WCMF: Media Consolidation Hits Home
You’ve probably heard by now the layoffs in local radio due to the change in ownership in WCMF and other stations:
Veteran WCMF deejay Dave Kane is among the layoffs announced Thursday as Entercom Communications Corp. wraps up a deal that gives the Pennsylvania radio giant control of four of the most-desirable properties in the area.
Also losing their jobs are WPXY’s Pete Kennedy; WCMF’s Dino Kaye and Mark Cronin; and J.P. Lacey, a producer on Brother Wease’s WCMF morning show. A receptionist and sales manager at the former local CBS radio station group also are on the list.
This is one of the many bad things that happen when the media is consolidated into fewer and fewer hands. Check out this graphic from mydd.com:
So much for a free market. Not to mention the marketplace of ideas. But folks are fighting back:
I was further heartened earlier this week, as Dodd took another strong stance against media consolidation. Josh over at The Seminal and I have been leading a campaign against media consolidation, and we’ve targeted a bill in the Senate, the Media Ownership Act of 2007 (S.2332) which would would increase support for minority ownership of media outlets, as something we’d like to drum up support for.
Sounds like it’s time to ring Schumer and Clinton’s offices again.
I’m sorry some people lost their jobs, but don’t bother calling Schumer or Clinton. Just let it happen, and tune out. After everyone stops listening, those corporations will sell their stations back to someone local.
Save your energy for the real fight: keeping the grimy fingers of those corporate media mofos off of the Internet.
Listen to Internet radio. Download podcasts. Watch music videos on YouTube. And work to make sure we always have it as an alternative.
I can’t agree with this. Just because there are bigger fights, it doesn’t mean you have to give up on other issues. And I don’t even agree that the internet is the bigger fight … consolidation of the media into a few hands has greatly distorted and destroyed political discourse in our country. I think fighting against media consolidation is just as important as net neutrality.
Net neutrality is just part of the fight. Mandated DRM, ridiculous licensing fees for Internet radio, DMCA. The list goes on and on.
Broadcast radio, other than talk radio, has been dead as a creative medium for years. It’s very hard to see how legislation will resurrect it.
I don’t think legislation is required in the first place. All that is required is an FCC chairman willing to do his job instead of just vapour-locking his lips to Clear Channel’s gilded posterior.
Clear Channel makes a convenient whipping boy, but it’s actually pulled pretty far away from the kind of consolidating it was doing a few years back. They’re selling their TV holdings (including channel 13 here), having concluded that radio/TV synergy wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. They sold off their live concert business (ditto). They’re selling off most of their smaller-market radio stations. They’d sell the Rochester radio stations if the right buyer came along, too.
At least on WCMF, there was a large amount of local content, not just on Bro Wease, but on the other shows as well, most notably from the beloved Unkle Rog, but also from Dave Kane and others. All of this local content now goes out the window. We lose the ability to learn about and be a part of our community when the big national conglomerates take over broadcast radio.
Also, I know that WBEE is very much involved in the community, and that too would be a shame if it was replaced by some national content.
And so, Rottenchester, although you say “Broadcast radio, other than talk radio, has been dead as a creative medium for yearsâ€ÂÂ, the issue isn’t that it is creative … the issue is that it is a part of our community. I don’t care if the folks on WBEE or WCMF never do another creative thing, as long as they continue to talk about and be a part of our community. If they cease to be a part of our community and are replaced by national content, we have lost a lot.
I can’t really agree with this much, either. For reasons stated below, local media is vitally important. Much though I love the Internet and am gainfully employed by said, it is precisely the problem: the center of gravity in people’s worlds moves slowly away from them, and their opinions become insignificant. Then, when Facebook decided to share their private data, they don’t mind so much. Hell, they’ll probably be happy for the attention.
I’m totally bummed/pissed off by the layoffs. One of the things that made Rochester kinda cool back in the day was the fact that we had a unique style of radio. Go anywhere outside of Rochester, and radio tends to be much more homogeneous even than Rochester radio is today.
Well, that’s going even farther away, as guys who’ve spent decades making things happen for Rochester will be replaced by the GM’s iPod.
I know, I should be more concerned about freedom of speech and information. Believe me, I’m worried. But when a city loses it’s identity to the collective, they become less willing to think for themselves in other ways. To my mind, music and culture are indispensable to maintaining our identity.
Kane said on the radio that because the radio in Rochester is in effect controlled entirely by two companies, the likelihood of him finding another job in Rochester is slim. He’d like to stay in Rochester, but …
This company sucks. Now they don;t want to rehire Wease?? What are they going to do to WBEE now that they own that too. Good by radio as we knew it. It’s a shame they do not listen to the locals when they buy out radio channels
[...] about local radio today. We’ve written about the issues here many times before — this post by btp is especially good, in my [...]
Nice of Entercom, or is it EXITCOM to strip Rochester radio of it’s personality. Wease’s Saturday morning show is great, and I especially miss Dave Kane and the mid day Mambo…I especially miss the Friday song. It obviously has no meaning to Exitcom.
I hate the current set up. If I want to listen to looped music, I listen to my ipod and my playlists.
Exitcom loves boring. Rochester deserves more…
Write to Entercom:
Entercom Communications Corp.
401 City Ave., Suite 809
Bala Cynwyd, Pa 19004
tel: 610-660-5610 | Fax: 610-660-5620
I used to listen to radio, I really loved the classic rock stations but somebody has to pay for the stations to be on the air so we get lousy car dealers and silly made up advertisements that insult the intelligence. This type of nonsense has driven me away from radio. Now I listen to satellite radio or internet streaming, I was once a loyal listener but I’ve lost interest as I cannot stand advertising. Today’s product marketing is all junk, I even put the TV on mute when loud obnoxious advertising is vomited through the speakers on my television.
I was stunned when I saw this mornings Rochester newspaper at work.
I can’t believe that Entercom let Bother Wease and Dave Kane go.
My question is this, are they nuts??!! Both of these guys were part of
the reason WCMF is where it is today. Does Entercom realize the deathblow they just did to the station? Sure Wease was a little contoversial at times, but what radio personality worth listening to isn’t once in a while. I might not have agreed with everything he said and did, but that”s one thing that makes America great, the ability to have and express your own opinion. I don’t know why Bother Wease was let go, but I, for one, will miss him and Dave Kane. One thing Wease brought to WCMF was his passion and his compassion for his fellow human being. At least Wease wasn’t afraid to speake his mind about what he believed in. That was what made him unique to Rochester radio. As for Dave, he too was a very inegral part of WCMF. I had the pleasure of meeting him at the Ford dealer here in Medina,NY a couple of yers ago. He was very personable and took time to talk to me for the few minutes I was there. I also loved his passion for the music he played when on the air. He was a genuine person who loved the work he was doing, and it showed. If anything, Entercom should have left things the way they were. ” If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!” I hope that Entercom realizes the mistake they made, and re-sign Bother Wease and Dave Kane back to the station they both had a hand in making what it is today. It just won’t be the same without them!