KUOW's Ken Vincent quits: I'm not the only one, but I'm the first...

Ken Vincent was midday announcer, news editor, and engineer of Weekday, The Conversation, and The Beat; he was the sound of weekdays at KUOW.

He quit Friday afternoon after 23 years with the public radio station.

On his website, Vincent,  50, cited "irreconcilable disagreements" with Program Director Jeff Hansen's "handling of editorial, airsound, technical and compensation concerns," and wrote he's not the only KUOW programmer with these concerns, but "I'm the first to decide not to take it any more."
               
(Photo: Ken Vincent: why is this man laughing?)

Vincent didn't close the door- "I hope and expect to work with the people at KUOW again someday."

In an interview Monday, Vincent told the Seattle Times' Florangela Davila he'd been "frustrated for a while ut that the last straw had to do with program changes announced Thursday."

On that day, the station said its weekday 2 p.m. show "The Beat," which had primarily focused on arts and culture, would be renamed "Sound Focus." The new program, which will debut Sept. 17, will explore a subject area that goes beyond the arts to include business, science and activism, according to an announcement. And in addition to in-studio conversations, the program will now also include out-in-the-field interviews.

The station also announced it would stop airing "The Writers Almanac," the five-minute poetry and history program hosted by Garrison Keillor, which had been included as part of "The Beat" broadcast.

On Monday, Weekday's Steve Scher announced Vincent's "abrupt" Friday departure.

"One identifiable hallmark of Ken's work [was] the musical choices that he made; they became comments on the program that added another level to the broadcast. He made 'Weekday' a better show," Scher said.

Close listeners and anyone who ever guested on the daytime shows knew Ken Vincent's mastery of the KUOW music archives to provide the perfect bumper music match for whatever topic was at hand- and that's saying something considering the broad, wide, and arcane subject matter that is local public radio fare. 

NPR listeners covet their public radio personalities, despite the near-obsessive public radio eschewing of personality and celebrity. Public broadcasters, we're told, seem to invoke more intimacy and familial feelings from listeners than do their outraged or hypermanic peers on commercial radio.

The self-promotion is probably there, they're human beings after all, but the down-toned ambience, the cerebral earnestness, and that they're not trying to sell you anything may make them seem more like someone you might know rather than the locus of a personality cult, a member of which you're supposed to wannabe.

Public radio broadcasters seem to stay around- for life, it'd seem- so when one leaves, it's more like a death than mere disruption of a daily listening regime.

Losing Ken Vincent is like a messy divorce rather than one of those cold-blooded corporate separations the like of which we just witnessed at KIRO.

Sounds like KUOW's in for some changes. Public radio, though doing better in this market than its commercial counterparts, hasn't been growing as much as it should either. We've reported on the national attempts to grow the litenerpie, and it stands to reason that the autonomous local stations must try to do the same.

Will the streets be strewn with babies thrown out with the bath water? Only time (and Ken Vincent, maybe, eventually) will tell.

From Ken Vincent's station bio:

Ken started at KUOW in 1984 and worked for seven years as a news reporter and local Morning Edition host. In 1991, he left KUOW to work three years in local politics and government for the Seattle City Council. After his stint working for the city, Ken did some writing for Seattle Weekly before returning to KUOW in 1995. Before KUOW, Ken worked in public and commercial radio and TV as a reporter, program host, News Director, and other positions in Seattle, Los Angeles, and Juneau, Alaska. He was born, raised and went to high school and college in eastern Washington state, and has spent most of his life a resident of Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood.

Comments

[joanie]

I haven't listened to NPR for a long time. Don't know why exactly except they changed programs on me and I lost interest. Also, I was attracted to the fiery AM political talk centered on the mess this country is in. I do still listen to one or two programs but mostly on line when I'm available to listen.

I think there are just too many choices out there these days.

Still, I hate it when people I've bonded to on the radio leave. It is hard. Even the AM hosts feel like family to me . . . just because I get in the habit of listening and habits are hard to break.

[Duffman]

As an aside:
Oh Boy...yet ANOTHER solicitation from the Edwards' family for $funds - this time appealing out of apparent jealousy that Mrs Clinton is being attacked by Karl Rove and they're not? [i.e. a ploy by the Repugs to focus attention on our next POTUS]
John exactly what part of the phrase 'you're history' don't you understand.

[fanofvincent]

what a huge loss! I know how it is when you get to attached to your employer, and that's what probably happened with Ken. It all became too dang important to him, instead of just being "his job". That's why he was so very good, and took it all so personally. Ken, it wasn't about YOU! Good luck. You're a gem.

[songs of yore]

Steve said it right: Ken Vincent added another dimension to Weekday. I will miss him. I hope the powers that be will not screw up KUOW, my radio home.

[Duffman]

Never listen to KUOW and was not familar with KV - but these last two posts are very kind and thoughtful. 23 Years is indeed a while to be loyal and devoted to a team!

[Justin Atheropinion]

Jeff Hansen--the guy who had the "bright idea" of losing Bob Edwards.

Given the way KUOW is making KIRO, KTTH, KVI and Gramma KOMO look over their shoulder (or watch their smoke), it seems a shame that Hansen always has to "fudge" with a winner. You can do that only so many times before you trash what attracts people.

KUOW's bright lights have a habit of moving to the National side (probably because their abilities make a mediocre programmer jealous and rewards their efforts with disdain, maybe?)

Makes me wonder if the new kid is ever going to play the theme from "Exodus" on their breaks. Would seem appropriate.

[HH]

What happened to Megan Sukys? She was so good on The Beat. Will Dave Beck be back? I'm not comfortable with a change with the three program approach. It works.

[trocar]

Why doesn't KUOW say anything about all this? Is this to be all top down like commercial radio? How about an on-air community meeting? How about an explanation? Why do we have to read this on a dman blog? (No offense, Micheal)

[Fremont]

I hope the KUOW will honor its claim and, indeed, find another slot for the fab "Writers Almanac". It seems that personalities are frazzled in the arcane closets of NPR's rock-solid edifice. H-m-m...so the cookie crumbles...

So, Duf, your admission ("Never listen to KUOW") clarifies the mystery of which piece of you is missing...

[Duffman]

ASSuming on your part F/Mont; after all you can never tell herein if it's the Duffman or if it's Memorex? Fair statement?

[mercifurious]

ASSuming on your part F/Mont; after all you can never tell herein if it's the Duffman or if it's Memorex? Fair statement?

Altogether now, Bla'M fam: Yaaawwwwwwwn

Go find Ms. Clinton's blog & post drudge stuff. She'll love it!

[Fremont]

Ditto to MF!

[Duffman]

Yes Ditto to MF!!!

[joanie]

Thanks, Fremont. I forgot to mention the absence of Writers Almanac which is also a favorite of mine. I do get it online more often than I hear it on KUOW. Fabulous few minutes of the day.

The eviction of that radio piece tells more about the integrity of programming than anything else in my opinion.

Duffman - you really aren't required to comment on everything. If you don't listen to KUOW, why not just let those who do talk about it. Take your own advice and put yourself aside when you have nothing to contribute except changing the topic at the first opportunity.

[Duffman]

Thank you mother joanie...after all you can be so sure that you're referring to my post(s) after the lambasting I've been taking herein with psudo-duffmans. So go without the facts and make judgements...like you ALWAYS get down on others for. What a hypocrite; I thought you were better than that...but possibly PugetSound is correct, it just be Ph(j)oanie.

[Duffgal]

Duff, you're being unfairly attacked because you are so correct on most things and these board members can't cope with that. Hang in there and don't let up.

[Duffman]

Thanks joanie, I appreciate that.
:o)

[Duffspark]

Ditto to what duffgal said!

[Duffspark]

Ditto to what duffgal said!

[Duffman]

Thanks sparks, knew I could count on you.

[Duff-furious]

duff: you're a good sport and I'm sorry for all of the teasing but hey you kind of asked for it.
Just so you know: I WILL be voting for Mrs Clinton.

[Duffman]

Hey merci...you da man! It's Okay.

[joanie]

Well, you killed this thread rather quickly, doffo.

[duff-s]

I do not know where you get the stamina to handle this crap.
I am impressed duffy.
keep on keepin on.

[Duffman]

Thanks duff-s aka: merci/sparks/joanie/coiler/fremont!
Very kind of you :o)

[Justin Atheropinion]

Don't get out much, huh?

[Duff-convict]

Just an hour a day for exercise.

[coiler]

I worked a fund-raiser at KUOW spring call-in drive for college credit. I met Steve Scher and another person Arvin Hokinson? Both rode their bikes to work which I thought was pretty cool. The studio had moved to a new state of the art facility and looked high tech. However it seems that most of their talent has moved on. Cynthia Doyon had a sucessful program there but was still part-time after 25+ years. I think UW/KUOW does it on the cheap, dazzling their listeners with flashy programming but seems so anti-labor for a 'progressive' audience that I stopped tuning in except for Cliff Mass' weekend weather update on Fri. mornings.

[recoil]

Thanks for sharing that.

[sandy]

I applied there once for a job they approached me about, and then turned down. Another employee sent me a string of emails from around the office with a bunch of hand-wringing by a bunch of white males, fretting if I was hired, it would be just another white male voice on the air. They turned me down on that basis apparently even though they had approached me in the first place.
Nobody else got hired for that, the same white male voices predominate over there.