What a Turnaround!

radioinfo asked 702ABC boss Roger Summerill whether he was disappointed that the 2UE/2GB merger had been called off. After all, his station might have benefited most from a listener backlash aimed at the other two. He answered, “In my head, Yes. But in my heart, No”.

Usually it’s only in the movies where ‘heart’ triumphs over ‘head’. Only in TV sitcoms would you get a scenario where high profile presenters like a Mike Carlton and a John Laws would side with mortal staff against the boss and win. Yet this week, a real life Scrooge story was played out in Sydney, perfectly timed for Christmas.

Could you imagine this happening at your station? Would your announcers dare criticise a corporate decision on air in the same way as Carlton and Laws did? It’s already happened at the ABC’s RN where staff have voted no confidence in a manager (see news story above). Could this be the start of a trend at your station/network where staff could stick their necks out to influence management through microphone diplomacy?

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