(I used to write a bi-weekly column, RadioRadio, for Players magazine in the Tampa Bay area. The following story appeared in 1991.)

Pulling the Power Pig's Tail

By Bob Andelman

Pulling the Pig's Tail

If the Power Pig has another depressed ratings quarter in the spring book - as it did in the winter - look for sweeping changes at the porker.

Problems abound at the one-time ratings champion. As impossible as it seems, the morning show seems to get worse with every passing week. Why it has been allowed to hemorrhage for so long is beyond us. The recent firings of Dr. Don and Courtney Campbell did nothing but save cash and their reputations.

Have you seen the station's current television campaign? A short black man with silver hair waddles to a podium, pulls up a chair so he can see over it and says, "Hi, I'm Jack Harris ... " Then he goes on - in Harris's voice - about how the Power Pig has changed. It hasn't - but its racist tendencies have become more overt.

Using Harris in the spot is especially suspect - his contribution to the morning show is practically nil. The fault isn't Jack's; he's a highly paid personality straitjacketed in a format that doesn't play to his talent and gentle humor.

RadioRadio now has bet its second lunch of the year. This time, we're going to bet that Power Pig program director/morning drive personality Marc Chase and the rest of the A.M. crew are fried pork chops by fall. Chase is a nice guy and a brilliant radio theorist - the Pig's original breakthrough was largely his doing - but he hasn't maintained the station's momentum, failing to cement a reputable morning show. Somebody's got to take the fall - no pun intended. And hey, two years in a single town is like a career in radio.

OH, THANK YOU! The following letter arrived in the mail recently with a return address of "IRS" (of course we opened it immediately ) in Cincinnati, Ohio. Sheer coincidence this is the hometown of Jacor, parent company of WFLA 970 AM and WFLZ 93 FM, of course.

The emphasis is all theirs:

"Dear Radio Listener:

"Your input is needed to improve the quality of radio programming in the Tampa Bay area.

"You have been assigned to listen to WFLZ-FM at 93.3 on the FM dial also known as POWER 93 - THE POWER PIG.

"Please listen to POWER 93 FM for the next week (7 days), then complete the attached comment card and return by June 14. No postage is necessary.

"Your response is very IMPORTANT to the Tampa Bay radio market. For your participation in this survey, the Institute of Radio Surveys will make a contribution to All Children's Hospital or The Boy's and Girls' Club of Tampa Bay.

"Thank you for your cooperation.

"Robert L. Cunningham

"Director of Research

"Institute of Radio Surveys"

An accompanying comment card asks for info about listening habits. It is asks the respondent to rank special features such as "No-Replay Midday," "93 Songs in a Row" and "The Joke of the Day."

Since RadioRadio has already gone on record as suggesting the Power Pig put the "power" back in its music selection and re-think its power-less morning show, we'll let this "assignment" from the "IRS" pass without further comment.

GOOD NEWS FOR JACOR! While the Power Pig is drowning in its own swill, its sister station NewsRadio 970 AM is filling the jacuzzi with champagne.

The talk station is basking in ratings that put it ahead of its FM counterpart and rank many of its hosts as highly in certain demos as pop music DJs. More people are listening to Jay Marvin at night than rock 'n' roll. Rush Limbaugh may soon be more annoying and popular than Bob "Mad Dog" Lassiter.

And there isn't enough time in the day to adequately accommodate all the talent WFLA has stockpiled - Paul Gonzales (yes, he's back from Atlanta), Freddie Mertz, Carroll Sudler and Jack Harris (this is where he belongs, afterall).

"I'd especially like to find room for Gonzales and Mertz," says station manager Gabe Hobbs. "If I don't find something for them full-time, somebody's going to snatch them up."

SORRY, DEBS! So far, neither WFLA nor WTKN has expressed any interest in picking up ex-"Today Show" host Deborah Norville's nationally syndicated show. It'll start this fall as a replacement for Sally Jesse Raphael, who is giving up radio to concentrate on her TV show.

Incidentally, we hear WSUN 620 AM will drop TalkNet any day now, leaving Bruce Williams, et al, without a home. Have to wonder if WEND 760 AM may not sense opportunity on the horizon with all the salable local and national hosts available in the Tampa Bay market.

SEE YA! Voncile Anderson is splitting her job as Power Pig promotions director to be an account exec at Mix 96. ... WFLA morning news producer Betsy Fredericks has also split.

THE THIRD WAVE! 98 Rock is adding a third hour to its popular "Tampa Bay Rocks" show on Sunday nights. The two hours of local music from 9-11 p.m. will be joined on June 9 for a live hour from the Rock-It Club in Tampa. Deloris Telescope will inaugurate the new segment at 11 p.m. Stranger will perform in July. Get your tape recorders ready.

"I hope it doesn't come off as a rip-off of what YNF is doing at Morrisound," says 98 P.D. Greg Mull, referring to 95YNF's "Live at Morrisound" program, which features live, in-studio performances by local artists. "The idea is to catch the band live in a club setting."

We'll bet 95's Charlie Logan - host of "Live at Morrisound" - is not going to be too happy about this new development. Next thing you know, bands will be signing exclusive performance and promotion agreements with one station or the other. Er ... forget we mentioned that, okay?

RANGER RICK SPEAKS! We offered Rick Sarro a chance to air his side of his recent dismissal from SportsRadio 910 AM as afternoon talk show host and program director. Here's what he had to say:

"Budget had a lot to do with it. They felt they couldn't afford me any more. I didn't know the cuts had to be as deep as they were. It was as amicable as any parting can be. I'm not happy about it. I told (General Manager Brent Harmon) that I think he's making a mistake.

"I'm going to try and stay in the area. I'm going to see what the market will bear," says Sarro.

Sarro's departure is just one reason we're frustrated with recent developments at WFNS.

Dave Campbell - Sarro's replacement - is knowledgeable but brings none of Sarro's excitement to the afternoon show. His topics are dry and vaguely functional. ... The expansion of Scot Brantley and Bob Hewko's morning show has sadly become a contraction. Granted these guys aren't brilliant radio hosts yet, but maybe the extra hour would have helped. They still need seasoning; in particular, they talk about themselves and on top of each other so much as to sometimes obscure the conversation with guests and callers. ... And evening and weekend repeats of "The Best of Nanci Donnellan" or "The Best of Scot & Bob" are a total snooze. Sports must be fresh; anything else is yesterday's news. There can be no discussion on this.

On the other hand, all sports all the time is personnel and cash intensive. It hasn't been done in a lot of markets partly because of the expense. SportsRadio has become an overnight favorite of those of us at RadioRadio Mission Control. More tinkering is advised.

FAIR PLAY! Charlie Logan, Charlie Logan, Charlie Logan ...

PROGRAM NOTES! Here's a treat: Every Thursday from 10 a.m.-noon, Mason Dixon and Marvelous Marvin Boone are co-hosting an oldies show on Mix 96. Do we smell a potent new morning team in the air? ... For something different, tune in that pushy and persistent dame, Lisa Logan, on W101 FM Saturdays and Sundays from midnight to 6 a.m. And don't keep asking us "Different from what?" ... "The Sports Doctors" debuted a few weeks back on WFNS SportsRadio 910 AM. It airs every Sunday at 10 a.m. and touches on subjects such as sports psychology, weight training and steroid use. The show is hosted by Jim Williams. ... Tape delayed broadcasts of "Sports Byline USA" at WFNS have been replaced for the interim with "Sports Round Table." Each day a different live host will anchor the program. ... Recognize the voice of the promo announcer at WFNS? It belongs to former WHVE personality Norm Hale.

MOUSKETEERS, SOUND OFF! Word on the street about Mix 96 now that good ol' boy Mason Dixon has joined it sounds like this: "Zzzzzzzzzzzzz." To help them out, RadioRadio offers the station's new jock lineup as a community service:

6-10 a.m. - Mason Dixon and Bill Connolly with news co-anchors Pat Brooks and Hugh Smith.

10 a.m.-3 p.m. - Marvelous Marvin Boone

3-7 p.m. - Mike Reeves

7p.m.-midnight - Party Marti

Midnight-6 a.m. - Celeste Harris

All razzing aside, thumbs up to Mix 96 for giving Hugh Smith a second chance.

OBITS! It is with sadness that we note the passing of two popular radio personalities from Tampa Bay's recent and distant past.

Veteran newsman Duff Thomas, 57, was the voice of WTKN 570 AM's morning news for two years and helped put WFNS 910 AM on the air. An aneurysm claimed Thomas in Arlington, Va.

Herbert Roy Hunt - a.k.a. Johnny Rebel and Herbert R. Hunt - was a popular open mike host on the old WLCY in the 1960s. Still a young man of 48, he was struck down recently by cancer in Lowell, Md.

SAY CHEEEEEEEZE! Promised WFLA's Tedd Webb a plug for his sideline biz. Seems the Teddster is a portrait photographer on the side, shooting models and bands in his own studio. If you're interested, call Webb directly at 681-3998.

AND THE WINNER IS ... ! The best sports radio talk show host in Tampa Bay is a toss-up between WFNS's Nanci Donnellan and WFLA's Chris Thomas.

Who is the worst?

Our vote must go to Dom Cornelia, host of WTKN 570 AM's "Sports Edge," which is heard nightly from 7-8 p.m. His voice could kill cockroaches. And doesn't it seem slightly illegal to broadcast sports betting lines?

WTKN P.D. Gordon Byrd refuses to say whether Cornelia is a station employee or if he buys time. The situation is low-rent at best. Why any sports fan would listen to Cornelia over Chris Thomas (heard simultaneously on WFLA) is beyond us.

TAMPA BAY WINS! TAMPA BAY WINS! A number of radio station plan special coverage of baseball expansion announcement from San Diego on June 12. WFLA will have Tedd Webb reporting live from the west coast; WTKN will offer two hourly updates from 3 p.m. on as well as continuing coverage from 6-9 p.m. on Mike Sharp's "Tampa Bay Sports Hour" and Cornelia's "Sports Edge." Both stations will provide live coverage of the National League's actual announcement.