Tuesday, November 3, 2015

NEW MTC FEATURE: Bit or Not?



Confessor Brad Gilbert somewhat anticipated this topic in his comment to the last post so thought I would go ahead and throw it up here.

Every once in a while you will hear something on The Ticket that will make you go "hmm, is this sincere or are they (or "is he") doing a bit?" 

The most recent puzzler is the series of ads featuring the hosts claiming to be P1s, swearing that they listen all the time and even identifying some favorite segments.

There are several possibilities here:

It could be sincere, more or less, in its entirety.  It would not be hard to believe that hosts tuned into the station during their listening time, in the car, doing whatever it is they do when they can also be listening to the radio.

The first thing that struck me as odd was Mike's statement that he simply had to tune in to the 8:40 bit everyday.  Had some trouble picturing Mike up that early, and if so, targeting that particular segment.  Still, made some sense.  Could be we are supposed to take it entirely seriously.

It should come as no surprise that Dan is the one most obviously lying -- in a way intended to be amusing, of course, and it is.  His first clue is actually somewhat sly, as he identifies the Muser segment in question as "Gordon's [not 'Gordo's] Corner."  This is clever – it is just the most subtle hint that he is pretending to know about a segment that he in fact never listens to as evidenced by getting the name just a little bit wrong.  In the one I heard this morning, he describes Junior's "Top Five/Bottom Five" lists as the most important thing ever on radio.

Bob gets into the act by expressing uncertainty as to whether Gordon has an Observation "Deck" or "Desk."

And yet we have Norm, George, and Craig more or less playing it straight in their claims of actually listening to the station.

Yes, I know this is a repeat. 

So what we're left with is a promotion that pretty much undercuts itself.  With Bob and Dan being funny, it calls into question whether all of the lavish mutual admiration is sarcastic.

This really isn't intended to be a criticism; I get a kick out of the commercials, and Dan's remarks are amusing.  But the schizophrenic message robs the spot of any kind of persuasive power. 

On balance, though, I think the ad was intended to be sincere and that we are intended to believe that the hosts tune in to one another with regularity throughout the listening day.  So while the spot is not effective in conveying this message, my vote on this one is:

Not a Bit.

43 comments:

  1. As far as host being P1s, I just assumed long ago that they don't listen all day like some of us because:

    #1 - It's work for them & we all like a break from work. It must be true for even those who have a job many of us wish we had.

    #b - If they listen to the guys before their show, they might accidentally repeat their point (consciously or subconsciously) at the expense of their own, unique take.

    After commenting earlier, I did hear Dan & knew he and Bib were attempting humor. Though, I thought it might be more of the friendly back and forth between them and the Musers. But after reading your post Plainsman, it may have been subtle wink to the listener that they are being told to say this when it may or may not entirely be true.

    And let me pre say: I don't mind that the host don't listen all day. Just don't tell us you do when signs seem to point to the fact that the main host probably don't.

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  2. There is no doubt that some hosts listen to other shows, because George has called in BaD before, Bob calls in the Musers or Hardline, but I don't think there is any appointment listening. If they are in the car riding around or driving to work they may have the ticket on, but other times they are probably just listening to music or doing other stuff. All of which is fine BTW, I would not expect them to listen all day everyday like some of us P1s.

    I have thought all along that the new spots were just tongue in cheek and a funny bit to highlight worthwhile segments throughout the day.

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  3. Hey, Corby, when you declare to your listeners that the "decks are clear" to watch the Mavericks without any other sports interference, how about the 9-3-0 Dallas Stars playing the Boston Bruins? That's kinda the reason you're getting off an hour early. I'm sure the Stars enjoyed hearing that coming from their flagship station an hour before the puck drops.

    Oh . . . and . . . uh . . . Corby . . . Houston was not in the SWC in 1961.

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  4. Plainsman I've noticed those spots, and I'm glad Brad Gilbert brought them up and you've made a post about them. The first question that came to mind is why didn't they use REAL P1's to read those lines/copy? I've got my own views on why they used drive-time hosts (Their occupational inbreeding leads them to believe they are their own best celebrity endorsement), but I'm curious to hear from other confessors.

    Why do ya'll think The Ticket used their own hosts instead of real P1's to convey the P1's connection to the station?

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  5. I think it's all tongue in cheek like the 15 on 15 of Ragonk, etc. Although, you do hear hosts from time to time saying that they heard one of the hosts talk about a certain topic. I agree it's more of a driving in to work thing, or catching it on the radio in the background. But making sure to wake up for the 8:40 bit? Come on...

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  6. Both. Norm said the same thing he has several times about how goofy bits require work.

    Dan calling lists best radio ever, bit.
    They do listen to each others shows but like the rest of us they explore the dial.

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  7. The most amusing of Dan's statements came in the first of these commercials I heard released. He said he could not miss the 5:30am 5-minute ticker; it was must-listen radio for him.
    If you think about it, though, I think these commercials are not for P1s. If you're enough of a P1 to know Dan isn't up before 10 and would not be into tickers even if he was, then you don't need convincing. Your mind is made up. This is aimed at making nominal P1s all-day-long listeners. I think for that, they may be effective; for us P1s, though, they're simply amusing, which only Bob and Dan seem in touch enough to understand.

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  8. 8:40 bit this morning, re: Norm talking more street now that he's on a show with Donny - genius.

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  9. I agree that the promotion undercuts itself. Furthermore, it is niggly.

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  10. Because it's much easier to make one of the hosts walk a few steps into the recording area and speak their lines. Much, much, much less coordination required.

    And, because as Mike has so famously said, they don't care about the P1s.

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  11. I know Gordo has his detractors, but after 20 years, the guy still makes coffee shoot out of my nose fairly regularly. While Dallas Bryant (Dez's new monkey) had a suspiciously similar accent to the Ticket Mouse, it was a great bit. The Chinese guy from Richardson who sold Dallas to Dez warned Dez not to expose him to sun light or get him wet, but Dez managed to do both anyway.

    http://www.theunticket.com/dallas-bryant-dezs-pet-monkey/

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  12. Definitely a bit. Before the ratings (outside the Musers) started crashing and Cat started forcing more cross talk, the only time you really heard another host call into a different show was when they were in their car driving around and heard something they wanted to comment on. They shouldn't have to listen when their not on the air, and the weird chemistry between different shows is why things like White Elephant day and the Campound are so great.

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  13. Man, BAD radio have to be laughing behind the scenes. Both the Musers and BAD Radio added college "experts" as regular guests this year. Joel Klatt is appointment radio and Brian Jones is pure radio anthrax.

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  14. Revenue down 8% from Q3 of 2014. Good Luck, Mary!

    http://finance.yahoo.com/news/cumulus-reports-operating-results-third-210000324.html

    And they got a delisting notice from NASDAQ too.

    http://www.4-traders.com/CUMULUS-MEDIA-INC-8822/news/CUMULUS-MEDIA--Notice-of-Delisting-or-Failure-to-Satisfy-a-Continued-Listing-Rule-or-Standard-Tran-21355569/

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  15. Nobody believes that any of the other hosts are listening at 5:30 am. Hell, a lot of days Gordon isn't listening at 5:30.

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  16. Brian Jones has been on with the Musers for a few years. He's great too though.

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    Replies
    1. I agree. He's wheels off but that's why I like him. Plus I love the intro song...brings back good '70's memories.

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  17. @Anon 8:49AM

    The Musers laugh harder behind the scenes as The Musers actually have listeners.

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  18. So musical genius Dingoo didn't know that Tennessee Whiskey was a George Jones song?

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  19. Danny was a parody of himself today. He pissed all over the Chris Stapleton stuff by referencing a session guitarist that put out a record in the 70's that nobody bought and then died.

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  20. George's Thursday night music show was really solid. I like hearing George mix and mingle with musicians, and there was some cool cross-pollination among some Dallas bands happening. I know these guys all know each other and lots of them have collaborated, but it's cool when a jam session of really talented people breaks out. Also, near the end, shake voice George made an appearance when he was talking about his latest Bird Dogs song. It's nice hearing someone passionate about what they're doing. I appreciate Jub.

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  21. Someday, years from now, somebody will inquire on MTC about the origin of George's drop "You can't put limits on aliens." And some of us will be able to say we were listening when he said it.

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  22. Yes, that segment was tremendous:

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CTJBu_AVEAA1w1T.jpg:large

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  23. OK, I'll play Corby's Greg Hardy game.

    What would Corby have said during the week of the Texas-OU game if Joe Mixon were a Longhorn?

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  24. If memory serves, we were advised to hold on to our collective butts. Well....we're waiting.

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  25. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37oPWrH3sJg

    P1 since 1998. Cowboys fan for 35 years (but no more). I understand the economics of why the Ticket can't completely distance from the Cowboys, but it would be great if someone would accept the moral responsibility of standing up against these monsters.

    I admit to being hypocritical and only speaking out now that the Hardy pictures have been released, but I would love those hosts with daughters (including Gordo), to actually do something and stop just making fun of a "machine gun couch".

    I'm halfway looking forward to the insight on Monday, and halfway dreading hearing them sweep it under the carpet.

    Stay hard.

    #burncowboysburn

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  26. Why aren't you a Cowboy fan anymore? I mean Cowboys rosters for the last 55 years have been littered with bad dudes so I'm assuming it's not that.

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  27. corky has already condemned Hardy way more than anyone should've ever expected. Some years ago he dubbed Sean Penn the greatest actor of our generation, lauding hyperbolic praise upon the guy after watching Penn in the film "Milk." The same Sean Penn who was charged with domestic felony assault, which went away only after his wife Madonna told the DA to drop the charges (according to the daily beast). I don't remember him saying Penn was a great actor but all the film studios should ban him to make a statement.

    I still can't figure out what Hardy's actions have to do with his right to work.

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  28. There is an interesting thread over on Reddit regarding the Hardy issue. Someone posted a comment regarding the fact that Carter Albrecht of Sorta (and other music ventures) fame was guilty of, essentially, the same thing as Hardy. I think it was a late night post, and a reddit response that seemed to be a Hardline cast member responded with the same defense that was raised at the time of Albrecht's death-he was on Chantix trying to quit smoking...drank when he knew he wasn't supposed to...and accidentally ended up at his neighbor's house where the homeowner shot and killed him(funslinger68-comment was taken down soon after). Now I think this is interesting (another posted on this very MTC thread raised the specter of Joe Mixon). Multiple news sources indicated that Albrecht had beaten his girlfriend. The police report indicates Albrecht was violently trying to get into the neighbor's house.

    The Orphanage was highly critical of the neighbor and went to great lengths to blame Chantix for their friend's behavior.

    My point is this: the Station has a spotty record on taking a stand against domestic abuse. In fact, Danny even went to great lengths to explain away his own close friend's act (s?) of domestic violence.

    So what is the right response? Righteous anger? Hardy would be criticized as a fraud if he made some sort of apology or statement at this point. He is obviously guilty-but the NFL punished him (and no legal proceedings went anywhere). This whole issue made me think about how Jerry Jones will be remembered once his new hips and plastic-surgery altered face are six feet under. I think he is a pretty lousy guy-not just because he signs guys like Hardy and then pretends like nothing happened, but because he does Mr. Burns-like things. Yet, when he does finally die, people will talk about his business acumen (true) and neglect the fact that he forced homeowners to move in order to make a buck off a new stadium. They will talk about his forward thinking ideas. They will probably not mention the fact that he was a total jerk when it came to better men and coaches like Tom Landry and Jimmy Johnson. When it comes to an issue like Greg Hardy...or Carter Albrecht....or even Jerry Jones, I guess one's opinion will be a function of utility.

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  29. @celery: I'm not sure what kind of person Carter Albrecht was prior to his death, and if the domestic abuse of his girlfriend was a repeating occurrence, but I do know of thousands of cases linked to the drug chantix that reportedly made otherwise normal individuals act in ways that baffled and confused friends and loved ones. Often times were cases related to violence, either against others or themselves (or both). Again, not defending Albrecht completely as I know nothing of his prior character, but the description used by Danny and many others close to him fit the bill for this drugs potentially lethal side effects.

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  30. On the station that loves to take to their bully pulpit to criticize Greg Hardy, just a few months ago Norm was telling us how great a guy Dave Bliss is. Yeah, that Dave Bliss.

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  31. I've been busting Corby's nads over the Joe Mixon issue, but up until now I've given Junior a pass. But after hearing Junior's Greg Hardy rant this morning, I think it's time to ask Junior where was all this outrage over OU allowing Joe Mixon to stay on the team?

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  32. @8:23 Junior has stated that Mixon should be gone from OU, but he certainly never expressed Hardy level outrage.

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  33. Why are we taking Greg Hardy calls on Norm and D? Why????

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  34. I'm close to turning off the Ticket until Greg Hardy isn't playing for the Cowboys anymore. Simply because I'm tired of endless segments with hypocritical Ticket hosts telling me how outraged they are about Hardy.

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  35. I only caught the tail end of Norm and Donnie, but was Sirois really calling Jason Witten out for not taking Hardy to task over domestic violence?

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  36. Barry Horn has a nice little piece on Hardy and the networks. He pointed out how Billick, who has been very vocal about Hardy, was coaching the Ravens when the Ray Lewis Show was airing. The same Ray Lewis who is now lauded; the same Ray Lewis who works on the NFL network.

    We live in an Outrage Society. It's a feel-good society. It's a non-thinking society. Put that all together and you get rampant hypocrisy. We're all guilty of it, but no sector of society, other than the political, is perhaps more guilty that the media. And perhaps the most guilty is the sports media. The Ticket with their selective outrages, The FAN with their excuse-making and "nuanced" interpretations, and ESPN (the company as a whole) with their rewarding bad and even criminal behavior with unwarranted and over-coverage of said behaviors--and with sleaze balls like Bayliss and Screamin' A.

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  37. so now we're criticizing the ticket for talking about what a terrible human hardy is? wow. cowboy fans are pretty amazing.

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  38. To 3:42: It is tiring to hear about Hardy from guys who will simultaneously say great things about Kobe Bryant, who also was accused of a crime against a woman, then was acquitted when she refused to testify, and then she settled for an undisclosed sum. If not Kobe, then pick another sports figure who has been awful to women or children: Bob Knight, Ty Cobb, Isaiah Thomas, Harold Reynolds, Oscar De La Hoya, Rick Pitino, Mike Tyson, Kirby Puckett, Karl Malone, Ben Roethlisberger

    Like many other opinionated humans, the Ticket hosts are selective with their outrage.

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  39. James,

    Of that entire list you rattled off, when was the last thing you heard any host say anything about any of those people? I guess I missed their segment about the merits of Ty Cobb and Karl Malone.

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  40. If Corby fake laughs any harder at Brad Garrett he's going to wet his pants.

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  41. The starting QB for team we play this very week, he was also the #1 overall draft pick, raped a girl and she didn't even get the pay out that Hardy's victim got. That girl is still out there actively looking for justice yet thousands cheer for Winston.

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  42. @6:14, I don't know, his jews can't dribble line was pretty good.

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