Results tagged “kiro”

Every journalist grew up with fuzzy memories of old movies in his or her head, of chain-smoking beat reporters with arm-garters and press passes stuck in the bands of their fedoras, always going on and on about how they've got "the big scoop, chief!" Alas, real life is rarely so exciting, but it's cute (and pathetic) when they grow up and try to realize those misty, water-colored memories of the way it never was. Witness KIRO 7's attempt at muckraking yesterday by digging into the mayor's "no more bottled water!" plan.

It all started last week when the August issue of Marie Claire (not on the magazine's webpage, because somehow Hearst doesn't know how to work the tubes) included a list of the top cities for women to meet single men. It was based on some statistics of dubious merit--among them the number of Starbucks and movie theaters--as well as some stats in areas we'd think Seattle would rank poorly (public transit, last call time). Despite all that--not to mention the phenomenon of the Seattle freeze--our fair city came out on top in the dating survey, beating, well, everyone else.

Seth wants you to know that "the first Mariners spring training game of the year will be on 97.3 FM radio at 12:05 p.m. Might be a nice thing for people who can get radio at work. (People can also listen live on the Tubes, it's $14.95 which buys you every spring and regular season game for the whole year.)"

The same day the CityClub of Seattle was holding--and tweeting--its panel discussion "The Newspaper Business: Sunset or a New Dawn?" strange things were happening. The P-I linked directly to a story on the West Seattle Blog. KIRO 7 TV started filing stories on Twitter, following KING 5's lead, though KING 5 was using its Twitter feed today to promote its new Facebook page. News is suddenly everywhere. At the panel, tears were still being shed over Craigslist stealing all those classified ad dollars back in the late '90s--right about the time that everyone in the U.S. was reading Who Moved My Cheese? Ten years later, major newspaper chains are still at the mercy of a cramped, ugly, lo-fi site started by some guy in San Francisco. Hearst thinks the P-I is a money-loser; from where we're sitting, the guys who've been losing billions are in the corporate suites, paying themselves top dollar while they redesign the buggy whip paper to make it more attractive to younger readers.

As of just a few minutes ago, KIRO TV is reporting that Ken Griffey, Jr., has decided on Seattle. We're a little gunshy until we hear it from Junior's mouth, but Atlanta station WSB has "said two of its sources confirmed that Griffey will come back to the Mariners, where he spent the first 11 years of his major league career."

For local sports fans, March can't come soon enough for two reasons. First, the Seattle Sounders begin their first season of play and the home opener will be March 19 against the NY Red Bulls on national TV.

In what might be the biggest sports media announcement in Seattle in decades, there's a new sports-talk radio station in town!! (Cue crickets.) 710 KIRO will soon become 710 ESPN Seattle. The station recently shifted its news-talk lineup to FM sister station 97.3. We can barely believe there's demand for one all-sports station in town, and given all the pro bono PSAs we've been hearing on KJR since the election, local advertisers apparently agree. Congratulations KJR! You've been "Tully'd."

• You know it's Seafair when the Seattle Police Department issues a "Boating Under the Influence Advisory." That's right folks, if you're out on the water this weekend, beware: everyone else on the lake is going to be drunk, whatever the boat cops say. As long-suffering Seattle residents who can afford boats, that is their God-given right during Seafair. It's the viking heritage.
• Crosscut Seattle confirmed a long held theory of ours: that the local news and radio broadcasters have remained virtually unchanged for our whole life. And we were right! Jean Enersen celebrates 40 years with KING5 today, and yesterday KIRO Radio personality Dave Ross celebrated 30 years on the air. Sure, the city has quadrupled in size, but you still got the same old Jean and Dave (and Steve Pool...and Kathy Goertzen...and Dan Lewis) to tune in to.
• Central District News warns local dog owners who might take their pups for a dip at Madrona Beach or a romp in the park. Two dogs convulsing from suspected slug poison have been taken to emergency vets, but have thus survived.

The cost of fielding a perennially bad team may finally start hitting the Mariners in the bank account next season. The P-I is reporting that the M's will move to KIRO-AM next year in a $5.5 million per year deal for three seasons. This season, at KOMO-AM, the M's are earning $10 million in radio revenue. The huge reduction in radio revenue can be attributed to lower ratings, due to the team's poor performance as well as the growth of internet/satellite radio. The Mariners' broadcast crew will move with the team.