1-15-2015
Beasley Broadcast Group has merged its various portfolios of radio stations under a new corporate header, Beasley Media Group, Inc. The change, according to Beasley, "reflects the broad and expansive reach of on-air, digital and collateral radio products that are available to Beasley's listeners and advertisers." The parent company will remain Beasley Broadcast Group, Inc. and will continue to trade as "BBGI" on NASDAQ.
11-20-14
Media Services Group has added long-time broadcaster/broker, Sunbelt Media's Bill Cate. MSG Managing Director George Reed said, "We are extremely pleased to add Cate to our roster of media specialists. He brings with him a background of station ownership, as well as 36 years of media brokerage." Cate is the former co-owner and president of Chapman Associates. He said, "I am extremely pleased to be joining Media Services Group. Many of the partners go back to my days with Chapman Associates, and it'll be great to be back working with them."
8-25-14
Scott takes over morning drive for Adams Radio of Fort Wayne at Soft Rock 103.9. Scott brings over thirty years of major-market programming, operations, talent coaching and on-air experience from Detroit and Cincinnati. He most recently served as PD/Afternoon host for Cumulus-Cincinnati's WNNF NASH FM 94-1. Prior to Cincinnati, Mike spent twelve years as Assistant Operations Manager/Assistant Program Director-Music Director and midday talent for powerhouse country station WYCD (CBS) in Detroit. Adams recently acquired Soft Rock 103.9 along with WBTU, WJFX, WXKE, WGL AM, WLYV AM and translators 103.3 and 96.9.
3-20-14
After 33 years working in the radio industry in station operations with the last 18 years at the Senior Management levels with companies like Connoisseur and as CEO of Maverick Media, Gary Rozynek has launched The Maverick Group, an advisory firm that focuses on "media sector solutions." Rozynek says his boutique advisory firm will provide a menu of services that will support value creation in the media sector. Radio, TV, Cable and other media solution providers will be our partners."
Visit Gary's new website at http://www.themaverickgroup.com/ or contact him at garyr@themaverickgroup.com.
9-27-13
Katz Media Group announced Friday that Mark Gray has extended his contract as President of Katz Radio Group. Gray said, ?It?s extremely exciting to continue my role at Katz Radio Group. KRG has the brightest talent and an exceptional client base. I look forward to leading our sales force and working with our broadcast partners to strengthen radio?s perception within the advertising community. Radio?s story has never been stronger.?
Gray started his career with KRG in 1988 as an Account Executive. Gray has since been promoted within the company to positions including General Sales Manager and Vice President. He became president of Katz Radio in 2001 before being promoted to his current role as President of KRG in 2006.
New KRG CEO Mark Rosenthal said, ?We are thrilled to have Mark Gray continuing in his role as President of Katz Radio Group. Mark has a tremendous amount of success and experience in serving KRG?s phenomenal clients and his expertise continues to be a great asset for Katz Radio Group. Radio is a powerful national marketing platform and Mark extending his commitment to KRG solidifies the company?s further growth and intensified effort to create unsurpassed media solutions for clients.?
7-22-13
Kevin Woodlinger joins Sonoma as Local Business Development Manager beginning August 12. He replaces long-time employee Jeriann D?Elicio, who announced her resignation recently. Wodlinger is the former market manager for the Cumulus cluster in Grand Junction, now owned by TownSquare. Sonoma Media Group President Michael O'Shea said, ?Kevin is the real deal; a consummate sales executive with a great track record of teaching, coaching, and leading in local business development. We are delighted to have his expertise and leadership in our building.?
Sonoma Media Group operates (and acquisition is pending before the FCC) five market-leading stations in Santa Rosa, including KSRO-AM, Froggy 92.9 FM, 97.7 The River FM, Mix 104.9 FM, and Hot 101.7 FM. Wodlinger said, ?I?m very impressed with Sonoma Media Group?s commitment to local ownership and development of more local customers. I?m very much looking forward to relocating to beautiful Santa Rosa?.
6-27-13
Jimmy Steele has been named brand manager at Saga's Columbus Radio Group, overseeing AC WSNY, Hot AC WCMX, and Classic Hits duo WNND & WNNP. Steele was most recently with Clear Channel/San Diego as OM and VP/programming; he left that post in January. He's also programmed stations in Buffalo, Madison, and Nashville.
"We were looking for a seasoned leader who mentors, coaches, and grows his people," Columbus Radio Group VP/GM Chris Forgy said. "And we found all of that in Jimmy Steele."
Saga EVP and Group PD Steve Goldstein said, "Jimmy had the trifecta. He has a great blend of art and science, and he knows the market well. We are thrilled to bring his experience and expertise to our group."
(6/27/2013 11:33:54 PM)
You guys are fortunate to have him. Great programmer...great guy.
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5-30-13
The first annual Radio Ink/Wizard Academy Online Radio Summit concluded yesterday in Austin, Texas. The event, which was attended by advertisers representing approximately $180 million in advertising spend, by radio station executives, and station managers, and by online radio executives from Pandora and others, was designed to help advertisers understand the online radio climate and its impact on radio advertising.
Radio Ink Publisher Eric Rhoads said, "This is the first time we've melded the advertisers, local radio operators, and online radio operators to create a dialogue about where the industry is heading. According to Roy Williams of Wizard Academy, 2013 is the year of online radio's bar mitzvah. It's time we began taking it seriously. Listening has grown and advertisers are asking for answers. The 2013 Online Radio Summit was merely the first in what will be an annual series. In effect, it will be the TED conference for online radio."
The event started off with presentations from Williams and Rhoads, and included presentations from Justin Chimienti and Ronda Joines of Pandora who shared their typical advertising presentation and their growth metrics. They were followed by an example of the largest scale independent Internet radio station and sales director Michael Hammer from IDOBI, which is seeing cumes of about 2.4 million listeners and receives national advertisers like Home Depot and others. Also presenting were Internet industry consultants Jeffry Eisenberg, David McKinnis (PR Web/Cranberry), JP Englebrecht, CEO of South Central Communications, which owns large and medium market radio stations, and Ray Seggern, a Wizard of Ads partner and broadcaster.
The event was followed by an industry roundtable designed to help advertisers, and online and terrestrial radio broadcasters draw conclusions about the medium.
The event will be held annually in Austin. Check out more pictures from the event HERE
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2-7-2013
Connections, which is Clear Channel's national sales and marketing division, is reorganizing into three regions. Laura Hagen joins Connections from NBC News and becomes Senior VP for the East Region. Kristina Lutz, comes to Clear Channel from Starcom USA, to become Senior VP for the Central Region. And Adrienne Pabst becomes Senior Vice President for the West Region.
Hagen joins Clear Channel from NBC News? Advertising Sales division where she most recently served as General Manager of Brand Solutions. She began at NBC in 2003 and focused on cross-platform media sales. Prior to NBC, Hagen held various sales positions at Salon Media Group, The Industry Standard (IDG), 24/7 Media, and Ziff-Davis Magazine Networks. She will join the company beginning February 11, 2013, and will be based out of New York City.
Lutz joins Clear Channel from Starcom USA where she most recently served as Senior Vice President and Activation Director. Lutz also served as Senior Vice President/Managing Director of General Motors Planworks, a dedicated unit of Starcom MediaVest Group that conducted media buying, planning, and research. Lutz will work out of Chicago and will oversee all large advertisers and partners located in the region.
Newly appointed Gayle O'Carroll and Chris Baskin will join Clear Channel Media and Entertainment as Vice Presidents of Connections for the Central Region and will report to Lutz. O?Carroll spent the past 13 years holding various sales leadership roles at major content and entertainment brands including Discovery Communications, Disney, and Cox Communications. Baskin will join the company from Buzzmedia, where he championed national accounts like State Farm, Kraft, McDonald?s, Nordstrom, Motorola and many more to help significantly grow revenue for the Midwest Territory.
Also announced today, Britt Levine will join Erin Collier as Vice President of Connections West. Levine was promoted from within Clear Channel Media and Entertainment and previously served as Sales Manager. Levine will report directly to Adrienne Pabst, Senior Vice President of Connections West.
2-4-13
2-5-2013
Radio Ink spoke to several Radio Group Heads Monday to get their feedback on whether or not $15 million per year was too much to pay Sprint to have FM chips installed and turned on in 30 million smart phones that will include Smulyan's NextRadio app. Hubbard Radio President and CEO Ginny Morris said she supports their plan and the industry owe's Smulyan a great deal of thanks. "Jeff Smulyan has worked tirelessly and with little help on getting us to this juncture." Here's more on what Morris, Galaxy CEO Ed Levine and Cromwell President and CEO Bud Walters think of the Sprint/NextRadio plan.
Morris says Radio has to recognize that people no longer wake up to an alarm clock. "Having a 'stereo' in your room is no longer 'the it thing' for most high school students and my guess is that most dorm rooms have docking stations instead of stereos. Couple those changing behaviors with the new competition in the dashboard and you have among other things -- far less visibility to local radio than we used to have -- I see this as 30 million more radios in the marketplace--that's a terrific start."
"We have so much more to offer than our ability to assist in an emergency. If we all do our jobs right on the local level people will appreciate the simple ability to access us over directly on their phones and not through a data plan. We are local, we are relevant in the lives of our listeners, we entertain and inform. Yes, we are also a lifeline to people who are dealing with the aftermath of a crisis but those are not the only times we matter in the lives of the American consumer."
"I have reached out to several people about giving a verbal commitment to participate in the program by dedicating inventory and without exception everyone has stepped up to do 'at least' what was asked of them. Big companies, small companies, big markets and small markets--the response has been overwhelmingly positive."
Galaxy Communications CEO Ed Levine also likes this deal. "The revenue split is innovative and the access to the phones in the Sprint customer base is huge. I would gladly sign up for the same deal along the same terms with AT&T and Verizon. This is about portability and distribution of our content. It's 2013, time to stop debating these critical issues of long term survival and simply get it done!
Cromwell broadcasting President and CEO Bud Walters says, "Over the last several weeks I have been in contact
with small market licensees of more than 450 radio stations. All except two have pledged $10,000 per year per station for three years for this project. There has been general excitement about the idea and the need. There are certainly a lot more licensees who will be supportive."
The app is being developed by Emmis and should be ready in April or May according to Smulyan. He says the response so far "has been spectacular." And, to allow radio stations to start competing on the dashboard immediately, all stations will get a few free features, including their logo and a liner.
Every radio station in the country will be available on the NextRadio app. Local listeners will have access to local stations through these Sprint phones with the NextRadio app. It will be the interactive upgrades stations decide to add to the app that determine just how competitive stations are with the cutting edge technology companies of today. Upgrades such as album art, graphics, selling targeted ads (watch out Pandora) and ways to purchase songs as they play.
Emmis is holding a free informational webinar on the app. February 27th
(2/5/2013 7:04:00 AM)
So, Jeff ran his company into the ground for something that consumers don't care about - what a deal! Thirty million is a drop in the bucket, too. That safety issue was a was always a ruse. Of course, being an investor in iBiquity, Jeff's goal is ultimately to get that flawed HD Radio chip into cell phones, and have the iBiquity royalties passed onto consumers.
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1-31-2013
The Cromwell Radio Group Nashville says Ops Manager Troy Hanson is sticking around until at least 2017 after signing a new deal. Hanson oversees WPRT-FM (Sports) and WQZQ-AM/FM (Urban Gospel) in Nashville. GM Tincy Crouse says, "Troy has shown a tremendous level of commitment and professionalism in his role with the Cromwell Radio Group. We are extremely pleased to have come to an agreement on his employment for many years to come."
10-21-2012 Update - Clear Channel to Take Down Boards
Clear Channel VP of Corporate Communications for Outdoor Jim Cullinan said in a statement, "We reviewed the situation, and in light of the fact that these billboards violate our policy of not accepting anonymous political ads, we asked the client how they would prefer to work with us to bring the boards into conformance with our policy. The client thought the best solution was to take the boards down, so we are in the process of removing them."
READ MORE HERE
10-20-2012
Liberal activist group "Color of Change" is demanding Clear Channel Outdoor take down billboards warning against voter fraud according to the Hollywood Reporter. The billboard ads say: ?Voter fraud is a felony! 3 ? Yrs & $10,000 Fine," and they are being paid for by a private foundation. The billboards appear in black and Latino neighborhoods in Ohio and Wisconsin and the group calls them ?one of the nastiest voter suppression schemes we?ve seen.?
Clear Channel issued a statement that Hollywood Reporter included in its story. It read: "Clear Channel Outdoor does not comment on our advertisers' ads. We are committed to ensuring that ads, including political ads, posted on our billboards have the appropriate disclaimer so this situation doesn't happen again in the future."
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9-25-2012
Radio Ink's 10th annual Forecast summit proudly presents "Radio Group Heads: Leadership Speak-Out." An annual summit highlight, this powerful panel features the leaders of the largest and most influential radio groups, speaking openly about the critical issues featuring the industry today. In Forecast tradition, no reporters are allowed. This conversation, moderated this year by Emmy-winning journalist Rita Cosby, is for the ears of Forecast attendees only.
A highly respected journalist with years of interviewing experience, Cosby can be expected to pose frank questions and provoke equally frank answers from the industry?s heavyweights about their businesses, their predictions, their concerns, what they are optimistic about, and their visions for radio in 2013 and beyond. This panel is historically conversational, candid, and occasionally heated.
"Each year the group heads step up to the plate for an industry dialogue," Radio Ink Publisher Eric Rhoads said. "This year, with Rita Cosby moderating, we should see a whole new level of intrigue." Forecast 2013 is set for November 28, 2012 (the week after Thanksgiving) at the Harvard Club in New York.
Rita Cosby is an Emmy-winning TV host, veteran correspondent, and best-selling author who anchored highly rated prime time shows on Fox News Channel and NBC. She is currently a special correspondent for the top-rated CBS syndicated newsmagazine Inside Edition and recently hosted WOR's nationally syndicated Rita Cosby Show.
Radio Ink EVP/Radio Deborah Parenti said, "We are especially pleased to have a journalist of the caliber of Rita Cosby lead this year's group heads' super session. With the election in the rearview mirror by the time Forecast convenes, this will be the first focused opportunity to hear from the industry's joint leadership on where they see business heading over the next four years."
Industry leaders confirmed as of today:
Lew Dickey is Chairman and CEO of Cumulus Media, the second-largest radio group in station count, a revenue leader, and a company with ever-growing industry influence. Cumulus Media Networks, meanwhile, serves more than 4,500 affiliate stations nationwide. Dickey co-founded Cumulus in 1997, and earlier founded Stratford Research; his background in research and statistics remains evident in his management style today.
David Field serves as President and CEO of Entercom Communications, which owns and operates more than 100 radio stations, including newest acquisition KBLX-FM/San Francisco. Field has been with Entercom since 1987 and became CEO in 2002, and he's known as an active and high-profile advocate on a range of industry issues.
John Hogan, longtime president and CEO of Clear Channel Media + Entertainment, added the title of Chairman earlier this year. He's been with the company since 1999, when CC purchased Jacor, and now manages more than 800 stations and the top revenue generator in the radio industry. Under Hogan's auspices, Clear Channel's iHeartRadio platform is growing fast and attracting partners like Cumulus Media.
Jeff Smulyan, founder and Chairman/CEO of Emmis Communications, wields outsize influence in the radio industry as a respected industry spokesman, most recently as an advocate for FM chips in cellphones, urging their importance as a matter of public safety. After operating WNTS in Indianapolis and KCRO in Omaha, Smulyan formed and became principal shareholder of Indianapolis-based Emmis in 1980.
Peter Smyth, Chairman/CEO of Greater Media, Smyth is known an industry leader on the local, state, and national levels, working with the NAB and RAB on various industry initiatives. He joined Greater Media in 1986 as GM of WMJX-FM/Boston. He became President/COO in 2000 and CEO in 2002, and added the chairman's title in 2008.
Forecast Co-Chairs
Clear Channel CEO Bob Pittman will co-chair Radio Ink's Forecast 2013. A vocal industry cheerleader, Pittman intends to focus the conversation at Forecast on radio's strengths. Before arriving at Clear Channel in 2010, Pittman's resume included stints as CEO of MTV Networks, AOL Networks, Six Flags Theme Parks, Quantum Media, Century 21 Real Estate, and Time Warner Enterprises. But he began his career in radio, as a 15-year-old on the air in his native Mississippi, and later programmed stations in Pittsburgh, Chicago, and New York.
Forecast 2013 co-chair Bill Koenigsberg is founder, President, and CEO of Horizon Media, and is highly respected for his insights into marketing and media trends. Under his leadership Horizon has become the largest and fastest-growing independent media agency in the world, with billing of $3.8 billion and clients including Geico, Capital One, United Airlines, and Kraft Foods.
Forecast 2013 is set for November 28, 2012 (the week after Thanksgiving) at the Harvard Club in New York. Attendance is limited to 200.
Register HERE
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9-6-2012
The Asheville Radio Group has tapped Neal Sharpe to become PD for WOXL-FM and 98-1 The River. Neal spent 10-years at Greater Media Charlotte?s WLNK and Clear Channel's WJGH classic hits in Jacksonville before joining Saga. Sharpe said, ?I'm excited about the opportunity to work for such an outstanding company with Steve Goldstein, Barry Brown, Ken Carson and the great team in Asheville.?
Market Manager Barry Brown said ?We are excited to have a PD of Neal?s caliber bringing his winning track record to the Asheville radio group.? Saga Executive Vice President Steve Goldstein added ?We are thrilled to bring a well-rounded, accomplished AC PD to Asheville. Neal brings the skill set we have been looking for? and operation manager Ken Carson said that ?Saga has once again sought out one of the brightest programming minds and Neal?s leadership will be an inspiration to our team and a partner in achieving our strategic goals.?
Neal is now in place and can be reached at 828-210-8580 or nsharpe@avlradio.com.
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7-25-2012Greater Media Vice President for Program Development Buzz Knight, reporting for Radio Ink, recently interviewed Blitz Media Senior Vice President/Group Director Greg Angland (pictured) about how he uses radio for his clients. Anglund had a lot to say about radio, including how he targets consumers via their lifestyle using radio. "The key is the right message. If you use the assets of radio effectively, it really can connect with people."
Listen to the full interview HERE
Buzz Knight is the Vice President of Program Development for Greater Media and he can be reached at bknight@greatermediaboston.com. Read more articles by Buzz Knight HERE
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5-24-12
The new MIW Gender Analysis Study by the Mentoring and Inspiring Women in Radio Group found that 1,807 AM and FM stations had women in GM posts in 2011 -- that's 16.6 percent of the 11,226 stations looked at. That's up slightly from 16.1 percent in 2010, and up from 14.9 percent back in 2004. In the top 100 markets, the trend was also upward: Women managed 17.4 percent of those stations in 2011, up from 16.7 percent in 2010.
Sales management still offers the best opportunities for women, although there was little change from 2004-2011, the report shows; last year, 30.5 percent of stations had female sales managers, a slight increase. In the top 100 markets, 32.1 percent of stations had women in the sales management post last year, also a slight gain.
Women programmed 11.1 percent of AM and FM stations in 2011, up slightly from 10.7 percent in 2004; in the top 100 markets, women program 9.6 percent of stations.
"The MIWs have been analyzing and publishing these gender numbers for the past 12 years," MIW spokesperson and Greater Media VP/Corporate Communications Heidi Raphael said. "It is very encouraging to see the percentages consistenly incrase. We look forward to seeing those numbers continue to grow on a larger scale in the future."
The annual Gender Analysis Study is compiled, analyzed, and released by the MIWs from information provided by MStreet Publications.
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3-2-2012
McFarlane joins Altitude as VP of Strategic Partnerships for the West Coast. She'll be asked to create unique advertising programs to help grow client brands and customer engagement. McFarlane has developed media campaigns for brands including American Airlines, Bank of America, and GlaxoSmithKline, among others. She's worked for CBS before at the company?s all-news station in San Francisco. She began her career as a regional sales and marketing manager for Turner Broadcasting.
July 6, 2011
Jack Myers is a media economist and chairman of Media Advisory Group. MAG invests in early stage companies that advance and support the media ecosystem and represents management teams in the sale of media companies with value of more than $100 million. Jack writes the weekly (subscriber-only) Jack Myers Media Business Report, publishes JackMyersThinkTank.com and MediaBizBloggers.com blog platform for industry thought leaders, and is the author of three books on advertising, including Building Brands and Profits in The Relationship Age, written in 1998. Jack?s weekly video commentary on the media economy can be viewed at Reuters Insider. Jack is the recipient of the George Foster Peabody Award for journalism, won the Crystal Heart Award from the Heartland Film Festival, and has been nominated for both an Academy and Emmy Award.
"I'm excited to be co-chairing Forecast 2012 with Peter Smyth. Our goal is to deliver insights, case studies and practical knowledge that can support radio management as they navigate through this transformational period," according to Jack Myers. "Jack Myers is a well known and highly respected media forecaster and analyst. We are delighted he has agreed to co chair Forecast 12 and excited for the chance to draw on his wealth of business and financial acumen for this year's conference," said Deborah Parenti, Vice President and General Manager of Radio Ink in making the announcement.
For more than two decades, Jack has been among the media industry's leading visionaries and economic forecasters. He has advised more than 250 media companies, marketers and agencies on business transformation, revenue-development and organizational best practices. Clients have included Disney/ABC, General Motors, Coca-Cola, The Huffington Post, TiVo, Sears Roebuck, Campbell Soup Co., Clorox, Reebok, AT&T, Kmart, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, TJX Corp., Turner Broadcasting, CBS-TV, AOL, Discovery Communications, The Weather Channel, Met Life, Time Warner, Golf Magazine, Aegis Group, Mediaedge and Fox Broadcasting. He currently has investments in 15 companies including Tremor Media, MyYearbook.com, Rally Marketing, Echo Systems, HeresYourNeighborhood.com, CatalystSF, adGenesis, TRA Global, Marketshare and Simulmedia.
Register for the conference and receive the early registration rate at www.radioink.com/forecast or by calling 561.655.8778.
Sponsored by:
Platinum Sponsor, Intertech Media
Silver Sponsor, Dial Global
Corporate Sponsor, Marketron
The latest to congratulate the Zimmer team on a job well done is The Los Angelas Times. In a piece entitled "Joplin Radio Stations Become Lifeline for Tornado-Stricken Residents" the paper highlights how broadcasters are turning into unofficial public information officers as callers ask for information on loved ones or make offers of assistance. And the paper points out that in the age of tweets and likes and blogs and texts, the good old fashioned transmitter, tower and telephone are the glue holding the tiny town of Joplin together. "In a town where Internet and mobile connections have become scarcities after an Old Testament-style disaster crippled new media, Zimmer Radio's untouched towers have made its six stations essential listening."
Read the entire article HERE
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