LaPierre on the loose...on the beach?

[Pete Ferrand]

> Dan Strassberg wrote:

> warmth of Florida. I haven't made up my mind on whether the 
> attempt at concealment was acceptable, but I'm uncomfortable with it.


I think this gets close to the nub of it.

I don't see it as an ethics issue so much as an issue of trust and
allegiance. Due to LaPierre's long history with his listeners, there was
an expectation of what he was doing and where he was. If that is broken,
it just gives the listener the image that the station and LaPierre and
radio in general just doesn't give a damn. And that will be reciprocated
by the listener.

It's like a Nestle bar that people buy for years. If the price goes up,
people grumble but know it's inevitable. If the price stays the same but
the bar gets smaller while the package stays the same except for the
weight marking, when people find out they feel taken advantage of and
annoyed...even though obviously the maker adhered to the law and didn't
misrepresent the weight. It's bad for a business to piss off it's
customers.

The problem is the bad news gets out eventually, and produces images
like this thread. If it was mentioned originally, everyone realizes that
the guy deserves to live and work where he wants and they'd drop the
matter.

As to out-of-market "pretend local" music and talk shows, since they
don't really build up a lengthy expectation of anything in anybody, what
I've seen when listeners are told the jocks are from 700 miles away is,
"ok, so what?". Most of their "local" content learned via the net is so
mindless it doesn't really resonate to the point anyone cares.

-Pete
Enfield, NH (who hopes never to work, live, or otherwise have anything
to do with Florida, the surrounding states, or anywhere else with a
similar climate)