Bakersfield Radio: Alpha Media Energizes 95.3 FM

Alpha Media Bakersfield, CA announced Monday the launch of KLLY 95.3 Energy FM. The new CHR format was “Energized” Friday, June 19th at 5pm.

Alpha Media VP of Programming, Phil Becker commented on the announcement, “Adding the new Energy 95.3 to our roster of CHR stations is something that we’re excited to bring to Bakersfield. Alpha Media is the fastest growing radio operator in the nation and with the rebranding of KLLY it is clear we have the “Energy” to keep going and going and going…”

“We’re excited to re-brand and re-launch CHR KLLY to Energy 95.3 with our cluster of market-leading stations,” said Director of Sales, Liz Ray. “Energy 95.3 will strengthen our audience and better position us with advertisers in Bakersfield and Kern County.”

KLLY 95.3 FM (12.5 Kw) Red=Local coverage Area

KLLY Program Director and Morning Show Host, Danny Hill added, “Not only is 95.3 bringing a new energy to Bakersfield, Energy 95.3 will be paying the energy bill for lucky listeners with our Phrase that Pays contest beginning July 13th! I’m proud to be a part of the all new Energy 95.3!"

Louisville Radio: iHM, WAMZ Morning Host Chris Randolph Re-Up

Chris & Amy

iHeartMedia/Louisville has announced a contract extension has been reached with Country WAMX 97.5 FM morning hos Chris Ranholph.

The move comes a week after Randolph was teamed with station newcomer Amy Nic.  Randolph is a six-year WAMZ veteran.

 “We are thrilled to extend WAMZ’s partnership with Chris Randolph,” said PD Michael Jordan. “He’s a Louisville radio legend!  His creative genius, intelligence, warmth, enthusiasm and wit really resonate with Kentuckiana's Country music community.”

WAMZ 97.5 FM (100 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area

“Wow, this is awesome,” remarked Randolph. “I am thoroughly enjoying working with my new co-host in the morning, Amy Nic!

I’d like to thank Bill Gentry, Kelly Carls, Carl Anderson, Rod Phillips and Michael Jordan for allowing me to continue to do a morning show in the community where I was born and raised. I’m so excited about this opportunity!”

Mike Francesa Opens Talkers New York 2015

Mike Francesa

In a video posted Monday, legendary WFAN afternoon drive personality Mike Francesa sets the tone for what proved to be a realistic, but highly optimistic and solutions-oriented, agenda at the recent industry mega-conference, Talkers New York 2015 (6/12).

The tell-it-like-it-is broadcaster – who has been ranked at #1 on the Talkers “Heavy Hundred of Sports Talk Radio” for the past two consecutive years – blasted the pessimism that he says permeates the radio industry and offered his assessment of the tremendous opportunities available to radio in the digital era.

Talkers will be posting videos of each of the sessions that made Talkers New York 2015’s agenda one of the most successful in the convention’s 18-year history.  A session will be added each business day for the next nine days in a row, in the order that they took place at the event, until the entire agenda, video-recorded by Art Vuolo, is posted in a special Talkers TV feature sponsored by independent station owner, Michael Zwerling’s KSCO, Santa Cruz.  The entire feature will remain posted for the rest of 2015.

CNN's GoPro Antics Rile Supreme Court

Walbert Castillo

The Supreme Court of the United States briefly removed media interns from its press room on Monday after a CNN intern was caught recording video footage with a GoPro camera that he had strapped to his chest, the On Media blog has learned.

The episode led to an impromptu meeting among top CNN executives and editors in Washington, a call to the company's legal department, and a profuse apology to the Supreme Court's public affairs team. Recording devices are prohibited from both the Supreme Court Press Room and the adjacent Public Information Office, as well as from the court room generally.

In a statement, CNN said that the intern "misunderstood the rules about recording inside the Supreme Court's Public Information Office and acted inappropriately. We've taken the necessary action to remedy this situation. We profusely apologize to the Court."

The intern, Walbert Castillo, had been assigned to serve as "a runner," relaying the court's opinions from the building to CNN correspondent Ariane de Vogue, who was waiting in the Supreme Court plaza. The process has become known as "the running of the interns," given the speed and intensity of the running-shoe clad youth.

Report: CBC Misjudged Ad Demand

CBC/Radio-Canada's poor numbers from its experiment with paid commercials on Radio 2 and Espace Musique show that the public broadcaster "clearly" misjudged the market for national advertising on its music-focused radio channels, according to the Canadian Press.

The CBC raised $1.1 million in revenue from ad sales on the two music-focused networks in the 2014 broadcast year, according to the CRTC's annual report on the financial results of Canadian commercial radio stations.

That's well below the $10 million the CBC hoped for when the CRTC approved its plan to air ads on the two channels.

Canadian Media Research Inc. president Barry Kiefl said the broadcaster assumed there would be much more demand for the four minutes of ads per hour dictated by the CRTC.

"It raises the question of why they did it in the first place," Kiefl said. "They clearly had not gauged the marketplace for national advertising very accurately."

The new ad money also wasn't nearly enough to cover an $18.2-million decline in government funding for the 2014 broadcast year, according to the CRTC report. Total revenue for the CBC's 82 radio stations fell 5.6 per cent to $287.6 million for the 12 months ending Aug. 31, 2014.

The CBC began airing ads at the beginning of October 2013, and the $1.1 million represents 11 months of ad sales from October to the end of August.

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Media Matters Founder Admits Defending Hillary Clinton

David Brock

Media Matters For America founder David Brock admitted Monday that his nonprofit, tax-exempt organization specifically defends Hillary Clinton, a political candidate for office, from Republican criticism, report the Daily Caller.

Brock’s stunning admission calls into question the nonprofit status of his left-wing media monitoring organization.What do you think?

Brock made the admission in an op-ed defending his group’s association with Sidney Blumenthal, Hillary Clinton’s political adviser and informal Libya consultant.What do you think?

Blumenthal fed Clinton information from Media Matters while advising the former secretary of state in the aftermath of the Benghazi terrorist attack. Blumenthal was serving as a paid Media Matters consultant at the time

“Under the Internal Revenue Code, all section 501(c)(3) organizations are absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate for elective public office,” according to IRS rules.What do you think?

“Violating this prohibition may result in denial or revocation of tax-exempt status and the imposition of certain excise taxes,” according to the IRS.

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Knoxville Radio: Owner Joe Armstrong Indicted For Tax Fraud

Joe Armstrong

Joe Armstrong, the longtime Knoxville Democratic lawmaker and businessman who has gained prominence on the national political stage, was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday on charges he took part in a tax fraud scheme.

WBIR-TV reports Armstrong, 58, was part of a scheme involving the sale of state cigarette tax stamps, according to the indictment. Armstrong and other "co-conspirators" bought the stamps at one price and then sold them at a profit, the indictment alleges.

In addition, the indictment alleges, Armstrong and his co-conspirators tried to hide the profits "to avoid the assessment and payment of federal income taxes," the indictment states.

Armstrong also owns WJBE 1040 AM / 99.7 T-FM, a Knoxville-based soul station that also features syndicated talk show hosts such as Tom Joyner.

Armstrong told the News Sentinel in a 2012 story he'd always dreamed of owning a radio station. While attending the University of Tennessee in the late 1970s, he worked at the original WJBE, owned by "Godfather of Soul" James Brown.

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R.I.P.: Univision Founder Daniel Villanueva

Daniel Villanueva

Daniel D. Villanueva, a former professional football player who as a founder of the Univision network built a Spanish-language broadcasting empire spanning the United States, died from a stroke on Thursday in Ventura, Calif.

He was 77 according to the NY Times.

One of the first Hispanic-Americans in the National Football League, Mr. Villanueva was a kicker for the Los Angeles Rams from 1960 to 1964, and for the Dallas Cowboys from 1965 to 1967. He was also a television sportscaster and an executive of the Spanish International Communications Corporation, a forerunner of Univision.

Based in New York, Univision is today the leading Spanish-language television network in the United States, serving nearly 30 million viewers in 57 markets.

On retiring from football in 1968, Villanueva became the news director of KMEX radio. He was later the station’s president and a co-owner. On weekends he moonlighted as a sportscaster for KNBC-TV, the network’s Los Angeles affiliate, where his colleagues included a young Tom Brokaw.

Under Mr. Villanueva’s stewardship, KMEX became the flagship station of the Spanish International Network. It also became a lodestar for the region’s diverse Spanish-speaking population.

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R.I.P.: Radio, TV MLB Analyst Darryl Hamilton

Former pro baseball player and MLB Network analyst Darryl Hamilton was found dead in a possible murder-suicide in a community outside Houston, reports CNN.

Pearland, Texas, police officers on Sunday afternoon responded to a disturbance call between a man and a woman, and when they arrived found the bodies of two adults at the residence and a 14-month-old child. The 911 call was made by a third party.

Hamilton, 50, had been shot several times, police said, and Jordan, 44, had an apparently self-inflicted wound.

At the outset, the deaths "appeared to be the result of a murder-suicide," Pearland police said in a statement. The investigation is ongoing, the agency added.

Hamilton had a lengthy Major League career that spanned from 1988 to 2001. The outfielder played for a number of teams, with his longest stints with the Milwaukee Brewers, the San Francisco Giants and the New York Mets.

He worked as an occasional analyst for the Milwaukee Brewers, for Compass Media Networks on its coverage of the Angels, and for Gow-owned Houston-market all-sports stations KFNC 97.5 FM and KGOW 1560 AM.

R.I.P.: Movie Composer James Horner

James Horner

Composer James Horner, who won two Oscars for the music of “Titanic” and scored such other blockbusters as “Avatar,” “Braveheart,” “Apollo 13″ and “A Beautiful Mind,” died Monday in a plane crash in Ventura County, Variety has confirmed.

He was 61, accoridng to Variety.

The two-seater single-engine S312 Tucano crashed north of Santa Barbara about 9:30 Monday morning and sparked a brush fire that was extinguished by country fire crews. Horner, a trained pilot, was alone in the plane, which was completely destroyed.



Horner was one of the most popular film composers of the last 30 years, and his “Titanic” soundtrack – with its hit Celine Dion song, “My Heart Will Go On,” written with Will Jennings – became the biggest-selling movie-score album of all time, selling an estimated 30 million units worldwide.

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June 23 Radio History

In 1891...Nikola Tesla granted patent 454,622 for the coupled tuned circuit radio-frequency oscillator.

Nikola Tesla

Tesla gained experience in telephony and electrical engineering before emigrating to the United States in 1884 to work for Thomas Edison in New York City. He soon struck out on his own with financial backers, setting up laboratories and companies to develop a range of electrical devices. His patented AC induction motor and transformer were licensed by George Westinghouse, who also hired Tesla for a short time as a consultant. His work in the formative years of electric power development was also involved in the corporate struggle between making alternating current or direct current the power transmission standard, referred to as the war of currents.

Tesla went on to pursue his ideas of wireless lighting and electricity distribution in his high-voltage, high-frequency power experiments in New York and Colorado Springs and made early (1893) pronouncements on the possibility of wireless communication with his devices. He tried to put these ideas to practical use in his ill-fated attempt at intercontinental wireless transmission; his unfinished Wardenclyffe Tower project.

In his lab he also conducted a range of experiments with mechanical oscillator/generators, electrical discharge tubes, and early X-ray imaging. He even built a wireless controlled boat which may have been the first such device ever exhibited.

Tesla was renowned for his achievements and showmanship, eventually earning him a reputation in popular culture as an archetypal "mad scientist." His patents earned him a considerable amount of money, much of which was used to finance his own projects with varying degrees of success.  He lived most of his life in a series of New York hotels, through his retirement. He died on 7 January 1943.

Tesla's work fell into relative obscurity after his death, but has experienced a resurgence in interest in popular culture since the 1990s.


In 1933...Don McNeill debuted as host of The Breakfast Club.



The Breakfast Club is a long-run morning variety show on NBC Blue Network/ABC radio (and briefly on television) originating in Chicago, Illinois. Hosted by Don McNeill, the radio program ran from June 23, 1933 through December 27, 1968. McNeil's 35½-year run as host remains the longest tenure for an M.C. of a network entertainment program, surpassing Johnny Carson (29½ years) on The Tonight Show and Bob Barker (34⅔ years) on The Price is Right.

From 1993...



McNeill Breakfast Club combined music with informal talk and jokes often based on topical events, initially scripted by McNeill but later ad-libbed. In addition to recurring comedy performers, various vocal groups and soloists, listeners heard sentimental verse, conversations with members of the studio audience and a silent moment of prayer. The series eventually gained a sponsor in the Chicago-based meat packer Swift and Company. McNeill is credited as the first performer to make morning talk and variety a viable radio format.

Dick Summer

In 1968...Dick Summer did his last show on WBZ 1030 AM, Boston. Summer was a pioneer in the evening "romance" style programming.

He manned the overnight shift at what was then a 50,000 watt powerhouse in Top 40 music, WBZ. His show was heard in 38 states and up in parts of Canada, too. You may find his voice familiar due to his commercial voice over work on radio and television for such clients as Resolve Carpet Cleaner and Binder & Binder.

Summer resume includes stops at  Indianapolis (WIBC and WISH), St. Louis (WIL) and New York (WNEW, WPLJ).



In 1986..This week's Street Talk From Radio&Records...

In 1995…Radio and television news anchor (ABC Radio Network, KUSI-TV San Diego, WABC-TV and WNBC-TV New York, KGO-TV San Francisco, KMOX-TV St. Louis, WXIX-TV Milwaukee) Roger Grimsby, who won six Emmy Awards during his 18-year tenure at WABC-TV, died of lung cancer at 66.


In 2006...Phil Hendrie did his last syndicated radio program and turned his attention to a full-time acting career.


In 2009…Radio/Television announcer/sidekick Ed McMahon died of bone cancer and pneumonia at age 86.


In 2009…Journalist/radio-TV host (WBBM-AM, WBBM-TV, WTTW-TV all in Chicago)/documentarian John Callaway, who hosted "Chicago Tonight"on WTTW for fifteen years, winning 16 Emmys and a Peabody Award, died after a heart attack at 72.

In Media Confidential one year ago...

VA Radio: Sandton Closes On F-L-S Stations: Click Here

DC Radio: Mike McMearty To Head-Up WTOP Programming

Mike McMearty

Hubbard Radio/Washington has announced that ongtime News Director Mike McMearty has been named Director of News and Programming for All-New WTOP 103.5 FM.

McMearty has been with WTOP for 23-years in various roles such as editor, producer, reporter, anchor, assistant news director, and, for the past 15 years, news director.

He replaces Laurie Cantillo, who left last March to join NASA’s Office of Communications.

In making today's announcement, Joel Oxley, WTOP's senior vice president and general manager, says, "Mike has been an integral part of our success for more than two decades. He has led the newsroom to hundreds of industry awards for excellence in journalism, including 18 National Murrow Awards and more than two dozen honors already in 2015. I look forward to him taking the department to new heights."

Adds McMearty, "I'm humbled and honored to be given this opportunity. I'm proud of what the WTOP brand has become globally and believe our best days are ahead of us."

WTOP 103.5 FM (44 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area

In other announcements made today:

• Mitchell Miller has bee promoted to senior news director, managing WTOP's newsroom on weekday mornings 
• Darci Marchese moves up to a fulltime news director for weekday afternoons
• Jamie Forzato now will manage news operations on the weekends along with being weekend managing editor
• Meera Pal moves to social and digital engagement director
• Julia Ziegler becomes the news director of WTOP.com website.

Apple Caves To Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift

Lots of artists and music industry figures protested after Apple said that it wouldn't pay royalties to artists and record labels for music that was played during a free, three-month trial of its new streaming music service.

But it took Taylor Swift to get Apple to back down -- and swiftly too, announcing Sunday night that it was reversing its position, just hours after the pop superstar criticized them online in an open letter in which she described the company's stance as, quote, "shocking, disappointing, and completely unlike this historically progressive and generous company."

Apple senior vice president Eddy Cue said, "When I woke up this morning and I saw Taylor's note that she had written, it really solidified that we needed to make a change."

#AppleMusic will pay artist for streaming, even during customer’s free trial period

— Eddy Cue (@cue) June 22, 2015

Notably, Swift hadn't just slammed Apple's plans, but also said she wouldn't allow her latest album, 1989, on the service because of it.

In her letter, Swift wrote, "We don't ask you for free iPhones. Please don't ask us to provide you with our music for no compensation."

Cue said that he spoke to Swift personally yesterday to tell her they'd changed their minds and would pay royalties during the free trial period. Swift has acted on the issue of artist compensation before, pulling her catalog from Spotify last year over its free, ad-supported tier.

I am elated and relieved. Thank you for your words of support today. They listened to us.

— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) June 22, 2015