http://youtu.be/DL_1amsoK4M Welcome back, Arsenio! With 2012 behind us, its time to look ahead to 2013. Here are the top ten things to look for in the media business this year, in Chicago and beyond: 1. Arsenio’s back. After an absence of nearly twenty years, Arsenio Hall returns to late-night syndication. But can he make a comeback and compete with three […]
Eddie & JoBo, Glenn Cosby, Effie Rolfe join ranks of radio’s unemployed For the second time this year, one-day mass layoffs have rocked the radio industry (and just like before, the layoffs happened… on a Thursday.) And similar to last March when they laid off more than 70 employees, Clear Channel was front and center of these mass layoffs: an estimated […]
Another all-local edition of the Grab Bag… including an item on a possible sale of some downstate TV stations: – Julian Nieh, one half of the duo of B96’s (WBBM-FM’s) The JNiice & Julian Morning Show, exited the station on Wednesday to pursue other interests. The seven-year veteran of the contemporary-hit station was paired with Jamar “JNiice” McNeil in January […]
These days when a format change takes place at a radio station, it usually happens without notice and the radio personalities are usually thrown out onto the street without the chance to say goodbye. Thankfully, that won’t be the case Thursday as WKQX-FM (Q101) prepares to shift from Alternative/Modern Rock to either all-News or News/Talk. Before handing the keys over […]
THIS was the announcement fans of Steve Dahl have been waiting for weeks? Speculation on “the big news” to be announced Monday at 12 Noon ranged from Dahl heading to Merlin Media to host a talk show at WKQX, a return to WLUP, or even a gig at WGN Radio. And when noon hit, this was “the big announcement”: if […]
It’s like saying Power 92 is #1 in the Streets! Yep, it’s been a week of mistakes for some – ask the Miami Herald and the Toronto Star who declared some teams champions last week when they weren’t, and for anyone who went into Downtown Vancouver Wednesday evening. It’s not just some bizarre universe where Dewey defeated Truman for President […]
Ah, lucky Providence, R.I. They get to see women in bras in the prime access hour. We Chicagoans get Bill Kurtis and Walter Jacobson. You know, it’s hard to be a bra salesman these days in Providence when you have the Internet… and now you have infomercials running as early as 7 p.m.! Is it no surprise that 25% of […]
Harry Teinowitz: “I’m winning.” Okay, so Charlie Sheen is “winning” – if your definition of winning is being fired off a hit show, having police raid your house, and jumping the shark on Twitter after only a week. But the winners and losers this week are for real: They’re really winning and losing, not some dopey sham job Sheen is […]
Eddie & JoBo return to Chicago radio to new “K-Hits”, which replaces JACK-FM. WJMK will not be “jacking” their body any longer. In news that was circulating ferociously for the last 48 hours, it is now official: CBS Radio’s WJMK-FM – known for the last six years as rock-leaning Variety Hits (a.k.a. Adult Hits) JACK FM – is flipping to […]
Yeah, but not for long…. The axe is waiting to swing on one of CBS Radio’s two struggling properties in Chicago. Industry website Radio Insight reported today that CBS Radio registered a domain under the name KHitsChicago.com, meaning a format flip for WJMK-FM (JACK FM, 104.3 FM) is imminent. Also mentioned as a possible target is WCFS-FM (Fresh 105.9 FM), […]
WGN wins July PPM survey overall; WTMX dominated 25-54s; Rock stations and WKSC gains; WLS-AM declines. The second time isn’t so great after all. Clear Channel’s WLIT-FM has dropped Melissa Forman and her show from the morning time slot at the station after two years. The move was due to declining ratings. Forman was one of only two live personalities […]
WBBM-AM big winner These are based on Persons 6+ numbers. Winners: WBBM-AM, WLS-AM and FM, Love FM (WILV-FM), WGRB-AM, The Drive (WDRV-FM), US99 (WUSN-FM) Honorable Mention: The Mix (WTMX-FM), WOJO-FM, The Loop (WLUP-FM), JACK FM (WJMK-FM) Down, but potent: Lite FM (WLIT-FM), V103 (WVAZ-FM) Losers: B96 (WBBM-FM), WGCI-FM, Q101 (WKQX-FM), Fresh (WCFS-FM) Analysis: All news WBBM-AM – with its coverage […]
(Editor’s note: I apologize for the lateness of this post, as I had Internet connection problems that knocked me offline for awhile this evening. – T.H.) The ax swung again at CBS Radio at a highly-paid radio personality – and this time – and to no one’s surprise – it was Steve Dahl. The venerable and legendary personality left WJMK-FM […]
The results from November’s PPMs are here, just three days after the radio ratings period ended. Isn’t it great to get results like this so quick? (Just don’t ask WGN-AM…) Borrowing the formula from Marc Berman’s Programming Insider from Mediaweek: Winners: WBBM-AM, WLS (AM and FM), The Drive (WDRV-FM), V103 (WVAZ-FM) Honorable Mention: Lite FM (WLIT-FM), WBEZ-FM, WIND-AM Disappointing (like […]
A poignant part of Milwaukee’s call letters is history. WKTI-FM dropped its Hot AC format today and flipped to adult hits “The New 94.5 The Lake”, an obvious reference to Milwaukee’s proximity to Lake Michigan (as is our city.) Also gone is the WKTI call letters, which have been used at the frequency for 34 years. Pending approval by the […]