Wednesday, February 26, 2014

21st Century Schizoid BaD

First to ID the reference without Googling -- honor system -- and I'll send you something.  I don't know what, but something.  I'm sure I've got something sitting around somewhere I could send you.

I didn't hear Dan twist off on the intern.  But we've heard his on-air downdressings before.  The event prompts some thoughts.

The first thought I had was -- do all the shows have interns?  Are they station interns, or are they hired specifically for BaD?  Is the reason BaD seems to have so many interns is that its the only show that talks about them?  Whenever I hear interns referenced on other shows, it's always a reference to a BaD intern doing something inappropriate.   Or does BaD have some special deal where only they get interns?  (I seem to recall references to Norm interns, too.)  Why does BaD need interns?   Why does BaD need other people to feed them?  Run their personal errands?  Is it the mankilling hours required of Ticket hosts?

I don't really care if BaD has interns and other shows don't.  All part of the deals, I guess.  I just don't understand the function of the intern.  I thought maybe they do research.

But I didn't really intend to make this a column about interns, although I'd be glad to have information about this unsung breed.  Perhaps we should pay more attention to them.  You know, I should be cultivating the intern.  Would be an interesting source of Ticket information, with pretty much nothing to lose if he or she got found out.

Oh, yeah -- get a female intern for Bob and Dan.  I dare ya, Cat.

No, here's what I wanted to write about -- my BaD schizophrenia.

I've been able to tune in more often than usual the past few weeks.  (Less Musers/Hardline, more BaD.) 

And sometimes I hear segments that are as good as anything I've ever heard on the station, sports-talk wise.  I thought the Ron Washington segment a couple of days ago was excellent.  Crisp, thoughtful, balanced.  Mostly Bob, but Dan usefully contributing.  And when I hear segments like that, I think -- you know, I've really come around on BaD, I should write a column about my growing admiration for that show.

Then I hear a segment like the recent El Chapo segment (El Chapo -- the Guzman cartel CEO that just got hisself captured) that was just chaos, and not good chaos.  It bogged down from the first syllable.  The discussion was whether "chapo" meant "shorty," which had already been pretty well established by every single news story on the event in all forms of media.  And while everyone was talking at once, you hear this dial tone, and you think man, that's annoying, Mino needs to fix that.  And it went on and on, and eventually you realize that it's not just an apparently unfixable irritant,  Dan is calling someone.  You don't know who it is.  Someone answers the phone.  No identification of who it might be, none that I heard anyway.  Dan starts talking to the woman in a familiar, flirtatious way, as though she should know who he is, and maybe she does, but doesn't sound ecstatic to hear from him.  He asks for "Mishrod," who I eventually figure out is Michelle Rodriguez (her Twitter ID is @michrod), who I eventually figure out is a fellow Cumulus radio host.  Maybe I should have known that's who Dan was calling, maybe you all knew, but irrespective of my ignorance of non-Ticket Cumulus stars, I was able to perceive that she wasn't a whole lot more interested in hearing from BaD than the receptionist had been.  Dan tried to chat her up, but she wasn't playing along.  The segment lurched to a close.

I was talking to  someone about BaD after that ratings book that showed a dip during some of the Norm-BaD hours.  This individual was as skeptical as we all were that this was anything more than anomalous blip, but he did say that maybe it would prompt BaD to sharpen up the show, especially the first segment or so.  And I thought of that remark when someone commented on the last thread that the segment after the intro was pretty much always burnt.

But every show has its rocky segments.  Why BaD's emerge more vividly for me, I can't say.  I've always liked Bob a lot, and I've warmed up to Dan more and more over the past couple of years.  A big Donovan supporter, too.  So I can't tell you why I punch out on BaD more than all the other shows combined.  And for all  those Chapo fails, there are segments that are brilliant.  And not just sports segments, but segments intended to be funny, and are.  Then Dan shows up a one-step-up-from-a-volunteer kid for insufficient attention to the details of his personal requirements.

See, Bob and Dan are like a railroad track.  They're separated from one another like
these rails here,  and no matter how far they go along together they never
get any closer.   And yet, they succeed perfectly well in their intended purpose.

Nothing like a well-turned metaphor -- actually, I guess I styled it as a simile --
to set off another incisive column.

On balance, if anyone's keeping track, it is the case that I'm a bigger fan of the show than I used to be.  (I know this will please BaD greatly to hear.)   I have been guided in my efforts to appreciate the show by the admiration expressed by many Confessors, who name it their favorite.

I guess where I come out is -- it's a damned weird show rendered entertaining by a mismatch that somehow usually works.   Yes, I do punch out from time to time -- but when I'm by the Philco from noon to three, I'm punching in.

I know that's a long way to go for not much payoff, but I haven't given you much content lately so thought I'd just ramble a bit while I had a few minutes.

*     *     *

Here's that album cover cactusflinthead refers to in the first comment below ("In the Hall of the Crimson King").  Love Robert Fripp, man.  Solo on the tune is amazing, but my favorite of his is on Eno's "Baby's on Fire."  [CORRECTION 2-28-14:  A commenter points out that the name of the album is "In the Court of the Crimson King."  I regret the error.]



63 comments:

  1. King Crimson. Still an unnerving album cover.

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  2. As far as Bob and Dan not being closer, I don't know if I agree. Professionally, they seem to have really hit their stride together around 07/08. I'm sure Donnie coming on board had a lot to do with it. A buffer was certainly a risk, but it worked out wonderfully. But I really think they both have done a complete 180 since the early days (when it was apparent they loathed each other) and whole heartedly consider each to be a great friend at this point. Do they hang together on ticket road trips? Absolutely not. Are there ever stories of the two seeing one another or even communicating outside the realms of noon to three? Not at all. In fact if you were to label every ticket personality and beg the question of which two are least alike in general, it'd probably be Bob and Dan. But maybe that's why it works. I do think they hold one another in very high esteem, and certainly see a future together for many years to come. If they didn't, we'd be listening to them on the fan these days.

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  3. why has no one ever commented on Junior's failed marriage?

    -sports

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  4. Cactus, email me your address and I'll send you some kind of crappy prize.

    741: Because I'm deleting comments on that topic.

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  5. I don't think Bob and Dan loathe one another; in fact, I'm sure they like one another -- they wouldn't have thrown in for a possible flyer at The Fan if they didn't.

    But speaking only for myself, I do not get the same feeling of great warmth between them as I get between the other on-air teams, and that includes Norm and his various enablers.

    And when there is friction on that show, it always feels real. Even the legitimate spats you hear on The Musers and The Hardline don't have the same genuine edge as the Bob-Dan set-tos. (And sometimes it's very under-the-radar stuff -- you hear someone make an offhand remark, and you go "oh-oh, someone's really pissed about something.")

    So I'm sure that over the years Bob and Dan have developed a friendship. But it seems to exist on a professional level. Nothing in the world wrong with that, it's just a different feel through the earbuds.

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  6. Wow. That all seems really overthought.

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  7. Whatever the stabilizing force, BaD sans Jake reached equilibrium a while back. A point where they finally found chemistry and consistency. I've mentioned several times how bad Dan's interviews are. Dan is so BaD with people outside the Ticket, I seriously think he suffers from clinical social anxiety combined with an unsupported arrogance. Who would want to be friends with the guy?

    All that being said, they HAD found their place and brought in ratings high enough that management would be willing to overlook their flaws. Until now. This shoehorning Jake into an active, vocal roll, to me, is a problem so far. Combined with phone calls to nobodies and many bad interviews, we are now listening to an unnecessary 4th voice. So far, there's been too much questioning of each others comments out of confusion, too much talking over each other and too much interrupting each other. In my opinion Jake's been a net negative to BaD and this is potentially a huge issue.

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  8. Professional-only relationships can work. I was surprised to read that Ralph and Razor do not interact at all outside of their game calling gig.

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  9. Call it abandonment issues due to his upbringing or whatever, Dan, from the onset, has always had a chip on his shoulder. It manifests itself in the on-air berating of subordinates, producers, and not as much as it once did but still rears its head from time to time "you'd do/you do X for THL or some other show but not for us" whine. Not only does Dan have a whiney voice, he's also a whiner. Yes, from all indications he's a wonderful father. OK. Great. Great for his children. But that has nothing to do with his presentation. A presentation that CAN, AT TIMES, be very good. When he's the only voice in the BaD room that will ask the tough question or speak of the elephant in the room, bluntly and unapologetically, I applaud Dan. However, those instances are few and far between. Mostly we get a guy who is far too preoccupied with the internet to be bothered---except when he sees an opportunity to ruin a segment by purposely bogging it down with inane b.s.. Come to think of it, Dan belongs on THL. He'd fit in perfectly with those buffoons.

    Musers on gay marriage: Yawn. Thoughtful Gordo: Yawn. Pragmatic Junes. Yawn. The moment they begin a serious discussion on what a right is, what it confers, and how rights differ from one another is the moment I will take them seriously. Right now, it's all emotional thinking cloaked under the guise of rationality. And that goes for most people on both sides of the issue.

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  10. "I DON'T WANT AUDIO!!!!"

    Classic Dan McDowell

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  11. BaD has had female interns--Betty Lou being the most famous. They may even have one currently. I believe their main function involves pulling audio and/or audio archiving. Norm always has interns too. They help print off the internet for him.

    And of course Dan doesn't hang out with Bob on road trips. He doesn't even hang out with his own family on road trips. (He rents his own car separate from the wife and kids).

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  12. Thanks for the info, Shaggy. Do the other shows have interns?

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  13. Nope, don't think so. Jake was of course a Hardline intern many years back, but that was an extreme rarity. And I don't ever remember the Musers mention their own interns.

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  14. Norm and BaD have always had interns.

    The last Musers intern I can think of was Bobby "in Lewisville" Crook back in 2003. Before that, I'd guess there were a few, but still rare.

    Last Hardline intern was Jake, but before that there were a fair number of interns, including Corby and Expo.

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  15. And BaD has had at least two female interns before Betty Lou (Kristen)...Summer, who looked like Britney Spears, and Tara of the famed failed Ticker.

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  16. Continuing the conversation from the previous thread, I think the slow start has been for a while. So, I am hoping Jake can some how straighten it out, though I am not necessarily saying it was Gribble's fault.

    Maybe that short, first segment should be passed daily between the 3/4 on -air voices. Let them dictate a topic, a la Mike's Mind. Just a thought.

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  17. Grubes got his start as Norm's intern.

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  18. Syllogist, I'm not so sure that "wonderful" fathers (of young daughters, at that) talk so much about their porn addiction to an audience of "thousands, consequently millions". Or is that all a bit?

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  19. ...and I make that last statement as a father of three, two of whom are daughters of 20 and four years (yeah, we started early, and are gonna finish LATE!)

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  20. The BaD and Norm interns are chosen by their shows respective producers. BaD interns do a bunch of audio archiving, run sheet archiving, help out with bits and research segments. The hosts are very hands on with the interns so there is always a bunch to do. BaD Radio really likes to keep track of what they have done in the past so its necessary for them to have interns.

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  21. deezy, I think it's a bit. From all indications, the guy is in the running for father of the year, every year. We'll see how porn-centric jokey he is in a couple of years. Once his oldest hits her teens (which shouldn't be too far down the road), I have a feeling Dan will be tapping, or rather slamming, the brakes on the porn guy act.



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  22. Never know who is going to show up at the MTC.

    I wonder if the Unticket has a copy of that song Jake and TC did for Ticketstock last year(?)wasn't it called 'Back it up'?

    From all accounts BaD is damn near obsessive about having multiple copies of everything. Seems like that is the origin of Dan's gun safe which contains no firearms. I have often wondered if the lost drops and recordings were due to negligence and incompetence or an effort to purge some of the more risque ones. I'd sure like to hear some back story about the engineer that gets thrown under the bus every time this comes up and the conversation is quickly shut down.

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  23. Porno Dan is not a bit.

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  24. Thanks to Former BaD Intern. That all makes sense. Did you ever have to bring BaD food?

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  25. Dan watches porn just as every other guy at the ticket watches porn (maybe not bob, definitely not norm), he just talks about it because he knows it gets laughs.

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  26. Yes i have Plainsman and i have never been sent back or saw anyone get sent back.

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  27. Isn't it the COURT of the Crimson King?

    I'm more of a Ballew guy, despite his tendency to upstage artists he's supposed to be backing up.

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  28. Thanks again to Former BaD Intern......what kinds of food did you have to bring them? Did you ever bring them Mexican food?

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  29. 159, you are exactly correct and I will note that correction.

    I like Adrian Belew, too.

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  30. Saw Belew perform with John Paul Jones in Chicago about 15 years ago. Amazing.

    It's official. With Norm about to be delving into Arizona's latest legal flap, now every weekday Ticket show has in essence told me how to think, what is right to think, and how good it feels to be on "the right side of history." Thanks, Ticket.

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  31. Anon 11:19am

    I listened to Norm's take, and while I am a little tired of hearing about it, I did appreciate it and think he articulated his point very clear. Its not as trendy as the Left's view, and not harsh enough for the Right's, but he made his point clearly. And I think it is an opinion that many have. I do believe there is a sports point in there because of not only the recent "outing" of pro athletes, but of the possible Super Bowl begin moved fro AZ.

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  32. Well, that didn't take long:


    " Whether you're at the end of your coffee, your day, your week or even your rope, welcome to Whitt's End:

    *Bigger ain't always better ...

    *After not happening in DFW in '13 for the first time since '89, it's set to resume this Spring ...

    *Good news: Starting March 1 DFWSportatorium will be free. Bad news: It will also be infrequent ..."

    So this is RW's soft exit from blogging. I predict he'll post up 3 more uninformative, self-referential "pieces" over the next month. By the end of March, mid-April latest, the site will be defunct. It'll still be there, but will be a ghost town. That is, until his t.v-ish gig goes kaput. (Perhaps, maybe, he learned something from his RaGE days: perhaps he's realized that you can't operate like he did behind the scenes and in public and expect to keep a job, unless you're Dale Hansen.) At that time he'll be "back and better and more focused and more hard hitting than ever!". Basically it'll be the same old story, yet again. One thing's for sure, pretty much every RW nay sayer has been right on the money.

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  33. Brad or 11:19 - can you post the Cliffs Notes re: Norm's take on the Arizona superbowl?

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  34. My quick summery of it is this:

    1) It is a topic that both sides will never agree completely on, so...both sides need to be flexible. In the instance of the cake-fiasco, the bakers need to say, "While I don't agree with your life-choice, I will gladly serve you," and the other side says, "I will take my business somewhere else because there are plenty other bakers that will serve us."

    2) Then, he gave his personal opinion: The Bible says it is wrong, just as it says my sins are wrong. I (Norm) believe when we get to heaven we will see many who we disagreed with there too.

    That is not a complete re-cap, but what I took away from it as it was on in the background of my office.

    Again, my biggest takeaway was that Norm had an opinion on it and spoke about it clearly (which some seem to think he is doing less and less these days), and that everyone else on the crew was silent during this part.

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  35. Good god almighty, rhines lack of move knowledge has to be a bit, right? As a 20 something who wouldn't label himself a film buff by any means, I was shocked at how many clear cut classics he missed. My favorite was his calling one flew over the cuckoo's nest "Jack in the insane asylum."

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  36. Btw, for those who missed it, I was referencing the Oscar movie trivia bit the hardline did at 5:10. Corby played snippets of dialogue from best picture winners and Mike had to guess what the film was. Great segment. Wish they did more bits like these.

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  37. If I lived in Arizona, I would be getting tired of the Super Bowl being a hostage of political correctness.

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  38. Avey Peppers - I was right there with Rhines. I didn't recognize any of those movies. I am not a movie person.

    Again, this is a case of Danny and Corby busting Rhines balls over nothing. Clearly a bit. Who cares what movies Rhines can identify with? This segment was a lot easier to do than an actual in-depth sports segment.

    So they need to stick with sports.

    I was getting out of the car when they went on the Granada about some girl. Didn't stay around to listem.

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  39. I only got like two of the movies myself. I'm sure Danny knew them because he was in on the preparation. I'd like them to get quized by a P1 by actual movies of the year candidates. I don't rember those movies rating as high as they made them out to be.

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  40. I guess I missed it! Was Corby beating everyone down with another boring segment?

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  41. The only question I have about the Oscars segment: How many times did corky pat himself on the back by touting the greatness of "12 Years A Slave?"

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  42. My only question is why do the THL/Corby bashers listen to THL? I used to bash them mercilessly. Then I came to my senses, stopped torturing my brain and sensibilities, and quit listening to them, cold turkey. The second WTDS ends, I'm out. My Ticket listening day is over, until The Top Ten begins. Guess what I do when a HL segment fills out one or more of the Top Ten? I turn the volume down until it's over. This move to being a HL free P1 has been nothing less than fantastic. I cannot recommend it enough.

    Look, I'm sure Mike, Corby, and Danny are the most swellestest guys, bestestest buddies a guy could ever have, and all around mensches in everyday life. At least I'll assume they are. But THL has turned into nothing less than the Russ Martin Show. Which is, as anyone who has ever objectively listened to it will tell you, a Howard Stern wannabe show of the highest order. Well, THL has managed to become a mirror of TRMS. That, folks, is not a good thing. Yet, it's exactly what happens when the entirety of the show revolves solely around the hosts'i personal lives; lives of local yokel, niche, celebrities; lives that are no longer relatable to the listener (excepting, of all people, Corby, who can at least relate to others on the kid-front). Hell, even Comm Q Hits and E News is always related back to their lives, their tastes, their narrow social and aesthetic views. And yeah buddy those be some narrow views.

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  43. I'm a Day One P-1 of Saturday Night Live, but there are lots of things I don't like about it these days. I still watch it every week, because when genius happens I want to be there to see it.

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  44. Well, 359, either you're a glutton for punishment or really into self flagellation. Either way, that's your bag, not others.

    I've no idea if Sean or Jake still visit MTC. I know they used to. Whatever the deal is, it would appear that either they still do and have taken some direction, or that they along with other hosts and maybe even Cat have been receiving complaints and suggestions about 'tudes and tube talk. Because I have nothing but tips o the hat, thumbs ups, and atta boys for TSJ this morning.

    First off both J and S have gotten off their once fairly high analytics or it's meaningless horse. They seem to have found a nice balance between 'old' and 'new' schools of sports analysis. Bravo. It does nothing but enhance the show and their analyses. Secondly they went out of their way to say we're only going to beat you down with 5 minutes of True Detective talk and that it'll be the last segmo. Again. Bravo. The fellas realize that not everyone digs, has access to, or is interested in, niche tv shows. Much less want to hear ad nauseam discussion about them as if the shows were The f'n Brothers Karamazov.

    Upshot. However they came about this realization. Be it CTO telling the rank and file 'your weekend show need not spend 20 mins on tv talk' or 'attention all hands: ease up with tube yakking, it's turning off the listener, they're telling us so.' Or if they've been getting emails and Tweets and/or feedback from MTC. . . . . . . . . . .don't care. Just as long as they abide.

    Can't wait for Oscar talk tomorrow. NOT.

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  45. I can't wait for Jerry Jones at the Oscars talk.

    FOR REAL.

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  46. It will be a beat down of the highest with Corby and yet, none of it will be interesting.

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  47. Y'all going to give the Musers a pass on their Oscars segment? Is it just Corby that gets the ration of haterade?

    And to all those that dislike cultural topics, community talk or anything that isn't sports. ESPN is right over there. The Fan is right next door to them. Do I wish THL would talk more hockey or about the Olympics? You bet. Are they going to? Not a chance. Corby had to drag a groaning Mike to discuss the Olympics. The only reason they might discuss hockey is when they have the coach on for a talk. I had rather hear them talk about some band I could not care less about as a way of keeping myself in the loop on current things rather than yet another segment on some Cowboys topic that doesn't amount to a hill of beans and isn't going to do anything to change the chaos over there in Jerry world. I try the other stations periodically and there is a reason they had a momentary blip on the radar, they are so boring it hurts. Like Junior asked the other day, "Did we double them up on the ratings?" Take a gander at the comments about Norm over at the Ticket P1 group, the most sportsy talker on the station, the majority of us like some other stuff mixed in with our sports. For some he is an instantaneous punch out.

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  48. Cactus, I highly doubt anyone who is solely interested in sports talk listens to The Ticket very much, if at all. Neither do those consumers listen to 103.3 or The FAN. They listen to podcasts and satellite shows. I'll take you at your word that you've flipped over to the other stations and found their sports heavy orientation boring. However, any reasonable listening sample size of said stations will reveal a slew of programs that are patterned after The Ticket's formula for success. They are all equally heavy on "guy talk" as sports talk.

    I agree with you that Norm will beat the hell out of whatever Cowboys narrative he's buying into at the time. He will, in essence, repackage the same segment over and again for days, weeks on end. And of course there's the draft. But even Norm now devotes several segments in his 2 hour show to pop culture and other variations of non-sports fluff.

    As to THL: The issue that I and others have with the show is that it has, barring a major story, put sports on the back burner to the point where a new listener would in all likelihood have no idea it is a sports talk show; and would most likely scratch their head when told THL was on a sports talk station. It has become a Stern-lite program; replete with the ubiquitous misinformed cast of characters disseminating misinformation in the guise of authority--sans the naked strippers/porn actresses.

    There's a happy medium, a Golden Mean, out there. They used to have it. No longer. It's been so long since THL has had any semblance of balance, they've forgotten how to credibly think about and discuss sports. If that's what the people want (and it appears that that's the case), fine. I for one do not. I enjoy the "guy talk" aspect of The Ticket. I once loved it when Mike and Gregg would discuss the old DFW bar scene days of their 20s and 30s. There was a time when music segments were few and far between, and thus were absolutely special. I used to actually look forward to E News. But they've made these topics the focus of the show. What's worse, the guys are more often than not woefully, shockingly misinformed about the pop culture and social topics they pontificate about and report on. When your program is centered around that which you have no real grasp on, your program is an annoying lowest common denominator of a give up.

    For the record, I hate all Oscar talk. Musers, obviously, included.

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  49. "sans the naked strippers/porn actresses"

    It's been a while since they've done a Disgruntled Bikini Girl segment, but you know it's not because they don't want to do one.

    I don't fully buy into the specific brand of THL hate you're spouting, 1:09, but I agree about the lack of balance these days. I don't put it completely on Greggo, the most unbalanced person in existence, but I think there was a gestalt there that hasn't been the same since The Hammer got serious about his downward spiral.

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  50. Anon109, if I wanted more sports I'd go find it. I have to do that with hockey. I read Sports Sturm blog this morning about the ruggedness of Modano. Nary a mention of it on the show. I listened to Norm be shocked at the contradictions of the draft last year. I still hear Mike talk about things as they used to be when he has a mind to reminisce about Buddy magazine or that other alt-paper whose name escapes me. But, there was no Greggo to be Capn Huh at the time. There was Corby and Danny asking him about those newspapers. The discussion of the Dap kings appealed to me, unlikely as it might be that I will venture forth to see them. I'd like to reiterate what the Musers said last week about Sam and the question of gay players, "We say this with all the credibility of AM radio." or close to it. Who was it the other day that said it was like listening to their father and brothers talking about the same things? I do not expect them to fully research their topics. George mentioned that he did not recall the civil rights fight of the 40s-70s being so religiously charged. Care to call him out on that too? Would you like me to go find Sen. Bilbo's quotes? Or any of the chorus of evangelical ministers? That ranks up there with any of Corby's ill-informed opinions. I get it, people wish THL had never changed. It did. It isn't going to be what it used to be. It is probably not going to become what you want it to be. If you choose to avoid it, that is certainly your right, but the fact of the matter is that they still kill in the ratings. Like it or not, Stern did quite well. I do not consider it a bad thing if they are Stern-lite. I do not miss absent Greggo. I can go listen to the ramblings of my country cousins and hear almost identical sayings. Go to any VFW and for the price of a beer get the same substance from Old Blevins sitting beside you.
    I'll keep defending them. I'll keep listening to them. I'll still cringe when I hear some ill-prepared and uninformed opinion, but it is not going to drive me to listen to satellite programs with generic sports talk about some team I could not care less about.

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  51. I don't mind Muser's Oscar talk, it's just that Corby blows!

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  52. Just curious

    I know they are two departments but...why does Rhyner say we don't owe the listener anything. Yet the run promos constantly saying tell your friends, and tune in?

    I don't get why you all continue to spend countless hours ragging THL, yet keep tuning in. If you hate it so much STOP LISTENING! I for one got tired head of hearing them mail it in and now listen to Afternoon Show (ESPN) or B&S. other times I just put on music. You have a choice, so just do something else. The ticket used to be P1 all day now it is Musers, punch out, BADD, WTDS, and punch out, return for Ticket Top 10. I also am an avid listener of IJB (it's just banter).

    Corby annoys me sometimes as much as the rest, but sometimes he pulls a Gordon. Reading the headline of a story, filling in the details, being really uninformed. Most stories people already know, and they butcher it. Yet he never seems to get beat up on here. Maybe it is not always what Corby is saying but how he is presenting himself. I am better than you and I know it.

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  53. "George mentioned that he did not recall the civil rights fight of the 40s-70s being so religiously charged. "

    George may want to mix in a history book every now and then. May I suggest Taylor Branch's Pulitzer-winning biographies of MLK, which would quickly disabuse him of the notion he apparently holds.

    Glad I wasn't listening that day. The only time these guys ever drive me nutty is when they spout off about stuff they truly know nothing about. Fortunately, I only find myself pounding the dashboard once every few months now. Must be the medication.

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  54. birq, it's interesting that you use the term "hate" to describe my comment on THL. Interesting because it's a perfect example of how we've denuded words of their power, lessened their meaning. Believe me, I'm guilty of this, as well. Far too often so. It just becomes more apparent (to me) when it pertains to a comment I myself made. So I'm not busting your balls; merely making a general point.

    To your point: I don't hate THL. I miss it no longer being my favorite Ticket show. I miss it no longer being my favorite because of the fact that it, for over 10 years, was my refuge from the hellish rush hour traffic I face 5 days per week. And also because it was once a flat out damn good show that never failed to deliver. Now, as I described in my last comment, it no longer does as such. Far from it. But I don't hate it, even though I no longer can listen to it. The show has become what it's become. How it got here, well, there's many avenues that can be explored. Most have been, right here at MTC. As I said previously, I don't mind "guy talk." What I do mind is only "guy talk"; and specially when the talkers in question get so much, so wrong--and so often. One more thing, birq. I totally agree with you about Greggo's departure not being the sole, or even main, cause of what I deem to be the sinking of the USS HL.

    cactus, boy howdy you sure do get worked up. You also seem to be a lot more tolerant of the misinformed who also happen to basically conform to/agree with your own socio-political outlook than those who do not. That's fine. It's what we all mostly do.

    Since you addressed me, I'll assume your entire comment was also directed toward me. In honesty (and maybe it's because I'm not the smartest guy in the room, or even close to it), I'm having some trouble piecing together your comment. Especially when taken with your original comment (the one I replied to). I think I get the overarching message; but the route taken to get there, admittedly, eludes me a touch. So, in lieu of doing a point by point reply, I'll merely restate what I thought was obvious in my post:

    I'm not asking or hoping for THL to get into the WayBack Machine. Those days are gone. Greggo is gone. Et cetera. I'm asking for some balance between "guy" and sports talk. The ratio, as is and has been for some time now, is way out of whack. I'm also asking for a bit, a modicum, of preparation where verifiable facts and story lines are concerned. Not perfection; not airtight certainty; just a whiff of caring enough to get the gist of the story right--since the story was thought important enough to be presented. Moreover, I was addressing THL, not The Musers. I think it's good that they make those disclaimers from time to time.

    As to ratings and Stern, uh, OK. I don't think anyone who takes the time to post a comment on MTC (sans overt trolls) would argue that THL's ratings speak to their success, and loudly at that. If you want to do down that road (I'm including Stern here), then anyone can bring up the success of a Duck Dynasty or a Real Housewives show or name your mega pop music star who pollutes the airwaves with his/her crap. Great success doesn't always entail substance. If you like Stern or whatever, that's fine. I'm not knocking you for it. Only pointing out the obvious.



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  55. Man. I knew Corby was gonna beat us down with Oscar talk, but I didn't know it was gonna be a massive, bloody body count!

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  56. I came on here to bash Corby yet again guys! I want you to know that I really hate him! I need exclamation points to express how mad I am! I hate the Ticket so much!

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  57. Ease up, turbo. You honestly live such an empty life that you resort to leaving silly little comments on a blog about a radio station? I feel sorrier for you than I do those who pour their hearts out in paragraph after paragraph on the merits of Jake Kemp or if whether Mike Rhyner has indeed mailed it in.

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  58. Hey 1028, I resemble the latter half of your comment!

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  59. "What's worse, the guys are more often than not woefully, shockingly misinformed about the pop culture and social topics they pontificate about and report on."

    That applies to all of them. From the Musers to CQH there are a few pet topics that the boys know inside and out, but by and large they are all woefully and shockingly misinformed. George included, hence my mention of him.
    Comparing the rednecks of West Monroe with THL seems a bit of a stretch.
    In all of the discussions of THL it comes back to one thing, Corby. Danny is considered a fellow rider and not the prime target. The one missing part that changes the chemistry is Greggo. There are listeners that will not ever accept Corby. If he went on there tomorrow and talked about his brand new Glock and affected a country bumpkin mindset it would not change their opinion of him. I tried to point out recent segments of Mike's which he did those things you said you missed. I know it will make no difference, but I wanted to put the evidence out there.
    For the record, I do not like Stern, was not a listener then or now. Neither did Russ Martin have any appeal for me. I consider them both to be mean-spirited, whatever topics they chose were immaterial when all I could hear was an effort to bully those around them.

    There isn't a thread on here that doesn't devolve into Corby bashing and by extension the socio-political opinions you seem to think I share with him. I don't always agree with him, but I do enjoy hearing him take digs at the recalcitrant voters for Tom Cruz and Rand Paul. That he does so on this station that they dearly loved when it was Their Station and Greggo was fanning the flames of righteous indignation makes it that much more delicious for me. It is yet another example of that same voter that refuses to recognize that their world is changing and they cannot, will not accept it. So here we are, you complaining and me defending.

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  60. What's the difference between someone who constantly returns to a Ticket blog only to complain about the Ticket and someone who constantly returns to a Ticket blog only to complain about other posters?

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  61. cactus, you really did bare your ass here. You're a highly politicized ideologue. You attempt to characterize any situation or narrative as two extremes (though one extreme is more acceptable than the other), placing yourself in the middle as the level-headed, pragmatic, centrist. The thing is, you're not. Your game is rather opaque. I know you don't think it is; I know you think you're rather clever. But that's what ideologues do. Your history on MTC evinces a commenter who is fairly grins and giggles as long as no one disagrees with you. Once that happens, you go into "there are those who... and those who... but I...." mode. It's cheap, it's boring, and it's unsporting.

    In short: Unless someone agrees with you, there's no reason to have a discussion. Due to your ideological blinders (that you filter everything through, no matter the subject), you mischaracterize (or misunderstand or perhaps incapable of understanding) what others say. Sadly, that's the way it goes with ideologues.

    And in the future, please try to put your thoughts together in a coherent manner. If you go back and objectively read your three comments on this thread, you'll see what I mean.

    Have a nice day.

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