- Multinationals -

taco bell bullying

I'm a former radio host from Colorado Springs who was fired from my #1 morning show at KKFM because I asked on the air why Taco Bell charges 25 cents extra to change meat for beans. I think, although I didn't even say this on the air, that I think it's an arbitrary gouge of vegetarians. Before we even got off the air 30 minutes later, Mike Grage, the Taco Bell official from our neck of the woods (I think his daddy owns the franchise) had called and reportedly not only threatened to pull $80,000 in advertising, but to have a restraining order placed against me personally. After calling me at home that night to tell me not to worry, to enjoy my shift, that I wasn't fired, Operations Manager Paul Johnson promptly fired me after my shift the following day. He has subsequently gone on the radio and television to say that Taco Bell (which, coincidentally, went back on the air the day after I was fired) had nothing to do with my firing, that I was fired for other, unspecified reasons. I wasn't there. I have no way to prove what the Taco Bell people said to the KKFM (owned by Citadel Communications) people. All I know is that I was fired and the reason for it seems to have disappeared like drops of water hitting a hot skillet. I"ve never been written up for anything I did off the air, and the only time I was written up, the whole morning show was, too. They still have their jobs...
Even if you don't care about my job, care that Taco Bell still reserves the right to skim 25 cents (about 20% extra) off of every vegetarian or health-conscious fast food diner that comes in to their restaurant. Care that big business routinely puts the squeeze on the media with their advertising dollars to gag their on-air personalities. There is no free speech in big business. You can read more about my situation in the Gazette archives. Use search words like clements+taco+bell, or clements+mike+grage+KKFM. Thanks. Tell your friends.

Follow Ups:

• You ain't paranoid if someone's following you. K W Stant USA June 20 1999 (0)
• The thing that happened at the radio station is sad. Glenn USA February 15 1999 (2)
  • just say 'go to hell' to Taco Bell a. clements April 19 1999 (1)
    • KKFM use to be my favorite radio station Dawn USA September 07 1999 (0)
• Bullies. b. olson usa July 21 1998 (1)
  • Beth is a symbol of something much larger than her firing vicki stevenson america July 28 1998 (0)
• Supporting comment Samuel Day Fassbinder Citizens for Mustard Greens USA July 07 1998 (1)
  • truth and justice can not be supressed. lifelong vegetarian canada July 10 1998 (0)