In the beginning KUOW created "Cliff Mass, Media Weather Man," and in the end, pulled the plug on that which they created.
(photo: Steve Scher, Facebook)
Steve Scher giveth and Steve Scher taketh away.
The Weekday (KUOW m-f, 9a-12p) producers and Scher hate waves, wave-makers, and those they consider self-promoters (who are about anyone trying to better themselves outside the non-profit sector). Mass stepped into all those boxes, and into the poo.
You gotta wonder how he lasted as long as he did.
When we said KUOW doesn't like controversy, we weren't kidding.
(photo: Cliff Mass, Seattle Metropolitan)
Unlike commercial stations who watch the ratings minutely and fire on-air talent and blow up programs more or less routinely, KUOW rarely fires anyone, and when they do it's like an academic firing- in slow motion with lots of multisyllabic harrumphings and process.
The bottom line is: It's Weekday with Steve Scher, not the Cliff Mass Shoots His Mouth Off On Any Damn Thing He Pleases Show.
It's about all things Steve Scher wants to consider, and so be it. (Steve DOES have an ego! As Steve would say when he's doing his Jon Stewart: "Who knew?).
Mass was supposed to talk about the science of weather; he couldn't abide by that; it was Steve (and producer Katie Sewall's) show; and they fired his ass (and it took almost 3 fucking years for them to get up the nerve to do it).
"Although we value Cliff's opinion, I do not want the weather segment to become an opinion and views segment," Scher Facebooked, blandly.
"Cliff was in their face with it. Steve had to do it or lose all respect with staff," a source writes BlatherWatch.
Although Mass is a bit of a blowhard and is known to adore the stentorian sound of his own voice (a plus in the narcissistic radio world as well in teaching) he probably should have a media forum somewhere, sometime.
Gotta say it, though: It was more than a little whiny of him to urge his blog readers to write KUOW to get him rehired. (Maybe rehired isn't the word: True to KUOW's renowned stinginess, Mass was, in 15 years, never paid).
He does have lots of perfervid opinions on education and other unweatherly, academic stuff. His opinions are just too big and loud, (and tedious, we'd say) to be held within the bland and gentle confines of Weekday.
We enjoyed this part of Scher's letter to Mass:
The weather segment has perhaps gotten too constraining for the topics at hand.
We have been doing this a long time, and I know I feel a little long in the tooth. When it is time, it is time.
KUOW and Weekday are hugely risk, controversy (and humor) averse. They work hard to avoid taking on water in such a porqueria as this. The last time anything like this happened was in 2007 when they fired longtime announcer, news editor, and engineer/Ken Vincent. It was a fast-drying kerfuffle that stirred up questions about KUOW's reserve funds, and low wages.
The only programming anywhere near controversial is Weekday's Friday local news review manned by some of the least controversial media characters in Seattle. Joni Balter represents the blandly conservative establishmentarianism of the Seattle Times editorial board; Eli Sanders, the talented Stranger news reporter is locked into journalistic objectivity and gives little more (however adorably) than the facts. There's the genteel Knute Berger who opines pedantically, and with plenty of Seattle-y conditionals and modifiers. (Former panelist Dorothy Parvaz had a little more edge than usually allowed, but she went away and they replaced her with no one in particular).
There's never been a permanent David Goldstein, Stefan Sharkansky, a Dwight Pelz, a Dan Savage, a Kirby Wilbur, or Choch Manana. They're all way too mouthy, opinionated, and/or self-promoting. Although his segment preceded it on Fridays, Cliff Mass was not a member of that pithy weekly panel, anyway.
He was the weather babe.
No amount of Facebook kvetching, boycotts, petitions, or demonstrations will get him reinstated. It would take a major donor kvetching, petitioning, or demonstrating to do that. And it's many months 'til the next pledge drive. (Besides, where would KUOW listeners go?)
BlatherWatch has long ranted about how boring and the KUOW dayparts (especially Weekday) are and how, by never changing, the station takes their TSL-loving and agong audience for granted. We find ourselves, however, in the strange position of agreeing with Scher et al when they've finally done something brave and that stirred up the shit with their listeners.
It's their show. Mass bolted its confines. He got fired. Here's to seeing more bold displays of creative courage and testicles.
~~
(PS: We had to laugh at Steve's attempt at a little Seattle nice in his last sign-off to Mass:
I look forward to working with you in the future in your capacity as a science educator. We end with mutual understanding I hope.
See you at the gym. [emphasis ours]
Sincerely, Steve
Why is anyone surprised ? Dr. Mass was interesting, insightful about weather and science in general.
Scher's judgment there should be questioned - only one side of the story is displayed here. I wasn't able to listen to him much because of the time the show was on, but am a fan of his weather blog. Mass should probably be saying good riddance, but having met him before, I think he is too much of a class act to do that and will move on happily with other contributions to the community in the world of meteorology and science. He was also instrumental in helping obtain a new weather radar for the Washington Coast - soon to be operational.
Posted by: KS | May 22, 2011 at 09:21 PM
Now KS, having Mass autograph his book for you at Costo doesn't REALLY count as "meeting" him.
Posted by: Jovita blogging from Raptured Island | May 22, 2011 at 09:44 PM
dang it all my second c got raptured outta the word Costco.
Posted by: Jovita blogging from Raptured Island | May 22, 2011 at 09:45 PM
But he used KUOW as a crusade against new math books and the Seattle School board who supported same. There isn't enough time during a 5 min segment to do weather, I hate the Seattle School board, and any counterpoint. He ignored the earlier warnings to stick to the weather and was canceled. It's no different than a business putting a political sign in their window and expecting the public to feel its a neutral place to shop.
Posted by: Coiler | May 22, 2011 at 09:46 PM
FYI - his book was autographed by him at a ski club meeting last year and I talked with him about meteorolgists who we both knew personally - for the record.
Posted by: KS | May 22, 2011 at 09:51 PM
I am through with Steve Scher. He is arrogant on the air and not interesting.
I appreciated Cliff Mass' viewpoint as a department head at the University of Washington. There are plenty of problems with higher education in this country and people with inside information need to be critical. Academia can be very stifling.
Thank you for refusing to be the weather boy, Cliff Mass.
Posted by: AprilMayJune | May 22, 2011 at 09:55 PM
Well excuuuuuuze me KS-who-knows-weather-babes. The venue was different but one conversation does not a Butt Buddy make. Or, in your case maybe it does. My bad!
Posted by: Jovita blogging from Raptured Island | May 22, 2011 at 09:58 PM
Question: why was his firing/cancellation even announced? Why not just pull a KIRO and simply make the segment disappear, without warning or explanation? Frank Shiers doesn't seem to mind it. Just sayin'
Posted by: Andrew | May 22, 2011 at 10:48 PM
Overall I have less respect for Scher because if it's true this has been going on as such for three years, and he only now fired the guy on these grounds, then what does that say for his turnaround time? Action is better than no action, but three years too late is almost just as bad. But what respect I do or don't have probably couldn't matter less because I never listen to his show, and I never would. When I pledge it's on behalf of the national NPR programs such as Prairie Home and Wait Wait. The local shows are passionless and ineffectual. When did an emotional response become a bad thing?
Posted by: Andrew | May 22, 2011 at 11:00 PM
mullah omar is dead........on all the wires,with few detaiks...killed while travelling from Quetta to Waziristan in Pakistan.....hoping its a US drone job or better, but whichever way he went i laugh and piss upon his dead corpse...i feel glee and joy, Joanie....bwahahahahahahahahahahahahaahhhhhh
Posted by: Tommy008. | May 22, 2011 at 11:22 PM
ohoh hold on...now denials aer coming over the wires , and :can't confirm's"...so story may be false....
Posted by: Tommy008. | May 22, 2011 at 11:30 PM
Andrew, the post said he was given warnings. Also, no one knows to what degree they have become more bold or frequent. Why judge anybody when you really don't know.
David Sirota's panties are in a twist since his on-air argument with Schultz. It's all so funny! Imagine a feud between two lefties. I have to laugh. Schultz the street fighter and Sirota the intellectual. I like them both. But Schultz did get a tad reactive. Maybe his ego needs an adjustment. And David shouldn't belittle anybody on the left who fights like Schultz does. Schultz is trying to stay in the good graces of democratic politicians. He's burned a few bridges with his honest talk. Trying to make peace I think. Esp. with Obama.
Posted by: joanie | May 23, 2011 at 03:21 AM
He's burned a few bridges with his honest talk. Trying to make peace I think. Esp. with Obama.
Posted by: joanie | May 23, 2011 at 03:21 AM
honest talk burns bridges? hmmm, probably the most insightful comment you have ever made regarding Democratic politics.
Posted by: Puget Sound Blathers | May 23, 2011 at 03:32 AM
If I were working for somebody, they warned me repeatedly not to do something, and I kept doing it, my firing would be the most unsurprising (and justified) event possible.
The fact that it took Steve Scher three years to do it just showed what a
goodnice Seattle liberal he is ("See you at the gym"...LOL). Maybe he should run for Seattle City Council. He'd fit right in.Posted by: Pete | May 23, 2011 at 08:08 AM
AprilMayJune - Mass is not the head of the department, Dale Durran is.
Posted by: Clearwater | May 23, 2011 at 09:01 AM
joanie says Andrew, the post said he was given warnings
I don't think you read what I wrote.
Posted by: Andrew | May 23, 2011 at 10:34 AM
@Clearwater - thanks for that. I don't know why I thought it was Cliff Mass ....
Posted by: AprilMayJune | May 23, 2011 at 01:39 PM
Breaking...tommy i hope you are sitting down, trump after dissapointing Celeb Apprentice ratings called into Fox and Friends and said he "would not rule out a late entry into the presidential race", the country is just too important to him.... further details as they develop
Posted by: dave (not dave ross) | May 23, 2011 at 03:05 PM
To your readers,
In case you're interested, KUOW's decision on Cliff Mass comes from management and station policy. Steve Scher's action was simply in compliance with those.
The decision to end Cliff's segment is completely in line with standard best practice both here at KUOW and in public radio in general.
Standard best practice is to book guests to speak on specific agreed upon topics. If they don't want to confine themselves to the agreed upon topics don't book them. This is standard at KUOW and public radio in general, and for a very good reason. If we allowed all guests additional airtime beyond the agreed upon topic to advocate for causes of their choice, or to offer their personal opinions on whatever they choose, we would quickly lose credibility with our listeners.
Here is another way of saying it: KUOW’s editorial rules differentiate between those who may give opinions on our airwaves and those who may not. Hosts and reporters are not allowed to take sides on issues. Guests are expected to stay within the parameters defined for them by the host and producer. The purpose of this policy is to keep the conversation focused, fair and balanced.
As for Cliff, it was really his choice. He no longer wanted to stick to the weekend weather and the science behind it.
Sincerely,
Guy Nelson
KUOW News Director
Posted by: guy nelson | May 23, 2011 at 03:20 PM
Well, there you go. Sounds reasonable to me.
Posted by: Zim | May 23, 2011 at 03:27 PM
Me too.
Posted by: sparky | May 23, 2011 at 06:13 PM
Indeed.
Posted by: Coiler | May 23, 2011 at 06:39 PM
My points still stand: it took three years regardless, and no public statement was ever necessary. Face could have been saved.
Posted by: Andrew | May 23, 2011 at 06:44 PM
Mass is the height of arrogance.
"PS: My next blog will include some observations about the nature of local public radio and its relationship with its listeners. I will suggest that there are serious issues well beyond my situation and that the large response reflects some deep-seated concerns of KUOW listeners."
maybe Dori will give him 5 mins every Friday
Posted by: Coiler | May 24, 2011 at 08:27 AM
Public radio, in general, has an arrogant and condescending tone. I haven't figured out if they train people to be that way with their emotionless, dry wit or if people who are emotionless are simply drawn to that kind of radio.
Posted by: NoBS | May 24, 2011 at 01:53 PM
They are trained to speak in soft, measured tones. But that snobby, college kid frat tone on This American Life et al is free styled, I believe. I don't know how you'd even train for that.
It wouldn't surprise me if NPR was subtly condescending, after all Dori is all that and more, and he received a three year contract renewal or extension or whatever. Maybe listeners have a repressed masochism that terestrial radio satisfies.
But in general I don't think you can have an NPR with condescension, because for any organization to say that radio should be "this, this and this", and never "that, that and that" requires an arrogant level of certainty about what you're doing.
One reason I respect commercial ridden radio over NPR is because they can answer to advertisers and yet still seem to have infinately more freedom than the orgnaization that claims to be listener supported. Why is it that I ultimately get what I want from radio that someone else pays for?
Posted by: Andrew | May 24, 2011 at 03:39 PM
C'mon nobS, it's called trying to sound neutral. Boring as heck but certainly not arrogant. I think people have forgotten what neutrality actually sounds like.
Posted by: joanie | May 26, 2011 at 10:32 PM
I wasn't crazy about Cliff Mass, but do see this action and how it's been handled as one more sign of the generally bland middle of the road approach to programming now being undertaken by KUOW. Except for NPR news, there's little left on KUOW I enjoy listening to or bother tracking the schedule of anymore. I'm more and more often listening to a different public radio station (which plays much more interesting programs, and has some great music, besides), or I listen to downloaded podcasts of my favorite shows (ones that KUOW no longer carries - like Science Friday). After MANY years of being loyal contributors to KUOW, my husband and I have already decided to reduce our pledge. If it were my decision alone, I think I'd drop it completely.
Posted by: Linda W | June 24, 2011 at 03:13 PM
KPLU is a far superior NPR station.
Posted by: Jovita has a sense of humor unlike you | June 24, 2011 at 03:27 PM