NYC Radio: Veterans Lead Morning Show Ratings

Elvis Duran

Elvis Duran of WHTZ 100.3 FM and Scott Shannon of WCBS 101.1 FM are the winning personalities, with all-news WCBS880 AM and WINS 1010 AM also clustered at the top, according to David Hinckley at The NY Daily News.

In the April Nielsen ratings, Duran finished first with 6.9% of the audience. WCBS-AM was a close second at 6.8%, with Shannon at 5.9%. WINS had 5.4%, tied with Steve Harvey of WBLS 107.5 FM.

Duran has been the morning anchor of powerhouse Z100 since 1996, and he has often hovered near the top.

Scott Shannon

For Shannon, however, this is a return. He co-hosted Z100’s very successful “Morning Zoo” after he launched that station in 1983, then left in 1989 and spent most of his New York radio career co-hosting the morning show with Todd Pettengill at WPLJ 95.5 FM.

This March 3, after an abrupt departure from WPLJ, Shannon moved to WCBS-FM. He added his old cohorts Joe Nolan and Patty Steele to Mr. G and the new team has been the city’s fastest rising morning show in several years.

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St. Louis Radio: Tony Scott OUT At KMJM

Tony Scott

Tony Scott of KMJM 100.3 FM’s “Tony and Tammie Morning Show” was relieved of his duties Friday morning.

Scott was the longest running personality in at the Clear Channel owned station. He had been with Majic for more than 25 years.

Majic has undergone several changes over the years – from format style to moving up the dial (from Majic 108 to 104.9 and most recently to its current home at 100.3) – but Scott had been a mainstay as both a morning and an afternoon host.

An anonymous source told the St. Louis American that Tammie Holland will stay on in the mornings, but as of yet no word on if she will get a new co-host – and if so, who will be selected to fill Scott’s seat.

Majic had moved the duo into the mornig slot just this past February:  See Orginal Posting.

Little Rock Radio: The Wolf Leaps Over KSSN

The Wolf's Bob Robbins

KMJX 105.1 FM “The Wolf” has taken the top spot in winter 2014’s radio ratings, usurping longtime leader KSSN 95.7 FM, in a dramatic ratings shift, according to Arkansas Business.

Clear Channel owns both Country stations.

Country music station KSSN had held the top spot in the Little Rock market for many seasons, last year sitting at the No. 1 spot with a 9.3 rating. It has lost almost 3 percentage points in the year since then, now sitting at No. 4 in the market.

KMJX, also a country station, climbed to the top, gaining 4 percentage points over the year to put it at 9.2. In its autumn period, KMJX showed falling numbers, with its rating of 4.7 down 2.8 percentage points from the previous year.

In November, CCM+E moved its best-known on-air personality, Bob Robbins, as well as fellow DJ Jennifer Trafford, from KSSN, where Robbins’ program had been a staple since 1979, to KMJX, which is also by Clear Channel. And KSNN started carrying The Bobby Bones Show.

Bobby Bones

Ron Collar, Clear Channel’s Little Rock market manager, said the company “wasn’t surprised” by the ratings shift.

“Bob’s loyal followers followed him to The Wolf,” he said.

Collar said he was confident that KSSN would regain its market share with the Bobby Bones show, a syndicated program that took the place of Robbins’. Collar said the target audience of Bones’ show was younger and “more interactive.”

“As history has indicated, Bobby Bones grows his own audience over time,” Collar said. “His show involves about a 180-degree different approach. Over time he attracts the demographic that likes his type of morning show.”

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Toledo Radio: Sid Kelly OUT At WVKS

Sid Kelly

Sid Kelly, the host of WVKS 92.5 FM KISS-FM’s “The Morning Rush” has been let go by CCM+E.

The Toledo Free Press reports there was a salary dispute.

Kelly’s one-year contract came up for review and Clear Channel decided not to renew, he said, leaving the radio host “heartbroken.”

“I said, ‘Give me what I was normally making, I’ll sign the contract,’ and they withheld the contract until the vice president people came through. [Then] I was told, ‘You no longer have a job,” Kelly said.

Kelly said he was “shocked” after learning of the separation.

“We were the biggest morning show in Toledo for two years running,” Kelly said. “We hit every one of our bonuses. … To say the least it came as an extreme shock to me and my family.”

Kelly said about four weeks ago, Clear Channel asked him if he was interested in signing a new contract, but after several reviews, corporate decided not to renew the contract. Kelly said he was shocked and surprised because “everything was going extremely well.”

In an emailed statement, Clear Channel Regional Marketing Manager Kellie Holeman-Szenderski said:

“As of May 9, 2014, Sid Kelly is no longer a part of the 92.5 KISS-FM Morning Show. We appreciate all of his contributions during his time with us and wish him well. For the immediate future, “The Morning Rush” will continue on schedule with Demetrius Nicodemus, Sara Hegarty and Meaghan Mick.”

Kelly’s last day on the air was May 9.

A post on Kelly’s Facebook page said he is taking the “high road” and will not engage in any bashing of the company. He said he doesn’t want to burn his bridges with Clear Channel even though he believes the company did not treat him honorably.

Kelly said the “The Morning Rush” show was No. 1 in its 18-34 age demographic and also No. 1 in the 25-54 age demographic.

Post by Sid Kelly.

Mitch Dolan Named CEO At Times-Shamrock Communications

Mitch Dolan

A veteran broadcasting executive will manage radio and billboard operations for Times-Shamrock Communications.

Mitch Dolan has been named chief operating officer of the Scranton-based media company’s radio and outdoor media division, said Bobby Lynett, an owner of the company, which also owns The Times-Tribune and The Citizens’ Voice.

Mr. Dolan, 58, spent a decade as president of ABC Radio Station Group, responsible for all the company’s stations, including major markets such as New York and Los Angeles.

Among his accomplishments:

• In partnership with ABC Radio Networks, he launched the national syndication of talk radio host Sean Hannity in 2001.
• He engineered the return of Don Imus in 2007 after the radio host’s termination with CBS.

“Mitch’s reputation preceded his introduction to us,” Mr. Lynett said. “He is exactly the type of individual we want leading our group of managers and our geographically diverse radio and billboard division. Since meeting Mitch, we have grown more and more excited about the great ideas and enhancements we know he can institute.”

Mr. Dolan will manage Times-Shamrock stations in Scranton and Wilkes-Barre, Baltimore, Reno and Las Vegas, Nevada, and a partnership station in Milwaukee.

NYTimes Reporter Provides Insight Into Abramson Firing

David Carr

On Sunday, David Carr -- one of the reporters who wrote the story announcing Abramson's ouster -- published a column on the Times website titled "Editor’s Exit at The Times Puts Tensions on Display" that offers insight into the "surreal" meeting at The Times' offices last week, according to THR.

"When The Times’ publisher, Arthur Sulzberger Jr., stood up at a hastily called meeting in the soaring open newsroom where we usually gather to celebrate the Pulitzers and said that Jill was out, we all just looked at one another," Carr writes. "How did our workplace suddenly become a particularly bloody episode of Game of Thrones? It is one thing to gossip or complain about your boss, but quite another to watch her head get chopped off in the cold light of day. The lack of decorum was stunning."

Carr also agrees with Sulzberger's assertion that "she had lost the support of her masthead colleagues and could not win it back."

He writes: "I like Jill and the version of The Times she made. But my reporting, including interviews with senior people in the newsroom, some of them women, backs up his conclusion."

He notes that one "big tactical mistake" she made was in failing to notify Baquet that she had hired The Guardian senior editor Janice Gibson as co-managing editor for digital.

"Dean was not aware that Jill had made an offer to Ms. Gibson, and he was furious and worried about how it would affect not only him but the rest of the news operation as well," he writes, adding: "When Dean let Arthur know that he would leave the paper because he found the situation untenable, it was clear that an important insurance policy for the newspaper's future was going to leave the building."

Calling it a "grinding spectacle," Carr adds that Sulzberger was likely not prepared to handle the media storm that followed Abramson's firing, even though people close to him say he was aware that "his decision would create an uproar."

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Little Change Noted In Women's Role In Journalism

The departure of Jill Abramson marked an abrupt end to the reign of the first woman to run The New York Times, a role that made her a journalistic pioneer in her own right. Her dismissal comes during the same week as the retirement of Barbara Walters, who broke a glass ceiling at ABC in 1976 by becoming the first woman to sit at a network anchor desk. Both events have prompted a debate about the role of women in American journalism and how much—or how little—has changed over the years.

Pew Research data analysis finds that overall there has been little significant change in the share of women newsroom employees and news managers in recent years. Female journalists are generally paid less than their male counterparts, an issue that may have played a role in Abramson’s exit, according to some media accounts, although the New York Times has denied that.

In the past 15 years, the percentage of women who work in newspaper newsrooms has barely budged. Women made up 36% of all newspaper staff in 2012 (the last year for which data are available), nearly unchanged from 37% in 1998, according to The American Society of News Editors’ annual census.

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"Our Greatest National Treasure' To Air For Memorial Day

More than 125 news/talk stations so far have signed up to air "Our Greatest National Treasure," a three-hour, highly-produced show honoring those who fought and died to defend the country and the loved ones who share the burden.

The show is a project of Fisher House Foundation, which provides no-cost housing and other support for the families of wounded warriors while their loved ones receive treatment at military and VA hospitals. The show spotlights their stories and shares the role that Fisher House played in their recovery.

Affiliates include WABC-AM, New York; WBAP- and KLIF-AM, Dallas/Fort Worth; KTRH- and KPRC-AM, Houston; WMAL-AM/FM, Washington; WPHT-AM, Philadelphia; WJR-AM, Detroit; WSB-AM/FM, Atlanta; KTAR-AM, Phoenix; WPGB-FM, Pittsburgh; WBAL-AM, Baltimore; and WBEN-AM, Buffalo.

Stations may air one, two or all three hours of the show anytime May 24-26. Four segments compose each hour.

Dave Ross

Dave Ross, host of "Seattle's Morning News" on KIRO-FM, hosts the show. Jim Cutler is the show's promo voice. "Our Greatest National Treasure" is written and produced by Marshall Adams and imaged by Chris Pendl.

Premiere Networks is distributing the show via FTP. To sign up, contact Kurt Kretzschmar at kkretzschmar@premierenetworks.com. Promos are provided and custom materials are available upon request.

Stations that have signed up already will receive FTP download instructions via email from Premiere.

R.I.P: MOR Singer Jerry Vale Dies

Jerry Vale, tknown for his high-tenor voice and romantic songs in the 1950s and early 1960s, has died.

He was 83, according to the Daily Mail.

Vale, who had been in declining health, died on Sunday at his Palm Desert home surrounded by family and friends, family attorney Harold J. Levy said in a statement.

Born Genaro Louis Vitaliano, Vale started performing in New York supper clubs as a teenager, and also won a singing contest at a nightclub.

In the early 1950s, he signed a contract with Columbia Records and went on to record more than 50 albums.

Vale's first hit was You Can Never Give Me Back My Heart, released in 1953.

There followed a string of successes - with his renditions of Volare, Innamorata and Al Di La becoming classic Italian-American songs.

His biggest hit was You Don't Know Me, released in 1956.

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Twin Cities Radio: MLB Twins Honor WCCO's Sid Hartman

The Minnesota Twins honored longtime sports columnist and radio personality 94-year-old Sid Hartman before Sunday’s afternoon game against the Seattle Mariners.

The Twins renamed the Target Field Press Conference Room in honor of the long-time Star Tribune and WCCO Radio reporter and honored him with a pre-game ceremony.

#MNTwins announce the renaming of the Target Field Press Conference Room to the Sid Hartman Press Conference Room! pic.twitter.com/UkTIKpBCnE
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) May 18, 2014

May 19 In Radio History

In 1960...On this day in 1960, the man who coined the term, "Rock And Roll", Alan Freed, along with Mel Leeds and 7 other disc-jockeys were accused of taking payola. After departing from 1010 WINS, Freed for a time was employed in New York by WABC 770 AM around 1958, about two years before it evolved into one of America's great Top 40 stations by launching its "Musicradio" format.

At this time, WABC (unlike rocker WINS) was more of a full-service station which began implementing some music programming elements.

Freed was fired by WABC (1959) during a dispute where he refused to sign a statement certifying that he had never accepted payola.


In 1974...The #1 Popular song on the Radio was "The Streak" by Ray Stevens


In 1994....Henry Morgan, former personality at WMCA, WOR, WNBC, WNEW died of lung cancer at age 79.




In 1999...Last broadcast of the Mutual Broadcasting System

Bob Liddle

In 2010…Longtime Seattle radio personality Bob Liddle, with more than 50 years on the air in the Pacific Northwest died at age 88.  Liddle spent much of his nearly 60-year radio career announcing, spinning big-band records, hosting easy-listening shows and reading the news on Seattle's KIXI 880 AM.

Liddle is perhaps best known for his years hosting KIXI's "Sunday Brunch." But in his long career he also worked as the station's program director and often hosted New Year's Eve "Tuxedo Junction" celebrations at the downtown Seattle Westin Hotel.


In 2011...Worcester, Massachusetts radio legend Dick Smith, who spent 30 years as a broadcaster for WORC, died at the age of 84.