Ruh Roh, George

George Noory/Guests, Commentary,
Radio topics

Moderator: Super Moderators

Post Reply
User avatar
Psychicwolf
Pirate
Posts: 5999
Joined: 12-31-2006 12:47 AM

Ruh Roh, George

Post by Psychicwolf » 01-16-2009 08:18 PM

CLEAR CHANNEL PLANS REVAMP

By PETER LAURIA

Last updated: 11:26 am
January 16, 2009
Posted: 12:43 am
January 16, 2009

The new owners of radio giant Clear Channel Communications will next week begin implementing a massive restructuring plan that seeks to cut $400 million in costs at the company, The Post has learned.

According to three sources with knowledge of the plan, the restructuring will include layoffs across the company's radio, outdoor advertising and international divisions as well as cuts to programming budgets and consolidation of back-office operations.

A precise headcount for the layoffs could not be obtained. Clear Channel has about 30,000 employees worldwide.

The company is also likely to move toward a "national programming" model that would require less local-level staffing, despite being criticized in the past for a similar action using centralized disc jockeys that made it appear as though they were broadcasting from local stations.

Sources said an initial round of layoffs is expected to commence next Tuesday - not coincidentally the same day President-elect Barack Obama is to be sworn into office. Clear Channel managers are hoping they can slip in the layoffs while the press is preoccupied with Inauguration Day festivities, sources said.

A Clear Channel spokeswoman declined to comment.

"Clear Channel was built through a series of acquisitions that generally weren't consolidated very well," said one source, alluding to the late '90s buying spree that put more than 1,000 stations under the Clear Channel umbrella, making it the nation's largest radio company.

To be sure, Bain Capital Partners and Thomas H. Lee Partners took a hard look at Clear Channel's expense base in the due diligence phase of their $17.9 billion acquisition, and identified hundreds of millions of dollars of costs that could be taken out of the company. While they always planned to restructure the company, sources said that the soured economy forced them to expedite the timeframe for the cuts.

"Nothing about our plans have changed except for the speed and timing of them," said the source. "There's no doubt we are in a horrible advertising environment, and we can't just sit there and take it."

The numbers bear out that argument. Radio ad spending fell almost 9 percent through the first three quarters of 2008, the second worst-performing category after newspapers, according to ad-spending tracker TNS Media Intelligence. Fourth-quarter ad-spending numbers have yet to be tabulated, but many are expecting a low- to mid-double-digit decline.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/01162009/bu ... 150374.htm

Premiere Radio Networks Inc., a subsidiary of Clear Channel Communications, syndicates 90 radio programs and services to more than 5,000 radio affiliations and reaches over 190 million listeners weekly. Premiere Radio is the number one radio network in the country and features the following personalities: Rush Limbaugh, Jim Rome, Casey Kasem, Ryan Seacrest, Glenn Beck, Bob (Kevoian) & Tom (Griswold), Delilah, Steve Harvey, Blair Garner, George Noory, John Boy and Billy, Big Tigger, Dr. Dean Edell, Bob Costas, Sean Hannity and others. Premiere is based in Sherman Oaks, California, with 13 offices nationwide.
http://www.premiereradio.com/pages/corporate.html
Dance to heal the earth. Not just when you're dancing, but always. Live the dance, whenever you move, in all you do, dance to heal the earth.

User avatar
Ziroc
Pirate
Posts: 511
Joined: 04-17-2003 10:17 PM
Contact:

Post by Ziroc » 01-17-2009 02:25 PM

Oops, just posted this, didnt see your post. :) By bad.. Wonder if Georgie will be laid off? Hmmmm
Ziroc™
"I thought there was no Chill town!" - Howie Gordon - BB6/BB7 AS

User avatar
ArtBellfan
Pirate
Posts: 168
Joined: 03-27-2008 05:29 PM

Post by ArtBellfan » 01-17-2009 06:11 PM

Think he is pretty safe. No one to contend with during the late night.

Joolz
Pirate
Posts: 11976
Joined: 12-25-2002 03:00 AM

Post by Joolz » 01-17-2009 06:28 PM

Well, I would think if George were to be laid off, what that would actually mean is the end of the show. Laying him off and replacing him wouldn't eliminate his job, which seems to be the objective of these lay-offs. Whether that would be a good thing or a bad thing in the long run would remain to be seen. JMHO.
Image Anchors Aweigh!

Plainsman
Pirate
Posts: 462
Joined: 05-23-2006 01:06 AM

Post by Plainsman » 01-20-2009 01:14 AM

At the very least, Clear Channel could lay off four or five or six members of George's staff. They obviously do a very poor job of searching out interesting guests, screening calls, and they can't even keep the damn plants watered properly.

Shirleypal
Pirate
Posts: 45448
Joined: 03-06-2003 03:00 AM

Post by Shirleypal » 01-20-2009 07:57 PM

Tonights schedule says it all loud and clear, nary a word about what happened in our Country today, do I detect sour grapes......

stevesh
Pirate
Posts: 87
Joined: 07-07-2007 07:19 AM

Post by stevesh » 01-21-2009 06:06 AM

Shirleypal wrote: Tonights schedule says it all loud and clear, nary a word about what happened in our Country today, do I detect sour grapes......


Near as I can tell, Noory is a big supporter of President Obama, so probably not sour grapes.

Last night's show was a bigger cluster than usual, though. GN threw the night's guest under the bus after the first hour, for, I think, confusing the host.

Shirleypal
Pirate
Posts: 45448
Joined: 03-06-2003 03:00 AM

Post by Shirleypal » 01-21-2009 01:28 PM

Local Radio Station Lays Off Staff

POSTED: Tuesday, January 20, 2009
UPDATED: 10:55 pm EST January 20, 2009

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. -- WDFN Sports radio 1130 dumped nearly its entire staff Tuesday including the popular Stoney and Wojo.

Its parent company Clear Channel blamed the slow economy when announced its decision to ax WDFN’s daily local sports programming for nationally syndicated sports programming.

“It’s been a terrific run. We thank the fans and the listeners,” said Bob Wojnowski and Mike Stone, co-hosts of “The Stoney and Wojo Show.”

The company said WDFN will still air Pistons games and do sports updates throughout the day.

http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/1852 ... 12009&ts=H

SETIsLady
Pirate
Posts: 19872
Joined: 04-14-2003 08:52 PM

Post by SETIsLady » 01-21-2009 01:32 PM

Being in the advertising business, I receive alot of info about this stuff....thought I would share this.

Clear Channel’s Deeper-than-Expected Cuts Affect 1,850

snip.....

Clear Channel did not offer details on which markets were most affected by the layoffs. Among those who have exited: SVP News/Talk Programming Gabe Hobbs; WGST/Atlanta PD Randall Bloomquist; Ft. Myers OM Louis Kaplan; Rhythmic AC KHHT-FM/Los Angeles PD R Dub; Hot AC KBIG/L.A. PD Dave “Chachi” Denes; and KLOU-FM/St. Louis PD John Matthews.

More at link

http://www.mediabuyerplanner.com/2009/0 ... m=textlink

User avatar
Elk
Pirate
Posts: 997
Joined: 01-18-2002 03:00 AM
Contact:

Post by Elk » 01-22-2009 02:44 AM

Every market is suffering a downturn in advertising revenues, ranging from 9 to 30 percent from last year. The big picture here is not the cancellation of noory and his ilk, but local radio.
Coast to Coast AM is a national program, and as such would likely be replacement fodder for open slots at stations who've suffered cutbacks in personal.
As usual, it is the local folks who will take the hit.
Programming will be business as usual as far as networks are concerned. Most likely, staffing will be downsized, and many will be pulled in under one roof.
Thanks to the revamping of radio regs back in '96, we wont see the creative programming we saw when radio was local and live, and under the gun when the market went sour back in the day.
All we will get today is the same crapolla we always get when corporate geeks take over the helm.
89 cities and one morning man, get it?
Noory aint goin' anywhere. So much for radio. So much for any hope in new and innovative programming.
Read a book...

Post Reply

Return to “George Noory/C2C AM Topics/Radio topics”