NYC Radio: Yankees, Kay Extend Deal

Kay Twitter

FishbowlNY notes Yankees fans will be hearing a lot more “See Ya!”. Michael Kay has signed a multi-year extension to remain the Yankees lead broadcaster on the YES Network.  Kay is an afternoon radio personality on WEPN ESPN 98.7 FM.

In December, Radio Ink magazine named his the second-most influential local sports talk show in America.

“I could not be happier,” Kay says. “Continuing to live a childhood dream as the TV voice of the Yankees while working with the best group of people in the business on the country’s best regional sports network is as good as it gets. I can’t wait to start another season.”

Thrilled to announce I have extended my contract at YES. Here is the release: yesnet.me/MKYES
— Michael Kay (@RealMichaelKay) January 28, 2013

“We are pleased that Michael will continue to play a vital role here at YES,” John Filippelli, president of production and programming at the YES Network, says. “For the past decade on YES, Michael has been the voice of the Yankees deftly capturing the drama, intensity, and passion associated with the greatest franchise in sports. He is one of the pre-eminent play-by-play announcers in baseball and is a first-rate interviewer as well, as evidenced by his stellar CenterStage.”

Read More Now.

Chicago Radio: WLS-AM Adds Sports Talk Hour

Lou Canellis, top sports anchor at Fox32 in Chicago, has signed as a permanent contributor to the WLS-AM 890 afternoon show hosted by Conn and Richard Roeper.

Starting this week, Canellis joins Roe & Roeper for a full hour of sports talk at 5pm Monday through Friday on the Cumulus Media news/talk station.

In announcing the change to his listeners Friday, Conn called the new feature “a mix of sports and entertainment — a different way of looking at the world.” The show’s signature Top 5 at 5 feature, a rundown of the day’s top five news stories, will move to 5:36pm and become “sports themed.”

“Driven by the explosion of sports stories and by the appetite our listeners have for them, we are excited to launch the 89 WLS Sports Pregame Show on Monday at 5pm,” Tracy Slutzkin, program director of WLS, said in a statement.

“It’s a natural expansion of our brand of timely, exciting, talk about the biggest stories on 89 WLS. We are thrilled to have Fox 32’s Lou Canellis join Roe and Roeper every day.”

Robert Feder at timeoutchicago, com notes Canellis, a native of south suburban Oak Lawn, first gained widespread notice in the '90s as part of the Bulls broadcast team, delivering memorable courtside interviews with Michael Jordan. He also has worked for a variety of local broadcast outlets and served as a regular contributor to 190 North, the weekly magazine show on ABC 7. He was promoted to main sports anchor at Fox 32 in 2010.

NBC Sports Radio Adds Donovan McNabb

Donovan McNabb

Dial Global and the NBC Sports Group have announced that recently retired NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb will join the NBC Sports Radio lineup as a contributor, starting Super Bowl week.

Six-time Pro Bowl quarterback McNabb, who established his storied career with the Philadelphia Eagles, will serve as an NFL lead analyst for NBC Sports Radio shows throughout the week and will also call in weekly to affiliated stations. He will be part of NBC Sports Radio's lineup of programming features on Super Bowl Radio Row this week in New Orleans. In addition, McNabb will play a big part in a soon-to-be-announced daily Monday-Friday talk show that will debut April 1, as the network expands its programming lineup.

As a player, McNabb posted one of the best records in the NFL, averaging 10 wins per season over his 13-year career.

Read More Now

WFAN’s Mike Francesa Denies Police Escort To The Super Bowl

Mike Francesa

Social media was buzzing Monday with the rumor that NYC WFAN sports radio talk show host Mike Francesa had a police escort to New York’s LaGuardia Airport  for his flight to the Super Bowl.

Based on Francesa’s self-important track record, a lot of people apparently bought into it, according to inquisitor.com. But Francesa took five minutes at the beginning of his week-long remote from New Orleans (which is simulcast on the YES television network) to call BS on the claim of a police escort.

Francesa, who famously denied falling asleep on the air last September (see video posting, Click Here), also categorically denied that he had a police escort yesterday and noted in fact that he had to wait on the security line just like everyone else. Moreover, Mike said he received no preferential treatment — just the opposite. The talk host was subject to an extremely invasive pat-down by the TSA because his artificial knee set off the machines (what Francesa called “the metal check”).

Read More Now

All CableTV Viewers Pay to Keep Sports Fans Happy

Per-subscriber fees for sports networks keep going up: ESPN, the granddaddy of them all, passed the $5-a-month mark last year.

Brian Stetler at nytimes.com writes the eye-popping price tags have restarted debate about a topic near and dear to sports fans, fairness: many TV customers never watch the mightily expensive channels at all, yet almost all must pay. There was a shudder in the industry when John Malone, the business tycoon who helped create the modern-day cable system, said in November that “runaway sports rights” costs amounted to “a high tax on a lot of households that don’t have a lot of interest in sports.” The only short-term fix, he said, was government intervention.

The price increases reflect the leverage big sports leagues have as distributors like Time Warner Cable and programmers like ESPN desperately try to hang onto live programming in the age of the digital video recorder and the Internet.

Sports are the television industry’s bulwark against rapid technological change: while the companies fear cord-cutting by customers who can cobble together a diet of TV on the Internet, they rest a little easier knowing that former customers would be hard-pressed to find their favorite teams live online.

Pretty much everybody in the business agrees that the overall costs are outrageous. Nobody has an easy solution.

Read More Now

Bloomberg Security Hassles Radio Reporter

In an explosive exchange outside the U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting in Washington, D.C., security guards for billionaire New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg accosted senior Talk Radio Network investigative reporter Jason Mattera when he asked the mayor about his strong support for gun control.

NBC Airs Ann Curry On Tape

Ann Curry, Matt Lauer in happier times

Former “Today” show co-host Ann Curry is being further marginalized by NBC by not being allowed to appear live on the network, sources tell the NY Post’s Page Six.

After being canned by “Today” last summer, Curry was named NBC News national and international correspondent/anchor and “Today” anchor-at-large.

But although she’s been filing reports for NBC News programs including “Rock Center with Brian Williams,” sources said she’s been barred from doing live interviews.

One source said, “There’s growing friction because she’s been pushing for live interviews, but NBC will only air her taped interviews, presumably so they can edit them.”

Curry’s relationship with NBC has been uncomfortable after her demotion last summer. Page Six hears she has been trying to get out of her contract, as new Cable News Network head honcho Jeff Zucker, a longtime friend and supporter since he was the executive producer of “Today,” has been courting her to join the network.

A rep for NBC said, “Ann Curry has a multi-year contract with NBC News. The rest of this gossip is nonsense.”

Read More Now

Kroft: CBS Doesn’t Do ‘Gotcha’ With Obama

Steve Kroft paid a visit to Piers Morgan on Monday night to discuss his 60 Minutes interview with President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Having covered Obama for several years, Kroft offered his take on the interview as well as Clinton's tenure and future. "Why do you think he keeps coming to you?" Morgan asked Kroft of Obama. According to Kroft  Obama simply likes 60 Minutes.

"We have a format that suits him. It's long, we can do 12 minutes or 24 minutes," Kroft replied according to a story atmediaite.com. "We do a good job of editing."

Adding that he's covered Obama since his candidacy, Kroft noted it's a "question of fairness." Obama "knows that we're not going to play 'gotcha' with him, that we're not going to go out of our way to make him look bad or stupid. Though we'll let him answer the questions."

Read More Now.

Chicago Radio: WBEZ-FM To Ask Listeners To 'Go Make Babies’

In one of the most clever and witty marketing campaigns in recent memory, Chicagoradioand media.com reports Chicago Public Media's WBEZ-FM 91.1  will be asking its listeners to make more listeners.

In what is being called the "2032 Membership Drive," the station wants its supporters to "Go Make Babies" to create the next generation of listeners.

On this Friday, February 1st, WBEZ-FM will unveil its first new marketing campaign in ten years. Chicago Public Media hired local agency Xi Chicago, a digital marketing division of the Proximity Worldwide/BBDO network, to come up with a creative new advertising campaign.

With tongue planted firmly in cheek, the new marketing campaign asks "interesting" people to make a love connection with other interesting people, thus creating a new batch of interesting newborns, who will grow up to be interesting people themselves.

Calling WBEZ-FM "Radio for the Curious Class," the ad campaign will ask people to visit the website GoMakeBabies.com, which leads to a Facebook page and app. There, visitors can take an "Interesting Assessment." That "test" will then provide links to current WBEZ-FM content based on their tastes, as well as trying to connect them with others who share similar tastes. The Facebook app also allows people to upload pictures of their interesting child/future listener. For doing so, the person posting the picture can receive a baby onesie with the words "Future Curious Class Member" on it.

Read More Now.

LIVE: Testimony Resumes Tuesday In MJ vs. Bubba Trial

Randy Michaels Testifies At Schnitt/Bubba Trial

Randy Michaels

Some defamation counts dismissed

After the jury was re-seated around 10:45a this morning, Clem's attorney brought to the stand it's first witness, Benjamin Homel, aka Randy Michaels. Michaels was CEO of Clear Channel Communications at the time of the Clem trial for the hog killing. Michael said CC continued to back Clem during that trial.

He noted that Clem's background was in professional wrestling with a tradition of goading opponents, and the two radio personalities would often take verbal shots at each other which needed some mediation by the radio station management.

At the end of the morning testimony, Michaels told the jury he never heard Bubba Clem give a call to action to any listeners, know as 'Bubba's Army' to do anything physical to Todd Schnitt or his wife Michelle.

The trial is now in lunch recess and will resume at 1:30p Tampa time.

Earlier this morning, the judge in the radio shock trial civil case dismissed several counts of defamation against Bubba the Love Sponge Clem but said the rest of the Todd Schnitt's lawsuit can proceed.

The decision came after Clem's lawyer argued for a directed verdict, according to tbo.com.

Schnitt's lawsuit accuses Clem of making defamatory remarks about him and his wife, Michelle. The suit says Clem incited his listeners, known as "Bubba's Army," to harass the Schnitts in a "radio war" that turned personal.

Schnitt's attorneys rested their case today. Clem's attorneys then argued to have the case dismissed, saying Schnitt's team did not prove the accusations. The judge agreed to dismiss some of the counts and let the jury decide the others.

Read More Now.

Judge Denies Bubba's Request for Mistrial

Attorneys for Bubba the Love Sponge Clem – who is accused of defamation by his radio rival Todd "MJ" Schnitt – asked for the mistrial Monday morning.

R.I.P.: Ohio Players Frontman Leroy Bonner Was 69

Leroy Bonner

Funk legend Leroy “Sugarfoot” Bonner has died, according to the Dayton Daily News.

“He was a great person with a lot of wisdom not just in music, but in life,” said Keith Harrison of the bands FAZE-O and the Dazz Band.

Bonner, 69, who helped make Dayton the Land of Funk, died Saturday following a battle with cancer, according to an “Official Family Annoucement” posted Sunday on his Facebook page.

Bonner, whose career spanned 56 years, died just shy of his 70th birthday, according to the post. “While his family, friends, colleagues, and fans mourn his passing they celebrate fondly his memory, music and legacy,” the posting stated.

The Hamilton, Ohio native was the lead singer and guitarist of the Ohio Players since he joined the band in 1971.

Read More Now

NYC Radio: Fox5 Tours NashFM 94-7 Studios

WNYW Fox5 Entertainment Reporter Jill Nicolini gives a look at NashFM 94.7 ‘vacant’ studio.

Report: Schnitt vs. Bubba Trial A ‘Circus’

Jurors Sent Home Early Friday

Personius w/attorney

The defamation jury trial of Todd "MJ" Schnitt vs. Bubba "The Love Sponge" Clem has taken more of a turn into the circus tent Friday according to swflorida.blogspot.com, as plaintiff's attorney ask for a mistrial, jurors were sent home Friday early, and testimony proceeded from witnesses to the events surrounding Schnitt's attorney Charles Philip Campbell's arrest Wednesday night for driving under the influence and his missing briefcase.

Attorney Steven Diaco had been subpoenaed for an appearance, but an objection was placed by his attorney who had advised Diaco to plead his 5th Amendment rights to not answer certain questions.

Melissa Personius, a paralegal for Bubba Clem's lawyer Joseph Diaco's firm for five years was part of the drama Wednesday night, allegedly with Phil Campbell in a bit of drinking. She invoked her 5th Amendment right against self incrimination and chose to not answer questions about that evening.

She would not answer any questions about her cell phone which she said she did not bring to court.

Campbell's team is trying to accuse Clem's lawyers of setting Campbell up for the Wednesday DUI arrest.

Bubba Attorney Steve Diaco said, under oath, he didn't recall whether he had instructed anyone to call the Tampa Police Department regarding Campbell's drinking and driving Wednesday night, for which Campbell was put in jail.

ALSO READ: Todd Schnitt's Wife Testifies She Felt 'Unsafe' In Own Home, Click Here.

Sgt. Raymond Fernandez, Tampa Police Officer testified he received a call at 7:45 p.m. Wednesday from an attorney with Diaco's office with a description of Campbell and his car and later made the traffic stop on Campbell about 10 p.m..

Allegedly he was asked to "move" Personius' vehicle which led to his arrest. Personious "plead the 5th" regarding whether she went to the bar to get Campbell to drink and to be arrested driving. It was argued further that one of Diaco's attorneys called a friend at the police department to "stalk" Campbell for the DUI arrest.

Defense, for Bubba Clem argued that the trial has not been affected as the jury doesn't know anything about the missing briefcase and DUI arrest and said there's nothing wrong with a citizen notifying the police of a possible impaired driver, and denied anyone was "set up."

Court will resume at 9 a.m. Monday.

Read More Now.