The names of the more than twenty folks who were laid off by Clear Channel Denver yesterday continue to filter out -- among them, Mark Abuzzahab, who served as both music director and evening host for KBCO. In some ways, the decision to release Abuzzahab, who declined to comment for this blog, is predictable: In January, during the first wave of Clear Channel Denver layoffs, music directors at KBPI and KTCL were let go -- meaning that Abuzzahab was the last music director standing in CC's metro-area cluster. And yet, he's got a national reputation for his music-selecting skill: In 2008, he was named the top triple-A music director in the country by FMQB (Friday Morning Quarterback), a radio-industry publication. Moreover, KBCO's overall numbers for the most recent ratings period were excellent -- up nearly 15 percent among listeners twelve and over from the previous quarter -- and he's consistently racked up strong numbers in KBCO's demographic during his regular air shift.
Just goes to show that in today's economic climate, even proven performers can find themselves on the outside looking in.
