In June of last year, 790 KABC (Los Angeles) Program Director Drew Hayes departed, leading 560 KSFO (San Francisco) Program Director Luis Segura to take on stewardship of both news/talk radio brands.
And while there are certainly differences between the two markets, Segura admitted there are many similarities between Los Angeles/Southern California and San Francisco/Northern California. When asked about what challenges are presented by leading the two separate brands in different markets, Luis Segura said “challenges” isn’t the right word for the situation.
“I know it sounds cliche, but it’s really an opportunity. It’s not like I’m in another state, it’s Los Angeles — Southern California — and we’re talking the Bay Area,” he said. “There’s great opportunity for really creating the state’s biggest megaphone that reaches both of the largest areas in California.
“Most of these cities and areas are plagued by the same problems. You go into Orange County, Los Angeles County, San Francisco County, or Alameda County, you’ve got the same issues of homelessness, crime, high taxes, and bloated government. Both of these areas are dealing with the same thing,” said Segura. “So, if anything there’s opportunity to bring the two together. Part of that is bringing the strength out of each station, bringing it over to the other, and making them like siblings. That’s just the beginning of more connection between the two from websites to news stories.”
In today’s day and age of corporate/brand synergy, and the national/regional syndication model that many companies utilize, 560 KSFO and 790 KABC don’t share many programs in their daily lineups. In fact, The John Phillips Show — originating from the Cumulus Los Angeles station, airing from 12-3 PM PT — is repurposed to air as a one-hour program in the Bay Area and called Fix California with John Phillips.
Segura told Barrett News Media the repackaging of the show isn’t really as difficult as one might think, due to the topics and subject matter being similarly important to listeners in both areas.
“The stories that affect one area affect the other. The Bay Area is really what Los Angeles is becoming. You saw the passage of a bunch of bills that were pro-police and tough on crime. Los Angeles County isn’t there yet, but it’s getting there,” said Segura. “You have great strides in Orange County with the DA there. So we already tackled, with The John Phillips Show, those topics anyway. So it’s really redoing some of those stories and really emphasizing what people are going through in the Bay Area, so it’s not it’s not a heavy lift.
“Even before taking over KSFO, we had people from the Bay Area and other parts of California — Riverside County, from Fresno — who would listen to The John Phillips Show online because the stuff is relatable. So there wasn’t it was not a heavy lift to localize that content for KSFO.”
In conservative talk radio circles, the word “California” can often be viewed as a dirty one. The consensus among talking heads in the medium is that the state is filled exclusively with liberal, electric vehicle-driving, marijuana-smoking, trans-loving hippies who instead of going to work every day find ways to rob other states to give money to illegal immigrants.
However, Segura is here to remind those with negative views of Californians that they have conservative citizens, too, and the two stations take logical approaches to reaching those listeners.
“Well, we focus on the taxpayer,” Segura stated. “It is even less about political or party lines. We’re focused on the taxpayer because when you sit around the table, what are people talking about? When you’re focused on the taxpayer, you don’t even have to bring in the conservative bent, because it’s like ‘What’s affecting your wallet?’
“When you’re talking to people about people’s money, you don’t have to think about the politics.”
While wanting to keep 560 KSFO and 790 KABC as separate entities, one thing Luis Segura is adamant about for both brands is the use of callers. And while the industry has mostly shifted away from taking many live calls on the air during primetime programming, it’s something the programmer believes separates talk radio from other mediums and formats.
“We’re big on taking calls. I love stressing that. We take a lot of calls from listeners, (because) so many of the other outlets won’t take your call. We give people an outlet to vent their frustration and voice their opinions on things. Radio is amazing, because it’s not a passive activity. It’s very much engaging. We have an opportunity, unlike television, or even a podcast, to pull people in, and engage in the conversation versus just kind of like giving a lecture.”
Both the Bay Area and Los Angeles have seen drastic changes to the talk radio landscape in recent years. Legendary San Francisco news/talk outlet 810 KGO flipped formats in October 2022 to sports betting, despite the state failing to pass legalized sports betting. Additionally, in the City of Angeles, longtime KFI-AM 640 duo Ken Chiampou and John Kobylt split up after Chiampou’s retirement at the end of 2023.
Despite the changes in each market, Luis Segura said they don’t directly affect how the two Cumulus-owned brands operate.
“I’ve been in radio since 1997, and I love it. One of my favorite things is just really focusing on the plan. I like to have a recipe, and I let it cook. I don’t change it too much from what other people are doing.”
Luis Segura added, however, that there are always opportunities to add new listeners through the content of the stations.
“I don’t like leaving any listener on the table. The more people I can bring in — they do call it broadcasting, right? So reaching the people that I can, any opportunity to do that, I will take.”
Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing bi-weekly industry features and a weekly column. He has previously served as Program Director and Afternoon Co-Host on 93.1 The Fan in Lima, OH, and is the radio play-by-play voice of Northern Michigan University hockey. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
