Media Frenzy

By Rob Holbert Managing Editor

As the controversy still rages over the firing of talk show host Neal McCready from WNSP last week, insiders at that station tell Lagniappe another recently fired talk show host may be moving in at any time.

McCready was canned as co-host of WNSP’s “Afternoon Sports Drive” Nov. 14, prompting him to claim in the Mobile Press-Register and on a syndicated radio show that he was fired for being too negative about the University of Alabama’s football program. McCready is a columnist and sports writer for the P-R and co-hosted “Sports Drive” weekdays from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. A story printed in the P-R Nov. 16 quoted McCready as saying, “The reason that they gave me for my firing was advertisers, specifically Alabama fans who were advertisers, pulling their ads because of a perception of negativity on my part about Alabama.”

Regardless of the reason, Lagniappe has learned another Mobile radio stalwart who was also recently fired will soon be joining the sports radio station. Insiders at WNSP tell Lagniappe Scott O’Brien, who lost his position at Clear Channel’s WNTM Nov. 9, will soon join the station and may replace McCready or some other departing on-air personality on the station. O’Brien and another longtime Mobile radio voice, Michael Sloan, were both released by Clear Channel earlier this month.

O’Brien has served as the programming director for WNTM 710 AM and also hosts “Ask the Expert,” as well as “Solid Gold,” which airs Sundays on WKSJ. Sloan has worked with some of the Clear Channel stations for nearly 30 years and has provided news breaks and reporting during that time.

David Coppock, a regional vice president for Clear Channel, confirmed the changes, but said company policy would preclude him from elaborating on why the changes were made.

CC insiders said Sloan’s position was downsized primarily as a result of Clear Channel’s recent partnership with WKRG in which the CBS television affiliate provides news breaks for the radio stations. The reason for O’Brien’s departure was not clear.

When asked about O’Brien possibly joining the station, WNSP’s programming director Tim Camp said he could not comment on that.

McCready’s firing reverberated throughout the state’s sports community and blogosphere, with some lauding the move and others blasting it.

Syndicated radio host Paul Finebaum interviewed McCready on his program Nov. 16, during which time McCready elaborated on his statements in the Press-Register. He told Finebaum Camp fired him via cell phone and told him Alabama advertisers were upset with him and, “the exact words were ‘not pro-Alabama enough.’”

McCready said he subsequently tried talking to WNSP about his dismissal, but was unsuccessful.

“Station management has not talked to me. I attempted to speak to one of them and frankly he hung up on me. That was bad,” McCready told Finebaum.

As far as his take on his future in sports radio, McCready was optimistic.

“It’s only been 48 hours and I’ve already had two or three things kind of potentially open up to me. I have no regrets with the way I handled it. I think being fired for being objective is not the worst thing that can happen to a journalist,” he said on Finebaum’s show.

Two sports reporters have also declined to continue their relationship with the station. One regular contributor to the show, The Montgomery Advertiser’s Auburn beat writer Jay G. Tate called in and quit on-air Nov. 16 over the firing. Contacted via e-mail for this story, Tate said he quit because WNSP’s firing of McCready represented poor sports journalism.

“I have done Auburn spots for the show since McCready arrived approximately five years ago. I appeared for my weekly segment on Friday, but cut it short after a brief admonition of the station’s approach to journalism. Neal claims to have been fired for being unnecessarily harsh with his criticisms of Alabama. One of the station’s higher-ups, in the Thursday Press-Register, said McCready’s firing was because of advertiser problems. ‘Sports Drive’ has been the top-rated show in Mobile for some time,” Tate wrote. “It was easy to see what was going on. This clearly isn’t a First Amendment issue, but what happened is a sad commentary on sports journalism. The station sold out to advertising interests, the Press-Register story clearly illustrates that, and I consider that unacceptable. I don’t want to be affiliated with the station. What they’re producing is not journalism. It’s not credible. It’s simply an array of rah-rah stuff that advertisers (presumably) want to hear. That’s not me.”

In other fallout from McCready’s dismissal, Glenn Gilbeau, who used to work for the Press-Register and is now at the Shreveport Times and had served as WNSP’s correspondent for LSU info has also resigned from further participation with the station, citing McCready’s dismissal as the major cause, according to a station insider.

For his part, Camp says the flap over McCready’s firing is being blown out of proportion because of his association with the Press-Register and his appearance on Finebaum’s show. Camp said his quotes in the P-R were taken out of context making it look as if he admitted McCready was fired at the behest of pro-Crimson Tide advertisers. Camp said the fact is that McCready’s negative style always grated on advertisers and listeners alike during the five years he was on the air and that negativity had created a critical mass of dissatisfied listeners and advertisers, making the show hard to sell.

“I think we at WNSP just had enough of the constant negativity,” Camp said, adding that McCready was not only negative about area sports, but about the community as a whole. “If he doesn’t want to be here and hates the city and thinks everyone here is a toothless redneck, then goodbye.”

Camp said the dismissal was simply a good business decision, not a conspiracy.

“This is blown way out of proportion. Neal is spinning this that the Alabama boosters are doing it to him. Neal’s head is big enough that he thinks the Alabama boosters are all conspiring against him, but it’s a bit ridiculous,” Camp said.

P-R political moves

The Press-Register announced the elevation of business reporter George Talbot to political editor in its Nov. 18 issue, but there are a few other moves inside the Water Street office.

According to a memo sent to P-R staff from Managing Editor Dewey English, Talbot will now engage in political reporting and write a political column. Former political editor Jim Van Anglen will continue as the in-house coordinator of the paper’s political team and has been given the title of assistant metro editor, and will remain in charge of election tabs and polling.

Jeff Amy, who currently covers Mobile City Hall, will move over to the business desk, taking Talbot’s spot. The moves leave open the spot for the City Hall reporter.

Another one?

Speaking of the P-R, we hear they’re going to launch yet another “niche” publication soon. Earlier this year, the paper began publishing ‘Zalea, Bay Family and Current. Current was discontinued in September. No word yet on what the new niche will be called or will cover.

Second thoughts?

According to published reports, the purchase of 56 Clear Channel television stations by Providence Equity Partners, announced earlier this year, is now in doubt.

According to the Dow Jones Financial News Online, the $1.2 billion deal is now in doubt because Providence says the performance of several stations in mid-sized markets has declined sharply. Mobile’s WPMI and sister station WJTC were both to be sold in the deal. The article said the departure of several key people at some Clear Channel stations play a role in their possible reversal. WPMI fired its top three anchors earlier this year and has seen a massive turnover in its on-air personnel this year.

Providence would have to pay a fee of $45 million for canceling the deal.

Rob Holbert is Lagniappe managing editor. Contact him at rholbert@lagniappemobile.com.

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