Discuss: Parade Behavior

[Arp2]

...and parade broadcast behavior....

"Everybody loves a parade"...well, I hate parades, but, if a parade is going to be on TV, I'm probably going to record it and watch it back fast to see if and how radio stations had a presence. Such was the case Saturday on WGN...the annual "Bud Billiken Parade" ran 2.5 hours, and the broadcast was hosted by one of the female news anchors from WGN-TV and a male jock from V103 with sideline -- er, side-of-the-street! -- reporting from a male WGN-TV reporter and a Power 92 jock.

(The "Bud Billiken Parade" is one with a strange background...apparently originally created as a way for Chicago's black population to throw itself a parade on the southside for virtually no reason, it has come to be an "awareness" event centered around kids going back to school and doing so on the first day of school so that Chicago schools can get maximum state and federal taxpayer money. "Bud Billiken?" Apprently, nobody...the originators supposedly made the name up out of thin air.)

The big radio presence that I saw came a little over two hours in (I had missed a little more than half of it) from Clear Channel's bigger black-targeted stations there -- WGCI (urban) and V-103 (urban AC).

First up was WGCI...a small- or medium-sized Peterbilt or something with a long flatbed (connected, not a trailer) with a concert-sized set of speaker cabinets and steps leading up to a large platform over the cab and engine where several of the station's jocks and mixers danced, gyrated, and worked their mics. The rest of the station's on-air staff was out in front on Segways that featured signage with the station's logo and the jock's name, and very large street team / security folks flanked each side of the truck.

When WGCI came to the place where the TV was being done, the talents on the Segways came to a stop and arranged themselves roughly in a line across the road, causing the truck and everything behind it to come to a stop. And I do mean a stop! Not a little pause for the cameras, not a little slowing in the hope for a little more camera time...an absolute stop!

The V-103 jock who was co-hosting the TV -- a 16-year former WGCI jock, himself -- took over the broadcast. Almost with a beat to it and sounding like he was "going free-style," he plugged WGCI, the WGCI parade entry sponsor, Clear Channel radio as a whole, and each and every jock who was there. With some quick prompting from parade officials, the Segways and the truck started moving again...slowly. And then stopped again!

At this point, mild panic obviously set in with the TV folks. The WGN-TV cohost went to her time-filler "a parade like this can't go on without the help of" stuff, and the director looked for something else to shoot, finding nothing but WGCI in front of every camera. WGN cohost runs out of stuff for the moment, leaving nothing but the music and talk from WGCI's entry filling the otherwise dead air. Finally, the V-103 jock speaks up again...

"Dey tryin' to shut da parade down!"

WGN anchorette: "I know...right."

V-103 jock: "Whooo! Shut...shut it...'shut it down' mean dat's a good thang."

Well, the TV producer finally figured out something to do -- toss it to a sideline reporter...the one who's the (competing) Power 92 jock.

WGN anchorette: "Trey The Chocolate Jock, what's up?"

Video switches to a two-shot of the jock on the left and a food vendor on the right...a very large sistah who, with her left arm down inside the neck of her shirt adjusting the apparatus that tries to hold up her 25-pounds-apiece breasts, clearly wasn't expecting to be on TV just yet.

Food vendor woman pulls her hand out of her shirt, smiles, starts bouncing somewhat, and waves that big arm and hand that had just been...

Power 92 jock: "Shouts...Shouts out to my Power 92 family! Power92Chicago-dot-com!"

Oh, shoot....now he's plugging his station! This is a disaster! Somebody somewhere obviously makes a decision -- go to a dang break this instant!

Power 92 jock: "(Blah blah food blah blah)...well, I'll get to this after the break, man. The 78th annual 'Bud Billiken Day Parade' back in a minute...TreyTheChocolateJockPower92WhatItDoPower92WhatUpWhatUpWhatUp!"

Cut him off!

Dissolve back to jib shot with a high, panoramic view...and WGCI hasn't moved!

....Three-minute break.....

We're back, and WGCI has apparently moved on...but, three minutes later, V-103 hasn't! V-103 has come to an absolute stop! V-103 has a multiple-vehicle entry...

First was a V-103 SUV pulling a V-103 float which featured a small-venue sound system, balloons, staff, etc.

Then came some sort of convertible sedan with Tom Joyner and partner, followed by a Jeep convertible with more jocks, followed by another Jeep convertible with more jocks, followed by another SUV with more jocks and station staff.

Now, of course, with this being the WGN anchorette's favorite station and the other cohost's station, yes, V-103, each jock, the station's program director, the station's website....everything got plugged.

And then came the V-103 / Diet Pepsi Max Tour Bus!

V-103 jock: "Look at it! Look at, look at, look...Look at our bus! Look at our bus comin'! The V-103 / Diet Pepsi Max...dat's how we do it! Go to V103-dot-com and check us out."

WGN anchorette: "You don't have any coke on that bus?"

V-103 jock: (a laugh explodes out)

WGN anchorette: (laugh) "Coca-Cola?"

Finally, seven minutes and fifteen seconds after they first appeared, these two radio stations have passed and are no longer on the screen. The hosts keep talking about V-103, though, for another 15 seconds.

Next is a children's dance group...which gets a whole 20-25 seconds on the screen with only about 10 seconds of that including talk about them.

And, then, it's WVON. The hosts talk about V-103 for another 15 or 20 seconds with WVON on the screen. The V-103 jock cohost finally gets into the WVON stuff but all but says his own station's website when it comes time to mention the 'VON website.

About fifteen minutes later, it's time for the show to go off the air, but -- gee! -- the parade, for whatever reason, isn't over yet! A big chunk of the parade, including its big finish, just couldn't make it on the air!

Alright.......go!

[Dave Loudin]

The only things that should be in a parade: marching bands, covertables carring beauty queens throwing candy, and a few fire trucks. All other elements should be illegal, especially twirler groups that use 5-watt amps for sound.

[Bob Campbell]

MAGNIFICENT media manipulation.
And yes, TV people are the dumbest media people in the world.

[EZ103.3FM]

Where's Bud Dailey when you need him????

That man could DO a parade.....

[Hoosier Daddy]

The only things that should be in a parade: marching bands, covertables carring beauty queens throwing candy, and a few fire trucks. All other elements should be illegal, especially twirler groups that use 5-watt amps for sound.

Thank you. I don't watch a parade to be "marketed".

[Lee]

Five words.

The Ironton Memorial Day Parade.

Stretch pants, welfare, BO, and cheap food that gives you the shits.

It's the Wal-Mart of the parade circuit.

[Hoosier Daddy]

Stretch pants, welfare, BO, and cheap food that gives you the shits.

The Lawrence County Fair.

When you've seen one white trash eatin' a corndog, you've seen 'em all.




P.S. I always liked the Arnton Memorial Day parade.

[Bob Campbell]

Gallia County Fair, or even worse, Meigs County Fair. Makes Lawrence look like The World's Fair in New York in '65.