WBBM Chicago Wins Legendary Marconi

9-20-13
The winners of the 2013 NAB Marconi Radio Awards were announced Thursday night at the annual NAB Marconi Radio Awards Dinner & Show held at the Radio Show in Orlando. CBS' WBBM-AM in Chicago was named legendary station of the year, Premiere's Steve Harvey won for Syndicated Personality of the year and Jerry Lee's WBEB in Philadelphia won for major market station of the year. Lee said he was ecstatic for beating out the great WMMR in Philadelphia, also up for the award. Here's the entire list of Marconi winners from last night.

Legendary Station
WBBM-AM Chicago, IL
Spanish Format Personality of the Year
Javier Romero WAMR-FM Miami, FL

Network/Syndicated Personality of the Year
Steve Harvey, Premiere Radio Networks
AC Station of the Year
WTMX-FM Chicago, IL
Major Market Station of the Year
WBEB-FM Philadelphia, PA

CHR Station of the Year
WRDW-FM Philadelphia, PA

Large Market Station of the Year
KSTP-FM St. Paul, MN

Country Station of the Year
KKBQ-FM Houston, TX

Medium Market Station of the Year
KRMG-FM Tulsa, OK

News/Talk Station of the Year
WBZ-AM Boston, MA

Small Market Station of the Year
WKDZ-FM Cadiz, KY

Religious Station of the Year
KLRC-FM Siloam Springs, AR

Major Market Personality of the Year
Eric & Kathy, WTMX-FM Chicago, IL

Rock Station of the Year
WZLX-FM Boston, MA

Large Market Personality of the Year
Cornbread, WIL-FM St. Louis, MO

Spanish Station of the Year
KLOL-FM Houston, TX

Medium Market Personality of the Year
Brian Byers, WSOY-AM Decatur, IL

Sports Station of the Year
KTCK-AM Dallas, TX
Small Market Personality of the Year
Monk & Kelly,WGSQ-FM Cookeville, TN

Urban Station of the Year
WVEE-FM Atlanta, GA
Established in 1989 and named after inventor and Nobel Prize winner Guglielmo Marconi, the NAB Marconi Radio Awards are given to radio stations and outstanding on-air personalities to recognize excellence in radio. Marconi finalists were selected by a task force of broadcasters, and the winners were voted on by the NAB Marconi Radio Awards Selection Academy. The votes were tabulated by an independent firm. The NAB Marconi Radio Awards Dinner & Show was hosted by "Shotgun Tom" Kelly of CBS Radio's KRTH-FM in Los Angeles. The show also featured a performance by Grammy Award-Winning band The Mavericks from Big Machine Label Group.

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Legendary Programmer Paul Drew Dies

5-17-13

Drew, a Detroit native, started his radio career in Atlanta in 1961 at WAKE where he would cultivate his audience by visiting high schools gathering names to air on his show. He went on to become VP of Programming for RKO Radio in New York. Merlin Media CEO Randy Michaels said, "There has never been a finer technical program director, or one who paid more attention to detail. If there is a hotline in heaven, Paul is on it with some advice on how to tighten up." Drew died of natural causes at the age of 78.

Drew hired some of radio's greatest names, including Jerry Clifton, Les Garland, Dave Sholin, Guy Zapolean, Bob Hamilton, Rick Bisceglia, Don Kelly, Harry Nelson, Rick Dees, Dave Martin, Gary Berkowitz, Walt "Baby" Love, and Charlie Van Dyke.

Les Garland told Radio Ink, "I feel a very deep loss this night like a close family member has passed. Paul Drew transformed my life. No one loved great radio more than Paul. I loved Paul and his wife Ann Drew. Please be reminded that once upon a time Paul Drew was the most important cat in the music business and he walked the top
of that mountain with a great deal class. I'm feeling the past come rushing back right now and a bit like a young radio programmer dream of meeting Paul Drew. That dream came true for me. Paul was my friend. I will miss him for the rest of my days."

Bob Hamilton told Radio Ink he worked for Drew twice and it was the best 10 years of his career. "Paul Drew was my true hero. No one will ever be like him. A true pro who was so smart. Loved the biz and was so cool. Once you got him, you loved him. We lost a real radio hero."

About his good friend, Jim Davis says, "Paul Drew was the game changer for my career. I was 21 when he hired me from Toledo for CKLW. From the get go, I knew he was a force to be reckoned with. He trained me on the all night show, actually sitting across from me with his Zenith Trans-Oceanic radio while he critiqued every single set. He made it clear he would not accept mediocrity (just ask the many engineers who ?bit the dust? because of a bad layover, or loose segue). He walked fast, worked incredibly long hours and was (sometimes) brutally honest. I never made a mistake on that station that he didn?t point out through a ?batphone? call. However, as demanding of perfection as he was, he was also fair and treated his talent with great respect.  He trounced the Detroit competition within 6 months. Later, I worked for Paul as his voice over talent at WIBG and then as air talent at KHJ and PD at KLIF, Dallas.  Rarely does time pass without my thinking ?what would Paul do?. What he taught me is burned into my being like the veins in the back of my hands. I will truly miss him."

In 1963, Drew moved to WQXI in Atlanta as host of the 7 p.m.-12 midnight shift. One online history of Drew says he introduced Atlanta to, and later toured with, the Beatles. He eventually became program director of WQXI in Atklanta, a position he held until 1967, when he left to program CKLW in Detroit, KFRC in San Francisco, and  KHJ in Los Angeles before moving on to RKO.

(5/17/2013 10:29:57 PM)
I actually worked as a Receptionist/Secretary in 1958 til 1961 at Radio Station WGST in Atlanta which was owned and operated by Georgia Tech. Paul Drew was a major DJ during that time and hosted many teen Hops
(5/17/2013 5:05:25 PM)
Rich, nice story. But they didn't ever beat WABC, not even close. Clifton was soon fired.
(5/17/2013 5:04:58 PM)
Rich, nice story. But they didn't ever beat WABC, not even close. Clifton was soon fired.
(5/17/2013 4:39:44 PM)
1974 WXLO New York. Brand new sales guy. I have my first encounter with Paul and Jerry Clifton who Paul had just hired to program XLO. Paul, sharply dressed in suit & tie. Jerry in a "I wanna hump " t-shirt with a camel on it. They went on to beat WABC and the rest is history. I am lucky to have known him and see his amazing work. His kind is lost forever I'm afraid. RIP Paul. (Rock In Peace).
Rich marston
(5/17/2013 9:56:03 AM)
The proper way to respect him is to send a donation today to the BROADCASTERS FOUNDATION OF AMERICA which helped ease his life at the end. http://www.broadcastersfoundation.org/

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(PROGRAMMING) Make Your Station Legendary

 9-14-2012 

Legendary status and what it means in our business is worthy of discussion. And radio stations that achieve legendary status are unique entities that deserve celebration. In the dictionary, "legendary" is defined as: extremely well known, famous or renowned, celebrated in legend. So let's break down how and why a radio station becomes legendary.

Legendary stations:
-- understand the significance of their past but never stop advancing in the present and for the future.
-- live, breathe, and embody the spirit of their market.
-- not only care about their community but love their community.
-- aren't afraid to experiment and invent fresh angles.
-- have unified teams within all departments...from sales to programming to engineering to promotions. Even the receptionist is aligned with the mission.
-- have an incredible understanding of what great customer service means for its sales customers and its listeners.
-- have a flair for thinking big.
-- are calm in the moment of competitive battle because they know who they are.
-- have a great time doing what they do!

My favorite element of legendary radio stations is one of the things that you can only experience when you walk into their building. When you walk into a legendary radio station you can feel it, you can smell it, and you can taste it. The energy is contagious. The spirit is alive.

The legendary crop of stations is large and I couldn't list them all here. But WMMR, WRIF, WMJX, WBT, WDHA, KROQ, WHTZ, WGN, WTOP, WBEB, KISW, WKLH, WFAN, and all of the others, deserve to be celebrated!

Buzz Knight is the Vice President of Program Development for Greater Media and he can be reached at bknight@greatermediaboston.com. Knight was named among ?Best Programmers? by Radio Ink Magazine in 2007 and 2010. He has served on the programming subcommittee of the National Association of Broadcasters(NAB) and is currently a member of the Arbitron Radio Advisory Council and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) COLRAM Committee.

Read more articles by Buzz Knight HERE

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Legendary Marketing Guru: "Radio Playing Too Many Ads"

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It's something we've written about many times but seems to fall on deaf ears inside the radio beltway. Here's one person who hears it loud and clear and has some serious advice for broadcasters. Buzz Knight, on assignment to Radio Ink, picked up an interview with legendary marketing genius Al Ries, the author of "Focus" and "The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding," among other best sellers. Ries, who is all about branding, tells Knight, "I am seriously concerned about radio." He says the number of ads radio plays is not good for advertisers. "I don't see how you can run so many commercials and expect to cut through. It doesn't make any sense." Ries ran an advertising agency in New York for nearly 30 years and now consults with his daughter Laura. Ries also tells Knight radio needs to do a better job getting its message out. Something we've heard many times before.

Listen or download the Buzz Knight/Al Ries interview HERE
Check out the Ries & Ries website HERE

Buzz Knight is the Vice President of Program Development for Greater Media and he can be reached at bknight@greatermediaboston.com.

(6/25/2012 6:35:27 PM)
Maybe it does need to be said. A lot of these guys are not professionals. They are in it only for the money they can grab... today.
(6/25/2012 6:13:50 PM)
A lot of the problem comes from radio station owners/GMs who are business people, not "radio" people. They see every single commercial availability that goes by unfilled as money left on the table.

If they aren't filling 12 minutes per hour (or more) entirely with commercials, they liken it to a grocery store having to throw out fruit that has gone bad. They'd rather oversell the station at 25 cents a spot than risk a day with unsold inventory.

They don't care about "damaging the brand."

(6/25/2012 1:43:49 PM)
Over commercialization was not Al Ries' message! His only reference was to the extreme, i.e, the parade of lead-in spots to celebrity talk shows.

Besides, Cable TV is now stealing Network TV ad
$ despite "insufferable" over commercialization.

Bigger issue: Radio & print come into the discussion only as mediums advertisers can borrow money from to buy more Social Media.

In a forthcoming online RI story (RADIO 2012...
GIVE UP?) I explore Radio's #1 problem, and
what you can do to solve it.

(6/25/2012 1:40:39 PM)
Friends of radio remember when radio was more friendly so to speak. 8 or nine minutes of ads per hour. F R E S H programming whether in music or talk. Accessible DJs and Talk Show hosts that made up a FUN listening environment.
Can we recreate that? Probably, so let's make today's Radio just that....
(6/25/2012 1:34:48 PM)
But---there are hundreds of small and medium market stations who "get it" and do it well.

And, they also limit their commercial load to a reasonable amount----but what they do air is largely local in scope.

AND---although if you asked 100 listeners if they "liked commercials" they would all say NO---they'd miss them if they weren't there---at least in the 10 or so markets I have worked in at stations that "got it".

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Legendary Marketing Guru: "Radio Playing Too Many Ads"

Download this show

It's something we've written about many times but seems to fall on deaf ears inside the radio beltway. Here's one person who hears it loud and clear and has some serious advice for broadcasters. Buzz Knight, on assignment to Radio Ink, picked up an interview with legendary marketing genius Al Ries, the author of "Focus" and "The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding," among other best sellers. Ries, who is all about branding, tells Knight, "I am seriously concerned about radio." He says the number of ads radio plays is not good for advertisers. "I don't see how you can run so many commercials and expect to cut through. It doesn't make any sense." Ries ran an advertising agency in New York for nearly 30 years and now consults with his daughter Laura. Ries also tells Knight radio needs to do a better job getting its message out. Something we've heard many times before.

Listen or download the Buzz Knight/Al Ries interview HERE
Check out the Ries & Ries website HERE

Buzz Knight is the Vice President of Program Development for Greater Media and he can be reached at bknight@greatermediaboston.com.

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The Legendary WABB in Mobile Sold

2-18-2012

It's the end of an era in Mobile, Alabama. Top 40 radio station WABB-FM has been sold to EMF (Educational Media Foundation) of Rocklin, CA, a not-for-profit organization. Many of radio?s major talents and programmers launched their careers at WABB including Mike McVay (pictured), Scott Shannon, Randy Lane, Leslie Fram, Mark St. John, Paul Fuller, Bill Evans, Lee Chesnut and many more.

Mike McVay tells Radio Ink,  "I was fortunate to have worked at WABB AM/FM, Mobile, under Bernie Dittman. Bernie gave me the title of General Manager, but he continued to manage the properties.  That was a huge benefit to me as I learned sales, management and operations from an amazing broadcaster. To call WABB a ?property? makes it seem inanimate. Bernie never looked at the stations that way. They were a part of his family. This had to be the most difficult decision that Judy or Betsy have ever had to make. God bless them."

WABB ?FM has been a powerhouse along the Gulf Coast for decades and one of  the longest running Top-40 radio stations in the United States.  Bernie Dittman bought WABB-AM in 1959 and put WABB-FM on the air in 1973. The stations have been owned by the family for 52 years. Dittman passed away in 2006.

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