All the news that's fit to hear

By: RANDY DOTINGA - For the North County Times | Wednesday, January 9, 2008 12:07 PM PST ∞

For several months, the San Diego Union-Tribune has been experimenting with an online radio station, trying to woo Internet listeners with an odd mix of reporters, columnists and grizzled veterans of the local radio scene.

Now, a decision by the Federal Communications Commission is opening the door for the largest newspaper in the region to bring its leading lights to old-fashioned radios. But the Union-Tribune appears to be betting that the future of radio is online, not in the familiar world of AM and FM.

"The worth of terrestrial stations will be dramatically diminished because folks will be getting audio and video by way of the Internet for the most part," predicted Ron James, head of content for the Union-Tribune's Web site.

The newspaper's main online station offers entertainment from veteran radio personalities along with specialized shows hosted by its stable of reporters and columnists.

Former local TV guy Clark Anthony and disc jockey Ken Copper, formerly of the defunct K-Best and other stations, host a weekday show. Dave Mason, a former DJ at Kool 99.3 and news anchor at KOGO, handles AM news duties, followed by "Charlie & Harrigan," a venerable team familiar to local listeners of KCBQ-AM. Happy Hare, a top-rated local disc jockey in the 1960s, is also on board.

"Ken Copper and I are getting more satisfaction and having more fun now than at anytime we can recall in our long radio careers," Anthony said. "Personally, I haven't had this much fun in broadcasting since back when I started as a 10-year-old playing records on a loudspeaker in front of my garage trying (in vain) to impress the four girls who lived across from our house in Peoria."

The Union-Tribune's decision to experiment with online radio is unusual for a couple of reasons.

For one thing, the members of the on-air staff are, well, of a certain age (i.e., AARP-eligible). In some cases, their heyday was in the 1960s, the 1970s and the 1980s. Not that there's anything wrong with that. But in a world where terrestrial radio is mightily concerned about reaching young people and couldn't care less about anyone over 60, it's an interesting approach. (In the newspaper's defense, it does operate a second online station offering music for younger types.)

For another thing, the Union-Tribune --- like just about every newspaper in the U.S. ---- is going through very rough times as subscribers abandon ship. The paper is paying the on-air staff ---- two full-time people plus a variety of temps and contractors ---- at the same time as it sheds staff members through voluntary buyouts and warns of layoffs.

So far, content manager James said, the station is attracting thousands of listeners a week, with huge growth during the wildfires. It's not unusual for newspapers to create partnerships with local TV stations. But James isn't aware of any other newspaper in the country that's operating an online radio station.

"It's part of our strategy to become a multimedia company and get our print journalists comfortable in working in different mediums," he said.

James said it's possible that the newspaper could form a partnership with a local terrestrial ---- i.e., old-fashioned ---- radio station until online radio truly takes off. And now, the Union-Tribune might consider another option: buying a station.

This wouldn't be cheap. Amazingly, radio stations often sell for tens of millions of dollars. But they cost so much because they have the potential to create plenty of profit. And ---- at least for the moment ---- the legal coast is clear.

Last month, a divided FCC decided to partially dump rules that discouraged newspapers from owning TV or radio stations in the same city.

Proponents of so-called "cross-ownership" argue that going into broadcasting could help some struggling newspapers stay afloat financially. But critics ---- including lots of politicians ---- don't like the idea of giving more power over the news to individual owners.

In particular, "rural senators and congresspeople just don't want Joe or Jane XYZ hating them and then going after them with two guns instead of one," said Douglas Gomery, resident scholar at the University of Maryland's Library of American Broadcasting.

As always, stay tuned: The courts or Congress may make sure that FCC doesn't get the last word.

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Quickie: Radio and TV talk-show host Bill O'Reilly is defending himself over allegedly shoving a Barack Obama staffer who got in his way at a rally in New Hampshire.

O'Reilly says the staffer was violating his constitutional rights (never mind that those rights only tell the government what it can and can't do).

John Dickerson, a writer at Slate magazine, was there and reported this: "During the shoving, I found myself yelling at O'Reilly to grow up, which was thoroughly unprofessional, except that I have little kids and I think it's important to discipline misbehavior immediately. If I don't dare to discipline, they'll grow up to be like, well, Bill O'Reilly."

Randy Dotinga may cause drowsiness. E-mail him at NCTimesRadio@aol.com..

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