just who is tampa bay?
You’ve probably noticed the poll that’s up on the site by now — well, there are a group of you who have noticed and voted but I don’t know if all would-be voters have checked in yet. The poll basically asks what local media personality personifies Tampa Bay? Of course, not all the names are local as Todd “Bubba the Lovesponge” Clem is a national shock jock now, and Larry the Cable Guy is a national personality…
But really the point is who, in the media — be they writers, journalists, TV personalities, actors, radio hosts, bloggers, etc — personifies Tampa Bay? Who can you look at and say “people in the area are like that?”
Loading ...From longtime TV newscasters (Gayle Sierens, John Wilson, Dick Fletcher) to the radio (Nancy Alexander, Bubba the Love Sponge, or Buccaneer radio man Gene Deckerhoff) and print journalists (Steve Otto, Howard Troxler) you ‘ve gotten a couple of choices. Of course, other is also a choice and we’d love to hear your selections and why through comments on this post.
Tags: media, personalities, poll, tampa-bay
November 12th, 2007 at 7:36 pm
You know, I came up with the poll and some of the entries but I chose OTHER. You can note that most of the selections are long time standards in the media and I thought I was forgetting people — nationally known or otherwise. I don’t think the old guard of Tampa Bay television like Sierens or Wilson, or Fletcher, happen to personify the area. They’re just a common face and a na,e that we know best…
November 12th, 2007 at 8:50 pm
I chose other, how can you have a list like this without crazy ass Bob Hite on it?
November 12th, 2007 at 9:54 pm
mostly because me and tommy didn’t want to stick two WFLA newscasters on the same poll.
November 12th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
I selected other because I have only lived in Tampa for a couple few years, started my own business, and if there are three people that I would say personify Tampa, and is a real representation of what Tampa is, it would be Daniel Ruth, an amazing commentator and someone who is truly a class act; Wayne Garcia from Weekly Planet who knows everyone and who can really make me think, and in a weird suggestion because he would probably be the youngest of everyone here, Michael Hinmann of the journal because this was someone who I would read all the time thinking he had to be some old guy with thick glasses and gray hair, and he’s practically a kid. That is awesome to me, young, aggressive, and smart — something I think really personifies Tampa.
November 13th, 2007 at 12:10 am
I wanted badly to say “Jeff Klinkenberg”, but that just ain’t true.
November 13th, 2007 at 12:33 am
Ummmmm……Joe Redner anybody!? Not just because he’s known for strip clubs, (Mons Venus) but because it seems like without him, the City of Tampa would’nt be whole. Whether one likes him or not, it can be said that he embodies the city and carries the flair that is Tampa. In a City that is constantly at odds with itself as to what kind of image it wants to portray to the rest of the country, Mr. Redner seems to go through the same kind of motions. Sometimes he’s portrayed meerly as a “Peddler of smutt.” Other times he is shown to be a succcessful business man and a posterchild for Democratic freedoms such as the first Amendment’s Freedom of Speech. Respectfully, the City of Tampa has also been portrayed in this same fasion. On one hand, Tampa has been shown to be a city where crime is rampant and Adult Clubs line just about every street. (No doubt Joe has something to do with the latter) At the same time, We’ve also been desribed as having a very successful business market and also lets not forget about being the “City of The Arts!” After taking all this into account, it seems like Joe Redner, whether it be the “Strip Club King of The South,” or the multi-millionair business-savy Entrepreneur, is the embodiment of this great city we call HOME.
November 13th, 2007 at 6:56 am
a second for joe redner- a few good qualities that always turn out to be mere posturing. he always falls short of respectable, and nobody will ever take him seriously.
November 13th, 2007 at 7:19 am
I clicked on the poll and thought, “This is the best we have to offer?”
Pretty lean deck of cards there.
November 13th, 2007 at 8:51 am
I vote for Bob H., he seems to me to be a relaxed Tampa boy. He likes to be on the water or anywhere outdoors for that matter. He likes having a good time at the local watering holes, I’ve seen that myself over the years. He just seems “Tampa” to me.
November 13th, 2007 at 10:33 am
Haha! I wouldn’t even vote for myself on a list of one person. =P
November 13th, 2007 at 10:53 am
Who is Michael Hinmann? I read all of the local papers and that name is not familiar. A friend of “Citizen Kane” maybe?
November 13th, 2007 at 1:25 pm
It’s actually one “N” at the end. And I’m really nobody. =P I write for the Business Journal, and have done absolutely nothing spectacular in my life at all. Even if I saved a litter of kittens from a burning building filled with asbestos, the world would just yawn, hehehe.
November 13th, 2007 at 1:28 pm
“mostly because me and tommy didn’t want to stick two WFLA newscasters on the same poll.”
Real pro, guys. Do you also roll dice to make decisions?
I vote for Bob Hite, also.
November 13th, 2007 at 2:02 pm
Well, likes, if you don’t like Sticks of Fire and who calls the shots or how it’s done, I don’t think anyone is forcing you to be here.
November 13th, 2007 at 6:41 pm
steve otto !! man he is the best!
Not redner, or ruth….although ruth can be really good at times.
November 13th, 2007 at 7:55 pm
Hey Sandy!! Good to see you back here! Sometimes we use Rock / Paper / Scissors.
November 14th, 2007 at 2:28 pm
I like it best when you throw darts at a list!
November 15th, 2007 at 9:32 am
It’s not even close to scientific, but I based my vote on Gasparilla being Tampa’s signature event. And since that event consists of imbibing heavily and doing whatever it takes (ahem) to acquire mass quantities of free strings of beads, the choice was easy. So congratulations Dick Fletcher!