Garland Robinette and New Orleans Radio

First, a little background for those outside the area: Garland Robinette is a WWL-870-AM radio host. He used to be fairly left-wing (pretty ardent environmentalist and used to host striking refinery workers on his radio show). He came to prominence with the infamous September 2, 2005 "Get off your asses" radio interview with Nagin. You can see a snipet of the infamous interview below:

The full interview can be found below:

Anyways, he hosts a weekday, mid-day radio show. It seems to me that somewhere in 2008/2009 he's also shifted a lot further to the right, politically.

What's become REALLY interesting is Fred Heebe, the notoriously corrupt benefactor of a lot of Jefferson Parish politicos, paid him as a "lobbyist" for the River Birch Landfill. He even gave Robinette a $250,000 loan after he did a radio show blasting the re-opening of the Old Gentilly Landfill (which would take business away from River Birch).

Here's the Times-Picayune above-the-fold article from Saturday. One thing to point out, yet again, the Times-Pic was scooped on a corruption story by one of the NOLA Bloggers. Slabbed was already on the case. It'll also be quite interesting who else is on the list of lobbyists (other local media?).

Since the initial article, the Times-Pic has been quiet as tomb, but online is another matter. Which brought me to the discussion here. There's a nice little exchange about the state of local radio in there as well. (Partial quote of my comments + Jason's):

Clay said...
You know, NOLA has 2 dead-tree papers that aren't half bad, when you consider the market size (Times-Pic and Gambit). Both have flaws, but are well above the national average.

We've got awesome online news (The Lens, great bloggers).

We've got TV stations that, while not perfect, are also good and getting better with intense competition (WWL, Fox8). ABC's local affiliate is the only one that really sucks donkey balls.

BUT, when it comes to radio, New Orleans is ABSOLUTELY BOTTOM OF THE BARREL. There's a reason why I only listen to WWOZ and WTUL. Politics aside, Bob Delgorno is so incredibly stupid I wonder if he was dropped on his head as a baby.

September 4, 2011 11:44:00 AM CDT


Dambala - Jason B. Berry said...
That's about the best assessment I've read. The only person on WWL that I could stand to listen to is Garland and now he's a useless shill.

Delgorno is so narrow-minded and dim I get embarrassed for him. I wonder who's idea it was to put that guy in front of a mic.

Spud is harmless enough and intelligent enough but I've never heard anyone talk so damn much and say absolutely nothing. Say something for Buddha's sake.

Tommy Tucker is hyper-annoying. If you were sitting in a bar and this guy started talking, you would get up and move in short order....once again, putting a mic in front of a guy like that is probably not a great idea.

Believe it or not the only person I've actually liked on WWL was Rob Couhig. I don't agree with his politics but he's no idiot. Taking into account WWL is way right of center, I would at least like to hear intelligent conservative banter on local issues instead of the dingleberries they have on the air now.

If WWL had any good sense they would replace GR with a moderate Dem or even an outright liberal. If they offset their programming instead of enforcing the party line 24/7 it would make for more interesting radio. Plus the lib. host would probably enrage their listeners to the point where they would tune in just so they could argue. Then the rest of the conservative yahoo hosts could make apologies for the black sheep and make themselves look better. It's a win/win.

And need I point out that the whole network is staffed with old, white men?

Come to think of it, I wish they would put Sandra Hester on in place of Garland. 18 Wheeler would be a ratings bonanza.

September 4, 2011 12:08:00 PM CDT

There are plenty of other good comments over there. Go ahead and read them; I just don't want to grab more than I've already nabbed.

The thread goes into more general discussion of the New Orleans radio stations. Bob Delgiorno is probably the poster-child for our crappy airwave media. Jeffrey has been cataloging his miscues for quite some time. Even TigerDroppings (a site I generally loathe) points out his lack of research and total stupidity. Why does WWL keep him on the air?

On a more general note, why does NOLA Radio suck? Can't it be better? Will Garland be on the radio Monday?

UPDATE- Well, No Garland today. Maybe tomorrow?

Rising Tide 5 in the books...

Rising Tide - Mac McClelland Keynote
Originally uploaded by Maitri

Rising Tide 5 is in the books. I've been sick and Candice had work to do, so we weren't around all that much, but we both made an appearance Friday night and I made it for most of Saturday.

Mac McClelland signing my copy of Halliburton's Cementing Handbook. That's something special.

The venue was great. I liked the setup a lot. There were areas to mill around and talk away from the presentations. That I think is always one of the highlights of Rising Tide. Also, the air conditioning actually worked! Amazing! The lakefront is still my favorite of the Rising Tide venues, thus far.

I decided to not use my flash for my photography, so most of my photos didn't come out well. Oops. I got a couple that came out well.

A few of my takeaways from the Politics panel:
* The focus of the panel was on 2 races: 2nd Congressional (New Orleans) and senate (Vitter/Melancon)
* Crouere: "Bobby Jindal WILL NOT serve two full terms as governor."
* If public universities start shuttering their doors left, right, and center in Louisiana, it will destroy Jindal's reputation both in the state and nationally.
* 2nd Congressional will pit "ethically challenged" Richmond vs. Cao, with Cao having a decent shot at reelection. Note that at last year's Rising Tide, the entire panel thought he was toast.
* Vitter should cruise to reelection, despite nobody actually liking the guy (Republican or Democrat). Vitter is a hard worker, but he's also never faced a strong, well-organized opponent. Every single race he's run has been against pitiful competition. Melancon isn't covering himself in glory, thus far. Also, don't be surprised if more damaging revelations about Vitter's past are released right before the election...
* The LA Democratic Party is a mess. Mitch tried to get the previous head of the party sacked and, despite the backing of his sister, failed. There's major division between the "John Breaux Democrats" and the more liberal, more black democrats. Good leadership is needed to keep the two camps pulling in the same direction and that hasn't happened for a long, long time. As a side note, remember that EVERYONE in the state was a Democrat 20 or 30 years ago.

Tim gave a great presentation on "Why can't we get some dam safety?" Related: Dam Failure - Wiki. Note that dams are considered life safety systems, while levees are not and that's written into the law by Congress.

Congrats to Cliff on winning the AshMo Award for the year.

500th Post

This is my 500th post. I originally started the blog in December 2006 as a way of keeping up my writing skills, given that most engineers aren't given much of an opportunity to write prose.

I wrote a lot about crime mapping for a while.

I've blogged about the oil industry and posted a few wetland photos I took.

I've posted a little about New Orleans history.

I originally wanted to avoid posting about politics, but later decided to because, let's face it, it's a part of everything and you might as well embrace it.

And of course, there's Patches.

The best part about blogging is the people I've met. Maitri, Oyster, Adrastos, Jeffery, Homan, Greg, Varg, Ashley, Ray, Leigh, Dambala, and, of course, Candice. I also can't forget about the great Rising Tide conferences, especially when Dangerblonde gets to kick some Commie tail.

Don't know what's going to happen in the future, but I'm sure it'll be an adventure.

Here's to 500 posts and many more ahead.

Krewe du Vieux 2009

Uncle Sam meets Fannie Mae
Krewe du Vieux is in the bag. Had a lot of fun. KDV and Krewe D'Etat are my favorites because of the bitingly satirical floats. KDV rolls past very fast, though. I guess mules are more reliable than tractors.

Voodoo Economics.

Sidney Torres gets KDV'd

Run on the Sperm Bank

Shave the Wetlands

Saw a few friends there. Here's Ray handing tons of cool stickers to Candice.

Maitri the loan shark has some cool beads.

Lots and lots of brass bands. Very cool

The crowd was mostly adults and it's a good thing. Imagine a little kid asking, "Daddy, why is there a giant penis walking down the street?"

The late, great Ashley Morris.

Rest of the Set here.

Blogspotting NOLA - 18 Jan 09

First Draft: Compare and Contrast Joe the Plumber with a Shri Lankan journalist who gave his life covering the story. More here.

WCBF: Jindal screwing New Orleans on stimulus projects? Also, Who wants Charity demolished (the Characters behind LSU/VA)? The usual suspects include Ed Blakely and the list gets less illustrious from there.

BONOB: "What Some Say" WDSU gets caught pulling a Fox News. It's also clear that WDSU is Nagin's preferred local news source. Also, don't forget to read the Cerasoli outtakes.

YRHT: Oyster is atwitter awaiting the Crime Camera report. Also, some major power plays between the White House and the Corps of Engineers.

Best Local Blog Posts - September Edition

Here is my take on the best blog posts from NOLA bloggers in September in chronological order:

WCNO: How much misinformation can Jeff Masters put in one blog post? Correcting out-of-towner misconceptions about the city.

SCR: Eminence Front. "Evidently, we are not sufficiently scared." Countering overreaction before it came trendy.

WCBF: Attempting to Pivot to An Alternate Vision. Eli did so much good reporting on the Facilities Master Plan, it's hard to nail down just one post. Also spot on the airport deal.


SCR: Roll Call. The Heroes of Gustav.

WCBF: Southern Scrap. Devastating indictment of the company.

HC: "Mayor Declares I Heart Wrecking Balls" Also, a heartbreaking story from an NOFD wife.


WCBF: "We do not have a record but at least you have the land." Honestly, shit like this makes me never want to buy a house in New Orleans. If I were this poor lady, I'd rent a Bobcat and take a trip to Park Island.

AZ: "A Modest Proposal, Metry Edition" I think that a lot of Louisiana would like to show up to LaBruzzo's office and sterilize him.

PGR: "Pouring Drano down the New Orleans brain drain" Locals being neglected for carpet-baggers, especially with education.

PGR: "Remember the good old days?" Also, "“Staggering from crisis to crisis”"

Ray: "This is Our Katrina... In Connecticut?" A well deserved smackdown. It's Katrina because of a possible increase in public school enrollment? Please. Also, a hearty fuck-you to Lamont. You couldn't knock of Leiberman and now you continue to fail.

BONO: "ASCE Buttons Its Lips" Appalling behavior by a professional organization. The entire leadership should be cleared out. They are a blight on the reputation of engineers everywhere.

Blogspotting NOLA - Oct 4th

First Draft: "Clutching at Straws." On self-delusion. Also gives a book review of the "The Fall of Berlin 1945," a book I've been interested. Along with William L. Shirer's book, it's among the WWII must-reads.

YRHT: "Permanent Pump Stations Delayed Until 2013?" More news from Matt McBride.

BONO: "Ninjas vs. Pirates?" Unleash the weirness.

Kevin Allman named Gambit editor. Congratulations. The Times-Picayune is in a slow death spiral from self-inflicted wounds. I hope Gambit steps up and takes their place.

Debris

I've got a bunch of random stuff that I wanted to post, but didn't want to dedicate a post:

Added a few bloggers to the list. Sophmom has been commenting here for a while, but I hadn't added her to the blogroll. Sorry about that. Mosquito Coast is a recent discovery. No, it's just me spoke at Rising Tide. I also found m.d. filter because of Rising Tide.

Speaking of blogs, someone likes my site's name.

Dirty Coast store now open at 5704 Magazine!

Broken: the Army Corps of Engineers. In Mother Jones...

Recovery by the Numbers (Times-Pic). Not that bad, actually. It is starting to look like the sun is finally starting to shine through the clouds.

Chertoff might take Gonzales' place I hope this report turns out to be wrong, because Chertoff was worse than the Horse's Ass ("Heck of a job" Brownie).

Communism in the NFL... Deadspin's season preview of the Patriots. Worth a read purely for the writing.

Wired article about how inter-operable communications saved lives in Minnesota... and cost lives in New York and New Orleans. Greg Meffert has blood on his hands.

Extremely insightful article about the economy by Brian at Got Law? Been meaning to link to this for a while. What he writes about will become more and more important over the next 10 years, IMHO.

Die, Commie! Die!

One funny incident yesterday was when Dangerblond went on an anti-communist crusade.

What happened was this one dude in a red shirt came to Rising Tide and got up to ask a question.

He ranted about how all us bloggers just spend all our time attacking Eddie Jordan for "not putting enough young, black men in jail" and ignore the reopening of the projects, etc. Damn, we've been made! All us bloggers just want more black men for our plantations that will be built on the land seized by City Hall next to our housing project golf course! He pitched a public housing rally later in the day. I don't even remember what his question was about anymore. He then went around passing out flyers. DB stormed out of the room, pissed off. She then found out that Chairman Mao didn't pay! SHE BECAME A BITCH ON A MISSION!

Here are some photos:


"I'm here to collect you're registration fee..."

Dude, you're never going to be taken seriously wearing a fanny pack

DB kicked his sorry ass to the curb. He completely pissed off a pretty sympathetic crowd. I heard a few people suggesting to throw him in the lake... If he's an advocate for the poor, then they need fewer advocates.

Oh yeah, there were some socialists that showed up at the end, but they were pretty much ignored...

UPDATE- Chairman Mao's name is Jay Arena. More commentary from Varg.

Rising Tide

See y'all in a couple of weeks.

B.Rox/Ugly

Read the comments on this post by Editor B. A lively debate going on. Related discussion on The Chicory.

Pistolette. Another New Orleans blogger I just discovered.

Houstorleanians. Add that one to the good ole lexicon.

Around the Net

Found a few new local bloggers recently. Actually some of them I found a while ago, but am just getting around to posting.

The Wayward Episcopalian. Volunteer in NOLA.

Emily Metzgar. Campaigner against corruption. Mostly focused more on Louisiana than New Orleans.

City Biz Blog. City Business is one of the most under-read journals in the city. Their blog posts good stuff, but even fewer people read it.

Overheard in NOLA. CLASSIC NEW ORLEANS!!! You'll laugh your ass off. Vignettes that really represent the funkiness of New Orleans.

Xavier Nurse. A conservative New Orleans blogger. Lots of coverage of the Give Them Back controversy, which is another underreported story, IMHO.

I'll get them on the blog roll soon.

Also, here are a couple of nice articles to read:

State Farm attacks Dickie Scruggs. I actually met Dickie Scruggs during my Katrina-semester at Ole Miss. If I were the insurance industry, I'd be scared as hell of him. He's the man who brought big tobacco to its knees.

A collection of essays by former and current soldiers. Not Generals, but the little guys at the bottom. All are incredibly insightful and the collection covers a wide range of opinions on Iraq. The collection is titled "How a Democrat Can Get My Vote."

Wetlands and Marshes and Bloggers, oh my!

Look at what rising sea levels will do to the coastlines around the world. It starts off over in Europe, but scroll over to see Louisiana's coast. Time to start buying beachfront property in Baton Rouge!

Oh yeah, and the US is spending 100 million to restore Iraqi marshes. They've also got plans and are taking action. They're not studying it to death. It's an old headline, but I figure I'd bring it up again.

Great article about bloggers, libel, and the evolution of the 4th Estate (PDF).