Jackson and Imus Still Looking for New L.A. Outlets

Drive-time fans of Don Imus in Los Angeles had better install very large antennas or long spools of television cable in their cars, if they want to hear the irascible announcer.

Imus, the gruff talk-show host whose program had been on KRLA-AM (1110) until the station converted to all-sports last Friday, won’t be back on the airwaves here any time soon, according to the company that syndicates his four-hour show.

Currently he’s available in Southern California only on KTMS-AM (990) in Santa Barbara, or on MSNBC, the cable TV network that simulcasts his radio show.

“We are searching frantically for a station in the market, and we’re hoping to find somebody,” said Dennis Green, vice president of affiliate sales for Westwood One, the New York-based company that syndicates “Imus in the Morning.” “I can’t tell you how many calls we’ve been taking here. Listeners have been very active.”

Imus lost his L.A. home when KRLA’s owner, Infinity Broadcasting Corp., a subsidiary of Viacom/CBS, sold the station to Disney/ABC in a process that began two months ago. Disney, which owns ABC and the majority of ESPN, has changed the station to an ESPN Radio outlet. The new KSPN features sports news, commentary and game broadcasts 24 hours a day, with a mix of local and national programming.

The people behind the Imus show, based at WFAN-AM in New York and airing on 100 stations nationwide, certainly want an outlet in the nation’s second-largest market, Green said.

“We don’t know if we’ll have something by the end of the year,” he said. “We hope we have something soon.”

The problem, Green said, is that the limited number of L.A. stations with a talk format already have their lineups settled, so adding Imus would mean someone was changing formats, or dropping a current national or locally originated show in the competitive morning commute hours.

“Imus in the Morning,” which broadcasts live from 6-10 a.m. EST in New York, had been airing starting at 5 a.m. on KRLA. The 900-pound gorilla of morning radio, Howard Stern, holds court from 6-10 a.m. on Infinity station KLSX-FM (97.1). His contract with Infinity ends next Friday, and he has hinted on the air that he’s leaving morning radio.

However, Infinity spokesman Dana McClintock said he couldn’t comment on Stern’s contract talks, whether Stern really might be leaving or whether that would make room for Imus. Even though Stern’s contract is still in flux, most believe the radio shock jock will continue. He has had his operatives scouting L.A. locations recently for a planned week here in January.

Another popular KRLA host still searching for a home on the airwaves is Michael Jackson, whose current-affairs and interview show ran from 9 a.m.-noon weekdays. He said he is still weighing options and reviewing offers, and he expects to know within a couple of weeks where he’ll land, somewhere on the local airwaves.

Several KRLA veterans have found other broadcast homes. Dr. Toni Grant, the pioneer of radio call-in psychology, moved from KRLA back to KABC-AM (790), where she airs 9 p.m.-midnight. Chef Jamie Gwen moved her cooking show “ChefTalk” to KIEV-AM (870), where it airs Sundays from 9-10 a.m. Other hosts are still looking for new homes.

The only programs carried over from KRLA to KSPN are Los Angeles Kings hockey and San Diego Chargers football games, and a thoroughbred horse racing show Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m.-10 a.m.

The sale is pending federal approval, expected sometime in the spring, but Disney/ABC has taken over operating the station in the meantime, under an agreement with Infinity.

Erik Braverman, program director of both KABC-AM (790) and KSPN, which remains at 1110 on the dial, said he’s heard plenty from sports fanatics about the new station during its first few days.

“They’re ecstatic to have an ESPN outlet,” he said. “The feedback has been tremendous.” He said Disney/ABC hadn’t really considered keeping the call letters of the station that once was the city’s rock ‘n’ roll powerhouse, bringing the Beatles to the Hollywood Bowl decades ago.

“The KRLA letters are certainly legendary in Los Angeles, but they’re legendary for music,” Braverman said. “In trying to establish ESPN Radio in Los Angeles, it was important there be no preconceived notions or baggage.”

But recognizing the loss of a major outlet in Los Angeles talk radio, Braverman said he’s “done everything possible to make KABC as palatable as possible to former KRLA listeners.” That includes tinkering with its morning show and other programs to make sure his station is “balanced, fair, provocative and opinionated.”

He said the perception was that KRLA tended toward the left side of the political spectrum, while KABC was seen as “a little more conservative, a little more one-sided, a little less balanced and a little agenda-driven.”

“If anything, this election has shown the country is clearly divided,” Braverman said, “and I’ve built a radio station that is clearly divided, to accurately reflect the population.”