Elaine Liner
is Caller-Times' media critic. Her columns are published Tuesdays, Thursdays,
and Sundays. She has been known to occasionally gossip with her readers in the
Elaine
Liner Forum. Elaine can be reached at linere@caller.com
Friday, January 7, 2000
Dean and Rusty show KO'ed from K-99
Cutting edge radio morning show deemed too controversial by management
Two of Corpus Christi's most listened-to country radio DJ's got the boot Tuesday. Dean Jaxon and Rusty Aldridge, who hosted the morning "Dean and Rusty Show" on country station KRYS-FM/99.1 for the past year and a half, were let go shortly after their shift ended at 10 a.m.
Aldridge, speaking for the duo, said they were called in separately to program director Clayton Allen's office and told they were being fired.
"He told us he was sorry but they had done a 'perceptual study' of 500 people and that basically the listeners hated us," Aldridge said.
The DJ's were told their show was offensive, controversial and not in keeping with K-99's image as a family-oriented country music radio station, Aldridge said.
Dean and Rusty recently were winners of a Caller-Times "Best of the Best" award as the readers' favorite morning DJ team. Their show also rated at the top in last spring's local Arbitron listenership survey. The fall Arbitron survey results won't be released until February.
Allen said K-99, which is part of the six-station group owned by AMFM, Inc., had received many complaints about Dean and Rusty's on-air topics, which Allen deemed "too cutting edge."
"Dean and Rusty do a very controversial style of show that lit off fires and touched emotions. And quite a few listeners were upset, especially about anything of a sexual nature," said Allen. "K-99 is a station very focused on music and fun. Dean and Rusty wanted to stay controversial and cutting edge. At the company, we don't want to be cutting edge and controversial. Corpus Christi listeners are very conservative and quick to fault."
Allen said the firings were a result of a "general consensus" at the station that changes needed to be made on the 6 to 10 a.m. weekday show.
"Cactus Lou" Ramirez, formerly the evening shift DJ on K-99, has been promoted to the morning show to replace Dean and Rusty.
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