Divided Airwaves Split Old Allies : Radio: Why would owners pit KABC-AM against their own KMPC-AM? It’s ‘the company cannibalizing itself,’ one staffer says. Officials say the goal is to corner the market.
Ken Minyard, the longtime morning drive-time host and biggest ratings-getter at KABC-AM (790), is not pleased about his new--and unlikely--competition.
It’s not just that his friend and former KABC colleague Peter Tilden is now on opposite Minyard and partner Roger Barkley on KMPC-AM (710), it’s that his own bosses created the conflict. KMPC is owned and operated by the same people who run KABC, and it was their decision to turn KMPC into a talk station that pits it against KABC and the separately owned KFI-AM (640).
“It’s direct competition. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned about that,” Minyard said in a telephone interview. “I’m concerned that Peter was on so long at KABC, and the following he has comes from KABC. . . . I went in and expressed myself on the matter and my reservations were duly noted by our management. It seems curious, to say the least. I’m not the only one that has a question mark about this.”
True enough. Another KABC employee regards the move as “the company cannibalizing itself.” And veteran KABC host Michael Jackson said unhappily, “My feeling is there’s one cake and you can divide it in just so many ways. We’re all going to have to work harder.”
Station officials acknowledge, but downplay, the intra-competition. Though they admit that KMPC may take away some listeners from KABC, they say the larger goal is to corner the talk-radio market collectively.
“Coca-Cola has Coke and Diet Coke; Procter & Gamble makes more than one brand of soap,” said KMPC/KABC operations manager Al Brady Law. “All of a sudden we have the opportunity to broaden our reach in the marketplace by offering more products than ever before.”
For instance, he said, “If you don’t want to listen to Michael Jackson discuss issues in his way, and you don’t want to hear Rush Limbaugh discuss issues in his way (on KFI), you might want to hear about relationships (on KMPC). I want to supply alternatives.”
Capital Cities Communications, which already owned KABC, bought KMPC in April from Gene Autry’s Golden West Broadcasting for a reported $18 million. Three weeks ago, it discarded the low-rated all-sports format for a youthfully oriented talk format, or what is known in the industry as “young talk” or “hot talk.”
Law and George Green, KABC/KMPC general manager, see KMPC’s primary rival as KFI, not KABC. KMPC’s promotional announcements repeatedly take aim at the station that--thanks in large part to syndicated broadcasting giant Limbaugh--has surpassed former talk-radio giant KABC over the past few years. KFI was No. 4 in the most recent quarterly Arbitron survey, covering last winter, while KABC was fifth, up from 11th in the previous three-month period.
“KFI did a superb job of positioning themselves as the young talk-radio station, positioning (KABC) as the old talk-radio station,” said Green, who has been at KABC for 35 years. “But I think KFI can no longer say they’re the young station in town.”
Indeed, the corporate directive at KMPC is to reach the younger demographic prized by advertisers, utilizing a hipper, more entertainment-oriented attitude than KABC.
“This is a program director’s delight,” said Law, who is responsible for the programming decisions. “I have a sandbox here that has more toys in it than you can imagine. What I want to do is make KABC a place where there generally can be found a serious discussion of the issues. KABC is noted for that and I think the advent of KMPC allows us to continue that with KABC.”
But there is grumbling within KABC’s halls about the tone of the new station.
“Am I impressed by that which I have heard at KMPC? Not in the slightest bit,” said Jackson, the longtime host of KABC’s 9 a.m.-1 p.m. show. “I don’t see any of it actually getting a younger audience.”
Jackson, who is currently in the midst of contract negotiations at KABC, said he finds the overall sound of KMPC lacking in professionalism.
“I don’t know what they’re after,” he said. “But, whatever the offer, I would not work at KMPC. I could work elsewhere, though.”
Not all KABC staffers share Jackson’s views. Lawyer Gloria Allred, who hosts KABC’s 7-9 p.m. weekday slot, said that her competition at KMPC, Xavier Hermosillo, another ex-KABC employee, represents such a different point of view from hers (conservative to her liberal) that their shows will not be in direct competition.
“I meet Xavier at the water cooler during the news break and it’s always a little bit of a surprise to see him there,” Allred said. “Then I realize he is on opposite me. But I don’t ask him what he’s talking about and I just don’t feel threatened. It’s strange because we were all one big team, one big family, and all of a sudden some of the people on this team are on another team, but it’s still one family. And I have to think that Capital Cities knows what it’s doing.”
Several KABC insiders said they think the biggest area for contention is the morning matchup between KMPC’s Tilden and Tracey Miller and KABC’s Minyard and Barkley, who in the most recent ratings ranked second in their important time slot (behind Howard Stern on KLSX-FM).
“I can understand why Ken would be upset,” said one KABC personality who asked not to be identified. “They’re doing very well, so why suddenly say, ‘We need you to go uphill right now and push this big rock’? I don’t know what the sense of that move is.”
Green and Law defend the decision, pointing to the different focuses of each show.
“Yes, you’re right--if there’s any show on (KMPC) that’s more competitive with (KABC) than any of the others, it’s Peter and Tracey,” Law said. “But I think that’s more a function of the time slot than anything else. I see Ken and Roger as the epitome of the radio magazine show, and I see Peter and Tracey as being more concerned with comedy.”