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KVEC producer getting kicked for soccer comments

May 31, 2015

KVEC 2By KAREN VELIE

Comments made on a local radio talk show Thursday night have turned into a public chastising of producer and on-air sidekick Craig Hill. The incident took place during the 6 o’clock hour of “The Dave Congalton Show” on KVEC 920 AM, which features an “open-line” discussion between Congalton and Hill on current events.

The rebuke began after Congalton asked Hill his opinion of the growing international soccer controversy. according to the podcast.

Hill, hired in April to replace Joe Bowman, then went on a verbal rampage against the game of soccer that angered multiple callers to the show.  Hill repeatedly said he thought the invention of soccer was worse than World War II.

“Soccer, worst thing ever,” Hill said. “World War II and the Nazis, second. There is a direct correlation between the rise of crime and the rise of soccer.”

After multiple listeners told Hill they were repulsed by his comments, he said it was a joke, but then refused to apologize when Congalton asked him to.

After several more negative comments, Hill finally said he was sorry before noting his comments would have been fine on “an NBC sitcom.” Congalton then pointed out that Hill was following each apology up with an excuse.

“Stop, stop, stop right there. You are making excuses for it,” Congalton said.

Congalton declined to comment about the incident on Sunday and referred all queries to KVEC program director Andrew Cannon.

However, Barbara Bolton of Santa Margarita posted this statement on Congalton’s Facebook page:

“I really enjoy listening to your show on my commute home and have done so for years (through Tom, Mardi and Joe). I listen for the traffic reports and the local information I get. I have not fully embraced Craig but have been giving him a chance to get with the program and settle in. Tonight was the last straw. I think I have to turn back to KCBX for the commute home. His comments regarding soccer and Nazi’s was too over the top, and then would not even back down or apologize for what he said. You were right, he just doesn’t get it. It is not a joke. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but my opinion of him is not so good…he is just too annoying to listen to.”

Hill was not on the show Friday and there has been no announcement as to when he might return. Hill previously worked for local FM radio stations in the American General Media group.


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Fleetwood Mac-Oh Well:

“Don’t ask me what I think..cause I might not give the answer that you want me to” http://youtu.be/s5SSOoLuUlM


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So was this guy on the show today (monday) and if so was there a 6oclock “last call” with Dave and Craig ?


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No….Craig was suspended and is being replaced by Tom during Craig’s suspension.


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Craig Hill will be back on “Hometown Radio” on Wednesday.


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My dad always told me that Soccer was a communist sport….but now we see it’s the Soccer fans?


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So people will turn off a radio show because someone on that show hates soccer? What? Really? Come on get over it already. I hate soccer too! It’s like watching paint dry. 3 hours out of an afternoon with a score of 1-0? no thanks! and I refuse to watch a game where it’s not over until the refs say it’s over.


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Soccer. Heh.

http://www.theonion.com/r/17603


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The best comedy has truth in it…


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The headline and last paragraph make it seem like Craig got axed. Am I missing something?


Last weekend during Soccergate, Craig & Dave were chatting about how Craig was heading down last wkd to SoCal to spend time with his son. Isn’t that why he was gone on Fri?


As for the soccer joke, yeah anything involving Nazis isn’t PC for sure but Craig Hill shouldn’t get fired over it. Sheesh.


But if Craig DOES get canned, it will be because of Dave’s obvious disdain for him. Listening to Last Call now is uncomfortable. Those two don’t mesh at all. Joe knew how to sit back and let Dave vent. Craig chimes in too much and Dave doesn’t like it. At all.


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Why did Joe leave? Does anyone know? He really added to Dave’s radio broadcast in a positive way. I like Craig too…he has gotten better as time has gone by in my opinion. It’s also fun to hear Tom from time to time.


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A few months ago Joe announced that he was staying on KVEC as a behind-the-scenes p/t producer-kind-of-guy on Dave’s show and joining King Harris in the mornings as a news sidekick. Maybe he also got another side job with more hours(?)


I also really liked Joe on Dave’s show. They didn’t always agree but they respected each other. Almost sounded like Joe was Dave’s son or nephew because they seemed to hit it off. Good on-air chemistry, enjoyable to listen to.


Years ago I liked Mardi Hall and of course Tom’s a nice guy…but there’s something about having a younger, fresh, nice and mellow guy like Joe to balance out Dave’s often curmudgeonly ways.


Dave Congalton is/was like the sometimes grumpy David Letterman and Joe B. was the mellow, chipper Paul Schaeffer who’s there to make the host smile and remind him to lighten up. :)


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I like that description, PP. Can’t disagree with a word you say (for once!).


Joe Bowman left my show in early April. He now does the morning news with King Harris from 6 to 9 a.m. and then goes off to a full-time, well-paying job with benefits and he’s having a blast. That split shift of morning news and my show was killing him.


Each producer brings something different to Hometown Radio, as it will be with Craig Hill.


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I don’t get it, who was he offending? Unless “soccer” is code for Hispanics. Is that what this is all about?


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No More Anger…..

There was no race Code talk…but you don;t have to offend special groups these days.

To offend all you have to do is say something that people find uncomfortable and would rather not hear said! People are SOOOO babied that, as some have posted, that they actually yell at the radio when hearing something they disagree with, it’s a form of bullying, cyberbullying or Radiobullying.


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I’m offended that you say I’m wrong!


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I think the offensive part is probably minimizing the atrocities of Nazi Germany and WWII. Jewish people tend to get a little upset over that one.


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New commandment for today’s society..thou shalt not offend.


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Could Carlin make it as a new comedian in todays world?

Answer…..no.


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If George Carlin was reincarnated right now as his same old twenty something old self, he would have a tough time of it, until he got up to speed on our current political, economic and tech-savvy world, then yes, I believe that he was a very high intelligence that would enable him to skewer our modern day politicians regardless of their party affiliation.


Same goes for Bill Hicks; allow either of them awhile to get caught up on current issues, and yowza, there would be some real fireworks; everyone would be fair game, but not in an uncalled for vicious manner, unless you were one of their targets.


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George Carlin would be a star anywhere but in this stagnant, vanilla culture we have created. We have no diversity, we have eliminated Mardi Gras, Poly Royale and we have taken the uniqueness out of downtown. We are what i had hoped the parents of our local politicians had been……sterile.


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Ah the joys of a spoiled life… where one can get riled up over a lame, but obvious joke.


We have it so hard… I wish we’d stop inventing problems and blowing them out of proportion.


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” … where one can get riled up over a lame, but obvious joke.” Tell that to someone who had a relative die in one of the “labor camps” and were either gassed, shot or hanged. Real funny.


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