Ovies and Giglio Launch Podcast
The Charlotte Observer reports that former WCMC-FM, Raleigh sports talk hosts Joe Ovies and Joe Giglio are launching a podcast venture after being let go by WCMC owner Capitol Broadcasting last week. The duo
have started The OG Live Podcast Co to operate their business. They say the new podcast program, titled, “Ovies & Giglio,” will drop three times a week – Monday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings – on a YouTube channel. Giglio tells the paper, “We’re going to try to do what we’ve been doing, only on our own. The outpouring from both listeners and from our sources — coaches, administrators, commissioners, (Canes owner) Tom Dundon — that part has been overwhelming and obviously super encouraging at a time when we obviously needed it. So that’s kinda why we thought we could do this. We hope we can make the most of the chance that we have.” Read the Observer story here.
“modern audiences.” According to Pemberton-Fowler, “‘The SoapKast Hour’ targets women 24-59 who are looking for daily original, high-quality drama. ‘The SoapKast Hour’ will keep audiences coming back day after day to hear the unfolding drama of ‘Kingsport,’ a story about unhappy people searching for happiness, and ‘Affairs of the Heart,’ an uneasy tale about class, wealth, and money set in a small college town.” The show will be available to stations via barter with 10 local and eight national spots per episode. Interested stations can learn more by calling 323-316-0342 or email 
It’s the most effective tactic in marketing: Free samples. And the attorneys, financial advisors, real estate agents, veterinarians, and other ask-the-expert hosts who broker time for weekend call-in shows can drum up lots of new business…IF they execute well.
compared to the net loss of $3.7 million in Q1 of 2022. Beasley CEO Caroline Beasley states, “Beasley’s strong first quarter financial operating results highlight our continued local audio leadership and the ongoing success of our digital transformation and revenue diversification initiatives which are driving top-line and SOI (station operating income) growth. Despite ongoing challenges related to the economy and softness in the national spot market, Beasley generated healthy growth across its digital, local audio, and network revenue sources, as reflected by the 3.7% increase in first quarter net revenues to $57.8 million. Top-
line growth was the primary factor contributing to an impressive 21% year-over-year increase in SOI to $7.1 million. Our digital strategy delivered first quarter digital revenue growth of 27.8% year-over-year and accounted for 17.3% of total first quarter revenue. Similar to recent quarters, strong digital revenue performance was driven by Beasley’s organic content creation initiatives and the roll-out of our tailored web services. Beasley continues to see accelerating demand from consumers for our innovative digital content, with our unique digital users more than doubling over the prior year quarter, resulting in a more than 90% year-over-year increase in sellable digital impressions. We believe we remain on path for this revenue source to reach 20% of total revenue by 2023 year-end.” Total outstanding debt as of March 31, 2023 was $290 million, and first quarter interest expense slightly declined to $6.6 million. Beasley had $35.9 million of cash and cash equivalents on hand at quarter end. We intend to keep our cash on the balance sheet in order to maintain our strong liquidity position, while we monitor the economic environment.”
Newsmax saw this agreement as both an opportunity to join with a respected leader in multimedia, Telecom Serbia, but also to strengthen America’s ties with the people of Serbia and the Balkans. The United States and Serbia were allies in both World Wars, share a common desire to overcome the destructive legacy of communism in East Europe, and both continue to support democratic societies. We believe that millions of Americans, Serbs and others will see us as an important source of information that they can trust.”
student has pivoted between holding positions on key talk stations and performing stints in politics and the public sector. These include being State Director of Field Offices for Governor Brian Kemp. She’s also worked for former U.S. Senator David Perdue in senior staff positions. Back in 2011, she announced her candidacy for Congress in Georgia’s new 9th Congressional District and temporarily left the airwaves to campaign full time. She made it to the runoff in that race, but did not win, although her impressive showing was a victory unto itself. Among her many roles, she has served on the Georgia State Board of Education since 2020. Zoller has been designated the TALKERS 2023 “Woman of the Year” and will be presented the prestigious award at the publication’s national conference on June 2 at Hofstra University on Long Island. 
The whining is non-stop. Many in radio mourn the advent of consolidation, corporate dictates, staff cuts. They miss the way the industry was – before.
concise, practical strategies that can be applied immediately. The three-minute videos cover a wide range of topics, from sales strategies to account management and client relationship building. Each video is accompanied by an eBook that expands on the topic, providing additional tips to help sellers and managers improve performance.
government and federal government contracting community.” Joel Oxley is vice president and general manager at WTOP News and Federal News Network. He says, “Each time I have brought new opportunities to Jeffrey he has used his creativity and collaborative approach to create success for our audience, our advertisers and our team. His expertise specifically in identifying trends our organization can leverage to better deliver on our mission will take a higher profile. Leading to even greater overall success. Jeffrey’s vision for the future will align directly with our goal of being the go-to source of federal news for employees and contractors and bringing new products and opportunities to market.” Wolinsky has served at Hubbard DC for the past 20 years.
Carton Show” weekdays from 7:00 am to 9:30 am on FS1 since September of last year in addition to the daily WFAN afternoon drive show he does alongside Evan Roberts. As Marchand writes, doing both shows is time consuming. Carton is up in the middle of the night to get to Midtown for the FS1 show, then does the WFAN show and gets home around 8:30 in the evening. Marchand also speculates that FS1 might believe that Carton’s TV show would draw more viewers if he wasn’t also on “The Fan.” It’s reported that Carton’s contract with Audacy expires later this year so WFAN would like to know what Carton’s plans are sooner rather than later. 
wont, the rest of the cast toasted – and roasted – her after she announced the engagement on the nationally syndicated show. 
content through financial resources, direct or indirect political pressures, and/or control over production and distribution.” Twitter owner Elon Musk replied to NPR’s protestations with two words – “Seems accurate.” NPR president and CEO John Lansing said the company was disturbed to see the “state-affiliated Media” tag slapped on its tweets and calls it “unacceptable for Twitter to label us this way.” 
Jenna Miller, integrated sales manager for Cox Media Group join the board of the organization consisting of top-level female radio professionals who use their 
experience, influence, and resources to help other women in radio develop management and leadership skills. MIW board president Ruth Presslaff says, “Both Lori and Jenna share a history with MIW, starting as mentees and now joining us as board members. They are each accomplished and inspiring professionals who are generously giving back to the betterment of women in the industry, and the industry as a whole. We welcome them wholeheartedly and are thankful for their participation.”
as a major ‘go-to’ source across the nation and continues to grow as a major political and social thought leader in the Peach State utilizing her local radio platform most effectively. She is truly a gem in this field.” Over the years, Zoller pivoted her multi-faceted career at different times between being a local and regional radio talk show host, a student, a political operative, a congressional candidate (where she made it to a run-off) and a businesswoman as well as a wife, mother, and grandmother. After graduating in 1979 from the University of Georgia with a degree in journalism from the prestigious Grady School of Journalism, she worked in the corporate world in addition to raising a family. She states, “I know there is no glass ceiling and women can have it all, just not at the same time.” A lifelong learner, Zoller completed her MA in Political Science in 2021 at the University of Georgia’s School of Politics and International Affairs. Her thesis was on women’s electoral success in the GOP. Among her political experiences, she served as the State Director of Field Offices for Gov. Brian Kemp. From 2014 until 2018, she worked for Sen. David Perdue in senior staff positions. Martha began her talk radio career in 1994 after being a regular caller to WDUN. Her first call to the station was prompted by Hillary Clinton’s lament that “she could have stayed at home and baked cookies.” In addition to being a perennial member of the TALKERS “Heavy Hundred,” Zoller has been named to James magazine’s list of Most Influential Georgians and Georgia Trend magazine named her as one of Georgia’s most influential members of the media. She also serves as the 9th District Representative on the Georgia State Board of Education since 2020. Meet Martha Zoller at TALKERS 2023 on Friday, June 2 at Hofstra University. For more information see story below.
that its Lawrence Herbert School of Communication brings to the table.” As was the case last year, this event will be held in a COVID-19 compliant environment based upon the circumstances at the time of the convention. TALKERS 2023 will boldly address key issues – some existential – facing the talk radio and talk media industries at this dramatically critical juncture of rapidly accelerating technological and societal change as well as identifying the remarkable opportunities inherent in these developments. It will also provide participants with unique and powerful networking opportunities. The all-inclusive registration fee covering convention events, exhibits, food, and services for the day is $379. Take advantage of the early bird fee of $329 available until 5:00 pm ET on Friday, March 31. Because space will be limited and a sellout is anticipated, all registrations are non-refundable. 
Communications Partners LP, a 39-station group which he later sold to Cumulus Broadcasting in 2000 for $258 million. At this time, he pioneered notable progress in integrating legacy media with emerging digital technology. In 2004, he formed Connoisseur Media which now operates 13 radio station brands and digital assets in five markets. Highly respected and celebrated industry-wide for his outspoken candor and bullish approach to radio station ownership, Jeff Warshaw serves on the board of directors of the National Association of Broadcasters, the executive committee of the Radio Advertising Bureau, and is chairman of the Nielsen Audio advisory council. Harrison describes Warshaw as “one of the most knowledgeable, emerging forces to be reckoned with among radio industry leaders.”
Christopher Ruddy founded Newsmax in 1998 to publish online and offline content in the fields of news, politics, health and finance. Newsmax.com ranks consistently as one of the country’s most-trafficked news websites. Newsmax TV, a cable and over-the-top media service news channel started in 2014, has shown remarkable growth becoming one of the nation’s leading television news and political opinion sources. Newsmax recently entered the field of talk radio with a syndication arm and is reportedly exploring expansion into radio station ownership. As a journalist, Christopher Ruddy previously worked at the New York Post and the Pittsburgh Tribune Review. He was also awarded a Media Fellowship at the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace at Stanford University. He holds a BA summa cum laude in history from St. John’s University and a Master’s in Public Policy from the London School of Economics. Harrison describes Ruddy as “a key player in emerging 21st century media.”
commentators as well as up-and-comers. Trader tells TALKERS he “honestly believes AUN is one of the fastest growing TV and streaming networks in the country.” He states, “Now it is time to expand once again. Our goal is to be broadcasting in every major market in the next two years! This is maybe where an ambitious, hard-working manager can become part of this dream. I am looking to develop a management team to make it happen. If a candidate has expertise in managing finances and accounting, recruiting, human resources, overseeing and developing technologies, as well as creating company policy, sales and marketing, then such an individual might be looking for the challenge of a lifetime.” Trader continues, “I am looking to work with conservative/faithful, passionate ideologs like myself who are concerned with the direction our great republic is heading and want to return it to the Judeo-Christian, faith-based patriotic roots our founding fathers created! Here is the catch: all our progress and success has been achieved on a very tight budget! In fact, we cannot offer salaries. What we can offer is incentives for those who produce to be rewarded.” Interested candidates can contact Rick Trader, president/CEO, AUN TV Network at 
including physical and mental wellness, nutrition, positivity, and the motivation seniors and families need for leading healthy and active lifestyles. Chen says, “We hope to reach a wider audience and help shed more light on important topics regarding physical fitness, mental health, and wellness that matter most to seniors as we continue to roll out podcast episodes now and into the future. We’re proud to be a part of a great network of people who are like-minded and dedicated to providing the best content online for a demographic that we feel is underserved, and we are looking forward to helping that change.”
DirecTV and its leadership for working with us to find a mutually beneficial business agreement to bring our programming back to its customers. While we raised the issue of censorship relating to our removal, we now believe in DirecTV’s commitment to distributing diverse viewpoints, including conservative ones. DirecTV has made clear during our negotiations that it has always been focused on protecting its customers from the rising programming costs across the pay TV industry and never intended to limit one perspective or to target conservative voices. We accept their position and believe that our new agreement with DirecTV will allow them to continue to be a go-to-source for one of the most diverse lineups of news programming, now with three conservative news networks including Newsmax.” Newsmax Media CEO Christopher Ruddy will be speaking at TALKERS 2023 on Friday, June 2 at Hofstra University.
It is an unpredictable thing, this news cycle that drives the headlines.
help retirees make sensible financial decisions in retirement. Armuth says, “Today’s investors deserve to know that investing is simple, affordable, and accessible to all! Collaborating with Senior Resource was a no-brainer for me because our missions are so similar. My podcast is dedicated to empowering and educating retirees on personal finance and investing, and Senior Resource helps me share this message with a broader audience. I’m thrilled to see my podcast has reached listeners from all across the country, and I remain steadfast in my commitment to giving real people the knowledge and tools they need to better understand investing and their finances in retirement.”
national spot revenue for 2022 was $798 million, down 0.2% from 2021. Digital revenue for 2022 was $259 million, an increase of 8.9% over 2021. Network revenue in 2022 was $89.9 million in 2022, an increase of 6.9% over 2021. The company also breaks down its radio revenue by format and notes that while revenue from music-formatted stations in 2022 was down 1.3%, revenue from news and talk stations was $199.7 million – up 2.3%, and revenue from sports talk stations was $264.3 million – up 5.2%. Audacy president and CEO David J. Field says, “Having started 2022 on a great note with revenues up 14% in the first quarter, we ended the year with revenues down 0.8% in the fourth quarter as challenging ad market conditions persisted. For the full year, revenues were up 3%. Fourth quarter 
expenses grew 9% due to accelerated recognition of podcast expenses, but we anticipate that expenses will be up low single digits in the first quarter and fall below 2022 levels beginning in the second quarter. We continue to vigorously execute our plan to navigate the storm and to position the company for recovery when business conditions improve. Our liquidity improved from $115 million at the end of September to $145 million at year end. With the sale earlier this month of $17 million of towers, we have now completed $73 million in non-strategic asset sales to bolster our liquidity and to support our continued compliance with our financial covenants. We are making solid progress on our key growth drivers including our reinvented streaming audio platform, our national enterprise business development, our podcasting and digital marketing solutions businesses, and our promising ad tech and ad product roadmap. Looking beyond the challenging current macro environment, Audacy has a strong and differentiated, scaled, competitive position in the dynamic and growing audio space and is deeply focused on continuing the work to capitalize on the opportunities and drive a healthy recovery.”
Have you picked up the most recent buzz around Artificial Intelligence? It’s hard to miss it.
Local news sponsorship is an opportunity to “fish for whales,” institutional advertisers who can associate with something special. And, well-done, local news sure is special, because:
of our programs.” The officer roles are: Annie Howell, chair, chief communications officer, Hallmark Media; Katina Arnold, incoming/vice chair, vice president, communications, ESPN; Heather Cohen, immediate past chair, EVP, The Weiss Agency; Brenda Hetrick, treasurer, president, Matrix Solutions; and Monica Bloom, treasurer-elect, VP of marketing for First Look Media. New directors serving on the board are: Cori Abraham, SVP, Entertainment Unscripted Development, Crime and Documentary Development, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming; Jayne Bussman-Wise, creator acquisition & growth, Amazon AMP; and Chesley Maddox-Dorsey, CEO, American Urban Radio Networks. The following leaders will continue serving on the AWM Foundation Board of Directors: Tim Clarke, SVP, digital audio content, Audacy; Vicki Lins, president and CEO, CTAM; Mike McVay, president, McVay Media; Deborah Parenti, publisher, Radio Ink, RBR, and TVBR; Josie Thomas, former EVP, chief diversity and inclusion officer, CBS (Retired); and Christine Travaglini, president, Katz Radio Group.
Queens councilwoman Tiffany Caban in the next elections. Sliwa tells the Post, “We’re going into the belly of the beast of the Democratic Socialists of America in New York City. We’re going to take on AOC and Caban. This is Concord and Lexington. We’re talking to regular people in Astoria. They don’t support defunding the police and defunding the jails.” Sliwa hosts the daily “Rip ‘n’ Read with Curtis Sliwa” show that airs from 12:15 pm to 1:00 pm on Red Apple Media’s WABC-AM and WLIR-FM. 
broadcasting remotely from a business center in a New Orleans hotel in which two Black people were sitting behind him. Referencing a previous trip to New Orleans in which Felger’s vehicle was stolen, Massarotti asked Felger if the two could hear him and when Felger replied that they couldn’t, he said, “OK, so I would be careful if I were you because the last time you were around a couple of guys like that, they stole your car.” During his apology on Monday, Massarotti said he gets why the joke, intended to be poking fun at Felger, was wrong. “It didn’t come off that way. It came off as something far broader and ignorant, and I’m regretful of that… I sincerely apologize, and I will do my best to make sure it never happens again.”
appeared on the “Parkins & Spiegel” show. Olivia Finestead is the mother of Clevinger’s 10-month-old who went on the radio show to discuss the allegations against Clevinger, a move he called “really trashy of them. That was some lowlife material right there.” He was also quoted saying, “My lawyers are paying attention. My lawyers are getting in contact with them, and they probably already sent a cease-and-desist for defamation. So [they] just got themselves involved in this, too, so good for them.” 
“Operating loss, net loss and net loss per diluted share for the three months ended December 31, 2022 include $44.2 million of non-cash impairment losses related to FCC licenses, goodwill and franchise rights. Operating loss, net loss and net loss per diluted share for the 12 months ended December 31, 2022 include $54.7 million of non-cash impairment losses related to FCC licenses, goodwill and franchise rights.” Beasley CEO Caroline Beasley comments, “Beasley’s 2022 fourth quarter and full-year financial results reflect the ongoing success of our digital transformation and revenue diversification strategies, which drove year-over-year increases in revenue and SOI for both the three- and 12-month periods. Throughout the year, Beasley largely offset ongoing challenges related to the economy and softness in the national spot market, as we generated healthy growth across all of our digital, local audio, political and other revenue sources, as reflected by the 6.2% increase in full year net revenues to $256 million. This top-line growth was 
the primary factor contributing to a 2.8% year-over-year increase in full year SOI to $43.1 million. While economic uncertainty remains, Beasley initiated several actions throughout the year that we believe will strengthen the long-term position of our business. First, our digital strategy continues to deliver strong results with fourth quarter digital revenue growth of 13.2% year-over-year, representing nearly 17% of total fourth quarter revenue. Digital revenue has consistently outpaced national spot advertising revenue over the past several quarters due to a combination of organic growth and contributions from the second quarter acquisition of our white label digital agency business, Guarantee Digital. With accelerating demand from consumers and advertisers for our local content and multi-platform marketing solutions, we are solidly on the path for this revenue source to reach 20% of total revenue. Second, we remain focused on monetizing our premium audio and digital content through new local business development, revenue diversification and maximizing political revenue opportunities. As a result, in the fourth quarter, we delivered $5.1 million in net political revenue, with stronger than expected gains in Las Vegas, Philadelphia, and Detroit, as well as year-over-year total revenue increases across nearly all of our markets and in our esports business. Our radio brands remain dominant in Nielsen Audio ratings, where Beasley currently has the highest average cluster share when compared to the major radio broadcasters in PPM. Finally, we implemented a cost reduction program in the second half of 2022, with the majority of cost cuts occurring in October.”