We’ve made it to day 4 of BNM’s Top 20 of 2022 series presented by Steve Stone Voiceovers. If this is the first time browsing our website and you missed this week’s prior announcements, be sure to check out who made our lists among News/Talk radio’s top National Shows, Major and Mid Market Morning Shows, and Major and Mid Market midday shows. The results are collectively determined by 44 radio industry programmers and executives from 15 companies in 36 cities. Their participation in this process is greatly appreciated.
After today, we will still have three days left to go. Left to be presented are the format’s top program directors, radio stations, and original digital shows. We were going to keep the last category simple and call it ‘Digital Shows’ but we want to make sure it’s understood that the programs listed in the category are specifically created for podcast/video/OTT, not repurposed radio programs, so that’s why the word ‘original’ is added to the category title.
As a format, News/Talk radio programming is available on over two thousand stations. The only larger format is country. We try our best to make sure the top shows, hosts, programmers and brands are listed for voting consideration but also allow room for our voters to add nominees if for some reason someone isn’t listed on our document. Additionally, though we triple check everything before publishing our lists and hope to present the perfect layout, sometimes things slip through the cracks. If you notice an error, please let us know. We want to shine the light on the format’s best brands and shows in a way that makes them feel proud to be recognized, not frustrated by an incorrect detail.
As you review these results, please keep in mind that they represent the collective opinions of our industry panel. If a show didn’t make the list, it doesn’t mean it isn’t good, successful or critically important to its employer. In other words, don’t lose sleep over it. It’s cool to be recognized but there are way more good shows out there than there are slots available.
If you wish to stay informed on each day’s results, it’d help us out if you’d give us a follow on Twitter at @BNMStaff, like us on Facebook at Barrett News Media or sign up for our daily newsletter, ‘The Rundown‘ by clicking here. You can also bookmark this website to stay updated on future news/media industry content.
As it pertains to the voting, here are a few key things to be aware of.
#1 – Our voters were asked to pick their Top 20 selections for each category in exact order based on a few key factors; quality of show (ear test), originality, ability to entertain-inform-connect across multiple platforms, ratings success, clearance (national shows) and industry buzz. Remember, our voters live in different cities, have different tastes, work for different groups, and value certain factors higher than others. This isn’t a perfect system but it’s the best one we’ve been able to create to showcase the industry’s best. Having done this for seven years for the sports talk format, we’re going to stick with it until another approach makes more sense.
#2 – Our executive panel consists of program directors and corporate executives from a number of top broadcasting companies including Audacy, iHeart, Cumulus, Beasley, Hubbard, Good Karma Brands, Cox Media Group, Radio One, Alpha, Bonneville, FOX News Radio, Hearst, Federated Media, Zimmer Communications, and Westwood One. We involve a large number of people in order to receive feedback from all parts of the country, and to avoid the results heavily favoring one company.
#3 – A total of 52 shows in the Mid Market N/T Afternoon Shows category appeared on ballots turned in by our executive panel.
Which brings us to today’s category – Mid Market News/Talk Afternoon Shows. For the first time this week, WLW in Cincinnati did not grab the top spot in a mid market category. That’s because our voting panel placed their support behind WIBC’s Hammer and Nigel. The Indianapolis duo won a tight race against Charlotte’s Brent Winterble to secure the top spot. BNM congratulates Jason Hammer, Nigel Laskowski, David Wood and the entire WIBC team on being voted #1, as well as every other show which earned a spot on this year’s list.
Now, here are the full results of “BNM’s Top 20 Mid Market News/Talk Afternoon Shows of 2022!”
Additional Notes:
- Hammer & Nigel won this category by 11 points over Brett Winterble. The Indianapolis drive time show and Winterble’s Charlotte program were tied for the most first place votes among all shows with four (4).
- Coming in 21-25 were Jack Riccardi, Afternoon News with Jeff Caplan, Terry Meiners, Mark Blazor, and Bob Lonsberry.
- The closest contest was for spots 2-4. Brett Winterble finished 2 points ahead of Jeff Katz, who was 2 points in front of Dana and Parks. Rod Arquette also held on to 20th place over Jack Riccardi by 2 points.
- Of the 52 shows to receive votes, eleven (11) received at least one 1st place vote.
Here is the remaining schedule for the BNM Top 20 of 2022.
- Friday December 16 = The Top 20 Major/Mid Market N/T Radio Program Directors of 2022
- Monday December 19 = The Top 20 Major/Mid Market N/T Radio Stations of 2022
- Tuesday December 20 = The Top 20 Original N/T Digital Shows of 2022
A reminder, BNM will have a big announcement following the Top 20 series on Wednesday December 21st. Make sure to visit the website that day to learn what else we’re up to.
Jason Barrett is the President and Founder of Barrett Media since the company was created in September 2015. Prior to its arrival, JB served as a sports radio programmer, launching brands such as 95.7 The Game in San Francisco, and 101 ESPN in St. Louis. He also spent time programming SportsTalk 950 in Philadelphia, 590 The Fan KFNS in St. Louis, and ESPN 1340/1390 in Poughkeepsie, NY. Jason also worked on-air and behind the scenes in local radio at 101.5 WPDH, WTBQ 1110AM, and WPYX 106.5. He also spent two years on the national stage, producing radio shows for ESPN Radio in Bristol, CT. Among them included the Dan Patrick Show, and GameNight.
You can find JB on Twitter @SportsRadioPD. He’s also reachable by email at Jason@BarrettMedia.com.
