TALKERS News Notes
The Newsweek-syndicated talk radio program “The Josh Hammer Show” adds new affiliate station KFTK-FM, St. Louis as the station airs the show on Saturdays from 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm. Hammer says, “I am absolutely thrilled to join the weekend lineup of ‘97.1 FM Talk’ in St. Louis. I grew up hearing about how my great-grandparents on my mother’s side immigrated to St. Louis from Eastern Europe, so this is personal for me. I can’t wait to take my own brand of hard-hitting, pull-no-punches conservatism to 97.1 FM Talk’s powerful airwaves.”
iHeartPodcasts announces the launch of “Native Land Pod” hosted by Angela Rye, Tiffany D. Cross and Andrew Gillum. The iHeartPodcasts president Will Pearson says, “This new, groundbreaking podcast brings together an electrifying ensemble of hosts, hailing from a wide range of media backgrounds. As we head into an election year, we’re excited to see how ‘Native Land Pod’ elevates the political discourse and empowers listeners with new knowledge and diverse perspectives.”
Audacy enters into a sales and distribution agreement with the Women’s Meditation Network. Founded by Katie Krimitsos, the Women’s Meditation Network offers 17 different guided meditation podcasts created to be easily accessible, approachable, and deeply fulfilling for people of all ages and experience levels, as well as children.
director and operations manager Matt Fishman says, “Tim’s extensive background in the sports talk format is invaluable as we continue to grow ‘97.1 The Fan’ and ‘1460 ESPN’ here in Columbus. I look forward to watching Tim grow in this new role and seeing his impact on the team and the overall product.” Station manager Cody Welling adds, “For the last several months, Tim has expressed the interest and ability to grow as a broadcaster and as a programmer. As ‘97.1 The Fan’ continues to innovate as one of the elite sports radio properties in the United States, I’m excited to see the contributions that Tim will deliver for our station and the community.”
director at WIVB-TV, Buffalo and served as a weekend anchor at WBEN-AM in 2002 and at sister WGR-AM in 1999. Audacy Buffalo SVP and market manager Tim Wenger states, “Lisa’s extraordinary background in leading award-winning content generation in local television news will be invaluable for WBEN as it continues to evolve as the radio station that’s always there when the community needs it the most. I look forward to Lisa taking an already stellar brand to new heights.”
several other KNBR staffers were released from the station in a budget move. Santangelo’s first shift on “The Game” will be as a fill-in host for Dan Dibley on the afternoon drive show “Willard and Dibs” tomorrow (12/21). Also let go from KNBR last month was digital team member Jake Hutchinson, who recently joined “The Game” in a similar capacity. He says, “I am truly grateful to Audacy and 95.7 for this opportunity and recognition of what I bring to the table. The people I’ve worked next to from 95.7 have always been motivated, innovative and encouraging. They were enormously fun to share press boxes and interview rooms with, and I am ecstatic to now be able to work with them.” 
We live in an increasingly noisy world. The accelerating advancement of media technology, with its accompanying “everybody is a star” syndrome, combine to make it increasingly difficult to get attention. By that, I mean real attention – the kind of attention that those in the professional media (and related) industries describe as “traction.”
November 2023 PPM Data – Information for the November 2023 ratings period (October 12 – November 8) has been released for Portland, Charlotte, San Antonio, Sacramento, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Orlando, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Kansas City, and Columbus.
November 2023 PPM Data – Information for the November 2023 ratings period (October 12 – November 8) has been released for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nassau-Suffolk (Long Island), Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, San Jose, and Middlesex-Somerset-Union (New Jersey).
financial struggles and looks more broadly at how radio as a legacy medium is facing “the same headwinds as other traditional media.” Carman adds, “Stations are losing their grip on younger audiences, and advertisers are tuning out. Fresh sources of revenue, like podcasts and streaming audio, are going to new contenders such as Spotify Technology SA or just failing to make up for the lost radio ad dollars.” The U.S. radio business has always touted its reach, but according to Lauren Russo, EVP at ad buyer Horizon Media, broadcast radio faces real problems. “The broadcast marketplace is extremely soft for ’23 and similarly for ’24. The overall audio ecosystem continues to grow from a streaming and podcasting perspective, but at the expense of broadcasts.” 
anchored by Newsweek senior editor-at-large Josh Hammer. Newsweek says the program’s goal is to “navigate the converging realms of politics, law, and culture while deliberating on the evolution of American conservatism. Hammer, with his background as a constitutional lawyer, intends to present commentary accompanied by interactions with contemporary conservative thought leaders.” Newsweek director of radio and podcasting Jesse Edwards adds, “Josh Hammer is going to be the next big voice in conservative talk radio, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to bring his powerful message to the airwaves of Seattle, and beyond.”
October 2023 PPM Data – Information for Nielsen Audio’s October 2023 PPM ratings period (September 14 – October 11) has been released for Portland, Charlotte, San Antonio, Sacramento, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Orlando, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Kansas City, and Columbus.
October 2023 PPM Data – Information for the October 2023 ratings period (September 14 – October 11) has been released for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nassau-Suffolk (Long Island), and Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario.
After post-consolidation cutbacks have whacked local on-air content, there’s now angst that Artificial Intelligence can – literally – dehumanize radio (and other media – HUGE issue in the SAG-AFTRA strike). Voice cloning is child’s play; and several vendors are already peddling AI gimmicks to radio stations.
September 2023 PPM Data – Information for the September 2023 ratings period has been released for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nassau-Suffolk (Long Island), Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, San Jose, and Middlesex-Somerset-Union (New Jersey).
for the Phoenix Region that includes news/talk KFYI-AM and sports talk KGME, plus six music brands. iHeartMedia Phoenix region president Linda Little says, “I am thrilled to have Nancie step into this role and lead our Phoenix sales team to the next level. I know Nancie will bring her passion, creativity and leadership talents to help us further grow our business and partnerships.”
August 2023 PPM Data – Information for the August 2023 ratings period has been released for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nassau-Suffolk (Long Island), Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, San Jose, and Middlesex-Somerset-Union (New Jersey).
audio solutions, audio sales, and industry AdTech. In his new role, Milano will lead one of Katz’s dedicated digital sales teams and drive Katz’s fast-growing programmatic audio offering, Audiology, the largest programmatic audio marketplace delivering precision data-driven audiences at scale. Milano says, “The timing of my return could not be any better. Digital audio has grown monumentally through industry innovation and programmatic execution becoming more commonplace. Under Scott Porretti’s leadership, Katz’s digital position is well-established and ready to expand. I’m excited to play a role in its current success and new growth.”
Consider the following song titles:
exclusive offering, Kim Komando shares insider secrets to empower listeners to unlock the full potential of their digital lives, catering to a diverse audience across music and spoken word radio formats. Today, technology is infused into every aspect of our lives. Kim Komando’s daily programs transcend barriers, enhancing the lives of listeners from all backgrounds” Komando adds, “I’m thrilled to join forces with the industry leader, WTOP, to bring invaluable tech insights to their discerning audience.”
Rick Caffey says, “We are thrilled to welcome Eric Baker to the Audacy Atlanta team as our new director of sales. With his extensive background in sales management, we are confident that Eric’s expertise will drive our market growth to new heights. His strategic vision and proven leadership will undoubtedly contribute to our continued success in delivering top-tier content and engagement to our valued listeners and partners.” Baker says, “It’s with great enthusiasm that I embark on this new journey as the director of sales at Audacy Atlanta. I’m thrilled to collaborate with industry veterans like Rick Caffey, Doug Abernethy, and Reggie Rouse, whose expertise I greatly respect. My 16 years at Radio One have been invaluable, and I can’t wait to bring that experience to the dynamic team at Audacy Atlanta, working together to deliver results and achieve remarkable success for our clients while continuing to positively impact the Atlanta community!”
July 2023 PPM Data – Information for the July 2023 ratings period has been released for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nassau-Suffolk (Long Island), Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, San Jose, and Middlesex-Somerset-Union.
HALF of all radio stations in the United States lose money – at least they did back in 1991. The NAB used to put out an annual report revealing how many radio stations were profitable. Usually half the stations in America lost money. Since consolidation, the NAB stopped putting out that report. It is reasonable to believe that far, far fewer stations lose money today. Shared costs, real estate, technical economies due to digital equipment versus analog all indicate that there must be fewer money-losing properties.
Nashville Public Radio, which includes WPLN “News 90.3” (and triple A WNXP), appoints Robert Sanchez as its chief operating officer. Nashville Public Radio president/chief executive officer Steve Swenson comments, “Rob brings a wealth of experience and expertise to help us as we continue our rapid growth to expand our public service to Nashville and Middle Tennessee. His extensive background in both news and music programming is unique in our industry.” Sanchez notes, “I’m grateful to Steve Swenson and the board of directors for entrusting me to help lead the many digital and audio services Nashville Public Radio offers. I’m invigorated to join an organization that functions at such a high level of public service and community engagement.” For the past five years, Sanchez was vice president of news for iHeartMedia Boston news -news/talk hybrid WBZ-AM and iHM’s northeast regional news director. He previously was director/news and programming for Washington, DC’s WNEW-FM “All News 99.1”; assistant news director of New York all-news WCBS-AM; and programming/operations manager for Los Angeles’ KBLA “1580 Talk Radio.” Among persons 6+ in Nielsen Audio’s May 2023 survey period, WPLN ranks #14 and is trending 2.8 – 2.9 – 3.3 (March – April – May, 6+).