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Fame Can Be Fickle, So Here’s How to Handle It

Peter Thiele
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Fame Can Be Fickle, So Here’s How to Handle It

Let us be honest: One of the attractions of radio was not just expounding on the air about politics, sports, news, or music, it was fame. Most radio people do not achieve the fame of Stern, Limbaugh, etc…But, they receive a certain amount of notoriety. Sinead O’Connor’s passing led me to think through fame. It’s repercussions and perhaps some tips for you. 

Sinead’s first album was The Lion and The Cobra. For the late 80s, it was a tremendous debut.  Considering the fad of the day was Hair Metal, this album finished at the 95th largest seller for the year. The big single was Mandinka which peaked on the Dance Chart at #14. Her bald head and pretty features also gained a lot of attention. Sinead either wrote or co-wrote every song on the record. Every artist wants attention, but most are totally unprepared for worldwide fame. 

Sinead’s second Album hit. Mostly her own songs, except for Nothing Compares 2 U written by Prince. This song was #1 all over the world. So, Sinead was an “overnight” sensation. And the pressure was really on.

Sinead was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live and ripped up a picture of the Pope.  O’Connor was known by everyone after that. It was a clean-up on aisle five for the record company. The jokes and hate towards Sinead commenced. Prince didn’t like that Sinead O’Connor covered his song. Sinead’s long slide really ramped up. 

Fame amplifies everyone’s strengths and weaknesses. It was obvious that Sinead had an anemic support system. 

Let’s talk about your fame. You like to think that you run through your life anonymously. You are wrong. The internet gets your picture everywhere. If you do any public appearances for your station, people know you, which is terrific, but there is a cost. 

Fame turns people into commodities. You are an individual. You are not a thing. But fame has made you one. If you reach a certain amount of notoriety, people begin to treat you differently. I personally want to be treated like everyone else. If you go and get a drink on the way home from work, there are people noticing you. If I am out with friends at a restaurant or bar, I never have a second drink. I will sip on a beer or bourbon and then have water after that. 

Fame can sully your relationships. Ugly radio guys can date some amazingly attractive women. Which is nice, but are you a trophy for the lady? Does that matter to you? Do your “friends” like you as a person or enjoy hanging out with someone who has a tiny bit of fame? I have a buddy who was a casualty of one of the big layoffs in our industry. He was a morning show jock in a nice market. He told me that his group of friends disappeared after the loss of his job. Did people like this guy or did they like the attention they personally received from the relationship?

Many of us in radio have built relationships with comics, musicians, and actors. I was having a conversation with a well-known actor. I won’t name-drop. This incredibly famous man said that he avoided certain roles because he didn’t want to be Tom Cruise. What he meant is that he didn’t want to be a prisoner to his fame. I don’t think that Howard Stern is running a lot of errands on his own these days. But being well-known and liked is essential for a long run on the air. 

So, here are my thoughts on fame for the radio personality: There is a difference between your on-air persona and you the individual. Learn the difference between these two parts of your life. Don’t be in personality mode 24/7. That is not you. You are like everyone else. When you are recognized in public, speak with the listener. Make the interaction personal and thank the individual for listening. If they want a selfie, do it immediately. It’s your job. 

I used to work with a talk show host that would go into stupid impressions of random celebrities if recognized. It was really embarrassing. I told him after the interaction with a fan that it was stupid. If a listener greets you, thank them for listening. Make that moment very special for them. Never, ever, lose your temper in public. No matter how close you were to being t-boned in the parking lot of the grocery store, don’t flip off or yell at the guilty party. Just Smile.

If I order something at a restaurant and the food is wrong, do not send it back. Just eat it. You will live through it. No matter how bad the service at the restaurant is, tip 25% at the minimum. If you tip 10%, the server will talk about how cheap you are. If you tip 25%, the servers will brag about you. Win that war.

Everyone in your neighborhood or building knows who you are. Smile and wave at everyone. Greet your neighbors when you see them. This is imperative. If you are aloof or just not friendly, they will tell their friends and people at the office. 

If you want to be anonymous, go to the store really early or really late. Hit the restaurant midafternoon. My brother worked at a restaurant in Santa Barbara while in college. Joe Cocker came in occasionally. Usually in the midafternoon, sat in a corner booth. Perfect, he could be a regular guy.

Sinead O’Connor’s mental health was very fragile. It is much easier to ask for help if the only people watching are friends and family. Everything becomes more difficult when it becomes a headline on social media and the news. Sinead’s fate could also have been averted by people telling her no. Famous people sometimes only have yes people around them. 

We all have problems. We also may have impulses that may be unbecoming of our image and our radio station’s brand. If you need help, get it. Don’t become a prisoner like Sinead obviously became. 

There is nothing embarrassing about fixing something in your life. Americans kind of like cheering for someone facing a problem. Being real and honest is attractive.  Showing your weaknesses can actually be empowering. Your fame should not keep you from addressing something. 

John Canzano: ‘FOX is Rooting Hard For Demise of Pac-12’

BSM Staff
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College football’s golden goose is television, and it’s also the great decider in how the sport’s landscape looks in the future.

The Pac-12 is seeing TV more as the great decider, as the conference faces an uncertain future with no new media rights deal in place for beyond next season. Already one school, Colorado, has defected from the 10 remaining teams in the conference after USC and UCLA joined the Big Ten.

In a new post Wednesday on his Bald Faced Truth Substack, John Canzano wrote that FOX appears to be standing in the way of the conference getting a new deal done. The network struck it big with the Big Ten and had its deal with the Big 12 sweetened with Colorado’s news.

“So why is TV reluctant to buy it?” Canzano asked. “Well, in part, because it doesn’t have to — as long as it can destroy the conference and pick apart the carcass. Fox didn’t need to make a big bid on the Pac-12’s rights. Not after it captured the Los Angeles TV market and 5.7 million television homes when USC and UCLA defected for the Big Ten. Then, last week Fox grabbed Denver via the Big 12’s acquisition of Colorado.”

Now as the uncertainty sets in, there are new rumblings that Arizona, Arizona State and Utah could also potentially jump ship despite the Arizona schools banding together initially to stay in the Pac-12.

Canzano believes FOX is hoping to run the clock out on the Pac-12.

“Those are heavy questions and it’s difficult for me not to believe Fox is rooting hard for the demise of the Pac-12,” he wrote. “After all, if all hell breaks loose it might pick up Oregon, Washington, Cal and Stanford under its the Big Ten contract at a hefty discount.”

“Television isn’t just responsible for late kickoffs, longer game times, and the loss of traditions and rivalries,” Canzano added. “Its greed has effectively squeezed the landscape into thinking there isn’t room for more than maybe 50 or 60 schools as long as the key media markets are captured and controlled.”

Dan Le Batard: ‘A Broadcaster Can Only Get My Attention if They are Truly Awful’

BSM Staff
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With Jeff Van Gundy leaving ESPN, the network’s main NBA broadcast team needed an addition. The Worldwide Leader found that addition in Doris Burke and Doc Rivers. The two will join legendary play-by-play voice Mike Breen on the call.

The news of two new faces on the broadcast meant Van Gundy’s co-analyst Mark Jackson has been relegated.

On The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz on Wednesday, Dan said he’s unbothered by the move considering he rarely watches a game listening to the broadcasters.

“To me, as someone who largely consumes these things with the sound down, I almost don’t care at all who is broadcasting that you could only get my attention if you’re truly awful,” Le Batard said. “And most of the other pieces I view as interchangeable. So I imagine Doc Rivers and Doris Burke and Mike Breen will be about as good as Jeff Van Gundy, Mark Jackson and Mike Breen.”

Stugotz chimed in saying the broadcasting pairings are a nonfactor in whether or not he watches an NBA contest.

“I don’t care if no one’s calling the game. If it’s a game I want to watch, I’m going to watch the NBA game,” he said. “Like people get outraged about this stuff, and I guess I understand why. But if you want to watch a basketball game, you’re not tuning in because Mike Breen is calling it.”

Amin Elhassan added that the decision to go with some fresh analysts alongside Breen was largely due in part to the fact that Jeff Van Gundy, and to some extent Jackson, wasn’t shy about being overly critical of officiating and things like load management. He said it doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things who calls the games, but it made sense that the league and ESPN would want to try to go in a different direction.

“However many millions of people are watching, this is the most watched event in our sport, and you’re getting bombarded with kind of a negativity,” Elhassan said. “I can see from the league’s standpoint of ‘Yo, we’re trying to do a thing here. We’re trying to sell this. We’re trying to like let people be excited about it and be optimistic about it.'”

“You do need a breath of positivity in it,” Amin added. “From that standpoint, I don’t think you’re right. People don’t turn off or turn on the game, but our overall perception of the game can be colored by the people who are bringing it to us at the highest profile moments.”

Bleav Launches FAST Channels Through TCL

BSM Staff
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Bleav Launches FAST Channels Through TCL

Sports and entertainment media production company Bleav has announced that two of its free, ad-supported television (FAST) channels are now available through TCL.

Fans utilizing the free TV function of their TCL smart devices will be able to access Bleav Sports and Bleav Football.

“We are so excited that TCL will be distributing our 2 Bleav TV channels – Bleav Sports & Bleav Football – we look forward to growing our programming and audience with TCL and their reach around the world,” Bleav President Eric Weinberger said.

Bleav Sports and Bleav Football are now available on Fubo, LocalNow, Sports.TV, DistroTV, GlewedTV, SportsTribal and FreeCast.

WOWO PD Mike Ragozino Exits

BNM Staff
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WOWO PD Mike Ragozino Exits

WOWO Program Director Mike Ragozino has announced he has departed the Fort Wayne news/talk station.

Ragozino has joined the growing network Audio 1 as its new Director of Programming.

Under his tutelage, WOWO won a Marconi Award in 2022 for Medium Market Station of the Year, and morning host Kayla Blakeslee is nominated for medium-market Personality of the Year in the 2023 Marconi Award finalists.

Ragozino also oversaw WOWO’s expansion to a more powerful FM signal in May of this year. The station added an FM simulcast on 92.3 FM which saw its power increase from 75 watts on the 107.5 FM signal to 2,200 watts.

The move marked a return to the signal for WOWO after previously being heard from 2012 to 2016 on 92.3 FM. However, with the move to the FM signal, the station began emphasizing 92.3 FM rather than its 1190 AM signal.

In addition to serving as Program Director of WOWO, Ragozino also held the same role for sports talk station 1380 The Fan for Federated Media Fort Wayne.

WOWO.com now lists Jon Zimney as the station’s program director. He currently serves as the Program Director, News Director, and morning show host at Federated Media’s South Bend news/talk station 95.3 WMNC.

The Sports Bash Leads ESPN 97.3 In Strong Atlantic City Spring Ratings Book

BSM Staff
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With sports betting legal in New Jersey, the people of Atlantic City have never been so glued to sports talk radio. That is clear looking at the spring ratings book, where ESPN 97.3 turned in a stellar performance. 

The format’s target demo (Men 25-54) was kind to the station, delivering a 5.5 share for weekday prime hours (M-F 6A-7P). That put the brand in 2nd place in the market.

ESPN 97.3’s one local show The Sports Bash with Mike Gill was number one in afternoon drive with a 9.6 share.

Mornings and middays are filled by syndicated programming from ESPN Radio. Even the nationally-focused shows delivered for the station. The two day-parts were third with a 4.7 (mornings) and fifth with a 4.6 (middays) respectively.

For the full week (M-Su 6A-Mid), ESPN 97.3 pulled a 4.6 share to finish third.

Paul Finebaum: ‘It’s Over for Pac-12 If Conference Inks Apple Deal’

BSM Staff
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The Pac-12 is urgently looking to ink a new media rights deal to ensure it will have a broadcast home when its current contract with ESPN and FOX Sports expires prior to the 2024 regular season. Recent discussions are centering around a potential partnership with Apple TV+ as speculation and reports hint that a resolution could be reached soon. Yet the conference is quickly losing members, with three schools departing for other Power Five conferences next year. 

The University of Arizona is also mulling leaving the Pac-12 for the Big 12 conference. It could further compel Arizona State University to consider a move, although it is reportedly not doing so at this time. The University of Utah is also being considered as Arizona weighs a substantial choice, compelling it to hold a Board of Regents meeting on Tuesday to discuss its future. Big 12 schools are set to receive $31.7 million each annually under its new six-year media rights contract with ESPN and FOX Sports worth a reported $2.3 billion, which begins in 2025.

“That streaming deal was a bit underwhelming financially, especially to start, but, and it will be gauged by the Big 12’s $31.7 million deal kind of as the fiscal barometer, there’s a potential with subscriptions for the Pac-12 to eventually eclipse that throughout the deal,” reporter Pete Thamel said. “That’s obviously a huge ‘but’ in a giant variance of how many people would sign up to watch Pac-12 football.”

While appearing on ESPN’s morning program, Get Up, college football analyst and radio host Paul Finebaum expressed his sentiments on the situation. He simply said, “It’s over,” regarding if the Pac-12 chooses to agree to a heavy streaming component within its next contract.

“Nobody is signing up on Apple to watch the Pac-12 because there’s nothing to watch once you lose Colorado, UCLA and USC,” Finebaum said. “I don’t want to be the guy that keeps burying this league because I think I did it the other day, but I’m going to keep doing it. Somebody needs to shovel dirt on this league and end this charade.”

The Pac-12 does not desire to add any more member schools until the completion of its media rights contract, a prime source of revenue for the conference. Commissioner George Kliavkoff and conference leadership are under the microscope as member schools, media pundits and college football fans await a protracted decision.

Ken Carman: ‘We Didn’t Know How Good We Had It With Big Ten on ESPN’

BSM Staff
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Just weeks out from kickoff of the Big Ten season, fans will need to grow accustomed to watching the game on a variety of different networks. The conference inked a record-breaking seven-year media rights deal with CBS Sports, NBC Sports and FOX Sports for approximately $8 billion, making the contract the largest in college football history. ESPN had been the broadcast home of the conference for over 40 years, but it pulled out of media rights negotiations last August and opted to lose the rights. The “Worldwide Leader” still carries the Big 12, Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and Southeastern Conference (SEC) amid its large sports portfolio.

On Carman and Lima’s Emerging Podcast Scene through 92.3 The Fan in Cleveland, Ohio, Ken Carman reminisced on the days when the Big Ten used to be on ESPN. He vividly remembers the commentary team of Brent Musburger, Jack Arute and Gary Danielson and the presentation of the games surrounded by roaring crowds in the Midwest.

“We didn’t know how good we had it,” Carman said. “There’s so many games – and I’m talking to an ESPN play-by-play guy here when I’m saying this – we have so many games where not a lot of guys stick out….. I hope it’s still the same presentation.”

The conversation came after Carman and Lima were remembering Ohio State Buckeyes teams of the past, including a run to the Fiesta Bowl in the early 2000s. Lima then mentioned how the Big Ten will be on a new network for 2023 and beyond, something that left Carman slightly incredulous. Nonetheless, Lima recognizes the value of the conference, evinced through the completed media rights deal, and how important it was for other networks to break up the monopoly on college sports held by ESPN.

“That’s how bad these other networks were dying to get the Big Ten,” Lima said. “Not because they felt the Big Ten was the best football, but because the Big Ten – [and] people still don’t understand this in the South – the Big Ten, by and large, [just has] bigger fanbases; they have more people around the country.”

Whether it is Ohio State, Purdue, Michigan or Penn State, the conference has continued to stand out in the college sports landscape as some of its counterparts, most notably the Pac-12, have lagged behind. The Big Ten is holding preliminary expansion talks as other schools, including Oregon and Stanford, consider entry.

Sports fans in the southern region of the United States tend to watch the SEC, which continues to be televised by ESPN and its SEC Network. In fact, the conference will commence a new 10-year media rights contract worth $3 billion prior to the start of next season. The part of the sport, however, that Lima believes they do not understand is how the value of a conference spans beyond the quality of football being played.

“They always say, ‘SEC, it means more,’” Lima conveyed. “But the amount of people that drop everything on Saturdays in the Midwest to follow college football – it’s why they don’t have the best teams, but they still get as much, if not the most money.”

OutKick Reportedly Locked Out of YouTube Channel For COVID-19 Comments

BNM Staff
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OutKick Reportedly Locked Out of YouTube Channel For COVID-19 Comments

Conservative digital outlet OutKick has reportedly been locked out of its YouTube channel after comments by Tomi Lahren and Clay Travis about the COVID-19 vaccine have come into question.

In a tweet, Lahren shared that the outlet hasn’t been able to upload any content.

“Moral of the story, you can create a basically worthless vaccine and coax tens of millions of people into taking it,” Lahren wrote. “You just can’t point out that it is basically worthless. Got it.”

An overview of OutKick’s YouTube channel shows it has not uploaded any content today. Usually, the company produces a sports show hosted by Dan Dakich from 9:00-11:00 AM on YouTube. However, this morning, the program gave an error code on the outlet’s website rather than the live video feed.

The issues OutKick is experiencing comes after the outlet announced FOX Nation would air programming produced by the Clay Travis-founded organization earlier this week. FOX Corp. purchased the outlet in 2021.

Rick Roberts Departs WBAP

BNM Staff
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Rick Roberts Departs WBAP

WBAP is in search of a new afternoon host as Rick Roberts has left the station after a seven-and-a-half-year run with the Cumulus station.

Any mention of Roberts has been removed from the station’s website. The program on the station’s lineup is simply listed as WBAP Afternoon Show. A job posting seeking a new host for the 2:00-5:00 PM timeslot has been Cumulus Media.

The job posting, which explicitly says it is looking for the timeslot Roberts previously hosted, reads in part “You must have a history of ratings success in a major to large market. WE ARE NOT LOOKING FOR ANOTHER POLITICAL TALK SHOW.”

Roberts joined WBAP in January 2016 after previously working at 1080 KRLD in Dallas, KOA in Denver, KCMO in Kansas City, and KOGO and KFMB in San Diego, among others.

A former energy lawyer, Roberts also guest hosted The Savage Nation and Red Eye Radio and also anchored America’s Radio News Network for Talk Radio Network.

Roberts’ final show on WBAP appears to have been on Friday, July 25th. The station has since ended the feed for his podcast archives.

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