BREAKING: carlson/schram to KOMO; ingraham to kvi

The Commentators, John Carlson and Ken Schram are being shuffled  fromKVI's drivetime and back to KOMO for an unusual 4 hour show from 10a to 2p. 

The syndicated Laura Ingraham, fresh from being dropped from Salem's KKOL will replace them, her morning show tape delayed for the afternoon drive. This will start Monday Sept. 29.

KVI has only one live and local weekdaily program: Kirby & Co. (5-9a) left, not like KTTH's David Boze show, the single live spot among national shows beamed down from "the birds" and fussed over by robots.

Syndication usually costs a station nothing but advertising time. No cash outlay.

Parent company Fisher Broadcasting hasn't much cash to lay out these days.

We're guessing this is only the beginning of the upheavals we'll be seeing around KOMO and KVI.

Fisher's been downsizing after a poor two years in which they lost the Mariners, had Wall Street investors howling, put their downtown building on the block; fired April Zepeda, and Bryan Suits. Employees report they're bringing their own toilet paper rather than participating in the recycling TP program proscribed by the company. "Use both sides!")

This is seen to be a move towards more talk for KOMO 1000, whose all-news format was given life support by Mariners baseball. They were forced to drop game coverage due to the high cost. KIRO picked up The Mariners starting next season.

The Commentators (affectionately known as The Taters) were originally launched January 2006, 9a to noon on KOMO where they gained little traction in the competitive mid-morning slot. Not many listeners were gained when they were moved to another to afternon drive on KVI, and had to compete with NPR's All Things Considered, KIRO's Ron & Dipshit; and KPTK's Rachel Maddow.

Comments

[Duffman]

See what I mean? THIS is the kind of stuff that we get first because of this blog. This is worth something and I hope EVERYone reading this has or will contribute to the BlatherWatch fund.

[marcus]

KVI is but a shell of its former wself. they invented seattle talk radio, I am sad.

[cinco]

I have A feeling they'd get rid of Carlson and Schrambo too if they didbn't have contracts too expensive to break.

[Paco]

The Commentators will fail on KOMO, too. They are boring and have fallen into predictability.

[KIRO-GYRO]

More syndication, fewer local voices. fewer opportunities for guys and gals coming up in radio. I work for the competition, but his bums me and my co-workers out on many levels.

[brianfromlacey]

it all started when they got rid of suits. bad move.

[Duffman]

Definitely far from the days of Robert E Lee Hardwick.
I'm still hoping they (either KVI or KOMO) will give John Carlson a solo shot again and dealing with mainly local politics. Ken Schramm must 'know somebody' for him to be on the air. He was fair on his 'Town Meeting' TV Show..back when but he's a non-event now. Kirby must have too large of a contract to sever? Still feel there's another shoe to drop though. Will Laura Ingram draw me back to KVI ....HECK NO!

[Casual listener]

'Taters started on KVI in that time slot, no? (against Rush after KVI lost him to the new K-T-T-H).

[Sleestak]

If it ain't live talk radio, it might as well be last week's news. Afternoon talk radio has been very painful to listen to in the Seattle area with Carlson/Shram, Ron&Don, Boze, and Hugh-Hew.

BRING BACK TOM LEYKIS!!!!

[Zan Ozimek]

I wonder if the 10AM start time is intended to siphon Dori's audience? That is, non-Ross KIRO listeners who tune to The Commentators as an alternative aren't likely to then switch to Dori at noon after they've invested 2 hours already. Four hours is a big commitment but the silver-tongued Art Bell used to do 5 hours and, sometimes he'd just tack on an extra hour and go 6 hours if he felt like it. Then George Noory came along and barfed over everything (www.georgenoorysucks.com). I digress.

I wish some station in Seattle would carry Tom Martino's "The Troubleshooter" show. I also wish KTTH would axe Boze so we could get Michael Savage live instead of on a 3-hour delay.

[Larry]

Savage sucks ass. Randi Rhodes RULES!

[Ben]

Sleestak, Leykis airs every night, 10 pm to 1 am on KISW "The Rock of Seattle" (which sure seems to have a lot of talk instead...?)

[RobP]

>>'Taters started on KVI in that time slot, no?<<

No.

'Taters started on KOMO and were moved to KVI.

Rusty Humphries was brought in to fill the crater left when Limbaugh moved to 770. And Rusty gave it his all - but it wasn't nearly enough.

[Herbalizer]

KVI is on its death bed! Too many years of mindless support for Bush. I called in one day a few years ago and Carlson told me Bush is one of the best presidents of all time. If you're that delusional, you're going to have a tough time in the Seattle area. Jesus, guns and ignorance doesn't sell that well around here. Too many people have an education in this area.

Can't wait for KVI to close its doors. Fat fuck Kirby will be off the air for good in the Seattle area.

Maybe some dumb fuck Christian station will pick up Kirby and his dip shit side kick, Carleen Johnson. Can't remember the name of dip shit side kick #3? He'll have to tag along too so he can continue to jack Kirby off.

What a bunch of worthless fucks.

[joanie]

Amen, Herbalizer!

[Gay Gary]

GAY GARY HERE.

I'm a conservative and I agree with Herbalizer. The day KVI closes their doors will be a day too late. There are awesome conservative hot talk stations like KFI in LA and there are Salem Communications wannabe stations like KVI. KFI is successful because they're conservative but don't touch religion. KVI is a failure because they can't separate politics and religion ... and they put no effort into programming the station ... after 6PM it's just a random hodge podge of cobbled together programs; an hour of this show on repeat and an hour of another show on repeat.

The reason Bryan Suits was a failure on KVI wasn't because Suits wasn't good enough for the station, it was because the audience wasn't good enough for Suits. There was a whole mess of conservatives out there who don't like getting spoon fed the Ten Commandments daily so have tuned-out KVI because the headliners (Kirby) are turning them off.

[Gay Gary]

I do like John Carlson. He usually has a quieter, less bombastic, more sarcastic delivery style than Kirby Wilbur who can barely pronounce a word longer than three syllables without sounding like he's just eaten a bag of q-tips.

[ExPatBrit]

Agree about John Carlson, a decent guy who I mostly disagree with but very listenable.

Kirby and Co..........barf.

Best shows on KVI are the two car shows and the home garden show Saturday mornings. Three local NW companies providing the content great stuff.

I mute the radio when Faux News comes on.

[Gay Gary]

The issue with Kirby is that he doesn't know when to stop. Successful conservative talk hosts - Mike Savage, Bill Handel, Dori Monson, Bob Brinker, etc. - don't have a problem in criticizing even if just a brief and a nod. Kirby has taken it upon himself to be Seattle's own Julius Streicher or Mohammed Saeed al-Sahhaf and it becomes absolutely nauseating to hear this parade of guests screaming at the top of their lungs "don't panic - everything is okay - things couldn't be better!" --- and then five seconds later they go to FOX News with an ominous bell tolling and the anchor saying "as of this morning stocks are in a state of complete collapse - a sea of red has enveloped Wall Street ..."

I can't stand Kirby the same reason I can't stand NPR - I always get the impression that he's trying to gently spoon feed things to a glib audience, not unlike NPR reporters who will try to explain some complex economic theory by trotting out these tortured, dumbed-down analogies that are supposed to be funny and are performed with the talent of a high school drama student.

[Gay Gary]

Also, their contests have become parodies of themselves. A "recite the pledge of allegiance" contest? UGH. There's nothing wrong with patriotism but it comes across as so forced and packaged with Kirby -- I also like babies and cats but I wouldn't want to hear 3 hours of babies crying and cats meowing.

[Upton]

Who cares? For me, it's all about Ed Schultz at noon.

[Gay Gary]

Was he Reagan's Treasury Secretary? What station is his show on?

[Gay Gary]

Also, I really wish someone would tell John Carlson he badly mispronounced Vaclav Klaus' name in the promo they're running for the WPC. Each time he says it I cringe. Major mistakes like that should not be making it to air -- again, and again, and again ...

[Brian]

Ed Schultz it a wimp.
Yesterday was the first time in 6 months of listening where I heard him take a call that disagreed with him.

How come the Lefties only take callers who are in blind lockstep?

[ExPatBrit]

Ed Schultz it a wimp.
"Yesterday was the first time in 6 months of listening where I heard him take a call that disagreed with him.

How come the Lefties only take callers who are in blind lockstep?

Posted by: Brian | September 17, 2008 at 09:17 AM"

LOL

You obviously don't listen much. Miller, Hartman, Schultz, Rhodes all take opposing calls.

Maddow doesn't take calls at all and Reagan has only been on a week or so.

Majority of the callers on KVI for the Tators agree with Carlson (big surprise)

[blathering michael]

Ed Schultz is one of the very few talkers who does not screen callers, just takes as they come it. Brian: get brave, get in line, and talk to that wimp!

[Brian]

Ha! Thanks Michael, I just might do that.

[Bigg Guy]

"fired April Zepeda,"

Who?

[franco popular]

dori makes me sick with his cute stories of his dog and its food!!!
what a hick station you have here
hes so anti obama its a joke

and don mcniells voice is very obnoxiuos, esp with his dr king and mochovic commercials!!!
-ex nyer

[redrachel]

dori is a wonderful radio person. you must be stupid if you dont like him.

[Tommy008]

wow- I used to listen to Laura Ingraham once in a while when she was on 770 several years ago. I tuned in this afternoon to catch her debut on KVI. She has progressed from merely annoying to obnoxious and insufferable. Same old conceited,'I'm smarter than you" full-of-herself pomposity except now on steroids. Her voice,merely grouchy at times in the old days, has morphed into a permanent, cross-sounding whine. The new Laura is every man's sarcastic, emasculating, nagging bitch of a first wife. Yuchhh