Radio Waves Podcast #377

 Radio: June 2, 2023

            Whether it was the threat of legislative action that would require it, or just a reaction to simple lobbying by government officials, listeners and buyers alike, Ford announced that it has reversed its decision to remove AM radio capabilities from some gas-powered vehicles in 2024 and through a software update will add the ability to receive AM in its 2023 electric vehicles.

            One of the arguments for maintaining the ability to receive AM signals has to do with safety - the Emergency Alert System often relies on AM stations to spread news and information in the case of an emergency — KFI (640 AM) is the key link locally, for example — and the long-distance reception that AM transmissions offer can get news to distant rural areas with ease.

            It is honestly a compelling argument; while cell-phone notifications can also be used in emergencies, the cellular network relies on cell towers and internet connections, which are not nearly as universal or robust as AM transmissions.

            The notice was made by Ford CEO Jim Farley via social media posts, writing in Twitter, “After speaking with policy leaders about the importance of AM broadcast radio as a part of the emergency alert system, we've decided to include it on all 2024 Ford & LincolnMotorCo vehicles. For any owners of Ford EVs without AM broadcast capability, we’ll offer a software update.”

            Notice the year: 2024. Nothing is stated on any year further ahead, so the battle may not necessarily be over. And obviously Ford’s decision doesn’t affect the operations of other companies with what I consider bad engineering departments — those that can’t figure out how to eliminate interference from their electric vehicles even though it doesn’t seem to be an issue with the likes of General Motors, Toyota, and now, of course Ford. Yes, BMW, Volvo, Volkswagen, Tesla, Rivian and Mazda — all of which have already or plan to remove AM from the dashboard —  I just outed your lack of basic engineering expertise. Convince me otherwise.

            So the legislative action continues and may indeed require AM reception in all vehicles in the future, similar to how television sets were required to offer UHF tuners starting in the 1960s.

            Yet I can’t shake the feeling that if more AM stations offered compelling programming and maintained their signals better, we wouldn’t be having this discussion at all. But you already know my position on that. Perhaps the renewed focus on AM will help start some programming momentum.

            Cheers and Jeers

            More on your radio loves and tune-outs:

            “My wife and I enjoy listening to the radio during the day. What we dislike is hearing the same five songs (on every channel) over and over every day and usually at the exact same times, when there is such a wealth of good oldies music available from the 50's, 60s, and 70s. Thank you for asking” — Tony Elia, Mission Viejo

            “My comment on news radio stations, particularly morning KNX (1070 AM, 97.1 FM), is that they read the news too fast and don't use proper nouns much. They usually say the proper noun of a city or person at the beginning of the story but from then on it's just: city or he or she. Sometimes I miss the proper name and don't know the location or who the story is referring to. Also, an introductory phrase between stories would help - sometimes I'm still trying to digest a story when they quickly read the next one without warning.

            “What I like: the three minutes of CBS news on the hour on KNX as well as the in-depth reporting, the Jerry Sharell show on KJAZZ (88.1 FM), and Rich on Tech on KFI (640 AM).” — Clive Soden

            “I love the Kevin and Sluggo Show on KLOS (95.5 FM) 3-7 PM. There are different daily segments like a funny or weird current news event, including audio, usually a human fail story. They have listeners call in with their responses to the daily topic; ie what is a tattoo you regret getting? There is a daily top ten list such as top-10 Easter candy sold. Then Kevin tries to guess at least five correctly and if he does, Sluggo gives him a dollar. It is very funny & entertaining for the afternoon commute.” — Cee Cee Curti

            “I love K-SURF (105.1 HD4) oldies. I hate the fact that when I listen to it on my car’s HD radio setting it is constantly cutting on and off all the time. Where I live, reception is always spotty. Would I tune in to a different station? Absolutely, if only they would play the 60s rock like K-SURF.  There are plenty of us old boomers still around who would love to hear the 60 music being played on the radio. 

            “Why cant one of the regular FM oldies stations play the stuff from the 60? At least with the regular FM stations I don’t have any reception issues and they all come in nice and clear. I have the KKGO app on my cell phone but really who wants to listen to music on their cell phone while driving.  It sounds so much better on the car radio than on your cell phone.” — Dan Schary 

            (The trick is to get your phone connected to your car stereo!)

            “I love KFI.  I listen to Gary and Shannon, John and Ken, and Tim Conway.  I was crushed when John and Ken changed their time from 1-4, because I liked to listen to them after work. Dislikes? The monotonous KARS-FOR-KIDS jingle. I will slam the OFF button the second I hear it start. How about they just SAY that you can donate your car to them. FACT: I NEVER will!

    

            “I also love The Patriot (KEIB, 1150 AM), especially the Joe Escalante show on Sundays, country and classic rock stations, and Sirius Satellite Radio.” — Bonnie Hoy

            Still more to come …

Radio: May 26, 2023

            You probably already heard that longtime UCLA Bruins men’s football, basketball, and baseball announcer Chris Roberts passed away May 12th at the age of 74 due to complications from Parkinson’s Disease. 

            This paper had one of the best looks back on his career that I’ve seen, focussing not only on his work with the Bruins but also his radio career beginnings start in Victorville, as well as his stops in San Bernardino where he worked with Jhani Kaye among others … I mention Kaye because the two would work together again from 1981 - 1992 at KFI (640 AM) and KOST (103.5 FM) when Kaye was the program director of the stations.

            During the KFI/KOST days, Roberts eventually became sports director, but it didn’t start that way, exactly. He was actually first working the overnight shift on KOST, and would prepare a sports report for the KFI morning show. You may remember the tagline: every sportscast ended with “Chris Roberts, Athletic Briefs.”

            I first heard of Roberts’ death from a Facebook post by Kaye. “My best friend in broadcasting, Chris Roberts, Passed away this morning,” Kaye wrote. “He was my pal. I admired him for the way he rose to become one of the most respected voices of UCLA sports broadcasters.” I have never heard an unkind word about Roberts; this is a huge loss to both the radio industry and the sports world. 

            Likes and Dislikes

            It actually started as a response to a column by InsideMusicMedia.Com’s Jerry Del Colliano, who wrote of Top Listener Gripes on April 28th. I still haven’t written of his gripes because I wanted to hear of yours first. But I also wanted to know what you live about radio as well. Here’s what you think, positive and negative, in no particular order … Jerry can wait.

            “I listen to Mottek On Money from KABC.com as a podcast. I don’t know if this would fall under your question, but hey interject commercial ads mid-sentence during the podcast. I find this very annoying … I don’t know if this is a Mottek or Cumulus thing.  No other podcasts I listen to does this mid-sentence advertising. — Steve Lui

            “The morning DJs turn me off. It’s the same format almost everywhere you turn. I like some introductions but not the stupid banter now. But, I am not in their market group being 58 as of a short time ago.” — Erik Hassold

            (Program note: Happy birthday!)

            “I hate the annoying ‘this has been previously recorded’ preamble before an ad for a radio show, as if the general listener isn’t smart enough to realize it’s an ad. I’m sure it’s an FCC thing, but annoying nonetheless.” — Cody Lyons

            “The playlists are all the same songs OVER AND OVER AND OVER. There's no creativity or imagination. And it doesn't matter if the station is ‘alt’ or ‘oldies’ ... it's all the same stuff. It's actually dumb that 98.7 and 106.7 categorize themselves as alternative. Those stations don't know what that means anymore. What do I enjoy? Klein and Ally in the morning on KROQ; very talented and underrated show that deserves more listeners. I was a huge Kevin and Bean fan for years and this show is different, but equally as entertaining. “ — Marc Levine

            “BAD: Same songs over and over.  Ok, so your research says it's best to stick to the superstars - I get it.  But Journey, Elton John, Rolling Stones, Heart etc. have more than a half dozen hits in their catalog.  By just doubling the number of songs played by the popular artists the stations would increase their interest from me.

            “If you're a political-leaning talk show, fine.  If you're not, please don't say anything political.  I have even heard political issues discussed on local 88.5 fm - disguised as songwriting information from local artists.

            “GOOD: Variety.  Stations can stick to their format and still have more variety.  Like my point above, include more songs from the favored artists.  Include more artists, and that doesn't mean they have to gamble with ‘lesser’ names - there are enough established artists in each category to expand.  And what about including some live tracks of the hits?  I love when stations do that.

            “Disc jockeys. There's a place for music-only stations with no DJs, but a few more DJ-led stations would provide more personal connection to us listeners.  And it doesn't have to include long comedy segments or listener calls - just some connection.

            “Don't know how to title this - DJ emotions. This might seem hokey. These days it seems like most DJs and their interaction with listeners is either distant or factual. In my day — I’m your age — they seemed a lot more emotional - you know, like hey it's Friday - school's out - party time (cut directly to party anthem song) or "hump day" ...   Contrived?  Maybe … maybe not. But they and the music helped steer our emotions, usually for the better.  They talked to us and with us and took our thoughts away from everyday life. I don't think life's just a party, but I think radio - like sports, entertainment, the movies - are to help us temporarily escape from things like work and other responsibilities. — Darren

            To be continued …

  Radio: May 19, 2023

            If you were a listener to KMET (now KTWV, 94.7 FM) during the station’s earlier days and rise to dominance in the 1970s, you remember “The Burner” Mary Turner, one of the early female pioneers of progressive and album rock radio. On the KMET airwaves from June of 1972 until August of 1982, she in many ways represented exactly what KMET was to its listeners: intelligent, passionate … and human.

            Details are unusually lacking, but Turner passed away May 9th. The news was announced by Turner’s KMET colleague Ace Young, who posted the news and a tribute on social media.

            Speaking to LARadio.Com’s Don Barrett  years ago regarding her career and the early days of progressive rock radio, Turner reflected on the times."It was an exciting time back then, because you didn't operate under any rules. You could play anything you wanted, say anything you wanted and who cared? FM at that time was a joke, especially to Top 40 people. We were the hippies, and they were the stars.”

            Did the fact that she was a woman in an industry dominated, especially back then, by men? Turner told Barrett,”I think being a woman helped more than anything else. The time was right for it, and I happened to be in the right place at the right time.”

            Just a short time after her arrival at KMET, the station hired a female program director, Sam Bellamy, who also spoke with Barrett, saying “When I arrived at KMET in 1974, Mary was already there paving the way for women in radio. We became fast friends and partners in crime, based a lot on our shared sense of humor and intense desire to succeed.

            “I learned very quickly that Mary would set the bar high for aspiring air personalities and radio executives alike, especially in the highly competitive L.A. market. Before Oprah and others started preaching it, Mary was living the purpose-driven life. Back in the early 70's, Mary had set goals for herself and she kept building on, and and reaching for, those goals - always mindful of inspiring and teaching others along the way.”

            She produced short interview and music information segments for KMET that evolved into nationally syndicated special programs called Off the Record; these specials reached an estimated 25 million listeners and are highly respected to this day. She was among the first to ever interview a young Bruce Springsteen for her regular evening air shift.

            After leaving KMET, she continued with Off the Record, did a daily show for Armed Forces Radio, did a stint for a Canadian broadcast group, and even worked on “Music in the Air,” an entertainment service used on the now defunct TWA Airlines. She returned to the local airwaves on KLSX (now KNX-FM, 97.1) for a time in 1993.

            More recently she was the chairwoman of the Betty Ford Center at Eisenhower Hospital in Rancho Mirage … the first chair to not be a member of the Ford family since the Center’s inception. Her expertise in this area came from her own life and determination to overcome her problems - in the early 1990s, she fought back a substance abuse problem, went on to become a UCLA-certified drug and alcohol counselor, and then earned a Ph.D. in clinical psychology.

            Turner is preceded in death by her husband Norm Pattiz, who she met through her radio shows. Pattiz, founder and former chairman of Westwood One radio networks, passed away just this past December.

            As if to prove the importance of Turner and her career, The Paley Center for Media in New York City includes in its collection recordings of her last show on KMET, dated August 6, 1982.  The collection also includes a portion of Jim Ladd’s program that followed immediately after, which on this night became a tribute show to Turner’s career.

            Hear Turner’s interview with Springsteen from July 4th of 1978 at bit.ly/TurnerSpringsteen. Find other airchecks by searching YouTube and others for Mary Turner KMET. 

            The passing of turner hit many hard … as Ace Young said in his Facebook post, it hit him “like a ton of bricks

            “Mary & I worked together for many years at KMET, Young wrote. “In fact, our friendship dates back to San Francisco. We both came to the Mighty Met in the Spring of 1972. Mary was the best. So much can be said of her career; her success; her life with husband, and recently passed, Norm Pattiz. I’ll, for the moment, leave that for others. 

            “I am grief stricken!” he concludes.

            Richard Wagoner is a San Pedro freelance columnist covering radio in Southern California. Email rwagoner@socalradiowaves.com.

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