Ryan Zimmerman's 30 Under 30 Bio Write up.

http://www.infinitedial.com/2007/06/30_under_30_winner_profiles_ry.php

Excellent, haven't read it yet and was actually waiting for it to be posted here. Thanx

I know Ryan... he is an awesome person and he deserves to be where he is. To me, he's one of those guys you think doesn't exist anymore and that's what blows you away.

I'm sure he's an awesome person, and I'm happy to know there are people under 30 that are moving and shaking this business.  

But Edmonton is a very friendly market for the radio industry.  I'd like to see boy wonder test his chops in a bigger market, with a floundering radio station.  Then we'd see exactly how much he "listened to those consultants and VP's"

I agree with Fred on that.

I agree with Fred on that.

FRED,

You're wrong. The bear was floundering when Ryan came in. He's the one that turned that station around. Step by step with Marty they put that whole ship back to sea.

Putting Yukon Jack on the mornings with Paul Brown and Gillian Foote.

Finding a gem like Paul Brown in the first place. And building a phenom morning show.

All while going up against fresh competition in the younger demos like Sonic and The Bounce.

How did he keep things going? By fine tuning the station's announcers and coming with with listener oriented promos that really came off great on air.

You could argue; but ratings and consistency of his success would tell you once again, "you're wrong".

Never met the guy, but he replied to a demo I sent him once:

Thanks for the tape, sounds pretty solid dude.

Zim

I doubt he even listened to it...  Still, that made my week.  You have to give him credit, he handily defeated two rock stations (3 if you count Joe FM) in the same market.

Ryan's a great guy who deserves all the credit he's getting. He's one of the few that I can say that about. His staff love him, the listeners love what he's created and why wouldn't you pat a guy like that on the back. I can hardly wait to see where he is in 10 years.

Quoted from Cpt Aphid (Guest)

FRED,

You're wrong. The bear was floundering when Ryan came in. He's the one that turned that station around. Step by step with Marty they put that whole ship back to sea.

Putting Yukon Jack on the mornings with Paul Brown and Gillian Foote.

Finding a gem like Paul Brown in the first place. And building a phenom morning show.

All while going up against fresh competition in the younger demos like Sonic and The Bounce.

How did he keep things going? By fine tuning the station's announcers and coming with with listener oriented promos that really came off great on air.

You could argue; but ratings and consistency of his success would tell you once again, "you're wrong".

Well, the number 1 competitor in the market Sonic, has passed the Bear in the S2 ratings.  Sonic is only a couple of years old, the Bear has some history.

Still think I'm wrong?  Even the Bounce which is brand new is nipping at their heels.

FRED,

Wow.

I'm shocked it took you that long to come up with that stunning reply.

I guess you took no notice of the word "consistency".

Note: In the same book CISN dropped to a 5.6 and Sonic apparently killing in 45+ demos.

Yeah.

Nothing weird going on there.

Way to to sift through the numbers.

PS You're still wrong.

HA, amen to that Cpt!

It's nice to see two posters utterly and totally miss the point of my original post.  But congratulations, you have.

Consistency is EXACTLY my point.  I re-iterate, if someone under 30 wants to be considered a "Star" programmer like you've touted him, they had better be judged on several stations, not just one...and not one in a market that is very radio friendly, and at a station that has some heritage in the market.  Until Sonic came in there was hardly a competitor in that format.

If you're going to talk about star programmers, you'd better then include Al Ford in the same breath as Ryan Zimmerman.  

I'm not going to battle wits with someone who is defenseless.

Quoted from FRED

It's nice to see two posters utterly and totally miss the point of my original post.  But congratulations, you have.

Consistency is EXACTLY my point.  I re-iterate, if someone under 30 wants to be considered a "Star" programmer like you've touted him, they had better be judged on several stations, not just one...and not one in a market that is very radio friendly, and at a station that has some heritage in the market.  Until Sonic came in there was hardly a competitor in that format.

If you're going to talk about star programmers, you'd better then include Al Ford in the same breath as Ryan Zimmerman.  

I'm not going to battle wits with someone who is defenseless.

Well then.  First, Al Ford should definitely get the credit he deserves.  From launch to now, a great station and perfectly placed to make an impact with their intended audience.

As far as Zimmerman goes why is it, exactly, that you can't give him credit for doing a great job?  He came to a station that was wallowing in it's lost dominance, had a dysfunctional airstaff, and was wandering down the middle of the road waiting to get run over.  I'm sure he would be the first to say he didn't single-handedly turn the station around.  But I also would bet that those around him would say that he enables and encourages them to be their best, and creates a positive and creative environment to work in.  He's probably had a lot of help and input from the "consultants and VP's"...but he still has to get it executed.

As far as the rest of your post goes, it's beneath comment.  If the only way you can validate yourself is to take shots at other people's legitimate comments, that's unfortunate.