Damn. There's way too much to read so I'll just add my 2 cents but maybe it's already in one of the previous 67 posts. The producers or ex-producers can't afford to reveal themselves because They Would Be Fired or, as the old saying goes, They Would Never Work In This Town Again! You need look no further than the recent Robert Feder Sun-times story on Cara Carriveau.
Letter to this column costs Loop jock her job
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http://www.suntimes.com/business/feder/ ... 05.article)
October 5, 2006
BY ROBERT FEDER Sun-Times Columnist
Writing to this column could be hazardous to your career. Just ask Chicago radio veteran Cara Carriveau, who was fired this week as a disc jockey at classic rock WLUP-FM (97.9) after comments she made about the business appeared in a column of reader mail here.
"It's unbelievable how many Chicago radio icons are not currently on the air in this town," Carriveau wrote. "It's amazing that we can no longer flip through the dial and hear Mancow, John Landecker, Fred Winston, Dick Biondi, Bobby Skafish, among many others. My heart goes out to those talented personalities, and I am empathetic to the many disappointed listeners. This situation is sad. Very, very sad."
Marv Nyren, vice president and general manager of WLUP, called the letter "the last straw" in a relationship that had been deteriorating since Carriveau was replaced as midday personality on the Emmis Communications station last March. She most recently had been working weekend and fill-in shifts on the Loop.
"I don't think Cara is a fan of what's happening here," Nyren said. "I have no problem with my people talking to you, but I want to have people here who believe in our industry and believe what we're doing is right."
Nyren said he and program director Tim Dukes felt there were "more talented" people than Carriveau who deserve opportunities for part-time positions at the Loop -- including Jeff "Turd" Renzetti, who was longtime sidekick to Mancow Muller, former morning personality on Emmis alternative rock sister station WKQX-FM (101.1).
Renzetti will be auditioned as a solo host on the Loop from 2 to 5 a.m. Saturday. "I'm a big fan of Turd," Nyren added.
In a message to fans, Carriveau questioned whether free speech exists in her industry ("scary thought," she said), adding that in her letter to this column she "did not speak negatively about any person or company."
She joined the Loop in late 1998 after a decade at other rockers in the market, including WTMX-FM (101.9) and the former WRCX.
Carriveau's case has been taken up by the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, the union representing broadcasters.
"We are investigating the situation, and we are in communication with the company's attorneys," said Eileen Willenborg, executive director of AFTRA's Chicago local.