Milwaukee Radio: Sales Vet Bill Hurwitz Set to Retire

Bill Hurwitz

Veteran Milwaukee radio sales and management executive Bill Hurwitz will retire from the Milwaukee Radio Alliance, but he says it has nothing to do with any pending changes in the three-station group’s ownership.

The stations are Alternative WLUM 102.1 FM, AC WLDB 93.3 FM and Oldies WZTI 100.3 FM / 1290 AM. The Milwaukee Radio Alliance was formed in 1996 to run retired Green Bay Packers lineman Willie Davis’ WLUM and WDLB 1290 AM, which is owned by the Lynett family of Scranton, Pa.

The stations have been the source of acquisition speculation for years because they are the only ones in Milwaukee that are not part of a larger nationwide group. The group has its headquarters and studios in Menomonee Falls.

“This has nothing to do with the ownership of the company,” Hurwitz told The Milwaukee Business Journal Thursday. “The Lynetts and the Davises are absolutely, positively committed to Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Radio Alliance.”

Executives with E.W. Scripps Co., which owns WTMJ 620 AM and WKTI 94.5 FM have said they are seeking acquisitions in the Milwaukee radio market.

Hurwitz turned 64 in July and will remain at the Milwaukee Radio Alliance this fall as the group seeks his replacement. Hurwitz said he and his wife Lynn want to relocate to a warmer climate and his children and grandchildren live in the southwest.

Hurwitz began his radio career in 1975 as a sales account executive.