Over the course of the last six weeks, Audacy Dallas all-news station 1080 KRLD has made drastic changes to its daily lineup. The addition of talk shows hosted by Chad Benson and Will Cain, as well as the appointment of Joe Kelley as the station’s morning host, has altered the station’s lineup. But Brand Manager Drew Anderssen balks at the idea that the station is no longer an all-news brand.
“There’s really not a shift from all-news. I think from the outside looking in, you could make that assumption, but at the end of the day, the radio station is talking about the news all day long,” Anderssen said. “But think about the all-news game and I think that format is a format and those clocks are built to play a cume game.
“When you just think about since the pandemic happened what’s happened to market cume, especially what’s happened to cume on the AM band, there’s not the same level of day-to-day movement, that — at least in Dallas/Fort Worth — that really leads itself to being able to execute that clock around the clock all day and have that supported. We really have to have some sort of time spent listening strategy and some way to lean into content that’s a little bit longer form,” continued Anderssen.
“So we are still an all-news station. The hosts that we’ve put on the air are talking about the news topics that are the most interesting topics that are happening in our world right now. I think this is the perfect sort of opportunity to say ‘Look, not only are we going to deliver the news, but we’re also going to help you understand it.’ We’re going to give you the insight behind it.”
Anderssen added that despite long-form talk shows being added to the daily lineup in prime dayparts doesn’t mean 1080 KRLD has changed its priorities when it comes to breaking news coverage, either.
“These are all shows that are leaning into this notion of long-form, but it doesn’t mean that we’re giving up on breaking news. It doesn’t mean that we’re giving up on major traffic incidents and severe weather. I mean, we’ve already had a number of situations where we’ve had to punt on some of the long-form programming so that we can lean into those things that we know our audience is tuning into us for first.”
Those hosts added to the lineup at the station all have a Texas flavor to them. The first addition — Chad Benson — hosted in San Antonio at KTSA earlier in his career. Joe Kelley joined the station after exiting WDBO in Orlando. However, he had previous experience in the North Texas market with Cumulus stations KLIF and WBAP. Even the nationally syndicated show from Fox News Radio features native Texan Will Cain, which is situated near the state’s border with Oklahoma.
Having that connection with city and state was an important factor in each of their additions, Drew Anderssen said.
“What I was attempting to do — and I think what we’ve successfully done — is find people that are familiar with Texas. That either have roots in Texas or have lived in Texas, and can speak specifically to Texans and more specifically to people in North Texas … We were very specifically choosing people who can lean into Texas issues in the right way and I’m super glad to have them on the air. It makes them a better fit for us.”
Few people — especially AM radio listeners — enjoy change. So, naturally, you might expect longtime and dedicated listeners of 1080 KRLD to not necessarily be in lockstep with the alterations made by Anderssen, who doubles as the News/Talk Format Vice President for Audacy. But he shared that much of the feedback has been positive.
“What I believe is going to happen is that people will depend on KRLD for all of the service elements — the news information, the severe weather information, the crisis coverage when stuff hits the fan. It’s the number one place somebody should turn on the radio,” he stated. “All of that is still deliverable for this radio station … Anytime you make a change, change is difficult.
“While you do hear the negative feedback first, we are getting good feedback in addition to the feedback that is ‘Why the heck are you doing this?’ and ‘You’re changing my favorite thing’ or ‘You’re changing my favorite radio station’ or any number of reasons that somebody may call to complain. The flip side of that is we’re seeing evidence and hearing feedback to the changes that we’re doing are really positive as well.”
Drew Anderssen was quick to credit 1080 KRLD staffers in their willingness to attempt a refreshed programming lineup after years of the strictly news format featured on the Metroplex station. He called them “incredibly supportive”, noting that they are generally the ones who take the brunt of criticism from listeners of the station.
He also shared his appreciation for Audacy leadership — from the local level like Market Manager Brian Purdy, to the national level with executives like Jeff Sottolano and Jennifer Selig — for their support and help throughout the programming shift. He shared that while he’s grateful that they “allowed me to take this kind of risk,” it takes everyone believing in a common goal and stated mission to succeed.
“I think everybody has been of the sense in the mindset that ‘Look, we really should look at how do we take a different approach here, and what does that look like? To have the support of that kind of a team when you make these decisions is empowering,” Anderssen shared. “I’ve said all along in my career, at the multiple places that I’ve been, I really believe — even now more than ever — that news is a process, it’s not a destination. And I think the future of news is a conversation about that process … I just think that this allows us that opportunity.”
Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing daily news stories, features, and opinion columns. He joined Barrett Media in 2022 after a decade leading several radio brands in several formats, as well as a 5-year stint working in local television. In addition to his work with Barrett Media, he is a radio and TV play-by-play broadcaster. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
