Page 16 of today's Red Eye:



The Score's Mike North wouldn't divulge details of his latest contract offer, but a source close to the negotiations estimates it at between $850,000 to $1,000,000 per year plus ratings bonuses.

We may not always agree with Pappy, but Don King said it best: "Only in America!"

Good for Mike. Hopefully the station retains more controll over staff and partnerships. The show is really just a few small steps from being very good. They took the first step in releasing Anne but have been reluctant to push the issue further. Now is a perfect time. It would also give Mike coverage if he was interested in changes.

I think the solution is to turn back time after McNeil's contract is up in '10:

Put Boers/Bernsie back at mornings
Put Pappy back at mid-days
Put Mac and ??? in PM Drive

and then have Murph facilitate the drunk Cub fans after 7PM

40% cut doesn't sound so good for the ego.

Who's to say those other numbers that were reported on his original contract weren't the numbers if he hit all his incentives?

It's all a media spin...

Hell, even this column was - it sounds like the Score through it out there, and North wasn't even aware of it.

Dolphin, what are these small steps?
What parts of the show WORK for you?

_________________
President of Blake Shetlon fan club

Bad for us.

"Good for us, bad for you"

Good for Mike. Hopefully the station retains more controll over staff and partnerships.


Ezactly right

_________________
"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

I would say it's only one step from being very good--getting rid of Mike North.

Man, $850,000-1,000,000 for putting out a shit product and running the morning ratings into the ground. I wish I could get on the Score's payroll. North should kiss the ground all the CBS bigwigs walk on for an offer like that considering his performance.

Mike through it out...

Then he wouldn't divulge...

And BeBe did

Grid, you don't give a guy 800k-1million and put him in mid-days. You only pay that type of money for a drive time host.

If the report is true it sucks of course. He's failed miserably for years and the stupid Score still throws money at him.

I'm still skeptical about the validity of the report. Maybe it's Pappy's people throwing this out there as a ploy. Pappy's people are the source. Maybe they are trying to put pressure on the Score because they haven't offered him shit yet. Maybe Pappy knows they won't make him an offer. He gave this report to the red-eye for his ego so people think he turned down 800k-1million when the Score doesn't retain him.

if the score gives him 1mil/yr to stay, they are insane. how can nort get paid more than boers/bernstein or danny mac ? they produce ratings while nort loses to mike and mike. cut his pay to 200-300k/yr and move him to middays or let him go period

If North DOES get resigned, I'm going to start an official position to group North, Huebner, Zaidman, and Jesse Rodgers into one show, a sort of "bad radio ghetto" if you will, so that the rest of us can easily avoid all of them at once.

I agree with the school of thought that says North put it out there. One thing North and his misses know how to do is get publicity and feed reporter's stories. If this was close, wouldn't Feder or Greenstein have this? They don't because North placed it with the kids at Red Eye - the ones he does a small commentary. He drops it on a Friday - to get meetings and phone calls with management ( and the major reporters and publications in town) early next week.

He has at least three months to go on his current deal - this is the opening shot from North - and far more to come in the papers and his show ( fabulous listening!)

I have to assume that this article is somewhat off on the numbers. I think someone would have to be fired to offer Mike that type of money after a 5 year crapfest.

If I was CBS, the offer would be 500,000 and that would kill me to offer, a shift back to afternoons, minimal control over his show and a buyout clause for the life of the contract.

North would be smart to take whatever he can get, shift to another time slot and retire at the end of the next contract.

Who is the Score bidding against? Nobody. If they want him back they can get him for 500k. Less if they want to stick him on mid-days cuz he can't handle drive time shifts. They shouldn't want him back at any price for any slot.

I'm more convinced than ever that this was Pappy throwing a false report to the Red Eye. Someone said Pappy has a relationship with them. He's trying to stir up the negotiations. Nothing he does will matter if the Score is smart and doesn't want him back as they shouldn't. Even if they want him back nothing he does matters. They'll get him at their price or Pappy will walk. What other station in town is trying to bid for him right now? Nobody

[quote="The Gridiron Assassin"]Page 16 of today's Red Eye:
The Score's Mike North wouldn't divulge details of his latest contract offer, but a source close to the negotiations estimates it at between $850,000 to $1,000,000 per year plus ratings bonuses.[/quote]

"a source close to the negotiations" = BB!

More info:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/cs ... 076.column

Really depressing news for those of us looking forward to the expiration of Mikey's contract.

Yeah. It looks like it's gonna happen. He'll be back.

I just don't understand Pappy's comment "it's not a level playing field" against Mike and Mike. So what if they are national and are on TV? You're local you idiot. That should be to your advantage. Marketing the show has nothing to do with it.

Radio listeners know you're there Pappy. If they're listening to Mike and Mike they are sports fans. They know the Score exists and that you are on. It has nothing to do with bill boards or TV ads. They choose not to listen to you. It's such a cop out by Pappy. But that's common for Pappy. It's never his fault.

Always good to see a reference to one's father who worked 80 hours a week on his deathbed, too, in a story about contract negotiations and ratings. This guy will stop at nothing to try and generate sympathy for himself. What a boob.

I do agree with him, however, that the playing field is not level. Greenberg and Golic have at least a modicum of talent and brains and judgement and they speak the English language with a minimum of slobbering and drooling. North fails on all the above counts.

Just more self promotion. He's negotiating in the press.
Anyone have the email address for Zimmerman@cbs?
I'd love to send him an email letting him know why I mostly listen to Mike and Mike, it's because of North. He'd be a fool to continue to make North the highest paid sports talk host for the results he brings in ratings.

How does Murph always beat Dan Patrick and now Tirico if it's such a disadvantage to go up against the national ESPN power house? Did Pappy ever explain how he lost to MJH for the short time he went against them?

Shame on the Score. Don't give me this he gets advertisers. Why not try and hire somebody who gets ratings and will generate greater revenue?

More power to Pappy. He's the only guy in radio that doesn't have to perform.

How many years is the Score gonna give him on this new deal? Do you think Pappy has a Jen Jen clause? "She only goes if I can find a hotter piece of ass that will feel indebted to me."

Awful, Mike!

_________________
"It's not exactly a rocket surgery." D.J.

North must have some really nasty compromising pictures of this Zimmerman dude. There's a shitload of morning sports listeners out there to be captured from ESPN if the Score could come up with anything approaching a halfway decent local show and he just throws more money at North and says, "Nice job, Mikey! Business as usual in the mornings! Carry on!"

Pappy comparing himself to the Cubs. "I know I suck but da loan shark companies buy da ads." That's really something to be proud of Pappy. That is funny. What an insult to everybody.

Ok, I understand he has some guys who bring in some money, but really, how much can it be? Like I said in a previous post, if North stays in the mornings, someone needs to be fired, because there is no way anyone can explain how a show that has won one book in 5 years deserves that.

That's what I don't get. Some day Pappy is gonna retire or die. Is the Score gonna go black for mornings?

B&B get advertisers. You will get advertisers if you get listeners. It's just Mitch not having foresight or the skills to put together a morning team. That's all it is. Why do you need a GM if you are going to retain a guy who doesn't have listeners because it's the safe thing to do?

Well, I will like to see Teddy G or Feder call whoever is on the other side of the table for CBS and see whats true, if they would even say.

It seems to me that there are two shows on in Chicago that have good ratings for a low cost of hosts salaries-

Score- Murphy
1000 - Silvy and Waddle.

Maybe the Score should try that in the mornings and hire someone who won't drive AWAY listeners. What a novel idea, but why do that when you can pay close to a mil for someone who does drive away listeners from your station. Just brilliant. The Score will get what they deserve out of the deal, continuing to come in number 2 in a 2 station race.