USA Today Relaunches Website

Report: WTAM To Retain Cleveland Indians

WTAM AM/1100 will continue as the Indians' flagship station for another five years, according to a report on the (Elyria) Chronicle-Telegram's website. The report  stated that an announcement is expected soon.   The Indians also received a serious offer from WKRK FM/92.3.

However, Indians senior director of communications, Curtis Danburg, said: “I cannot confirm a deal having been done with WTAM or 92.3/The Fan. We continue to have meaningful communications, but we don't have a finalized contract.”

According to Indians President Mark Shapiro that the Indians haven't signed a deal of any length with WTAM.

The Weather Channel To Name Winter Storms

During the upcoming 2012-13 winter season The Weather Channel will name noteworthy winter storms. Our goal is to better communicate the threat and the timing of the significant impacts that accompany these events. The fact is, a storm with a name is easier to follow, which will mean fewer surprises and more preparation. 

Hurricanes and tropical storms have been given names since the 1940s. In the late 1800s, tropical systems near Australia were named as well. Weather systems, including winter storms, have been named in Europe since the 1950s.  Important dividends have resulted from attaching names to these storms:

• Naming a storm raises awareness.
• Attaching a name makes it much easier to follow a weather system’s progress.
• A storm with a name takes on a personality all its own, which adds to awareness.
• In today’s social media world, a name makes it much easier to reference in communication.
• A named storm is easier to remember and refer to in the future.

Read More Here.

TRN: Jerry Doyle Moves Into Savage Time Slot

The Talk Radio Network has decided to promote from within.   Mark Masters, CEO of TRN, has announced that Jerry Doyle will move into the 3pm to 6 (Pacific) time slot vacated last week by Michael Savage. 

Savage departed TRN last week following an arbitrator’s ruling that in effect voided his contract.

Talkers Magazine ranks Doyle as the 6^th largest syndicated radio talk show in America and Masters notes that, "Jerry Doyle is the vanguard of talk radio's next evolutionary step, and he has been setting the standard for talk radio's profitable, saleable and sustainable future for some time now, with commentary that is entertaining, memorable and responsible.  Good work Jerry, as you jump from the 6th largest show to the 3rd largest show in America - you deserve this day - you have earned it."

Doyle is a Jet pilot, Wall Street investment banker for 10 years, Hollywood star for 12 years, former congressional nominee and a 9 year talk show vet.

To listen to show samples click www.jerrydoyle.com.  For more information contact: Talk Radio Network Enterprises 1-888-383-3733.

WCCC In Hartford Car Promotion Crashes

UPDATE, TUESDAY 10/9:  Things have worked out for contestant Michelle Mele.  First a competing station WMRQ 104.1 Hartford offered to fulfill the prize.  Then, WCCC made things right. After being contacted by WCCC, Mele says  . "We had a talk about everything that happened and they offered me compensation that I'm very grateful for. I thank them from the bottom of my heart for that. They made it right."

Original Posting....

On a whim, radio listener  Michelle Mele she entered Hartford’s WCCC / Rock 106.9's Custom Coach Contest. It offered up to $10,000 worth of auto repairs for a person in need and she won.

"I was so grateful that someone would do something that nice for somebody," Mele told NBC Connecticut Troubleshooter Monica Buchanan.

But a contest that promised to build dreams was nothing short of a nightmare for Mele, according to WVIT-TV reporter Buchann. She says promises of a much-needed wheelchair lift, paint job and even a quick vacuum were broken.

"When they brought the car around, I almost burst into tears. Nothing was done to it, it looked exactly like it did when they came to pick it up," Mele said.

According to the radio station's website, three small Connecticut businesses teamed up for the contest. K&J Auto in Wolcott would repair any mechanical issues. PN Auto in Cheshire would repaint and detail the winning car, while Custom Coach in Southington promised customized work, like a lift.

"As far as WCCC listeners know, somebody won the contest and somebody got the prize. That didn't happen," explained Mele.

Mele turned over the keys to her car on August 8. No timetable was specified in the contest rules, but she says she was told her new and improved ride would be revealed at Custom Coach's car show on August 19. But the 19th came and went with few apologies and requests for more time. Mele says after 21 days without a way to and from therapy, she had had enough.

"I was getting sicker and it was really bad. I needed my car back," said Mele.

She says it took several days of unanswered and unreturned phone calls before Chris Caldarola from Custom Coach got back to her. Before she got the keys though, she was asked to sign a contract that read "Custom Coach and 106.9 WCCC are not responsible for any promises and/ or work that was not done."

"I was heartbroken. I was grateful that the one place, K&J Auto in Wolcott, did do the work and fixed all the mechanical stuff," said Mele.

Receipts show K&J Auto in Wolcott finished replacing Mele's brakes, struts, serpentine belts and catalytic converter on August 28 to the tune of about $2,300. But Mele says P&N Auto and Custom Coach didn't do a thing to her car.

Read More Here.

As for WCCC, they’ve posted the following on their Facebook page.

Many of you have contacted us regarding the inaccurate and misleading report that aired on WVIT-TV last night. We would like to set the record straight regarding this situation. Michele Mele won a contest we had on Facebook and was awarded a $10,000 car makeover. Three Connecticut businesses agreed to donate their services for this promotion – Custom Coach, PN Auto Body, LLC and K & J Automotive. The mechanical work took longer than anticipated to finish due to the fact that Michele’s car is quite old and it was difficult to get the parts quickly. Once the basic mechanical problems were fixed by K & J Automotive (about $2,500 worth of work), the vehicle was taken to Custom Coach. Custom Coach was planning to do a number of alterations to the vehicle, including installing a ramp in the back in order to facilitate the storage of Michele’s wheelchair. This was going to take at least a week. It was at this point that Michele demanded that Custom Coach give her back her car even though the work had not been completed. Custom Coach was perfectly willing to do the work, but Michele wanted her car returned to her. We continue to work on a solution to this situation.

WCCC-FM

WIL-FM St. Louis’ Judi Diamond Stars In New Reality Show

"MFF: Mom Friends Forever" airs at 9:30 p.m. Mondays on Nick Jr. beginning tonight (Oct. 1).

Judi Diamond

Judi Diamond and Kate Frisina-White wore sparkles for the premiere screening of "MFF: Mom Friends Forever," as only appropriate for budding TV stars.

Diamond declared herself "a nervous wreck." Frisina-White hugged everyone in sight.

According to Gail Penningston at stltoday.com, the friends, both 40-something, spun their video blog, "Lipstick 'n' Laundry," into a television series, thanks to St. Louis' Coolfire Originals and Nickelodeon cable, which will air "MFF: Mom Friends Forever" beginning tonight as part of the new NickMom block on the Nick Jr. channel.

"What I can't get over," Diamond said at the screening, "is that this was an idea, just an idea, and now it's really happening."

But Frisina-White wanted to make an important point. "I'm a real person. I'm not an actress. I work 30 hours a week at a grocery store" (a grocery store that won't allow its name to be mentioned). "I took the job to get health insurance for my kids. Anything you see on screen is my real life, and I hope other women will find that relatable."

Kate White

Diamond is also a working mom; St. Louis audiences hear her daily on "The Cornbread Morning Show" on WIL-FM (92.3), for which she's also a producer.

When Diamond and Frisina-White first came to Coolfire with their idea, they didn't really have an idea. "We thought we had something, but we weren't sure what," Diamond said.

"They discovered us," said Tim Breitbach, Coolfire's vice president of original programming. "They were already doing their video blog, and they were so much fun together, we knew it could be a good TV show."

That only left finding the right network. At the time, Nickelodeon was looking for programming for a planned NickMom block targeting mothers after their kids are in bed.

Read More Here.

Crazed Fan Bites KZOK's Danny Bonaduce

Danny Bonaduce, who has made a career out of being a radio personality and "that kid from The Partridge Family TV show," was bitten on the cheek by a fan this past Friday night while making a personal appearance, according to a story by radio reporter Corey Deitz at about.com.

The KZOK-FM/ 102.5 FM Seattle morning man told the newstribune.com she asked if she could kiss him and then "latched on to his cheek" for maybe a minute. Others had to pull the woman off.

LISTEN HERE.

The woman was taken into custody and Bonaduce was treated with antibiotics. Police took a report Saturday but Bonaduce said he was not going to press charges.

Read More Here.

The SavageNation Goes Online

Talker Michael Savage, who last week won a legal proceeding against the Talkers Radio Network and ended his radio program, went online Sunday.

Savage did a broadcast via Ustream and vowed to keep the Nation in-the-loop as to where he'll eventually end up.  He expects a new radio deal soon.

Ustream audio of the broadcast was pulled from the public Sunday.

Seattle's Bob Rivers: On With The Radio Show!

With bad jokes, big hearts and Twisted Tunes, Bob Rivers and his KJR crew keep playing.

Profile by Bill Reader at seattletimes.com

Benschneider photo 

The radio business is changing: Fewer stations, fewer jobs, fewer personalities. But for nearly 23 years, Seattle has been listening to lovable misfits Bob, Spike and "Downtown" Joe Bryant. Since April 1, 2011, after adding Seattle radio veteran Jodi Brothers to the mix, they've been cracking wise from 6 to 10 a.m. weekdays on KJR. The show is consistently one of the top three in its time period with the all-important 25-to-54 age group, along with "The BJ Shea Morning Experience" on KISW and "Morning Edition" on KUOW. 

It's the last remaining local talk/entertainment program on Seattle morning radio — others play music between gabbing, or focus on news. The show — "Bob Rivers Twisted Radio" on KISW from late 1989 through August 2000, "The Bob Rivers Show" from 2001 through September 2010 on KZOK, and now on KJR — is stronger than ever.

LISTEN HERE!

Everything's rainbows and great ratings now, but the incredible longevity, the easy chemistry and current success of these radio survivors has been hard-earned. Their long, strange trip has included failed contract negotiations, cast changes, rehab, a lot of work and a recent health scare. But as the show and its players have evolved, there has also been laughter, love, support and family. Always, family — on and off the air.

Read More Here.

How Morning Shows Can ‘Talk’ About The Prez Debates

Consultant Randy Lane offers ideas for music station morning shows to ‘tie-in’ to the Presidential Debates.  First one is Wednesday 10/3:

• The American Presidential debates are next week. Challenge your team to find a way to talk about it in the style of your show. Here’s a checklist of ideas to help you get started (focusing on quantity, not quality, for thought starters – no judging!):

• Bill Jordan from WRAL noticed that this election is all about percentages. 47%...98%...1%  Come up with your own funny percentages.

• Find listeners who have one Democrat and one Republican in the relationship. Ask them how they watch the debates, or challenge them to a game.

• Bring in a stand-up comedian to say what you can’t.

• Replay clips from late-night monologues, Jon Stewart, etc.

• Get audio of kids or really old people talking about the hot topic.

• Play “Guess the Debater” and replay clips of blunders and gaffes from previous debates (Rick Perry, for example).

• Create a parody of some kind – a photo, video or song.

• Put a twist on a benchmark you already do. “Battle of the Sexes” becomes Donkeys vs. Elephants or Democrats vs. Republicans for a day.

• Create a Facebook or phone topic along the lines of “My ex [or ex’s family/or in-laws/or even parents!] was so [liberal/conservative] that __________.”

• Play a trivia game about all the actors that have played presidents in movies (Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman, Michael Douglas, that guy from 24, etc.). Play audio clips or have listeners match the movie or show to the actor.

• Presidential Spelling Bee: Have listeners spell politician’s names. D-U-K-A-K-I-S. Always funny.

• Do a “Jay Walking” type segment asking people on the street what they know about the election or even 6th grade civics – branches of government, electoral colleges, etc. 

• Create your own platform. Or for veteran, character-driven shows, ask listeners which one of the show players they’d be most likely to vote for.

• The Bert Show, Q100/Atlanta, Syndicated, had two eighth graders, one with Republican and one with Democratic parents, review the debate performance the next morning.

Read More Here.

Opinion: KSTE A&G Dust-up Was All About Lawyers

From Bob Maiman for sacbee.com.

The outrage over last week's mini-suspension of radio hosts Armstrong & Getty provided yet another example of melodrama common in our society and corrosive to our discourse. 

Radio is replete with stories of broadcasters punished for uttering words that cross swords with management, but given the context of the insipid video that sparked much of the latest contretemps in the Middle East, it's understandable why reaction to the suspension was driven by familiar, albeit misguided missives on free speech, Muslim appeasement and corporate cowardice – in this case, Clear Channel. 

It's common, too, for media of all stripes – radio included – to reduce stories to single sound bites, further fueling the misinformation rock pile. Indeed, "molehills into mountains" is the typically "instant coffee" practice of today's digitized media. Just add water – provided it satiates our ADD culture – and voilà, controversy! 

As a longtime radio broadcaster, I wasn't buying this suspension. Urging listeners to "bombard" Al-Jazeera, the Arabic news network, with homemade "anti-Muhammad ads until they grow up"? How does a company suspend someone over words like that, which are perfectly legal, given that fellow Clear Channel broadcaster Rush Limbaugh has faced no such company wrath despite saying far worse? 

As the duo explained in their on-air return last Thursday, the suspension had nothing to do with what was said on the air. Insiders told me the day before that the suspension involved a support staffer issuing a press release containing rhetoric from the broadcast. Issued without approval – a violation of corporate policy – it included Clear Channel's corporate logo, making matters worse.

Read More Here.

WLS-FM’s Legendary Jocks Now Play 'Classic Hits'

WLS-FM (94.7) Chicago unveils a new line-up today and reference to ‘oldies’ is gone.  The station now plays the Classic Hits.

Pictured are Cumulus Media programmer Jan Jeffries (foreground, seated) with new WLS-FM lineup (from left): Greg Brown, middays; Brant Miller, mornings; Dick Biondi, overnights; Fred Winston, afternoons; John Records Landecker, evenings.

“It is clearly a shift of format from oldies to classic hits,” Jan Jeffries, senior vice president of programming for Cumulus Media and program director of WLS-FM, told Robert Feder at timeoutchicago.com in an interview Sunday.

“There will not be any radio station like this one.” He pointed to a playlist spanning ’60s to ’80s rock featuring Bryan Adams, Journey, John Mellencamp, Chicago, Doobie Brothers, Eagles, Supertramp, Styx, Blue Oyster Cult, Fleetwood Mac and Bruce Springsteen. “We still will play a lot of the music that we’ve always played, but it’s no longer oldies. We will not use that word.”

LISTEN HERE.

Above all, the presentation will be unique, Jeffries said. “We will be fresh to the market and will have instant relevance that is unduplicated. And that will be compounded by the fact that we have the most legendary [talent] lineup in Chicago — no question about it. Probably in the whole country.”

Read More Here.

RIP: Chris Economaki Dies At 91

Chris Economaki, a journalist long regarded as the authoritative voice in motor sports, died Friday. He was 91.

National Speed Sport News, which Economaki edited and published for more than 60 years, announced his death but gave no details, according to a story at latimes.com.

Economaki, who was often called the "dean of American motor sports journalism," worked in television for more than 30 years with stints at ABC, CBS and ESPN.

He was part of ABC's first telecast from Daytona International Speedway in 1961, then became a pit reporter and commentator for the network's "Wide World of Sports" until 1983.

After moving to CBS in 1984, he called races for that network until 1993. He also covered Formula One races for ESPN in the late 1980s.

Born Oct. 15, 1920, in Brooklyn, N.Y., to a Greek immigrant and his wife, Economaki grew up in Ridgewood, N.J., and attended his first race in Atlantic City when he was 9.

Read More Here.

Fred Winston Returns F/T To WLS-FM

In a seismic shift involving four of radio’s best known voices, Fred Winston moves in to afternoons, Brant Miller returns to mornings, Greg Brown moves up to middays, and Scott Shannon moves out at oldies WLS-FM(94.7).

According to Robert Feder at timeoutchicago.com, all four moves, announced Friday, mark a wholesale realignment of the Cumulus Media station’s daytime lineup.

Winston, a Chicago radio legend who first joined sister station WLS-AM (890) in 1971 when it was a Top 40 powerhouse, has been working weekends on WLS-FM since late August. Starting Monday, he’ll be on from 2:30 to 6pm Monday through Friday.

“Fred personifies WLS,” said Jan Jeffries, senior vice president of programming for Cumulus Media and program director of WLS-FM. “He is back where he belongs in the driver's seat every afternoon.”

LISTEN HERE

Winston, who’d been sidelined since June 2005 when CBS Radio switched WJMK-FM (104.3) from oldies to Jack FM, said he was eager to return. "I'm proud to be joining the best team in radio today,” he said in a statement. “I'm so excited that Jan Jeffries and Cumulus brought me onboard to reintroduce myself to Chicago, afternoons on WLS-FM."

Miller, who previously hosted mornings on WLS-FM, returns Monday to join co-host Marti Jones from 5 to 10am weekdays. On Thursday, the station parted company with Dave Fogel after more than two years as morning personality.

Read More Here.

Goodbye 'Car Talk,' Hello 'Everywhere' Radio?

From Sophie Schechter at minyanville.com:

The famous "Car Talk" brothers are shutting down their beloved public radio show, but this does not mark the end of the radio era, say executives. 

After 35 years of supplying advice and laughter to roughly 3.3 million listeners via 660 radio stations per week, NPR’s hit series Car Talk will stop producing new shows this month.  

The radio talk show, hosted by brothers Tom and Ray Magliozzi, has been “culturally right up there with Mark Twain and the Marx Brothers," according to Doug Berman, executive producer of Car Talk. But despite the show's 25 years of success and timeless quality, , hosts Tom, 74, and Ray, 63, have decided -- due to their advancing ages --  that it is “time to get even lazier." 

NPR has announced that Car Talk will cease producing new episodes at the end of September, so presumably this weekend, but the station will continue to broadcast reruns of Car Talk until, we assume, the show stops bringing in listeners. Car Talk reruns will run on NPR often, but not necessarily in the same prime time slots. "We're hoping to be like I Love Lucy” and air ten times a day on NPR at Nite in 2075," Tom told ABC World News. 

The premise of Car Talk is simple: The two mechanics dispense wisdom -- regarding car problems, primarily, but also about relationship issues sparked by automobile malfunctions -- to individual callers across the US and Canada. However, Tom and Ray are not your average mechanics. Both graduates of MIT, the brothers decided to open up a DIY car shop originally named Hackers Haven in 1973, selling car parts to non-mechanics while also teaching lay people how to install the equipment. When this operation proved unsuccessful, the brothers decided to open up a classic repair shop they called Good News Garage in 1977. 

That same year, WBUR, an NPR affiliate in Boston, asked the Magliozzi brothers to sit on a panel of automobile specialists. It was from this one-time appearance that NPR discovered the duo and their ability to mix auto advice with comedy. Soon after, the show Car Talk came to life. Hosts Ray and Tom took on the nicknames Click and Clack, in homage to the old, worn-out vehicles discussed on the program. Their ability to diagnose issues based on general descriptions and, in many cases, sound effects, was uncanny. 

In their 35 years on the radio and 25 years at NPR, the Magliozzi brothers have become a staple in the lives of many radio listeners, even among urbanites who don't drive or even own vehicles. “Grim news indeed,” said one fan in a Tweet after hearing that Car Talk would no longer be airing new episodes come fall. He continued, “I am mourning Click and Clack’s announcement on several levels. Most obviously, the retirement leaves a gaping void in the NPR community.” 

So what does the end of Car Talk mean in the age of new media?

Read More Here.

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