The David Lee Roth Show

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الموسوعة الحرة

The David Lee Roth Show was a nationally syndicated American radio show hosted by musician David Lee Roth that aired from January 3 to April 21, 2006. It was the replacement of The Howard Stern Show following its departure from terrestrial to the subscription-based Sirius Satellite Radio. It was simulcast on seven stations owned by CBS Radio, who launched the show as part of its Free FM radio format. Notably different from Howard Stern's program, or corporate "morning zoo" and "shock jock" formats which dominated morning radio at the time, Roth's show sounded similar to pirate radio, featuring ethnic and non-commercial rock music integrated with personal stories, occasionally uncomfortable debates on intellectual matters, and interviews with people Roth admired, such as guitarist Brian May, baseball player Johnny Damon, and Roth's uncle, Manny Roth.

Following its January 2006 debut, a plurality of critics savaged the show, chiding its "amateurishness," while a minority praised Roth's willingness to bring something so obviously "non-corporate" (and ultimately "anti-corporate") to American mainstream radio. Arbitron numbers showed that Roth's radio program initially lost a sizable portion of the Howard Stern audience; however, by the end of his tenure, his show began to find advocates in people disenchanted by Clear Channel-formatted radio.[1] Roth's firing from CBS Radio ended in a lawsuit, which was eventually settled.

History

Background

In October 2004, Stern announced his departure from terrestrial radio for the subscription-based satellite radio service Sirius Satellite Radio, starting in 2006. Stern had been at WXRK-FM in New York City, the country's number one radio market, since 1985, and moved to morning drive in February 1986. In the same year Stern's show entered national syndication, and aired to peak of 60 stations in the US and Canada. The Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show controversy spawned a government crackdown on indecency in television and radio by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), prompting Stern to leave for Sirius, a platform exempt from its regulations.

Shortly after Stern's announcement, his employer and WXRK-FM owner, Infinity Broadcasting, began the search for a replacement. In March 2005, Roth auditioned by hosting the morning show on WZLX-FM, a classic rock station in Boston, for one week. This was followed by a stint on KLSX-FM in Los Angeles. Roth had been an American pop culture icon since the late 1970s, first as the original frontman for Van Halen, and later as a solo artist. In July, news reports speculated that Roth had signed a deal with Infinity, with the prospect of launching the show as early as September, as Stern considered the possibility of leaving terrestrial airwaves three months early.[2] Roth signed a deal worth an $4 million, and was announced as Stern's replacement on October 25 during a surprise appearance on the show. Roth was set to replace Stern in the majority of east coast-based stations, with others replaced by The Adam Carolla Show and Rover's Morning Glory.[3][4]

Stern's final live terrestrial broadcast aired on December 16, 2005, after which WXRK switched call letters and formats to WFNY and Free FM, a new, mostly talk-based format emphasising the free-to-air service in comparison to the increasingly popular Sirius and XM Satellite Radio services. In addition, Infinity was reorganized as CBS Radio.

Launch and run

The David Lee Roth Show launched on January 3, 2006, and was simulcast to six other CBS-owned stations: WBCN-FM in Boston, WNCX-FM in Cleveland, KLLI-FM in Dallas, WYSP-FM in Philadelphia, WRKZ-FM in Pittsburgh and WPBZ-FM in West Palm Beach.

On February 27, 2006, less than two months into his stint, Roth took a one week vacation which prompted speculation about his future. Tom Herschel, general manager of his Cleveland affiliate, assured Roth would return and that the break had been planned for weeks, but questioned why Roth needed to take time off.[5] On the same day, the monthly Arbitrend ratings were published which revealed that in January, Roth's first full month on the air, WFNY's morning share among its target audience of 18-to-34-year-olds fell from 13.8% to 1.3%. Audiences also fell sharply in Los Angeles and Chicago.[6]

On March 7, WFNY station manager Tom Chiusano and programming vice president Mark Chernoff held a meeting with Roth to discuss ways for Roth to improve the show. According to Roth, the pair asked him to stop playing "foreign" and "ethnic" soundbeds and appeal to "a 35-year-old white male who likes Lynyrd Skynyrd".[7] Roth spent most of the following live broadcast criticising Chiusano and Chernoff and their suggestions, claiming they wanted him to "copy Stern" which he refused to do, and stressed that he was hired to deliver something "unique".[7] Roth was informed that the addition of a female newscaster was a possibility.[7]

After CBS pulled the show for two days, Roth returned to the air on March 31. The program had noticeable changes, with the 40 rotating music beds and the various sidekicks dropped, leaving just Roth and his board operator Hutch in the studio. Roth said the show was dropped for not following directives and avoiding news and traffic, and for "black fun humour" with his security guard Animal. He said CBS issued him a series of letters forcing the changes, or else face disciplinary action.[8] Rother later said management issued him four letters in five days, and predicted his show could end before May 2006.[9]

Cancellation

On April 21, around 20 minutes before the show went live, Roth was told that the show was being cancelled after the day's broadcast.[10] On his last show, Roth said: "I was booted, tossed, and it's going to cost somebody", hinting legal action towards CBS for full compensation of his reported $4 million contract. The announcement came shortly before the quarterly Arbitron ratings were published.[11]

في 24 أبريل، أعلنت شبكة سي بي إس عن تعيين أوبي وأنتوني بديلًا لروث على جميع محطاتها السبع التابعة، بدءًا من 26 أبريل. كان البرنامج، الذي يُبث من نيويورك، حصريًا على إذاعة إكس إم الفضائية منذ عام 2004، لكن الاتفاقية منحت سي بي إس رسوم ترخيص لبث البرنامج وإعلانات إكس إم على موجات إف إم. من الساعة 6:00 إلى 9:00  صباحًا، كان البرنامج متوافقًا مع لوائح لجنة الاتصالات الفيدرالية، لكنه ظل غير خاضع للرقابة لمستمعي إكس إم، وبعد ذلك أصبح حصريًا على إكس إم. [ 12 ] مثّل هذا عودة البرنامج إلى الإذاعة الأرضية منذ أغسطس 2002، عندما أوقفته شركة إنفينيتي لأجل غير مسمى بسبب فقرة زُعم أنها تضمنت زوجين يمارسان الجنس في كاتدرائية القديس باتريك . في عام 2009، وبعد تطبيق نظام تقييم المستمعين وتراجع جمهور إذاعة إف إم، تخلت سي بي إس عن أوبي وأنتوني وحولت محطة WFNY إلى بث الأغاني المعاصرة وأفضل 40 أغنية.

نقد

خلص النقاد والمعجبون على حد سواء إلى أن روث لم يكن مستعدًا لتقديم برنامج إذاعي، وقُبيل توقف البرنامج، أشار روث نفسه على الهواء إلى موافقته على هذا التقييم. كما صرّح على الهواء مرة واحدة على الأقل، ردًا على شكوى أحد المتصلين، بأنه يعتقد أن البرنامج "سيئ للغاية"، مع أن هذا كان إشارة إلى الشكل الجديد الذي فرضته عليه إدارة إذاعة فري إف إم.

قال روث إنه خلال الأسابيع الأربعة الأولى من البث، "كنت مثل سمكة تتخبط في نهاية عصا." [ 7 ]

صرح هوارد ستيرن بأن فرقة فان هيلين الأصلية هي فرقته المفضلة على الإطلاق في موسيقى الروك أند رول، وأنه معجب بديفيد لي روث على المستوى الشخصي. وفيما يتعلق ببرنامج "ذا ديفيد لي روث شو " ، ذكر ستيرن في مقابلة عام 2010 مع روب بارنيت، المدير التنفيذي السابق في شبكة سي بي إس، أنه أدرك فشل البرنامج عندما بدا أن روث لا يستوعب الفرق بين مخاطبة جمهور إذاعي ومخاطبة جمهور حفلة روك. قال ستيرن: "نظر إليّ بنظرة جامدة، وكأنه غير مكترث". [ 13 ]

In the April 28 edition of the Boston Herald,[14] reporters Gayle Fee and Laura Raposa wrote that some observers speculated that Roth was never intended to successfully replace Howard Stern. Supposedly, CBS Radio wanted to hire Opie and Anthony but did not because Stern openly disliked Opie and Anthony, was a fan of Roth. Reportedly, management at CBS Radio (then called Infinity Broadcasting) believed that whoever replaced Stern was doomed. An insider at CBS Radio was quoted as saying to the Boston Herald reporters that "(he) looked good to Wall Street, and they gave him a real shot. They would have loved for him to succeed, but he wasn't a radio guy."

"Roth's show is ... skin-crawlingly awful. ... In these days of bland Clear Channel/Infinity corporate radio, it's bracing to hear a guy who has no idea what he's doing. ... Listening to Roth, you feel actual physical pain." – Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone

"He's a mess, and he's a loudmouth punk." – syndicated radio host Don Imus, whose show aired opposite Roth's on sister station WFAN.

"Why anyone ever thought that would work as a radio show is beyond me, it was absolutely unlistenable." -syndicated radio host Tom Leykis.

Show cast

  • David Lee Roth – host
  • John Hutchinson – board operator (known as "Hutch")
  • Brian Young – guitarist (known as "B. Young")

Guests

  • Robin Bakay – guest co–host
  • Linda Reisman – guest co–host, Dave's EMT instructor
  • Lisa Roth – guest co–host, Dave's sister
  • Valerie Deore – guest co–host, from Dallas' 105.3 Free FM
  • Danni – guest co–host, from 92.3 Free FM's The Booker Show
  • Uncle Manny Roth – studio guest, Dave's uncle
  • Ludlow Stan – recurring studio guest, record reviews
  • Elizabeth Hayt (N.Y. Post Columnist – Love & Hayt) – recurring studio guest
  • Animal – Dave's bodyguard
  • Matt Sencio – Dave's manager
  • Sasha – intern
  • Chop – car salesman
  • Stacy – the listener who called daily to scream to David on the air that he "sucked"

References

  1. ↑Blabbermouth (April 21, 2006). "DAVID LEE ROTH: 'I Was Booted, Tossed, And It's Going To Cost Somebody'". BLABBERMOUTH.NET.
  2. ↑"The David Lee Roth Show (2005)". The Boston Globe. July 16, 2005. p. 45.
  3. ↑"The David Lee Roth Show (2006)". The Los Angeles Times. April 22, 2006. p. 39.
  4. ↑"The David Lee Roth Show (2005)". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. October 26, 2005. p. 23.
  5. ↑Washington, Julie E. (February 25, 2006). "WNCX plugs in local show for vacationing David Lee Roth". Cleveland Plain Dealer.
  6. ↑Hinkley, David (February 28, 2006). "What hath David Lee Roth on FM?". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on April 15, 2006. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  7. 1234Hinkley, David (March 9, 2006). "Roth airs wrath after bosses' Stern lecture". The New York Daily News. p. 91. Retrieved October 13, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑"Mexican Standoff: "Dave" Roth Charges CBS Radio With Sabotage". FMQB. March 31, 2006. Archived from the original on April 7, 2006. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  9. ↑"Roth continues to struggle as radio show host". Today. April 12, 2006. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  10. ↑"The David Lee Roth Show (2006)". Newsday. April 22, 2006. p. 8.
  11. ↑McShane, Larry (April 12, 2006). "David Lee Roth Bounced from Airwaves". CBS News. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  12. ↑Farhi, Paul (June 26, 2006). "Opie & Anthony Get the Last Laugh". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on October 8, 2016. Retrieved September 12, 2016.
  13. ↑articles.nydailynews.com[link removed]
  14. ↑"The Boston Herald – Conspiracy in the air: Roth was a fall guy". Archived from the original on September 29, 2006.
  • The David Lee Roth Show Official website (Retrieved from the Internet Archives)
  • Rare audio of his show