Buddy Cianci, Rhode Island Corruption, Talk Radio

MORE FELON TALK?

Cianci's Release Could Further Damage Medium







Why has talk radio suddenly become a dumping ground for sleazy felons and other washed- up politicians?

With the impending prison release of notorious former Providence Mayor Buddy Cianci (shown left in photo with Boston Mayor Tom "Mumbles" Menino), Northeast talk stations may continue the troubling recent trend of hiring hosts from the ranks of convicted felons.

Who says crime doesn't pay? So much for cleaning up the sleaze- ridden radio business.

According to the Providence Journal's Mike Stanton, Cianci's early release could mean a faster transition to the airwaves, depending on whether an agreement is reached:

Although Cianci’s five-year sentence for racketeering conspiracy doesn’t end until July 28, plans are for him to be released from prison in Fort Dix, N.J., on May 30, a longtime associate said yesterday.

Cianci will be sent initially to a halfway house in Boston, the Coolidge House, but he will probably be back in Rhode Island soon after, living in home confinement in East Greenwich with his nephew, Brad Turchetta, a Warwick orthodontist and son of Cianci’s sister.

Under government rules, Cianci will have to show that he is working before he can move to home confinement, and he will have to wear an electronic ankle bracelet until his sentence expires on July 28.

(excerpted)

Cianci, 66, will return to a different world than the one he left after his 2002 conviction for racketeering conspiracy. There is a new mayor in City Hall, one who has criticized Cianci’s corrupt regime. New high-rises are sprouting downtown.

And Cianci’s longtime national radio foil, Don Imus, is history.

Will Cianci be replacing Imus on local talk radio?

“We haven’t had any talks with Buddy, but we hope to have lots of talks with him after he’s released,” said WPRO station manager Paul Giammarco yesterday. “If Buddy wants to be on the radio, we want him to be on WPRO.

“Buddy wants to be relevant, and he wants to find a place where his voice can be heard, whether it’s radio or television or the movies.”

Giammarco said that station officials have devised plans to shift WPRO’s current talk-show lineup, which includes Cianci nemesis John DePetro in the morning and Dan Yorke in the afternoon, as well as syndicated host Rush Limbaugh at midday, to make room for Cianci.

“There’s room for everybody — the whole gang,” said Giammarco, who declined to elaborate.

Officials at WHJJ, which recently fired Arlene Violet and is down to just one local talk show, could not be reached for comment.

Talk radio “would certainly be a natural spot for him,” said Artin H. Coloian, his former chief of staff, who declined to comment on Cianci’s employment plans. “I’m excited about his coming back. I think he’ll be as dynamic a champion of the city as he ever was.”

Others who have had contact with Cianci say that he has been working as a prison librarian at Fort Dix and writing his memoirs.

At least in this case, Cianci had some level of popularity with the public, unlike convicted felon Tom Finneran, a former state legislative leader and Democrat Party insider who recently took a similar job in Boston.

But make no mistake about it: Cianci is a crook. And even from a ratings and revenue perspective, it's hard to make a case for Buddy. For one thing, advertisers are not especially keen to associate themselves with known criminals.

And beyond that, there are other problems: he's now 66, has been out of the public spotlight for some time and is likely out of touch with local and national issues. Clearly, Providence has moved on as well, with growth and revitalization that is no longer associated with Buddy's brand of civic corruption.

Beyond just Providence, this pro- felon hiring trend is damaging to talk radio as a whole. Can't we do better?


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Menino / Cianci photo: mumblesmenino.us