Philly Radio: John Kincaide To Wake-Up Fanatics On WPEN

Two days after Marc Farzetta announced he was out as morning show host at WPEN 97.5 FM The Fanatic, John Kincade has formally been named as his replacement.

The Philly Business Journal reports The John Kincade Show will officially begin on January 4. Chuck Damico, program director at The Fanatic, said that Farzetta’s co-hosts Bob Cooney, Jamie Lynch and Pat Egan will stay with the station as part of Kincade’s new show.

“Marc is super-talented and we would have loved to keep him as part of our war chest,” Damico said. “But we felt the morning show required a different set of skills and it wasn’t getting enough traction. We just couldn’t keep Marc [and give him a different assignment] because of budget. We just felt John’s skill set was more applicable to a morning show.”

So what are those different skills that Kincade brings to the table?

“John has tremendous experience, knows this market well, knows what works,” Damico said. “He’s done national shows, dealt with celebrities of all types. And his show is not just about sports. It’s about entertaining the audience with a variety of topics. And he’s phenomenal at that.”

Kincade worked at WIP from 1992 to 1994 before relocating to Atlanta where his career took off. He hosted shows for ESPN Radio and CBS Sports Radio but spent the past 20 years at WCNN 680 AM (The Fan), mostly co-hosting the Buck & Kincade show along with former University of Georgia quarterback Buck Belue. He was laid off in September by parent company Dickey Broadcasting as part of Covid-19 cuts.

In a statement, Kincade called returning to Philadelphia an “immense honor and pleasure.”

Like Farzetta, Kincade is a former mentee of Angelo Cataldi, the longtime morning show ratings kingpin at rival Sportsradio 94 WIP. He has long done guest spots on Cataldi’s show. But Cataldi, 69, signed a new contract with WIP last year, saying he was re-energized by the competition from Farzetta. Now Kincade will go head-to-head with his mentor. Damico has realistic expectations about how that will go.

The change at The Fanatic is not surprising. While WIP was fourth in the overall Philadelphia market ratings for the November book, The Fanatic did not crack the top 20. Damico was brought in this summer to serve as the station’s program director, replacing Eric Johnson. Gargano is entrenched at the midday shift and Mike Missanelli’s contract as afternoon drive host was extended through 2021.

In addition to The Fanatic, Beasley also operates rock station 93.3 FM (WMMR), classic rock station 102.9 FM (WMGK), country station 92.5 WXTU, pop station 95.7 BEN FM and talk station WWDB (860 AM).

Radio Disney to Sign-Off

 

As The Walt Disney Co. continues to emphasize streaming video, it is shutting down its Radio Disney and Radio Disney Country operations, effective the first quarter of 2021, reports Broadcasting & Cable.

The move comes at a time when the media business is changing, giving kids more personalized music choices and the pandemic prevents Radio Disney from holding in-person events that attract sponsors.

Disney has been restructuring to focus on its direct-to-consumer business. Combined with the pandemic, which has devastated the company’s theme parks and movie business, the company reported a $710 million loss for its fiscal fourth quarter and has eliminated thousands of employees to reduce costs.

Launched in 1996, Radio Disney helped launch young Disney music stars including the Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, as well as Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber, and One Direction. In 2013, it began producing the Radio Disney Music Awards, which were televised on Disney Channel and showcased stars like Ariana Grande, Gwen Stefani, Meghan Trainor and Zendaya.

Radio Disney’s 36 staffers were informed of plans to cease operations Thursday morning via a teleconference with Gary Marsh, president and chief creative officer, Disney Branded Television.

The Radio Disney staffers will lose their jobs early next year and receive an enhanced severance package.

The decision to close follows Disney’s exit from the radio station business, which began in 2007 and concluded with the sale of five Radio Disney stations to Salem Media Group for $2.225 million in 2015. Radio Disney kept one local station, KRDC-AM, Los Angeles, to originate its national programming feed. Disney will sell that station in 2021.

The shut down process will take a few months, and the Radio Disney signal will be turned off in the first quarter.

BIA Releases U-S Local Advertising Forecast for 2021

Radio is expected to remain in the top 5 ranking of media platforms in terms of local ad revenue next year, according to BIA advisory Services.

BIA has released its U-S Local Advertising Forecast.

It believes total local advertising revenue across all media in the U.S. will reach $137.5 billion in 2021. “This estimate represents a 2.5 percent year-over-year growth from the firm’s final post-COVID estimate for 2020 of $134.1 billion, as businesses start to adapt and rebound from the pandemic lows,” it stated.

“As the expected presence of vaccines will help with the continuing rebound in the economy, we expect this increase will occur throughout 2021 even without the presence of significant political advertising.”

Radio, the company projects, will bring in $12.6 billion in ad revenue. Included in the figure is all spot revenue from OTA radio, from national, regional and local advertisers, as well as radio online advertising.

That performance would be up 1.4% from BIA’s latest estimates for 2020 and it would keep radio at about 9.2% of the local ad pie, “pretty flat” with this year’s 9%.

In 2021, traditional media revenue will account for 55.3% of total local advertising at $76.1 billion, a slight decline from 2020 levels. Digital media revenue will grow to $61.5 billion in 2021 to obtain 44.7% of total local media revenue, a share increase of 3.7% from 2020.

“Although we are estimating an overall increase in total local advertising next year, we do not expect spending to recover to pre-COVID (2019) levels until 2022,” says Dr. Mark Fratrik, BIA’s chief economist.  “The availability of a vaccine early in the new year will be a key factor to a much stronger year for almost all vertical advertising as the economy rebounds and consumers start moving around more freely and even going back into the office.”

BIA’s Local Advertising Forecast 2021 provides total nationwide spending estimates for five years, along with 13 individual media forecasts.

Explaining the share of wallet between media, Fratrik commented, “This year saw a very strong shift into digital media for its lower costs, accountability, and flexibility. However, it also included substantially improved targeting, attribution, and ROI tools from broadcast TV, broadcast radio and MVPDs that cannot be ignored. Just as the pandemic had a significant effect on the local ad environment, it adjusted how we did our overall forecasting for 2021. Into the new year, we will continue examining the revenue generating opportunities of linear plus digital media activations in our forecasting models.”

Proposed Podcast Measurement Guidelines Out for Public Comment

IAB Tech Lab has released the Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines 2.1 for public comment for a 30-day period which begins today and lasts until December 31, 2020. Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines are standard metrics for both podcast content and podcast ads to provide marketplace clarity through a common language for measurement.

With the podcast industry's significant growth, and ad revenue projected to reach $1 billion in the U.S. for 2020, there is a need to keep pace with market needs and provide further clarification of the Measurement Guidelines. The IAB Tech Lab Podcast Technical Working Group put together the latest updates on industry best practices to reduce measurement discrepancies and provide a set of recommended metrics and guidelines across the podcast marketplace. The IAB Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines 2.1 have significant updates over the current version, which was last updated in 2017. They include a new section with guidance on user agent structure, recommendations for IPv6 IP addresses, filtering guidance for Apple watchOS user agents, and a number of additional podcast player recommendations.

The IAB Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines 2.1 define four metrics – Download, Listener, Ad Delivered, and Client-Confirmed Ad Play – creating the first step toward an improved environment where buyers and sellers can use a clearly defined common language. This is important because improved communication will enable producers to scale their operations and invest in technology that brings tracking closer to the standards available in other media options.

Shailley Singh

"The podcast industry has remained vibrant during the global pandemic. Podcast listeners are loyal and highly engaged which makes them an appealing target for marketers," said Shailley Singh, Vice President, Product and Global Programs, IAB Tech Lab. "However, this medium is currently under-utilized due to industry challenges around a commonly agreed-upon set of metrics. The IAB Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines is designed to address this by creating a consistent set of podcast advertising metrics so buyers and sellers can engage in a conversation about campaign strategy with confidence."

"The changes to the IAB Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines v2.1 are the result of hours of conversation, collaboration, and research among podcast industry leaders across a range of topics most notably with respect to guidance for podcast app developers," said Robert Freeland, Co-Founder and CTO, Podtrac. "The IAB Tech Lab Podcast Technical Working Group continues to iterate on its standards to provide the market with the most accurate and consistent data."

Robert Freeland

Steve Mulder, Senior Director of Audience Insights, NPR, added, "Podcasting continued to grow in 2020 despite the COVID-19 disruptions to all of our lives, reinforcing the power of this medium to connect with audiences. With this continued growth, it is vital to accurately measure podcasting effectiveness, and that's why the updates to the IAB Podcast Measurement Technical Guidelines matter. These updates ensure podcast metrics can be trusted by publishers and advertisers for making key investment decisions in this powerful medium."

IAB Tech Lab Podcast Technical Working Group Co-Chairs include Steve Mulder, Senior Director of Audience Insights, NPR and Robert Freeland, Co-Founder and CTO, Podtrac.

To review the proposed standard and provide feedback, please go to: https://iabtechlab.com/standards/podcast-measurement-guidelines/

The AM Rundown: Dire COVID Warning In Leaked Report

Nearly every square mile of the United States is in the red danger zone for coronavirus, and the threat to the health of all Americans "is at an historic high," according to a report sent by the White House coronavirus task force to the states. The report, which was leaked to the media, warns that a surge in infections will inevitably follow the Thanksgiving weekend and threatens to overwhelm the medical system. Yesterday, for the fourth day in a row, hospitalizations for COVID-19 reached a record high. A total 98,691 were hospitalized and 2,597 died.

Dr. Robert Redfield, head of the Centers for Disease Control, issued a stark warning that total deaths from Covid-19 could reach "close to 450,000" by February unless most Americans follow basic precautions like wearing masks. Nearly 275,000 have died to date.

On a more positive note, the CDC is expected to shorten its guidance for the quarantine period that should follow exposure to COVID-19. The recommended period to stay home will be shortened to seven to 10 days from the previous two weeks.

CNN Refuses to Show Any Excerpts from Trump's 46-Minute, Lie-Filled Rant Against His Election Loss: 'Essentially a Propaganda Video' https://t.co/JFPxd7cx5T

— Mediaite (@Mediaite) December 3, 2020

➤PRESIDENT TRUMP CONTINUES TO DISPUTE ELECTION RESULTS: President Donald Trump has posted a 46-minute video on Facebook and Twitter in which he demanded that the results of the 2020 election be overturned immediately. He asserted that the results were fraudulent, and claimed that there were instances of dead people voting, mysterious machine malfunctions and rampant corruption in big city polling places. The president said our election system is "under coordinated assault and siege."

Trump to travel to Georgia on Saturday to rally for Perdue and Loeffler https://t.co/KKLOkkCIP5

— CBS News (@CBSNews) December 2, 2020

➤TRUMP TARGETS SOCIAL MEDIA: President Donald Trump has threatened to veto an important defense spending bill unless Congress adds something entirely unrelated to it: A measure to undo the protection from lawsuits that social media companies enjoy. That is, sites like Facebook and Twitter cannot now be held legally responsible for the content of the posts on their sites. The president tweeted about it this week, saying that the 1996 Communications Decency Act is "a serious threat to our National Security & Election integrity." He and other conservatives also believe that the social media companies are tougher on conservatives than on liberals. Twitter has been regularly fact-checking the president's claims on election fraud.

➤'PEOPLE' UNVEILS ITS PEOPLE OF THE YEAR: People Magazine revealed the four individuals it has crowned People of the Year, celebrating their talent and their determination to be forces for good. George Clooney, Selena Gomez, Regina King and Dr. Anthony Fauci were recognized. Each person landed their own cover. 

• GEORGE CLOONEY While returning to the spotlight for The Midnight Sky, he’s continuing to advocate for justice with the Clooney Foundation for Justice. He’s also given $500K to the Equal Justice Initiative in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and $1 million to COVID-19 relief efforts.
• SELENA GOMEZ Gomez was toasted for putting out a No. 1 album, Rare, becoming a successful cooking show host with HBO Max’s Selena + Chef, becoming one of the most-followed people on Instagram with 195 million fans, and using that platform to share messages from Black Lives Matter activists who were protesting police brutality. Gomez also launched an inclusive makeup brand that set the goal of raising $100 million in 10 years to give people access to mental health services, while speaking out about her own personal struggles.
• REGINA KING The Oscar-winning King has become a powerful voice to drive the vote and support marginalized communities amid the pandemic and a spate of police violence. She is also making her directorial debut in One Night in Miami, which bows Christmas Day.
• DR. ANTHONY FAUCI Dr. Fauci stepped up in 2020, providing Americans with guidance and leadership in an uncertain and frightening time.

Obama criticizes "defund the police" messaging: "You lost a big audience the minute you say it" https://t.co/VYYiHxJZKN

— CBS News (@CBSNews) December 3, 2020

'It's Not A Slogan. It's A Mandate' Progressives Push Back On Obama, Defend 'Defund The Police' https://t.co/lDZnb9o4Yq pic.twitter.com/R3ylUPAeDk

— The Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) December 3, 2020

🐷PIGS DON'T FLY: The Department of Transportation has tightened rules on the types of animals that can fly with their people to provide "emotional support." The new rule allows only dogs to fly along, and only those that have been trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. The airlines have been battling with their customers over this for years. American Airlines has already instituted a policy banning amphibians, ferrets, goats, hedgehogs, spiders, sugar gliders, waterfowl and animals with tusks, horns or hooves.

➤CHICAGO COUPLE USES WEDDING DEPOSIT TO FEED PEOPLE: A Chicago couple used the money that had saved up for a catered wedding reception to feed the needy on Thanksgiving. After cancelling their original plans because of Covid-19, Emily Bugg and Billy Lewis married on October 1st at City Hall in Chicago. The newlyweds then used their $5,000 catering deposit to provide 200 Thanksgiving dinners for clients of Thresholds, a nonprofit mental health provider for people with mental illnesses and substance abuse issues. The dinners catered by Big Delicious Planet included turkey and all the fixings.

➤LADY GAGA ‘CHROMATICA’ OREOS ARE COMING IN 2021: Lady Gaga has teamed up with Oreo to create Chromatica Oreo cookies. The cookies are inspired by the pop star’s sixth studio album, Chromatica, and come in hot pink packaging. The cookies have pink-colored Oreo cookies and are filled with a green-colored cream. However, the cookies will taste like the classic Golden Oreo. They’ll be available wherever Oreos are sold for a limited time beginning in January 2021.

➤PRINGLES IS CHANGING UP ITS CANS AND MASCOT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 20 YEARS: Pringles recently announced that its cans would be getting a new look for the first time in 20 years. The brand says the new cans have a “new look that features bold hues and a clean design, highlighting the crisps’ inventive flavors and unique, stackable shape.” The brand’s mascot, the mustached Mr. P, also got a new, simplistic design.

FINAL: The @steelers remain unbeaten! #BALvsPIT #HereWeGo pic.twitter.com/eg86VcYlNV

— NFL (@NFL) December 2, 2020

🏀SWEET DEAL FOR LeBRON JAMES: LeBron James has signed a deal to stay with the Los Angeles Lakers for two more years for $85 million a year. That's a bit of a raise, since he's being paid $39.2 million for the current season. Speculation is rife that James is eager to stay long enough to play with or against his son, Bronny James, who is currently a star high school player.

🏀NBA OPENING NIGHTS REVEALED: The first NBA games of the season have been scheduled for December 22nd. The Golden State Warriors will meet the Brooklyn Nets at 7 PM ET, followed by the Los Angeles Lakers and the Clippers at 10 PM ET. Then on December 23rd, the Milwaukee Bucks will play the Boston Celtics at 7:30 PM ET and the Dallas Mavericks will play the Phoenix Suns at 10:30 PM ET.

The NBA's traditional holiday package for this year includes five games on December 25th: the New Orleans Pelicans vs. the Miami Heat, the Golden State Warriors vs. the Milwaukee Bucks, the Brooklyn Nets vs. the Boston Celtics, the Dallas Mavericks vs. the Los Angeles Lakers, and the L.A. Clippers vs. the Denver Nuggets.

🏀WESTBROOK IS A WIZARD: The Houston Rockets are sending Russell Westbrook to the Washington Wizards in exchange for John Wall and a future first-round draft pick. Westbrook had reportedly wanted to leave Houston.

🏈BUD DUPREE INJURED: Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Bud Dupree may have suffered a torn ACL during yesterday's win over the Baltimore Ravens, according to the NFL Network. Coach Mike Tomlin said he'll have an update after Dupree undergoes further testing today.

🏈MEDAL OF FREEDOM FOR LOU HOLTZ: Lou Holtz, the former Notre Dame football coach and a prominent supporter of President Trump, will receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the White House announced yesterday. Holtz, now 83, was a college football head coach for 33 seasons, including 11 at Notre Dame, from 1986 through 1996.

Report: Amazon Kicking Tires At Wondery

Amazon.com Inc. is in exclusive talks to purchase podcast startup Wondery, according to The Wall Street Journal citing people familiar with the matter, as the tech giant pushes further into the growing audio sector.

The talks value Wondery at over $300 million, the people said. Wondery’s last funding round, in June 2019, valued the company at $100 million, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The company is on track to increase revenue to more than $40 million this year, according one person familiar with the matter, with about 75% of that coming from advertising and the rest from licensing to TV, to subscription services like Audible and Stitcher Premium and to Wondery’s own premium subscription service, which launched this summer.

The deal talks are continuing and negotiations could still fall apart, the people said.

Closely held Wondery is the last large, independent podcaster on the market—and could present the final opportunity for a major tech or media giant to buy its way into the exploding field. Wondery’s investors include venture-capital firms such as Waverley Capital, Lerer Hippeau Ventures, Greycroft Partners and Advancit Capital.

Amazon’s foray coincides with a growth spurt for the small but rapidly expanding podcasting industry. Once the domain for super-niche fare, true-crime content and pop-culture dissections, the format has exploded in recent years as a destination for high-profile entertainment and political programming. Podcasting as a whole is attracting over 100 million monthly active listeners, according to Edison Research.

U.S. ad revenue from podcasts, meanwhile, rose an estimated 48% to $708.1 million last year, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau, and is projected to exceed $1 billion by 2021.

Major players in the tech and media sectors have acquired several other podcast startups in recent years. Spotify Technology SA bought Gimlet Media, a maker of narrative podcasts, in 2019 for more than $200 million. New York Times Co. NYT 0.92% in July said it would acquire Serial Productions, maker of the hit podcast “Serial,” in a deal that could be worth as much as $50 million depending on milestones and performance metrics, the Journal reported.

Spotify Soars From Joe Rogan Buzz

Spotify Technology SA climbed as much as 16 per cent Wednesday to an intraday record after the Joe Rogan podcast became exclusive to its platform, and it generated buzz with a feature that lists users’ top music of 2020, reports Bloomberg.

“The Joe Rogan Experience” is now being marketed as an only-on-Spotify podcast, giving the company a new way to lure listeners. The show holds the top spot for the most popular podcast of the year, Spotify said on Tuesday. The company said in May that the podcast would become exclusively available on the platform later this year.

Buzz around Spotify Wrapped is also providing a boost, according to Evercore ISI. The feature breaks down users’ listening history at the end of the year, providing insights like top songs and top artists that can be easily shared on social media.

“Spotify always sees a jump in app store rankings in early December following the Year in Review campaign,” analyst Kevin Rippey said in a note.

Evercore said the Spotify app has jumped in U.S. app store rankings to No. 9 on Wednesday from No. 27 on Monday. Spotify was the top Twitter trend in the U.S. as of 3 p.m. New York time on Wednesday.

Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Amine Bensaid also said upbeat vaccine news is a net positive for Spotify, as it points to the return of commuting.

NYC Radio: Kay Wins Carton's First 3-Days Back

In Craig Carton’s return to WFAN 101.9 FM / 660 AM, WEPN's 97.9 FM ESPN New York’s Kay Show beat “Carton & Roberts” in his opening three days among men 25-54, reports The NY Post citing Nielsen Audio. Depending how you view streaming, Kay either won the first three days or took two of three. 

On Monday, Nov. 9, from 3-7 p.m. when the programs go head-to-head, Kay won 8.6-6.9 with FAN’s streaming included. Two days later, Kay won 9.2-4.3, again with streaming. On Tuesday, Nov. 10, Kay won, 6.1-5.6, in the traditional way Nielsen present its numbers, but when you add in FAN’s streaming — which is already baked into ESPN New York’s share — then “C&R” comes back for a 8.1-6.1 advantage.

Any way you look at it, this is just for the first three days so, in the burgeoning afternoon radio rating war, it is a blip, an opening blip, but a blip,  according to Andrew Marchand at The NY Post.

The real sample size is three months, not three days.

In four weeks, appropriately enough, near Christmas, the first month will be available. This will still be an incomplete portrait though, more telling.

As for the content, Carton’s style doesn’t seem to have changed much after his three years away from FAN that included a year in a minimum security prison due to a fraud conviction.  Carton loves to talk about Carton. It is why it is a divisive listen, because it is more about him than sports, writes Marchand.

Kay, with his sidekicks Don La Greca and Peter Rosenberg, is not an all-sports show either. They are on a winning streak after taking down Francesa. The trio got the initial “W”against Carton, but it should be lowercase.

Springfield MO Radio: ND Don Louzader Joins KWTO Media

Don Louzader

Zimmer Communications has announced the addition of national award winning News Director Don Louzader to its Classic Country KWTO 101.3 FM.

Louzader comes to Zimmer with 29 years of news experience, the last 25 in Springfield at crosstown Country KTTS-FM. He’s earned two National Edward R. Murrow Awards, the highest honor in broadcast journalism. In addition, he has won numerous regional Murrows and Missouri Broadcasters Association Awards for news anchoring and reporting.

Don Louzader has earned the trust of thousands of listeners over the years with his straight-forward, accurate reporting of local news.

John Zimmer commented, “As we build out our local news operation to serve the Ozarks community, it became apparent quickly that Don was the gold standard for the area. We are thrilled to have Don Louzader be part of our team in Springfield.”

Louzader will join the “Wake up Springfield with Tim Jones” morning show on KWTO (93.3FM/560AM) as well as anchoring news and traffic reports on sister stations 101.3 Real Country and 98.7 The Dove.

“It’s a tremendous honor to be joining a local company with a commitment to local news and information,” Louzader said. “I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to work at a heritage station in Springfield with a group of talented broadcasters who care about this community.”

Louzader will join Zimmer Midwest Communications on Monday, December 7.

On September 17, 2020, 101.3 FM changed their format from red dirt country to classic country, branded as "101.3 Real Country".

MN-IA Radio: WHMH Morning Host EXITS After Inter-Station Bullying

WHMH Former morning host Aaron Imholte

WHMH 101.7 FM in St. Cloud, MN is down one host after Aaron Imholte resigned following an on-air verbal attack targeting another radio host on another station in another state.

Imholte had dedicated much of his Nov. 20 broadcast to ridiculing Heather Lee, co-host of “Fish & Heather,” a morning program that had premiered earlier in the month on KAZR Lazer 103.3 FM in Des Moines.

The Star-Tribune reported Tuesday that Imholte lashed into Lee, claiming that he had applied for the Iowa gig and that Lee was unqualified for the job. “I’m upset that a girl was allowed on a morning show,” he said on his “Steel Toe Morning Show” on rock station WHMH.

Lee, who had recently been broadcasting at a Hubbard-owned radio station in Seattle, said she could tolerate the digs about her on-air performance. But she balked when listening back at the personal insults, which included vicious comments on her weight and age.

“We will bury her in the ground. This chick is toast,” Imholte had said on the air. “We’re bullying today.  At one point, Imholte urged his listeners to start a rumor that Lee uses the “N word” in her personal life.

KAZR's Heather Lee

“Those were the types of things I found predatory,” Lee said in a phone interview Monday. “Comments inciting your fans to defame me on top of demoralization? That’s crossing the line.”

During an e-mail exchange Monday, Imholte says he was the victim of a “hatchet job” with Lee purposely taking his jokes out of context.

“They know they pulled a dirty move,” he wrote in the e-mail. “We are a comedy show built on sarcasm and satire. We did a segment two days previous lecturing guys that women have a terrible time in bars and how crappy it must be to go out and have to watch your drinks and hang out in groups because of the creepy things guys do. The herd mentality doesn’t decipher those things. They know only blood lost [sic]. They got me off the radio, but they pushed me out of a nest I needed to leave.”

Ownership at Tri-Country Broadcasting, which owns WHMH, did not respond to an interview request.

Grand Rapids Radio: Casey Daniels Gets Wake-up Duty At WFGR

Casey Daniels

Townsquare Media Inc. Grand Rapids, welcomes new morning show co-host Casey Daniels to Classic Hits WFCR 98.7 FM.

Daniels joins the station’s successful current morning host JoJo Girard, to form the Casey & JoJo Show.

Townsquare Director of Product Development Doug Montgomery says, “We’re excited for Casey to join the team in GR for this newly created local position on WFGR. She’s gonna need snow tires for her Harley though.”

Townsquare Grand Rapids Market President Jeff Luckoff adds, “We are elated to have Casey join us in Grand Rapids.  Her enthusiasm for West Michigan is contagious and I am really looking forward to having her team up with JoJo, making an already great show even better.”

“I’m super excited to be coming home to Michigan. I’m eager to be with such a forward-thinking and innovative group like Townsquare Media. Many thanks to Todd Lawley, Jeff Luckoff, Doug Montgomery, Brian Thomas and Kurt Johnson.”

Daniels has an impressive resume of success, most recently as OM of Adams Radio Group in Tallahassee, FL. She also had a five-year run on-air at the legendary WZPL/Indianapolis, managed WZOW and WWLV in South, Bend, IN, and was a producer and on-air host at WSBT-TV in South Bend.

TV Ratings: 'The Undoing" Became A Water Cooler Hit

The dramatic conclusion to “The Undoing,” HBO’s whodunit starring Hugh Grant and Nicole Kidman, proved how it’s still possible to bring people together in today’s fragmented television world.

Citing Nielsen Data, The Associated Press reports three million people tuned in Sunday to find out who really killed the girlfriend of Grant’s adulterous character in one of three showings on HBO and on the streaming service HBO Max.

That’s likely to be a fraction of who eventually sees it, given how television is consumed today. The premiere of the six-episode series was seen by 1.4 million people the night it first aired, and by now has been seen by 9 million and counting.

“It’s a good example of how you can still have a water-cooler hit,” said Casey Bloys, HBO Programming president. “I will always point to good acting, writing and directing. It was a good story.”

“The Undoing” has generated more conversation on social media than any other new scripted television series this year, Nielsen said. Coupled with the streaming-only series “The Flight Attendant,” HBO Max had its biggest week since the service was launched.

NBC was the top-rated broadcast network in prime time for Thanksgiving week, averaging 3.64 million viewers. CBS had 3.55 million, ABC had 2.4 million, Fox had 1.6 million, Ion Television had 930,000, Univision had 890,000 and Telemundo had 530,000.

ESPN was the most-watched cable network, averaging 2.95 million viewers. Hallmark hit 2.53 million, Fox News Channel had 2 million, MSNBC had 1.59 million and CNN had 1.41 million.

➤Top 20 Prime_Times Shows (Ttotal Viewers):

1. NFL Football: Chicago at Green Bay, NBC, 16.48 million.

2. “60 Minutes,” CBS, 13.78 million.

3. “NFL Pregame” (Sunday), NBC, 13.32 million.

4. NFL Football: L.A. Rams at Tampa Bay, ESPN, 13.14 million.

5. “The Masked Singer,” Fox, 11.42 million.

6. “NFL Post-Game” (Sunday), Fox, 11.11 million.

7. “Football Night in America” (Sunday, 7:55 p.m.) NBC, 10.78 million.

8. “NCIS,” CBS, 10.16 million.

9. “FBI,” CBS, 8.4 million.

10. “Football Night in America” (Sunday, 7:30 p.m.), NBC, 7.38 million.

11. “The Voice” (Monday), NBC, 7.08 million.

12. “The Voice” (Tuesday) NBC, 7.07 million.

13. “Dancing With the Stars,” ABC, 6.42 million.

14. “Monday Night Kickoff,” ESPN, 6.22 million.

15. “I Can See Your Voice,” Fox, 6.07 million.

16. “FBI: Most Wanted,” CBS, 5.66 million.

17. “The Neighborhood,” CBS, 5.46 million.

18. “Bob Hearts Abishola,” CBS, 4.9 million.

19. “Bull,” CBS, 4.68 million.

20. “The Bachelorette,” ABC, 4.49 million.

ABC’s “World News Tonight” led the evening news ratings race with an average of 9.5 million viewers. NBC’s “Nightly News” had 8.8 million and the “CBS Evening News” had 6.3 million.

In other ratings news, CNN finished November with its most-watched month in the network’s 40-year history, showing growth in the aftermath of the election compared to rivals Fox News Channel and MSNBC.

FOX News Pulls Highest November Ratings

Fox News pulled its highest November ratings in the network’s history, the company said Wednesday, citing Nielsen Media Research.

The Hill reports the network had the top four cable news programs among both adults in general and viewers 25-54, according to a statement from Fox. The network had 3.9 million prime-time viewers and surpassed 10 million total viewers for six telecasts in November.

Several of the network’s prime-time opinion programs had their best-rated month among viewers 25-54 ever, including “Hannity,” “The Ingraham Angle” and “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” according to the statement.

The network led both CNN and MSNBC in total prime-time viewers, with 3.93 million. It also led MSNBC in growth from last November, growing 41 percent compared with MSNBC’s 29 percent, while CNN grew 180 percent. MSNBC, however, led Fox in total day viewer growth, increasing 32 percent from last November compared with 22 percent for Fox. CNN led both in total day growth as well, increasing 135 percent from last November.

MSNBC, meanwhile, saw its best-rated month in history in November, while election week was the highest-rated week in the network’s history. Nov. 7, when major networks projected Joe Biden had won the presidential election, was the highest-rated Saturday in the network’s history and its second highest-rated day ever following Nov. 3.  

The network’s prime-time viewership was 2.7 million in November, an increase of more than 99 percent from November 2016. The time slot among viewers 25-54 was the network’s best since November 2008 and a 48 percent increase from November 2016 with 544,000 viewers, according to MSNBC.

FCC: Simington Heads For Senate Vote

Nathan Simington

The Senate Commerce committee advanced Federal Communications Commission (FCC) nominee Nathan Simington on a party-line vote Wednesday, reports The Hill.

The 14-12 approval for the Republican nominee tees up what is likely to be a hotly contested vote before the full Senate.

If confirmed, Simington’s presence on the commission would leave it at a 2-2 partisan deadlock when current chair Ajit Pai steps down on Jan. 20. Republicans could make it difficult for President-elect Joe Biden to break that tie, posing problems for his policy objectives.

However, it is not yet clear whether Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) intends to bring the nomination up for a floor vote given the limited legislative time left in the year.

President Trump nominated Simington, a senior adviser at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), after pulling the renomination of Republican Commissioner Mike O'Rielly in August.

Discovery Launches Streaming Service

Discovery Inc. said it would launch a new streaming service that will include shows from all of its major cable networks, a move that follows the media company’s earlier strategy of offering smaller, thematic plans catering to groups from foodies to home-improvement enthusiasts.

The Wall Street Journal reports the new streaming service, Discovery+, which will launch in the U.S. on Jan. 4, will cost $4.99 a month with ads and $6.99 without. It will feature content from channels including TLC, Food Network, Discovery Channel and Animal Planet. The service will also include library programming licensed from other companies, including the BBC, A&E Networks and Group Nine Media.

Discovery has struck an agreement with Verizon Communications Inc. to provide the streaming service free to the wireless company’s U.S. customers for a year, with Verizon and Discovery sharing the cost of those subscriptions, according to people familiar with the deal.

David Zaslav

Discovery is launching a streaming service months after some of its biggest competitors. Chief Executive David Zaslav is betting that Discovery, one of the biggest traditional TV companies, can compete for subscribers with the likes of Comcast Corp.’s Peacock, AT&T Inc.’s HBO Max and Amazon.com Inc.’s Prime Video by offering most of its cable-TV shows directly to video-streaming subscribers.

At stake is the long-term future of Discovery. Viewers by the millions are abandoning traditional pay TV for streaming services, imperiling the lucrative licensing fees that cable and satellite companies pay to cable network owners. Almost all major TV programmers, including Comcast Corp.’s NBCUniversal, ViacomCBS Inc. and WarnerMedia, have launched their own streaming services in an effort to reach those viewers. 

Traditional TV programmers like Discovery have to walk a fine line when developing their streaming services to avoid souring relationships with cable and satellite TV providers. Those companies pay billions of dollars for the rights to show programming that traditional TV networks are increasingly selling directly to consumers at a fraction of the cost of a cable subscription, potentially cannibalizing the pay-TV audience.

Discovery aims to solve this problem by keeping new seasons of many shows on its traditional TV channels exclusively for a window of time, ensuring that they are still valuable for cable and satellite companies, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Report: Mariah Carey Has Built A Holiday Juggernaut

Mariah Carey's 26-year-old song “All I Want for Christmas Is You” is the engine of one of the biggest holiday hit machines of all time, reports The Wall Street Journal.

The song, off a 1994 Christmas album that initially seemed like a risky detour, only simmered for years as a staple of Christmas radio. But in the digital era it has undergone a miraculous ascent, thanks to its age-defying bop, the power of holiday playlists, the multiplying effects of the streaming ecosystem, and her fans’ ritual dedication to the song. She has built a franchise around the propulsive tune in recent years with alternate versions and videos, and a book and animated movie for kids.

WSJ Graphic 12/3/20

“All I Want for Christmas Is You” snowballed to 309 million on-demand audio and video streams last year, according to Nielsen Music/MRC Data. That helped push it to No. 1 on Billboard’s all-genre Hot 100 songs chart for the first time. It got streamed more than chestnuts like Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” and other latter-day standards like Wham!’s “Last Christmas.” As of Thanksgiving this year, her song had reappeared among the more fleeting hits on the chart (most recently at No. 14), where it’s almost guaranteed to climb as Christmas approaches.

In a year when musicians on every level were forced to regroup, Ms. Carey received a timely gift in the form of her Apple deal. It centers on “Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas Special,” premiering Friday on the Apple TV+ streaming service. The partnership first took shape last February, she says—shortly after “All I Want” became the first Christmas song in 60 years to hit No. 1, and before coronavirus sent the entertainment industry into a deep freeze.

What makes “All I Want For Christmas Is You” a holiday earworm (written and produced by Ms. Carey and Walter Afanasieff, once a frequent collaborator) is her swinging, stair-run vocals and a throwback ‘60s production style. It has gotten bumps in the past, including from a charming cover in “Love Actually,” a 2003 rom-com which itself became a holiday favorite. Yet “All I Want” didn’t register on the top-songs chart until 2012, when streaming started to catch on with listeners, and first counted toward the official ranking of hit songs.

The song’s exponential streaming growth is tied to the way its sound pairs with holiday numbers of any era. That versatility helped “All I Want” proliferate along with holiday playlists and the smart speakers people use to shuffle them. “She’ll be on pretty much any Christmas playlist, whether it’s a user-generated playlist or an algorithmic one,” says George Howard, a Berklee College of Music professor and industry veteran who managed Carly Simon. The result is an annual reignition of the “network effect” that amplifies content which is already popular, he says.

Music streams can translate to eye-popping numbers, such as the 658 million views on YouTube for the original “All I Want” video, shot in the style of a home movie when the song was first released. However, streams—from services such as Spotify and Pandora—generate less revenue than the payments and licensing fees that add up each time a tune gets played on the radio and television, and in stores, restaurants and other venues. On that front, “All I Want” likely generates many times the amount of money it does from streaming royalties, Mr. Howard estimates, with Ms. Carey getting paid as a composer, producer and performer of the song.

SiriusXM Radio: NBC Sports Audio Launches

NBC Sports and SiriusXM today launches a new 24/7 audio channel featuring some of the biggest names in sports talk – NBC Sports Audio on SiriusXM.

NBC Sports Audio on SiriusXM will feature live daily weekday sports programming from 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. ET. In addition, the channel will present live weeknight and weekend coverage of some of the biggest events in the NBC Sports portfolio including Triple Crown horse racing, major golf events, and more.

The NBC Sports Audio channel is available exclusively on SiriusXM and is available to subscribers on the SiriusXM radios in their cars (channel 211), on the SiriusXM app and at home with Amazon Alexa, the Google Assistant or however they stream in the house.

“We are excited to partner with SiriusXM to bring the NBC Sports Audio lineup of top sports talk shows and live events to SiriusXM subscribers across the country,” said Nicolina O’Rorke, SVP, NBC Sports Enterprises & General Manager, Sports Betting and Gaming.

“The NBC Sports Audio channel is a terrific addition to the SiriusXM lineup,” said Steve Cohen, SiriusXM’s SVP of Sports Programming. “Fans of NBC Sports’ great programming and talent will get access to an outstanding sports talk lineup every weekday, and our subscribers will get access to live play by play of many top events on the sports calendar. And as a SiriusXM subscriber you can tune in to this great programming anywhere – whether you are in your car, at home or on the go.”

NBC Sports Audio’s weekday block of live programming includes PFT Live featuring Mike Florio and Chris Simms at 7 a.m. ET, followed by The Dan Patrick Show at 9 a.m. ET, The Rich Eisen Show at Noon ET, Brother From Another, with Michael Holley and Michael Smith, at 3 p.m. ET, and PFT PM at 5 p.m. ET. On Mondays, Safety Blitz, featuring Rodney Harrison and Jac Collinsworth, airs at 6 p.m. ET, with Chris Simms Unbuttoned on at 6 p.m. ET from Tuesday through Friday.

Following is NBC Sports Audio on SiriusXM’s weekday sports programming (ET):

• PFT Live 7 a.m. – 9 a.m.
• The Dan Patrick Show 9 a.m. – Noon
• The Rich Eisen Show Noon – 3 p.m.
• Brother From Another 3 p.m. – 5 p.m.
• PFT PM 5 p.m. – 6 p.m.
• Safety Blitz* 6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
• Chris Simms Unbuttoned** 6 p.m. – 7 p.m.

*Monday; **Tuesday-Friday