Posted on 11/17/2006 12:56:04 AM PST by raccoonradio
WRKO radio today eliminated its entire news staff in a dramatic move station officials said is aimed at focusing full attention on its efforts to build an all-star talk lineup.
The AM station axed seven people, including news director Rod Fritz; news anchor and reporter Paul Tuthill; news anchors Listo Fisher, Mary Blake, Marga Bessette, Sharon Smith and part-timer Deb Daigle.
The cuts were effective immediately.
Slashing the news department - which included an award-winning team of veteran journalists - enables the Entercom-owned station to invest fully in its ‘‘core identity” as a talker, station officials said.
Sources say management wants a strong cast of personalities in place before WRKO begins broadcasting Red Sox games this spring.
“We’re not eliminating news. We’ve chosen to deliver it in another way,” Program Director Jason Wolfe told the Herald. “We’re just eliminating the need for a full service news department because we’re going to put our efforts and our resources into continuing to improve our talk format.”
In a statement, WRKO said it ‘‘will continue to talk about the news of the day through the ongoing dialogue between our show hosts and our listeners.”
With no news department of its own, Wolfe said WRKO will take advantage of digital technology. That includes beefing up its mobile media service and Web site. The station already runs news provided by the Associated Press, Fox News and the Herald on its Web site.
One initiative includes sending people up-to-the-minute, customized traffic reports to their cell phones. On the air, the local news will be outsourced and the national news delivered by Fox News Radio.
Two weeks ago, WRKO fired ratings-challenged talk host John DePetro after he called gubernatorial candidate Grace Ross a ‘‘fat lesbian” on the air.
WRKO’s current ratings aren’t helping the station.
In the key category of 25-to-54-year-olds, DePetro’s share dropped 50 percent, from a 2.2 in the spring to a 1.1 in the summer, according to numbers provided to the Herald.
In the same category, ‘‘Boston This Morning” dropped 68 percent; ‘‘The Scott Allen Miller Show” dropped 18 percent; Rush Limbaugh fell 42 percent; Herald columnist Howie Carr fell 11 percent; Todd Feinburg fell 17 percent; Michael Savage dropped 69 percent and ‘‘Coast to Coast” fell 26 percent.
Sources confirmed to the Herald that WRKO brass has been talking to former House Speaker Tom Finneran about a possible on-air role. The station has been interested in Finneran for some time.
Finneran was indicted last year on federal charges of perjury and obstruction of justice and the case goes to trial in January.
Sources say Finneran has been trying to get on WRKO on and off since Andy Moes died in 2001. Moes was the co-host of ‘‘Blute and Moes in the Morning.” Finneran has not returned phone calls.
One of WRKO's main problems is that their signal - it sucks. I live 55 miles north of Boston and the signal strength is laughable for a 50kW station, especially in the morning and evening hours. Entercom's other AM station in Boston, 680 WEEI, is even worse. I often wind up listening to Howie Carr on a (very weak) FM station here in Southern NH (WPTL) when the AM signal fades out.
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I'm not going to say where I am in that age group, but I mostly listen to talk radio. However, when I'm at the gym, I sometimes switch to music to inspire myself. Yesterday, I tuned in to WODS and immediately tuned out. Too soon for me as well.
Rod's a high school classmate of mine; we did school plays together 'way back when. Our high school class reunion is a week from tomorrow night, and he's scheduled to emcee a musical review we're putting on. This is very sad news....
Rod's a great guy, and a highly experienced news professional. I'm sure he'll land on his feet, and be back soon in a new incarnation. I just hope he'll be staying in Boston.
Give him my best -- tell him I wish him luck! -- A loyal listener.
I'll give him your message maryz!
850 WEEI, you mean...
In the case of both Howie and the Red Sox, WCRN AM 830
is around to help when it comes to west of Boston
Actually WRKO is supposed to push to the north and south--
especially after sunset
http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/pat?call=WRKO&service=AM&status=L&hours=N
(Day signal:
http://radio-locator.com/cgi-bin/pat?call=WRKO&service=AM&status=L&hours=D
Howie oughtta get syndicated nationwide.
I've never even lived in MA but still find his a great listen.
Oh, and Howie: The point behind podcasts is that PEOPLE SHOULD BE ABLE TO DOWNLOAD THEM EASILY TO THEIR iPODS, YOU CHUMP.
< |:)~
He tried but it didn't work out. At one time he was on
in places like Salt Lake City, Seattle, Hagerstown MD,
Newark OH (near Cincy), and down in Florida.
Also briefly Howie did shows via phone line for KFI in
LA (could hear them on Web) on Saturdays. KFI only...
right after Afghan war started I think.
From Wikipedia:
In September 1996 the show experimented with local syndication, sending the show out via ISDN connections to a group of stations around New England. The local experiment was such a success that - in January 1998 - ABC Radio Today started syndicating the show nationally. The show did not sustain a large nationwide following and syndication was handed over to SupeRadio. In 2005, Carr's show was syndicated to New England-only stations by Entercom, the corporate owner of WRKO.
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