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Post by BonnevilleMariner on Dec 15, 2009 12:52:05 GMT -5
How long has KSL touted itself as Utah's most complete and comprehensive news source? They may have been that at one time, but the last few years have made it clear that they've fallen woefully behind when it comes to timeliness and details. Not to mention the shoddy, inconsistent, and lazy news reports on their website or their declining on-air talent.
Case in point: Two Saturdays ago a couple semis wrecked and blocked I-80 both ways just east of the Tooele/Lake Point exit. I was driving behind about 30 min. after the accident and was caught in the ensuing traffic melee. So what did I do? Tuned over to KSL. They're the only station I know that does live traffic reports on the weekends. They must know something, right?
Nope. Next traffic report comes and goes. Nevermind that the guy behind the mic could barely string a sentence together. No mention of the wreck. Next report: no mention. Another half hour, no mention. Finally, about 1.5 hrs. after the incident occurred, completely closing one of the SL Metro's 's 3 major freeways both ways, essentially sealing off acccess to one of the state's largest counties, and backing up cars for miles, dude gets on and says something to the effect of:
"And it looks like there's a bit of a mess out near Lake Point."
That's it. Since I wasn't going to make it to SL County, I turned around and went home. I had listened to KSL for about 2 hours at that point with only the "bit of a mess" mention. Finally, right before I got out of the car, same traffic guy says there's something going on near Lake Point. "We'll have details for you as soon as we can get them."
So when exactly will KSL wake up and realize that Tooele County actually exists? KNRS adds a mention of traffic coming to and from Tooele County in EVERY SINGLE REPORT. Yet a pile-up seals off a freeway and an entire county for several hours and KSL has no freaking clue.
Hundreds of cars were no doubt tuning into KSL to get some idea of why they're stopped 4 miles from the exit. And what did they get? Reports of slow-downs and slide-offs on I-15. Even worse, this happened during Ethan Millard and Alex Kirry's Weekend Throwdown. The topic? Traffic.
KSL, I'm done.
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Post by Amanuensis on Dec 15, 2009 21:36:47 GMT -5
KSL has the most FREQUENT traffic reports, but I think KUER has the traffic reports that are most relevant to my commute -- from West Jordan to Provo in the morning and then back to West Jordan in the afternoon.
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Post by henry on Dec 15, 2009 21:50:31 GMT -5
You can always listen to a pre-recorded Airwatch employee instead.
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Post by toomuchradio on Dec 15, 2009 23:31:50 GMT -5
December 14, I'm driving home listening to sports radio and hearing "the Jazz will have a full roster tonight." During the commercial, I flip through the stations and 2 hours before tipoff hear KSL's Sports guy say, "Andre Kirlenko is still out from tonight's game with a bad back." WHAT? Sure enough Andre very much participated in the abysmal home loss to the T-Wolves. Bonnerville you got it right, timeliness and detail are thrown out.
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Post by Amanuensis on Dec 16, 2009 9:27:29 GMT -5
What I wish traffic reporters would do is provide more information. It is not enough for them to say, "traffic on I-15 Southbound through Utah County" is moving pretty slowly." Is it slow enough that I should take State Street instead? How many extra minutes will it add to my commute?
It is exactly this type of programming that would finally persuade me to get an HD radio. Surely there are enough people commuting at any given time that KSL-FM could make money by having continuous traffic reports on an HD frequency. Have a 5 minute long traffic report followed by 1 minute of ads. Repeat 10 times per hour in the morning and afternoon. During other times of the day and on weekends, just have traffic reports at the top and bottom of the hour (unless more frequent reports are warranted by conditions) and fill the time with programming from the WTOP sister station's Federal News Radio product.
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Post by BonnevilleMariner on Dec 16, 2009 10:01:14 GMT -5
It is exactly this type of programming that would finally persuade me to get an HD radio. Surely there are enough people commuting at any given time that KSL-FM could make money by having continuous traffic reports on an HD frequency. Have a 5 minute long traffic report followed by 1 minute of ads. Repeat 5 times per hour in the morning and afternoon. During other times of the day and on weekends, just have traffic reports at the top and bottom of the hour (unless more frequent reports are warranted by conditions) and fill the time with programming from the WTOP sister station's Federal News Radio product. Exactly, A-man. I've got a whole line of presets on my XM for their traffic/weather channels. They don't have one for SLC, but it's a godsend when I'm in LA, San Diego, and other metro areas. The reports are long and detailed, and that's all you get. When I hit a traffic situation all I want is traffic-- no teasers teasing teasers of news blips that you'll already be to work before they air, no glossed-over "bit of a mess" lines. I think something like that over an HD channel would be an excellent idea. One of the many, many reasons listening to KSL is torture for me is the frequency of traffic/weather updates. Combine that with the news breaks and commercials and the actual content you get on KSL is marginal at best. |
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Post by justin on Dec 16, 2009 15:13:49 GMT -5
I made a deliberate move to abandon KSL back in May. I haven't regretted it since. I got tired of the canned programming. I couldn't see how handing over 3 hours a day to the likes of Sean Hannity represented the best use of the public's airwaves that the management and owners of KSL could find. Similarly, I found that a few hours of the only local programming on KSL that I ever found entertaining in the least (the Nightside) were replaced by Clark Howard. The morning host, Doug Wright, is a guy I have respected for years for his reasoning, but rarely agreed with. At least he could explain why he thought a certain way. This year, he seemed to become more of a defender of the establishment. I found him becoming more ideological and less thoughtful, fair, and objective.
I had no reason to continue to listen to KSL. They weren't trying to talk to anyone like me. They were talking to their core of listeners who will always be with them. So, I removed the frequency from all the radios I own, and I haven't missed it yet.
I can get real-time traffic on my iPhone.
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Post by henry on Dec 16, 2009 20:56:39 GMT -5
^^^
Canned programming? Which KSL are you listening to?
They are live and local for 16 hours each day!!! Clark Howard is long gone. Yes, Hannity is a poor blip on the radar. But hey, it's WAAAAAY better than KNRS-F, KNRS-A, and KKAT-A which all run Hannity-like canned programming all day long.
What more do you expect from KSL (sans canning Hannity, which I agree with)?
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Post by BonnevilleMariner on Dec 17, 2009 11:28:26 GMT -5
Canned programming? Which KSL are you listening to? I still listen to the AM simulcast:) What more do you expect from KSL? --Accurate, timely, and thorough traffic reports that don't completely space major incidents, read by somebody who doesn't sound like a bumbling idiot. --Accurate, timely, and thorough news reports on the website. For example, one lazily updated piece on the Nutty Putty Cave incident simply tacked the news about John Jones' death on the top of the piece about his imminent rescue. The result was a completely inappropriate, borderline offensive jumble of pasted paragraphs. Simple mistake? Maybe. But lots and lots of people go to KSL for news-- especially updates on critical local stories. And frankly, KSL doesn't deserve the patronage. They dropped the ball on the cave coverage, just as they did in the case of the trapped miners a few years ago. It was amazing how all one had to do was go to the Trib or D-News to get a much clearer and more accurate picture of what was going on. 16 hours of live, local per day? Yeah, it's not too difficult to take 5 hours worth of real content and tease 11 more hours out of it. It's like the snack bar guy at the movie theater filling your cup to the brim with ice cubes and 10 oz. of Coke and calling it a 32 oz drink. I'll give this to KSL: when it comes to fluff, nobody can hold a candle to them. If that's your cup of tea, Henry, more power to you. |
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Post by henry on Dec 17, 2009 12:03:03 GMT -5
^^^^ Wow. Somebody really doesn't like KSL. Well, don't worry. The way things are heading, all local TV and radio news, along with papers will disappear, leaving you and me with nothing but blogs to get our news from.  |
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Post by BonnevilleMariner on Dec 17, 2009 12:20:37 GMT -5
Wow. Somebody really doesn't like KSL. No, somebody who grew up trusting and depending on KSL is just extremely disappointed in it. Is there a reason you neither acknowledge nor refute my points? If I'm wrong here, please specify where and how. Well, don't worry. The way things are heading, all local TV and radio news, along with papers will disappear, leaving you and me with nothing but blogs to get our news from. You're generalizing here, but you're mostly correct. And I think it's high time that media outlets like KSL wise up and adapt to the realities of changing media consumption trends. |
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Post by henry on Dec 18, 2009 0:08:04 GMT -5
I didn't want to argue, that's why I didn't attack point-by-point.
I'm all ears for adaptation. How, specifically, should KSL adapt? And more importantly, how should they make money off it? KSL spends more money than any other radio station along the Wasatch Front. But even their resources are limited (which is why Nightside has no call screener).
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Post by BonnevilleMariner on Dec 18, 2009 11:07:58 GMT -5
I didn't want to argue, that's why I didn't attack point-by-point. Ah, c'mon, I don't argue here!  I'm all ears for adaptation. How, specifically, should KSL adapt? And more importantly, how should they make money off it? It's exactly that attitude ("more importantly, how should they make money?") that is radio's downfall. Look, I know revenue is what makes it work, but it's a chicken-or-the-egg question. Does more revenue make better radio or does better radio make more money? My money's on the latter. Think about this-- back to my original example: Semis wreck, you've got hundreds of cars backed up and tuning into KSL for some sort of info on the situation (I know they were because everybody was using their cell phones to Tweet about it). KSL, had it chosen to provide excellent traffic reports, even on the weekends, would have been in a position to be on top of it. They would have had quick, detailed-as-possible info and listeners would have been rewarded with the info they so badly needed. Boom! KSL's now got a captive (but very willing) audience listening to all of their ads and teasers. Furthermore, next time something happens, where do you think these listeners will turn? That's right, KSL. Better radio (useful, relevant, timely, well-delivered info) = MORE MONEY. KSL has it bass-ackwards. |
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Post by henry on Dec 18, 2009 12:09:37 GMT -5
^^^^
I'm the first to agree with you that radio's cuts in the early part of the decade lead to its self-euthanasia. Sadly, we've moved past that point. Today, it's not greed driving the cuts. It's simply survival.
To fix that problem, some large owners like Citadel and Clear Channel are going to have to collapse, or re-negotiate their crushing debt.
That's certainly not KSL, Bonneville, KSOP, or 97.9's case. None of them have crushing debt. Likewise, none of them are particularly trying to suck all the money out of their properties, either. For an example of that, see KTVX, KUTV, or any Clear Channel station back around '01.
In fact, a colleague of mine who used to work at KSL-TV told me the station often gives most of it's profits to charity. The rest bolsters some of the commercial activities of its parent owner. But either way, nobody can say KSL-TV and radio are lifeblood suckers by any means. I've visited (or worked for) a Mom 'N Pop, Citadel, KSOP, KSL, Bonneville, KBYU, KUER, etc. Easily, by far, KSL radio is the most over-staffed place I've seen.
They have a news-writer who works all night. Three reporters, two producers, two anchors, a sports guy, a traffic reporter, and an intern during morning drive. An editor, three reporters, traffic reporter, and an intern during Doug Wright and Hannity. And then, pretty much a repeat of the morning crew's size for afternoons. Then two hosts, and two news people until midnight.
Compare that with the only place that even comes close: KNRS. They have Abby Bonnell in the morning. And then one reporter/anchor every four hours through about 7 PM.
KUER: Dan Bammes, mornings. That's it. I've seen it. They have about three very talented reporters all day, but they usually work on one story a day, which airs for Dan's show, and is never very timely.
KBYU: College students pretending to be reporters.
See my drift? KSL really does try hard to create a big market product on a small market's budget. They make a lot of money. But they also spend a lot of money on staff.
If I may, I believe your grudge is mostly their ignoring Tooele County. Generally, everything you say is true. Charles Moran is there, reporting traffic on weekends. When I get stuck in Salt Lake, Weber, Davis, or Utah counties, he's got great information. But, perhaps Tooele/Stansbury is an oversight. But I ask: Who else is even DOING traffic on weekends?
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Post by BonnevilleMariner on Dec 18, 2009 12:48:28 GMT -5
See my drift? KSL really does try hard to create a big market product on a small market's budget. They make a lot of money. But they also spend a lot of money on staff. Which is why it's a shame their product is so sub-par. They've got the infrastructure of an excellent media organization, but what comes through my speakers is somehow less than the sum of its parts. The traffic and website things I mentioned are just examples of the decline in quality. If I may, I believe your grudge is mostly their ignoring Tooele County. It's a big part of it. But the traffic situation directed my train of thought to underlying concerns I had before I even moved to Tooele County, which include their fluff news format, shoddy traffic reports even in SL Valley, wishy-washy hosts, and the chalkboard journalism on their website. What does KSL still do well? Sports broadcasts and Nightside. I'm not a big football fan but I'll listen to an entire game-- pregame to post-game-- because of the quality of content and production. Nightside, same thing. Who else is even DOING traffic on weekends? Exactly. They have pretty much a monopoly on weekends. Why not capitalize on it? |
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