The Michael Harrison Wrap | TALKERS magazine

Friday, November 11, 2022

By Editor | November 11, 2022 by Editor

NOW POSTED: This Weekend’s Installment (Series Finale) of “The Michael Harrison Wrap: An Overview of the National Conversation.” The latest installment and series finale of the one-hour weekend special, “The Michael Harrison Wrap,” that has looked back each week for the past three-and-a-half years at the hottest topics discussed in the American talk media per the research of TALKERS, is now posted. This new episode titled, “A House Divided,” reviews this past week of 11/7-11. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Dr. Murray Sabrin, professor emeritus of finance, Ramapo College, NJ; Harry Hurley, talk show host, WPG, Atlantic City, NJ; Victoria Jones, executive director, DC Radio Company; and Matthew B. Harrison, Esq., associate publisher, TALKERS/law professor, Springfield, MA. The show has been airing weekends (Friday evenings to Sunday nights) on 100-plus broadcast signals and networks across the U.S. and U.K as well as having developed a significant international following as a podcast. To listen to this week’s milestone episode, please click here. To view the latest TALKERS topic research, please click here.

LiveOne Reports Revenue for 2023 Fiscal Q2 Up 7.3%. Reporting its financial data for the second quarter of Fiscal 2023, LiveOne says consolidated revenue was $23.5 million – an increase of 7.3% over the same period in 2022 Fiscal Q2. LiveOne is the parent company of PodcastOne and the filing reveals that PodcastOne “posted record 1H Fiscal 2023 revenue of $17.2 million as U.S. unique monthly audience surpassed 6.7 million in September 2022.” LiveOne is planning to spin out PodcastOne as a separate, publicly traded company and expects to file an S-1 with the SEC by December 15. Returning to the company’s consolidated financial data, LiveOne posted a net loss of $3.4 million, a dramatic reduction from the net loss of $15.2 million it reported for second quarter of Fiscal 2022. LiveOne CEO and chairman Robert Ellin comments, “The momentum in LiveOne’s audio business, which includes Slacker Radio and PodcastOne, continues to experience growth of paid members through partnerships, including Tesla, as well as an increase in advertising and sponsorships. We expect our audio business to collectively achieve revenue in excess of $80 million in Fiscal 2023 and generate more than $16 million in Adjusted EBITDA. Over the past year, we have successfully reduced costs and overhead by an expected $25 million on an annual basis while focusing on the operating performance of our audio division. A significant part of our strategy is a decision to forgo any live tentpole and pay-per-view events until Fiscal 2024, which has resulted in a lowering of expected Fiscal 2023 revenue to between $100 million and $110 million. These measures will allow us to utilize our capital and resources to strengthen our balance sheet, buyback stock and focus on the growth of our profitable businesses.”

Christian Arcand Returns to WEEI, Boston to Produce PM Drive Show. Sports talk radio pro Christian Arcand – who was a casualty of the recent cuts at Beasley Media Group and served as an air personality at WBZ-FM, Boston “98.5 The Sports Hub” – joins Audacy’s WEEI-FM, Boston as producer of the “Merloni, Fauria & Mego” show and as host of the Saturday 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm program. Arcand originally served with WEEI first as co-host on the “Planet Mikey” show with Mike Adams and then hosted the “WEEI Late Night” program before joining WBZ-FM five years ago. Audacy Boston SVP and market manager Mike Thomas says, “Christian is a talented guy and a great team player. A lot of people in the building, including myself, have had the pleasure of working with him in the past. What he will bring to ‘Merloni, Fauria and Mego’ on and off the air will really help propel the show and the station forward.”

Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Host Election Event. Pictured above at Tuesday night’s midterm election night event in Nashville are Premiere Networks-syndicated personalities Clay Travis (right) and Buck Sexton (left) – hosts of “The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show” with U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN). Travis and Sexton hosted the event for key advertisers, political guests and others. Among the special guests who attended the private event to watch the election results were: Premiere Networks-syndicated personality Jesse Kelly, Sen. Bill Hagerty, Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, FOX News commentator and Outkick The Coverage host Tomi Lahren, country music star John Rich, former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler, among others.

Hillsdale College Produces Election Night Coverage. In the photo above, student broadcasters at Hillsdale College’s radio station WRFH-LPFM, Hillsdale, Michigan “Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM” present their live election night coverage on the station with a remote broadcast. The school says that more than 20 staffers were involved in some way during the evening, as they welcomed panels of fellow students, Hillsdale professors, candidates, reporters, and pundits to the airwaves. The event was open to the campus community and more than 200 people turned out to watch and listen.

KDWN, Las Vegas Hosts Election Night Special. In the Las Vegas market, KDWN talk host Steve Sanchez (right) presented election night coverage on the station that included contributions from GCN nationally syndicated talk host Dr. Daliah Wachs (center) and “Finding Common Ground” host Patrick Casale (left).

New York Festivals Welcomes Diego Cannizzaro to Radio Awards Advisory Board. The New York Festivals announces that DMC Studio owner Diego Cannizzaro is joining the NYF Radio Awards Advisory Board. New York Festivals Radio Awards vice president Rose Anderson says, “The 14-member Advisory Board panel is an international brain trust of innovative storytellers and industry executives whose expertise spans all genres of audio entertainment and journalism. Diego’s mastery of every aspect of his craft in works like ‘Madre’ and ‘Weightless’ brings emotions, memories, and sensations to his listening audiences. These insights and the Board’s essential guidance ensure that New York Festivals will continue to honor world-wide excellence across all platforms.” Cannizzaro’s DMC Studio is located in Buenos Aires and specializes in radio arts, sound stories, commercials, field recording, sound design and mixing. He is an industry pro known for award-winning work. He creates audiovisual productions for radio, TV, social networks, and movies. He comments, “I consider New York Festivals as an iconic common place, in a global level speaking. A meeting point for all who are really involved in storytelling in the media. Personally, it is an honor to be part of the Advisory Board with outstanding colleagues from all the media worldwide.”

NOT TOO LATE! Comrex Offers Talk Broadcasters Free Trial of Gagl Remote Contribution Service for Post-Election Programming. High-quality, remote contribution is a vital part of any live broadcast – and that’s especially true during election season. Comrex has provided talk radio hosts, reporters and sportscasters with great remote broadcasting tools for decades. Their Comrex ACCESS units have become a ubiquitous presence at political conventions, breaking news stories and anywhere broadcast-worthy things are happening. While Tuesday’s elections are in the rear-view mirror, post-election contribution to your station’s coverage of local and national races is still going strong and will for the foreseeable future. Those contributors need to be able to connect from remote locations at the drop of a hat. Often, reporters and contributors will call in from their remote locations on a mobile phone, which is a simple solution, but results in poor audio quality. Other reporters will have access to a remote audio codec, which provides excellent audio quality, but also requires some management from the engineering team. Gagl, the new remote contribution solution from Comrex, is the best of both worlds. According to the folks at Comrex, reporters and contributors can connect to the Gagl interface from a web browser on a smartphone or laptop, meaning it’s as easy as a phone call to get connected. Up to five reporters can be in a Gagl session at the same time. The Gagl session is connected to a Comrex IP audio codec in the studio, and so on-air hosts are able to talk with field reporters. Each reporter has their own mix-minus, and their audio is studio quality with very low delay, so quality isn’t sacrificed for simplicity. Gagl is a subscription-based service and it’s a first for Comrex. “It’s kind of a pivot for us,” Comrex director of sales, Chris Crump tells TALKERS. “Broadcasters are looking for easier, faster and less expensive ways to do their job. But quality and reliability are just as important,” says Crump. “Gagl uses a web browser on a smartphone or computer. It’s as easy as clicking a link to connect. But it connects to a Comrex IP Audio Codec back in the studio for reliability and greater stability. It sounds great and is designed to be dependable as Comrex customers would expect.” Anyone with an ACCESS or BRIC-Link codec can try Gagl free for two weeks by contacting Chris Crump at Comrex Corporation: chris@comrex.com. Office phone: 978-784-1776. Mobil phone. 404-610-5954. comrex.com

Politics and Midterm Elections Top News/Talk Story for Week of November 7 – 11, 2022. The politics surrounding the 2022 midterm elections and the races that will determine control of Congress for the next two years combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was former President Donald Trump’s position as a Republican kingmaker and his expected announcement he’ll run for president in 2024, followed by inflation and fears of a recession at #3. The Takers Ten^TM 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.

KWAM, Memphis Seeks News/Talk Morning Host. Memphis news/talk outlet KWAM-AM “The Mighty 990” is looking for the next great talk show host in America. We have an immediate opening for a morning show host. Our host must have at least three years experience and must be well-versed on national, Tennessee and Memphis news. Send resumes and audio clips to todd@starnesmediagroup.com.

Friday, November 4, 2022

By Editor | November 4, 2022 by Editor

iHeartMedia Q3 Revenue Up 7%. Reporting its financial data for the third quarter of 2022, iHeartMedia says revenue was $989 million, an increase of 7% over the same quarter a year ago. The company is also posting an operating loss of $211 million for the third quarter of 2022 compared to the operating income of $80 million it reported for Q3 of 2021. Additionally, iHeartMedia reports a net loss of almost $310 million compared to the net income of $3.6 million it posted in the third quarter of 2021. iHeartMedia breaks its operations into three segments. Third quarter results for those segments are as follows: the Multiplatform Group that includes its radio stations and program networks was basically flat with a revenue increase of 0.1% “as a result of increased political advertising revenue as 2022 is a midterm election year, partially offset by a decrease in revenue due to a more challenging macroeconomic environment. Broadcast revenue grew $2.1 million, or 0.4% year-over-year, driven by higher political advertising revenue and an increase in trade and barter revenue, partially offset by lower spot revenue, while Networks declined $(0.7) million, or 0.5% year-over-year.” The Digital Audio Group was up 23.4% on revenue of $254 million. This group’s revenue increased by $48.2 million compared to the prior year, “including growth from Digital, excluding Podcast revenue, which grew $21.1 million to $162.7 million, driven by increased demand for digital advertising as well as Podcast revenue which increased by $27.1 million to $91.3 million, driven by higher revenues from the development of new podcasts as well as growth from existing podcasts. Digital Audio Group revenue increased as a result of general increased demand for digital advertising and the growing popularity of podcasting.” And the Audio & Media Services Group was up 17.7% on revenue of $77.8 million. Chairman and CEO Bob Pittman says, “We’re pleased to report another quarter of solid operating results for iHeart, and our performance in the midst of the current climate of economic uncertainty is a strong indication of the successful transformation this company has undergone in which our high-growth digital revenues comprises 26% of total company revenues. Our Digital Audio Group continues to deliver industry-leading growth, and our Multiplatform Group has again demonstrated its resiliency during a difficult economic environment. We believe the strong positions of both of these groups with both consumers and advertisers give us the ability to both navigate through this period of economic uncertainty and position us for continued growth through the recovery and beyond.”

Salem Media Group Total Revenue Rises 1.3%. The company reports that its total revenue for the third quarter of 2022 was $66.9 million, an increase of 1.3% over the same period in 2021. Salem Media Group also reports an operating loss of $8.8 million compared to operating income of $15.8 million in Q3 of 2021, and a net loss of $11.9 million compared to the net income of $22.1 million is reported during the same period in 2021. Salem presents its financial data in three segments. The Broadcast segment reports revenue of $51.1 million, an increase of 3.1% over Q3 of 2021, Digital Media revenue was $10.2 million, down 4.3% from the third quarter of 2021, and Publishing revenue was $5.5 million, a decrease of 3.7% from the same period a year ago.

Round Four of October PPMs Released. The fourth and final round of ratings data from Nielsen Audio’s October 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 October 2022 sweep covered September 15 – October 12. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. In the Raleigh market, iHeartMedia’s news/talk WTKK-FM tacks on three-tenths to wrap the survey with a 9.1 share that puts it in the #1 spot, while Curtis Media Group’s news/talk WPTF sheds one-tenth for a 1.8 share finish to remain ranked #15. The top dogs in Milwaukee flip as iHeartMedia’s news/talk WISN adds a full share for a 10.6 share finish that lifts it from #2 to #1, while Good Karma Brands’ WTMJ loses 1.9 shares for an 8.1 share finish that drops it from #1 to #4. Cumulus Media’s news/talk WPRO-AM/WEAN-FM, Providence adds on nine-tenths for wrap the survey with a 6.4 share that lifts it from #6 to #5. And in Jacksonville, Cox Media Group’s WOKV-FM is up one-tenth to a 7.9 share good for the #3 rank in the market. You can see Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets (as well as the previous three groups) here.

Comrex Unveils New BRIC-Link III Audio Codec. The company officially unveils BRIC-Link III – the newest addition to its popular BRIC-Link family of codecs. Comrex says there are more than 10,000 BRIC-Link codecs circulating world-wide, and BRIC-Link III is an updated version that takes advantage of the latest improvements in IP audio transmission technology. BRIC-Link III is a true codec, offering a full-duplex stereo encoder and decoder in each box. A jitter buffer manager is incorporated that automatically balances delay and stability, dynamically increasing and decreasing delay based on network performance. BRIC-link III offers a wide range of encoding algorithms including stereo and mono linear mode, FLAC modes, AAC/HE-AAC modes, Opus, G.722 and G.711. BRIC-Link III features a new, more powerful processor for improved reliability. It also features enhanced front panel indicators, including four buttons which will trigger contact closures by default and configurable for auto-connections to other Comrex IP audio codecs. BRIC-Link III is compatible with all other Comrex IP audio codecs, including the ACCESS codec line as well as older BRIC-Link models. BRIC-Link III also works with Gagl, a new service now available for purchase for audio contribution. Gagl turns any Comrex IP audio codec into a hub for up to five remote participants. Like other BRIC-Link codecs, BRIC-Link III includes CrossLock VPN technology, Comrex’s proprietary suite of reliability tools. In addition to bonding technology, CrossLock also includes a Redundancy Mode for mission-critical applications. BRIC-Link III can take advantage of HotSwap, meaning that users can set a 4G/5G modem as a backup connection to only be engaged when the primary internet fails, providing an extra layer of reliability. Customers can also choose to purchase an optional one-time license per codec to utilize SwitchBoard, a private server that Comrex maintains which allows for easy connections between IP codecs. You can get more information on this and other Comrex products here.

GAB Radio Talent Institute Returns to University of Georgia. The RAB’s National Radio Talent System announces the return of the GAB Radio Talent Institute at the Grady School of Journalism at the University of Georgia. The institute takes place in person May 15 – 24, 2023 thanks to sponsorship from The Georgia Association of Broadcasters. The talent incubator spans 10 days and is led by broadcast professionals that bring their real-world industry knowledge from around the state and country to educate students. RAB says that college students from universities throughout the state and region apply to be accepted into the GAB Radio Talent Institute. This provides an ideal networking pool for the students and a wide variety of potential interests within the classroom for industry professionals to identify and actively recruit from. Upon completion of the Institute, students can further their networking capabilities with the ability to access the National Radio Talent System’s Career Center. RAB president and CEO Erica Farber states, “We are delighted to have the GAB Radio Talent Institute make its return after a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic. Collaborating with Bob Houghton and the Georgia Association of Broadcasters enables us to bring this world-class program to life in the southeast and further develop the next generation of broadcasters.”

TALKERS News Notes. Inside Towers’ Leslie Stimson writes an interesting piece about the FCC’s creation of a Space Bureau. Stimson writes that FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced the move at the Satellite Industry Association meeting yesterday (11/3). “She said the growth of satellite broadband internet plays a big part in why the agency is making the move. ‘Ninety-eight percent of all satellite launches in 2021 were deployed into low-earth orbit to provide internet connectivity back here on Earth. They can help advance the FCC’s goals to connect everyone, everywhere,’ Rosenworcel said. ‘More than that, the success of these low-earth orbit communications satellites could be seen as an early litmus test for the broader commercialization of space.’” Read Stimson’s entire piece here…..Three Hillsdale College students have won national College Broadcasters, Inc. awards for their work with “Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM.” The awards were announced at the National Student Electronic Media Convention in Baltimore. Sophomore Lauren Smyth placed first in Best Newscast or Sportscast category for “Lauren Smyth News,” senior Josh Barker placed third in Best Hard News Reporting for his feature “The Policy Corner: Michigan Voting Laws,” and Rachel Kookogey (class of ’22) received both first and second place for two segments of her feature, “Sports Story Time.” WRFH general manager Scot Bertram says, “I’m very proud of our students for their well-deserved wins. It is great to see our students being recognized on the national level for their continued hard work and dedication.”…..SiriusXM announces its play-by-play coverage of the 2022-23 college basketball season that begins Monday (11/7). The opening night schedule features 24 teams from the men’s Associated Press Top 25, including defending national champion and #5-ranked Kansas facing Omaha and top-ranked North Carolina, coming off their 12th National Championship appearance, hosting UNC Wilmington…..Host Bethenny Frankel, the most successful business mogul to emerge from “The Real Housewives” franchise, and iHeartPodcasts launch a first-of-its-kind rewatch podcast titled, “ReWives.” Frankel, formerly of Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of New York,” breaks down the franchise that launched her career. In each episode, she’s “joined by unexpected celebrity guests ranging from superfans to Housewives newbies for hilarious conversations and surprising insight on real topics.” “ReWives” premieres on November 14 with Elisabeth Moss as Frankel’s first guest. New episodes will post each Monday with additional guests including Jerry Springer, Suze Orman, Kevin Nealon, Dave Portnoy, Griffin Johnson and more.

Broadcaster Raising Awareness of Need for Organ Donors. Western Massachusetts broadcaster and public relations pro Mark Auerbach (pictured) is revealing his battle with kidney disease in an effort to raise awareness of the need for organ donors. Auerbach hosts “ArtsBeat,” “On The Mark” and “Athenaeum Spotlight” on WCPC15 and 89.5fm/WSKB. He’s also the ArtsBeat reporter for Pioneer Valley Radio. On today’s program that you can see here, Auerbach reveals his battle with Stage 5 kidney disease and the need for donors. Auerbach says people can help by taking any of three steps: 1) becoming an organ donor upon your death; 2) consider donating while you’re alive (get details at kidney.org); and 3) donating to him at Mass General Hospital’s living donors program (https://mghlivingdonors.org/).

Politics and Midterms Top News/Talk Story for Week of October 31 – November 4. The politics leading up to Tuesday’s midterm elections were the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the economy combined with the Fed’s rate hike, followed by the aftermath of the Pelosi home invasion at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, October 28, 2022

By Editor | October 28, 2022 by Editor

Cumulus Net Revenue Declines 1.8% in Third Quarter. Reporting its financial data for the third quarter of 2022 – as well as the first nine months of 2022 – Cumulus Media reveals that net revenue was $233.5 million in Q1, a decrease of 1.8% over the same period in 2021. For the first nine months of this year, the company reports net income of $16.3 million compared to the loss of $360,000 it reported for the first nine months of 2021. Cumulus breaks out its revenue into segments and the total broadcast radio revenue for Q3 of 2022 was $177 million, down 4.7% from the same period in 2021. While spot revenue was $124.8 million – up 2.3%, network revenue was $52.3 million, down 18.2%. Digital revenue was $34.9 million, an increase of 4.7% over the third quarter of 2021. Cumulus president and CEO Mary G. Berner states, “Notwithstanding a difficult macro environment, consistent execution of our strategic plan has put us in an enviable financial position to effectively navigate through the continuing headwinds. Our solid Q3 results reflect that execution – although total revenue declined, driven by weakness in national advertising channels, digital revenue continued to grow, and we increased profitability as well. We also generated $24 million of cash from operations, repurchased $3.9 million of shares, opportunistically retired $2.8 million of senior notes at a discount and finished the quarter with net leverage of 3.7x, the lowest it’s been in more than a decade. Looking ahead, we will continue to rigorously implement our plan, which includes: furthering our multi-platform evolution; supporting growth of multiple, profitable digital businesses; reducing our fixed cost base; investing in high-ROI internal initiatives; maintaining a disciplined approach to M&A, including enhancing cash generation from non-core asset monetization; bolstering liquidity; reducing net leverage; and optimizing a multi-pronged capital allocation strategy. Given our track record, we continue to have strong confidence in our ability, under this plan, to grow shareholder value even in the incrementally challenging macro environment.”

Beasley Names Ron deCastro Market Manager for Tampa. Radio sales and management pro Ron deCastro joins Beasley Media Group as market manager for the company’s Tampa station group that includes business news WHFS-AM “Money Talk 1010 AM” and five music brands. DeCastro was most recently market president and chief revenue officer at WQHT-FM and WBLS-FM in New York. He says, “I’ve spent a significant amount of my career leading some of the most iconic brands in America and I am excited to join the team at Beasley and help continue grow these fantastic brands.” Beasley EVP and COO Brian Beasley says, “We are happy to welcome Ron into the Beasley Media Group family. His vast experience, valuable insight and proven leadership made him the perfect choice to lead and grow our Tampa/St. Pete-based radio properties.”

NPR and Edison Research Unveil Results of Spoken Word Audio Report. The latest Spoken Word Audio Report from NPR and Edison Research concludes that “almost half (46%) of the U.S. population listens to spoken word audio content daily.” This is the fourth version of this study that “explores the ways spoken word media consumption in the U.S. has increased over time, including the number of listeners, and how long they listen.” This year’s study includes a special focus on how younger demographics are increasingly more interested in the medium, and reveals a 214% increase in listening to spoken word audio among those age 13-24. Key findings include: 1) There are an estimated 26 million more people listening to spoken word audio in the U.S. than eight years ago. An estimated 131 million people in the U.S. age 13+ are daily spoken word audio listeners, up from 105 million daily listeners in 2014; 2) Spoken word’s share of all audio is increasing among all listeners. Listeners age 13+ spend 29% of their total audio time with spoken word content, up from 20% in 2014, a 45% increase; 3) Listeners age 13-24 show the most explosive growth with share of spoken word audio. That Gen Z segment spends 22% of their time with spoken word audio, compared with those age 13-24 in 2014 who spent only 7% of their time with spoken word audio, a 214% increase for this age group; and 4) For the first time ever, daily spoken word audio listeners spend a majority of their audio time with spoken word. Those who listen to spoken word audio daily spend 51% of their total daily audio time with spoken word. You can see the report here.

TALKERS News Notes. Just in time for the 2022 Major League Baseball World Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and the Houston Astros, Audacy drops the new national daily podcast, “Baseball Isn’t Boring,” hosted by longtime baseball columnist, author and WEEI-FM, Boston broadcaster Rob Bradford. The podcast is a project born from the “Baseball Isn’t Boring” campaign instituted by Bradford and major league pitcher Joe Kelly. Kelly and Bradford have also co-authored the soon-to-be-released book, A Damn Near Perfect Game: Reclaiming America’s Pastime. Bradford says, “As we wrap up what has been a very ‘un-boring’ postseason, we’re thrilled to launch this fun new daily podcast to rally behind the great sport of baseball – America’s national pastime. I look forward to speaking with some of the biggest names in sports to prove that baseball is alive and thriving.”…..CNN Audio premieres the new eight-episode, limited-series podcast, “The James Brown Mystery,” that investigates the suspicious death of the legendary musician and questions if he was murdered. The investigation began after CNN reporter Thomas Lake received a phone call from a woman who said she was in James Brown’s inner circle almost 40 years ago and the relationship nearly destroyed her career. Decades later, she’s trying to solve the mystery of Brown’s death. When she makes the call to Lake, “the two stumble into a world of secrets, intimidation, and suspected foul play.” “The James Brown Mystery” is the first podcast hosted and reported by Thomas Lake, who in 2019 published his exclusive CNN investigative series, “Lost in the Woods with James Brown’s Ghost,” exploring unanswered questions around the singer’s death and the many people still calling for an autopsy and criminal investigation. “The James Brown Mystery” expands upon Lake’s reporting and covers Brown’s complicated past, the mysterious death of his third wife, and the biggest questions surrounding his demise…..WDAS-AM/W273DO, Philadelphia “FOX Sports Radio, The Gambler” sports show “The Divide Live” – hosted by Mike, a diehard Mets fan and Corey, a diehard Yankees fan – are broadcasting a one-hour special recorded live from the Toms River Field of Dreams Comedy Night Benefit last weekend (10/22). The special broadcast will include interviews with former MLB third baseman Todd Frazier for his take on the Mets, Yankees, “retirement” and life after the MLB; mixed martial artist Frankie Edgar who breaks down what it’s like to prepare for his final UFC fight at Madison Square Garden; and WFAN, New York afternoon drive star Craig Carton talking career, giving back, life’s successes and unfortunate failures. It airs tonight at 9:00 pm ET…..Edison Research, provider of Edison Podcast Metrics, announces it has developed a complementary service to count downloads for participating publishers. After months of research, Edison is utilizing a new method for determining U.S. downloads that does not employ a redirect nor involve delivery of log files. Edison president Larry Rosen says, “We have developed an elegant new solution that will enhance our unique Edison Podcast Metrics survey. While our survey of 20,000 podcast listeners each year provides the most complete look at the totality of actual listening to podcasts, download data will provide deeper information to subscribers, especially for smaller and short-run shows.”

KTSA, San Antonio Helps Raise Almost $170,000 for Thanksgiving Dinner for Those in Need. San Antonio news/talk KTSA helped raise a record $163,893, during the annual Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner radiothon Friday, October 21. Funds raised will go to feed more than 25,000 seniors and needy people on Thanksgiving Day. The Alpha Media news/talk says the Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner is the largest dinner of its kind in the country. Pictured above (l-r) are KTSA talk hosts Sean Rima, Jack Riccardi, and Trey Ware with a staffer from the Raul Jiminez Thanksgiving Dinner charity.

WCRS, Greenwood, South Carolina Owner Honored for Station’s Service. Pictured above is broadcaster and WCRS, Greenwood, South Carolina owner Anne Eller (left) receiving a proclamation by Charles Moates (right), chair of the Greenwood County Council, in honor of the station’s 81 years of service and Eller’s service to the community. Speaking to The Index-Journal about her work as an independent broadcaster, Eller says, “Each day gives me the chance to connect with my listeners through delivery via traditional radio, livestreaming on the Internet, podcasts on our website and promotions via social media. Radio is as relevant in the business of communications as ever before – maybe more so. I am proud of the honors my station and I have received recently, and I look forward to many more great years as a broadcaster,” Photo by Damian Dominguez, The Index-Journal

Politics and Midterm Elections Tie as Top News/Talk Stories for Week of October 24-28. The debates ahead of the November midterm elections and the politics surrounding them came together as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the state of the economy, including inflation and threats of a recession, followed by former President Donald Trump’s legal issues at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, October 21, 2022

By Editor | October 21, 2022 by Editor

Wisconsin Talk Hosts Avoid Prosecution for Entering Locked State House. According to coverage from Madison.com, charges against Michael Crute (left) and Dominic Salvia (right) – hosts of the progressive talk program, “The Devil’s Advocates Radio Show,” for entering the Wisconsin Capitol illegally on December 22 of 2020 are being dropped. Crute and Salvia’s program is heard in Milwaukee on Good Karma Brands’ WAUK-AM/W266DR, on WTTN-AM/W224EG in Madison and other Wisconsin signals. The duo, along with producer Bryan Kelly, accessed the locked Capitol during the pandemic lockdown to “put up a Christmas tree that included ornaments lampooning Republican lawmakers after Republican state Reps. Paul Tittl and Shae Sortwell and others put up their own tree in the Capitol rotunda and held other activities without a permit because Democratic Gov. Tony Evers had decided not to put up a tree during the pandemic.” Crute, Salvia and Kelly’s lawyer told the program’s listeners that his defensive strategy “was going to be the defense of selective prosecution” on the part of the district attorney. In the end it didn’t matter because ultimately the prosecution “did not feel at this time in the interest of justice jury trials in these matters was warranted.”

Salem Announces Midterm Election Coverage. The company says that its coverage of the November midterm elections will begin on Tuesday (11/8) at 7:00 pm ET and run through 2:00 am the next morning. Salem Media Group says that the Salem Radio Network will join forces with the new Salem News Channel platform to provide marathon “DECISION 22” Midterm Election coverage focusing on the battle over which political party will gain control of the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives for the next two years. “DECISION 22” will also track election results in hotly contested races for governor from coast-to-coast. SRN VP/news & talk programming Tom Tradup states, “This promises to be quite very possibly the most historic Midterm election and it will offer our audiences the first ever live broadcast partnership between our ground-breaking Salem News Channel and the Salem Radio Network nationwide.” For the first five hours starting at 7:00 pm ET, SNC’s Andrew Wilkow and SRN’s nationally syndicated talk hosts Hugh Hewitt and Dr. Sebastian Gorka will anchor the live coverage that will include perspective and analysis from invited guests including SRN hosts Mike Gallagher and Brandon Tatum live from midterm “watch parties.” Correspondents updating key races will include Chris Stigall of “AM990 The Answer” in Philadelphia covering the pivotal Pennsylvania U.S. Senate contest. SRN News White House correspondent Greg Clugston will provide breaking news throughout the evening from the Decision Desk in the Washington bureau. At 12:00 midnight ET coverage switches to the Los Angeles studios of Salem’s “870AM The ANSWER” for continuing coverage anchored by Jennifer Horn (host of The Morning Answer of KRLA and KTIE) and KRLA news anchor Larry Marino.

Mike Miller Named VP of Programming for iHeartMedia Central PA. Radio programming pro Mike Miller is named vice president of programming for iHeartMedia’s Central PA stations that include news/talk WHP-AM and sports talk WTKT-AM “FOX Sports 1460” in Harrisburg, as well as five music brands. iHeartMedia national programming group EVP Jeff Hurley comments, “Mike brings an unparalleled understanding of our business and operations. His track record of innovation speaks for itself. He has created and grown unique brands from the ground up for over 20 years in Central PA. We’re excited to welcome Mike back to our programming team, where he got his first start on ‘FM97’ in Lancaster at age 16.”

Broadcasters Foundation of America Lauded for Hurricane Assistance. After hurricanes swept through Puerto Rico and Southwest Florida, those working in the broadcasting business in the those areas have had to deal with personal and family issues in addition to having to keep up their professional duties to keep the public informed and apprised of everything that is happening in clean-up efforts. At best, it has been difficult for those in the broadcast community to continue working while also dealing with damage to their property or automobiles. At worst, they may be dealing with something such as injury to a family member or pet. While there is certainly no way to replace something as precious as life, the Broadcasters Foundation of America has stepped in to provide some financial security to those colleagues who are suffering from these natural disasters. Dozens of employees from various radio and television companies in those areas have reached out for help and the BFOA has either already delivered or is in the process of providing financial support. Beasley Media Group CEO Caroline Beasley says, “Hurricane Ian was one of the worst natural disasters to hit Southwest Florida in over a century. A near category 5 hurricane, the storm devastated communities that Beasley serves. Our employees worked around the clock, serving as a lifeline to listeners when radio was the only source of communication available to them with the outside world. Throughout the storm, Tim McCarthy and the Broadcasters Foundation of America team were front and center, checking in and offering assistance to our employees who were directly impacted by the hurricane. It’s that type of true commitment and dedication to broadcasters on the front lines every day that makes the BFOA so incredibly important and vital as they take care of those who selflessly take care of others every day. That is what the Broadcasters Foundation of America is all about!”

TALKERS News Notes. A new deal between SiriusXM and New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hollis gives SXM the exclusive rights to distribute and sell advertising for “The Rachel Hollis Podcast.” Additionally, the agreement calls for Stitcher to distribute the show across all podcast platforms. Hollis says, “Teaming up with SiriusXM allows us to further elevate the show, bringing it into an exciting new chapter. I believe we learn the most by listening to other people’s stories and sharing in conversation. My hope is to keep seeking out wisdom from our guests that spark curiosity and openness with an ever-evolving audience.”…..Salem Media Group is presenting at the Annual LD Micro Main Event XV investor conference at 5:00 pm ET on October 26. The presentation will be available on the investor relations portion of Salem’s website prior to the company’s presentation…..Dr. Daliah Wachs’ GCN-syndicated talk radio program adds a new affiliate as Fairview Broadcasting’s news/talk KWBG-AM, Boone, Iowa adds the show to its program schedule in the 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm daypart.

Politics and the Midterm Elections Top News/Talk Story for Week of October 17-21. The politics and the debates leading up to the November midterm elections combined as the most-talked-about-stories on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Takers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the economy – including inflation, the up-and-down financial markets, and fears of a recession – followed by the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine tied with other foreign affairs stories at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, October 7, 2022

By Editor | October 7, 2022 by Editor

KGO, San Francisco to Begin Sports/Wagering Format on Monday. The end of the news/talk format on Cumulus Media’s legendary KGO-AM, San Francisco came in a way that many market observers are calling bizarre – just to give one adjective. During the late morning Mark Thompson show, the station suddenly ended the talk show and began airing a recorded announcement followed by music stunting. Thompson himself was as surprised as the listeners to learn the that station will flip to a new format on Monday (10/10) – some form of sports betting talk. The message from Cumulus was: “Today we say goodbye to the legendary KGO. Over the last 80 years, KGO has been here for Bay Area listeners covering and discussing all the news that has impacted our world and local communities. We thank you for your loyalty and for trusting KGO to be your source for information. We also want to sincerely thank all the talented men and women that worked so hard over the years to produce award-winning programming on KGO. On Monday, 810AM begins a new era. We hope you will tune in.” Northern California-based journalist Matthew Keys reports that sources say the new format will be branded “The Spread 810AM.”

Beasley and Audacy Swap Las Vegas Stations. The two companies are entering into an asset exchange agreement that will see Beasley Media Group’s news/talk KDWN-AM and FM translator K268CS (101.5) go to Audacy, which will give FM station KXTE (currently alternative rock) to Beasley. As part of the agreement, longtime Las Vegas-based syndicated morning personalities “Dave and Mahoney” will continue to be heard on KXTE-FM. Beasley CEO Caroline Beasley says, “Throughout Beasley Broadcast Group’s 61-year history, we have actively managed our station portfolio with the goal of serving the communities where we operate with the best local programming and brands, diversifying our operations, managing risk and improving financial results. The agreement to exchange KDWN-AM/FM translator for KXTE-FM addresses all of these strategic objectives and upon completion, will complement our Las Vegas market presence and content with five strong signals in the market.” The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year subject to Federal Communications Commission approval and other customary closing conditions.

Round Two of September PPMs Released. The second of two rounds of ratings information from Nielsen Audio’s September 2022 PPM survey has been released for 12 markets including Washington, Boston, Miami, Seattle, Detroit, Phoenix, Minneapolis, San Diego, Tampa, Denver, Baltimore, and St. Louis. Nielsen’s September 2022 sweep covered August 18 – September 14. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. Hubbard Broadcasting’s all-news WTOP-FM, Washington remains ranked #1 in the market after adding one-tenth to finish the survey with an 8.1 share (weekly, 6+ AQH share). Cumulus Media’s crosstown news/talk WMAL-FM tacks on six-tenths for a 4.5 share that lifts it to the #7 rank. In Boston, iHeartMedia news/talk WRKO slips half a share for a 3.8 share that leaves it ranked #9, while the company’s all-news WBZ-AM adds seven-tenths for a 5.3 share good for the #5 rank in the market. Audacy’s WCCO-AM, Minneapolis rises eight-tenths to finish the survey with a 5.6 share that lifts it to the #7 rank, while iHeartMedia’s crosstown news/talk KTLK-AM is up one-tenth for a 3.1 share finish and Hubbard Broadcasting’s talk KTMY-FM dips two-tenths for a 3.1 share finish leaving them tied at the #15 rank. You can see Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets (as well as the first round) here.

iHeartMedia Sells New Orleans Office Building. The New Orleans City Business reports that iHeartMedia has sold the downtown New Orleans building that houses its operations there. The three-story, 17,765-square-foot building has been on the market for two years and was acquired by a Florida-based investment group. The story notes that the building was constructed in the mid-1990s. It has “a 250-kilowatt generator, 60 parking spots with a secured gate and two adjacent lots.” The sale price is reported to be just over $3.57 million. It was originally listed at $3.7 million in August 2020.

Grant Stinchfield Launches Show on Salem Podcast Network. KRLA-AM, Los Angeles morning drive personality Grant Stinchfield is launching a podcast on Salem Media Group’s Salem Podcast Network on Monday (10/10) titled, “Stinchfield.” He currently hosts “The Morning Answer” show on KRLA alongside Jennifer Horn. Salem SVP for spoken word Phil Boyce says, “Grant does a great morning show with Jen in Los Angeles, and we’re excited that he’s moving up on the Salem platform. Now, listeners all over the country get to hear his take on the day’s news and events. We’re delighted to give him this opportunity.” Stinchfield comments, “America is in crisis and the corporate media establishment continues to silence strong conservative voices. This podcast is about pushing back and refusing to be silenced. We will expose the stories the mainstream media refuses to cover. I am so proud to be a part of Salem Media, an organization that refuses to sit idly by and watch our nation fall deeper and deeper into debt and despair. Its commitment to free speech is why I am proud to call Salem Media a partner.”

TALKERS News Notes. According to a report by Kevin Kinkead at Crossing Broad, Jamie Lynch is out at Beasley Media Group’s sports talk WPEN-FM “97.5 the Fanatic.” There is no information from the company on Lynch’s departure, although a cost-cutting motive is the most likely. Morning drive host John Kincade said on the program, “Obviously you will notice Jamie is not here. I can only say that we miss Jamie because a situation like this is a time when Jamie is of the greatest joy. We miss him not being here with us today. And if you miss Jamie this morning you can only imagine how much we do. I don’t know how much more to say. I’m not at liberty to say. But we miss him and we wish he was here with us.”…..Public media company GBH announces that Jim Braude will leave the WGBH-TV program “Greater Boston” at the end of this year. Braude also co-hosts the “Boston Public Radio” program on WGBH-FM, Boston with Margery Eagan and will continue in that role. Braude has hosted the “Greater Boston” television program since 2015 and co-hosted the radio program with Eagan since 2013…..Cipolla Analytics announces the appointment of Dr. Ed Cohen as chief research officer for the company, overseeing the expansion of its SpotGPS advanced intelligence software for radio. Developed especially for PPM markets, Cipolla Analytics says, “SpotGPS makes it easy to get the listening credit you deserve. SpotGPS reveals content placement and quantity on your stations and the competition in a way that is clear, colorful, and compelling.” Cohen was previously vice president, ratings and research for Cumulus Media, and led Nielsen Audio’s connected car streaming audio research initiative as vice president, measurement innovation.

Russia-Ukraine War and Foreign Affairs Top News/Talk Story for Week of October 3-7. Russia’s annexation of portions of Ukraine, its continuing military invasion of the country, and surrounding foreign affairs combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the economy – including inflation, the financial markets and the threat of a recession – followed by politics and the November midterm elections at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

KWAM Seeks News Staffers. KWAM, Memphis “The Mighty 990” is expanding its local news coverage. KWAM has promoted Ben Deeter – executive producer of “Wake Up Memphis” – to full-time news anchor and anchor of the radio station’s political coverage. KWAM owner Todd Starnes says there are plans to add more reporters and anchors. Email resumes to: info@kwamradio.com.

FOX News Media Seeks Freelance Radio Anchor. This onsite position in either Los Angeles, Chicago or New York is a freelance radio anchor for the FOX News Audio family as on-air talent for FOX News Radio Network/FOX News Headlines 24/7 Sirius XM Channel 115. In this position, you will work under tight deadlines and deliver top-notch newscasts. You have a passion for breaking news and the flexibility to work on a day’s notice. Learn more about this position here.

Reporter Position Open at FOX News Media in Washington, DC. For this onsite reporter position FOX News Media is looking for an experienced, full-time reporter to join the Washington DC team. You will cover a wide range of political, government, and Congressional stories for FOX News Audio (FOX News Headlines 24/7 and FOX News Terrestrial Radio). You possess strong journalism skills and thrive in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment. Most importantly, you have great editorial judgment and the ability to break important news stories. Learn more and apply here.

Freelance Producer/Editor Opportunity at FOX News Media. This exciting opportunity is based in New York for a freelance producer/news editor to supervise the staff for our network radio news operations (terrestrial and FOX News Headlines 24/7 – Channel 115 on SiriusXM Radio). In this role you are our editorial leader, working with news anchors to craft the content and structure of a 24/7 news operation. This is fast-moving news environment! Your ability to thrive in a fast-paced, deadline-driven newsroom allows you to deliver top-quality segments/newscasts. You excel at multi-tasking and pay close attention to details. Your writing and editing skills are excellent and your editorial judgment is first-rate. Find out more here.

Front Page News Industry News

Friday, September 30, 2022

By Editor | September 30, 2022 by Editor

Audacy to Flip Sports Talk ‘790 The Ticket’ to Spanish Talk as ‘Radio Libre 790.’ Beginning Monday (10/3), sports talk WAXY-AM “790 AM The Ticket” flips to Spanish conservative talk as “Radio Libre 790.” The programming change takes place in partnership with national conservative Hispanic network Americano Media. Audacy regional president and Miami market manager Claudia Menegus says, “We’re proud to introduce Spanish radio to our South Florida portfolio for the first time ever and empower the voice of so many of our neighbors in this community. With the launch of this station, we aim to not only serve our listeners but give them a reliable home for the news they seek and the information they rely on every day.” Americano Media chief Ivan Garcia-Hidalgo adds, “The joint endeavor with Audacy is a natural fit for Americano. We provide the best Hispanic news-talk programming in Spanish, with the best hosts covering important current events, and Audacy’s audience is demanding that information. This is the first of many terrestrial radio syndication agreements for Americano, and we look forward to a strong partnership with Audacy.” The station will feature Americano Media’s talent, which includes former “Radio Mambi” hosts Nelson Rubio, Dania Alexandrino, and Lourdes Ubieta, who will cover the day’s political and critical news events, technology, and breaking news. Americano Media produces 18 hours of original programming each weekday from 6:00 am to 12:00 midnight, with diverse Spanish-speaking hosts. Regarding the sports programming on WAXY-AM, the station’s two local shows – Tobin & Leroy and Hoch & Crowder – are both already simulcast on Audacy’s sister sports talk outlet WQAM and will remain there.

Chicago TV Personality Jane Clauss Named Contributor to WLS-AM’s Steve Cochran Show. Windy City television personality Jane Clauss joins Cumulus Media’s news/talk WLS-AM as morning show contributor for “The Steve Cochran Show.” Clauss is an EMMY Award winner and currently host of “Creative Living,” which airs nationally on the Yurview network, as well as “Arizona Living: Your Home Your Inspiration” show and “Craft Room Crash” on CLIXTV. She was the longtime host of “Living Healthy Chicago” on WGN-TV. Clauss has radio experience, having served with WGN-AM and WLUP-FM. WLS-AM program director Stephanie Tichenor says, “I am delighted to welcome Jane Clauss on board as a contributor on ‘The Steve Cochran Show.’ Jane is the consummate media professional whose brand has delighted generations of Chicagoans. From her ‘Loop’ days to her longtime contributions on ‘Living Healthy Chicago,’ Jane has always been authentically ‘Chicago.’ I am excited to have her join Steve as they wake up Chicago every weekday morning with what our listeners need to know to get through the day.” Clauss comments, “I’m thrilled to call ‘the Big 89’ my new radio home. Being a part of the legendary WLS call letters and working alongside Steve Cochran every weekday morning is a true honor.”

KFNX-AM, Phoenix Owner and Talk Host Bill Brady Named ‘Best Evening Radio Show’ by Phoenix New Times. It’s an honor that news/talk KFNX-AM, Phoenix owner and air personality Bill Brady says he didn’t see coming but is nonetheless thrilled about. The alt-weekly Phoenix New Times names his talk program Best Evening Radio Show in its Best of 2022 feature. Brady’s entry reads: “Aching to ogle at Arizona’s craziest candidates ahead of November’s general election? Pining for a preview of the Arizona Cardinals’ season debut against the red-hot Kansas City Chiefs? Talk radio veteran Bill Brady says, ‘Why not both?’ The Bill Brady Show airs every weekday afternoon from 5 to 7 p.m. on 1100 AM radio, so tune in on your drive home from work and enrich your day with what he calls ‘a return to common sense commentary.’ His instantly recognizable voice has graced the ears of Valley residents during interviews with everyone from CIA directors to sports greats such as NFL quarterback Johnny Unitas and boxer Sugar Ray Leonard. Most recently, Brady has taken in-depth dives with the Arizona Wildcats, state candidates including Adrian Fontes, and even New York Governor Mario Cuomo.”

Salem Radio Network Host Branden Tatum Addresses NRB’s Capitol Hill Media Summit. Pictured above is Salem Radio Network host Branden Tatum speaking at the recent National Religious Broadcasters’ Capitol Hill Media Summit. The host of “The Officer Tatum Show” spoke from his perspective as a Christian executive, encouraging fellow Christian leaders to set an example for their teams by upholding five pillars of faith, integrity, loyalty, combat, and victory. “God has called us all to something special. We cannot sit back and let the next man do the job God has for us. There’s a group of people that can only hear from you. Remember that faith is not a stagnant verb but an active verb. You have to put action behind your broadcasting.”

Deborah Parenti Receives Lifetime Achievement Award. The president and publisher of broadcast industry trade journals, Radio Ink and RBR+TVBR, Deborah Parenti (left) received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Dayton Area Broadcasters Hall of Fame. Parenti was honored for her achievements as a market manager and longtime broadcaster in Dayton. She is pictured with talent agent Heather Cohen, SVP of the Weiss Agency (right), who spoke about Parenti’s outstanding career during the ceremony.

TALKERS News Notes. For the run up to the November election, SiriusXM is inviting Crooked Media to take over its SiriusXM Progress channel. The special Crooked Radio programming will feature Crooked’s top-ranked podcasts, including “Pod Save America,” “Lovett or Leave It,” “Pod Save the World,” and “Strict Scrutiny.” In addition, SiriusXM’s L.A. Garage studios hosted a special taping of “Pod Save America” before an audience of their superfans on September 28. Crooked Media founders Jon Favreau, Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor, alongside their fellow “Pod Save America” host Dan Pfeiffer, were joined by guests including Grammy-award winning singer-songwriter John Legend, Senator Elizabeth Warren, “Vibe Check” co-host Sam Sanders, and “Dare We Say” podcast hosts Alycia Pascual-Peña and Yasmine Hamady…..Cumulus Media launches “Hello Ross,” an all-new, original podcast on the Cumulus Podcast Network featuring Ross Mathews who’s famous for his television celebrity interviews and red carpet moments. The inaugural episode features an in-depth interview with Chelsea Handler. Upcoming episodes will feature hilarious and insightful conversations with fascinating people including Guy Fieri, Todrick Hall, Kathy Griffin, Bowen Yang, and Martyn Bullard…..FOX Sports Radio unveils its weekend lineup for the 2022 football season. With the transition of “Covino & Rich” from weekends to FSR’s weekday afternoon timeslot, the network welcomes back veteran sports talk personality Mark Willard to lead the network’s Sunday evening show. He’s joined by longtime FSR weekend host Ephraim Salaam. FSR also launches “FOX Sports Radio’s Countdown to Kickoff” on Saturdays and Sundays with Brian Noe, Rich Ohrnberger, Jared Smith, Geoff Schwartz, and Bill “Krack” Krackomberger.

Russia-Ukraine War/Baltic Gas Leak/Foreign Affairs Combine as Top News/Talk Story for Week of September 26 – 30. Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, the intentional destruction of the Nord Stream gas pipelines, and U.S. foreign affairs issues combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was inflation and the sell-off on the world’s financial markets, followed by politics and the November midterm elections at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, September 16, 2022

By Editor | September 16, 2022 by Editor

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 “Turbulence” looks back at this past week of 9/12 to 9/16. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Holland Cooke, media consultant; Lynn Woolley, talk show host, KJCE, Austin; Dom Giordano, talk show host, WPHT, Philadelphia; and Graham Mack, broadcaster/journalist, London. The show airs weekends (Friday evenings to Sunday nights) on almost 100 broadcast signals and networks across the U.S. and U.K as well as having developed a significant international following as a podcast. 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 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.

New Jersey Child Psychologist Sues Bill Spadea and Townsquare Media for Defamation and More. In a civil suit filed in New Jersey Superior Court, psychologist Steven Tobias is suing WKXW-FM,Trenton “New Jersey 101.5” morning drive talk host Bill Spadea, the station, and Townsquare Media for defamation, business disparagement, and more. In the complaint Tobias says that he’d appeared on “New Jersey 101.5” numerous times over the years as an expert guest and, when the pandemic began, he appeared a number of times to offer advice on how to assist children struggling with wearing masks as well as with returning to school after remote learning. Tobias says he agreed to appear on Spadea’s program on September 21, 2021 after Spadea’s producer assured him he would not be pressured into taking a stand on whether children should wear masks and that his appearance would not be politicized. Tobias claims that after his appearance, Spadea launched a “vicious attack on him personally and professionally.” He says Spadea called him a “crackpot” and said Tobias “should literally be indicted for child abuse,” and more. Tobias says the attacks have damaged his reputation and his business, the Center for Child and Family Development. Tobias is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, and more. Bill Spadea did not immediately respond to TALKERS’ request for comment on the lawsuit.

Dave Ramsey Presents Building Wealth Events to Sellout Crowds in Phoenix. Pictured above on stage at Central Christian Church in Mesa, Arizona is Ramsey Solutions’ Dave Ramsey presenting his Building Wealth live event before a sold-out audience. Ramsey Solutions says that retirement is the number one long-term savings goal among Americans, but according to the latest edition of The State of Personal Finance study by Ramsey Solutions, inflation and the cost of living are the two biggest factors impacting people’s savings plans. The report also found that nearly 60% of respondents said they worry about their general finances daily, and about half have lost sleep in the last three months due to financial worries. Partnering with local affiliate KTAR-FM, Ramsey Solutions produced the event on September 12 and 13. Each night included presentations from Ramsey, New York Times bestselling author Rachel Cruze and other Ramsey Personalities, including Dr. John Delony, Ken Coleman and George Kamel. Dave Ramsey states, “The reality is, you work too hard to feel this broke. In hard economic times and in good economic times, you have to prepare for your financial future. From my 30 years on the radio, I’ve seen over and over that real millionaires follow a proven plan for their money. This event will show you it’s possible for you too.”

Michael Biondo Promoted at iHeartMedia. The company promotes Michael Biondo to the position president of business development and strategic partnerships, effective immediately. He has been serving the company as EVP, strategic business operations of the iHeartMedia Networks Group. In his new role, Biondo will “oversee the evolution of iHeartMedia’s partnerships and deals with key companies across iHeartMedia’s field of view – from tech startups to established automotive companies, from the entertainment industry to international distribution.” iHeartMedia Digital Group CEO Conal Byrne states, “Mike has had a long, varied career at iHeartMedia, and has gained experience and wisdom across a diverse set of priorities, vendors and partners. With Mike in this new role, our company will be even better prepared to approach the market in a thoughtful, streamlined, strategic manner every day, and in every conversation.”

FOX News Media Names Jennifer Griffin Chief National Security Correspondent. Journalist Jennifer Griffin inks a new, multi-year deal with FOX News Media to serve as FOX News Channel’s chief national security correspondent. FOX News Media CEO Suzanne Scott says, “Jennifer is one of the industry’s premier journalists and has proven to be an indispensable asset on a consequential beat with unrivaled experience spanning more than three decades in multiple war zones. We are extremely proud that she will continue her incredible career at FOX News Media.” Griffin adds, “It has been an honor to provide viewers with trusted reporting from the Pentagon and across the world on issues that are paramount to all of us – the security and safety of our fellow citizens and allies. I am looking forward to continuing to inform the FOX News audience alongside the best journalists in the business.”

Colleen Grant Upped to Metro President for iHeartMedia Detroit. Management and sales pro Colleen Grant is named metro president for iHeartMedia Detroit. Grant has been serving the cluster as SVP of sales. The Detroit market is home to WDFN-AM “BIN Black Information Network” and five music brands. iHeartMedia division president Tom McConnell comments, “Colleen has been instrumental to the success in Detroit. She has created a culture of high performance, accountability and respect and is the perfect choice to lead the Detroit market.” Grant also served as the region vice president of automotive for iHeartMedia’s Detroit Region, and as co-host of iHeartMedia Detroit’s public service program, “Light Up the D.” She says, “This is a childhood dream come true for me. Having a father who was the general manager of television stations, I’d always wanted to oversee stations as he did. I saw the care for people it required, the creativity necessary to generate growth, and his commitment to the community. These are the things I plan to bring to this opportunity, and I couldn’t be more excited to do it.”

Politics and Elections Tie for Top News/Talk Story This Week. The combination of politics and the last of the primary elections before the November midterms was the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the state of the U.S. economy tied with the averted rail strike, followed by former President Donald Trump’s legal issues at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, September 2, 2022

By Editor | September 2, 2022 by Editor

Salem Announces Talk Hosts Fall Tour of Battleground States. The second half of October will see the Salem Media Group talk radio hosts tour the battleground states to “assist listeners and voters to understand how important it is that they get out to vote as well as vote with an understanding of the issues, and the candidates that will be leading our government.” Dubbed the Battleground Talkers Tour 2022, Salem hosts Dennis Prager, Charlie Kirk, Dr. Sebastian Gorka, Mike Gallagher, Eric Metaxas, Brandon Tatum, and Hugh Hewitt will hit tour stops in Tampa on October 16, Orlando on October 17, Atlanta on October 18, Philadelphia on October 19, Pittsburgh on October 20, Columbus on October 21, Cleveland on October 22, and Phoenix on October 23 where Salem news/talk stations will host the events. Hosts will broadcast their radio and TV shows from many of these cities. Salem Media Group SVP of spoken word Phil Boyce comments, “I do not think we have ever seen the kind of energy and excitement that we have witnessed now building up to the November 2022 election. Getting our hosts in front of our listeners and viewers and encouraging them to vote wisely is something each of our hosts is passionate about doing. There has never been a more important mid-term election than this one, and Salem is thrilled to be front and center, leading the charge.”

Ronnie Bloodworth Named Area President for iHeartMedia’s Mid-South Region. Radio management pro Ronnie Bloodworth is promoted to area president for iHeartMedia’s Mid-South region that encompasses Alabama, Mississippi, and Memphis, effective immediately. Bloodworth has been serving as market president for Mobile, Biloxi and Pensacola. In this new role, he’ll be responsible for oversight of stations in Birmingham, Gadsden, Huntsville, Montgomery, and the Tuscaloosa markets, as well as stations in Biloxi, Hattiesburg, Jackson, Laurel, Memphis, Mobile, Pensacola, and Tupelo. iHeartMedia division president Shosh Abromovich says, “This is a very exciting announcement to bring these markets together; the alignment of these outstanding leaders, talent, teammates and communities are set up to truly flourish. Ronnie’s culture-first attitude, drive for success and high bar he sets for himself and his team will take this newly combined area to all new levels of achievement and opportunity.” Bloodworth comments, “Helping people identify their strengths, find their motivation and then achieve their goals is something I have enjoyed from day one. Helping our teams in Mobile, Pensacola, Memphis and Mississippi find their stride and excel is something I take pride in. We strive to be the best in the business and enjoy what we do and where we do it. I look forward to having the high-quality and high-performing teams across the state of Alabama join us as I move into this new role.”

Alpha Media Names Clay Church OM for Dayton and Canton. Radio programming pro Clay Church joins Alpha Media as operations manager for the company’s Dayton and Canton, Ohio clusters that include news/talk WHBC-AM Canton and sports talk WING-AM, Dayton, plus five music brands. Church was most recently director of content and operations at Townsquare Media’s Flint, Michigan operations. Alpha Media SVP/market manager Brett Beshore says, “After a lengthy, nationwide search, we found the best possible candidate to lead our successful teams in Dayton and Canton, and Clay brings all of Alpha’s core values to the market. He knows how to lead a team, build strong brands, and execute digital strategies to grow our ratings and revenue. We’re excited to welcome him aboard.” Church comments, “I’m very excited to take the next step in my career with Alpha Media and the incredible people in Dayton and Canton. The great stations in both markets are a direct reflection of the talent inside the buildings. I hope to add my skillset to the outstanding teams already in place.”

Good Karma’s ESPN Madison Inks Badger Keeanu Benton to NIL Partnership. Madison sports talk outlet WTLX-FM ESPN Madison announces it has agreed to a NIL (name-image-likeness) partnership with Wisconsin Badgers’ nose tackle Keeanu Benton for him to make weekly appearances on the “Rutledge and Hamilton” show each Wednesday at 2:30 pm. Good Karma Brands Madison market manager Tom Olson says, “Our ‘ESPN Madison’ team is thrilled to have Keeanu Benton join us this football season. This is our very first NIL agreement, and we’re excited for the opportunity to work with someone as accomplished and as charismatic as Keeanu. This will be an exclusive opportunity for our fans to hear weekly insights from Keenau and get to know him better as a person.”

Holland Cooke’s Inflation Hacks Now an Online Course at CECNA. The e-book Inflation Hacks: Save Those Benjamins by media consultant Holland Cooke has become an online course from the Washington-area-based nonprofit Consumer Education Council of North America. CECNA founder and chairman Jim Hood says, “Inflation is like climate change: It’s a big problem that everybody talks about although no one seems to have the solution. But broadcast personality Holland Cooke has researched it and come up with a list of everyday steps that consumers can use to trim hundreds of dollars from their monthly budgets. He’s assembled his thoughts in a CECNA Learning Center course called ‘Inflation Hacks: Save Those Benjamins.’ The title refers, of course, to Benjamin Franklin, whose image adorns the $100 bill and who once cautioned, ‘Beware of little expenses. A small leak will sink a great ship.’” The CECNA offers the course here.

TALKERS News Notes. Sales and advertising pro Scott McRoberts is named Midwest sales director for home improvement media brand Today’s Homeowner Media. In this role, McRoberts will be responsible for growing the brand’s presence in the Midwest while creating innovative solutions for the company’s partners. Company president Danny Lipford says, “I am thrilled to have Scott join the team. We provide our partners with custom advertising solutions to meet their goals and connect them with our highly qualified audience of homeowners. Our partners will benefit from Scott’s experience providing innovative solutions and his collaborative style.”…..Progressive talk host Stephanie Miller announces that her “Sexy Liberal Save Democracy Tour” has three events scheduled for this fall. The comedy tour that includes John Fugelsang, Hal Sparks and Frangela will stop in Washington, DC on September 10 at Sidney Harman Hall with special guest Glenn Kirschner; in Chicago on September 24 at Harris Theater with special guests Jill Wine Banks and Rep. Jan Schakowsky; and in Los Angeles on October 22 at Saban Theater with special guests Rep. Adam Schiff and Rob Reiner…..iHeartMedia announces the debut of a new iHeartRadio original podcast titled, “Unbreakable with Jay Glazer: A Mental Health Podcast.” This project is an extension of his widely acclaimed, best-selling book Unbreakable in which the FOX NFL Insider shares his personal mental health journey with the audience, including the tools and techniques he’s developed to “live in the gray” – his term for living and thriving with anxiety, depression and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder…..iHeartMedia Chicago’s radio stations, including WMFN-AM “BIN: Black Information Netwotrk” announces the 10 winners of the “Brilliantly Black Business Awards” in partnership with the Chicago Urban League. The “Brilliantly Black Business Awards” ceremony will be held on Thursday, September 8 at 2:30 pm at the iHeartMedia Chicago Studios. The project was launched in 2020 to support local Black-owned businesses, restaurants and non-profits. Since its inception, iHeartMedia Chicago has showcased nearly 1,300 Black-owned businesses through digital, on-air features and the “Brilliantly Black” podcast. The 10 winners have been selected to receive $100,000 of in-kind media on iHeartMedia Chicago radio stations and a small business development cohort from the Chicago Urban League. iHeartMedia Chicago president Matt Scarano states, “iHeartMedia Chicago created the first-of-its-kind ‘Brilliantly Black’ community resource initiative. We are proud to expand the initiative and award 10 local Black-owned businesses a combined total of $1 million in marketing and advertising to further promote their products and services, while elevating economic growth for their businesses. The Chicago Urban League shares our mission and stepped up to provide small business master-level education training for the award winners as well.”

The FBI Raid of Mar-a-Lago, DOJ Documents Probe and Trump Legal Troubles Combine as Top News/Talk Story This Week. The aftermath of the FBI raid on former President Donald Trump’s residence at Mar-a-Lago, the Department of Justice’s investigation into top secret documents, and Trump’s legal troubles combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio for the week of August 29 – September 2 and landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was a tie between partisan politics, the midterm elections, and Sarah Palin’s special election loss, followed by the state of the U.S. economy at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, August 19, 2022

By Editor | August 19, 2022 by Editor

Ken Charles to Lead Programming at CMG’s WSB-AM/WSBB-FM, Atlanta. News and talk programming pro Ken Charles is named the new director of branding and programming at Cox Media Group’s Atlanta news/talk giant WSB-AM/WSBB-FM “95.5 WSB,” effective September 12. Charles, who most recently was programming Audacy’s all-news KNX-AM/FM, Los Angeles, takes over the role at WSB that opened when Drew Anderssen left to take the brand manager role at Audacy’s all-news KRLD-AM, Dallas/Fort Worth and the Texas State Networks. This is a return to Atlanta for Charles who programmed iHeartMedia’s news/talk WGST-AM from 1998 – 2000. CMG Atlanta VP and market manager Jaleigh Long says, “Ken has an impressive track record for growing top talent and exceptional content. It’s exciting to add Ken’s experience and passion to the WSB legacy and top performance in Atlanta.” Charles comments, “I’m excited to join the amazingly talented team at 95.5 WSB. Thanks to Jaleigh Long, Rob Babin and Chris Eagan for giving me the chance to be a part of one of America’s top brands. I can’t wait to get back to Atlanta and build on WSB’s 100-year commitment to local news and community service.”

RI Talk Host John DePetro Attacked by Man with Lawnmower. According to a report by WLNE-TV, Providence, WNRI, Woonsocket talk host John DePetro was assaulted on Wednesday night (8/17) by a man outside the same home in Warwick, Rhode Island where DePetro was arrested for willful trespassing the night before. For the second night in a row, DePetro was doing a Facebook Live stream outside the house that authorities investigating the disappearance of Charlotte Lester say she frequented. This time, DePetro was allegedly assaulted by Mark Perkins with a lawnmower. In the video that you can see here, Perkins charges DePetro with the mower before the video cuts out. Police charged him with assault with a deadly weapon, first degree robbery, malicious damage to property and disorderly conduct. DePetro tells WLNE-TV, “Tonight while doing a follow up on the Charlotte Lester missing person case, I was violently attacked by Mark Perkins with a lawn mower and punched and kicked me to the ground on Staples Avenue. He smashed my equipment and threatened to kill me. I am cooperating fully with Warwick police.” DePetro has a September 1 court date for the willful trespassing charge.

WWJ-AM, Detroit News Anchor Roberta Jasina Victim of Audacy Cuts. According to a report in the Detroit Free Press, Roberta Jasina, morning drive news anchor at Audacy’s all-news WWJ-AM, Detroit was let go on Tuesday (8/16) as part of the company’s ongoing staff reduction at its radio stations. The 68-year-old Jasina had been with WWJ for the past 34 years and told the paper she’s sad about losing her job. In an audio message she posted on Facebook, Jasina says she was told this was about budget cuts and not about her performance but adds, “My heart was broken. I loved WWJ. I had the best job in the world.” Jasina also said that the day after she was let go, she learned that her husband Alan has been diagnosed with cancer and asked for prayers for her family. She tells the Free Press that she’s been heartened by the well-wishes she’s received from listeners and the community.

Mike Max Cut from Audacy’s WCCO-AM, Minneapolis. A report from BringMeTheNews indicates that evening sports talk personality Mike Max is out at Audacy’s news/talk WCCO-AM, Minneapolis as part of the company’s staff reductions. Max hosted “Sports to the Max” weeknights from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm. He also serves as sports director at CBS Broadcasting’s WCCO-TV. The report says WCCO-AM will move Henry Lake from late nights to the 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm slot and will fill the late night daypart with CBS Audio’s “Eye on the World with John Batchelor.” Also exiting WCCO-AM with the departure of Max is his show’s producer Craig “Hammer” Schroepfer.

Audacy Eliminates Bob Salter’s New York Public Affairs Position. Twenty-eight-year Audacy on-air staffer Bob Salter is exiting the company after his final show on Sunday, August 21 as his public affairs position is being eliminated. Salter’s work was heard on Audacy’s New York stations that include WFAN-AM/FM, WCBS-FM, WNEW-FM, and WNYL-FM. Salter says, “It was nice to put some life into Sunday morning radio in NYC.”

Salem to Launch New Podcast Starring Sekulow Brothers. The latest podcast to debut on Salem Media Group’s Salem Podcast Network is the “Sekulow Brothers Podcast with Jordan and Logan Sekulow,” set to start on September 12. Jordan and Logan Sekulow are sons of Jay Sekulow, chief counsel for the American Center for Law & Justice and a member of the Donald Trump legal team during the first impeachment trial. Salem Media SVP spoken word format Phil Boyce says, “Salem is so excited to launch this podcast with the Sekulow Brothers. Logan and Jordan are at the tip of the spear in this culture war we are fighting, and they know the issues better than anybody. This is going to be a ‘must-listen’ podcast.” Jordan Sekulow (left) is the executive director of the ACLJ and Logan Sekulow (right) is the director of media for the organization. Jordan Sekulow says, “Our family is known for our intensity. Through the work of the ACLJ, we always showcase hard-hitting analysis and legal work. But with this new podcast, you’ll see us in a casual environment three times a week. You’ll learn about our lives, our unique perspectives, where we agree and where we differ. And we will break down our views on news, politics, family, and culture.”

TALKERS News Notes. Sports talk program that emanates from Good Karma Brands’ Madison and Milwaukee stations are being added to the company’s Beaver Dam, Wisconsin station WBEV-AM “1430 ESPN.” The company says “Wilde and Tausch” – starring Jason Wilde and Mark Tauscher – and “Scalzo and Brust” – featuring Greg Scalzo and Ben Brust – will be heard on “1430 ESPN” beginning Monday (8/22). Good Karma Beaver Dam general manager Ryan Gabel says, “We are excited to integrate ESPN Wisconsin programming into our lineup with the launch of ‘1430 ESPN.’ Every morning, fans in Dodge County will hear from Packers Hall-of-Famer Mark Tauscher and award-winning Packers reporter Jason Wilde. In the afternoon, they can tune into former Wisconsin Badger basketball star Ben Brust and longtime ESPN Radio host Greg Scalzo. The versatility and analysis from each of the shows will make ‘1430 ESPN’ a one-stop sports station for our listeners.”…..Voiceover artist Cayman Kelly is celebrating his third year on ESPN as he renews his contract before the start of the 2022 fall sports season. Kelly says, “Working with ESPN has been a dream come true and I remain just as excited now as I was three years ago when I first became the national voice of ESPN Audio.”

Liz Cheney’s Loss, Partisan Politics and Elections Tie for Top News/Talk Story This Week. U.S. Rep Liz Cheney’s loss in the Wyoming primary, the partisan politics, and the primaries leading up to the November midterms combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio for the week of August 15-19 and landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the tie between FBI raid on Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump’s legal issues, and Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani being investigated, followed by the state of the U.S. economy and the electric car incentive at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

WSVA Radio Has A Rare Opportunity For You To Join Our News Staff. Live and work in Virginia’s beautiful Shenandoah Valley. WSVA has been covering Virginia news since 1935 and in these days of cutbacks and consolidation in the radio industry, WSVA continues its commitment to local news. We’re looking for a full-time news reporter/anchor who can be a storyteller with a news mindset. If you’re charismatic and have a sense of humor; if you’re active in your community; if you’re interesting; if you’re an elite communicator, we’re looking for you. We want someone who understands how to reach the local listeners and make a story interesting. We want an individual who loves to connect with listeners and community leaders. Duties include gathering and reporting news for our news/talk station, delivering updates on our music stations and keeping our digital site up-to-date. If you enjoy doing play by play sports, there’s opportunities to help our sports department too. Local radio news is alive and well on WSVA! To apply, send your resume, on air demo and references to Frank Wilt at fwilt@hrgradio.com. Saga Communications is an equal opportunity employer and a long-term radio only company dedicated to the principles of excellence in radio.

Salem Media Group Seeks Producers. Attention producers! Salem Media Group is looking for producers. Salem has great radio stations, the Salem Radio Network, the Salem Podcast Network, and the Salem News Channel, and we always need producers to help us create our great products. If you have experience producing radio or TV shows, please send your resume and keep ‘em coming to: Phil Boyce, Senior VP of Spoken Word Formats, Salem Media Group Philip.boyce@salemmedia.com. Salem is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Front Page News Industry News

Friday, August 12, 2022

By Editor | August 12, 2022 by Editor

Pioneering Broadcaster, Anti-Ageism Activist and TALKERS Principal Carole Marks Dies at 86. The longtime host of the groundbreaking, upper-demo syndicated radio talk show, “A Touch of Grey: The Talk Show for Grownups,” Carole Marks Scott of Mystic, CT passed away this past Sunday (8/7) at Lawrence and Memorial Hospital in New London, CT. She was 86. Ms. Marks was the host and founder of the groundbreaking and long-running upper-demo-targeted radio talk show, “A Touch of Grey: The Talk Show for Grownups” and a principal in Talk Media, Inc., the parent company of TALKERS – a partner in both ventures with TALKERS founder Michael Harrison and radio executive Shelley McBreairty. Ms. Marks graduated from Oxford School and attended Connecticut College. She had four children. As a newly single mature woman, she went back to school and earned her college degree from the University of New Haven when three of her four children were adults. She found her passion as director of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program of New London. In that position, Ms. Marks was interviewed in the media about issues concerning senior citizens on WSUB, New London and was invited to start her own radio show, “Senior Focus with Carole Marks” in the mid-nineties. The idea of a radio show aimed at an older demographic was unique at the time, and upon joining forces with Michael Harrison as her partner and co-host, her show was syndicated nationally with a new name, “A Touch of Grey: The Talk Show for Grownups.” The show ran for two decades accruing thousands of listeners and establishing Ms. Marks as one of America’s leading experts on upper demographic issues as well as a champion in the battle against ageism. She waged a relentless campaign on a number of media fronts to make, as she put it, “the lives of the 50-plus generation as meaningful, fulfilling and as productive as possible.” Her mission was to counter negative senior stereotypes and she spoke before civic groups, professional associations, and industry conventions all across the country as a supporter of the group she liked to call “seasoned citizens.” At its peak, “A Touch of Grey” was heard on more than 50 stations across America, including at different times, New York City’s WOR, WABC and WNYM. Her guests included the biggest names in health care, politics, sports and the arts, including presidents of the United States. She boldly tackled such problems as the rising cost of prescription drugs, the future of Social Security and Medicare, challenges facing the “sandwich generation” who must take care of young adult children on one side and elderly parents on the other, planning retirement during difficult economic times, the best ways to choose a nursing home, safe and effective ways to diet and exercise, understanding leading edge technology, and countless other subjects. Ms. Marks would often take her show on the road and broadcast live from such diverse places as the United States Senate Office Building, the jungles of Africa, the Taj Mahal, the North American Orient Express, or a glacier in Antarctica. She was proudest of being in the White House press room and on Air Force One with President Obama. She said, “I want people to know that just because you’ve put on a few years doesn’t mean you can’t go out and explore the world and life, and, most importantly, continue to learn and grow.” Travel became a second passion, as she went on worldwide trips to all seven continents and had a map in her kitchen showing all of the places she had visited, including Dharamshala, India where she met the Dalai Lama. In 2004, Ms. Marks found love again and was married for the second time, to J Irving Bird Scott. In 2005. She wrote the book Modern Aging: A Guide for Seasoned Citizens to Achieve Health, Happiness and Purpose (Talkers Books 2005). TALKERS founder Michael Harrison says, “Carole was one of the finest human beings I have had the privilege to know in my life. Her role as my friend and business partner were invaluable in contributing to the longevity and success of our media enterprises. She was a loving wife, mother and grandmother, as well as a consequential thought-leader, businesswoman, humanitarian and philanthropist who supported numerous public service organizations and non-profits.” Her business partner Shelley McBreairty adds, “Carole was more than a beloved colleague and source of guidance and inspiration. She treated me and my daughters as a mother and a grandmother. We all love her dearly.” A public celebration of life for Carole Marks Scott will be announced in the near future. In lieu of flowers, please consider a charitable donation to The Garde Arts Center, 325 State Street New London, CT 06320, or Lawrence and Memorial Hospital, 365 Montauk Avenue, New London, CT 06320.

Round Four of July PPMs Released. The fourth and final round of ratings data from Nielsen Audio’s July 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 July 2022 sweep covered June 23 – July 20. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. In Raleigh, iHeartMedia’s news/talk WTKK-FM is steady with an 8.0 share (weekly, 6+ AQH share) that keeps it locked in the #3 rank, while Curtis Media Group’s crosstown news/talk WPTF is up one-tenth for a 1.8 share good for the #15 rank. Although it sheds 1.5 shares, Emmis’ news/talk WIBC-FM, Indianapolis remains ranked #2 after posting a 7.9 share. The news/talk battle in Milwaukee flips as iHeartMedia’s WISN leaps into the #1 rank after adding nine-tenths for a 9.9 share finish, while Good Karma Brands’ WTMJ drops 1.8 shares, finishes with a 9.6 share and falls to #2. Cumulus Media’s news/talk WWTN-FM, Nashville dips seven-tenths for a 6.2 share finish that drags it from #4 to #6, while iHeartMedia’s crosstown news/talk WLAC rises eight-tenths to a 2.5 share good for the #13 rank. In West Palm Beach, Hubbard Broadcasting’s news/talk WFTL spikes by 2.4 shares for a 3.4 share finish that moves it from #13 to #7, while iHeartMedia’s talk WZZR dips three-tenths to a 2.1 share good for the #10 rank and sister news/talk WJNO rises three-tenths to a 1.7 share and the #11 rank. You can see Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets (as well as the first three rounds) here.

RTDNA Announces 2022 National Edward R. Murrow Award Winners. The Radio Television Digital News Association announces the national winners of the 2022 Edward R. Murrow Awards in recognition of outstanding work in digital, radio and television journalism in technical and editorial categories. RTDNA president and CEO Dan Shelley says, “The Edward R. Murrow Awards are among the most prestigious in journalism. More than 750 Regional Murrow winners advanced to the national competition, and over the past few months, an expert panel of journalists has meticulously reviewed and deliberated over every entry. That’s why I’m confident in saying today’s winners represent the absolute best of the best. So, let me be the first to say congratulations to our newest National Edward R. Murrow Award winners.” RTDNA chair Allison McGinley adds, “Thank you to every journalist who played a role in the pieces that were submitted. Not everyone can be a Murrow Award winner, but all of you make a difference in your communities. Thank you for the work you do.” See all the winners here.

LATimes: No One Listens to Sports Talk Radio in L.A. Why the People in Charge Aren’t Worried. Los Angeles Times writer Bill Shaikin looks at the question of why Los Angeles – of all the major markets – has the lowest listenership to sports talk radio, according to Nielsen Audio ratings. In the piece, Shaikin talks to WBZ-FM, Boston “98.5 The Sports Hub” afternoon drive hosts Mike Felger and Tony Massarotti – and others – about why East Coast cities like Boston and Philadelphia have huge sports talk listener audiences while Los Angeles pales in comparison. Read his story here.

TALKERS News Notes. The new permanent host of FOX News Channel’s “FOX News Sunday” program is Shannon Bream. FOX News Media CEO Suzanne Scott says Bream – the first woman to host the 26-year-old program – will start on September 11. She will continue as the network’s chief legal correspondent. Scott says, “Shannon is an outstanding journalist, reporter and anchor who has cultivated a strong and enduring relationship with the FOX News Media audience.”…..The National Sports Network is partnering with in USA Radio Network to offer a slate of NCAAfootball games for radio stations. Beginning the schedule this season is the September 3 game Alabama vs Utah State. Other September games include Tennessee at Pitt and Oklahoma at Nebraska. See the whole schedule here…..iHeartMedia Nashville is presenting the 20th annual Wine on the River event on September 10. This year, the funds raised will go to The DISTRICT’s initiative 2ndavestrong, which helps restore the vitally important historic district of 2nd Avenue. The initiative was created in response to the damage resulting from the Christmas Day bombing in Nashville in 2020. News/talk WLAC and its sister stations are promoting the event…..WBUR, Boston unveils its fall season for CitySpace at The Lavine Broadcast Center, “a state-of-the-art live event venue for cutting-edge conversations, adventurous art and innovative ideas. Bringing WBUR’s journalism alive on stage, CitySpace conversations feature some of the nation’s leading thinkers on timely topics such as the changing media landscape, the state of national politics, climate change and the challenges of American motherhood.”

FBI Raid/Trump Legal Issues Top News/Talk Story for Week of August 8-12. The FBI raid on former President Donald Trump’s residence at Mar-a-Lago as well as his legal battle with the State of New York combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was partisan politics and the week’s primary elections, followed by urban crime, gun control, and policing issues at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, July 22, 2022

By Editor | July 22, 2022 by Editor

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Telstar and Me: July 23, 1962. Tomorrow (7/23) is the 60th anniversary of the first broadcast on the satellite called Telstar 1. Longtime radio personality and voice performer Mark Wainwright wrote about the launch and first broadcast using Telstar in a piece TALKERS published first in 2020. Wainwright has updated this piece for the 60^th anniversary. He says that although the idea of worldwide video transmission is nothing extraordinary these days, back in 1962 it was the stuff of science fiction. He writes, “By the early 1960s, live worldwide radio had been around for decades. With a combination of shortwave transmission and some intricate international phone links, you could get a radio broadcast from just about anywhere to just about anyplace. There were limitations, and the audio quality wasn’t great, but it could usually be done. The bandwidth demands of “broadcast-quality” television, however, were a much higher hurdle.” Read the whole story here.

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TALKERS News Notes. A new live presentation from the RAB features J.D. Power director, global insurance intelligence Robert Lajdziak providing the current state of mind of automotive insurers and what drives customer satisfaction. The July 27 presentation – free for RAB members – takes place at 1:00 pm ET. Lajdziak will also share what broadcasters need to know to aid and prospect in the category…..FOX News Media expands distribution of its direct-to-consumer subscription streaming service FOX Nation across live TV streaming platform FuboTV. FOX Nation president Jason Klarman says, “We’re delighted to partner with FuboTV to offer FOX Nation as part of their growing content offering and bring our loyal audience more ways to access the wide variety of signature content that they crave.”…..Noted talk media commentator and Trends Journal publisher Gerald Celente is organizing Occupy Peace’s “Peace & Freedom Rally” tomorrow (7/23) at 2:00 pm in Kingston, New York, where, he says, “the seed of democracy was sown.” Celente says the mission of the rally is “to reverse the negative trends of ongoing wars, hatred and destruction… and bring Peace on Earth and Goodwill to All.” He adds that the event is in honor of America’s first president and true warrior, George Washington. The country’s first president, in his farewell address, said the U.S. should “observe good faith and justice towards all nations: cultivate peace and harmony with all.” Get more information about the rally by contacting Jane Campbell via email: janecampbell@occupypeace.com.

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January 6 Committee Hearings Top News/Talk Story for Week of July 18-22. The January 6 Committee hearings and the related trial of former Trump White House strategist Steve Bannon combined as the most-talked-about stories on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was partisan politics tied with the November midterm elections and speculation about the nominees for the 2024 presidential race, followed by the issue of high violent crime rates in America’s major cities tied with gun control at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

Salem Media Group Seeks Producers. Attention producers! Salem Media Group is looking for producers. Salem has great radio stations, the Salem Radio Network, the Salem Podcast Network, and the Salem News Channel, and we always need producers to help us create our great products. If you have experience producing radio or TV shows, please send your resume and keep ‘em coming to: Phil Boyce, Senior VP of Spoken Word Formats, Salem Media Group
Philip.boyce@salemmedia.com. Salem is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Front Page News Industry News

Friday, July 15, 2022

By Editor | July 15, 2022 by Editor

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, “The Merchants of Division,” looks back at this past week of 7/11 to 7/15. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Harry Hurley, talk show host, WPG, Atlantic City; Peter King, correspondent, CBS News Radio, Orlando/Kennedy Space Center; Daliah Wachs, M.D., talk show host, Genesis Communications Network; Todd Feinburg, talk show host, WTIC, Hartford; Victoria Jones, executive director, DC Radio Company; and Matthew B. Harrison, VP/associate publisher, TALKERS. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast RadioUK 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.

It’s My Party – The Story of Hubbard Broadcasting’s ‘myTalk 107.1’. Back in 2000, Hubbard Broadcasting bought a pair of New Richmond, Wisconsin-licensed country-formatted stations (WIXK-AM & WIXK-FM) for $27 million. The company subsequently tested several formats for the FM, then upgraded it to a move-in signal at 107.1 for Minneapolis-St. Paul, roughly 47 miles to the west. Country was jettisoned in early-June 2002 so it could give way to what has blossomed into a distinctively different approach to the talk radio genre. In this feature story, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian does a deep dive into the female-targeted talk station KTMY-FM “myTalk 107.1” that will celebrate its 20^th anniversary as a talker next Thursday. Hubbard Minneapolis VP/market manager Dan Seeman says company president and CEO Ginny Morris “saw that ‘Oprah was Oprah’ [and wondered why] a talk radio station couldn’t be aimed at women. Even today, all talk radio is [male-targeted]. It doesn’t mean that women aren’t listening; [however], news, politics, and sports lean more toward men. Ginny will always tell you that the hope for the station was to create Vanity Fair on the air. The conversation was about relationships and certainly included news and information – but from a female perspective. It was much lighter and with laughs. There wasn’t – and still isn’t – anything else like [KTMY] anywhere in the country.” Read the full story here.

Round Three of June PPMs Released. The third of four rounds of ratings data from Nielsen Audio’s June 2022 PPM survey has been released for 12 markets including Portland, Charlotte, San Antonio, Sacramento, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Orlando, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Kansas City, and Columbus. Nielsen’s June 2022 sweep covered May 26 – June 22. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. In Portland, Alpha Media’s news/talk KXL-FM rises three-tenths to finish the survey with an 8.2 share (weekly, 6+ AQH share) and remains ranked #4. Across town, iHeartMedia’s news/talk KEX-AM tacks on two-tenths to finish ranked #19 after posting a 2.1 share. iHeartMedia’s news/talk WOAI, San Antonio rises to the #8 rank after adding three-tenths for a 4.2 share, while Alpha Media’s crosstown news/talk KTSA adds half a share for a 2.6 share finish good for the #15 rank. In Salt Lake City, iHeartMedia’s news/talk KNRS-AM/FM is #1 after rising six-tenths to a 10.6 share finish while Bonneville’s news/talk KSL-AM/FM adds seven-tenths for a 6.8 share that pushes it up to the #2 rank. See Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets (as well as the first two rounds) here.

Steak Shapiro and Sandra Golden to Host Late Mornings on Audacy’s ‘92.9 The Game’ in Atlanta. Two of the Atlanta market’s most well-known sports talk personalities are joining Audacy’s WZGC-FM “92.9 The Game” to host the 9:00 am to 11:00 am show effective August 4. The new program featuring Steak Shapiro and Sandra Golden is called “The Front Row on 92.9 The Game.” Shapiro and Golden co-hosted together previously in the market on Dickey Broadcasting’s crosstown sports talker WCNN-AM “The Fan.” Audacy Atlanta SVP and market manager Rick Caffey states, “We are excited to welcome Steak Shapiro and Sandra Golden to the ‘92.9 The Game’ team and for the addition of this brand-new show to our weekday programming slate. Like our listeners, Steak and Sandra are extremely passionate about our Atlanta sports teams, and their high-energy, fast-paced show will be a great compliment to our market-leading schedule of live and local sports content.” Shapiro is also the creator and host of the Emmy Award-winning television show “Atlanta Eats.” He’s has lead roles on Food Network shows “Food Truck Face-Off” and “Best Thing I Ever Ate,” and has been a guest commentator on CNN, FOX News, MSNBC, FOX Business and Headline News. He is the founder of Big League Broadcasting and Bread n Butter Content Studio. Golden is a three-time Emmy Award winner and four-time Associated Press Award winner. Audacy says additional co-hosts of “The Front Row on 92.9 The Game” will be announced at a later date.

Research Director Announces New Staffers. With the retirement of longtime quality control team manager Kathryn Boxill from Research Director, Inc, the company announces a number of promotions. Nakia Smith takes on additional duties as client services consultant and senior team lead. At the same time, Matthew Wright assumes the quality control team supervisor and graphic designer position. Additionally, Lucas Gordon and Andrew Wilson join the company as media data analysts. Research Director Inc founder and CEO Marc Greenspan says of the retiring Boxill, “She was the second employee we hired back in 1996. I interviewed her at my dining room table before we moved into our first office in 1997. She has played an important role in every stage of our company’s success since then. We wish her the best in the next phase of her journey.”

TALKERS News Notes. Next Wednesday afternoon (7/20), Cumulus Media’s WBAP, Dallas and talk host Rick Roberts will present a live, in-studio panel discussion with school safety experts and DFW community leaders called “School Security and Your Child’s Safety.” Taking part in the two-hour program will be Tarrant County Sheriff Bill Waybourn, Texas State Senator Royce West, retired NYPD lieutenant and FOX News contributor Joe Cardinale, retired Texas Ranger and co-founder of Cinco Peso Training Group Brad Oliver, and Dallas Police Association president Sgt. Mike Mata…..The Nebraska Broadcasters Association will enshrine Rick Alloway, Gary Kerr, and Neil Nelkin into its Hall of Fame on August 9 during the 87th Annual NBA Convention. Alloway served with KFOR, Lincoln from 1972-1984 as an announcer, producer, promotions director and operations manager. He became a full-time University of Nebraska-Lincoln faculty member who taught the college’s sports broadcasting course for 30 years and was a member of the steering committee that developed the college’s major in Sports Media and Communication. Kerr served with WOW-AM & WOW-TV beginning in 1964. He became the WOWT-TV news anchor in 1971. Nelkin has moved through the broadcasting ranks as an announcer, talk show host, program director, operations manager, station manager and co-owner. He continues to stay active in Omaha radio, at both NRG Media and at Walnut Media…..Double Elvis, in partnership with iHeartMedia, announces the launch of a brand new travel-meets-music podcast titled, “Sound of Our Town.” The new scripted, narrative-style audio series explores 10 different cities across the United States in-depth by taking listeners through each town’s individual culture of music. In each episode, host and acclaimed independent recording artist Will Dailey digs into each city’s best live music venues, tells the tales of local musicians, and details the neighborhoods and communities where new sound styles thrive and more. The show’s premiere episode takes listeners through the dynamic sound of Portland, Maine, while other episodes will delve into local music from Asbury Park, Chicago, Atlanta, Boston, Los Angeles, Tulsa, Phoenix, Houston and Philadelphia.

Partisan Politics and the Elections Tie as Top News/Talk Story for Week of July 11-15. The partisan politics in Washington, DC tied with the November midterm elections and speculation about who will be the presidential nominees in 2024 tied as the most talked about stories on news/talk radio during the week and landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the state of the U.S. economy as inflation, sinking stocks and fears of a recession plague Americans, followed by the January 6 Committee hearings at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM is a weekly chart of the top stories and people discussed on news/talk radio during the week and is a result of ongoing research from TALKERS magazine. It is published every Friday at Talkers.com. See this week’s complete chart here.

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Friday, July 8, 2022

By Editor | July 8, 2022 by Editor

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, “Soda, Pretzels and Fear,” looks back at this past week of 7/4 to 7/8. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Gary Sutton; talk show host, WSBA, York, PA; Daliah Wachs, M.D., talk show host, Genesis Communications Network; Holland Cooke, media consultant, Holland Cooke Media; Dom Giordano, talk show host, WPHT, Philadelphia; Victoria Jones, executive director, DC Radio Company; and Matthew B. Harrison, VP/associate publisher, TALKERS. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

Nick Wilson Returns to 92.3 The Fan Cleveland in Afternoon Drive. Sports talk personality Nick Wilson is re-joining Audacy’s WKRK-FM, Cleveland “92.3 The Fan” alongside Dustin Fox on the afternoon drive program, effective July 18. Wilson previously served as one of the station’s evening hosts from 2015 to 2018. He most recently served with Urban One’s sports talk WFNZ-AM/FM, Charlotte. Audacy Cleveland SVP and market manager Tom Herschel comments, “Having Nick back in Cleveland to rejoin our lineup is a great moment for ‘The Fan,’ the radio home of the Browns and the most local sports talk in Cleveland.” Wilson says of his return, “Leaving Cleveland was an impossible decision four years ago. It’s an honor to be rejoining ‘92.3 The Fan.’ Afternoon drive in Cleveland is hallowed ground, and I can’t think of a better person to team up with than Dustin Fox. I can’t thank Tom Herschel, Andy Roth and the entire leadership group at Audacy Cleveland enough for making my dreams come true again.”

Jake Kaplan Rises to Corporate Role at Audacy. Imaging and creative director for Audacy’s Los Angeles station group is promoted to the newly created corporate position director of imaging & sound design. Jake Kaplan had been in his previous role with Audacy LA since December of 2019 and had served as imaging director for KCBS-FM, Los Angeles since 2005. In this new role, Kaplan will oversee national vendor relationships, create collaborative teams for brand imaging projects, oversee exclusive station imaging, build format imaging teams, oversee campaigns for national initiatives and events and more.

Campanario Promoted to SVP Post at AURN. Digital media pro John Campanario is promoted to SVP digital media & brand communications for American Urban Radio Networks. Campanario joined AURN in 2018 and launched the company’s digital platforms. Prior to that, he served with WWRL-AM, New York when it was a progressive talk format. He led the national launch of “The Ed Schultz Show.” AURN CEO Chesley Maddox-Dorsey states, “John has more than proven himself as a great leader with both a creative vision and his uniquely approachable management style. With the expansion of our digital media department, we are excited to have his leadership which affords us continued growth as we explore more emerging digital areas.”

Jim Bohannon Addresses Absence from Air to Listeners. Legendary Westwood One nighttime talk show icon, Jim Bohannon, has been noticeably absent from his show for the past couple of months while battling with and recovering from a health challenge. His show has begun airing the following message that he recorded for his listeners: “Hi. This is Jim Bohannon, and I hope it sounds like me. I’m sure many of you have noticed my on-air absence of late. I have some health issues which will keep me off a bit longer. In the meantime, thanks to guest hosts Dom Giordano, John Trout, and Rick Valdez for continuing to fill in and I hope to return to the Jim Bohannon Show in the not-too-distant future.” Bohannon also sends his thanks to the many attendees of TALKERS 2022 who signed a large get-well card for him at the convention.

TALKERS News Notes. Sports media figure Greg Papa and the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers have agreed to an extension of Papa’s deal to remain the radio play-by-play voice for the team through the 2028 season. Papa, who also hosts the midday show on Cumulus Media’s sports talk KNBR, San Francisco (the 49ers flagship station), joined the 49ers after 21 seasons as the voice of the Oakland Raiders until their move to Las Vegas. 49ers president Al Guido says, “Our team has experienced incredible games, plays and moments on the field in the past few seasons, a large portion of which have been accompanied by memorable calls by Greg Papa. His voice has become synonymous with our organization, and we are thrilled to welcome him back to our radio booth for years to come.”…..iHeartMedia Central Florida announces its 2nd Florida Jobs Now Career Expo, an onsite resource event connecting job seekers to companies. The July 14 event will provide job seekers with the opportunity to meet with companies throughout Central Florida offering hundreds of positions, as well as attend and interview on-site the day of. iHeartMedia area president for Orlando and Melbourne Barbara Latham comments, “We look forward to bringing our second of three recruiting events this year to Central Florida. As a business ourselves serving our local community in Central Florida, we continue to realize the need from our business partners to fill jobs and is a top priority. We feel uniquely poised to help connect these businesses with people living or moving to Central Florida as an essential part of our efforts in our local communities.”…..SiriusXM announces the release of a special installment of its audio documentary series, which will remember the late comedian Gilbert Gottfried. “Obsessive Comedy Disorder: Boomers – The Gilbert Gottfried Is Dead Special” features comedy legend Gilbert Gottfried’s interview with Dan Pasternack and Aristocrats director Paul Provenza, who talk about the ‘80s comedy boom, his life, career, and more. SiriusXM says, “In what is believed to be the last long-form interview done with the voice that became comedy gold, this hour and a half conversation is an expansive and hilarious deep dive into the mind and memories of one of comedy’s most brilliant and unique talents.”

Fourth of July Shooting and Gun Control Top News/Talk Story for Week of July 4-8. The shooting in suburban Chicago that took the lives of seven on the Fourth of July and the issue of gun control combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was testimony before the January 6 Committee, followed by partisan politics and the primary races for the November midterm elections at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

Rare On-Air Opening at KOA, Denver. This opportunity hasn’t existed in 25-years! With the retirement of April Zesbaugh, we’re looking for our next morning voice to co-host “Colorado’s Morning News” on iHeartMedia’s KOA 850 AM & 94.1 FM in Denver. You’ll work alongside a group of talented, award-winning journalists in one of the few 24/7 local radio newsrooms in America. Our facilities are top notch, with new studios, one of the best AM signals in the country and full-market FM coverage. Applicants must submit a hosting/anchoring demo as well news writing samples and a summary, with demo audio, of your commercial endorsement skills. See full details and apply here. iHeartMedia is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Radio News Opportunities. The Virtual News Center is looking for remote reporters who can gather, write, and produce daily news stories with audio from home. Ideal candidates will have calling capabilities to record interviews with newsmakers, or we can provide access to our VoIP system if needed. Knowledge of the business world would be a plus, as there are opportunities to produce specialized business pieces in addition to daily standard news stories. Please send an mp3 and resume to: jdearing@virtualnewscenter.com

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Friday, July 1, 2022

By Editor | July 1, 2022 by Editor

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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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 Ten^TM. 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 Ten^TM 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.

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Friday, June 24, 2022

By Editor | June 24, 2022 by Editor

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, “The Supremes’ Biggest Hit,” looks back at this past week of 6/20 to 6/24. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Jack Heath, talk show host, The Pulse of New Hampshire; Daliah Wachs, M.D., physician/talk show host, Genesis Communications Network; Todd Feinburg, talk show host, WTIC, Hartford, CT; James Golden a.k.a. Bo Snerdley, talk show host, WABC, New York; and Matthew B. Harrison, VP/associate publisher, TALKERS/media law professor. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

New TALKERS 2022 Video Posted: Fireside Chat with WABC Owner John Catsimatidis. Today, TALKERS magazine posts the latest video presentation from the TALKERS 2022 convention held on June 10 at Hofstra University on Long Island. This video features TALKERS magazine publisher Michael Harrison interviewing Red Apple Media CEO John Catsimatidis. Red Apple owns and operates WABC, New York and WLIR-FM, Hampton Bays, NY (Long Island). You can watch the video here.

Introducers Play Vital Role at TALKERS 2022. Yesterday we began highlighting the talk media professionals who introduced the panel discussions and presentations at the recent TALKERS 2022 at Hofstra University. Today, we continue to give a little digital ink – as well as our tremendous thanks for their outstanding efforts – to those who took the time to prepare brief speeches that provided informative and relevant information prior to the conference presentations. Pictured below is Binnie Media director of brand operations Michael Czarnecki, who introduced the “Independent Radio Station and Small Group Operations” panel.

Pictured above is Dottie Herman, vice-chair of Douglas Elliman Real Estate and host of “Eye on Real Estate” heard on WNYM-AM, New York “AM 970 The Answer” who introduced “The Big Picture” panel.

Wayne Allyn Root’s Donald Trump Interview Gets Traction in Mainstream Media. Las Vegas-based, USA Radio Network nationally syndicated talk radio host Wayne Allyn Root, host of “Wayne Allyn Root: Raw & Unfiltered” is getting some international media play after conducting his fourth interview with former President Donald Trump this year. During the interview, Root repeating his suggestion that Trump’s path back into power is as the House Speaker – should the Republicans take control of the U.S. House, and Trump appears amenable to the idea. But, the segment that got picked up by major news outlets was Trump saying that he never backed U.S. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) for House Speaker, just for his reelection.

PodcastOne Announces 14 New Podcasts Join the Platform. A host of new programs are joining the PodcastOne platform. The LiveOne company says, “Fourteen 14 new and recently acquired podcasts, as well as the return of a fan favorite, spanning across multiple top podcasting genres, including Society and Culture, Self-Help and Motivation, True Crime, Technology and Fitness are now part of its offerings. PodcastOne says “Barely Famous” launched under PodcastOne at #30 on the Apple Podcast chart in its category, and “Vibin’ & Kinda Thrivin’” was recently at #24. PodcastOne president Kit Gray says, “PodcastOne’s strength as a network is rooted in our mission to offer a vast array of diversified programming and voices to our listeners. This year, we’ve seen amazing growth across all audiences and genres, which speaks volumes about our amazing talent roster. As our slate continues to expand, we are excited to create innovative opportunities for our advertising partners and bring great new offerings to our ever-growing fan base.”

TALKERS News Notes. The nationally syndicated “Todd Starnes Show” is now heard on Truth Broadcasting’s The Truth Network with signals in Winston-Salem, Highpoint, and Greensboro, North Carolina…..The sports program “Faith On The Field” is now airing on DuPage Radio LLC’s WCKG-AM, Chicago. The program is described as a Christian sports show and is hosted by AP NFL writer Rob Maaddi and TV personality Remy Maaddi. It airs every Saturday morning from 7:00 to 7:30. WCKG sports director Jon Zaghloul says, “I’m very excited to bring ‘Faith On The Field’ to Chicago. There’s so much more to athletes than what we think, and Rob and Remy do an outstanding job at getting them to open up about what truly matters – their faith. This is a meaningful addition to our lineup, and something that listeners will enjoy.”…..iHeartMedia Philadelphia is named a 2022 honoree of “The Civic 50 Greater Philadelphia” by Philadelphia Foundation, in partnership with Points of Light and local partners. Modeled after Points of Light’s national program, “The Civic 50 Greater Philadelphia” provides a standard for corporate citizenship and showcases how employers use their time, skills and resources to drive social impact in their communities and company. iHeartMedia Philadelphia president Jeff Moore comments, “iHeartMedia utilizes the power of audio and human companionship to create deep and engaged relationships with our audiences. A big part of that is being able to use our voice and actions to directly impact the communities that we serve. Adding stations recently like ‘The Black Information Network’ and ‘Rumba 106.1’ shows the commitment that iHeart Philadelphia has made to ensure that we are having a positive impact on the entire diverse population of the Greater Philadelphia Region. We are humbled and honored to stand beside some other great, community-minded companies in our area in receiving this distinguished award.”…..iHeartMedia’s Newsradio WTAM 1100 and MLB’s Cleveland Guardians are teaming up to host a special “Stuff the Truck” donation drive today (6/24) to benefit Providence House, a non-profit organization focused on family preservation and supporting children and families through crisis. The event is taking place in Gateway Plaza between Progressive Field and Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse where Mike Snyder and Bloomdaddy are broadcasting throughout the day.

The Economy and the National Mood Tie as Top News/Talk Stories for Week of June 20-24. The high price of gasoline & food, the sinking financial markets, and concerns about a recession causing the uncertain national moods combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was partisan politics and the primary elections for the November midterms, followed by the January 6 Committee hearings at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, June 17, 2022

By Editor | June 17, 2022 by Editor

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, “Take a Hike,” looks back at this past week of 6/13 to 6/17. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Paul Gleiser, talk show host/owner KTBB, Tyler, TX; Joe Thomas, talk show host/PD, WCHV, Charlottesville, VA; Matthew B. Harrison, VP/associate publisher, TALKERS/media law professor; Todd Feinburg, talk show host, WTIC, Hartford, CT; and Daliah Wachs, M.D., physician/talk show host, Genesis Communications Network. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

TALKERS magazine Presents Annual Awards at TALKERS 2022 Convention. After two years of not presenting annual awards (2020 and 2021) at the TALKERS convention due to COVID-19 interruptions, TALKERS magazine presented four awards to talk media broadcasters on Friday, June 10 at Hofstra University at the TALKERS 2022 convention. As we reported on Wednesday (6/15), WOLB-AM, Baltimore morning host Larry Young was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award. At the Breakfast session, KOA, Denver talk host Mandy Connell (pictured below) was presented with the Woman of the Year Award.

WRVA, Richmond afternoon drive personality Jeff Katz (above) was honored for his charity work dedicated to children with developmental challenges and to organizations supporting law enforcement with the Humanitarian of the Year Award.

At the convention’s Closing Reception, “Free Talk Live” co-founder Mark Edge (above left, being congratulated by TALKERS publisher Michael Harrison, right) accepted the 2022 Freedom of Speech Award for the program’s co-founder and lead host Ian Freeman, whose work fighting for what he sees as the freedoms we all should enjoy as Americans has earned him accolades as well as the ire of those – including some New Hampshire and federal authorities – who see him as a troublemaker, or worse.

Audacy Teams Up ‘Bernstein and Holmes’ for Middays at ‘The Score.’ The new midday show at Audacy’s WSCR-AM, Chicago “670 The Score” features two of the station’s longtime hosts – Dan Bernstein and Laurence Holmes. As part of a station programming update, the new “Bernstein and Holmes” show will air from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm, beginning June 20. The morning drive “Mully and Haugh” show adds an extra hour and will be heard from 5:30 am to 10:00 am. Leila Rahimi, who had been co-hosting with Bernstein but accepted a new gig as lead sports anchor at NBC 5 in Chicago, will continue in her role on “Leila Wednesdays” on “Bernstein and Holmes.” WSCR brand manager Mitch Rosen states, “Our all-star Chicago lineup improves with ‘Mully and Haugh’ extending later into the morning and two teammates who have worked together for 20-plus years finally sharing a microphone on a regular basis. We couldn’t be more excited for this updated lineup.” Bernstein had previously hosted late mornings on the station. Holmes previously served as host from 12:00 noon to 2:00 pm.

KIRO-AM, Seattle Unveils New ‘Bump & Stacy’ Midday Show. Seattle sports talk personality Stacy Rost is getting a new partner as Michael Bumpus joins her for the new “Bump & Stacy” program on Bonneville’s KIRO-AM “Seattle Sports,” airing from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. Station program director Kyle Brown comments, “We’re thrilled Michael Bumpus will be stepping in to join Stacy Rost as a full-time host from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm each weekday. Bump has spent years preparing for this opportunity and I have no doubt he’s ready for this moment. ‘Bump & Stacy’ will bring four hours of unending fun to ‘Seattle Sports’ listeners daily.” Michael Bumpus –who played football at Washington State University before going on to a pro career with the Seattle Seahawks and BC Lions – now serves as the host of the Seahawks pregame, postgame and halftime shows and as a television analyst for the PAC12 Network. Stacy Rost joined “Seattle Sports” as a staff writer and Seahawks Insider in 2017. She has spent the past three years as a talk show host with “Seattle Sports” and producing daily Seahawks Insider reports.

Mike Conti Named Brand Manager for ‘92.9 The Game’ in Atlanta. News and sports radio pro Mike Conti is promoted to brand manager for Audacy’s sports talk WZGC-FM, Atlanta “92.9 The Game.” Audacy says that in this role, Conti will oversee content strategy, talent, operations and branding for the station. He will continue in his current role as radio play-by-play announcer for the station’s flagship coverage of the Atlanta United FC and as host of the Atlanta Hawks Radio Network. Audacy Atlanta SVP and market manager Rick Caffey comments, “Mike has stepped up to the challenge of leading our programming team on an interim basis since February and he has earned this opportunity to lead WZGC. We are excited to have his leadership as we continue to build on our performance of providing the very best in entertainment and sports content for our audience and business partners.” Conti joined “92.9 The Game” in October 2012 from WGST-AM, Atlanta where he served as assistant news director. At WZGC, Conti has served as managing editor, overseeing coverage and production of live sports events. He says, “I want to thank Rick Caffey and my teammates at ‘92.9 The Game’ for the opportunity to lead such a talented group of content creators. As someone who has been with ‘The Game’ since the day we signed on 10 years ago, it has been remarkable to see us evolve into Atlanta’s go-to source of sports information and entertainment, and I look forward to continuing that evolution.”

Round Four of May PPMs Released. The fourth and final round of ratings data from Nielsen Audio’s May 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 May 2022 sweep covered April 28 – May 25. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. In Raleigh, iHeartMedia news/talk WTKK-FM dips two-tenths to finish with a 7.2 share (weekly, 6+ AQH share) and slips to the #4 rank, while Curtis Media Group’s crosstown news/talk WPTF loses half a share for a 1.5 share finish and landing in the #17 rank. Good Karma Brands’ news/talk WTMJ, Milwaukee remains in the #1 spot after adding four-tenths to wrap the survey with a 10.3 share. Meanwhile, iHeartMedia’s crosstown news/talk WISN puts up a 2.1 share increase to finish with a 9.6 share that vaults it into the #2 rank. Although dipping by two-tenths and finishing with a 5.9 share, Cumulus Media’s news/talk WWTN-FM, Nashville climbs to the #4 rank. After losing a full share, Cox Media Group’s news/talk WOKV-FM, Jacksonville wraps the survey with a 9.6 share and falls from #1 to #2. You can see Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeways from this group of markets (as well as the first three rounds) here.

NPR and Edison Research Reveal Results of 2022 Smart Audio Report. The 2022 Smart Audio Report from NPR and Edison Research was released on Thursday (6/16). The report highlights the increased usage of voice technology, with 35% of Americans 18-plus now owning a smart speaker. This year’s study compares the most recent survey results with the 2017 Smart Audio Report, and also revisits families who were interviewed in 2017, creating a comprehensive picture of the changes over the last five years. Some of the key findings from the study include: 1) Voice technology is everywhere: In 2022, 62% of Americans 18-plus use a voice assistant on any device, and those devices can include: smart speakers, smartphones, TV remotes, in-car systems, a computer/laptop, tablet, among others; 2) Overall usage of voice tech is increasing: In 2022, 57% of voice command users use voice commands daily. Twenty percent of smart speaker owners spend most of their audio time listening through a smart speaker, up from 18% in 2017. The weekly number of tasks is increasing: In 2022, smart speaker owners request an average of 12.4 tasks on their device each week, up from 7.5 in 2017. Smartphone voice assistant users request an average of 10.7 tasks weekly, up from 8.8 in 2020; and 3) Ad messages delivered via voice tech are heard: Half of smart speaker owners have heard an ad on their smart speaker. Fifty-three percent of smart speaker owners who have heard an ad on their device agree they are likely to respond to ads on their smart speaker. Almost half (48%) of smart speaker owners who have heard an ad on their device say that compared to hearing an ad in another place, hearing it on their smart speaker would make them more likely to consider the brand. Find out more here.

TALKERS News Notes. Next Tuesday (6/21), Newsmax will present a live New York Republican Gubernatorial Primary Debate at 8:00 pm at the famed Kodak Center in Rochester. Moderating the debate for Newsmax will be Eric Bolling and the leading candidates – Rob Astorino, Andrew Giuliani, Harry Wilson, and Lee Zeldin will take part. Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy states, “People across New York are hungry to learn about the Republican candidates as they make their choice in this critical primary. Newsmax is glad to be actively involved across the nation a series of debate and town hall events to further voter awareness.”…..Audacy announces the launch of a new show, “Hey Mayne,” from its sports podcast studio 2400Sports, premiering June 23. Longtime ESPN host Kenny Mayne leads the program that “blends the sports culture with entertainment, politics, music, comedy, and beyond.” Mayne says, “I want to ask guests not just about their work, but who they are. I want to know what people were like in kindergarten. Because I think who you were then is basically who you are today.”…..Nineteen students just successfully completed the Kellar Radio Talent Institute’s broadcast radio training program at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. The return of the in-person, 10-day immersive professional development course for college students also marks the first institute to be produced by the Radio Advertising Bureau since it acquired the National Radio Talent System in August of 2020. RAB president and CEO Erica Farber comments, “An integral part of the RAB’s mission is providing the industry with the tools and resources to help broadcasters attract new sales talent to the medium and enhance radio’s professionalism through training and support. Bringing back the talent institutes was a top priority for RAB, and we are excited by this year’s Kellar graduating class, all future broadcasters.”…..iHeartMedia’s WDAS-AM, Philadelphia “FOX Sports Radio, The Gambler” announces that the popular sports podcast “The Divide Live” will make its official broadcast radio debut on the station’s Sunday afternoon drive lineup, effective June 19. Airing from 12:00 noon to 1:00 pm, “The Divide Live” features two longtime friends – Mike, a diehard Mets fan and Corey, a diehard Yankees fan. Together, the dynamic duo hash it out about all things sports, life and current events…..NRG Media’s sports talk KOZN, Omaha “1620 The Zone” will remain the flagship home for the NCAA Men’s College World Series through 2026. The new five-year contract extension with Westwood One begins this year. NRG Media has been the radio home of the Men’s College World Series in Omaha since 1997…..VSiN, The Sports Betting Network, announces that sports media executive Len Mead will join the VSiN team as general manager. VSiN founder and CEO Brian Musburger states, “Len has excelled at creating original content and growing audience across all platforms throughout his career, and we’re thrilled to add his expertise to our leadership team. Not only does Len bring a wealth of media experience from his prior roles at ESPN, NBC Sports, NESN and others, but he also brings sports betting industry knowledge from his time as head of content for PointsBet. We believe this combination will help VSiN deliver its premium sports betting content to even more bettors, on more platforms, in new ways.”

The Economy and the National Mood Tie for Top News/Talk Story for Week of June 13-17. The state of the U.S. economy, including the sinking Dow & NASDAQ, soaring gas & food prices, and fears of a recession – combined with the unsettled national mood – came together as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week and landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was partisan politics tied with Tuesday’s midterm election primaries, followed by the January 6 Committee hearings at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, June 10, 2022

By Editor | June 10, 2022 by Editor

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, “2022 ½,” is a special edition of the program that looks back at the first six months of 2022. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Harry Hurley, talk show host, WPG, Atlantic City, NJ; Dom Giordano, talk show host, WPHT, Philadelphia; Renee Kohanski, M.D., forensic psychiatrist/podcaster, MDEdge Psychcast; Daliah Wachs, M.D., physician/talk show host, Genesis Communications Network; and Steve Weisman, law professor, Bentley University, Boston/founder Samicide.com. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

TALKERS 2022 Convention Takes Place Today at Hofstra University. The 25^thannual installment of the talk media industry’s longest-running, largest and most important convention, TALKERS 2022, is taking place today on the campus of Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York in association with the prestigious university’s multi-award-winning station WRHU Radio. Its speaker lineup and attendees comprise a “who’s who” of the talk media industry and its agenda will boldly address the most compelling industry issues of the modern era. For video coverage of the convention, be sure to check in with TALKERS magazine every day in the coming weeks.

Stephan’s Show Rebrands, Moves to USA Radio Networks. In addition to jettisoning the title of his program from “The DJV Show” to its original “Good Day” moniker, Doug Stephan will segue his program to the USA Radio Network. Officially re-launching next Monday (6/13), “Good Day” with Stephan and co-host Jai Kershner will merge with USA’s “Daybreak.” The show Stephan launched in 1988 will continue to air in the morning and remains designed to time-shift to other dayparts. Affiliation will be handled by USA Radio Network, with that web’s president Chip Miller stating, “I’m excited to welcome Doug and ‘Good Day’ to the USA Radio Network family. Doug is an iconic fixture in morning radio throughout the country and we look forward to working with [him] and the ‘Good Day’ team. The lifestyle, non-political content ‘Good Day’ offers is something we feel more stations will welcome during a time when there’s so much going on in the world and in our society. Doug and ‘Good Day’ will serve as the cornerstone for an exciting growth plan for the network. This is our first programming change and show addition since acquiring the network in December 2021.” Stephan comments, “We’ve been hearing from some of our more than 300 affiliates of their frustration with how negative many news/talk programs have become. This move enables us to continue to present the news you need to know, along with our opinions, in addition to the positives that we see every day.” There will be no change in the format clock; technical; traffic; or sales partners. Stephan is the longest running syndicated host of a daily talk show and appears at #29 on TALKERS’ 2022 “Heavy Hundred.”

Guthrie Named iHM Florida Division President. Former six-year Cox Media Group president/chief executive officer Kim Guthrie is set to become iHeartMedia’s Florida division president. In that position, she will succeed Linda Byrd, who retires next month (7/15). Guthrie will report directly to iHeartMedia Markets Group president Hartley Adkins, who states, “At iHeart, we pride ourselves on being a ‘talent first’ company; this decision reflects that commitment. It’s rewarding to find someone who both understands what our listeners need and how to operate in a multi-platform environment. Kim checks every box and more. We’re thrilled she chose to bring her talents to iHeart. Her CEO experience at Cox Media Group makes her uniquely-qualified for this position.” Guthrie adds, “I am very excited to announce my ‘un-retirement.’ iHeart has become a true employment destination and I’m thrilled to be part of America’s #1 audio company. iHeart’s leadership has built a culture of respect, transparency and innovation. The entire team has made me feel like I can make a difference here.” Guthrie joined Cox Media Group in 1998 as vice president/general manager for its Long Island radio station group and later became executive vice president of CMG’s national ad platforms. As Cox Media Group’s CEO, she had complete oversight of the company, including nearly 100 broadcast radio and television stations; dozens of digital assets; and newspapers. She started her career as a television news reporter and anchor for several ABC affiliates. Guthrie was named “Woman of Distinction” by the March of Dimes and “Humanitarian of the Year” by the Muscular Dystrophy Association. In addition, she won the “Trailblazer Award” from Mentoring And Inspiring Women In Radio and the “Women Who Lead” honor from the Alliance For Women In Media.

Radio Mercury Awards Winners Announced. The 31^stannual such event was held last night (Thursday, 6/9) in-person at New York’s Sony Hall, as well as virtually. This year’s “Best of Show” award was presented to FCB Chicago for its “Go RVing” radio commercial. Other winners included: Mockingbird, iHeartRadio App, The Studio at iHeartMedia (“Creative Radio Promotional Spot or Campaign by a Radio Station or Group”); Great American Settlers, Spreaker.com, The Studio at iHeartMedia tied with Kiddie Pool, The Kartrite Resort and Indoor Water Park, The Studio at iHeartMedia (“Creative Radio Commercial by a Radio Station or Group”); Tick Suck, Steve’s Pest Control, Zimmer Radio & Marketing Group; Dog Years, Motel 6, Barkley (Creative Radio Commercial by an Agency, Production Company, Or Advertiser); and Moolah, Georgia Lottery, BBDO Atlanta. Radio Mercury Awards chief judge/Campbell Ewald executive creative director Ale Ortiz comments, “It’s been an honor to be at this year’s Radio Mercury Awards and to award the incredible lineup of winners. The final round jury and I were very impressed by the winners’ ability to not only entertain listeners, but tell stories through radio and audio.” According to Radio Advertising Bureau president and chief executive officer/Radio Creative Fund chair Erica Farber, “This year’s awards once again proved the power of sound and demonstrated the strength of radio and audio in conveying a brand’s message. This was an incredible night for radio. It was so great to celebrate with everyone both in person and online.” Presenters from this year’s final round jury and advisory council included: freelance creative consultant Larissa Kirschner-Chaney; Josh Grossberg (McCann Health); Nicky Lorenzo (Taylor Global); Ciro Sarmiento (Weber Shandwick); and Joyce King Thomas (King Thomas). Event sponsors of this year’s event were Audacy and iHeartMedia. Dedicated sponsors included CBS News Radio, Hubbard Broadcasting and World Wide Wadio. General sponsors were Beasley Media Group; Cumulus Media/Westwood One; Katz Media Group; Salem Media Group; Skyview Networks; Sound and Fury; and WideOrbit, along with Friends of the Mercuries sponsors Forcht Broadcasting; Neuhoff Media; Nielsen; Triton Digital; and vCreative. For the complete list of winners and to listen to their work, go to www.RadioMercuryAwards.com. Shown in the photo are (left to right): Ale Ortiz; FCB Chicago’s Justin Enderstein and Andrés Ordóñez; and Erica Farber.

WTOP Partners With Greater DC-Maryland’s National MS Chapter. Through a series of on-air and online promotions, Hubbard Radio Washington, DC’s all-news WTOP will raise awareness for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Announcements will highlight various MS events in the community in an effort to increase registrations – and ultimately – donations. WTOP general manager Joel Oxley states, “We wanted to do everything we could to help amplify the critical mission of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Our hope is that, through this partnership, we can help those in their journey with MS and work towards a world free of this devastating disease.” National MS Society Greater DC-Maryland Chapter president Chartese Berry remarks, “We are sincerely grateful [to] WTOP and their amazing partnership in joining our quest towards a world free of MS. Their strong reach in the region will help immensely in raising much needed awareness and funds to support the nearly one million people in the United States living with MS.” WTOP senior sports director Dave Johnson and WTOP anchor/reporter Mike Murillo were diagnosed with MS in 2019 and 2016, respectively. The two will contribute to the campaign by sharing their stories about how MS has effected them and their families. Johnson declares, “MS: Look out we are coming after you. We have the community and we have the support. My mom lost her battle to MS in 1979, and now with my WTOP family and the MS Society we are going to finish the fight.” Murillo adds, “I am so thankful to have benefited from new treatments for MS, but there is so much still to do including finding ways to repair the damage the disease can cause. With your help, I truly believe there will soon come a day when we can say there’s a cure for MS.” WTOP will highlight volunteer opportunities throughout the year.

TALKERS News Notes. Veteran NPR reporter/political correspondent Juana Summers is named one of the rotating co-hosts for the network’s flagship afternoon news program, “All Things Considered.” Summers has been covering politics, race, and justice for the network. She joins Alisa Chang, Mary Louise Kelly, and Ari Shapiro. Summers succeeds Audie Cornish, who departed NPR in January for CNN. According to VP/news programming Sarah Gilbert, “Propelled by her authoritative reporting expertise, versatile journalistic talent, and drive to explore and interrogate the most challenging questions of the moment, Juana emerged as the top candidate.” Summers states, “In my work as a political correspondent, I spend a lot of time talking with young people about the country and the world that they are inheriting. It’s made me think about the future of our audience and the opportunities that we have to grow. I’m excited to play a role in introducing a new, diverse generation of listeners to the blend of powerful storytelling, accountability journalism and culturally relevant conversations that can only [be found] on NPR.” Summers – who previously worked at Politico, CNN, Mashable and The Associated Press – begins her new duties in just over two weeks (6/27) … Housing and Urban Development secretary Marcia Fudge guested this past Sunday (6/5) on Multicultural Broadcasting-owned KBLA “Talk 1580,” Los Angeles’ “A More Perfect Union.” The HUD secretary and KBLA’s chief national political analyst, Dr. Nii-Quartelai Quartey, discussed the city’s homelessness problem; the need for affordable housing; and creative ways for first-time buyers to purchase a home and down payment assistance. Fudge commented that HUD is committed to equity by eliminating redlining of “certain kinds of neighborhoods.” … Effective next Monday (6/13), Randy Cable commences as director of sales for Beasley Media Group’s Fort Myers/Naples cluster, which includes sports talk WBCN “ESPN Southwest Florida.” Vice president/market manager AJ Lurie comments, “The more people I asked about Randy, the more excited I got about having him on our team. I think he will be a perfect complement to our brands, products, and family here in Southwest Florida.” Spring Valley, New York native Cable notes, “I am thrilled to join the Beasley family and look forward to working with the incredible team in Fort Myers. I am passionate about helping our team help local businesses thrive and prosper with great ideas and our ability to develop/execute powerful fully-integrated radio and digital campaigns.” Cable formerly was integrated sales manager for Cox Media Group’s Miami and Jacksonville stations, and spent eleven years as director of sales for Audacy Greenville (South Carolina) … The Chesapeake Associated Press Broadcasters Association (CAPBA) recognizes Your Public Radio-owned public radio news/talk WYPR, Baltimore with five (5) first-place awards and seven (7) second-place awards for work done in 2021. Its first-place citations are in “Outstanding News Series”; “Outstanding Public Affairs”; “Outstanding Specialty Reporting”; “Outstanding Documentary/In-Depth Reporting”; and “Outstanding Serious Feature.” The CAPBA awards ceremony was held last Saturday (6/4) in Ocean City, Maryland. … In addition to hosting afternoon drive on iHeartMedia Des Moines news/talk WHO “News Radio 1040,” Simon Conway has been doing morning drive on similarly-formatted Orlando sibling WFLA “News Radio” and today adds a national assignment, filling in for Joe Pagliarulo. Conway’s PM drive program is simulcast on iHM’s WMT-AM “News Radio AM 600,” Cedar Rapids and WOC “News Talk 1420,” Davenport (Iowa). … Among the Delta Radio Greenville, Mississippi properties McConnell “Man@Large Adams will oversee as the newly-appointed operations director is WNIX “News Talk.” Adams most recently was director of content for Townsquare Media Lansing (Michigan).

Primaries and Trump & the GOP Top News/Talk Stories This Week. This week’s primary races – as well as the recall election of San Francisco’s progressive district attorney – combined as the top news/talk story for the week of June 6 – 10. At #2 this week was the U.S. economy, including the high price of gasoline and food, plus the concerns about a recession, followed by the January 6 Committee hearings at #3. The Talkers Ten 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.

The Road Ahead. With TALKERS 2022 taking place today (Friday, 6/10) on the campus of Hofstra University, this marks our publication’s biggest day on the calendar. We’re right back at it again though next week, as TALKERS vice president/executive editor Kevin Casey leads team coverage of TALKERS 2022 highlights; in addition, we will post regular Monday morning memos from Holland Cooke and Steve Lapa. Later in the week, editor/publisher Michael Harrison reveals his latest guest on “The Michael Harrison Podcast,” while managing editor Mike Kinosian begins his four-part series on “Takeaways” from Nielsen Audio’s May 2022 survey period.

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Friday, June 3, 2022

By Editor | June 3, 2022 by Editor

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, “Short Week,” looks back at this past week of 5/30 to 6/3. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Harry Hurley, talk show host, WPG, Atlantic City, NJ; Joe Thomas, talk show host/program director, WCHV, Charlottesville, VA; Renee Kohanski, M.D., forensic psychiatrist/podcaster, MDEdge Psychcast; Steve Weisman, law professor, Bentley University, Boston/founder Samicide.com; and Daliah Wachs, M.D., physician/talk show host, Genesis Communications Network. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

Wynter and Massey Promoted to Full Time at WSB, Atlanta. As reported by Rodney Ho in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, air personalities Shelley Wynter and MalaniKai Massey are joining the Cox Media Group Atlanta staff as full timers. They began co-hosting “Word on the Street” on news/talk WSB-AM/WSBB-FM on a weekly basis back in 2019. Later, the program was given nightly status airing at 9:00, but conservative Wynter and more liberal Massey remained part-time employees. Along with this promotion, “Word on the Street” assumes the 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm slot, effective June 13. Massey tells the AJC that getting the full-time status was a “test of faith and endurance and perseverance. There were times I wanted to quit and give up before I was on WSB. But I kept pushing and keeping an eye on the prize. This has been very emotional.”

Alex Jones Trial Damages Phase Set for September After Bankruptcy Scheme Fails. Several reports, including this one from Kate Marino at Axios, reveal that Alex Jones’ attempt use bankruptcy laws to avoid what could be large damages paid to families of the Sandy Hook school massacre victims, has failed and the September damages trail in Connecticut remains scheduled. At issue here was Jones’ strategy to use a new subchapter of the U.S. bankruptcy code to declare Chapter 11 for three of his companies that did little or no business and thereby triggering an “automatic stay” on the case. But the subchapter was designed to help struggling small business delay payments to creditors while reorganizing and not as a strategy to simply delay a trial. In addition to the Justice Department’s bankruptcy watchdog seeking to dismiss the bankruptcy cases for Jones’ companies, the Sandy Hook families also dropped their suits against those companies but are continuing to seek damages from Alex Jones himself. The piece notes that in the Connecticut state court damages trial, “Jones may face much higher penalties than the $10 million he offered in the bankruptcy deal.”

Alpha Media Flips CHR KTFM to Sports Talk as Simulcast of KZDC-AM in San Antonio. Sports talk outlet KZDC-AM “San Antonio Sports Star” gets a full-market FM signal as Alpha Media flips CHR KTFM at 94.1 to a simulcast of KZDC. Afternoon host Jason Minnix writes a blog piece on the station’s site announcing the additional signal. He says, “Moving to 94.1 is huge – the signal is 37 times bigger than what we had yesterday. You know I am a music guy so this is like a band that started playing clubs, moved to arenas and is now playing massive stadiums. Like going from Wolff Stadium to Jerry’s World… This move to 94.1 gives San Antonio one of the biggest sports stations signal wise in the state. Dallas has a sports station with a bigger signal. Houston doesn’t. Austin doesn’t.”

TALKERS News Notes. In a move announced by the company’s board of directors, Saga Communications declares a quarterly cash dividend of $0.20 per share, an increase from the previous quarterly dividend of $0.16 per share. This dividend will be paid on July 1, 2022, to shareholders of record on June 13, 2022. The aggregate amount of the payment to be made in connection with the quarterly dividend will be approximately $1.2 million. The quarterly cash dividend will be funded by cash on the company’s balance sheet. Including this dividend, the company will have paid over $79 million in dividends to shareholders since the first special dividend was paid in 2012…..iHeartMedia and acclaimed film and television producer Meryl Poster, the founder of Superb Entertainment, announce the season two launch of “Call Your Grandmother,” the show that features New York grandmothers – 83-year-old Ellin Grodsky and 92-year-old Rita Kaye – and celebrates Jewish grandmothers and the irreverent qualities that make them natural comedians…..Mark Fratrik, Ph.D., BIA Advisory Services’ SVP and chief economist, is retiring from the company, effective June 30. BIA says he’ll continue as a strategic advisor and analyst to the company offering continuity for the firm’s forecasting, insights and analytics services that will now be led by Nicole Ovadia, VP of forecasting and analysis. BIA CEO and founder Tom Buono comments, “When I look at the accomplishments of BIA over Mark’s 21-year tenure at BIA, there’s a direct correlation between our success and Mark’s dedication and expertise. Mark’s competence in analyzing the economic forces driving the local media industry has guided our forecasting efforts and allowed us to continuously deliver high-quality, reliable data and insights. His analyses have been integral to informing and influencing decisions at the highest levels of our industry and the government, and his service to BIA has been immeasurable.”

Mass Shootings Top News/Talk Story for Week of May 30 – June 3. The recent spate of mass shootings and the controversy over gun control legislation was the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was a tie between the state of the economy, the national mood, and Elon Musk’s battle with Tesla employees, followed by the infection rate of COVID-19 cases at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

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Friday, May 20, 2022

By Editor | May 20, 2022 by Editor

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, “Primary Directives,” looks back at this past week of 5/16-20. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Mandy Connell, talk show host, KOA, Denver; Brett Winterble, talk show host, WBT, Charlotte; Victoria Jones, executive director, DC Radio Company; Dom Giordano, talk show host, WPHT, Philadelphia; and Matthew B. Harrison, VP/associate publisher, TALKERS/media attorney. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

Round Four of April PPMs Released. The fourth of four rounds of ratings information from Nielsen Audio’s April 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 April 2022 sweep covered March 31 – April 27. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. In Raleigh, iHeartMedia’s news/talk WTKK-FM grows by seven-tenths for a 7.4 share (weekly, 6+ AQH share) finish that pushes it up from #4 to the #3 rank, while Curtis Media Group’s crosstown news/talk WPTF tacks on one-tenth to finish with a 2.0 share and ranking #14. Emmis Communications’ news/talk WIBC-FM, Indianapolis loses half a share, finishing the survey with a 9.0 share and remains ranked #2. In Milwaukee, Bucks playoff hoops and Brewers baseball helps Good Karma Brands’ news/talk WTMJ leap from #3 to #1 after adding 1.7 shares for a 9.9 share finish. iHeartMedia’s crosstown news/talk WISN sheds eight-tenths to finish with a 7.5 share and falls from #2 to #4. Cumulus Media’s WWTN-FM, Nashville loses seven-tenths and its 6.1 share causes it to fall from #2 to #6. Cox Media Group’s WOKV-FM, Jacksonville continues its hold on the #1 rank after tacking on one-tenth to wrap the survey with a 10.6 share. You can see Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets (as well as the previous three groups) here.

Triton Digital Releases April 2022 U.S. Podcast Report. The April 2022 edition of Triton Digital’s ranking of the top 100 U.S. Podcasts (the report also includes the Top 20 U.S. Networks) based on Average Weekly Downloads is released and NPR’s “NPR News Now” remains in the #1 spot. Some of the other podcasts affiliated with radio-centric companies that made the April chart include Cumulus Podcast Network’s “The Ben Shapiro Show” at #3 and its “The Dan Bongino Show” at #8. Salem Podcast Network’s “The Charlie Kirk Show” remains ranked at #12. Three more Cumulus Podcast Network shows finished in the top 25, including “The Mark Levin Podcast” at #18, “The Matt Walsh Show” at #23, and “The Michael Knowles Show” at #24. The chart is comprised of networks and programs that opt in for measurement. You can see the complete chart here.

Public News/Talk WYPR, Baltimore Partners with The Baltimore Banner. Baltimore public radio organization Your Public Radio and The Baltimore Banner – a multi-platform news organization established by The Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism – are beginning a joint operating agreement that will allow the nonprofit organizations to work collaboratively to deliver quality journalism across the state. WYPR “Your Public Radio” has three signals in the region – WYPR, Baltimore; WYPF, Frederick; and WYPO, Ocean City, Maryland. The two organizations say they will “work together to cover stories, special reports and develop joint programming to serve the needs of communities throughout Baltimore and around the state. This includes content sharing across platforms accessible to Baltimore Banner subscribers and the Your Public Radio audience and members. One of the first collaborations will be to cover the upcoming local elections.” Your Public Radio president LaFontaine E. Oliver says, “We are looking forward to the possibilities of this unique model of nonprofit news as we work to preserve and strengthen local journalism here in greater Baltimore. This partnership between Your Public Radio and The Baltimore Banner is an important step to bolster our local newsrooms in Maryland – with trusted, community reporting at the core of the agreement between the two organizations.”

TALKERS News Notes. Leadership from Hope Media Group and WAY Media announce the official close of their merger into a single media organization headquartered in Houston has taken place. The new company says, “This merger combines the rich heritage of two like-minded organizations, who together engage an audience of more than 4 million individuals worldwide with positive multimedia content over radio and online mediums.” President Joe Paulo comments, “We’re thrilled to officially join forces with Way Media to expand our combined impact. This merger is much more than a business matter. Aligning our efforts is a positive shift within Christian media to create and share uplifting content that encourages and inspires audiences across the country. We could not be more excited for this next chapter as our media brands continue to be a beacon of Hope for all.”…..The Radio Television Digital News Association is revealing winners of the local Edward R. Murrow Regional Awards for the numerous regions in the U.S. and iHeartMedia San Diego’s “Newsradio 600” KOGO, San Diego is honored with the award for a Newscast. A broadcast made by KOGO reporter Phil Farrar was singled out for the honor. “KOGO News with Phil Farrar” will now compete with fellow regional winners for the national award. The national award winners will be announced this summer and presented at the Edward R. Murrow National Awards Gala on October 10, 2022…..SiriusXM announces the launch of an all-new, original podcast “Basic!,” hosted by media veteran Doug Herzog and TV critic Jen Chaney, which explores the groundbreaking programming and glory days of cable television. The first three episodes of “Basic!” are now available on all major podcast platforms. Episode #1 features guest Jimmy Kimmel chatting with Herzog and Chaney about his breakthrough on cable television with Comedy Central’s “Win Ben Stein’s Money” and “The Man Show.” Amy Schumer joins in for episode #2 where she talks about creating and starring in her sketch comedy cable show, “Inside Amy Schumer,” and Fab Five Freddy is the guest for episode #3 where he shares stories about the creation of MTV’s groundbreaking hip-hop show, “Yo! MTV Raps.”

Partisan Politics and Elections Top News/Talk Story for Week of May 16-20. The partisan politics surrounding the primary elections leading up to November’s midterms was the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the economy – including high gas & food prices, the selloff on Wall Street, and concerns about a recession, tied with the shortage of baby formula. At #3 this week was the Russia-Ukraine war and the related U.S. foreign affairs. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

FOX News Media Seeks Freelance Radio Anchor. This is a New York or Washington, DC-based position. FOX News is looking for a freelance radio anchor to join the FOX News Audio family as on-air talent for FOX News Radio Network/FOX News Headlines 24/7 Sirius XM Channel 115. As the freelance radio anchor, you will work under tight deadlines and deliver top-notch newscasts. You have a passion for breaking news and the flexibility to work on a day’s notice. Find out more and apply here.

FOX News Media Has Opportunity for Freelance Producer/Editor. This New York-based position is a freelance producer/news editor role in which you will supervise the staff for network radio news operations (terrestrial and FOX News Headlines 24/7 – Channel 115 on SiriusXM Radio). As the freelance producer/news editor you are our editorial leader, working with news anchors to craft the content and structure of a 24/7 news operation. This is fast-moving news environment! Your ability to thrive in a fast-paced, deadline-driven newsroom allows you to deliver top-quality segments/newscasts. You excel at multi-tasking and pay close attention to details. Your writing and editing skills are excellent and your editorial judgment is first-rate. Find out more and apply here.

Podcast Producer Position Open at FOX News Media. FOX News Audio is looking for a producer for The Will Cain Podcast to be part of the fast-paced and growing FOX News Podcast Network. The producer for The Will Cain Podcast will develop ideas, pitch stories, and work with FOX News Channel talent in crafting daily and weekly podcasts. The producer will also direct bookings, edit shows, and work with production teams to create high-quality content every day. In addition to their production duties, they will also lead creative on social media posts and website write-ups to promote the product. This is a New York, Washington, or Nashville-based position. Find out more and apply here.

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Friday, May 13, 2022

By Editor | May 13, 2022 by Editor

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, “Musky and Murky,” looks back at this past week of 5/9 to 5/13. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Derek Hunter, talk show host WCBM, Baltimore/Talk Media Network; Dr. Daliah Wachs, physician/talk show host, Genesis Communications Network; Claire Carter, talk show host/founder, Good For You Radio; Martha Zoller, talk show host, WDUN, Gainesville, GA; and Dr. Murray Sabrin, emeritus professor of finance, Ramapo College, NJ/libertarian scholar. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

Bill O’Reilly’s Killing the Killers Debuts at #1. This new book is the 11^th in the “Killing” series and it’s the 11^th to be a #1 New York Times bestseller. Sales in this series are roughly 19 million copies worldwide and have spent close to 340 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. In the new book, Killing the Killers – The Secret War Against Terrorists (2022 St. Martin’s Press) Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard report on America’s intense global war and manhunt against terrorist extremists who both masterminded the horrific 9/11 attacks as well as executed hundreds of others on American and international soil. They trace America’s efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and ISIS worldwide. O’Reilly and Dugard gained access to top secret national security documents as well as interviewed the highest national security officials in the U.S. The publisher says that primed with deeply sourced information, detailed maps and revealing photographs, O’Reilly and Dugard have created a riveting account that has never been reported to this scope and depth. Bill O’Reilly’s radio programs – including the new, national daily one-hour “No Spin News,” show – are syndicated by Key Networks.

Salem: 2000 Mules is Most Successful Political Documentary in a Decade. The new film, 2000 Mules, from director Dinesh D’Souza and executive producer Salem Media Group is being billed by Salem as “the most successful political documentary in a decade.” Salem says that 1 million people have seen the movie – available for download and DVD purchase on SalemNOW.com – and has become a huge hit on Rumble and its Locals platform. D’Souza says, “The movie is a success financially for sure, but also it is successful in its political and cultural influence. It’s the most-talked-about movie out there right now, making headlines in multiple publications, and is trending extremely high on social media.” The film purports to provide proof of illegal ballot harvesting, both in geo-targeting of cell phone data, and in actual video surveillance of the many unmanned ballot boxes in the five key battleground states. The movie’s conclusion of illegal ballot harvesting is based on research by True The Vote. It features five Salem radio talk show hosts as they walk through the process of learning what the evidence shows, and then discussing what this means for the American belief in free and fair elections. Salem says those hosts, Dennis Prager, Sebastian Gorka, Charlie Kirk, Eric Metaxas and Larry Elder, all came away disturbed at what they learned really happened to hand the election victory to Joe Biden.

iHeartMedia Names Jorge Lopez VP of Sales for Hispanic Brands in Tampa and Jacksonville. Sales and marketing pro Jorge Lopez is promoted to vice president of sales for iHeartMedia’s Tampa and Jacksonville Hispanic brands that include broadcast and digital brands encompassing more than 10 music, talk, and news formats. iHeartMedia operates the Spanish news outlets WHNZ-AM/W290BJ, Tampa “Acción 1250 & 105.9” and WFXJ-AM/W247CF, Jacksonville “Acción 97.3.” Lopez says, “I am very grateful for this new role in my career. I’ve been with iHeartMedia for more than six years and I think it’s great to have this distinguished opportunity where I contribute with my experience and skills to the expansion and growth of the brand. With the continuing growth of the Hispanic population in Florida it is very important that we serve our community with an authentic voice and a compelling product.”

Abortion Rights Top News/Talk Story for Week of May 9-13. The fallout from the leak of the Supreme Court’s draft decision to overturn Roe v Wade, including the protests at justices’ residences, was the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the Russia-Ukraine war tied with the larger topic of U.S. foreign policy, followed by the economy, including inflation, supply chain woes, the financial markets and recession fears at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

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Friday, May 6, 2022

By Editor | May 6, 2022 by Editor

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, “Mothers of Contention,” looks back at this past week of 5/2 to 5/6. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Harry Hurley, talk show host, WPG, Atlantic City; Thom Hartmann, talk show host, WYD Media; Todd Feinburg, talk show host, WTIC, Hartford; and Gregg Stebben, correspondent, beamz.live. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

iHeartMedia Reports Q1 2022 Consolidated Revenue Up 19.4%. Financial results from the first quarter of 2022 for iHeartMedia Inc. reveal consolidated revenue of $843 million, an increase of 19.4% over the same period a year ago. The company’s net loss shrank during the first quarter to $48.7 million from the $242 million net loss posted during Q1 of 2021. iHeartMedia posted operating income of $12.3 million for the first quarter, compared to the operating loss of $76.4 million it reported in Q1 of 2021. Looking at the company’s reporting by segment, broadcast radio was up 16.2% on revenue of $416.5 million, and networks was up 2.1% on revenue of $117.6 million. Those, along with sponsorships & events, comprise the company’s Multiplatform Group. The Digital Audio Group consists of digital excluding podcasting, which reported revenue of $145.7 million (up 22.2%), and podcasting, which reported revenue of $68.5 million (an increase of 78.7%). The company’s Audio & Media Services Group reported revenue of $60.9 million (up 10.4%) for the quarter. iHeartMedia chairman and CEO Bob Pittman states, “We’re pleased to report another quarter of strong results, and believe our performance is further evidence of the successful execution of our digital transformation and multiplatform strategy, and the power of our position as the #1 audio company in America across broadcast radio, digital radio, and podcasting. We remain committed to building on iHeart’s transformation into a data-led, digitally focused business; to investing in areas with high-growth potential; and to continuing our focus on innovation and being at the forefront of new technologies and digital platforms which create incremental growth opportunities for Audio.”

‘Toucher & Rich’ Morning Show Expands to Springfield, Mass. Market. The “Toucher & Rich” morning program based at Beasley Media Group’s sports talk WBZ-FM, Boston “98.5 The Sports Hub” will be heard on rock Saga Communications’ WLZX-FM/W253CD in the Springfield-Northampton, Massachusetts market beginning on May 9. The program, hosted by Fred Toucher (left) and Rich Shertenlieb (right), began expanding to affiliate stations throughout New England last fall. This is an uncommon move for Saga, which has a history of keeping its morning drive programs live and local. Toucher & Rich comment, “We’re excited to be launching ‘Toucher & Rich’ in Springfield and Northampton on ‘Lazer 99.3 and 98.5’ with our new friends at Saga Communications. We’re fortunate to have some of the most loyal listeners in radio and look forward to introducing our show to a whole new audience of potential T&R diehards.”

Moms & Media 2022. “Two years into COVID,” Moms’ media consumption is changed. “The Research Moms” at Edison Research updated their annual report in a Thursday webinar consultant Holland Cooke attended; and HC’s “one-sentence version” is: “To reach Mom, use smartphones, Alexa, Facebook, and TikTok.” Click here for his notes, and links to download the report and watch a video of the narrated presentation. Read more here.

WJR-AM, Detroit Celebrates 100 Years on the Air. On Wednesday (5/4), Cumulus Media’s news/talk WJR-AM, Detroit kicked off a year-long Centennial celebration. WJR signed on for the first time on May 4, 1922, as WCX, which changed a few years later to WJR to reflect the ownership of the Jewett Radio and Phonograph Company. Cumulus says, “The station has served the community with excellence for 100 years, with a 50,000-watt signal that can be heard across nearly half the country at night, providing the city of Detroit, the state of Michigan, and the Upper Midwest with news, music, sports, and information by some of the most talented people in the radio industry. Through the years, WJR’s legendary lineup has featured broadcasting giants such as Paul W. Smith, Jack Parr, Mitch Albom, J.P. McCarthy, Frank Beckmann, Ernie Harwell, Guy Gordon, and Rush Limbaugh.” In the last several months leading up to Wednesday’s 100th year birthday, WJR has presented dozens of on-air vignettes that mark memorable moments, tell interesting stories, and feature the unique sound and talented people from WJR’s history. In addition, the station has populated www.wjr.com with archival video, audio and photos that tell the story of WJR’s first 100 years. Cumulus Detroit VP and market manage Steve Finateri comments, “Being at WJR is like being part of an all-star team at every position in this famous Fisher Building. WJR is iconic because of the extremely high standards set by so many world class broadcasters over the past 100 years. Today, those same high standards and our ‘blow torch coverage’ is what still attracts top newsmakers from around the Great Lakes Region and is the reason for our continued success. We take great pride in our programming, our business and civic relationships, and serve the community by raising millions every year for numerous worthy charities that improve the quality of life in Detroit. The best-of-the-best seem to find their way to WJR, and I know that tradition will continue on for the next 100 years.”

TALKERS News Notes. Chicago media writer Robert Feder reports that Windy City media personality and former WGN-AM, Chicago morning drive host Steve Cochran is going to be heard on Cumulus Media’s WLS-AM in mornings next week. Cochran will guest host the program that is without a permanent host since Bruce St. James exited the station last month. Since exiting WGN, Cochran has been producing a twice-weekly podcast titled, “Live from My Office.”…..Audio streaming service TuneIn names Tom Fuelling chief financial officer. Fuelling has served as CFO for Hulu, OpenX, ARTISTdirect and most recently, Spokeo, Inc. TuneIn CEO Richard Stern says, “Tom is an incredible addition to our growing leadership team. His experience scaling global media businesses that consumers love is unparalleled. Working in a competitive landscape, TuneIn has emerged as a leader in live audio streaming and we look forward to working with Tom as he’ll help us sustain and maintain our growth both domestically and abroad.”…..FOX News Media, in partnership with the National Merit Scholarship Program, announces the selection of the recipients of the third annual Dr. Charles Krauthammer Memorial Scholarship. This year’s scholarships will be endowed to Emmett Gaffney, son of vice president of documentary programming, Brian Gaffney and Grace LeCroy, the daughter of FOX News assignment desk manager Lillian LeCroy and FOX News Edge photojournalist Phil LeCroy. The winners will be featured on the network’s evening newscast, “Special Report with anchor Bret Baier,” on which Dr. Krauthammer was a fixture over the years. Additionally, Daniel Krauthammer will appear on the program tonight to discuss his father’s legacy. In making the announcement, FOX News Media CEO Suzanne Scott says, “We are pleased to continue the tradition of honoring Charles Krauthammer’s extraordinary and celebrated career. Emmett and Grace are exceptional students whose many talents extend beyond the classroom. It is our hope that Charles’ brilliant intellect, integrity and courage will serve as an inspiration for them throughout their next endeavors in higher education. Congratulations to Emmett, Grace, and their families.”

Roe v Wade Top News/Talk Story for Week of May 2-6. The leak of a draft decision indicating the Supreme Court will overturn Roe v Wade was the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was partisan politics tied with the 2022 and 2024 elections, followed by January 6 committee activity tied with Donald Trump’s influence over the GOP at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM is a weekly chart of the 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.

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Friday, April 29, 2022

By Editor | April 29, 2022 by Editor

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, “Staying Focused,” looks back at this past week of 4/25 to 4/29. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Matthew B. Harrison, media attorney/associate publisher, TALKERS; Gregg Stebben, correspondent, beamz.live; Bill Brady, talk show host/owner, KFNX, Phoenix; and Victoria Jones, executive director, DC Radio Company. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

Bill Cameron to Host Weekly Show for WLS-AM, Chicago. Legendary Chicago political reporter Bill Cameron is returning to Cumulus Media’s news/talk WLS-AM to produce and host the Sunday radio program and podcast “Take 1 with Bill Cameron.” The program will debut from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm on May 1 featuring Cameron’s unedited interviews with Chicago newsmakers and discussions about local breaking news. His first guest is Senator Dick Durbin. Cameron, who retired from full-time reporting in August 2021 after more than 50 years of covering Chicago politics, says, “It’s impossible to walk away from Chicago. This is the city with politics that wouldn’t be believable in a movie script, architecture that architects worldwide come to study, Nobel Prize-winning intellectuals, nationally renowned restaurants, performing arts, and museums, eight professional sports teams that alternately thrill and confound diehard fans, and more than 200 diverse neighborhoods in 78 community areas. ‘Take 1 with Bill Cameron’ is the kind of program ideally suited to radio. Ask a question, get out of the way, don’t interrupt, and let interesting people tell their stories – no sound bites, no spin, no shouting, no editing.” WLS-AM program director Stephanie Tichenor says, “We are delighted to welcome back Bill Cameron to ‘the Big 89.’ The news doesn’t stop and neither does Bill.”

Good Karma Brands Unveils Apps for New York and Los Angeles Stations. The two newest sports talk stations in the Good Karma Brands stable – ESPN Los Angeles and ESPN New York – are getting their own apps. The company announces the new apps “offer fans the opportunity to listen to all shows and content with limited recorded commercials.” ESPN LA SVP and market manager Sam Pines says, “It is a priority to invest in our fans and partners, and by creating a one-tap-to-listen app, we are able to deliver shows and content for free to fans across the country. The easily accessible content will include all of fans’ favorite ESPN LA voices.” ESPN New York market manager Vinny DiMarco adds, “We are continuing to invest in our fans and deliver best-in-class content at their convenience. Whether it’s hearing your favorite 98.7 ESPN host or live games, you’ll be able to listen anytime and anywhere.” Earlier this year, sports media and marketing company Good Karma Brands acquired ESPN LA 710 AM and ESPN 1050 AM in New York, as well as the agreement to perform ESPN’s obligations under the Local Marketing Agreement for 98.7 ESPN in New York.

Broadcasters Foundation of America Presents Leadership Awards. On Wednesday morning (4/27), the Broadcasters Foundation of America closed the NAB Show in Las Vegas by honoring several industry leaders at its annual Leadership Awards breakfast. The Leadership Award is presented by the Broadcasters Foundation annually to industry leaders who have made an impact on the broadcast industry and in their local communities. This year’s honorees are: Byron Allen, founder, chairman, and CEO, Allen Media Group; Pierre Bouvard, chief insights officer, Cumulus Media; Ralph Oakley, retired, president and CEO, Quincy Media; Christine Travaglini, president, Katz Radio Group; and Dennis Wharton, retired, EVP, Media Relations, National Association of Broadcasters. Gordon Smith, former U.S. Senator and special advisor to the NAB, was honored with the Lowry Mays Excellence in Broadcasting Award, which is presented annually to a broadcast luminary who has made an impact on the industry through innovation, entrepreneurship, issue advocacy, community service, and philanthropy. Pictured above are (from l-r): Tim McCarthy, co-president of the Broadcasters Foundation and Scott Herman, chairman of Broadcasters Foundation, Byron Allen, Pierre Bouvard, Christine Travaglini, Dennis Wharton, Ralph Oakley, and Gordon Smith.

TALKERS News Notes. Cablefax publishes its Top 100 Power Players of the cable industry and Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy is honored with inclusion on the list. Cablefax says its chart represents “exceptional leaders [who] have grown their organizations through a pandemic, rising inflation, M&A, an influx of streaming services and general uncertainty without ever dropping the ball.”…..Talk radio host Simon Conway is adding another gig to his already busy spring work schedule. Conway – heard in afternoon drive on iHeartMedia’s WHO, Des Moines; WMT, Cedar Rapids; and WOC, Davenport, Iowa – has been filling in on Bud Hedinger’s morning show on WFLF, Orlando since March 24. This weekend, he’ll be hosting the Premiere Networks-syndicated talk show, “The Weekend.”…..iHeartRadio and 23andMe are debuting season three of the podcast “Spit,” that features a different guest podcast creator on each program diving into genetics, DNA, health and how it all ties together. Each host shows how knowledge of our DNA is a powerful tool in living our healthiest lives. Season three explores how specific information about our DNA can change our lives.

The Economy Top News/Talk Story for Week of April 25-29. The economy, including the sinking value of tech stocks, the high price of food and gasoline, and predictions of a major recession came together as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter and the reactions on Wall Street and by the public, followed by the ongoing Russia-Ukraine War and U.S. foreign policy at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

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Friday, April 22, 2022

By Editor | April 22, 2022 by Editor

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, “MiGs, Masks & Musk,” looks back at this past week of 4/18 to 4/22. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Christopher Ruddy, CEO Newsmax; Dr. Daliah Wachs, physician/talk show host, Genesis Communications Network; Bill O’Reilly, talk show host/commentator, Key Networks; and Joe Madison, talk show host, SiriusXM Satellite Radio. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

Round Three of March PPMs Released. The third of four rounds of ratings information from Nielsen Audio’s March 2022 PPM survey has been released for 12 markets including: Portland, Charlotte, San Antonio, Sacramento, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Orlando, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Kansas City, and Columbus. Nielsen’s March 2022 sweep covered March 3 – March 30. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. In Portland, Alpha Media’s news/talk KXL-FM adds four-tenths for an 8.1 share (6+, weekly AQH share) finish and climbs to the #3 rank, while iHeartMedia’s crosstown news/talk KEX tacks on two-tenths for a 3.3 share good for the #13 rank. Radio One’s news/talk WBT-AM/FM, Charlotte leaps nine-tenths to finish the survey with a 4.2 share and rises to the #10 rank. iHeartMedia’s news/talk WOAI, San Antonio jumps from #7 to #3 after climbing 1.1 shares for a 6.2 share finish. In Salt Lake City, iHeartMedia’s KNRS-AM/FM is #1 in the market after leaping 1.5 shares to wrap the month with a 9.9 share, while Bonneville’s crosstown news/talk KSL-AM/FM is up three-tenths, finishing the survey with a 6.3 share good for the #3 rank. You can see Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeways from this group of markets (as well as the first two rounds) here.

Triton Digital March 2022 U.S. Podcast Report Released. Data from Triton Digital’s March 2022 U.S. Podcast Report is released. The ranking of the 100 top podcasts – based on average weekly downloads – is of the pool of programs from participating podcast networks. In March, “NPR News Now” from NPR was the #1 podcast in the U.S. But Cumulus Media podcasts fare very well in the ranker, with several in the top 25 including “The Ben Shapiro Show” at #2, “The Dan Bongino Show” at #7, “The Mark Levin Podcast” at #19, “The Matt Walsh Show” at #21, and “The Michael Knowles Show” at #24. Salem Podcast Network’s “The Charlie Kirk Show” was up to #12 in March and Audacy Podcast Network’s “Pod Save America” ranked #11. You can see the complete ranker, as well as a rank of the top 20 U.S. podcast networks, here.

iHeartMedia and Seneca Women Partner for Search for the Next Great Female Podcasters. This new partnership between iHeartMedia and global women’s leadership platform Seneca Women will establish the “first-ever Seneca Women Podcast Academy, a program designed to help amplify the voices of women in podcasting. The inaugural class will consist of 10 winners from iHeartMedia’s nationwide initiative, ‘Seneca Women to Hear: The Search For the Next Great Female Podcasters,’ which set out to find the next breakout female podcast stars.” The Seneca Women Podcast Academy will help these winners develop and launch their own shows on the Seneca Women Podcast Network, distributed by iHeartMedia. The six-week intensive program will kick off in May and will include one lecture per week with direct access to industry-leading mentors, all women who are at the top of their respective fields in podcasting. Creators will also receive a stipend and top-of-the-line audio equipment to produce episodes of their shows, which will all become part of the Seneca Women Podcast Network. iHeartPodcast Network COO Will Pearson says, “iHeartMedia is proud to say that 50% of our new shows over the past 12 months are hosted by women. We want to continue that growth and we believe starting the Seneca Women Podcast Academy is an exciting next step toward changing the makeup of podcasting. These 10 shows will only bolster our platform and we’re thrilled to offer these creators the space and support to become the next generation of influential podcasters.”

Skyview Networks Promotes Jeanne-Marie Condo to President of Network Partnerships and CRO. Media executive Jeanne-Marie Condo is promoted to president of network partnerships and chief revenue officer for Skyview Networks. Skyview CEO and president Steve Jones comments, “Jeanne-Marie has been the architect of our sales strategy, carefully integrating business partners to create unrivaled value for our advertising clients while driving significant return for the audio brands we steward. This new title recognizes Jeanne-Marie’s leadership role in the company and across the industry wherein she has become respected for her commitment to our clients and early development and implementation of integrated sales and brand awareness for our advertisers.” Condo has been with the company since shortly after its inception by executive chairman of the board Ken Thiele.

TALKERS News Notes. Chicago media writer Robert Feder reports that WGN-AM, Chicago morning drive host Bob Sirott will be one of the personalities on Marquee Sports Network’s new program “The Reporters” when it debuts on May 1. Marquee general manager Mike McCarthy says, “We’re excited to launch ‘The Reporters’ as part of our Sunday morning programming lineup, discussing the biggest sports stories with the writers and broadcasters closest to the action. We look forward to bringing additional coverage across the Chicago sports landscape to Marquee viewers.”…..Edison Research is presenting “Moms and Media 2022” in a webinar on Thursday, May 5 at 2:00 pm ET. The company says this year’s study provides insight on U.S. moms and their media usage, social media habits, and current outlook on tech. Findings incorporate data from The Infinite Dial study from Edison Research, Wondery, and ART19, as well as new data from a national online study of adults 18 and older. You can get registration information here…..The nationally syndicated weekend program “Talkin’ Pets” with host Jon Patch celebrates 32 years on the air this month. Patch says, “Each week you get a variety of veterinarians and trainers, not just me, which keeps our show current, fresh, exciting and always new.” The program also features news on animal welfare, wildlife, farming, and environmental issues that affect animals, as well as interviews with celebrities…..AdLarge signs an ad sales partnership deal with globally recognized financial icon Tori Dunlap on the re-launch of her “Financial Feminist” podcast. AdLarge says, “The first season of Financial Feminist podcast, which wrapped in Summer 2021, it was ranked #1 in business podcasts and is currently the only woman-founded, woman-hosted, and women-focused podcast in the Top 20.”

The U.S. Economy Top News/Talk Story for Week of April 18-22. The state of the U.S. economy including the high price of gasoline & food, the supply chain problems, the crash of Netflix stock, and concerns about a recession combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. Tied at #2 this week was the Russia-Ukraine War, U.S. foreign policy, and the French presidential race between Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen, followed by COVID-19 at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

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Friday, April 15, 2022

By Editor | April 15, 2022 by Editor

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 “Hostile Takeovers” looks back at this past week of 4/11 to 4/15. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Curtis Sliwa, talk show host, WABC, New York; Jim Bohannon, talk show host, Westwood One; Victoria Jones, executive director, DC Radio Company; Bill O’ Reilly, talk show host/commentator, No Spin News; and Matthew B. Harrison, associate publisher, TALKERS/law professor. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

Report: Connoisseur’s Jeffrey Warshaw Offers to Buy Cumulus Media. According to a report from Reuters, Connoisseur Media CEO Jeffrey Warshaw is leading a consortium that is offering to acquire Cumulus Media “for close to $1.2 billion, including debt, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday.” Warshaw’s offer is to take the company private for $15 to $17 per share. Before the news broke yesterday, Cumulus was trading at around $11 per share. After the news broke, Cumulus stock closed Thursday’s trading at $14.21 per share. Warshaw says the consortium would be willing to pay more, subject to due diligence. Reuters says that “a Cumulus spokesperson confirmed that the company had received ‘an unsolicited, non-binding, highly conditional indication of interest’ and that its board of directors was reviewing it alongside its financial and legal advisers.” Cumulus operates 406 radio stations, syndicator Westwood One, as well as its digital platform. The Reuters piece notes that in February, Noble Capital Markets analysts put a $27 price target on the stock, saying that “Cumulus is seeing strong advertising demand driven by sports betting, government, restaurants and cryptocurrency platforms.”

iHeartMedia Division President Linda Byrd Announces Retirement. Forty-year iHeartMedia staffer Linda Byrd announces she is retiring from her role as division president for iHeartMedia Florida and moves into an advisory role, effective July 15. The company says that “as a company leader for four decades at iHeartMedia, Byrd has contributed to the success of nearly 50 different markets and countless employees.” iHeartMedia says one of the duties in her advisory capacity will be the continued involvement in iHeartMedia’s Hispanic footprint, where she has made significant contributions. Byrd says, “It’s hard even to say the word retire. I have had the most fantastic career working in an industry that I absolutely love. I’ve never even thought about doing anything else. And I am so fortunate to have been on this iHeart train, and previous companies, for the last 40 years. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. I am thankful and excited to have the opportunity to transition into an advisory role for the next stage of my life. And I’m truly appreciative of the support and partnership I have had for so many years with Bob [Pittman], Rich [Bressler], Greg [Ashlock] and Hartley [Adkins]. I couldn’t have asked for a better team to learn from and work with.”

John Rowe to Lead Cumulus Northeast Wisconsin. Radio executive John Rowe is promoted to vice president and market manager for Cumulus Media’s combined business unit of Cumulus Green Bay and Cumulus Appleton/Oshkosh. Rowe has been serving as vice president/market manager for Cumulus Appleton/Oshkosh for nearly eight years and adds leadership responsibilities for the Green Bay market, effective immediately. In the two markets, Cumulus operates sports talk WDUZ-AM/FM, Green Bay and news/talk WOSH-AM/FM, plus seven music brands. Rowe comments, “I am excited to lead both Wisconsin clusters on behalf of Cumulus Media. The combination of talent and quality programming in each market makes this an ideal role and provides a host of opportunities going forward. My primary focus will be to enhance these great brands while meeting the needs of both our listeners and advertisers. I want to thank Mary Berner, Bob Walker, and Mark Sullivan for this opportunity.”

TALKERS News Notes. Sports talk KKFN-FM, Denver “104.3 The Fan” afternoon drive personality Darren “DMac” McKee is named Denver’s best talk show host in alt-weekly Westword’s Best of Denver 2022 edition. The Bonneville station notes that the recognition was not specific to the format of sports, or even the field of radio. McKee co-hosts “The Drive with Tyler Polumbus and DMac.” It was a week for kudos for the duo as Polumbus was honored by the Colorado Broadcasters Association with their 2021 Award of Excellence in the category of Best Regularly Scheduled Entertainment Program for his “Mount Polumbus” segment…..SiriusXM announces the launch of Amanda Seales’ “Smart Funny & Black Radio,” a new morning show on Kevin Hart’s Laugh Out Loud Radio channel. The weekly program kicks off on Monday (4/18) at 10:00 am ET. Seales is joined by co-hosts Taj Rani and JeremiahLikeTheBible. Kevin Hart says, “I’m beyond excited to have the amazing Amanda Seales join Laugh Out Loud Radio’s expanding family, as we continue to deliver a dynamic slate of voices to the channel. Passionate, unapologetic, brilliant, talented, and most of all funny, her show is going to be a can’t-miss experience for our SiriusXM listeners nationwide.”…..Larj Media and iHeartMedia debut the new serial podcast “Nobody Should Believe Me,” hosted and executive produced by novelist Andrea Dunlop. The podcast investigates Munchausen by proxy, a form of medical child abuse in which a caregiver feigns, exaggerates, or induces illness in their child for the purpose of receiving attention and sympathy from medical staff, their family, the community, and even strangers online. Dunlop first became interested in the subject when her older sister was investigated for Munchausen by proxy. This catastrophic series of events that followed tore her family apart and set her on a journey to understand this most taboo form of abuse. In this groundbreaking podcast, Dunlop talks to some of the top experts in the world to explore the criminology and psychopathology behind Munchausen by proxy and to reveal the wide swath of destruction these perpetrators leave in their wake…..Audacy announces that its premium podcast studios, including Cadence13 and Pineapple Street Studios, have garnered 22 nominations for the 2022 Webby Awards, the leading international award honoring excellence on the internet, representing the most across the industry. Audacy’s nominations span original series, partner series, partner networks, and branded content across 20 categories, including Arts & Culture, Crime & Justice, Documentary, Diversity & Inclusion, and Sports.

Russia-Ukraine War Top News/Talk Story for Week of April 11-15. The ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and the greater topic of U.S. foreign policy was the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the U.S. economy, including high gas prices, inflation and employment figures, followed by the Brooklyn subway shooting, crime, and guns at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, April 8, 2022

By Editor | April 8, 2022 by Editor

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, “Atrocities,” looks back at this past week of 4/4 to 4/8. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Derek Hunter, talk show host, WCBM, Baltimore; Jim Bohannon, talk show host, Westwood One; Walter Sterling, talk show host, “Sterling on Sunday”; Arthur Aidala, criminal trial lawyer/talk show host, AM 970 The Answer, New York and Matthew B. Harrison, associate publisher, TALKERS/law professor, Western New England University School of Law. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

KVI, Seattle to Add Rita Cosby Show to Program Lineup. Programming changes will take place at Lotus Communications’ talk outlet KVI-AM, Seattle “Talk Radio 570” on Monday (4/11). The station will move the Radio America syndicated “The Dana Show” starring Dana Loesch to the 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm daypart and will add “The Rita Cosby Show” in the 9:00 pm to 11:00 pm slot. Lotus says, “Cosby is one of the most recognized and respected broadcasters in America who has attained an extraordinary level of success in multiple arenas that few in the media landscape have achieved. Cosby was named Radio Ink’s 2018 Most Influential Woman Legend of the Year and has won six Gracie Awards in radio, including for Outstanding Host and Outstanding Talk Show. She is also a renowned Emmy-winning TV host, who anchored highly rated primetime shows on both FOX News Channel and MSNBC.” KVI program director Rick Van Cise adds, “Dana Loesch has proven to be a great addition to KVI’s nighttime lineup – so much so that we are expanding her show and moving it to an earlier timeslot. We are also thrilled to announce the addition of Rita Cosby who will help KVI listeners wrap up their evening with a deep-dive into the latest news along with powerful and compelling interviews.”

Former Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr to Host Afternoon Show on KWTO-AM, Springfield. Beginning Monday (4/11), former Missouri House Speaker Elijah Haahr will host the 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm show on Zimmer Midwest Communications’ news/talk KWTO-AM/K227AO, Springfield, Missouri. The station says that Haahr graduated with honors from the law school at the University of Missouri and practiced law before serving eight years in the Missouri General Assembly, including as Speaker of the House from 2018-21. The station employs another former House Speaker in morning host Tim Jones. Zimmer-Springfield operations manager Tom Ladd says Haahr was a “no-brainer for a station that’s quickly becoming known as the ‘Speaker’s House.’ Elijah brings so much passion for radio and a connection with listeners. His show will be informative, bit it will also be a lot of fun.”

Good Karma Brands Announces New Digital Program ‘Good Karma Wrestling.’ Last night (4/7), Good Karma Brands debuted its new digital content venture, “Good Karma Wrestling (GKW),” across its social and digital platforms. The weekly show, hosted by ESPN Chicago’s Jonathan Hood, ESPN Milwaukee’s Gabe Neitzel, and ESPN West Palm’s Brian Rowitz, now streams every Thursday at 7:00 pm ET. Good Karma Brands VP of content Evan Cohen says, “We are extremely excited to launch our first coast-to-coast show with Good Karma Wrestling. Jonathan, Gabe and Brian will bring a fresh insight and fun energy to the show, and nothing speaks to sports and entertainment quite like wrestling.” GKB adds that every “Good Karma Wrestling” show will be viewable to watch back and linked on GKB’s platforms.

‘Island Time in the Desert with TMac & Noah’ Joins Up On Game Presents Podcast Lineup. A new podcast joins the Up on Game Podcast Network led by FOX Sports Radio’s LaVar Arrington. The new show, “Island Time in the Desert with TMac & Noah,” featuring University of Arizona freshman football players Tetairoa “TMac” McMillan and Noah Fifita to the Up On Game Presents podcast lineup. The podcast gives “listeners a front row seat as two student athletes navigate the rigors of college life in the classroom and on the field. The duo will share their thoughts and opinions on the week’s trials and victories, as well as interviews with guests along their journey.” Arrington says, “I’m excited to welcome these young men, who I watched grow up in front of my eyes, to the Up on Game Presents feed. Noah and TMac changed the whole landscape of high school football in the Trinity League – arguably the toughest league in the country. They played a vital role in making Servite High School football relevant again and I believe they will do the same for Arizona. Powerful, impactful, young voices are needed and essential for our youth in this day and age, and I’m proud and honored to welcome Noah and TMac to the Up On Game Presents family.”

The Russia-Ukraine War/U.S. Foreign Policy Top News/Talk Story for Week of April 4-8. The ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, allegations of war crimes against Russian soldiers, and the U.S. foreign policy combined as the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the economy, including still-high gas prices, the high cost of food, and the supply chain, followed by the actions of the January 6 Committee at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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, April 1, 2022

By Editor | April 1, 2022 by Editor

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, “Slappy Daze,” looks back at this past week of 3/28 to 4/1. The program features guests (in order of appearance): Kevin Casey, executive editor, TALKERS; Harry Hurley, talk show host, WPG, Atlantic City; Steve Weisman, founder, Scamicide.com/professor of law, Bentley University; Victoria Jones, executive director, DC Radio Company; Todd Feinburg, talk show host, WTIC, Hartford; Arthur Aidala, criminal trial lawyer/talk show host, AM 970 The Answer, New York. 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 Network; CRN Digital Talk Radio Network; Podcast 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.

Beth Troutman Joins WBT-AM/FM, Charlotte Morning Show. Media pro and former congressional candidate Beth Troutman is named co-host of the morning drive program on Radio One’s news/talk WBT-AM/FM, Charlotte. The veteran news anchor, multiple Emmy-winning documentarian, and television host joined “Good Morning BT with Bo Thompson & Beth Troutman” today (4/1). Radio One says that Bo Thompson called upon Troutman in 2016 to serve as a correspondent from the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Since then, she’s been a regular guest on WBT, bringing her media experience and personal insight to the conversation with the station’s listeners. Radio One regional VP and Charlotte market manager Marsha Landess says, “I was immediately impressed by Beth from our first meeting. Her contribution as a guest with Bo, and her infectious positivity, has only reinforced that impression. Together, they’re able to speak to the moms and dads and working professionals of Charlotte as generational peers, and we are incredibly excited to have Bo and Beth begin WBT’s second century as our morning team.” Troutman comments, “This is a fantastic opportunity to work alongside Bo Thompson. He is one of the best broadcasters in the business, and I know we’re going to create something really unique, fun, and informative together for the WBT audience!”

New York Festivals 2022 Radio Awards Shortlist Announced. The New York Festivals Radio Awards competition announces the 2022 Radio Awards shortlist across 14 category groups. NYFestivals says, “World-class audio entries created by storytellers from 24 countries around the globe were judged online by the 2022 New York Festivals Radio Awards Grand Jury. Shortlisted entries include audiobooks, dramas, documentaries, breaking news coverage, entertainment, and music specials from radio stations, networks, prominent production companies and independent producers. The United Kingdom led with 75 entries shortlisted followed by the United States with 57, Ireland with 56 and Canada saw 35 entries.” Shortlisted global broadcasters include BBC, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, CBS News Radio, NBC News, RTÉ Ireland, Deutsche Welle (DW), Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and Mediacorp. Prominent companies making the shortlist include HarperCollins Publishers, TBI Media, Radio New Zealand, ABC Radio National, Bloomberg, Intelligence Squared U.S., Lockdown Productions, Fresh Air Productions, SiriusXM, Penguin Random House UK, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Swedish Radio, Unusual Productions, Colorado Public Radio, DCP Entertainment, FM Club, JAZZ.FM91, GoLoud, Magnum Opus Broadcasting, Media 24, Radio Free Asia, Radio-Canada, Religion of Sports, Sky News Radio, Sveriges Radio, USG Audio, Virgin Radio UK, and Wondery. New York Festivals Radio Awards honors storytellers from around the globe. The organization says that since 1957 it has celebrated excellence and innovation across all genres and platforms, keeping pace with industry-wide developments and global trends. The mission of the competition is to honor the achievements of the men and women who make up the global audio storytelling community. All entries in the 2022 competition were judged online by NYF’s Radio Awards Grand Jury of 200-plus producers, directors, writers, and other creative media professionals from around the globe and judged on the following set of criteria: production values, creativity, content presentation, direction, writing, achievement of purpose and audience suitability. Award-winning entries will be announced during the New York Festivals 2022 Storytellers Gala virtual event on April 26. All winners will be showcased on the Radio Awards winners gallery. You can see the shortlist here.

Salem Promotes Jonathan Garthwaite to SVP and Publisher of Townhall Media. Longtime Townhall Media staffer Jonathan Garthwaite is promoted to SVP and publisher, Townhall Media by parent company Salem Media Group. Townhall Media properties include Townhall, RedState, PJ Media, Hot Air, Twitchy, and Bearing Arms. Salem Media Group COO David Evans says, “Jonathan has earned this promotion with his relentless dedication to the success of Townhall Media and his passion for fair politics, together with his strong leadership of the tremendous Townhall Media team. I am sure Townhall Media operations will continue to excel under Jonathan’s leadership; he is a true asset to both his team in D.C. and to Salem Media Group as a whole.” Garthwaite was most recently VP and general manager. He comments, “From the early years incubating Townhall at the Heritage Foundation to the last 16 years of explosive growth at Salem Media Group, it has been the honor of a lifetime to work with all my colleagues. They are simply the best in the political news and analysis business over the past 27 years. There is nothing more satisfying than working hard each day on a mission-driven business with a team of talented writers, marketing pros and digital strategists to fight for America’s future with fairness and truth in political news. Without the executive team and everyone at Salem during the last 16 years of expansion, innovation and business success could not have been possible. Everyone at Townhall Media is grateful.”

FOX News Media Names Caitlyn Jenner a Contributor. Media figure Caitlyn Jenner joins FOX News Media as a contributor. Company CEO Suzanne Scott says that Jenner, a television personality, Olympic gold medalist, motivational speaker, entrepreneur, and former California gubernatorial candidate, will offer commentary and analysis across FOX News Channel programming and various FOX News Media platforms. Scott adds, “Caitlyn’s story is an inspiration to us all. She is a trailblazer in the LGBTQ+ community and her illustrious career spans a variety of fields that will be a tremendous asset for our audience.” Jenner states, “I am humbled by this unique opportunity to speak directly to FOX News Media’s millions of viewers about a range of issues that are important to the American people.”

KSL-AM/FM, Salt Lake City Announces 100^th Anniversary Documentary. Heritage Salt Lake City signal KSL-AM will celebrate its 100^th year of service to the Salt Lake City region on May 6, 2022. In celebration of the station’s achievements over the past 100 years, Bonneville International’s KSL-TV and KSL NewsRadio are partnering to simultaneously air a special documentary, hosted by TV’s Deanie Wimmer, on the history and legacy of KSL. The program airs tomorrow (4/2) at 4:00 pm. You can see the trailer on Twitter here.

TALKERS News Notes. This weekend’s 2022 NCAA Men’s Final Four in New Orleans will be broadcast by Westwood One, beginning at 3:30 pm ET with “The Final Four Show.” Coverage of the first national semifinal between Villanova Wildcats and Kansas Jayhawks will start at 4:30 pm ET, live from Caesars Superdome, followed by the second national semifinal, featuring basketball’s most legendary rivalry, as the North Carolina Tarheels take on the Duke Blue Devils. On Monday, April 4, coverage will commence at 6:30 pm ET with the pregame show, “Championship Monday,” followed by the NCAA Men’s Championship Game broadcast at 7:30 pm ET. Westwood One will also broadcast all three games in Spanish. In addition, Westwood One will provide complete play-by-play coverage of the NCAA Women’s Final Four and Championship Game from Minneapolis…..SiriusXM, the exclusive audio broadcaster of the Masters Tournament, announces expanded broadcast plans for Masters week, April 2-10. SiriusXM president and chief content officer Scott Greenstein says, “The Masters is always such a special event, and we are excited to deliver an exceptional level of coverage to our listeners again this year. We’ve added several distinguished voices to our play-by-play team, expanded our coverage to include the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and Par 3 Contest, and will present multiple shows hosted by players competing this year and those who have won in years past. Our subscribers will get an unparalleled perspective on the Masters before, during and after the Tournament.”…..Shining City Audio, a history-focused podcast studio joint venture between Audacy’s C13Originals and Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and New York Times bestselling author Jon Meacham, announce “Reflections of History,” a short-form daily podcast series in which Meacham reflects on critical moments in global history and how they continue to impact the world today. Every weekday, Meacham will guide listeners on a brief historical journey through an event which occurred on that date, offering a glimpse into the past as well as a guide for the present. “Reflections of History” will launch on April 4 with the first episode marking the anniversary of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)’s creation on April 4, 1949…..The Alliance of Maryland Podcasts announces the 2nd Annual Maryland Podcast Awards! These Awards will recognize the best in podcasts from across Maryland. There are three phases to the contest: April 1-14: Public Nomination Phase; April 18-May 1: Public Voting Process; and May 11: Announcement of Winners. To be eligible, a podcast must be produced in the state of Maryland or by residents of the state of Maryland. The eligibility period runs from April 1, 2021-March 31, 2022 and the categories are: Podcast of the Year, Podcast Host of the Year, Best News Podcast, Best Sports Podcast, Best Lifestyle Podcast, Best Entertainment Podcast, Best Interview Podcast, Best New Podcast, Best Produced Podcast, Best Video Podcast, Best Fiction Podcast, Best Politics Podcast, Best Podcast Social Media Feed, Best Podcast Twitter Feed, Best Podcast Instagram Feed, Best Podcast Facebook Page, and Best Podcast TikTok Page.

The Russia-Ukraine War Top News/Talk Story for Week of March 28 – April 1. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and its effects on the rest of the world was the most-talked-about story on news/talk radio this week, landing atop the Talkers Ten^TM. At #2 this week was the economy – including high gas prices, inflation, supply chain breakdowns and labor shortages, followed by the BA.2 Omicron subvariant causing COVID-19 and the relaxing of mask and gathering policies around the country at #3. The Talkers Ten^TM 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.

‘SuperTalk 99.7 WTN’ Has News Anchor Opening. Nashville news/talk outlet WWTN-FM “SuperTalk 99.7 WTN” is seeking a live and local full-time news anchor. The Cumulus Media station says, “We’re looking for a great sounding news anchor that is ready to hit the ground running! Creative writing, use of audio, strong delivery, and the ability to cover breaking news are critical. Key responsibilities for this position include: news anchoring, street reporting, interviews, assisting in booking guests for talk shows, collecting audio from multiple sources, working news studio board, cover breaking news and weather, regular meetings with program director and news director, Must be able to thrive under deadlines every half hour. See more about this position and apply here.

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