Chris Berry Appointed SVP of News, Talk and Sports for iHeartMedia. Radio programming, sales and management pro
Chris Berry takes on the SVP of news, talk and sports post for
iHeartMedia. The company says
that Berry "will oversee our news, talk and sports brands, where he'll provide strategic guidance for our spoken-word formats and connect key advertisers with iHeartMedia's news, talk and sports audiences." Berry has been serving as SVP/general manager for
NBC News Radio and
24/7 News Network, a position he'll maintain. During his career, Berry has been VP/GM for
ABC News Radio and VP/GM of WMAL, Washington, to name a few. He joined 24/7 News Network as senior vice president and general manager in March 2011 and has spearheaded NBC News Radio's editorial content since 24/7 News began syndicating the network in July 2016.
WBAL, Baltimore Names Jeff Wade News Director. Baltimore news/talk WBAL "Newsradio 1090" names
Jeff Wade news director, effective June 5. Wade comes to the
Hearst Television-owned station from his most
recent position with
Binnie Media's Concord, New Hampshire operations as director of news and talk programming. During his career, he's also served with
Saga Communications at news/talk WGAN, Portland as news director. WBAL president and general manager
Cary Pahigian states, "Jeff has a deep appreciation for WBAL's zealous commitment to 24/7 news coverage. His leadership, along with the skills and experience of our news team, will allow WBAL to fortify its position as Maryland's leading radio news source." Speaking about his new gig, Wade remarks, "I'm excited to be joining WBAL and the Hearst team. This is one of America's iconic radio stations with a proud legacy as a news leader staffed by an all-star team of experienced and knowledgeable talent."
PPM Analysis: Baseball Flagships. How did the first month of the 2017 Major League Baseball season go for radio play-by-play flagships?
TALKERS magazine editor
Mike Kinosian addresses that very question, reporting on the 6+ performances of baseball flagship stations based on data from the April 2017 PPM survey from
Nielsen Audio. Ten stations saw their 6+ numbers go up at least one full share, with
CBS RADIO's KMOX, St. Louis shooting up 2.2 shares to an 8.4 share (and good for a #1 market rank).
iHeartMedia's WLW, Cincinnati was close behind, rising by 2.1 to a 9.3 share. See the whole report
here.
TALKERS News Notes. In Chicago,
Salem Media Group adjusts its programming on news/talk WIND by
moving the
Salem Radio Network's
Larry Elder show from overnights (1:00 am to 3:00 am) to the 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm slot, followed by its "
Jay Sekulow Live" program at 9:00 pm. The shows bump the
Dave Ramsey program from the station's program schedule, effective June 1…..Next season, Detroit Pistons games will be heard on
CBS RADIO's sports talk WXYT-FM, moving from
Beasley's crosstown WMGC. The NBA club's games were originally heard on WMGC when it was a sports talk station – "Detroit Sports 105.1" – and remained there after the station flipped to classic hip hop and R&B. In the event of conflicts on WXYT-FM, Pistons games will move to the company's all-news WWJ-AM.
Manchester Bombing Aftermath, Trump's International Trip, Trump-Russia Investigation, Obama MS-13 Controversy, China Criticizes U.S. Ship Movement, Trump Budget Proposal, and MLB, NBA and NHL Action Among Top News/Talk Stories Yesterday (5/24). The arrests of family members of Manchester bomber Salman Abedi and the task of preventing more attacks; President Donald Trump's trip abroad; the investigation into possible connections between Trump campaign operatives and Russia; a whistleblower alleges Obama's Unaccompanied Children policy allowed MS-13 gang members to be settled in the U.S.; China lashes out at the U.S. after a Navy destroyer sails within 12 miles of its military, man-made island; the Congressional Budget Office's report on the Trump Administration budget proposal; and MLB, NBA and NHL action were some of the most-talked-about stories on news/talk radio yesterday, according to ongoing research from TALKERS magazine.
Cool Programming Opportunity. The Springfield, Illinois operations of
Mid-West Family Broadcasting is seeking an operations manager for the four-station cluster consisting of news/talk WMAY-AM, adult contemporary WNNS, rock WQLZ, and country WUSW. The company is seeking candidates who possess the following qualifications: Love to coach and develop talent, especially in the talk format; can do an airshift in multiple formats; understand that a digital plan is not a banner ad and a station stream; realize that a remote appearance is the exact opposite of being remote to listeners; know how to make Selector sing; have the instincts to do it your way and not wait for a corporate mandate. If this sounds too good to be true, it's not. It's Mid-West Family Broadcasting in the Land of Lincoln: Springfield, Illinois. Mid-West is an employee-owned company. If you want to talk in strict confidence, send an e-mail, resume and salary requirements to
Harvey Wells at:
hwells@mwfbmedia.com. What's sent to Springfield stays in Springfield. Mid-West Family Broadcasting is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Women and minority candidates are encouraged to apply.
Dr. Daliah Wachs Joins Michael Harrison for this Week's Podcast. She has just been named
TALKERS "Humanitarian of the Year" in recognition of her amazing achievements in supporting health-oriented charities, including her work getting "Blood Donation Days" instituted in many states and "National Blood Donation Week" becoming official across America.
Board-certified physician,
Daliah Wachs, M.D. practiced family medicine in Las Vegas for 16 years. She became a daily local radio talk show host in 2009 on KLAV and then KDWN. Her
show grew to include other affiliates around the nation and eventually was carried by
SiriusXM Satellite Radio and
iHeartRadio, in addition to her main platform,
Genesis Communications Network. In March of 2016, she closed her practice due to rising costs and red tape she says is smothering independent medical practitioners. She is currently a faculty member at
Touro University. As this week's guest on the award-winning
PodcastOne series "Up Close and Far Out with
Michael Harrison," Wachs talks about the challenges of hosting a successful, health-flavored generalist program on politically defined news/talk affiliates, in addition to explaining her non-partisan criticism of both the Affordable Care Act and the new GOP bill before Congress. To listen to the podcast in its entirety, please click
here or click on the "Up Close and Far Out" player box located in the right-hand column on every page of Talkers.com.
