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Monday, February 28, 2022

Monday Memo: Read Me, Please! “Few opportunities to engage are more powerful than the ongoing email conversation you have with listeners.” Consultant Holland Cooke calls it “a relationship that Pandora and Spotify and your robotic AM/FM competitors can’t emulate.” In this week’s column, HC shares tips for the most important words of your email: its subject line. Read about it here.

 

Pending Business: Sell Carefully. Radio sales pro Steve Lapa says the war in the Ukraine has the potential to bring more information and opinion-hungry listeners to your news/talk station and provides a sales opportunity. “The loyal audience base your station has worked hard to develop will lock in regularly for information updates and the clarity your air talent can bring to a complex and intimidating situation that could affect everything from the price of gas at the local pump to a roller coaster ride in their stock portfolio.” He offers six tips for selling during this historic news storm. Read more here.

 

KNBR-AM/FM, San Francisco Promotes Adam Copeland to Afternoons. Sports talk radio pro Adam Copeland is promoted to co-host of the afternoon drive with longtime host Tom Tolbert on Cumulus Media’s KNBR-AM/FM, San Francisco. This comes after Cumulus parts ways with Tolbert’s former co-hosts Larry Krueger and Rod Brooks. Tolbert tweeted last week about their departure, saying, “Rod and Larry are no longer on the show. It sucks. I’m always saddened when something doesn’t work. I love both of those guys. I consider them friends. I can’t tell you why some things work and some don’t work. It’s a bummer. It stinks.” The new “Tolbert and Copes” show airs from 2:00 pm to 6:00 pm. Copeland joined KNBR as an intern in 2009 and was hired in 2016 as a board operator. He eventually became the producer of “KNBR Tonight with Ryan Covay.” In 2018, after time as a fill-in host on the station, Copeland was named host of his own talk show, “The Lead Off Spot with Adam Copeland,” airing weekday mornings from 5:00 am-6:00 am. He also served as a producer of the “Murph and Mac” morning program.  Copeland says, “Having the opportunity to host ‘The Leadoff Spot’ and hang with Murph and Mac for the past four years has been a dream come true since I was 16 years old, and I’m forever indebted to all the loyal listeners, callers, and guests who made the show as fun and engaging as it was. It’s been the honor of my life. I look forward to bringing that same energy and enthusiasm to afternoon drive with the legendary Tom Tolbert. I know I have big shoes to fill, and I hope to make my fellow Bay Area sports fans proud. Onward and upward.”

 

Round Four of January PPM Survey Released. The fourth of four rounds of ratings information from Nielsen Audio’s January 2022 PPM survey has been released for 12 markets including: Austin, Raleigh, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Nashville, Providence, Norfolk, Jacksonville, West Palm Beach, Greensboro, Memphis, and Hartford. Nielsen’s January 2022 sweep covered January 6 – February 2. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways for this group of markets. In the Raleigh market, iHeartMedia’s news/talk WTKK-FM jumps 1.1 shares for a 7.4 share (weekly, 6+ AQH share) finish and the #3 rank in the market, while Curtis Media Group’s crosstown news/talk WPTF tacks on nine-tenths for a 3.3 share finish good for the #11 rank. Emmis Communications’ news/talk WIBC-FM, Indianapolis recaptures 1.8 shares to wrap the survey with a 10.6 share and climbs to the #2 rank. In Milwaukee, iHeartMedia’s news/talk WISN-AM leaps to #1 after adding nine-tenths for a 9.7 share finish, while Good Karma Brands’ crosstown news/talk WTMJ-AM rises half a share for a 7.2 share finish good for the #4 rank. Cumulus Media’s news/talk WWTN-FM, Nashville tacks on eight-tenths to put up a 6.9 share that gives it the #2 rank in the market. Cox Media Group’s WOKV-FM, Jacksonville is back at #1 after shooting up 2.6 shares for a 9.6 share finish. You can see Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeaways for this group of markets (as well as the first three rounds) here.

 

Nielsen Holdings Reports 2021 Q4 Revenue Up 2.5%; Full Year Revenue Rises 4.1%. Ratings giant Nielsen Holdings plc reports its financial data from the fourth quarter of 2021 and for the full year, revealing Q4 revenue was $894 million, an increase of 2.5% over the same period in 2020. Revenue of the whole of 2021 was $3.5 billion, a year-over-year increase of 4.1%. For the full year of 2021, Nielsen reports net income from continuing operations attributable to Nielsen shareholders was $551 million, compared to $191 million in 2020. Nielsen CEO David Kenny says, “We delivered strong results in 2021. We successfully sold Nielsen Global Connect, hit significant product milestones, and exceeded all of our original 2021 guidance metrics despite facing some unanticipated challenges. We are strongly positioned within the media ecosystem, with growing relevance as audiences shift to streaming, and we are delivering value to clients across our three essential solutions. We made measurable progress toward becoming a digital-first company, and our strategy aligns with where growth in the industry is coming from. We are piloting the first iteration of Nielsen ONE, which we launched in January, with a representative group of clients across media buyers and sellers and feedback has been positive. We also made progress on strengthening our balance sheet, reducing our net debt leverage by over half a turn in 2021. We now have the flexibility to return more capital to shareholders while continuing to invest in organic growth initiatives and pursue strategic, tuck-in M&A. Our $1 billion share repurchase authorization reflects our board’s confidence in both our short and long-term growth prospects and enables us to deliver value to our shareholders.” The company reports its financial position, stating, “As of December 31, 2021, the company had cash and cash equivalents of $380 million and gross debt of $5.626 billion, resulting in net debt of $5.246 billion.”

 

Russian Ukraine Invasion, COVID-19, The Economy/Financial Markets, CPAC 2022/Trump & the GOP, William Barr Book, State of the Union, and SAG Awards Among Top News/Talk Stories Over the Weekend. The Russian invasion of the Ukraine and the domestic and global responses to Vladimir Putin’s gambit; the falling rate of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., the relaxation of mask mandates, and the U.S. trucker convoys destined for Washington, DC; the state of the U.S. economy as the Ukraine invasion affects global markets, the ongoing inflation affecting consumer retail prices, and the financial markets activities; the weekend’s CPAC 2022 conference and Donald Trump’s influence over the GOP; former Attorney General William Barr’s new memoir containing criticism of Donald Trump is teased; anticipation of Tuesday’s State of the Union Address; and Sunday’s Screen Actors Guild 2022 awards ceremony were some of the most-talked-about stories on news/talk radio over the weekend, according to ongoing research from TALKERS magazine.

Advice

CES2022: 5G, 4 Wheels, 3 Days

By Holland Cooke
Consultant

 

LAS VEGAS — Security guys are walking COVID-sniffing dogs around CES venues. Just to get sniffed, we had to enter vaccination dates – and vaccine lot numbers – into that Clear security app you see used at airports. Upon arrival here, we’re presented with self-test kits.

Other big international conventions are watching this bellwether. The World Economic Forum in Switzerland was recently postponed as Omicron numbers mushroom.

(more…)

2021 Heavy Hundred – 76-100

The 2021 TALKERS Heavy Hundred

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #76: Dr. Daliah Wachs, Genesis Communications Network

76. Dr. Daliah Wachs – Genesis Communications Network

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #77: Joe Piscopo, WNYM, New York

77. Joe Piscopo – WNYM, New York

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #78: Monsters in the Morning, WTKS-FM, Orlando

78. Monsters in the Morning – WTKS-FM, Orlando

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #79: Kevin McCullough, WNYM, New York / Syndication

79. Kevin McCullough – WNYM, New York / Syndication

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #80: Derek Hunter, WCBM, Baltimore / Syndication

80. Derek Hunter – WCBM, Baltimore / Syndication

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #81: Karen Hunter, SiriusXM Satellite Radio

81. Karen Hunter – SiriusXM Satellite Radio

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #82: John Williams, WGN, Chicago

82. John Williams – WGN, Chicago

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #83: Brett Winterble, WBT-AM/FM, Charlotte

83. Brett Winterble – WBT-AM/FM, Charlotte

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #84: Larry Gaydos, KTAR-FM, Phoenix

84. Larry Gaydos – KTAR-FM, Phoenix

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #85: John DePetro, WNRI, Providence

85. John DePetro – WNRI, Providence

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #86: John Batchelor, John Batchelor Show

86. John Batchelor – John Batchelor Show

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #87: Eric Von Haessler, WSB, Atlanta

87. Eric Von Haessler – WSB, Atlanta

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #88: Gordon Deal, Compass Media Networks

88. Gordon Deal – Compass Media Networks

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #89: James T. Harris, KFYI, Phoenix

89. James T. Harris – KFYI, Phoenix

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #90: Jennifer Horn, KRLA, Los Angeles / KTIE, San Bernardino

90. Jennifer Horn – KRLA, Los Angeles / KTIE, San Bernardino

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #91: Jimmy Failla, FOX News Radio

91. Jimmy Failla – FOX News Radio

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #92: Mike Calta, WHPT-FM, Tampa

92. Mike Calta – WHPT-FM, Tampa

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #93: Jeff Wagner, WTMJ, Milwaukee

93. Jeff Wagner – WTMJ, Milwaukee

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #94: Frank Morano, WABC, New York

94. Frank Morano – WABC, New York

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #95: Ken Matthews, WHP, Harrisburg, PA

95. Ken Matthews – WHP, Harrisburg, PA

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #96: Martha Zoller, WDUN-AM/FM, Gainesville, Georgia

96. Martha Zoller – WDUN-AM/FM, Gainesville, Georgia

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #97: Charlie Kirk, Salem Radio Network

97. Charlie Kirk – Salem Radio Network

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #98: Grace Curley, Howie Carr Radio Network

98. Grace Curley – Howie Carr Radio Network

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #99: Guy Benson, FOX News Radio

99. Guy Benson – FOX News Radio

TALKERS 2021 Heavy Hundred #100: Dan Mandis, WWTN-FM, Nashville

100. Dan Mandis – WWTN-FM, Nashville

1 – 25 | 26 – 50 | 51 – 75 | 76 – 100

Letters

JC Corcoran Responds

Gentlemen:

I enjoy your work, but I wish one of you responsible for today’s piece (Social Media: Handle with Care, published 1/27/12) had contacted me before it was published.  I might have been able to contribute background information most would consider pertinent.  It’s a bit frustrating to see the outcome which, in this case, amounts to a number of colleagues whose work I respect, taking positions without having some of the key facts in the story at their collective disposal.  These facts may or may not have altered their opinions, but still should be taken into consideration.  I hope you’ll share this information online as an addendum to today’s story.

I am not “defending” my use of rough language in the tweets.  I’m only offering an explanation.  Unbelievably, this entire thing began when, during the first week of October, I was alone in breaking the story, three weeks before the rest of the free world, that St. Louis Cardinal manager Tony LaRussa was about to retire from baseball.  The story was universally dismissed and I was roundly ridiculed by the local media.  It wasn’t until the day after the World Series parade that everyone realized I’d had one of the great scoops in recent memory.  My relatively new Twitter account went from 280 followers to over 2600 in just a few days.  In mid-November, similar kinds of sources told me Albert Pujols was only a few hours away from re-signing with the Cardinals.  I tweeted it.  I ended up being wrong.  That’s when some longtime adversaries went into attack mode.

1)  The Riverfront Times, the publication that started the controversy by publishing the exchange between me and the “listeners,” has been attacking, cheap-shotting and mischaracterizing my work almost since the day I arrived in St. Louis twenty-seven years ago.  I will simply use one story as an example of the way they work.  Several years ago I was involved in a lawsuit with another pair of broadcasters.  The pair engineered a physical attack on me at a charity appearance I was broadcasting from, then told police it was I that had attacked them.  Over the course of the three-year long wait for the case to come to trial, the RFT published almost two dozen attacks on my character, ranging from accusation to ridicule.  When I won the case, and the jury hit the opposing pair with $370,000 in damages, the RFT spoke not a word of it.  Moral of the story?  Their decision to come after me again came as no surprise.

2)  A series of tweets from two of the individuals in question was never published by the RFT or any other media outlet that covered this story.  The people who sent those tweets were nice enough to tell me they wanted to “rape my mother,” among other things.  I ignored them.  Again, I’m not surprised this part of the story was omitted by The Riverfront Times.  It was only when more of this sewage was sent that I finally reacted the way I did.

3)  This is not the way I talk to people.  This is not the way I talk to listeners.  This is the way I talk to creeps.

4)  Two of the people that have been sending this stuff have been identified as local broadcast competitors.  Cowards hiding behind phony screen names.  That element to the story, somehow, has been left out of all of this.  (For the record, every single thing I do in this town contains my real name and image.)

For nearly three decades I have enjoyed a terrific relationship with my listeners.  Frankly, it’s the kind of bond most GMs and PDs can only dream about.  I’ve achieved amazing ratings and won all the awards.  I hardly think it would be fair to make this unfortunate development seem typical of my work here or somehow reduce it to being my defining moment.  I learn from my mistakes as well as the mistakes of others.  I hope you’ll all do the same.

I continue to look forward to your daily work at Talkers.

JC Corcoran
KTRS, St. Louis
jcontheline.com


Great Article

I read your story, “Social Media: Handle with Care” with great interest.  I find that tweeting is a great way to engage the audience.  You will get tweets from people who will never call a radio program and sometimes from callers after they get off the air.  Twitter is used by some in our business as a one way communication and I assume that is because they don’t want to be seen as only responding to favorable comments.  I will tend to ReTweet a positive comment, but I will RT and respond to negative comments more frequently.  I guess I enjoy the “fight, fight, fight” mentality of the school yard.

Talk radio, at least how I see it, is a persuasive medium and Twitter gives you an oppurtunity to make points and back them up with links. Twitter also reminds you sometimes that you aren’t always right.

I think the real danger in a talk radio host adamantly using Twitter seems to be the danger of slipping into a mode that allows talk that wouldn’t be OK on the air, as if you were texting a freind of yours. I am guilty of this many times.

Great article.

Dale Jackson
PD/ Host of The Dale Jackson Show
The Attack Machine Blog
NewsTalk 770 AM/92.5 FM WVNN
Cumulus Media – Huntsville, AL
dale.jackson@cumulus.com


Very Smart

Love the Social Media: Handle with Care exploration.  Very smart!

Amir Forester
Forester Public Relations
Los Angeles, California
amir@foresterpublicrelations.com


Builds Up Fan Base

I have found facebook and twitter very beneficial in keeping my name in front of my former listeners during my time on the beach.  Everyday I post a story or two and make a comment on it.  Some of the discussions can get pretty intense.  It’s as if I am doing a show without doing a show.

I have the maximum of 5,000 friends on my facebook page plus 1300 on a newer fan page and about 1300 Twitter followers.  Now I know there is some overlap, but I am still adding people every day.  When I announce my next gig I will have a built in forum to drive my listeners to the new station.  It has been a wonderful way to build a loyal fan base and keep my name in the public’s eye.

Any host that isn’t currently using social media to build up their fan base in case they find themselves looking for work is a fool.

Tom Becka
Talk Show Host
Omaha, Nebraska


Responses to Walter Sabo’s Overnight: The Underexploited Daypart

THANK YOU.  Never understood why dummies don’t do more with overnights.  Why must you and I be smarter than everyone ALWAYS?

– Jake Fogelnest via Twitter

The dream for my next life.  Another all-night talk show.

– Haney Howell via Twitter

Hey…I LOVE this,Walter!  I’m a HUGE fan of “overnight” radio.  It’s how I started my career.  I do hope that your readers understand how true what you suggest is to them.  Overnights has long been ingnored in radio…a place to put the “new guy/gal,” etc.  There are TONS of wide awake people, at those hours, who’d appreciate being treated like they were as important as midday or AM drive listeners.

– Bob Bateman via Twitter

Love this.  My 2 1/2 years of overnights at WHEN Syracuse (1980-82) were fantastic and the phones always rang off the hook thanks to a wide-ranging audience of students & third shifters.

– Peter King via Twitter

Walter, I always liked your response to management: “You want non-traditional revenue?  How about selling the all-night show?”

– Tom Parker via Twitter

‎”Dennison’s…A Men’s Clothier”…etc., etc.  Love the article, as you’d imagine!

– Ray Rossi via Twitter

Enjoyed this article very much, Walter.  I totally agree.  Before talk radio, I was on air at QVC for 15 years and helped them build the overnights to an extremely profitable time slot.  Like radio, they had been neglecting it.  Live and local overnight radio shows will not only “lead the way” to morning drive, they will open the door to so many new advertisers.

Nice job, thank you for writing it!

– Steve Bryant via e-mail

 


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