Radio Leicester

[Channy'sboots]

For what it's worth I rang Radio Leicester today to lodge a complaint about the post match treatment of a couple of the callers. I have no time for Stringer et al and their unique take on NP and our fortunes but the bullying dished out on Sat was just beyond. It made for queasy listening and Stringer in particular seems beyond their control right now.The receptionist made a note of my comments and stated that any feedback on presenters and content are put to the station editor same day. Thought he seemed a little reserved tonight, maybe it is dawning on both him and Bourne what a mess they have made of THEIR debut season in the Prem, no access/interviews etc etc.. ?

[Arkie Bennett]

For what it's worth I rang Radio Leicester today to lodge a complaint about the post match treatment of a couple of the callers. I have no time for Stringer et al and their unique take on NP and our fortunes but the bullying dished out on Sat was just beyond. It made for queasy listening and Stringer in particular seems beyond their control right now.The receptionist made a note of my comments and stated that any feedback on presenters and content are put to the station editor same day. Thought he seemed a little reserved tonight, maybe it is dawning on both him and Bourne what a mess they have made of THEIR debut season in the Prem, no access/interviews etc etc.. ?

I was most unimpressed with Bourne's constant adolescent giggling on Saturday, as if someone was mugging off mic. Surely they were not taking the p*ss out of the callers?

[KFS]

I'm 99% one of the callers said something about staying up on the weekend to which Bourne murmured "I wouldn't count on it."

Not digging it out because I can't be arsed, but I'm sure I heard that.

[SecretPro]

I thought the caller made some very good points.

Certainly in terms of Pearson playing the way we are now because he has no choice.

We are where we are, because of Pearson and his overly cautious tactics, and his fixation of worrying more about what the opposition are going to do, rather than just playing to our strengths. 

To listen to some people on here, it is as if Pearson has suddenly become a tactical genius, but the truth is, he`s realised it`s shit or bust time and he has no choice but to go for it.

 

Good honest post in my opinion.

 

Pearson has made some decent decisions of late, maybe through being backed into a corner, maybe not. In Saturdays match thread when Pearson used up all three subs and Kram was still sitting on the bench the mood turned a bit sour. It worked out OK this time but I still can't see the merits of picking Ulloa over Kramaric. Why pay all that money for the kid if you are not going to bother to use him - he changed the game when he came on last week and now we are playing more agressive, attacking football it suits him - he has rarely been played when these tactics have been in place.

 

As said, two wins (both, especially West Ham with some poor football and errors) doesn't suddenly make Pearson a tactical genius.

 

Someone else on this thread has mocked saying lose and it's Pearsons fault, win and it's only 'because he has no choice' but this to an extent is pretty true. Compare the losses to the wins, compare the negative tactics to recent tactics.. at the end of the day you judge the man on his last 30 games, not his last two. Keep the run going and keep winning, making the right changes etc - fine. But I think it's a bit early to start the hero worship again.

 

Don't get me wrong, he's done well in recent weeks and although I'm not his biggest fan I have congratulated him and his tactics in the match threads. But just saying.

[ronnup]

Good journalism should be like good refereeing in my book in these cases. We don't want to be drenched in Stringer's opinion, he should felicitate the communication and passing of information between the club and the fans. He's been woefully bad at this to a quite ridiculous extent.

Good journalists earn the rite to an opinion. This cretin is out for fame sadly and has done an awful job of being a journalist.

He isn't there to be a pain in the managements arse, he's there to get as much info as possible and create as much good dialogue as possible. He's awful At both and we merely discuss his character half the time. He's dreadful.

[Freeman's Wharfer]

Just listened to the podcast and I have to say it was fantastic hearing people finally giving back to them about their conduct this season. I'm pretty sure that the callers following Pauline and the guy in the West Brom end were very strongly checked to ensure that there wasn't going to be anyone else following on.

 

One of Stringer or Bourne made the comment "I can't believe that after a Leicester City win people are phoning up to question BBC Radio Leicester's coverage". If nothing else, that should hit home to them exactly how they've alienated their audience. It was almost like a mass relief on Saturday and a bit of an uprising of people deciding they've finally had enough of the negativity and it's great to hear.

 

What makes me laugh the most is when Stringer and Bourne say we are impartial journalist's for the BBC, we have to call it how we see it and show no bias towards the club. They fail to remember that they work for BBC Radio Leicester. Everyone of their listeners is a Leicester City fan, thats why they listen to their coverage. It's not like they are working for a national arm of the BBC. They work for local radio. The fans of Leicester City don't want a commentator on local radio to be saying, "Is that it for Nigel Pearson now" after losing the 11th game of the season. They don't want their club to have a media block on the local radio station because the "journalist" acts inappropriately with hand gestures to players. All season it's been the same negative spin, no wonder the fans are griping at them. 

 

I was going to make exactly this point until I saw that you had made it for me!

 

By what reasoning do they have to be impartial?

 

They work for a small LOCAL radio station who are there to champion LOCAL causes and news. Are you telling me that during the Richard III stuff the station would have remained impartial? That they didn't champion how great it was for the city and highlight the positives of it for the city and LOCAL people?

 

This big time attitude seems to have seen them get a bit carried away with exactly what their job is (digging for sensation and wanting to break headlines into national news). Yet similarly they're not prepared to be judged by the same national standards when talking about sandwiches or dealing with callers in the way they do. Listen to someone like Darren Fletcher and then compare him with Stringer - worlds apart.

 

I would not call for somebody to be sacked lightly as whatever you think of him he is just doing a job but in my opinion Ian Stringer's position at Radio Leicester has become untenable he's lost the manager, the players and now the fans/listeners its a shame because he is a million times more listenable than Neville Foulger ever was and his commentary of Knockys winner at the city ground will stay with me for ever but sadly its time to go. Radio Leicester need to find a replacement who is just as talented and hard-working as Stringer without the ego and arrogance. 

 

I also agree with this. His position is untenable.

 

He's alienated his audience and the people at the club that he has to have a working relationship with.

 

In many ways it's a shame as he does commentate passionately (although as someone else said his tag-lining is annoying - his "they're here to stay Premier League" line that he was dropping in after every goal soon had to be dropped post-Manchester United) but he's also quite clearly unable or unwilling to accept criticism, constructive or otherwise.

 

It appears to me that they don't have someone strong enough above the pair of them guiding them and that this season has just seen issues snowball to the point that we're at now. Whoever is in charge of them (and I don't think it's anyone on a matchday - I know Bourne produces a lot of the stuff) needs to have a look at themselves because they've failed them in a managerial capacity.

 

It will be very interesting to see what happens at the end of this season if we stay up. I just can't see a way that Stringer could or should continue in his role and unfortunately Bourne has skipped off down the same path as his little pal and put his own career in jeopardy too.

[GingerrrFox]

Good journalism should be like good refereeing in my book in these cases. We don't want to be drenched in Stringer's opinion, he should felicitate the communication and passing of information between the club and the fans. He's been woefully bad at this to a quite ridiculous extent.

Good journalists earn the rite to an opinion. This cretin is out for fame sadly and has done an awful job of being a journalist.

He isn't there to be a pain in the managements arse, he's there to get as much info as possible and create as much good dialogue as possible. He's awful At both and we merely discuss his character half the time. He's dreadful.

This is right on point. It's exactly the same reason Adrian Chiles lost his job as ITV's football anchor. He was too busy spouting his own opinion rather than letting the recognised football pundits speak and critique using their vast knowledge.

That's exactly what Ian Stringer is doing, he thinks his opinion is worth something, it's not. Matt Elliott is there to analyse the tactical and playing side of Leicester City's performances. Ian Stringer is there to describe to the listener what happens during the 90 minutes and then ask meaningful and well constructed questions to the managers and players. That doesn't include spouting crap like "is that it for Nigel Pearson", or constantly asking the manager if "he fears for his job" straight after a defeat. His opinion on football is worth **** all and he's yet to realise this. He's not earnt the right to have a meaningful opinion that somebody of the likes of Gary Neville has. You don't see Martin Tyler - the modern great of football commentating - voicing his opinion, because he knows it's not his role, that's why Stringer is still and always will be an amateur, because he has an ego and a self inflated perception of himself.

[Steve_Guppy_Left_Foot]

He's just asking the questions we, the fans, want the answers to imo.

[Guest bss9401]

When we were at the man utd home game I said to my son that part of that great feeling was because the world were watching and listening to Leicester City. It is disappointing to think that the listeners this season have been subjected to the fiasco between RL and Pearson. IMHO Stringer's paymasters should have intervened and told him to commentate and stop looking for an angle or story whether there was one or not. It riles me when any commentator is only after self advancement at the expense of being professional, respectful and good at the job that they are paid to do.

[foxfanazer]

That's very true and can agree with that, he may have made a good couple of tactical decisions recently. However most of this season his decisions have been quite poor, I do honestly believe with the squad we have we could have been higher up the table, but with Pearson playing most of the season negative defensive football, which could have cost our survival in the premier league. Just why didn't Pearson start with these attacking tactics from the start of the season?!

Is English your first language?

[UpTheLeagueFox]

He's just asking the questions we, the fans, want the answers to imo.

 

The trick is to ask questions, in a reasonable and professional manner, to elicit good responses from the interviewee. People don't tune into my talkSPORT programme to listen to me, they listen to hear what others with substantially more knowledge have to say. And that's exactly how it always should be.

 

Journalists shouldn't use the 'fans want to know this or that' line in interviews though. You're not a fan with a microphone, you're a professional broadcaster. Well that's what they taught me and I've tried to live by that.

 

And ask simple questions (even during the tough times) without loading your opinion or any agenda. They generally get the best answers.

[Captain...]

Wow that was embarrassing, I don't listen to the moan in because it is shit, so what other examples of negativity are there from Stringer and co?

[Facecloth]

Is English your first language?

His posts remind me of

[Steve_Guppy_Left_Foot]

The trick is to ask questions, in a reasonable and professional manner, to elicit good responses from the interviewee. People don't tune into my talkSPORT programme to listen to me, they listen to hear what others with substantially more knowledge have to say. And that's exactly how it always should be.

 

Journalists shouldn't use the 'fans want to know this or that' line in interviews though. You're not a fan with a microphone, you're a professional broadcaster. Well that's what they taught me and I've tried to live by that.

 

And ask simple questions (even during the tough times) without loading your opinion or any agenda. They generally get the best answers.

 

The trick is to ask questions, in a reasonable and professional manner, to elicit good responses from the interviewee. People don't tune into my talkSPORT programme to listen to me, they listen to hear what others with substantially more knowledge have to say. And that's exactly how it always should be.

 

Journalists shouldn't use the 'fans want to know this or that' line in interviews though. You're not a fan with a microphone, you're a professional broadcaster. Well that's what they taught me and I've tried to live by that.

 

And ask simple questions (even during the tough times) without loading your opinion or any agenda. They generally get the best answers.

 

Yes mate completely concur with you, think having your insight on this matter has helped me understand it a lot better. Just that's what Stringer always says when he knows he's asking something he shouldn't be or in a manner in which is detrimental to the chemistry between him and the interviewee.

[chapero82]

If we sray up, then that is mission complete, it's his first season too so Pearson is on a learning curve too

[MC Prussian]

He's just asking the questions we, the fans, want the answers to imo.

It's more a case of Stringer catering to a specific audience.

 

Sure, asking tough questions is the sign of a good journalist, but when you do it like Stringer, repeatedly and overeagerly putting yourself into the limelight (and somewhat arrogantly declaring yourself the "voice of the fans") just for the sake of it in order to boost your own position within the BBC, then it becomes tedious. Especially when you link it to Stringer's past and previous antics and downright embarrassing subjective comments about the manager in particular or the treatment of certain callers on air (in the majority of cases the ones that don't agree with him or Bourne - surprise, surprise).

 

Good commentating is taking a step back, don't allowing your own ego or persona being in the spotlight, simply describing what's happening. Over the course of the years, Stringer has maneuvered himself into a somewhat odd position where he gets away with so much alongside Bourne that he gives the impression he's become untouchable. The phone-in has more and more turned into the Stringer & Bourne show, including the use of jingles that are there to either further promote them as the hosts or take away valuable debate time.

[CosbehFox]

Loved that the chap on the Saturday phone-in what championed Stringer and Bourne but then stated I don't even like football.

[C-man]

Just listed to the podcast for the first time ever. I am stunned.

Usually hate relating anything in football to real life, but I'm going to do it anyway... If a client called me up and gave me some feedback, that I perhaps didn't like, I would be sacked on the spot for saying 'give me an example, try one, try one' or 'When? When?! When?!'

There's defending yourself professionally, which they would have been more than within their rights to do (just claim impartiality - bollocks in my opinion but it seems half believable) and there's acting like a complete child. Discrediting callers, their customers, is really poor form.

[Vicki Vixen]

I just don't get his "we have to be impartial" attitude. You work for a local radio station man, it's your job to get behind the local teams.

Looking at his Twitter feed, he doesn't seem to have any issue supporting the Riders, so why he has this chip on his shoulder when reporting on City is beyond me.

[JAPANFOX1]

I defended the stance taken by RL and Stringer when NP refused to speak to him on the grounds of freedom of press etc. However, the more I have listened to the childish behaviour of Stringer dressed up as "journalism and sports reporting" the more I want to change my position. His behaviour, in short, is not becoming of a man paid to represent the good people of Leicester through the BBC.

 

Listening to the latest podcast a couple of things became more apparent to me.

 

1) Him and Bourne show no respect or basic patience for the opinions of those callers who wish to disagree with them. The constant interrupting of callers with childish little digs or "for example, for example, for example" and the soundbites already prepared to "show how wrong the caller is" are amateurish at best.

2) His standard defence of all criticism is "we are not paid to be positive". However, this does not seem to work both ways. When LCFC win and are on the up he clearly takes on the role of a fan and looses all objectivity (and this was his original appeal to many fans). At these times we do not hear "we are not paid to be positive". Yet, when we are not doing so well he wants to pretend that his questions, line of attack and topic of discussion are free from bias. They are NOT, he clearly has a non-professional agenda against Pearson and an agenda to inflate his own EGO as much as possible at the direct expense of the fee paying public.

3) The chidish giggling and little one line digs we can hear in the background when a caller makes a valid point are simply unprofessional.

4) He comes across as a failed wannabe celebrity big brother house mate who has dressed up his "constant flow of bullshit dross" as "journalism". I have no doubt he would be an excellent salesman but I would suspect that the BBC would aim higher than this kind of image.

5) When he was interviewing at the KP I really was put off by his "I wannabe a gezzer and mates with all the players" tone of questioning. The use of slang, idiomatic language, more common in the pub, than in journalism was hard to listen to. I was reminded of that kid in class who wants so badly to be one of the cool kids but simply tries way, way, way to hard that his behaviour just comes off as a little odd.

 

Overall, his personality is now so dominant in his program management that all of the issues, topics etc are overshadowed by it. It could be called "the Stringer show" (which I am sure he would love) and this would more accurately reflect the focus of the program. It is a shame that RL management have not had the foresight to sort this out before now. A stern word from his boss and a crash course on journalistic integrity, style and language could have worked wonders. Until there is a change it is the listeners and fans who will have to suffer the consequences.

[cc_star]

I just don't get his "we have to be impartial" attitude. You work for a local radio station man, it's your job to get behind the local teams.

Looking at his Twitter feed, he doesn't seem to have any issue supporting the Riders, so why he has this chip on his shoulder when reporting on City is beyond me.

 

With Stringer it's all about his personal agenda, there is nothing impartial or journalistic about it. At best it's completely unprofessional

The BBC is doing its listeners and payers of the BBC Tax a huge disservice by letting this happen.

 

The BBC will circle its wagons around its own though.

 

I vote with my ears and no longer listen to anything involving him, I know of many who do the same

[desertfox2]

Just listened to the podcast and I have to say it was fantastic hearing people finally giving back to them about their conduct this season. I'm pretty sure that the callers following Pauline and the guy in the West Brom end were very strongly checked to ensure that there wasn't going to be anyone else following on.

One of Stringer or Bourne made the comment "I can't believe that after a Leicester City win people are phoning up to question BBC Radio Leicester's coverage". If nothing else, that should hit home to them exactly how they've alienated their audience. It was almost like a mass relief on Saturday and a bit of an uprising of people deciding they've finally had enough of the negativity and it's great to hear.

I was going to make exactly this point until I saw that you had made it for me!

By what reasoning do they have to be impartial?

They work for a small LOCAL radio station who are there to champion LOCAL causes and news. Are you telling me that during the Richard III stuff the station would have remained impartial? That they didn't champion how great it was for the city and highlight the positives of it for the city and LOCAL people?

This big time attitude seems to have seen them get a bit carried away with exactly what their job is (digging for sensation and wanting to break headlines into national news). Yet similarly they're not prepared to be judged by the same national standards when talking about sandwiches or dealing with callers in the way they do. Listen to someone like Darren Fletcher and then compare him with Stringer - worlds apart.

I also agree with this. His position is untenable.

He's alienated his audience and the people at the club that he has to have a working relationship with.

In many ways it's a shame as he does commentate passionately (although as someone else said his tag-lining is annoying - his "they're here to stay Premier League" line that he was dropping in after every goal soon had to be dropped post-Manchester United) but he's also quite clearly unable or unwilling to accept criticism, constructive or otherwise.

It appears to me that they don't have someone strong enough above the pair of them guiding them and that this season has just seen issues snowball to the point that we're at now. Whoever is in charge of them (and I don't think it's anyone on a matchday - I know Bourne produces a lot of the stuff) needs to have a look at themselves because they've failed them in a managerial capacity.

It will be very interesting to see what happens at the end of this season if we stay up. I just can't see a way that Stringer could or should continue in his role and unfortunately Bourne has skipped off down the same path as his little pal and put his own career in jeopardy too.

Agreed. Ultimately he's a knob with a huge ego. He's a very good commentator but that should be the limit. It's the arrogance that gets me. Must have some french blood

[MattGamble92]

Why does Stringer say his job is to be impartial when he shouts ALLEZ LE BLUEEEEEEE against forest. Impartial is the last thing he could ever be. He is far too driven by that ego.

[Ollie93]

Just listened to the post West Brom podcast. I vote give Pauline the job.

[Manwell Pablo]

Why do people keep sayng things lke "he's  good commentator?"

 

He' acually pretty shit, I give him credi for being better than John Barber, but that's like being better than Oscar Pistorious at picking Valentines day gifts.