Long time reader of the board...I guess now's as good a time as any to chime in.
I haven't like the MNMS from the start. When the concept was introduced of covering different topics, I wanted to vomit. C'mon, guys...this is SPORTS TALK radio. I can go to other places on the dial to get the crap you're slinging. 1st Bad Idea...trying to leave the girl who got you to the dance in a chair on the side of the gym.
Many people have called the show a train wreck. They're right. As much as it flat out sucks...you can't keep from listening to see what ridiculous nonsense North spews. Here are my top reasons for disliking the MNMS...
MIKE IS ALWAYS RIGHT: No matter what opinions anyone else has, Mike has to have the last word AND has to be correct. Mike, there's something called humility which you seem to lack. Humility makes for good debate. You can realize when someone has a valid point that doesn't match yours and say, "You know what, I think you're right about that." But therein lies our problem. You surround yourself with lapdogs who do nothing (or aren't allowed to do anything) but agree with the odd and strange things you say.
THE BITS: Mike, as a guy who worked in Milwaukee radio for almost 8 years (I know it's not Chicago) I can honestly say your schtick sucks. You've ignored the listeners for far too long and only NOW you decide to work them back into the fold...but ever so slightly. You give your "Caller of the Day" award to the first person who demonstrates that he's awake, can speak in full sentences, and isn't drooling on himself when he calls in. You read E-mails as a staple of the show. You play highlights of games that we can hear at the top and bottom of the hours. You give us the Wild Card standings when any idiot with an IQ over 70 and the internet can find them himself. You give Kudos of the Day to animals and dead people. Bottom line, you glorify the ordinary and try to make is seem extra-ordinary. Ignore the dumb bits and just...talk...sports. Work the listeners' opinions in while you're at it. Listener participation can make for interesting radio. It works for other hosts, you know.
THE PEOPLE: For a show to work, it has to have dynamic personalities. With the MNMS, we have an ill-spoken, uneducated, ill-prepared hothead, a "yes man," a cocktail waitress, a college intern and an edgy soundman. I may be in the minority who enjoyed listening to Fred when he was paired with Murph in the mornings. Outside of that, Fred does know a bit about some things. He never gets the chance to get a word in edgewise with North. Jen...give it up. You can't read for radio. Learn the trade and then try again. Your news reports and weather updates sound hacked up and like you're reading them off the page. You need to sound conversational on the air. You clearly don't. Bascially, all the show consists of is Mike ranting his fool head off, Fred agreeing with him, and other random useless bits of information (like Mike telling us that his dog Lucky is a "cat.")
FINALLY: Mike is the CREEPY OLD GUY! The way he talks to Jen is outright CREEPY. He's like the old molester dude sitting on the park bench watching the teenage girls rollerblade. Mike, what would impress me more is if you actually did some show prep (other than just reading the papers because "that's what I've always done.") and stopped talking about Jen's outfit 'o the day. Let there be real, honest to God debate in the mornings. Let the listeners call in, disagree with you and get in fights with them! Your temper and energy can in fact be harnessed for good. Use it to make a better show and not keeping it up when Jen shows up in a hot, black top.
There...I'm off my soapbox. Long time reader...first time poster. I had a lot to get off my chest.