Tim Virgin heads to The Drive

Will continue to appear on KSHE St. Louis Veteran Chicago radio personality Tim Virgin is returning to town as the new afternoon host of Hubbard Broadcasting’s The Drive, aka WDRV-FM, starting today where he will host weekdays from 3 to 7 p.m. “A few months away was long enough to remind me exactly where I belong – on a legendary […]

Chicago PPM report: 93.9 The Lite on top as Christmas music season begins

Sister station 103.5 KissFM remains on top in demos As iHeartMedia’s AC 93.9 The Lite (WLIT) kicked off its 25th annual Christmas Music format Tuesday, the station has already perched itself on top of the overall PPM ratings for October and won’t be budging from that position anytime soon.  WLIT topped all comers with a 4.9 rating, and for the third […]

Chicago PPM Report: Immigration blitzes and ICE protests sends listeners to news and talk stations

The Drive tops overall ratings while Kiss 103.5 FM is first in 25-54s With the continuing ICE enforcement and National Guard drama in Chicago, listeners tuned in to the city’s news, talk, and information stations in increasing numbers during the month of September in PPMs released earlier this week.  Operation Midway Blitz was fanned across the nation’s third-largest radio and […]

Chicago radio ratings: Rock 95.5 surges in ratings; WKSC sweeps demos

WLIT tops overall numbers The August PPMs were an awesome one for iHeartMedia Chicago, with Rock 95.5 (WCHI-FM) surging, Kiss 103.5 FM sweeping the demo races, and WLIT topping the overall numbers. Rock 95.5 moved from — to thirteenth with a 3.2, the highest share number in the station’s five-year history, and the highest for the frequency since the WNUA […]

Dan Bernstein heads to Hubbard via podcasting with “Unfiltered”

“Unfiltered” already in top ten in Apple Podcasts Disposed by Audacy for a doxxing incident, former 670 The Score (WSCR-AM) morning host Dan Bernstein signed a deal with Hubbard Broadcasting, as reported by the Sun-Times on Monday, not to a terrestrial radio deal, but to host a podcast.  Titled Dan Bernstein: Unfiltered, the new venture from Hubbard is 312 Sports, […]

The Media Notepad: “The Food Guy” exits NBC 5

Steve Dolinsky takes job at Levy Restaurants; Chicago Sky expands distribution; 93.9 The Lite returns to the top of the PPMs [Editor’s Note: The first item of this piece was updated on May 22 to add Facebook post.] “The Food Guy” has reviewed his final plate on Chicago television. Steve Dolinsky announced this week he was departing NBC 5 (NBC-owned […]

March PPMs: Q101 maintains hot streak

Best ranking since the return to 101.1 frequency The March PPMs were released on Tuesday and showed an interesting trend: the resurgence of Q101.  The Cumulus-owned Alternative station is on a hot streak. WKQX scored an overall ratings increase for the fourth consecutive month and finished in a tie for eleventh place with WBEZ – the highest overall ranking since […]

The Media Notepad: iHeartMedia Chicago names new region president

Also: A new syndicated radio show originates from Chicago; St. Louis Cardinals strikes new deal with FanDuel [This post was updated on November 12.] Amid layoffs, iHeartMedia announced some promotions on Friday with a pair of new Region Presidents. Adam Kurtz will take over from Matt Scarano in Chicago and oversee all six iHeart brands, including AC 93.9 The Lite, Adult […]

The Media Notepad: Elon Musk wants to get rid of over-the-air TV

Plus, Chicago radio ratings, Comcast considering the sale or spinoff of cable channels, and the CW returns to a Cleveland station after Nexstar buys it  Elon Musk has finally expressed his thoughts on television, and he is not a fan. The South African billionaire who bought Twitter for $44 billion in 2022 blasted the major networks on his platform recently, […]

The Media Notepad: ABC, The CW announce 2024-25 lineups

Also: The Drive reclaims the top spot in Chicago radio ratings; Young Sheldon redeems himself   [Editor’s Note: The second item of this piece was updated on May 21.] Wrapping up the upfronts: ABC released its fall schedule last week as part of a Disney upfront presentation that hardly mentioned the network. And little wonder – there isn’t much to talk […]

Hubbard appoints Keith Lawless as new Chicago Market Manager

Replaces Jeff Enguland, who steps down  Minneapolis-based Hubbard Radio announced Friday a management change at the executive suites at its Chicago cluster, with Keith Lawless taking over as Market Manager for Hot AC 101.9 The Mix/WTMX, Classic Rock 97.1 The Drive/WDRV/WWDV, and Classic Hits WSHE-FM.   “We are pleased to welcome Keith to Hubbard Radio and look forward to watching him […]

The Drive, WLIT tie again in latest PPM survey

Also: Ali Matta departs Q101  A touch of Christmas has led iHeartMedia’s 93.9 The Lite (WLIT-FM) to tie Hubbard’s The Drive (WDRV-FM) for first place in the overall ratings for the second time this year. The last time the two tied for first in the overall ratings was in September.  Both stations came up with even 6 shares in the […]