An ayoda on radio

August 29, 2022 Mr. David Field Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Audacy Incorporated Dear Mr. Field: Allow me the introduction. I’m basically a listener with perhaps a more-than-casual interest in what’s happening on our local dial. I’m hoping my unsolicited comments provide a helpful perspective, given your company’s major investment in the Los Angeles market. Your company, owns hundreds of stations, five outlets (technically six) here in Los Angeles. Let’s first offer appropriate props. K-EARTH 101 (KRTH), The WAVE (KTWV), and JACK-FM (KCBS-FM) are all quite successful.   They’ve been steady performers and garner very good ratings. KNX and KROQ are well-established call letters. themusicnetwork.com Still, everything’s not perfect. We're aware times are tough, witness your company's recent reduction in force . It’s quite well known the total audience for radio continues to decline. Maybe radio is not the “new and shiny” object compared to streaming on ...

 (OK, I'm a day late, we can celebrate all weekend!) (Click to enlarge) Ouch!:  Seems Dodger reporter David Vassegh  is now nationally (in)famous. He's always got the inside about what's going on with the local baseball team, but it was his ride down a slide at American Family Field in Milwaukee that's now trending on YouTube . The details are available online , suffice to say he was back at work by the fifth inning (the accident occurred before the game) displaying a soft cast for a fractured hand and wrist and noting he also had six broken ribs.  A "tribute" to Vassegh at the end of Bernie's Slide, American Family Field The host of Dodger Talk on AM 570 L.A. Sports (KLAC) was first heard in SoCal when he was a producer for the late  Joe McDonnell . How I wish I could hear Joe's reaction -- he'd be (appropriately) merciless. Vassegh isn't willing to share how much pain he's in with his colleagues, though he did say he'll likely need su...

  We now have some names associated with the local Audacy layoffs . Veteran traffic reporter Denise Fondo  is exiting KNX. She started with L.A. Network traffic "to pay bills while I wrote fiction and non-fiction." She is a graduate of Lycoming College in Williamsport, Pennsylvania with a degree in Political Science and Philosophy. She arrived in Southern California to originally work for the Hollywood Entertainment Radio Network, writing radio dramas. She also has written for the Discovery Channel and feature films. She assured us she's going to be OK. "I was planning on retiring soon, anyway, so Randy (Fuller) and I are absolutely fine and looking forward to traveling." Fondo had a 15-year run at the all-news outlet. Bill Nesbitt  is considered a production guru. He got his start in Southern California at KWIZ-Santa Ana in the mid-1980s. Before his most recent gig at KNX, Nesbitt worked at KEZY, KYSR, KACD, and KFWB. Among his distinctions, he was the voice a...

  Back in July, 2021, Audacy had a "reduction in force" throughout their properties, but Los Angeles was largely spared. Starting today, Audacy imposed another round of layoffs, this time there are individuals leaving the studios located on Wilshire's Miracle Mile.  Here's the official statement from Audacy: Over the past few years the company has undergone a "transformation journey" that included growth through acquisitions, platform enhancements, and the addition of hundreds of employees. We remain committed to this exciting transformation which has made us a much stronger organization, but in light of current macroeconomic headwinds, like so many other companies, we have been proactively taking actions to mitigate against the impact of any downturn. These include evaluating budgets, reducing expenses, and also reducing our workforce.  It's expected about five percent of Audacy employees will be affected by the layoffs.  Meanwhile, starting last weeke...

  News anchors are not generally known for being flashy or ostentatious, as their job is to report and stay out of the way of the stories they report. But these journalists are often underrated professionals as well as an important part of the history of Los Angeles Radio. Retiring from the KNX microphone, Mark Austin Thomas has also been heard nationally, helped craft a novel news effort in New York, and is credited for his behind-the-scenes efforts at then-upstart KFI.   Thomas got his start at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, noting he “actually obtained a degree in Radio / TV journalism” from their College of Media. Following graduate course work in educational psychology, he moved to Knoxville, Tennessee, working at WIVK, “which had the biggest audience share for country music in the U.S.” He then became the executive editor at WEEI-Boston before moving to the west coast to be the news director at urban KSOL (K-Soul)-San Mateo / San Francisco. Receiving an...

  dodgerblue.com I hesitated writing this since I didn’t want to take any focus away from those celebrating the life of the legend, Vin Scully , nor did I want to be (more) self-indulgent (than usual). I'm aware so much has been published by those far more talented and qualified. However, I think my tale about meeting and interviewing Mr. Scully (who insisted people call him Vin) allows me to share my insights about the great Dodger broadcaster. Some background: When I was a contributor to Don Barrett ’s LARadio.com, I’d mentioned to him more than once that meeting Vin Scully was on my bucket list. I pitched the idea I could even interview him about his perspective on radio. I’m assuming I became annoying enough because, in August 2011, Don Barrett worked with Bob Moore , Jack Silver , Josh Rawitch , and Eric Braverman to arrange for me to interview Mr. Scully. After I picked myself off the floor, I cleared my calendar to make sure I wasn’t going to miss this opportunity. Bob Moor...