Clearing Something Up

It's been six months (okay, almost seven, but who's counting) since I was laid off by WSSP. I think it's time I set the record straight on what happened.

Normally, I wouldn't have done this. But a couple of things have led me to this point.

One - I still get emails wondering where I've been (even though my layoff was covered by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on two occasions).

Two - there seems to be a misconception about why I'm not at 'SSP anymore. There are people who seem to take pleasure in what happened to me because they disagree with my opinions. Those people (who never sign their real names by the way) love sending me emails telling me they're glad 1250 "took out the garbage."

That misconception (the one that says I got let go because of performance) is just not true. That was not the case by any stretch. I've been let go by radio stations before (and I guarantee I'll get let go again - it's the nature of the business). What I never had happen to me was the way I was let go by 1250. I had never been fired and praised at the same time.

The reason I got let go is that WSSP's parent company (like the other major broadcasting companies) was hit hard by the recession. Entercom Communications let go of about one-hundred people the day they laid me off (though layoff is really a bad way to describe it since none of us have gotten our jobs back). The layoffs came exactly one day after Entercom's CEO announced they would no longer match contributions to their 401K funds.

My firing had everything to do with the bad economy. It had nothing to do with performance (and the numbers show I had a pretty big impact in the six weeks I had been doing middays; certainly they were very good in the two years I co-hosted afternoon drive).

Let me also clear up another misconception. I was not let go because of any argument I might have had with my former PM Drive co-host, Gary Ellerson. Did we get into it from time to time? Absolutely. Anyone who does a team show is going to have arguments with their co-host. It's pretty simple. You aren't going to see eye to eye with the people you share the microphone with all the time. In my case, I spent more time with Gary than I did with my wife. He spent more time with me than he did with his wife and kids. We both wanted to do great shows. We both wanted to succeed in the ratings. Sometimes, we had different opinions about how to do that. Sometimes we had arguments. Big deal. Who doesn't fight with their brother? That's how I looked at Gary and I know that's how he looked at me.

Is it hard not being on the air? You bet it is. You have to understand. Radio is all I've done since college. I still look at the headlines every day and think of the ways I'd handle those headlines and stories on the air. But, I'm not going to complain about the hand I've been dealt.

Why? Well, first of all, complaining doesn't do anyone any good. it isn't going to change the situation. I'm still out of a job. Moaning and groaning about it isn't going to result in my getting another gig.

Secondly, there isn't anyone to blame for what happened to me. Just like former FOX Sports Radio host Ben Maller has no one to blame. The same could be said for Dan McNeil (formerly of ESPN 1000 in Chicago). I could list dozens of names - just in the Sports Radio format. We were all the victims of circumstance. The economy went into the tank. It's still there. We didn't cause the recession (if you want to call it a depression go ahead, by the way). We were (okay, are) the victims of the recession.

The thing about down economies is they don't last forever. It goes in cycles. Things will get better. Will the economy rebound as strongly as it did after the recession in the early 90's? Will it rebound as strongly as it did after the recession earlier this decade? That I can't tell you. I'm not an expert on the economy. I'll leave that to the experts.

All I can do is hope that things get better. And once they do I think we'll all look back on this period of time and breathe a sigh of relief that it is over.

Until then, complaining is just counter productive. So, I do my blog, do my podcast, and keep knocking on doors, hoping (knowing actually) that eventually someone in this business is going to let me in.

I've worked with guys in this business who've been let go and complained about it. Complained about it long, hard, and loud. It didn't get them anywhere, and it didn't help them get a new (or better) job.

I'm also not going to point to what the ratings were when I left and what they are now. Anyone can look at the numbers (and believe me they have) and come to their own conclusion as to why the numbers are what they are now as opposed to what they were six months ago.

But doing that isn't going to do any good either. Ratings - like the economy - are cyclical. What they are now will probably change in six months. So, how much can you really read into them?

It's important to remember that I left WSSP on good terms. I still talk to Doug Russell regularly - we've known each other for over ten years. I still keep in touch with Steve Fifer, Gary Ellerson, some of the sales guys, and the station's GM - Alan Kirshbom. I wish them nothing but success. Nothing that happened was their fault. Nothing that happened was my fault. It just happened.

In the meantime, I'll keep doing what I'm doing until that next opportunity comes. One of the benefits of my 'time off' (and believe me this isn't a vacation) is that I've gotten the chance to listen to a lot of sports radio over the last six months. Some of it has been good. Some of it hasn't. It's actually been educational. There are things that I've learned over the last six months that I'm going to put into practice when I get that next job.

For instance, I'm not going to rely on phones as much as I did before. I've come to the conclusion (better late than never) that calls can be a crutch. Just because the lines are full every day doesn't mean the show is any good, especially if the same people are calling you every day. Jim Rome says it best (though it is very harsh) - "More of me and less of you is better for the show." I'll still take calls (obviously) but I now realize that Joe in the car isn't listening for what John on the phone has to say. Joe is more interested in what the host has to say.

I've also learned that while benchmarks are good they can be a crutch as well. Just because something works doesn't mean you have to do it every week. I'm going to ask myself if the benchmark is really the best way to fill the segment before I do it. I'm going to challenge myself to come up with something better. Doing a benchmark segment once a week can be good, but it also can get old very quickly. Once a month makes the benchmark more of an event. It makes the benchmark more special. Doing it once a week can become old hat (and it might actually be lazy).

Another thing I'll do from here on out is have more topics ready to go. Not that I'll use everything I have prepared. But, it will allow me to be a little less structured. Sometimes hosts go with topics for two segments when it's clear the topic loses steam after one. Sticking with something too long can force the listener to tune out.

I could go on and on, but I know you don't have all day. And I don't want to get too far away from what my goal was. That goal was simply (and for the first time I might add) to get my side of what happened to me out there.

I hope I've cleared everything up. If I haven't, email me at saundersonsports@yahoo.com and feel free to ask me anything you want. I've got nothing to hide.

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