Station Break

Heard or seen something on the pop culture landscape that appalled/delighted/enlightened you? Of course you have. That's what Station Break with Paul Farhi is here for. Local stations, cable, radio shows, commercials, pop culture -- they're all fair game.

Farhi was online Tuesday, April 18, at 1 p.m. ET.

Submit your questions and comments before or during today's discussion.

Farhi is a reporter in the Post's Style section, writing about media and popular culture. He's been watching TV and listening to the radio since "The Monkees" were in first run and Adam West was a star. Born in Brooklyn and raised in Los Angeles, Farhi had brief stints in the movie business (as an usher at the Picwood Theater), and in the auto industry (rental-car lot guy) before devoting himself full time to word processing. His car has 15 radio pre-sets and his cable system has 75 channels. He vows to use all of them for good instead of evil.

A transcript follows.

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Paul Farhi: Greetings, all, and welcome back. I'm tanned, rested and ready after a vacation trip to San Francisco (okay, not tanned; it rained most of the time I was there). Media scorecard for the week: Bay Area radio--better than ours in dear old Washington (more musical variety, more leftover hippie flava); Bay Area TV news--as insipid as ours, but (strikingly) often as serious and good, too (they had plenty o' mudslide news, and 100th anniversary of the Big Quake stuff on); Bay Area newspapers--C'mon, who are we kidding? Anyway, just thought you'd like to know. I have some great home movies of the trip, too. Let's go to the phones...

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Guilty Pleasures: Don't we all have certain shows that are our guilty pleasures? Something we are less than eager to admit to watching. I am addicted to The Surreal Life, Blowout and The Deadliest Catch.

Paul Farhi: Mine is Amazing Race. Satisfyingly stupid, with exotic locales.

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Clifton, Va.: I listen to 94.7 and used to listen to BIG for a Motown fix, etc. With the format change to dentist office rock I deleted BIG from my presets. The new format is awful. Every once in a while you need some Motown and surf music to go with your Who, Stones, Zeppelin, etc.

Paul Farhi: Dentist office rock! Great phrase, Clifton...Seems to me BIG has carved out a little bitty niche that is somewhat different than WARW's 70's album rock format. How different: More pop, more Billy Joel and Elton, less Skynyrd than Arrow. Sounds a bit like retro WASH-FM to me.

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Cubeland, NoVA: What is the deal with NBC's local news? I feel like I'm watching some sort of horrible mix of Entertainment Tonight, America's Wildest Police Chases, and a cable access chat show. Last night I actually heard an anchor refer to someone as "this guy".

I've been a loyal NBC news viewer since I was a kid, but this is so painful I now actually choose a treadmill at the gym based on avoiding having to watch it.

Paul Farhi: I've always thought of WRC, Channel 4, as this market's gold standard for TV news--about as serious as you're gonna get without being dull. I hope you haven't spotted a (downward) trend.

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Washington, D.C.: Good afternoon Paul. Thanks for taking questions.

Now that Washington Post Radio has been on at least a short time, Federal News Radio has been on for a while, and of course WTOP has been on forever, have we gotten saturated with a similar format and often the same reporters/personnel?

Two side questions:

Has WTOP taken a hit/reduction in the number of listeners due to it's move to FM only (Frederick being a different market).

And, are there enough people remaining not already listening to WTOP or WFED to make Washington Post Radio a success, or will they siphon off WTOP and WFED listeners?

Paul Farhi: Interesting questions, and ones I'm sure the smart people at Bonneville (and the WashPost Co.) have wrestled with. Let's take this one at a time: 1) No ratings yet on WP Radio; 2) WFED has a very small and specialized audience to begin with, so not sure siphoning will be much of a problem; 3) I'm certain my WP colleagues (if not the folks at B'ville) will be glad to siphon listeners from everywhere--WTOP, WFED, WAMU, WETA, WMAL, WTEM, etc. etc.

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Northwest : What's the latest on Arch Campbell?

Paul Farhi: Arch has cancer, and is undergoing chemo. My colleague, Desson Thomson, saw him at a movie screening this morning and said he's in good spirits and working away.

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Venus: Has anyone else noticed that the current Channel 9 news set is just about the ugliest set in the history of television news? The red is literally gross and unappealing, and the set looks like a B-movie space ship throw-away from an old Ed Wood movie.

The news program isn't much better.

Paul Farhi: The Chan 9 set is the first in the area designed for HDTV, but you can see it on regular old boring TV, too, obviously. I don't know if the demands of HD (more detail, more "authenticity") create an odd look for conventional TV. In any case, you can read more about this (AFTER the chat, you mugs) in a very good story by my colleague Steve Levingston:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/24/AR2006032401808.html

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Rhode Island: Hi Paul: No call from the Pulitzer's this year for you? Curious, what exactly is the prize? Cash, cars, trip to Vegas?

Maybe you could write an expose on the monopolization of the radio industry and get one of them things for yourself?

Paul Farhi: I'm submitting these chats for the PP next year, so look sharp!

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Huh?: WRC is the gold standard? Really? You must watch a different broadcast than I used to. I've moved over to 7. While it may be a little low key, at least I can trust them to stick to the news and away from the hype.

Paul Farhi: Yeah, props to 7, which is by far the most improved news operation in town. And, as you suggest, may well be the best.

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washingtonpost.com: washingtonpost.com:Ready for Their Close-Up? (Post, March 25)

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Charlottesville, Va.: Did you catch Don Geronimo's rant yesterday about the Web master of DCRTV.com? (David Hughes, I think). Got pretty nasty. Do you know about the history between the two?

Paul Farhi: I did not, and do not. But I know Dave has a very lively site and that Don loves to go off on the local media.

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Larry, Curly, MO: Paul,

How do we get those creepy "Fitness Made Simple with John Basedow" commercials from appearing every thirty seconds on every channel? The frosted toupee and body makeup on this guy makes him look ghostly. Who is he? I've been tempted to call the number just to tell them to stop advertising that he will be appearing at the Learning Annex on January 24th! How low-rent these ads are!

Paul Farhi: I find myself wishing those commercials were even worse than they are. If we're stuck with them, they might as well be even cheesier and more entertaining. But I agree. The hair frosting has got to go. Also, lose the way he pulls down his waistband to show off his abs.

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Silver Spring, Md.: 7 only got better because they got the best and brightest from 9.

Paul Farhi: Okay. Good move, 7...

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Washington, D.C.: Forget WBIG -- how about the format change at DC-101? Sometime when I wasn't paying attention, they apparently made the decision to fill their airwaves exclusively with songs targeted to preteen girls -- Fallout Boy, Jimmy Eat World, All American Rejects, etc.

In any event, they're certainly providing plenty of material for "Make it Stop" in 2016.

Paul Farhi: I like DC 101 for the surprise--you never know what'll pop up there. Sometimes, I actually stay around and listen.

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Silver Spring, Md.: I just wanted to turn myself in to all the radio purists out there. The ones that are seething with rage over what's happening on terrestrial radio.

Ready? Here goes.

I like new Big 100. I like Jack-FM.

For what it's worth, I'm 29, married, minivan driving mom. My first real radio station was the real WAVA. I'm a child of commercial radio and never knew deejays that could choose their own music.

Radio is about playing commercials. My guess is that if you don't like what's played in between the commercials, you'll be much happier with an iPod.

Paul Farhi: The stoning will begin after the chat. Meet at the flagpole.

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Laurel, Md.: Please tell me if Michelle Sigona is gone for good on Fox 5, she was the only reason I watched.

Paul Farhi: 'Believe so. I think she went to a station in NYC.

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980: Any word who is going to replace Kornheiser when he goes to Monday Night Football? Will they hire someone permanently or just have a 7- month fill in? And how has Snyder's buying up of ESPN radio programming shaken up 980? Is he going to take some of their on-air talent too?

Paul Farhi: Haven't heard on Kornheiser's replacement, but those are some big shoes to fill for that station. As for Snyder, say what you will, but his raid of ESPN programming was a brilliant business coup (credit goes to his radio honcho, Bennett Zier, too). He has simultaneously strengthened his radio operation AND hobbled a competitor. One-two punch.

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Oh, yes, please!: Make John Basedow go away. Not only is it pretty clear that his head was photoshopped onto his body, but he sounds and looks as though he's sedated. Worst of all, though, is that little jingle is catchier than anything currently running on pop radio. I actually found myself singing it one day while vacuuming! It's brainwashing, I tell you!

Paul Farhi: I bet you have pretty nice abs as a result...

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Philadelphia, Pa.: Sports radio here is so provincial it is sickening, plus the David Lee Roth experiment has failed. Do you you think the Sports Junkies have any chance to expand outside of D.C./Baltimore?

I hope so, I can only listen via streaming for a few minutes a day.

Love your work.

Paul Farhi: Thanks...The Junkies DID expand out of this market a few years back, but their career in syndication has ended for the moment (not sure why they pulled back; I'm tempted to say their ratings outside this area were poor, but I don't know exactly how they did).

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Falls Church, Va.: so i'm listening to BIG and they play their promo "the greatest rock-and-roll of all time!" Then they play Fire and Rain by James Taylor -- I'm not knockin' the song, but "the greatest rock-and-roll of all time!" it is not ...

Paul Farhi: Right. Same reaction to their playing of Stevie Nicks' ouevre (I think I spelled that right)...

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Bay Area radio: "Bay Area radio -- better than ours in dear old Washington"

Please. You could connect two tin cans with string, hold one to your ear and the other to the wind, and hear better stuff than you hear on Washington radio.

Paul Farhi: Whassamatter, you don't like Washington Post Radio?

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Cubeland, NoVA: Re: downward trend

That's exactly what I'm noticing. It's like they turned on the "dumb it down" switch a month or so ago when they started the thing where the anchors go "up to the newsroom" or whatever.

Oh, and stupid Internet polls kill me too. Thanks for the ven t... maybe someone from dear old WRC is listening?

Paul Farhi: The "go up to the newsroom/when I join you in the newsroom" trope is a favorite of mine. Some consultant must have come up with the concept: "See, it says to the viewer that you're working really hard down here in the bowels of the building and that you'll have all the facts to present WHEN YOU'RE GOOD AND READY. Only the facts aren't quite ready just yet." Or something like that.

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Silver Spring, Md.: I thought the Junks left national syndication because WHFS threw a huge amount of money at them to compete with Elliot?

Paul Farhi: Again, not sure. Could be. They were syndicated when they were doing the evening show on WJFK, but not when they moved to mornings on WHFS. Evenings are a less competitive time period, but...but I don't know. Thanks for letting me think out loud here. I'll have more when I join you in the newsroom...

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Mount Airy, Md.: I'm actually starting to like WashPo Radio. And it's refreshing to NOT hear the traffic and weather every ten minutes ...

Paul Farhi: Interesting. I thought this might be a weakness,especially in drivetime...

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Washington, D.C.: Why didn't the powers-that-be select WaPo for the radio station's call letters? Certainly flows better than WTWP.

Paul Farhi: We had suggestions. WONK was my fave. WAPO another. WPST probably wouldn't work.

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Staunton, Va.: Jey Severin (on WJFK): Terrible show or worst show ever?

Paul Farhi: Hahaha. He's scary. I didn't know anyone from Boston could be that far Out There.

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Washington, D.C.: Have you recovered from seeing Vito dressed in leather and dancing in the gay club last week? That aside, thoughts on the new Sopranos season, halfway through?

Paul Farhi: The Vito thing was a really interesting thread. The vehemence and outright hatred of gays by the Guys (and their wives) was really kind of shocking (I guess I'm easily shocked). But Tony's ambivalence about whacking/firing Vito is fascinating. Which is why The Sopranos remains The Greatest TV Show Ever.

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Lafayette Hill, Pa.: If the junkies would do a show a little less centered on the D.C. sports scene they would be huge.

I really wish they would.

Paul Farhi: If they went into syndication, they obviously would have to. But the show doesn't work as a sports show alone; it's a guy "lifestyle" show, with sports as just one component.

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Gaithersburg, Md.: Mr. Farhi,

My impression of Wash.Post Radio so far:

There is a reason why the Columbia School of Broadcasting exists. Reporters who I just love in print are AWFUL on the radio. Hemming and hawing, grating voices, etc., make it a painful experience, for the most part. While there may well be "More to the story", I am having difficulty tuning in.

Paul Farhi: I'm on thin ice here (multiple conflicts involved) but I understand what you're saying. There's a great range of radio ability here; some good, most not. We ARE print pros but radio amateurs. But this will undoubtedly change as people get more comfortable behind the mic. I think.

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Call Letters: Because it's easier to say "Washington Post Radio" than "WTWP"

Paul Farhi: I guess pronouncing it as "W-twip" won't work, will it?

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Washington, D.C.: Hey, Paul. Do you have a regular slot on WTWP? If so, when? Also, can you give me any sort of update on Mark Fisher's history of radio? Any idea how his book is coming along?

Paul Farhi: I do not have a regular slot, nor have I yet appeared (is "appeared" what you do on radio?) on WTWP. As previous comment indicated, I'm sorta wrestling with my own internal conflict here--can I write about WTWP, work for the company that owns it, AND appear (that word again) on WTWP simultaneously? Not sure what the Ethics Book says on this.

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Washington, D.C.: Another vote for The Deadliest Catch. Great show. It's fascinating to watch the working conditions these guys put up with.

Paul Farhi: That's two. It's going on my Stuff to Watch that I Haven't Yet Watched but Mean to Because People on the Chat Said it Was Good List.

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Washington, D.C.: "The vehemence and outright hatred of gays by the Guys (and their wives) was really kind of shocking (I guess I'm easily shocked)."

This is how many people I know really talk about gays, particularly my friends and family outside of the D.C. metro who haven't been as well-trained in P.C. I thought it was refreshing to see some realism on TV, ugly warts and all.

Paul Farhi: Does your family get so angry at gay people that they recommend killing them, a la the Fellas? But, yes, I mean you're basically right. No PC stuff on The Sopranos. Which is why (everyone join in) it's The Greatest TV Show Ever...

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Wilmington, N.C.: Is The Office not the best show since Seinfeld?

Paul Farhi: Comedy division only.

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Silver Spring, Md.: How in the world could anyone like Michelle Sigona. She had to be the WORST reporter ever in D.C. Great how Channel 5 just threw an unseasoned intern into the chopper and turned her loose. Just awful. She's now working at America's Most Wanted

Paul Farhi: Ah, sorry. America's Most Wanted. Thanks.

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Washpost radio love: "Whassamatter, you don't like Washington Post Radio?"

Actually I do. It's cool to hear what some of you sound like. But I was complaining about the music stations. Bleech. Not that I'm some old fogey raging about music today. I like most of it. But the constant commercials suck. Well, unless you're a 29-year-old mini-driving mom.

Back to the iPod for me.

Paul Farhi: I'm gonna have to stick up for 29-year-old mini-van driving moms here. I've known a few in my day. They are the soul of this great nation.

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Baltimore Md.: Re Philly poster saying "sports radio is so provincial here." Got news for ya pal ... it's provincial everywhere. I was in Manhattan last week, taking a cab some 30 blocks in the p.m. rush. The cabbie had sports radio on and the ENTIRE time the guy talked about whether Pedro Martinez would try to throw at Ozzie Guillen that evening. (This after the big hoohah between the two in the previous Nats/Mets series.) I mean, the cab ride took 20 minutes and this was the only subject. Sheesh!

Paul Farhi: Yeah, and wouldn't it be a GOOD thing to be provincial about sports on LOCAL radio? It's a LOCAL audience, which most likely wants to talk about LOCAL teams.

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The More I Wish I Didn't Know: The other night I heard a new one of those "The More You Know" public-service things on NBC. In this one, the actor said, "Don't videotape yourself having sex." Duh! Isn't this one a no-brainer?

Paul Farhi: Soapbox Alert!!! Those More You Know commercials are the most insidious thing NBC does. Let's review: The network won't run ANY public service ads from anyone else, but to get credit from the FCC, it created its own PSAs, which are idiotic and superficial and ultimately just promos for NBC sitcom and series stars. Bleech! (We now return to our regularly scheduled opinion mongering...)

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Washington, D.C.: I remember when they started those "up in the newsroom" years ago, and they would have Vance (or whoever) sitting at his typewriter (yes, that's how long ago that was), jacket off and tie askew. After a few years they turned it into an actual stage-set with the big logo in the background, and then it just became another gimmick.

Paul Farhi: My question is, why do they have to join us in the newsroom? They seem to be doing perfectly fine "down there." Maybe Vance should say, "You know, Bob, it's a little crowded up here just now. Stay where you are and let us know when you've finished preparing your report."

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Baltimore, Md.: Re: WashPost Radio

I'm very glad that the Nationals are being broadcast on WashPost Radio because the 1500 signal is much stronger than 104.1. As a result, almost every night, there is a baseball game on that I can listen to in Baltimore -- either the Orioles or the Nationals. As an avid baseball fan, this is great!

Paul Farhi: Another satisfied customer! Your Washington Post--"service" is somewhere in our name (if you do the Word Scramble).

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Gaithersburg again: Paul,

Does WTWP broadcast from the WP building, or do you folks schlep to some studio in town?

Paul Farhi: I sit two desks away from our spiffy new studio, where our folk troop to for their radio hits. But the hosts (Hillary Howard, Mike Moss, Bob Kur, etc.) are over on Idaho Avenue NW, home of Bonneville's world-famous glass-enclosed nerve center.

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The More You Know: Note that around April Fool's Day, those spots had the cast of "The Office" doing parodies ... that might be what the post-er saw.

Paul Farhi: Ah. Yes. Good point. My rant still stands, however.

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Rockville, Md.: So what's the deal with the beef between Elliot (of Elliot in the Morning) and Tony Kornheiser?

Paul Farhi: Odd, ain't it? Tony claims he's met Elliot maybe once (at some corporate party), but Elliot sure has it in for Tony. I think it's a little calculated, a little real. Most important, though: It must "work" for Elliot or he wouldn't keep harping on it.

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Silver Spring, Md.: I was shocked when I read that OLN had signed Brett Haber to a contract for $200,000! Who knew OLN had that much money? Who knew that anyone liked Haber that much?

That made me wonder, how much do the sports guys on local TV generally get paid?

Paul Farhi: Depends on which sports guy you mean. George Michael, the dean, is probably way up there. Just a rough guess, but a bigtime sports anchor at a bigtime station in a bigtime market can probably expect mid-six figures, maybe more...

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Channel 4: I sometimes watch their a.m. show. I feel so sorry for Barbara Harrison -- she seems to have a lot of trouble with the spontaneous chitchat, or even reading the teleprompter sometimes. She seems like a really nice person, so I'm pulling for her to do well, but it's painful to watch sometimes.

Paul Farhi: She's a very pleasant presence. And she scored a real coup with her Condi and Laura Bush exercise bits the other month. Plus, "Wednesday's Child," the adoption thing she hosts, is truly a public service.

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WaPo Radio: So the studio near you would be the nerd-enclosed glass center?

Paul Farhi: Hahaha! Genius!

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Adamstown, Md.: Amazing Race a guilty pleasure? I vehemently object. I think it's the only reality TV show that is for non-reality show watchers. The situations are mostly real ... many things vacationers would do in the locales. I wouldn't eat a 1000 bugs on live TV for Fear Factor and the chances of me being stranded on a island with a dozen other folks and have to challenge each other for food is pretty low on the totem pole. So stop calling Amazing Race a guilty pleasure.

Paul Farhi: Oh, yeah, sure, on my last trip to Brazil, I, too, flew a helicopter to the top of a downtown office building. And when I go to Turkey, I always put together a dismembered statue, just for kicks....Get out! It's a reality show just like the others. Only the stunts have been changed to protect the innocent (the bugs, I mean).

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News people saying exactly what they feel like: I love what you said about telling Bob Ryan to stay where he is. Have you ever seen anyone blurt out something like that on TV?

Paul Farhi: Only in the movie "Anchorman."

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Rockville, Md.: The Logan-is-the-evil-mastermind twist on "24" seems to have polarized viewers on its credibility. Are you for or against?

Paul Farhi: Somewhat against. It's a ridiculous and contrived conspiracy, even by the ridiculous standards of "24."

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Paul Farhi: Folks, this has been too much fun, which may explain why it seems to have flown by. But, alas, we're out of time (as they say on WaPo radio). Let's try again in two weeks. In the meantime, I'm developing my pictures from S.F. (gosh, I hope the Rite-Aid doesn't censor me again), and will bring them for a slide show next time. Until then, regards to all!

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