RIP, FreeFM



FreeFM's quixotic decision to replace the departing Howard Stern with David Lee "The Rothmare" Roth may go down as one of the stupidest maneuvers in the history of the media in the United States. CBS' dark overlord Les Moonves actually said that Joel Hollander didn't know how to pick a morning show.

The abysmal failure of David "Weave" Roth led to the firing of Hollander, who once, amazingly, suspended Howard Stern for a day. Once Hollander was gone, it was only a matter of time before the format itself went. It is much more profitable and hassle-free to do contemporary rock. The JV and Elvis episode (And, might I add, Imus) cemented it.

With an infinitude of choices, though, of interesting celebrities who might have leapt at the chance of reaching Howard's 12 million strong listener fan base and taking home a Stern-sized paycheck, the fact that they chose an aging rock star with attention deficit disorder is bewildering. We have always maintained that they should have chosen the always interesting Courtney Love. They didn't; now, the entire station format may be kaput. From NYDailyNews:

"Starting as early as today, 92.3 FM may no longer be the land of the Free.

"Several well-placed radio sources say CBS Radio is dropping the edgy 'hot talk' Free-FM format at WFNY (92.3 FM) and switching back to contemporary rock music.

"If this happens, it will mark the end of a brief and troubled life marked by low ratings, the embarrassing David Lee Roth morning show and most recently the removal of hosts JV and Elvis over a prank phone call.

"Defenders have noted that, perhaps ironically, the format was designed to be risky, open and controversial. They have also argued that it wasn't being given enough time or support.

"But CBS Radio President Dan Mason, who replaced Joel Hollander last month, may feel it's more trouble than it's worth. Tom Taylor, editor of Radio-Info.com, notes Mason has made it clear Free-FM isn't his favorite format."

We can't help but wonder why Sumner Redstone didn't back Stern against the FCC charges during the thick of things. Is there any merit to the frequent charges that Viacom -- Redstone, in particular -- throws his "talent" under the bus, no matter how important, as soon as they fall into bad odor? If he had, he would probably still have Stern, and a very profitable radio franchise.

The website for FreeFM is down, touting some sort of special announcement for 5pm. Looks like David Lee Roth was the ruin of FreeFM-- nee K-Rock's -- hot talk format. RIP, FreeFM(NYDailyNews)