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Chris Hand Experienced Travel Chaos Before First Show on SuperTalk 99.7 WTN

BNM Staff
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Chris Hand Experienced Travel Chaos Before First Show on SuperTalk 99.7 WTN

WTN Super Talk 99.7 in Nashville was conducting a nationwide search for a new midday host. The station plugged several people into the timeslot, including Pamela Furr, President of the Tennessee Radio Hall of Fame. A few months in, Program Director Dan Mandis received a message from Chris Hand inquiring if the position was still open.

Hand had previously worked as a producer for Mandis and considered him a mentor. At the time, Hand worked as a media director for Charlie Kirk’s Turning Point USA organization.     

Hand had a successful radio career primarily focused on music formats, spending ten years with Rhythmic CHR and Hot AC. However, during his last run with SuperTalk from October 2022 to April 2023, he began to consider transitioning full-time to news/talk. He saw opportunities for himself in this format, as other radio personalities such as Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and Todd Schnitt have flourished in music and news/talk. It’s a move that’s been beneficial for many in the industry.  

Hand’s top priority was being an excellent father. When his wife secured a job at a music company in Nashville, he gladly took on the role of staying at home to care for their children. During our conversation, Hand’s son was present, and he shared his hopes to have his kids experience the same America he did growing up. Hand believes that it’s crucial for his kids to have access to the best possible opportunities. He views his work at Turning Point as critical and comparable to hosting a talk show on the radio every day.  

Chris Hand is a valuable member of the SuperTalk 99.7 team, bringing creativity and fresh ideas. He demonstrated his skills in a Thanksgiving promotion he created for the station last year, featuring his four children discussing the potential next President while gathered around a table.

The tagline “We even discuss politics at the kids’ table” was used in the promo. Chris has a passion for writing and enjoys the creative process. Although he lacks experience in hosting conservative shows, he sees it as an advantage to bring a fresh perspective. In an interview with Barrett News Media, Chris shares his experience in his first week at SuperTalk, his involvement with Turning Point USA, and his effort to make his first show on time. 

Ryan Hedrick: What was your impression of Turning Point USA before joining SuperTalk 99.7, and what was the biggest takeaway from your experience with them?  

Chris Hand: Turning Point is amazing. There is such a great staff there. It’s a young staff; everyone is hungry and always willing to learn and try something new. It was weird because I felt like I kept having dream gigs popping up one after another there for a little bit.   

RH: Did you learn anything from the principles that Turning Point USA Founder Charlie Kirk instilled in the organization, even though you didn’t work side-by-side with him?  

CH: One thing that was sent through the organization was grassroots humility, a warrior spirit, and persistent innovation. Those are the core values that they want to instill in everyone who works there. Charlie’s fearlessness and positivity are infectious.   

RH: How did your first week of shows at WTN go? Can you share some insights on how you prepared for your role as a full-time talk host?  

CH: Luckily, I had done it [hosted shows] before, so I knew what the process would be like going into it. The preparation will evolve as I get more comfortable with this shift. The first week, I was worried about formatics. I worked on trying to get down the flow of my show. While the other hosts are so well-versed and so experienced, I wanted to try and make sure not to be like anybody else. That was key for me.   

Last week, I tried to live in a bubble and not listen to anybody’s takes to make sure I didn’t accidentally steal anything. I tried to make my bumper music different and my intro music different. I also tried to read everything that I could read.  

RH: How did you catch the attention of SuperTalk 99.7’s Program Director, Dan Mandis, for the talk host position?  

CH: I had done some shows for them prior to my stint at Turning Point USA. I had been a producer, and I had done some imaging here and there, and Dan and I had known each other for a while.  

RH: Why is it crucial to discover your unique niche in talk radio and avoid getting pulled toward the echo chambers that some hosts tend to fall into?  

CH: I was at ACTCON (Turning Point Action Conference) in West Plam Beach, Florida, and I watched Tucker Carlson’s speech, and he said something that resonated [with me]. He said he doesn’t watch the news; he reads. He also said he’s very careful of what he reads because he doesn’t want to internalize bad information.   

It was very important during the first week, especially trying to get my feet wet and show everybody who I am; I thought it was important to not listen to anybody. I listen to a lot of media, but for the past couple of weeks, I’ve just tried to shut it all down.   

RH: What was your first show on WTN like? Do you have any unique experiences to share?  

CH: I was traveling back to Nashville one day before my first show. I arrived at an airport in Florida and got stuck there for six hours. Finally, I arrived in Atlanta, but my flight got canceled, then got uncancelled, and then the pilot argued with the flight attendant at the gate about whether the plane was going to take off or not. It ended up being around midnight when they decided to cancel the flight.   

I ran downstairs to the car rental place, and I learned that all the cars were sold out, so I thought I was going to miss my first show, so I took an Uber from Atlanta to Nashville. The ride was a few hundred bucks. It was my first show, and I couldn’t miss it. The radio station had been promoting me for four or five days at that point.

When I arrived at the studio, I slept probably five hours over two days. It was chaos leading up to my first show, and then once I hit the air, it was everything I thought it would be.   

RH: What makes the Nashville radio market appealing to you?   

CH: Nashville is so cozy. Because I live in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, and I’ve been here for so long, I’m just trying to talk to my friends. I’m trying to talk to the parents of my kid’s friends, and I’m trying to talk to my neighbors. Because I have been here for so long and know these people, I can easily envision who is listening to my radio station. I’m trying to be who I would be if you bumped into me at the mailbox.   

RH: Do you have any tips based on your experiences for individuals seeking jobs or trying to advance in this industry, as it can be quite challenging to secure a position?  

CH: Once I decided I wanted this gig and sold myself on it, I was persistent. I’m sure Dan [Mandis] didn’t want me to have his cell phone number at a certain point anymore. A couple of times, I said to him, ‘If I’m bugging you, texting you, just tell me.’ I just stayed persistent and positive.

Luckily for me, there was no downside because I already had the Turning Point gig. I was blessed; I had a great job either way.

At the end of the day, I didn’t want to leave this area, so when the job at SuperTalk 99.7 became available, I didn’t go for it at first. It wasn’t until a month later that I reached out and expressed interest. From there, it was off to the races.   

RH: What inspires and drives you?  

CH: I want to be a good dad. I love the country, want my kids to have the same life growing up that I had, and want my grandkids to have that life. Pushing American values and being at the forefront of the debate and the conversation is something I was doing off the air anyway, sometimes a bit too much for my wife’s liking (joking). It’s not much of a transition [hosting a show]; I get a wider audience to do it with.   

In Radio Ratings, The Weighting is the Hardest Part

Dr. Ed Cohen
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In Radio Ratings, The Weighting is the Hardest Part

When I was considering a title for this radio ratings column, all the puns around weighting came up in my head. There’s the Tom Petty standby “The Waiting (Weighting)” because, of course, it’s the hardest part. Then there’s “The Weight” by The Band. They were all too easy so forgive me. Let’s just get into it.

As you know, the “black box” of ratings includes weighting for different variables. This means that the sample is adjusted to reflect the population or universe estimates for the weighted dimensions. 

By the way, there is a subtle difference between population and universe, but for the purposes of this discussion, the words are interchangeable. Sometimes, the sample is very similar to the population so the results are adjusted just slightly, but other times, the sample is so far off on some weighting variable that some survey respondents count for much more than other participants.  If their listening or viewing habits are unusual, the results can be skewed.

Let me give you a marvelous example from last century. I was VP-Research for Clear Channel and would occasionally head to Columbia, MD to review diaries at Arbitron. The prime purpose of this visit was to review WKCI (KC 101) in New Haven (Glenn Beck was PD and morning host which tells you how far back we’re going), but Clear Channel also had an AM station, WAVZ, that at the time was running Music of Your Life. 

If you don’t remember MOYL, this was a “standards” format that probably had a core demo of 75+. Somehow, WAVZ was number one W18-24 middays, and if memory serves, top three in P18-24 middays as well. How could this happen? I found the diary of a young woman who reported that she listened to WAVZ every weekday from 8 AM to 5 PM. In the comments, she stated, “I work in a nursing home.” Honest reporting of behavior but completely off from the reality of the market. 

Weighting is done because the rating services want to reflect the population. The weighting variables should have a direct correlation with what is being measured, in this case, media usage. For example, age matters. Does a 20-year-old listen to the same formats as a 50-year-old? Generally not. How about men versus women? If you’re Hispanic and you speak only Spanish, are you more likely to view Spanish language videos over English language videos?

Not every market uses the same variables. For Nielsen Audio, every market is weighted by age cells (18 of them for PPM and 16 for diary). From there, each market may be different. A one-county metro with low minority percentages will not be weighted for any other variable, but most markets have some sort of geographic weighting and it can get very complicated.  Geographic weighting exists in both diary and PPM.

Both services also weighted for race (black), Hispanic ethnicity, and language dominance within Hispanic depending on the makeup of the market. I won’t rehash the arcane rules that determine each market’s weighting variables, but you can look up the rules in the latest Description of Methodology and the weighting variables for each market in the “Blue Book” or “Red Book”, the Nielsen publications that have the market ranks, populations, etc. 

Nonetheless, being black, Hispanic, having a particular language dominance within Hispanic, and “Other” (non-black, non-Hispanic) does have a relationship with what audio you choose to use.

PPM uses a couple more variables which are the presence of children (yes/no) and employment status (employed full time/not employed full time), the latter of which is used only for persons 18+. 

Why not use other variables, such as income or education? Don’t these variables have something to do with listening? For example, income and all news may correlate. How about education and public radio? 

Weighting for a particular variable requires credible estimates of the population as well as good data from the respondents. With the exception of language dominance within Hispanic ethnicity, solid estimates projected from U.S. Census data (the gold standard) exist.

Let’s assume we have good universe estimates for education and income. Now the problem is respondent reporting. I remember when our demographer at Arbitron reviewed the education results from diary surveys against the population data. Not many people were willing to admit that they didn’t finish high school. 

Respondents appeared to move themselves up one level, for example, high school dropouts reported finishing high school, high school graduates spent some time in college, and the “some college” group was now more likely to graduate.  It’s similar in the income category. 

You may not make a lot, but do you want to admit it?  It doesn’t hurt to go up a category or two in a survey.

Further, the two variables didn’t have much value when added to the weighting mix. In weighting, sometimes, the cure is worse than the disease. Too much weighting (and too many variables) can interact and cause big swings in the data. In radio, even the biggest stations have relatively small AQH audiences (sorry to say that) and as everyone who uses the data knows, one meter or one diary can make a world of difference. 

More opportunities for weird “bounces” are in no one’s interest, unless of course, your numbers improve and you make your bonus. Keep in mind that “what goes around comes around”, so if you’re lucky one time, you’re likely to be unlucky sometime in the future.

The net is that weighting is a good thing to improve sample representation, but you need to track how Nielsen is doing. It’s easily done by reviewing the E-book. Remember the E-Book? 

That’s right…not many subscribers look at it because it has almost no listening data, but it’s the easiest and often the only place to find population information, how the sample for your market turned out, etc. 

If Nielsen is grossly under or over-representing some characteristic for an extended period (not just one month or one diary survey), it may be time to bitch at your rep as a starting point.  Pick your fights. And before you complain, look at how you can put the “misses” to your advantage. 

If a particular variable is underrepresented, how does your station perform with that cell? Can you play to it knowing that each meter/diary carries a greater weight, meaning every quarter hour is worth more?

During my Cumulus time, I used to receive a “monthly” (every four weeks) report from Nielsen detailing the sample in each of our PPM metros at a granular level. If you’re a subscriber in a PPM metro, ask your rep to see the report regularly. 

Let’s meet again next week.

The Hardline Announces Dan McDowell & Jake Kemp Are Not Returning to The Ticket

BSM Staff
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The Hardline Announces Dan McDowell & Jake Kemp Are Not Returning to The Ticket

The sports talk radio world in Dallas was shocked last week to learn that The Ticket hosts Dan McDowell and Jake Kemp had submitted their resignations.

McDowell had been at the station for 24 years and co-hosted The Hang Zone with Kemp. The duo reportedly reached an impasse with Cumulus Dallas leadership in negotiations for a new contract.

On The Hardline with Bob Sturm, Corby Davidson and Dave Lane on The Ticket late last week, Sturm and Davidson offered their reactions to the news that began to circulate across the sports media space.

Sturm said hearing that Dan and Jake had gone was some of the tougher news he’s had to bear since he started.

“Honestly as the kid caught in the divorce, man I don’t really care the details as much as I care the outcome which is – this sucks,” Sturm said. “It may not suck for them. They may be very pleased. In fact, I took a look at their video, and they seem OK with how things are, but I do know in my heart of hearts that they both intended to stay at The Ticket for a long, long, long, time. It didn’t happen.”

The disagreement in negotiations reportedly stems from the fact that Cumulus would not give their blessing to Dan and Jake to podcast outside of their daily radio show. The two hosts fought the company for the right to be sole proprietors of any outside content they generate.

“Sometimes it just doesn’t work, and they’re really steadfast in what they want and that’s control of their outside media,” Davidson said.

“They want to own some aspect of their personas and that’s just counter to corporate radio,” Lane responded.

“They want to change the game, and honestly that doesn’t surprise me,” Sturm added.

Sturm seemed particularly shaken up by their departures, talking about how he considered McDowell a brother and that they had similarly structured contracts and pay just out of respect for one another.

Sturm and Davidson talked about having a different relationship with Kemp, who has been viewed as a little brother in Sturm’s eyes and someone Davidson watched basically come of age at the station.

But they made the overall point that as hard as the news is, they have to keep carrying The Ticket torch forward.

“The Ticket is going to be fine. Now it’s going to be different. But The Ticket is going to be fine,” Davidson said. “We’ve taken a couple of hits here, and for me personally, and I feel like I’ve seen it all here in the last 25 years – all of it. This one stings the worst, and it’s not really even close just because the hanging out aspect like we said.”

“I wish the station would’ve been able to satisfy them, and I wish they both had a bar that was lower for compromise and I really mean that,” Sturm added. “I wish both sides could’ve found common ground, and that in the end they both will say, ‘We tried really hard, and we wish the other side would’ve tried harder.’”

The announcement came just days after Corby Davidson offered listeners some hope. On Wednesday, he told listeners that despite the reports in the media saying McDowell and Kemp were done, it was more of a holdout than an actual resignation and both sides still wanted to get a deal done. That appears to no longer be the case.

Eli Gold Returning to Bama Radio Crew Following Cancer Treatment

BSM Staff
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Eli Gold, the voice of Alabama football on the radio, is officially returning to the broadcast booth for the 2023 season. The 69 year old sat out the 2022 season as he was undergoing treatment for stage 3 cancer.

Eli has been calling Crimson Tide football the last 35 years. He told Ryan Fowler of Tide 100.9 in Tuscaloosa that he now has a clean bill of health and intends on being ready for Bama’s season opener on September 2.

“I was a very sick boy. Turns out, I have gotten better,” Gold said. “There’s still work to be done.”

Gold said there were times when his wife Claudette was told by doctors he might not live through the night. But he said he continued to not lose hope in one day returning to the broadcast booth.

“You can’t give up, man,” he said. “You’ve got to fight. You can’t give up. I learned that.”

Dan Le Batard: Justin Fields is ‘Content, Not a Human Being’ to Colin Cowherd

BSM Staff
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Dan Le Batard: Justin Fields is ‘Content, Not a Human Being’ to Colin Cowherd

Colin Cowherd adjusted his outlook on Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields ahead of the 2023 season, and Dan Le Batard was very intrigued by the FS1 host’s take.

On The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz last week, Le Batard said it’s interesting to see how some of the top voices in the medium like Cowherd have evolved over time and continue to stake their claim in the landscape with hot takes.

Dan has made it clear how he feels about how sports debate television has changed thanks to Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith, but he said there’s just something different about the approach Cowherd takes.

“Because Cowherd is super calculated about how he gets people to listen and he knows there’s money in being wrong,” Le Batard said. Cowherd tweeted last week he was originally 60/40 on Fields being successful in the NFL, but he’s dropped it to 55/45 because he felt like Fields lacked self-awareness. Cowherd took plenty of flack on Twitter for the take, which is something he’s accustomed to doing.

But Dan said Cowherd is just seizing the opportunity to generate content.

“So he’s got no problem taking out Justin Fields as a quarterback. Because why not? It’s content and it’s not a human being,” he joked. “It’s just something I said once upon a time, being wrong doesn’t cost me anything, I’ll just go after Justin Fields, but I’ll do this purposely and purposefully.”

“It sounds like he’s less certain that he’s gonna succeed, right?” asked Amin Elhassan. Amin said it was really odd Cowherd decided on 55/45 considering most people are either all or nothing, 90/10, 60/40 or 50/50.

“He still thinks he will succeed, but he’s leaving himself the chance that he’s going to be less wrong because he moved it back 5 percent,” Le Batard responded.

“The way that Colin Cowherd is going to age, is better and more pioneering than anyone ever, because Amin has never heard anyone go 55/45,” he added.

Dan said he just loved the approach Cowherd took. It was very much a Cowherd thing to do.

“Colin Cowherd is here to tell you he’s already dropped 5 percent on what Justin Fields is gonna be,” Le Batard said. “Is he going to be a runner, is he going to be a quarterback, which isn’t that I want in this league? Can I trust him to be a quarterback, as the position entirely changes.”

Derek Wolfe Out at 104.3 The Fan in Denver

BSM Staff
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Derek Wolfe Out at 104.3 The Fan in Denver

Derek Wolfe is out at 104.3 The Fan in Denver. A source confirms to Barrett Sports Media that he has chosen to leave the station “to focus on other interests.”

Wolfe worked with Darren McKee on the station’s afternoon show The Drive. He joined the show less than a year ago after Tyler Polumbus left the station. 

Wolfe played nine seasons in the NFL, eight of them with the Denver Broncos. He missed the 2021 season due to injury. He officially announced his retirement in July 2022. By October of that year, he was employed by The Fan.

The move puts the station in the same position it was in just last year, looking for a new partner for McKee, who has been a mainstay on Denver sports radio and at 104.3 The Fan since 2007.

Stephen A. Smith: ‘I Want Shannon Sharpe on First Take Period’

BSM Staff
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Stephen A. Smith has a wishlist for the future of First Take, and there is one name he is not beating around the bush about.

“I want Shannon Sharpe on First Take, period,” he said on the Friday edition of The Stephen A. Smith Show.

Speculation began almost immediately after Shannon Sharpe announced that he was leaving FS1 that he may end up with ESPN. Smith confirmed that, while no deal is done yet, it is more than just rumor and wishful thinking.

“The conversations are official, the reports have not been misnomers or misreports or anything like that,” he said. “We are talking to him and I’m hopeful, very hopeful, very confident that ultimately we will be announcing sooner than later that he will be on First Take.”

Sharpe’s wasn’t the only name Smith mentioned. He has said in the past that he likes the show’s current setup with Molly Qerim as the host and him debating a guest every day. With the football season around the corner, Smith said he hopes the rotation for the fall includes First Take regulars Ryan Clark, Marcus Spears and Dan Orlovsky. He added that he hopes Kimberley A. Martin and Mina Kimes will join the mix as well.

Smith has been on vacation, but is expected to be back on ESPN next week. It is expected that in the coming days he will address the status of Michael Irvin at the network and whether or not he will be returning to First Take in 2023.

Kevin Scott Departs Audacy Traffic Weather & Information Network

BNM Staff
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Audacy Traffic Weather & Information Network regional operations director Kevin Scott has exited.

Scott — who was stationed in Chicago and had been with the network since it was launched in 2017 — says he is the victim of budget cuts at the outlet.

“I’m proud of everything we accomplished.  We had a great team effort throughout the country with TWIN and in Chicago. I value every minute we were together and with my co-workers, we became a family,” he told All Access.

“It was a very hard job but also an incredibly rewarding experience that I was proud and honored to be a part of.  I understand the business decision, and I wish everyone at WBBM, TWIN, and Audacy all the best.”

Audacy is currently in the midst of instituting a plan to restructure nearly $2 billion in debt it holds. It also recently implemented a 1-for-30 reverse stock split in an effort to restore its NYSE stock price to more than $1. It was suspended in May for being non-compliant with NYSE rules on minimum price.

The View Co-Founder Bill Geddie Dies

BNM Staff
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The View Co-Founder Bill Geddie Dies

Bill Geddie, the legendary news producer who worked with Barbara Walters and helped launch The View, has died.

Geddie, according to his family, died of coronary-related factors. He was 68.

“He was a big deal in TV, but at home, he was an even ‘bigger than life’ husband and dad,” said Geddie’s family.  “He had a genuine love for television and entertainment. He would try everything and did it well — screenwriting, recording podcasts, playing guitar, writing songs, and loved a wide range of music from country to jazz. 

“His favorite band was The Beatles, and he never thought he would have the opportunity to meet one of his personal heroes Paul McCartney in person, but his dream came true. The question wasn’t who did he meet, but rather who didn’t he meet?”

In addition to co-founding The View, he served as the show’s executive producer for 17 years. He and Walters were partners for more than 25 years. Geddie served as her writer, executive producer, and director for several of her famous specials. He also served as a producer at Good Morning America.

The View co-host Joy Behar shared her sympathy to Geddies’ family after the news was announced.

“As a producer, he kept us together and was very loyal to his staff. Bill loved comedy and plenty of laughs not to mention a good cigar. I’m forever grateful to him and Barbara for the opportunity to be on The View,” Behar wrote.

Spike Eskin Asks Boomer & Gio to Give Out His Brother’s Number on the Air

BSM Staff
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WFAN programmer Spike Eskin celebrated his brother’s 39th birthday in a devious way on Friday morning. Jason Eskin is the vice president of digital marketing for The Walt Disney Studios and now most of New York knows how to get in touch with him.

Older brother Spike requested WFAN’s morning duo of Boomer Esiason and Gregg Giannotti send their well wishes. Both did just that over the air and then followed up on fulfilling Spike’s second request.

“He said, ‘Would you mind reading his cell phone number on the air?,’” Giannotti said of Eskin on WFAN. “So that’s what we’re going to do – for real. So I’m going to read his actual cell phone number on the air… Please text and call Jason [to wish him] a happy birthday.”

Divulging Jason Eskin’s actual cell phone number both on Twitter and over the air is a tradition for his brother. He polled Twitter users as to whether or not he should do it again. The results of the survey came in, with over 75% of people imploring Eskin to reveal the digits to reach his brother.

https://twitter.com/SpikeEskin/status/1682389686273073152?s=20

Upon giving out the number on the air, update anchor Jerry Recco wrote him a message saying, “Happy birthday – hope you have a great day.” The show then continued to compel listeners to reach out, and while the results of the endeavor are not yet known, it is very likely that Jason has received a deluge of texts and calls.

“Make sure you do it because Spike is also using this as audience research to see how many people are going to text him,” Giannotti added.

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