The most discussed stories yesterday (4/27) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
According to a report by Lauren Hirsch and Benjamin Mullen in The New York Times, SiriusXM is in the early stage of talks to acquire iHeartMedia. The report notes that neither company responded to 
requests for comment. The report states, “Liberty SiriusXM Group, once an affiliate of John Malone’s media empire, formerly held significant stakes in both companies. But it eventually sold its stake in iHeartMedia, primarily a broadcast radio company, and split off its ownership of SiriusXM, the satellite radio company, into a separate entity.” The story goes on to underscore that the talks are in the early stages, and a deal may not take place. See the Times story here.
Cumulus Media is renewing “The John Phillips Show” with a new multi-year agreement. The program – hosted by John Phillips and Randy 
Wang – is heard on 790 KABC-AM in Los Angeles and 810 KSFO-AM in San Francisco daily from 12:00 noon to 3:00 pm. Phillips is also a columnist for the Orange County Register and the Los Angeles Daily News. Wang also hosts the locally focused “KABC News Blitz” daily from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm. Cumulus regional VP Larry Blumhagen says, “We are thrilled to extend “The John Phillips Show” and will continue to have John Phillips and Randy Wang speak about accountability in California to their loyal audience.”
Audacy’s sports talk WEEI-AM/FM, Boston announces that Rich Shertenlieb will co-host a new afternoon drive show with Ken Laird and Ted Johnson. Shertenlieb most recently hosted mornings on WZLX with Johnson as co-host. Prior to that he co-hosted mornings on WBZ-FM “98.5 The Sports Hub” with Fred Toucher for 14 years before an acrimonious parting. Audacy SVP of programming and sports format vice 
president Mike Thomas says, “Rich is one of the most dynamic and entertaining voices in Boston media, with a proven ability to connect with audiences across platforms. Paired with Ted’s championship pedigree and insight, and Ken’s deep understanding of the station and its audience, this show brings together a unique combination of credibility, energy and perspective that will resonate with Boston sports fans.” Shertenlieb says, “I’m thrilled to be at WEEI and reunite with my buddy and one of my favorite colleagues, Ted Johnson, and work with Ken to see what we can build together. The station’s connection to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund makes this deeply personal, given the role those organizations have played in saving my wife’s life. I’m grateful for this next chapter and can’t wait to get started.”
Salem Radio Network reacted swiftly to the breach of security and shooting at the White House Correspondents Dinner on Saturday night. SRN VP of news & talk programming Tom Tradup says that SRN Special Reports were fed starting just four minutes after the first shots were fired and the president was evacuated from the head table by Secret Service agents. TOWNHALL.com’s Larry O’Connor went live on 
YouTube less than 20 minutes after the shots were fired with analysis and perspective including multiple videos from different angles, as well as his own experiences over the years attending D.C. events. Tradup adds, “I am so very proud of our Salem news professionals at SRN News and TOWNHALL.com who quickly and concisely kept our audiences up-to-the-minute as this unprecedented drama unfolded.”
Beasley Media Group and the Tampa Bay Rowdies soccer club are partnering in deal that will see WJBR-AM, Tampa “Florida Alumni Radio 1100AM” serve as the radio broadcast home for all Rowdies matches in 2026. Beasley says Rowdies home and away matches from the USL Championship regular season and Prinx Tires USL Cup are the latest addition to Florida Alumni Radio’s growing portfolio, which already includes football and basketball broadcasts for both the University of 
South Florida and Florida State University. Radio broadcasts for Rowdies home matches on Florida Alumni Radio will feature the same crew from the club’s television broadcasts on Tampa Bay 44 – longtime Rowdies play-by-play commentator Drew Fellios, Rowdies legendary goalkeeper and color commentator Jeff Attinella, and sideline reporter Diandra Loux.
The most discussed stories over the weekend (4/25-26) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
iHeartMedia names programming pro Christopher Layfield vice president of programming for the company’s Louisville station group that includes news/talk WHAS, talk WKJK, and sports talk WKRD, plus five music brands. iHeartMedia 
Louisville area president Kristy Beebee says, “Christopher brings an exceptional track record of leadership, creativity and strategic vision, and will be a tremendous asset to our teams and listeners. Louisville is a dynamic, growing market, and we’re excited to see the impact he’ll make as we continue to elevate and strengthen our brands, talent and community connections.” Layfield most recently served with Cumulus Media as SVP of programming for Indianapolis.
iHeartMedia Philadelphia names Jeff Hurley SVP of programming for the six-station cluster that includes sports betting outlet WDAS-AM “FOX Sports The Gambler.” In this role, Hurley will oversee programming operations across the market while continuing to maintain his EVP of programming 
responsibilities outside of Philadelphia, including the Upstate New York, Mid-Atlantic and New England areas. iHeartMedia EVP of programming Thea Mitchem says, “Jeff is a proven leader with a deep understanding of our brands, our audiences and the power of strong programming. His ability to strategically elevate stations while developing great teams makes him the right choice to lead programming in Philadelphia, and I’m confident he’ll continue to drive success in this important market.”
Marketing pros Gayle Troberman, former CMO for iHeartMedia and David Alberts, former chief creative officer for Grey London are launching Bubbler Media Group, a “conversation company designed to break the marketing cycle of safe thinking and predictable playbooks.” The company’s press release says Bubbler “is a marketing company designed for marketers by marketers built to spark and scale human conversations as a catalyst for ideas and growth. Through 
provocative podcasts, unexpected live experiences, and new research, tools and planning solutions, Bubbler is designed to get brands into the conversation in fresh ways.” As part of its launch, Bubbler announces a partnership with iHeartMedia to develop and distribute a slate of original business and marketing podcasts, with more than 10 original podcasts slated for this year. President of iHeartPodcasts Will Pearson says, “The iHeartPodcast Network has always been focused on the new genres and audiences we can reach through this incredible medium – and the ‘business-to-business’ space is a perfect example of that. Creating a slate in podcasting for marketing executives to have meaningful, deep conversations with each other about the world of business and advertising will have immense value for our listeners and brand partners alike.”
iHeartMedia to Reveal Q1 Results. iHeartMedia will report results for the quarter ending March 31 on May 11 and will host a conference call at 4:30 pm ET that day to discuss its financial performance and outlook. A live audio webcast will be accessible through its investor website.
Urban One Sets Earnings Call. Urban One says it will release its operating results for the first quarter of 2026 on May 14 and will host an earnings call at 10:00 am ET on that day. A replay of the call will be available through May 21 on the company’s website.
Here are the most talked about stories of the past week (4/20-24) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS:
Stories
People
To see the full TALKERS Stories, Topics, and People Charts, please click HERE.
The latest court filing in the Cumulus v Nielsen monopolistic practices suit tells the court it is no longer asking it to prevent harm, it’s asking the court to recognize that the harm has already happened. The filing states: “After a three-day evidentiary hearing, the District Court ruled for Cumulus, finding that Nielsen’s unlawful tying would irreparably injure
Cumulus’s relationships with advertisers, goodwill, and market share, and push it towards financial collapse. The District Court accordingly enjoined Nielsen’s anticompetitive conduct. 
Nielsen’s brief attacks those findings as speculative, asserting that Cumulus never showed any real risk of bankruptcy or any other non-compensable harm, but one of those irreparable harms has now come to pass: After a motions panel stayed the injunction, Cumulus declared bankruptcy—citing “the Nielsen network tying policy” as a significant contributing cause. The other harms identified by the District Court remain today and have become increasingly urgent, as Cumulus will lose access to Nationwide this September.” TALKERS associate publisher and Harrison Media Law senior partner Matthew B. Harrison comments, “Cumulus has fundamentally shifted the posture of this case. What began as a forward-looking claim of irreparable harm is now being presented as a realized outcome, following its Chapter 11 filing. The appellate court is no longer being asked to prevent potential damage, but to assess whether the harm that has already occurred can be attributed to Nielsen’s challenged conduct — or to broader economic pressures facing the radio industry.”
Cumulus Media | Westwood One’s Audio Active Group reveals that according to Edison Research Share of Ear data, Honda automobile drives listen predominantly to AM/FM radio when listening to ad-supported audio (83%). Ad-supported podcasts come in second at 8%. The report goes on to say, “U.S.
government studies report most commutes are a solo affair. In the car, Honda drivers cannot be reached by social media, online video, or any digital platform while commuting to work. What are the audio habits of Honda drivers in all locations (home, work, vehicle, and some other place)? Edison examined audience shares among Honda drivers to ad-supported audio platforms at home, in the car, at work, and some other place. In all locations, Honda drivers devote 62% of all their ad-supported audio time spent to AM/FM radio.” See more about the study here.
This is the third month of Podtrac’s Multi-Channel Podcast ranker that combines audio, video and video clips consumption to rank the top podcasts in the U.S. and Meidas Touch Network’s “The Meidas Touch” remains ranked #1, with “The Joe Rogan Experience” steady at #2. This chart presents the
ratio of the three measurement types and it’s notable that more than half of Joe Rogan’s consumption is audio. For comparison, the audience for Candace Owen’s “Candace” (#9) is mostly from video and video clips – split evenly between the two. “The Tucker Carlson Show” (#10) audience is predominantly from video clips, while The New York Times’ “The Daily” (#6) is almost exclusively consumed via audio. See the chart here.
Triton Digital’s Top U.S. Podcasts by weekly average downloads for participating networks for March is released and
iHeart Audience Network’s “Stuff You Should Know” returns to the #1 spot. Cumulus Podcast Network’s “The Dan Bongino Show” is steady at #3, while Salem Podcast Network’s “The Charlie Kirk Show” falls eight places to #14. See the March ranker here.
The Museum of Broadcast Communications unveils Radio Hall of Fame 2026 nominees. The 24 nominees were chosen by the Radio Hall of Fame Nominating Committee, with input from the
radio industry and listeners. Voting for inductees begins Friday (4/24) and runs through May 8. The top six vote recipients will gain induction as part of the 2026 Radio Hall of Fame Induction class. The additional inductees that will make up the induction class will be selected by the Radio Hall of Fame Nominating Committee. Spoken-word nominees include: Boomer Esiason, Joey Reynolds, John & Ken, and Larry Elder. See all the nominees here.
WRVA, Richmond afternoon drive host Jeff Katz (right) is pictured here with Richmond city council member Reva Trammel (left), while being recognized on the 10th anniversary of Katz’s Lieutenant Jan McTernan Blue Friday Honor Award. Katz, a former police officer, has been honoring Central Virginia law enforcement heroes on the final Friday of each month. The award is named in memory of Janice Ann McTernan a retired, longtime veteran of the Richmond Police Department.
“The Financial Exchange” Expands. “The Financial Exchange with Michael Armstrong and Chuck Zodda” is now available on BiZ TV. is growing again. The business radio show is currently heard on 14 stations across New England, including WRKO, Boston and nationally on Sirius XM’s Business Radio channel. Now, it’s on BiZ TV on every major streaming platform including in addition to being on OTA TV in 36 states.
iHeartMedia Sets Date for First Quarter Earnings. iHeartMedia will issue financial results for the quarter ending March 31, 2026, on May 11. The company will conduct a conference call at 4:30 pm ET, following the release of its earnings announcement, to discuss its financial results and business outlook.
The most discussed stories yesterday (4/22) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
In a piece by Stephen Battaglio in the Los Angeles Times, billionaire businessman and WABC, New York owner John Catsimatidis is profiled as his image soars nationally due to his role in the Oscar-nominated Timothée Chalamet film, Marty Supreme. Battaglio writes, “‘Marty Supreme’ director Josh Safdie cast Catsimatidis as Christopher Galanis, 
a financial backer of the table tennis phenom played by Timothée Chalamet in the film. Safdie told Vanity Fair he liked Catsimatidis’ ‘larger-than-life regional businessman’ look, which he noticed when the mogul ran for New York City mayor in 2013.” Interestingly, a key focus in the piece is on Catsimatidis’ ownership of news/talker 77WABC. He writes, “Catsimatidis made millions from buying New York real estate on the cheap in the 1970s when the city was in deep economic trouble. So, he recognized a bargain when his Red Apple Media group bought WABC for $12 million from Cumulus Media.” See the LA Times piece here.
The Chicago Tribune’s Robert Channick writes a piece about Audacy’s all-news WBBM-AM/WCFS-FM, Chicago dealing with the task of replacing the top-of-the-hour CBS News that will cease in May. In the piece, brand manager and news director Craig Schwalb isn’t tipping his hand on what the station will do once CBS News is gone for good. He says “all options are on the table.” TALKERS publisher Michael Harrison is quoted in the piece noting that WBBM faces a “high bar” replacing a
newscast that some 700 stations respected enough to put on their air. Schwalb tells the Tribune, “Conversations have been going on since the announcement, and I think we get closer and closer to a decision every day. But we have to be very careful and be very diligent about making sure the product that we select is going to make sense from a listener perspective and a revenue perspective as well… CBS has been a great top-of-the-hour news piece for a long time, but it’s a very small percentage of what we do in a given hour between business, traffic and weather together on the eights, local news – the strongest local newsroom in Chicago radio.” Read the Tribune story here.
Mentoring and Inspiring Women in Radio, Inc announces that McVay Media president Mike McVay is the recipient of the 3rd Annual MIW Erica Farber Impact Award that recognizes individuals “who drive meaningful change by actively engaging with impactful organizations and generously 
contributing their time, expertise, and resources. Honorees are true champions of service, demonstrating an unwavering commitment to fostering growth and progress within the industry.” McVay was presented with the award by Erica Farber on April 20, at the MIW Lipstick & Lobster Dinner at Maggiano’s. MIW board president Sheila Kirby states, “Mike McVay has been a consistent and powerful advocate for both the radio industry and the advancement of women within it. His willingness to share his time, expertise, and influence has made a lasting impact on MIW and the broader community we serve. Mike doesn’t just support the mission, he actively helps move it forward, and that kind of leadership is exactly what the Erica Farber Impact Award represents.”
The most discussed stories yesterday (4/21) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS research:
Sports media personality Gregg Bell is returning to iHeartMedia’s “KJR Sports Radio” as host of the 10:00 am to 12:00 noon program. This comes a week after talk host Marc James exited the station. The new program, “The Gregg Bell Show with Christopher Kidd” leads into “The 
Ian Furness Show,” which moves to an earlier start by an hour. The Seattle Times notes that Bell has covered the Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune since 2014, and Kidd is an executive producer with KJR who co-hosts the “Seahawks Man 2 Man” podcast. Bell comments about working Kidd, saying, “We have great rapport. I value his input. He’s a Seattle kid, born and raised, and a Coug. He’s a little younger than I am, so that gives another perspective.” See the Seattle Times’ coverage here.