The long knives of tuesday: bryan suits will survive

The radio industry is abuzz after a New York Post piece Friday about a massive restructuring of Clear Channel, the nation's largest radio company who will cut costs of $400 million.

According to three sources with knowledge of the plan, the restructuring will include layoffs across the company's radio, outdoor advertising and international divisions as well as cuts to programming budgets and consolidation of back-office operations.

There are no clear Channel talkers in Seattle, but quaking in their be-blinged sneakers are the staffers on-air and off on music stations KUBE, KJR FM, KFNK, KNBQ, and endangered sports talker KJR AM.

(photo: Bryan Suits- "I will survive!)

Middle and lower people in ad sales are said to be hardest hit.

Bryan Suits (KFO m-f, 7-10p) is the only talker we know who works for a Clear Channel station. Days after being fired from Seattle's KVI, he skipped into Los Angeles and into an evening slot on the gnarly talker, KFI.

"I just signed a three year deal," he writes in an email to Blatherwatch, "so I'm cool."

He'll not only survive the Clear Channel hell to rain down on Tuesday, his show will "be repackaged for regional syndication."

(We've never been able to download the KFI media player, so we've never heard Suits' weekdaily show with Kennedy, or his new Sunday afternoon standalone, Bryan's Dark Secret Place, which he says will be syndicated despite being broadcast, from a whale's vagina in San Diego).

Suits writes that small-to-medium markets will be "royally fucked," but New York and LA will stay largely intact.

The Post piece says the company is trying to move towards a "national programming" model that would require less local-level staffing. (That, even despite they were excoriated for trying to make centralized, national McJocks sound local with pettifoggery, a tactic that didn't settle well with listeners), and gained them wide ridicule in the industry).

"Nothing about our plans have changed except for the speed and timing of them," said a Post CC source. "There's no doubt we are in a horrible advertising environment, and we can't just sit there and take it."

A big international company has a big, international solution. It means cutting services to and by humans. While it trims up its bottom line, radio, once the most intimate of media, will be further homogenized, and de-personalized. Just as the market is craving the opposite!

New earballs are being drawn in droves to other platforms that serve them more personally.

We can only hope that Clear Channel and other media-gloms will eventually give up and pull their collective dicks out of radio and leave it for smaller local companies willing to super-serve local communities. 

Comments

[Duffman]

No doubt this news will excite T008 to no end. How's that Suits/KFI prediction working out for you Tommy.

[Puget Sound]

probably like that Tina Nole prediction worked out for Joanie.

[joanie]

Clear Channel may find itself a big brother channel to which no one listens. If Obama plans to open up opportunities for more local ownership and enhance diversity, clear channel may find itself obsolete and without an audience except for a small group of sheep on the right. Esp. in smaller markets which they've dominated for so long.

There's always a small group of people who need big brother around for security.

Too bad for KJR. I didn't realize it was clear channel. I've always considered KJR along with KOMO, KING (already dead) and KIRO as part of our Seattle family.

Go on, Duff. Have the courage to ask the parrot what prediction that was. Hold this birdbrain accountable for his fallacious words and delusions. Courage, Duff, courage.

Ah, just more twitter and tweet.

Aren't you supposed to cover cages at dusk?

[Mike the Driver]

So why is the term "endangered sports talker" being used for KJR????

Shall we assume some on air staff at KJR are gonna be canned on Tuesday?

I'm betting Groz and Elise will be gone, possible Ian too (he can still work at Q13 and learn to LOOK AT THE CAMERA STUPID!). Since KJR will lose ESPN soon, I can see them having local sports during the day and have JT the Brick on at nite instead of Elise.

[Puget Sound]

Just don't mess with John Clayton. That is the best local sports show in Seattle.

[Puget Sound]

and as a dedicated bryan suits listener at both kiro and kvi i feel a little redeemed that the good folks in so. cal have caught on to bryan.
he is spot on funny and smart. he doesn't take himself too seriously but has stepped up to serve this country three times in combat.
and for those that doubt his debating skills, the clip of him kicking jim mcdermott's tail on his show is priceless.

[Puget Sound]

here is a clip of bryan interviewing a ex scientologist.
bryan has a unique style. serious but witty.

clip1

clip2

[Thought I Saw A Bum]

Elise will likely be gone and Sandmeyer or Fain will be out as update guys. Maybe Groz. They're switching over to Fox Sports when ESPN leaves and Clayton said he doesn't know what's happening. Rome is now on live on KRKO, better then Mitch and meatball boy.

[Mike the Driver]

If any of you heard tonite, KJR is now simulcasting on KHHO 850 in Tacoma for the Groz w/Gas and Gas Shows from 3 to 7 pm. They are calling 850 the South Sound Sports 850.

Also, no JT the Brick on KHHO tonite and KJR is now using Fox Sports for late nite and not ESPN. Big Ben was on and mentioned in a sly way to let everyone know that "like listeners of KJR in Seattle"

So I would assume ESPN is now off KJR.

I wonder how long John Clayton will continue on KJR with them being Fox Sports instead of ESPN?