Signing Off: S.F. Sports Talk Show Host Ralph Barbieri Dropped From KNBR-AM

KNBR-AM host Ralph Barbieri had spent 28 years at the station “airing strong opinions in a unique voice,” but that came to “an end this week when his longtime employer let him go,” according to Al Saracevic of the S.F. CHRONICLE. KNBR GM & Program Dir Lee Hammer yesterday said Barbieri "is no longer with the station,” calling the Barbieri's departure a "management decision." Barbieri in a statement said, "I've heard it said that this was an amicable parting. That is not exactly the case. I came to work (Tuesday) morning, totally unaware that anything of this nature was afoot." His on-air partner, Tom Tolbert, hosted their 3:00-7:00pm PT show, "The Razor and Mr. T," by himself yesterday (S.F. CHRONICLE, 4/12). In San Jose, Daniel Brown notes KNBR “terminated its enthusiastically abrasive host, marking the end of one of the most divisive shows in Bay Area broadcasting.” Barbieri had been “diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2005.” He wrote for Sport magazine before “getting his own show on KNBR in 1984” (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 4/12).

MOVES IN MIAMI: WQAM-AM Program Dir Lee Feldman confirmed that host Sid Rosenberg “has been fired from WQAM following an arrest and DUI charge late last week.” Rosenberg had been with WQAM “since September of 2009 after a three-year stint at 790 The Ticket” (South Florida SUN-SENTINEL, 4/11). In Miami, Barry Jackson noted WQAM “immediately hired former University of Miami defensive lineman Dan Sileo to replace” Rosenberg on the 3:00-7:00pm ET show, beginning immediately. Sileo was “fired by a Tampa station last month after referring to three black players” as "monkeys." Sileo generated “high ratings during his time as a morning sports talk host in Tampa.” Jackson wrote Tuesday was a “tumultuous day in local radio" with WAXY-AM host Jorge Sedano leaving the station "to concentrate on his job doing a fantasy sports show for CBSSports.com” (MIAMIHERALD.com, 4/10).