I hadn't listened to Karel's show on KGO in a while, and I recently found out that he had been fired over an accident involving a live mic. The incident happened shortly before the election, and it involved a mention of "Joe the Plumber" in a top-of-the-hour news story. Here is an aircheck: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ym0nyGyhjxw

Bummer!

Man, I don't think people should be losing it over something like that. It's too GODDAMMED draconian.

It's interesting that an openly gay talk show host would make a disparaging comment about anyone!

Not Karel.
He would often talk bad about his fellow talkers on KGO.

He did his show from his studio in Los Angeles. The Kgo board op didn't kill his mike during the news. He ASSumed it was off! Board op was fired also!

Isn't there a light or other indicator that tells whether or not the mic is hot for which the host should be aware of?

It wouldn't help if the light is on in S.F. if you are in a stuido in L.A.That's why you should NEVER cuss in the stuido. It could come back to bite you.

Confucius say, "ALL mike hot."

Yeah, this is one of those ignore the problem and it will go away kind of things, isn't it?

Still draconian.

On the plus side, Karel did issue an apology. I hope that the Karel fans in San Francisco stage a coffee cup protest or something similar an that KGO management reconsiders. I think that the board op did deserve some reprimand because that is not the first time that I have heard the remote studio feeds left open on Saturday night. I am not sure whether this should have been considered a fireable offense for the board op.

Also, I wasn't aware before now that the Karel show was done from a remote studio. As such, he would have had no way of knowing that his comments went out over the air until somebody confronted him about it.

The standard operating procedure at KGO is for the board op to say "You're clear" when the mic is off the program channel and "You're hot" when it's on again. Karel's mic channel was also used for the online stream on his website, where he knew that people could hear him. Thus when he let fling a bunch of obscenities during the ABC news, he knew that the people on his web page could hear him. Either that or he talks to himself....

I have no sympathy for Karel. He bragged so much about his KFI days and his KGO days that you'd think he knew at least the first thing about broadcasting: You don't curse anywhere near a mic.

what happened to the 7?second delay too delete the booboo's??

Its not uncommon for the board op to use the network news to go get a cup of coffee, use the bathroom or go and have a smoke break. The network news is considered to be a "safe" time to leave your post. And you know how long the news is.

> Karel's mic channel was also used for the online stream on his website, where he knew that people
> could hear him.

Now it makes more sense. When I first heard the aircheck, I thought that his comments were directed to the board op. When I found out that Karel was in a different city than the board op, I thought, who was Karel talking to? Nonetheless, saying that you want Joe The Plumber dead is bad form, even on an online stream, in my opinion.

Pretty stupid rookie mistake for a pro to make. All mikes are assumed to be hot. First thing you learn.

The second I step in the studio or get my gear ready for play by play the cussing stops. The Mic is always hot.

another fix might be to charge him a $$$$ penalty deducted from next paycheck?they could have different prices for each different cuss word!!??a couple weeks ago KOAP ran a program aboutx-pres Nixon! it incluced a film/tape of him using an explative deleted! the S word!I was a bit surprized they didnt edit that out!!he said an old country(?)phrasewith that word in it!!??

The occasional bomb in a legitimate news context is an exception. Management will squirm, church ladies may cluck, but even the Bush FCC won't come down on that.

A followup on Karel's story: he wasn't actually in the radio station...he did his KGO show from his home in SoCal. They hit the net break, he got up to "make tea," and reacted, as he did, to a news story about Joe the Plumber. His board op had left his microphone on. My buddy Jack Swanson, KGO PD, showed the board op the door, too.

(One of those most infuriating aspects of my own toe-dipping into so-called "major markets" was the need to entrust my career to the hands of contract-protected professional board-ops who couldn't run that thing a tenth as well as I can)

Karel blames the board op and Janice Jackson's left breast. I think Karel trusted the board op too much, and for some reason underestimates the power of the female bosom.

Ouch!!

This makes a bit more sense. Thanks!

The mic is hot, the tape is rolling and negativeland is out there....waiting.

love that ---> negativeland!

I hate living there! Is it possible to move?

Still think it's draconian though. Why can't a simple explanation be aired. We've all said stupid shit in our homes and to our friends. It's human.

So then, put the humanity out there, suck it up, and move on.

The mic is hot, the tape is rolling and Negativland is out there....waiting.

R. Reagan knew Confucious a couple few times!!!!

Some say Reagan knew his words would be picked up...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zv13ZnkpWos