In Defense of Randy Michaels

Tribune CEO Randy Michaels is being ripped for banning 119 words or phrases from being uttered on WGN. Knowers know that this has Lee Abrams fingerprints all over it — but here’s why they’re right…

Photo From The Los Angeles Times

Randy Michaels is a product guy.

He rose the ranks of radio to the top of the Jacor group, which he then, with current Tribune owner Sam Zell, rolled up into Clear Channel Radio. Randy found himself at the top of that, too.

At some point Clear Channel felt they didn’t need a product guy, and they forced him out. We can hear the tired results of that move every day.

Last week, Randy memoed his WGN News Director, Charlie Meyerson with a list of newly forbidden “newsspeak.” With few exceptions, the 119 words and phrases could have come from something called the Reporter’s Cliché Handbook, if one had existed.

Additionally, Michaels handed out bingo cards with the clichés on them and encouraged staffers to play along — even turning in fellow staffers if they heard the phrases used on the air. (By the way, anyone in the know has to know that this is not likely the work of Randy, but instead Tribune Chief Innovation Officer Lee Abrams. This has Lee’s fingerprints all over it.)

The report was picked up worldwide and Michaels, for the most part, was savaged.

Savaged mostly because the CEO of the bankrupt Tribunue Company shouldn’t be spending his time micromanaging things like this.

Or should he?

What I find most amazing about how newsrooms handled a story about another newsroom, is how they failed to report the essence of the story. They failed to read between the lines and report on the point Michaels was trying to make. I shouldn’t be surprised.

The point, from Randy Michaels the product guy, is that the product sucks.

Hearing his news operation rely on these tired crutches is only a symptom of a larger problem.  Michaels senses it and it must drive him nuts.

Journalism is in real trouble in America– it’s on autopilot– and Randy Michaels is just pointing out one part of it.

The American Press snoozed through the Iraq War, and sleepwalks still while Wall Street commits theft and propagandistic cable channels lie about health care.

Instead of actual news reporting from actual sources, we get armchair journalism and sensationalized, cliché-ridden copy.

So if Randy Michaels and, I suspect, Lee Abrams want to pull a stunt to shock their newsroom out of a zombie state, I’m all for it.

Here’s a list of the banned phrases:

• “Flee” meaning “run away”
• “Good” or “bad” news
• “Laud” meaning “praise”
• “Seek” meaning “look for”
• “Some” meaning “about”
• “Two to one margin” . . . “Two to one” is a ratio, not a margin. A margin is measured in points. It’s not a ratio.
• “Yesterday” in a lead sentence
• “Youth” meaning “child”
• 5 a.m. in the morning
• After the break
• After these commercial messages
• Aftermath
• All of you
• Allegations
• Alleged
• Area residents
• As expected
• At risk
• At this point in time
• Authorities
• Auto accident
• Bare naked
• Behind bars
• Behind closed doors
• Behind the podium (you mean lecturn) [sic]
• Best kept secret
• Campaign trail
• Clash with police
• Close proximity
• Complete surprise
• Completely destroyed, completely abolished, completely finished or any other completely redundant use
• Death toll
• Definitely possible
• Diva
• Down in (location)
• Down there
• Dubbaya when you mean double you
• Everybody (when referring to the audience)
• Eye Rack or Eye Ran
• False pretenses
• Famed
• Fatal death
• Fled on foot
• Folks
• Giving 110%
• Going forward
• Gunman, especially lone gunman
• Guys
• Hunnert when you mean hundred
• Icon
• In a surprise move
• In harm’s way
• In other news
• In the wake of (unless it’s a boating story)
• Incarcerated
• Informed sources say . . .
• Killing spree
• Legendary
• Lend a helping hand
• Literally
• Lucky to be alive
• Manhunt
• Marred
• Medical hospital
• Mother of all (anything)
• Motorist
• Mute point. (It’s moot point, but don’t say that either)
• Near miss
• No brainer
• Officials
• Our top story tonight
• Out in (location)
• Out there
• Over in
• Pedestrian
• Perfect storm
• Perished
• Perpetrator
• Plagued
• Really
• Reeling
• Reportedly
• Seek
• Senseless murder
• Shots rang out
• Shower activity
• Sketchy details
• Some (meaning about)
• Some of you
• Sources say . . .
• Speaking out
• Stay tuned
• The fact of the matter
• Those of you
• Thus
• Time for a break
• To be fair
• Torrential rain
• Touch base
• Under fire
• Under siege
• Underwent surgery
• Undisclosed
• Undocumented alien
• Unrest
• Untimely death
• Up in (location)
• Up there
• Utilize (you mean use)
• Vehicle
• We’ll be right back
• Welcome back
• Welcome back everybody
• We’ll be back
• Went terribly wrong
• We’re back
• White stuff (meaning snow)
• World class
• You folks

Blogger Ian Chillag attempts to use all 119 in a single sentence at NPR.org.