Michael Smith has taken a shot at his former employer after the most recent survey.

Referring to the former vice-president of the AWU featured in Michael Smith’s ‘conspiracy’ videos, Smith begins his blog post with this swipe:

“2UE backed Gillard’s interests over Bob Kernohan’s. Shareholders must be thrilled with management’s wisdom.”

He continues: 

“The greatest, saddest insult to that once great Sydney institution is its irrelevance.  It’s not even mentioned in media reports about the battles being fought by others in Sydney radio.

2UE is internally focussed on generating synergies within the Fairfax media group with the multi-title platform independent content generators who are uniquely placed to meet the needs of a new generation of platform agnostic device independent media consumers who tell us they value the immediacy of our blah blah blah.

Talk radio is about people.  As Sydney comes to know say Ben Fordham, to see him in a range of circumstances and to sense the consistency and genuineness he brings to the role, so his ratings grow.   That is why he is leading his timeslot.

People in Sydney do not care whether Fairfax meets its management KPI triggers for bonus payments on the achievement of the internal cost reduction and synergy generation in the Annual Plan.   They want great radio.”

Smith then offers this Julia Gillard interview by Paul Murray as an example of the station’s prioritising access over integrity.

He takes another swipe at Murray earlier in his blog, pointing out that Hadley’s 3.8 rating drop was more than Murray’s entire listenership.

Smith finishes the post by wishing 2UE announcer Jason Morrison well in a radio station that he believes is shifting it’s editorial policies:

“Let me add here, just to repeat what I’ve often written about on this site.   One of the most difficult jobs in the Australian media at present is to attend work every day as the sole conservative working on a radio station that is being integrated with the Sydney Morning Herald and like titles.

“The successful news/talk radio stations that operate without taxpayer funds share certain characteristics that 2UE doesn’t have.   Jason Morrison knows the caper and is very successful in it – however while people select and watch TV shows, they tend to listen and stick to radio stations. Jason’s working for bosses who don’t get it. I hope he ends up somewhere soon where they do.”