Home Blog Page 2006

Laurence Holmes: ‘Someone Should Put Me on Crisis P.R. Staff’

BSM Staff
-
0

Laurence Holmes of 670 The Score knows what it takes to communicate effectively, especially in a crisis.

Last week before the start of the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, Nevada, a member of San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama‘s security detail allegedly struck pop superstar Britney Spears. The incident took place at Catch restaurant in the Aria, and it left Spears and those in the worlds of sports and entertainment flabbergasted to say the least. Spears addressed the crisis on Tuesday on her Instagram page and acknowledged the lack of a public apology. Members of the phenom’s security team apologized to Wembanyama about a half hour after the encounter, and no charges will be filed against the security guard.

In remarks to the media, Wembanyama said that he remembers a person grabbing him from behind and security guards promptly dealing with her, although he did not know with how much force. Wembanyama is now reportedly going to be taking a break from the media to focus on basketball and prepare for the upcoming 2023-24 regular season. The summer league debut of the Spurs center was the second most-watched Summer League game in ESPN’s history. Additionally, tickets for the matchup were, on average, $96, the highest mark ever recorded for the Summer League.

During 670 The Score’s transition segment from Mike Mulligan and David Hough to Dan Bernstein and Laurence Holmes, the production team played back the audio of Spears recalling what transpired. Spears specifically conveyed her thoughts towards comments made saying she deserved to be hit, expressing her utter disgust and sentiment that no woman should ever be hit. The lack of action from the National Basketball Association and the San Antonio Spurs, especially with a player projected to be a perennial superstar, is an evident shortcoming of this example of crisis public relations.

“There’s a missed opportunity here with Britney,” Holmes said. “What the NBA should have done is they should have said, ‘Ms. Spears, we’re sorry about the misunderstanding that happened with you and the security team. We would love it if you could come sit courtside for the debut of Victor Webanyama. Victor has expressed that he would love for you to be there as well.’”

By having Wembanyama meet Spears before his first game, Holmes assumes that the clash can be resolved and dissipate out of mainstream conversation. A deluge of Spears’ most ardent fans have spoken out against Wembanyama and the Spurs organization, hoping for his downfall and demanding he apologize. Holmes likens the ideal outcome of the situation to the moment during the NBA Playoffs between Denver Nuggets center and NBA champion Nikola Jokić and Phoenix Suns owner Matt Ishbia. During a playoff game, Jokić inadvertently shoved Ishbia, unbeknownst to him, while he was trying to retrieve a basketball that went out of bounds.

“You have Victor meet Britney courtside; they hug [and] they squash the beef,” Holmes said. “Everything’s good…. Someone should put me in their crisis P.R. staff.”

Victor Webanyama and Britney Spears are dealing with crisis public relations after the incident.
Victor Wembanyama – Courtesy: Michael Gonzales, Getty Images | Britney Spears – Courtesy: Frances Iacuzzi

Both Mulligan and Haugh concur with Holmes regarding his idea for Spears and Wembanyama to make up following the altercation in Las Vegas. Even so, Bernstein believes that navigating through the public relations crisis this has caused is more difficult because of the statements being made.

“Phase one is reaction; phase one of crisis P.R. is the crisis,” Bernstein explained. “It is what is happening; damage control, etc. Phase two is answering the harder questions, ‘What are you going to do about it? What are you going to do now?’ They’re not even answering questions; they’re not available.”

SuperTalk 99.7 WTN Names Chris Hand New Midday Host

BNM Staff
-
0
SuperTalk 99.7 WTN Names Chris Hand New Midday Host

SuperTalk 99.7 WTN is adding Chris Hand as the station’s new midday host.

Hand will take over the 9:00 AM-Noon timeslot on the Nashville news/talk station. The window was previously occupied by Michael DelGiorno, who exited the Cumulus Media station in March after a 16-year run. Pamela Furr spent the majority of the past months hosting the timeslot on an interim basis before declaring that she was not the permanent host last week.

In making the announcement on Twitter, Hand said he is “Humbled to be a part of this legendary station,” before tagging new colleagues Dan Mandis, Matt Murphy, and Brian Wilson.

Hand rejoins SuperTalk 99.7 WTN after a brief stint as the Media Director for Turning Point USA, the conservative advocacy group founded by Charlie Kirk. Hand joined the conservative group after working as a host and producer at WTN from October of last year to April of this year.

He has previous stints working for Steel City Media, CBS Radio, and iHeartMedia.

WBEN Adds Armstrong & Getty to Daily Lineup

BNM Staff
-
0
WBEN Adds Armstrong & Getty to Daily Lineup

WBEN has announced Armstrong & Getty has joined the station’s daily lineup.

The Buffalo news/talk station will air the program weekdays from 7:00-10:00 PM.

“We’re thrilled to have Armstrong & Getty as part of the evening lineup at WBEN,” Operations Manager and Audacy News/Talk Vice President Tim Wenger said. “Their entertaining approach to current events and politics is a refreshing way to cap off the daylong programming on the station.”

The show will replace The Dana Show with Dana Loesch in the station’s lineup.

“We’re excited to join the list of great radio voices that have been part of Buffalo and WBEN. Now, more than ever, it’s important that folks get a perspective from outside the mainstream media. We’re here to be that honest voice,” Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty said in a joint statement.

Latest Tucker on Twitter Episode Stretches Twitter’s Video Lengths

BNM Staff
-
0

Tucker Carlson released his latest Tucker on Twitter episode Tuesday, and the ninth installment was notable for its length.

Carlson sat down for an extended interview with social media personality and former kickboxer Andrew Tate. The produced episode of the digital video show was a whopping two hours and a half hours.

In May, as Carlson was beginning to launch his program after he was fired by Fox News, Twitter announced it would allow those subscribed to Twitter Blue to post videos up to two hours long.

In a tweet, Elon Musk declared that subscribers could post videos as large as 8 gigabytes or two hours in length. It is unclear if that length has been widened or if Carlson’s latest episode was simply less than 8 gigabytes in size.

Carlson did receive pushback from some conservative pundits like Erick Erickson and Joe Walsh for his interview with Tate. The social media personality is currently on house arrest in Romania as he and his brother are awaiting trial on rape, human trafficking, and forming an organized crime group to sexually exploit women charges. The 36-year-old has denied any wrongdoing.

Keith Abrams Exits KXL, Freedom 970 in Portland

BNM Staff
-
0
Keith Abrams Exits KXL, Freedom 970 in Portland

Alpha Media Portland Content Director Keith Abrams has departed after his position was eliminated.

Abrams oversaw news/talk KXL and conservative talk Freedom 970, in addition to sports talk station 750 The Game.

He joined the Alpha Portland cluster in December 2021 after serving as Senior Vice President of Programming for iHeartMedia’s WMMS and WMJI in Cleveland, before being laid off during a round of COVID-related cutbacks in late 2020.

In total, Abrams has spent more than 30 years leading stations in Seattle, Salt Lake City, Charlotte, and Pittsburgh.

Abrams tells All Access that he is not retiring, but will be relocating near Columbus, Ohio to be closer to his family.

VSiN Partners With VoiceAmerica for New Digital Radio Channel

BSM Staff
-
0
VSiN Partners With VoiceAmerica for New Digital Radio Channel

VSiN is going to be the backbone of a new channel for VoiceAmerica. The digital broadcaster will launch a new channel called VoiceAmerica Sports and Gaming Channel powered by VSiN.

“We pursued VSiN’s content because it’s the gold standard in the sports betting industry,” Alex Schild, vice president of programming at VoiceAmerica, said in a press release. “As sports betting continues to expand across the country, the demand for this content will continue to grow, and we wanted to align our brand with the best in the category. VSiN content aligns with our current offerings, and we believe it will be a hit with our listeners.”

More than 30 million listeners have access to VoiceAmerica. The company was one of the pioneers of digital on-demand talk radio.

“We’re thrilled to work with VoiceAmerica to bring VSiN’s brand of sports wagering content to even more of the nation’s growing number of fans who bet on sports,” said Brian Musburger, founder and CEO of VSiN. “This relationship will further expand VSiN’s audio reach, building on our position as the largest sports betting network in the U.S.”

Stephen A. Smith Admits He is Jealous Of TNT Post-Game Show

BSM Staff
-
0

It seems like Stephen A. Smith is on TV all the time at ESPN. Add his podcast to his regular television schedule and it is easy to understand why he told Bill Simmons that he started to experience some burnout this year.

Smith was a guest this week on The Bill Simmons Podcast and said that he is making an effort to spend more time on vacation because, especially during the NBA season, it seems like he is working all the time. Being a part of NBA Countdown was a particular drain on Smith. On the days ESPN aired NBA games, Smith would be on television from 10 am until well after midnight sometimes.

That isn’t an easy schedule, but Smith said that he thinks he actually would have had an easier time with it if the postgame edition of NBA Countdown were a little longer.

“If we had the time at ESPN to have a post-game show like TNT does, I would have been hyped and wired for that.,” he said.

According to Smith, once the pregame edition of NBA Countdown ends, he is often in studio for another four to five hours. In that long time span though, he says he is lucky to get eight minutes of TV time.

“This is the television real estate that you have available to you. It’s nobody’s fault,” he said. “I’m just simply saying that when you are a guy that comes on TV as much as I do, I’m a person that when the lights come on, I’m ready. I don’t know how to explain it. I don’t know what happens to me. I’ve never experienced anything like it in my life, but when those lights come on, it doesn’t matter how tired I am or how sick I am. It doesn’t matter what the situation is, I’m ready to perform. And so for me, when you have to step back and you’re so limited, you’ve got to remember I’m kind of spoiled because First Take is two hours and it’s basically my show.”

Smith admitted that it wasn’t just the long wait. His daughters also encouraged him to carve out time to spend with them. That helped him make the decision to scale back and actually use his vacation time.

Still, Stephen A. Smith knows he is driven and he loves to be on television. If ESPN gave him more time at the end of a night of NBA coverage, it would be hard to turn down.

“My attitude about it would have been totally different if there was a post-game show like the television real estate TNT has with their postgame. If that happened, man, I would have had a totally different energy about it. I still think that it would have been a lot to take because of the obligations to First Take in the mornings, but nevertheless, I still would have been incentivized to be even more pumped up instead of dying down because the evening is coming to an end, you know?”

ABC Audio Selects Compass Media Networks As Radio Ad Sales Partner

BNM Staff
-
0
ABC Audio Selects Compass Media Networks As Radio Ad Sales Partner

ABC Audio has announced it will begin working with Compass Media Networks for advertising sales and sponsorships after splitting with Skyview Networks.

“Our decision to partner with Compass…demonstrates that ABC News is fully invested in the continued growth and success of our radio division,” said ABC Audio Vice President Liz Alesse.  “With this new strategic partnership and our unrivaled team of on-air talent, we are poised for further expansion and innovation, and I’m so excited for ABC News Radio as we enter this new chapter.”

“ABC Audio provides a key outlet for delivering straightforward, trustworthy journalism to millions of Americans, the addition of Compass Media Networks underscores our dedication to ABC News Radio’s growth and success as well as our unwavering commitment to our affiliates and their listeners,” added ABC News President Kim Godwin.

The partnership will officially begin in January of next year. However, the agreement for the marketing of commercial inventory has already started.

“Christmas has come early for us and our national sponsors,” said Compass Media Networks CEO and Founder Peter Kosann. “ABC Audio represents some of the most iconic brands and media assets in the world, and we will move mountains to be a wonderful ambassador and advocate for our new partner.”

ABC Audio features more than 1,500 affiliated stations, and boasts that more than 65% of the network’s advertising inventory base is FM music stations with offerings in primetime dayparts.

“This is another wonderful addition to our portfolio that will help our clients achieve their audio marketing and media objectives,” said Compass Media Networks President of Advertising and Marketing Paul Gregrey.

Steven Portnoy Joining ABC Audio as National Correspondent

BNM Staff
-
0
Steven Portnoy Joining ABC Audio as National Correspondent

After announcing he would depart CBS News Radio last week, Steven Portnoy has a new home.

The longtime radio reporter will return to ABC Audio as a national correspondent. Portnoy worked for ABC News from 2002 to 2015 before joining CBS News Radio. At ABC News Radio, Portnoy became the network’s Washington Correspondent in 2006 and provided coverage of the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections.

“Holding powerful officials accountable to the public and helping Americans understand their world have always been my objectives in journalism,” said Portnoy. “On those points and so many others, ABC News is best in class.”

In addition to his work at CBS News Radio, Portnoy served as the President of the White House Correspondents Association for the 2021-2022 term.

Portnoy joins the outlet at a slightly tumultuous time. ABC Audio laid off three executives last week as part of ongoing cuts from parent company Disney, including Executive Director Heidi Oringer.

Fox News Reportedly Distancing Itself From Charlie Kirk Organization

BNM Staff
-
0

It appears that Fox News has distanced itself from Turning Point USA, a major conservative organization founded by Charlie Kirk, after severing ties with CPAC months ago. Fox News and TPUSA had a close relationship in the past, with Fox News personalities frequently attending TPUSA events and Fox Nation broadcasting their events. 

According to The Daily Beast, as TPUSA prepares for its big 2023 conference, Fox News is not involved in any way. According to a source within Fox News, the network’s relationship with TPUSA has ended, and they no longer want their talent associated with the organization. 

The upcoming Turning Point Action Conference, known as ActCon, is set to take place this weekend in Palm Beach and will be hosted by TPUSA’s political advocacy arm. Several GOP presidential candidates and lawmakers, as well as right-wing pundits like Tucker Carlson and Dan Bongino (both of whom left Fox News in April), are scheduled to appear. However, right now, no Fox News personalities are expected to attend. 

While Fox News may choose to cover certain moments of the event, their absence marks a significant shift for both Turning Point and the network. In the past two years, Fox News has played a major role in Turning Point’s annual events, with broadcasts from personalities like Hegseth and McEnany, and high-profile speeches from Carlson, Watters, Gutfeld, Pirro, and Ingraham.  

According to Semafor’s report last week, the network seems hesitant to allow its stars to attend conservative events that involve election deniers and conspiracy theorists following Fox’s $787.5-million settlement with Dominion. For instance, Pirro, who was named in the Dominion lawsuit, has been discouraged by Fox from speaking at a TPUSA event and a church service to promote her new book. 

Moreover, ActCon 2023’s keynote speaker is Donald Trump, whose election lies directly led to Fox’s Dominion mess, further suggesting a connection between Dominion and Fox’s break-up with TPUSA. However, Trump will appear on Fox’s air this weekend in a more controlled environment via an interview with Maria Bartiromo.

Other speakers scheduled for ActCon speeches include Mike Lindell, Patrick Byrne, and Steve Bannon, who are known as 2020 deniers and Jan. 6 organizers. Additionally, Kirk himself has been vocal about his belief that the 2020 election was “stolen” from Trump.

1...2,0052,0062,007...2,779Page 2,006 of 2,779