St. Louis Talk Host's On-Air Slurs Draw Renewed Opposition

Romanik (Photo: Belleville News Democrat Video)

The operator of three radio stations in the ST. LOUIS MARKET is facing more backlash from a community effort to have the FCC revoke his licenses due to his use of racial slurs and homophobic comments on his own daily talk show.

BOB ROMANIK, a former homicide detective whose INSANE BROADCASTING COMPANY leases ENTERTAINMENT MEDIA TRUST News-Talk-Classic Country KQQZ-A/FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS, IL-ST. LOUIS and News-Talk-Oldies KZQZ-A/ST. LOUIS, calls himself "The Grim Reaper of Radio" and hosts his show "ON THE DARK SIDE" weekdays 10-11a (CT) on KQQZ with two replays daily; his show combines extreme right-wing politics and support for President TRUMP with racist and homophobic comments, and has frequently been criticized by community members and other media entities for his material.

In a column posted to FACEBOOK, media consultant and former network radio and TV producer CHAD WILKINSON notes that ROMANIK frequently uses the "n-word" in his comments, including his response to the PITTSBURGH synagogue shootings, and, noting that ROMANIK's comments are airing on federally controlled airwaves, asks, "How is this guy on the air?"; the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH has called for the FCC to review ROMANIK's comments about a politician who ROMANIK called a "cross-dresser," using a derogatory term for gay men and later denying that the word he liberally used to denigrate the politician was "hate speech" (NET NEWS 11/7/16). ROMANIK was also ordered by a judge in MAY to stop stalking or communicating with another activist who organized a boycott of ROMANIK's advertisers, reports the BELLEVILLE NEWS-DEMOCRAT

WILKINSON tells ALL ACCESS that a campaign to convince the FCC to take action against ROMANIK is forming, led by THE NORTHSIDER Editor and former ST. LOUIS Alderman ANTONIO FRENCH, himself a target of ROMANIK's invective (notably a recent tirade chronicled by the RIVERFRONT TIMES). The trust holding the licenses for the stations leased by ROMANIK also holds the license for News-Talk KFTK-A/EAST ST. LOUIS, currently being leased to ENTERCOM as a simulcast of KFTK-F/ST. LOUIS. ROMANIK is a convicted felon (perjury and bank fraud) who would not be eligible to own stations himself, but the FCC has yet to rule if his arrangement to lease the stations runs afoul of its rules; the trust is in the name of ROMANIK's son as sole beneficiary.

Read WILKINSON's column here.

« see more Net News