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In fall 2020, Debra OConnell was elevated to President of Networks for Disney Media & Entertainment Distribution, thus leaving the role of President/GM of WABC-7 in New York open for her replacement.
ABC Owned Television Stations has just select that individual, and it is WABC’s News Director.
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Futuri is known in media circles for its AI-driven audience engagement and sales intelligence technology.
Now, it seeks to be known for its forthcoming suite of offerings for local, network, and cable television and digital publishers.
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In April 1958, just 3 1/2 years after the team won the 1954 World Series, the New York Giants baseball club moved to San Francisco from the Polo Grounds.
Now, a Nexstar Media Group local TV leader is moving from the Bay Area to the Big Apple.
Chris McDonnell has been promoted to VP/GM of WPIX-11 in New York, the former Tribune Media flagship that serves as the CW Network’s affiliate in Market No. 1.
Officially, he will direct WPIX under the terms of a local programming and marketing agreement between Nexstar and the station’s licensee, Mission Broadcasting.
As RBR+TVBR reported on Dec. 30, 2020, The E.W. Scripps Company is no longer the owner of WPIX-11. Mission became the owner through Nexstar’s decision to transfer its option to purchase the station to Mission.
Scripps purchased WPIX as part of its acquisition of eight television stations in seven markets from Nexstar. Those stations were being divested in connection with Nexstar Media Group’s acquisition of Tribune Media in September 2019.
McDonnell has been VP/GM of news-intensive KRON-4 in San Francisco since 2017, and his move to WPIX suggests Nexstar will ramp up WPIX’s news department — one that is largely known as the weekend home of veteran Big Apple anchor Kaity Tong.
During his tenure at KRON McDonnell and his team added new hour-long weekday newscasts at 3pm and 9pm, while he also orchestrated the launch of KRONOn.TV, a local 24-hour digital streaming news application.
With KRON-TV now producing nearly 20 hours of local news each weekday, WPIX could be poised for a similar ramp-up in a market where Spectrum News NY1 has come under scrutiny for changes since its time as a Time Warner Media property and where Optimum-distributed News 12 has a highly localized approach to its round-the-clock news coverage.
If anything, WPIX’s increased news coverage would be a competitor to CBSN New York, the all-news OTT offering produced by WCBS-2 in New York.
Before joining KRON McDonnell served as the President/GM of NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises’ WSNS-TV in Chicago. He also handled sales and marketing for the Telemundo station and, before that, worked in sales management at NBC O&Os WMAQ-5 in Chicago, KXAS-5 in Dallas and at KNSD-39 in San Diego.
She’s been singled out by her new boss for her “extensive knowledge and experience” in the Atlanta market, along with her “winning attitude and impressive accomplishments.”
That’s what Debora Collura, GM of WGCL-46 and WPCH-17 “Peachtree TV”, has to say about the stations’ new Director of Sales.
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There are two new members of the National Association of Broadcasters‘ TV Board of Directors.
Concurrently, there is a new addition to the NAB’s Radio Board of Directors, and it is the person in charge of such radio stations as Easy 93.1 in Miami and K99.1 in Dayton.
Cox Media Group CEO Dan York and WDBD-TV in Jackson, Miss. VP/GM RaMona Alexander have been appointed to the NAB Television Board of Directors.
York succeeded Kim Guthrie in 2020, following Apollo Global Management’s majority acquisition of Cox.
Alexander leads a FOX affiliate at Channel 40 that, while owned by American Spirit Media, enjoys a shared services agreement with Gray Television. She also oversees management of WLOO-TV in Jackson, a MyNetwork TV affiliate licensed to Tougaloo College.
Additionally, Alexander is responsible for Program Acquisitions at American Spirit Media.
But, it is her experience at Gray Television that has been the hallmark of her career. Alexander began her career at WJTV-12, in Jackson, Miss.
Meanwhile, Cox Media Group SVP and Head of Radio Rob Babin has been appointed to the NAB Radio Board of Directors.
Babin recently assumed those duties from now-retired Bill Hendrich.
SANTA CLARITA, CALIF. — Tune to 1100 kHz in the southern San Joaquin Valley of California, and you’ll get a Spanish-language radio Class B radio station that serves as the Bakersfield affiliate of the Don Cheto radio program.
Will that continue, now that this AM with an FM translator is being sold?
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As the continuing COVID-19 pandemic will put a kibosh for a second-straight year on the annual alcohol-fueled parade of media buyers across Manhattan that’s become Upfront Week, media companies are already gearing up for what will be a zoom-fueled cavalcade of online sessions.
Among those companies is a newly reconstituted Univision Communications. But, ahead of its May 18 digitally delivered affair, Univision’s new CEO will team with Steve Mandala’s replacement in holding a virtual presentation to clients two months ahead of that event.
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In June 2020, he was promoted to Director of Marketing for Hulu, an ascension that came after roles as SVP of Growth Marketing and VP/Subscriber Growth at the Santa Monica, Calif.-based OTT platform.
Now, this former longtime Yahoo! global marketing executive is joining Discovery Inc. to serve as its Global Chief Marketing Officer for its Discovery Direct-to-Consumer unit.
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WEST PALM BEACH, FLA. — Exactly 50 years ago, a 20-year-old student at Southeast Missouri State University was flunking all of his classes. Yet, he had a passion for one thing: Radio. Armed with some experience at a hometown radio station at age 16, he accepted a position as an on-air personality at a Top 40 radio station in McKeesport, Pa., using the name “Jeff Christie.”
That individual, who celebrated his 70th birthday on January 12, would revert to his birth name in 1983. He’d also transition from music radio to become of one the most renowned and, to some, reviled, talk show hosts in American history.
All are now pausing to reflect on the life of Rush Limbaugh, who has lost his battle with Stage 4 lung cancer.
An official announcement was made just after Noon Eastern on Wednesday (2/17) by Limbaugh’s wife, Kathryn, on his radio show. “Losing a loved one is terribly difficult, even more so when that loved one is larger than life,” she said. “Rush will forever be the greatest of all time.”
The news was shared by FOX News at 12:10pm Eastern.
Limbaugh had been absent from his Premiere Networks-syndicated daily talk show since February 2, with guest hosts called in to substitute. As recently as February 10, show producer “Bo Snerdley,” a.k.a. James Golden, thanked listeners for their prayers. On Twitter, he wrote, “Our prayers are with Rush as he continues to fight the illness he has been afflicted with. We are still praying for a remission.”
That, sadly, did not come.
A FINAL HEALTH BATTLE, OF SEVERAL
America’s Anchorman, the Doctor of Democracy, with talent on loan from God.
For more than three decades, Rush Limbaugh has come to be known as the epitome of conservative American political thought – and influence. In recent months, he staunchly defended former President Donald Trump’s unproven claims that the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election results were flawed, and that he had actually won re-election. This led to Limbaugh’s voluntary deactivation of his Twitter account on January 7, 2021; his last Tweet was on December 17.
On December 23, Limbaugh took to the microphone to provide an update on his health to listeners.
“I’ve had a year now to reflect on the things that really matter, a year to reflect on the things that are completely relevant and important to me,” he said. “And all of you are in that large conglomeration of people and things that are very important to me.”
On February 3, 2020, Limbaugh told his audience, and the world, that he has been diagnosed with “advanced lung cancer.” At the time, he noted it was a struggle for him to make the revelation, after first telling his staff earlier in the day that Monday just over one year ago, when COVID-19 was still largely an Asian pandemic.
The diagnosis, Limbaugh said, was confirmed by two medical institutions, on January 20, 2020. He added that he first believed something was wrong on his birthday weekend of 2020. “I thought about not telling anybody,” Limbaugh admitted. “I thought about trying to do this without anybody knowing, ’cause I don’t like making things about me. But, there are days where I am not going to be able to be here.”
In his Dec. 23, 2020, update, Limbaugh told listeners, “I wasn’t expected to make it to October and then to November and then to December — and yet here I am. Today I’ve got some problems, but I’m feeling pretty good today. God’s with me today. God knows how important this program is to me today, and I’m feeling natural in terms of energy, normal in terms of energy, and I’m feeling entirely capable of doing it today.”
The lung cancer disclosure came 18 1/2 years after otolaryngologists Antonio De la Cruz and Jennifer Derebery discussed a diagnosis and treatment for hearing loss incurred by Limbaugh. As of October 2001, Limbaugh suffered from autoimmune inner ear disease (AIED), a disease that could include sudden hearing loss. He was able to regain much of his hearing with the help of a cochlear implant. It then became known that he had become addicted to Vicodin, resulting in a five-week leave of absence from his daily radio program in order to enter a rehabilitation program. Severe back pain led Limbaugh to begin using the drug.
A THREE RIVERS SPARK, AND FLAME-OUT
As “Jeff Christie,” Limbaugh began his career in radio, first at McKeesport, Pa.-based WIXZ and then at a bigger Top 40 station in Western Pennsylvania, KQV-AM 1410, then-owned by ABC. He would enjoy two stints at KQV in the early 1970s, and in 1974 hosted the night shift as the station transitioned from ABC ownership to Taft Broadcasting. They weren’t fond of Mr. Limbaugh’s persona as Mr. Christie, and by the end of the year he was gone; RBR+TVBR founder Jim Carnegie, under pressure from Taft’s C-Suite, carried out the edict as KQV’s Program Director. Then-General Manager John Gibbs suggested he hang up the headphones and take a radio sales position.
Dejected and with only one job offer, which he declined, Limbaugh went home. Over the next five years, he’d established a home in Kansas City – but not a successful radio career, with stints at KUDL and the former KFIX. In 1979, Limbaugh left the radio business altogether, taking a position with the Kansas City Royals just before their 1980 World Series season. While with the American League baseball club, he’d travel to Europe and Asia. It provided a foundation for his conservative views which would later permeate his Talk radio career.
That began in late 1983, when KMBZ-AM in Kansas City hired Limbaugh to be Limbaugh, with the “Jeff Christie” name gone for good. KMBZ fired Limbaugh. However, he soon accepted a job offer that would fundamentally change his career – and Talk Radio. On Oct. 14, 1984, Limbaugh replaced acerbic talk show host Morton Downey Jr. at KFBK-AM 1530 in Sacramento.
By 1988, fueled by the 1987 repeal of the Fairness Doctrine, Limbaugh’s show was attracting a large audience. It also gained the attention of Ed McLaughlin, the President of ABC Radio.
After 14 years, Limbaugh was rehired by ABC. Talking up Elton John and Blue Swede records was no longer necessary. Yet, the news was hardly headline-making. In the July 2, 1988, edition of Billboard, one line in the “Vox Jox” column stated the following: Rush Limbaugh comes to middays at Talk WABC New York from KFBK Sacramento, Calif., where he succeeded Morton Downey Jr.
While that may have been a minor hire in the view of columnists Sean Ross and Yvonne Olson nearly 33 years ago, Limbaugh’s presence on WABC was just the start of a career revival and explosion. Thanks to syndication, Limbaugh’s program gained a national audience. It also shepherded the transition of Talk radio from largely local programming to shows heard from coast to coast outside of overnights, where the late Larry King revived his career.
By the Persian Gulf War some 30 years ago, Limbaugh’s show was heard on some 650 radio stations.
By 1994, Limbaugh’s program greatly influenced the American electorate by ushering in the Congressional “Republican revolution,” led on Capitol Hill by Newt Gingrich.
The Rush Limbaugh Show would continue to have great influence over U.S. politics and talk radio for the next 27 years, even after his early 2014 move from WABC-AM to rival WOR-AM, which iHeartMedia predecessor Clear Channel agreed to acquire from Buckley Broadcasting in August 2012.
RUSH THE LIFE SAVER
In early February 2020, just days after disclosing his lung cancer diagnosis, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the State of the Union address by President Trump in the House Chamber.
While those who may have disagreed with Limbaugh’s political views and sphere of influence likely scoffed at the honor, Limbaugh for several years used the power of his nationally syndicated radio program to save lives. He and his program are avid supporters of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Thanks to Limbaugh, hundreds of thousands of dollars have been raised in support of blood cancer cures, research and treatment through listener-driven telethons.
This will be part of Limbaugh’s legacy, cemented through a commitment to expressing his beliefs, challenging those in Washington, D.C., he didn’t agree with, and revolutionizing commercial spoken word radio for a generation.
She currently serves as the Chair and Chief Executive Officer of UWG, a multicultural advertising and marketing agency.
Now, she’s also a member of Entercom Communications‘ Board of Directors, expanding it to 11 directors.
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Taking the seat on the Entercom board is Monique Nelson.
It’s a notable D&I move for Entercom, whose leadership is largely comprised of Caucasians and tilts male.
Nelson serves as the Chair and Chief Executive Officer of UWG, formerly UniWorld Group, a WPP Company affiliate. Current work includes activity for Colgate, Bacardi, Lincoln, Ford, The Home Depot and the U.S. Marines.
“During this transformative time for our company, we’re excited to welcome Monique to Entercom’s Board of Directors,” President/CEO David Field said. “Her extensive career in advertising and marketing leadership make her an outstanding addition to our board.”
Nelson added, “Entercom is in an exciting and pivotal moment and I’m delighted to be joining the Board. It’s clear Entercom is truly committed to moving the needle significantly in the audio space.”
Nelson has led UWG since 2012. Previously, she was the Global Lead for Entertainment Marketing at Motorola. She currently sits on the Advertising Week Global Board, AdWeek Diversity & Inclusion Council, The Brandeis Board of Trustees, The Eagle Academy Board, as well as the New York Advisory Board for The Posse Foundation, of which she is an alumna, and is a participant in the ANA’s Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing (AIMM).
On July 28, 2019, a 27-watt low-power FM radio station “proudly returned live morning radio” to a small city some 50 miles to the north of Columbus, Ohio.
Known for its Warren G. Harding Presidential Home, this Buckeye State burgh’s LPFM was also the final home for a local radio legend, the late Charlie Evers.
Now, that tiny voice of Marion, Ohio has been asked to turn off its transmitter by the FCC.
It appears, however, that this was an Order that was slightly out of order.
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The E.W. Scripps Co., which sold its podcast company Stitcher in October and nearly doubled its return on that investment, was an early entrant into podcasting and digital audio.
Now, it is selling Triton Digital, a divestiture the broadcast TV company says “reflects Scripps’ consistent invest-for-growth strategy that capitalizes on emerging media marketplaces to unlock shareholder value.
The buyer is iHeartMedia, and the price tag is a cool $230 million.
For Scripps, the deal represents a cash-on-cash return of 1.6x for a business Scripps acquired in late 2018.
Triton is a global technology and services leader for the digital audio and podcast industry. Scripps bought the company for $150 million, and it has been accretive to segment margins since then, it says.
Operating in more than 50 countries, Triton Digital is a global advertising technology SaaS platform for audio streaming, podcasting and metrics that, Scripps says, “enables publishers to monetize their audiences by providing digital audio measurement and advanced audio-focused infrastructure to maximize the yield of audio inventory.”
The company’s two lines of business focus on advertising infrastructure and measurement, including a content delivery system that distributes digital audio streams and podcasts to listeners while dynamically inserting ads and measurement business that tracks audience and creates ratings reports.
In addition to measuring audiences for customers, Triton Digital operates a programmatic marketplace for digital audio programmatic ad-buying and Yield-Op, a Supply Side Platform (SSP) that specializes in audio and enables programmatic audio advertising.
Neal Schore“We are thrilled to join the iHeartMedia family,” said Triton Digital CEO Neal Schore. “We remain deeply committed to providing the world’s broadcasters, podcasters, and online audio publishers with continuously innovated, best-in-class solutions and services for online audio management, advertising, and consumption data, and are well positioned to enhance iHeartMedia’s value proposition to audiences and advertisers.”
A CHAPTER CLOSES FOR SCRIPPS, AND IS WRITTEN FOR iHEART
“The sale of Triton creates significant value for Scripps’ shareholders and employees, as we close a chapter on our growth of digital audio businesses through a series of successful transactions and a focus on prudent operations, including our core TV business,” said Scripps President/CEO Adam Symson. “We believe iHeartMedia is a perfect fit for Triton Digital given their focus and position as the leader in audio solutions.”
For iHeartMedia, “Adding Triton Digital and its industry leading services to the iHeartMedia audio ecosystem establishes iHeartMedia as the only company with a total audio advertising technology and data solution,” said Bob Pittman, the company’s Chairman/CEO. “iHeart, with our strong leadership position in podcasting, digital radio and broadcast, already provides cutting edge audio management, programmatic and data solutions for the broadcast radio, digital audio and podcasting industries, and this acquisition further strengthens our position as the No. 1 audio company in America and provides unique — and critical — solutions for the industry and for advertisers.”
The company adds that with this acquisition, a significant investment in the podcasting business, iHeartMedia “will now be able to provide audio content to producers and advertisers with an industry-leading full ad service package for streaming and podcasting no matter their size, reach or distribution method.”
In particular, iHeartMedia claims it is now “the first and only company in the audio market to provide four distribution methods for audio, including on-demand, broadcast and digital streaming radio and podcasting, and to service all audio assets programmatically.”
Scripps Chief Financial Officer Jason Combs said the company would use proceeds from the Triton sale to pay down debt.
“We remain focused on bringing our debt back down to our company’s historical levels as quickly as possible while at the same time we reap the financial benefits of being a new leader in national television as we have been in local broadcast,” Combs said.
For iHeart, the Triton purchase follows post-bankruptcy emergence investments in the audio technology space for iHeartMedia. In October 2020, the company once known as Clear Channel Communications acquired Voxnest, a marketplace for podcasts and provider of podcast analytics, enterprise publishing tools, programmatic integration and targeted ad serving. This followed the purchases of Jelli Inc, purveyors of technology that offers marketers a digital-compatible buying platform for broadcast radio that includes programmatic buying, data targeting and creative optimization; Radiojar, which developed a cloud-based audio playout platform through iHeartMedia-owned RCS; and Unified, a social advertising data intelligence platform and solutions provider.
Transaction highlights:
The Triton transaction is expected to close in the first quarter, pending Hart-Scott-Rodino clearance.
While the nation’s leading radio broadcasting companies have shunned it, TuneIn remains one of the leading live streaming and on-demand audio platforms on a global level.
As such, it is ramping up its C-Suite with the appointment of a Chief Technology Officer, a Chief Revenue Officer and Chief Product Officer — among other changes.
The moves see Paul Brody become CTO, Rob Deichert as CRO, and Joe King taking the CPO role.
At the same time, Yasmin Coffey has been elevated to Chief Legal Officer (CLO).
Kevin Straley will continue to serve as Chief Content Officer (CCO).
The news comes on the heels of the recent appointment of Richard Stern to Chief Executive Officer and a new investment in TuneIn led by Innovation Endeavors.
Additionally, six new members will join TuneIn’s Board and bring their deep expertise in the areas of business, technology, media and entertainment: Eric Botto, Steve Cakebread, Sukhinder Singh Cassidy, Greg Coleman, Rick Scanlon and Harpinder Singh.
Previously, Brody served as CTO at Rakuten Advertising, where he built and operated the technology for the company’s ad platforms and innovative e-commerce measurement business. Before that, he served as Chief Product Officer for CleverTap, co-founder and CEO of Sococo, and Vice President of Products for Yahoo!
Deichert was formerly CEO at Eyeview, where he refactored the product roadmap, business processes and developed a plan to continue scaled growth.
As CPO, King is responsible for TuneIn’s product management and interaction design. Previously, he served as Principal Product Manager, Kindle Content at Amazon.com.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Board of Directors for the company that owns such key NBC affiliates as WXIA-11 in Atlanta and WGRZ-2 in Buffalo has declared a dividend payable April 1.
The news came ahead of the Closing Bell on Wall Street, which saw TEGNA shares reach close to $18 in a positive trading session for the broadcast TV company.
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On January 25, ten brands in the state of Michigan went live with sports betting.
To better understand the consumer reaction in Michigan to the launch of sports betting, Cumulus Media and its Westwood One national radio arm commissioned MARU/Matchbox to conduct a study of 700 Michigan adults aged 21 and older.
The research was conducted from Friday, Jan. 29-Monday, Feb. 1. The findings are now being shared.
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WASHINGTON, D.C. — FCC Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has selected the agency’s next Press Secretary.
It’s an individual joining the Commission’s Office of Media Relations after having served as Communications Director for then-Congresswoman Xochitl Torres Small of New Mexico.
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Have you downloaded Discovery+ yet? If not, perhaps you’ve heard about the new OTT platform from the company behind some of cable TV’s most watched networks.
Or, maybe you haven’t — given the ad plan of action from the company.
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The latest Media Monitors Spot 10 Radio report shows a big gap between the leading auto insurance brand and its closest competitor. Is this the start of a new trend?
It may be way too soon to make such predictions, but Progressive has a commanding lead by play count over GEICO in the latest report.
And, Progressive is the lone fully paid brand over 55,000 plays.
Otherwise, there’s little movement in the Spot Ten for the week ending February 14, 2021, with McDonald’s now at No. 10.
She began her career in 2011 as an intern at iHeartMedia/Milwaukee’s WKKV-FM.
Now, this sales talent has come full circle, as she’s been named VP of Sales for the company’s entire group of stations in Wisconsin’s largest market.
Jasmine M. Johnson has been named Vice President of Sales for the company’s Milwaukee stations, comprised of WISN-AM, WKKV-FM, WMIL-FM, WOKY-AM, WRIT-FM, and WRNW-FM.
Johnson reports to Nathan Tonarelli, Senior Vice President of Sales for iHeartMedia Milwaukee, and will be responsible for leading multicultural initiatives for broadcast, digital and iHeartRadio customers across the region.
“This for me is a full circle moment,” said Johnson. “To return to the company that gave me my first start – from an intern to my first job post-undergrad – as Vice President of Sales leading such an iconic brand in our community and serving such a loyal listenership base is a gift.”
Johnson’s resume includes roles as Diversity Programs Director for Manpower Group, a role she held until January 2021. Before that, she spent more than 12 years at Pfizer, serving as Senior Manager of Government Relations and Corporate Affairs. From May 2002-July 2006, Johnson was an account executive for iHeart predecessor Clear Channel Communications.
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