October 19 in Radio History

On the 19th in 1953...Julius LaRosa was fired live on-air by Arthur Godfrey.

La Rosa was on Godfrey's shows from November 19, 1951 to October 19, 1953. When Archie Bleyer, Godfrey's bandleader, formed Cadence Records in 1952, the first performer signed was La Rosa. Cadence's first single, which was also La Rosa's first recording, was "Anywhere I Wander." It reached the top 30 on the charts, and his next recording, "My Lady Loves To Dance", was a moderate success.

After La Rosa's third recording, and a dispute with Godfrey over his failure to attend a Godfrey-mandated dance class required of all cast members, La Rosa hired his own agent and manager: Tommy Rockwell.



With hit recordings and his appearances on Godfrey's shows, La Rosa's popularity grew exponentially. At one point, La Rosa's fan mail eclipsed Godfrey's. A year after La Rosa was hired, he was receiving 7,000 fan letters a week.  Godfrey did not react well to LaRosa hiring Rockwell as his manager. After consulting with CBS President Frank Stanton, on the morning of October 19, 1953 (in a segment of the show broadcast on radio only), after La Rosa finished singing "Manhattan" on Arthur Godfrey Time, Godfrey fired La Rosa on the air, announcing, "that was Julie's swan song with us." La Rosa tearfully met with Godfrey after the broadcast and thanked him for giving him his "break".


On the 19th in 1991...Grant Turner, WSM-Nashville and Grand Ole Opry announcer for 49 years, died at the age of 79.

Grant Turner

Jesse Granderson "Grant" Turner was born May 17, 1912 in Baird, Texas, near Abilene. In 1928, while in high school, he performed as Ike and His Guitar announced for Abilene, TX. Turner majored in journalism at college and worked for Texas and Louisiana newspapers during the 1930s, but he returned to radio announcing in 1940 at KFRO in Longview, TX., before joining a station in Sherman, TX.

In 1942, he moved to Knoxville, TN.. Turner rode an all-night bus to Nashville and auditioned for WSM, where he joined the staff on June 6, 1944, which was D-Day, the day the Allies invaded Europe in World War II.

He first announced early-morning programs, but a few months later joined George D. Hay's staff of Saturday night Grand Ole Opry announcers. Turner became announcer for R. J. Reynolds's NBC network half hour of the Grand Ole Opry, in the late 1940s: the Prince Albert Show, piped weekly to some 170 stations and some 10 million listeners by 1953. In the early 1950s he hosted WSM's Mr. DJ, USA program, featuring guest DJs from around the nation, and in the mid-1950s became the third regular announcer for Ernest Tubb's WSM Midnight Jamboree, a job he held until 1977

Turner for years hosted the pre-Opry Grand Ole Opry Warmup Show-spinning records and taking requests on the Opry House stage. He worked the Friday and Saturday night Opry shows, besides the summer matinees, until the night before he died. Grant Turner was one of three original members to be inducted into the Country Music D J Hall of Fame in 1975. He was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1981.


On the 19th in 1991...Dan Ingram debuted at WCBS-FM.  Here's an un-dated WCBS-FM aircheck:





On the 19th in 2010…"Boom Boom Brannigan," a popular Albany, New York radio personality (WABY, WPTR) for 50 years, died at age 82.

Born in Utica as Joseph Charles Motto, he became well known during the 1960s as a disc jockey at Albany-Troy giant WPTR 1540-AM. Brannigan was going by the name Ronny Victor at a Buffalo radio station when he landed the job at WPTR during the early 1960s.

In a 1998 interview, Brannigan said he was trying to think of a new name for the Capital Region market when he tuned in his new employer and learned his stage identity had already been chosen. “I heard this jingle that said ‘Boom Boom is coming’ and then there would be this sound of drums,” he said.Brannigan remained at WPTR until 1975, when the popularity of disc jockey-driven rock ’n’ roll had been replaced by album-oriented rock formats and talk radio.



Later, he would buy small radio stations like WKOL in Amsterdam and WSCG in Corinth
and turn them into more prosperous businesses.

Brannigan had chances to move to bigger broadcasts in New York City and Philadelphia to compete against national talents such as Dick Clark and Wolfman Jack, but Brannigan didn’t want to move.

Red Zebra To FCC: Don't Ban Redskins

Red Zebra Broadcasting told the Federal Communications Commission on Friday that it has no legal grounds to ban radio stations from using the name of the Washington Redskins, reports The Hill.

Critics are using “meritless” arguments to urge the FCC not to reauthorize the license of local Washington sports radio station WWXX 94.3 FM, Red Zebra Broadcasting told the agency in a formal filing.

WWXX 94.3 FM (2Kw) 60dBu Coverage

The request for the FCC to not renew the station’s license is “a crass misuse of the license renewal process,” it added, which would lead to “limitless expansion of the government’s censorial powers,” seemingly in violation of the Constitution.

“While there is, in fact, a public debate over the use of the name ‘Redskins’ in association with the team, the commission cannot appropriately serve as the arbiter of that dispute,” the broadcaster claimed. “The commission’s task is not to pass judgment on the propriety of the name of Washington’s professional football team.”

The company is owned by Redskins owner Dan Snyder, who has repeatedly refused to change the team name despite repeated criticism.

"Our response makes clear that under the Communications Act and the First Amendment the FCC should not be in the business of censoring the content of radio stations. Any debate about the Washington Redskins' name and its meaning should be had in the free marketplace of ideas, not in the halls of the FCC or any other governmental agency."

Andrew G. McBride, of the law firm of Wiley Rein LLP, counsel for Red Zebra said of the filing, "We hope that the FCC will swiftly reject this transparent attempt to use the license renewal process to intimidate broadcasters across the country with the baseless threat that accurately reporting on the Washington Redskins football franchise by using the team's full name violates any law or FCC regulation."

Last month, the FCC said it is considering whether to rule "Redskins," the team name of Washington, DC's NFL team, as indecent. In recent months, many have called on the football francise to change its name from the word many consider a slur to Native Americans. Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler is considering action on a petition from legal activist John Banzhaf III, asking the denial of Red Zebra's WWXX-FM license when it comes up for renewal for using "Redskins" on-air.

Team owner Daniel Snyder has vowed not to change the name, despite the efforts of President Barack Obama and half of the U.S. Senate, who asked the NFL to endorse a name change.

Houston Radio: Radio One Gambles On Classic Hip-Hop

KROI 92.1 FM rechristened Boom 92 declares it's the first major market radio station dedicated to classic hip hop. Instead of Drake and Nicki Minaj, it would play “the hip hop you grew up with”—assuming that you grew up with Dr. Dre and Missy Elliott.

If that sounds awesome to you, you’re going to love a recent Boom 92 playlist, according to Bloomberg Businessweek.

In many ways, this is an idea whose time has come, which is another way of saying that hip-hop, and its first-wave fans, are, well, old.

Dre will be 50 in February; Ice-T is just 10 years away from his first Social Security check. Licensed to Ill topped the Billboard charts in 1987; three years later, hip-hop made up one-third of the Hot 100. By 1999, it was the country’s best-selling genre, with more than 81 million albums sold. The fans who propelled the early boom probably don’t know Young Thug from Rich Homie Quan, and don’t want to.

The obvious parallel is to classic rock radio—a format that emerged in the early-1980s as baby boomers rejected punk and disco, and radio execs realized it was easier to serve up old songs than convince their aging audiences to try new music.

Not that advertisers minded. Older listeners are generally wealthier and better educated than younger audiences, says Mark Fratrik, who studies the radio industry as chief economist at consultancy BIA/Kelsey: “That’s why adult contemporary always does well on revenue share.”

That makes the format attractive to Radio One, a Silver Springs, Md.-based “urban media specialist” that owns Boom 92 and 51 other broadcast radio stations nationwide, and generated $448 million in revenue last year. “This is not an urban radio station; it’s general market,” senior vice president Jay Stevens told industry website Inside Radio. “We did extensive research to find the sweet spot of crossover hip-hop from that period.”

Read More Now

Cord-Cutters: Be Careful What You Wish For

With HBO and CBS stand-alone streaming services, the oft-maligned pay-TV bundle has begun to loosen. But, according to The Wall Street Journal, it’s not clear the brave new streaming world that replaces it will actually be cheaper for consumers.

By offering their networks directly to consumers via the Internet, HBO and CBS are cutting out the middleman—cable and satellite companies—and potentially undermining the backbone of the television business.

On the surface, this is seen as a win for people frustrated with rising monthly television bills and paying for lots of channels they don’t watch. Other networks are following the lead of Time Warner ’s HBO and CBS, including Univision Communications Inc. and possibly Showtime, which is a unit of CBS Corp.

A future where television viewers subscribe to each channel individually could be cheaper for young people who only watch two or three channels, industry executives said. But analysts say that for households filled with people of differing tastes or fans of many channels, this future could make the average cable TV bill—which hovers at around $90—seem like a bargain.

Some analysts however, paint a grim portrait of an unbundled world. Today’s hundreds of channels could shrink down to about 20. That is because advertising would decrease substantially on channels with reduced audience reach, forcing consumers to pay the entire cost of running the channels, instead of splitting that cost with advertisers, as is done in basic cable.

Sports networks could be most at risk in an unbundled world. About half of the subscriber fees paid each month by consumers go to channels with sports, even though these channels account for less than a quarter of viewership.

If ESPN were taken out of the bundle, for example, it might need to cost as much as $30—instead of the roughly $6 per subscriber it currently charges as part of the bundle, according to SNL Kagan—to recoup its losses from reduced distribution and continue to afford its content.

Read More Now

Chattanooga Radio: WUSY's Bearman Dies After Fall

Benjamin 'Bearman' Martin

Longtime WUSY 100.7 FM US-101 morning personality Benjamin "Bearman" Martin has died.

He was 61 years-of-age.

He passed away Thursday night from complications after a lengthy battle with liver disease. Bearman had been dealing with some health problems over the past couple of months.  He had been in the hospital last week, but was discharged Wednesday.  However,  he slipped and fell early Thursday morning at his home and hit his head. He was rushed to the hospital, he went into a coma and died around 10:45pm Thursday night, according to a posting on the iHeartMedia station website.

The Bearman in his own words:

"I've been in 'Radio' for 35 years. Started at a small AM station in south Alabama doing whatever needed to be done..hoping to one day get on the air, and to the dismay of some...finally one day they put me on. I've been in country radio for about  30 of those 37 years, and I've been at US-101 for 25 years. 

I started at US-101 doing mid-days, then moved to afternoons, then in 1995 Ken Hicks and I moved to "mornings" and I've been there since. I, along with my partner Ken, have been nominated for 4 CMA awards and 3 ACM awards...and we have won the Country Radio Broadcasters Personality of the Year Award. 

I am married to my wonderful, beautiful wife Rosa...we have 3 children...Jason, Jacqui, and Jeff, and 6 grandchildren. We live in Flintstone, Ga. and I work part-time at the rock quarry...I have a dinosaur named "Dino" and my best friends' name is Barney."

Report: Pandora Claims 7M+ Listen In-Cars

If your car is capable of getting an internet connection, then chances are it can stream Pandora. That’s not just some happy coincidence for the music streaming company. According to gigaom.com, Pandora has made the automotive industry a big priority, and the results of the effort are obvious.

Since 2009, Pandora has partnered with 26 automotive brands, and 145 vehicle models have Pandora software loaded into their dashboards, including the top 10 best selling passenger cars in the U.S., according to the company. Pandora certainly isn’t in every connected vehicle out there, but no other third-party developer can claim that kind of presence in the automobile.

The attention Pandora has paid to the connected car is a result of Pandora’s stated mission: to be at any intersection where radio listening and the internet meet, a topic Pandora CTO Chris Martin will delve into with Janko Roettgers at Gigaom’s Structure Connect conference in San Francisco next week. One of the most obvious intersections is the car, where Pandora estimates more than half of radio listening occurs.

“We want to get as close to possible to the FM radio model as possible,” Pandora VP of automotive business development Geoff Snyder told me in an interview last week. “If Pandora was the last thing playing when you get out of your car, we want it to be the first thing playing when you get back in.”

About 7 million Pandora users have listened to music through an integrated app in their cars – and that doesn’t count the users who simply plug their smartphones into an auxiliary jack in their car’s stereo system. That may not sound like a lot when compared against Pandora’s 250 million registered users or even its 76.4 million active monthly users , but it’s also important to remember that there are relatively few connected cars on the road today.

Read More Now

Peoria Radio: Gets Energy

Alpha Media/Peoria, Illinois has announced the launch of Energy 102.3 WDQX. The new CHR format was “Energized” October 16, at 9am by announcing it will play 10,000 songs-in-a-row, commercial free.”

“We’re very excited to add a CHR format with Energy 102.3 to our market-leading cluster of stations,” said SVP/Market Manager Peoria, Mike Wild. “It’s the perfect complement to our group and it rounds out the full spectrum of audience for our advertisers.”

Alpha Media VP of Programming, Phil Becker commented on the announcement, “Over the last few months Alpha Media has shown our commitment to locally programmed CHR stations. That focus is once again proven as we add WDQX to our Top 40 roster. A new Energy has come to Peoria and it’s fully charged!”

WDQX 1023. FM (4.1Kw) 60dBu Coverage

Energy 102.3 is launching with a 10,000 song or $10,000 promise. If the station doesn’t play 10,000 songs-in-a-row without commercials, the first listener to call the Energy line can win $10,000.

Bob & Tom Produce Football Songs For Affiliates

Popular radio comedy show The Bob & Tom Show, distributed by Westwood One, is engaging football fans across its vast listening base with fun, customized songs for local stations that air on The Bob & Tom Show and in many markets with college or pro football teams.

Bob & Tom's home station is WFBQ 94.7 FM in Indianapolis.

Each song is market specific, customized with call letters and station monikers.  The first song in this year’s series was created for Cincinnati’s Fox 92.5 (WFOX), the heritage rock station where The Bob & Tom Show dominates morning drive and pulls in a huge local audience, many of whom are passionate  football fans.  The music promotes The Bob & Tom Show while getting listeners pumped for the next Bengals matchup.  You can hear the Cincinnati Bengals song, “Who Dey,” here.

Other markets being rolled out include New Orleans, Green Bay, Detroit, Buffalo, Chicago, Oklahoma, and Nebraska.

Tom Griswold, of The Bob & Tom Show, said “This is a terrific opportunity for us to create something exclusive for our listeners that can only be heard on The Bob & Tom Show affiliate stations. “Who Dey” and all the other team songs are performed by Duke Tumatoe and The Bob & Tom Band, and recorded at the show’s recording studio in Indianapolis.

Louisville Radio: Michael Jordan New PD AT WAMZ

Michael Jordan

iHeartMedia/Louisville has announced that Michael Jordan has been appointed Program Director for Country WAMZ 97.5 FM.

Jordan will remain as Ops Manager for nearby Lexington, KY and he succeeds longtime PD/personality Coyote Calhoun, who is retiring effective December 31, 2014.

“Michael was born and raised in in Kentucky,” said iHeartmedia R/PM Kelly Carls. “He has distinguished himself with the outstanding success of WBUL and signature community events like the annual '4th of July Red, White and Boom' festival. We’re thrilled to see him bring that expertise to WAMZ.”

“Coyote Calhoun built WAMZ into a legendary brand,” said Jordan.

“We want to continue his legacy of great Country music, concerts, and a tireless dedication to the community. I’d like to thank Kelly Carls, Bill Gentry and iHeartMedia’s senior leadership for this amazing opportunity.”

WAMZ 97.5 FM (100Kw) 60dBu

Lincoln Radio: Julie Haskell Gade Now GM At Digity Cluster

Julie Haskell Gade

Market veteran Julie Haskell Gade has returned to radio after a six years abence as General Manager for Digity Media's cluster in Lincoln, NE, according to journalstar.com.

Digity Media, which recently purchased 48 radio stations from Three Eagles Communications, including six in Lincoln, for $66.5 million.

Gade now oversees Top40 KFRX 106.3 FM,Country  KFGE 92.9 FM /The Eagle, Rock KIBZ 104.1 FM /The Blaze, KLMS 1480 AM ESPN, N/T KFOR 1240 AM and Country KZKX 96.9 FM KX 96.9.

Gade left Three Eagles in March 2008 after being laid off as station manager for KX96.9 and The Eagle.

Before landing at Digity, she served as vice president of business development for Leadership Resources, a results-oriented provider of organizational development.

KFRX 106.3 FM (100Kw) 60dBu Coverage

Gade replaces Joy Patten, who remains at Digity in charge of sales.

'Giants of Broadcasting' Honored

Peter Smyth, LBA's Don West

Greater Media Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Peter H. Smyth was featured among the honorees at the 12th Annual Giants of Broadcasting & Electronic Arts Annual Luncheon Gala, sponsored by the Library of American Broadcasting. The event took place on Thursday, October 16th at Gotham Hall in New York City.

The honorees were recognized for their contributions to the media industry in the last half century.

“I am so honored and humbled to be recognized among the Giants of Broadcasting,” said Greater Media Chairman and CEO Peter Smyth.

“As broadcasters, we have a responsibility to preserve the past, while embracing the future for the next generation of broadcasters. As technology continues to provide exciting new opportunities in the radio and television industries, we need to look for innovative ways to provide our listeners, viewers and advertisers with the very best entertainment experience possible."

Other individuals recognized for their outstanding contributions at the event included Pablo Raúl Alarcón Sr., Raúl Alarcón Jr., David Barrett, Regis Philbin, Chuck Scarborough, Fred Silverman, Judy Woodruff and Gwen Ifill and Sylvester L. “Pat” Weaver and Virginia Forwood Pate Wetter.

The distinguished honorees join the ranks of 170 Giants, including industry founders Guglielmo Marconi, David Sarnoff of RCA and NBC, William S. Paley and Frank Stanton of CBS, Leonard Goldenson of ABC, Bob Hope, Lucille Ball, Jack Benny, Philo T. Farnsworth, H. V. Kaltenborn, Edward R. Murrow, Walter Cronkite, Arthur Godfrey, Paul Harvey, Charlie Rose, Ken Burns, Johnny Carson, Katie Couric, Brian Williams, Christiane Amanpour, Lowry Mays and Tim Russert.

The Library of American Broadcasting is located at the University of Maryland and is entering its 42nd year serving as the national information resource for the radio and television industries as well as the academic communities that rely upon it for depth and expertise. The Library’s collections of historic documents, professional papers, oral and video histories, books and photographs are among the most extensive in the nation.

Chicago Radio: Shannon Ihrke, WLUP Extend Deal

'Rock Girl' Shannon Ihrke

Shannon Ihrke, the spokesmodel and "Rock Girl" for WLUP-FM/97.9 The Loop, is going to be sticking around, promoting the radio station for a lot longer, according to Chicagoland Radio & Media.

Originally known as Shannon the 2013 Loop Rock Girl, and currently known as the 2014 Loop Rock Girl, she will soon be known as the 2015 Loop Rock Girl. Her one-year contract to be the station's spokesmodel, has been renewed for a send time. Ihrke is now the longest reigning Loop Rock Girl since the station begun this annual promotion in 2005.

At a live event held at the end of October 2012, Chicago-based model Shannon Ihrke was selected to be the 2013 Loop Rock Girl. In that role, Ihrke was asked to represent the rock radio station at events through the end of November 2013, and take part in numerous photo/video shoots.

As the 2013 Loop Rock Girl, she received a contract for $75,000.

WLUP-FM management chose to not do the annual Rock Girl search at the end of last year. The reasons were said to be due to many factors, including Merlin Media's impending exiting of the radio business, a lack of sponsorship of the contest, and most of all, Shannon Ihrke's popularity as the station's spokesmodel.

Read More Now

October 17 In Radio History

In 1919...Radio Corporation of America (RCA) was created.

The incorporation of the assets of Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company of America (including David Sarnoff, the Pan-American Telegraph Company, and those already controlled by the United States Navy led to a new publicly held company formed by General Electric (which owned a controlling interest) on October 17, 1919. The following cooperation among RCA, General Electric, the United Fruit Company, the Westinghouse Electric Corporation, and American Telephone & Telegraph (AT&T) brought about innovations in high-power radio technology, and also the founding of the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) in the US.

The Army and the Navy granted RCA the former American Marconi radio terminals that had been confiscated during the War. Admiral Bullard received a seat on the Board of Directors of RCA for his efforts in establishing RCA. The result was Federally-created monopolies in radio for GE and the Westinghouse Corporation and in telephone systems for the American Telephone & Telegraph Company.

The argument by the Department of War and the Department of the Navy that the usable radio frequencies were limited, and hence needed to be appropriated for use before other countries, such as the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Canada monopolized them, collapsed in the mid-1920s following the discovery of the practicality of the use of the shortwave radio band (3.0 MHz through 30.0 MHz) for very long-range radio communications.

David Sarnoff 1922

The first chief executive officer of RCA was Owen D. Young; David Sarnoff became its general manager. RCA's incorporation papers required that a majority of its stock be held by American citizens. RCA agreed to market the radio equipment manufactured by GE and Westinghouse, and in follow-on agreements, RCA also acquired the radio patents that had been held by Westinghouse and the United Fruit Company. As the years went on, RCA either took over, or produced for itself, a large number of patents, including that of the superheterodyne receiver invented by Edwin Armstrong.

By 1926 the market for commercial radio had expanded, and RCA purchased the WEAF and WCAP radio stations and networks from AT&T, merged them with its WJZ (the predecessor of WABC) New York to WRC (presently WTEM) Washington chain, and formed the National Broadcasting Company (NBC).

In 1934..."The Aldrich Family" premiered on radio.

Ezra Stone, Jackie Kelk 1947

The Aldrich Family, a popular radio teenage situation comedy (1939-1953), was also presented in films, television and comic books. In the radio series' well-remembered weekly opening exchange, awkward teen Henry's mother called, "Hen-reeeeeeeeeeeee! Hen-ree Al-drich!", and he responded with a breaking adolescent voice, "Com-ing, Mother!"

The creation of playwright Clifford Goldsmith, Henry Aldrich began on Broadway as a minor character in Goldsmith's play What a Life. Produced and directed by George Abbott, What a Life ran for 538 performances.

When Rudy Vallee saw the play, he asked Goldsmith to adapt it into some sketches for his radio program, and this was followed in 1938 by a 39-week run of a sketch comedy series on The Kate Smith Hour with Stone continuing in the role of Henry. Kate Smith's director, Bob Welsh, is credited with the creation of the "Hen-reeeeeeeeeeeee! Hen-ree Al-drich!" opening, which eventually became one of the most famous signature sounds in radio.

After finding an audience with Kate Smith's listeners, The Aldrich Family was launched in its own series as a summer replacement program for Jack Benny in NBC's Sunday night lineup, July 2, 1939, and it stayed there until October 1, 1939, when it moved to Tuesday nights at 8 p.m., sponsored by General Foods's popular gelatin dessert Jell-O, which also sponsored Jack Benny at the time. The Aldriches ran in that slot from October 10, 1939 until May 28, 1940, moving to Thursdays, from July 4, 1940 until July 20, 1944. After a brief hiatus, the show moved to CBS, running on Fridays from September 1, 1944 until August 30, 1946 with sponsors Grape Nuts and Jell-O before moving back to NBC from September 5, 1946 to June 28, 1951 on Thursdays and, then, as a Sustaining program in its final run of September 21, 1952 to April 19, 1953 on Sundays.

The main characters (created by Clifford Goldsmith) never age. Henry Aldrich (portrayed by Ezra Stone, Vic Jones and Bobby Ellis) is one of those types of teenagers everyone has met at sometime during life, as is his best buddy, Homer Brown (Jackie Kelk, Jack Grimes, Johnny Fieldler). More characters: Mary (Henrys sister).



The show was a top-ten ratings hit within two years of its birth (in 1941, the show carried a 33.4 Crossley rating, landing it solidly alongside Jack Benny and Bob Hope). Earning $3000 a week, Goldsmith was the highest paid writer in radio, and his show became a prototype for the teen-oriented situation comedies that followed on radio and television.

NY Daily News 10/18/1966

In 1966...Jack Sterling does last show at WCBS 880 AM. Appreciation site: Click Here.

Jack Sterling was born in Baltimore on June 24, 1915, the son of Jack Sexton and Edna Cable. The names of Sexton and Cable were of considerable note in show business, a profession to which Jack's parents devoted forty years....It was natural then that Jack was destined to make his debut as an actor at an early age. He did, at age 2 when he appeared as Little Willie in 'East Lynne.' By the time he was 7 Jack Sterling had worked up a routine as a minstrel and played the same bill as his parents in their coast-to-coast tours. At 15 Sterling was a leading player in the John D. Winninger stock company which toured midwestern cities.

He rounded out his experience....and in 1939 settled down in Peoria, Illinois, where he joined WMBD as an announcer and producer.

One year later he moved to WTAD in Quincy, Ill., as program director and from there to CBS Radio's KMOX, St. Louis.

In 1947, after two years at KMOX, he was promoted to program manager of CBS Radio's WBBM, Chicago.

While in that post, CBS Radio sent out a call to its affiliates requesting audition records of its top local talent. Arthur Godfrey's heavy network broadcasting schedule was forcing him to give up his local WCBS Radio morning show and a replacement was needed. Sterling became active in the midwestern search for a candidate but overlooked the person who was to get the job: himself.

"I never considered myself as a candidate because I decided to devote my time to the executive phase of radio," Jack recalls.

"However, WCBS Radio asked for my audition record."

Jack's modesty was underlined by the fact that he would only make the audution record on the condition that WCBS Radio would pay the cost. The station did, and on November 5, 1948, Sterling made his debut on WCBS Radio in the early morning time formerly occupied by Godfrey.

STERLING AIRCHECK: 10th Anniversary Show 1958, (courtesy of Jack Sterling Appreciation website).

Sterling died of lung cancer in 1990 at age 75.

In 1970...The Hot 100..The Jackson 5 first hit #1 with "I'll Be There", knocking Neil Diamond's "Cracklin' Rosie" out of the top spot.  Sugarloaf was up from 8 to 3 with "Green-Eyed Lady" and Free edged up with "All Right Now".  The Carpenters were up nicely (9-5) with "We've Only Just Begun".

The rest of the Top 10:  "Candida" from Dawn, the former #1 "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" from Diana Ross, the double-sided CCR hit "Lookin' Out My Back Door"/"Long As I Can See The Light" at #8, "Julie, Do Ya Love Me" from Bobby Sherman and James Taylor's first hit "Fire And Rain" moved from 17 to #10.

In 1970...The Album Charts..Cosmo's Factory by CCR continued to hold on to the #1 album spot for the ninth week.  Abraxas by Santana was generating excitement and moved from 8-2.  Mad Dogs & Englishmen from Joe Cocker was #3 followed by A Question of Balance from the Moody Blues.  The rest of the Top 10:  Third Album from the Jackson 5, the Soundtrack to "Woodstock", James Taylor moved to #7 with Sweet Baby James, After the Gold Rush from Neil Young edged up to #8, Chicago II was still going after 36 weeks and Get Yer (sic) Ya-Ya's Out! by the Rolling Stones debuted at #10.

In 1981...The Hot 100.."Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)" by Christopher Cross took over at #1 after a nine-week reign by Diana Ross & Lionel Richie's "Endless Love".  The Rolling Stones saw an opening and got to 3 with "Start Me Up".  Sheena Easton had "For Your Eyes Only" while Eddie Rabbitt hopped up "Step By Step".  The rest of the Top 10:  Hall & Oates with "Private Eyes", Stevie Nicks with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers had song #7--"Stop Draggin' My Heart Around", Journey were on their way down with "Who's Crying Now", Dan Fogelberg had a big hit with "Hard To Say" and the Little River Band notched their 10th hit and fifth Top 10 with "The Night Owls".

In 1987...The Album Charts..Bad, which had debuted at #1 on the Album chart for Michael Jackson, continued to set the pace for the fourth week.  Whitesnake was #2 with Whitney from Whitney Houston trailing.  Hysteria by Def Leppard climbed up to #4 and Pink Floyd reached the #5 position with A Momentary Lapse of Reason.

The rest of the Top 10:  The "Dirty Dancing" Soundtrack, La Bamba from Los Lobos #7, John Cougar Mellencamp with The Lonesome Jubilee, U2's The Joshua Tree was #9 and Heart's Bad Animals closed out the list.


In 1991...News anchor Bree Walker Lampley filed a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission against Los Angeles radio station KFI-AM saying it personally attacked her by talking about her having a disformed baby.


In 2006...Newsman Christopher Glenn, WNEW 1130 AM, WCBS 880 AM, CBS RADIO, died.

Christopher Glenn

Glenn worked at various radio stations in New York, Connecticut, and Washington, D.C. before joining CBS in 1971. While at CBS, Glenn worked in a variety of capacities in its news organization. He was a narrator for In the News, a long-running Emmy award-winning TV news program geared toward children and young people, which aired between the network's Saturday-morning children's shows. Glenn also appeared on camera as an anchor for the short-lived "30 Minutes", a young people's version of "60 Minutes".

He served as an anchor for two of the CBS Radio Network's signature news roundups carried by affiliates in the United States - The World Tonight (now the CBS World News Roundup Late Edition) from 1988 to 1999, and the morning CBS World News Roundup from 1999 until his retirement. Glenn's final morning broadcast occurred on February 23, 2006.

From 1982 to 1984, Glenn served as a television news anchor, on CBS News Nightwatch, which aired from 2-6 a.m. weekdays.

Glenn made his best-known report on January 28, 1986, when he anchored CBS Radio's live coverage of the launch of the Space Shuttle Challenger. Glenn had just signed off—after what was thought to have been a normal launch—when the shuttle disintegrated, killing the seven astronauts on board. "I had to get back on the air real fast to describe that, and had a very difficult time doing that," he recalled. Glenn and correspondent Frank Mottek (now a reporter at CBS Radio Station KNX) covered the Challenger disaster from that point as a CBS NetAlert bulletin.



Glenn was among the first CBS News correspondents to use a personal computer (an Apple II). Glenn continued to play sound clips in his newscasts from carts long after most of the industry had switched to computer-based playback systems.

Glenn, who suffered from liver cancer, died suddenly on October 17, 2006 in Norwalk, Connecticut. Glenn was posthumously inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in Chicago on November 4.


In 2010…Longtime Cleveland radio personality (WRMR, WDOK, WQAL, WHK, WGAR) "Tall Ted" Hallaman died at the age of 83.

CBS All Access VSOD Debuts

CBS is launching an online subscription video service that will feature both current and classic programming as well as a live stream of its broadcast network, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The platform, called CBS All Access, is making its debut Thursday (at noon EST) at a price of $5.99 a month.

Les Moonves

Unlike many other online offerings from broadcast and cable networks, an existing subscription to a pay-TV distributor isn’t required to view content on CBS All Access.

“CBS All Access is another key step in the company’s long-standing strategy of monetizing our local and national content in the ways that viewers want it,” said Leslie Moonves, president and chief executive of CBS Corp.

Separately, CBS is also putting the finishing touches on its plans to introduce a stand-alone digital news service later this month. The tentative debut date is Oct. 28, people familiar with the plans said.

The new offerings are further evidence of how program suppliers are increasingly willing to distribute their content outside the traditional ecosystem of cable and satellite TV especially as consumers get frustrated with rising monthly TV bills. On Wednesday, Time Warner Inc. said it would start offering its service via broadband to U.S. consumers who don’t have a pay-TV subscription.

Read More Now (Paywall)

Report: Convenience Driving OnLine Video Viewing

Although most consumers continue to watch original TV series on traditional TV, many are time-shifting their TV viewing, and this desire to watch on their own schedule is one of the primary drivers of online video viewing, according to a report from marketingcharts.com.  That’s one of the chief takeaways from a new comScore report based on a survey of more than 1,100 online adults.

It’s not earth-shattering to say that there’s less appointment viewing these days, though social TV is helping offset the declines. The rise of time-shifting has led to TV industry stakeholders pushing for an expanded TV ratings definition for quite some time (here’s the argument for expanding from C+3 to C+7), and the results in the comScore study bolster that argument. While the report doesn’t specify how time-shifted TV is viewed, some 46% of original TV viewing by Millennials (18-34) is estimated to be time-shifted, including 17% at least 4 days after airing.

While time-shifting isn’t quite as prevalent among older age groups, there is one segment that is delaying viewing to the same degree as Millennials: paid digital video subscribers. An estimated 46% of original TV viewing by these subscribers occurs after live airing, including 16% at least 4 days after airing.

As for that subscriber segment? It’s not small. More than 4 in 10 respondents reported subscribing to a paid digital video service, with Netflix (32%) unsurprisingly being most popular. As expected, those figures are much higher among Millennials: 61% subscribe to a paid service, including 49% to Netflix.

Clearly, paid service subscribers enjoy watching TV on their own schedules – and research does indeed indicate that they’re motivated by convenience. But they’re not the only ones. When survey respondents were asked the main reasons why they watch original TV on the internet, the two leading reasons, by a strong margin, were:

• Prefer to watch on own schedule (56%)
• It’s more convenient (52%).
• Ads do play a role, but it’s a lesser one: 38% watch because they can skip commercials, and 33% because there are fewer commercials.

The rise in time-shifting TV viewing – and increasing time spent watching online video – are clear indications that consumers’ preferences are changing.

Read More Now

Dayton Radio: Alpha Media Launches HankFM

Alpha Media/Dayton, OH today at 10am launched Hank FM on WCLI 101.5 FM which will play iconic hit country music from the 80’s, 90’s and 2000’s — a format currently not being utilized in the market.

Alpha stated, "While the Miami Valley has several country hit stations, 101.5 Hank FM promises to differentiate itself by playing the iconic artists absent from Dayton radio such as Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson, George Strait, Reba McEntire, Shania Twain and Brooks & Dunn."

“The decision to add Hank FM in Dayton becomes part of the foundation to help increase our value as a cluster in the market,” said Alpha Media Executive VP of Programming Scott Mahalick.

“The Icons of Country format connects us to a passionate and underserved audience that continues to grow."

WCLI 101.5 FM (6Kw) 60dBu Coverage

"101.5 Hank FM is being launched because we miss the ‘golden era’ of country music and we know that a lot of people in Dayton do too,” said Program Director Brad Waldo. “There are some great stations in the area, just none that are playing what we play.”

SiriusXM Dealt New Blow Over Pre-1972 Music

A California state judge has ruled in favor of the record industry’s suit to secure compensation for pre-1972 recordings from services like SiriusXM and Pandora.

Variety reports the ruling was isued Tuesday by Judge Mary Strobel, a year after a group of independent and major record labels sued SiriusXM for using songs recorded before 1972 without paying the artists.

The jurist granted the plaintiffs’ motion for jury instruction, ruling that California law allows states to regulate pre-1972 recordings. She noted that the state law “must be interpreted to recognize exclusive ownership rights as encompassing public performance rights in pre-1972 sound recordings.”

Strobel had indicated in August that she would side with Sirius XM but changed her tentative ruling Tuesday, citing a recent federal court ruling in a case filed by Flo and Eddie of The Turtles alleging the satellite radio giant was misappropriating their songs without authorization and compensation.

The Turtles suit seeks $100 million in damages.

Federal copyright law was not extended to sound recordings until 1972, but the record labels have asserted that such pre-1972 performances are covered by California common law and state statute.

The state court suit was filed in September, 2013, by Sony Music Entertainment, UMG Recordings and Warner Music Group, as well as ABKCO, the label representing a variety of musicians. Cary Sherman, CEO of the Recording Industry Association of America, said the rulings underline the labels’ position.

“Two courts have now handed down landmark decisions which confirm what should be obvious – the pioneers of rock and roll and every other genre before 1972 deserve to be compensated when their music is used by companies like SiriusXM,” Sherman said.

“It’s increasingly clear that SiriusXM, Pandora and other digital music firms who refuse to pay legacy artists and rights holders are on the wrong side of history and the law.  It’s time for that to change.”

Read More Now

CNN Accuses Michael Savage Of 'Wild Conspiracy Theories'

Michael Savage

CNN is accusing syndicated talk host Michael Savage of spreading “wild conspiracy theories” about Ebola and claiming Obama is purposely trying to infect U.S. troops and the nation with the deadly virus, according to wnd.com.

“Speaking of wild conspiracy theories, conservative talk-radio host Michael Savage, who has one of the biggest radio audiences in the country, has even been suggesting that this is all some Obama plot to purposely infect the nation,” CNN’s Jake Tapper said in a segment on his show headlined, “Dangers of Ebola: Myths and misconceptions.”

CNN then played a clip of Savage telling listeners of his nationally syndicated show, “There’s not a sane reason to take 4,000 troops and send them into a hot Ebola zone without expecting at least one of them to come back with Ebola, unless you want to infect the nation with Ebola.”



Tapper then said, “It’s hard to even know where to start with that one – the idea that the president wants to infect soldiers and then Americans. It’s so unhinged, we should probably not bother dignifying it with fact-checking.”

Savage – who has a doctorate in epidemiology and coined the president’s nickname, President Obola – didn’t indicate that Obama actively sought to infect soldiers. He expressed his alarm at the prospect of sending thousands of U.S. troops into a hot zone and potentially exposing them to the deadly virus.

Reacting to Tapper’s segment, Savage told WND, “Since health workers in full biohazard gear have contracted Ebola, why wouldn’t we expect one of the 5,000 U.S. soldiers sent into the epicenter of one of the world’s most virulent epidemics to contract the virus?

“Common sense would dictate not to send soldiers into this region without expecting some of them to contract the disease – common sense, which is lacking in Tapper’s illogical mind,” he said. “Moreover, the U.S. government is violating the primary rule of epidemiology by exposing our young men and women to this deadly virus.”

Savage has also charged that Ebola has entered the U.S. because of Obama’s open-borders policy.

Read More Now

Toledo Radio: WLQR Adds Bob Frantz to Line-Up

Bob Frantz

Former Cleveland talk-show host Bob Frantz is replacing Norm Wamer as the 3 to 5 p.m. host of a local sports radio show on WLQR 106.5 FM / The Ticket.

The Toledo Blade reports Frantz will broadcast much of the time from a studio Cumulus Media/Toledo is building in his Cleveland home, as well as at Cumulus studios in Toledo, said Andy Stuart, regional vice president and marketing manager for Cumulus, which owns WLQR.

“It will be a northwest Ohio sports talk show,” Stuart said, with a regional focus that includes Detroit, Cleveland, and South Bend.

Frantz most recently worked at iHeartMedia's WTAM 1100 AM, where he hosted a popular talk show from 7-11 p.m. that covered news, politics, popular culture, and sports. Frantz was let go in mid-July.

Previously, Frantz had a morning show on WSPD 1370 AM.

“He understands the peculiar area that is northwest Ohio for sports, with so many teams to talk about,” Stuart said. “And he’s a great sports talk talent.”

His show replaces Norm Wamer, who was let go earlier this week after 18-years.

Phoenix Radio: KFYI Adds Chris Merrill To PM Drive

Chris Merrill

iHeartMedia/Phoenix has announced that Chris Merrill has been named Afternoon Host at N/T KFYI 550 AM.

He starts November 10, 2014.

Merrill will host weekdays from 4-7:00 p.m. Merrill  joins KFYI from KOGO 600 AM in San Diego, where he hosted mornings and will continue to host Merrill At Night.

He will replace host Mike Broomhead, who is moving to KFYI mornings.

KFYI Program Director Neil Larrimore states, “We are beyond thrilled to bring Chris into town! He is an up-and-coming superstar who understands the evolution of talk radio. With Chris joining the team, KFYI is perfectly positioned for much success in 2015 and beyond.”

“Being a part of the legendary KFYI is another dream realized,” said Merrill. “Thank you, Phoenix, for letting me be a part of your City. This is going to be great!”

Vice President of Programming Steve Geofferies adds, “with Mike Broomhead and Chris Merrill anchoring our drive times, KFYI is set up for further success. They are two rising stars of talk radio.”

NYC Radio: Take This Honor And Shove It

Village Voice says I'm top radio personality in NYC but they're so snotty saying it, they should shove it where the sun don't shine.
— Geraldo Rivera (@GeraldoRivera) October 15, 2014

The Village Voice on Wednesday dubbed WABC 770 AM talker Geraldo Rivera the “Best AM Radio Personality” in the city.

How Rivera responded on Twitter: “Village Voice says I’m top radio personality in NYC but they’re so snotty saying it, they should shove it where the sun don’t shine.”

Rivera obviously didn't care for the write-Up in The Voice. It contained insults aimed at Rivera’s “dippy laugh” and “dopey mustache.” It even said that Rivera’s “past missteps are more famous than his modern ideas,” referring to the newsman’s history of sensational reporting.

iHeartMedia Award VP Status To Sac MM John Geary

John Geary

iHeartMedia/Sacramento has announced that John Geary has been named Market President, effective immediately.

As Market President, Geary will leverage iHeartMedia Sacramento's assets including its brands and audience to generate new revenue while providing quality programming. He will oversee the market's overall operations including all station activities and events to help drive sales and achieve revenue targets. Geary will join iHeartMedia with more than 30 years of experience in the radio industry. From 1997-2013 he served as Vice President and General Manager for Entercom in the Sacramento market. Geary's extensive experience also includes senior roles at Brown Broadcasting Company in Sacramento and Bonneville International in Chicago.

"iHeartMedia is a company that thinks and delivers in a big way," said Geary. "Putting my retirement on hold wasn't planned, but this is a compelling opportunity. I'm excited to be part of iHeartMedia and look forward to leading the Sacramento team."

"After former Market President Dave Milner decided to take another career path, we are fortunate to bring someone to the Sacramento team who delivers tremendous market equity, and brings exemplary sales and programming experience," said Hartley Adkins, Executive Vice President of Operations, iHeartMedia. "John's leadership and extensive relationships will provide unparalleled results for our advertisers."

WB/Scranton Radio: Borneman New GM At Shamrock

Steve Borneman

A 32-year veteran in radio will lead Classic Rock WEZX 107.1 FM Rock107, Alternative WFUZ 92.1 FM and WEJL 630 AM / 100.1 FM ESPN.

Steve Borneman has been named general manager of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre radio stations of Times-Shamrock Communications by Mitch Dolan, chief operating officer, Times-Shamrock Radio & Outdoor.

Borneman spent 23 years working with Dolan at WABC 770 AM and WPLJ 95.5 FM in New York City. He began as an AE in 1989, eventually moving into management. After Citadel purchased ABC Radio from the Walt Disney Company, Borneman was promoted to president and GM for WABC and WPLJ in 2009.

Borneman replaces Sean O'Mealy.

CA Radio: Dimes Media To Acquire Mapleton Stations

Dimes Media of Camarillo, Calif., has announced  it has entered into an agreement to purchase all of San Luis Obispo radio stations owned by Mapleton Communications.

Mapleton owns five stations in the San Luis Obispo market:

• KPYG 94.9 FM, Cayucos-San Luis Obispo, CA, Alternative
• KXTZ 95.3 FM, Pismo Beach, CA, 93.5 The Beach, Classic Rock
• KXDZ 100.5 FM, Templeton, CA, 100.5 The Beach, Classic Rock
• KWWV 106.1 FM, Santa Margarita CA, Wild 106, Top 40
• KYNS/ 1340 AM San Luis Obispo, CA, AC
• 
  

The sale is expected to close in 45 to 60 days, he said. Terms of sales were not disclosed. The stations currently have 15 employees, Criswell said. He expects the stations will add employees.

KPYG 94.9 FM (25Kw) 60dVBu Coverage

Eric Fahnoe, president of Dimes Media, announced these stations are the initial acquisition of the newly formed Dimes Media. Fahnoe said, “After significant research and investigation, we determined that the San Luis Obispo market represents a vibrant and diverse community with tremendous potential. We’re thrilled to be the flagship of the newly formed Dimes Media.”

“Our family has owned and operated radio stations for three generations,” he said. “I’m proud to lead this new company at an exciting and innovative time in our industry’s evolution.” Fahnoe plans to move to San Luis Obispo County, making these stations locally owned and operated.

Fahnoe is the nephew of the late Rick Buckley, and grandson of the family patriarch, Richard Dimes Buckley, founder of Buckley Broadcasting. Eric’s Mother, Martha, is Rick’s sister, and a key executive in Dimes Media.

Frank Boyle is the broker for the buyer, Dimes Media. Andy Mc Clure of Exline Co. is the broker for the seller, Mapleton Communications.

TV Ratings: 'The Real' Looks Like The Real Thing

The Warner Bros. syndicated TVtalk show featuring five ethnically diverse women has blasted out of the gate with a 0.7 rating among women 25-to-54 (the key daytime demo). That's is as good as or better than all of the half-dozen new entrants, including Meredith Vieira's talk show, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The Real also is attracting a younger audience than its new rivals: Viewers' average age is 45 (compared with 61 for NBC's Meredith), younger than for any of the top 10 syndicated talk shows.

The show premiered Sept. 15 as an alternative to The View or The Talk, offering younger hosts from varied backgrounds. The hosts are Tamar Braxton, Loni Love, Adrienne Bailon, Jeannie Mai and Tamera Mowry-Housley.

While The Real's total household numbers are lower than Meredith's (1.0 vs 1.2), what matters to ad buyers is its strength in women 18-to-34, 18-to-49 and 25-to-54.

In females 18-to-34, as of Oct. 10, The Real had a rating of 0.7, compared with 0.3 for Meredith. In females 18-to-49, The Real again scored a 0.7, compared with 0.4 for Meredith.

And The Real is working even though it airs on independent or B-level stations in much of the country. While Meredith runs on strong network affiliates in 87 percent of major markets (anchored on the NBC stations), The Real is on network affiliates in only 12 percent of big markets. (However, that includes Fox stations in the largest cities.).

Read More Now

RAB Updating, Revamping Iconic Instant Library

The Radio Advertising Bureau has released the first wave of a complete revamp of its signature Instant Background Reports Library, with additional reports to be rolled out through the end of first quarter 2015.

The updated roster of Instant Backgrounds focuses on key business categories for radio and adds new data points such as total ad spending, ad-to-sales ratios, ‘why radio’ statistics and links to additional resource information – presented in an easy-to-read, printer-friendly format.
More than 35 of the new reports are now available online, including Auto Dealers, Home Improvement/Hardware Stores, Financial Institutions, Telecommunications, Real Estate, Family/Fine Dining Restaurants, Fast-Food Restaurants and Jewelry Stores. Based on volume of requests received from members by RAB’s Member Response team, a number of new business categories will be rolled out between now and April 2015. The new Instant Background library, featuring 100+ Instant Background reports will be ready for use in sales presentations across the country.

"RAB Instant Backgrounds are one of our most popular member benefits," noted Erica Farber, president and CEO, Radio Advertising Bureau. "By providing the radio sales force and our advertising customers with vital industry and consumer business intelligence, we become true marketing partners with one common goal of driving revenue for our clients."

The RAB Instant Backgrounds Library is a benefit of RAB Membership. To learn more about accessing this library, log on to www.rab.com.

Benztown, VO Artist Sean Caldwell Ink Deal

Sean Caldwell

Benztown announces that it has added prominent voiceover professional Sean Caldwell to its portfolio of premium quality voiceover personalities and is offering his VO services to stations for barter.

Caldwell currently serves over 100 radio stations with world-class professional voiceover products.

Justin Case, Director of Programming and Imaging for Benztown, said: “I geeked out a bit when Sean said yes-- How could you not want him on your roster?! In all seriousness, we couldn’t be happier to welcome Sean to the Benztown Brigade. He is a phenomenal talent heard all over the world and making him available for barter is something that we are very proud to offer.”

Caldwell said: “Stations love working with top professional voiceover talent. GMs love it when they can access that top talent for barter that doesn't beat up their budget. Benztown gives stations both, which is why stations love working with Benztown. I’m excited to be a part of that equation for success and I look forward to working with stations of all formats and markets."

Caldwell started his radio career in Detroit while in high school, working in the production department and as an on-air talent on the weekends, and spent years learning from some top talent in the Midwest, including Rick Gillette at WHYT, a master of creative copywriting, imaging and production. Sean departed Detroit and went east to become the Creative Director for WEGX Eagle 106 Philadelphia.

Sean departed Eagle in 1993 to become the imaging director and afternoon drive jock at Y100 WPLY Philadelphia, working with Eric Johnson and Garrett Michaels.

During this time, Sean's voiceover business grew from a handful of clients to dozens of clients. Sean relocated to the Tampa, Florida area and began serving clients from his own studio. He quickly became one of the most desired imaging voice talents, serving leading stations including: 102.7 KIIS-FM Los Angeles, WKTU New York, WXTU Philadelphia, KISS-FM Dallas, 98 WSIX Nashville, KYW Philadelphia, B96 Chicago, WKIS Kiss Country Miami, KIOI San Francisco, Q100 Atlanta, and many others.

For more information about booking Sean Caldwell for barter, visit: www.benztown.com, or contact Masa Patterson at mp@benztown.com and at (818) 842-4600.

Westwood One To Stop Distribution of NBC Radio News

Westwood One has announced it will be ending distrubtion of NBC Radio News services.

In a letter to Westwood One affiliates on Wednesday Senior VP/Affiliate Sales Dennis Green announced that effective Monday, December 15, NBC News Radio, including radio newscasts and other programming and elements, will no longer be produced and distributed by Westwood One.

Instead, the company will soon begin providing Westwood One News, a locally branded and full-service news network powered by CNN that offers stations enhanced programming, correspondent reports and news features.

Green said that Westwood One News is designed to help stations integrate their local branding into newscasts with greater flexibility, including selecting one to five minute newscasts based on affiliate needs and preferences.

"As part of our commitment to providing innovative flexibility for stations, this next-generation news product will include headlines, special reports, correspondent two-ways, newsmaker sound bites and other news elements your listeners expect -- all powered by CNN and featuring your local branding," Green added.

To ease in the transition, satellite channels will not change for stations switching to Westwood One News.