Thursday, November 17, 2016

Has Bates checked in?


This morning, the staff e-mail contained the following notice of the "ewport" canceling and reschedule. Of course, we already heard that, but the significance of this announcement is that it came from Tony Bates. You remember Bates, don't you? His incompetence and behavior inspired some 100 staff/volunteers to sign a petition demanding his firing. Reimers had no option but to comply, so Bates was barred from WBAI.
CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE

Reimers—too widely disrespected to have anything to lose—brought him back for one of his marketing sprees and as if by magic, the salaried lemmings made a turn-around and all but fell to their knees. Bates was brought back again for the recent five-week scam-a-thon, and he was oilier than ever as he plowed new paths of deceit.

Now Bates appears to have been granted tenure by Reimers, a move that—if true—raises a tin cup-full of questions.

Here's what staffers and volunteers found in their communal inbox:

Subject: Report to the Listener Rescheduled
Date: Wed, 16 Nov 2016 13:50:12 -0500
From: Tony Bates <tonybates@wbai.org>

Greetings All,
We've had to cancel the report to the listener today. It is rescheduled for Wednesday, November 30th, from 4 - 6 PM.
Thank you,
Tony Bates
Programming Manager
WBAI 99.5 FM
388 Atlantic Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11217

One insider, R. Paul Martin, posted the following reaction on his restricted blueboard—the one with the tumbling tumbleweed:

"...I have to wonder if Bates has actually been hired for something. The General Manager had told the local Finance Committee, when he was coming to it, that Bates was hired only as a consultant to run the 'thons. "Programming Manager" is not a Staff position. It isn't Management, either. There has also been a hiring freeze in Pacifica for a long time. Maybe someone can get the General Manager to clarify just what's going on with this."


ADDENDA:

SDL asked R. Paul:
So another question, which is probably layered in mystery. If Reimers can't really unilaterally hire Bates, who's paying his salary?
R. Paul posted his response this morning (Friday Nov 18):


A good question"I can't say for certain because I have been given no information. The General Manager hasn't told the local Finance Committee anything about having Bates do anything beyond the 'thons. I suspect that the salary must be coming from the general operational budget, probably a line for "Consultants."

The proposed "draft of a draft" WBAI FY17 budget contains a line called "Consultant Related Exp." which shows a grand total of $0. But then we have the line "Consultants" which shows $2,500 for each month from November 2016, through September 2017, which adds up to $27,500. But we have someone who's serving as Web master now, and the previous Web master, who passed away a couple of months ago, was being paid $3,500 a month. I also see a line "Fund Drive Expenses" that shows $6,000 a month for a total of $72,000 for FY17.

The draft of a draft FY17 budget is advertised as incomplete. So it's hard to draw a lot of reliable information from it. FWIW, looking at the latest P&L I see that the line "Consultant/Temps/Contractuals" shows $213,813 for FY15 and $240,864 for FY16.

If we can get the General Manager to communicate with us, this "Programming Manager" compensation issue will be one of the questions we'll ask.

18 comments:

  1. One of Bates poorer decisions was putting Marie Faustin's "Tall Tales In the Big City" in the 7-8 PM Thursday slot. I'm sitting here trying to figure out what the show is all about. What a terrible waste of time and space.

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  2. I saw the Bates Motel at Universal Studios, Hollywood.

    KGT

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    Replies
    1. It's part of the studio tour, isn't it? Born old, it never becomes passé.

      At the risk of sounding paranoid, I wonder if Tony Bates is a rook in the Siegel-Wilkinson game or if he is pushing for Reimers' job?

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  3. I wonder if that Home of the Rat crap was a Bates idea. What on Earth is that woman rambling about? Is it supposed to be some sort of literary show to make up for the late Simon Loakly?

    SDL

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  4. Well, maybe Bates will be the one person with the balls to fire Fass and his drugged out friends.

    SDL

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    Replies
    1. It's his way of maintaining that little long past world of his when he meant something. You really just have to feel sorry for him.

      SDL

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    2. I do, actually, but he brought this on himself—he could have turned off that beaten path and utilized the past instead of dwelling on it. I don't regret having brought him back to WBAI, buy that was fifty years ago! He wasted all that time nourishing the ego that beca,e a roadblock.

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    3. He just couldn't let go of his glory days and face reality. He reminds of that doof Joe Piscopo, whose only success was riding Eddie Murphy's coattails. He keeps pretending to be a star by kissing peoples' asses, but he's a pathetic joke with a little morning radio show. Some people just can't let go.

      SDL

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  5. (JustAlistener)

    Maybe Reimers is marking Trump's election by by putting a person accused of sexual harassment in a position of power at WBAI.

    The hypocrisy of it is barely worth mentioning - sounds like WBAI is slowly dropping any women's or LGBT issues programming and migrating toward it's goal of Haitian male rights/entertainment programs 24/7.
    Still, I wonder what what legal risk exists by hiring back someone who was dismissed in part because of sexual harassment allegations. (Even letting him into the building seems shaky to me, but I'm not a lawyer).

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  6. Since Bates is back again (and his email address is posted here), I'm assuming that he's being bombarded w/complaints? Unless of course his email filters have wide parameters. Or, he takes the Reimers "I Don't Give a ____ About My Damn Emails" approach?

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  7. Howard Jordan .... wondering how people around the world think about afro/latino people .
    Skin color seems to be the only thing this man is capable of talking about . How Sad .

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    Replies
    1. Fire Jordan and put Luciano in his place. Now that would be a funny joke!

      SDL

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    2. People like Jordan think in a very limited space.

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    3. @SDL Luciano is preoccupied with his own light hue these days, hence the leitmotif of his Friday show: I am BLACK! I am BLACK! I am BLACK! I am BLACK!, I really, really, really am!

      BTW, we were spared that this morning. Credico did the show and he was very good—they should give it to him and, if they must keep Felipe, give him R. Paul Taylor's throw-away slot.

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    4. I guess the punchline wasn't obvious. Both are Mr Latino, but Luciano is better known. I thought it would just be funny to have a nothing like Jordan replaced by someone known doing the same basic shtick. Anyway, I haven't listened to Luciano in weeks, so maybe he has changed since he started the show.

      I have to admit that Credico befuddles me. Sometimes he's an obnoxious loonie leftie, but other times he does decent interviews, like the Frank Serpico one. In the end, even though I think he can be a jerk, I would keep him on the air if I were PD because he has more to offer than he has drawbacks.

      SDL

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    5. Got it!

      I agree with your assessment of Credico.

      Delete
  8. at LA's KPFK we call him an "interim" "Program Director "- even after 5+ ? yrs.and still interiming there...unwilling to share or give up that good position with whatver Payola all programmers and those selecting dem programmers also get -

    since programmers at KPFK constantly & continually promote events, musicians,guests... anyone actually, poticos and their websites and friends and friends of friends...and all 'for free' - or pretend it is all generous PR given gratuitously.Sure.

    so Who'se gonna believe those free promos ? or ever admit the benefits all dem altruistic benefitors = programmers and their supervisors get ?

    And Tony Bates used to work at the LA station ....long ago ...and left...

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    Replies
    1. The very same thing has been going on at WBAI, now more blatantly than ever. The most recent ad campaign was conducted by Ron Daniels, who delivered on a noticeably rigid schedule a commercial for his "nation time again" conference in Newark—he gave out a non-WBAI number as he solicited registration, an effort that carried over into his two-hour weekly show. Jeannie Hopper has been running her little scam for a long time—early criticism finally forced her to add that "some proceeds" of her dances and boat rides will go to WBAI. As has become the modus operandi, she gives out the address and direct phone number. How vague is that? Non-commercial radio? Not any more.

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