Posted on 11/09/2006 9:53:37 AM PST by djjava
John DePetro, recently dismissed talk show host on WRKO, will be holding a press conference today, according to the Boston Herald Messenger blog.
Fired talk jock John DePetro wants his job back at Entercom-owned WRKO radio and he’s holding a 3 p.m. press conference today at his lawyer’s office.The statement points the finger at other WRKO AM personalities, saying Entercom “allows greater breadth of free speech to its other radio personalities.”
DePetro and his board operator, Jimmy Kiesling, were fired last week after DePetro called gubernatorial candidate Grace Ross a “fat lesbian” on his morning show. DePetro has apologized for the remark.
John DePetro can make an excellent case for wrongful termination. Julie Kahn, the woman who fired DePetro, is quoted in a Boston Globe article from July 18, 2004 describing what she feels is acceptable speech on WRKO, using Hillary Clinton as an example.
"Hey," says Julie Kahn. "I'm OK with nipples." Well, we could describe her the way, say, Bubba would have, because we're part of a newspaper, and the FCC has no power over us. Nonetheless, that would be ungallant in the extreme, even though she says she wouldn't mind it, not even on the radio stations she manages. "They could say, like, 'Julie Kahn is an idiot. She's a doofus-head,' " Kahn explains. "But 'All women GMs suck.' They can't do that anymore." So that means you can't say all women are fat b-- , but can you call Hillary Clinton a fat b-- ?"It's in poor taste," says Kahn, "but, technically, it's inside the line. She is a public figure."
Grace Ross is a public figure, and she is fat, and a lesbian. If you Julia Kahn says that you can call Hillary Clinton a "fat bitch," why can't Grace Ross be called a "fat lesbian?" Both are true.
This is pure hypocrisy on the part of Julia Kahn of Entercom, and WRKO. To quote Julia Kahn, "She's a doofus-head."
Please visit John DePetro's website for future updates.
DePetro bump.
A newspaper article said Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
complained about JD's anti-gay comments back in March and
asked that their spots be taken off during DePetro's slot.
WRKO complied. If you go to 'RKO's site you'll see they
(HPHC) advertise there, too. Right in between the "Podzinger"
and "Celtics schedule" bits on the site.
DePetro is asking they give him his show back, send him to
sensitivity training, and he promises he'll put Ross on
once per week so she can address her audience. Factors in
DePetro's dismissal, according to articles I've read:
--complaints from advertisers and poss. listeners
--low ratings--from 2.2 to 1.1
--After the Fat Matt incident he was kind of put on
probation and WRKO feels he broke that probation
--Jason Wolfe (WRKO PD) feels it wasn't so much what he
said but how he said it ("tone")
Personally I thought DePetro was good on occasion. Not exactly the most "pro radio" voice but hey that didn't
stop Al Franken. But consider WRKO doesn't want to
p--- off sponsors or listeners, and certainly not the
Red Sox--as they're now the flagship of Red Sox radio.
The Sox almost wound up on Greater Media's WBOS (GM
backed away from their proposal plus I think Entercom
topped it) and some felt the Sox didn't want their
flagship (WEEI up till now) to be a station that
constantly criticized Sox ownership.
Now consider this: Henry, Werner, Lucchino, Epstein
are all libs as far as I know. See pics of them posing
with Kerry on bostondirtdogs.com...Permission was given
for Queer Eye for the Straight Guy to film at Fenway
("Hi Theo!!!"--sound clip often played by JD).
Does Entercom/WRKO want to spoil its relationship with
the Sox? They spent big money to get the rights but if
a "controversial" talk host makes fun of gays, maybe they'd
withdraw from the contract...Notice also that since the
DePetro controversy, the "Scondras sound" seems to be
absent from Howie's show.
Would WRKO fire Howie for a similar offense? Maybe, but consider a) they'd give him a couple chances, and b)
Howie got higher ratings than DePetro. That actually could
be a factor in his firing. "Waiting for a good excuse..."
WRKO has to worry about complaints from listeners and
advertisers. Remember Stern and the FCC fines Infinity (now
CBS Radio) got? How about the fact that some stations
worry that too many negative things in their "public
file" could squash a license renewal?
There's a need for radio to be edge and controversial
but also for station owners to play it safe. WRKO
may feel it's time for the latter. Just my opinion...
Also re: the comparison to Dennis and Callahan:
that may have been first offense (got suspension). DePetro
had been suspended in July (IIRC) for the Amorello comment
and was warned he could get more serious action if it
happens again.
if JD can convince 'RKO to let him back on (maybe only
a weekday show) at the conditions he specifies, then
who knows...He may have some good points; as do they...
Janet Jackon's boob pretty much blew good radio out of the water. I'll tune into Mikey Adams on 'EEI every once in a while, and the Big Show every now and again, but other than the Red Sox, terrestrial radio is a wasteland. FM? What the hell is that? If not for the Pats on 'BCN, I could eliminate FM altogether.
************
I'm with you regarding the commercials, but who's on satellite other than Stern? I'd rather listen to all-commercials, all the time than Stern. Usually I listen to DePetro, Rush, Severin and some of Graham. Lately, Severin has been bashing the war and Bush, so I've been listening to Carr.
***********
You're right. WRKO won't jeopardize that relationship, especially, as you say, because his ratings aren't what Howie's are. Howie has also been with the station for years, although I'm not sure that's a factor.
There's plenty of talk on satellite other than Stern. Sirius, for example, has an entire channel devoted to conservative talk---if that's your bag. If not, it offers hundreds of music, entertainment, and sports channels.
That's good to know. We've been considering it for a while, but mostly for the music.
And WRKO has come out with a statement about DePetro's
proposal. As Tom Reilly would put it (in that clip
Howie plays), their answer? "N-O, no..."
http://cbs4boston.com/topstories/local_story_313155805.html
"WRKO issued a statement today saying his firing was appropriate and he won't be coming back. The statement read:
We understand that Mr. DePetro intends to hold a press conference this afternoon in an effort to seek reinstatement to his former position with Entercom's WRKO. Mr. DePetro no longer works for Entercom. His discharge was appropriate and justified. We do not intend to reinstate him. We have moved on and wish him well."
How about token conservative at Air America Boston?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.