August 26 Radio History

➦In 1873...radio inventor Lee DeForest was born in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

Lee DeForest circa 1914-22

His invention of the electron tube, specifically the triode, a three element vacuum tube, made possible radio broadcasting as we knew it in the first half of the 20th century. However, he was forced into selling the rights to his patent to American Telephone and Telegraph for $500,000; considered by most to be foolish of AT&T.

In the summer of 1915, DeForest  received an Experimental license for station 2XG, located at its Highbridge laboratory in New York City. In late 1916, de Forest renewed the entertainment broadcasts he had suspended in 1910, now using the superior capabilities of vacuum-tube equipment. 2XG's debut program aired on October 26, 1916, as part of an arrangement with the Columbia Gramophone record company to promote its recordings, which included "announcing the title and 'Columbia Gramophone Company' with each playing". Beginning November 1, the "Highbridge Station" offered a nightly schedule featuring the Columbia recordings.

DJ DeForest 1916

These broadcasts were also used to advertise "the products of the DeForest Radio Co., mostly the radio parts, with all the zeal of our catalogue and price list", until comments by Western Electric engineers caused de Forest enough embarrassment to make him decide to eliminate the direct advertising.  The station also made the first audio broadcast of election reports — in earlier elections, stations which broadcast results had used Morse code — providing news of the November 1916 Wilson-Hughes presidential election.  The New York American installed a private wire and bulletins were sent out every hour. About 2000 listeners heard The Star-Spangled Banner and other anthems, songs, and hymns.

With the entry of the United States into World War One on April 6, 1917, all civilian radio stations were ordered to shut down, so 2XG was silenced for the duration of the war.

Phil Baker

➦In 1896...comedian and radio host Phil Baker was born in Philadelphia.  He came out of vaudeville (where he teamed with Ben Bernie) to star in 1933 as a comedian and accordion player in his own NBC radio series The Armour Jester.  The show moved to CBS and became first The Gulf Headliner and later Honolulu Bound. In the 1940s for six years he was the host of the CBS radio quiz show Take It or Leave It, which later became The $64 Question.

He died Nov. 30 1963 at age 67.

➦In 1911...announcer Hal Gibney was born in Woodland Calif.  In 1939 he left KPO San Francisco to move to L.A. to become the official West Coast announcer for NBC. He is best known as the announcer for NBC radio’s The Six Shooter and ABC-TV’s The Mickey Mouse Club. He was also the announcer (with George Fenneman) for both the radio and the original NBC-TV versions of Dragnet.  Gibney died June 5, 1973 at age 63.

➦In 1926...WWRL NYC signed on.

Founded by radio enthusiast William Reuman, WWRL (for Woodside Radio Laboratory) began broadcasting at 12:00 a.m., Thursday, August 26, 1926 from a studio and transmitter in his home at 41-30 58th Street in Woodside, Queens, New York on a frequency of 1120 kHz. In 1927 the nascent Federal Radio Commission ordered the station to move to 1500 kHz. In its early days, the station served many ethnic communities, broadcasting programs in Italian, German, French, Hungarian, Slovak, and Czech, as well as English. Following implementation of the 1941 North American Radio Broadcasting Agreement the station again changed its frequency, this time to 1490 kHz, followed shortly thereafter by a move to the current 1600 kHz.

In 1951 the station's official licensed location was changed from Woodside, NY to New York, NY. In 1964 Reuman retired and sold the station to a group headed by Egmont Sonderling.

Gary Byrd

WWRL in the 1960s was an R & B radio station focusing on popular music aimed at the young black community. They played a blend of Motown, Stax and Memphis soul, and early James Brown-styled funk. In that era, disc jockeys, Carlton King Coleman, Douglas Jocko Henderson, Frankie Crocker,Herb Hamlett, Gary Byrd and Hank Spann were featured on the station. In the 1970s WWRL stressed Philadelphia soul and other 1970s soul artists. The station was owned during this period by Sonderling Broadcasting. In 1979 Sonderling merged with Viacom.

Viacom bought 106.7 WRVR (now WLTW) in 1980 and in 1981 donated WWRL to the United Negro College Fund. The Fund then sold the station to Unity Broadcasting later in 1981. The station planned to affiliate with a new sports talk radio network in 1982 but the network never got on the air. Also that year WWRL began playing Gospel music in the evenings as well as airing religious features, and expanded Gospel programming on Sundays. In Fall 1982 WWRL shifted to a full-time Gospel music format along with sermons from local black churches. WWRL stayed with this format until 1997.

Transmitter in Seacaucus, NJ.

In April 1997 they dropped Gospel programming except for Sunday. They flipped to playing R & B oldies from the 1960s to the 1980s. The format change was not successful. They added some talk shows by 1999. By 2001 they had evolved towards their current format. Although the station was recently able to increase daytime power to 25,000 watts (it is still 5,000 watts at night) -- after purchasing the frequencies of WLNG in Sag Harbor, New York, WQQW in Waterbury, Connecticut, and WERA in Plainfield, New Jersey. WWRL does not achieve any substantial ratings, and has not since their gospel days.

By 1999, WWRL began mixing in paid programming during the week. By 2001, the station evolved into a diversified station selling blocks of time to various interests. Their programming included gospel music and preaching on Sundays, some Caribbean Music, talk shows, infomercials, and other programs. In September 2006, WWRL became an affiliate of Air America, a liberal talk radio network.

Also, WWRL is owned by Access.1 Communications Corporation. Access.1 is a 24-hour African American owned and operated radio broadcasting company.  In December 2013, WWRL announced that programming will become All-Spanish on January 1, 2014.

➦In 1939…In New York City, the first televised major league baseball games, a double-header between the Cincinnati Reds and the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field, were shown on experimental channel W2XBS (which is now WNBC-TV) with Red Barber as the play-by-play announcer. Along with the 33,000 people in the ballpark, an estimated 3,000 people watched on TV.

➦In 1939...the radio program “Arch Oboler’s Plays” presented the NBC Symphony, for the first time, as the musical backdrop for the drama, “This Lonely Heart.”

➦In 1961...Chuck Dunaway does last show on 77 WABC.

Chuck Dunaway

While working at WKY, Oklahoma City, Dunaway's afternoon radio show scored a 72.9% audience share - a rating never previously achieved in the market - that brought WABC (AM)'s program director, Mike Joseph, to Oklahoma City to offer Dunaway the afternoon drive shift at New York City's number one station. Dunaway eventually became disillusioned with the station's broad play list and after a year and a half decided to return briefly to his old job at WKY in Oklahoma City.

Dunaway occupied the afternoon drive slot at every radio station he worked at during his 35 year career, including radio KILT-AM Houston, KLIF-AM Dallas, WKY Oklahoma City, WABC (AM) New York City and WIXY Cleveland.

He finished his career as the owner and operator of six FM and two AM radio stations in Joplin, Missouri.

Larry Keating

➦In 1963...actor/announcer Larry Keating succumbed to leukemia at age 67.  A staff announcer at NBC radio in the 1940′s, he was probably best recognized as the voice of ABC Radio’s This is the FBI for 12 years.   As a TV actor he was a regular on Burns & Allen and Mr. Ed.


➦In 1969…Elvis Presley released "Suspicious Minds," his 18th and last #1 single in the U.S.


➦In 1972...More FM stations are programming beautiful music than ever before. Some 20% of all FM stations program the format, up from 13.7% in 1970.

➦In 1972...WAPE 690 AM Jacksonville Lineup – Cleveland Wheeler, Larry Dixon, Tom Kennedy, Don Smith, Sean Conrad and John Moore.

Tom Donahue

➦In 1972...KMPX 106.9 FM San Francisco, the station the hippies listened to during the summer of love and beyond, was now programming big bands! After its fall from progressive prominence, following the now historic KMPX-FM strike that resulted in Tom Donahue and the majority of the staff departing to rival KSAN-FM – the station struggled for a number of years.

➦In 1972...Bruce Bradley is the new morning man at WHN 1050 AM New York, replacing Herb Oscar Anderson.

➦In 1980...announcer/narrator Knox Manning died at the age of 76. His most notable bigtime radio assignment was as commercial spokesman (for Bromo Quinine) on the 1939-46 run of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. But his main income came from narration assignments on almost 100 films in the 30′s 40′s and 50′s. After a career-threatening throat operation he ended up as news anchor for KDAY Radio, Santa Monica until retirement in 1961.

➦In 1997...Since federal rules on radio ownership were eased last year, more than 2,100 stations have changed hands in deals valued at more than $15 billion. This week – Dallas-based investment firm Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst Inc agree to buy SFX Broadcasting for $2.1 billion – making them the industry leader.

➦In 2009…songwriter Ellie Greenwich (Be My Baby, Da Doo Ron Ron, Then He Kissed Me, Leader Of The Pack, Do Wah Diddy Diddy, Chapel Of Love, River Deep Mountain High) suffered a fatal heart attack while in the hospital being treated for pneumonia. She was aged 68.

➦In 2013…Journalist (St. Petersburg Times, International Herald Tribune) Bruce Dunning, a reporter for CBS News for 35 years until his retirement in 2005, died as the result of injuries from a fall at the age of 73.

ESPN Moving Get-Up's Michelle Beadle Back to L-A

Michelle Beadle

ESPN’s NBA Countdown studio show is returning to ESPN’s Los Angeles Production Center this season. The move coincides with the launch of additional NBA studio programming, including a new post-game show – NBA After The Buzzer – that will feature the NBA Countdown studio team.

NBA Countdown had originated from ESPN’s Los Angeles Production Center at L.A. LIVE since the 2011-12 season before emanating from the New York studios during the second half of last season. The Los Angeles facility is located across the street from the STAPLES Center, the home of LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, as well as the LA Clippers.

As a result of the launch of NBA After The Buzzer and the NBA Countdown move, Michelle Beadle has extended her contract with ESPN and will return to Los Angeles to focus on the NBA. She will no longer serve as a host of the ESPN weekday morning show Get Up! and her last show will be Aug. 29. Beadle is entering her third season as the host of NBA Countdown along with analysts Jalen Rose, Chauncey Billups and Paul Pierce. She will also continue to host NBA studio coverage on Christmas, and throughout the NBA Playoffs and the NBA Finals.

New morning schedule for SportsCenter, Get Up! & Golic & Wingo starts Sept. 3

Starting Monday, Sept. 3, SportsCenter will now air from 7-8 a.m. ET on ESPN. Get Up! will now air as a two-hour show on ESPN from 8-10 a.m. It will continue to feature Mike Greenberg as host, while Jalen Rose will remain as a co-host on days when he has no NBA Countdown responsibilities in Los Angeles. Going forward, Get Up! will also include regular hosting contributions from Maria Taylor, Laura Rutledge, Dianna Russini and Jen Lada, each of whom has guest-hosted the show since April’s launch and will continue with their other roles.

ESPN Radio’s Golic & Wingo simulcast will air on ESPN2 and ESPNEWS from 6-8 a.m. before continuing on ESPNEWS for the remaining two hours of the show, starting Monday, Sept. 3. SportsCenter will continue to air from 8-10 a.m. on ESPN2.

“We remain very committed to Get Up! and the show continues to provide important context, wide-ranging expertise and strong analysis and opinions, led by Mike Greenberg, Jalen Rose and a very talented, hard-working team. It remains a central part of our revamped morning lineup,” said Schell.

According to The NY Post, Michelle Beadle never really wanted to do “Get Up!” — ESPN’s morning talk show that so far has been an epic failure.

Former ESPN President John Skipper kept offering Beadle the job to team with Mike Greenberg, and Beadle kept saying no, according to sources. But Skipper continued to up the ante until, at $5 million a year, Beadle couldn’t say no anymore.

Now, five months into the show, Beadle is done at “Get Up!”

St. Louis Radio: Kristie Graybill Joins Jordan Morning Show On KSLZ

Kristie Graybill

KSLZ Z107.7 FM, St. Louis’ #1 Hit Music Station, announced Friday that Kristie Graybill has been named Morning Show Co-Host for Jordan and Kristie in the Morning from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m.

Graybill will be joining co-host Jordan DeSocio to deliver the latest pop music and pop culture news to St. Louis, every weekday morning.

“Kristie is a strong, well-known radio personality within the iHeartMedia family,” said Z107.7 Program Director, Matt Johnson. “We auditioned several talented on-air personalities to join Jordan, but Kristie’s drive, creativity and talent made her our ideal candidate.”

“I genuinely want to thank iHeartMedia St. Louis for giving me this amazing opportunity,” said Graybill. “I am thrilled to be working with Jordan and I can’t wait to connect with the St. Louis listeners bright and early every morning.”

KSLZ 101.1 FM (100 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area

Graybill joins the St. Louis market from Kiss 107.1, Cincinnati’s #1 Hit Music Station, where she most recently served as an Afternoon Drive On-Air Personality. She began her career at WDJQ in Canton, Ohio and is a graduate of Kent State University.

Ottawa Radio: CKBY Adding Daily 'Girl-Power Hour' Show

Ottawa’s Country CKBY 101.1 FM plans to launch a “girl-power hour” starting Monday that’s dedicated to putting women in the spotlight.

The Canadian Press reports Amanda Kingsland, the station’s programming director, said the idea came from brainstorming sessions with staff about the lasting gender imbalance on country airwaves. She believes spending an hour each weekday exclusively on female musicians could help elevate standout performers who are “sometimes overlooked” on a typical broadcast day.

“We really wanted to show it can be done consistently,” Kingsland said.

“It’s not going to be filler.”

The plan comes as the music industry continues to face questions about a lack of gender inclusion in key production roles, such as engineers and producers, across nearly every genre.

Keith Hill

But country radio has faced particular criticism in recent years over its favoritism towards male voices.

A pervasive opinion with some radio programmers says that listeners are averse to hearing too many female singers in a programming block. No tangible data has supported the assumption.

The topic garnered major attention three years ago when U-S radio consultant Keith Hill compared women on country radio to tomatoes in a salad, implying they were an ingredient that wasn’t necessary, or better in small servings.

He doubled down on his take earlier this year saying that women should only represent 15 per cent of the content on country radio playlists or listeners would “fatigue faster and automatically respond by listening less.”

CKBY 101.1 FM (84 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area

Country 101.1, which is operated by Rogers Communications, plans to latch onto the interest by using the “girl-power hour,” which airs weeknights at 6 p.m. ET, to highlight current stars, play favorites from the likes of Shania Twain and Terri Clark, and run interview clips.

Similar programs have been rolling out this summer on U.S. stations.

Radio personality Bobby Bones is working on a national show for iHeartMedia dedicated to female artists, while Houston’s KKBQ 92.9 FM spends its Wednesday lunch hour block focused on the women of country.

Pecker Leaks Power MSNBC To TV Rating Wins

President Donald Trump’s really bad week has been a ratings bonanza for Rachel Maddow, according to Deadline citing Nielsen data.

For a third night in a row, Maddow’s MSNBC program was highest rated across all of cable TV Thursday night. Her program averaged 3.674M viewers, 758K of them in the 25-54 year age bracket that news programs target.

Maddow’s third consecutive nightly win accompanied headlines that Trump’s longtime pal National Enquirer chief David Pecker had been given immunity in the investigation of Trump’s former personal lawyer/fixer Michael Cohen.

And, for a third consecutive night, MSNBC topped primetime cable news in both total viewers (2.869M) and in the news demographic (560K), besting FNC (2.576M, 490K), and CNN (1.514M, 547K).

 Five MSNBC programs ranked in the Top-10 in total viewers. In addition to Maddow, that included The Last Word with Lawrence O’Donnell (2.774M, 533K) at No. 3,  No. 6-ranked All In with Chris Hayes (2.160M,389K), No. 8-ranked The 11th Hour with Brian Williams (2.052M, 380K), and Hardball with Chris Matthews (1.893M,334K) at No. 9.

In her 9 PM timeslot, Maddow beat FNC’s Hannity (2.935M, 572K) and CNN’s Cuomo Prime Time (1.601, 591K). Sean Hannity’s show was the night’s No. 2 ranked cable program in total viewers.

Cox Media Names Billy Farina President of Nat'l Ad Platforms

Cox Media Group has created a new senior executive position for its national advertising platforms.

Longtime Cox Communications executive Billy Farina will be president of national ad platforms -- overseeing CoxReps, Gamut and Videa.

Billy Farina

Farina has been the head of Cox Media Inc. (CMI), the advertising division of Cox Communications, its cable TV operations, since 2005. CoxReps is a national TV spot advertising rep with more than 350 stations as clients. Gamut is a Cox digital media services company.

Videa is a growing programmatic/automated TV service for TV stations' advertising inventory, including Cox TV stations. Videa is in more than 100 markets with an average reach of approximately 90% of consumers across 70 million households.

The Atlanta-based Cox Media Group consists of 14 broadcast TV stations, one local cable channel; more than 60 radio stations; four daily newspapers; and 80+ digital sites.

Total revenue estimates is that Cox Media Group pulled in around $2 billion in 2017. According to TV Newscheck, annual advertising for Cox TV stations was at $492.8 million in 2017.

Cox Communications, a sister company of Cox Media Group, is estimated to have revenues of around $12 billion in 2016, according to MediaPost.

Utica NY Radio: Matt Herkimer Retires After 51 Years

Matt Herkimer started in 1967, playing 45s on turntables. Then it became pushing buttons, and finally, mouse clicks.

Country WBUG personality Matt Herkimer, known by radio listeners as “Matt in the Morning,” has seen a lot of changes in radio during the past 51 years that he’s been on local airwaves. But for country music lovers here in central New York, he’s been a constant for more than half a century.

And now, Herkimer is turning off his mic for good, as he’s retiring from Bug Country 99.7/101.1 FM.

His previous gig lasted 25+years doing mornings on crosstown WFRG Big Frog 104.  Herkimer joined WBUG in 2014.

While it might seem impersonal, sitting alone in a studio, talking into a microphone, Herkimer says that what he’s going to miss most is connecting with listeners and the feeling that he might have helped them a little bit.

“This sounds a little disingenuous, but I will miss interactions with the listeners, the phone calls that I get, the appearances that we make,” Herkimer said. “It's always so gratifying to know that you made some kind of a difference. You made them laugh. You gave them some information that was important. So I think that probably is the thing that I will miss the most.”

Herkimer and his wife will split their time between their camp in Woodgate and their home in Florida, according to WKTV-TV.

R.I.P.: Top40 Radio Personality Chuck Brinkman Dead At 83

Chuck Brinkman, a KQV 1410 AM mainstay in the 1960s who became one of Pittsburgh’s most popular Top 40 DJs, died Friday surrounded by family at his home in Plano, Texas. He was 83.

Brinkman’s son, Jonathon Brinkman, confirmed the death to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He said his father had suffered from Parkinson’s disease.

Chuck Brinkman

Brinkman, born July 19, 1935, was a DJ with KQV from 1960 to 1972, and doubled part of the time as a music director.

In 1964, he introduced the Beatles to the crowd at the Civic Arena — the band’s only Pittsburgh concert.

Brinkman was one of the most popular Top 40 DJs here in the 1960s. He was part of then-Top 40 station KQV’s “Fun Lovin’ Five,” which also included Hal Murray, Steve Rizen, Dave Scott and Dexter Allen.

Chuck moved from KQV to WTAE Pittsburgh in 1972 for middays.  Around 1982, Chuck went across country to KOGO 600 AM in San Diego.  After a short time on the West Coast, Chuck returned to Pittsburgh after a short interval to do mornings and PD at WHYW 96.9 (formerly WLOA and then WFFM).

Chuck spent 17 years as the program director and afternoon drive personality at oldies,  KLUV-FM in Dallas, Texas. Chuck left KLUV on December 28, 2005. Chuck spent some time at 770 KAAM as well.

Brinkman was inducted into the Pittsburgh Rock ‘N Roll Legends class of 2017.

August 25 Radio History

➦In 1949…NBC Radio debuted the sitcom "Father Knows Best," which ran for four years before making the transition to television in 1954. Robert Young was the only cast member to continue with the show on TV.

Dick Clark

➦In 1962...The radio bug bites Dick Clark again - as he announces plans to record a “syndicated” radio series for top-40 stations.

The two-hour programwould be broadcast five days a week and would be produced and distributed byDick Clark Radio Productions and Mars Broadcasting Inc.

Dick Clark says the show will feature artist interviews and records and will be taped at MarsBroadcasting in Stamford, Conn. Clark was a Disc Jockey at WFIL Radio in Philadelphia when he landed the job as host  of TV's “American Bandstand.

➦In 1962...Fred Wolf celebrates 12 years as the morning man on Detroit’s WXYZ 1270 AM

He started with the station in 1950 and stayed until 1965 when he left the after refusing to play some rock and roll records.

➦In 1962...Paul Sherman, 1010 WINS, New York replaced Bob (Bob-A-Loo) Lewis on the outlet’s Saturday and Sunday “Freedomland” remote broadcasts. Lewis was days away from joining rival 77 WABC.

➦In 1966...WNBC 660 AM New York canceled the syndicated “Joe Pyne Show” after debuting last March. Billed as “fist-in-the-mouth” radio, WNBC gives no reason for the cancellation

R. Peter Strauss

➦In 1966...R. Peter Straus, president of radio station WMCA 570 AM New York - appears on aprogram on rival station - WNEW 1130 AM. He was interviewed by Richard Doan on a weekly series titled “The Truth About Radio.”

Straus was told that he probably was one of those broadcasters “who peddles rock ‘n’ roll all day and who refuses to call it by that name,” that maybe he was ashamed of the practice. Mr. Straus denied he was ashamed and asserted that WMCA programmed for the largest possible audience so that its commercials and community messages ofsubstantive content would be exposed to the largest number of people. Straus that if the most popular music next year were say Chamber music or Chinese madrigals “we will be playing them".

➦In 1971....Former 93 KHJ Los Angeles night DJ Humble Harve Miller,who affirmed his guilt in court, is sentenced for a term of five years to life for killing his wife, Mary.  He pled guilty to second-degree murder – the unlawful killing of a human being with malice, but without premeditation on Aug 2. His seven-year marriage was described as “stormy and tempestuous” and Mrs. Miller as “domineering and literally a witch.” Miller could be paroled in as little as 3 ½ years.

➦In 1977....It was announced Record executive Irving Azoff would be serving as executive producer on a movie called “FM.” Azoff will coordinate the soundtrack – to include a blend of rock standards, current hits and original compositions written for the movie and take charge of a live rock concert which will be filmed for inclusion in the film.



The movie is about the going’s on  - at a major market FM rock music station and the music business.

➦In 1989...Former WMCA 570 AM talk host Alan Colmes is now doing mornings at classic rock WZLX Boston.

➦In 1989...KLOS Los Angeles morning show hosts Mark and Brian do a no-no. Equipped with hidden mics, they took listeners on an aural Graceland tour for the 12th anniversary of Elvis’ death, but they were caught. Graceland says you’re not supposed to be broadcasting from the premises. They called the duo incredibly rude and distasteful.

➦In 1994...Radio stations across the country started experimenting with Digital Audio Tape (DAT). Unlike a CD, DAT allows a user to record in crystal-clean digital.

➦In 1994...Rush Limbaugh was not amused with a parody by the ABC sketch comedy show – “She-TV.” The premiere show – cast member Nick Bakay does a parody of the newly married Limbaugh in which he joked abut Limbaugh’s wedding being performed by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Limbaugh has filed a complaint with ABC. Limbaugh says the skit made him out to be racist.

➦In 1999...KLOS Los Angeles apologized for a Mark & Brian stunt after they announced plastic gardening tools called “Black Hoes” would be given out.

➦In 2009...Glenn Beck returned to Fox News Channel after a vacation with fewer companies willing to advertise on his show than when he left, part of the fallout from calling President Barack Obama a racist.

A total of 33 Fox advertisers, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc., CVS Caremark, Clorox and Sprint, directed that their commercials not air on Beck's show, according to the companies and Colorofchange, a group that promotes political action among blacks and launched a campaign to get advertisers to abandon him. That's more than a dozen more than were identified a week ago.

While it's unclear what effect, if any, this will ultimately have on Fox and Beck, it is already making advertisers skittish about hawking their wares within the most opinionated cable TV shows.

NYC Radio: WCBS 880 AM Wooing MLB Mets

The Mets are closing in on a deal to air their games on 880 WCBS AM next season and for the foreseeable future, sources have told The NYPost.

The agreement is not official yet, but if it goes through, CBS will have outbid 710-WOR, which has tried to retain the Mets.

The potential deal from WCBS’ parent company, Entercom, is right out of its corporate playbook. Across the country, it has repeatedly shown it believes in play-by-play deals as driving forces in its successful stations.

The move could also have an impact on WFAN’s programs. When the Mets moved from WFAN to WOR in 2014, the team forbade any of its personnel from going on WFAN’s shows.

Entercom owns both WCBS and WFAN, which could change the Mets-FAN relationship. The Yankees’ games are broadcast on WFAN, which, as the No. 1 sports station in the market and with signals on both the FM and AM dial, is considered the ideal destination for game broadcasts.

The Yankees had been on WCBS before taking the Mets’ place on the FAN four years ago.  The Yankees now air on sister-WFAN.

Newseum President and COO EXITING

The Washington Post reports Scott Williams is leaving the struggling Newseum after six years — including the past six months as the journalism museum’s president — to lead the Discovery Park of America in Union City, Tenn.

Williams is the latest of a string of senior executives to depart the struggling institution that last August began exploring the sale of its Pennsylvania Avenue building or closing entirely. The review was launched by the Freedom Forum, the museum’s primary benefactor, which has spent more than $500 million on the museum in the past 20 years. President and chief executive Jeffrey Herbst stepped down as the review was announced, ending his two-year tenure.

Scott Williams

The 55-year-old Williams, a Tennessee native who has been the Newseum’s chief operating officer since 2012 and president and COO since March, said his decision was not related to those struggles.

Newseum Vice President of Exhibits Carrie Christoffersen will become senior vice president and Newseum executive director when Williams leaves Oct. 19. Christoffersen has worked at the Newseum for two decades.

Williams’s resignation comes two weeks after the Newseum was widely criticized for selling “You are very fake news” T-shirts and other merchandise in its gift shop and online that many journalists perceived as supporting ongoing attacks on the media.

A spokeswoman initially defended the merchandise, saying the museum is nonpartisan and that “we are champions not only of a free press but also of free speech.” Days later, the museum issued an apology and removed the items.

Milwaukee Radio: Tom Langmyer To EXIT WTMJ, WKTI

Longtime Milwaukee radio veteran Steve Wexler will be returning to be general manager of News/Talk WTMJ-620 AM and Country WKTI 94.5 FM after the two stations are sold to Milwaukee-based ESPN radio station owner Craig Karmazin later this year, according to the Business-Journal.

Steve Wexler

Wexler, currently radio vice president for E.W. Scripps Co., will take over the leadership of the stations likely in October or November replacing current general manager Tom Langmyer, who has been in that position for five years. Langmyer announced his departure Thursday in a memo to WTMJ and WKTI employees.

"It’s been a true honor to lead our group over these past 5 years," Langmyer wrote. "I’m extremely proud of our terrific team - and honored to have had the opportunity to work with you. I will leave Radio City with a fond place in my heart for you and these terrific stations. I'll continue to be a cheerleader for the team and for you, individually, for more chapters of personal and group success."

Langmyer did not say what his future plans were.

Tom Langmyer

Karmazin’s company, Good Karma Brands, announced in late July that it was buying iconic Milwaukee news-talk-sports station WTMJ and its sister station country WKTI-FM for $16 million.

Wexler, 57, began his broadcast career in 1977 as an intern at WTMJ which was then owned by Journal Communications. He hosted on-air programs on both WTMJ and WKTI in the late 1970s and early 1980s before leaving the company to become an on-air talent and program manager at Hearst Broadcasting’s WISN 1130 AM in 1985.

In 2007, he returned home to Milwaukee as vice president and general manager of WTMJ-TV, WTMJ-AM and WKTI-FM in addition to his corporate regional role, overseeing television and radio operations in several Journal markets. In 2014, he stepped away from day-to-day general manager duties to head Journal’s radio division, leading the company’s 34-station group across eight markets. He continues this role today as vice president of radio for Scripps, following the merger of Journal and Scripps in 2015.

Sacramento Radio: Cristina Mendonsa Joins KFBK Morning Show

NewsRadio KFBK, Sacramento’s News, Weather and Traffic Station, announced today that Cristina Mendonsa has been named co-anchor/host of The KFBK Morning News airing weekdays from 5 – 9 a.m., effective August 27.

Cristina Mendonsasa

Mendonsa will be changing formats after a 21-year run at Sacramento’s ABC Channel 10, where she worked as a news anchor. She replaces Amy Lewis.

Mendonsa will be joining co-host Dan Mitchinson on The KFBK Morning News to deliver the latest local, national, and breaking news. In addition to reporting on-air, her coverage will be featured on the station’s website KFBK.com and through the station’s social media channels.

“We’re thrilled to have Cristina join iHeartMedia Sacramento as co-anchor/host of The KFBK Morning News,” said Curtiss Johnson, Senior Vice President of Programming for iHeartMedia Sacramento. “She is a native of Northern California as well as an EMMY and Murrow award winning multi-media journalist with decades of experience as a public speaker, educator and entrepreneur with Mendonsa Media.”

KFBK 93.1 FM (20.5 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area

“Cristina’s a team builder, passionate journalist and storyteller with deep connections to the communities we serve,” said Bill White, Program Director of NewsRadio KFBK. “A consummate pro, Cristina will further enhance KFBK’s news reputation not only on the radio but also on our digital and social media platforms through informative and thought-provoking podcasts and video content.”

KFBK 1530 AM (50 Kw, DA-2) Daytime 2 mV/m contour

“KFBK is approaching a century of serving Northern California,” said Mendonsa. “I’m so honored to become part of this team and legacy. I’ve missed talking with listeners and viewers and collaborating with a team of passionate professionals. Informing and engaging our community on a daily basis once again will be satisfying and fun!”