KVI: oldies in, bryan suits outI

The news was big -- it's the end of Talk Radio 570 as we know it. 

FisherComm pulled the trigger Monday afternoon: heritage talker KVI will flip next week to AM oldies.

It ends a 15-year stint for a station widely considered seminal in the talk format. It was the first all-conservative big-market talk station.

In a written statement, KVI PD Travis Box said the station will play "Greatest Hits of the '60s and '70s", starting Nov. 8. (Music on AM? sounds nutz, but then again we thought right-wing talk was nutz).

Gone with the format is the recently-re-hired morning guy Bryan Suits, along with syndicated talkers Laura Ingraham, Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, George Noory, and Dennis Miller.

 KOMO sports announcer Tom Hutyler and news reporter/anchor Marina Rockinger will be spinning the Creedence and Beatles in the morning, former KBSG jock Mark Christopher will spin' em in the PM drive, and ex-KJR DJ Ric Hansen will do nights. Sue Romero, Bill Rice and Ana Kelly will do local news, traffic and information.

(Actually it's a flip-back ... KVI was doing oldies when Gene Autry owned the station, Brian Jennings and Shannon Swette were programming, and Mike Webb was assisting. Around 1990 Rush Limbaugh was brought in, and saved not only KVI, but  ayem radio which was in the process of being killed off by FM, which produces a superior audio product especially for music. KVI, with Jennings and Sweatte at the helm built a powerful model for conservative talk, and led the Seattle market in many ways. John Carlson, Kirby Wilbur, Dave Boze, Luke Burbank, Michael Reagan, and Michael Medved started radio careers working at the station).

This is just a stop the bleeding move... expect them to unload the station one of these days. (Nonetheless, with his strong no-cut contract, they'll still be paying Brian Suits for years to come).

Conservative talk radio has declined mightily in the five years BlatherWatch has existed. There's but one conservative talk station left in Seattle -- KTTH, home of Limbaugh and Beck; and the live & local David Boze. There are right-wingers on KIROFM, Dori Monson and Frank Shiers, but the money is being spent on the liberal-ish Dave Ross/LukeBurbank Show (m-f 9a-12p) or the inane-ish, apolitical Ron & Don (m-f, 3-7p). John Carlson (m-f 3-6p) does conservative talk on KOMO, but it's a pale shadow of the old KVI-style hyperventilatin'. (Even these local talkers are watering down their shows with "lifestyle," Youtube audio, sports and celebrity tabloidism in order to appeal more widely).

With all the steam and drang allegedly generated by the tea-party and the I-hate-Obama crowd, you'd think the conservative talk format could at least survive in this, the town that helped create it.

Instead, it has mirrored the declining health and welfare of its aging Boomer audiences. Radio management didn't change anything for years, they didn't think they had to. When their mighty and reliable 25-54 demo aged into 35-64, they forgot to go back and figure out how to entice the next bunch of 25-54's.

When the bottom dropped out of the business in '08, they finally saw what was left, and it wasn't much more than the young end of an old demographic.

Can they save it? Can radio - more specifially talk radio -- attract new earballs to their product?

We think they could. But the question for the teevee-heavy Fisher Communications is: do they want to?

 

 

Comments

[CorporateSuit]

Bryan Suits has burnt so many bridges in this town, he's going to have to do Cincinnati radio from his back bedroom. He helped bring what was left of KVI down to this.

[Chucks]

Guess I am going to have to dust off the old re-verb unit to give 60's AM the right feeling.
I am still in awe of how the KVI management managed to take a very successful talk station and fuck it up so badly this quickly.
Is there some kind of a Peabody Award or something similar for most incompetent radio station management team ever?

[KS]

Similar sentiments. Classic example of successful talk station mismanagement - KIRO-FM had enough local talent to survive their mismanagement. Suits will go to another city or find a home at KIRO-FM again.

Seattle is a weak sister when it comes to talk radio - even Spokane has it beat.. The limousine liberals and progressive/neo-coms have their talk station- KPTK, one conservative station - KTTH and a hybrid KIRO-FM and that's it for Seattle. You could also include KKOL for business and KGNW - religious, but its still a thin lineup.

[Mike Barer]

That's the total the opposite of what 97.3 did.

[Daniel K]

Now we don't have to listen to it anymore - good riddance!

[kvi beach]

John Carlson ran Kirby off out at KVI, then he jumped ship. Suits is good, but he couldn't hold up the place all by himself. He took the damn job with the understanding Carlson would help him anchor the station. Suits should be furious.

[Trocar]

Good riddance to Sean Hannity. Good riddance to Mark Levin. Good riddance to Laura Ingraham, and Dennis Miller. They are negative and angry which are things I try not to be every day. I'm gald they are gone.

[Chucks]

Wow Daniel K, When exactly did you have to listen to KVI? Who made you listen and why couldn't you make it stop?

[Tommy008]

Suits is trying to sound giddily cheerful this morning. How bogus. What a phony. He's not fooling anyone. I wished you a good ridance when you left the first time and allow me to do that again . Good riddance Bryan. Please get that treatment fot PTSD athat the "lib" army head doc strongly suggested you get years back (Suits told ua thia on hia show). You need it.

[Tommy008]

Suits is trotting out the old "I;m going to be syndicated soon ( his Sunday show on KFI) crapola, and repeating this all hour. How long have we been hearing from Suits that he will "soon" be syndicated? It's got to be years now. Give it a rest, dude.

[KVIBryan]

Phony? Are you serious? It's radio moron. Do you really think I'd come back here without a substantial safety net?
Is there a blog for people IN the business? Oh yeah LARadio.com

Be sure to add www.kfiam640.com to your twitter feed.

[Tommy008]

"it's radio moron". There you go, dude. There's the real Bryan- contemptuous, superior, insulting, conceited. Now go be real on the air thie morning for once, instead of the fake crap we're hearing now. "no cut"? So now you're saying that all you care about is money, not your career. You're mad as Hell about coming back here only to be fired within months,Suits and your passive aggressive "cheerfulness" is the tell. Again, a merry holiday good riddance to you, sir.

[KVIBryan]

Well, you've certainly given me plenty to contemplate "thie morning."
Whyyyyyy......are you listening? Don't you understand it makes me feel like I've won over the great Timmy008 ? You should show me and go back to bed! Or clock out of your Mini-Mart and go to bed.

[KVIBryan]

"There's the real Bryan- contemptuous, superior, insulting, conceited."
So you HAVE been listening!

[Herbalizer]

I hope Bryan gets raped with a chainsaw.

[Tommy008]

By the way, Suits, the post trashing your wife you blamed on me here in your post, saying it was "predictable" of me, was written by an impostor calling himself Tommy009, not Tommy008. i think you just came on Blatherwatch for a minute and i doubt you saw my posts condemning that guy and calling the postere who were saying your wife made up the attack story "jackasses".

[Ray]

The market for radio is definitely changing. Talk with its constant yelling at the audience with little or no substance has run its course. Time to try something new or just different.

I'm not sure the oldies format will gain traction, but at least they aren't replacing one yelling host with another.

BTW - does anyone know if they are going to keep Coast to Coast? So far its still the best show on the station.

[Tommy008]

i think you have things backwards, KVI's Bryan. You are the guy who will soon be clocking out of his Mini-mart job at 6 a.m. every morning, while I continue to make googobs of money in the stock market, working for myself. Captain Sarcasm, may i bid a final good riddance to you, sir.

[Earl Shankmeister]

Every cloud has a silver lining.

Bryan can now carry his glock and escort his wife on her midnight jogs and shoot up those damn mexican drug dealers.

[Sclub]

Suits once again flops. What's new?

[MstngSally]

Soon a likely more proper masthead for this blog may be "Searching for talk radio so you don't have to"
Bryan Suits is a talent, he may want to consider reenlistment, however as radio as we know it is metamorphosing in a big way. Good luck to you sir; surely you will prosper, as I don,t believe Tommy has ever been correct on any of his predictions or prognostications.
MURRAY WINS!

[William J Harrison]

I just can't figure out why talk radio prospers in Boston but not here. Is Seattle just that much more apolitical and superficial than the home of Jeff katz, Todd Feinberg, Michael Graham, Howie Carr, Jay Severin , and Steve Leveille? Anyway, thank God for Internet and WiFi radio!

[Brianwithani]

Damn Bryan say it ain't so. I've been a fan of yours since you were rollin on 710. Well fuck it I'll stream you again if you check out of town. Or even better Kiro FM evenings would be awesome. Hey timmy008 you might want to get a shovel and clean up the shit i took on the bathroom floor of your mini-mart. Oh and wash your hands that bathroom door key i gave back to you, well that wasn't peanut butter.

[Tommy008]

I predict that "my dark secret place" wil still be carried on KFi and nowhere else, just like it has for the year Suits has been gone from KFI. Tom Leykis can't even get syndicated anymore. I'm supposed to believe that a niche narrowcast show like this, aimed primarily at fat fifty year old white men, is going to make it out of local. I mighty believe it if Suits hadn't been crying wolf about his imminent radio syndication for literally years now. .Someone has to finally call bullshit. Suits is angry , and embarrassed and trying his best to sound like a bigshot as his ass is unceremoniously booted out the door.

[Chucks]

Tommy, You are acting like a highly hormonal 13 year old bitch girl this morning. What is wrong with you?
Take your fucking medication.
I hope that you land locally Bryan. Many of us like what you have to say and the way you say it.

[Rat_Bastard]

Gotta' have Bryan Suits, KOMO 5am - 9am.
That could and should happen.
Bryan is the best local radio guy, period.
Hoping that he stays on the air in Seattle...
Long time fan here.

[KVIBryan]

Ross/Burbank/Suits debuts on Monday.

[KVIBryan]

I rejected the "coupling" with Shiers. The Mormons wanted to call it "Frank n' Suits"......creepy.

[Mike in Seattle]

I will be sad if Coast to Coast is off the air in Seattle. Entertaining radio if not wholly factual or based in reality.

[AprilMayJune]

If T008 is acting like a teenage girl, B with an I is acting like an 8 year old boy, obsessed with poop.

Bring it up a notch, people.

[TomF]

Coast to Coast / Noory / Bell has to get picked up somewhere. It'd be a logical grab for 97.3... dump Hunt snd Hendrie.

Otherwise I think Seattle would be by far the biggest ADR Noory's not cleared in. But they won't sit still.

[Andrew]

Coast to Coast to KIRO, Monson to KTTH would be utopian perfection.

[Rat_Bastard]

I'd love to see Dori shoved over to KTTH so I can hear his show without that awful FM static.
Another good KTTH bit of news would be to hear that Coast to Coast replaces Dr. Laura.
I don't listen to George Noory much, but I do like the weekend hosts.
Bryan Suits would be a welcome addition to KIRO or KTTH, but KOMO seems the only logical situation.
Suits/Carlson/Schram would be excellent.
Or even bring back the Commentators with Suits and Schram during the Noon - 3pm slot.

[JDB]

Just think what the the GOP could do in this state with this climate if they still had two stations mostly dedicated to local conservative talk. Now, when if Rossi loses by 100 votes, no one will be there to make up stories of voter fraud. It just won't be the same.

[Rat_Bastard]

Us "hate filled Right wingers" should be happy that the election this year kept KVI around until now only because of the political ad revenue.
Without it, KVI probably would have flipped sooner.
It really is a shame to lose the station...
Not sure AM radio needs another KIXI.

[Erictheeditor]

1. Oh, great. I can listen to KVI again.
2. The 12 minutes of KIRO Morning News I listened to yesterday did sound like amateur radio. I was disappointed. I had switched my morning wake-up button from KOMO to KIRO in anticipation. Hope they get it together.
3. So now that we have Ross and Burbank, what are they going to do with Dori Monson. Is Jessica going to kind of co-host?

[Lydia]

Happy Election Fool's Day! Goodbye KVI.

[BenSeattle]

Here's the irony: the Seattle area ALREADY has a station programming "hits of the 60's and 70's." It's called:

Q-104 - KMCQ - FM 104.5 - Covington, WA

And -- just for the record, Mr. Suits -- while I would check into KVI periodically during the day, I never -- NOT ONCE -- bothered to hear your program. Not even by accident. If nobody else in town is talking about some lame chat-gabber (or whatever your job title is) why should I?

[Erictheeditor]

I'm surprised that KVI is going with local hosts. Seems too expensive, especially for AM music. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy about it (but surprised)
104.5 does play hits of the 60's and 70's--on FM and without commercials!

[Tommy008]

bahahahaa look at the Pathetic, juvenile level of thinskinned egoist and ex-Seattle talkhost Bryan Suits(KIRO and KOMO didn't pick him up last time, they certainly won't this time.) As a person who dared to doubt the sincerity of his obviously grotesquely forced cheerfulness this morning, I'm the "moron", "Timmy008", and a "mini-mart worker". When confronted with some legitimate opposition Suits' arrested, teen level emotional make-up gets the better of him and he resorts to insults, mockery and bogus cheapshots. Muiddle school stuff. His embarrassing, unprofessional and childish intrusion onto our blog this morning really makes me relieved that Fisher did the right thing after reversing their originally good decision to fire him several years back.

[MstngSally]

Would anyone happen to know if Carleen Johnson is being retained? I've always liked her professional ways.

[Coiler]

No duffman, she isn't

[MstngSally]

Not sure I grasp your reference to duff man, but thank you for answering my question coiler.

[Fred]

>>I'm surprised that KVI is going with local hosts. Seems too expensive, especially for AM music.<<

Since most of the "new" airstaff is already on the Fisher payroll, it's not that expensive at all - in fact, they'll probably SAVE money with this new format.

[Chucks]

Paul, DeMint and Coats!!!!
Anybody for Tea?

[Tommy008]

I warned the usual suspects here liek Joanie, who called me a racist,about Obama's arrogance and condescending manner. This election seems to be a direct pushback against Obama, moreso than about the economy. Bill O'Reilly caleed Obama meanspirited, especially after he was cauhgt calling good Americans who oppose immigration amnesty "enemies". I'm glad that this asinine amnesty bill affair now will have no chance of passing after tonight. haha Barack haha Barack

[Coiler]

The Tea baggers cost the GOP any Senate or House wins in Delaware tonight.

[Tommy008]

We don't need Christian nutbars or WWE executives in the Senate. thankfully the Dem candidate won in Conn. and Delaware. LOOKS LIKE DIVIDED GOVERNMENT IN CONGRESS. just what i wanted.

[Errol A]

I'm upset we are losing Bryan Suits. I recently found 570KVI and I stopped listening to Beck. I'll be looking out for him where ever he goes. Tonight I'm celebrating though!! Bye bye dems. The Seattle streets will be filled with tears.

[Tommy008]

Monson did a somber retrosective on the rise and fall of KVI today, showing some respect anf sffection for the first real all conservative talk station in the country, let alone Seattle. In contrast, there were no kind words fot KVI from Suits, only that offensively fierce, fake cheerfulness all morning. I think Suits stil hasn't gotten over the fact that KVI dared to fire him several years ago. The fact that they hired him back, something rare in radio, makes no difference to a mean grudgeholder like Suits. So i think he was extremely angry that he was getting the boot again after less than a year in his new position and masked the anger and hatred with the almost manic "cheerfulness". He wants people to believe that the odd mood meant he was ecstatic that he was getting a paid, very extended "vacation" a la Leykis did with CBS Radio, with his "no-cut" contract. People with serious careers like Suits and Leykis don't operate that way. He's threatening to go back to L.A. Plese do, Bryan. We'll take a collection for your Bekins bill.