K-G-Bum Fires "Jimbo" (October 16, 2002)

North County Times - Randy Dotinga
Jim McInnes Fired... Excerpts:

McInnes, who's kept KGB listeners company for 27 years, isn't talking. A source does confirm, however, that his involuntary departure ---- officially, a non-renewal of his contract ---- had nothing to do with any song he played. The official line from station management is that programmers wanted "a different entertainment approach in the afternoon."

But it's still ironic that McInnes spun "The Last DJ" during his last shift, especially considering that he's a card-carrying member of the old school.

It's not clear if KGB's failure to renew McInnes' contract was a matter of finances. KGB has been doing some housecleaning. A few weeks ago, it stopped using the services of Cincinnati disc jockey Jay Gilbert, who had been hosting its midday show. And we shouldn't assume that evil lurks in the hearts of KGB programmers. There may be more sides to the story. Heck, maybe McInnes wanted $1 million a year. But until I know different, I'm going to assume that McInnes left KGB because he's the kind of radio outlaw memorialized by Tom Petty.

The stupidity continues as the evil empire near Qualcomm known as The Clear Channel San Diego Death Star Headquarters, which can't seem to figure out what diversity means, has fired longtime K-G-Bore veteran Jim McInnes last week according to Chris Carmichael's http://www.sdradio.net/ website. There's a lot of commentary from him and his readers about the firing.

Jim McInnes goes way back to the days where deejays were still in the studios spinning vinyl and using carts for commercials instead of using computers to play the songs and ads today (and in many cases, voice-tracked jocks from another realm nobody can relate to.) Jim McInnes survived through 8-tracks, cassettes, CDs, and three ownership changes, but just as DVD Audio is beginning to make waves in the music medium, McInnes gets the axe from "Cheap" Channel in what is yet another cost-cutting move.

Nowadays, it was Jim that was better than what was left of the KGB rock and roll format as the current owners of the station ran it into the ground by voice-tracking the heck out of the station on weekdays and middays, plus late nights and finding nothing to do other than to rerun DSC nights and Saturday mornings, which proves that "Cheap" Channel's programmer at KGBore just don't know how to program a station for what is now an over 40-plus crowd.

Just a few weeks ago, Tom Petty released "The Last DJ" CD. It seems now that KGB has officially canned the last DJ that really mattered to the station (Dave Rickards is no deejay, just a talker).

According to sdradio.net, ratings for the afternoon sked were down considerably. Funny, the overall ratings for that station is up. Blame it on the voice-tracked shift that preceeded McInnes's downward ratings sprial, not McInnes himself, stupid KGB programmer; nobody liked that phony jock from out of town that preceeded his shift and people tuned to another station, never to come back for the rest of the day, in search of a human being at the studio spinning better music at KPRI 102.1, which went up in the book.

Duh! Everybody knows a real jock from a fake one in San Diego (not counting the syndicated jocks like Casey Kasem and Dr. Demento). Voice-tracking jocks like the untalented Mikey is what contributed to the downfall of local radio (a letter about it from radiodailynews.com follows later.) Sure, the station needs to cut costs somewhere, but to sacrifice warmth for the bottom line? Hello?

What's next? Voicetracking out of town jocks all day at K-G-Behind the Times? Reairing DSC all day while the weenies that host the show don't get the money they deserve for the rebroadcasts? Where are their union representatives? Sure, their morning show is not funny by my standards, but doesn't "Cheap" Channel ever think to pay them for reusing their material in other dayparts? DSC should register their show with AFTRA and have them get CC to pay up!

Excerpts from Reaction: "I'm still trying to love radio...but I'm finding it more and more difficult every day. That GD company (whoa dude!). How can anyone who works for them feel good about it. They all have to know that loyalty and hard work means nothing to that group of pigs. As far as the love / hate for radio... I love what it was, & always will. What it has become since dereg (& more importantly what CC has done to it) is a completely different animal though. And I HATE that. It comes down to who the real losers are in this, it's the listeners. The many people who have tuned to JM for years and felt safe...."

Haven't the losers lost enough in the San Diego Outland? Wish President "Dubya B" would sign legislation outlawing Clear Channel and begin bombing in five minutes (reference to Reagan joke testing the intercom from 1984).

Some excerpts from Chris's website:

Jon Hoffman writes: Radio here basically sucks....there's no creative talent on the air in SD. Hasn't been for years. No one seems to want off-the-cuff thinkers anymore.

Barbara Shultz writes: "I am an ex-Cheap Channel employee...The evil empire does creep it way up all the way to the top!!!!!! Oh my Jim McGinnis! How on earth could the let YOU go? The genius of all what has brought life to a radio. You will be missed, Mr. McGinnis....more than you ever imagined. Jim McGinnis you are an Icon in this business. Your talent tops them all and your wit and knowledge of what makes this music world go round is untouchable."

A current Clear Channel employee writes: " Yeah that sucks about Jim. I don't know him but just hate those kinds of stories ...it happens more and more these days ..."

Midnight Mike sends: "Grew up with him sad day interesting that KGB's web site is down this a.m. probably being bombarded by e mail like to see him show up at the Planet or KPRI unless he enjoys retirement radio is really suckin now tks to big business"

Bob Smith writes: "He ranks up there with other greats who've made their mark in their local market. I hope he can hook up with another station as he's personable, a company guy, and humble."

Lupita Rameriz writes: "Radio is killing the radio star. For those of us who have been in the biz for a long time, we remember when the program directors and on-air talent commanded respect. (Now some newcomer idiots demand respect.) Real people with real talent and local angles on what is important to San Diegans. These people really are slowly phasing out the on-air talent. It's soooo sad when...the voicetraking intros the guy that's on the regular shift and it turns out the guy is out sick. The higher-ups at the deathstar, the borg, whatever...they're making the really big bucks, what do they care if radio is going down the toilet? Hail to the almighty dollar. It's a good thing that Jim is such a multi-talented person, he'll do just fine."

Dave Ficere, Operations Director at KFLT, Tucson, Arizona, writes: "I trust some wise GM in San Diego will snap Jim up and get him back on the air soon. In the meantime it's just another bad decision by the evil empire as they seem hell-bent on destroying what we love - local radio. Please pass on to Jim my best wishes."

Paul Adams writes: "It just hit me... I think it just might wake up Cheap Channel if, on 10/15 (101.5) there was a massive 'sick-out' by everyone working at the evil empire. I know it takes courage to do this, but it's something that needs to happen." He also urges readers to send out e-mails to the local newspapers in Jim's favor at North County Times: letters@nctimes.com San Diego Union Tribune: letters@uniontrib.com

John Fox writes: "With 28 years at KGB, you may have been the Hank Aaron of making a difference. It's unfortunate that corporate radio can't seem to reconcile ratings and credibilty ... and think the wrong one is the more important of the two. If your replacement ends up being voice tracks, we'll know ratings were just an excuse. There's at least one station in town with some recently acquired heritage call letters (KPRI) that could certainly benefit from your rep. If they're as sharp as I think they are, they've already contacted you. And, hallelujah, they're not owned by Lowry's loonies."

Tommy Sablan of Star 100.7-FM: "Jim McInnes is KGB....When you think of KGB, you think of Jim McInnes...I hope the owners of that radio station change call letters now, because as someone that grew up in this town, there ain't no KGB without Jim McInnes."

The letters in complete form are at sdradio.net. Here are a few letters from readers from my website:

William McKenzie: "The bottom has officially fallen! Radio is spiraling down the drain in a hastier tone as yet another real human being (aka radio deejay) has fallen through no fault of his own. That's the problem with the radio business; no matter how good you are, you still get fired because of the f-ing ratings I can't vote on (I know I would have voted just for McInnes' shift though I listen to KPRI more often)."

Tom Barker: "This is ridiculous! Clear Channel has just no idea about San Diego radio heritage. The "kids" at CC would rather turn the station into Music Choice Channel 1015 with little voice-tracking and no feeling for San Diego instead of having real people to spin the discs (they're now on hard drive). You would think that it doesn't matter, CC? Well, it does, and we'll follow McInnes if he gets rehired and goes to another station!"

Deanna (last name withheld from this website by request): "It's a sad day in radio when those heartless suits at that company give a veteran jock I grew up with the pink slip. Once KGB fired the longtime late nighttime jock John Leslie and overnighter Mark St. John, I knew that radio at KGB was beginning to go downhill faster than they changed formats to playing only old rock and roll. I quit listening when I heard Leslie died by his own hand, but came back a year later, only to hear Coe Lewis quit (I guess because she got sick of Layla playing everyday). Now that McInnes is gone, I am too forever. There is no talent left on KGB. I never listened to Rickards and company because their show is too mean spritied and I listen to Jeff and Jer on Star instead of those bozos there. KGB is not KGB anymore, it's just another corporate run station from hell."

Jack Mars: "KGB is dead, Jim! The brains have left the Clear Channel building! This is yet another nail in the coffin of San Diego radio, thanks to Adolf Channel exterminating our deejays one by one until nobody from the pre-CC days are left. I have grown up with McInnes's wit, now KGB is just a piece of sh*t station! Never again! Where's that Amazon link, I want to buy some classic rock CDs from your website and dump radio for good!"

D.T.: http://www.davesfunstuff.com/amazon.

Bruce Davidson: "Instead of listening to those idiots at DSC at night, I flip over to KLOS 95.5 out of Los Angeles for some better rock music plus the talented Jim Ladd, which just celebrated his fifth anniversary at the station there from 10pm until 2am. Ladd's softer rock mix will relax you into the night. Try KLOS-FM instead of KGB if you can get it. I guess they're still streaming but I haven't checked lately.

D.T.: http://www.955klos.com/listen.asp for the live KLOS radio stream. I should also add KLOS to the rotating banners page, come to think of it.

Jennifer (no last name mentioned): "This had to happen sooner or later. Clear Channel is so predictable that my circle of friends are participating in a 'firing pool', which is sort of like a celebrity death pool, predicting what CC live jock will get fired next. Want to join, Dave?"

D.T.: Let me throw in Shannon Leder from 105.3. The station needs another voice-tracked shift to complete their station's all-out-of-town jock lineup from Howard Stern on (sarcasm).

Walter Milton: "Let me say that after all these years of reading your radio news website tracking the demise of San Diego radio from the dropping of Dr. Demento's show on KKOS on, this firing of Jim McInnes is a new low for any radio station locally as the collective IQ level of SD radio continues to ebb. Your assessment of Clear Channel is dead on and accurate. Those morons there don't care about me or you or anyone else who enjoys hearing good radio. I'm even listening to my MP3s on CD instead of local radio nowadays and am not looking back at local radio anymore, which has completetly lost touch with the human good in favor of the almighty dollar."

Gabriel Jones: "Buh bye KGB! CC continues to suck with the firing of our Jimbo in favor of, what, some newbie from within the company who doesn't know San Diego? Give me a break!"

And I've received some celebrity "letters" yesterday about the firing:

Wyonna Ryder: "CC didn't fire Jim McInnes. I shoplifted him from the studio last week."

Hannibal Lecter: "I like Jim McInnes. Taste like chicken!"

George W. Bush: "I have officially drafted Jim McInnes into our Armed Services and he will personally kick Saddam Hussein's ass off the face of the earth. What we'll do with the rest of Saddam, however, remains in question."

David Letterman: "Jim left KGB because the squirrels kept invading the KGB studio in their goal of trying to gather nuts!"

Daryl Hall and John Oates: "You're (Clear Channel) out of touch, I'm out of time" - from their 1984 hit "Out of Touch"