More details later, for now here’s the press release from the University:
Cleary Named Interim KHSU Chief
Aug 18, 2008
Arcata – Humboldt State Vice President of Advancement Rob Gunsalus (on left above) has named Patrick Cleary, President of Lost Coast Communications, interim general manager of the University’s radio station, KHSU-FM, with immediate effect.
In announcing the appointment August 18, Dr. Gunsalus said Cleary’s track record of consistent achievement in broadcasting, business, and community endeavors met the University’s criteria for
KHSU
’s new leadership.
“I believe it is imperative that
KHSU
have strong interim management,” Gunsalus said at a campus news conference.
“Day-to-day operations and the approaching October pledge drive require firm direction. Patrick’s appointment will enable station staff and volunteers to function at full strength. From today forward, underwriters can be assured of sound leadership as
KHSU
opens a new and promising chapter in its distinguished service to the Redwood Coast Community.”
Accepting the appointment, Cleary set two priorities. “Step one is to secure
KHSU
’s financial stability, both short- and long-term,” he said. “We must put the station’s financial house in order, to stem its losses and ensure its viability during a period of serious budget pressures on the state and the University.”
He said his second order of business is to buttress partnerships with current underwriters, recruit new ones and enlist expanded community support for the station. “
KHSU
has many strengths,” he said, “and it clearly has done a good job of building a large and passionate audience. Evaluation of the station’s program costs, which are climbing, must be handled professionally, taking into account community support as well as ratings.”
Cleary’s leadership of Lost Coast Communications, which operates three award-winning FM radio stations in the region, has pivoted on locally-originated programming. Prior to his arrival in Humboldt County in 1997, Cleary served on the board of directors of Act
III
Broadcasting, Icelandic Broadcasting Corporation and the Independence Broadcasting Corporation. He has 17 years of experience in finance in New York City and was successively vice president and managing director of Chase Manhattan Bank’s Media and Telecommunications Division.
This article appears in In The Green Room.
“Evaluation of the station’s program costs, which are climbing, must be handled professionally..”
THAT is equivelant to a ‘what do you do here at the organization’ form…or in other words, the ax man cometh.
Now that I see what he looks like, I’ll have to start referring to him as Robby.
Doesn’t it seem like a conflict of interest to hire the leader of the competition? Perhaps Gunsalus & Richmond are banking on Cleary’s good reputation in the community to deflect further criticism and deeper probing into what is really going on. And who are they going to ax? There are only 6 paid staff members at KHSU anyways.
Now, Quick, Before anyone notices….cancel all NPR programming….
“Humboldt State Vice President of Advancement Rob Gunsalus” Advancement of what?
Anon 5:39pm asks – “Doesn’t it seem like a conflict of interest to hire the leader of the competition?”
Evidently this one sentence from the gunsalus press release is supposed to erase any concerns:
“I will approve all new underwriting contracts and review any loss of underwriters. I will also review programming changes with an eye toward how they affect KHSU’s positioning in the market, especially as they relate to Lost Coast Communications.”
That’s it? Seems kind of thin.
nice way to lead into an across the board reduction in salaries.
“You increase funding or you decrease expenses,” he said. Gunsalus said Cleary has accepted a reduced salary of $40,000. The position will be slightly less than full-time.
Everything is in order now.
Get back to your meditation room.
All is well, go back to sleep.
Who knows what rough beast slouches towards
Bethlehem?
i can think of no finer individual for complete and full dedication to any project. i have known pat for many years and have watched a brilliant man consistently put power and new energy to a variety of interests and endeavors, always finishing with a more highly polished and refined product. i certainly know he puts his heart (a great one) and his mind ( a complex and brilliant one ) into it.
i feel better about maintaining my membership with KHSU with pat as interim…
I can. How about someone whose best personal interest wouldn’t be to sink the station or at least use the inside knowledge he gains to make his own stations outperform the competition (KHSU)?
We’re a small town, so we’re supposed to ignore conflict of interest? This is truly sad, and even sadder that the decision has been anointed by the news media.
interesting that you would not leave your name. i always wonder about the hiding behind an anonymous. i think that pat has a longer view of things. his profile is always at stake. why would a smart person shoot themselves in the foot …in this instance , if he does not help shore up the financial and listener support for , mind you, an interim period only…it will only make his other ineterests be taken less seriously.
i also think that pat’s other radio interests do not compete with KHSU. i listen to all of them for different reasons at different times of the day…i guess that is why there is a dial on the radio..
i am going to be optimistic and if there is something i do not like, i have no fear of telling mister cleary directly of my concerns…
but perhaps you had another more qualified person in mind that can walk right in?
Really? It’s rather common on blogs.
So you’re saying that there’s no inside knowledge to be gained from leading KHSU that he could not use without it becoming public knowledge? I so seriously doubt that.
Really? Wow. Ad dollars are ad dollars. Companies don’t spend money everywhere. They have limited funds to spend. Every new media outlet means less dollars for existing media outlets. Every radio station competes with every other one, KHUM and KHSU perhaps even more so.
You don’t see a conflict of interest? The mere appearance of it should be enough to nix the arrangement. But this administration apparently doesn’t care about appearances.
Should we even be talking about KHSU, in terms of “..Market Positioning?” I thought it was a community radio station.
The die is cast and we shall see. Hang on for the ride.
I just love the conspiracy theories spun by people that have no idea what they are talking about. Secret advertising lists? Give me a break. The best way to get that list is to, and this is a shocker, listen to the station. You hear an underwriter mentioned, they must have paid for that mention. Real rocket science. You don’t have to work for a station to find out who advertises on them. Duh, it’s advertising, they don’t keep those names secret.
“The best way to get that list is to, and this is a shocker, listen to the station.”
It’s even easier than that. When Charles Horn was development director (and web guy) he created a page on the KHSU site with phone numbers and weblinks for all of the underwriters:
http://www.khsu.org/underwriters
Huh? Who mentioned secret advertiser lists 10:10, besides yourself?
On the surface, it may look like a conflict of interest, but perhaps not. Patrick Cleary took the helm of KHUM and turned it around, and added another station, in fact. KHSU needs someone with vision in order to right the ship, so it doesn’t go down like the Titanic.
I’m happy that HSU decided to appoint Patrick as interim GM. Now, the station can get back to business and begin to get things back in order. Only then can a search for a new station manager begin.
You make the claim, then provide no evidence. Your justification could be summed up as, “but he’s a good guy and I trust him, so let’s look past the conflict of interest.”
Another question is, how much will the U actually let Cleary do? Will he be free to make decisions and changes? I think not. He’s just there to staunch the bleeding.
The next real GM will be the one to be concerned about.
Something’s wrong with that Gonsalus dude. Look at that photo for too long and your molecular structure will begin to vibrate. Serious. A word to the wise….