Twin Cities Radio: More HipHop Coming On 95.3

KNOF Go 95.3 FM, a new Twin Cities radio station focused on contemporary hip-hop, is set to go live Tuesday.

An extension of Go 96.3 FM — the station unveiled last year to focus on modern alternative, Twin games — Go 95.3 will be the first of its kind since B96 went pop in 2010. Go 96.3, news aggregator BringMeTheNews, and Go 95.3 fall under the Go Media banner of Pohlad Cos.

Peter Parker

According to citypages.com, Go 95.3 will tout an all-rap playlist that focuses simultaneously on a hit-driven rhythmic radio format (i.e. Drake, The Weeknd, Rihanna, Rick Ross, etc) and an indie/local angle (including national indie acts like Vince Staples, Action Bronson, and Chance the Rapper, plus Twin Cities acts like Atmosphere and Allan Kingdom).

Christian station Praise FM currently holds the 95.3 frequency.

In the past 12 months, three all-rap radio stations launched in a market suffering from a dearth of hip-hop on the airwaves. Go 95.3 distinguishes itself by spotlighting music released in the last decade, while 105 the Vibe and Hot 102.5 spin throwback rap/R&B hits. But the strongest sign of the station's potential for longevity is the involvement of the chief music director, Peter Parker.

KNOF 95.3 FM (900 Watts) Red-Local Coverage

Parker, who was known for integrating interviews and freestyles with local hip-hop legends like Brother Ali and Doomtree while DJ'ing for B96, recently returned to the Twin Cities to help build Go 95.3's playlist. Having worked in D.C. and Cleveland after B96 changed formats, he will se serve as music director as well as drive-time DJ at the new station, which launches 3 p.m. Tuesday.

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Candidate Trump Starts Airing TV Commercial

(Reuters) -- Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Monday released his first television commercial in the 2016 race for the White House with a 30-second spot highlighting his stance on Muslims, immigration and terrorism.

The ad will air starting on Tuesday in Iowa and New Hampshire, two key early voting states in the run-up to the party's nomination convention in July ahead of the November election, Trump's campaign said in a statement on its website.

The commercial reiterates the Republican front-runner's recent call to temporarily block Muslims from entering the United States and pledges a tough stance against Islamic State and acts of terrorism.

The ad also reiterated the businessman-turned-politician's ongoing calls to target illegal immigration by building a wall along the southern U.S. border that he said Mexico will pay for.

Trump leads national public opinion polls of the 12 Republicans seeking their party's presidential nomination, although he is trailing in some state polls.

He said last week he planned to spend at least $2 million a week on ads in early voting states.


On Monday, his campaign said it is also releasing a radio ad later this week in South Carolina, another key state.

SiriusXM Unveils New 'Commander Touch' Receiver

SiriusXM today announced the introduction of the new SiriusXM Commander Touch, its latest aftermarket satellite radio that lets listeners enjoy SiriusXM through the in-dash audio system of their vehicles.

"SiriusXM Commander Touch gives drivers who want SiriusXM in their vehicle an innovative solution for installation without replacing their vehicle's factory-installed radio," said Joe Verbrugge, Executive Vice President, Sales and Development, SiriusXM.  "The Commander Touch integrates seamlessly into the vehicle, giving drivers and their passengers access to the best entertainment available on the road."

The easy to operate SiriusXM Commander Touch is designed to deliver the best SiriusXM listening experience to customers, including commercial-free music; plus, premier sports talk and live events; comedy; news; exclusive talk and entertainment, and a wide-range of Latin music, sports and talk programming.

The Commander Touch includes everything needed for a professional installation.  The compact touchscreen color display can mount safely just about anywhere in the vehicle for the driver's convenience, and the hideaway tuner can be installed behind the vehicle's dashboard with concealed wiring.  For a more custom look, a professional installer can use the included flush mounting kit to integrate into the vehicle's dash.

SiriusXM Commander Touch was selected as a CES Innovation Honoree reflecting its innovative design and engineering and offers listeners an impressive list of features and capabilities, including:

• Compact touchscreen controller is only 4.1"W x 1.7" H x 0.5" D and mounts directly to the vehicle dash. The tuner module hides discreetly behind the dash for a fully integrated look.
• Enjoy SiriusXM through the vehicle's factory radio via FM or AUX audio input.
• Replay™ allows listeners to pause, rewind and replay up to 60 minutes of live satellite radio, in addition to buffering all 18 of the listener's preset channels with 30 minutes of content.
• Use TuneMix™ to hear a mix of songs from your favorite channels.
• Keep moving with the most current updates using Traffic & Weather Now™.
• Album art and channel logos displayed on the compact color screen provide listeners with quick information at a glance.

Innovative Delayed Off mode automatically pauses while drivers make short stops up to 30 min, so when they stop and get coffee or refuel their vehicle they will pick up right where they left off.

In addition, the "Never Miss a Beat" offer gives customers who purchase the SiriusXM Commander Touch and call SiriusXM, the first three-months of the SiriusXM All Access subscription that delivers every satellite radio channel available, as well as access to programming beyond the vehicle on smartphones and other connected devices, and at https://player.siriusxm.com.  For offer details, please visit www.siriusxm.com.

SiriusXM Commander Touch gives SiriusXM subscribers everything needed to listen to satellite radio in the vehicle and is available now at retail locations and online stores nationwide at an MSRP of $129.99.

Hearst CEO Bullish On ESPN

Steve Swartz

Hearst, the privately held company that owns TV stations, magazines and newspapers, and has a 50 percent in A+E Networks and a minority stake in ESPN, will have earned record revenue and profit in 2015, according to a letter set to go to employees on Monday.

Revenue grew 6 percent to $10.7 billion, according to the letter from CEO Steve Swartz.

Hearst also has assets in the auto-marketing, healthcare and financial industries, though Swartz says in his letter that "television in all its forms remains by far Hearst's biggest business."

According to The Hollywood Reporter,  he boasted that ESPN and A+E Networks "delivered profit growth in a tougher year for their industry, and our broadcast TV group achieved record revenue in a year without elections or Olympic Games."

The company's print assets include Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping and Elle magazines, as well as the San Francisco Chronicle and Houston Chronicle newspapers. Its TV stations include WCVB-TV in Boston, KETV in Omaha, Neb., WBAL-TV in Baltimore and several more.

In his letter, Swartz also notes a big push into new media and efforts to attract millennials, like its partnership in a new cable channel called VICELAND, to be produced by VICE, and the launch of FYI, a lifestyle channel aimed at young, upscale people.

Variety reports Swartz emphasized his faith in ESPN maintaining its primacy in the digital future, calling the sports powerhouse “the most unique asset in television.” He sought to dispense with the criticism that has swirled in recent months. “No traditional media brand has been able to transfer its leadership position in the new streaming, digital world better than ESPN. Sports rights have gotten more expensive and cord cutting and cord shaving have caused modest losses in the number of ESPN households, however, we are confident that this brand and this team have many years of strong revenue and profit growth ahead of them, as there simply is no substitute for ESPN,” Swartz wrote.

Fort Wayne Radio: WFWI Goes Big

Radio Group Federated Media has announced the launch of a brand new radio station in Fort Wayne, IN, Big WFWI 92.3 FM.

With it brings a return to a music based format on that frequency and a brand new website www.big923.com.

The Hybrid Format of Classic Hits/Adult Hits and will be extremely music intensive, playing the greatest hits of four decades, with most of the focus being in the late 1970’s-early 1980’s. Favorites like The Eagles, Billy Joel, John Mellencamp, Fleetwood Mac and such will be in heavy rotation and a lot of the elements on the station will focus on remembering a time when life was a lot simpler.

WFWI 92.3 FM (2.2 Kw) Red=Local Coverage

Another exciting benchmark that Big 92.3 will feature is “The 2 Minute Promise”, meaning whenever the music stops for a commercial break at any part of the day, it will NEVER be longer than 2 Minutes. No exceptions. And this is NOT a part time gimmick. The 2 Minute Promise is Here to stay and will be a main strategic brand of the radio station.

Big 92.3 will also feature a Live & Local Morning Show, literally BIGGER than every other AM Drive Show in the Market. Mike Ragz & The Big Morning Show will air Weekday Mornings from 6am-Noon, hosted by longtime Indiana Broadcaster Mike Ragozino, who will also serve as the Program Director.

Ragz, who over the past year had been doing Afternoons in Portland, OR on 750 The Game says, “I’m really excited to get back into the MUSIC side of Radio, by developing a format I love (Ragz Programmed WAOR from 2006-2014 in South Bend) in a community that I’ve really grown into.”


Big 92.3 Fort Wayne’s Greatest Hits actually officially signed on Friday Afternoon at 3pm ending WOWO’s tenure at that dial position. However, now the News/Talk station can still be found on FM at 107.5. Over the weekend Big 92.3 only played 2 minute versions of all their music, teasing the audience by promising something “bigger” on Monday, and playing off their “2 Minute Promise” of commercial time.

Little Rock Radio: TomFM Goes Big

Little Rock's KHKN 94.9 FM has rebranded as a Classic Hits format from the 1970s and '80s.

iHeartMedia/Little Rock announced it had changed its brand name from 94.9 Tom FM to Big 94.9 Little Rock's Greatest Hits.

The change comes after weeks of Christmas music on Nov. 1 under the "Christmas 94.9" moniker, according to KHKN's Senior Vice President of Programming Chad Heritage in the release.

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According to Nielson ratings for the Little Rock market released in October, KHKN came in at No. 10 out of 13 stations with a 3.3 percent market share.

KHKN is licensed to Maumelle, AR.

KHKN 94.9 FM (100 Kw) Red=Local Coverage

"Our listeners told us, their favorite songs are the songs we play from the 70's and 80's," said Program Director Jeff Cage. "Now Little Rock and Central Arkansas has a station exclusively playing the biggest hit songs from those decades."

Senior VP/Programming Chad Heritage added, "Our name change better reflects the music we play. We're big and fun, and play the big hits that have been missing from Little Rock radio for too long. Now fans of the station can listen even longer. We hope our listeners have enjoyed the great Christmas music as we worked behind the scenes to give them the radio station they asked for."

Air personality Tom Wood remains with the station, hosting weekdays from 9am to 3pm. "Tom Wood is beloved by Little Rock listeners; he's just part of musical memories here. It's only fitting that he be a part of Big 94-9," added Cage.

Atlanta Radio: Cumulus Again Tries Alternative At 98.9 T-FM

The dawn of 2016 launched a new music era in Atlanta. 99X returned to W255CJ 98.9 FM via WWWQ 98.9 FM-HD in Atlanta, January 1, 2016. But, Cumulus Media promises this is not your father’s 99X.

In 1992, 99X debuted as one of the true pioneers in new music discovery. Devoted to offering new artists a platform in one of America’s greatest cities, Atlanta’s 99X became the center of a movement, a community. And now, 15 years into a new century, a new generation of artists is seeking a similar home. Twenty-One Pilots, The 1975, Cold War Kids and Cage The Elephant share the airwaves with Taylor Swift, 5 Seconds of Summer and Justin Bieber on some stations, and the music of a past generation on others. 99X is here to give music mavens their favorite established artists and a voice to what’s next: Saint Motel, The Wombats, Catfish and the Bottlemen and the countless to come.

W255CJ 98.9 FM (250 watts)

“99X will once again be Atlanta’s unique source for new music discovery,” said Program Director Greg Ausham, PD of sister Classic Rock WNNX 100.5 FM. “99X will be a station rooted solidly in today’s artists and devoted to looking ahead toward what’s next musically.”

Media writer Rodney Ho at ajc.com comments "Cumulus hasn’t shown patience for any format at this signal, which isn’t all that strong. Over five years, besides 99X, it’s been active rock (the Bone), a Christian/country hybrid (The Walk), oldies (True Oldies/Good Time Oldies), country (Nash ICON) and for a week adult contemporary (Warm). No station format has lasted longer than 15 months."

Editors, Reporters Help Deliver The Boston Globe

Subsribers to The Boston Globe may not have known who delivered Sunday's edition, but chances are the deliver may well also have been the same person who wrote part of it.

Fed up after nearly a week of widespread delivery problems, dozens of reporters and editors at the Globe are planning to pitch in with Sunday's deliveries, according to Media wrtier Brian Stetler at CNN.

Along with those from the newsroom, employees who work on the business side of the paper also pitched in. Altogether, "more than 100" are volunteering, according to the Globe.

Scott Steeves, the head of the Boston Newspaper Guild, told Globe staffers in an email Saturday that "we are in crisis mode."

Volunteers will "get a route with a list of households with delivery instructions," Steeves said. "Make sure you have a flashlight and a GPS."

Some reporters had actually volunteered for the job earlier this week, amid mounting complaints about delivery delays. The Globe itself reported that the trouble started on Monday when the company switched to "a new delivery company."

In a story on Thursday, the Globe said "missing papers" across the local area "prompted an outcry from readers, who vented on social media and overwhelmed the Globe's phone system with complaints."

In the meantime, a smattering of readers expressed gratitude to the newspaper staff via Twitter, and a couple joked about brewing coffee for their delivery person.

"This actually makes me want to subscribe," one wrote.

Felicia Gans, a metro reporter, said the scores of newsroom volunteers proved that there is "so much love for Boston Globe."

NC Radio: WIOZ Expected Back On-Air After Power Surge

Adult Standards WIOZ 550 AM in Pinehurst NC was scheduled to return to the air this week after the station’s transmitter experienced a devastating power surge in mid-December.

“It couldn’t have happened at a worse time,” said Rich Rushforth, operations manager of WIOZ. “With the Christmas holidays, we’ve been dashing forward with the fastest possible method of shipment to get the parts we need to make repairs.”

The cause of the surge is unknown and Rushforth, a popular local on-air personality in addition to serving as operations manager of Star 102.5 FM and WIOZ, said he had never seen anything like it in his 27 years experience in radio.

“For a station to be down that long with something that was so damaging!” he said.

Replacement parts were shipped from a vendor in Quincy, Illinois, and included four capacitors, two power supply units, and a modulator card. The final needed piece will be installed this week and should restore signal service.

WIOZ 550 AM (1 kw-Day, 260 watts Night) Red=Local Coverage

Owned by Muirfield Broadcasting, Inc., WIOZ 550 AM station broadcasts an adult standard format featuring music by Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and some easy listening and softer oldies and adult contemporary artists.Weekdays the station features Sunrise in the Sandhills with morning show host, Billy Bag-O-Donuts.

BIA/Kelsey Issues Analysts' Top 10 Predictions

BIA/Kelsey has released a free “Top 10” preview of its 2016 analyst predictions. The Top 10 highlights selected nuggets on the impact on local media and advertising by millennials, mobile payments, Facebook, Google, data-driven ad sales, yellow pages, ad attribution, programmatic advertising, the on-demand economy and online video.

"Making predictions is a core part of what we do as analysts," said Michael Boland, chief analyst and VP, content, BIA/Kelsey.

"This report is spells out our ongoing forecasting and analysis, which will carry into 2016 with our day-to-day coverage of the local media and advertising industry."



Top 10 Highlights from BIA/Kelsey’s 2016 Predictions:

• Millennials will drive the next wave of marketing innovation – Abid Chaudhry
• Facebook emerges as a giant in local marketing and offline attribution – Michael Boland
• Data-driven local ad sales is the new normal – Charles Laughlin
• Data will unlock attribution, local’s holy grail – Rick Ducey
• Unicorns join the endangered specials list – Mitch Ratcliffe
• Mobile payments and beacons face a moment of truth – Michael Boland
• Google launches assault on mobile apps – Abid Chaudhry
• The Yellow Pages industry will see more consolidation – Charles Laughlin
• The march of programmatic continues – Rick Ducey
• SMBs get animated – Mitch Ratcliffe

CES2016 Expected to Be A Star-Studded Show

CES 2016 will feature Hollywood stars, professional athletes, TV personalities and celebrity chefs discussing and promoting technology that is revolutionizing the way consumers live, work and play.

Owned and produced by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) – formerly the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) – CES 2016 is the world’s gathering place for all who thrive on the business of consumer technologies, and will run January 6-9, 2016, in Las Vegas, NV.

Among the highlights:

YouTube vloggers turned entrepreneurial powerhouses, Justine Ezarik, aka iJustine, and Joey Graceffa, will serve as Ambassadors for the Entertainment Matters Program at CES. Presented by Variety, Entertainment Matters is the CES program designed to help the Hollywood community navigate the most influential technology show in the world.

Bob Pittman, Ryan Seacrest

TV/ radio host, producer and entrepreneur Ryan Seacrest will participate in a headliner conversation with Bob Pittman, chairman and CEO, iHeartMedia during the Entertainment Summit, presented by Variety, on Thursday, January 7, from 2:15-2:45 PM in the LVCC, North Hall, Room N258.

The C Space Storyteller conference track features actor, entrepreneur and radio/ TV personality Nick Cannon and celebrity Chef Morimoto. Morimoto will share his story on Tuesday, January 5, from 2:45-3:15 PM, while Cannon returns to CES on Wednesday, January 6 from 4-4:30 PM to reveal how digital media has influenced his brand and enabled career-changing opportunities. Both events will take place in ARIA, Level 1, Pinyon 5.

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, and studio analyst for Turner Sports Shaquille O’Neal, will participate in the Tech Investing in Sports conference as part of the Sports Business Forum, presented by Turner Sports. The session will be moderated by CNN news anchor Brooke Baldwin on Thursday, January 7, from 11:30 AM-12:10 PM in Venetian, Level 2, Hall D. O’Neal will also participate in the NBA on TNT Live Broadcast with host Ernie Johnson, and fellow analysts Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith. The broadcast will take place on Thursday, January 7, from 4-5 PM in Venetian, Level 2, Hall D and is open to all CES attendees.

The Sports Business Forum also will host The Commissioner’s Panel on Sports and Technology. Robert Manfred, commissioner of the MLB, and Adam Silver, commissioner of the NBA, will participate in a discussion moderated by Turner Sports studio host Ernie Johnson on Thursday, January 7, from 9-9:40 AM in Venetian, Level 2, Hall D.

Under Armour will host a plethora of athletes and Olympians at their booth (Sands, Hall C, #74316) including: Tony Romo, Michael Phelps, Buster Posey, Cal Ripken Jr., Georges St-Pierre, Deion Sanders, Nastia Liukin, Jake Dalton and Brandon Wynn.

The founder of The Chopra Foundation, Dr. Deepak Chopra, M.D., will participate in Harnessing the Power: Precision Medicine and Genomics, part of the Digital Health Summit, presented by Living in Digital Times. The session runs Thursday, January 7, from 1:45-2:45 in Venetian, Level 4, Lando 4303.

ABC’s Shark Tank and CEO, FUBU and Shark Branding Daymond John is among the panelists in the Making Disney Magic: Connecting Digital and Physical Worlds SuperSession, presented by the Consumer Technology Association, on Thursday, January 7, from 1-2 PM in LVCC, North Hall, Room N257.

Actress and singer Christina Milian will be at Monster’s booth (LVCC, Central Hall, #9405) on Friday, January 8, from 12-3 PM to discuss her relationship with Monster and her latest endeavors.

Retired NBA players Larry Johnson and Larry Nance, and retired Vincentian-American NBA player Adonal Foyle will all make appearances at ZTE’s booth (LVCC, South Hall 3, #31706) between Wednesday, January 6 and Friday, January 8. The NBA National Championship trophy will also be on display at ZTE’s booth all day Thursday, January 7.

Actress, best-selling author and activist Jenny McCarthy will conduct a live broadcast of her Sirius XM show followed by an autograph session at FCA’s Uconnect booth (LVCC, North Hall, #3534) on Thursday, January 7, from 1-3:30 PM.

D/FW Radio: CBS Christmas Radiothon Raises $1M+

Children’s Medical Center Foundation posted a record $1,003,236 in donations from its annual Christmas Is for Children CBS Radio Radiothon Dec. 10-11. Every dollar benefits the Children’s Health medical system, according to The Dallas Morning News.

The radio marathon featured live and recorded stories about 22 patients and their families. It was arranged in partnership with Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and CBS Radio DFW, which broadcast live from the hospital on three stations: KLUV 98.7 FM, “La Grande” KMVK 107.5 FM and NewsRadio KRLD 1080 AM.

“The incredible patients and families we serve, along with the continued generosity of the Dallas-Fort Worth community, never cease to amaze us,” said Christopher J. Durovich, president and CEO of Children’s Health. “CBS Radio DFW is one of the strongest supporters in our quest to be by the side of parents across North Texas. We are grateful for their commitment and the community as a whole as we continue to live out our mission of making life better for children.”

The radiothon started about 20 years ago, and this marked its 11th year of the collaboration with CBS Radio, said Children’s Health spokeswoman Heidi Cannella.

“Even after all these years of working with the amazing team at Children’s Health on this incredible effort, we continue to be overwhelmed by the response of our listeners, “ said Brian Purdy, senior vice president and market manager for CBS Radio DFW. “They open their hearts and their wallets with one purpose: to help the next generation of North Texans live life to the fullest. We can’t imagine a better gift.”

A total of 1,525 people made donations over the two-day radiothon. FairLease was the presenting sponsor.

January 4 Radio History

Al 'Jazzbo' Collins

In 1919...radio personality Al ‘Jazzbo’ Collins was born in Rochester, N.Y. He is best known for creating the Purple Grotto program on WNEW New York, and on this coast for his talk shows at KGO San Francisco.  He died of pancreatic cancer September 30, 1997 at age 78.


In 1923...WEAF in NYC (now WFAN 660 AM) and WNAC in Boston (now WRKO 680 AM) conducted the first non-wired simulcast using a 100-foot antenna connected by a clothesline to the building's roof.


In 1923...Ft Worth radio station WBAP debuted a new country music show called the “barn dance.”

It featured a variety of performers, including an old-time fiddler named Captain M.J. Bonner who played square dance music. WBAP’s barn dance was so popular that a number of other radio stations began copying it. Soon, the barn dance variety show format could be heard across the country.

One of the most successful imitators of WBAP’s barn dance was the Nashville radio station WSM, which launched its Grand Ole Opry in 1925.  Grand Ole Opry went on to become the best-known country music radio show in history.


In 1928...the NBC Radio Network premiered "The Dodge Victory Hour", starring Al Jolson, Will Rogers, and Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra


In 1932..."The Carnation Contented Hour," a showcase for top singers and musicians, debuted on the NBC Red network. Sponsored by the Carnation Milk Company, the series continued until December 30, 1951.

In 1935...Bob Hope made his first appearance on network radio as part of the cast of "The Intimate Revue." The variety show, sponsored by Bromo Seltzer, lasted only fourteen weeks, but Hope’s association with NBC continued for more than half-a-century.







In 1936...the first sales-based pop music chart was published in Billboard. Big band violinist Joe Venuti's "Stop! Look! Listen!" was the first #1 record.


In 1950...Two years after Columbia Records introduced the long-playing record, RCA announced its intention to follow suit


In 1954..A young truck driver named Elvis Presley enters the Memphis Recording Service in Memphis, TN, ostensibly to record a song for his mother's birthday (which was, in reality, many months away). He records "Casual Love Affair" and "I’ll Never Stand in Your Way." It was this recording that would lead MRS head Sam Phillips to call Presley back to record for his Sun Records label.

In 1963...Actor/comedian Dave Foley was born. He played Dave Nelson on ths sitcom "NewsRadio"


In 1970...'Music 'Til Dawn' ended airing on WCBS 880 AM in NYC. "Music 'Til Dawn" was an all night classical music radio program sponsored by American Airlines from 1953 to 1970.

In 1977...Mary Shane was hired by the Chicago White Sox to be the first full-time, female, play-by-play announcer for a major league baseball team.

By mid-season, however, it was apparent that her lack of experience and baseball knowledge was quickly turning it into a failed experiment. She was pulled from the broadcasts before the 1977 season ended and her contract was not renewed.

Shane later worked in Massachusetts, where she became a sportswriter for the Worcester Telegram in 1981. She died of a 1987 heart attack at age 42.


In 1982...The ABC Direction Network with 57 affiliates and the ABC Rock Network with 40 affiliates become the 5th and 6th ABC Radio networks.


In 2010…Baseball broadcaster (Los Angeles Angels) Rory Markas died after a heart attack at 54.


In 2015...Stuart Scott, for more than two decades one of the top sportscasters at ESPN,  lost his battle with cancer at age 49.