July 22 In Radio History

In 1963…The Beatles' first U.S. album, "Introducing The Beatles" was pressed by Vee-Jay Records. When it was released in January 1964, Capitol Records filed an injunction against Vee-Jay in an attempt to keep them from "manufacturing, distributing, advertising, or otherwise disposing of records by the Beatles." The trial that followed resulted in Vee-Jay being allowed to release Beatles records only until October 15, 1964

Jack Lescoulie

In 1987..WNEW-AM Radio/TV personality, former Today Show host  Jack Lescoulie died

On radio, he was billed as the "Grouchmaster" on The Grouch Club (1938–40), a program in which people aired their complaints about anything,  created by future TV legend Nat Hiken, creator of The Phil Silvers Show /You'll Never Get Rich and Car 54, Where Are You?. In the 1940s, he was morning-drive partner to Gene Rayburn on WNEW radio (now WBBR) in New York City, before turning over his role in the team to Dee Finch. The Lescoulie and Finch pairings with Rayburn provided what are believed to be radio's first two-man morning teams.

During World War II, Lescoulie served as a war correspondent, flying in Air Force planes on bombing missions over Italy.

Today's Frank Blair, J. Fred Muggs Dave Garroway

In the fall of 1947, Lescoulie became the "all night radio man" on the Mutual Broadcasting System's New York affiliate WOR 710 AM. On April 12, 1948, he portrayed a mysterious newscaster in "Twelve to Five," a Quiet, Please fantasy drama which recreated an all-night request radio program so convincingly that some listeners phoned in with requests. He returned to Quiet Please June 4, 1949, in the horror drama, "Tanglefoot."

On today, he was teamed with Dave Garroway for over nine years, covering sports, news and features. The tall, blond performer was called ''the saver'' by Mr. Garroway because of his ability to enliven lackluster interviews with his wit. Often characterized as a good-humored, all-American boy, his frequently lighthearted tasks for ''Today'' included wrestling a walrus, interviewing a penguin and eating six breakfasts in one sitting. He Left 'Today' in 1961.

During the 1950's, Mr. Lescoulie made commercials for Milton Berle, was an announcer for ''The Jackie Gleason Show'' on CBS and was the host of an NBC sports-interview series called ''Meet the Champions.'' He also filled in as host of NBC's ''Tonight: America After Dark,'' a show that briefly replaced the ''Tonight'' show in 1957. The next year, he was co-host of an NBC quiz show called ''Brains and Brawn.''

AdLarge Media Inks Social Media Deal With Commotion

AdLarge Media has announced an exclusive national advertising sales representation agreement with its newest partner, Commotion, the breakthrough listener-engagement platform for radio stations that enables real-time communications.

Commotion is a web and mobile communication portal that builds a social media community around the radio station and visually matches what is being heard on-air.  The Commotion platform encourages real-time conversations not only between hosts and listeners but also among listeners, and is driven by both the over-the-air and streamed signals.

“The seamless experience of Commotion’s real-time social media interaction deepens listener engagement,” noted Frank DeSantis, Vice President, Business Development, AdLarge. “By being platform agnostic in their perception of radio, Commotion has helped more than 200 stations extend their brand to real-time engagement in a meaningful way for listeners and advertisers.”

“We chose AdLarge as our national advertising partner because of their successful track record in representing the value of radio’s engaged community to clients,” stated Richard Rene, Vice President, Global Business Development, Commotion.  “They have a well-deserved reputation for creating customized packages across platforms that also was a good fit for us.”

“The ability to change the experience within the station’s mobile app as quickly as the station changes what is happening on-air is critical to a successful mobile experience,” explained Ryan Burgoyne, Chief Executive Officer, Commotion.  “We call this ‘Moving at the Speed of Radio,’ since listeners can now visually experience whatever they are hearing on the radio as it happens.”

Radio Show: Bob Hoffman To Deliver Keynote

Bob Hoffman

Organizers of the 2014 Radio Show, jointly produced by the Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB) and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), announced today that advertising luminary Bob Hoffman will provide the event's keynote address on September 10 at 3:45 p.m.

The keynote address, sponsored by vCreative, will follow opening remarks from RAB President and CEO Erica Farber and NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith. The Radio Show will be held September 10-12 in Indianapolis.

Hoffman's keynote, titled "The Golden Age of BS," will address the gulf between what we are being told by "experts" and the reality of advertising and media today, with specific focus on broadcast radio. Hoffman is a partner in Type A Group, LLC, a consulting firm that works with advertisers, marketers, and media. He is the author of Amazon's number-one selling advertising book, "101 Contrarian Ideas About Advertising," and "The Ad Contrarian" blog, which Business Insider named one of the world's most influential advertising and marketing blogs.

"Bob is a trusted authority in the advertising business," said Farber. "Radio Show attendees are sure to benefit from his unique insights and compelling presentation. This year's provocative keynote will offer valuable takeaways that attendees can put to work at their stations."

Hoffman founded Hoffman/Lewis advertising, one of the West Coast's largest independent agencies, acting as chairman and CEO until he retired in 2013. Previously, he was CEO of Mojo USA and president and creative director of Allen & Dorward. He has created advertising for McDonald's, Toyota, Shell, Nestle, Blue Cross, Chevrolet, Pepsico, Bank of America and AT&T. In 2012, the San Francisco Advertising Club named him "Ad Person of the Year."

Fresno Radio: Blake Taylor Named New KMJ AM/FM PD

Blake Taylor

Cumulus announces that Blake Taylor has been promoted to Program Director of KMJ- 580 AM and KMJ 105.9 FM in Fresno. Taylor has served KMJ AM/FM as morning drive news anchor and News Director and Assistant Program Director at KMJ AM/FM since 2007. Taylor came to Fresno from Bakersfield, CA, where he was Program Director of KERN for five years.

Prior to that, he was Program Director of KBTK in Albuquerque. He was also on-air host and anchor at Albuquerque’s KNML and KKOB. Taylor began his radio career at age 17 as overnight disk jockey at KZOR in Hobbs, NM. Last year, he was honored by the City of Fresno as a member of Fresno’s "40 Under 40".

John Dickey, Executive Vice President and Co-Chief Operating Officer of Cumulus said:  "Blake Taylor's news experience, digital savvy and competitive energy make him the perfect PD to bring a new generation of listeners to the legendary KMJ-AM and FM.  We're pleased that Blake continues to grow with Cumulus Media.”

Taylor said: "I've served as News Director at KMJ for almost 7 years now, and we've experienced some amazing growth during that time. But there are many more opportunities ahead as we continue to grow our audience while maintaining our position as the go-to breaking news station in California's Central Valley. I look forward to taking on the challenge!"

Taylor’s appointment is effective immediately.

He succeeds Skip Essig who departed last week. (Click Here)

Report: Casey Kasem's Remains In Montreal

Casey, Kerri Kasem

The head of a Washington state funeral home that had initial responsibility for radio personality Casey Kasem says he personally made sure his remains were put on a flight to Montreal last Monday, according to a report at therecord.com. 

Corey Gaffney, the president of Gaffney Funeral Home of Tacoma, says he confirmed the remains arrived in Montreal and media reports suggesting they have disappeared are not true.

Some U.S. media outlets quoted Kasem's daughter Kerri as saying her father's remains were missing.

In the months before his death June 15, Kasem's daughter has been embroiled in a battle with his wife of the past 34 years, Jean Kasem, over the welfare of the legendary radio star.

A death certificate filed in a Washington State court July 15 listed Montreal funeral home Urgel Bourgie as the place of disposition, and July 14 as the date of disposition.

The Montreal funeral home told The Canadian Press on Saturday it had no record of Kasem's remains as being at the facility or that they were supposed to arrive.

"What we did was made sure that Casey got to the airport, we released custody of Casey to the airline," Gaffney said in an interview Saturday night.

"The airline signed for that and acknowledged that and than at that point we returned to our office, tracked his flight to Montreal, confirmed that he had arrived, reported that to Mrs Kasem."

"When he landed in Montreal, I ceased being the funeral director in charge."

A judge granted Kerri Kasem a temporary restraining order preventing her father's wife from cremating his remains, but her lawyer told The Associated Press that when he approached the Tacoma funeral home with a copy of the restraining order, he was told it no longer had the remains.

Anthony Cumia Launches New Website

Anthony Cumia, formerly of The Opie and Anthony Show has launched his website as a prelude to his live, uncensored HD video podcast coming August 4th at AnthonyCumia.com.

SoFL Radio: K-V-J To Announce Next Gig

The K-V-J Show

Popular SouthFloria morning ensemble Kevin, Virginia and Jason Show morning radio program are ready to divulge their next radio gig.

"The KVJ Show" announced over the weekend they will be returning to the airwaves.

Via a YouTube video, Kevin Rolston, Virginia Sinicki and Jason Pennington said more details would be coming Monday at 3pm about their reemergence into FM radio.

The trio was let go in early May from Cox Media Group's Hollywood-based WFLC 97.3 FM Hits after 14 years as the Palm Beach County/Treasure Coast undisputed morning prime-time No. 1 on WLDI Wild 95.5.

Tweets by @KVJShow

KVJ was traditionally a talk show, and talk about the idiosyncrasies of life in South Florida took less and less importance on a show fronted by three well-paid personalities. Cox wanted to play more music.

Here's the big tease...

NC/SC Radio: Jeff Davis Upped To OM For Asheville-Greenville

Jeff Davis

CCM+E has announced Jeff Davis has been named Operations Manager for the Greenville and Asheville markets.

He will also continue to serve as Program Director for WKSF 99.9 FM Kiss Country in Asheville.

Davis has more than 30 year of experience in the radio industry.  For the past 15 years he has served as Operations Manager for Asheville along with Program Director of WKSF.  Prior to joining Clear Channel Asheville he served as Program Director for WITL in Lansing, MI. Davis also held prior positions at Federated Media in Ft. Wayne, IN.

WKSF 99.9 FM (48Kw) 60dBu Coverage

“I’m very excited to be working with the outstanding teams in Greenville while being able to continue to work with the great crew in Asheville,” said Davis.  “Thank you to John Rohm, Rod Phillips and Bill McMartin for the opportunity to work with both teams who will take us to the next level.”

“Jeff’s leadership in Asheville has helped our cluster of stations be truly dominant here, making this an easy choice to expand his duties into Greenville.  We are excited to have him work day to day with two more terrific Country brands WSSL and WESC,” said Rod Phillips, Senior Vice President of Programming, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment.

Harrisburg Radio: WTPA Encouraged By Bruce Bond Show

Bruce Bond

It's been a month since Bruce Bond returned to PA's midstate airwaves (see original post, Click Here) on WTPA 92.1 FM - and already the Bond effect has been noticed, according to pennlive.com.

Web streaming for Bond's timeslot, 9 a.m.-noon on Saturdays, is up 60-70 percent, according to Tim Michaels, vice president and general manager for the station. It's an unusual increase.

"When you're looking at web, typically office hours are your highest peak listening," Michaels explained. "But it was really interesting when I was looking at the data and saw that Saturday, when he comes on the air, there's definitely a spike there."

WTPA 92.1 FM (1.4Kw) 60dBu Coverage

As for how it's working with ratings for the station, Michaels said that information was not yet available, as ratings surveys are done quarterly. But he did say that he has received a lot of "positive comments about Bruce, and Bruce certainly has had a solid following of people who listen to him."

Bond himself has found his rhythm, mostly by pulling in different co-hosts and guests every week. It's a move Michaels approves of. "When [Bond] has someone in the studio with him, it allows his creativity to flow," Michaels said.

Read More Now

Midwest Radio: Number Of Hispanic Stations Increasing

For many Latinos in Cleveland, Ohio, waking up on January 1st to the sounds of Marc Anthony on WLFM-FM 87.7 FM-LV(Channel6 on old analog TV) was a dream come true,  according to NBC News. The arrival of "La Mega" was a welcome arrival in the state's second most populous city. But the story of the Cleveland station's switch to español and bilingual programming mirrors what other Midwestern radio managers have discovered - the potency of the Hispanic radio audience.

“[Latinos are] the only growing population that exists in those markets, and there was nothing for them,” said Murray Hill Broadcasting Director of Advertising Josh Guttman, explaining the company's decision to introduce the station in Ohio. Since 2000, the state's Latinos have increased by over 63 percent to account for about 10 percent of the state's population.

Hispanics have the highest inclination to listen to radio of any ethnic group; numbers provided by Nielsen make this pretty clear. More than 93 percent of all Hispanics - roughly around 40 million - use radio each week. On average Hispanics spend about 12 hours and 13 minutes a week consuming radio. Mexican regional music is the most popular format.

Luis Montoto

For many Hispanic radio stations in the Midwest, understanding their local Latino audience is key. Luis and Lupita Montoto took a circuitous route toward their current roles as programming directors at WLMV 1480 AM La Movida in Madison, Wisconsin. The husband and wife duo had always dreamed of having their own radio station. After years working in central Wisconsin, they got their opportunity in April 2000. Tom Walker, the President of Mid-West Family Broadcasting, had a frequency that was only being used for simulcasting that he hoped to transition to a full-time Hispanic network.

Since the station's debut Wisconsin's Latino community has grown immensely; it is the second largest but fastest growing minority in the state. Though Wisconsin's Hispanic population is about 6 percent, the median age is 23, and many analysts believe the demographic will grow even further.

A year ago La Movida expanded to a full radio network with another station in Rockford, Wisconsin. With the support of the Mid-West Family Broadcasting, the Montotos hopes to bring stations to even more communities in Wisconsin.

The growth of stations in the Midwest is part of a national trend: the number of Spanish language formatted radio stations grew from 547 in 2000 to 895 in 2012, according to the National Association of Broadcasters.

Read More Now 

Brad Paisley Disputes Fan's Breastfeeding Claim

A woman claims she was kicked out of a recent Brad Paisley concert in San Diego for breastfeeding. Police disagreed strongly, and Paisley — who talked about the incident on radio Friday — says he does, too, according to A Taste of Country.

Megan Christopherson was in the pit area of the July 10 show with her 4-month-old child when she was approached by officers from the Chula Vista Police Department. In a video captured by a bystander, they’re heard telling the woman to either sit in seats they’d designated for her, or to leave. She chose to leave. Police say they were simply worried about the safety of her child, as it can be very loud so close to the speakers.



When speaking with the Frogmen in the Morning show Friday on CBS Radio's KFRG 95.1 FM/92.9FM in San Bernardino, CA, Paisley maintains that the police did the right thing.

“It seemed to me … it sure seemed that she did the absolute wrong thing.” the country star says. “She’s probably picked the wrong fight.”

Video -

Paisley was performing during the incident and didn’t even see it happen. He stresses that he had “nothing to do with [it],” and while none of his people were involved, he did enough research to reach his own conclusion. “From what I was told by the authorities, according to the police it had nothing to do with breastfeeding at all,” he says adamantly, adding, “Nothing.”

Paisley saw the YouTube video (which has since been taken down) of the confrontation and says the cops handled it professionally and that “it didn’t look like they were mean.” In the clip, police are overheard saying, “Your child doesn’t have hearing protection on. The crowd is going to start surging forward. Where you’re at, your child can get crushed.”

Paisley, a father himself, absolutely understands their concern.

Read More Now

Report: NYTimes' Distorted Coverage Of Gaza Conflict

Something important is missing from the New York Times's coverage of the war in Gaza: photographs of terrorist attacks on Israel, and pictures of Hamas fighters, tunnels, weaponry, and use of human shields, according to The Weekly Standard.

According to writer Noah Pollak, it appears the Times is silently but happily complying with a Hamas demand that the only pictures from Gaza are of civilians and never of fighters. The most influential news organization in the world is thus manufacturing an utterly false portrait of the battle—precisely the portrait that Hamas finds most helpful: embattled, victimized Gaza civilians under attack by a cruel Israeli military.

A review of the Times's photography in Gaza reveals a stark contrast in how the two sides are portrayed. Nearly every picture from Israel depicts tanks, soldiers, or attack helicopters. And every picture of Gaza depicts either bloodied civilians, destroyed buildings, overflowing hospitals, or other images of civilian anguish. It is as one-sided and misleading a depiction of the Gaza battle as one can imagine.

Today's Times photo essay contains seven images: three of Gaza civilians in distress; one of a smoke plume rising over Gaza; and three of the IDF, including tanks and attack helicopters. The message is simple and clear: the IDF is attacking Gaza and harming Palestinian civilians. There are no images of Israelis under rocket attack, no images of grieving Israeli families and damaged Israeli buildings, no images of Hamas fighters or rocket attacks on Israel, no images of the RPG's and machine guns recovered from attempted Hamas tunnel infiltrations into Israel.

Read More Now

Russian News Media Backing Putin

Opposite of how the Western media porays the down of the Malaysia airline jets, media in Russia is presenting a different version of events.

For example, one Russian TV piece challenged a video clip that Ukrainian authorities said showed the Buk missile battery being rushed toward the Russian border shortly after the shootdown, saying the serial number on the truck -– 312 -– showed the missile launcher was Ukrainian army equipment.

NBC News reports Dozhd TV took note of the wave of criticism directed at Putin in a chyron denouncing “Putin hunting” by foreign leaders.

Nor has the Russian news media had a problem getting soundbites and pithy quotes from Russian politicians.

Deputy Russian Prime Minister Dmitri Rogozin, for example, said on Twitter that the U.S. has reached its conclusions about responsibility for the crash before the facts are known. He cited a bit of recent history to underscore his point: “Just like Saddam Hussein and his weapons of mass destruction!”

On the other hand, the Russian media has not paid much attention to an upwelling of sympathy from Russian citizens who have been leaving flowers and other gifts at makeshift memorials outside the Malaysian and Dutch embassies.

That might have something to do with the stinging messages scattered among the other remembrances, like this one, “Not all Russians are murderers and terrorists.”

R.I.P.: Former NJ Radio/TV News Anchor Michael Schurman

Michael Schurman

Michael Schurman, former radio/TV news anchor, died Sunday.

He was 71.

Schurman was also the first news director for radio station WOND and later for  local NBC affiliate WMGM-TV 40, for which he was a weekend news anchor.

Schurman's wife Debbie said her husband suffered from Alzheimer's disease for about four years.

"He was a great guy with a great heart," Debbie Schurman said. She recalled the years her husband spent playing Santa Claus for the neighborhood children. "He had a real soft spot for children," she said. Michael Schurman and his twin brother Robert grew up in an orphanage.

Schurman also served as president of the Press Club of Atlantic City at one time and as executive director of the National Headliner Awards.

July 21 In Radio History

In 1969...Six hours after first landing on the moon, American astronaut, Neil Armstrong, stepped on the Moon at 2:56:15 AM and the world watched and listened, all made possible by the tranmission of radio waves.


In 1980...WMCA 570 AM, New York, hosted a reunion featuring Joe O'Brien, Harry Harrison, Dan Daniels, Jack Spector and B. Mitchel Reed.

In 1960, WMCA began promoting itself by stressing its on-air personalities, who were collectively known as the Good Guys. Led by program director Ruth Meyer, the first woman to hold the position in New York City radio,  this was the era of the high-profile Top 40 disc jockey with an exuberant personality aimed at a certain audience segment. With the advent of the Good Guys format, WMCA became more "on top" of new music and started to become known for "playing the hits."

In the early 1960s, the top 40 format was still young, and the field was crowded in New York City. Two major 50,000-watt stations, WMGM (now WEPN) and WINS, had battled each other, playing pop music for years. Then in 1960, WABC joined the fray and started featuring top 40 music. Ultimately, it was WMCA's earnest competition with rival WABC that forced WMGM (in early 1962) and then WINS (in spring 1965) to abandon the top-40 format. There was so much attention on the high-profile WMCA-WABC battle that WMGM and WINS were each summarily forced to find a new niche.


In 2011...WRXP 101.9 FM NYC changes call letters to WEMP



 In 2013…Cabaret singer Page Morton Black, who sang the Chock Full o' Nuts coffee jingle in radio and TV commercials during a two-decade run in the middle of the 20th century, died at age 97.