dcrtv.com - Mailbag - October 13 to October 19, 2009

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DCRTV Mailbag - October 13 to October 19, 2009

Latest messages listed first.....
\/ October 19 Messages \/

OK I worded this incorrectly. I have heard this several times lately from WXPN's Michaela Majoun:" We have modified the signal at our WKHS facility. If you listen to 90.5 WKHS Worton/Baltimore or pass through this area please let us know if there is a difference in signal strength" I realize that Kent County Public School is in posession of the license as I have listened to the Broadcasting Class at KHS for about 10 years. There are some student DJs who could have a future in broadcasting if there IS a future in broadcasting and there are some who may not have " a face for radio" but neither do they have a VOICE for radio...but I applaud them for trying. WXPN broadcasts at 88.5 Philadelphia,88.7 WXPH York/Lancaster,90.5 WKHS Worton/Baltimore,99.7 Harrisburg, 104.9 in the Lehigh Valley,Streaming Live at XPN.ORG and Y-Rock on XPN at 88.5/88.7 FM HD2.WXPN is Listener Supported Radio from the University of Pennsylvania. (10/19/09)

Danny Snyder did finally in fact get FCC approval to change the city of license for WWXX 94.3 closer to DC today after filing an amendment. despite previously getting turned down by the FCC for FM 92.7 moving its city of license closer to DC. Not sure what the change in apps was or what included in the amendment changed the FCC's determination, but it's clear that the FCC initially wanted to turn down both applications. The next question is whether he'll try to move the transmitter closer to DC as well. Hmmmm (10/19/09)

It's the TV Business News Channel version of 'Balloon Boy'! - and the joke's on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. And, the Fox Business News channel, is all over the story! LOL... Whoa! Slow Down There, Sparky! (10/19/09)

If the Washington Post didn't deliver the paper to WTOP they would have to go out and find their own news stories. The anchors always sound as if they're reading out of the Post. (10/19/09)

WKHS is licensed to the Board of Education of Kent County not WXPN. The station is used by the students during school and also has some programs of it's own as listed on its web sight. The rest of the time it repeats WXPN. The recent improvement in coverage, which is quite noticeable, is due to the station replacing its antenna and changing from horizontal only polarization to circular polarization. Apparently the old antenna was in very bad shape. Details can be found here. Bob in Fairfax fjallfoss.fcc.gov (10/19/09)

ATTENTION:Jeffrey Young - Thanks for the input on the copper pole for the "ground antenna". Since my townhouse does provide me with an "abbreviated backyard/patio" it will be no problem driving that pole right outside my kitchen window. I believe Radio Shack still sells a kit that will contain all that I need to get this thing started before it gets cold outside! The radio I keep in my kitchen is one of the original GE Superradios (circa '79) and it has connections for both a ground and an external AM antenna. I'll also try what you did with the Sony 2010. Because of 3 pc's in my house the AM noiselevel is just high enough to keep me from really digging up some DX gems. In the winter I can sometimes be seen outside in a parka scanning up and down the dials! I'm glad I got my flu shot! Thanks again, Dude! Alvin G. Lawton (10/19/09)

I've always been annoyed by the way WAMU shamelessly presents stories from the Wapo as their own news without attribution. It is especially notable when it is a one of a kind special feature story found only in the Post that morning. Robert, Arlington (10/19/09)

WYPO in Ocean City (the repeater station for WYPR in Baltimore) has had a string of audio outages cover the past month. Some of these outages have been for more than a day long. I remember the FCC used to have a rule that you had to ID a station every hour, and if you lost audio you were to turn off the transmitter within a short period of time. I guess that rule doesn't exist anymore, or non-commercials stations don't have to follow it. By the way has anyone noticed this on their Frederick repeater? (10/19/09)

"659,600 people 25-54 listen to WTOP each week, more than the entire circulation of the newspaper." Aren't you're comparing a weekly cume with daily circulation? Wouldn't a better comparison be how many people listen to WTOP on a single day, vs. the Post's daily circ number? And, as for Farley's response to the charge that commercial radio doesn't do any real reporting -- While I don't want to dismiss the journalistic excellence represented by WTOP's recurring "knucklehead in the news" feature, voting on favorite restaurants and David Burd's talkback line....every time I bother listening to WTOP I hear several items lifted from the Post -- I don't ever recall it going the other way. (10/19/09)

Kevin Corke formerly of NBC’s DC Bureau named anchor at WTVJ Miami according to his Facebook. (10/19/09)

If you haven't noticed, WFAN 1067 is still playing a healthy dose of PSA's to fill out their ad schedule. This means that they may not be having much luck selling spots with the new flip. Obviously the economy has something to do with this, but still, low revenue is what it is, and CBS isn't in the business to lose money. A friend of mine came to visit from the west coast and she told me that the going rumor out there is that CBS still hopes to sell WFAN to Dan Snyder after goading him to pay more than it's worth to silence the stinging criticism it rightly dishes out on a daily basis. I also noticed that The Fan's legal ID includes 94.7? That's weird unless it's a package sale deal. I don't know anything about radio but I know business, so we'll see... (10/19/09)

Dave's response: 106.7 is not WFAN. That's NYC's 660 AM, another CBS sports talker. A bit of trivia. Those calls once graced DC's 1340, 100.3, and Channel 14.....

I do not know the agenda of the person who made the absurd comments about Albie Dee, but let me set the record straight. WTGB was probably the worst idea to hit DC radio in the last 20 years. The station was a dog, and if Albie was speaking up and telling management that the station was going nowhere, then Albie was absolutely right. It is also my understanding that his numbers were as good as could be expected on that stillborn radio station. The day a programmer is afraid of or hostile to the ideas of his staff, is the day that programmer is on the way down. If Albie does wind up at 105.9, he will give that station an infusion of energy and passion that obviously was not welcome at "The Globe." (10/19/09)

(regarding a previous post) "Wash Post 'Special Section' in print edition today says 'Nearly three times as many Washingtonians age 25-54 read The Post each week than listen to WTOP, the largest audience station.'" -- Maybe what they meant is that more local radio listeners of DC stations with so-called "news departments" HEAR stories on the air that were swiped from the original journalism of the Post. Let's face it, many stations here and in other large/medium markets (now & for years) have depended upon the local newspaper reportage, as a basis for their drive-time newscasts. (10/19/09)

Hey, WOW, I'll sign my post and I'll tell you that you don't have a clue what you're yapping about. The "NEGATIVE" post about Albie was based on facts, actual ratings, as opposed to your silly rant. And the "NEGATIVE" post about Doug Tracht was also based on facts: other than a short tour of duty on a tiny station 95% of the DC market couldn't even hear, the guy hasn't been on the air hear since 1999. What about that is hard for you to comprehend? What about it makes you start spewing your filth? Answer: you're clueless. Dave in Sterling (10/19/09)

Maybe 105.9 should bring back Elliott and Woodside. Scott Woodside is now in the funeral home business, so he might know something about working with a dead radio station. www.linkedin.com (10/19/09)

If Citadel would have put together a local staff for WJZW True Oldies and done any promotion, it would have had a top radio station, just like WCBS-FM in New York or WOGL-FM in Philadelphia. Instead, it kept 105.9 a big secret and nobody knew about it. Who cares what they do any more. We're back with BIG. (10/19/09)

Po widdle 'TOP....maybe as long as they're crying about what the Post said and whining about ratings inaccuracies, they can investigate how many people inaccurately fill out ratings books? And how many PPMs and Arbitrons are based on radios that are playing in empty rooms? Etc etc etc? (10/19/09)

BOGUS CLAIM. Wash Post "Special Section" in print edition today says "Nearly three times as many Washingtonians age 25-54 read The Post each week than listen to WTOP, the largest audience station." They do not print any source for that wildly inaccurate claim. 659,600 people 25-54 listen to WTOP each week, more than the entire circulation of the newspaper. And nearly 1.5 million listeners of all ages listen to WTOP weekly (Source-Arbitron). That's individual listeners. Now if you resort to the newspaper trick of counting everybody in a household and claiming they all read the newspaper, WTOP could do the same plus count the size of all the carpools that listen to WTOP. You gotta wonder why The Post decided to get into a pissing match with WTOP using a wildly, unsourced claim that can be checked. (10/19/09)

Saw the “NEGATIVE” posts in reference to Albie and the Grease. Hey, they’re still in the mainstream!! Does it bother you that some talent’s keep on ticking? You sure seem like sour grapes. It looks to me like both posts were written by the same twit. Get a life, better yet sign the post you a****le! You think you can do better than either of them? SURE! WOW (10/19/09)

If i was WJZ i would launch HD NEWS @11 when csi or one of the higher rated cbs drama's lead in to the 11:00 news (10/19/09)

RE: [ " Does the NFL have a grudge against Fox 45 WBFF or did the station just all-out refuse to carry the NFL yesterday? " ]........ According to www.the506.com... Fox 45 changed its mind at the last minute and took the early FOX game instead of the late game. But I didn't watch, so I don't know if that happened, but if you notice, quite a few TV stations change the game they carry each week depending on circumstances. In this case, it's hard to fault FOX45 for picking the better game, don't you think, especially since it was the national FOX game that most of the country saw? Conversely, WBOC, the Delmarva FOX affiliate, switched the exact opposite way and carried the Philly game instead, but of course there are many Eagles fans in Delaware, so that makes sense too. (10/19/09)

("DCRTV hears that DC radio vet Albie Dee was spied at Citadel's northwest DC radio complex this morning. Could he be signing a deal to be heard on new classic rocker WVRX, 105.9 The Edge? More as we hear it.....") The same Albie Dee who had the worst ratings on WTGB, in any incarnation of the rock format the station had? Hmmm... Albie is another washed up radio dinosaur...who has run out of places to go. I hope the folks at Citadel enjoy having a guy who will constantly tell them how they are doing it wrong... (10/19/09)

re:WPost...I'm sure thankful for their Redesign Owner's Manual. How would I know how to 'navigate' their newspaper without it. I'm going to suggest they give out free magnifying glasses for their weather section with each subscription renewal. Only makes sense when your remaining readership is, like me, middle-aged or older. Send yours to ideas@washpost.com (10/19/09)

Are Charle and Harrigan coming to mornings on 105.9?? (10/19/09)

Dave: I'm generally favorable toward the Post's redesign, which I absorbed as I read through the paper this morning. But only now, reading the "Redesign Owners Manual" that I brought to work so I could better understand all the changes underway at the Post, do I see that the new "better Weekend" section on Fridays will "be home to full-length reviews of all movies opening each Friday [and] will now carry star ratings." Star ratings are a bad move, although I can live with those. But no more movie reviews in Style? I know that Post long ago moved away from separate reviews of the same movies in Style and Weekend, but Style-section reviews were usually much longer than the original Weekend section reviews, back when the paper ran Desson Thomson's full reviews in Weekend. The way I read this, the reviews will inevitably be shorter. I guess the Style section needed more room for your beloved Reliable Source gals? This is a bad move on the Post's part, giving me one less reason to look at the increasingly vapid Style section. Christian (10/19/09)

God bless you Rusty Gibson! "Wednesday's Child".....Fantastic!!!! (10/19/09)

Regarding Fox 45 and football... Yesterday, CBS had the double header and since Fox 45 showed the 1:00 pm Giants-Saints game, they couldn't show a game at 4:00. The Eagles-Raiders game was on Fox 5. (10/19/09)

Re: "Yes, Greaseman will rule mornings. Just like Imus did when they brought him back..." This is supposed to be a joke, right...? It is now A DECADE since Tracht was any kind of ratings force in DC. He is beyond has-been. He's been gone for so long that most people in his target demo have never even heard of the guy. (10/19/09)

WJMA is now using the old WCUL FM tower in Culpeper. Their legal ID now only says "Culpeper". The "Culpeper/Orange" is gone. (10/19/09)

To the previous post (i.e. Tom Gavin); Yup I can deal w/ "Wednesday's Child" fr. the short school bus regardless of how many phone #'s. Not an issue. Rusty Gibson (10/19/09)

Yes, Greaseman will rule mornings. Just like Imus did when they brought him back. It's a fact of life that washed up jerks, I mean jocks get monster numbers on 105.9. All Grease has to do is say schweet in accordance with optimal PPM usage and he'll be back on top. Imus did it with his quacking duck. Next, let's get Stevens and Medley on there for the all time DC morning domination. I'm not saying old dogs can't come up with new tricks, but the belief that Greaseman can do well "if only he avoids..." is ludicrous. Anybody who's heard him in the past few years knows his act is pretty tired and washed up. I mean really, 1160 WMET anybody? Remember that? If there was really a veteran morning show that Elliot would supposedly fear, I would think it would be one willing and happy to engage in an all out war. I can think of one locally based show that used to do that and had continuously good numbers. (10/19/09)

Is there a reason that the web broadcast of TK's show on WTEM keeps getting interrupted for no particular reason by Colin Cowherd commercials? Between 11:40 and 11:55 this happened a couple of times and it was clear that the radio show was still going on when they rejoined at the end of a discussion with Kevin Sheehan talking about Saturday's VT game. (10/19/09)

What the Post has done is dumbed down its product in a move that seems outdated by about 30 years. Seriously---more pictures? "Easier to read?" Were there people complaining that the newspaper was "hard to read?" Or are they saying it makes no sense that the Post can't get in scores from games played after 7pm the previous day, has shrunk its comics down to the size of postage stamps and focuses way too much on meaningless celebrity goings-on? It doesn't look like any of those problems have been addressed. What I see is a half-assed imitation of USA Today. Guess the morons at the WP haven't noticed that Gannett is also hemorrhaging cash and readers. (10/19/09)

Hey Rusty - You ready for all those incessant Tom Gavin phone calls again? He can't go 10 minutes without calling the WEBR studios with one of his several phone numbers.... (10/19/09)

Ex-TV Producer Creates Way to Kill People for $1 www.washingtoncitypaper.com... Unemployment has not been easy for Paul Sherno. Since losing his job at WJLA-TV, the veteran TV producer has applied–with 60 other people–for a warehouse job (didn’t get it), considered selling insurance (money was crap), and attempted to enlist in the Army (too old). (10/19/09)

You know all this talk about news anchors operating their own teleprompters with a foot pedal? Well, I have a better idea. Modify a big dildo with a motion detector and stick it up their freakin' ass just before the newscast and when they wanna scroll the prompter, just squirm in their chair. The worst that can happen is the viewers will think they all have a bad freakin' case of hemorrhoids. Signed, George Carlin. (10/19/09)

Dave, Does the NFL have a grudge against Fox 45 WBFF or did the station just all-out refuse to carry the NFL yesterday? Maybe because of the Rush Limbaugh/NFL fallout??? Very strange because both Comcast and FIOS Program guides show WBFF carrying the 4pm Eagles/Raiders game, however if you tuned in at the 4pm hour, you were greeted by some sort of game show. Knowing they're not carrying any NFL on Sunday, you would think WBFF would put something of quality in those time slots. (Even a Very Brady Christmas would have been better than the Canadian Game Show that ran) The person who answered the phone in the WBFF News department kept saying; "Sir I can't explain it. All I can say is it's out of our hands" Sounds like Rupert is a little miffed? (10/19/09)

Dave. Any idea where ex "TrueOldies" nighttime Jock Tom Grooms landed? B/T/W, I'm going to be resurrecting my "Magical History Tour" on WEBR VERY soon. I'll keep you posted when details are finalized. Oh, and a "Hello" to my fellow "Mailbaggers". It's been a while. Rusty Gibson, Onetime WEBR, Fairfax (10/19/09)

The biggest change I noticed in this morning's Washington Post was that there was no Redskins photo/story on the front page above the fold. Except for a picture below the fold, all the Redskins news was relegated to the sports section. What a concept! -- Bobbie (10/19/09)

RE: [Dave's response: I hear that the Fox5 anchor's right foot will power the teleprompter while the left foot will pump a pedal that'll send power to the WTTG transmitter, saving vile station owner and one of the richest men on planet Earth, Rupert Murdoch, pennies a month.....] I don't buy it, Dave...performing both tasks simultaneously would definitely be more challenging than walking and chewing gum at the same time...a skill set our intrepid Fox5 anchors clearly have yet to master. - Jeff in (How can Rush Limbaugh be racist when he clearly hates all minorities equally?) Bowie (10/19/09)

WXPN recently boosted the WKHS Worton/Baltimore signal. I'm not sure how far south WKHS reaches but more people should be able to listen now. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they'll add an HD2 channel to it and bring Y-Rock on XPN to those who can't get HFS2. (10/19/09)

Mike (O'Meara) and Greaseman in the Morning. 105.9 The Edge. Rob on the board and Buzz with the news. It'll be the second best four man duo in DC. (10/19/09)

It appears that WTTG has added a panel to the front of their news desk to hide the anchor's feet when they operate the teleprompters. DLP in Woodbridge (10/19/09)

Dave's response: I hear that the Fox5 anchor's right foot will power the teleprompter while the left foot will pump a pedal that'll send power to the WTTG transmitter, saving vile station owner and one of the richest men on planet Earth, Rupert Murdoch, pennies a month.....

Don't get your hopes up about Grease just yet. He has commitments elsewhere. (10/19/09)

Dave's response: He does afternoon drive on a Jacksonville classic rocker. So I guess, via the miracle of voice tracking or an ISDN line, he could morning drive here.....

Re: "PRESIDENT! YEAH!!!! Joe Scarborough WILL NOT get stuck in the radio business! He will TRANSFORM the WORLD when he becomes President!!!!" So, that's what Joe does on the weekends - writes fluff letters to website mailbags! (10/19/09)

Re: "I seriously doubt Elliot has anything to worry about - Doug is a great guy - but the Greaseman act is old." This is a very, very good question. Sure, Grease's act has worked in DC (and Jacksonville, his other "home" market), but are there enough classic even rock listeners who want to relive it on a daily basis in 2009? (10/19/09)

It's funny, the supporters of Rush Limbaugh don't seem to realize that Rush's failed effort to be a part owner of a football team was defeated by good old fashioned politics, and it's bedfellow: money. Certainly we know that in politics the truth can and does very often suffer. Rush's own defense in the WSJ on the surface seems reasonable, but so what ? Certainly a master of hyperbole and half-truths, such as Rush, realizes the same methods can be used against him ? The quotes of what Rush has said hardly matter, it's what he stands for which matters. He has made a living mocking and railing against entitlement programs, the homeless, liberal politicians and the social programs they support, black politicians and leaders, etc. etc... Wakey, wakey...the NFL consists of a large majority of black players, who might be wealthy now, but most don't come from well-to-do families. Many have families or friends which have been helped by entitlements programs at some point. I think it's fair to say most probably don't come from places where Rush and his political ideas hold much sway or have much of a constituency. Toss in a couple of professional rabble-rousers to remind everyone of Rush's politics, and it was over. He became a pariah, a loser for his investment group and a loser for the NFL. You think the NFL would want to spend time addressing the bona fide's of Rush Limbaugh while the sale of a football team drags on, or deal with the very real possibility of players/agents/coaches making or having statements solicited on their feelings about Rush Limbaugh? Come on! Get real ! Rush Limbaugh presented a real threat to a smooth operating money making monolith, and they lanced the boil before it had a chance to grow. It was good business to ditch this guy as soon as possible. It's certainly strange, Rush, a guy who claims to be so brilliant couldn't see the writing on the wall, long before he figured he could be anything more than a professional fan-boy. His defense that Checketts didn't seem to care, when he claims to have mentioned his participation might become an issue, turns out to be a pretty weak reading of the political tea leaves from a fellow that considers himself an expert in the area. Whether his name was leaked early, late, or at any other time, his fellow investors should be happy to have ditched him, as his name associated any NFL buyers group renders it DOA, now and forever. Finally, the subtitle of his WSJ piece reads " My critics would have you believe no conservative meets NFL 'standards" Has anyone said that ? I am quite sure the NFL has many conservative owners, but they haven't been shooting their mouths off on a radio show for 20+ years, or seeking the spotlight in political matters. Rush, it's you buddy the NFL doesn't want, and with good reason, you carry far too much baggage. (10/19/09)

/\ October 19 Messages /\

\/ October 18 Messages \/

Dave, Channel 4 this morning... Did you see that the Obama weekly radio/web address aired this morning right after MTP and before the Redskins pregame? Set back the show's start time to 12;37. But they didn't run the GOP response. Interesting. (10/18/09)

HFS is back on the air on 94.7 HD2. Some sort of software problem. (10/18/09)

So if FOX5 will eventually have their anchors control the teleprompter from the anchor desk, what about when they, or other reporters who are never behind the desks are standing in front of the camera giving reports?..Will they have to manipulate the foot controls while standing?..If so, I can't wait to see that as I'm sure it will be quite entertaining. (10/18/09)

Sure, it's a liberal paper, but The Washington Post did have the balls to endorse Republican Bob Ehrlich in a surprise move a few years back while the Baltimore Sun endorsed Martin O'Malley for governor of Maryland. One is now one of the lowest rated governors in the nation laying off tons of people and with a huge budget crisis and the other a newspaper in bankruptcy laying off tons of people that might just completely go under. Go figure. (10/18/09)

Has anyone else ever noticed that Darcy Spencer of Channel 4 news has two different colored eyes? This is just an observation, not a criticism...actually, it's kind of neat. -- Bobbie (10/18/09)

Redskins feed. Who will Comcast blame? CBS. The network made an announcement about it before flipping over to the Vikings game for a couple of minutes. Last week it was FOX 5 with HD encoder problems. Neither were Comcast's fault...geez (10/18/09)

I had to laugh after reading Jim Williams story on Larry Michael. First of all, Mr Williams has zero credibility. Award winning Journalist!! You gotta be kidding. Who is this guy? Larry Michael is the biggest joke in Washington broadcast circles, and like Mr Williams has no credibility. I'm not sure whether Michael is worse on Radio or Television. On both mediums he is unlistenable and unwatchable. Hey Frank Herzog, the Redskins really miss your work, your class, and your professionalism. (10/18/09)

Speculations over The Edge hiring a local airstaff looking to be accurate. All Access is running ads for midday and PM drive taloent. No mornings, however. (10/18/09)

Dave's response: Why? Because they've already signed the Grease?

Well, let's see ... it's now 3pm and for the second week in a row there are problems with the TV signal for the Redskins game. This time, no video and no audio. Nothing. Wonder who Comcast will blame this time? (10/18/09)

For the second week in a row we lose the feed of the Redskins game; it's just a different network. Same end result, though. It's starting to feel like "Groundhog Day". (10/18/09)

Fox45 is the cheapest. To avoid overtime they DO tape newscasts which is a disgrace to the industry. How can anyone count on them to bring the latest information at any time if they tape newcasts and anytime? It's a good thing that some folks notice this. I wonder if their advertisers do? (10/18/09)

Couldn't find HFS2 on HD radio this morning. Any idea what's up? Does this have anything to do with the 105.9 announcement you're hinting about? (10/18/09)

Dave's response: Yeah, just checked and 94.7 is running just its main signal in HD Radio. No HD2 at all. Anyone know what's up? I doubt it has anything to do with 105.9 since both stations have different owners.....

wow, the leftist Wash Post endorsed a left leaning Dem for VA governor. Now that's a real news flash. No one gives a rat's ass. (10/18/09)

While Bonneville would buy Citadel's properties here and elsewhere, in D.C., they'd much rather have CC's as they're intrinsically better. And, CC's implosion isn't that far off, either. New bank regulations (only partly a consequence of TARP) will make deals like the recent ones much more visible and politically risky. While Bonneville would like to have 107.3 in D.C., they'd love to have 97.1, 98.7, 100.3, and 101.1 instead. However, if CC implodes and CBS can do the deal, I can see them going after 101.1 and perhaps one of the others. Sad thing about CBS is people knock it about "poorly-run" radio stations. Regardless of how a station sounds, and the "ratings" (Although PPM's are bringing an embarrassing dose of reality to some operators...) what matters is what you bill and your OFCF at the end of the reporting period. Using those parameters, 99.1 is an unqualified success. As is WJZ-FM in Baltimore. "Fresh" is getting there as is 106.7 although 94.7 had a bit of a head start. Like it or not, broadcasting is a business. If you don't ,make money you won't be in business for very long. As for longing for a station to fulfill a specific perceived format "need" or absence, you usually hear AAA, Jazz, and occasionally Classical being mentioned. However, those formats (among some others, which is triggering an FCC inquiry into the methodology of the PPM) rate poorly and are either disappearing or have disappeared entirely. While you can bill well in good times or bad with classical, a good classical station usually has a horrendous overhead. Otherwise, you'll have "Jack" with Brahms, Beethoven, etc. What i wonder is how much longer CC will keep 98.7 country? It bills fair but is a very niche format here, making it as vulnerable as classical or jazz in a sour economy. Also, look at how many of the non-southern major markets lack a country station at all! Might it be Congress which has kept D.C. from losing its last country outlet??? Who knows??? As for an "open" as opposed to "HD" AAA like WHFS happening? Highly unlikely. The target audience income and spending demographics just are not there. In times like these, one needs to remember that a radio station format is like an investment strategy. When times are good, you can afford to be daring and creative. However, in times like these, you look at what is zero-risk and safe. -Unsigned Corporate Suit (10/18/09)

Note to Alvin Lawton in KC. If you can drive a copper pipe into the ground in your backyard, do it. Especially if there's a spot that gets a little wetter, such as from downspouts or water pooling. Getting a good ground field is the other half of the equation besides antenna that adds up to better DXing. I was listening to Europe on medium wave at the OBX, as well as long wave. I was amazed that the Sony Air 8, with its flexible whip antenna (and built in ferrite rod) could pull Euro stations in. My Sony 2010 has done it much better, but that's understandable. It's built as a DX machine, whereas the Air 8 is really for aircraft band monitoring. I know the 2010 has a ferrite rod, but the long pullout antenna nonetheless made signals stronger. Perhaps it's inductive coupling. Also - cool that you had a Hallicrafters S-120. That was my first shortwave receiver, given to me by my Dad in the early 60s. I gave him fits with my sending for QSL cards - it was a time back then when getting swag from the likes of Radio Havana, the DDR, and Radio Tirana just didn't look right, especially to J. Edgar Hoover. That S-120 helped to create what became a lifetime radio and TV broadcasting career. (Including a couple of KC stations) And, look where I work now. Jeffrey Young, VOA-TV (10/18/09)

I always thought Grease should have been a character voiceover artist after the Arrow94.7 incident. I know he did a little in L.A. I could see him doing animated movies, etc. He's got a lot of talent but he's doing the same old radio show. I loved him growing up on the Big Ape outta Jax(FL) and on DC 101. (10/18/09)

(RE: Grease on 105.9?) A couple of years ago he had the 8-12 Saturday shift on DC101... it didn't last long. He does belong on a Geezer Rock station, because that was his heyday too (I listen to Geezer Rock!). If it works out for him and he can stay away from his racist humor, all the better. The guy has to eat. (10/18/09)

(RE: Grease on 105.9?) I seriously doubt Elliot has anything to worry about - Doug is a great guy - but the Greaseman act is old. (10/18/09)

(RE: Grease on 105.9?) a friend of mine was telling me about that on our way to the KISS show the other nite.tha would be SCHWEET!" (10/18/09)

(RE: Grease on 105.9?) When do we start the pool to to see how long it's gonna' take him this time to get tossed? (10/18/09)

Although I live in MD, I can't watch even a few minutes of TV without being subjected to McDonnell and Deeds ads. My impression from the ads is that McDonnell has some kind of plan and moral compass, while Deeds stands for nothing more than name-calling. So, when I started to read the Post editorial, I was wondering if they were in a different universe. By the time I had finished, I came to a few conclusions: (1) If I lived in Virginia, I'd probably vote for McDonnell, (2) As when the Post endorsed corrupt doofus Jack Johnson for PG Exec, it has become hard to take their editorial writers seriously, and (3) It is easy to understand why the Post is bleeding subscribers. Diane in PG (10/18/09)

Dave; I can't believe 630 WMAL is dumping Joe Scarborough. Joe Scarborough is the greatest conservative talk show host in America. He's the only conservative in America who could make it on a liberal tv network, and he WILL be President some day (he's got what it takes!). Even though Sean Hannity and Mark Levin don't need/use a sidekick woman like Joe does, Joe is still better than those wannabe-president types. Don't tell me how great Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity or Mark Levin or Chris Plante is just because they don't have sidekicks, Maybe they should try having sidekicks (women are awesome, guys...get a clue). The point is Joe Scarborough, like a great (future) President, surrounds himself with talented people. He tried the "personal ego" approach (going totally solo) to doing a syndicated talk show 3 years ago on Westwood One networks, and quickly learned that allowing a woman to share a tiny bit of his spotlight is what America wants. And look at where Joe is at now! Wow! Jack Diamond shares a tiny bit of his spot light with Erica Hillary, Joe shares a little tiny bit with Brzinski. That's true leadership. That's the stuff that Presidents are made of! Scarborough 2012. Or 2016, whatever. Joe will use the medium of radio to become President, and turn this country around, with or without WMAL. And WMAL will never get ratings again without Joe Scarborough - - too bad for you, guys...you had your chance. Joe - if you're reading any of this, just know that those of us who "get it" (even though WMAL does NOT "get it") don't believe this stuff that people are saying about you. You are NOT a "right wing blowhard!" You are NOT a "snoozer." Your show is NOT "a mess." And forget this sudden "concern" about a "dead intern" that's been suddenly popping-up on the internet lately (that actually helped Ted Kennedy so don't worry about it Joe). And Joe...those of us who "get it" don't believe for a moment this LIE that you brought Brzinski in to your radio show because you can't handle a show on your own! LIE LIE LIE!!!! We know that you brought a gorgeous chick into your media kingdom to laugh at your jokes, and play "devil's advocate" on your show because it was THE RIGHT THING TO DO!!!! (WAKE UP AMERICA! We need conservative Americans like Joe Scarborough who affirm and elevate women to the stature that they DESERVE! GET A GRIP!!!) And Joe...those of us who "GET IT" (this time it's a capitol "GET IT"...get it?) understand that, unlike Sean Hannity, or Chris Plante, or Mark Levin, or Rush Limbaugh who simply build radio shows and websites merely for the sake of making great radio shows and great websites.. YOU, Joe Scarborough, are using the medium of radio (AND TV AND WEB!) to build your political career and become PRESIDENT! YEAH!!!! Joe Scarborough WILL NOT get stuck in the radio business! He will TRANSFORM the WORLD when he becomes President!!!! And un-do the insanity of Obama. Joe - - BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS!!!! You will make it - - even if "radio people" at the very little-minded WMAL DON'T GET IT!!! Keep elevating women to the sidekick level ...keep using the media to build your political career. You will change the world. I'm never listening to WMAL again. I'm only going to watch MSNBC now. (10/18/09)

"Interesting that you made a hysterical statement that you didn't source as a means of a failed rebuttal and did not cite a single fact" This was an opinion, and was clearly indicated as such by the phrase "one can only assume." I can see why those Baltimore Suns are piling up. Try going to Dictionary.com and see if you can discern the difference between "opinion" and "fact"...you may want to check out the word "irony" while your there. MW (10/18/09)

Post endorsement of Deeds...making it a horserace. That is just the "face" that dems want to put on it. If a popular president isn't going to VA more than a token time, the race is lost. The White House has said as much by scheduling trips to Corzine territory and not ol' vaginie. Greaseman? Oh please hasn't that ship sailed? If Elliot and his uber male-slanted localism isn't lighting it up, how is greaseman going to do it? He does schtick. Everything these days is about reality...and how are those grease 'stories' going to play in a PPM world? (10/18/09)

I may have been the only person to stay up and watch the ALCS game last night. After the game Fox 45 aired a special edition of the news at 10. Does anyone know if they tape it? It sure felt like it was recorded. Phrases were all based on Saturday and not Sunday and I am not sure sports had the game final. I know 45 is cheap, but why not skip the news like channel 2? (10/18/09)

The Susan Komen Race in Hunt Valley was a great success today despite the weather. However CH2's coverage was less than exciting. Some comments: when they first called on Norm Lewis he didn't know where he was. They went to a break and missed the start of the race (glad they don't cover the Baltimore Marathon), they prepared some interesting feature stories and had an interview with a male breast cancer survivor. They missed the winner of the race coming across the finish line and did a cya interview with the young man who won the race. On many occasions the hosts didn't seem to know where to go next. This type of broadcast needs a top notch producer and the equipment to do a good job (helicopter). I'm sure the Komen people were thrilled to be on TV and I hope they raised lots of money. (10/18/09)

Okay - just how OLD is Dave Brown? The few times I've listened to him lately on TOP it's like taking a ride with someone's grandfather and he sounds like he's about to lose a lung. Today he was doing an interview with someone about how SNL and the late night shows are starting to take shots at Obama - and Brown says - "yeah, like Will Rogers". WILL ROGERS? WTF? What demo is he trying to attract? (10/18/09)

I have to laugh at a newspaper "endorsement" for governor in Virginia. Like, who cares whether the Washington Post is biased toward one or the other ? Speaks poorly for the writers behind the paper. I can see the guidance of endorsements from constituent groups, like unions, but an objective media outlet? Makes no sense -- no value to voters, penalty for the newspaper. (10/18/09)

Dave's response: Over the summer, the Post's endorsement of Deeds gave him a big boost over two very well-funded opponents in the Democratic primary. I wouldn't be surprised to see its endorsement of Deeds this morning give him a four or five point bounce up in the polls, making the Virginia governor race a real horserace, and not a romp by Republican McDonnell.....

Okay Dave, is this source reliable? Someone who uses ALL CaPs On AnD oFf and cute $$$ sounds shady to me. But if it is true, who would encompass Elliott's worst nightmare? Intuition screams MOM, but he'd never do mornings................... right? Josh in Harrisburg, PA (10/18/09)

Dave's response: Greaseman.....

Once again, the facts prove someone wrong. Here's the LA Times story "Obama the 'Magic Negro'"........ www.latimes.com... I'd not want Rush owning my NFL team (although I dunno how he could be any worse than Daniel Snyder & a couple other owners), but many of the attacks against him seem to be phony witch hunt style attacks with no basis in fact and they keep all getting shot down. (10/18/09)

'...from a 4th party source..." That's all you need to know about that post. (10/18/09)

Please tell me it's not true that CBS is looking for more radio stations to buy. As someone who suffered the implosion of WHFS (hey let's play Limp Bizkit, Metallica and Alice in Chains nonstop!) trying to listen to Howard Stern on WJFK and having him cut off in mid sentence so they could air Bill O'Reilly, and having hope that the worst AAA station in the nation (94.7 The Globe, 20 minutes of commercials and only 2 currents every hour) could someday be a good station, I really can't take them buying another signal and running it into the ground.. I gave up on local radio a long time ago, but a little part of me hopes that someday we could have a station like WXRT (a CBS station that doesn't sound like it's owned by CBS), WXPN, KBCO or KFOG. If CBS buys another property, the chances of having a cool rock radio station goes down. Thank God for internet streaming. Michael Wright (10/18/09)

Citadel' $ gonna turn the market ON IT's ASS with what's BREWin'...believe U me. The biggest secret in morning radio will be launched any day now. Oh my GAWWWWWWWWWD. From a 4th party source. There is a room full of laughing "in-the-knows". HOLY $H^T! IT's GONNA GET UGLY. ELLIOT's BIGGEST FEAR is ABOUT to HAPPEN. (10/18/09)

RE: [ " This is a perfect example of the type of non-sourced, hysterical statement (as fact) that the author complained Mr Limbaugh was a victim of...well done! One can only assume that his own long, and well documented history of half truths, innuendo, and incivility have finally caught up with him. Karma is a bitch! MW " ]...... Interesting that you made a hysterical statement that you didn't source as a means of a failed rebuttal and did not cite a single fact nor did the original person who made the grandiose LImbaugh or NFL/college coaching racism claims. Meanwhile, CNN and The Washington Post's Wilbon were publicly refuted by actual facts. Yes, karma IS a BITCH best served cold! Enjoy! :-) Oh, one more thing, is there some way I can cancel my free year long subscription to The Baltimore Sun? I should take a picture. I have them all in a pile, haven't read a single one, I read online. No wonder they're bankrupt. (10/18/09)

LOL at you leftists not realizing that Rush's parody of "Barack the Magic Negro" is a satire of the LA TImes' resident left winger David Ehresnstein's LA Times column "Obama the Magic Negro". You lefties, as usual, have no clue what Rush is doing. You should be slamming Mr. Ehresnstein's piece instead of Rush, who is just doing what Rush does best, exposing the elitist left as the hypocrites they are. (10/18/09)

So I was doing a little research earlier today (about something completly different than the topic of this post) and came across this listing of the nation's Certified Broadcast Meteorologists: www.ametsoc.org. Achieving the CBM designation is the highest achievment one can attain in broadcast meteorology. Interestingly, there are only two DC folks on the list: Bob Ryan (no surprise), and Devon Lucie, WUSA's newest hire. His hire might have actually been a good move by 9. Also, I have no idea who David W. Pusey is, but I can probably guess why he uses Dave Warren as a stage name! (10/18/09)

FCC has been going over Citadel's stations "from the outside". And, that among others, they've got a "good strong technical bust on one of their east coast stations acquired from ABC/ESPN"... Sounds like WMAL, doesn't it? (10/18/09)

The teleprompter situation at WTTG is not specific to them, but applies to all Fox stations. The "re-assignments" are geared to "encourage and induce potential searches of professional opportunities with other distinguished broadcast organizations". And, that there will ultimately be layoffs as the new positions are "less visible". This has supposedly been done successfully in the cable biz where "significant" layoffs have gone unreported in the "public media" . (10/18/09)

Not local but certainly of interest of longtime radioheads: Record executive/producer/promoter Shelby Singleton died of brain cancer this past Wednesday in Nashville. He was 77. Singleton was best-known for producing Jeannie C. Riley's 1968 country/pop #1 hit, "Harper Valley P.T.A." In the mid-'70s, Singleton's SSS label produced Programmers Digest, a monthly LP featuring airchecks of jocks and samplers of radio stations from around the U.S., complete with print articles contained in the album jacket. The LPs were mailed to radio stations around the country. You can read more here: blogs.tennessean.com (10/18/09)

/\ October 18 Messages /\

\/ October 17 Messages \/

With the Post's slumping sales of their newspapers, guess they're somewhat happy that they're getting some publicity with all of these t.v. ads by Deeds and McDonnell showing quotes from the Washington Post..I do find it quite funny that both are using the Post as if that paper is endorsing them both and as well as bashing them both at the same time.. (10/17/09)

No one has yet mentioned "Barack The Magic Negro" the song first played on the air and popularized by a certain big load on his radio program www.cnn.com. Robert, Arlington (10/17/09)

Re: 1067 HD2 - Is this a permanent home for Fox Sports on HD2 w/ dukes doing a once a week show? Or is something else in store? Anyone know? (10/17/09)

I suppose that in your rush to point out Paul Farhi's mistake in the Style section you overlooked your mistake in the Angie Goff piece; October 19th is a Monday NOT Tuesday (10/17/09)

Dave's response: But if you cross the international date line, Monday is Tuesday.....

Re: "...DCRTV hears, Citadel is actively looking for an air staff for the currently jockless station (the Edge)..." Probably wouldn't recommend uprooting a family for this possible opening... but, that's just my 2 cents which would probably be your hourly pay... I kid, 'cuz I love! (name withheld by request) (10/17/09)

Kudos to Limbaugh on his outstanding Wall Street Journal op-ed taking the race hustlers like Wilbon, Jackson, and Sharpton to task for the slander that perpetuates the multi-million dollar race baiting industry. (10/17/09)

Dave's response: I hear that Rush Limbaugh is starring in a movie. He'll be playing the Godfrey Cambridge role in the remake of the 1960s flick "The Watermellon Man." It's when a white man goes to bed one night and finds that his skin has turned, ah, a few shades darker when he wakes up the next morning.....

(...from 10/16 posting "I dislike Rush, but I think he has as much right as anybody to own an NFL team. It's not like the rest of the owners are exactly the Holy Grail. ") Unfortunately for Mr Limbaugh (and his ditto-heads), there is no "right" to own an NFL team. While the owners are not the "Holy Grail", they do have control over who gets into the club. How far has Limbaugh strayed from the herd that he has alienated these guys? (...from 10/16 posting: In some cases colleges and NFL teams have been forced to seek out black coaches when there weren't even any interested in the damn job!) This is a perfect example of the type of non-sourced, hysterical statement (as fact) that the author complained Mr Limbaugh was a victim of...well done! One can only assume that his own long, and well documented history of half truths, innuendo, and incivility have finally caught up with him. Karma is a bitch! MW (10/17/09)

Dave, given your recent Front Page coverage of the Limbaugh controversy generated by not-so-titanic, color-focus liberal journalists (I label them only because you choose to label conservatives in your news stories all the time, and liberals almost never), why haven't you posted Limbaugh's first formal response.? Here's the link since I assume you simply "missed" it. wsj.com... He specifically addresses Michael Wilbon, too. The right thing to do is not relegate it to the mailbag, but put it on your Front Page. That would be consistent. That would be fair. And it gives you another opportunity to label someone conservative in your news page! Bob in Forest Hill (10/17/09)

During the campaign, Rush Limbaugh read selected articles about Senator Obama and substituted the words "Arab American" for "Black" or "African American." Remember the confused old lady telling John McCain Obama was an "Arab?" That misinformation came from Rush. Rush defended his statements saying Obama's father was from an "Arab part of Africa." He was not. There is no question Rush uses race to put others down in an calculated, unwarranted, disingenuous, and slimy way. Speaking of disingenuous people, welcome back Chris Plante! (10/17/09)

Dave's response: Listening to Chris Plante is like having a nasty earache. He's not a terribly smart conservative, but he reads the Heritage Foundation press releases rather respectibly. Thank God Tony Kornheiser's on from 10 AM to noon over on WTEM.....

What unmitigated gall Wilbon has to call anyone else a race baiter. Wilbon is a guy who, in my opinion, has made his career based on his race and his race baiting. One doesn't have to be a big fan of Limbaugh's to object to Wilbon's sanctimonious, disingenuous carping. (10/17/09)

Earlier posting: “WSVN was a piece of work… WSVN apparently was on the leading edge of the decline of broadcast news into tabloid junk.” Sir, you have the gift of gross understatement. And, to paraphrase their apparent “mission statement”, they are still on the bleeding edge of this journalism genre. What would be interesting to see is what would happen to WRC (and its effect on the market) if Sunbeam (WSVN’s O&O) were to buy the once-storied D.C. station... Which reminds me… I find the popularity of Fox News both interesting and disturbing. As a journalistic enterprise, they strike me as the electronic equivalent of print’s “Weekly World News”… -Unsigned Corporate Suit (10/17/09)

(I was hired in my last job by a black manager.) Given the vitriol in your posts that anyone who disagrees with you is a "race-baiter", I hope he recognizes the mistake he made. (Shawn in DC) (10/17/09)

Re: Rick Sanchez He is mellow on CNN compared to his early days at WSVN in Miami. WSVN was a piece of work and Sanchez delivered. "SHOCKING" was the adjective of choice for nearly every story. WSVN apparently was on the leading edge of the decline of broadcast news into tabloid junk. btw- Today Show- that was completely unnecessary to hold the shot of the crying mom (the burned child story) for what seemed like eternity. I'm sure some director/producer was very proud of themselves, but it was disgusting. The poor woman's grief was clear and obvious and it was not necessary for the camera to linger lovingly for ratings. (10/17/09)

WUSA9 Reporter Lindsey Mastis dumps on WTTG anchors in FB posting - facebook.com: "Seriously-- I don't know what the big deal is. I loved running my own prompter at my last station. I could ad-lib, change things, or skip a few lines without any problems. There was also a special button that I could press to jump to the next story. It was super-easy." (10/17/09)

Some web site insinuated, or maybe just came out and said it, that FiOS TV is actually programmed by DirecTV. I have a hard time believing this, but due to the "who gives a crap" messy pile of channels we get on FiOS TV, I am beginning to wonder if this is really true after all. -Chainsman (10/17/09)

Watching CNN's Rick Sanchez is just pretty funny. Jeff n E'burg (10/17/09)

Donnie G's Twitter says he's coming back to DC radio in October 2010. What's Mike up to? (10/17/09)

/\ October 17 Messages /\

\/ October 16 Messages \/

On Channel 7 this evening, Greta Kruz covered an abortion debate in Montgomery County and her story seemed to be slanted toward the Catholic Church. Is that because she has hosted Archdiocese of Washington events in the past, as recently as May of this year. "The awards will be presented by Washington Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl on May 7 at 7 p.m. at the Renaissance Hotel in Washington. ABC 7 TV personality Greta Kreuz will emcee the evening’s festivities." Should she be allowed to report on stories like these? www.adw.org (10/16/09)

Who is Lindsey Mastis? Who watches Channel 9 and who cares about her blog? I must admit, I really enjoyed this line she wrote: “When I moved back home, I got surgery on both my feet.” Got? Uh, had. (10/16/09)

Speaking of the Sheehan-Loverro distaster. Does the word BORING come to mind? Loverro is a nice writer, but...well you get the picture. Sheehan must have photos of someone. I must admit he is an inspiration to any young person that wants to get in the biz. If he can do it, anyone can! (10/16/09)

Talk about a double standard, Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson and their recent comments about Limbaugh. Seems to me Jackson made his infamous comment about New York City a few years ago, calling them a bunch of "Hymies". If that doesn't smack of anti-semitism; yet no one seems to remember that, yet Rush gets blasted about his comments about McNabb a few years ago and loses out on the Rams bid. As far as this Checkettt guy heading the group, he sounds like a "chicken s--- owner wannabe. And what about these players going on record as saying they would not play for a team where Rush might be an owner. Seems to me if most of us tried that..they would have us out the door in no time. I think it is a damn shame Rush was dropped from the group, seems if you are a conservative and voicing your views, your name is mud especially with the liberal media...such as the NBC/Obama network. Only Fox News has the guts to tell it like it really is, along with the conservative radio talk show hosts Most of the rest are just a bunch of whiners And I would be ashamed to admit i was from Minnesota, with the likes of Jesse Ventura and now Al Franken. (10/16/09)

RE: [ " Indeed, most of the mainstream print media is conservative anyway. " ]........ WHAT ARE YOU SMOKING? LMAO! Seriously, name a conservative local newspaper. The Washington Times is the only one that comes to my mind for DC. The Baltimore News American is long since defunct. Any others? Oh, and people don't apply for jobs because they KNOW THEY'RE NOT WANTED? Is that what they teach in the schools now? Where the hell does that drivel come from? No wonder the inner city schools are failing our youth! If that's not from left field, I don't know what is. I was hired in my last job by a black manager. I didn't think for a minute that I wouldn't get the job because I was white. Only people who don't deserve the job in the first place or have a racial chip on their shoulder to begin with think like that and/or don't apply. I think we can safely put this argument to bed. I rest my case. Oh, but by all means, please continue the race baiting, just do it WITHOUT ME! GEESH, this site gets crazier daily. (10/16/09)

Just not big fan of the Tom L. and Kevin sheehan show. Just don't think Sheehan has much of a sense of humor and every thing he says something seems to be a declarative statement. Plus he dominates the conversation, no flow between Tom , sheehan and the guest. Liked it much better when Tom L. was on the Sports Reporters (10/16/09)

Id like to see Alison Seymour handle a teleprompter. I've never seen interviews mangled as bad as she does. Did she go to the Barabra Harrison School Of Nitwit News Anchors? I'll never forget her asking Tony [in all seriousness] if a storm system in Hawaii could affect the DC area. Are you fucking kidding me? And were others as creeped out as I was by the Balloon Family being interviewed over and over? Paul (10/16/09)

(Tom Brokaw was asked about media bias a few years back and stated it plainly... for whatever reason, few Republicans study Journalism in college, who knows why, but it is what it is. You could make the same argument on the black coaches controversy. In some cases colleges and NFL teams have been forced to seek out black coaches when there weren't even any interested in the damn job!) Baloney. Republicans have had every opportunity to seek and receive media jobs. Indeed, most of the mainstream print media is conservative anyway. Black coaches? They've historically not been welcome in the coaching ranks. Why seek a job if you have no chance of getting it? Hey how many black head coaches are there in Division I college football? How many in Division I college basketball? Why was the Rooney Rule necessary? Give me the numbers and come up with a better explanation than failures make better managers or the old "blacks don't apply" argument. (Shawn in DC) (10/16/09)

(Speaking of skywave/groundwave pummelling 1500, I want to know why Bonneville won't put WFED as a subchannel on the 103.5 blowtorch. The subchannels on 103.5 right now are a waste of space) Easy answer. One channel makes a lot of money for Bonneville (leased). The other is at the behest of ownership. (10/16/09)

Dave's response: The former being a south Asian/Indian channel and the latter being a Mormon/Latter Day Saints channel.....

Some interesting perspective on the actions of actual NFL minority owners compared to the fabrications regarding Rush; bighollywood.breitbart.com (10/16/09)

Funny how CNN's Rick Sanchez retracted his Rush Limbaugh related comments from earlier in the week regarding the Rams ownership bid, and Wilbon's Rush quote is clearly out of context and also not correct. Why won't he retract it too? Personally I don't even like or listen to Rush Limbaugh so he is NOT "my boy", but I call out media bias when I see it and this is a slam dunk clear case. If Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton were looking to be part-owners of an NFL team, do you think the NFL or the media would have the guts to criticize them? I think not. I dislike Rush, but I think he has as much right as anybody to own an NFL team. It's not like the rest of the owners are exactly the Holy Grail. Hell, Jimmy Irsay said worse things about his own father recently on ESPN, then went out against Limbaugh. Is he drinking like his dad used to? That was hysterical. Of all the owners with skeletons in closets, for Irsay to shoot his mouth off about Limbaugh! What a joke! As for the % of NFL coaches to players ratio meaning racism is at work, that is just COMPLETE BUNK Shawn in DC! The percentage of white Republican journalists at major newspapers is extremely low. Does that mean that necessarily news organizations are making political or racist decisions on hiring white journalists? I think not. I think it's a great analogy. Tom Brokaw was asked about media bias a few years back and stated it plainly... for whatever reason, few Republicans study Journalism in college, who knows why, but it is what it is. You could make the same argument on the black coaches controversy. In some cases colleges and NFL teams have been forced to seek out black coaches when there weren't even any interested in the damn job! Finally, Kornheiser and Wilbon are perfect together, they are BOTH complete idiots. I guess that now makes me both anti-semitic and racist. Oh well. (10/16/09)

(regarding a previous post) "the left and their allies in the past-tense media have been slandering rush for over 20 years" Poor Rush! Poor put-upon, misunderstood Rush! You Limbaugh apologists are something else. It's not slander, if it's the truth. For years, everything that was wrong in the world was Bill or Hillary Clinton's fault. When Dubya was in office, the liberals in Congress were Rush's verbal punching bag. Now that Obama is president, he needs to fail and everything's his fault. (never mind that Bush started with a massive surplus and ran it - and the economy - into the ground) Despite what the dittoheads and the Limbaugh apologists claim, Rush Limbaugh is a whiney twerp who dishes it out just fine, but can't take it! (10/16/09)

In case you missed it… Check out this week’s Unplugged Under 40 featuring the State Department's social media guru, Jared Cohen. He's 27, a Rhodes Scholar who has visited 66 countries and counts Condi Rice as a mentor. He advises Sec. Clinton on how Facebook and Twitter can be used to support American diplomatic initiatives. And he's figuring out how to empower people around the world through the use of this new technology. www.cbsnews.com (10/16/09)

(He thinks it's just peachy for him to hope that President Obama fails, but when anybody hopes that Rush Limbaugh fails - well, that's everybody unfairly ganging up on poor Rush.) once again, incorrect, and ignorant of the statements made. first of all, the left and their allies in the past-tense media have been slandering rush for over 20 years. he can take it as well as dish it out. second, this latest flap involved news networks knowingly using *made-up quotes* and attributing them to rush (and only after rush has been safely removed have some of them retracted. not MSNBC though). third, rush hopes obama "fails" to implement socialism on this country, not fails in general. big difference. (10/16/09)

TLC (The Learning Channel) has filed a lawsuit in Maryland alleging that Jon Gosselin of Jon & Kate Plus 8 hasn't met the obligations of his contract as an exclusive employee, has appeared on other programs for pay and made unauthorized disclosures about the show. A TLC spokeswoman, Laurie Goldberg, has said the show's longtime future remains in question. More here... tv.msn.com (10/16/09)

Dave's response: Hey, I got a great idea for a new show at TLC - have Jon move in with the balloon boy's family.....

Abc 7 had a run in with the new real housewives of dc. It was on their talk show let's talk live. They had pics too. Comedian Judy Tenuta was on and sat on Natasha and Doug's laps. Very interesting. (10/16/09)

(regarding a previous post) "For all his posturing as a self-reliant conservative, Rush Limbaugh sure paints himself as a victim a lot! Hell, his whole act hinges upon it: Everybody's ganging up on poor widdle Rush, as his minions and dittoheads just lap that shit right up!" And, isn't it interesting that Limbaugh can 'dish it out,' but he sure 'can't take it'. He thinks it's just peachy for him to hope that President Obama fails, but when anybody hopes that Rush Limbaugh fails - well, that's everybody unfairly ganging up on poor Rush. (10/16/09)

It’s interesting that the National Geographic Wild Channel is already on the air via satellite and cable (in addition to the main National Geographic Channel) in a number of markets internationally, including the UK, Ireland, Turkey, Hong Kong, Singapore, Romania and Vietnam (quite a mixed bag of countries!). In Hong Kong, two streams of Wild are reportedly available, one in English and the other in Cantonese. This reflects the very heavy international emphasis in National Geographic’s (and Fox’s) marketing these days. Mark O. (10/16/09)

PBS web site has been infected at a section related to the Curious George children's TV show. news.idg.no (10/16/09)

More woes for Danny Snyder's Red Zebra... First the FCC rejected their change in city of license for FM 92.7, now the FCC appears to be balking on a similar application for FM 94.3. Red Zebra filed an amendment yesterday. fjallfoss.fcc.gov... You know what that means? Pretty much the FCC isn't buying Dannyboy's phony story on why a city of license change is warranted for either station. When this app gets dismissed, that'll bring to the number of dismissed FCC applications for Danny Snyder to 3, in including AM 730. Who does Snyder have writing these denied applications? His coaching staff? LOL Is this guy an epic fail or what? (Btw, I didn't even check his other VA stations, so it could be more!) (10/16/09)

George King was one of the "Good Guys" when I worked at Clear Channel in DC. Clear Channel was lucky to have someone of his caliber. To bad they are too greedy and myopic to know that. Any word what happened? Something good I hope. (10/16/09)

Wilbon On Rush's Failed NFL Deal - it's obvious that wilbon (and most of the people who blasted rush's bid to buy the rams) don't listen to his show and/or took the "i hope he fails" comment horribly out of context (and added a racial element to it in wilbon's case). did you know that george soros has a group of people whose sole job it is to type out the transcript of every one of rush's shows, in the hopes he says something that can be used against him and republicans? if rush is as bad as the left and the media claim (but i repeat myself), then we would've heard about these quotes, instead of ones that were made up out of thin air being used by CNN and MSNBC (and courageously retracted by CNN's rick "vehicular manslaughter" sanchez a full 24 hours *after* rush had been dropped from the bid group). as for the "i hope he fails" line, if the media had been honest, they would've played the entire clip and/or explained that rush meant he hoped obama failed to implement his far left policies. but of course, they weren't. it's almost as if they have an agenda or something. (10/16/09)

Dear Jeffrey Young, I saw your note to the "Hammerlund" guy and how to make a good ground connection for Dxing on the Beach. Would that same "contraption" work for me in North East Kansas? I live smack dab in the middle of an apartment subdivision. Do you have a modified version were I could just drive the copper pool into the ground in my back yard? One more question! I also own a Sony 2010. You mentioned you can DX europe quite easily. Are you referring to Short wave or medium wave broadcasts? I'm only asking because you mentioned you were just using the whip antenna and on that receiver the antenna for medium wave is built into the receiver. When I was growing up in Kansas City I took an old car antenna wrapped some wire around the base of it and connected it to a metal pole already in the ground and connected another lead to a Halicrafters S-120 and I actually pulled in a station in St. Louis on 1380 right on top of a local directional on the same frequency! Signed, Alvin G. Lawton (10/16/09)

Here is some info about Kirk McEwen. www.delmarvanow.com... Regards Biff (10/16/09)

(So now that WJFK is going FM HD, what is Red Zebra going to do?) Absolutely nothing. Nobody listens to HD, minus a few people that were duped into buying radios or that bought them for the curiosity factor. Once they prove that HD has listeners or that HD can be monetized, perhaps Red Zebra will make that move - but not before. (10/16/09)

RE: 100.7 The Bay.....the entire station sucks. It is so dry. They play AC hits instead of core classic rock hits. Hey guys, lay off the Beatles, lay off Elton John. Why not kick in some more Hendrix, hell even KIX...since they are local band! How about Crack the Sky? Come on, 98 Rock rocks harder with classic rock than the Bay does. Sometimes, I can't tell if I'm listening to the Bay or 101.9 LITE FM half the time. The jocks at the bay are washed up, former shells of greats that ended up on a poorly processed, small market imaged, small market programmed station. Pitty. (10/16/09)

(As for Wilbon and race, c'mon, the high percentage of black athletes vs. the low percentage of black coaches has nothing to do with race. Only RACE BAITERS feed into crap like that. What about all the dumb as a rock white athletes who didn't become coaches either? The fact of the matter is that in most cases the best coaches and managers in the NFL and MLB are often FAILED athletes, not successful ones, so the high % of successful black athletes is irrelevant to this discussion. Look at Earl Weaver, a complete failure as a baseball player who's in the Hall of Fame as a manager. This crazy Wilbon notion that the ratio of black athletes to black coaches should be similar or have some parity just shows how truly stupid the man is. Managing and coaching versus playing a sport are completely different animals. Just because there are less of one race doing one or the other says nothing about race in my opinion.) Speaking of stupidity, this post has to be one of the most inane written on this subject. First, the figures with respect to black coaches don't lie. Secondly this writer in opining that failed players make the best managers apparently assumes that there have been no failed black players; ergono black managers. Sorry, since Jackie Robinson there have been, ahem, any number of failed black players if failure is the standard for managing. Don't see them getting a shot. As to this being your opinion, anyone can have an opinion; try backing it up with some facts. Then at least you can distort them as you please. If you want to talk race baiting, it was your boy Rush that brought up the McNabb issue, with no basis in fact. Your argument is nothing but a thinly veiled reprise of Al Campanis. (Shawn in DC) (10/16/09)

Ref: The Bay "I smell a stunt......anyone else?" And its already starting to work, come on guys how long have you been in this business? J.J. "Hitman" McKay Ocean City, Maryland. (10/16/09)

("Dave's response: It's Baltimore's Hot 99.5. In fact, how about calling WWMX "Hot 106.5," and making adult contemporary WLIF "Mix 102"? Hmmm....") Mix 106.5 still seems almost like a Top 40 station with a 90's soccer mom name. Why do they seem stuck on this "Mix" name? Is it out of fear that someone else might take it if they drop it? Maybe Clear Channel should beat them to it and switch Channel 104.3 back to B104 or keep the name the same and just go Top 40 like San Diego's Channel 933. (10/16/09)

I've gone over Article One in my Heratage Foundation pocket edition of U.S. Constitution that wonderful Sean Hannity feller sent me in the mail. I musta read the dern thing a dozen times this morning and I guess I might just be one of them dense "luibrul mainstream medais" you fellers keep talking about, because damn if I can find the clause that guarantees every American their God-given right to be a minority owner of an NFL team. Can you help me out here? (10/16/09)

Note to the Hammarlund guy - Like I said in my previous post, get a three foot or so section of copper water pipe, and solder a long multi stranded wire on it with a 3.5mm mono jack on the other end. Go push it into the beach sand down below the water line, and plug the jack into the "ground" port on your receiver. Hokey smokes, rocky - the entire planet is now working to bring you signals! With my Sony 2010, using only its long whip antenna, I can DX Europe after sunset like it was the Ohio Valley. Now is a great time of the year to do this because the summer storms and their lightning are mostly behind us. The OBX is DXing paradise...(so is Cape Cod and the eastern tip of Long Island) Jeffrey Young, VOA-TV (10/16/09)

MAJOR PROPS to Jason Kidd and Dave Labrozzi. WWMX sounds awesome and now the PPM's back that up.HIGH 5 (10/16/09)

Dave's response: It's Baltimore's Hot 99.5. In fact, how about calling WWMX "Hot 106.5," and making adult contemporary WLIF "Mix 102"? Hmmm.....

Considering--> TO: "Harvey Kojan, Program Director, 100.7 The Bay": {taps on Harvey's shoulder} Guess what? The numbers have spoken on your INDY COLTS based morning show.--> Harvey's a dumbass. How can you screw-up that station... Unless it was an order from Bill Lynett. Harvey's not "That Stupid". The question remains... Why doesn't Lynett sell the station to me so I can kick the living sh*t out of Clear Channel and CBS like they we do in Providence! (10/16/09)

Harvey Kojan Why in the world would you insult Baltimore with that anti-Baltimore Morning Show Team. I lived in Indy 1983-1993 back then no one in Indy insulted the core values of Baltimore like your Morning nightmare Team. Please admit your mistake fire them today .John T. Henneman. (10/16/09)

Re: 100.7 The Bay - It's not just the morning show that is horrible (hands-down the worst programming move in Baltimore history) but the overall delivery is terrible too. To be fair, I think that Harvey is new and it probably isn't his fault. (10/16/09)

Speaking of skywave/groundwave pummelling 1500, I want to know why Bonneville won't put WFED as a subchannel on the 103.5 blowtorch. The subchannels on 103.5 right now are a waste of space. Likewise, WHFS 1580 should be a subchannel on 106.7 WJFK. -Chainsman (10/16/09)

/\ October 16 Messages /\

\/ October 15 Messages \/

With all this talk of DX, I have to ask if anyone has noticed more skywave interference to 1500 these days. We're at the distance where groundwave and skywave beat against each other mercilessly, so trying to hear Nationals or Caps games is pretty tough. Nowadays, there's a co-channel station in the mix at night that I've not been able to ID. Anybody caught this? (10/15/09)

Do you know what happened to Kirk Mcewen he was on an oc station now he is gone Thanks (10/15/09)

So now that WJFK is going FM HD, what is Red Zebra going to do? I see 980 on the AM HD list, but none of the portable HD Radio players pick up AM. (10/15/09)

I'm pretty certain that once your neighborhood is wired for FIOS, whether you buy it or not, your telephone AND DSL service is then running over the new FIOS wires, not from your house, but on the main line it seems. The reason I say this is because after they installed FIOS around here, even though I didn't order it, my DSL speed tripled like the day after they finished wiring the neighborhood and this is even before they started sending FIOS offers out in the mail. I just knew from the half dozen VERIZON trucks in the area what was going on. As for COMCAST, I just don't know why people still defend them so religiously. Instead of investing in the expensive technology upgrades like VERIZON has, COMCAST's solution has been to limit and ration customers' bandwidth and speed to save costs and they've even been cited by the FCC for christ sake for doing so! How can people defend them? And that doesn't even include the blatantly & despicably false advertising they run including the Slowskies commercials, which to me are blatantly anti-Polish (but we won't go there). At least the VERIZON ads are pretty much truthful. FIOS picture quality is indeed better and upload speeds are faster along with download speeds as well because COMCAST throttles its customers speeds based on demand due to a lack of technology. As for Wilbon and race, c'mon, the high percentage of black athletes vs. the low percentage of black coaches has nothing to do with race. Only RACE BAITERS feed into crap like that. What about all the dumb as a rock white athletes who didn't become coaches either? The fact of the matter is that in most cases the best coaches and managers in the NFL and MLB are often FAILED athletes, not successful ones, so the high % of successful black athletes is irrelevant to this discussion. Look at Earl Weaver, a complete failure as a baseball player who's in the Hall of Fame as a manager. This crazy Wilbon notion that the ratio of black athletes to black coaches should be similar or have some parity just shows how truly stupid the man is. Managing and coaching versus playing a sport are completely different animals. Just because there are less of one race doing one or the other says nothing about race in my opinion. But I'm sure the race baiters will continue on with these crazy rants because race is a crutch some people rely on their entire lives. -- The Slowskies (w/ a faster upload speed than DCRTV's own Dave Hughes on COMCAST!) (10/15/09)

TO: "Harvey Kojan, Program Director, 100.7 The Bay": {taps on Harvey's shoulder} Guess what? The numbers have spoken on your INDY COLTS based morning show. IT FUCKING SUCKS AND NOBODY LIKES IT! DUH! (10/15/09)

(regarding a previous post) "never ever fire someone who can put you out of business. I guess NBC forgot that." My 15-year-old Calico cat will put MSNBC out of business before Don Imus does. And, she'll be a partner in an NFL ownership group before Rush Limbaugh is. Of course, I will give Rush this -- he's still a much bigger pussy than my cat is! (10/15/09)

The Washington Post article about FOX5 should have read like this: "Instead of orchestrating coverage, fact-checking, handling breaking news, paying attention to the [newscast], engaging reporters, questioning authorities, covering bad writing and technical mistakes, anchors will now spend most of their time" running the prompter, said weekend anchor diva Will Thomas. "It's kind of like a literal one-man band -- singing, banging a drum, crashing cymbals, playing a trumpet and strumming a guitar . . . except we're not playing show tunes here." (10/15/09)

We got a good laugh out of MSNBC's "worry"/ What a bunch of losers. After all, didn't they fire Imus? General rule of thumb in business: You never ever fire someone who can put you out of business. I guess NBC forgot that. (10/15/09)

On my drive home today, heard WJFK HD2 broadcasting Fox Sports syndicated programs - Is this filler till something else on 10/19 (10/15/09)

Dave's response: You're right. Just checked and 106.7's HD2 is up and running.....

Uh Dave, the race hustlers and Jew haters like Jackson and Sharpton, along with their allies in the mainstream media, have fed the public quote after quote they attribute to Limbaugh that is bogus, slanderous and non verifiable. ABC, CNN, and NBC all ran with this crap without doing what professional journalists used to do, verify, and verify again, and verify yet again. Hell, they never verified once. They just ran with it. That's how deep the state run media has fallen off the cliff. Is it any wonder Americans are abandoning these outlets by the truckload? Meanwhile, Limbaugh is a commentator, not a journalist. And even though he is not a journalist, he still goes out of his way to do what journalists used to do; he always provides verifiable references and audio clips to support his opinions; not simply opinions and smear based on internet heresay. It's one thing to dish out opinion based on quotes referenced on tape like Limbaugh does, but another to purposely slander a person as a racist, making up stuff out of thin air, when it is clear the man is not even close to being one. Go ask the Professor Walter E. Williams, his frequent guest host, if Limbaugh is a racist. (10/15/09)

For all his posturing as a self-reliant conservative, Rush Limbaugh sure paints himself as a victim a lot! Hell, his whole act hinges upon it: Everybody's ganging up on poor widdle Rush, as his minions and dittoheads just lap that shit right up! (10/15/09)

If bullshit were music, Rush Limbaugh would be a one-man-band! (10/15/09)

Dave's response: You get on the air and sling the bullshit against everyone, far and wide. And then when someone does the very same thing back at you, you fuckingly freak out. A very common trait along talk radio blowhards. They can dish it out real good, but they can't take it. They're insecure babies.....

Dave, I never used Comcast for internet before I dropped them as a cable provider and never use my DSL much for uploading. Reason I dropped them for cable for DTV was everytime it rained my cable went out. Now I am a retired Verizon cable maintenance tech so I know a little bit about these things. I told the morons at Comcast every time something was getting wet outside. They insisted I go to the service center and change out the box, I refused and made them send a tech every time. Still the same problem FIVE boxes!! I told them they were wasting their time, send an outside tech.I gave up and finally changed to DirecTV. I realize this doesn't solve your problem, just wanted to share. I know people have beefs with Verizon, they all suck. At least I still have friends if my DSL acts up. Retirement is great!!! BC. (10/15/09)

Dave's response: I signed up for Budget Dialup a few years ago. Ten hours for $10. It all too often comes in as a lifesaver for DCRTV when Comcast conks out.....

I thought Limbaugh was so big on letting the market decide? Isn't he always espousing the free market? So when the NFL powers that be decided that Limbaugh would hurt their bottom line and damage their market, he starts crying like a five year old spoiled brat? Tough fucking luck, hypocrite. Ya reap what ya sow, and Rush has sowed nothing but hatred and bad blood for years. It couldn't have happened to a more deserving guy. (10/15/09)

Hi, Dave -- hope all is well! One of my AEs just came in freaked out about the latest PPM weekly rankings you posted. Your list had us at 33rd. Hey, we're certainly not setting the world on fire, but we're not 33rd 12+ ... we're 16th. Big difference. :-) Would you please investigate and let me what happened? Thanks! Harvey Kojan, Program Director, 100.7 The Bay (10/15/09)

Dave's response: We had a minor mix-up. The numbers first posted around noon were the 12+ morning drive numbers. We have since added the real 12+ full-day numbers. That sucky 33rd place figure was for your godawful morning show, not your entire station.....

(Two things on prior posts. First, WIlbon is a first class race baiter so why Limbaugh thought he would get a fair shake from the guy is beyond me.) Oh Rush Jr., just stop, just stop. Why don't we just pretend that race issues don't exist anymore. Will that satisfy you? Let's pretend that there are lots and lots of black Division One college football coaches. Let's pretend that there that there are more black pro football head coaches than white. Let's pretend that there was no need for the Rooney Rule in the NFL. Let's pretend that there are more black college basketball head coaches than white. Will that satisfy you? Oh let me guess; the blacks aren't "qualified." I could go on and on. If you want to disagree with Wilbon on the issue, that's your right; but don't pretend that race issues don't exist and demonize the messenger. (Shawn in DC) (10/15/09)

All of the folks huffing and puffing about Rush vs. the NFL seem to have forgotten the drama when George Soros wanted to own the Nats: www.washingtonpost.com (10/15/09)

On the subject of Channel 5 forcing anchors to run their own teleprompters: OMG! I ran my own prompter when I anchored at my 1st and 3rd TV jobs--- using a toggle switch on the edge of the anchor desk. Far better. No relying on a sleepy or distracted operator. Viewers never knew. It takes a little hand/eye coordination... and nothing else. Is that too much to ask of highly paid, supposedly college-educated news readers?? Don't they maneuver a steering wheel while operating a gas pedal and brake pedal WHILE watching the roadway? Don't they type with 2 hands while reading what they type on a computer screen? Pah-leese! (10/15/09)

Brutal?? You don't KNOW what brutal is until you consider the latest Baltimore PPM numbers: WWMX -106.5FM's internet stream (tied at #41) beat WNST-1570AM (unlisted). How much for a 30-second drive-time spot at NST? Can you spare a piece of gum??? (10/15/09)

Two things on prior posts. First, WIlbon is a first class race baiter so why Limbaugh thought he would get a fair shake from the guy is beyond me. Second, there is nothing MASN can do to capture a consistent DC area audience, at least while Angelos owns it. (10/15/09)

Up here, in the Borough of Hanover, in the beautiful Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, my COMCAST HSI has not been out once that I can recall. I've had it well over three years. As for cable tv, that may have been out once or twice for ten minutes or so. If there were any other outages, I must have been away. JohnnyuinHanoverf,Pa. (10/15/09)

Dave's response: Mine's usually pretty good. But three times when it has rained in the past month, I've lost the ability to upload. Go figure.....

Dave: maybe post the entire CNN clip along with parts of the story in keeping with your sense of fairness? “Today on-air, Rush Limbaugh slammed Washington Post sports columnist Michael Wilbon for his Post piece yesterday” Dave & fellow mailbaggers: Wilbon is just another inept if not deliberate media lemming, as can be evidenced by the following: “Which public figure can be quoted as having said something bigoted and disgusting and it doesn’t matter whether he did or not because he might have? Who can Big Media brand a racist without checking the facts? Who has to prove he did not say something racist, rather than the accuser proving he did? A pat on the back for anyone who guessed the answer: Rush Limbaugh (OK, the blog headline was a clue). From CNN to MSNBC to ABC, it’s been put about that Limbaugh said this: I mean, let’s face it, we didn’t have slavery in this country for over 100 years because it was a bad thing. Quite the opposite: slavery built the South. I’m not saying we should bring it back; I’m just saying it had its merits. For one thing, the streets were safer after dark. It’s also been spread around that he said this, about the death of the man who assassinated Martin Luther King: You know who deserves a posthumous Medal of Honour? James Earl Ray. We miss you, James. Godspeed. Here’s CNN’s Rick Sanchez baldly stating at the 1.14 point that Limbaugh made the slavery comment: (video clip) Trouble is, he didn’t say either of these outrageous things. And it wasn’t difficult to check, as protein wisdom shows here. They originated from, er, Wikipedia and Wikiquotes. Both quotes ended up in this book – a hit job that doesn’t cite any sources. They’re also included in this internet list posted a year ago and endlessly ripped off ever since. The irony is, of course, that the people reporting this as fact are the same types who are always denouncing bloggers and the internet as forces of evil intent on destroying proper journalism – proper journalism being the kind that involves checking facts. In the case of Rush Limbaugh, however, it seems to be enough that the intention (i.e. to show the talk radio host is a racist) is considered pure. Even those who have been primary movers in spreading these malicious falsehoods – which would lead to payouts of hundreds of thousands in British libel courts if lawsuits were ever filed there – are brazenly unapologetic. telegraph.co.uk (10/15/09)

Okay, let me just say that I enjoyed Joe & Mika's radio show, but not as much as listening to Laura Ingraham during that time slot. The problem with Joe is that: a) he's a RINO; b) he takes commentary & what people think of him personally; c) he constantly interrupts Mika, callers & guests; d) he's totally 'thin-skinned'; e) he 'whines' too much. I could go on, but I don't have the heart. He's generally a good, solid guy - just with some faults that drive any loyal listener crazy after a while. It's bad enough when I was agreeing more with Mika than with Joe 90% of the time (I admire Mika and think she has a bright future in radio, or whatever she decides to do). Put your head up high, Joe, and try to correct some of these faults. Best to all, -Silvie- (10/15/09)

The strangest thing about FIOS is this: Verizon has always claimed to be building out the areas where tha most revenue can be had first. Sounds reasonable. But if you really look at it, areas like McLean, and Newark NJ, and Takoma Park MD, that is, old Bell Atlantic areas are actually behind, in some cases WAAAAY behind, the old General Telephone areas like Manassas, Harrisonburg, VA, and Gettysburg PA, in terms of the percentage of the population that actually has access to FIOS. The other thing, why so slow? I realize what they face, yes. I'm no fan of the cable companies, least of all Comcast, but I have to give credit where credit is due. Cable systems hav, almost without exception, now built out fiber to the neighborhoods, and then at the neighborhood level roll things over ot COAX. That way, when they finally do deploy Fiber To The Premesis, it is a very manageable size of upgrade. It's manageable financially, technogically, logistically, training-wise, and promotionally. It's not a huge leap in any of those areas. One of the mistakes that companies like Verizon and Qwest have made is this: The wireline phone system has no aggrigation before the CO. Every line is a dedicated pair, used for nothing else, all the way to the CO. That means that, to offer things like high speed internet service, they must re-build their entire network. When some of that copper is a century old or more, that's quite a job. One thing that sure puzzled me: The very day Verizon went hot with DSL in my area, was the same day that the cable company(Then Adelphia) started having their contractors on the sides of the major roads, actually doing the upgrades! I have it from a reliable source that, because we are classified as a "Rural" area, and at the time there was basically no cell phone service down here, the DSLAM( The critical device that needs to be installed in the CO to offer DSL) was actually sitting crated in an unused part of the CO for 2 years! (10/15/09)

The NY Post ran an article in its gossip section on Thursday saying that MSNBC was worried that Imus's show on Fox Business will impinge on Joe Scarborough's viewership. www.nypost.com (10/15/09)

Re:thoughts on Dish vs DirecTV. I have DirecTV and love it. I also understand they do the programming for Verizon FIOS. There are rumblings in the business world that DTV will be bought by VZ or ATT. Thats why I bought DTV at $22 per share a few months ago. I believe it's now trading at about $27 per share. I like. BC. (10/15/09)

Do you know of anything being done to find IMUS a new radio home in DC? Thanks Bob (10/15/09)

Dave's response: Nope. His ratings stunk when he was on 105.9. The most likely candidate would be WTNT, 570, but that righty talker is committed to the Washington Times morning radio show. And another righty talker, WHFS, 1580, is committed to Michael Smerconish in mornings.....

Dave, I know that you are tired of this question, but once again with WCHH coming in as the 16th rated station for the first week of October do you think that with WWIN performing so well in the PPMs do you think that CC(Baltimore) would consider a flip to adult urban with Steve Harvey in AM and Marc Clarke in the afternoon?).With WHUR doing so well in D.C. and WWIN doing so well in B-more the adult urban format is more that a viable format with these PPMs. (10/15/09)

Dave's response: Yeah, I think it's getting more and more likely that 104.3 will flip to maybe rhythmic contemporary, adult urban, or possibly contemporary hit.....

“Scarborough Twitters His Wrath About MAL Firing - 10/15 “ Hey Dave: speaking of “Banjo Boy” Joe, here’s a blurb from The New York Post: Imus rattling MSNBC nerves as Joe Scarborough is under intense pressure to perform as he goes head-to-head with old foe Don Imus. MSNBC chiefs have been nervously watching the ratings since Imus' show on the Fox Business Network started airing at the same time as Scarborough's "Morning Joe" earlier this month. Scarborough was hit with a further blow this week when his radio show was dropped by DC radio station WMAL. A source told Page Six: "Those higher up at MSNBC are unnerved by Imus' move to Fox Business Network and fear his show could push Scarborough down. They're putting a lot of pressure on Joe to keep the ratings up. To make things worse, there are multiple scores to be settled.” Tom Bowman, Imus' old producer at MSNBC, jumped to Fox Business with him, and is said to have harsh feelings toward Scarborough and his executive producer, Chris Licht. "So they [Imus and Bowman] are out to win," said our source. The simulcast of the "Imus in the Morning" syndicated radio show was dropped by MSNBC two years ago after Imus called the Rutgers women's basketball team "nappy-headed ho's." Scarborough said at the time, "Don Imus always hated my guts . . . he called me 'BANJO BOY.' " Early ratings showed Imus gave the Fox Business Network a boost in his first week on air, averaging 148,000 viewers a day, a few thousand viewers ahead of CNBC. But "Morning Joe" remained ahead, averaging 357,000. Scarborough and his team are keen to play down the rivalry with Imus, and Scarborough has been busy focusing his fire at Fox News' host Glenn Beck. A source close to Scarborough told us, "Imus is not even on our radar. Joe is too busy concentrating on what he is doing," An MSNBC spokeswoman said Imus' show "has had no impact on 'Morning Joe' ratings or guest bookings." Fox Business Network and a rep for Imus declined to comment.” So Dave, my only question is: what does talking head Craig Crawford, who has a contract with & appears frequently on PMSNBC (usually Keith Overbite and Rachael Catchow) shows and is a regular on Imus’ new FOX Business show do if Joe “Banjo Boy” Scarborough insists he be on HIS show at the same time? This is what inquiring minds wanna know…. (10/15/09)

Seriously, Dave, if you're not listening to Rush right now, you're missing out. He's now blasting Michael Wilbon for ignoring Rush's e-mail correspondence and basically writing the story he wanted to write anyway. So there's a local angle to Rush's anti-media rant today. Christian (10/15/09)

During the first half hour of his show today, Rush Limbaugh suggested that George Soros may be the principal partner in the group looking to buy the St. Louis Rams. That is head-spinning. Christian (10/15/09)

Rush just said he gave the Washington Post's Michael Wilbon the "truth from the get-go" and then wrote his NFL/Rams column yesterday which made it seem he didn't even talk to Rush. Poor Rush. (10/15/09)

Wow – WZBA gets beat by everyone with a signal in Baltimore – even the Spanish station and a Frederick station! Even worse is that WBIG beat them at the same format with a spotty signal in the market. Same music, so the only thing that could be killing them would be “Bob & Tom” in the AM, and that they are devoid of any local anything the rest of the day. It’s time for either a format change, or for them to get someone in there that knows how to do classic rock correctly. It’s a very dull station and that has to be what is the culprit. (10/15/09)

Dave, Big fan of the site. If you're not aware, Joe Scarborough is using his twitter feed (@JoeNBC) to hype his ratings on WMAL (see posts from today and October 13). Might be worth tracking. Danny (10/15/09)

Just heard some radio spots for (i believe) KASPERSKY computer software. low concept, nice casting/execution on a couple guys yakking at each other in a far-northwestern accent thing. Anyone know who produced? JV (10/15/09)

I'm not going to question the WaPo hiring of Katharine Zaleski since I don't know her from Eve. But after working for someone or something with an obvious political bent, how can folks be sure a person will be even-handed now? The reason I ask is we have a situation in Virginia where spokemen for the last two governors have come directly from the Associated Press and Times-Dispatch ranks and apparently had no problem dealing in a little intellectual dishonesty. (10/15/09)

Any thoughts on Dish Network versus DirecTV? (10/15/09)

Carl in Olney - I’ll see that 3 cents and raise you 2 more! I confess, I was also a teenage neophyte DX junkie back in the ‘60's, from classic Rockville. I also have a card from Radio Americas on Swan Island, logged on my old Hammarlund HQ-180 (best damn receiver I ever owned, sorry I ever sold it. Stupid is as stupid does.) ZNS on 1540 was in Nassau, the Bahamas (they pronounced it ZED-N-S). DCRTV Dave says Nassau might be a distant suburb of Miami, but even so, what was the last Miami station in your log? Yeah, same here. I remember (geez alarms going off all over DCRTVland) the “clear channel DX”, if you will - WABC in New York, WBZ Boston, KYW Cleveland (later WKYC and 3WE after the KYW call returned to Philly), WKBW Buffalo, and even from the Great White North, CKLW in Windsor, Ontario. Note that these were all rock stations back then. Yep, those were indeed the good ole days - they were MAGIC. Think about it - there we were in our little respective corners of the country, hearing ALL THOSE SIGNALS from all across the land, and even some foreign lands, coming into a little box in our rooms! Outrageous! Sadly, today, thanks to, among other factors, the preponderance of man-made noise on the band, the AM DX hobby is not as much fun or as productive as in olden times. But every now and then, I can’t help giving the (digital) dial a twist between 530 and 1700 to see what might be going on...ya just never know! Jeffrey Young - we were in Avon, NC this past summer, just a seashell’s throw from Buxton. if we go back Next year I’ll have to bring along the Sangean 803A and see what rolls in on AM. On a previous trip, I logged Anguilla, the Bahamas, and Bermuda. Who know what other DX lurks out there!!! Maybe even Europe, as you heard! Mike in Frederick, and the entire Dashboard DX Society, thinking about what a long strange trip it’s been...Excelsior! (apologies to the late Jean Shepherd, K2ORS). (10/15/09)

Re: Comcast. You may recall "the first one is free" The Internet is becoming and eventually will be totally pay as you go. The goal for Comcast and Verizon is a $300+ monthly bill for broadband connectivity per household. Comcast customer- do you want to download a HD quality movie? That will soon be a $5 bandwidth charge if you get from a non-Comcast URL. Trust me on this one... (10/15/09)

Breaking! Don's out @ WGMD (10/15/09)

Dave's response: That news "broke" a few days ago. Where've you been?

At one point Captain Lou managed NRBQ.....Great Man.....Great Band......Ratso (10/15/09)

Comcast is using a new method of determining who the internet hogs are since the FCC busted them for blocking peer to peer sites and too much internet usage. So, I wonder if DCRTV.com has been caught in the new Comcast spider web. It sounds suspiciously similar since DCRTV is obviously constantly uploading lots of content. This might be the source of your problem Dave. (10/15/09)

Dave's response: If that's the case then why not let the affected customer know about the problem? I wouldn't mind paying a bit extra for a higher upload "cap." On a typical day, I'm uploading two pages, the Front Page and Mailbag, 10-20 times. It doesn't seem like all that much upload bandwidth usage.....

Vincent in Triangle, does MASN sometimes "steal" one of the ESPN feeds for college football? That could fill up both MASN's. Your point is valid about college hoops on MASN (TV schedule comes out next week). Mike in Alexandria (10/15/09)

(RE Today's Rant) I can only speak from personal experience. I swithched from Verizon DSL to Comcast HSI about a year ago. I also switched my phone service. I continue to get my television from DirecTV. My own experience is that Comcast HSI is faster, but more erratic, with more outages. Comcast phone has better sound, and more consistant volume, but again more outages. Verizon DSL is not as fast, but is more consistant, with fewer outages. BTW, You know anyone interested in an old DSL modem, or should I put it in the pile with the Analog TVs? (10/15/09)

I always enjoy the discussion of MASN and it's coverage of the O's and Nat's. One thing that should be obvious to everyone is when both ball clubs turn the corner and start putting a winning product on the field, viewship will be on the upswing. I would like to see one channel devoted exclusively to the Bird's, another to the Nationals. Both teams have some good broadcaster's. Johnny Holliday and Ray Knight get my vote in the pre and post game category while I must admit Rob Dibble grew on me as Bob Carpener's sidekick as the season played out. Gary Thorne misses way to many O's games, thus the lack of continuity with that crew. Tom Davis always does a nice job. I agree with an earlier post, every game should be in HD. Hopefully that willl happen this coming season. No question Washington has been been locked in with the Orioles since Bob Short left town in 1971, but in due time the Nat's fan base should be able to become more respectable as the team gets better. Pitchers and Catchers report to Vierra in what 3 and half months? (10/15/09)

Chad Dukes announced on his website (www.thefukerton.com) that WJFK is firing up the HD2 signal. The Chad Dukes RodKast (feat. Drab and Othello) launches Tuesday October 19th and then will be heard weekly (and maybe more often) Thursdays from 7-9pm. Episodes will be podcast as well. He plans to continue releasing Fukerton exclusives as well. I've got a RodKast just thinking about it. Anyone know if WJFK's signal is receivable in HD in Laurel? -Grant (in Laurel) (10/15/09)

Dave's response: I would think that 106.7's HD2 would be rather difficult to receive in Laurel, not only because you're about 20 miles from the transmitter in Fairfax, but also because of interference from the station's adjacent channel, 106.5 WWMX in Baltimore. Hopefully, JFK will stream the HD2 on its website.....

For those who would like MASN to sponsor two separate full-time channels, one for the Nationals and one for the Orioles: What kind of programming could MASN run on two channels? It barely has enough for one as it is, and unless MASN could obtain rights to some programming CSN has minimal interest in (e.g., ACC men's soccer and women's basketball), running two channels year-round wouldn't make much financial sense now. I can understand why so many gripe about the setup, but as currently constituted MASN has little alternative. And I don't think MASN has any Baltimore bias in its baseball coverage -- if a local team is playing a high-profile East Coast team such as the Phils, Yanks, Mets or Bosox, it will be carried on MASN. If one of the teams is playing in the Pacific or Mountain time zone, that will likely land on MASN2, and also be carried on MASN after everything's finished with the other game. The final day of the regular season is proof MASN is playing it fair. With its Ravens coverage, you could argue it should have scheduled the Blue Jays-Orioles game on MASN as a lead-in, relegating Nationals-Braves to MASN2. Instead, the opposite happened -- and because the Nats game went 15 innings, the Ravens wrapup was delayed. MASN's problem is that once baseball season ends, there's relatively little for Washington-area viewers to sink their teeth into, aside from George Mason and Georgetown basketball plus their respective conferences, the CAA and the Big East. Given the success of the Frozen Four at Verizon last March, perhaps MASN should look into some college hockey coverage. I used to live in New Jersey and regularly saw game's at Princeton's Baker Rink (with future Capital Jeff Halpern); it's a fun, well-played game that would get a small, but devoted, base of fans.-- Vincent in Triangle (10/15/09)

I'm not even a Rush LImbaugh supporter nor do I listen but why do people trust or get all of their news or opinions from websites like HuffingtonPost.com? It's not a real newspaper, you do know that right? It's basically a glorified liberal blog & opinion website, the same as Rush, only internet based. Would the NFL approve HuffingtonPost.com buying the Rams? Probably not either! (10/15/09)

This story made me laugh: nfl.fanhouse.com... Jimmy Irsay, owner of the Colts says he wouldn't vote for Rush Limbaugh to be an NFL owner, yet in the ESPN Barry Levinson Baltimore Colts documentary, he said far worse things about his own father who moved the Colts to Indy in a raging drunken stupor and snowstorm! Irony of all ironies. Black kettle, meet the pot. LOL (10/15/09)

RE: [ " Oh, and by the way, the Nats and the Orioles are both at the bottom of the league in terms of the number of games being televised in HD. Most other teams, even crappy ones like Oakland and KC, have networks that broadcast all their games in HD. " ]........ If COMCAST and COX won't carry 2 SD MASN channels full-time, do you think they'll agree to carry two HD channels? PLEASE put the blame where it belongs! Even most Orioles fans hate Angelos, but this is just something that is completely out of MASN's control. LIke I said previously, if one or both of these teams has a successful season and or even not in last place, maybe more people would be calling their cable operator and complaining and COMCAST or COX would feel some pressure, but right now COMCAST, who owns most of the area's cable systems is pretty much holding all the cards. And with the Nats TV ratings so low, it's unlikely many people are calling and complaining other than the few vocal people here on DCRTV. MASN has some big decisions to make in this off-season. The Nats have lots of big sponsors, they seem to have more than the Orioles. Will they all renew next season after the last place TV ratings and the Orioles actually getting higher ratings in DC? I know a lot of DC people think that COMCAST would have spent more money or done better Nats broadcasts, but let's face it, even COMCAST doesn't throw money down a drain. They spend money on the Redskins because it's a guaranteed audience that watches regardless. I'd argue that COMCAST would not have spent any more money on Nats broadcasts than MASN has. The only difference would be the full-time HD channel, but once again, the only impediment to that now is basically COMCAST since they basically have a deal with MASN for only ONE HD CHANNEL. (10/15/09)

/\ October 15 Messages /\

\/ October 14 Messages \/

If indeed WTTG plans on training the anchors to work the teleprompter, why not have them write their own copy?..I've seen on more than a couple of times weird looks from the anchors when they started reading the teleprompter and realized what was written made no sense whatsoever.. (10/14/09)

george longwell has decided to become the 7th manager in 5 years for dc101. maybe snyder runs that station and thinks that they're head coach material? (10/14/09)

"And of course there was that time he cut his wife's head off," --Come on, Dave....This comment has no place on this site as it offends Ted Williams and other people who have had their heads removed for various reasons! A wise man once said "Where's the beef?" and because of that you should remove this pointless drivel...Signed, ThatThingIsMightier....Hi Tom!" I have to say, that made me giggle..... as I taught myself a lesson. --- ThePenIsMightier (10/14/09)

RIP, Captain Lou...IIRC, the band NRBQ once did a song about him, which I believe Weasel used to play frequently during the heyday of WHFS. -- Vincent in Triangle (10/14/09)

Rush Limbaugh:: Knowing Rush "the entertainer" as I have going back to his days at KFBK Sacramento and during times when he was, on occasion, so broke he bought food with his gas card, one professional & personal fact holds true - he won't ever own a piece of an NFL team. Yesterday Dave Zirin, sports correspondent of Nation Magazine was referred to on air as "scum" by Rush. Limbaugh called him out by name on his radio show because, along with Bryan Burwell of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Drew Sharp of the Detroit Free Press, he challenged Limbaugh's efforts to own a NFL team, saying that his history of racial bombast should count against him. Every DCRTV Limbaugh supporter should read more at: www.huffingtonpost.com (10/14/09)

I know it’s not exactly local to the D.C. area, but I just heard on KNX that longtime pro wrestler “Captain” Lou Albano died today at age 76. I remember back in TV’s “golden age”, Albano and his act (with “stars” like “The Fabulous Moolah”, Andre “the Giant”, and others) was a staple (even in prime time) on WTTG when it was on channel 5 and WDCA when it was on channel 20. Of course Albano gained a new generation of fans with his appearance on the Cyndi Lauper music video, “Girls Just Want to Have Fun”. RIP on a Wednesday afternoon when it is indeed raining in Southern California. (At least where I am right now…) Cheers… John Pinckney, Pasadena (And a long way from DCRTV-land!) (10/14/09)

"And of course there was that time he cut his wife's head off," --Come on, Dave....This comment has no place on this site as it offends Ted Williams and other people who have had their heads removed for various reasons! A wise man once said "Where's the beef?" and because of that you should remove this pointless drivel...Signed, ThatThingIsMightier....Hi Tom! (10/14/09)

Dave's response: Oh come on! It was clearly just a harmless little fuzzball of a joke.....

"If the blurb on the television ratings for the Nationals is correct, it just shows that Angelos is successful in manipulating MASN to favor the Orioles." No, it just means that old habits die hard. Fans in this area followed American League baseball for over a century before the NL showed up. This, too, will eventually change. As far as the rights issue itself goes, that was the price of MLB avoiding opening the books, as they well might have had to do if Angelos sued them. MLB was protected, DC got a team, PA got to claim he won something out of it (even though MASN is currently overpaying for Nats rights based on their ratings). That's a win-win-win if you're keeping score. Howie (10/14/09)

No love for a DC/former Hot 995'er in Chicago now? LOL, kiddin man:? Thought I'd send a link to an AA 10 Questions article in case there was any possibility in a mention my friend! How is the DC radio marketplace sounding these days? Best to you! Julian (former night personality @ Hot 995- 2002'-06') www.allaccess.com (10/14/09)

Dave's response: What? I'm supposed to put up a Front Page link for a story at a rival radio site featuring a former DC radio personality? Get real, man! Oh, as usual, DC music radio sucks. Except, of course, for Jon Ballard.....

Why in the world did the Washington Post change the Weather section. At a glance in Metro ,I can no longer determine the upcoming forecast. The newly formatted Style section stinks as well. And, for that matter, why did they so many articles on the old Woodies? Glad it's delivered to my office and not to my door............ (10/14/09)

As a retired professional teleprompter operator, I feel for the on-air news readers pumping, cutting and reading their own prompter, while a producer is yelling in their ears "cut pages 12-18, read to 22, throw break" all while looking composed and in control. (10/14/09)

"Goodell Derails Rush's NFL Bid" yet he allowed Tom Brady to wear a skirt in a shark cage just a few weeks ago? Wow, amazing how the NFL has lost all its balls. LOL (10/14/09)

WTTG better avoid the glass newsdesk that German Television had for a while. No "modesty panel." Women anchors, peddling their own teleprompters, found out too late they should avoid short skirts. (10/14/09)

I would have to agree that Don Snyder seems to have a problem retaining good chief engineers. I certainly don't know the specifics regarding the turnovers, but I do know that word get's around quickly in the engineering community if indeed the owner is difficult to work with. The down side is that many of the seasoned engineers are retiring, the same engineers that still know directional AM sites. And of those, only a few are truly specialists with this type of transmission. Unfortunately few of the younger engineers have any training in this arena. That's going to be a challenge for AM owners in the near future. Regardless, I still believe that the future is considerably better in broadcast engineering/IT, rather than being an air personality. Tom Conroy (10/14/09)

Dave, Dave, Dave, with all due respect, liberals don't get to decide who's a RINO. You can't claim Grandy; only Republicans get to make that call. It's just like the eeny-meeny-miny-mo word that white people can't use (and rightly so). I think you want Grandy to be a RINO because you genuinely like him, and perhaps share his love of show tunes, as I do. On another current WMAL related topic, remember when that racist Rush Limbaugh tied the dogs he didn't shoot to rape-stands? Certainly not someone we want in the NFL. Of course, in his defence, that was part of the culture in Cape Girardeau, MO where he grew up. And remember that time the gun he had stuck in his sweatpants went off and shot him in the thigh? Man, that was embarrassing for the Rush-man! And of course there was that time he cut his wife's head off, and that time he held up someone in a Las Vegas hotel room to get back some memorabilia. Hey, cut Rush a break! He just likes to make it rain! --- ThePenIsMightier (10/14/09)

When I worked at WAZT in Woodstock, Virginia, I had to operate my own teleprompter when I was anchoring the news or doing sports. Does that qualify me for a job at WTTG? Al McGilvray (10/14/09)

If the blurb on the television ratings for the Nationals is correct, it just shows that Angelos is successful in manipulating MASN to favor the Orioles. The concept that the Nats television rights are held by a another franchise for which it is competing for fans still boggles the mind. (10/14/09)

Regarding an earlier post, Channel 9 wasn't the only station to report on the woman with the bad reaction to her flu shot. Channel 5 reported that story on the 10 O'Clock News last night, and Channel 4 reported it this morning on their news program. -- Bobbie (10/14/09)

All iPhones & iPod Touches to have FM radio reception soon? Apparently, all newer iPods and iPhones have always had an FM chip in them, but Apple has never implemented or enabled FM radio reception. This would completely remove the ZUNE radio advantage according to sources since HD radio basically has bombed. Also, reportedly, you'll be able to make iTunes purchases of songs you hear on your local radio station directly! Is that cool or what? Here's more on the new Apple rumor... 9to5mac.com (10/14/09)

(RE: Fox 5's move to have the anchors operating their own promptors) "They also say that viewers may notice some awkward cranking and pumping beneath the anchor desk....." Hey, that sounds like a good porno! Up next...Fox 5 Morning Nudes starring Steve Chenevey and Gurvir Dhindsa (plus Matt Ackland for all his fans on here)! Better keep an eye on Julie Wright and Tony Perkins! Seriously though, does this mean that during the newscasts where Brian Bolter is standing in front of a monitor, as opposed to being seated at the anchor desk, we're going to see his leg bouncing up and down as he operates a foot pedal? Yikes! (10/14/09)

The idea of Mike O'Meara, Cerphe and Albie Dee on 105.9 is actually DUMB DUMB !!! First off its time for young blood and newcomers to take over and you ain't going to get that with Mike O'Meara. Why not have Michael Popovich ( the guy who once had ESRTV and now works in radio on the Eastern Shore ) rocking out on 105.9? Winchester's Chuck Carroll and Elwood King? They can do it better than Cerphe, Ellwood himself had told me that. Cindy McGuire? Bring her back !!! What about somebody from Richmond? Fredericksburg's Baxter & Bonnie? Look, I know there are a lot of people who believe that Don & Mike, Cerphe, even Jack Dimaond are better than JesusChrist, thats cool but isn't it time for a change in the DC radio market? New blood and/or different blood is needed. The "older" guys like O'Meara and the like have made their money, let them move on. (10/14/09)

"It wasn't too many years ago that he made almost daily references to the "NAALCP" (National Association for the Advancement of Liberal Colored People). You don't have to actually say the 'N-word' to be a goddamned racist." - So now calling the NAACP the NAALCP is racist? When, in fact, the NAACP has no use for conservative minded African-Americans? (See Clarance Thomas, J.C. Watts, Thomas Sowell). You leftists really need to put down the crack pipe and stop using that "racist" term like the word "the". It's getting to the point that real racists can't be identified any more. (10/14/09)

I chimed in earlier on the whole MASN and TV ratings issue. I will admit that MASN really stepped up their promoting this season, and adding Rob Dibble to the booth was a good move. However, it is annoying having to check two separate channels (which are nowhere near each other on most systems) to find the game you're looking for. I personally have no problem finding the correct one, but let's look at this post from Tracee Hamilton, Washington Post sports columnist, from the Post's Nationals Journal Blog earlier this year (washingtonpost.com): "You guys and gals are giddy today. Since we are talking about Dibble, I will say this: I didn't expect to like him and I find that I do. He was doing several difference 'voices' the other night -- think it was Wednesday -- and it was hilarious. I am still in shock that I STILL can't get MASN2 on my cable. Or so they say. True story: I called Cox and asked if I could add it and the guy said, "I don't know, what channel is it on?" If only I knew, dude..." So...she, and obviosuly the guy who answered the phone at Cox, were unaware that MASN2 even exists on the cable system (Channel 74). Since it's not a full-time channel, it preempts other channels only when there's a game on, which does make it a little trickier to find. The novice fan might have difficulty in this case. Also, depending on your cable provider, most fans in the DC area didn't even get an opportunity to watch the games during the 2005 inaugural season (plus 2006 for many people as well) since Angelos was in a pissing contest with Comcast and other are cable systems. That hurt the opporunity to build a fanbase, especially since they spent much of the first half of 2005 in first place. Long story short, I know it will take a winning team to get good ratings, but MASN certainly doesn't help the cause for the Nats. Oh, and by the way, the Nats and the Orioles are both at the bottom of the league in terms of the number of games being televised in HD. Most other teams, even crappy ones like Oakland and KC, have networks that broadcast all their games in HD. (10/14/09)

People forget that if not for COMCAST, there would be a dedicated MASN channel for both the Nats and Os 24/7 most likely. It's COMCAST who first refused to carry the channel, then made this compromise where MASN 2 appears on a C-SPAN channel, which is completely ridiculous considering how much available channel space COMCAST has. And they'll have more after they switch to all digital. I'm sure if MASN were not competing with Comcast we wouldn't have this flip flop channel scheduling, but in the end it's a complete 50/50 mix, so it affects both teams negatively equally. If no one has noticed, big games with popular teams like the Phillies, Mets, Yankees, & Red Sox often are the MASN1 game regardless of whether it's the Nats or Os playing them. I don't see how this is a valid excuse for such poor baseball ratings in DC. However, ideally, what I'd like to see is a MASN1 exclusive to each market, same channel every day, Nats on MASN1 in DC, Os on MASN1 in Baltimore, and a MASN2 for the other team in each market, but I'm not sure even the Nationals want that scenario just yet because technically they're a brand new team looking for exposure in the entire region and more people on Delmarva & south central PA would want the Orioles to be on MASN1, hence less exposure for the Nats. I would argue the current flip/flop channel situation actually benefits the Nats more than the Orioles since as someone pointed out, Baltimore already has a baseball culture that will look for the game more earnestly than the average Nats fan who's a newbie. The flip/flop channel scheduling exposes the Nats to more people in Baltimore and Delmarva and parts of Virginia that otherwise might not find the channel as easily. I always remember the MASN1 channel #. Even when I don't know which game is on I go there first even if I'm looking for the Orioles game. If the Nats game is on, sometimes I watch some of it before switching to MASN2. So I think in the short term, with The Nats being so new to the area, this actually benefits them as far as broad-based exposure. Once either of the teams starts winning though, I'm sure there's going to be intense pressure on COMCAST to allow 2 full-time MASN channels. But COMCAST is sort of holding all the cards here as usual. Finally, some of the Angelos posts here are just plain nutty and I say that not even liking the man. Given the ownership makeup of MASN, it's NOT in Angelos's best interest to see the Nats NOT succeed on TV. If Angelos were to try to cripple Nats ratings, it would only cause MASN to lose revenue and in effect devalue the Orioles franchise as well since TV ratings and ad sales clearly define what an MLB team is worth and MASN is an integral part of each team's overall value. And Angelos isn't going to be around a whole lot longer on this earth. It's rumored Angelos is even looking to sell, so what would his motivation be to make MASN a failure for the Nats since the Orioles get such a large portion of that revenue? Anyone who thinks he's trying to devalue either teams' worth really hasn't analyzed the situation very carefully from a money perspective. And trust me, Angelos is ALL about MONEY! (10/14/09)

Just spent a week in Buxton, NC on the Outer Banks (way down next to Hatteras Lighthouse). Brought my 20-year old Sony "Air 8" handheld receiver with only its whip antenna. Wow - 66 & 88/NY were as loud as local stations in the middle of the day! Pulled in a lot of other distant stations in the daytime as well. At nighttime, 89/WLS was blowing the front end off the Sony, and I was pulling in other stations from as far as St. Louis and San Antonio. But the real prize was getting LW/MW from Europe after sunset - multiple contacts. On previous trips, I have brought my Sony 2010 and used a copper pipe ground pushed into the salty wet beach sand. The entire planet Earth offers up its conductivity for reception you can't even imagine. There was a really good reason why R.A. Fessenden (who has a DC street named after him) went to Buxton in 1908 for experimental broadcasts. Jeffrey Young, VOA-TV. (10/14/09)

***** New additions to the event the - GREASEMAN is coming out of retirement (so to speak) to take part in the event AND Wendy Rieger will be the emcee******* You’re Invited. Thursday evening, October 29, 2009. for a Halloweeny ROAST* of Jeff Hedges, Ronnie Mervis And more!!! a FUNraiser for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society There will be a $100 donation to the National MS Society, and proceeds go to help people who live with MS in the DC area and to fund research for a CURE for Multiple Sclerosis! Dinner is included. Cash bar. (Hey, we’re a charity – and none of the money goes into Chris Broullire’s pocket) Pooks Hill Marriott, Bethesda, Md. (If you live in Virginia, too bad – come anyway) Cocktails start at 6pm - Roast starts at 7pm RSVP to: Patti Cochran 301.758.7178, Jody Lish 301.922.8398, Chris Broullire 202.255.3334/// * These will be funny stories, told by people you know. Face it, you need a laugh right now, and people will be laughing about this one for a LONG time (10/14/09)

Quote: "Next can you please use your feminime wiles to get WMAL to can that Godawful trucking show?....Since they cut C2C to 2 hours, I've been listening to KFI in LA overnights online" When do you sleep? I actually like the trucking show, perhaps because I realize that the first people out in the street at 3-5 a.m. are actual truckers. Judging by certain clever decisions WMAL has made in recent days, anything could happen. Who knows, you might get C2C back, or you might not. E-mail the station and lobby for it. -Silvie- (10/14/09)

(regarding a previous post) "I wonder what will happen to Limbaugh the first time he tells a 380-pound African American lineman to put a bone in his nose or go rob a liquor store, as he occasionally tells African American callers...? According to Rush, ... he and his attorneys are ready to take legal action to those who print and/or spread such vile misquotes & lies. ... I think Rush is serious about this." The offensive Rush Limbaugh is being offended? That's rich! The only thing that Rush Limbaugh is serious about, is drumming up press about his own fat self. The memory of these ignorant dittoheads certainly is selective. It wasn't too many years ago that he made almost daily references to the "NAALCP" (National Association for the Advancement of Liberal Colored People). You don't have to actually say the 'N-word' to be a goddamned racist. (10/14/09)

What's with Dan Snyder and Chief Engineers? He has as much trouble keeping them as he does coaches! -Unsigned Corporate Suit (10/14/09)

I just saw one of the most irresponsible stories on WUSA9.... they just had a story during the 11 PM news about a woman who, 10 days after receiving a flu shot, developed an extremely rare and devastating neurological disorder, along with plenty of footage of its effects on her (quite horrifying). And then WUSA9 of course says that she blames the flu shot, and that there's no other explanation for it. The only counter WUSA9 provided was that they contacted the CDC but that they weren't aware of any links between the flu shot and the disorder she developed. But of course it caps off with her saying that she wants people to make sure they look at what happened to her and weigh the risks. Seriously, this is one of the most blatant and irresponsible stories I've seen on the local news. It's purpose is clearly to scare the viewer into not getting a flu shot, even though the risks of not getting a flu shot and then developing the flu are far more likely to result in problems than something like what happened to this woman. It's just blatant scare tactics, incredibly irresponsible, and just sickening. WUSA9 should be ashamed, and if this story even scares a handful of people into avoiding getting a flu shot and they then get sick, I think WUSA9 should be held responsible for their irresponsible journalism. - Justin in McLean (10/14/09)

Hey Dave, I am a regular ranter on the strange/suckish rock radio market we have in DC...and for a change, here's something positive about 105.9 The Edge. It may get on our nerves sometimes with the constant Boston/Lynyrd Skynyrd schlock, but it beats the old Classic Rock 94.7 The Globe by a longshot. It is 10 Times better than they were.....except the only thing The Edge doesn't have that TGB did are cool DJ's. I really hope to see Mike O'Meara, Cerphe, and maybe Albie Dee show up on VRX once their non-competes expire. MAN that would be so fucking cool. I'm also noticing today that The Edge is playing some more deep cuts, not much, but I'm still loving it. Hopefully, it'll stay this way. I took a look at yes.com, and the Edge dug out U2's Even Better Than The Real Thing, last nite around 3AM, that is cool. Oh, Dave...like yourself i am a hardcore fan of U2 as well... But anyway I heard VRX play Peace Frog by the Doors today, and Ten years Gone by Zep. I don't even know where to start when telling you how much better than BIG 100.3 this station is. This is the kind of rock radio DC has been missing for so long. (10/14/09)

I too want to commend Sylvie. Job well done. Next can you please use your feminime wiles to get WMAL to can that Godawful trucking show? I wonder if there are very many like me, which may explain the morning show dip in ratings. I like Coast to Coast a lot. I would drift off to sleep listening to C2C then wake up to Geezer and Gopher, I mean Andy & Grandy. Since they cut C2C to 2 hours, I've been listening to KFI in LA overnights online, then Bill Handel's morning show until Rush (Handel is light years better than Joe,,,and most things on the air here in DC), and if I'm home I'll listen to Rush on KFI's stream as opposed to WMAL. Interesting sidenote about KFI: they ran Dr Laura after Rush (12-3PM LA time). Her contract was up and KFI didn't renew it. Instead of getting a new host, Bill Handel does 5-9 AM (LA time), then Rush does his show, then Handel comes back and does a 12-2 PM show. Their 3PM show now starts at 2PM to cover the 3rd hour of Dr. Laura's void. Talk about burn out.... (10/14/09)

Let's get real here. Why would the Yankees or Red Sox affect the Baltimore Orioles TV ratings any more than the Nat's playing the Red Sox or the Phillies or Mets or even other teams since DC has so many people from out of town compared to Baltimore which has far less transplanted people? I personally don't even want to watch the $100 Million+ payroll bloodbath when the Yanks come to town in Baltimore. So please, quit the useless "I'm in denial that The Nats and their fans suck" excuses. Every single excuse falls on its face. Just admit it for christ sake, your TV ratings are last place for an 9th place media market and it has nothing to do with MASN or Peter Angelos or the Red Sox or the Yankees! And some other idiot kept trying to claim it was due to not being able to find the channel! Is that not like the stupidest excuse you've ever heard in your lifetime? Are people in DC really that dumb? I don't think so, but i'm starting to wonder. (10/14/09)

/\ October 14 Messages /\

\/ October 13 Messages \/

Dave: watch posting totally bogus stuff like this from left-wing, American loathing hate mongers. “I wonder what will happen to Limbaugh the first time he tells a 380-pound African American lineman to put a bone in his nose or go rob a liquor store, as he occasionally tells African American callers...?” According to Rush today on my local Washington DC radio station, WMAL, he and his attorneys are ready to take legal action to those who print and/or spread such vile misquotes & lies. I have listened to Rush Limbaugh since he first came on the air in Los Angeles (KFI) in the 80’s and he has NEVER, EVER, EVER, said anything even vaguely similar to the aforementioned, let alone anything that would warrant true racists like Sharpton & Jackson to spout off. Be critical of Limbaugh, Levin and others, but be accurate: otherwise, you are like the Nazis spreading disinformation. And I think Rush is serious about this: www.rushlimbaugh.com (10/13/09)

Don Geronimo 2.0:: Tick Tock.Tick Tock. As he fades further & further into obscurity, the 24 radio news cycle on Mike Sorce has expired and now we return you to your regularly scheduled DCRTV Programming and hopefully, a moratorium on anything Geronimo for at least 10 months. (10/13/09)

Quote: "I'm sure you were sounding like Meg Ryan's "YES YES YES" scene at the Waldorf Walmart when you got the news." Brilliant! Yes I was. And since 'Plan A' has now been executed (Plante back at WMAL), I'm going back to my bunker and scheme on Plan B, which is to have Jerry Klein back at WMAL too. Although I know this is just me dreaming, I can't help but think of all the good times, arguments, discussions and all-out yelling & screaming between Chris & Jerry.... Ahhhh, good times! Welcome back, Chris. -Silvie- (10/13/09)

"DC is the only TV market in the country where a team from another city gets better ratings than the hometown team. Orioles games on MASN drew a 0.67 rating and 16,000 homes in DC during the '09 season, a rating ...that is 12% higher and a household distribution that is 14% higher than the Nationals' 0.60 rating and 14,000 homes." I wonder what the figures would be if you took games involving the Yankees and Red Sox out of the equation (the Orioles face them 36 times each year; this season, due to interleague schedule rotation, the Nats had six games against the AL East's two evil empires). I think the Nats would probably be comfortably ahead in those non-Yanks/Bosox games; remember, Washington has a lot of NY/New England emigres, especially in the government. Once the Nats field competitive teams -- and it will happen someday -- their TV rating numbers will be good. If I were MASN, I would try to get the NBA or NHL to put a franchise in Baltimore once a new arena is built. That network needs a winter pro sports property desperately, and I doubt CSN.will let the Capitals, Wizards or the next-best thing, ACC sports, get away. -- Vincent in Triangle (10/13/09)

Is don geronimo headed to KCJJ to join robbay on the station that blasts throughout the Mid-West? Frankly, this starting a job and then quitting in short order doesn't look good to this radiophile. Adios, Keith garvin remember him from days down in Durham,N.C. guess the bell was ringing with Craig melvin in place. doesn't the constant spork's talk about redskin's just get ponderous and ponderous? (10/13/09)

I was just getting used to NBC4 having only one anchor on the morning weekend broadcasts and now I read that that Keith Garvin's leaving..So I wonder who will take his place..Hope it isn't Kimberly Suter..She filled in a couple of times on the weekend and just didn't seem to fit..But I guess people have to start somewhere..Look at Tony Perkins..He's gone from weather guy to anchor in training.. (10/13/09)

RE: "A belated 84th birthday to WMAL. They went on the air October 12, 1925" And, this begs the question, "How long have they been on life-support?" Not to mention, "How long before someone either mercifully pulls the plug or performs radical surgery to end the suffering?" Chris Plante is a genuinely nice guy. But, he won't stop the ratings slide singlehandedly . If WMAL were truly committed to being the "conservative" voice of Washington", they would can Limbaugh, Hannity, Levin, et al, and go all locally originated conservative talk. Without WMAL, the syndicated talkers would simply start drifting in the breeze like so much chaff. Where would they go? WAVA? Unlikely? Especially Limbaugh as his on-air religious roots seem ambiguous at best, And strictly political at their cynical worst. WHFS? You've got to be kidding! However, ditch the syndicated shouters, put Plante in AM drive (Yes, I'm also saying what to do about the current AM drive line-up...) hire back John Matthews as a full-time ND with a real news department and you might give WTOP fits. Put a good and credible sports tilted segment in drive and you might do the same to WJFK, In fact, had WJFK not gone sports, I'd have said put in a sports talk show in the evening. But, now that's a moot point. WMAL... What a wasted opportunity! -Unsigned Corporate Suit (10/13/09)

This didn't get a lot of press, but Anheuser Busch sold off its theme parks including Busch Gardens nearby in VA and in FL and Sea World parks to the company that holds a near 50% ownership of Universal Studios Florida. That is going to be the next GE / NBC Universal move I bet. They'll just make licensing deals and GE will get out of the theme park biz soon. That's my prediction. Whether GE sells the rest is debatable after that, but I have a feeling whatever deal if any happens is going to be a split deal because none of the interested companies can keep all the assets. Strangely, both Comcast & FOX are very conservative companies. If those 2 slice up NBC/Universal, well, all I have to say is hmmm, Keith Olbermann, is your resume up to date? hehe -- Joe in Essex (10/13/09)

Dave, If I'm not mistaken this month or next month marks the 40th Anniversay of Johnny Holliday coming to Washington and WWDC. What a mark Johnny has left on the Washington-Baltimore community . Our thoughts and prayers continue for his family and his 11 year old grandson. Shawn,Bethesda (10/13/09)

Dave wrote: "I think if you see a Comcast takeover of NBC Universal, you'll see NBC sell its owned broadcast TV stations, including DC's Channel 4/WRC." I believe if Comcast is successful, they will be required to sell those stations due to regulatory concerns. Comcast isn't after the broadcast sticks, anyway, they're after the cable/satellite/programming assets. (10/13/09)

The Conscience of Don Geronimo wrote: "Finally, like the kid who takes his football and runs home during the middle of a football game, Sorce has once again shown no respect or class and proven in selfish manner...(yadda yadda)" If you don't have to work with the guy or deal with him in any capacity other than as a listener, why do you care? Signed, Not A Defender of Doni G, But Just Sick Of Your Self-Righteous Obsession With Him (10/13/09)

("And perhaps that's why Joe Scarborough's getting the steel-toed boot from old 630 at 10 AM") Joe's getting the boot because he SUCKS! He's like listening to paint dry. I'd like to nominate Sylvie for a Nobel Peace Prize for her tireless efforts in getting Chris Plante back on the air. I'm sure you were sounding like Meg Ryan's "YES YES YES" scene at the Waldorf WalMart when you got the news. :) (10/13/09)

I can not see why ch13 and ch45 do traffic reports in the afternoon (except for the sponsorship). The reports can not be seen or heard by those in their cars and they seem to be infatuated with the current speeds. The speeds can be useful in the morning, but certainly not in the afternoon for the above stated reasons. Give the time to a more complete news story. (10/13/09)

"...Fancy, the only people crying are those who hated the result of the last election. Just like I had to in '00 and '04, I shut up and dealt with the results. You should do the same..." Really? I mean REALLY? You must have been the only Dem' who kept quiet. Or lived in a bubble. All I heard throughout 2000-2008 on the local media outlets was "Bush is an idiot, Bush is a Nazi, Bush stole the election, Republicans want to starve babies, Republicans want the elderly to die; there were marches in the streets, burnings in effagy, countless jokes, most in bad taste, on the air, in print, on the blogs. I was not a fan of Bush but you're delusional or have no short or long term memory if you think the left kept quiet during his presidency. Our current POTUS and both Houses seem hell bent on ramming through every piece of draconian legislation they've lusted over for the past 10 years, and I'm sorry if the rights' questioning and complaining upsets you. But didn't our current Secretary of State utter (maybe screeched) during Bush's term that "...we have the right to debate and disagree with any administration..." Free Speech...it's only good for what's Left. Signed P.A. Cavity, laughing, scratching, and loving the change and transparency, in beautiful, unhistoric, Hoodbridge, VA. (10/13/09)

Dave's response: Come on. Keep your posts media-related.....

There's a remembrance of the great Eddie Gallaher still posted on the web from the time of the announcement of his passing. Interesting reading at slick.org/deathwatch. I met the man, briefly in the early 1970s, during his tenure at WASH-FM, when people gathered at a WTTG-TV studio (one floor above WASH) to commemorate the occasion of one of his many ten-year anniversaries. (10/13/09)

I'd like to add my 3¢ to the DXing discussion. From my teenage outpost in Brooklyn, NY, I could hear "Radio Las Americas" from Swan Island back in the 1960s. It was on what was called a split frequency, 1165 KHz. And, according to all the radio communcations magazines (long after it was off the air), it was apparently a CIA operation. I could get it usually just around sunset (the best time for DXing) right there next to WWVA-1170. The "farthest, hardest" AM station I got from New York City was ZNS-1540 from Jamaica (not Long Island, the West Indies). I got it exactly once. Somewhere on a tape (but I no longer have a reel-to-reel tape recorder) I have a jingle and legal ID for "KYW, Cleveland, Ohio, a Group W station, Westinghouse Broadcasting, it's 11 o'clock", back when it was on 1100 KHz. Those were the good old days. -- Carl in Olney (10/13/09)

Dave's response: I believe ZNS is from Nassau in the Bahamas, a bit closer to the USA than Jamaica is. You could almost consider Nassau a distant suburb of Miami.....

10/13 Washington PPM's - WTEM is up and isn't WAMU down a bit? I have wondered how the Kornheiser show might affect these two stations. I used to listen to Diane Rehm daily, but haven't since Tony came back on the air. And it's hard to return to Kojo's show after the fun and entertainment on WTEM. I haven't even listened to the excellent Politics Hour since Mr K's return as well. I look forward to and listen to the Kornheiser show daily, and will frequently stick around for the Sports Fix. I was not a sports radio listener before. Robert, Arlington. (10/13/09)

Dave's response: Just checked and WTEM is definitely trending upward in the overall age 12+ numbers in middays, 10 AM to 3 PM. From 18th place two or three weeks ago to 15th now. And I'm sure it's doing much better in the manly male demos, which I didn't get to see. I can't see Kornheiser much affecting Rehm, who probably attracts a lot of liberal women. The "Maude" crowd. Kornheiser, on the other hand, would probably attract more old men, the kind of geezers who listen to WMAL. And perhaps that's why Joe Scarborough's getting the steel-toed boot from old 630 at 10 AM.....

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The discussion regarding dx'ing the AM audio signal of Benjie's Drive-in triggered a memory of some very strange programming by Ocean City's 1590 (then WETT) in the mid 1970s. 16 WETT produced the locally originated programming on Eastern Shore CATV's Channel 9 througout the 70s. Channel 9 ran really awful movies from midnight to 6, and for some reason 1590 ran the audio from the movies. I remember being on vacation and laying in our beach cottage listening to the audio from classics like "It Came From Outer Space" on my Radio Shack Flavoradio. -Mike in Bartonsville (10/13/09)

I saw Bob A's comment about the righty health care coverage on Fox45. No fair and balanced coverage at this station. The Smith boys ride again. I wonder if there is a direct line from Hunt Valley to 41st street. (10/13/09)

washington.bizjournals.com: D.C. is the only TV market in the country where a team from another city gets more viewers than the hometown team. Orioles games on MASN drew a 16,000 homes in D.C. during the 2009 season, that is 14 percent higher than the Nationals' 14,000 homes. Added together, an average of 30,000 D.C. homes watched two teams that combined for 201 losses, a household mark that is better than just two other teams: the A's (20,000) and the Royals (29,000)..... (10/13/09)

To the person who posted about picking up the Bengies Drive-In AM 830 radio signal down in DC..... Guess what? They're still open, they didn't close yet..... www.facebook.com/bengies... Wouldn't it be great if they like powered up the transmitter for just like the last night of the season and you could hear a movie on the radio like in the great old radio days? hehe. Of course they'd probably be fined out of business by the FCC in short order, but oh well. It doesn't hurt to dream. :-) (10/13/09)

According to your front page item, WDCN -- the low-powered Spanish-whatever station on the far-left side of the FM dial -- is outpacing 50-KW WFED. Why does Bonneville continue to waste a good AM signal on a format better suited to podcasting? (10/13/09)

Dave's response: Yeah, I think maybe Bonneville should keep WFED on 820 AM and via the internet, and add it to WTOP's HD subchannels. And then take 50,000-watt 1500 AM and make it big band, older oldies, or classic country with trucker shows at night.....

Thanks for the ratings info, which always interests me. I noticed that the parenthetical references to WMAL's talkers indicates, I think, a fairly sizable uptick for Hannity, and maybe for Rush as well. (Grandy and Andy are languishing.) Have you tracked their performance over recent quarters? Seems like Rush and Hannity are recovering after the GOP's recent beatings at the ballot box. Is that evident in other markets as well? Anyone know? Christian (10/13/09)

To Teddy Roosevelt and Dwight D Eisenhower: I know you’re cranky from being dead and all, so I’ll overlook that you missed my point about the NFLPA citing sports’ ability to “overcome division and reject discrimination and hatred” as the reason to discriminate against and hate Rush Limbaugh’s bid to be part of a group that buys the St. Louis Rams simply because the executive director doesn’t like Limbaugh’s politics. Nowhere in my original email did I claim “blind adherence” to Rush Limbaugh’s views or anyone else’s except my own. There is, however, a modern concept called “projection” that you two may want to look up. You can now stop spinning and go back to your eternal rest. Chris from Bethesda (10/13/09)

The only way Rupert Murdoch would even be interested in NBC-Universal is likely to carve it up just for the cable channel properties... and possibly for Universal Studios. (Bravo, USA, Sci-F... er, "Syfy," Telemundo, and The Weather Channel... all of which are nothing to sneeze at.) Plus, merging the struggling Universal Studios into 20th Century Fox - in a manner similar to MGM's buyout/merger of United Artists - would be an earth-shattering move. The NBC-TV and O&O group and MSNBC (and maybe even CNBC, if it isn't merged into Fox Business) would be spun off. NBC's fallen so much off the map in a downward trajectory since 2002, so much so that their only growth - period - has been in adding to their cable channel stable. The only thing from NBC-TV that has any staying power is both Today and the Nightly News. But it's extremely unlikely. My money's on Comcast for a takeover. - Nate in Cleveland (10/13/09)

Dave's response: I think if you see a Comcast takeover of NBC Universal, you'll see NBC sell its owned broadcast TV stations, including DC's Channel 4/WRC. With NBC, eventually, perhaps 10 years down the road, becoming a completely non-broadcast network like ESPN or CNN.....

Word on street of a big layoffs today for local westwood 1 peeps. (10/13/09)

"Grandy and Andy, who start their show at 5 AM, absolutely hated doing the fifth hour at 9 AM....." Poor babies! The WTOP drivetime anchors have always worked 5am-10am running their own board and kicking WMAL's butt in the process. (10/13/09)

Don Geronimo 2.0:: To Bob in Forrest Hill & other supporters,who knew "Geronimo"stood for 'let's get the hell out of here - again!One, no courtesy going away swan song 1-2 week party notice from Sorce - damn even right-wing/ultra cracker conservative WGMD would have appreciated that. Two, as twittered by WGMD PD Dan "the Big Gaff" Gaffney this morning, Sorce must have left in a hurry because " @dongeronimoshow Hey, you left your autographed Cowsills record here! I'll treasure it forever. (unless you want it back)." Three, in Hollywood, the saying goes "always leave them wanting more" In Sorce's case it continues to be "don't let the studio door hit you in the ass on the way out." Finally, like the kid who takes his football and runs home during the middle of a football game, Sorce has once again shown no respect or class and proven in selfish manner as Keith Olberman would say Mike Sorce may be" the worst person in R. A. D. I. O" At leastMike Sorce has time to finish his "book." Wonder if there is anyone left in the industry to write the intro? (10/13/09)

(Was it just my reception, or did others have awful video on the Maryland/MTSU game on Saturday? I have Dish Network and the video was horrible and the audio bad as well. Shawn in DC." Uh, Shawn, the Maryland/MTSU game was on Sept. 19. Are you in the same funk that the Terps defense is? Fear The Turtle. Tom In Wheaton) I did not make that post yesterday. I made it at the time of the game in September and I have no idea why it was reposted under yesterday's date. Dave??????? (Shawn in DC) (10/13/09)

Dave's response: I got it yesterday! Go figure.....

Hey, Dave, Do you you know all those right wing groups that the left claimed purchased in bulk "Liberty & Tyranny," so as to get it on best seller lists? Well, now is the time to clear the wharehouses of all those books. You can purchase today only Liberty & Tyranny by Mark Levin for only 4.95! www.wnd.com. And speaking of World Net Daily crap, welcome back to WMAL Chris Plante. (10/13/09)

And so it ends....the wonderfully refreshing DCRTV mailbag sans useless ramblings by ThePenis is no more...It was nice while it lasted and it will be missed....Signed, ThatThingIsMightier (10/13/09)

Saw this posted on someone's Facebook page: (from Sports Business Journal...) DC is the only TV market in the country where a team from another city gets better ratings than the hometown team. Orioles games on MASN drew a 0.67 rating and 16,000 homes in DC during the '09 season, a rating ...that is 12% higher and a household distribution that is 14% higher than the Nationals' 0.60 rating and 14,000 homes. (10/13/09)

Sounds to me like Don Geronimo got some serious positive feedback from Clear Channel or Citadel… maybe The Danny… less likely, Bonneville. With all its limitations, RZ/WTEM came up with the goods to snag Tony the K, and maybe they’ve got Don in their sights, too. Or, God knows, Sirius/XM. With Stern, O&A, Mad Dog, Jay Thomas, et al already in the zoo, Geronimo would fit right in. Okay, I’ll put $10 on The Satellite Sisters and take the points. Why leave the beach and screw with this again? Well, like Brett Favre (could have) said, “Hey, if they’re dumb enough to pay me this kind of money…” (10/13/09)

Dave's response: Since there's no more "guy talk" format in DC, Don would have to go to a sports talker or to a political talker if he was to return to a DC talk station. I just can't see Don doing righty political rants on WMAL or WTNT. And I can't see him re-signing with CBS to go back to now-sports talk WJFK. There's just too much "bad blood" there, even with Michael Hughes gone. So, might he go to Redskins owner Dan Snyder's WTEM? Sure, Don has badmouthed Snyder a-plenty during his JFK days, but the revengeful Snyder might just want to "stick it" to CBS and TEM arch rival JFK with one of their former top talents in morning or afternoon drive. Don does know football, inside and out. And, even in these recessionary times, Snyder would have the dough to pay Don what Don thinks he's worth. It's a shame that we'll have to wait another whole year, at least, to see this possibility "play out." If that's what's up, CBS's legal eagles will definitely keep Don on the DC radio sidelines for every friggin' minute that he's still under contract to them, until October 2010.....

I wonder what will happen to Limbaugh the first time he tells a 380-pound African American lineman to put a bone in his nose or go rob a liquor store, as he occasionally tells African American callers...? (10/13/09)

Chris! So proud...to see you back at the helm of DCRTV. While Dave, your amanuensis, has done a stellar job, there's no substitute for the real deal. Just one leftover bit of business, the removal of the offensive post referrring to a mildly retarded adult as "that thing." Great to have you back, big guy!!! --- ThePenIsMightier (10/13/09)

Dave's response: While I often disagree with Chris Plante, it's good to see WMAL adding back two daily hours of LOCAL programming. Now, if the station could only put together a LOCAL afternoon drive talk show, plus reinstating a fulltime news department, it might actually be onto something.....

Oh No! The Mailbagger who keeps insisting that "Chris Plane exposed Sarah Palin to be an idiot" is back! Sorry, dude, that was not Plante. That was Couric, Fey, and Gibson. Enough of this nonsense! But thank you to WMAL for bringing back Chris Plante. We'll take the risk that he'll single-handedly bring down the Republican Party! (10/13/09)

Re: "Sorce's days of having to explain his pathetic personal & professional decisions are long gone." Oh, look, it's the DCRTV Mailbag's Self Appointed Conscience of Don Geronimo! And he continues to assert his moral superiority over the former WJFK host by calling him by his real last name! Woo hoo! I missed you, Conscience. But let's make it clear...DG does NOT have to explain anything to you. Period. Look, did anyone really think Doni would be on WGMD for more than a few months? He wants to return to DC, and bad, and has decided not to do his part-time midday show from the Shore in the Winter while he puts those ducks in a row. Unlike with the WOCM gig, he didn't trash the station or ownership or management this time...he seems to genuinely like them. He probably went to them and asked for a little more "full-time" scratch between now and October 2010, when even WGMD knew he'll leave for DC. Look, Don Geronimo is a radio host who has to explain nothing to anybody. His career is talking on the radio, and if you want to tune in and listen, you can (assuming you're in his listening area). If you don't like him, there are dozens of other media options in Delmarva, DC and beyond. Unlike you, Mr. "Conscience", the rest of us don't take Don Geronimo's career moves all that seriously. (10/13/09)

Anyone notice how one-sided Fox 45 Baltimore's health care coverage is? It's bent so far to the right, I have to put books under my TV to balance it out. Bob A. in Pikesville, MD. (10/13/09)

"Was it just my reception, or did others have awful video on the Maryland/MTSU game on Saturday? I have Dish Network and the video was horrible and the audio bad as well. Shawn in DC." Uh, Shawn, the Maryland/MTSU game was on Sept. 19. Are you in the same funk that the Terps defense is? Fear The Turtle. Tom In Wheaton (10/13/09)

Not local media, but worth a mention - Richard W. Sonnenfeldt, the chief interpreter for American prosecutors at the Nuremberg war crimes trials, has died in New York. He was 86. A German-born Jew, Sonnenfeldt was a U.S. Army private who helped liberate the Dachau concentration camp when he was selected as interpreter. He later became an electrical engineer and helped develop color television at RCA. (10/13/09)

Dave, Would the U.S. government actually allow Rupert Murdoch to have control or a stake in two of the four major over the air broadcast networks(FOX and NBC)? If so WOW talk about media power. (10/13/09)

Dave's response: Nah. And I think Comcast will have a very tough time getting regulatory approval to take over NBC Universal.....

Re: the comment from the obnoxious anon bracket-writer [we], "Don Geronimo 2.0:: Mike Sorce quits WGMD & burns another radio bridge." Actually, I was pleasantly surprised by the tone and clarity of Donnie G.'s post. Very gracious, complementary and showing a pretty reasoned thought process. Doesn't sound like a burnt bridge at all. Of course, none of us know what WGMD's management thinks, so time will tell. But my initial, one-sided reading is that Don's calming down and being more introspective. I hope that's the case and that he rises again, as I've been a fan since he was in afternoons on WAVA, BM. Bob in Forest Hill (10/13/09)

Tonite on "This Old Cardboard Box", Wandering Willie blends Thunderbird wine and a dead squirrel over a newspaper fire for a symphony of flavor. Don't miss it! (hic!)...Whoopie!!! www.cnn.com (10/13/09)

Dave, don't know if you have mentioned it on the front page or not, but Hot 99.5 night DJ Grooves' bio page has been removed from the website. I remembered you posting a while back that you heard he was leaving, but I didn't hear anymore about it. (10/13/09)

Great news for local radio! (From WMAL:) Chris Plante is Back! You spoke (man did you speak,) and we listened (finally!) We received thousands and thousands and thousands of emails, phone calls and letters... even a few smoke signals (OK, maybe not that last thing,) and they all said the same thing: WE... WANT... CHRIS!! Thank God for second chances and persistent listeners like you. Please join us in welcoming back a conservative’s conservative, Chris Plante to the 9am-noon slot, beginning Monday. He’s always insightful, often outspoken, frequently fearless and predictably unpredictable, but be forewarned... Chris hasn’t spoken in 6 months... he has a LOT to say. Thanks for your patience. Please be sure to tell your friends that Chris is back on 630 WMAL. See ‘ya Monday morning at 9! (10/13/09)

Dave's response: Chris will start his new WMAL show on a royal throne on Monday morning with Bob McDonnell there to wash his feet.....

We relaunch The Q&A Cafe this week at the Georgetown Ritz-Carlton. Actress, comedian and Oprah regular Alexandra Wentworth is the interview. Seating begins at noon, the program begins at 12:30. If you have a reservation, please reconfirm today at 202.912.4110. If you're on the wait list, check in later today or tomorrow. You might also make a reservation for our next Q&A, when we get the husband's point of view from outrageous Simon van Kempen, one of the stars of the "Real Housewives of New York." The date for that program is November 12. There is a "Real Housewives of DC" update in my New York Social Diary column today, as well as some wonderful jazz at he Kennedy Center and a little more of Reggie Van Lee's champagne party at the Watergate. NYSD: www.nysocialdiary.com (10/13/09)

Chris Plante exposed Sarah Palin to be an idiot just a week before the election (she even had to go on national television to try an make up for her really stupid remark made on the Chris Plante Show). Next week he returns to do further damage to the Republican Party. Watch out! Expect riveting exposes on certificates of live birth, FEMA death camps for old people, and government ordered euthanasia. Is this move designed to lure Silvie back from WTNT? Why does WMAL want to hurt the Republican party, again? (10/13/09)

LOL!!! This is AWESOME NEWS for me and the fans.... you don't know how much we've all lobbied the WMAL powers-that-be for the past 6 months to get him back on-air.... Silv (10/13/09)

Dave's response: Yeah, those scandalous pics you had of MAL PD Paul Duckworth must have really worked to get Plante back on the station. Ha ha ha.....

A belated 84th birthday to WMAL. They went on the air October 12, 1925 (10/13/09)

(Dave's response: Christian contemporary stations do well in the PPMs. In the DC market, WGTS is now a top 10 performer, something that it never was in the old diary system.....) Dave - ...also... RBS also flipped to (nearly) all music in early August, changed its name, brought in new talent, and relaunched as basically a new radio station. (10/13/09)

Dave's response: We did report that. They changed their name to "The Shine." I said it sounded too much like "The Shining," the old Jack Nicholson horror film. I think that's why WRBS made the all-music flip for 95.1. They saw the Baltimore PPMs coming and were seeing how well Christian contemp WGTS was doing in the DC PPMs. Smart move.....

As for El Zol getting lots of revenue with low ratings you just need to look at New York City starting in the late 1980s. Many former English-speaking powerhouse stations with storied 40+ year histories switched to Spanish and made more money than anyone else for decades without denting the ratings, and then as the Hispanic population grew, they end up today regularly posting in the top 3 in overall raitings. I'm not sure that could happen here, since we have many diaspora in the DC area and a strong urban black radio market, but the ratings do not reflect money share as far as non-black ethnic radio stations go. -Chainsman (10/13/09)

I like to keep up with all the HD radio goings-on. I knew that there was a movement afoot to get digital carrier power, which had been at 1% of the analog power, upped to 10%. What I didn't know was that the opposition to the plan was DC based NPR. They claim that the digital carriers will interfere with adjacent analog signals. Down in the swamp that is the area from 88.1–91.9 MHz, stations are close together and are, for the most part, lower power...obvious exemption being WETA, one of the few stations in zone 1 (northeast US) that has over 50kW ERP. Anyway, the kids at NPR say that they can back an increase to 4%, but they want a streamlined complaint system in case of issues and they are recommending asymmetrical digital sidebands. They are also holding out the carrot that, even though they can't back the "one size fits all" approach, which doesn't take spacing into account, they can get behind calculating different levels of HD carrier for each individual station. What's the FCC's stance? They are waiting for the industry to make a unified request and then they will make that the rule of the land. Is this a panacea? No, they are just moving the Titanic's deck chairs around faster and coming up with just the perfect arrangement. John (10/13/09)

Don Geronimo 2.0:: Mike Sorce quits WGMD & burns another radio bridge? [We], yes [we] gave Mike Sorce 7 weeks at WGMD - congratulations, the over bet wins by a few. His announcement today as reported by DCRTV and without a response by GM Dan "the Big Gaff" Gaffney on the station website or his Twitter account speaks loudly about what could have went down - oops, cross ANOTHER "Christian" referral off Sorce's resume. Sorce's days of having to explain his pathetic personal & professional decisions are long gone. What is obvious is the fact the hearing about Sorce's "next step" these days is like coming home from the bar drunk in the middle of the night, turning on the TV and instead of flipping on the porn channel, the remote control jams and your forced to watch Sally Struthers pitch helping those starving children in Ethiopia while fly's land on their heads - painful. Hey Sorce, [we] know you have options - albeit in this day & age, for a lot less $$ & respect. Here's an offer for you. Like Struthers, [we'll] give you $10 a month if you'll just go away. (10/13/09)

I think the end of DC101 as we know it is near....unless Cheap Channel does something to better it. There's nothing on that station that is listenable anymore. Elliot is now taking 4 to 8 commercial breaks per hour it seems, and they are now just plain boring as hell. No wonder DC101 is ranking much lower these days. As for the rest of the dayparts, DUMP ALL THE OTHER JOCKS!! every single jock on that station makes my ears bleed, and they are all a pain in the ass to hear. The kind of jock voice i HATE is one that makes my ears ring, even at a low volume. All the jocks at that station do that. DC101 should also go into more of a TRUE alternative direction, and stop calling itself DC's rock station, cause it isnt. They have to stop repeating the same crap on an hourly basis as well, and slow down on the songs that were hits 5 years ago. I think with 105.9 now playing the heavier classic rock songs from the 70s and 80s, that DC101 won't need to go into an active rock direction like WIYY is. Crappy DC morning radio and rock radio lives on.....sheesh! (10/13/09)

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