Bob and the Showgram

Bob and the Showgram is a morning radio show on WDCG-FM in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina that airs from 6 am to 10 am weekdays. The current cast consists of radio personalities Bob Dumas, a "redneck" despite his six-figure plus salary (see Larry the Cable Guy), Mike Morse, a local Disc Jockey, and Kentucky Kristin, the newest member of the crew.

Broadcast Information

Bob and the Showgram airs on G105, 105.1 FM WDCG-FM Durham, Raleigh and Chapel Hill. The show is a production of the Clear Channel Communications Corporation. The broadcast studio is located in [http://triangle.citysearch.com/profile/11420443/ Smoketree Tower] in Raleigh, NC.

New episodes of the show are typically aired between 6 am and 10 am on Monday through Friday with a "Best of" from the previous week on Saturday in the same time slot. There is also a free podcast available called [http://www.bobandtheshowgram.com/showgram_ondemand.html "Bob and the Showgram On-Demand"] on the iTunes Music Store and on the show's website.

Previous Hosts and Interns

Mike Stiles was the original co-host with Bob Dumas. At the time, the show was called "The Bob and Mike Show." In the mid nineties Mike was replaced with Madison Lane. The show was renamed "The Showgram with Bob and Madison." Madison then left G105 in 2004 for another Raleigh/Clear Channel station, WRSN-FM Sunny 93.9. She reportedly left over creative differences with Bob Dumas.

The show also features a number of broadcast interns who have come and gone over the course of the production. In 1999 Mark Kay was the producer alongside John "Big Flash" Hartnett. During the following year the Showgram was known for numerous stunts and on air gimmicks which led them to being the #1 consecutive morning show in the Raleigh market. Kay left to host a morning show in Washington D.C. and "Big Flash" was let go due to creative changes. Tommy Owen (the original Flash) replaced Kay after taking a hiatus from the show. After 2 years on the show he left the Showgram to follow a new career path. In 2001, Erica DeLong known as Intern Erica joined the crew, shortly after she was hired as an on-air producer. Erica currently does radio in NYC. In early 2006 there was an on-air competition to find a new intern after "Intern Ben" returned to his native Canada. One of the more high-profile interns was referred to as "Racist Rodney" for his typical "that's racist!" reaction to statements made on the show. During the middle of 2006, another intern, "Fried Rice," joined the show. He was known for believing that he was a member of the African-American race. Racist Rodney, along with several other African-American members of the show's audience, accepted Fried Rice's self-description as an African-American. Racist Rodney and Fried Rice were best known for sticking together and speaking out for the African-American community, because they were occasionally subjected to racist comments from host Bob Dumas. In January 2007, interns Racist Rodney and Fried Rice left the show in hopes of beginning a career in the rap/hip-hop industry.

Controversies

"Bob and the Showgram" has a history of controversial broadcasts and subsequent disciplinary actions. Bob Dumas is a self-proclaimed redneck and often makes statements which take on an inflammatory note. One of the show segments is called [http://www.bobandtheshowgram.com/bobssoapbox.html "Bob's Soapbox"] and the website for that feature once prominently exhibited a Rebel Flag.

Encouraging Drivers To Terrorize Bicyclists

On September 22 and 23 of 2003, Dumas encouraged listeners to call in and relate stories about how they terrorized bicyclists. In the course of that show, he said that he kept empty bottles in his vehicle so that he could throw them at cyclists. [cite web|url=http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/5058.0.html |title=Shock jocks |accessdate=2006-08-05 |last=Mionske |first=Robert |date=2003-10-02 |format=html |work=Legally Speaking |publisher=Velonews ] These statements caused protests from the local community [cite web|url=http://www.trianglemtb.com/pages/projects/g105.html |title=G105 promotes driving into cyclists as fun |accessdate=2006-08-05 |date=2003-10-02 |format=html |work=The G105 Incident |publisher=Triangle MTB club ] , who successfully lobbied for an official resolution that the capital of the state was friendly to bicyclists [cite news | first =Katie | last =Marzullo | url =http://rdu.news14.com/content/story_links/?ArID=37577&SecID=231 | title =City asks drivers and cyclists to get along | publisher =TWEAN Newschannel of Raleigh | date =2003-10-21 | accessdate =2006-08-05 | language =English ] and convinced some local businesses to pull their advertising. Bob was suspended for two days and station management aired an apology. [cite web|url=http://humantransport.org/bicycledriving/wdcg.htm |title=Raleigh, NC |accessdate=2006-08-05 |last=Goodridge |first=Steve |date=2003-10-02 |format=html |work=Clear Channel Radio Responds |publisher=North Carolina Coalition for Bicycle Driving] Eventually a compromise was reached between the community and station management. [cite news | first =Joe | last =Miller | url =http://www.newsobserver.com/166/story/212378.html | title =Cyclist engineers truce with station | work =Tar Heel of the Week | publisher =The News & Observer Publishing Company | date =2003-10-26 | accessdate =2006-08-05 | language =English ]

American Idol

Bob Dumas and a previous host Amy Bristle were suspended from the station after causing national controversy by making offensive statements, characterized by some as racist, about the 2004 winner of "American Idol", Fantasia, of High Point, such as calling her "ghetto".

Recent News

Native Americans

On April 1st, 2008, Bob Dumas and co-hosts joked with an intern about her engagement to a Lumbee Indian, whom are not federally recognized as an authentic tribe, but instead are wards of the State of North Carolina, as are most tribes in the state. Dumas made remarks that Indians are "lazy" and that "a lot of Indians live on the reservation."

Dumas also asked if the groom's grandfather would stand on the side of the road with "a single tear," a reference to the well known 1971 "Crying Indian" TV and print ads which were part of a Keep America Beautiful ad campaign. Also, co-host Mike Morse asked, "After you guys get married, are you going to have a teepee-warming party?" [Michael Futch, "Shock Jock Comments about Lumbees Labeled Racist," "Fayetteville Observer", April 5, 2008.]

On April 9th, 2008 the cast was suspended and the show was temporarily replaced by music. The show returned on April 14th, 2008.

Mexican Americans

On April 2, 2008, just one day removed from the Native American flap, Bob Dumas criticized the Mexican Consulate in Raleigh over the issue of illegal immigration. An assistant producer, John Clark, went to consulate. The initial plan was for him to be posing as an INS agent seeking documentation of citizenship for those who were there that day; however, they then decided to play the "What are YOU doing at the Mexican Consulate?" ["Apology Calms Indians, but DJ Irks Mexicans," "The News & Observer", April 18, 2008.]

Bob Dumas' awareness of Wikipedia

On Friday, October 10, 2008, Bob Dumas was made aware of the Wikipedia page for Bob and the Showgram and mentioned it on air.

Kristin becomes aware of Sandwich Strange

October 11 2008, Kentucky Kristin learned that strange women were making her boyfriend sandwiches and became extremely upset after Bob and Mike pointed out it must be because she uses small tomatoes.

Contributions to the Community

Despite controversial broadcasts and acts the show also has a history of positive contributions to the local and national community.

Pennies From Heaven

In November 2007, the Showgram raised over USD $280,000 for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Eastern North Carolina. Celebrity spokespersons Ashlee Simpson and "Lifehouse" guitarist Jason Wade, along with the families of children with life-threatening diseases and the entire Eastern North Carolina community were also involved in this. The show also raised [http://carolinanewswire.com/news/News.cgi?database=headlines.db&command=viewone&id=3114&op=t $280,000 for this charity in 2007] . Overall, Pennies From Heaven has raised well over $2,000,000 dollars for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Assistance to Local Law Enforcement

* A show segment [http://www.bobandtheshowgram.com/cc-common/feeds/view.php?feed_id=392&feed=/feed-local.html&instance=1&article_id=27459 Bob The Bounty Hunter] has been successful at spreading the word about wanted criminals in five North Carolina counties. The local community has stepped up to call in tips about fugitives after hearing their descriptions on the show.

* In 2004 the show participated in G105's [http://www.chathamsheriff.com/press/2004/10-2-04.htm "Operation Teddy Bear"] , a program designed to collect teddy bears from the community and provide those to children when law enforcement officials responded to a call where kids would be involved.

Disaster Relief

In 2005 the show hosted a Hurricane Katrina Relief effort entitled [http://www.clearchannel.com/LocalSpirit/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=1280 Bob & The Showgram’s Bus to the Bayou] which collected 11 tractor trailers full of supplies from the community and Dumas himself helped deliver them to communities affected by the hurricane in Mississippi and Louisiana.

Other Charity Involvement

* In April 2008 the cast of the show was active in the [http://www.angelsamongus.org/ "Angels Among Us"] charity event, participating as [http://www.bobandtheshowgram.com/cc-common/feeds/view.php?feed_id=392&feed=/feed-local.html&instance=1&article_id=87216 "Team Larry"] .

Dumas's Illness

Host Bob Dumas was found to have a malignant brain tumor in April, 2007, and was operated on at the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke University Medical Center. He has stated that the experience has led him to prayer and a new attitude towards life. [http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=triangle&id=5330782 Popular Radio Personality Faces Reality, Part I, by Barbara Gibbs WTVD 11 News interview 05/23/07] [http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=triangle&id=5332101 Popular Radio Personality Faces Reality, Part II, by Barbara Gibbs WTVD 11 News interview 05/23/07]

References

External links

* The show's [http://www.bobandtheshowgram.com official website] .
*The show's "Unofficial Myspace Page" [http://www.myspace.com/bobandtheshowgram profile] on MySpace
*Host Mike Morse's [http://www.djmikemorse.com/ website]

In The News

* [http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2004-05-29-idol-radio_x.htm USA Today] Article in USA Today about Bob criticizing Fantasia Barrino
* [http://carolinanewswire.com/news/News.cgi?database=headlines.db&command=viewone&id=3114&op=t 2004 Pennies from Heaven]
* [http://www.ncsu.edu/news/dailyclips/1003/100103.htm#10 "Radio Host Infuriates Cyclists"]
* [http://orangepolitics.org/2004/08/het-pride-parade/ Hetero Pride Parade]