Chicago: Eddie & Jobo Out At K-Hits

Chicago radio icons Ed Volkman and Joe Bohannon, whose celebrated partnership as Eddie & Jobo has endured through 25 years of ups and downs, are out of work again.

On Thursday they were cut after 20 months as morning personalities on CBS Radio classic hits WJMK-FM (104.3), the station they helped kick off as K-Hits in 2011. They declined to go on the air for a final show Friday, but will be paid through the remainder of their two-year contracts, which expire in March.

Asked why they chose not to bid farewell to their audience, Volkman told Robert Feder at timeoutchicago.com: “Who’s really listening? That was part of the problem. I can say goodbye on social media to a lot more people than we were getting there.” Later he tweeted: “When Jobo & I were taken off @B96Mornings in 2008 Twitter was in its infancy. Today? OMFG! I'm grateful for unlimited data on this phone!”

In the latest Arbitron Portable People Meter survey, Eddie & Jobo were tied for 20th place in mornings with a 2.1 percent share of listeners between 25 and 54, the station’s target demographic. Overall, K-Hits ranked 18th with a 2.5 share.

In addition to underperforming ratings, program director Todd Cavanah cited the duo’s incompatibility with the station’s format. “Eddie and Jobo have a great style, and they really helped us launch the radio station and get us on the map,” he said. “But the match of Eddie and Jobo with this music is not a good fit. It’s hard to perceive Eddie and Jobo playing the Beatles. It doesn’t fit with who they are.”

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