Radio Broadcasting News Round-Up: October 5–9, 2026

🗼The Radio Hall of Fame inducted its Class of 2026 on October 8 in Chicago (hosted by Bobby Bones). The eight honorees are Boomer Esiason (WFAN New York), Dennis Green (COO, Sun & Fun Media/Key Networks), Shotgun Tom Kelly (SiriusXM 60s Gold), Helen Little (WLTW New York), Bob Pittman (Chairman/CEO, iHeartMedia), Rickey Smiley (Urban One/Reach Media), Charlie Van Dyke (voiceover/veteran personality), and Fred Winston (Chicago veteran). Nine legends were also recognized posthumously.

🗼The Supreme Court, via Chief Justice John Roberts, paused a 4th Circuit order that had required the FCC to rule by noon on October 9 on Democratic candidates’ challenge to the agency’s public notice extending lowest-unit-charge political ad rates to party committees and joint fundraising committees. The pause (with responses due from challengers by October 10) keeps the expanded policy in place for now amid the midterms.⁠

🗼Nominations (Call for Entries) opened for the 52nd Annual Gracie Awards (honoring 2026 work by, for, and about women). Podcasts now have a dedicated division; new categories include local radio PSAs/community engagement and various video/podcast formats. Eligibility is January 1–December 31, 2026; early-bird deadline December 10, 2026; final January 21, 2027. National winners will be recognized May 25, 2027, in Beverly Hills.⁠

🗼Spotify renewed its multi-year licensing agreement with Joe Rogan for The Joe Rogan Experience (announced October 8). Terms are reportedly similar to the prior deal (estimated ~$250 million earnout); the show remains non-exclusive and available on other platforms, with new episodes continuing weekly. It has 18 million Spotify followers and ranked as a top podcast.⁠

🗼Audacy’s WCBS-FM (101.1, New York Classic Hits) launched “The Morning Show with Trey and Loren Raye” (Trey Morgan and Loren Raye) weekdays 6–10 a.m. ET, filling the slot left by Race Taylor’s September exit. Both have major-market experience, including New York and Boston.⁠

🗼The Paramount–Warner Bros. Discovery merger closed October 6, valued at roughly $110–111 billion, creating the combined company Skydance under Chairman/CEO David Ellison (with co-CEO Ynon Kreiz). It unites major studios, networks (including CBS, CNN, MTV, TBS), and streaming services Paramount+ and HBO Max, with ~$70 billion in annual revenue (and significant debt). Shares trade as SKYD.⁠

🗼A federal judge in Washington heard arguments October 6 in Disney/ABC’s lawsuit seeking to block the FCC’s early review of licenses for its eight owned-and-operated stations (not due until 2028–2031). Disney argues the process (tied to employment-practice inquiries) chills First Amendment rights and is retaliatory; the FCC seeks dismissal on jurisdictional and procedural grounds. No immediate ruling; further filings were ordered.⁠

🗼Edison Research’s Q3 2026 Podcast Metrics (via SSRS) show YouTube as the platform used most often by U.S. weekly podcast consumers. Spotify ranks second (17%), Apple Podcasts third (9%), and Netflix seventh (3%). This underscores the shift toward video platforms.⁠

🗼Audacy Insights’ NFL Attention Index ranks top fandom markets by avidity/engagement/performance: Buffalo (135), New Orleans (120), Cincinnati (119), Dallas-Fort Worth and Kansas City (tied at 115), followed by Baltimore, Milwaukee, Harrisburg-Lancaster-Lebanon-York (113), Philadelphia (111), and Columbus, OH (110). Audio is highlighted for high concentrations of avid sports fans.⁠

🗼WHYY named Fred Vigeant (formerly VP/Chief Audience Officer at WITF Harrisburg) as General Manager of WPSU (news/talk FM and PBS TV) in State College, PA, effective October 26. This follows WHYY’s October 1 acquisition of the Penn State-owned public media outlets.⁠

🗼K-Love closed its $2 million purchase of the 94.5 FM facility in the San Jose/Gilroy area from Connoisseur Media. The station is now KJNV-FM for Christian programming; Connoisseur retained the KBAY Country brand and moved it to 98.5 FM (with classic rock KUFX shifting to HD2/online).⁠Mediaconfidential.blogspot

🗼Urban One realigned programming across its Dallas-Fort Worth cluster: KBFB (97.9 The Beat) features Rickey Smiley in mornings (5 a.m.), Jazzi Black middays, Bryhana Monegain afternoons, and “Posted on the Corner” evenings; KKDA (K104) keeps DeDe McGuire mornings, with Michael Shawn middays, Hollywood Bay Bay afternoons, and Lil D evenings; KRNB shifts to a 1990s–today R&B focus as “105.7 RnB.”⁠

➤Look Ahead: October 12–16, 2026

• Watch for further developments in the political ad-rate litigation (as responses and potential Supreme Court action play out before the November midterms)
• The Disney/ABC license-review case (additional filings due). 
• Industry gatherings include the Ohio Association of Broadcasters Exchange (October 14)
• CBI National Student Media Convention (October 14–17 in Philadelphia). 

Broader themes such as audio’s role in sports fandom, podcast platform shifts, and post-merger integration at Skydance are likely to remain in focus, alongside any FCC agenda items or station-level programming moves.

Radio History: Oct 11

➦In 1919...Actress/voice actor Jean Vander Pyl was born in Philadelphia.  Her two main broadcast roles were as the wife Margaret in NBC Radio’s Father Knows Best, and as the voice of Wilma Flintstone in several cartoon series on TV.  She also provided the voice of Rosie the robot maid from the animated series The Jetsons,

She succumbed to lung cancer April 10 1999 at age 79

➦In 1936...the first radio quiz show premiered, "Professor Quiz".

➦In 1940...in New York City, Glenn Miller recorded “Make Believe Ballroom Time” for RCA Victor’s Bluebird label, featuring the vocal group The Modernaires for the first time. It would become the theme song for Make Believe Ballroom on WNEW, New York, with host Martin Block.

Martin Block

Block created the aura of doing a “live” radio program, complete with performers (on records) like Harry James or Frank Sinatra, from the “Crystal Studios” at WNEW. Copycat versions of the ‘Ballroom’ featured Keith Sandy at CKEY in Toronto, and Al Jarvis at KHJ Los Angeles.

In 1935, while listeners to New York's WNEW-AM in New York (now information outlet WBBR) were awaiting developments in the Lindbergh kidnapping, Block built his audience by playing records between the Lindbergh news bulletins. This led to his Make Believe Ballroom, which began February 3, 1935 creating the illusion that he was broadcasting from a ballroom with the nation’s top dance bands performing live. He bought some records from a local music shop for the program as the radio station had none. Block purchased five Clyde McCoy records, selecting his "Sugar Blues" for the radio show's initial theme song.

Because Block was told by the station's sales staff that nobody would sponsor a radio show playing music, he had to find himself a sponsor. Block lined up a producer of reducing pills called "Retardo"; within a week, the sponsor had over 3,000 responses to the ads on Block's radio show. Martin Block's style of announcing was considerably different than the usual manner of delivery at the time. Instead of speaking in a voice loud enough to be heard in a theater, Block spoke in a normal voice, as if he was having a one-on-one conversation with a listener.

➦In 1948...One of radio’s last premiering soap operas, “The Brighter Day”, took to the air for the first time on NBC. It’s interesting to take a look at the cast and see which names are still recognizable, like Hal Holbrook and William Redfield.  After six years on radio “Day” moved to TV.

➦In 1976...“Disco Duck (Part 1),” by Rick Dees & His Cast of Idiots was the Number One songs on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart. At the time he was a morning DJ at Memphis radio station WMPS.

Radio History: Oct 12

➦In 1937...'Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons' debuted on the NBC Blue Network.  It was one of radio's longest running shows, airing to April 19, 1955, continuing well into the television era. It was produced by Frank and Anne Hummert, who based it upon Robert W. Chambers' 1906 novel The Tracer of Lost Persons. The sponsors included Whitehall Pharmacal (as in Anacin, Kolynos Toothpaste, BiSoDol antacid mints, Hill's cold tablets and Heet liniment), Dentyne, Aerowax, RCA Victor and Chesterfield cigarettes. It aired on the NBC Blue network until 1947, when it switched to CBS.

➦In 1944...What would come to be known as the "Columbus Day Riot" took place in New York City, when 35,000 hysterical teenage girls crowded into the Paramount Theatre for a chance to see the return of Frank Sinatra. The crowd of teen "bobbysoxer" girls stopped traffic in Times Square and  refused to leave between shows.

➦In 1950…The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show, sometimes called The Burns and Allen Show, made it debut on TV.   The is a half-hour series broadcast from 1950 to 1958 on CBS.

Burns and Allen were headliners in vaudeville in the 1920s, and radio stars in the 1930s and 1940s.

Their show was initially staged live and broadcast every other Thursday at 8 pm ET. In fall 1952, it became a weekly series filmed on the West Coast. From March 1953 through September 1958, The Burns and Allen Show aired Mondays at 8 pm ET.

The show was an immediate success.

➦In 1955...Chrysler introduces the world's first sound system for it cars.  The system consisted of -- record player mounted under the dashboard.

➦In 1969...Pop Culture's "Paul is Dead" hoax began when Tom Zarski, a student at Eastern Michigan University, called WKNR in Detroit and informed DJ Russ Gibb on air of the rumor that Paul McCartney died in a car crash, perhaps as long ago as 1966. Zarski told Gibb that by playing a section of the band's "Revolution 9" backwards, a clue emerges: the phrase "Turn me on, dead man." Gibb proceeds to do just that. Many listeners were stunned.

Two days after the WKNR broadcast, The Michigan Daily published a satirical review of Abbey Road by University of Michigan student Fred LaBour under the headline "McCartney Dead; New Evidence Brought to Light".  It identified various "clues" to McCartney's death on Beatles album covers, including new clues from the just-released Abbey Road LP. As LaBour had invented many of the clues, he was astonished when the story was picked up by newspapers across the United States. WKNR-FM further fuelled the rumor with a special two-hour program on the subject, "The Beatle Plot", which aired October 19, 1969.

In the early morning hours of October 21, 1969, Roby Yonge, a disc jockey at New York radio station 77WABC, discussed the rumor on the air for over an hour before being pulled off the air for breaking format. At that time of night, WABC's signal covered a wide listening area and could be heard in 38 states and at times, other countries.

Later that day, the Beatles' press office issued statements denying the rumour which were widely reported by national and international media.

Various 'clues' were used to suggest the following story: three years previously on November 9, 1966.  The rumored story was that McCartney, after an argument during a Beatles' recording session, had angrily driven off in his car. He had crashed it and died as a result. To spare the public from grief, the Beatles replaced him with "William Campbell", the winner of a McCartney look-alike contest.

➦In 1997...Henry John Deutschendorf Jr. died in a light plane accident (Born December 31, 1943). He was known professionally as John Denver, was an American singer-songwriter, record producer, actor, activist, and humanitarian, whose greatest commercial success was as a solo singer.

John Denver 1974

After traveling and living in numerous locations while growing up in his military family, Denver began his music career with folk music groups during the late 1960s. Starting in the 1970s, he was one of the most popular acoustic artists of the decade and one of its best-selling artists. By 1974, he was one of America's best-selling performers, and AllMusic has described Denver as "among the most beloved entertainers of his era".

Denver recorded and released approximately 300 songs, about 200 of which he composed, with total sales of over 33 million records worldwide. He recorded and performed primarily with an acoustic guitar and sang about his joy in nature, his disdain for city life, his enthusiasm for music, and his relationship trials. Denver's music appeared on a variety of charts, including country music, the Billboard Hot 100, and adult contemporary, in all earning 12 gold and four platinum albums with his signature songs "Take Me Home, Country Roads", "Annie's Song", "Rocky Mountain High", "Calypso", "Thank God I'm a Country Boy", and "Sunshine on My Shoulders".

DOJ Probing TWH Press Pool For Not Covering Select Events

The Justice Department is investigating ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and NBC over whether their coordinated refusal to cover certain White House events amounted to an illegal group boycott under federal antitrust law.

The probe, announced Saturday, focuses on the television press pool’s decision to suspend shared coverage of select events after the Trump administration moved to bar CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House. DOJ spokesperson Emily Covington said in a statement that “members of the television press pool have proudly boycotted covering White House events” and that “group boycotts among commercial competitors can violate the Sherman Act.” The Antitrust Division is examining whether the networks broke antitrust laws.

The networks were contacted Friday about the investigation, according to The New York Times, which cited six people familiar with the matter.

The dispute began Sept. 18, when President Trump said he was barring CNN, Politico, and MS NOW for publishing “purposely negative stories.” The three outlets sued, arguing the ban violated the First and Fifth Amendments. A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order, later extended through the following Tuesday.

In response, ABC, CBS, Fox News, and NBC declined to step into the rotation to replace CNN, creating gaps in the shared pool footage normally distributed worldwide. Coverage of events including Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit was affected. The pool resumed full rotation on Sept. 25.

TWH Unveils New Press Spox

President Trump on Friday appointed Katie Zacharia, a conservative commentator, as White House press secretary, replacing Karoline Leavitt weeks before the November election.

Zacharia, a California native, is a communications adviser to Trump Media & Technology Group, which operates Truth Social, the platform where Trump frequently posts. She worked briefly at the Department of Homeland Security earlier in Trump’s second term and has appeared as a commentator on CNN, Fox News and Newsmax. Trump said she was also involved in his previous campaigns.

“She has an unblemished record of support, and has been a loyal and brilliant supporter, right from the beginning,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “She is, likewise, a devoted fan and member of MAGA!”

Zacharia called serving Trump and the American people “the honor of a lifetime.”

R.I.P.: Mike Ditka, Football Player, Coach and TV Analyst

Mike Ditka, the Hall of Fame tight end and Super Bowl-winning coach who became the face of Chicago Bears football, died at 86, his family said Friday.

No one embodied the franchise more. Ditka was a Pro Football Hall of Fame tight end, the coach of the 1985 Bears — the only team in franchise history to win a Super Bowl — and, for decades afterward, a ubiquitous television analyst and celebrity promoter. His face, once described as “a clenched fist,” even resembled the bear on the team logo and became familiar to millions, first as a player starting in 1961, then as Bears coach from 1982 to 1992, and finally from the broadcast booth.

After the Bears dismissed him following the 1992 season, Ditka moved almost immediately into television, joining NBC as an analyst on NFL Live and as a color commentator. Fired by the New Orleans Saints in 2000, he spent the 2000 and 2001 seasons as a studio analyst on CBS’s The NFL Today. He joined ESPN in 2004, appearing on Sunday NFL Countdown, NFL Live and Monday Night Countdown, and worked the booth for Monday Night Football games in 2007 and 2008 alongside Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic. In 2016 ESPN shifted him to remote SportsCenter analysis so he could work from home. He also appeared regularly on Chicago’s ESPN 1000 radio.

NYC Radio: WFAN's Gio Escorted Off Private Flight

WFAN co-host Gregg Giannotti was barred from a private jet to Chicago on Thursday after he could not produce a REAL ID, preventing him from attending the Radio Hall of Fame ceremony Thursday where partner Boomer Esiason was inducted.

The pilot checked identification for the private flight carrying Esiason, WFAN executives and staff. When he reached Giannotti, the host offered only a standard driver’s license. According to Awful Announcing, the pilot asked if it was a REAL ID or enhanced ID; Giannotti said it was neither. After checking further, the pilot returned and told him, “We’ve got a problem. I can’t take you.” Giannotti was escorted off the plane while the rest of the group continued to Chicago.

Giannotti recounted the episode on Friday’s Boomer & Gio show. 

Carr Says FCC Would Defer To Hegseth On Execution

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr says he would defer to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on whether to livestream the firing-squad execution of the Fort Hood shooter on public airwaves.

Carr, speaking on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street,” stated that the Federal Communications Commission would ultimately follow Hegseth’s lead. “Ultimately we’re going to defer to Secretary Hegseth and his decision on how to move forward with this,” he said when asked about the proposed broadcast.

Hegseth announced earlier this week that the public would be able to watch a livestream of the execution of former Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan. Hasan was convicted in 2009 of killing 13 people and injuring 31 others in a shooting at Fort Hood, Texas.

Homeland Secretary Has Contentious News Briefing

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin sparred with reporters Friday at a Washington briefing on a New York ICE shooting, cutting off questions he said were meant to change the subject and calling the exchange an example of “fake news.”

The briefing, held with ICE officials, was called to defend Thursday’s operation in the Marble Hill section of the Bronx and to blame New York’s sanctuary policies. Officers fired several rounds at 28-year-old Oscar Belgal as he was in a car with his 5-year-old son. Belgal was hit in the neck, treated, and held in a detention facility outside the state. Mullin said agents identified themselves, gave lawful orders, and did not know a child was in the car. He said Belgal accelerated, rammed vehicles, and drove toward officers, and he called Belgal a “gangbanger” and “thug” with a criminal record, including a grand larceny conviction and a pending 2025 drug case. The public outcry, Mullin said, should be aimed at Belgal, not the officers. “I’ll never apologize about our men and women doing their job,” he said.

Ella Langley Tulsa Concert Canceled After Threat

Ella Langley canceled her sold-out concert at Tulsa’s BOK Center on Friday night hours before showtime over a “serious security threat,” even though Tulsa police said they found no credible danger after multiple sweeps of the venue, Billboard is reporting.

Statements posted shortly before 5 p.m. CT on both Langley’s and the venue’s social media accounts said the show could not proceed. “Due to a serious security threat involving the safety of my fans, venue personnel, and the artist, Ella Langley’s scheduled performance tonight at BOK Center in Tulsa has been canceled,” the post read. It continued that “the safety and well-being of everyone involved is our absolute priority” and that ticket refund information would be forthcoming.

Skydance Sorting Out Sports Rights For New Company

Skydance is preparing to cut jobs and shed sports rights at the newly combined CBS Sports and TNT Sports, as an $80 billion debt load turns “synergies” on a portfolio that was barely discussed during the Warner Bros. Discovery takeover.

John Ourand of Puck reports that executives already expect the integration to be a bloodbath. CBS Sports president David Berson will run the combined sports group; TNT Sports chairman and CEO Luis Silberwasser is leaving. The company, renamed Skydance after Paramount closed the deal this week, has told investors it is targeting more than $6 billion in run-rate savings within three years and wants net leverage down to 3 times by the end of 2029. Sports, long treated as a side issue in a fight over studios, streaming, and CNN, is now part of that math.

D-C Radio: For Sports Radio, Fandom Never Ends

Sports fandom doesn’t stop when the game ends. It continues through podcasts, sports talk, social media, and the hosts fans trust for analysis, debate, and community.

At Advertising Week New York’s Podcast Zone, Audacy President of Digital Sales Michael Biemolt joined John-Paul “J.P.” Flaim and John “Cakes” Auville of 106.7 The Fan in the Washington, DC market's The Sports Junkies to discuss how that always-on fandom is reshaping sports media and opening new ways for brands to reach audiences beyond the live broadcast.

The hosts described how, over 30 years, they have built a loyal community in Washington, D.C., and extended it well beyond the home market through podcasting and on-demand content. They also explained how authentic host endorsements, personalized advertising, and long-term brand partnerships can turn audience trust into real engagement for advertisers.

Former WBD CEO Walks Away With $606M

David Zaslav cashed out $606.1 million in Warner Bros. Discovery stock and options when Paramount closed its takeover.

The Form 4, filed Thursday, covers the exchange that took place when the deal closed on Oct. 6. Paramount paid WBD holders $31 a share in cash, plus a small ticking fee that lifted the effective price to about $31.02. Of Zaslav’s total, roughly $224.4 million came from common stock and restricted stock units converted to cash, and about $381.7 million came from stock options that were in the money and vested at closing. Nearly 15 million other options expired worthless because their exercise prices sat above the deal price.

L-I Radio: Weather Forecaster Pat Pagano Ready To Retire

Forecaster Pat Pagano

Pat Pagano, the meteorologist who has delivered weather on WALK/97.5 FM for 50 years, will deliver his final official forecast next Thursday.

The 75-year-old will also end the daily weathercasts he files for other Connoisseur-owned Long Island stations: WHLI/104.7, WWSK/94.3 and WWWF/103.1. Connoisseur had not named a replacement by Thursday afternoon.

No personality tied to a New York-area station — or to this Patchogue one — has been on the air longer, and few have filed more reports. Pagano records about 10 a day. In a business now defined by layoffs, firings and “rightsizing,” that run makes him an anomaly.

Radio History: Oct 10

➦In 1900...actress Helen Hayes was born Helen Brown in Washington DC. After honing her craft on the stage Ms. Hayes began a 55 year big screen career in 1931. She had her own popular radio anthology series in the 1940′s; on  TV she played one of the Snoop Sisters in the 70′s, and Miss Jane Marple in the 80′s.

The First Lady of the American Theater died Mar 17, 1993 at age 92

Orville Gibson

➦In 1902...Mandolin maker Orville Gibson founded the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Mfg. Co, Ltd. in Kalamazoo, MI.   In 1936 it would create the first commercially successful electric guitar.

Gibson began in 1894 in his home workshop in Kalamazoo, Michigan. With no formal training, Gibson created an entirely new style of mandolin and guitar, with tops carved and arched like the top of a violin. His creations were so different that he was granted a patent on his design.  More importantly, they were louder and more durable than contemporary fretted instruments, and musicians soon demanded more than he was able to build in his one-man shop.

On the strength of Gibson's ideas, five Kalamazoo businessmen formed the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Mfg. Co., Ltd., in 1902. Within a short period after the company was started, the board passed a motion that "Orville H. Gibson be paid only for the actual time he works for the Company." After that time, there is no clear indication whether he worked there full-time, or as a consultant. Julius Bellson states in his 1973 publication, The Gibson Story, that "Orville Gibson had visions and dreams that were considered eccentric."

Starting in 1908, Gibson was paid a salary of $500 by Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Co., Limited (equivalent to $20,000 a year in modern terms). He had a number of stays in hospitals between 1907 and 1911. In 1916, he was again hospitalized, and died on August 19, 1918, at 62 years of age, in St. Lawrence State Hospital in Ogdensburg, New York.  Gibson is buried at Morningside Cemetery in Malone, New York.

Audio Maintains Slim Lead As Preferred Podcast Format

Video podcasts are not replacing audio, new research from SiriusXM Media and Edison Research finds. In the past month, 90% of monthly podcast consumers listened to an audio-first show and 89% consumed a video podcast — nearly identical shares, with both formats growing.

Seven in 10 did both. Only 10% listened exclusively, and 20% watched exclusively. Nearly half said they are consuming more audio than a year ago, and nearly half said the same about video. “Video isn’t growing because people have suddenly stopped listening and discovered video,” Edison Research Vice President Megan Lazovick said. “Audio is growing alongside it.”

FOX Weather to Simulcast on FOX News, FOX Business

FOX Weather will present continuous live coverage of Hurricane Isaias beginning at 5 AM/ET on Friday, October 9th through Saturday night, October 10th. Helmed by FOX Weather’s expert meteorologists the special coverage will also be simulcast on FOX News Channel overnight Friday into Saturday from midnight-6 AM/ET and on FOX Business Network from 4 AM - 9 AM/ET Saturday.

Anchoring the coverage from FOX Weather’s New York headquarters will be meteorologists Ian Oliver, Ari Sarsalari, Britta Merwin, Craig Herrera, Bob Van Dillen, Steve Bender, Kiyana Lewis, Melanie Black, Bayne Froney, Marissa Torres and Jane Minar. Renowned FOX Weather Hurricane Specialist Bryan Norcross will also provide exclusive analysis on the storm throughout its duration.

Radio Hall of Fame Honors New Members

Eight broadcasters entered the Radio Hall of Fame Thursday night at the Fairmont Hotel, a class that runs from morning-show stars and legendary disc jockeys to the executive who built MTV and now leads the country’s largest radio company.

The Class of 2026 is Boomer Esiason, Helen Little, Rickey Smiley, Bob Pittman, Charlie Van Dyke, Dennis Green, Fred Winston and Shotgun Tom Kelly. Bobby Bones, himself a 2017 inductee, hosted.

• Winston, a Chicago radio fixture since his 1971 start on WLS, drew the loudest hometown response. His career ran through WMAQ, WFYR, WCFL, WPNT, WJMK and WLUP, and the room treated his induction as a local homecoming as much as a national honor.
• Smiley turned his remarks into a celebration of the syndicated morning show that reaches more than 60 markets through Urban One/Reach Media. The comedian and host has spent the week broadcasting from Chicago ahead of the ceremony; colleagues have credited his work ethic and humor with carrying the show across generations of listeners.
  
• Esiason, the former NFL MVP quarterback and longtime WFAN voice, traced the less obvious path from the field to Sportsradio 101.9/660 The Fan. He has also called Monday Night Football and 19 Super Bowls, a sports-media career the hall treated as radio work first.
• Pittman, chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia and co-founder of MTV, spoke as the executive inductee in a class otherwise dominated by on-air names. He co-founded MTV in 1981, later held senior roles at AOL Time Warner, and took the helm of what was then Clear Channel.

The rest of the class filled in the medium’s range. Little is the longtime WLTW-FM New York morning voice known for warmth and community ties. Van Dyke was working major-market Top 40 at Dallas’s KLIF by 19, later programmed KHJ Los Angeles, and spent the 1980s as the primary fill-in for Casey Kasem on American Top 40. Kelly remains the signature voice of SiriusXM’s ’60s on 6. Green, COO of Sun & Fun Media/Key Networks and co-chair of the hall, was recognized for a career in syndication and for helping run the induction process itself.

The ceremony also recognized nine Legends, the hall’s posthumous class: Lin Brehmer, Vivian Carter, Dale Dorman, Gary Krantz, Wink Martindale, B. Mitchell Reed, Pierre Robert, Polito Vega and D.E. “Duke” Wright. The group runs from Chicago’s WXRT and Philadelphia air personalities to Vee-Jay Records co-founder Vivian Carter, New York Spanish-language pioneer Polito Vega, and Midwest Communications owner Duke Wright.

Six of the living inductees — Esiason, Kelly, Little, Smiley, Van Dyke and Winston — were chosen from 24 nominees by a panel of more than 950 industry professionals. Pittman and Green were selected by the nominating committee. The hall is housed at the Museum of Broadcast Communications, which receives a portion of ticket proceeds.

FCC Gets More Time To Respond Lower Court Order

Chief Justice John Roberts on Thursday paused a federal appeals court order that would have forced the FCC to decide by noon Friday whether broadcasters must extend election-season discounted ad rates to political parties and joint fundraising committees.

The administrative stay came hours after the Justice Department asked the Supreme Court to block the deadline. Responses are due by 5 p.m. Saturday. The pause leaves the commission’s expanded discount policy in place while the justices consider the request.

Ban On White House Press Ban Gets an Extension

A federal judge on Thursday temporarily extended his order blocking President Trump’s ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House, saying he would decide by next week whether to keep the outlets’ access in place for a longer period.

Judge Timothy J. Kelly of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia said the short extension would give him time to review the arguments. The outlets asked that their access continue while the lawsuit proceeds, a process that could take months. The government countered that the president has the authority to bar them and should be allowed to reinstate the ban while the case continues.

Nominations Are Opening For 2027 Gracie Awards

The Alliance for Women in Media Foundation (AWMF) announced that the Call for Entries is now open for the 52nd Annual Gracie Awards, which annually recognize outstanding programming and individual achievement created by, for and about women across television, streaming, radio, podcasting and digital media.

This year's Call for Entries includes several updates reflecting the evolving media landscape -- Podcast entries will now be recognized in a dedicated Podcast division, separate from Digital Media. New categories include Digital/Social Short-Form Standalone Video or Series and Content Creator (Journalist/Reporter/Entertainment) in Digital Media; Video Podcast -- Co-Host/Ensemble, and Audio Documentary/Narrative Non-Fiction in Podcast; and Public Service Announcement or Community Engagement in Local Radio. The Video Podcast category has also been expanded into Lifestyle/Entertainment/Sports and News/Investigative/Education distinctions.

"Each year, the Gracie Awards recognize work that does more than capture attention; it informs, entertains and ensures women's voices and perspectives are seen and heard," said Becky Brooks, President of AWMF. "The entries we receive reflect the breadth and impact of work reaching audiences across platforms and communities. We look forward to honoring the content that moved audiences in 2026 and continuing the Gracies' long-standing investment in the people who will shape what comes next."

National winners will be honored at the Gracies Gala on May 25, 2027, at the Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills, and local and student winners will be celebrated at the Gracies Luncheon on June 15, 2027, at Cipriani in New York.

Returning as co-chairs of the 2027 Gracie Awards are Heather Cohen, President of The Weiss Agency; Annie Howell, Chief Communications Officer at Hallmark Media; and Mike McVay, President of McVay Media Consulting.

Eligibility Period: January 1-December 31, 2026 • Early-Bird Entry Deadline: December 10, 2026 • Final Entry Deadline: January 21, 2027. Complete information is posted HERE.

Joe Rogan, Spotify Renew $250M Podcast Deal

Joe Rogan and Spotify have agreed to a new multi-year deal that keeps “The Joe Rogan Experience” on the platform, extending a partnership that began in 2020.

The renewal is for similar terms to Rogan’s previous deal with the streaming service, which allowed “The Joe Rogan Experience” to be distributed broadly and for an estimated earnout of $250 million, according to The Wall Street Journal citing to people familiar with the matter.

TV Ratings: Radio's Secret Sauce Helping NBC TODAY Win

NBC’s TODAY won the broadcast morning-show ratings crown for the week of Sept. 28 through Oct. 2, finishing ahead of second-place ABC’s Good Morning America in total viewers and in the adults 25-54 and adults 18-49 demographics.

The win kept TODAY No. 1 across the measures networks and advertisers use to rank the 7 a.m. competition. Good Morning America placed second. CBS Mornings, formerly CBS This Morning, finished third.

Graphic Courtesy of RoadMN

The weekly result extends a broader lead for the NBC program. TODAY closed the 2025-26 season as the top morning show in both total viewers and adults 25-54 for the first time in 14 years, averaging about 2.94 million viewers and leading GMA by roughly 114,000. It also finished September as No. 1 in total viewers and the key demo, its largest September advantage over GMA in 15 years, according to NBC.

In the adults 25-54 demo, the audience most valued by advertisers, TODAY’s season and September margins over GMA were substantially wider than its total-viewer edge. Season figures also showed TODAY ahead of GMA in adults 18-49.

CBS Mornings remained well behind both rivals in total viewers and the key demos, continuing a long-running gap in the morning race.

Longtime radio consultant Gary Berkowitz gives the personality 'chemistry' nod to the talent on TODAY.  

Gary Berkowitz

Berkowitz notes the faces on “Today” have changed over the years, but one thing has remained consistent: the show has always understood the importance of putting people on the screen that viewers want to spend time with. And what has always amazed me about “Today” is that everyone on the show seems to genuinely enjoy being together. Savannah, Craig, Al, Jenna and Carson make it feel like they actually hang out together. They laugh together, react to each other, and seem to enjoy being in the same room. Is that always true once the cameras are turned off? I have no idea. And frankly, it does not matter. That is how it comes across on the air."

However, “Good Morning America” feels very different to Berkowitz. "Robin, George and Michael sometimes come across as if they have a stopwatch running, telling them exactly how much longer they have to sit next to each other before they can leave. Again, I have no idea what is really happening behind the scenes. But to me, it sure seems like they do not like each other, maybe even bordering on massive dislike."

He concludes "But that is not the point. What matters is what the audience feels. And that brings us directly to radio. Listeners can feel chemistry. They can feel warmth. They can feel when people genuinely sound like they enjoy being there. They can also feel when they do not."

Happy Friday: Here's The Pulse Briefing For Oct 9

Radio Broadcasting

Radio's Secret Sauce: Radio Consultant Has Theory as to why NBC TODAY is winning the breakfast battle with ABC's GMA. MORE

New Deal: Joe Rogan and Spotify have agreed to a new multi-year deal that keeps “The Joe Rogan Experience” on the platform, extending a partnership that began in 2020. MORE

Discounted Politicals: FCC Gets More Time To Respond Lower Court Order Concerning Lowest Units Rates. MORE

Skydance CEOs Again Say CNN, CBS News Remain Separate

David Ellison and Skydance co-CEO Ynon Kreiz said Thursday that CNN and CBS News will remain separate businesses with independent editorial operations, even as they left open the possibility of operational efficiencies between the two news organizations.

Appearing on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Kreiz rejected the idea that combining newsgathering would be a cost-cutting move. “This isn’t about cost savings in this case,” he said. “We look to keep the businesses run in parallel with independent editorial operation.” He called CNN and CBS News “two separate businesses.”

Trump Admin Hits Pause on Tech H-1B Visa Holders

Vice President JD Vance said Thursday that the administration is suspending Microsoft, Adobe and several tech recruiting companies from a program that lets H-1B visa holders apply for green cards, citing what officials call widespread abuses of the visa system.

Vance’s antifraud task force took the action the same day President Trump recognized Microsoft’s CEO and other tech leaders at a Washington event. Vance said no other company has abused the system more than Microsoft, accusing it of laying off U.S. citizens and replacing them with foreign workers on H-1B visas.

Pentagon Plans To Live Stream Firing Squad Execution

The Pentagon said Thursday that the firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan will be livestreamed, after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the execution would be “public.”

Hegseth told Real America’s Voice News on Wednesday that Hasan will be executed at Fort Hood on Dec. 3. Hasan was convicted of killing 13 people and wounding 32 others in a 2009 shooting at the Texas military base. “We’ll make sure that people are able to watch it, that it’s public,” Hegseth said.

Radio History: Oct 9

➦In 1890...Aimee Elizabeth Semple McPherson born (Died – September 27, 1944), also known as Sister Aimee or simply Sister, was a Canadian-American Pentecostal evangelist and media celebrity in the 1920s and 1930s, famous for founding the Foursquare Church.

McPherson has been noted as a pioneer in the use of modern media, because she used radio to draw on the growing appeal of popular entertainment in North America and incorporated other forms into her weekly sermons at Angelus Temple, one of the first megachurches.

In her time she was the most publicized Protestant evangelist, surpassing Billy Sunday and her other predecessors. She conducted public faith healing demonstrations before large crowds; testimonies conveyed tens of thousands of people healed.  McPherson's articulation of the United States as a nation founded and sustained by divine inspiration continues to be echoed by many pastors in churches today.

News coverage sensationalized her misfortunes with family and church members; particularly inflaming accusations she had fabricated her reported kidnapping, turning it into a national spectacle. McPherson's preaching style, extensive charity work and ecumenical contributions were a major influence on Charismatic Christianity in the 20th century.

NYC Radio: WCBS-FM Unveils New Morning Show

Trey and Loren

101.1 WCBS-FM, the most-listened-to Classic Hits station in America, announces a new morning show featuring Trey Morgan and Loren Raye. “The Morning Show with Trey and Loren Raye” can be heard weekdays from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. ET.

“Trey and Loren love radio. They love connecting with people, and each brings a very different take on life to the microphone. Put those personalities in a room, and you’ve got the makings of great conversations and something worth turning up,” said John Foxx, Brand Manager, 101.1 WCBS-FM. “I’m excited for our listeners to get to know them and find a little of themselves in the show every morning."

“There are very few opportunities in radio that feel this special. WCBS-FM has an incredible history and a unique relationship with New York, and I’m grateful for the chance to build this show with Loren Raye,” said Morgan. “I’ve been fortunate to have learned from great mentors and am excited to continue learning from John Foxx, Jim Ryan, and Chris Oliviero. My goal is to make a show Loren and I are proud of, have a lot of fun and earn our place in people’s mornings.”

Radio Honors Hall of Fame Inductees For 2026

The Radio Hall of Fame inducts its 2026 class Thursday night in Chicago, honoring eight living broadcasters and nine posthumous Legends at a ceremony hosted by Bobby Bones.

The Museum of Broadcast Communications holds the induction at the Fairmont Chicago, Millennium Park. Bones, a 2017 inductee and host of iHeartMedia’s The Bobby Bones Show, serves as master of ceremonies. A portion of ticket sales is a tax-deductible gift to the museum, which houses the hall.

The living inductees are iHeartMedia Chairman and CEO Bob Pittman; Boomer Esiason of WFAN-AM/FM in New York; Helen Little of WLTW-FM in New York; Rickey Smiley of Urban One/Reach Media; Shotgun Tom Kelly of SiriusXM’s ’60s on 6; Dennis Green, chief operating officer of Sun & Fun Media/Key Networks and co-chair of the hall; Charlie Van Dyke; and Fred Winston. 

Six were chosen by a confidential ballot of more than 950 industry professionals, run by Votem.com and overseen by Miller Kaplan’s Andrew Rosen. The 2026 Nominating Committee selected the other two.

ABC's WNT Is No.1 Newscast With 8.3M Viewers

“World News Tonight with David Muir” ranked as the No. 1 newscast in all of broadcast and cable in Total Viewers (8.346 million), Adults 25-54 (1.136 million) and Adults 18-49 (836,000) during the week of Sept. 28, 2026, based on Live+Same Day Big Data Plus Panel Program Ratings from Nielsen Media Research.

• “World News Tonight” outperformed “NBC Nightly News” (6.894 million, 1.006 million and 689,000, respectively) in Total Viewers (+21%/+1.452 million), Adults 25-54 (+13%/+130,000) and Adults 18-49 (+21%/+147,000).

TV Ratings: FNC Posts Week-To-Week Growth

Key Highlights:

• FNC Continues to Beat CBS in Monday – Friday Primetime Year-to-Date
• CNN and MS NOW See Losses in Total Viewers and the 25-54 Demo

FOX News Channel (FNC) ended the week of September 28th with nearly 2 million weekday primetime viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research Big Data + Panel. Year-to-date, FNC continues to beat broadcast network CBS (2,698,000 viewers) in Monday – Friday primetime, nabbing 2,733,000 viewers. In Monday – Sunday primetime, FNC claimed over 1.6 million viewers and in total day, FNC notched over one million viewers, posting a two percent growth week-to-week.

Notably, in Monday – Sunday total day, CNN posted 373,000 viewers, seeing a six percent loss in total viewers both week-to-week and year-over-year. In the 25-54 demo, the network claimed only 53,000 viewers which is a five percent loss week-to-week and a 12 percent loss year-over-year. In Monday - Sunday primetime, CNN (554,000 viewers; 97,000 A25-54) and MS NOW (917,000 viewers; 89,000 A25-54) marked week-to-week declines in total viewers and the 25-54 demo. Additionally, episode three of CBS’ 60 Minutes was down three percent year-over-year in the 25-54 demo.

David Elllison Supports CNN Access to TWH

David Ellison, CNN’s new owner, said he supports the network’s legal action against the Trump administration over White House access and will not interfere in its coverage.

“We believe in editorial independence, and we will never interfere,” Ellison said Tuesday, repeating assurances he made while seeking to buy Warner Bros. Discovery. The Warner-Paramount merger took effect that morning, creating a company named Skydance, which he leads as CEO.

At an employee town hall and a later press conference in Los Angeles, Ellison said Skydance will keep CNN and CBS News “completely editorially independent,” build a streaming service that can compete with rivals, and rebuild trust by following through on those promises. Asked how the company would win over merger opponents, he pointed to those commitments.

Skydance Is Here, Next Comes...Layoffs

Skydance executives have told employees that layoffs will be part of integrating Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery, days after the companies closed a roughly $110 billion merger and began operating as a single company.

In a memo sent Tuesday, chairman and CEO David Ellison and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz said combining the two businesses “will bring change, including difficult decisions that affect our workforce.” They added that the process would be handled “thoughtfully and respectfully,” but they did not say how many jobs would be cut, which divisions would be hit, or when reductions would begin. The note, reported by Variety and Deadline, was the first clear acknowledgment from leadership after closing that workforce cuts are coming.

The company is targeting at least $6 billion in run-rate cost savings over three years. Executives have previously said most of that figure is expected from non-labor sources: unifying streaming technology stacks, including Paramount+ and HBO Max; consolidating procurement and back-office systems; cutting overlapping marketing spend; and shrinking the real-estate footprint. 

ABC Attorney: 'We Are Watching Everything We Do"

An ABC lawyer told a federal judge Tuesday that the network is already tempering its midterm election coverage because of threats from President Donald Trump and FCC Chair Brendan Carr.

Beth Wilkinson, arguing for ABC before U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan in Washington, said editorial decisions are being affected now, weeks before the election. “We sit with our head on the guillotine,” she said, calling the risk of losing broadcast licenses a “corporate death penalty” for eight major-market stations owned by ABC’s parent, Disney. “Our editorial decisions are being affected right now,” she said. “We are watching everything that we do.”