Carpetbaggers & Nincompoops

Howard Stern‘s switch to Sirius satellite radio next year will leave his Infinity Broadcasting family of 27 stations high and dry (his last “free” radio show will air here December 16th on WCKG-FM 105.9). In New York and six other markets he’ll be replaced by diminutive former Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth. Los Angeles and other stations out west will hear over-exposed big-mouth Adam Carolla and Chicago will get . . .

Some 30-year-old guy named Shane French, whose DJ name is Rover.

French has spent the past few years doing mornings on Infinity Broadcasting-owned alternative rock WXTM-FM in Cleveland — the nation’s 25th market.

But come December he’ll originate his “Morning Glory” show from WCKG-FM, which will beam it to Detroit, Cincinnati, Memphis, and Rochester.

Rover sports a Mancow-y Van Dyke and, occasionally, dark Stern glasses; in some of his Web site photos he’s wearing a Browns shirt and a Cubs hat. His tired morning schtick has included playing recordings of female orgasms to dads on Father’s Day and asking them to identify their daughters; dispatching picketers to a Hillary Clinton book singing with signs reading “Cheat on Bill with Rover,” women’s pudding wrestling, a version of the Dating Game called the Thursday Hook-Up, interviewing “celebrities” such as Pauly Shore, and having a show regular called Dieter take various dares — such as eating placenta to enduring someone called “Paco The Homo” licking whipped cream off of him.

One can’t help but think that consolidation and Infinity’s notorious cheapness has kept them from using someone with ties to the city, such as Garry Meier, Bob Sirott, “Queer Eye” foodie Ted Allen, or even Kevin Matthews. (Better yet, someone should try pairing Sun-Times writer Debra Pickett with Tribune “Ask Amy” columnist Amy Dickinson. An interview with the latter revealed that she’s quick on her feet and has a great voice. And everyone knows it’s legal to pay women 72 cents for every dollar that a man earns). Nonetheless Infinity chairman and CEO Joel Hollander told AP that in replacing Stern, “we took the opportunity to cultivate a wide array of talent, from both in and out of the radio industry.”

That wide array ranges from Infinity-owned stations getting a DJ-free Jack-FM format to CNN Radio News to wacky morning teams The Junkies, Drew & Mel, and Star & Buc Wild.

Rover, who actually hails from the Chicago area, starts January 3rd. “We’ll make Cleveland proud as we take over the nation,” he writes in an open letter on his Web site, www.roverradio.com.

He’ll face stiff competition from B-96 (WBBM-FM 96.3) morning stalwarts Eddie & JoBo, who recently added some women — a term we’re using loosely — to their lineup in order to combat dismal ratings. The newcomers are 21-year-old former B-96 intern Shelly Menaker and model and former intern for “Java” Joel Murphy, Erica Cobb, who we are certain will add plenty of depth to the show. But probably not as much as witty and wise former news anchor Karen Hand, who parted ways with the duo three years ago. The pair have done mornings on B-96 since 1988 — minus a couple of years after they were fired for slandering former NBC newscaster Joan Esposito, who won a lawsuit against them.

ODDS N SODS: On December 3rd the rock ‘n’ roll talk show “Sound Opinions” will make its debut on public radio station WBEZ-FM (91.5). The show, hosted by Tribune rock critic Greg Kot and his Sun-Times counterpart, Jim DeRogatis, aired for more than seven years on WXRT-FM (93.1); the show was started in 1993 by DeRogatis and former Reader critic Bill Wyman (now an editor at National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered”). The move from commercial to public radio will give the show a bigger budget and the use of a live music facility as well as podcasting and syndication opportunities (for exact airtimes, go to www.soundopinions.net). Recent guests have included Smoking Popes, Moby, Dag Juhlin, Antonia Loque, and Rocktober magazine and the Goblins‘ Jake Austen.

Last month Jonathon Brandmeier returned to the Chicago airwaves for the first time since 2001. The 49-year-old’s new morning show airs on WLUP-FM where it was heard from 1983 to 1997. For those out the loop, Brandmeier spent the past several years in L.A. (apparently that acting career never quite took off). One can’t help but wonder just how wacky he’ll be this time around. Not very if his new look is any indication: short Caesar hair and hipster glasses that bring to mind the previously mentioned Allen.

It looks as if Bob Sirott really is out as host and executive editor of WTTW-Channel 11’s “Chicago Tonight.” Starting in January, former anchor Phil Ponce will play a bigger role, and WMAQ-Channel 5 investigative reporter and Sun-Times columnist Carol Marin will be added to the show. Since the 56-year-old former WLS-AM (890) DJ landed on his feet after losing “Fox Thing In The Morning,” we can only hope he does so again. In the meantime he’s been nominated for an Emmy Award for his “One More Thing” commentaries.

— Cara Jepsen

Category: Media, Monthly