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Transitioning Radio Personalities Into The Digital World

Bob Lawrence
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Transitioning Radio Personalities Into The Digital World

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

As you read this, we are seeing industry-wide layoffs in many companies. Sadly, it’s nothing new, and it’s a difficult pill for those suffering the pain of losing their jobs. So, what is the best course of action to take as the industry continues to evolve and change? I have always tried to be part of the change rather than avoiding it. Enhancing your skills is good play.

Last week, I wrote about transitioning a traditional broadcast sales team toward digital sales and marketing. As I mentioned then, it’s not an easy or simple process. Besides salespeople making the transition, radio personalities have also had a tough time navigating the digital world. It wasn’t too long ago (and it still may be the case) that the words “digital content” struck fear in the hearts of anyone in traditional media like radio.  Many companies quickly began building business models that were based on radio talent, creating a certain amount of digital content. I remember that the greatest challenge was explaining what “digital content” actually is.    

For most of our careers, content simply meant news, weather, morning show bits, specialty programming, and features, all of which simply relied on entertaining and exciting listeners. But today’s world depends on much more from its content creators. Over the past two decades, technology has created ways for us to use two-way forms of communication, whereas we had traditionally only been a one-way stream. Rather than just using a microphone, we now have the added benefits of a keyboard’s offerings when creating content.

The digital landscape has expanded the definition of content to include a multitude of formats that leverage all of the same traditional platforms but add connectivity, interactivity, engagement, multimedia, real-time updates, and analytics. The new content creator uses the web for articles, live interviews, blogs, pages, SEO, books, papers, quizzes, forums, and user comments and feedback.

Talent also needs to be social media mavens using personal and/or corporate posts, stories, live streams, unique videos, and memes. Platforms like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn each have their unique content styles and engagement methods. The key is to make it compelling since, in the end, engagement is what drives revenue. Even sponsored, quality content can generate interest and be monetized properly. Keep in mind that content from radio shows can be morphed into online content on websites and podcast platforms. Digital opportunities can also enhance your on-air product. For example, live interviews on air can often drag on and lose the listener’s attention. Editing and streamlining live interviews for broadcast and then posting the full interview on your podcast platform for those interested is a terrific common practice. The idea is to deepen and expand your own show’s footprint both on air and online.

Podcasts and videos are a great way to generate fresh content that expands your audience beyond just the broadcast. Imagine a morning show feature in which you talk about some of the best pizza or hamburger joints in town. You and your on-air team can no doubt do an on-air tasting and share opinions, adding your own show’s flare. Now, what would it look like if you took it to another level and actually went out with the entire team and traveled to each of the pizza shops? The video possibilities could add an entirely new dimension and expansive dynamic that may even be able to secure a radio and online sponsor at a premium rate. The level of engagement could be enhanced immensely. Of course, you would be exposing your morning show and its footprint to an entirely new audience that is no longer limited to your local market but now has tentacles that can reach a global market.  

As talent, keep in mind that digital content offers detailed metrics and analytics to measure engagement and effectiveness without having to wait for Neilsen. You get to see results much faster and almost in real-time!  I also always appreciate digital’s ability to be updated and modified quickly as feedback warrants. When aired, that traditional broadcast genie cannot be put back in the bottle.

If you’re one of those brilliant people who have spent your career in traditional broadcast media, consider that expanding your skillset to include digital not only adds broader appeal to your audience and makes you more valuable to employers. It enhances your marketability and ability to generate revenue – which makes YOU a greater asset on multiple levels. If you’ve been resistant, trust me, it’s simply another natural progression that you are very likely already good at.  Yes, it does require more work on your part, but as you look around at what is happening year after year in our industry, with many losing jobs across several companies, making yourself as valuable as possible is the smart move!

Sales Meeting: Are You Hoping or Are You Selling?

Dave Greene
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Sales Meeting: Are You Hoping or Are You Selling?

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but hope is not a strategy. Unfortunately, there are too many sellers in the media space who have very little strategy or who do not want to do the whole job. That is what we are going to address in this week’s sales meeting.

As a GM or Sales Manager, I would constantly repeat to my teams that there are six main responsibilities in this job. You have to prospect, you need to reach out to decision makers to set appointments, you need to do a needs analysis, make a presentation, close the deal and then service the accounts.

As a manager, it is your job to figure out which of the six steps your sellers are struggling with. And, of course, you are going to have different members of your team who are struggling with different steps of the process.

There are other things media sales reps have to do but most everything ties back to one of those six things. And the key here is this, you have to do ALL six things in order to really be doing the job.

If you have worked for me, sorry you have to hear this for the thousandth time, but if you are a cook at McDonalds, you cannot say you are going to make burgers, shakes and coffees but refuse to make the fries. It doesn’t work that way. You either do the whole job or you should do none of it.

Now, I have always also said that if you can handle steps one and two, I can help do all of the rest for you as your manager. However, it would be impossible for one person to prospect and set appointments for everyone, so at the very minimum, someone needs to have the skills to do those two things. If they do, I can teach them the rest.

There are two steps which get failed the most, one of course is setting appointments because it is the hardest step. The other part is the close, also known as THE SELLING PART!

You can do a great job prospecting and even getting meetings. You can be someone who asks all the right questions and makes killer presentations. You’re incredibly organized and thoughtful and you take care of your clients. But, what about that fifth step, the close?

Too many of our brethren will pitch an idea and if objections come or the buy gets turned down, they walk away with their tail between their legs and think they just wasted their time. Perhaps, the client or agency just needed to be sold.

Sales, that is our business. Sometimes it does actually require selling and not just marketing. As I am sure many of you were taught, objections are generally buying signs, not necessarily the prospect not wanting to do business. Some people have a natural tendency to not want to buy anything unless you have talked them into it.

What is in it for them? That should be the focus when trying to talk through selling something to someone. It isn’t about your station being No. 3 in mornings with left-handed women or that last great ratings book you had. It is about how it will help their business grow and if you truly believe you have put something together that will make a noticeable difference in their business, tell them that and show them the research you have to back it up.

Ask yourself, have you ever turned a ‘No’ into a ‘Yes’? I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but if you haven’t you are probably not coming anywhere near reaching your financial potential. You are leaving too many deals on the table because someone has pushed back. If you cower anytime someone brings up something negative about what you have pitched, that is not selling. That was pitching something and just hoping they didn’t have any objections.

A strategy a friend used to use was when an objection came up, he would always ask them to tell him more about that or to give him an example. Mostly, he was doing it to buy himself some more time to think of an answer, but he also said that many times, the more the client keeps talking about the objection, you end up getting to the real objection, which had nothing to do with that they brought up in the first place.

Another tip is to have the presentation always refer back to what the client or prospect told you in the needs analysis. I like to have it on paper in the presentation. You told me this was a problem, so I am presenting this as the solution to that problem. Now, it becomes easier for the client to see why you chose that product as you have related it to their own words. Hopefully, you ended the needs analysis meeting or in a follow up email, you made clear what you heard the challenges were. Without those, it is hard to come up with solutions.

This job is hard. Really hard. It is made even harder by skipping steps or not being willing to challenge objections thrown your way. No’s can become Yes’s, it does happen. I know you hate role-playing, but this is a skill that many need to work on and figuring out a way to do that together can be helpful.

Figure out what the main objections are and talk through what the best responses are for each. Make sure it isn’t just something you recite, but something you know like the back of your hand. Practice it, practice it again, and practice it until you can answer the objection, you can explain your reasoning and you can continue conversing with the person until you get to the next objection.

Sell, don’t just hope.

Music Choice’s Jim Murphy Makes It Work Across Seven Time Zones

Jeff Lynn
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Music Choice’s Jim Murphy Makes It Work Across Seven Time Zones

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Jim Murphy is the Director of Programming for Music Choice and Country Programming. In addition to Country, Murphy is responsible for the Music Choice oldies channels, including the 70s channel, Malt Shop, and others.

Next year, Murphy will celebrate 50 years in radio, including stops in Boston, Denver, Jones Radio Networks, and Dial Global.

Murphy says that programming for Music Choice has more similarities than differences to terrestrial radio.

“This is linear audio, in that you’re playing a stream of music, and whether this goes out through a terrestrial AM or FM transmitter, or whether it goes out through the cable, in the case of Music Choice, there’s a Program Director who selects the songs, who determines the order that they’re going to play, figures out which ones are the most popular, and plays those more, and ones that are not quite as popular, plays those less, and does it in a way so that everyone who’s listening to that broadcast is hearing the same thing at the same time, said Murphy.”

“So that makes it different from streaming, because in streaming people can start and stop wherever they like, they can back up, they can skip over songs, but we’re much more like radio, in that you turn it on, you listen for as long as you care to, and you’re going to hear the same song as the person in the next town. When you’re listening to Music Choice in Las Vegas, or in Nashville, or in Portland, Maine, you’re hearing exactly the same songs at the very same time, and we do this across seven time zones.”

When programming across seven time zones, what happens to any regional flavor?

Murphy said, “We don’t have really a regional flavor, and I learned this, working at several different networks, starting with ABC, back in the early 90s, when I was working with Buck Owens and programming Real Country for him, and then later working for Jones Radio Networks and GAC. What you want to find is that common thread. You want to find those things that are universal, that you hope are going to work in every part of the country.”

“I have great respect for those programmers who are in Tampa, or Dallas, or in Bakersfield, who say, this act works for me, this song works for me, and maybe nobody else in any other part of the country gets that,” said Murphy. “I, on the other hand, need to be looking for those things that will work in Bakersfield, and in Dallas, and Tampa, hopefully more or less equally well.”

While terrestrial radio has a fairly short listening time, Murphy says Music Choice listeners spend more time when they engage.

“It’s much longer for all of the reasons that you might expect. It is an at-home experience so when people put it on, they’re going to be at home for probably a longer period of time. The dashboard experience, which is where most of terrestrial radio’s listening is done anymore, has gotten shorter, and a lot of that has also been impacted by the pandemic.”

“People are not going into the office as often as they used to; therefore, they’re not in their car as often as they used to be. Work patterns have changed. There have been a lot of things that have influenced how people listen to terrestrial radio, but a lot of that revolves around the in-car usage.”

Longer time spent listening means a different approach to music rotations.

“We don’t play; we can’t play songs as often; we don’t have the same kinds of minimal artist separations on Music Choice that terrestrial radio has because if your average occasion is 15 minutes, you’re going to program differently than if your average occasion is an hour, an hour and a half, or two hours.

Murphy and Music Choice are known in the industry as champions of new Country music and young up and coming artists.

“I am so fortunate that as a programmer for Music Choice, we and I’m talking about the entire programming team, are challenged to look for the next thing, to look for artists that we think are going to be trendsetters, people who are going to resonate with our audience, and there is no reason for us to be conservative in that way.”

“Being in Nashville, I’m exposed to it every day, every night, and you, having been here, know just how much of a music town this is. I mean, you could be doing three different shows every night if you had the stamina to do that. If I am able to see an act, listen to an act, meet the act, and then say, yes, this is someone who we think we would like to invest in, that we would like to support, that we would like to be on the front lines for.”

When Murphy commits to an add it is not for two or three spins a week. On the Country side he has a category that allows the song to be highlighted. And unlike terrestrial stations that may start a song overnight there is no such thing as overnights for Music Choice.

“We give that song extra exposure in what we call our brand new category. Like all of our categories, from the lightest to the heaviest, there is no day partying on our Music Choice Country channels. When you are in seven time zones, there really is no such thing as a day part. Because what is overnight, in one part of the country is morning drive in another. So, we play the song in equal rotation in all-day parts. And I think if anything says to an act, we support you, we’re going to expose this throughout our entire day. That philosophy really encapsulates that.”

Prior to the pandemic Music Choice captured a lot of videos and content in its Manhattan studios, and something that also changed with the pandemic.

“What we’re doing now is pretty much what happened before the pandemic, which was we had three television studios in our Midtown Manhattan office. We had video editors and camera people and lighting and sound and all of that.”

“When the pandemic hit, no one was traveling. Artists wouldn’t come out; it is completely understandable. So that had to go away and what replaced it ultimately was artists deciding, you know what? I’m going to put a green screen in my house, our label saying, we’re going to build a small studio inside of our label headquarters. And they began self-shooting this content. So, we might, at the end of the day, have more content now than we had when we were shooting in New York.”

“The difference being that it’s coming directly from the artists as opposed to them having to fly up with their team and a glam squad and everything else. It’s really, at the end of the day, more efficient, and we get everything that we need. And I think that the artists get more exposure out of it because of it.”

Murphy sees Country music changing and embraces what comes next.

“Having done this now for nearly 50 years, it’ll be 50 years in 2025. What I tell them is, Country music has changed, it is changing, it will always change, because that’s what a vital, dynamic art form always does.”

“Pop music is not the same today as it was five, 10, 15, 20 years ago. And I don’t expect Country music to be, although certainly there are those people who think that it should be what they grew up on, which, depending on your age, could be music from the 90s or the 2000s.”

“But it’s always going to change. And I am excited for what’s coming next, because the superstars of tomorrow, we may not have even heard yet, but they’re right around the corner. And that’s what keeps me, having done this for so long, interested in this.”

“I love programming our Classic Country Channel. That’s my personal favorite. It also has one of our highest times spent listening on Music Choice. And it’s great to hear those songs in the 50s and the 60s and the 70s.”

“And yet, at the same time, the songs that someday will be on the Classic Country Channel are songs that we’re playing right now. Artists that are just now in development, will be the next superstar. So that keeps me interested and excited and really bullish on Country.”

Check Out Music Choice here.

Can iHeartMedia Still Say It’s Trying to Save AM Radio After Latest Round of Cuts?

Garrett Searight
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Can iHeartMedia Still Say It’s Trying to Save AM Radio After Latest Round of Cuts?

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

One of my favorite sayings when presented with two options is “It can be both.” However, I don’t think that’s an option for iHeartMedia and the crusade to save AM Radio.

As I’m sure you’re aware, the radio giant is slashing hundreds of jobs in the latest of a long line of job reductions. Nearly every aspect of the company — from the C-suite level, to sales, to on-air and production — has been affected by the cuts.

But when you look at the profile of the on-air personalities that were cut in the past few weeks, there is a similar pattern.

Stations like 710 WOR, KFI-AM 640, 600 KCOL, 1200 WOAI, Rip City Sports Radio 620, FOX Sports 980 WONE, 1460 KXNO, 850 KOA, FOX Sports 910, Sports Talk 790, 1040 WHO, 1430 KASI, 1370 WSPD, 540 Newsradio Orlando, and I could go on and on, but you get the picture.

What do they all have in common? They’re AM signals. Some of them are heritage brands. And yet, they weren’t immune to ongoing cuts.

To be frank, I don’t think it can be both “We need to save AM radio because it is such a vital platform!” while simultaneously dumping as many salaries you can find. Those are competing ideologies. You can argue that the best way to save a tree is by cutting off the dead branches…but when the branches are what make up the interest in keeping the tree around in the first place, that analogy doesn’t fly.

In an effort to be fair, this isn’t specifically an iHeartMedia issue. Cumulus Media, among other national radio companies, is also letting go of some AM Radio hosts in cost-cutting measures.

But iHeartMedia carries the burden of being the biggest radio company in the country. So like Walmart and McDonalds, they sometimes have to carry the criticism for entire industries, fair or unfair.

But it is fair in this instance because it is the company making headlines by laying off major radio talents to save what CEO Bob Pittman has estimated as much as $200 million in salary. However, I don’t know how many companies or industries that have cut their way to prosperity.

Almost everyone agrees radio’s future is by producing live, local, meaningful content that is personality-driven. And yet…the people who produce live, local, and meaningful content are becoming an endangered species.

So excuse my skepticism that radio companies who, along with the NAB, have led the Depend on AM Radio campaigns are actually believing the messages they’re putting out. Because it’s the classic “Do as I say, not as I do situation.”

However, The “Do as I say, not as I do” strategy isn’t going to be a winning one if iHeartMedia truly hopes to keep AM Radio afloat. Because how can you expect the general public, let alone Congress, to invest in the battle to keep the medium active if the companies who own the stations aren’t committed to it themselves?

I don’t ask that question facetiously. I’m dead serious: How do you sell the idea that you still care for AM Radio with the utmost regard and believe it has a strong future in the greater media landscape when all of your actions suggest otherwise?

I believe in the strength of AM Radio and what it can provide to the general public. But only if that future includes the programming required to keep it at a sustainable level. If the future of the band includes simply running nationally syndicated news/talk radio shows like Glenn Beck, Clay Travis & Buck Sexton, Michael Berry, Jesse Kelly, and Our American Stories or just slapping on the FOX Sports Radio brand in as many markets as possible, the future couldn’t be more bleak.

It can’t be both. And it feels increasingly unlikely that the days of investment in local talents in AM Radio brands will ever be anywhere close to what it is even today, after massive cuts as stations across the country.

So, to me, I think we have our answer on whether or not AM Radio is worth saving. If the largest radio company in the nation feels that way about the medium, why should I — or anyone else for that matter — feel any differently?

James Rosen Still Asking the Tough Questions as He Covers the White House for Newsmax

Krystina Alarcon Carroll
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James Rosen Still Asking the Tough Questions as He Covers the White House for Newsmax

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

53 countries, five continents, and multiple presidential administrations. Newsmax Chief White House Correspondent James Rosen is the man who’s in the know across Washington. “The only reason good reporters become reporters, is because we suffer from a peculiar compulsion to adduce new facts to the record of our times,” he said.

As a child, Rosen wanted to be a comic book illustrator, like his idol Neal Adams, but was swayed by his parents to pursue other avenues of employment. “I thought that I would very much like to be like another person I idolized in the 1970s, Dan Rather,” Rosen said. “He was really good looking, and as the CBS News White House Correspondent he would trot the globe in a smart looking trench coat and go toe to toe with the Presidents of the United States,” he recalled.

Rosen studied political science at Johns Hopkins University, where he came to the conclusion, “Why would you want to be like Dan Rather and spend your days as a reporter going after the crumbs of information?” Still looking for his calling, it wasn’t until high school friend and roommate Rich Eisen went to Northwestern University Rosen settled on being ‘the record of our times.’ He, too, went to graduate school at Northwestern before landing in market No. 137 in Rockford, Illinois at WREX TV.

The anchor and reporter then moved around to multiple start-up stations (at the time) including NY1 and News 12/The Bronx, before landing at Fox News in 1999. “I wrote a cheeky letter to Brit Hume, who at the time was the anchor and managing editor for Fox News, and that was my big break – when Brit Hume hired me for the Washington bureau,” Rosen recalled.

From his tenure at Fox News, to later Sinclair and beyond, Rosen has always made headlines. His exclusive reporting on North Korea’s nuclear program earned him the distinction of being the first reporter to be a designated as a criminal co-conspirator in an alleged violation of the Espionage Act. “Somebody was prosecuted in connection with that and served a prison sentence,” Rosen said. “The person stood up in open court and acknowledged that he ‘had provided classified national defense information to James Rosen of Fox News,’” Rosen recalled.

The incident, which happened while Rosen was at Fox News under the Obama administration, caught the attention of several rival outlets. In a unifying move, many outlets and anchors came to his defense, “I was grateful that so many people throughout the media, from Jake Tapper and others, all sorts of folks stood up for me, stood up for Fox News.”

Rosen joined Sinclair Broadcast Group in 2019, where he would break another major story. “On October 29th, 2020, 5 days before Election Day, I broke the story that Hunter Biden was under criminal investigation by the FBI for his finances,” he said. Rosen’s report came just 15 days after the New York Post initially reported on the ‘laptop from hell.’

Rosen recalled of his own report, “[It] was something that nobody else corroborated or refuted until after the 2020 election, when Hunter Biden himself stepped forward and confirmed that he was under FBI criminal investigation for his finances.”

In January 2022, he moved on to his new-found home, Newsmax. It is here where Rosen continues to ask the tough questions of Washington insiders, including President Biden. The proud moment which is best told in his own words:

“I asked my famous question of President Biden on January 19th, 2022. Basically, I said, ‘I’d like to ask you a delicate question, but with utmost respect for your lifetime of accomplishment and the high office you hold. A poll was released this morning by Politico/ Morning Consult which found that only 46% of registered voters agreed with the statement, “Joe Biden is mentally fit.” Not even a majority of Democrats were willing strongly to affirm the statement.’”

President Biden tried to cut him off, but he persisted. “I said, ‘If you’ll allow me to finish, Mr. President, why do you suppose such large segments of the American electorate have come to harbor such profound concerns about your cognitive fitness?’ He simply said, ‘I have no idea’ and turned to the next questioner. In the minds of many watching that moment live in the East Room, his answer validated the question because when a man tells you he has no idea, he is, in a sense, speaking to a mind that is empty.” As we approach the end of the Biden Presidency, it is clear Rosen’s question was a valid one.

For those looking to follow in Rosen’s footsteps he facetiously said, “There’s no substitute for comfortable shoes.” Less flippantly he noted there are two key items to success: reading and writing. “It’s really important to be a voracious reader if you want to be a good reporter,” he said. “Meaning, not just reading all the articles you think you need to know in order to pursue your daily assignments. It means keeping abreast of developments in totally unrelated areas, whether it’s science or technology or culture.”

Similarly on writing, Rosen suggests you write for more than just your 2-minute live hit. “I would urge young reporters, especially those who go into TV, to maintain their writing chops [as well] because when you’re working in increments of two minutes, your writing style will necessarily change to adapt to the TV medium. One thing I’ve been doing continuously since I got into this business is continuing to write and publish in print outlets because I wanted also to keep my writing skills, or real prose, intact.”

Having worked with Rosen previously, there are some things about him which are hard to completely capture in black and white. He has a great love for the Beatles and Paul McCartney and Wings. He will defend the group’s oft-overlooked 1979 album, Back to the Egg, but not Paul’s equally obscure 1986 solo effort Press for Play. His dry witty sense of humor is unmatched in any newsroom. He also is steadfast in the use of SAT words, which can make an unprepared producer’s head spin (“My audience always understand me,” he says). James Rosen is a true veteran in the media industry always looking to clarify the proverbial record and “adduce new facts for the record of our times.”

ESPN Monday Night Football Reaches Nearly 100 Million Fans in First Half of NFL Season

BSM Staff
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ESPN Monday Night Football Reaches Nearly 100 Million Fans in First Half of NFL Season

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

ESPN says Monday Night Football has reached nearly 100 million fans during the first half of the NFL season including games and studio shows. In the first nine weeks, 95.4 million fans have watched at least a portion of Monday Night Football. 

MNF is averaging 14.4 million viewers through eleven total games. Since 2010, the only season as high as this one through this point of the year was last year. If you remove the three weeks which ESPN did not simulcast on ABC, the average is just under 17 million per game.

The Week 10 matchup featuring the Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Rams on November 11 generated 12.2 million viewers.

Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli, also known as the ManningCast, is averaging 982,000 viewers through its first seven shows this year. In Week 7, the show achieved its 30th individual episode of averaging at least one million viewers.

Monday Night Countdown is averaging 1.2 million viewers a show leading into Monday Night Football each week, up 3% from last season. Sunday NFL Countdown finished the first half of the season averaging 1.2 million viewers. NFL Live expanded to two hours on Mondays this season and the first hour of the show is up 19% year-over-year compared to the programming that aired in that spot in the 2023 season.

Mike Lee Named Program Director at Mix 104.4 Chattanooga

BMM Staff
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Mike Lee Named Program Director at Mix 104.4 Chattanooga

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

Mike Lee has been appointed Program Director and afternoon drive host at Hot AC Mix 104.1 in Chattanooga, TN. With extensive experience in the market, Lee previously spent 11 years as the morning co-host on “Mike & Ed in the Morning” at Brewer Broadcasting’s Top 40 Alive 95 and three years hosting afternoons on CCM J-103.

His career also includes positions in Phoenix, Tucson, Denver, San Diego, and Atlanta before establishing himself in Southeast Tennessee.

“It’s thrilling to be back home and on the air again on a station so married to the community. This is radio the way it used to be when I started my career in 1978,” said Lee. “Working with owner Steve Hartline and our very dedicated crew is not work. It’s a pleasure.

NAB Names Sean Perkins CMO and SVP Global Connections & Events

BMM Staff
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NAB Names Sean Perkins CMO and SVP Global Connections & Events

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

The NAB has announced the appointment of Sean Perkins as Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President of Global Connections & Events (GCE). In this capacity, he will be responsible for overseeing marketing initiatives for the NAB Show and NAB Show New York.

Perkins will focus on developing strategies to enhance engagement and visibility for NAB’s flagship events, reporting directly to Karen Chupka, Managing Director and Executive Vice President of GCE.

Perkins has amassed over 30 years of experience in leading successful marketing initiatives for esteemed brands, including AOL, Amtrak, AARP, Intel, Sage, Neustar, and the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). In his most recent role as Vice President of Marketing at CTA, Perkins oversaw extensive marketing and advertising strategies for CES, the association’s flagship annual trade event.

“We are excited to have Sean join NAB during such an important time for the industry,” said Chupka. “Sean’s extensive experience in marketing and his proven success in driving growth and visibility will be a tremendous asset to our team. His expertise in event marketing and digital transformation will help us elevate NAB Show and other key initiatives, ensuring we continue to deliver extraordinary value to our members and partners.”

570 WKBN Host Dan Rivers to Retire After 42 Years

BNM Staff
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570 WKBN Host Dan Rivers to Retire After 42 Years

Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.

570 WKBN host Dan Rivers has announced he’ll depart the iHeartMedia Youngstown news/talk station later this month.

On Monday, Rivers announced that Wednesday, November 27th will be his final regularly scheduled show in the 9 AM-Noon timeslot.

Rivers will host a podcast for the station, and is something he’s looking forward to starting.

“But I’m just thinking it’s a whole new audience that I may not be reaching right now, and maybe I have a message that can help them through some podcasting, or at least some commentaries,” Rivers told WKBN-TV.

After graduating from Youngstown State University, Dan Rivers joined 570 WKBN in 1981. He produced The Dan Ryan Show until he eventually replaced him in the station’s lineup.

“I never imagined myself not doing it,” Rivers said. “I thought, you know, I’m made of iron, and I can do this show as long as my voice is clear and my mind is clear.

The station has yet to announce what programming will be inserted into the lineup when Rivers retires later this month. It did say, however, that he’ll remain a fill-in host on the station and will be on standby to host the afternoon show helmed by Ron Verb from 2-7 PM when vacations are in order.

Corporation for Public Broadcasting Awards Funding To KVPR, WQLN and KRCL

BMM Staff
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Corporation for Public Broadcasting Awards Funding To KVPR, WQLN and KRCL

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Public radio stations KVPR Fresno, WQLN Erie, and KRCL Salt Lake City are set to benefit from a substantial financial investment to improve their emergency alert systems. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has allocated $587,704 to these stations as part of ongoing initiatives to upgrade the nation’s public media infrastructure through the Next Generation Warning System (NGWS) grant program.

Grants provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) play a crucial role in a nationwide effort to bolster public media as a key emergency alerting channel within local communities. So far, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has distributed NGWS funding to 38 public media stations across 21 states.

“Public media stations are pivotal in providing timely and potentially life-saving information during emergencies,” said Corporation for Public Broadcasting President and CEO Patricia Harrison. “This funding helps stations, particularly those in rural areas, to update and maintain the necessary infrastructure to fulfill this crucial role.”

The NGWS program is dedicated to bolstering public media stations, enabling them to provide more effective alerting and warning services to the community. This initiative offers financial support and essential training to help these stations adapt to new technologies and processes.

The initial funding round was part of a $40 million allocation sanctioned by Congress for Fiscal Year 2022. Following a strong response from media stations, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) is now rolling out a second round of grants totaling $56 million for Fiscal Year 2023. A third funding round is expected to begin soon, supported by an additional $40 million approved for Fiscal Year 2024.

“FEMA’s commitment to bolstering community resilience through integrated emergency communications is unwavering,” stated Manny Centeno, Director of FEMA’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System. “Our partnership with broadcasters is essential in cultivating a robust network that can swiftly distribute emergency alerts to the public.”

KVPR-FM in Fresno will receive up to $38,607 to establish an auxiliary transmitter site, which will help maintain service during critical incidents. WQLN-FM in Erie has been allocated up to $87,059 to upgrade its equipment and software to improve signal reception across its translator sites. KRCL-FM in Salt Lake City will also benefit from up to $462,038 to enhance its transmission capabilities, allowing it to reach a wider rural audience.

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