BlatherWatch

allen prell crucifies christian radio

Former KIRO talk-host Allan Prell is putting the finishing flourishes and furbelows on his tell-all book, Pulling the Plug on Talk Radio, and already he's pulled the plug on some BlatherWatch reporting.

And hey, in this case, we're glad he's got it right!

We recently wrote a heavy-breathing post about Salem Communications, the right-wing radio group that Mother Jones Magazine described as the fastest-growing Christian radio chain in America; the company itself claims to be

"...the largest U.S. radio broadcasting company, measured by number of stations and audience coverage, providing programming targeted at audiences interested in religious and family theme radio programming.
We own and operate 92 radio stations, including 58 stations in 22 of the top 25 markets. This makes us the sixth largest operator measured by number of stations overall and the third largest operator measured by number of stations in the top 25 markets."

The company is pumping up the wattage in the next few months on their local property, KKOL, (1300 kHz). Locally, they carry such right-wing dingers as Mike Gallagher, Hugh Hewitt, and Dennis Prager; and in their national stable they boast such heavy hitters as Michael Medved, Randall Terry, James Dobson, Bill Bennett, Janet Parshall and Laura Ingraham. (Has anybody heard of any of these people besides the localite Medved, "Hold 'em or fold 'em" Bennett or the scaly Christian gobstopper Dobson? Or a better question might be: have you listened to any of these people?)

With KIRO and KTTH in the pooper, we were concerned that KKOL could, with a strong signal and good programming, become a player around here.   

Mother Jones chronicled Salem's origins in the California extreme right-wing, their partisan mission and their low-flying national political influence as they buy up small stations in large markets.

We were afraid of the faith-based reactionary colossus with an evangelical master plan taking over our non-sectarian paradise.

But Prell blows this up real good. He made a market-by-market study and found that Salem's just a flim-flam paper Messiah shaking down old ladies.

ALLAN PRELL TO APPEAR TUESDAY NIGHT AT DRINKING LIBERALLY

Former KIRO talker, Allan Prell will attend Seattle's Drinking Liberally, the weekly Tuesday gathering of liberal media folks, progressive bloggers, local politicians, and some of the choicest blatherers in town.

Allan, who'd been locked for months in a room in his underwear writing his memoirs, promises to put on some pants and drink pints from just about anybody who cares to buy.

It all happens starting at 8p at the Montlake Ale House, 2307 24th Ave E. in Seattle's Montlake neighborhood.

Everyone of such a mind is invited. Republicans can come, though they must check their weapons at the door and mind their manners.

Mike Webb's replacement???

IF YOU WERE IN KANSAS FOR XMAS, maybe- or in a coma (or...Tacoma) you might not have heard that KIRO Talk host Mike Webb was fired in December after being arrested and charged for felony insurance fraud.

We were not unhappy that KIRO pushed Webb under the bus so expeditiously- as a matter of fact we'd been predicting it for months. We were surprised at how that all came to happen- something we could not have predicted. As progressives, we were frequently embarrassed by Mike for his rude handling of callers; other professional atrocities a liberal should not be accused of.

Mike has written that KIRO could not replace him with someone more "assertive and accurate and challenging" than he. We think he's wrong. We know there's someone out there possessing those attributes but also honest, entertaining, be less lazy and be all that without the bombastic anger.

We're sorry that Erin Hart is not up to the task, even though she exhorts listeners every time she's on the radio to write management telling them to put her into the position. It's untoward, and it's futile.

We are proud liberals and because Mike Webb played one on the radio, we're assuming, (demanding?) that KIRO will do the right thing and hire another local progressive in that m-f, 9p-1a slot.

Not a syndicated voice in the dark. Not a conservative. Not an info-mercial. But gen-u-wine red-blooded, commie-pinko, bleeding heart; equipped- figuratively, of course- with a pair made of solid titanium.

Who will that be? We have some suggestions but we'd also like to ask you. Here's a list of people we'd like to see- please drop us a line in our comments threads and suggest one or two of your own or second one of ours.

THE BEST, THE WORST, THE MEDIOCRE OF SEATTLE TALK RADIO, 2005

OUR FIRST YEAR has been quite a year in talk radio. We've seen the half-hearted emergence of liberal talk; we've seen the mighty KIRO writhing like a piglet on a platter, stations reformatted, programming tweaked and molested; out of town bigwigs from making decisions for  local littlewigs; talk hosts  hired and fired, slapped down by judges; charged in a felony; burrowed, borrowed, belittled, banished.

THANK YOU, THANK-YOU, THANK-YOU to the tippers, the sources, the insiders, the threep doats- whose secreted, sensational and accurate information not only always checks out, but have made us more than just another screedblog or Air America fansite. Special kudos and accolades to Mike Siegel, Mike Webb, Michael Medved, Frank Shiers, Dori Monson, Tom Delay, Tom Clendening, Dan Sytman, Dave Boze, George W. Bush, John Carlson, Kirby Wilbur, Rev. Ken Hutcherson, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Dave Irons, Lou Pate, Dino Rossi, Rabbi Daniel Lapin for just being who you are. And a special mention to Allan Prell.

We've divvied up the goodies into seven categories: TALKERS, READERS, ABSURDERATA , COMMERCIALS, BLATHERING, QUOTES and RADIO STATIONS. Click & read.

Holiday oddems: critches, defects, o'reilly, olberman, mike webb, john dingell, susan paynter, knute berger, steve scher, allan prell, erin hart, your mother

~~please forgive our recent tardier-than-usualness and that some of our recent posts are unclickable. Typepad (the low-rent blog provider we depend upon to save America) has been suffering crashes on its Roy Rogers model servers and rodent-run hardware. They owe us.

~~The "war" on Xmas wages on. The cynical exploitation of Christian "victimhood" continues to put gas in the Lexi for right wing talkers. O'Reilly's December 2 promise to "bring horror into the world of" those he claims are waging a "war" on Christmas earned him the "Worst Person in the World" title on MSNBC's 's December 8 Countdown with Keith Olbermann. The prestigious award was based on false O'Reilly claims, noted by Media Matters, that a Texas school district and the township of Saginaw, Michigan, enforced bans against red and green clothing during the holiday season. Olberman told Rep. John Dingell: Would it surprise you, sir, that as they have warned us about this rush to change "Merry Christmas" into "Happy Holidays," that the biggest transgressor in the area might be Fox News itself?...they sold O'Reilly "Christmas decorations" and called them "Holiday" ornaments for your "Holiday tree." And instead of a Christmas party this year, their parent company has just held a Holiday party?"

~~The best news and political discussion on Seattle radio happens not on KIRO or KTTH, but at 10a each Friday on KUOW's Weekday, the wildly popular public radio news talk show hosted by the evervescent plodder, Steve Scher. Unfortunately only an hour long, the debate's always wide-ranging with a regular clutch of liberal print media graybeards: PI columnist Susan Paynter, Seattle Weekly editor and columnist, Knute Berger and Seattle Times columnist Danny Westneat. They have the benefit of age, and long experience reporting in Seattle- virtues not often celebrated in local radio these days. Paynter isn't the cute little trick she once was scandalizing the newsroom in a micro miniskirt; and Berger still looks like the hippy who sneaked past the security guard. We love this weekly discussion, though there's a little too much about Seattle city politics, an exasperating topic we'd rather know less about. We think that coots rock and we're all for fogey power; what's more, we're crazed liberals. But we'd like this weekly dust-up even more if there were a conservative among these pundits. Of course, most radio conservatives we know live in the suburbs or are too heavy-breathing for NPR- but stick in someone like Carlson or Medved who could hold up their end of an argument with minimal demagoguery and we might have some real radio.

~~Cliches we feel confident will be gone by the end of this month: "Monday morning quarterback;" "deja vue all over again;" "the People's Republic of Seattle."

~~A reader who must be inside at KIRO writes: "Mike Webb has a guy who calls himself Dr. Mortimer S. Weems D.D.S. who is always instant messaging him a written butt-kicking. He shows up on Erin Hart's show also. Since I can't stand the uber-arrogant Herr Webb, or the annoying Hart, I get a real charge out of this Weems."  We don't know how the reader could know about this unless he is Dr. Weems or a KIRO board op or producer. Dr. Weems: could you please drop us a line at [email protected]? We probably have lots to talk about.

~~Fans of Allan Prell, late of KIRO 9 to noon will be happy to hear he's reached some kind of agreement with some moneybags interested in syndicating the Allan Prell Show. According to Prell, all they need is a Director of Affiliates, whatever the hell that is...if you are one and need some work, write him at [email protected]

Allan Prell tells all: pulling the plug on talk radio

In a mass email to fans, veteran talker Allan Prell sent a sample chapter of his upcoming book, a work in progress that spares no one- not even himself. [He'll send you one, too just write and ask: [email protected]]

Prell was ignominiously frog-walked out the door at the end of his KIRO 9-noon shift in September, and hasn't yet been replaced by the dizzy, yet skeevy Entercom management.

In a funny read that sounds like Prell does on the radie-yo, he describes how he was fired by his old friend, Program Director Tom Clendening after a focus group he describes as "made up of about a dozen people moderated by the very management folks who were considering ending my professional relationship with the station."

The real culprit, according to Prell, is someone he identifies only as a "Sales Weasel," but whom we know to be Entercom General Sales Manager, Dennis McCormick, who reportedly headed the drive to oust Prell.

This particular Sales Weasel had clearly stated to the Overseers at KIRO that some advertisers didn’t wish to be a part of the Allan Prell Show, or they wouldITAL cancel. Heavens to Betsy...CANCEL!!!!  The worst possible of words to be heard by Overseers from a Sales Weasel. The worst possible words to be heard by a Sales Weasel from an advertiser. That would mean defending the station’s programming. That would require the Sales Weasel to work. That would require...thinking. The only sane “solution” for a Sales Weasel to recommend (or perhaps slyly hint) to Overseers...fire this guy who is receiving complaints (valid or not).

It’s so much easier to have a nice radio station, one that doesn't receive complaints from advertisers, one that makes tapioca pudding seem like three-alarm chili. Unless, of course, if the Gabulator is of a conservative bent, then the rules don’t apply. For many years now in talk radio there have been few complaints about conservatives and their points of view.

He was fired on a Wednesday (not the usual Friday) a few days before the new ratings trends were due out (talkers are usually fired after the numbers come out). The next week, a few dozen Prell fans marched in protest in front of KIRO as Prell chained himself to a mailbox, wrapped himself in the flag, then "threw off the chains of oppression.

The listener response to his firing was surprising with Prell, BlatherWatch and KIRO receiving thousands of letters and emails. Local sports-announcing icon, Tony Ventrella was fired at the same time, with hsardly a ripple in comparison.

I had been on the air for nine months at KIRO. In that time five new sponsors had already signed on for the Allan Prell Show, two of which had re-upped for longer runs. They had purchased “endorsement spots” which are ads created and delivered by the Gabulator rather than being with standard issue. Endorsements sell at a premium, and are highly sought after by Sales Weasels and by the on-air talent. The endorsement contracts generally run for a longer period than standard contracts—a minimum of 13 weeks; if successful, for a year. They command a premium price because the advertiser has a personal spokesman, someone the listener will pay special attention to, and trusts, someone like...tee hee, like Allan Prell.

~~
You got a problem? with the so-called insider radio info you read here at BlatherWatch? Is it wrong and misguided and unfounded and erroneous? Is it salacious gossip, without the added advantage of being true? Quitcherbitchin.' We're tired of hearing about it from you who give us nothing. So write us at [email protected] and tell us what's what, or...shut up awready. You can take our discretion for granted, but that's about all...

OUR PATHETIC, UNSCIENTIFIC, ENTIRELY MEANINGLESS POLL RESULTS

Last week we administered a little poll, taking the temperature of our readership...'tis the season.

We gave our readers a long list of present and past KIRO talent, threw in a few utterly ridiculous names, and asked everybody to rate them 1-5 as to whom they'd like most to see in the wide, wide open 9 to noon spot recently ripped asunder by the firing of Allan Prell.

It ended up being a popularity contest and a free-for-all for re-programming KIRO, which as you know, hasn't been very popular lately. As we've reported over and over, the once mighty blowtorch has fallen in the last year or two.

While ratings improved with the new book, out last week, the old dear has a ways to go.

We do mean that when we speak affectionately of the Seattle heritage station. And fondness for the old KIRO was a recurring theme in the many comments we got from listeners. KIRO was once a broadcaster's dream: "I used to turn it on in the morning, and listen straight through the day."

That kind of loyalty was more typical of a different time--an age when people referred to their favorite station as "my station," and when a new host or DJ was introduced, folks just got used to him and usually,  it eventually developed into an affectionate relationship.

We sensed that with some of Allan Prell's fans, who loyally kept their radios on 710 ,  even though they didn't like him when he started, they stuck it out just because he was on KIRO. They ended up loving the guy, or so many of them say.

We got names from the KIRO's past like Jim French, Jim Altoff, Drake Collier, Dave Dolacky, and Bryan Suits  As a matter of fact, long-gones Fred Ebert, Charles Jaco, took 4th and 5th places.

Here are the results of this ridiculous little popularity contest. Don't expect this to have any effect whatsoever. Entercom never heeds their listeners and BlatherWatch is death to them--they may even make decisions just to spite us.(god, we'd love to think that were true).

Arbitron ratings: kiro's back! ktth is not, kvi's in the pooper, ALLAN PRELL, COME BACK--ALL'S FORGIVEN!

Corks from magnums of RockStar have been popping at Eastlake after the release of the latest Arbitron ratings covering the long, not so hot summer.

KIRO, whose demise has been predicted by BlatherWatch and many others for months, had it first good book in a year! In the overall 12+ demo, KIRO went dramatically from 7th place in the Spring book, to tie with KOMO for 3rd.

This demographic, of those 12 years old and older, is kind of a show demo and the only one released to the public, (you can see the whole thing here).

Air America's KPTK (1090AM) didn't show up at all in the top 20. KIRO ugly sister KTTH (770am) dropped even further into the poop going from 17th to 19th. KVI made a dismal showing in the 12+, going from 10th place to 16th.

The 25-54, "money demo," is the survey that advertisers and therefore everybody else in radio cares about.  Sneak-peekers and rumor mongers claim that KIRO went from 19th place to 14th--an impressive jump.

Air America's KPTK, made it from 23rd to 19th.

Conservative talkers KVI, and KTTH both have dropped out of sight on the top 20 in that all-important demo.

"KTTH is probably the worst-rated conservative talker in the country," a radio pro told us after seeing the numbers. We recently found out that one minute of ad time on Rush Limbaugh on KTTH can be bought for $120! Or, for the same price, you can buy a minute on obscure morning talker Mike Siegel's show. At those cut rates, even BlatherWatch could afford a little promo--maybe somebody in sales could drop us a line.

We've been hearing that John Carlson, (KVI, m-f, 3-6p) is negotiating his contract (up in Dec.) w/Fisher Broadcasting; and is even talking to Entercom (KIRO & KTTH). But the Summer book wouldn't seem to give him much to negotiate with. In the 12+, his time slot (sharing the last hour with Bryan Suits) went from 5th to be tied for 12th place. In the money demo, where he was already very close to the bottom, he dropped a point.

According to sources and the trade message boards, KIRO midday made an impressive improvement. That would be in the 10a-3p, shared last summer by Allan Prell and Dori Monson. The hourlies, not released yet, would break out these numbers between the two hosts, and some smart people are opining that Allan Prell, who apparently was just catching on when he was fired, is accountable for this up-tick.

No one can know that for sure, yet; but as you know, if you read this blog, there was a huge--some say an unprecedented--uproar from many loyal listeners after the firing that caused fusillades of mail to be pelted at KIRO, BlatherWatch, and Entercom. We're still getting fresh inquiries about where the hell is Allan Prell. (Seattle sports icon, Tony Ventrella was fired from KIRO a few days later and it was like the proverbial tree falling in a forest--there seemed to be no affect).

Mysteriously, Prell was fired just days before the summer trends numbers were to come out. And when they did--they showed a significant upward trend in his listenership. Now a month later, the book comes out with a big jump in midday? Some are saying: "It ain't Dori Monson!" Or you could read or comments strings, if you doubt us.

Or maybe Dori's self-promotions last summer--like jumping out of that plane or selling kisses at Bumbershoot did the trick...

We always love to blame Program Director Tom Clendening for everything bad that happens at KIRO, but in this strange business, he actually fought FOR Allan Prell with Chopping & Splitting Division Chief Jerry "Swingblade" McKenna.

What's really crazy is that they fired Prell without having anyone to replace him. Now we never know who's gonna show up for the 9 to noon: and KIRO frequently falls back on the miserable Frank Shiers. Prell's people were of the liberal persuasion and fled like sugar bees to a rump roast on over to Air America's Thom Hartmann on KTPK--especially after hearing Shiers' smug, self-satisfied conservatism. Read our comments strings about Frank, if you don't wanna hear it from us...

(BlatherWatch was caught flatfooted (once again) by Prell's popularity--we'd cast nasturtiums on him since the beginning. After all this, however, we've come to believe that Prell, an acquired taste, was fired prematurely and might very well have become a strong player in Seattle morning radio).

In other crow, we might have to eat: Mike Webb has won some good numbers. His show, (with one hour of Tony Ventrella) went impressively from being tied for 12th to the #4 spot in the 12+. He did well in the money demo, too, we hear. (Expect Webb, who's obnoxious even when he's down, to be insufferable now that he's back up. We're not looking forward to it).

KIRO is not out of the woods-- their new good numbers will drop like a rock if they don't get someone into the 9-noon spot soon. (Dave Ross performed well in this book; and many think he'll end up back in the morning. Others say he loves his early morning Tai Chi class, and wants to write a book). We predict NY Vinnie's numbers in the 6-9p won't be good next time--there's still lots of work to be done at KIRO. Clendening's job, wonder of wonders may be safe again...

KVI made a stunningly mediocre showing...Are Fisher suits wondering if all this on-air politickin' by Carlson, et al and the subsequent Public Disclosure Commission and other legal problems including the prospect of civil suits is worth it? We shall see.

KTTH is in the deepest trouble of them all...they can't even get good rating out of Limbaugh, the most popular talker in the history of the world.

Stay tuned for more hardheaded analysis.

A PATHETIC, UNSCIENTIFIC, ENTIRELY MEANINGLESS POLL ON KIRO's FUTURE

Dear BlatherWatchers and talk radio listeners:

We all know that 710KIRO doesn't listen to you, and most certainly, doesn't listen to us.
Summer ratings results are coming out soon and KIRO will most certainly respond to those? won't they?  Well, maybe not. But irregardless (as President Bush would say) BlatherWatch is conducting this unscientific, entirely meaningless poll in a pathetic attempt to stir up the poo, get hits and seem relevant.

Who do you want in KIRO's 9a-12p slot?
1. Rate your top 5 choices by putting a number up to 5 behind 5 names from the list below
2. Click on comments at the end of this post and paste in your choices
3. Get all your friends to vote, but don't vote more than once--we know when you do that, and it could be embarrassing--especially if you're someone on the list.
4. PLEASE COMMENT on why you love who you love, hate who you hate. Be sweet, be nasty. We'll be looking for the most passionate, best written comments.
5. There are conservatives on the list...for those who believe KIRO is failing because it's too liberal--here's your chance!
~~
Dave Ross
Allan Prell
Larry Nelson
David "Goldy " Goldstein
Dori Monson
Carl Jeffers
Lou Pate
Pam Roach
Mike Webb
Mike Siegel
Dave Boze & Dan Sytman
Bill Willkie
Erin Hart
Bryan Styble
Frank Shiers
Turi Ryder
Tom Douglas
Dino Rossi
Ciscoe Morris
Charles Jaco
Rush Limbaugh
Fred Ebert
Anybody we missed?  write in here_______________

Whither KIRO, KTTH...ad yawneum

Here we go again. After Allan Prell's momentous departure and aftershocks that keep resounding like a dog barking in the afterlife, Entercommies keep opening up and spilling their guts to Blathering Man.

The KIRO help can't help themselves wondering why Program Director Tom Clendening still has a job. We've asked it since last March (!) and have greatly exaggerated rumors of his demise.

Suits trooped in from Bala Cynwyd (but not CEO David Field) Monday & Tuesday of last week, but no apparent shoes dropped, although everyone was quivering. The PD is like Kenny from South Park, just when you think he's really dead, there he is again. Rumors are that Entercom honchos rented Clendening a shaman (they're for rent on the back page of The Stranger) put him in a sweat lodge, smudged his office with healing herbs and purged him of all his evil decision-making demons.  Reportedly he's good to go.

There was a cleansing colonic procedure as well, and Frank Shiers reportedly manned the hose-bag, familiar as he is with Tom's posterior. Not a great favorite with his fellows, he reportedly bops into Tom's orifice, (oops, office) from the newsroom all day long. Maybe that's how he keeps getting all the key fill-in work he has so little experience with. BJ Shea (KQBZ m-f, 10a-3p) always says program directors are lazy--they often take the line of least resistance. Shiers, who does KBSG voice-overs, is always right there and ready to go (though we hear Tom sometimes peeks out his door to see if the coast is clear before going to the john to avoid being button-holed by Shiers).
 
Word on the street is that NY Vinnie isn't packing it in Ventrella's spot on the 6-9p. It's generally agreed that Ventrella will disappear entirely after the Seahawks are over. People are still amazed in the difference in how Prell and Ventrella were terminated. Tony got a swan song show, where he got to read a poem and say good bye; a quaint fable was crafted about how he wanted to get re-involved in his business. Prell was unceremoniously dumped one morning after his shift and no explanation was made to listeners, even though they wrote by the hundreds or thousands even.

Vinnie hasn't much passion for issues. His heart's in the right place and his politics; but he's a get-along guy who'd rather tell stories or lead the chorus than mix it up with callers. The other night he led one of those tsk-tsk fests about the lack of civility anymore--you know how nobody holds doors for the ladies or says please & thank-you, and that danged Jerry Springer and South Park that's ruined us all, etc.,etc., ad yawneum...He's a sports guy and always falls back on sports.

The thrill mill still insists that Siegel producer Dave Boze and Medved producer Dan Sytman will wrench the KTTH morning drive (m-f 6-9a) out of Siegel's hands and send him to afternoons--maybe to that odd 5-7p spot where O'Reilly tells his lies. (O'Reilly to Siegel? that's a lateral move, Tom).

Dave & Dan (we call 'em Dumb & Meaner) have been filling in for Siegel during his multious holidays and perked up the mornings while they did. They're frisky and loud, and fast moving in that mocking, politically incorrect gotcha way of Young Republican quick studies. They've gotten good reception from listeners, at least the ones who write to us. After Siegel's hackneyed schtick, anyone might seem fresh, though.

We've heard Boze may be resistant to taking the slot, though he denies everything to us. He's from Hillsdale College by way of Stanwood, so his hippy ambivalence runs deep. He may be afraid the morning commitment would interfere with elk season. 

Sytman, a Seattle boy who gets his kicks interviewing homeless people and asking them questions on economics, applied several years ago for a sense of humor, but so far it hasn't come though. He's done a fair job of fashioning one out of old Michael Medved shows and Peter Weissbach one-liners from the '90's. (Michael Medved only acquired his sense of humor after the Republican takeover in 1994).

We'd love it if the new team got the spot, but why, Tom, not send Siegel back to the farm team?