TALKERS News Notes
KIRO-FM Debuts Home Improvement Show. Bonneville’s KIRO-FM, Seattle “Newsradio 97.3 FM” will launch “Inside Out with Tami Michaels” on August 8 airing from 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm. KIRO says the home improvement show will bring listeners an entertaining and informative mix of interior design trends, practical how-to advice, innovative home and lifestyle products and services, pet topics, and more.
WPEN-FM Becomes “97.5 LeBron – Home of King James.” Following Friday’s news that LeBron James is joining the Philadelphia 76ers, Beasley’s sport talk WPEN-FM “97.5 The Fanatic” is celebrating by temporarily rebranding the station “97.5 LeBron… Home of King James!” Program director Scott Masteller comments, “These are the moments sports radio is built for. Philadelphia has been waiting for this day, and every conversation is about LeBron and the Sixers. From the first show this morning through the final segment tonight, we’re bringing fans everything they need to know about one of the biggest stories in NBA history.”
devoted to chronicling the development and growth of what he envisioned as “the coming talk radio phenomenon of the nineties.” The publication went on to publish as a newspaper on newsprint evolving into a glossy magazine and eventually an online publication fully devoted to serving the needs of talk radio and eventually a variety of spoken word platforms that have collectively become known as talk media. TALKERS also contributed to the growth of the field by producing 28 national conventions / conferences in New York and two in Los Angeles, more than 50 groundbreaking radio rows, dozens of talk show host tours of international hot spots, and thousands of hours of spoken word syndicated and online programming. Throughout its colorful history, TALKERS always maintained a neutral position regarding politics except for, as Harrison puts it, “unwavering support of the First Amendment.”
TALKERS founder Michael Harrison is this week’s guest on the National Press Club’s official podcast, Update-1, in which he tackles the topic “Predicting the Future of Media Following the Shutdown of CBS News Radio.” Interviewed by noted American University media professor Gemma Puglisi, Harrison addresses such issues as changes in the tenets of journalism and the general shrinkage of radio news. Along the way, he offers his insights into a variety of media and societal topics including the impact of clickbait and what he describes as “the daily dance of affirmation” resulting 
from the trend toward news platforms “targeting” audiences for purely marketing purposes. Harrison defends AI from critics who claim the technology lacks “heart” and that audiences will swing back to the “authenticity” being destroyed by AI slop. Harrison makes the case that what counts is the humanity behind the operation of AI which is “only a tool.” He says, “Blaming AI for shallow content is like attributing shoddy novels to the invention of the word processor.” Harrison boldly predicts that AI and modern technology will hasten the “death of Hollywood” as we know it among other insights into the future of news, entertainment, and communications. Don’t miss this! 
would be retiring from daily talk show hosting later this summer on Jacobs Media’s WDUN-AM/FM, Gainesville, where she presided over a hugely popular midday program since 2019. The decision was made due to heart-related health issues. She planned to remain with the powerful station as an occasional political consultant and commentator. Zoller, the 2023 recipient of the TALKERS “Woman of the Year” award, was an influential figure in Georgia politics having run for Congress in the U.S. 9th District as a Republican in 2012. Before that she served her first stint as a radio talk show host in North Georgia for a number of years. She was also a member of the State Board of Education representing District 9 in Northeast, Georgia in addition to engaging in a number of other community-oriented activities.