Life Is A Rock, But The Radio Rolled Me
Posted in: UncategorizedSome people never learn. They’re in hot water today for the same reasons that earned them a seat in principals office every week as kids: Saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. Most have erred at one time or another, but this is post-1984, significant only because George Orwell miscalculated: “Big Brother” is not the government, but is, “We The People.”
Americans seem relatively tense, and there is not much forgiveness for calculated or accidental misstep, most likely due to several coinciding events: big business mistrust (banking, housing, automotive), scam artists (Bernie Madoff), and a struggling economy. Today, the slightest of mistakes could spark a ruckus. Just ask Carrie Prejean, the “I missed it by that much” Ms. America contestant. Ms. Prejean learned a brutal lesson on the world stage; sometimes it’s better to lie if you want to win…at least that’s what we want to teach America’s children (heavy sarcasm implied). She made a choice based on her personal morals and First Amendment rights, and took a beating.
Polar opposites using the First Amendment for profit, such as Howard Stern and Jay Severin, have also stated controversial things in public. However, they do it for ratings and money. Both radio personalities are actually very different in message, methodology, and delivery; yet one common element binds them: when they go on-air listeners either tune in or turn off. This week, Jay Severin was suspended from WTKK in Boston for making racially biased comments regarding Mexicans, stating that the major imports from Mexico were venereal disease, women with mustaches, and the swine flu. He then went on to state that Mexicans were “primitives.”
Boston's Jay Severin
From there, the plot is as easy to follow as a daytime television drama:
A. DJ offends a person, or group of persons, publicly
B. Offended group calls radio station in “flood of protest”
C. DJ is suspended or fired; station backs DJ or backs off
D. The First Amendment is mentioned several million times
E. “Oppressed“ groups rehash incident for weeks
F. DJ fades away or returns in a different market
The usually talkative Severin was silent when questioned by reporters, directing them to his attorney, who stated, “It would certainly be unfortunate if someone was suspended because some people didn’t like what he said.” Sounds like Mr. Severin needs a new attorney.
Lost His Dog, His Wife, & His Freedom
The radio business has been volatile in the past week as San Antonio-based radio giant Clear Channel announced further staff reductions (1950 were cut in January) that would include on-air personalities. Additionally, a popular Florida DJ for Clear Channel was arrested for shooting his dog…unfortunately the bullet ricocheted off his dog, hitting his wife in the head. Both the wife and dog are expected to recover, and the DJ is expected to go to jail.
<strong>Jeff Louis</strong> is a Strategic Media Planner, Project Manager, and New Business Coordinator. His passion is writing, contributing to BMA as well as freelancing. He’d love to hear from you: linkedin.com/in/jefflouis or twitter.com/jlo0312
Remember that song, “I always feel like, somebody’s watching me, and I get no privacy…?” Well, stop inviting people to watch you, and maybe they will. George Orwell’s 1984 has gotten a little too close for comfort these days, except that big brother is not the government or the media, it’s “We, the People.” 
Like the Robinson’s robot from Lost In Space, someone has obviously been warning “The Suits” at 
be utilized; some from third party vendors that cause the pages not to load correctly or even hang your browser. Additionally, MySpace is not positioned like Facebook in regard to the “employment” factor. Facebook is setup to “brand” yourself to potential employers…which means that tend to keep it clean of profanity in the headings, as well as use actual names rather than online IDs. But, then again, maybe that is part of its charm. Facebook has experienced their share of problems; they’ve disenchanted some of their members with sweeping changes to their privacy policies (although later rescinded), and have changed the user interface, much to the chagrin of many. In fact, many demand that the “old” Facebook be brought back. Finally, Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, seems to be a wild card that holds the future of the site in his hands, as evidenced by the mysterious departure of Chief Financial Officer, Gideon Yu. Yu’s departure was the latest change of several in the upper ranks at Facebook, “
. The premise of this “game” was that the iPhone ”baby” cried and fussed loudly, not stopping until the iPhone user shook the phone vigorously.
Coca Cola, invented in the late 19th century and marketed as a “cure-all” for diseases like morphine addiction, dyspepsia, neurasthenia, headache, and impotence has come a long way in a century. A friend once told me that Coke’s special formula used cocaine. Which is true, although at the time I called him a “lying pooh-pooh head.” In fact, a single glass of Coke contained nine milligrams of blow. The nice thing? No crusty white boogers or mirror checks before going outside. ‘Cola’ was spawned from the Kola nut, which added caffeine to the mix. It’s a wonder Ritalin wasn’t invented sooner.
Are you one of the many health buffs into bodybuilding? Well if you are, don’t forget the one most important thing to make those muscles strong and healthy…protein. They are one of the many supplemental additives that help people build bodies into the envious builds that many people dream of today. 
There are a lot of big names in the showbiz industry these days making headway in the call for eco-friendliness. While the list goes on, two names came out on top. They are Leonardo DiCaprio and Oprah Winfrey.
No more free coffee, cut-backs on car service, showing up on time, working eight hour days. Instituting a client-centric focus. The economy has been especially tough on agencies and media companies–industries known for creative problem-solving and critical foresight–causing them to remove perks associated with working in the industry.
Most of us just happily blog-along, with no worries, really. We try to do our best, tell the truth, and use correct punctuation. We don’t try to misquote, and do work to give credit where credit is due. These practices, however, will most likely be changing in the near future as the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) looks at plans to regulate viral marketing and blogs.
the words, “Results not typical, Individual Results May Vary” across the bottom of the screen in tiny 7pt type.
