for 17 OCT 06: CUTS RIGHT AND LEFT
And people say change happens slowly in Columbus! There's nothing like a week out of town to show that's not true. Two radio stations have made adjustments - and while one is a bit subtle, the other could have sparked an uproar if anyone really was listening to it.
Monday marked the return to a single-host format for WRCG's "TalkLine." While Robbie Watson remains, the Ledger-Enquirer reports Antonio Carter was fired on Friday. If we find out tonight on "Dancing With the Stars" that he's the new love interest of Sara Evans....
Archway Broadcasting executives say Antonio Carter was cut from TalkLine for budget reasons. They claim income from advertising was down. This is surprising, because you'd think a Caribbean or soul food restaurant would want Carter to persuade white listeners to try it.
(There may be a lesson here, for one of the mayoral candidates. Burt Coker needs something more than free air time on WRCG - and WRCG needs something more as well.)
Yet Archway Broadcasting admits TalkLine's ratings have increased slightly this year. So why not be patient with Antonio Carter and Robbie Watson? After all, WRCG listeners have been patiently waiting for that new and improved radio signal -- for more than a year....
(By the way, we're still waiting for the spring radio ratings in Columbus to be posted publicly. Hey, Antonio Carter! Did you sneak any "papers" out the door with you, when you cleaned your mailbox last Friday?)
While Antonio Carter and Robbie Watson bickered often on TalkLine, I can tell you from my recent morning at WRCG [14 Aug] that they DO seem to be friends off the air. But of course, that was two months ago - and apparently Watson didn't demand to be fired along with Carter, out of principle.
At the same time Antonio Carter was shown the door, WRCG decided to end the comeback of Doug Kellett. His return to Columbus talk radio lasted less than a year -- and we're not even sure he's paid the bills yet for his summer honeymoon in Puerto Rico.
WRCG gave Doug Kellett a tough task - putting him up against Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity on WDAK in the afternoon. While Kellett promised he'd try to offer a "local" talk show from his studio near Atlanta, he often talked about the same subjects that his competition did - and without anyone from Fox News Channel coming to his rescue.
Somebody has to ask it - did WRCG feel it had to drop Doug Kellett, because it also was dropping Antonio Carter? Is this an unusual case of being "fair and balanced," when it comes to firings?
If you visit the WRCG web site, you'll never know the "TalkLine couple" has split. While Doug Kellett's name appears to be gone, Antonio Carter and Robbie Watson still were listed as co-hosts on the home page Monday night. Divorce negotiations sometimes can be complicated, you know....
Over on the FM dial, WIOL has made the more subtle change. It now calls itself the "all-new 95.7 The River" - which is strange, considering it plays nothing but old songs.
The old FM-95.7 billed itself as "classic rock." Now it claims to be "classic hits." After listening to it for a while Monday night, I didn't notice much of a difference. There was music from REO Speedwagon, Heart and Neil Young -- but nothing by Olivia Newton-John or The Carpenters.
If Davis Broadcasting REALLY wanted to have a "classic hits" station, there would be less "hard rock" and more "pop" in the music on WIOL-FM. That way, it could take on WGSY "Sunny 100" - which some mornings sounds so much like the radio station I left in Oklahoma 22 years ago, I want to go read news headlines for them.
E-MAIL UPDATE: We're catching up on your messages from our vacation -- and as it happens, we heard from WRCG's Robbie Watson before the shakeup occurred:
Hi, Richard! Sorry I didn't volunteer to guest blog. So much to share, so little time. Tell Maxine [Hardy, 12 Oct] she needs to heed her mother's advice. I find people who have been handed everything they ever wanted in life end up in dire need. ( of a healthy dose of humility among other things) Is she trying to raise a Republican or what?....
Robbie
Now hold on here! Some Democrats have been handed a stockpile of blessings over the years. After all, you never heard a Kennedy giving speeches about "a place called Hope."
We move on quickly to the vote for Columbus Mayor, three weeks from now:
I watched the City Council tape of Oct 10 on the Gov't Access channel ..I could not believe how rude the mayor was to Paul Olson..I might not always agree with Paul ,but he is a representative of the citizens of Columbus. The mayor even raised his voice to him and talked down to him..He allowed other members of the council to also be rude and misquote Mr Olson .. After Mr Olson made his presentation Red McDaniel started laughing with the mayor and others making fun of Mr.Olson..Mr McD said Mr Olson was there only to campaign for a candidate (s) by making this council look bad...Well, you all looked bad and you were being taped live..I just hope there was no person watching who "was" thinking about locating a business here..I was embarrassed by the council's rudeness and especially the unprofessional attitude of the mayor...Mr Mayor no way I would vote for you now..this decided it for me!!!!
Since I don't have cable TV, I was unable to see this dramatic moment. But keep something in mind - do you think Jim Wetherington became Columbus Police Chief by being quiet and polite with suspected criminals?
We should also note that Paul Olson was the man who took Mayor Bob Poydasheff before a Georgia Ethics Commission hearing earlier this year, about the sales tax vote. So Olson's appearance at Columbus Council so close to Election Day may have sparked the closest thing to an "attack ad" the local races will have.
We've also heard again from the police-backing "IsOurCitySafe" - this time responding to a crime story which apparently occurred while we were away:
Police officer grazed by bullet
Injured while working security downtown
A Columbus police officer suffered a slight wound when he was shot while working security downtown Saturday night.
Around 11:10 p.m., Officer Mike Moore was at the intersection of Broadway and 11th Street , where several gunshots were heard, said police Sgt. Harvey Hatcher. Nobody identified who fired the shots or from where they came. One bullet grazed Moore near his right armpit, Hatcher said.
Moore was treated and released at The Medical Center and isn't expected to miss any duty, Hatcher said.
The shooting was among several reports of gunfire Saturday night in downtown and south Columbus , but those calls to 911 also didn't result in any arrests, serious injuries or further details, Hatcher said.
What does SERIOUS mean? How in the (edit) can you say that there were no SERIOUS INJURIES when a police officer gets shot for no reason? I bet we have no SERIOUS CRIME in this ONE COLUMBUS. We probably should have a new mayor even though there are no SERIOUS PROBLEMS with our city government either huh?
AQ
What you may not know Mr. AQ is that shots being fired on Broadway and other parts of our city on a busy Friday or Saturday night is not an uncommon occurrence. I have personally witnessed an individual a few years back on North Lumpkin Rd. shooting an automatic rifle at Southeastern Beauty School...and when I say automatic rifle, I mean a FULLY AUTOMATIC AK47. One person was shot and no arrests were made. Crime will never stop, but hiring enough and KEEPING enough Police Officers should make a dent in the crime stats. Columbus should have 75 more Officers than if we were fully staffed. So in my opinion, I guess we are about 105 Officers short if you look at the big picture.
Thanks for writing.
Let's start with AQ's original question. Under the common police definition, an injury is only "serious" if it requires someone to stay at a hospital at least overnight. I suppose it could be called a "major injury" instead - but then we'd be bringing up that mess about promotions to the rank of major again.
The close call for an officer at 11th and Broadway may have prompted a raid on downtown businesses by police this past weekend. More than 60 people were arrested - but on charges related to alcohol, not guns. Yet as we all know, one form of "shots" or being "blasted" can lead to another.
And why in the world would someone fire an AK-47 at Southeastern Beauty School? If your highlights aren't quite right, someone can fix that....
Let's check one more message before we close - this one about something more than crime:
I got my shot after a 15min wait at Armour Rd doc in a box last wk...nice place,always friendly,sometimes crowded... THurs night my nieghborhood had a prowler who was creeping around yards and houses..911 was called by 2 neighbors..after 30 min. 911 called back ,police could not find the house..the house has been in the same location since 1940 on a well traveled street with the address on the curb and the mailbox...but get this..911 wanted me to go stand at the end of the drive way by the street..how was I suppose to know if the creeper was watching me from the bushes with his chainsaw?..finally police arrived..they never left a 10 sq.ft area in my yard.took the report and left...I guess they were scared also..last place he was seen was 2 doors down leaning against a house
Hmmmm - so should I put all of this together? Should people should be allowed to take flu shots home with them, to frighten criminals away?
Maybe the 911 operator wanted this person to stand at the end of the driveway because it IS along a "well-traveled street." The more witnesses who can see a chainsaw attack, the better - just ask the producers of that new horror movie.
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