Talk host fired for telling listeners to go elsewhere

NewsTalk Unemployed

The egocentric business of  radio talk host encourages performers to push the limits. And, unless its an elaborate publicity stunt, it seems Alberta’s self-styled King of Talk Radio, Dave Rutherford, has gone too far. Rutherford has been fired from NewsTalk 770 in Southern Alberta for ripping a strip off the station’s owner, Corus Entertainment, for shutting down during the Calgary flooding. According to the National Post, NewsTalk 770 was one of  several Corus stations evacuated from its downtown headquarters as the Bow River started to rise on Friday. In the meantime, the station broadcast an Edmonton news feed, while still putting Calgary music stations on the air. The arrangement caused Mr Rutherford to launch a searing attack on his employer. “It is with profound disappointment that I have to tell you that Corus in Calgary has decided to direct resources in places other than information radio,”  the National Post quotes Mr. Rutherford as saying. “I would completely understand if you went elsewhere for your information.” The next day, says Mr Rutherford, he was kicked off the air but never really given a full explanation. His complaint that he was never told why seems a little arch. Anyone could tell him why, poor boy. This said, the South Bayview Bulldog thinks that Corus might have been smart to explain itself and give Rutherford another chance.