Sever-ance III

Massachusetts News Platoon ^ | May 23, 2009 | D. R. Tucker

[MartinaMisc]

Jay Severin–or at least, a modified version thereof–could return to WTKK’s airwaves soon.

According to WGBH-TV’s Greater Boston, Severin–who was indefinitely suspended last month for controversial comments about Mexico’s role in the spread of swine flu–may be brought back under three conditions: a restructuring of his salary (said to be around $1 million annually), a change in the overly sarcastic tone of his show, and an agreement to broadcast the show from WTKK’s Dorchester, Mass. studios, as opposed to his home.

A toned-down Severin will be a better Severin. The “Extreme Games” host had a less acerbic tone during his tenure on WRKO-AM in the late-1990s; he maintained that civil tone in the early weeks of his WTKK tenure, before moving to a rougher, Michael Savage-esque style. For years, this style drew ratings and revenue–but as of late, Severin’s sarcasm hasn’t succeeded.

There have been suggestions that Greater Media, the parent company of WTKK, would like its talk stations to have a less over-the-top style. Not for nothing did WTKK recently run Philadelphia talk-radio star Michael Smerconish in Severin’s slot: Smerconish’s positive, partisan-but-not-excessively-so style is clearly less potentially controversial than Severin’s approach.