On Saturday, Boston’s “Kiss 108” WXKS was the last of 12 Clear Channel stations to host its annual Jingle Ball holiday concert.
With a snowstorm bearing down on Boston, headliner Miley Cyrus was stuck at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey and unable to make her flight into Boston for the show. As Gawker reports that didn’t stop Kiss from promoting that Miley was already at the TD Garden for the show.
Afternoon host Romeo made references to Cyrus throughout his show including a promotional staffer joking that he tripped over a dancer in to her and that she was walking around backstage in a bathing suit. Once the show had already begun, Cyrus called into night host Mikey V to tell him that she was stuck at the airport.
The station made the announcement on Twitter that Cyrus would not make it to the show at 9:25pm; well after the show had begun. The station’s Facebook page is full of many displeased concertgoers stating that there was little to no notification to those inside the arena that she wouldn’t make it.
INSTANT INSIGHT: While the intent of Romeo and Kiss was to make the show seem larger than life, with a snowstorm in the region it would probably have been better for the station to ensure that all advertised talent, especially the show’s headliner was confirmed at the show before making comments that they were. There are many other ways to hype a show without making poor jokes about tripping over a little-person dancer.
Filed under “little white lies.”
Before Clear Channel, there was a word called “credibility.” That word is not in Clear Channel’s vocabulary.
Shameful.
The bigger lie told would have been implying that Miley Cyrus has any talent or sense of decorum. But I digress.
man, no! no!!! can’t do it. I can’t bring myself to say I feel bad for Miley fans, i mean she’s been lying to her fans for years! I’ll close this with a great Hanna montana quote. “i’m in the club, high on perk, with some shades on. Damn, and I try so hard to be musically open minded, that’s pop culture though, you get what you get. other formats know better, you’ll never hear this country about a country or active rock station.”
This is a hilarious topic and conversation. I hate Clear Channel as much as the next person, but radio lies stretch back way before Clear Channel, before Evergreen, before AM/FM, before Chancellor… I mean, where to even begin? Let’s start with “the request line” and the jocks responding to 99% of the requests by saying “I’ll see if I can get that on for ya!” Puh-leeease!
I worked at one radio station in my entire life and within my first week there, I remember saying to someone “Wow. Radio’s whole on-air image is lies, isn’t it?” The response: “That’s at any station!”
So many listeners get on the air because the jock coaches them on exactly what to say. And do you know how many listener calls are actually station staffers dialing in from the sales department? Have you ever actually seen a “prize closet?” haha. I could go on and on.
Richie Balsbaugh would have NEVER let this happen!