Ch. 5 news for more than a year. I can only think by comments over recent months that nothing has changed. As I said a year ago, goodbye Ch. 5. Hello NewsChannel 8. (12/2/08) RE: WBAL-TV's HD Signal: I have Verizon FIOS and I've noticed that WBAL-TV right before they go local they do some sort of weird switch. I've seen it at the the tail end of network programming where the 11 o'clock news is about to start and the screen switches sizes abruptly. Also, I've noticed it often when they are in a commercial break the tail end of a commerical will repeat just before the news returns. I'm not sure why it happens but I've noticed it for a while as well. (12/2/08) RE: Some dufus wrote, "(you'd of never of asked your question if you did!)". ROTFLMFAO! - Glad you find that so amusing. (12/2/08) Regarding the post about Brian Bolter's on air cockiness, I couldn't agree more..To me, he appears to really be into himself once the camera turns to him..And when they gave him the News Edge at 11pm, they really boosted his ego..As for NBC4, I too have noticed that Jim Vance has started stumbling over reading the teleprompter..And can they please turn off his microphone while the other anchors are speaking?? Hearing him constantly clear his throat and cough while others are reporting is quite annoying. (12/2/08) Dave: Regarding the post about Don O'Brian being heard on Cambridge Md's WINX..did you mean "Easton MD.'s WINX?" I could be wrong..but I don't think WINX is in Cambridge; seems to me that their studios are in Easton..but on the ID, I've heard them say "Saint Michaels; sobody please clarify this for me? Tom in Denton, MD (12/2/08) Yeah, local TV news is pretty awful. I can barely watch Jim Vance keep losing his place, and Doreen Genzler is starting to look like Nancy Pelosi with her perpetually surprised eyelids. WUSA is convenient at 7PM, mostly for Topper Shutt, but otherwise they're using more stories from other areas to fill the holes lost from their lack of local coverage. WJLA has got it going, but you know what ? * Some of the best production and news content is WBAL in Baltimore. Channel 11. Go see, and screw up the DC ratings book. *phrase trademarked Sarah Palin. (12/2/08) $125 monthly parking is not new. It's good to know that you are such a fan of WMAL though! MARCONI-WINNING "Major Market Station of the Year"! Thanks for all the great coverage - LOVE IT! Remember to tune in daily..630 WMAL, that's AM. :-) God Bless. (12/2/08) Dave's response: Yup, the last DC AMer that still gets decent ratings. Ah, how much did Chris Berry have to pay the NAB for that award? Hmmm..... At this point, it may be best for Channel 9 to just pull the plug. I think the only people cheering for WUSA and its fine management team would be Todd McDermott and Tracey Neale. As for Channel 5, maybe Brian Bolters cocky on-air attitude is striking a raw nerve with viewers? Interesting how Channel 4 and Channel 7 were able to grow viewership. (12/2/08) Dave's response: I don't like Rupert Murdoch and Roger Ailes and simply won't watch the local news on Channel 5 because of them. Even though I like many of Fox5's news personalities. And, frankly, I've just gotten out of the habit of watching local TV news. During mornings, I usually have the radio on instead. At 5 PM it's Chris Matthews. At 6 PM, if I'm even watching TV at all, I'm watching last night's Letterman via DVR. If I'm watching TV at 10 PM, it's usually not news. And at 11 PM, I'm usually asleep..... Maybe WASH will begin a yearly tradition, and be your "After Christmas music station" playing all Christmas music until January 1. Thanks to the person who replied to my question about the Ravens game on Dec 20. Burt in Denton (12/2/08) Dave's response: Doesn't the Eastern Orthodox/Russian church celebrate Christmas in mid-January? Maybe WASH could extend its holiday tunes through the Presidents' Day holiday..... Carson Daly, Luke Russert AND Amy Robach??? CHRIST! What's the title of the show- ''Happy New Years Eve and Tim Russert Is Still Quite Dead!'' Paul (12/2/08) Regarding the Front Page item of “No More Free Parking At MAL, RQX, JZW,” Andy Parks says when he is selling some sort of in-office coffee service that it is enjoyed by the 100 or so people at the station. Assuming that this number includes all three stations and these folks will have to pay $125 monthly to park, this adds up to $150,000 for the year. I’m sure that someone in corporate accounting thought this to be a “no brainer” to justify the cut. (12/2/08) Now that Farid has taken away parking and maxed out vacations at two weeks is it OK to say that he has taken the old ABC radio group to a new low? Allowing that bean counter to run a broadcasting company was idiotic. It was akin to SAT radio giving Howard Stern 500 million when they never had a working business plan or like hiring Bennett Zier to run Red Zebra Broadcasting and then Air America or like the comedy of errors at Bonneville during the WAPO/3WT “we are beginning to see ratings traction” phase or like…oh, never mind... (12/2/08) (snip) Phil LoCascio...has been budget cut from his operations manager, program director, and afternoon drive on-air gigs at...WCHR.....(end snip). Holy Marconi! The guy was doing three jobs at once at he still got sliced! (12/2/08) Some dufus wrote, "(you'd of never of asked your question if you did!)". ROTFLMFAO! (12/2/08) Some quick hits: (A) WETA-DT has four streams: PBS-"HD" (this stream is too bit-starved to be a real HD), Create, PBSKids, and WETA-SD. Yes, 26.4 now relays what is shown on analog 26. (B) Licensed transmitter locations do not change until there is a new one. A simple statement, yes, but that means old sites still show up until licenses (not construction permits) are issued for their replacements. (C) GAB's grumblings about interference to WBBM here will fall on deaf ears, regulatorily speaking. DC is well outside WBBM's skywave service area (see page 16 of this). Regards, Dave Loudin (12/2/08) My wife has been out of town for a few weeks and she will be pissed by this, “The Mojo high-def men's programming network went belly-up and the cable TV giant has replaced it with the HD version of the Versus sports net on channel 226. Versus had been sharing space with Golf Channel HD on channel 254, which Golf now has to itself......” Dave, when you say “belly-up “ do you mean that they went out of business or that Comcast is no longer carrying the network? What’s interesting is that my wife is 58 and loved Mojo’s late night programming. But on another note, doesn’t Comcast have some ownership in both The Golf Channel and Verves?? Hummmm (12/2/08) Dave's response: Mojo pulled the plug on Mojo. Not just Comcast. And, yes, Comcast owns all or part of Versus and Golf. It may have also had an ownership stake in Mojo, too..... RE: [ " Dave's response: Channels 7 through 13 will be running their digital signals on their old VHF channels come February 2009. Channels 2 thru 5 will stay on UHF " ].......... While that may be true here in the DC/Baltimore area, it's certainly NOT true nationwide. I believe the FCC, in basically one of it's stupidest moves ever, has allowed DTV channels 4, 5, & 6 to remain in several markets (Philly being the most notable nearby) even though its a proven fact these frequencies are not ideal for DTV. If the FCC had planned this better, we could have had an all digital FM band and possibly even moved some AM stations OFF of the AM band to clean that up as well. That could have possibly saved some of these troubled media companies with new sources of revenue (i.e. multiple FM channels that ACTUALLY ARE Hi-DEF radio!). Face it, these companies basically cannot compete against Apple's iPODS, iPHONES, Microsoft's ZUNE, and the internet for music due to poor audio quality and the AM band is quickly becoming too static-ridden to even be viable anymore with all these other forms of digital & electrical interference. I can't even keep my iPHONE anywhere near a stereo due to digital interference. It's an incredible missed opportunity and another one of those classic FCC blunders just like AM STEREO! Anyone remember that? -- Joe in Essex (12/2/08) Dave's response: I was referring to the local markets. You're right, there will be some digital TVs in the low VHF band (2-6) in a few places, but not here..... Open question to DISH Network subscribers who get WBAL-11 as part of their local package, and also have a standard 4:3 screen size set: Are you seeing the strange warping of WBAL's picture size during almost all of their local level commercials and even with shows like "Oprah", or "Ellen"? It's also occurring when they do newsbreaks, but not during the regular newscasts. Watch for a "zoomed-in" and "stretched" look...which only corrects itself for a few seconds when they run one of those MD Lottery promos at the bottom right. Then it goes back to the odd ratio. This doesn't seem to occur when 11 runs NBC's programming, and isn't happening at all on their analog over air signal. You will not see this effect on WMAR or WJZ, and DISH tech support has no idea what its coming from, so that narrows it down to something haywire with WBAL's feed out, maybe something to do with the conversion coming soon. Someone able to confirm this, and why WBAL's allowed it to go on for almost 3 weeks? (12/2/08) Jim Nabors is right. Pat Murphy rocks! I join my colleague Jim Bohannon in abandoning my Cialis. The Murphy in the Morning poster covers my bedroom ceiling (replacing the mirror that was there). Tom Gauger (12/2/08) This came up several days ago during a discussion of HDTV antennas, but I cannot find the thread; which TV stations in the DC area will be going all-digital on their primary VHF channels, rather than move up to the UHF band? (12/2/08) Dave's response: Channels 7 through 13 will be running their digital signals on their old VHF channels come February 2009. Channels 2 thru 5 will stay on UHF..... You know what's stupid about WETA taking part in this "analog shutoff test" today? They program their analog channel completely separately from their digital channels--including this evening at the time of the test. So, if you see the message of doom on 26, it doesn't mean you're not ready for digital, it just means you were trying to watch a specific channel out of the 5 they broadcast. WETA's message of doom should read, "On February 17, we're downsizing from 5 program streams to 4 (and saving a bunch of money on our electric bill)." ~~CA in BC (12/2/08) Quote: "Re:WBBM 780. Class A AM stations like WBBM are protected from interference in their nighttime skywave coverage area, which extends for hundreds of miles. In or near this area, it is not possible for another station to operate on the same frequency." Not quite true. If the station on the neighboring (first adjacent) channel is also clear channel and transmits AM HD, there is severe interference. Examples are WHO 1040, WBZ 1030 and KDKA 1020. (12/2/08) Roddy scribed "Someone told me that for now, WBIS is diplexing with WNAV; don't know whether that's correct." You are correct, Roddy. WBIS lost their tower sight and cut a deal with WNAV a little over two years ago, with little impact to either station's signal. (12/2/08) Re: Burt in Denton...Yes. WBAL-11 will carry the NFL Network coverage of the Ravens-Cowboys game on Dec. 20. (12/2/08) Yes, Jim Nabors, you're right! Thanks to that heartwarming photo of Superman Murphy in the Morning, my cockles are now overheating and I no longer need to freebase my viagra. Jim Bohannon (12/2/08) "I was sad to see MOJO HD go away. I really enjoyed some of the programs it launched such as Three Sheets, with former Girls Gone Wild infomercial "host" Zane Lamprey" - Zane has been announcing that he is looking for a home on either Spike or Comedy Central. He has been encouraging fans to write in requesting his show.Zane will be missed until then. (12/2/08) ( I'm curious as to why there is not a single AM 780 on the east coast that has any nighttime signal...) In the Easton/Cambridge area you sometimes can hear NYC AM radio late late at night. (12/2/08) Murphy in the Morning? Sure looks like Ron Burgundy to me. Scotchy scotch scotch... (12/2/08) WRC-TV, WDCA-TV, WTTG-TV, WETA-TV, WJLA-TV, WHUT-TV, WUSA-TV, WDCW-TV, WFDC-TV, WPXW-TV, WJAL-TV are all participating in the DTV test at 5:28 Tuesday afternoon www.tvnewsday.com... Los Angeles, NYC, Hartford, and Dallas are all having tests too this week. Chase (12/2/08) /\ December 2 Messages /\ \/ December 1 Messages \/ Nobody cares, PLB if you are offended or not. You are a windbag that constantly seeks the last words in arguments that you start. On top of not fully reading Silvie's posts (you'd of never of asked your question if you did!) you are now making clear your obsession with the male anatomy. Have no shame PLB I like it too. However, what seperates me from you is that I can get away from it long enough to keep from having to mention it in an unrelated discussion. Now, please remind us that everybody that disagrees with your nonsense is simply thick skinned and how awesome you are because you sign your names. (12/1/08) Dave, this morning, I heard Alby Dee talk about having an operation "down there" to see if there is a possibility of the big "C", as Don Geronimo used to call it. Have you heard anything on that? Emmanuel (12/1/08) Dave's response: Ah, no..... I hear that WASH will be under pressure to continue the Christmas music after 12/25 to hopefully keep people in a buying mood. Stores are being forced to take record per-item markups in hopes of building volume to hold a mimimal profit. (12/1/08) I think that all daytime stations should log off at sunset and not continue operate on reduced power. I also think the FCC should reinstate clear channel stations. If a daytimer wants to reach more people at night, they could webcast and have more listeners. Let's get the FCC paying attention to technical standards once more. GAB in the Airless Cubicle (what's all that crud under WBBM?) (12/1/08) I was sad to see MOJO HD go away. I really enjoyed some of the programs it launched such as Three Sheets, with former Girls Gone Wild informercial "host" Zane Lamprey, and After Hours with superstar chief Daniel Boulud (it introduced me to WD-50 and Dinosaur BBQ in New York City, one of the best high-tech restaurants and one of the best "joints" in the entire city). I was ready to be upset with Comcast for yet another bait and switch channel line-up deal but discovered that MOJO was actually partially-owned by Comcast and two other big cable companies and that it was shutting down operations. I always thought that the channel was poorly programmed (it's line-up was never very consistent and always seemed to be a work in progress) and kept waiting for it to find its center. The only commercials that it seemed to air were for itself and for DVDs of its own shows (I kept waiting for the second year of After Hours to go on sale but it never did) and that is a sign of poor management. But it had so much potential. One has to wonder how a cable network that's owned by distribution giants like Comcast and Cox and others can go belly up. Another great idea (just like WJOK -- the all comedy radio station with its weak ass transmitter off of Watkins Mill Road in Gaithersburg/Germantown) gone down the toilet. (sniffle) Sprawl and Crawl Steve (12/1/08) Re:WBBM 780. Class A AM stations like WBBM are protected from interference in their nighttime skywave coverage area, which extends for hundreds of miles. In or near this area, it is not possible for another station to operate on the same frequency. It takes only a small amount of power to cause interference. Even as far away as Arizona, a station on 780 can only radiate about 110 watts at night towards Chicago. Closer in, the number falls to just a few watts. The FCC will not permit a directional antenna to have an extreme variation. So an antenna that produces 5 watts toward Chicago and 10,000 watts toward the Atlantic Ocean is not supposed to be licensed. (12/1/08) Dave or anyone out there answer this question. The Ravens play Dallas on Dec 20, which is being shown on the NFL network. Will the game be shown on broadcast TV in Baltimore that evening? Inquiring minds need to know..lol. Burt in Denton (12/1/08) "Regarding the NFL and the song by Gary Glitter, It is really embarrassing to be at FedEx field with a child who asks when that song is played and 90,000+ people all chant the refrain " Hey, you s**k!", what that means. I'm sure many have heard that same chant on the last 2 prime time Skins games that were on Monday and Sunday night football broadcasts. I guess Mr. Snyder is pleased with such actions by his 'so-called true Skins fan base'. Based on their performances at home this season (3-4), the refrain may be really meant for the home team and not the opposition." Umm, are you seriously upset about hearing "suck" at a football game? Seriously? The drunken idiots at FedEx say far worse things than "suck" at the game. If you thought you were going to be hearing zero curse words at a football game, you were severely mistaken. A football game is not a musical; if you don't want your kid to hear "suck" then maybe you shouldn't take them to the game. (12/1/08) I think along with WUSA9 & NBC4, all of the local channels are probably doing the DTV check as I saw a commercial for FOX5 doing this check as well. (12/1/08) Its me again. The guy who picked up the very strong signal for the NOAA weather radio broadcast from Hagerstown on 1630AM while in the Rockville area. Since then I have checked that frequency on a regular basis only to find static. Yesterday, again in the Rockville area, I tuned to 1630AM and heard a loop being broadcast for Northern Virginia Community College. Another strong signal. Today...static again. Is there a pirate station in the Rockville area that is using automated stations for rebroadcast? Am I in the twilight zone? Any ideas? (12/1/08) Regarding the NFL and the song by Gary Glitter, It is really embarrassing to be at FedEx field with a child who asks when that song is played and 90,000+ people all chant the refrain “ Hey, you s**k!”, what that means. I’m sure many have heard that same chant on the last 2 prime time Skins games that were on Monday and Sunday night football broadcasts. I guess Mr. Snyder is pleased with such actions by his ‘so-called true Skins fan base’. Based on their performances at home this season (3-4), the refrain may be really meant for the home team and not the opposition. (12/1/08) I am surprised that the FCC still lists as current the old WANN transmitter site in Eastport. I should check whether WYRE is still listed at the top of Spa Creek. There's something in common among WYRE and and WUST. Both are part of the expansion of stations in the AM band that followed WW2. That's why so many community and fringe metropolitan AMers date to 1946-48. Both stations went on the air with brand new examples of the beautiful art-deco styled Collins 300-G transmitter, rated 250 Watts. And both transmitters are now in private hands. The 1946 WYRE Collins is part of a hobbyist radio station south of Cleveland, the 1947 WUST (nee WBCC) transmitter operates from near Annapolis. And a third example of the transmitter returns to the airwaves soon from Bowie's Radio TV Museum. (video) www.youtube.com... It's a 1951 Collins 300-G, rescued from WFOY St. Augustine Florida when the owners sold a waterfront location to developers. (12/1/08) On behalf of the many "Geezers" that read, post and take to heart, everything that is written on DCRTV, could you please, please, post that awesome photo of Pat Murphy in the Superman costume from his WMOD days? I know PLB doesn't have to take a viagra, after basking in the warm glow of the photo! That photo has been an inspiration to many of DC's radio and TV giants. Just ask, Larry King, Jim Bohanon, PLB, Tom Gauger and Barry Richards, to name a few. On behalf of the "Geezers", I thank you! Jim Nabors - WEAM 1966 (12/1/08) Dave's response: You got it (right)..... Okay... Take a look at the mug on the young kid behind the microphone in the second photo at DCMemories.com... Does anyone else think that could be the same "Bob McBride" who anchored Channel-4 news in the '70s (and who went on to WKYC-TV 3 Cleveland... to eventually retire in 1988)? He would be about the right age. (12/1/08) "2006- The NFL asks teams to stop playing “Rock n Roll Part 2” by convicted pedophile Gary Glitter... You stay classy, Redskins." Then the NFL is hypocritical as long as that bust of O.J. Simpson stays on display at the Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. There's also a disturbingly high incidence of criminal activity on the part of current NFL players, accentuated by the highly publicized legal cases involving former Falcons quarterback Michael Vick and Cowboys defensive player Adam "Pacman" Jones as well as the recent gun incident with Giants receiver Plaxico Burress. By the way, the coverage of the one year anniversary of Sean Taylor's violent death by local TV stations seemed a bit over the top. While there's no question that Taylor was a great player who deserved induction into the Redskins Ring of Honor, let's not portray him as the second coming of Mahatma Gandhi just because he helped out a few children's charities and cared about his girlfriend and daughter. If not requiring all of its players to assist with such charitable efforts, the league certainly pushes them in that direction in order to enhance its public image. A glaring omission from the coverage on Comcast SportsNet and Channels 4, 5, 7 and 9 was the serious societal problem involving pro athletes (especially football players) and firearms - clearly an issue they should have delved into but instead chose to sweep under the rug. Mike, Fairfax (12/1/08) I was in Annapolis over the holiday and drove past the former WANN/WBIS studio/transmitter location. The building, which I remember as being a nice facility, is boarded up. Of course, the towers are gone although the FCC database shows the site as the current location. Someone told me that for now, WBIS is diplexing with WNAV; don’t know whether that’s correct. Roddy Freeman (12/1/08) The unnamed DCRTV mailbag contributor who mentioned touring the WBCC studios in Bethesda prior to opening with Doug Bailey neglected to explain that Doug was an American University "whiz kid" broadcaster like Willard Scott and Ed Walker. According to his bio: "Doug Bailey began his radio career in 1944 at the age of 14, conducting audience interviews for Frank Blair. Throughout his high school years he volunteered on the Armed Forces radio station at Walter Reed hospital, performing on the organ and the piano, in addition to writing and producing shows for veterans. In 1947 as a freshman at American University, he started and was Program Director for a carrier-current radio station called WAMU. The next year he became a page for WMAL in the Trans Lux Building and then for WRC at the Wardman Park Hotel with Willard Scott. In 1950 he left this position to become a disc jockey and musician on WBCC, Bethesda. There he conducted a live entertainment show from the Hiser Theater, utilizing both pipe organ and piano." The bio goes on to say that Doug later help put WDON and WASH-FM on the air for Everett Dillard and served as PD for those station. Read all about him at: www.frostburgpalace.org (12/1/08) For the record... WBCC (1120kc AM) debuted on Sunday, February 9, 1947 using a transmitter at Kenwood Country Club. See the Washington Post article here: DCMemories.com... The first indication in the Post that WBCC's calls had changed was in the Thursday, October 18, 1951 edition when their FM side was shown as "WUST-FM Channel 292 - 106.3 mc". The AM side had changed calls as well, but the change must have been dictated over the phone, as the listing incorrectly showed "WUFT - 1120 kc - 6 a.m. to 5:30 p.m." The Post fixed that typo in the following day's editions. Yes... they had an FM side. The first appearance of "WBCC-FM Channel 276 - 103.1 mc" was in the Post of Thursday, September 29, 1949. On September 24, 1950, the Post showed the frequency as "WBCC-FM Channel 292 - 106.3 mc" for the first time. The final appearance of "WUST-FM 106.3 mc - 2:30 a.m. to midnight" in the Post was Wednesday, May 11, 1960. The very next day's Post radio listings show a brand new station at a different position on the FM band: "WJMD-FM 94.7mc - 6 p.m. to midnight." as Julius and Marcus Diener (who had bought the WUST stations in 1959) used their initials for the new call sign. The Post shows that WJMD-FM had stretched their operating hours by June 1960 to "8 a.m. to midnight". (12/1/08) For the inquiring mind, there aren't that many daytimers on 780 kHz in the East to begin with. There are three with nighttime authorizations: a station in Dunn, NC, with ONE watt and two stations in Maine, one with 18 watts and the other with 60 watts nighttime. The 60 watt station is almost right on the eastern border of Maine to Canada. There are also a couple of applications in Florida that would have 250 watts nighttime power. Regards, Dave Loudin (12/1/08) Re the WAVA 780 news: Wouldn't the boost in power on Salem's AM channel be a more likely first step toward consolidating its most popular talk programming on the AM dial, and toward opening up its strong FM signal for a 24-hours-a-day Christian music station? The WAVA folks no doubt have noticed WGTS's strong PPM ratings. Christian (12/1/08) From the "Hard to believe it has been over 36 years" Department:... There's a higher-quality version of that October 1972 film clip featuring The Joy Boys final broadcast from the basement studios of WRC-AM: www.truveo.com... (Dave Statter and Tom Buckley had to reach way back into the archives for that one.) And don't forget that everything a body needs to know about Eddie Walker and Willard Scott can be found at Bob Bybee's TheJoyBoys.com... Skip McCloskey and Mike Berry thoroughly cover that station's history, spotlighting its' "Great 98" rockin' days and nights, at their www.98wrc.com site. (12/1/08) (It is the Monday after Thanksgiving, which means "The War on Christmas" begins. HOOOOOOOORAY! My favorite time of year is The War on Christmas....) if it wasn't for christmas, the only thing people would care about in december is new year's eve or a friend/relative's birthday. (12/1/08) (NPR Reporter Escapes Injury In Iraq Bombing) idiots! doesn't al queda know that NPR is sympathetic to their cause? or is this a case of NPR changing their tune now that secular jesus is coming to power, and instead of "2 legs bad", it's now "2 legs better" when it comes to the war, and they're becoming targets? (12/1/08) Dear dick..PenISmightier...it all depends on how you look at it. Penis Mightier.???? You know when I inserted the words in my posts that seemed to offend you they weren't meant to. But truthfully you offend me. When I respond to any comments on the board of a professional nature, I do think my opinions are correct. As does anyone who posts thoughts. Also I realize that opions are like a-holes, everyone has one. But, usually if the opinion is about the industry, it's thought outright or wrong, it doesn't matter, it's just an opinion. You that come out of the woodwork and take personal shots must have some deep down personal reasons. I don't really understand any of them. I'm no longer a broadcaster and somewhere along the line we must have crossed paths, if so, you sure carry a grudge a LONG time. I've been off the air since 1998, and glad of it the industry has really gone into bad times. By the way, no anger here, I buried that feeling a long time ago, just as I buried ego-hate-jealousy and regrets. PLB:0) (12/1/08) WUST did not go straight from 250 watts to 20,000 watts. When the transmitter was at the old movie theater, the power became 1,000 watts at some point, but I don’t recall if the increased happened when WUST moved to the theater or during its years there. Roddy Freeman (12/1/08) 2006- The NFL asks teams to stop playing “Rock n Roll Part 2” by convicted pedophile Gary Glitter. www.sportingnews.com... You stay classy, Redskins. (12/1/08) Saw a blurb on All Access that Citadel is cutting everyone's paid vacation to two weeks. No matter how long they've been there. Minor league, huh? (12/1/08) Low-power TV broadcaster WBQC-TV in Cincinnati has changed its call letters to WKRP-TV, using the name of the 1970s sitcom to promote its new digital signal, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports... Wasn't there a LPT station in Washington, DC called "WKRP" for awhile? (12/1/08) Being a non-technical person, I'm curious as to why there is not a single AM 780 on the east coast that has any nighttime signal. I realize there's Chicago's monster AM780, WBBM, but geez, that is so far away. I can't imagine there would be much interference from say a 500 watt directional signal pointed right towards the Atlantic from say DC or points south like Norfolk or the Carolinas. Is it really impossible to not interfere with WBBM at night all along the entire eastern seaboard even down to Florida? Inquiring minds would like to know. (12/1/08) I visited the 1120 transmitter site on the Kenwood Country Club after they had changed formats. There was a little studio and "Lord Fauntleroy" Bandy was on the air. I don't recall the year. They had changed to an urban format and I don't recall which call letters they were using. Years earlier Doug Bailey and I visited the original WBCC studios while they were under construction and the station had not yet signed on. Those studios were on the on the second (top) floor of a building on Wilson Lane just west of Old Georgetown Rd, Bethesda. (12/1/08) It is the Monday after Thanksgiving, which means "The War on Christmas" begins. HOOOOOOOORAY! My favorite time of year is The War on Christmas. Listen to Sean Hannity on 630 AM, and Bill O'Reilly on 1580 AM for all your "War on Christmas" updates. Watch them both on Fox News interview victims and casualties from The War on Christmas. Get ready to get angry, Christians! Let us see who else steps up to the plate on The War on Christmas. Will Chris Plante or Mark Levin present misinformation (like all the misinformation they presented on the UAW and GM) on the War on Christmas this year? Will Les Kinsolving ask Dana Perino a poorly worded and factually inaccurate question about The War on Christmas this year? Let the fun begin. As I said, The War on Christmas is my favorite time of year, and WMAL and Fox News are the best sources for information and commentary about The War on Christmas. Gosh darn it, CNN and NPR don't even cover The War on Christmas, If you need information on The War on Christmas, you have to get it from Hannity, O'Reilly, and the "back benchers" on AM radio. (12/1/08) Is HBO Latino no more because on direct tv they have stealth TV on instead... Derek-Owings Mills (12/1/08) Last night I was checking out another site and someone htere had posted that despite the nationwide ban of TV cigarette ads going into effect in 1971, there were actually a few markets as early as 1969 who had already banned such ads..and the very first market to do was...Baltimore !!! Group W banned the ads in 1969 from airing on WJZ with WBAL and WMAR quickly following suit. True? And speaking of such ads I wonder if cigarettes ( or even cigars ) could still air on TV today...meaning CABLE not OTA TV since of course at the time when the total ban went into effect ( 1971 ) there wasn't such networks like ESPN, TNT, MTV and so forth. Now in DC for some reason I can recall when there were a few times when a few ads were suddenly yanked off the air. Two I remember..one was for WPGC. When Q107 had their famous "woman" ad with all of those Q107 voices coming out of her mouth I believe WPGC aired a similar ad like that too. I only saw it once. Wonder if Q107 sued WPGC or did WPGC get a case of "..we better stop doing this".? I also remember a commerical for The Washington Star when they picked up the Doonesbury comic strip. In the ad they had these voices pretending to be President Jimmy and Amy Carter. The story I have been tod over the years was that the ad pissed off Jimmy Carter so much that he called up all the local DC stations and DEMANDED them to yank it off..or else. Wonder if that is true? Were there any other ads on local TV around here that got the boot..suddenly? (12/1/08) Hey Dave, It's not just WETA doing the DTV test on Tuesday... I saw a commercial on NBC4 this afternoon, and now a commercial on WUSA just now that they are both going to do an analog TV shutoff at 5:28 on Tuesday... Just thought you should know Chase (12/1/08) Here's a real treat for all of you Joy Boys fans out there! It's some vintage video from Channel 9 from October 6, 1972, the final broadcast on WRC of Ed Walker & Willard Scott. Great stuff! www.youtube.com (12/1/08) As a former event producer at Verizon Center, I know for a fact that the Capitals have not played "Rock & Roll Pt. 2 since the Gary Glitter underage sex conviction came down.. Yes, I agree, the "O" during the national anthem is worn out and it's purely a Baltimore thing now that DC has the Nats.. I guess everyone hasn't gotten the memo on that one.. If the Caps fans want to TRULY be heard during the national anthem, they should raise their voices during "the rockets' RED glare" part of the national anthem because as we all know by now "Red is Capitals hockey"..... (12/1/08) When I used to PD a group of stations in western Nebraska, we would play Drake's (Chenault's) History of Rock and Roll every 4th of July weekend. A true radio pioneer who's influence is still heard today. (12/1/08) Thanks to the anonymous poster who caught my bad on the call sign of the RKO General TV station in Boston. The AM also used the WNAC call letters until just before flipping from MOR to Top 40, and becoming WRKO. The FM calls were also WRKO, until they became WROR-FM, using Drake-Chenault's automated HitParade format. Throwing down all those "winky-poos" with Bill Drake at Nickodell's next to KHJ on Melrose in L-A fogged my memory. Thomas F. O'Neill (12/1/08) /\ December 1 Messages /\ Jump to the Mailbag Archive Index.....