The Hollywood Reporter released its Most Powerful People in New York Media list, and New York news/talk radio hosts aren’t happy about it. The publication drew sharp criticism from several of the city’s most prominent voices, who argued it missed the mark badly. Their complaints centered on one consistent theme — radio, and particularly news/talk radio, was all but invisible on the list.
The omissions stretch well beyond the hosts themselves. Howard Stern and SiriusXM CEO Jennifer Witz didn’t make the cut. WFAN’s Boomer Esiason and Craig Carton were left off, as were WFAN president Chris Oliviero and Audacy CEO Kelli Turner.
No major radio CEOs — not iHeartMedia’s Bob Pittman, Cumulus Media’s Mary Berner, nor Red Apple Media’s John Catsimatidis — earned a spot. ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro and Newsmax CEO Chris Ruddy were also absent. The list skewed heavily toward print, television, and digital media, leaving the radio industry almost entirely unrepresented.
Three of New York’s loudest talk radio voices — Sid Rosenberg of 77 WABC, Curtis Sliwa of 710 WOR, and Mark Simone, also of 710 WOR — didn’t hold back. Each offered a pointed take on what The Hollywood Reporter got wrong, and why the exclusions speak to something deeper than a simple editorial oversight.
“Nobody Would Know Who That Person Is”
Rosenberg, who hosts mornings on 77 WABC, framed his absence from the list as self-evident.
“Well, the first thing I thought of was, ‘Oh my God, what a (expletive) list,” said Rosenberg. “I don’t know what sort of criteria there is for influential. But I know this — I’ve been in New York for a very, very long time. I host the number one radio show by a distance. There’s no competition. The guys across the street have not been competitive at all. I got President Trump on a radio show for 40 minutes. You want to talk about influence? I had the president on again for the ninth time for 40 minutes!”
He didn’t stop there. Rosenberg questioned whether the people who made the list carry any real recognition.
“I’m going to tell you that at least 25 people on that list, they can walk into a restaurant and nobody would know who that person is. So, I don’t know why I’m not on the list,” he said. “I can only chalk it up to maybe I’m too close to Trump. Maybe I’m too brash. Too polarizing.
“But any New York list — you want to put most recognizable? I belong there,” said Rosenberg. “You want to put most famous? I belong there. Biggest jerk? I’ll be fair and honest, I belong there. Put me on that list, too. I don’t care. But to omit me from any list dealing with New York? That’s nonsense.”
Talk Radio’s Stepchild Status
Sliwa took a broader view, framing the list as yet another symptom of how the media industry consistently undervalues talk radio. He ran for mayor of New York City twice and spent 35 years behind a microphone, yet the Hollywood Reporter didn’t find him worth a mention.
“Of course, they always want talk radio to be the stepchild of TV and the written word,” Sliwa said. “They don’t even have any hip, bright young up-and-coming bloggers there or people who are representing Gen Z. Now, I notice they have Charlemagne tha God from Power 105. But other than that, I don’t see anybody from radio.”
Simone brought the numbers into focus, arguing that The Hollywood Reporter simply doesn’t understand the medium it chose to ignore. He pointed to the raw audience data and suggested the list reflects a fundamental disconnect from how New Yorkers actually consume media.
“Sean Hannity’s radio show has like 16 million listeners. Clay and Buck have 10 million listeners. Seth Meyers has like 800,000. I don’t know how influential you are with a tiny audience at one in the morning,” shared Simone. “Network television has 25 million viewers. AM radio has 63 million. That’s like 2.5 times the audience, so I don’t know how network TV is still influential.”
Declining Influence
Simone also turned his criticism toward the publication itself, arguing it lacks the standing to define influence for anyone.
“It’s kind of comical that a magazine that’s not very influential is doing a list of who’s influential,” Simone argued. “There’s a handful of Hollywood people who read it, and even not so much anymore. It’s like asking a vegan to recommend restaurants — they’re going to be very limited in what they think. They won’t know 80% of the restaurants in New York.”
Meanwhile, Sliwa shared he was happy to be snubbed by The Hollywood Reporter. He believes it would have meant that talk radio is now viewed as establishment-friendly.
“Well, thank God The Hollywood Reporter did ignore us because putting us on a list with people of no consequence would be like the last nail in the coffin for us,” Sliwa shared. “So thank God we’re not on the list. Because if we were on the list, that means it would be RIP, rest in peace. Because nobody does anything these people say. Nobody.”
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. Sign up for our newsletters to stay updated and get the latest information right in your inbox.
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.
IT’S CALLED “THE MOST POWERFUL PEOPLE IN NEW YORK MEDIA”. OBVIOUSLY BEING # 1 IN RADIO DOESN’T NECCESSARILY MAKE YOU ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL