(1) Post CV Ticket; (2) Question About Cowboys Coverage

Topic 1:

The last comment thread had some interesting thoughts about what we might expect at The Ticket after things get back to normal.

Bearing in mind that most people, including me, believe either that we will never get back to the pre-CV "normal," or, at a minimum, that the lead time for returning to that state is likely measurable in years and not months.

I think a lot of businesses will be cutting back, either because (1) they have discovered, out of necessity, that they can operate at a lower expense level, or (2) economic conditions will not support either reemployment at the previous levels, or at the previous levels of compensation.

So I think those who are speculating on a different-looking Ticket (and radio generally) are probably correct.

Bear in mind that, as Surly pointed out in the last thread, the Tier 1 guys, at least at the host level, have contracts.  Now one thing we do not know is whether those contracts have what are called "force majeure" clauses, which allow one or the other party to cease performing the contract if certain (usually specifically enumerated) "acts of God" take place, which may include public health crises.  We just don't know.

Anyway, I wanted to acknowledge that we had an interesting topic going there, and I'd ask you to continue to toss in your thoughts on this subject.

Red 1 serving as break before Topic 2:

Topic 2:

Why don't local reporters break the biggest Cowboys stories?  I don't expect the hosts, or even the Tickermen, to break local sports news, but why would Adam Shefter get a story like the Andy Dalton signing before one of our distinguished local sports reporters?  Gets him for the big interview first? Don't lour local guys have some high-up inside sources?

Maybe they don't want to give anything to David Moore because of his Ticket affiliation?  But there are other prominent local reporters, including TV sports guys, who are not so afflicted.

Do the Cowboys favor national reporters to curry favor with -- well, let's face it, ESPN is pretty much it on the national scene.  That would explain it.  But I do think it makes our local sports journalism fraternity look pretty lame.

Red 2 will wrap this one up for us:

ThePlainsman1310@gmail.com

@Plainsman1310

A List, and Some Thoughts

I'm still thinking Corby and Danny stay where they are in the positions they now have.  I don't think Danny will be elevated, if he even wants that with his other outside interests.  He may not.


The thought I have is that the replacement must have sports knowledge.  Must.  This is where The FAN eats The Ticket's lunch.  It's where The Hardline has weakened over the years in a way that there simply was almost no serious sports talk on the show except maybe when Corby would talk tennis or college football, and even then  .  .  .  .

The second thought I have is that the replacement needs to have some weight, some heft, some adult credentials to rein in Corby/Danny's more juvenile tendencies.  Although, on further consideration, maybe The Ticket is looking to get younger at all positions, bring in some guys at the lower end of the demo that they seem to be losing.

So let's go through the list:

Of the current hosts, only Donovan strikes me as a potential Hardline replacement, and I don't see that working, much as I like Donovan.  Just not enough razzle-dazzle, and I think Corby and Danny would be tiptoeing around him to some degree.  While he and Corby do seem comfortable together and can put on a good show, that combo just doesn't spark for me.

Cat isn't going to break up BaD, and is not going to move BaD into The Hardline slot -- I don't think.  


That leaves, in no particular order:

Jake:  Leading coming out of the turn.  Sportsy, loquacious, smart, snotty.  At first I thought Jake with Corby would be too much snot for one show, but of the people at the station, he's probably tops.  There's no weightier Ticket guy available except Donovan, assuming neither Bob nor Dan graduates to The Hardline.  (And, if so, it would have to be Bob.  Dan -- Corby would say, "Are you kidding me?"  Besides, I think both Bob and Dan really like their time slot and massive intern support where they are now.)

Mike Sirois:  Love Mike Sirois.  Sportsy enough?  A little thin-skinned sometimes, makes for some interesting radio.  Cirque is frequently replaced, although he seems to be present for his producer duties with The Invasion.  He doesn't suffer fools gladly and he and Corby/Danny might be a tense fit.

Sean Bass:  Oddly, Sean seems to be a polarizing figure with the Confessor.  I like him.  Is he flavorful enough to boost The Hardline?  He's been moved into a semi-management role at The Ticket, so there's some weight there, and he is sportsy.  I don't recall a Sean/Corby pairing in the past but I'd like to hear it.

I don't see anyone more junior than Jake, Mike or Sean being serious candidates, as talented as some of them are.  Both Justin Montemayor and David Mino have turned into accomplished hosts on the Work in Progress Sunday show, they're both very good.  But with them there's the weight problem.

Ty Walker:  Like him on Country Force, and he can talk baseball.  He's gotten kicked in the cojones for so long by hosts -- all in fun, sure -- could he be elevated?

Dave Lane:  Again, a guy I like whenever I hear him.  I didn't think his +1 coat-and-tie "interview" appearance last week showcased him to good advantage.  His Mike tribute was great, but overall he didn't seem to be at his best.

I like Eli Jordan quite a lot, but I just don't see him leapfrogging more tenured in-house candidates.

One possibility is to do nothing.  No replacement.  Leave it as the Corby/Danny show.  Anyone else thinking that Corby sounds more responsible without Mike present?  Danny too?  Maybe I'm imagining things.  The Confessor seems to think that would not be a good idea, but I wouldn't mind it.

Let me throw out a couple of longshots:

David Moore.

Mike Doocy.

They're both sportsy; they're both adults.  I have no idea whether they are available or willing.  I do believe that Doocy, at least, could keep his current gig and still do the afternoon show.  David has to be present at Cowboy events and skulk around the locker room, so his availability is less certain.  However -- what is it that is making me think that David Moore is not a young man?  I went looking for his age and couldn't find it, but I think I heard somewhere that he's actually out of the demo.  (David, sorry if I've misheard that somewhere.)  He may be ready for a regular radio gig and broadcast paycheck.  Both are familiar to Ticket listeners.  Both have a sense of humor.  Doocy would need to tamp down his natural inclination to deference.  And again -- The Ticket may not want to replace Mike with an actual adult.  No idea whether either would blend with Corby/Danny.

And I think Lee "Hacksaw" Hamilton is available.

I'm probably forgetting someone's favorite, and when you tell me who I've forgotten I'll smack my forehead and apologize.

Please, Robert

I really like Robert Wilonsky.  Not everyone on this site does; some think he fudges some accounts of his past.  I have no way of knowing and it doesn't make a lot of difference to my enjoyment of his broadcasting and his journalism.   I really like David Moore, too, and that means I doubly like Intentional Grounding.

I wish were on for two hours every Wednesday.

I wish it were on every week throughout the year.

But I heard something near the close of the show tonight that made me a little sad.

Robert was interrogating David Moore on the Alex Smith-from-KC-to-Washington deal.

In the course of doing so, he was deliberately avoiding using the phrase "Washington Redskins," calling it either the "Washington Football Club," or the "Washington Football Team," maybe both, I forget which.  (I don't believe David ever found reason to use the team name but I may have missed it.)

And he kind of paused before he said it each time.  Thinking about it.  Not sure.  Not signalling, just not sure.

I was disappointed in that locutional strategy.  I don't like to think of my favorites giving in to political correctness.  Snyder isn't going to change the name.  Goodell isn't going to make him do it.  Native Americans are not clamoring for it.   (Differing, in this important respect, from other names for other ethnic groups, which names are widely reviled.  Washington Post poll from mid-2016 reports 9 of 10 Indians not offended by the name.)  No one is going to think Robert is a racist if he calls them the Washington Redskins, yet he felt he just couldn't bring himself to say it, and it was obvious that it was not an inadvertent word choice.

Ah well, we live in different times now.  Crappier times, but different.

Wahoo, Big Bob.

Draft Notes, Random

(1) I don't care anything about the draft and, as the Confessor knows, don't know a whole lot about sports generally.  But for some reason I always love First Night Draft Talk on The Ticket.  This year is no disappointment.  Even though you hear these guys talking about the same things in their own shows during the week, it still sounds fresh and the guys sound engaged and happy to be on call for the greater glory.

(2) Norm mentioned earlier today that he had not been feeling well and might not make it past pick 16.  I wonder if that is why he is making very much mistakes tonight.  Identifying the number one pick as someone's "sister," getting draft numbers wrong, just generally having a hard time getting more complex phrases out with any coherence.  Yow, did I just hear him call a "baby" a "bagel"?  Let's hope that's some medication kicking in. 

(3) Junior Miller is not only the Fred Astaire of The Ticket, he is also the Garrison Keillor of The Ticket, the maestro of wry, dry, observational humor and offbeat gags.

(4)  Bob Sturm is at least a regional treasure, and may well be a national treasure.  He has his issues with excessive discursion on occasion, but if you are patient there's usually a nugget before he takes the next breath.

(5)  One of these days I have to write a David Moore appreciation.  I know some Confessors don't care for him, but I think he's excellent.  Remember, he's the successor to Mickey Spagnola and Todd Archer, and he's still going strong.  I think there's room for Intentional Grounding all year 'round, don't really care what he and Big Bob decide to discuss -- that show always seems too short to me.

(6)  Not much Corby, yet.

(7)  No JV on air tonight, not counting the capsule bios they do after the picks.

"Norm, I don't come to laugh when you cover the draft.  I have the champagne and pork rinds waiting."

ThePlainsman1310@gmail.com
@Plainsman1310

And Here Are the Finalists

My Ticket Confession and Your Plainsman grant Cumulus Media Inc., The Ticket 1310 AM and 96.7 FM, David Moore, and their respective successors and assigns, a perpetual, non-cancellable, worldwide, royalty-free right and license to use any of the following names for the segment nka "The Ranch Report."  Oh, all right, you can send me something from the prize closet.

I've stayed away from David Moore-based names, because I have a feeling he may be destined for bigger things that might require his premature retirement from the Report.

The Star Telegram.

My personal favorite because it combines the name of the facility with the idea of communication. This would probably require a deal with the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, but here's the thing -- you leverage that into the newspaper being a sponsor of the segment.  Big problem, though:  David Moore is affiliated with the rival Dallas Morning News, as is The Ticket itself.  Too bad.

The Range Report.

Cheap variation; leverages current name recognition.  Reflects the wider open spaces in rural Frisco, the kind of landscape where real cowboys ply their trade, and the Jones's ownership of a large percentage of of north Texas real estate.

The Post from Polaris or The Polaris Post.

The Star.  It's up north.  It's the north Star.  Polaris is the North Star.   Leverage with sponsorship by Polaris personal recreational vehicles.

The Ford Focus.

Highly descriptive and an accurate description of David's report from the Ford Center (the name of the stadium itself at The Star, which is the name of the complex).   And another leverage opportunity for Chris-Chris:  Get the DFW-area Ford dealers, or an individual dealer, to sponsor the segment.  Trademark infringement, using the name of a Ford model?  After all, it draws attention to the Ford-ness of the Ford Center, which is what Ford wants by paying to slap it's name on the thing to begin with  Get the crack Cumulus attorneys on it.  If it's too much of a legal problem, then:

The Ford Follies.

Star Tracks.

The DM Report

All right, it's a David Moore reference.  But the leverage opportunities for D&M Auto Leasing are too good to pass up.  Much like the Musers' "Tell them that D&M sent you."  Now if David's middle name is Nathan or Neal or something like that, you'd really have something.

 

That Amazing Draft Coverage

I think I write a little something about this every year, but it's still true:  The Ticket's draft coverage is just terrific.

It's not so much that it goes wire-to-wire, which is pretty amazing in and of itself.  It's the quality and entertainment value of the commentary.

Norm, who remains very knowledgeable, has more or less settled into the role of an amiable master of ceremonies.  Oh, he offers substantive commentary and seems to know the draft class extremely well, but as the years have gone by, Bob Sturm, David Moore, and David Newbury have taken over more of the heavy lifting as to What It All Means.  At least that's the impression I have from the slices of the coverage I'm able to grab over the multi-day extravaganza. 

I really enjoy listening to Bob and it's great to see his profile in Cool Metro continuing to grow with his Dallas News writing and other coverage.  The best moment I heard from the weekend, though, was from The Boomtown. I think it was Saturday afternoon.  Norm had thrown the show to David & David, who were giving their thoughts on the state of the Cowboys' draft.  They spoke carefully and very persuasively without being bombastic.  I loved Newbury's point that all the best drafting teams "know who they are," and that the Cowboys don't seem to.

I swung by Ben & Skin's coverage and just had to shake my head.  There's an argument to be made that Ezekiel Elliot was the best pick, but B&S's over-the-top jubilation and insistence that it was the most amazing best-ever pick just sounded ridiculous after almost every Texas-based analyst was at best confused, and at worst appalled, by what the Cowboys had wrought.  (Although SI gave Dallas's draft an A-.)  Like their year-end Cowboys coverage last year consisting of how tremendously excited they were about 2016 after 4-12, the homerism seemed pretty apparent.  I don't like to ascribe motives to people I don't know, but man.

Having said that, I do ask myself this question and invite the Confessor to set me straight:  If Elliot really is a can't-miss offensive force that can replicate what DeMarco Murray accomplished a couple years back and more, is it possible to argue that in addition to more reliable scoring, his presence will extend drives both through his own skills and occupying defenders who would otherwise by smothering Dez, and in that way keep our shaky defense off the field?  And thus, with this single pick, the Cowboys have not only increased their offensive potency, they may have reduced the other team's offensive possessions, elevating (if only constructively) the entire Cowboys defense.  Whereas Jaylen Ramsey would only have improved one facet of the defense.

I think it's a dubious theory -- addition to the defense by subtracting defensive draft picks.  But thought I'd toss it out there in fairness to Ben & Skin.

In deference to Confessors who view this site at their workplaces and don't want to see babes pop up on their screen when the site flashes on, today's ginger will appear at the end of this deathless prose.

"Which tent is Mike's?"

I try to cover Campound coverage to the extent possible, but my listening has been spotty the last few weeks and that may continue for a bit.  Please weigh in frequently and in detail reporting on the best of our lads out in the forest primeval.

ThePlainsman1310@gmail

@Plainsman1310

OPEN THREAD: Create Ur Own Topix!

I know, it's always Open Thread around here, but thought we needed a little thread-freshener.

Here's my topic:  The David Newbury segment with David Moore (the latter on the phone) on yesterday's afternoon show (Newbury/T.C.) was the best ten minutes on the Cowboys I've heard this season.  The focus:  Tony Romo has been given too much power to run the offense, change plans, dance around until the play clock is a microsecond away from delay of game.   I can't remember the last time I heard a weak segment featuring either, and when they're both on, it's must-listen.

Will we hear The Boomtown (David & David) in a show this year?

ThePlainsman1310@gmail.com

@Plainsman1310

The Night Before

Two nights before, actually.

I usually enjoy The Ticket's draft coverage even if I don't have a lot of interest in the draft.  I only got to listen to about two hours of it this time around, Thursday evening.  The time leading up to and just following the Cowboys' pick.

It was OK, certainly didn't punch out, but it seemed somehow  .  .  .  I dunno, undernourished.  In the past, The Ticket seemed to have made an investment in the draft, really talked it up, promoted the coverage heavily.  Not so much this year, just the guys in the studio, and Cumulus didn't even turn the air conditioning on for them.

There wasn't the same verve and, I daresay, the same preparation we have heard in years past.  Norm mispronounced names of at least two of the top batch of picks, and on one occasion he was corrected incorrectly by one of the other hosts.

Bob was good, as usual, but seemed kind of checked out, not really fully engaged.  I can't put my finger on it.  No criticism, I just got the feeling that maybe he wasn't all that interested in fighting with all the other voices.

As other commenters have observed, Corby was one guy too many.  Nothing to add on the football front. And he was doing something peculiar:  Every once in awhile he -- at least I think it was him -- would start mumbling quietly when someone else was trying to talk, like nonsense syllables or something under his breath, and Norm would simply stop and the air would go dead.  Some really weird moments.

Bright spot:  David Moore.

I miss Junior Miller's capsule bios of the players following their selection.  Little jewels of reportage and wit.

Draft coverage should be Norm, Bob, and one or the other David (Newbury or Moore).  Whether they're all in the same room or divided up between the draft venue, Valley Ranch, and Victory Park, you'd just have a cleaner, livelier, and more informative show.

Whither the Orphanage?

The demise of The Orphanage is regularly predicted by Confessors. I was never sure why, except that the show seemed to get under the skin of some listeners who show up here. It's been away the last two weeks. If there has been an explanation for its absence, I haven't heard it.

I only heard a bit of its replacement on Saturday. I believe it was Bruce LeVine and maybe Josh Bogorad? I didn't hear a name, but Bruce made reference to his partner, so I'm surmising. Nothing wrong with the show. Nothing distinctive, but an OK listen.

But it wasn't the Orphanage.

Some have tired of what they believe to be Danny's "act," the aging hipster music snob. Some feel that the ages have passed Dave Lane by. Some don't like the attitude, the nose-thumbing at show prep, the sometimes hung-over flavor to the whole thing.

I like all of these things, and I like The Orphanage. I would not like to see it leave the air.

But to everything there is a season, no? I am doubtful that either D or D is handsomely compensated for spending his Saturday morning on the air. Danny has gone into business which must require some of his professional attention, has musical irons in the fire, and he's still full-time on The Hardline (with, it seems, more absences than in the past).

No one has dropped me a line with any inside dope on the disposition of The Orphanage. Perhaps someone will. If it is the case that we have seen the last of it -- and, as Norm might say, with the greatest respect to Bruce LeVine and the other guy -- I hope the CTO will continue their policy of looking for some fresh voices among the JV. I'm not sure who it would be. For my money The Ticket has hit a home run with Cirque and The Shake Joint, and I also very much like any combination of Ty Walker, David Newbury, David Moore, Stewart Cedar, guys like that.

In the meantime, I'll remain hopeful that the Teebox will continue to hand off to Davey and Danny.

Muser Triumph + Quick Hits

So a variety of circumstances have knocked me off the rails today.  After determining that I my chances of remaining employed even should my employer discover that I am completely blowing off the day at >78%, I'm sitting in a location where two -- maybe three -- Spanish-language radio stations are blasting, it's uncomfortably warm, and I'm a little buzzed.  My employer has a dim awareness of my true identity (I've decided that I'm actually The Plainsman, and everything else is an act), but he never checks the site.  Although I hated to leave my closely-reasoned and, let's face it, correct anti-spoiler analysis, I realized that the time is perfect for getting up an article, listening to Robert and David and The Hard Ones (at Frisco's Burger Girl -- geez, the hospitality vendors along the Tollway not far from the prospective Kowboys Korporate Komplex must be thrilled, including especially sometime Hardline destination Tailgaters, which is literally (literally!) a short walk from the site at Warren and the Tollway), and even more perfect for simply refusing to do the job for which I am compensated.

*     *     *

As already reported by Confessors commenting on the last thread, The Musers thrashed it today with their Musers' Topic Wheel Fart Talk.  I laughed at what they were saying, and it was fun listening to them having genuine fun.  

My reception was very spotty during that period and I missed a little bit of it.  I wonder whether they mentioned one of my favorite fart-related phrases, which I believe I learned from a Muser or Hardline discussion of farting some time back:  Farting while walking = "crop-dusting." 

I'm trying to remember the other Muser utterance that made me laugh out loud in the car.  I think it was the 8:40 replay of the Buzz-'n'-Knoxie talk.  Well done, with a cameo by Junior in a rare triple role.  

I actually have visual proof that finding farts funny is bred deeply into the living tissue of the male.   Mrs. Plainsman was sitting on a couch with a baby on her knee.  I'm not good at guessing the ages of little ones, but I'm going to guess about 10 months.  I am sitting next to Mrs. P.  The photo is taken right at the moment when I am making a prodigious farting noise with my mouth, my lips nearly invisible like hummingbird wings.  The baby's head is thrown back and he's laughing.

*     *     *

Several Confessors have recommended rabbit ears to us unfortunate Time-Warner Cable people who can't get CBS and some other stations.  Also heard Intentional Grounding with the Breaking News that TWC is  offering rabbit ears to its customers, which frankly isn't very encouraging for a resolution anytime soon.  I dropped in to my AV vendor and asked them about that, and they said they doubted very much it would work in our house with the kind of insulation and roof-lining we had.  They also looked me over carefully and said that it was actually somewhat tricky to install and use in conjunction with cable.  Seeing as how I barely have the patience to get Blogger to work well enough to eke out my gems on this site, I decided either to wait, or get DirecTV in here.

By the way, my vendor strongly recommended DirecTV over Dish Network.  Not sure why.  Any of y'all have a preference?  A local relative has Dish Network and likes it, and I note that Warren ("The Oracle of Omaha") Buffett recently invested in it.  Actually, the vendor's highest recommendation went to Verizon FIOS, but it (and AT&T U-verse) are not available out here on the plains.

*     *     *

I understand those Confessors who don't find Intentional Grounding an attractive steady diet, but I like it a lot and I think I would also enjoy it it in large, frequent doses.  But it doesn't sound strictly Tickety, that's for sure.  

If NPR and The Ticket got drunk at a bar and engaged in a wild, inebriated night of swiving, the resulting offspring would sound like Intentional Grounding. 

*     *     *

A big MTC thanks to Richie Whitt for his personal appearance in the last thread commiserating with Your Plainsman on the severe nut-kicking he suffered for his courageous position against stealth spoilers outside of the confines of an announced segment on the spoiled teevee show in question.  (I know -- referring to oneself in the third person is a sign of a seriously unhinged personality.)

*     *    *

Confessors derive great pleasure out of whipping Corby for his repetition of pet phrases.  Well, Danny and Mike are now doing it with their impromptu announcement of fake segments with the title of the phrase in question whenever Corby tosses it out as a sentence intro.  Danny, in his best fake-announcer voice:  "And now, with 'LET ME TELL YOU,' -- Corby."  My candidate:  "To be perfectly honest with you." 

*     *     *

Hits remain strong since the demise of the Fan and the BaD Radio Drama.  My thanks to you all, including the nut-kickers.

*     *     *

OK, gotta put the dogs out, feed them, take drugs, and hustle off to meet Mrs. Plainsman for dinner and the Ticket-endorsed "The Way Way Back."

+     +     +

ThePlainsman1310@gmail.com

@Plainsman1310

Early Newbury Thinkings

In the recent past and in the last thread, Confessors have sung the praises of David Newbury and wished for the day when we might hear him more permanently.

I join both sentiments.  He brings the kind of hard-core wonk sportsiness seen hitherto only in Bob, sometimes Norm.  Maybe another one or two over the years that aren't coming to mind.  

The following are not misgivings, just observations:

(1)  He's not a Tickety guy.  He plays nothing for yuks, which may be a breath of fresh air, but he conveys the feeling that he does not entirely approve of other participants doing so.   I'm unsure whether he would be an effective solo host, but I would think that any more Tickety co-host would have to be pretty strong and mature.  Recall that matters did not go smoothly with David and Matt McClearin.

I'm thinking David Moore, another guy I could stand to hear a lot more of. They could call the show "Welcome to the Boomtown," or, perhaps just "the Boomtown," to which they could "welcome" listeners at the outset.

Look it up.

(2) He's a Sturm-Sports-Bully starter kit -- again, quite possibly a good thing.  Sometimes falls into forest-for-the-trees syndrome, however.  Not keenly interested in alternative viewpoints.

Having said this, hoping The Ticket continues to find opportunities to showcase him.

 

Email:  ThePlainsman1310@gmail.com

Twitter:  @Plainsman1310

 

OPEN THREAD -- Intentional Grounding

+     +     +

Missed the first show but caught the second.  First impression is that CTO programming has delivered another off-hours winner.

Two guys sitting around talking, both likable through the ear buds.  Some interviews.  Nobody gives speeches.  Nobody "announcing" to the listeners.  Solid content.

Just a couple of preliminary thoughts:

(1)  More David.  Got no problem at all with Robert, but it seems like he authored the distinct preponderance of syllables.  Wait -- I had to leave for a segment; that may have been Felix Jones talk that David might have helmed, so my count may be skewed.

(2)  Too short.  Needs a second hour.  They spent a long time on the Cowboys, also the subject of the two interviews, which was perfectly OK sports talk, but by Wednesday those topics had more or less been talked out.  Longed for Rangers talk.

(3)  Robert is much different on IG than on The Hardline.  He's shuffled off the hipster-local-sophisticate persona that he has when he's talking to Danny, Mike, and Corby.  (Actually -- I like that presentation; just saying it's different.)  He's much more reg'lar-guy on IG, which is also very appealing.

Anyway.  Small sample size, but it sounds good to me.  You?