Industry News

BFoA Holds Third Media Mixer

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The Broadcasters Foundation of America held its third Media Mixer on June 13 at the New York City studios of iHeart Media. Approximately 150 people – from CEOs to those interested in the business – attended the soiree designed to give up-and-coming professionals in broadcasting “unprecedented access to talent, managers, and executives and to bring awareness of the mission of the Broadcasters Foundation to those that are new to the industry.” Pictured above are (from l-r): Heather Cohen, president of the Weiss Agency; Tim McCarthy, president of the Broadcasters Foundation; Gandhi, a member of the nationally syndicated “Elvis Duran And The Morning Show”; Scott Herman, chair of the Broadcasters Foundation; Maxwell, from Z-100; and Mark Simone, from WOR.

Industry Views

Pending Business: Talk Radio Questionnaire

By Steve Lapa
Lapcom Communications Corp
President

imTime to thank the lawyers in the Donald Trump trial for once again proving beyond any doubt the power of talk radio.

1. Sellers – Get ready for Mother’s Day and Christmas rolled into one.

2. Managers – Prepare a fresh new page in your talk radio media kit.

3. On-air talk radio talent – Don’t throw away that lottery ticket, your number could come in.

4. Media consultants – Hit the brakes on making TV as an automatic first choice for your political campaigns, we’ve got a story for you.

5. Owners – Play your cards right and that talk radio format may have jumped in value.

It has been widely reported that jurors selected for the Donald Trump-Stormy Daniels trial were presented a questionnaire with the following question, “Do you listen to talk radio?” “If so, which programs?” Now wait just a minute all you jury profilers out there or fans of the TV show “Bull.” This is big, but I have a few questions of my own:

1. Why would any lawyer be interested in the radio listening habits of a (potential) juror?

2. Why specify “talk radio?”

3. What’s with the need to know about specific programs?

4. What’s the definition of “listen?” Daily? How long?

Maybe it’s time to recognize just what all this means to great talk radio talent and marketers.

I’m sure by now you have figured out where this goes – influence – as in talk radio hosts, the original influencers.

The very nature of a jury selection questionnaire screening for talk radio listening and specific programs is fascinating. Did an attorney conclude that talk radio shows influenced a potential juror’s feelings, opinions, perceptions (the very currency of talk radio) when it comes to Donald Trump or Stormy Daniels or any other key player on the legal stage?

As every seller knows, talk radio talents were the original influencers and continue to drive sales every day. To the local sellers and managers in the New York DMA pitching Sid Rosenberg, Joe Piscopo, Mark Simone and the other great local talents, imagine experienced legal teams evaluating the influence of their daily shows on potential jurors. Same for the nationally syndicated talent heard in the New York DMA. Talk radio lives and is influencing in the Big Apple!

“Do you listen to talk radio?” “If so, which programs?” that line of questioning should now become part of your daily marketing testimonial. After all, if teams of well-respected lawyers feel talk radio listening can influence the decisions of jurors in one of the most historic cases ever to be tried in our country, imagine what talk radio can do for your advertisers!

Steve Lapa is the president of Lapcom Communications Corp. based in Palm Beach Gardens, FL. Lapcom is a media sales, marketing, and development consultancy. Contact Steve Lapa via email at: Steve@Lapcomventures.com.

Industry News

Talk Host Mark Simone Inks New Deal with WOR, New York

New York City talk radio personality Mark Simone signs a new, three-year deal with iHeartMedia’s news/talk 710 WOR to continue hosting the 10:00 am to 12:00 noon show. Simone says, “There’s no betterim place to be in the radio world than iHeartRadio. Thanks to the finest broadcasting executives around, Tom Cuddy, Thea Mitchem and Bernie Weiss for making it all happen. Walking to work every day is like walking through the Radio Hall of Fame. Just to get to my studio, I pass Elvis Duran, Jim Kerr, Charlamagne tha God, Angela Yee and other all-stars.” WOR program director Tom Cuddy adds, “When I joined WOR almost 11 years ago, Mark was my first hire. Since then, it’s been a blast watching Mark grow into becoming the highest-rated radio talk host in his time slot, along with digital numbers that are among the highest in the country.”

EDITOR’S APOLOGY:  The above story about Mark Simone’s new contract at WOR originally ran yesterday (9/5) in TALKERS.  Unfortunately, our art department utilized a combination of hand-rendered illustration, CGI and AI in creating a headline banner image that apparently missed its mark.  The premise was to depict Simone as the proverbial “800 pound gorilla” of New York radio in which his avatar – a Simone lookalike – inspired by the legend of King Kong, was depicted as a determined figure climbing the Empire State Building.  As it turned out, the King Kong reference was not clear to our readers because there was no actual ape depicted and Simone received a large number of emails telling him that TALKERS ran a photo of the wrong guy.  We meant it to be a caricature but our creative plan backfired.  Simone was upset by the image telling TALKERS, “I have had dozens of caricatures done of me in the past. They are usually somewhat cute.  Never had a problem with them. Yours looked hideous and really cheap. When radio people try to do it, they have no skill at it… no one thought it was a caricature and no one thought it was me. The 13 emails I got from radio execs asked me why you used a picture of someone else, so they never thought for a second it was supposed to be a caricature and no one noticed anything to do with the Empire State Building.”  TALKERS publisher Michael Harrison issued the following statement, “Simone is right.  Looking back at it now, with the increased objectivity of having a full day to think it over, I can understand why he was upset, although there was nothing specifically disparaging about the image. It just wasn’t clear that it was meant to be him and that he was supposed to be climbing a building in an iconic scenario.  After all, a media personality’s sound and image are their brand and they must be protective of its depiction.  We have subsequently pulled the banner from the website and replaced it with a more standard format with the same copy but a different graphic (see above).  The irony is Mark Simone and I have been friendly for more than three decades and I’ve often stated that he is one of the greatest and most successful radio personalities in New York and the nation, not to mention a top notch human being. I still think that.  All of us at TALKERS deeply regret this mistake which was the result of an overly-zealous attempt at being creative. In the world of publicity there’s the old saying ‘as long as they spell your name correctly.’ Well, I guess in this case we spelled Mark Simone’s face wrong.”

Industry News

News Pro Larry Mendte Joins WOR, New York

iHeartMedia announces that Emmy Award-winning news anchor Larry Mendte is joining news/talk WOR, New York as news director and morning news anchor. In this role, Mendte will anchor news during the station’s “Len Berman and Michael Riedel in the Morning” and during the late morning “Mark Simone Show.” Mendte takesim over the position after news director Joe Bartlett retired from the station on May 31 after 37 years with the WOR. Mendte had most recently been news director and host at WJLP-TV, Middletown, New Jersey “Me-TV.” Mendte says, “WOR is iconic in radio history, and I’m honored to accept this position. Len Berman and Michael Riedel are smart, entertaining, and informative. It’s the morning show I listen to, and I’m elated to now be part of it.” WOR program director Tom Cuddy states, “I’ve been a fan of Larry’s for many years. So, when the opportunity popped up for him to work with Len and Michael, I was truly pumped up that we were able to bring in a talent of his caliber.”

Industry News

2023 Radio Hall of Fame Nominees Announced

The Museum of Broadcast Communications announces the selection of the 24 Radio Hall of Fame 2023 nominees chosen by the Radio Hall of Fame nominating committee, with input from the radio industry and listeners. Voting – by more than 800 industry members – for inductees begins tomorrow (6/16) and runs through June 30. The top six vote recipients will gain induction as part of the 2023 Radio Hall of Fame Induction class. The two additional inductees that will make up the eight-person induction class will be selected by theim Radio Hall of Fame nominating committee. The nominees are: Bert Weiss, Bob Rivers, Charles Laquidara, Dyana Williams, Gerry House, Jaime Jarrin, John & Ken, John DeBella, Johnny Magic, Kevin Matthews, Kid Leo (Lawrence Travagliante), Larry Elder, Laurie DeYoung, Lee Harris, Rev. Louise Williams, Bishop, Mark Simone, Mary McCoy, Matt Siegel, Mojo in the Morning, Monica May, Nina Totenberg, Pat St. John, Shadoe Stevens, and Shelley “The Playboy” Stewart. 2023 Radio Hall of Fame inductees will be announced Monday, July 24, and honored in-person at the 2023 Radio Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Thursday, November 2, at the InterContinental New York Barclay Hotel in New York City. Radio Hall of Fame co-chairman Kraig Kitchin states, “Congratulations to each of this year’s’ nominees on this recognition. Behind this slate of nominees, the nominating committee reviewed more than 2,500 incoming suggestions from industry members and listeners before determining this group of talented individuals. Each nominee is deserving of induction, and I look forward to the results of the forthcoming confidential voting results.”

Front Page News Industry News

Friday, July 1, 2022

NOW POSTED: This Weekend’s Installment of “The Michael Harrison Wrap: An Overview of the National Conversation.” The latest installment of the one-hour weekend special, “The Michael Harrison Wrap,” that looks back each week at the hottest topics discussed in American talk media per the research of TALKERS, is now posted. This new episode titled, “Who Needs Fireworks?” looks back at this past week of 6/27 to 7/1. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Bill Brady, talk show host/owner, KFNX, Phoenix; Mark Simone, talk show host, WOR, New York; Victoria Jones, executive director, DC Radio Company; Todd Feinburg, talk show host, WTIC, Hartford; and Dr. Murray Sabrin, emeritus professor of finance, Ramapo College. The show airs weekends on WONK-FM, Washington, DC; WTIC, Hartford; KSCO, Santa Cruz, CA; KDFD, Denver; KFNX, Phoenix; KTLK-FM, St. Louis; WPG, Atlantic City, NJ; SuperTalk 99.7 WTN, Nashville; KMZQ, Las Vegas;  WTPL, Manchester, NH; WEMJ, Laconia, NH; WTSN, Dover-Portsmouth, NH; WVLY, Wheeling, WV; WTRW-FM, Scranton/Wilkes Barre, PA; WVOX, Westchester, NY; KBDT, Dallas; WGDJ, Albany, NY; WJFN-FM, Richmond, VA; WZFG, Fargo; KTGO, Tioga, ND; KWAM, Memphis; K-NEWS, San Luis Obispo; WGMD, Rehoboth Beach, DE; WCHM, Clarkesville, GA; WPHM, Port Huron, MI; KSYL, Alexandria, LA; KTOE, Mankato, MN; WCED, DuBois, PA; K-NEWS 101.3, Owensboro, KY; WWTK, Sebring, FL; WSAR-AM/FM, Fall River, MA; WIZM-AM/FM, La Crosse, WI; WMVA, Martinsville, VA; KQEN, Roseburg, OR; the Virginia Talk Radio NetworkCRN Digital Talk Radio NetworkPodcast Radio UK and many more. To listen to this week’s episode, please click here. To view the latest TALKERS topic research, please click here. “The Michael Harrison Wrap” is now available in syndication via Talk Media Network to stations across America on a market exclusive basis. For affiliation information, please click here or call 616-884-8616.

Jason Carr Named SVP of Programming for iHeartMedia West Palm and Treasure Coast. Programming pro Jason Carr moves from iHeartMedia’s Cleveland station group to the West Palm Beach/Treasure Coast markets to serve as SVP of programming, effective immediately. In this capacity, Carr will also serve as program director for talk WZZR-FM, West Palm Beach and WCZR-FM, Vero Beach “Real Radio” and for classic rock WKGR-FM “98.7 The Gater” in addition to overseeing programming on the 11-station cluster. Market president Mark McCauley states, “We’re excited to bring Jason back home. Jason’s market experience in Cleveland and his experience and familiarity of the West Palm Beach and Treasure Coast markets make him a great fit to grow our heritage brands and take them to new heights.” Carr comments, “I’m pumped to get in the trenches with this outstanding programming team. Managing a heritage rock brand like ‘98.7 The Gater’ will be a treat. Working alongside world class talent like WOLL’s Mo & Sally will be a treasure. My wild ride of a career started at ‘Real Radio 92.1’ and all these year later it is bringing me back to the Palm Beaches and Treasure Coast. To say I’m excited is an understatement!”

Harry Hurley Celebrates 30 Years at WPG, Atlantic City. Today (7/1) is the 30th anniversary of Harry Hurley’s hosting the morning show on Townsquare Media’s WPG, Atlantic City. Hurley says, “Our first guest exactly 30 years ago today was New Jersey Governor Jim Florio. Governor Florio was scheduled for one hour and asked on-air if he could stay for the entire program. Governor Florio’s willingness to appear on our brand-new, unproven talk radio program and travel from Trenton to appear in-studio really helped to launch our career going forward. To start our program with the state of New Jersey’s chief executive officer was priceless. It’s hard to believe that a full 30 years has elapsed. It seems like half that amount of time. It’s also hard to believe that we’re still at the same radio station, 30 years later, now called WPG Talk Radio 95.5. This is very rare in the radio business. I want to take this opportunity to thank my employer, Townsquare Media Atlantic City, our valued listeners and advertisers for making the past three decades possible. My sincere thanks and appreciation to our Townsquare Media Atlantic City leadership team: Michael Ruble, president, Joe Kelly, content director, Chris Coleman, program director, Jennifer Doughten Smith, marketing director, Jim McClain, general sales manager and Chelsea Masterson, digital managing editor.”

New TALKERS 2022 Video Posted. The latest video from the recent TALKERS 2022 convention at Hofstra University is posted. This video is of the panel discussion titled, “Attracting Younger Demos and Broadening the Base,” moderated by WOAI, San Antonio/Compass Media Networks talk show host Joe “Pags” Pagliarulo and featured panelists: Mike “Bax” Baxendale, morning co-host, WAQY-FM, Springfield, MA “Rock 102”; Derek Hunter, host, WCBM, Baltimore/The Derek Hunter Show, TMN; John T. Mullen,operations director, WRHU-FM/WRHU.org, Hofstra University; and Doug Stephan, CEO, Stephan Multimedia/host, the “Good Day Show.” See the video here.

Local Broadcaster John Caracciolo Welcomes Attendees to Long Island. A number of talk media industry professionals served the critical role of introducing panel discussions and presentations at the recent TALKERS 2022 convention at Hofstra University. JVC Broadcasting president/CEO John Caracciolo (pictured below), whose company owns and operates a number of Long Island radio stations including news/talk WRCN-FM, Riverhead “LI News Radio,” welcomed the attendees to Long Island during the Morning Greetings session.

TALKERS News Notes. Public media pro Lindsay Foster Thomas is named vice president, WNYC Studios in which she will oversee the strategic and editorial direction of “The Takeaway with Melissa Harris-Perry,” “Death, Sex & Money with Anna Sale,” and “The United States of Anxiety with Kai Wright,” as well as oversee the pipeline and development process for new talk shows. Thomas brings over 15 years of experience in public radio, with a background that includes work at community, college and commercial radio stations. She joins WNYC Studios from WUNC, North Carolina where she served as content director…..iHeartMedia announces a new partnership with Swoop, which provides privacy-safe AI-generated audiences for healthcare marketing. iHeartMedia says, “Pharmaceutical and life sciences companies can now leverage the same brand-exclusive Swoop segments they already use for digital activation to better inform media planning across iHeartMedia’s ad-enabled broadcast radio portfolio, which reaches nine out of 10 Americans monthly, driving greater engagement and conversion, and ultimately increasing Rx lift. As one of iHeartMedia’s preferred healthcare data providers, Swoop enables healthcare marketers to move from legacy age and gender buying to data-driven broadcast radio activation in an ad-enabled portfolio that reaches more than 275 million individuals per month, representing 90 percent of the U.S. adult population.”

January 6 Hearings Top News/Talk Story for Week of June 27 – July 1. The bombshell testimony of former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson before the January 6 Committee was the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers TenTM. At #2 this week was partisan politics and Tuesday’s primary elections in Illinois, Colorado, Mississippi and elsewhere, followed by the state of the U.S. economy at #3. The Talkers TenTM is a weekly chart of the top stories and people discussed on news/talk radio during the week and is the result of ongoing research from TALKERS magazine. It is published every Friday at Talkers.com. See this week’s complete chart here.

Front Page News Industry News

Friday, March 18, 2022

NOW POSTED: This Weekend’s Installment of “The Michael Harrison Wrap: An Overview of the National Conversation.” The latest installment of the one-hour weekend special, “The Michael Harrison Wrap,” that looks back each week at the hottest topics discussed in American talk media per the research of TALKERS, is now posted. This new episode titled, “Madness in March,” looks back at this past week of 3/14 to 3/18. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERSDom Giordano, talk show host, WPHT, Philadelphia; Mark Simone, talk show host, WOR, New York; Richard Neer, talk show host, WFAN, New York; Jonty McCollyer, talk show host, “China Watch Radio,” KSCO, Santa Cruz, CA; Dr. Daliah Wachs, physician, Las Vegas/talk show host, Genesis Communications Network; and John DePetro, talk show host, WNRI, Woonsocket, RI.  The show airs weekends on WONK-FM, Washington, DC; WTIC, Hartford; KSCO, Santa Cruz, CA; KDFD, Denver; KFNX, Phoenix; KTLK-FM, St. Louis; WPG, Atlantic City, NJ; SuperTalk 99.7 WTN, Nashville; KMZQ, Las Vegas;  WTPL, Manchester, NH; WEMJ, Laconia, NH; WTSN, Dover-Portsmouth, NH; WVLY, Wheeling, WV; WTRW-FM, Scranton/Wilkes Barre, PA; WVOX, Westchester, NY; KBDT, Dallas; KQSP, Minneapolis; WGDJ, Albany, NY; WJFN-FM, Richmond, VA; WZFG, Fargo; KTGO, Tioga, ND; KWAM, Memphis; K-NEWS, San Luis Obispo; WGMD, Rehoboth Beach, DE; WCHM, Clarkesville, GA; WPHM, Port Huron, MI; KSYL, Alexandria, LA; KTOE, Mankato, MN; WCED, DuBois, PA; K-NEWS 101.3, Owensboro, KY; WWTK, Sebring, FL; WSAR-AM/FM, Fall River, MA; WIZM-AM/FM, La Crosse, WI; WMVA, Martinsville, VA; KQEN, Roseburg, OR; the Virginia Talk Radio NetworkCRN Digital Talk Radio NetworkPodcast Radio UK and many more. To listen to this week’s episode, please click here. To view the latest TALKERS magazine topic research, please click here. “The Michael Harrison Wrap” is now available in syndication via Talk Media Network to stations across America on a market exclusive basis. For affiliation information, please click here or call 616-884-8616.

 

Triton Digital Releases February 2022 Podcast Report. The latest podcast ranking report from Triton Digital is published for the period of January 31 to February 27 and is based on Average Weekly Downloads. The report’s rank of the top 20 podcast networks again has Stitcher Media at #1 with 59.1 million Average Weekly Downloads. The Audacy Podcast Network was #2 with 36.1 million AWD, and NPR came in at #3 with 33.5 million AWD. Ranking individual podcasts, NPR’s “NPR News Now” was #1, audiochuck’s “Crime Junkie” was #2 and Cumulus Podcast Network’s “The Ben Shapiro Show” was #3. Other podcasts with a radio connection that are ranked in the report include: Cumulus’ “The Dan Bongino Show” at #8, Salem Podcast Network’s “The Charlie Kirk Show” at #13, and Cumulus’ “Mark Levin Podcast” at #17. See the complete report here.

 

Katie Reid to Lead Bonneville Denver. Radio sales and management pro Katie Reid joins Bonneville International as SVP and market manager for the company’s Denver cluster that includes sports talk duo KKFN-FM “104.3 The Fan” and KEPN-AM “ESPN 1600” and two music brands. Reid, who was most recently VP/GM for Cox Media Group’s Jacksonville operations, takes over for Bob Call, who recently retired. Bonneville president Darrell Brown states, “Katie is a dynamic leader who knows how to focus on priorities and grow business. I believe her experience will position our stations for long-term success in Denver.” Reid comments, “I am honored to be joining the Bonneville team and work with these legendary brands. The Denver team continues to deliver excellent results and I am excited for this next chapter.”

 

TALKERS News Notes. Longtime talk media personality Michael Savage celebrates his 80th birthday today (3/18). Savage, who produces a daily podcast after years of syndication in talk radio, is interviewed by Steve Travers for a piece in Newsmax that you can read here…..Beasley Media Group announces that Cole Croshaw is been named director of traffic operations for the company. He begins the newly created position on March 28. Croshaw was most recently with Marketron serving as the NXT product specialist. Beasley CFO Marie Tedesco says, “We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Cole to the Beasley Media Group family. His leadership and vast experience made him the perfect choice to take our company’s traffic operations to the next level and beyond.”

 

The Russia-Ukraine War Top News/Talk Story for Week of March 14-18. Russia’s now-four-week-old invasion of Ukraine and the attendant political issues surrounding it came together as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers TenTM. At #2 this week was U.S. diplomatic relations with China and Russia with the Ukraine war as the backdrop, followed by the state of the U.S. economy, soaring gas prices and still-rising prices of consumer retail good at #3. The Talkers TenTM is a weekly chart of the top stories and people discussed on news/talk radio during the week and is the result of ongoing research from TALKERS magazine. It is published every Friday at Talkers.com. See this week’s complete chart here.

Front Page News Industry News

Tuesday, March 15, 2022

Dominic ‘Zakk’ Zaccagnini Named PD for WHAM, Rochester and WSYR, Syracuse. Radio programming pro Dominic “Zakk” Zaccagnini is named program director for “NewsRadio WHAM 1180,” classic rock WAIO-FM “Radio 95.1” in Rochester and news/talk WSYR, Syracuse, effective immediately. He will report to Tias Schuster, SVP of programming for iHeartMedia Upstate New York. Zaccagnini joins the iHeartMedia Rochester and Syracuse markets from Cumulus Media’s rock KSAN-FM, San Francisco where he was program director and afternoon drive host while also handling pregame host duties for the Kansas City Chiefs on KCFX-FM, Kansas City. Schuster says, “Zakk is a winner with deep programming knowledge coming from multiple formats and major markets. We look forward to his vision, energy, and leadership that he will bring to our stations.” Zakk comments, “It is a privilege for me to join so many talented professionals and become part of these amazing brands in this management role. I am grateful and very excited for this opportunity. Thanks to everyone at iHeartMedia for making it happen!”

 

Jeff Austin Adds ‘ESPN 1320’ Sacramento Brand Manager Duties. Programming pro Jeff Austin is named brand manager for Audacy’s KIFM-AM, Sacramento “ESPN 1320.” Austin continues his current role with the company as brand manager for sports talk outlets KFXX-AM “1080 The Fan” and KMTT-AM “910 ESPN” in Portland. He assumes the duties from Danny Freisinger, who was recently promoted to director of sports for Audacy’s 2400Sports podcast studio. Audacy Sacramento and San Francisco SVP and market manager Stacey Kauffman says, “We’re delighted to bring Jeff’s ability to mold local sports brands to our market and have his oversight at the helm of KIFM. His experience managing two favorites in Portland will serve him well as he expands his role with us, and we look forward to watching ‘ESPN 1320’ continue to build on its success.”

 

WBZ-FM, Boston’s Tony Massarotti Named Color Commentator for NESN’s Red Sox Coverage. Boston sports media personality Tony Massarotti is named the TV color commentator for NESN’s presentation of Boston Red Sox games this season. Massarotti co-hosts the afternoon drive show with Michael Felger on Beasley Media Group’s WBZ-FM “98.5 The Sports Hub.” Massarotti also hosts “The Baseball Hour with Tony Mazz” on “98.5 The Sports Hub” during the baseball season. He served as the Red Sox beat writer for the Boston Herald from 1994-2008. He’s also the co-author of Big Papi: My Story of Big Dreams and Big Hits, with David Ortiz, and Knuckler: My Life with Baseball’s Most Confounding Pitch, written with Tim Wakefield. Massarotti says, “I’m extremely grateful for this opportunity, but it was obviously a unique circumstance that required the sacrifices and cooperation of many people. I can’t say enough about the support and open-mindedness of the people at Beasley Media Group, The Sports Hub, NESN and the Red Sox for their parts in making this work. In all my time reporting on and talking about baseball, I can’t ever remember being more excited about an approaching Boston baseball season than I am for this one.”

 

WSB, Atlanta Celebrates 100 Years of Service. Atlanta news/talk WSB-AM is celebrating its 100th anniversary serving the market today (3/15). Cox Media Group says its flagship brand, WSB Radio, broadcast across the airwaves for the first time on March 15, 1922 and was the first radio station in the Southeast. The station’s call stood for “Welcome South Brother.” CMG says the station was soon nicknamed The Voice of the South and today continues delivering the news, weather, sports and traffic that matter to listeners while giving back to the Atlanta community. The company adds, “WSB expanded in 2010 to a full-time simulcast on 95.5 FM, extending its footprint across the metro Atlanta area. With its expanded reach, WSB set its sights on innovating its content, digital platforms, programming, sales, production, promotions and engineering, all contributing to the brand’s ongoing success and longevity.” CMG Atlanta and Athens VP/GM Jaleigh Long states, “As we celebrate this milestone, we are honored to have such a talented and diverse team who have served WSB through the years to help us remain at the forefront of innovation that keeps us connected to our audience and local advertisers. 100 years of community service is in our DNA and if there’s anything we are proud of, it’s the station’s rich history of uplifting the surrounding community. WSB’s never-ending commitment to innovation and embracing change will propel the us into the next century and beyond.”

 

Media Execs Spencer Brown and Charles Steinhauer Form New Firm Gemini XIII. The new company, Gemini XIII, is described in a press release as “the podcasting and radio industries’ new home for premium audio content, production and marketing services.” The company is being founded by Cadence13 and Dial Global founder Spencer Brown (left) and former Westwood One COO Charles Steinhauer (right). At the same time, Gemini XIII announces it has acquired The Infinite Agency, a full-service digital advertising agency based in Dallas, as well as Phantom Producer, an audio imaging service from Australian audio producer Jeff Thomas that includes web and mobile app user interfaces. Jonathan Ogle is remaining in his president role with The Infinite Agency and Thomas will continue to lead Phantom Producer. Gemini XIII is based in New York, with offices in Dallas and Sydney, Australia. Gemini XIII CEO Spencer Brown says, “We are pleased to announce the launch of Gemini XIII with the acquisition of two of audio and advertising’s most innovative companies, The Infinite Agency, and Phantom Producer. These great companies are a formidable launching pad for what we expect to be Gemini XIII’s growing portfolio of audio’s most exciting brands. We welcome the talented professionals at these organizations to the Gemini XIII family and look forward to serving our partners and customers with the very best in content and services.” Company COO Charles Steinhauer adds, “These two companies represent a solid foundation of talented people from which Gemini XIII will continue to build. We are committed to bringing new resources and capabilities to audio and to offer new and creative ways to tell stories in audio. We are actively exploring opportunities to complement these organizations to once again build and grow a new breed of audio company.”

 

WWO Audio Active Group: Radio Helps Reach More Swing Voters. According to data from Nielsen VP of cross platform insights Tony Hereau, “the addition of AM/FM radio to a political media plan can generate an extraordinary amount of incremental voter reach.” Hereau recently presented the findings to the American Association of Political Consultants in a report called, “The 10% Solution: Optimizing the Political Media Plan with Radio to Reach Swing Voters.” Some of the key findings in his report include: 1) 45% of voters are zero/light TV viewers who are impossible to reach with TV ads: Nielsen finds there has been a sharp increase in voters who watch little or no TV; 2) The combination of connected TV and AM/FM radio can reach voters who are zero/light TV viewers: AM/FM radio reaches 82% of zero/light TV voters. Connected TV reaches 62% of zero/light TV voters. Combined, CTV and AM/FM radio can significantly supplement the political media plan; 3) Zero/light TV voters reached by AM/FM radio are younger, upscale, and more likely to have kids; 4) AM/FM radio is a rich source of swing voters: 40% to 50% of AM/FM radio programming format audiences are swing voters, according to Nielsen; and 5) AM/FM radio advertising was the untold secret ingredient to Glenn Youngkin’s Virginia gubernatorial victory. See more from this post here.

 

BIA: Local Audio Ad Spend Forecast for 2022 is $14.7 Billion. According to a new forecast from BIA Advisory Services, $14.7 billion will be spent in ad-supported local audio platforms including broadcast radio and digital audio. BIA says the local audio advertising marketplace is becoming more competitive with more streaming services and podcasts. While the shares of local radio OTA (Over-the-Air) advertising is eroding, radio digital is increasing, providing radio stations an avenue to still increase their sales. BIA’s local audio estimate breaks out advertising revenue forecast for 2022 from each of the following local ad-supported local audio platforms: Radio OTA: $12.7 billion – All revenues generated by local radio stations for sale of time to either national or local advertisers from their over-the-air broadcasts. Does not include any advertising sold by the national radio networks. Radio Digital: $1.7 billion – All revenues generated by local radio stations from national, regional and local advertisers targeting a local market from their online activities. Includes display and streaming advertising revenue other than Pandora. Pandora: $400 million – Audio and display advertising revenue generated by Pandora from national, regional and local advertisers targeting a local market.

 

TALKERS News Notes. New York City talk radio host Mark Simone tells TALKERS magazine that his 10:00 am to 12:00 noon program on iHeartMedia’s news/talk WOR-AM “has set a new ratings record, getting the largest total audience (Persons 6+) of any radio station in New York, beating all of the 85 other stations – the only talk show to do that in this century.” Simone’s program garnered a 6.7 share for the two-hour period in Nielsen’s January 2022 PPM survey…..WABC, New York talk host Sid Rosenberg has a cool TV gig on the side. As reported by InsideRadio, Rosenberg plays Dave Busco, a soldier in a crime family, in the Amazon Prime series “Gravesend.”…..Salem Radio Network’s 24/7 national news service SRN News is providing live, comprehensive coverage of a rare “virtual” address to a joint session of the U.S. Congress by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tomorrow (3/16). SRN live coverage begins at 9:00 am ET anchored by SRN News White House correspondent Greg Clugston, featuring remarks by Zelensky followed by recap and analysis of the Urkrainian leader’s address. Additionally, the network’s nationally syndicated “Mike Gallagher Show” on Wednesday will not only feature highlights of Zelensky’s remarks but a special “America Reacts” segment as listeners from coast-to-coast weigh in with their instant reaction to the latest development in the four-week Russia/Ukraine conflict…..Cumulus Media’s Westwood One is again presenting complete coverage of the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship. Coverage will tip off with First Four action on Tuesday, March 15 and run through the NCAA Men’s Final Four on Saturday, April 2 and the National Championship Game on Monday, April 4 in both English and Spanish. Westwood One is also announcing the expansion of its coverage of NCAA Women’s Championship events. For the first time, both the Women’s Frozen Four and the Division I Women’s Lacrosse Championship will be broadcast nationally on radio. Westwood One’s women’s coverage will also include the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Tournament featuring every game from the Sweet Sixteen through the Final Four and National Championship Game, as well as every game of the Women’s College World Series…..Audacy’s Cadence13 podcast studio announces a partnership with creator-focused new media company Puck and the launch of the program “The Powers That Be Daily,” that brings listeners inside the four corners of power in America: Wall Street, Washington, Silicon Valley and Hollywood. Emmy Award-winning journalist Peter Hamby and Puck’s team of founding partners, including Julia Ioffe, Matt Belloni, Dylan Byers, Theodore Schleifer, Tina Nguyen, Eriq Gardner, Baratunde Thurston, and William D. Cohan, “pick up where the news ends to explore the story behind the stories driving the day’s headlines across Wall Street, Washington, Silicon Valley and Hollywood with a digestible and dishy 15-20 minute daily rundown featuring insider insights.”

 

Chicago Radio Legend Pervis Spann Dies at 89. WGN-TV reports that Chicago radio legend Pervis Spann has died of complications from Alzheimer’s. During his career in radio he served as a DJ and helped build WVON-AM where his daughter Melody Spann-Cooper currently serves as president and general manager.

 

Russia-Ukraine War, U.S.-China Relations, Gas Prices/Inflation, COVID-19/People’s Convoy, Midterms/Trump & the GOP, January 6, and Urban Violence Among Top News/Talk Stories Yesterday (3/14). Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine and the U.S.’s role in sanctions and arming the Ukrainian military; the U.S.’s relations with China as Russia asks Xi Jinping for military aid; soaring gas prices and the still rising costs of retail consumer goods; the leveling of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., the lockdowns in China, and the still-active People’s Convoy protesting mandates in Washington, DC; the battle for control of Congress in November’s midterm elections and Donald Trump’s influence over the GOP; Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ wife Gini’s admission to attending the rally prior to the raid on the Capitol on January 6, 2021; the capture of a man suspected of killing homeless people and the arrest of an NYC man who beat an elderly Asian woman were some of the top stories discussed on news/talk radio yesterday, according to ongoing research from TALKERS magazine.

 

 

 

Talk Radio Revolution! Conservative News Talk Morning Radio Producer based in Richmond, VA. Emerging and exciting independent conservative talk-news radio stations/media network is seeking top-notch career-oriented executive for morning producer.

This position is full-time, based in Richmond, Virginia with unlimited growth potential.

The company’s morning show host is a nationally known figure who owns radio stations across the mid-Atlantic region. This is not a remote position, as the producer must work in the flagship studio in south Richmond, VA. The AM hours are 5:30 AM to 2:30 PM. The position requires solid radio production knowledge, creativity, perseverance and the ability to multi-task in the morning. The right candidate will produce the morning show, field phone calls from high-level political figures and live callers, manage the clock, run the ads and navigate through normal live radio issues.

The show host is usually remote traveling the nation. Once the show is completed, the successful candidate is responsible for all post-production as well as running the next show. The successful candidate must be very internet and social media savvy and enjoy a lightning fast-paced environment and work well in the sandbox with others.

This position offers incredible freedom of expression and you will not be micro-managed in a corporate-bean counter driven mentality. You must be able to work independently with little day to day direction. If you love radio but hate the direction our industry is headed with corporate empty suits telling you what to do every fifteen-minutes then we are the company for you!

We play :60-:75 seconds of classic rock music in the morning before each segment so you have to be selecting songs to connect with our audience. We are an independent network and growing. This is a conservative-talk enterprise with the leading America First hosts in the nation, so you should feel comfortable in that environment.

While our competitors are shrinking and laying staff off – we are buying and growing. Come join our talk radio revolution! We are an equal opportunity employer. Competitive salary. Please send a short cover letter and your resume to: ApplyJFMN@gmail.com – Include producer in the subject line. The base salary is $40-50K depending on experience. This is a self-relocation if you live outside of RVA.