banyon
03-02-2006, 01:39 PM
does anybody care?
____________________________
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/13994721.htm
Talk-radio ‘ethics’ is an oxymoron
JASON WHITLOCK Fatlock
You’re kidding me? One year to the day after my departure from the local sports-talk radio scene, and Kevin “The New Don Fortune” Kietzman decides to lead a debate on journalism ethics and trash “Bland and Blander” and “Ms. Sideline Eye Candy.”
What a treat. I mean, seriously, 810 WHB and 610 KCSP debating journalism ethics is sort of like Shawn Kemp and Bill Clinton bickering over monogamy.
Now, I only caught about 15 minutes of The New Don’s gimmick on Tuesday. Although devoid of substance, it was highly entertaining and laced with just enough righteous indignation that I almost believed that he believed what he was saying. In the interest of fairness, I flipped down the dial and tuned in Bland and Blander, KCSP’s Marty Wall and Neal Jones. Unfortunately, I could only stomach five minutes before feeling like I was inadvertently eavesdropping on their debate about whether pleated khakis and a cardigan sweater were appropriate attire for a wild night of “boogieing.”
I didn’t miss any of the particulars, though, because it seemed that a friend would call me hourly with an update. By Wednesday morning, I’d read Jeffrey Flanagan’s recap in The Star and had returned politico Steve Glorioso’s voice mail, which promised enlightening information on the controversy (stay tuned for this bit of enlightenment).
You know the story, right? Bland and Blander — the duo that replaced me at 610 — accepted $150 apiece to be hosts of a radio remote that promoted the latest tax provision campaign to fix the Truman Sports Complex. Wall and Jones occasionally masquerade as journalists and should at all costs avoid the appearance that their opinions are bought and paid for, especially by political groups.
The New Don delighted in their misstep. In his glee and desire to appear more ethical than his competitors, the New Don attacked “Survivor” star Danni Boatwright, who may or may not be masquerading as a journalist but certainly speaks into a microphone while serving as eye candy during Kansas City Brigade games.
Although not required to speak, Boatwright was paid $500 to appear at the Save Our Stadiums remote.
Repulsed by this whiff of impropriety, the New Don announced that Boatwright would be removed from the Brigade radio broadcast, which airs on the 3-year-old FM station he has helped manage to miniscule ratings.
What? We’re not talking about Suzy Kolber, Bonnie Bernstein, Andrea Kremer, Michele Tafoya or any legitimate sideline reporter. We’re talking about someone whose 15 minutes of fame recently struck the 14-minute mark and will soon be known as Ms. Casey Wiegmann’s Girlfriend. That’s not a knock on Ms. Sideline Eye Candy. It’s a knock on anyone who would expect her to have a clue about journalism ethics.
You could pretty much say the same thing about the New Don, he of the very faulty memory. Oh, on Tuesday he remembered to disclose that he has money invested in downtown property, which could in some way explain his zeal for promoting a downtown stadium for the Royals and being against the S.O.S. campaign.
What the New Don failed to discuss on Tuesday was the fact that the campaign that promoted the tax provision for building a downtown arena spent $7,500 for advertising and radio remotes involving his radio show in 2004.
“I’m just baffled that he wouldn’t talk about that,” said Glorioso, who worked on both campaigns. “We paid for him to host two radio remotes promoting the arena campaign. Three days before the vote, he hosted our rally. He introduced the mayor. We paid for that.”
The arena campaign did not cut Kietzman a specific check.
“WHB does things differently than 610,” Glorioso said. “They made us buy an advertising package in order to get Kietzman to host the remotes.”
As an owner in the station, someone who goes beyond simply being host of a show, Kietzman’s relationship and involvement in the arena campaign is even below the journalism standards of his competitors.
Now, to be fair, I don’t see the New Don’s or Bland and Blander’s behavior to be truly unethical. It’s talk radio. There are virtually no ethics. The full-time hosts are not journalists and only pretend to be so they can justify their press passes and locker-room access.
Being host of a radio show is a totally different discipline from working for a newspaper. Each job is difficult. And it’s equally hard to be good at either craft. But, for the most part, you should approach sports-talk radio the same way you approach “The Sopranos” or “Seinfeld.” It’s entertainment not to be taken seriously.
That’s why Tuesday was so enjoyable. You had to laugh. KCSP has been begging Carl Peterson and the Chiefs to save it from irrelevance, so of course its hosts are in favor of the stadium package. WHB’s fearless leader has money invested in downtown, so of course his station is against the latest stadium package.
Tune in this afternoon for another edition of “As Ethic$ Turn.” I just wish it was televised, so I could get a look at Danni Boatwright.
____________________________
Meanwhile, Keitzman is demanding a personal apology and threatening to sue them on 810 right now.
____________________________
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/13994721.htm
Talk-radio ‘ethics’ is an oxymoron
JASON WHITLOCK Fatlock
You’re kidding me? One year to the day after my departure from the local sports-talk radio scene, and Kevin “The New Don Fortune” Kietzman decides to lead a debate on journalism ethics and trash “Bland and Blander” and “Ms. Sideline Eye Candy.”
What a treat. I mean, seriously, 810 WHB and 610 KCSP debating journalism ethics is sort of like Shawn Kemp and Bill Clinton bickering over monogamy.
Now, I only caught about 15 minutes of The New Don’s gimmick on Tuesday. Although devoid of substance, it was highly entertaining and laced with just enough righteous indignation that I almost believed that he believed what he was saying. In the interest of fairness, I flipped down the dial and tuned in Bland and Blander, KCSP’s Marty Wall and Neal Jones. Unfortunately, I could only stomach five minutes before feeling like I was inadvertently eavesdropping on their debate about whether pleated khakis and a cardigan sweater were appropriate attire for a wild night of “boogieing.”
I didn’t miss any of the particulars, though, because it seemed that a friend would call me hourly with an update. By Wednesday morning, I’d read Jeffrey Flanagan’s recap in The Star and had returned politico Steve Glorioso’s voice mail, which promised enlightening information on the controversy (stay tuned for this bit of enlightenment).
You know the story, right? Bland and Blander — the duo that replaced me at 610 — accepted $150 apiece to be hosts of a radio remote that promoted the latest tax provision campaign to fix the Truman Sports Complex. Wall and Jones occasionally masquerade as journalists and should at all costs avoid the appearance that their opinions are bought and paid for, especially by political groups.
The New Don delighted in their misstep. In his glee and desire to appear more ethical than his competitors, the New Don attacked “Survivor” star Danni Boatwright, who may or may not be masquerading as a journalist but certainly speaks into a microphone while serving as eye candy during Kansas City Brigade games.
Although not required to speak, Boatwright was paid $500 to appear at the Save Our Stadiums remote.
Repulsed by this whiff of impropriety, the New Don announced that Boatwright would be removed from the Brigade radio broadcast, which airs on the 3-year-old FM station he has helped manage to miniscule ratings.
What? We’re not talking about Suzy Kolber, Bonnie Bernstein, Andrea Kremer, Michele Tafoya or any legitimate sideline reporter. We’re talking about someone whose 15 minutes of fame recently struck the 14-minute mark and will soon be known as Ms. Casey Wiegmann’s Girlfriend. That’s not a knock on Ms. Sideline Eye Candy. It’s a knock on anyone who would expect her to have a clue about journalism ethics.
You could pretty much say the same thing about the New Don, he of the very faulty memory. Oh, on Tuesday he remembered to disclose that he has money invested in downtown property, which could in some way explain his zeal for promoting a downtown stadium for the Royals and being against the S.O.S. campaign.
What the New Don failed to discuss on Tuesday was the fact that the campaign that promoted the tax provision for building a downtown arena spent $7,500 for advertising and radio remotes involving his radio show in 2004.
“I’m just baffled that he wouldn’t talk about that,” said Glorioso, who worked on both campaigns. “We paid for him to host two radio remotes promoting the arena campaign. Three days before the vote, he hosted our rally. He introduced the mayor. We paid for that.”
The arena campaign did not cut Kietzman a specific check.
“WHB does things differently than 610,” Glorioso said. “They made us buy an advertising package in order to get Kietzman to host the remotes.”
As an owner in the station, someone who goes beyond simply being host of a show, Kietzman’s relationship and involvement in the arena campaign is even below the journalism standards of his competitors.
Now, to be fair, I don’t see the New Don’s or Bland and Blander’s behavior to be truly unethical. It’s talk radio. There are virtually no ethics. The full-time hosts are not journalists and only pretend to be so they can justify their press passes and locker-room access.
Being host of a radio show is a totally different discipline from working for a newspaper. Each job is difficult. And it’s equally hard to be good at either craft. But, for the most part, you should approach sports-talk radio the same way you approach “The Sopranos” or “Seinfeld.” It’s entertainment not to be taken seriously.
That’s why Tuesday was so enjoyable. You had to laugh. KCSP has been begging Carl Peterson and the Chiefs to save it from irrelevance, so of course its hosts are in favor of the stadium package. WHB’s fearless leader has money invested in downtown, so of course his station is against the latest stadium package.
Tune in this afternoon for another edition of “As Ethic$ Turn.” I just wish it was televised, so I could get a look at Danni Boatwright.
____________________________
Meanwhile, Keitzman is demanding a personal apology and threatening to sue them on 810 right now.