The Wires - Nationwide (May 8, 2004)

Stealing Back the Airwaves (DAT's Entertainment 2:00 a.m. PDT)... As summer camps go, it's unusual. In four days, you can learn to build transmitters and antennas, and get advice on handling any FCC agents wondering about your new radio station. By Jason Silverman.

CDs, DVDs: Human After All (Technology Thursday)...One reason CDs and DVDs are so expensive is that they're supposed to last forever. Well, they don't. Shoddy manufacturing can spell an early demise, as can careless storage and handling.

In yet another sign of trouble for Air America Radio, the liberal talk network entering its fifth chaotic week on the air, co-founder and chairman Evan Cohen resigned Thursday, as did vice-chairman and investor Rex Sorensen. The company also failed to make its scheduled payroll Wednesday, leaving its staff roughly 100 radio personalities, writers, and producers unpaid until Thursday. "We're on a wild ride," said Jon Sinton, the network's president, acknowledging that Air America has suffered "the typical bumps and bruises faced by any start-up." "But the bottom line," he said, "is that we are on the air to stay." (read Chicago Tribune - John Cook) read (read Doug MacEachern) read

After MidNite Host Blair Garner will receive the On-Air Personality of the Year award at the 39th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards. This award is presented to an outstanding country music "on-air" radio personality selected by a panel of blue ribbon judges from the country radio industry. The nominees were judged on ratings, public service, community involvement, entertainment, and professionalism. This award premiered with the Academy of Country Music Awards in 1965 (read) read

The Wires - Nationwide (May 7, 2004)

All Access (registration required)
XM SATELLITE RADIO HOLDINGS, INC.'s subscriber count as of the end of first quarter 2004 was 1,681,903 subscribers, with 321,675 added for the quarter, more than double those added in first quarter 2003.

KPRI Winner (May 6, 2004)

sdradio.net website migrates to new ISP May 15 (May 6, 2004)

"Let me see .... news that you can use:

"Hip Hap Hare honored by port authority and Clear Channel Monday. Hare is a supporter of the cruise ship industry in the market.

"Arrr ... Pirate 96.9 'fixes' antenna problem, FCC takes keen interest in their (reportedly) Little Italy location. (I don't know where they are at now.)

"While rumbles continue, Howard Stern is not a sure-fit win at KPLN/Planet FM. A couple of factors in the BB, but mostly likely it's the expense of Howard and the potential of new rules requiring a station to loose their broadcast permit.

"KSON's new morning show has stopped the "loss" of listeners from the heritage country station. Cliff and Company have been on board for about a month."

More to come later. New web design for sdradio.net to happen May 15.

The Wires - San Diego (May 6, 2004)

North County Times - Randy Dotinga
1968: Boss Radio takes hold in SD... Remember 1968? It was quite a year. And not just because a future North County Times radio columnist was born, destined like children everywhere to grow up and assume his mother had managed to immaculately conceive him. The year of the monkey ---- no wisecracks, please ---- has another distinction: It turned the San Diego radio scene upside down. In the tight battle for local rock listeners, upstart KGB-AM and its innovative Boss Radio format ---- heavy on the music, light on the talk ---- had landed on top, and arch rival KCBQ-AM was DOA. But suddenly, KCBQ started getting its groove back, as described in a new self- published book called "Aircheck: The Story of Top 40 Radio in San Diego." As author David Leonard describes it, KCBQ began playing an early version of alternative rock ---- songs by artists like Country Joe & the Fish, Arlo Guthire, Canned Heat and Velvet Underground that didn't make the conventional Top 40. DJs included well-known names like Scotty Day, Gary Allyn and the legendary Lee "Babi" Simms, who once fooled a KGB disc jockey into thinking a new Beatles song was called "Broken Down Old Merry Go-Round." read more

You can visit David Leonard's website here: http://home.earthlink.net/~leonarddla/ or people can just email him for info at leonarddla@earthlink.net.

The San Diego Union-Tribune
Still no news about KIOZ's morning ratings in Preston Turegano's column. News about weekly opera broadcasts. Whatever.

Reader Blurt
KSON and KUSS sponsor competeting country music events.

You Read This in Allaccess and RRonline First Last Week, still not in the U-T... The latest Arbitron ratings show a decline for Rock 105.3 without Howard Stern. Rock 105.3 (KIOZ-FM) is one of the six Clear Channel-owned stations that stopped carrying Stern at the end of February. Rock 105.3's audience share among all listeners 12 years and over was 8.9 percent in February. In March, when Stern was off the air, Rock 105.3 showed a 0.7 percent rating during the time Stern used to be on -- a decrease of 92 percent. -- Ken Leighton

Ken also writes: ""It was a nice long run. It was three years exactly, from May 1, 2001, to May 1, 2004." KCEO-AM (1000) operations director Rick Rome is referring to the death last weekend of "Premium Radio," an edgy rock format started by DJ Mike Halloran on sister station 92.1, which moved to KCEO evenings when 92.1 was sold last November. Alternative rock will be replaced by nostalgic oldies."

KCEO Dumps Premium For The Owl (May 6, 2004)

The news is that KCEO has dropped the alternative rock mix of Premium 1000 during the evenings and replaced it with "AM 1000, The Owl," a unique mix of great ballads, nostalgic standards and the best of the swinging big bands, Owl1000 offers the sultry, familiar notes of original hits by the stars that made them famous. All night long, beginning at 6pm. The new website is http://www.kceoradio.com/.

The Wires - Nationwide (May 6, 2004)

All Access (registration required)
A prominent Republican comes to HOWARD STERN's defense, but it's not a surprise that former NEW YORK Mayor RUDY GIULIANI would tell the NEW YORK OBSERVER that "I think HOWARD STERN is what he is. Everyone knows what HOWARD is like. They listen to his show and then they've made a decision that they enjoy his kind of humor. I think the FCC or regulatory agencies have better things to look at than that. And I think it does get very close to inhibiting free speech." GIULIANI, a guest on STERN's show three times in recent years, told the paper that he can't understand why political figures aren't defending STERN and praised the host's parents as "very, very sweet, nice, understated people."

The Wires - Nationwide (May 6, 2004)

On Wednesday's nationally-syndicated popular Celebrity Justice TV show, two Chicagoans -- radio show shock jock Erich "Mancow" Muller and Citizens for Community Values director David Smith -- will be featured. Mancow is suing David Smith for $3 million, claiming Smith's numerous FCC complaints over the past several years constitute harassment. Over the past five years, Smith has filed 66 complaints with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) against Mancow for alleged obscene content during portions of his "Mancow's Morning Madness" show broadcast daily during busy morning drive-in times. The dispute between Mancow and Smith will be featured on Wednesday's edition of Celebrity Justice (read Illinois Leader) read

October brings George Carlin's next literary output. Or outburst. Or for sure outsized something. Title: "When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?" Like, he says, like: On the media: "Equal parts business, politics, advertising, p.r. and show business. Enough bull - - - - for Texas to open a chain of branch offices." (I don't exactly know what that means but I imagine it's very clever.) The sexes: "Women are crazy, men are stupid. Main reason women are crazy is that men are stupid." (read Cindy Adams) read

Howard Stern has commanded a loyal following for years. But who would have guessed that he would increase his reach and expand his audience in key markets with his political diatribes against Federal Communications Commission censors, in between his usual bits about sex, strippers and bathroom humor? Actually, we would. The history of censorship is nothing if not consistent. When authorities tried to ban books like D.H. Lawrence's "Lady Chatterley's Lover," Henry Miller's "Tropic of Cancer," or James Joyce's "Ulysses," those efforts only boosted interest--and sales. (Other books that have been banned in some places, but haven't suffered a decline in sales: the Harry Potter stories and "To Kill a Mockingbird.") Who wouldn't want to see a movie or read a book that was "banned in Boston"? There's a lesson here for the FCC and Congress, if they're willing to listen (read Chicago Tribune) read

Life just got more difficult for illegal "pirate" radio stations that torment their legitimate counterparts. Bills passed late last month in the legislature make it a third-degree felony to operate radio stations or interfere with radio transmissions without a Federal Communications Commission license. A conviction is punishable by five years in prison and a $5,000 fine for each count. They now go to Gov. Jeb Bush for consideration (read Palm Beach Post) read

As host of "The Newlywed Game" for parts of four decades, Bob Eubanks asked thousands of newlyweds embarrassing and illuminating questions that, if the husband and wife matched their answers, would net them fabulous prizes. Or at least a new bedroom set. A disc jockey in California during the early 1960s, Eubanks hosted the show from 1966-'74, 1976-'81, 1985-'88 and 1996-'98. Eubanks also was a concert promoter for two decades - he borrowed $25,000 on his house to help finance the Beatles' first appearance at the Hollywood Bowl - and visited Wisconsin many times while promoting Merle Haggard. In a visit to Racine on Thursday, Eubanks will share anecdotes, personal stories and video clips during the 2004 Senior Day at Festival Park (read MIlwaukee Journal Sentinel) read

Democratic FCC commissioner Michael Copps on Monday blasted his agency for its role in the "Clear Channelization" of American radio, charging that the Republican-controlled panel has shortchanged the public by giving the go-ahead to further media consolidation. "We are skirting dangerously close to taking the public interest out of the public airwaves," Copps said at the Future of Music Coalition's policy summit, a conference of musicians, record industry executives, lawmakers and civil liberties activists (read Reuters) read

The Wires - Nationwide (May 5, 2004)

Copps Blasts FCC For "Clear Channelization" Of Radio... The crusadin' commissioner accuses the FCC of letting radio skirt its public interest obligations, fostering an era of media homogenization, and okaying another wave of consolidation.

FCC No Habla Espanol?... Is Spanish radio getting away with the same thing Howard Stern, Bubba The Love Sponge and others are being fined for?

Internet favorites THE SMOKING GUN report that the FCC received over 1600 complaint letters concerning OPRAH WINFREY's oft-discussed MARCH 18th "tossed salad" broadcast. For reading enjoyment, the site obtained and posted a number of those complaint letters and, owing to popular request via email from our readers, ALL ACCESS presents you the link to said letters. Some of the letters are on-target, and some are just amusing ... we'll let you figure out which is which. Be forewarned: There's some harsh language ahead. Check out the letters by clicking here.

"THE RAY REO COMEDY RADIO SHOW" is up for grabs! RAY REO, a former manager at HOLLYWOOD's legendary BRILLSTEIN-GREY, has put together a demo CD for a two hour, once weekly show that originates from the CITY OF ANGELS. Using his long-term friendships like A-list comedians like ADAM SANDLER, CHRIS ROCK, DAVID SPADE, ROB SCHNEIDER, NORM MACDONALD, etc., RAY's show presents funny and revealing interviews that no one else can get. To request a copy of the demo CD, contact Super Producer JEFF SCHIMMEL at jeglosa@sbcglobal.net.

Those static-filled AM stations and FM signals that fade out a few miles from home may be headed the way of black-and-white television. Following the lead of computers and TVs, the nearly century-old business of radio is starting to join the digital age. For listeners, the difference could be loud and clear. High-definition digital radio broadcasting, or HD radio, makes AM sound as good as FM and FM sound as good as a CD for anybody who has a special digital receiver. Along with improving quality, radio stations that broadcast digitally can add features to their transmissions (read AJC - Bob Keefe) read

Beset by a drop of more than 30 percent in music sales over the past three years, ongoing piracy, industry consolidation, thousands of layoffs and bottom-line losses in the multimillions of dollars, the music business is searching for novel -- and cheaper -- ways to find and nurture talent. Zero works at XM Satellite Radio in Northeast Washington. For about $10 per month, the pay-radio service beams more than 100 channels of music, news, sports and talk to special receivers in cars and homes. Zero runs XM's "Unsigned Bands" channel, which exclusively plays bands that do not have record contracts. He left Washington's WHFS (99.1 FM) for XM in February 2000, after growing frustrated that the Infinity Radio station would not play enough unsigned bands to suit his tastes. When the channel launched, Zero had to solicit CDs from unsigned bands. Now, he receives 50 to 100 CDs a day from hopeful bands, beseeching him to play their songs. "On my desk," he said, "I've got nine 'Property of U.S. Postal Service' mail bins and another six on my intern's desk full of [CDs]." (read BizReport) read

Radio legend Casey Kasem received the prestigious Clear Channel Radio Lifetime Achievement Award at the Clear Channel Radio Programming Leadership Conference on April 29, 2004. The Clear Channel Radio Lifetime Achievement Award is given to members of the Clear Channel Radio family and to members of the industry who have impacted the medium through long standing achievement and tireless dedication and commitment. Celebrities such as Jessica Simpson attended and recognized Casey's passion and talent with their own presentations to him. Casey Kasem will return next year to present the Clear Channel Radio Lifetime Achievement Award to another worthy recipient (Clear Channel Web site) + Susan Karis is named CC Regional Vice President for Arizona (read Adobe PDF) read

Satellite radio is the biggest thing in cars since power windows. At least that's the way executives at General Motors see it after polling customers. "The surveys have been very positive," said Jay Thibault, program director for GM's satellite radio services, at a conference in Los Angeles last week. GM offers satellite radio in 41 models, and will extend that to about 50 models for model year 2005 - some 1.1 million GM vehicles. The systems installed by GM are made by XM Satellite Radio, one of two subscription-based satellite radio companies. The other is Sirius Satellite Radio. Both have been on the air since early 2000, with more than 100 channels of programming apiece (read Brian Deagon) read

I woke up this morning ready to begin a new day. The sun was shining and the birds were singing. Everything was going well until I turned on the radio. I only had a few minutes till I would have to leave my house. I needed to know the weather. I listened around the dial. I heard shows hosted by several people or morning teams talking for over 5 minutes about nothing important. After listening to several stations I finally heard the forecast however the people on the air said it so fast I missed it. It seemed as if they just wanted to get needed information out of the way and go back to discussing reality TV shows or whatever the topic was at the moment. The above illustration is an example of how morning radio sounds these days ... One thing that most morning shows have in common is that they have perfected the concept of being able to talk to each other for 10 minutes and say nothing. They seem to love to hear themselves when they are on the air. Why do the teams of today go on and on about reality TV shows? How much can or needs to be said about any television program? They just keep going and going all morning along with listener phone calls to supposedly bring more to this boring topic. If you don't get the point of a TV show while it's on the air you won't understand it any better the next day as the result of listening to a morning show (read Larry Stoler) read

In response to the recent attention given by Congress and the FCC to "indecent" radio air personalities like Howard Stern, a non-profit organization has been formed to educate Americans about the ramifications of these recent issues. SaveRadioNow.org has been created as a non-profit, non-partisan web effort with four stated goals: 1. To inform Americans about the actions of Congress and the FCC, and their impact on free speech rights. 2. To enable Americans to share ideas and opinions on this topic via chats, blogs, and meet-ups. 3. To provide Americans with easy access to their elected Representatives, and the FCC Commissioners so they can express their opinions. 4. To sign a petition that will be sent to the FCC as well as all members of the Senate and House Committees in charge of writing rules and enforcing policy. www.SaveRadioNow.org saveradionow.org has been funded by, and is the creation of Detroit-based radio consulting firm Jacobs Media (read) read

A fast-spreading computer worm similar to last year's massive "Blaster" has struck hundreds of thousands of PCs globally, and the number could soon rise sharply, a top computer security official said on Monday. Finnish data security firm F-Secure says the worm, which surfaced over the weekend and is known as "Sasser", automatically spreads via the Internet to computers using the Microsoft Windows operating system, especially Windows 2000 and XP (read Biz Report), Forum Chatter 5-5-04! Radio-Info San Diego

Subject: Why Howard won't land on KPLN/Planet FM anytime soon. [ Reply ]
Posted by: SDRadio

(Of course, subject to change)

1. Cost KPLN/Planet $$$. Yep, just because it's in the family, the station still has to pay.
2. Is the return on investment worth it?
3. Pending FCC rules could mean broadcast license.
4. It would be Howard until 10 a.m. -- what hook would leave them at the Planet? Meaning_ the station would have to spend $$$ on a media campaign.
5. Planet's quality hosts and management are taking the station in a music direction.
6. JM in the PM on the FM. With Cindy, and Dawson, it's a great one-two-three power punch to rock the Planet.

Just my thoughts over freshly ground french roast .....

______________
+--
Chris
SDRadio.net

Subject: Bay 63 Television [ Reply ]
Posted by: ibezdechi

I've got the definitive answer to a question which was raised about a Low Power UHF TV station which formerly existed in the Hillcrest area called "Bay 63." I almost became involved with the station but with the FRIGID shoulder shown to the station by Cox Cable I knew that it didn't have a future. The station was based from the medical office building suite on the seventh floor (2850 Sixth Avenue) where it had its transmitter and tower. When Cox Cable doesn't want to put a station on the air on its system, it will dig in its heels and not do so.

I have posted an ad which was published for a couple weeks in the Union-Tribune's "TV Times" magazine as station attempted to garner public pressure to get Cox Cable to put the station. You can also read a few other articles originally published by the station on my website at http://www.artlinemedia.com/bay63/ You will need Adobe Acrobat in order to open the files (downloadable from the page).

I really don't know what happened to the station's owner/GM John Wilkie afer the station went off the air (I'm not sure when), but after ten years I still tip my hat to this guy who tried to bring alternative TV to San Diego.

(Editor's comment: Cox cable fostered the growth of KBNT 19, now on 17, and XUPN 49 because they had programming we desired. How does a cable network know what we don't want to watch? How can they say that I don't care to have Bay 63 if I never heard of it, nor what programming it offered? Is Cox as stupid today as it was 15 years ago when it dumped FNN for the idotic CNBC? Cox cable, like the Union-Tribune, is run by undereducated college-graduated suits who don't know how to look for new ideas, such as Bay 63 or other low power TV stations, trying to get some publicity and growth through TV listings and carriage on cable systems. Too bad Cox never dumped one of their stupid home shopping networks to make room for it. Bay 63 could have been a contender in San Diego. With 1000 channels on cable, Cox surely can put all of the local signals on the analog band 2-125, with the pay and sports channels moved to digital cable. Cox can tell me until they're blue in the face that they serve the public interest with sponsoship of charities, yet don't put their money where their mouth is by carrying stations that truly serve the local community instead of the out-of-touch satellite networks many people don't care to watch.)

The Wires - Nationwide (May 4, 2004)

Pirate 96.9 FM Back On the Air (As Of May 3, 2004)

From the pirate969.org webstie: Hey folks! So we fixed our antenna, and our signal is back to booming again. We have some finishing touches we need to do (like crank it up another 30'), but our huge technical problem that's been hanging over us for months is finally solved. Thank you to everyone for your patience and understanding; running a radio station can be a lot of work :-).

The signal seems to be stronger this time around.

New Stations Coming to San Diego 5-5-04!

K253AD in Oceanside operated by the Educational Media Foundation will be on 98.5 MHz. It will be translating programming from KLVJ 100.1 in Julian, which is a mind boggling 48 watts, while the new translator will be blanketing all of 100 square miles of Oceanside with just ten watts!

K245AI in San Pasqual, operated by Penfold Communications Inc. will be on 96.9 MHz, the same frequency as Pirate FRSD. Hope that doesn't cause too much interference.

The Wires - Nationwide (May 3, 2004)

Senate Keeps Web Access Tax-Free (Politics Sunday)...Protecting Internet connections from taxation for four years, the Senate stopped short of a permanent ban on the tax. Telecommunications companies want to expand services; local governments want tax revenue.

Air America Radio, the self-proclaimed "liberal network," is hailed by its founders as a counterbalance to the prevailing conservative tenor of contemporary talk radio. Listeners now have a choice, say from noon to 3 p.m., between Rush Limbaugh's views or the world according to author/comedian Al Franken. The network has outdone its conservative counterparts by placing an even greater emphasis on entertainment value. What is it trying to accomplish, and how? The network is clearly championing President George W. Bush's defeat in November. Just as conservative radio attacked all things Clinton, Air America has difficulty finding anything the president has accomplished that would recommend his re-election. Despite its opposite agenda, Air America finds it useful to copy conservative talk radio's emphasis on "heat" over "light." (read Newsday - Richard Pirodsky) read

The Federal Communications Commission's well-publicized post-Super Bowl campaign against broadcaster "indecency" is misplaced, if not downright comical. While the F.C.C. is fining radio "shock jocks" for using language milder than what can be heard in most high-school parking lots, Americans can see graphic pornography on the Internet. It's time to consider a more radical approach to censoring pornography. But what? The First Amendment limits the government's ability to restrict freedom of expression. In general, only material deemed "obscene" can be penalized. The commission's additional power over broadcasters comes from its management of the public airwaves and the granting of local TV and radio licenses. But as cable and digital television, along with the Internet, grow more popular, Americans get less information and entertainment from traditional over-the-air broadcasters. The result is that the F.C.C.'s content and ownership regulations are becoming increasingly irrelevant (read NY Times - Jonathan A. Knee) read

Considering that some folks seem to think Howard Stern is Satan, let's recap one of the big stories: In the winter survey, Stern's show -- which airs on KLLI/105.3 FM "Live 105" -- had its best ratings since he returned to the Fort Worth-Dallas airwaves in January 2001. The station itself had its best showing in its four-year history, placing 11th overall, with a big boost from afternoon jock Russ Martin, who boasts of being No. 1 in the 3-7 p.m. time slot among 18- to 34-year-old men, 18- to 34-year-old adults, 25- to 54-year-old men and 25- to 54-year-old adults. Ah, demographics. When I was a teen listening to radio, I used to wonder how El Paso's three rock radio stations could all claim to be No. 1 at the same time. The answer is in the demographics -- you can be No. 1 in one demo while someone else is first in another -- and no matter which programmer I talk to, he or she will say that it's the target demographic, not the overall "12-plus" (listeners 12 and older) number, that's important (read Robert Philpot - Star-Telegram) read

The reports of "On Air with Ryan Seacrest" having trouble booking guests are, as they say, "greatly exaggerated." To whit: with May sweeps upon us, "On Air" (3 p.m./ Ch. 5) is welcoming a slew of A-list guests including Kate Hudson; Michael Douglas; the cast of "The O.C."; Usher; Alicia Keys; and Kid Rock. Also on tap for May are Patti LaBelle; Smokey Robinson; Dakota Fanning; Nelly Furtado; Greg Kinnear; Jessica Simpson; and Jeff Gordon (read NY Post) read

A recorded message advised listeners, "Details on a new Chicago affiliate will be announced soon on www.airamericaradio.com ," but there is no obvious home for the station here, and - in marked contrast with the days before the 1996 Telecommunications Reform Act led to corporate consolidation in the industry - it could be difficult to obtain a decent frequency. Air America reminds listeners its programming is streaming on its Web site and is available to satellite-radio customers at Channel 167 on XM and 125 on Sirius. It also remains on in other markets, including its flagship WLIB-AM in New York City. But that's of little use to most Chicagoans who don't subscribe to satellite radio and can't stream from the computer while driving. That's too bad, because Air America's programming had greatly improved over the course of its first weeks on the air (read Chicago Daily Herald) read

Backwaves: The Readers Strike Back! (May 3, 2004)

From John Trevithick: Planet 103.7 needs a new format, preferably, one that plays today's adult rock music, Bob and Tom in the morning, Tom Leykis in the afternoon, rare classic rock cuts and Dr. Demento on weekends. People who listened to rock in the 70s have moved on to other stations like 94.9 and satellite radio. Planet needs to address some facts and put on what's not on.

From Matt Seufert: This from www.howardstern.com today:

Gary comes into the studio to deliver some incredible ratings news from San Diego. It turns out that the Clear Channel station that dropped HowardÆs show went from an 8.9 with Howard to a 0.7 without him. HereÆs the ratings comparison:

Howard was dropped from Clear Channel's KIOZ-FM (San Diego) in February

Demo  Feb(Howard)  March(No Howard)
P12+     8.9 1st place   0.7 27th place
M18+    12.7 1st place  0.7 27th place
P18-34  20.6 1st place  0.8 19th place
P25-54  10.1 1st place  1.0 23rd place

From A.D. Albright:

Open letter to Oldies 540: Since you've asked for listener feedback, here's mine. In the past, when your station was broadcasting as The Surf on AM-540, I found it quite enjoyable and listened often, but not continuously, of course, excepting for the morning show with Geoff Edwards and his gal pals.

Now that you have gone mainstream with oldies, you'll be competing for my attention against two existing oldies FM stations I regularly listen to. They are:: K-Earth, FM-101.1, in L.A and Cool/Kool, FM-99. 3 in San Diego. You all play the same genre of music, and your advantage over them is your strong and clear AM signal, which does not fade-out. Your disadvantage is that your signal is not enhanced by a stereo effect (unless you are now broadcasting in an AM stereo format, for which I have had no compatible receiver in either auto or home, since my '97 Dodge with the AM-stereo feature at a time when no station in SoCal was broadcasting it).

I have been enjoying most of your oldies music selections until now, but the introduction of more talkative DJs is not likely to please me, as it just means there'll be less music. As for the usual ego driven "personalities" with their persistent inane prattle, that is something I can and will do without, unless they are on a par with the professional demeanor of Shotgun Tom Kelly and Geoff Edwards, both of whom are rare exceptions to the usual DJ fare. Of course advertising is a feature of your business; but a line up of DJ "hosts" isn't really "necessary" and they merely add to your cost of doing business; and frankly, as a listener, if I don't dig the DJ, I'll tune him/her (and the commercials) out by switching stations during the time they're on.

In the meanwhile I'll keep on listening ... and hoping... for things to get even better on AM-540! Oh, yes, I almost forgot to mention how pleased I am to be able to listen to original radio dranma/comedy programs from the '30s-50s each night betyween 9 and 10 pm. I don't usually listen from 8-9pm for the Stan Freeburg fare, but I always catch the 9-10pm broadcasts. Please keep on broadcasting them at 9pm with repeats at 2am (as KNX used to do). My last comment is my praise for the excellent rendition you've been playing of the Natonal Anthem of the Republic of Mexico, by a clearly superior concert orchestra. :-)

From Barry Rogers: I would rather see Planet put Howard Stern on instead of some guys I can't remember in the morning. It's no wonder Planet's ratings are in the toilet; no marquee name such as Stern. I don't give a flying fish what the Planet PD thinks, it's Stern or the PD is out of a radio job. I'd rather listen to the Planet than put up with those boring Dave and Mojo egos on that other station. Don't wait until you're fired, Planet PD. Put Stern on now!

From Jared Knight: Looks like KIOZ is the one that's going to need a format change. Without Stern, nobody cares about the station anymore. Might as well put the KIOZ rock on KGB and reformat KIOZ into a smooth jazz radio station. KIOZ is playing nothing different than 94.9 or 91X anyway.

From Irwin Jones: I'm still not listening to KIOZ until they put Stern back on. If Clean Channel can employ that foul-mouthed morning guy on KGB, then they can have Stern too. No Stern? Fire those KGB guys or be branded a hypocrite.

From Gary Tate: Planet, KGB, and KIOZ have one thing in common: they all suck because they don't have Howard Stern, Tom Leykis, or Bob and Tom on the radio. Why is San Diego so far behind when it comes to diverse programming? Nothing but silly opera and stupid rap music on the dial. No wonder Eli Manning didn't want to play with the Chargers: so he can listen to Stern in the mornings in New York. He's smarter than anyone in the NFL gives him credit for.

From Barry Stevens: I HATE THAT SONG THAT IS PLAYING ON THE RADIO! WHY DOES STAR KEEP PLAYING THAT STUPID FALLING SONG ALL THE TIME! I ALWAYS SWITCH TO ANOTHER RADIO STATION WHENEVER THAT SONG COMES ON THAT I HATE! I ALSO HATE EVANESSENSE AND JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE. I HATE THAT SONG! UGGGGH! STAR SUCKS! I HATE SAD SONGS! THEY'RE BAD! WAY BAD! BAD SONG! FIRE THE STAR PROGRAMMER! DIE STAR!

From Batman: The war between US 95.7 and KSON is interesting to note that KSON should have not let the well-known Tony and Kris go and should have paid them more to stay. Instead, Clear Channel used its publicity machine to plug the heck out of them at the new US 95.7 station on the billboards and TV and its paid off so much for US that it knocked KSON down to within a 1/2 a point of topping KSON. The morning team of Cliff and Company have yet to make a publicity push on the media. Just who is Cliff and what are the Company? What do they bring to KSON? What's going to be different with the new team? Meanwhile, I moved that knob...to US.