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Barry Alvarez Joining Good Karma Brands, ESPN Madison as On-Air Host, Brand Ambassador

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Barry Alvarez Joining Good Karma Brands, ESPN Madison as On-Air Host, Brand Ambassador

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.

Good Karma Brands has announced that former Wisconsin Badgers Head Coach and Director of Athletics Barry Alvarez is joining ESPN Madison. Alvarez will be an on-air host for the radio station and also a brand ambassador. Alvarez will make weekly appearances on The Great Dane Huddle on ESPN Madison with former Badgers Derek Engler and Tarek Saleh.

Craig Karmazin, Good Karma Brands founder and CEO, welcomed Alvarez to the team in a release saying, “Barry’s significance to the Wisconsin sports landscape and to Good Karma Brands can’t be overstated. I would not have visited Wisconsin as a college student and eventually started a company here had it not been for the way he and Pat Richter transformed the Wisconsin football program. To add a teammate with his leadership skills, experience, knowledge and passion is a huge win for our fans, advertising partners, ESPN Madison, and all of GKB.”

Alvarez was the head football coach at Wisconsin from 1991 to 2005. In 2004, he added Director of Athletics to his resume and continued in that role until 2021. Under Alvarez, the school won 74 Big Ten championships, 16 national team championships, and three Rose Bowl titles.

Alvarez was inducted into both the UW Athletic Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame in 2010. In 2022, the field at Camp Randall Stadium was renamed ‘Barry Alvarez Field’ in recognition of his decorated career.

Engler and Saleh, who have hosted a season show on ESPN Madison for more than 20 years, were both coached by Alvarez and part of Wisconsin’s 1994 Rose Bowl championship team. Saleh was inducted into the UW Athletic Hall of Fame earlier this year.

Charity Event Roundup: Music Radio Stations Making It Rain

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Charity Event Roundup: Music Radio Stations Making It Rain

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.

Music Radio stations nationwide are doing good for their communities and engaging their listeners to help. This week’s roundup includes:

KRBE in Houston successfully hosted its 2nd Annual Turkey Tour with hosts Kevin and Audrey, resulting in a remarkable donation of 873 Hunger Bags, amounting to 3,000 pounds of food for the Houston Food Bank. The event took place from November 1-5 and is part of a larger initiative to address food insecurity in the Houston area, where 1 in 8 residents regularly experiences food shortages.

Rocker Z93 (WKQZ), Saginaw, MI, raised over $30,000 in community donations for the American Cancer Society’s annual Men Wear Pink fundraising campaign. These funds will support the American Cancer Society’s efforts in Mid-Michigan and the battle against breast cancer. Z93 has set a new fundraising record in the region, earning Bingham and the station a spot among the Top 30 Men Wear Pink ambassadors nationwide.

Stations in iHeartMedia’s Carolina region have partnered with meal delivery service Table & Twine and the Raleigh-based nonprofit Overflowing Hands for the initiative “A Thanksgiving To Remember.” This program aims to provide full, chef-prepared Thanksgiving meals to families in the area affected by Hurricane Helene. Additionally, B93.9 Raleigh will contribute $2 from every ticket sold for its Rising Stars Concert on November 22 at the Lincoln Theater to support this cause.

If your music radio station has something you would like to share, send it to jeff@barrettmedia.com

ESPN, Amazon Prime Video Staffers Amongst the Names on the Annual Latinos in Sports List for 2024

BSM Staff
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ESPN, Amazon Prime Video Staffers Amongst the Names on the Annual Latinos in Sports List for 2024

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.

On February 13, 2025, a group of people will be honored as part of the annual Latinos in Sports list for 2024. Amongst the honorees are ESPN’s MJ Acosta-Ruiz and Oscar Ramos along with Amazon Prime Video’s Luis Rueda. The event will take place in Los Angeles during the week of the PGA TOUR Genesis Invitational.

The list is broken up into various categories including The C-Suite, Global Players, Rising Stars and Movers & Shakers.

Ramos, ESPN’s Vice President of Global Digital Editorial & ESPN Deportes, is named in The C-Suite category. Ramos leads the development of ESPN’s digital editorial content outside the US and manages ESPN’s global editorial content teams across multiple languages and markets, including Europe, Africa, India, Asia, Australia, and Latin America. He is also responsible for managing ESPN Deportes, leading the business strategy and all digital aspects including editorial and social media.

Ramos is a twenty-nine-year veteran of the Walt Disney Company and joined ESPN in 2006 as senior director and general manager of ESPN Deportes Radio and ESPNDeportes.com. Prior to joining ESPN, he accumulated over fifteen years of experience in the radio industry, focusing his efforts on marketing to the US Hispanic community and radio stations around the world.

Meanwhile, ESPN anchor and reporter MJ Acosta-Ruiz was named on the Movers & Shakers list. Acosta-Ruiz is an ESPN SportsCenter host and also is the sideline reporter for ESPN Deportes’ Monday Night Football. The Emmy Award-winning journalist became the first woman of color to host a show at NFL Media. She has been involved in television and entertainment for the last fifteen years.

Additionally, Amazon Prime Video’s Luis Rueda is named on the Rising Stars list. Rueda is a Colombian-born program manager with a passion for sports and technology. Rueda plays a key role in enhancing how fans engage with live events and sports streaming content worldwide. His work focuses on optimizing operational processes, coordinating cross-functional teams, and ensuring high-quality user experiences for millions of viewers.

1480 WLEA Reverses Course, Will Stay On Air

BNM Staff
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1480 WLEA Reverses Course, Will Stay On Air

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.

1480 WLEA in Hornell, New York had originally planned to cease operations on Monday after new ownership was found for the station. But that has changed, with programming remaining on the air.

In a message posted to the station website, departing owner Brendan Doran shared that a deal with news/talk station 1040 WYSL — owned by Radio Livingston — in Rochester to provide programming for 1480 WLEA had been struck, keeping the station on the air.

“We will honor all our commercials, advertisements, and be able to keep faith with our community and our sponsors,” Doran wrote. “We will honor our word and are very grateful to our community. We wish to thank everyone who has supported us in this difficult time.”

WLEA has been on the air since 1948 and was facing extinction after being sold earlier this year.

1040 WYSL currently features a mix of local and national shows, with offerings like The Glenn Beck Program, The Dan Bongino Show, and Dana Loesch dotting its lineup.

Beasley Media Group Dedicates Novemeber To Helping Veterans

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Beasley Media Group Dedicates Novemeber To Helping Veterans

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.

In recognition of Veterans Day, Beasley Media Group is dedicating the entire month of November to highlighting essential services available for veterans and their families. As part of its Beasley Best Community of Caring initiative, the organization will broadcast public service announcements, host interviews with veteran organizations, and share impactful stories across its 57 radio stations. This effort aims to raise awareness of valuable resources and services for those who have served.

Beasley is partnering with several organizations, including the Cohen Veterans Network (www.cohenveteransnetwork.org/) and Home Base Veteran and Family Care (www.homebase.org/).

This collaboration aims to deliver essential information and support services for veterans and their families. The partnered organizations offer a wide range of services, including mental health support, family care, and employment resources.

In Fort Myers, special public service announcements will air across all five Beasley radio properties throughout Veterans Day, highlighting the valuable programs and services offered by Home Base Florida.

“We would like to thank our valued veterans for their outstanding service and show support to them and their families,” said Beasley Media Group Chief Communications Officer Heidi Raphael.

Beasley is urging listeners to explore the services provided by various organizations dedicated to supporting veterans, emphasizing the importance of year-round engagement rather than limiting support to the month of November.

The company remains dedicated to strengthening community connections, promoting public service initiatives, and championing significant causes through its ongoing initiative, “Beasley Best Community of Caring.”

Jason Whitlock: Sean Hannity, Clay Travis, Will Cain ‘Follow the Money’ and ‘Sell Myths’ to Advance Their Careers

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Jason Whitlock: Sean Hannity, Clay Travis, Will Cain ‘Follow the Money’ and ‘Sell Myths’ to Advance Their Careers

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.

Jason Whitlock has been a longtime critic of ESPN host Stephen A. Smith. But that spilled over into the political world with shots at Fox News hosts Sean Hannity and Will Cain, as well as Clay Travis, last week.

During his TheBlaze podcast, Whitlock argued that Sean Hannity, who has featured numerous discussions with Stephen A. Smith on his Fox News program, is doing a disservice to the conservative audience by trying to legitimize the ESPN star.

“The fraudulence is so thick and obvious around Stephen A. Smith. And for Sean Hannity to be helping mainstream and introduce him to a conservative audience? Like, ‘Hey, this is the guy you should take seriously,'” said Whitlock. “This idiot, who can’t even follow the sports world, where he’s he doesn’t even know sports that well? Yeah, I’m going to pawn him off as a political voice that you should listen to. Hannity is not alone. Clay Travis helped sell the Stephen A Smith myth. Will Cain, who I like, helped sell the Stephen A. Smith myth.

“Most of these people aren’t about this life in a real way,” Jason Whitlock continued. “They’re just like Stephen A Smith. Wherever the money is flowing — whatever direction it’s flowing — they will sell that. They will sell Stephen A. Smith, the biggest fraud in the history of sports media. And I know many of you are sitting around like, ‘Man, you’re just jealous. You hate Stephen A Smith. It’s personal.’ That ain’t it. I’m tired of the frauds. I’m tired of the Kamala Harris’s, I’m tired of the Barack Obama’s, and I’m tired of the people they dress up as Black saviors, to go out and promote the alphabet agenda.”

Whitlock’s disdain for Smith is well noted. The pair have traded thinly-veiled barbs at one another for years, with Smith going as far as to label Whitlock a “devil”, a “fat bastard”, and other increasingly hostile names in recent months.

Jason Whitlock and Clay Travis have a complicated history. Whitlock joined OutKick — the digital outlet Travis founded — in 2020. However, he departed the organization in 2021 after what he called a “byproduct of my failure to properly vet my business partners.” he had purchased a one-third stake in the company alongside Travis and Sam Savage, but grew angry when Savage did not invest the required $500,000. OutKick argued nothing had been misrepresented to Whitlock and he left on his volition.

After Whitlock’s departure, Travis subsequently sold the organization to FOX Corp, where he, along with Hannity and Will Cain, are all employed currently.

Mountain Radio Group Debuts Classic Hits 107.3 In Colorado Springs

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Mountain Radio Group Debuts Classic Hits 107.3 In Colorado Springs

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.

Mountain Radio Group has flipped the format on Red Dirt Country “Mountain Country 107.3” Colorado Springs, CO. The station will now simulcast the Classic Hits heard on KDZA 1230/102.9 Pueblo.

KDZA, which launched in May 2023, quickly established itself as the market leader in Pueblo, achieving an 8.0 share in the Spring 2024 Nielsen Audio ratings. This rating positions it ahead of iHeartMedia’s 95.5 KPHT, which features a similar format. Notably, Colorado Springs currently lacks an Oldies or Classic Hits station.

Nick Donovan will continue his morning slot but will adjust his hours to 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. The midday host, Charlie, will go from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Meanwhile, Guy Girtin’s afternoon program will be reduced from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. and will now air from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Joining the lineup from the former “Mountain Country” station is Coba Hoban, who will host the 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. slot, and Operations Manager Kevin Hayes, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Matt Walsh Addresses Viral Project 2025 Tweet: ‘The Outrage Directed at Me Shocked Me’

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Matt Walsh Addresses Viral Project 2025 Tweet: ‘The Outrage Directed at Me Shocked Me’

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.

Matt Walsh saw a tweet the day after the election go viral as critics argued it proved Republican leadership had lied about Project 2025 throughout the campaign. He attempted to clear things up during his nationally syndicated radio show Friday.

During The Matt Walsh Show, The Daily Wire host discussed his tweet — that said Project 2025 actually was the agenda for conservatives after Donald Trump was elected — and did so with a heavy dose of sarcasm.

“So there has been some controversy swirling around me recently, and I know that may be surprising,” he said. “I’m not the sort of person who normally invites controversy. I don’t like controversy. I tend to shy away from it. As you know, I’m the kind of guy who prefers to get along with people. Matt ‘Kumbaya’ Walsh is what they’ve always called me. Friendly, wholesome figure, the new Mr. Rogers. That’s the other thing they’ve always called me.”

“So the outrage directed at me over the past few days has shocked me just as much as I’m sure it shocks you. It all began the morning after the election, and in my usual thoughtful way, I was trying to think of something to say. A public statement to make that might help calm everybody’s nerves and reassure our Democrat friends that everything’s going to be okay. So this is what I came up with. I tweeted: ‘Now that the election is over, I think we can finally say that, yeah, actually project 2025 is the agenda. Lol.'”

He then sarcastically said that he should have been more clear in his messaging.

“For some reason, this post seems to have upset a lot of people, and I have no idea why, because I said ‘lol.’ After all, I didn’t mean it like a nasty ‘lol.’ This wasn’t an evil, wicked-witch-type laugh. More like a warm, hearty chuckle. I would have actually written ‘WHC’ for warm, hearty chuckle, but I wasn’t sure if anyone would be familiar with that acronym. So I went with ‘lol.’ But even ‘lol’ was not enough to prevent the outrage mob from assembling and assemble they did.”

In a nearly 10-minute monologue on the subject, Matt Walsh read reactions from those angered by his tweet before sharing that those upset by the message should visit Project2025.com. That link redirects to a website promoting Walsh’s documentary Am I Racist?.

Cincinnati Reds, Diamond Sports Group Terminate Their Contract

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Cincinnati Reds, Diamond Sports Group Terminate Their Contract

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.

According to a court filing on Friday, the Cincinnati Reds and Diamond Sports Group have agreed to terminate their relationship. As part of the agreement the team has sold back its 20% stake in Diamond’s Ohio regional network for $1. It appears the team will be headed under the Major League Baseball umbrella for a television partnership.

According to the filing, “The Settlement Agreement will effectuate the transfer of the Reds Member’s membership interest in the Cincinnati JV [Joint Venture] to Diamond Ohio for nominal consideration [$1]. This will facilitate the orderly winding-up and ultimate dissolution of the Cincinnati JV by Diamond Ohio. As noted above, neither the Settlement Agreement nor the ultimate dissolution of the Cincinnati JV will have any effect on the remainder of Diamond Ohio’s business or the operation of the Diamond Sports Ohio RSN.”

The Reds have declined commenting until the settlement agreement is approved by the court. There will be another hearing on the matter later this week.

It was reported the Reds deal with Diamond Sports Group paid the team around $60 million per season. The team was expected to lose at minimum, 20%, on a new restructured deal with DSG. Instead, they will now be one of at least seven teams who will work with MLB, which in addition to the Reds includes the Arizona Diamondbacks, Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Guardians, Minnesota Twins, Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres.

The teams which look like they will stay with DSG are the Miami Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels and Tampa Bay Rays.

SuperTalk 99.7 WTN Afternoon Host Brian Wilson Announces Upcoming Retirement

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SuperTalk 99.7 WTN Afternoon Host Brian Wilson Announces Upcoming Retirement

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.

Brian Wilson has been a host at SuperTalk 99.7 WTN in Nashville for more than six years. That moniker will end on Christmas Eve as he has announced he’ll depart the station and its afternoon drive program.

The Drive with Brian Wilson host announced on Friday that he will be retiring from the station. He’ll host the final episode of The Drive on Christmas Eve next month.

“After 50 years in broadcasting, I’ve made the decision to step back,” said Wilson as he made his announcement. “The Drive will reach its final destination in December. Christmas Eve will be my last full-time show. See, I’m on the cusp of turning 69 years old, and I would like to pull back from the demands of a daily four-hour show.”

He said that while his daily show is ending, it doesn’t mean he’ll be a stranger to the SuperTalk 99.7 WTN airwaves.

“I will not be vanishing completely. Program Director Paul Mason and the management team of WTN have made it clear that they want me on their bench,” Wilson shared. “We are in discussions as to what that will look like but it is my expectation that I will fill in from time to time. And we’re exploring other ways I can contribute. I just won’t be doing a daily show anymore.”

Brian Wilson reiterated that it was his decision, and his alone, to depart the Cumulus Nashville news/talk station.

“This is fully of my own volition. This is my idea, period. For three years management of WTN has known that I would be ready to step down from the rigors of a daily four-hour broadcast once we got through this election cycle. There are other things I want to accomplish in addition to broadcasting in the days the good lord grants me on this earth while I still have good health and at least some hearing left,” he shared. “It is not goodbye. It’s just that we’ll have a different relationship going forward.”

Originally joining the station to host Nashville’s Morning News in 2018 after a career that included stops at Fox News and WMAL in Washington DC, Brian Wilson shifted to afternoons, where he has helmed The Drive from 3-7 PM. There was no immediate word from the station on who would replace the longtime broadcaster.

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