On August 11, 2009 between 8:30 and 9:00 Bill Handel called Dr. Laura out as a liar.
As I listened to Bill go on and on yesterday about how Dr. Laura did NOT leave KFI of her own free will, how she did NOT have a contract with KFI, and that no one would willingly go from a 50,000 watt to a 5,000 watt station, I was puzzled.
I wondered why a nationally syndicated radio show would not have a legal contract with the stations that carry the show. (Is that what Handel on the Law would recommend?) I wondered why Dr. Laura would lie about this. And I wondered why KFI would care if she did lie. I mean, she’s a old lady with 21 years’ worth of history at the station. Can’t they let her save face (if that’s what she was attempting to do)? I thought, how does it benefit KFI to trash Dr. Laura?
This morning I had my light bulb moment.
Of course KFI would want to marginalize Dr. Laura! She has tons of loyal listeners. If those listeners see how KFI treated their morality guru and follow her over to KFWB, who will listen to this stupid “high-bread” show?
If KFI can metaphorically strip Dr. Laura of her fancy jeans, blouse, and custom-made rhinestone cowboy boots (Is that still the look she’s pulling these days?) and leave her exposed for all to mock and ridicule, no one will listen to KFWB.
Classy.
Wait, when did I get all John Ziegler-y?
KFI does have the 8:30 to 9:00 portion of the Bill Handel show available for podcasting. It is part of Handel on the News.
the 8:30-9 part of the Bill Handel show is podcasted. it’s just stuck at the end of the main Handel on the News podcast.
I just listened to Bill bitch about Laura saying that stuff about 20 minutes ago.
I don’t understand what’s so bad about Laura saying she just went somewhere else. Why does KFI have to be such assholes about it. So she may have stretched the truth. Big deal. Why does it hurt KFI to let her save some face.
So, I posted that before I read the whole post.
1: a syndicated host is under contract to the syndication company. So while Laura may have a long term contract with whoever syndicates her, KFI as a station simply contracts with the syndication company, and those are (apparently) month to month.
2: Bill makes a big point of saying that they’re getting rid of Laura because she wasn’t getting the ratings they require to stay on the air. That being said, I don’t think that her taking her apparently insignificant listener base with her would make enough of a difference with them, seeing as how they didn’t renew her ‘lease.’
KFI does podcast the 8:30 – 9:00 time period. It’s at the end of the Handel on the News podcast (since 8:30 – 9:00 is HOTN Late Edition).
KFI does podcast Handel’s 8.30-9a slot as part of it’s Handel On the News podcast. It combines that .30m with the primary HOTN hour’s podcast. I really doubt Handel bashing Dr Laura would affect the stations ratings at all. They’re smart enough to know that Dr L’s fans will follow her anyway no matter what they say about her.
Thank you everyone who let me know the 8:30-9:00 half hour is podcasted. I started listening to Handel on the News and heard them say it was 6:06. I wasn’t at all interested in listening to it again, so I turned it off.
Can’t believe I didn’t find this blog until now.
It’s probably a matter of KFI wanting to pay less (or, refusing to go along with a price increase) for the Dr. Laura show. She gets good ratings in key demos. But ad-supported media has been suffering big time, especially over the last year or so.
It is much cheaper to simply fill the three hours with a station’s existing, in-house, on-air hosts, having them work more hours. Ratings are likely to drop, so the ad time will be sold for less, but the cost savings will more than make up for that. At least, that is what they are counting on.
John & Ken already skip out of the 6pm hour much of the time by replaying the 3pm hour, so I wonder what is going to happen with their show starting at 2… will Suits gain the 6pm hour, or will John & Ken actually ad another hour on the air when they weren’t live for their full show as it was?
KFWB gains on this one, as Dr. Laura will likely raise their ratings somewhat.
The attitude here is bizarre. Does it not occur to any of you at all that Handel making comments on Dr. Laura indicates nothing other than *Handel’s* opinion on the matter? Assuming something Handel said is automatically the global opinion of KFI management is just conspiracy theory silliness. I’m waiting for someone to report they saw black helicopters or UFOs (or both) hovering over KFI studios.
Dr. Laura could be a fun show, especially when she got calls along the lines of “My boyfriend beat up my parents, broke my jaw and ate my cat. Do you think it’s OK to marry and have seven children with him?”, but it’s not something I’d go follow after.
I’m not even sure if the Prof. Trelawney analogy is an insult or a compliment. So you consider Dr. Laura to be mostly a fraud who has a real, honest to goodness insight one every couple years? Should be watching her back for Voldemort?
If you listen to the statement Bill made, it was obvious he was speaking on behalf of KFI.
Re: Professor Trelawney
Read pages 594-597 of Order of the Phoenix. After 16 years at Hogwarts, Trelawney is publicly humiliated, fired, and thrown out of her home.
After 20 years at KFI, Dr. Laura was publicly humiliated and fired.
So in this analogy, KFI is Professor Umbridge, Dr. Laura is Professor Trelawney, and I am Professor McGonagall.
Way to hang a light on it, maaan.
I dunno… have you tried fitting it into a Lord Of The Rings analogy instead? ;-)
Uh, nooo… I’m not a nerd. ;-)
Spoiler alert!!!!!! I am on page 593!!!!