You can almost hear the collective eye roll anytime a non-news/talk radio programmer takes a job leading a news/talk brand. And despite his recent run leading 104.5 The Zone — a sports station in Nashville — new SuperTalk 99.7 WTN leader Paul Mason has plenty of news/talk experience in his background.
Last month, Cumulus Nashville elevated Mason to Talk Programming Operations Manager, which means he’ll oversee both the sports station he previously led to new heights in the Music City — the highest-rated station in the cluster in the latest monthly ratings from Nielsen, alongside its news/talk sister station.
It isn’t Mason’s first foray into the format, however. Earlier in his career, he programmed 850 WFTL in West Palm Beach, and also worked as the Executive Producer and Assistant Program Director of the venerable news/talk station 700 WLW in Cincinnati.
And while he was solely focused on sports before his promotion, he was excited to get back to his news/talk roots with his new position.
“I definitely missed it. It was the first time in my career I had not done news/talk, when I got here. So it was one of those things that I always missed. Just seeing everything that’s gone on, you miss that thrill that you have just being in the day-to-day news cycle,” Mason admitted. “When it was presented to me, it was like ‘This is my opportunity to get back in,’ and to be associated with such an iconic brand in SuperTalk with an already established great team in place, it was a no-brainer.”
SuperTalk 99.7 WTN is in a strong place in the Nashville market. In the latest full-book ratings, the station finished with a 7.2 share in the Persons 35-64 demographic. The station has long-running shows hosted by Dan Mandis in mornings, Matt Murphy in middays, and Brian Wilson in afternoon drive. The station added Chris Hand in middays in July of 2023 to cement its lineup.
The station was previously programmed by Mandis, who will now focus solely on his duties as host of Nashville’s Morning News. And having someone who knows the ins and outs of the station like the previous program director still in the building has been, and will continue to be, a valuable tool for Paul Mason.
“I’m very lucky,” he shared. “I can’t say enough good things about Dan Mandis. The stuff he’s done for this brand, this radio station, and for me to have him on my team going into this is invaluable … I think he’s definitely one of those that so much — there are so many good days ahead. I’m excited to see what he can do. He can fully focus on that, but yes, for me, it’s nice to have someone here with the transition and to have someone to bounce off of.”
Often times when a news/talk radio brand gets a new leader, it’s because it was underperforming in some aspect, whether it be ratings or revenue. That’s not the case at SuperTalk 99.7 WTN. The brand isn’t a reclamation project. Paul Mason doesn’t have to oversee its rise from the ashes. It is already established as a leader in the market, and is widely known as one of the best news/talk brands in the South.
He believes the people in place at the Cumulus Nashville station make the difference.
“We have a group here that they just know what to do. It’s just obvious,” he said. “When we had the situation with the assassination attempt (of former President Donald Trump on Saturday, July 13th), to just watch this group spring into action in the most inconvenient time — a late Saturday afternoon, early evening — they were just on the air instantly and embraced it. They just know how to handle not only those situations, but the day-to-day. What’s also exciting is I don’t think we’ve reached our full potential. So the fact that we know we have people who know what they’re doing? It gets me excited to get out of bed in the morning.”
When asked what separates a good news/talk brand from a great one, Paul Mason had a simple response.
“I think it’s the talent,” he quickly responded.
He continued by noting that he believes SuperTalk 99.7 WTN currently has people in place to fit that “great” moniker every station strives for.
“I think we’re really lucky to have four very good shows … we have Ken Weaver doing news and staff of great producers and support staff, and a leader in our market manager, Allison Warren,” he said. “You have to have the right people in place. When you have those resources in place, the sky’s the limit.”
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.
