On the Road with Glenn Beck and Bill O'Reilly

Check out my latest Talk Land column in the April issue of Newsmax Magazine. It's a close-up look at the "Bold and Fresh" stage show that is bringing in a bundle of cash for Fox News Channel hosts Bill O'Reilly and Glenn Beck. To add a little more detail to the story, the magazine's policy is to buy tickets for reporters to cover such events. This is to avoid the impression that a positive review can be bought. I also bought a ticket to take my mom, who's the world's biggest fan of conservative talk radio. She adores Limbaugh, Hannity and Glenn Beck. O'Reilly, not so much. Good thing we had tickets, because the mainstream media is definitely not welcome in the auditorium when the conservative pundits are preaching to the converted. The crew from Al Gore's Current TV had to stay outside. The crowd-pleasing content of the show was pretty much what I expected, but what shocked me were the ticket prices. By the time you add Ticketmaster's outrageous fees, it was $150 a person for the better seats! Even in this tough economy, a lot of people apparently felt it was worth it, even though they can watch these guys on TV every day for free!
The Talk Land column is exclusive the the print version of the magazine, so unfortunately, I can't post a link.

HIgh School Journalism Day at USC

You might wonder why anyone would want to be a journalist in these times of disappearing jobs and shrinking paychecks. Actually, journalism school has never been more popular and the annual high school journalism day at USC's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism is so popular that they now have it TWICE a year!
I moderated the panel on the Role of the Multimedia Storyteller and it was a good chance to test some of the material from my upcoming book on a real live group of students. Here are my fellow panelists. Jessica Gelt, who writes the Daily Dish and other entertainment content for the Los Angeles Times made everyone envy her cool job, despite the huge workload. KABC online producer Owen Michael explained how the Eyewitness News web site comes together. The students provided a good window on how high school journalism is changing. One sharp young man from West Torrance wondered how to drive traffic to the website of his school newspaper, now that it's no longer published on dead trees. Here's the group from Long Beach Poly High.Kudos to Sebastian and Jesus for making sure my multimedia presentation went off without a hitch and the incomparable Diane Guthman for organizing an event that is sure to inspire the next generation.

More stimulating talk radio!

It's a yucky, rainy Saturday night, and I'm getting ready to go to work at 9:30 pm. Working the weekend overnights is part of my training to join the well trained SWAT team known as KFI news. Spending time in this newsroom reminds me why I love radio. It's creative and conversational. Nothing but me, the microphone, the computer and the listeners on "the most listened-to talk station in America." News director Chris Little is taking a chance on this TV person and has shown a lot of patience in helping me conquer the board. The last time I worked in radio, at KABC and the former KTZN, I didn't really have to mess with all those buttons. Way back when I did morning drive with Glenn Beck at KPWR-FM in Houston, it was just a matter of writing the cast and reading it. Now I have to make sure I get all the right signals from the always helpful board ops and the folks in the traffic center. I've got to make sure the right actualities and music beds roll at the right time, at the right level.
When I'm teaching overseas, I've noticed that radio is just as important as television and brushing up my skills will make me a better teacher.
Update: I survived the overnights and now have a regular Saturday morning shift during Handel on the Law. Listen for me at the top and bottom of the hour from 6 to 11:30 am. I can also be heard on KOGO-AM in San Diego.
See you on the radio!