WDAE’s Dan Sileo Suspended By Clear Channel
October 29th, 2009
Hours after he claimed the Glazer Family, owners of the Bucs, were near bankruptcy as a result of being involved in Bernie Madoff’s financial scams and likely to sell the Bucs to pay off their debts, Clear Channel, the parent company of WDAE-AM 620, suspended morning host Dan Sileo.
Thursday morning, Sileo, not exactly a credible source of reliable information, threw out all sorts of accusations about the Glazers’ financial status and future of the Bucs. Sileo boasted he would have more information later Friday.
Shortly after Sileo’s show, Joel Glazer, making a rare public statement, harshly scolded both Sileo and Clear Channel hinting at seeking legal action for what Glazer deemed, among other things, “slanderous.”
As a result, Clear Channel suspended Sileo until an investigation can be completed reports Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune.
Sileo reported this morning that the Glazer family was among the plethora of high-profile victims in the Madoff scheme and is considering bankruptcy. Sileo also said the Ponzi losses have led to the family being $650 million in debt, and he surmised the team may be for sale.
“The report today by WDAE’s Dan Sileo about our family and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers is 100 percent false,” Glazer said in a statement released by the team.
Sileo, who hosts the early morning show on WDAE, quoted a “friend” who works with the Securities and Exchange Commission as saying the Glazers lost $440 million in the Ponzi scheme.
Joe has heard the audio and Joe will say only this: Given Joe’s decades in print journalism, if someone, anyone, makes such claims from an unnamed source(s), that person better have rock solid evidence the claims are 100 percent accurate beyond a shadow of a doubt.
Given Sileo’s background and track record, just on face value, Joe thought Sileo’s claims were dubious at best.
Let’s be honest here: Some of the most reputable newspapers, both American and international, including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, The Times of London, the Miami Herald, and various New York and English tabloids, have scoured Madoff’s records and files as well as government documents and none of these organizations’ teams of investigators have found even a hint of a financial connection between Madoff and the Glazers.
How a sports radio host in Tampa with a chequered past could find this information on his own, well, it’s a stretch for Joe.
October 29th, 2009 at 11:07 pm
Wonder if our buddy Justin is going to take over in the mornings before Ron & Ian now while Dan is suspended.
October 29th, 2009 at 11:08 pm
Bucsfan5:
We’ll find out in roughly seven hours.
October 29th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
Let’s hope so and that it is made permanent. Justin is the best on that station period.
October 29th, 2009 at 11:23 pm
Wasn’t it the BigDog who broke the news of the Buc’s sale?
October 29th, 2009 at 11:26 pm
Justin would be a good choice if a change is made. Yes Fisher, Duemig did report about the Glazers possibly selling a few years ago. One of many times he has been wrong as well.
October 29th, 2009 at 11:52 pm
And this is precisely why the people who run this website need to be wary of WDAE. Face it, Ron and Ian are seriously misguided and are unprepared. There isn’t one talent at that station right now who doesn’t need some ethics training. No one at the station right now is qualified to really wing it with out some sort of basic ethics training.
It is ok to have opinions. But we have learned that there are issues at WDAE. The talent does not get along with each other. There is a ton of backstabbing going on there. Ron and Ian are not respected in the community and making threats on the air isn’t prudent. Ian is made to look like a goof and when he is “serious”, he can’t take conversation for more than 25-30 seconds before he questions the “tone” of the caller.
I would hope Mr. Diloreto and Mr. Killabrew take a strong look at what they want WDAE to be. If they don’t want to be “serious”, maybe a rebranding and reimaging of the station is necessary. Are they truly the “Sports Animal?” Can’t have it all ways. And be hypocrites.
October 29th, 2009 at 11:53 pm
Joe’s right, you come out with a statement like that, you better have ironclad proof to back it up. Sileo is well and truly fooooked, which means we’ll get to hear more Justin and Derrick, both of whom are worthy replacements for the blowhard!
October 29th, 2009 at 11:57 pm
As far as Justin goes, he has a future in this business as long as he doesn’t have to take “crap” from Ron Diaz and COVER FOR HIM!!!! This is part of the root of the problem of WDAE where petty politics are played and where carnival gimmicks rule the day. Justin does have talent and has a future but shouldn’t be made to be a pawn, i.e., like how his predecessor was treated and mocked. If Ron Diaz can’t prepare for his own show and needs to rely on “birthday challenges” to look “legitimate”, then there is a format issue.
Ron Diaz is even more culpable and guilty than Dan Sileo in fostering the type of environment that what is wrong with sports radio. Ask the former producer of their show who just happens to be the producer of Chris Thomas. Maybe I just listen too hard.
October 30th, 2009 at 12:02 am
Joe here,
Joel – Not big on censoring comments, but your statements about WDAE are sort of ridiculous. Ron and Ian are on the air to get ratings. To say “they are seriously misguided and are unprepared” is a little foolish. Obviously, they are prepared to get the ratings the reel in, which dwarf the two other sports radio options during the same time slot in this town.
And since when does talent have to get a long with each other? You think everybody on the Bucs roster is tight? Gosh, I work with people I can’t stand. Doesn’t mean the company is a problem.
In summary, WDAE is a radio station, in place to make money through ratings. If you don’t like it, there are dozens of other options on the dial.
The station’s job is to make money, not live up to any of our dreams.
October 30th, 2009 at 12:05 am
Joe here,
Joel – Justin’s a big boy. He’s not made to be a pawn, just a grownup doing his job well. Funny how you come on here and insult him. Nobody’s insulting you.
It seems like you need to turn the dial. No need to wallow in all this hatred.
October 30th, 2009 at 12:16 am
No censorship, no harm, no foul..It was meant as a compliment to him. I am talking over several years. He does his job and does what is expected of him. I am just disappointed in the station’s strategy and direction that has developed over several years. And fact is he does the best he can do given his set of circumstances.
And considering some of the gimmicks on that show and where it was about 4 years ago, I am surprised you feel the way you do. But we all have our bread buttered in certain directions.
October 30th, 2009 at 12:19 am
Ron Diaz is awful and knows nothing about sports. Mr. Admin, we all know you 620 is a big advertiser on our site, so your biased is quite obvious.
Anyone who was glad to hear that Upshaw was dead (no matter what you think if Upshaw) and cheered his death is a sick fool.
October 30th, 2009 at 12:23 am
Well it looks as if Dan will be cast upon the sword for his own stupidity, but the the fact of the matter is this. If the Glazer boys aka (Golden Sperm Club) were taking care of business witht their team as they should be, reports like this would never surface. This repoert is a product of the incompetence displayed by the Glazers and the cronies they have hired to coach this team. Bottom line is: Joel, do your job, spend the money and put a winning product on the field, and we will return in kind. Otherwise F U and the horse you rode in on. Don’t take away from the problem which is that you destroyed agood team with marginal coaches and you guys suck. Good job Dan. True or not, sock it to them because they are socking it to us. F U Joel.
October 30th, 2009 at 12:27 am
Joe here,
Joel – Never commented on the quality of the Ron and Ian show. Just don’t think that any radio station owes any listeners anything. Maybe that’s just me. I’ve been on-air at four different sports radio stations in my day and never believed that the station was there for anything other than ratings. If that meant birthdays, then so be it. Obviously, WDAE is wildly popular. And that’s all they’re really there for.
Only wish my bread was being buttered.
October 30th, 2009 at 1:07 am
Funny how the admin “rarely says anything” until it is about one of their advertisers. I won’t say anything about Ferg’s either, afraid the admin will come after me.
October 30th, 2009 at 1:32 am
Joe here,
Hey Brandon. Take a look around. I think you’ll find in most comment threads something from “Joe” or “Admin.” …The goals is to try and stick the old nose in everywhere.
Feel free to make fun of Ferg’s. Beer too warm for you? Ladies too skanky? Perhaps you don’t like all the opposing team jersey’s floating around there? You get some bad fries?
October 30th, 2009 at 1:45 am
I dont get the station at all. BigDog reports on the missing boaters all being alive, then we find out they were dead. He broke the news about the bucs sale a few years ago…and he still has a job? Yet they will probably do more things to Sileo.
October 30th, 2009 at 5:33 am
Who cares anyways. It’s all entertaining to me and that’s what sports talk radio and any other talk radio is. Entertainment. All three shows on WDAE are different, entertaining, aggravating but it’s my choice to listen. I choose not to believe everything I hear, especially on the sports talk radio because it’s just a lot of opinions and hear say.
October 30th, 2009 at 6:23 am
WDAE does not have a very good line up but 1010 is almost un-listenable (is that a word). Sorry 1010 is not likely going to surplant WDAE. Both are terrible sports talk radio but WDAE is better at some of the little things. (so far)
Don’t listen to Ron and Ian much, to little sports (to much food and women – nothing wrong with that but it seems at times to be 60% of their routine) at times. First hour only if then. Dumig and Sileo first hour too is usually the only thing worth listening to.
Tampa deserves better.
October 30th, 2009 at 8:52 am
I’m sure that my opinion won’t be shared by many but I personally liked listening to Derrick and Justin this morning. They were hilarious and didn’t just complain and sound like whining ladies. There are times that I can’t turn on Dumig or Sileo because they just complain or harp and puts me in a negative mood. I look forward to listening to Derrick and Justin until things get put back to “normal”.
October 30th, 2009 at 9:06 am
It’s about time time somebody called the Glazers out..aleast Dan had the walnuts … In the media / news world there is a term called “undisclosed sources” where actual factual information is leaked out and to protect the leak the name or names are withheld to protect the source..happens every day.. So the Glazers take offense of what has been speculated by all media outlets and the fan base and looks like Clear Channel “blinked” so they use Dan as a lamb. We as a fan base have seen this moive before and now have watched the Glazers over the past years go on the cheap ala Culverhouse era.. PLEASE SELL THE TEAM GLAZERS…as far as the morning and afternoon radio talk host’s go it’s like the “RADIO NAZI”if they don’t agree with the opinion of caller they push the kill button and cut you off…
October 30th, 2009 at 10:15 am
Hey Admin/Joe
Those comments you wrote about the radio station …
“[I] Just don’t think that any radio station owes any listeners anything. ”
“The station’s job is to make money, not live up to any of our dreams.”
It the Glazers were to substitute the Bucs for radio station wouldn’t it be the same thing?