Some early morning chum, gathered from a scan of the papers before I go downstairs for breakfast at the hotel:
- From the “Does Hot Air Cause Global Warming?” Department: According to the Los Angeles Times, Conservative Talk Radio is on the decline in California. Ratings appear to be down, and stations are turning to syndicated hosts to save money. I don’t know how much of this is ratings, however. Look at what happened to KLSX: they dropped their talk format, not because it wasn’t doing good in the ratings, but because talk radio is expensive. Each show has the hosts, the screeners, the producer, and any ancillary staff. Getting rid of those for syndication simply saves a lot of money, and with ad revenues going down, they have to do that. Next, I predict, will be a shakeout as some of the weaker talk stations move to automated formats to stay alive.
- From the “Not Staying Alive” Department: Alas, some things don’t stay alive, and so I must report two passings: Altovese Davis, the widow of Sammy Davis Jr., and Ron Silver, who I remember from shows such as West Wing and Chicago Hope.
- From the “And Some Are In Limbo” Department: As the economy gets worse, the airline industry has been cutting flights. So what happens to those planes? According to the LA Times, they go to scenic Victorville and Mojave (and likely Tucson as well). The aircraft boneyards are filling up with planes that are being furloughed in hopes of resale or the economy picking up and their going back to work. Hmmm, just like a GM worker. Anyway, the planes are drained of fluids, have their engines removed, and just sit, watching soap operas and game shows all day. OK, I made up that last bit, but they are parked and maintained. If they don’t find a new life, they get chopped up and recycled. I’ve always found these aircraft boneyards fascinating.
And now, off to a quick shower and getting down to breakfast….
