Thanks to a commenter in one of the many very active discussions about David Lee Roth, we learn that he’s out. Says DCRTV.com:
This just in: CBS Radio has removed the low-rated David Lee Roth (right) from his post-Howard Stern morning slot at the company’s stations in NYC, Philadelphia, Boston, and Pittsburgh. Just in time for the spring ratings sweep, which starts tomorrow. “JV And Elvis” now airs in NYC, at least. CBS recently flipped Philadelphia rocker WYSP, which carried Stern in morning drive, to “Free FM” all-talk with Roth in mornings. And it has plunged from 4th to 19th place in the ratings. We’ll get more info later today about how the Junkies are doing as Stern’s replacement at DC’s WJFK-FM and Baltimore’s WHFS when another round of Arbitrends gets released…..
Listening to Stern this morning, he recounted the ratings disasters that CBS has on its hand: three of the five lowest-rated stations in New York and each a former powerhouse, for example. Roth was a disaster from the first minute but Stern’s right: We can’t blame him for CBS’s woes. Those are CBS’s.
Dave was off the air this morning — reportedly suspended, was the rumor — and in just five minutes, I could tell that his replacements were better. They’re no Stern. But they’re not David Lee Roth, either.
: This from yesterday’s NY Post: “…Roth’s February Arbitron numbers were only half of what he averaged in January. According to Post radio reporter John Mainelli, Stern had 277,000 listeners at any given moment last December – while Roth had only 32,000 listeners last month.” There are plenty of blogs that are bigger.
: UPDATE: Here‘s the NY Post story. CBS is saying he wasn’t suspended and is on his way back from Miami. Last I knew, you could fly that route in a few hours, not a few days. The Post says he was ordered to redo the show. He’s still off the air today (Thursday).