Tag: "Motor Racing Network"
Tuesday, February 15, 2022
Hepola Out at WCCO-AM, Minneapolis. According to a report by Bring Me the News, late morning talk host Cory Hepola has exited Audacy’s news/talk WCCO-AM, Minneapolis. Hepola began hosting the show in January of 2019 after a career that included a four-year stint with KARE-TV as host of “KARE 11 Sunrise.” Audacy has not
commented publicly about Hepola’s exit. He said after his departure that his work at WCCO changed his life “in positive ways that I didn’t expect.” He also wrote, “I felt the pressure from the start. I mean, this was a huge risk; I was giving up a successful career (in TV) I’d worked so hard for – to move into something new. What if I was a disappointment? What if I said something wrong? What if they fired me?” His last day on the show was February 8, the same day he told Minnesota Public Radio reporter Brian Bakst that he’s considering a run for governor of Minnesota. Since February 9, Blois Olson has been hosting the 9:00 am to 12:00 noon show.
Radio Executive Ray Quinn Announces Retirement. After a career that has spanned more than 50 years, Ray Quinn is retiring from his position as area president for iHeartMedia’s Alabama area, effective, March 22, 2022. Quinn has been with iHeartMedia for 14 years. He has held leadership positions at several stations throughout his extensive career, including vice president/market manager for KOSI-FM, KALC-FM, and KQMT-FM in Denver; WMYX-FM, WXSS-FM, and WSSP-AM in
Milwaukee; WOLX-FM, WMMM-FM, and WBZU-FM in Madison; and many more. The governor of Kentucky also recognized Quinn as a Kentucky Colonel for participating in numerous charitable projects in his community. He was awarded the March of Dimes “Order of the Battered Boot” for walkathon fundraising efforts over the years. iHeartMedia division president Shosh Abromovich says, “Ray is one of a kind. He is known as a unicorn of a leader with his passion, enthusiasm and constant innovative thinking. He has impacted so many of our lives in this industry for the better. We are beyond thankful for the many years Ray has led our teams and are truly excited for him to enjoy this next chapter of his life.” Quinn states, “It’s been an amazing 51 years in radio and 14 years with iHeartMedia. Along the way, I’ve worked for and with some of the most intelligent people in the business and I am grateful to iHeartMedia for allowing me to lead multiple markets in the Southeast. While I will miss my team and the day-to-day battles, it’s time to pass the torch to the next generation of leaders.”
TALKERS News Notes. The Central Florida operations of iHeartMedia is presenting the Florida Jobs Now Career Expo, an onsite resource event connecting job seekers to companies with exciting opportunities and benefits. The event will be held on Thursday, March 3 from 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm and attendees will have the opportunity to meet with companies throughout Central Florida offering hundreds of positions, as well as attend resume writing and interview preparedness workshops. iHeartMedia Orlando/Melbourne area president Barbara Latham says, “We look forward to bringing this important career event to Central Florida. As a business ourselves serving our local community here in central Florida, we recognize the significant need from our business partners to fill job openings. We feel uniquely poised to help connect these businesses with people living or moving to central Florida as an essential part of our efforts in our local communities.”…..Cumulus Media announces that it has entered into an exclusive long-term agreement for WNAM-AM, Appleton-Oshkosh, Wisconsin, to remain the official radio broadcast home of the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, the High-A affiliate of the MLB’s Milwaukee Brewers. This year will be the 13th season that the Timber Rattlers have been broadcast on WNAM, with 23-year play-by-play voice Chris Mehring calling the action….. In advance of the 64th running of the Daytona 500 on Sunday (2/20), Motor Racing Network announces additions to its content lineup and award-winning team of announcers. NASCAR Cup Series Championship winning crew chief, Todd Gordon joins MRN after 11 years with Team Penske. Gordon will provide race analysis on select NASCAR broadcasts and will be MRN’s competition and strategy expert across Motor Racing Network’s NASCAR programming. Suzy Armstrong will serve as host of MRN’s signature show “NASCAR TODAY.” The program is heard daily on 280 radio stations across the country in afternoon drive. During her two decades plus with the network Suzy has contributed her familiar voice to several shows and podcasts.
Ukraine Tensions, COVID-19 Mandates-Protests, Durham Probe, Inflation/Financial Markets, Midterms/Trump & the GOP, Palin-NYTimes Case, Beijing Olympics, and Rams Win Super Bowl Among Top News/Talk Stories Yesterday (2/14). The diplomatic tensions over Russia’s military buildup at the Ukraine border; the rate of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., the planned relaxing of mask mandates in numerous states, and the truckers’ protests; special counsel John Durham’s investigation into allegations of Hillary Clinton’s digital spying on Donald Trump; the still-soaring inflation and the activity on the world’s financial markets; the battle for control of Congress in November’s midterm elections and Donald Trump’s influence over the GOP; a judge says he’ll toss Sarah Palin’s defamation suit against The New York Times; the politics behind the Beijing Winter Olympics; and the Los Angeles Rams’ victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI were some of the most-talked-about stories on news/talk radio yesterday, according to ongoing research from TALKERS magazine.
Wednesday, August 25, 2021
ESPN Radio Unveils New Weekday Programming; Max Kellerman Joins Morning Drive Show with Keyshawn Johnson and Jay Williams. The rumored move of ESPN personality Max Kellerman from the “First Take” TV program to the morning drive radio show becomes a reality as ESPN Radio unveils its new fall weekday lineup. Kellerman
will become part of the new “Keyshawn, JWill & Max” show (6:00 am to 10:00 am ET) with Keyshawn Johnson and Jay Williams on September 7. ESPN says Kellerman will host a new ESPN television series with details on that to come soon. He’ll also continue to host his weekly boxing show, “Max on Boxing,” on ESPN2. The midday “Bart & Hahn” show hosted by Bart 
Scott and Alan Hahn adds an hour expanding to 12:00 noon to 3:00 pm ET. The afternoon drive show loses WNBA star and co-host Chiney Ogwumike whose ESPN duties will change to roles including college and professional basketball analysis on various platforms such as “SportsCenter,” “First Take,” “Get Up,” and more. Joining Mike Golic Jr. on the ESPN Radio afternoon show is Chris Canty for the “Canty & Golic Jr.” show that expands by an hour to 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm ET. The rest of the ESPN Radio lineup remains the same. ESPN SVP, production David Roberts says, “We are excited about these next steps as we continue to build upon the impactful lineup we debuted last year. These enhancements create even more cross-platform chances for hosts to better engage with fans throughout the day, while delivering timely, compelling content.”
Dan Patrick and iHeartMedia Announce 2nd Annual ‘The Next Great Podcast’ Contest. This year’s “The Next Great Podcast” contest is open for submissions through September 17. iHeartMedia and sports broadcasting legend Dan Patrick are again partnering on the contest that will give the winner the opportunity to produce a new podcast series of any genre – from comedy to true crime, sports to pop culture – and to work with the iHeartPodcast Network and Patrick to launch the new series. Last year’s contest – in collaboration with content creation platform Tongal – received nearly 1,800 submissions from creators of all ages from Albania to Zimbabwe and all geographies
between. The 2020 winners were creators Lianna Holston and Siena Jeakle’s “Tossed Popcorn,” a new movie review podcast from a pair of friends who “don’t really like movies,” which debuted earlier this month. Dan Patrick says, “Our first year of ‘The Next Great Podcast’ exceeded my wildest expectations. What I most love from our contest is the incredible diversity of voices and range of stories that our amazing fans submitted from across the planet. I know that our second year is going to be just as incredible as the first. The Danettes and I can’t wait to hear them.” Creators are asked to submit a short synopsis and treatment that describes their podcast idea, along with links to past work and an optional audio trailer and pitch video. Pitches will be narrowed down by a panel of podcasters, led by head judge Dan Patrick, and 10 semifinalists will be awarded $1,000 to further develop their idea into a 10-minute pilot. These pilots will be shared on “The Next Great Podcast” feed in the fall for fans everywhere to listen and vote. iHeartPodcast Network COO Will Pearson comments, “Podcasting as a creative medium and launch pad for new talent continues to thrive. After the impressive results from last year that brought us ‘Tossed Popcorn’s’ fresh approach on movie reviews, we are excited to collaborate for a second year with Tongal to reach their impressive community of creatives as we search for 2021’s next great podcast.”
TALKERS News Notes. Chicago sports talker WMVP-AM “ESPN 1000, Chicago’s Home for Sports” announces a new multi-year agreement with Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana as the new naming rights sponsor of the White Sox Radio Network.
ESPN Chicago market manager Mike Thomas states, “Partnering with the Chicago White Sox late last year was monumental for ESPN Chicago! Now, to partner with Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana to present the naming rights of the White Sox Network to White Sox fans throughout Illinois, Indiana and Iowa is remarkable. I want to thank Matt Schuffert and Joe Branchik and the Hard Rock team! I can’t wait to hear Len Kasper say: ‘The ESPN 1000 Hard Rock Casino White Sox Network’ each game for years to come.”…..Digital audio boutique Price Brothers announces that it has been tapped for creative and production services by voice dialogue platform Instreamatic. Price Brothers, a spinoff of longtime radio ad shop Oink Ink, was formed to meet the need for creative solutions for brands growing increasingly interested in new digital tools such as interactive audio. Co-founder Dan Price comments, “We’d been developing campaigns in the digital space for four years now and decided to carve-off a new entity that would focus solely on initiatives like dynamic audio and interactive, as well as podcasting. We wanted to position ourselves 
as the guys already doing great creative by the time brands would eventually become comfortable implementing the new technologies.”…..Motor Racing Network adds two content producers to its production team. Julian Council comes to the Concord, North Carolina
studios of the Motor Racing Network from nearby Charlotte where he was an on-air host and producer at Audacy’s WFNZ “Sports Radio 610 and 102.5.” Trey Downey joins the MRN production team from Tampa Bay Buccaneers flagship radio station WDAE, Tampa where he was an executive producer, reporter, and host. The first race of the NASCAR Cup Series Playoffs is the “Cook Out Southern 500” Sunday, September 5 from historic Darlington Raceway and will be carried live by approximately 350 radio station partners across the United States.
Larry Elder Campaign Gets Support from Street Artist Sabo. The boxing match-themed poster pictured above was recently published by Breitbart in a piece about the support Salem Radio Network talk host Larry Elder is getting from street artist Sabo in his campaign for governor in the recall election of Gavin Newsom. The posters have been spotted in numerous places around Los Angeles.
Afghanistan, COVID-19, SCOTUS Keeps ‘Remain in Mexico’ Policy, Dems Pass Voting Act, Herschel Walker Senate Run, Kamala Harris Vietnam Trip, Western Wildfires, and Charlie Watts Dies Among Top News/Talk Stories Yesterday (8/24). President Joe Biden sticks to the August 31 date for withdrawal of the U.S. presence in Afghanistan as critics charge him with leaving Afghan allies behind; the rate of COVID-19 cases in the U.S., Pfizer’s vaccine gets FDA approval, & mask and vaccine mandates; the Supreme Court refuses to block the Trump administration policy requiring amnesty seekers to remain in Mexico during their application period; House Democrats pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Act; former NFL star Herschel Walker announces bid for Georgia Senate seat as a Republican; Vice President Kamala Harris criticizes China’s “bullying tactics” during trip to Vietnam; the wildfires scorching parts of California; and Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts dies at 80 were some of the most-talked-about stories on news/talk radio yesterday, according to ongoing research from TALKERS magazine.
Tuesday, April 29, 2014
Cumulus Ups Jeff Brown to SVP. There are new corporate SVP stripes for Jeff Brown as Cumulus Media promotes him from VP/market manager of its Atlanta cluster to senior vice president, Cumulus Corporate. In this new post, Brown will be responsible for regional operations oversight in 26 Cumulus markets and he will report to EVP and co-COO Jon Pinch, who comments, “We are thrilled to be able to promote from within for this high level position. Jeff has the energy, intellect and experience that will make him a valuable resource for our market managers.” Brown states, “It is a tremendous honor to be asked to play a larger role in the development of our ever-expanding platform and the execution of our key strategies. I am truly excited to help drive the continued growth and evolution of Cumulus, as it creates and distributes the very best in entertainment products and services for our listeners, communities and advertisers.” A search for Brown’s replacement at the Atlanta cluster is underway.
Davis Joins Heller in Wisconsin Sports Talk Simulcast. Milwaukee Bucks radio play-by-play voice Ted Davis is becoming part of the Mike Heller show heard on Clear Channel’s WOKY, Milwaukee “The Big 920 Milwaukee” and WTSO, Madison “The Big 1070 AM.” Heller’s program airs from 2:00 pm to 6:00
pm and Davis will join from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm. The company says Davis will bring 26 years of NBA play-by-play experience to Mike Heller’s show. CCM+E regional market president Jeff Tyler comments, “We are extremely excited to have a pro like Ted join Mike Heller and the rest of our great on-air team. Ted will bring another dimension to the best sports talk line up in Madison. With Ted Davis, the exclusive Wisconsin Badgers broadcast franchises, and more exciting plans on the horizon, we know Madison will continue to embrace ‘The Big 1070’ as Madison’s choice for sports talk and play-by-play.”
Cumulus Q1 Revenue Up 3.7%. For the first three months of 2014, Cumulus Media reports net revenue, on a pro forma basis, was up 3.7%. The company reports “net revenue increased $10.5 million to $292.0 million, from $281.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2013. The increase was due to $3.1 million in broadcast advertising revenue, of which $2.2 million was from an LMA in Chicago entered into in January 2014 (the ‘Chicago LMA’), offset by a $9.9 million decline in network spot sales and the loss of approximately $2.2 million of third party network station compensation. Broadcast advertising revenue growth also benefited from $13.0 million of reduced producer revenue shares at WestwoodOne. Digital advertising increased $4.5 million due to revenue from our partnership with Rdio and revenue increases from our streaming and digital commerce initiatives. There was a $1.3 million increase in political advertising revenue; and a $1.6 million increase in affiliate license fees and other non-ad-based revenue.” In a statement, CEO Lew Dickey says, “This quarter was marked by the accelerated integration of WestwoodOne. We now expect to complete the two-year integration approximately three quarters ahead of time and will exceed the stated synergies by 5% to 10%.”
NAB Radio Board Makes Appointments. Named to two-year NAB Radio board seats are: Lincoln Financial Media president/chief executive officer Don Benson; Radio One chief executive officer Alfred Liggins; CBS Radio president/chief executive officer Dan Mason; Hubbard Radio chair Ginny Morris; Clear Channel chair/chief executive officer Bob Pittman; and Federated Media vice president Tony Richards. Those appointments take effect in June. Meanwhile, NRG Media president/chief executive officer Mary Quass is unanimously elected to the first vice chair seat of the NAB’s executive committee. Eagle Communications general manager Gary Exline is appointed to fill a vacant board seat, while Jawco Inc. owner John Wharff is appointed to serve until June 2015.
AdLarge Media, Motor Racing Network Team for Exclusive Sales Agreement. The pact is for national advertising sales representation of Motor Racing Network’s NASCAR racing on radio and digital audio platforms. It includes all MRN flag-to-flag coverage, including 51 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races and qualifying events; 21 NASCAR Nationwide Series events; 22 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series events; and 13 IMSA TUDOR United SportsCar championship events. AdLarge Media chief executive officer/co-founder Gary Schonfeld states, “This outstanding addition to the sports properties we represent drives our company forward in network radio sports, and places us at the forefront of auto racing on radio and digital audio. If it has four wheels and goes really fast, you can buy the audio advertising from AdLarge.” The firm’s president/co-founder Cathy Csukas comments, “Each week, millions of radio listeners hear MRN’s vivid descriptions of exciting, fast-paced NASCAR racing action. Their live coverage and in-depth programming produces the kind of consistent listener engagement that national advertisers want. We are excited to partner with MRN again and to deliver their passionate NASCAR audience to our advertisers.” According to MRN president/executive producer David Hyatt, “With Gary, Cathy, and their excellent team, national advertising sales representation is a collaborative partnership that generates success for advertisers and affiliates. Their independent status allows them to be adaptable and innovative. They create customized campaigns that connect advertisers with NASCAR fans.” AdLarge is seeking a sports sales executive who will be dedicated to this undertaking. Chief revenue officer/radio sales Don Wachsmith remarks that, “It is imperative we expand our sales management to include a focused sports sales leader to spearhead our national advertising sales efforts with MRN’s motor sports coverage.” This is MRN’s 45th consecutive year covering NASCAR; more than 600 radio stations carry the broadcasts.
Cool Job Opportunities. “Think CNN with a hint of the Daily Show!” We’re on the hunt for America’s SMARTEST, most authentic, engaging, entertaining news personalities – real people who can react to, comment on and amplify the news… and do it in short, 3-minute segments. These are NOT “anchor” positions, we’ve got that covered. It’s not a talk show. It’s a true INTEGRATION of news and personality. If you…are a world-class storyteller, talk TO the listener, not AT them, eat, sleep and breathe news, are smart (but not cerebral), have a point of view but aren’t an ideologue, understand what “shareable” content is, know how to integrate social media, are comfortable with the fact that NEWS is the DNA of the radio station (your job is to generate TSL), are a winner and a team player and want to work in a highly desirable LARGE market…send cover letter, resume and mp3 of your work to: randylaneco@gmail.com
Odds & Sods. New York market traffic reporter Joe Nolan is recovering after suffering a heart attack over the weekend. Nolan does traffic on WCBS-FM on the Scott Shannon program…..In conjunction with cable’s Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports Radio will provide coverage of the 2014 NFL Draft beginning Thursday, May 8 live from Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Jay Glazer and anchor Don Bell will cover the first three rounds on Thursday and Friday. Weekend coverage will showcase the final four rounds that take place on Saturday…..NBC Sports Radio – the WestwoodOne and NBC Sports Group joint venture – is celebrating a major milestone today as the network announces it has passed the 400 station mark. WestwoodOne COO Charles Steinhauer comments, “We are very proud of the tremendous growth the NBC Sports Radio Network has experienced since inception. Thanks to the dedication and hard work of our top-rate talent, producers, and affiliate sales team we are able to continue to extend the reach of this outstanding sports talk content for our listeners and advertisers.”
Nielsen Study Reports Radio Listening at ‘All-Time High’; Hispanic and African America Audience Makes Up Almost 30%. In its quarterly State of the Media: Audio Today report, Nielsen concludes radio listening in the United States reached an all-time high with 244 million Americans listening to the radio each week – that’s 92% of all Americans 12-plus. But this report dives into the numbers of Hispanic and African American listeners. The increase in total 12+ cume for each demographic was not dramatic – Hispanic listening went up 1.4% from last March to this, and African American listening rose just 0.6% during the same period. But the report notes interesting conclusions about usage. For example, the top daypart for listening by Hispanics is the midday 10:00 am to 3:00 pm and the average time spent with radio each week is 12 hours and 13 minutes. For African Americans, midday is also the top daypart for listening and the time spent with radio each averages 12 hours and 10 minutes. Check out the study here.
Sponsors Quickly React to Less-Than-Sterling Remarks. Fallout over racist comments attributed to Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling continues, as CarMax, Kia, State Farm, and Virgin America pull advertising support from the NBA team. According to a CarMax official, “These views [by Sterling] directly conflict with CarMax’s culture of respect for all individuals. While we have been a proud Clippers sponsor for nine years and support the team, fans and community, these statements necessitate that CarMax end its sponsorship.” A Kia official states, “Comments allegedly made by Clippers owner Donald Sterling are offensive and reprehensible. They are inconsistent with our views and values. We are suspending our advertising and sponsorship activations with the Clippers. Meanwhile, as fans of the game of basketball, our support of the players and the sport is unwavering.” Two high-profile Clippers players are spokespersons for two of those advertisers: NBA Players’ Association president Chris Paul for State Farm and Blake Griffin for Kia. A State Farm representative notes that, “The remarks attributed to the Clippers’ owner are offensive. While those involved sort out the facts, we will be taking a pause in our relationship with the organization. We are monitoring the situation and we will continually assess our options. We have a great relationship with Chris Paul and will continue supporting the ‘Born to Assist’ advertising campaign involving Chris and now other NBA players.” The Clippers on Sunday lost game four of its playoff series to the Golden State Warriors. It was the highest-rated game of the playoffs so far (ABC-TV), registering a 5.0 overnight rating. In San Francisco (the Warriors play in Oakland), the game had a 9.8, the third-highest-rated first round game on any network in more than a decade.
Indulging in Local Customs. That’s “Into Tomorrow” host Dave Graveline enjoying a shisha while visiting Turkey. Graveline tells TALKERS he’s been in the Mediterranean to serve as moderator at the annual Global Press Conference for IFA – the big consumer tech show that takes place in Berlin every September, from which Graveline broadcasts his show. He explains, “Each year in April, they bring nearly 400 journalists from around the world to a venue in the Mediterranean to talk about the latest trends in consumer electronics, leading up to that trade show. This year I was asked to be emcee for the event.” Graveline says he moderated several panels in addition to the press conference.
Donald Sterling Racist Recording, Obama Asia Trip, Midwest Tornadoes, Kerry Israel ‘Apartheid’ Comments, Russian Aggression/Sanctions, and ObamaCare Criticism Among Top News/Talk Stories Yesterday (4/28). The case of Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling’s recorded racist rants; President Obama’s trip to Asia; the deadly tornadoes that ripped through the Midwest on Sunday; controversy over Secretary of State John Kerry’s comment that Israel runs the risk of becoming an apartheid state; new sanctions being levied against Russia and Vladimir Putin’s continued aggression in Ukraine; and scrutiny of the rollout and effects of the Affordable Care Act were some of the most-talked-about stories on news/talk radio yesterday, according to ongoing research from TALKERS.
