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Monday August 11, 2008

published 08/11/2008 4:45pm

ESPN 890 offers new line-up following Felger’s exit

890 ESPN is still trying to get to where it's going on the Boston sports radio map. But the road hasn’t been easy so far. 890 ESPN opened for business as a sports-talk station a little more than three years ago, with the formidable task of challenging market’s 17-year institution WEEI AM 850 and becoming a solid alternative to Entercom’s sports radio powerhouse.

Since September 2005, the ESPN Radio affiliate had featured former Boston Herald writer and current Comcast SportsNet personality Michael Felger in its PM drive lineup. But, last month the Charlestown-based sports talker was forced to remold itself as Felger jumped ship to rejoin WEEI as part-time on-air personality and columnist on its soon-to-be relaunched website.(BRW 7/13)

Starting this Thursday(8/14), ESPN 890 will launch a new local lineup. Big change is the addition of the Mike and Lew Show which shifts over from pay-for-time morning drive at WWZN AM 1510/The Zone to 4-6pm slot at ESPN 890. In addition, ESPN 890’s sports flasher/reporter Mike Salk and WCVB’s weekend sports/news anchor Bob Halloran pair up for a new midday show “Salk and Halloran” from Noon to 2pm.

Here’s the official announcement from ESPN 890 :

890 ESPN EXPANDS LOCAL PROGRAMMING

WITH ANNOUNCEMENT OF NEW DAILY LINEUP

Fresh New Voices and Boston Perspectives Highlight Program Change

BOSTON - August 11, 2008 - In a move to expand local programming and help meet Boston's insatiable appetite for local sports talk, 890 ESPN Radio today announced a new afternoon and drive time program line up.

Beginning Thursday, August 14, WCVB-TV 5 news and sports anchor Bob Halloran will team with current 890 sports reporter Mike Salk for "Salk & Halloran" which will run weekdays between noon and 2pm.

A new drive time show, "Lew and Mike," hosted by the sports talk team of Lew and Mike (Lew Goldstein and Mike Vallee) will air between 4pm and 6 pm. The "Lew and Mike Show" had run on AM 1510 The Zone.

"These moves allow us to supplement our local sports talk and Boston sports news which our listeners cannot get enough of," said 890 ESPN program director Len Weiner. "Boston is America's number one sports town and ESPN is America's number one sports brand. We are excited to expand our programming and offer more new local voices along with the resources and great talent at ESPN."

Halloran's entry into the station lineup is a welcome home of sorts. Before joining WCVB's SportsCenter 5, Halloran was at ESPNews where he spent three years as an anchor and writer for ESPN.com. He is also the author of "Irish Thunder: The Hard Life and Times of Micky Ward," published by The Lyons Press.

Mike Salk has been 890 ESPN's Red Sox reporter for the past two years, and will continue in that role. He also can be heard on ESPN's national programming.

The "Lew and Mike Show" at AM 1510 meanwhile has earned a significant response and a reputation for edgy sports commentary and news by two local opinionated and enthusiastic sports observers.

"I'm confident that 890's listeners will embrace these new shows. It's a new day for 890 ESPN, and we look forward to perhaps bringing even more local programming to the station." said Weiner.

Tuesday July 29, 2008

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome to Fenway Park…it’s Howie Carr Day!!

published 07/29/08 3:15pm

Together at last : Sirius XM Satellite Radio is born

The merger of Sirius Satellite Radio and former competitor XM Satellite Radio is now a done deal. Sirius today (7/29) completed its $3.3 billion absorption of XM in an all-stock deal that took close to 18 months to make it happen. The long delay was the result of getting the deal through the regulatory process -- the stickiest of which was obtaining FCC approval, which finally came last Friday(7/25).

Ultimately, the merger cost the satcasters millions of dollars for lobbying to influence decision-makers, leaving the share prices of each company down significantly. The new combined company, Sirius XM Radio, starts out with 18.5 million subscribers.

The conditions of the FCC approval, announced last Friday night, include three major points :  a) new radio receivers able to receive both satcasters signals be offered to consumers; b) two dozen satellite channels be set aside for separate programmers to use - 12 for minority groups and 12 for public access and 3) a la carte programming with a three-year price freeze.

BRW Notebook :

Parade route : It’s unlikely on your calendar but today is WRKO’s Radio Hall of Fame afternoon personality Howie Carr’s day to shine in the sun. From WRKO’s release(Ed. Note : No word whether or not Mumbles is showing up for any part of Howie’s Rolling Rally)

WHAT:  To commemorate the induction this month of WRKO host Howie Carr, WRKO has declared that this Tuesday will be “ Howie Carr Day in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts .”   

Never one to shy away from self-congratulation, Carr will board a Duck Boat and take the ride of champions to the State House.   At approximately 3:08 PM on the stairs of the State House, Howie Carr will present a proclamation, signed by none other than himself, declaring it “ Howie Carr Day in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts .”   He hopes to be joined by some of his loyal listeners.   Carr will continue his live broadcast from the Duck Boat until 4 PM, and then continue the broadcast from Eastern Standard Restaurant in Kenmore Square . The Boston Red Sox will acknowledge Howie’s induction into the Radio Hall of Fame by honoring him during their pre-game ceremonies tonight before their game with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.  Last week, the National Radio Hall of Fame announced its 2008 inductees. Carr will be inducted in the category of “Local or Regional – Active” nominees.   The induction ceremony takes place in Chicago  on November 8, 2008.

WHEN: Tuesday, July 29, 2008.Carr will arrive at the State House on a Duck Boat at 3 PM and make his proclamation at 3:08 PM.

WHERE:   Front steps of Massachusetts State House, Beaco Street , Boston

Look who’s talking now : The Herald’s Jessica Heslam takes a look at the battle of the Talk Stations based on Spring Arbitron numbers. Speaking of WRKO’s Hall of Famer, he’s still behind Jay Severin on WTKK 96.9FM but closing the gap since he returned to WRKO after prolonged sit-out last fall.(Ed. Note : Considering that a year ago Carr was planning a funeral for AM band and getting ready to listen to Severin on his *FM* radio, that’s quite a turn of events. Tonight he is being recognized in front 35,000 fans at Fenway Park. Three months from now, he’ll be chowing away at the Radio Hall of Fame dinner and giving his speech wearing the WRKO hat….in Chicago(Obama’a turf) of all places… four days after the Presidential Election….maybe a week after the Sox beat the Cubs in the World Series…It’s the Howie Carr Day. Anything goes.)

Honor roll : There will be a large number of Boston music stations represented at this year's Radio and Records magazine’s Industry Achievement awards. Nominations were announced yesterday morning. Preliminary votes were cast by selected R & R subscribers in June and final ballots, where subscribers must choose one winner from each category, are currently being distributed. The winners will be announced September 19 at the annual R&R Convention in Austin, TX.

Nominated in the station of the year category : WMJX 106.7FM/Magic in the adult contemporary format; WXKS 107.9FM/Kiss 108  is in the top-40/CHR category; WBCN 104.1FM and WFNX 101.7FM in the alternative rock format; WJMN 94.5/Jamn in Rhythmic format; WAAF 107.3FM in the active rock format; WKLB 102.5FM in the country format;

WMJX’s Don Kelley is nominated program director of the year for adult contemporary while Mark Laurence is nominated in the music category in the same format. WKLB’s Ginny Rogers(country) and former music director for WJMN, GeeSpin(Rhythmic) are also nominated.

Nominees for local air personality of the year include Ramiro and Pebbles of WJMN in Rhythmic, David Allan Boucher of WMJX in Adult Contemporary, Toucher and Rich of WBCN in Alternative Rock, and Greg Hill of WAAF in Active Rock.

Blair Garner(overnights on WKLB 102.5FM) and Ryan Seacrest(American Top 40 on WXKS 107.9FM) is nominated for nationally syndicated air personality of the year

Sunday July 27, 2008

published 07/27/08 7:25am

Spring ratings show Matty and Kiss are making waves

Arbitron’s Spring 2008 ratings came out this week and in the survey period from April 3 to June 25, news/talk giant WBZ AM 1030 and mainstream Top40  WXKS 107.9FM/Kiss 108 shared the top spot as Boston's most popular radio stations with listeners ages 12 and older.

This is the first time in a decade, Kiss 108 has been able to claim the #1 spot in the 12+ demographic category finishing up with its highest total in that demo since the late 90’s. Kiss 108 also shared the top spot among listeners ages 25 to 54 with adult contemporary WMJX 106.7/Magic. In the 18-34 group, the Top 40 powerhouse finished second behind sister station Top40 Rhythmic WJMN 94.5FM/Jamn. Kiss 108 made clean sweep with all female listener demographics with a #1 showing.

Kiss 108's strong showing is no surprise to anyone who closely watches the local radio scene. It helps that the station has exclusivity in its format in the Boston market. Kiss 108 is the only mainstream Top 40 station in town, and therefore is able to play a broad mix of music, from dance/pop to alternative to hip-hop. Quite often that draws a cross-generational mix in which teens are listening along with their parents. Plus, the morning man Matt Siegel who like all other morning shows worked in Howard Stern’s shadow from mid 90’s to mid 2000’s has developed a huge and very loyal fan base over the past 27 years.  His show is now the No. 2 most popular show from 6 to 10 am with listeners age 12 and older, right behind WBZ-AM’s news. With Stern gone for over two years, Siegel is currently wearing the crown as the king of Boston’s morning radio.  He topped adults 25-54 demo as well all female demographics, station’s primary target audience.

In other news, Kiss 108’s sibling, Jamn 94.5 lost a bit in the 12+ demo but kept its 7-year hold as the #1 station among 18-34 listeners. The station also took the top spot among all male listeners 18-34.

The Red Sox season start and the Celtics championship season finish weren’t  very helpful factors as far as sports talker WEEI AM 850 was concerned.  The station actually fell from fifth to sixth among all listeners 12+. But some good news for WEEI’s owner, Entercom as corporate sibling WRKO AM 680, which broadcasts majority of the Red Sox games and soon-to-be-inducted Radio Half of Fame afternoon personality Howie Carr, jumped from ninth to fourth place.

On the talk front, WRKO’s Sox surge put the station ahead of rival WTKK 96.9FM which held steady among listeners 12 and older. But in the 25-54 demographic, the battle of the bands favored FM as WTKK once again outscored AM talker WRKO by a wide lead.

In the battle of the oldies-baed formats, WROR 105.7FM went up while WODS 103.3FM took a dive. In the world of adult contemporary radio , WMJX 106.7FM was down. WBMX 98.5FM/Mix and WMKK 93.7/Mike were up slightly. And in the rock arena, WAAF 107.3FM and WBOS 92.9FM were up. WBCN 104.1FM was down slightly. No change for WFNX 101.7FM

BRW Notebook :

Award time : Boston's news radio pubcaster WBUR, 90.9 FM garnered three Public Radio News Directors Inc. (PRNDI) “firsts,” the most wins among National Public Radio Division A stations across the country, plus one runner-up prize, announced John Davidow, WBUR news director.

The awards, recognizing broadcasts during 2007, were presented at the PRNDI’s 23rd annual meeting and awards banquet on July 19 in Washington, D.C. The PRNDI Awards competition is the only national contest recognizing outstanding public radio news reporting at local stations.

For One Night  Only : For one night only, Tuesday August 4^th from 7:30 to 9pm  WTKK’s afternoon host Jay Severin will host  his own Town Hall Meeting at the Ritz Carlton/Boston Common of all places. The event won’t be broadcast on the air. The only way to hear Severin’s political views in person is to become a WTKK insider by going to the station’s website(www.wtkk.com) and register to win a ticket.

What’s in the name? : Call letter change on the AM dial this past week. Spanish Religious and the flagship of the Red Sox Spanish radio network AM 1150 changed its call letters from WTTT to WWDJ. The WWDJ call letters were previously on the Salem-owned religious AM 970 outlet in New Jersey which will temporarily use WTTT as it awaits FCC approval for the requested call letters WNYM to go with a format change to all-talk.

Movers : WUMB 91.9FM  has recently named veteran Boston air talent John Laurenti as its new Music Director. He has been a fixture in the Boston and Providence radio scene (WBOS 92.9FM/WZLX 100.7FM/WHJY 94,1FM) for two decades, having served most recently as afternoon host on WBOS 92.9FM. Brian Quinn returns to handling just program director duties. The Globe has a story on Laurenti as WUMB has been slowly shifting from all-folk to Radio Americana format…. Bill Parcell’s “I reserve the right to change my mind” quote came into play this week. Local radio veteran Mike Mullaney was named  as the new program director and morning show host at adult alternative WXRV 92.5 FM/The River, the station’s press release announced on Monday(7/21). Mullaney has been working as WBMX 98.5FM/Mix’s music director/assistant program director since November 1998.  But for whatever reason, he changed his mind the following day, as he chose not to return to the River where he worked as music director when the Haverhill-based station launched the AAA format in August  1995. In addition to working as music director, he was also River’s morning personality before moving to Mix. Previously, Mullaney also worked at WBOS 92.9FM from 1991 to 1995.

Can Savage survive the latest firestorm? : Michael Savage, syndicated radio host who is heard locally on WRKO AM 680 from 7 to 10pm(or after the Red Sox broadcasts) characterized nearly every child with autism as "a brat who hasn't been told to cut the act out," is standing by his remarks and has no intention of apologizing.  As is his syndicator Talk Radio Network. On the July 16 broadcast, Savage said: "In 99 percent of the cases, it's a brat who hasn't been told to cut the act out." Savage's commentary spurred a firestorm of criticism. WRKO’s program director Jason Wolfe offered his apology in the Herald story.

Friday July 18, 2008

published 07/18/08 11:35am

With a little help from his friends Carr gets the call from the Hall

WRKO’s afternoon host Howie Carr will be following in his mentor Jerry Williams’ footsteps when he's enshrined in the Radio Hall of Fame at Chicago's Museum of Broadcast Communications in early November.  Carr topped the list in "Active Local or Regional" category.

In this year’s induction process, The Hall of Fame invited the public to vote for the class of 2008. Thru on-air promos and its website, WRKO took advantage of the new rules and urged Howie’s listeners to log in and vote for the favorite afternoon talkmaster. When the votes were all counted, the on-air campaign had paid off for Carr who began his radio career as a regular contributor on Jerry Williams Show back at 1988’s Democratic National Convention in Atlanta.

Carr, who is currently syndicated on a few New England station, took over WRKO AM 680’s afternoon drive seat from Boston's legendary talk radio pioneer Jerry Williams in September 1994. Williams, who passed away in 2003, was inducted into the Hall in 1996.

If you don’t want to fork out $500 a ticket to see and hear Carr’s acceptance speech in person, radio syndicator Westwood One will be syndicating the show nationally in a condensed one-hour package and broadcasting at 10pm on the same night.

Another beloved Boston radio personality, Jess Cain, who was the morning man at WHDH AM 850 for 34 years will be inducted posthumously during the November 8^th event in Chicago.

BRW Notebook :

Mike Felger…what are you going to do now? : Boston Magazine catches up with former ESPN 890 afternooner who re-joins Entercom’s sports radio empire on Monday(7/21) after three years in exile.

Summertime and baseball on the radio is easy : Hey, it sure feels like summertime outside. A couple of timely baseball-on-the-radio stories in the Globe and the Patriot Ledger.

Striking out cancer : 7^th annual Jimmy Fund telethon/radiothon on WEEI AM 850( and NESN) will begin 36 hours of programming on Thursday, Aug. 14, at 6 a.m. from Fenway Park , and continue through the Red Sox game against the Texas Rangers until midnight. The broadcast will resume Friday morning, Aug. 15, at 6 a.m. until midnight, including the Red Sox game against the Toronto Blue Jays. The two-day lineup is packed with patient interviews and expert information from Dana-Farber researchers and doctors. This year’s goal is to raise $4 million. Last year’s event raised a record $3.74 million, with contributions coming in from every state and from nations as far away as Singapore , Iceland , Ireland , and Japan.

GRLZ are doing it for themselves : Uplifting story in the Globe about a teenage intern from the GRLZ Radio in Dorchester. GRLZ staffer Mirayah Rivera is interning at the Greater Media Boston cluster this summer.

The envelope...please : Scott's Shots David Scott disects this week's winners and losers in Boston sports radio.

Wednesday July 16, 2008

published 07/16/08 6:35am

Build it and they’ll come : WEEI looks to strong on-line presence

WEEI and Entercom Boston made it official yesterday. The local sports radio powerhouse is getting into a somewhat scaled-down version of what we came to know as the print journalism. The new online hybrid at WEEI.com will feature a combination of the current live audio streaming from Entercom’s sports radio leader, and WEEI-branded, exclusive sports content. Up until now, the NESN/Boston Globe-powered boston.com site has been the preferred on-line destination for thousands of hundreds of local sports fans seeking info on breaking sports stories as well as advertisers looking to push their services to the masses. On-line is where the next big influx of population, young and old, has already migrated. Radio broadcasters like any other business providers must adjust and go where they live.

Instead of quoting boston.com for breaking sports stories and sending web traffic to the competition, WEEI.com will now be transforming itself into a one-stop-shop by hoping to retain listeners who are listening to the station’s live stream on-line via home, work or mobile devices. The new on-line plan is a pretty large undertaking requiring almost 24/7 commitment from Entercom to provide exclusive station-branded on-line sports news content. Obviously, by hiring former Herald sports reporters - Rob Bradford, who will work as WEEI.com editor, and Mike Felger - the station is showing its willingness to branch out into an unchartered territory as it seeks to generate additional ad revenues in a sluggish media economy.

On the local level, news stations like WBZ AM 1030 and WBUR 90.9FM have been heavily involved in linking their on-air and on-line products for years. So WEEI is not breaking any ground as far the whole on-line concept is concerned, but it should be interesting to see how it does for the sports-only format as it battles against established destinations like boston.com and to some extent nation's #1 sports site - espn.com.

As for Mike Felger’s re-entry into WEEI’s thunderdome after 3 years with ESPN 890, expect to hear him a lot on weekends during the NFL season. It’s almost a given that he’ll take over as the host of WEEI’s Sunday morning football show and play some part in Patriots Monday on the Big Show where he was a regular for five years(2000-20005).

BRW Notebook :

The Replacements : Mike Felger has been officially replaced at ESPN 890. The sports talker has re-launched its local afternoon drive show with “PrimeTime Live”(not to be confused with ABC News’ version of its long-running PrimeTime TV newsmagazine) hosted by Kevin Winter and with Adam (Not the Pacman) Jones sliding into the sports flasher role. On the first day of the new show, Winter’s microphone wasn’t working at the start of the show leaving Jones to hold down the fort after delivering his flash at the top of the 3 o'clock hour. When Winter got on the air a couple minutes later he made a wisecrack comment about a mic(as in Mike, get it) not working at the station. Planned or unplanned? (Ed. Note : I am here all afternoon…Try the veal).

Rolodex update : Speaking of former ESPN 890 staffers who moved on to much bigger and better things. Doug Tribou has been named Associate Producer of National Public Radio's weekend sports show, Only A Game with Bill Littlefield. He will also report for the program. Tribou has been a news anchor at Only A Game's flagship station in Boston, WBUR 90.9FM, for more than two years. Only A Game is heard on about 175 stations around the country and airs locally on WBUR 90.9FM Saturdays at 7am and 6pm. 

Tribou has also been working as a news/talk/sports radio programming consultant and spent the last year working with Salem Communications' Boston Cluster (WEZE, WTTT, WROL). Prior to joining WBUR 90.9FM/ NPR, Tribou was the first program director ESPN Radio/Boston (WAMG AM 890/WLLH AM 1400) and spent six years as program and news director for news/talk 560 WGAN, hot talk/sports WZAN AM 870, and adult standards The Bay (WBAE/WVAE) in Saga Communications' Portland, ME cluster…..

Spinning off : WJMN 94.5/Jamn assistant program director/music director and on-air personality GeeSpin(also known as Geoffrey Gamere, the son of former Boston TV/radio sports broadcaster Bob Gamere) has left the station after 7 years. The 37-year old Brookline-bred GeeSpin is moving down to the Big Apple starting his new gig  at Clear Channel's sister station WWPR-FM/Power 105.1 in New York. He will take over as an Assistant Program Director/Music Director role and will continue to work at WJMN as Mix Show Coordinator and, thru the magic of voice-tracking technology, its overvenight personality. He’ll also be heard on overnights at WWPR where he’ll be working for his old boss, program director“Cadillac” Jack McCartney. McCartney moved to WWPR five months ago after 17 years with Clear Channel Boston’s Kiss 108 and Jamn 94.5(BRW 2/5/08). Jamn is looking for a new music director.

Back to School Time : WFNX 101.7FM’s “Disorientation 2008’ event  will be held at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston’s Seaport District on Saturday, September 13^th. Starting at 5pm, Does it Offend You Yeah will take the stage followed by Rogue Wave, Alkaline Trio, The Kooks and Flogging Molly. Tickets for all-ages show go on sale this Saturday(7/19) morning and priced at $32.00.

Remembering Tony Snow : Former WRKO AM 680 morning host, Scott Allan Miller remembers former White House Press Secretary Tony Snow, who hosted Fox News Radio's Tony Snow Show from 2003-2006. Snow passed away of cancer last Saturday. He was 53. Snow used to appear with Miller every Friday morning on WRKO to promote his FOX News show. He also filled in at WRKO a couple times in the early midday slot(9am-Noon) a few years ago.

Praise time : The host of “Matty in the Morning”, Matt Siegel, was voted the best morning show for the 6th straight year in the Improper Bostonian magazine….WEEI AM 850 and its afternoon drive personality Glenn Ordway have been nominated in the sports station of the year and major market personality of the year categories, respectively, in the upcoming NAB's Marconi Awards. WEEI AM 850 won a Marconi for the best sports station in 2006. Also, this is Ordway’s third Marconi nomination in the past four years. This year he’s up against KIIS-FM/LA personality Ryan Seacrest who's now heard on over 500 radio stations worldwide with his syndicated American Top 40 show, including Kiss 108 locally. Winners in all categories will be announced on September 18^th at NAB Radio Show in Austin, TX…Greater Media President & CEO Peter H. Smyth has been ranked 9th among the "40 Most Powerful People in Radio" by Radio Ink Magazine in the July 7^th issue. Smyth has consistently been featured on the list for the past seven years. Locally, Greater Media owns WKLB, WROR,WMJX, WTKK and WBOS….Voting for the Museum of Broadcast Communications' Radio Hall of Fame for 2008 closed at midnight yesterday. We should know sometime tomorrow(7/17) whether WRKO’s what seemed like never-ending on-air campaign to get its afternoon man Howie Carr inducted into the Hall has paid off. [Ed. Note : If Carr is inducted, he should definitely mention Mumbles in his acceptance speech. There would be no Howie if we didn't have Mumbles to kick around every week. Thank yous.]

Sunday July 13, 2008

published 07/13/08 8:05am

Local ESPN Radio affiliate hopes to stay in the game

ESPN 890, you're on the clock.

In the latest episode of Boston’s own sports-talk radio version of `Survivor', WAMG AM 890, the local ESPN Radio affiliate, promises to launch a new(and improved) and more local line-up shortly.

According to an internal staff memo sent out by ESPN 890’s general manager/co-owner Jessamy Tang, which was obtained and published, by Boston SportsMedia’s David Scott, the station is looking to replace departed afternoon host Michael Felge and  add a new midday program. Felger ended his nearly 3-year stint at WAMG/ESPN 890 this past week. Felger who already has a fulltime job as co-host of Comcast SportsNet’s roundtable format “SportsTonight” show, is returning to the all-mighty WEEI AM 850. He’ll be writing original content for the station’s sports portal at weei.com which is expected to receive a major facelift in upcoming weeks. Felger was hosting his afternoon drive show on ESPN 890 from a specially-built radio studio at CSN in Burlington.

Another loss for ESPN 890 was the news that the “Patriots Friday” package is moving to all-mighty WEEI AM 850 which reached a new multi-year deal with the Krafts which also includes “Patriots Monday” and New England Revolution soccer games.

Among a long list of reasons(iffy signal, lack of ratings, WEEI's dominance,etc), one could also see why the Krafts would choose to cut ties with ESPN 890 after this last season's Tickgate story. Earlier this year, the Krafts weren’t too thrilled with their now-former "Patriots Friday" radio partner when they learned that some of the playoff tickets donated to station’s charity event were used for on-air promotion.

BRW Notebook :

Mike's Twoffer : The Globe talks to WZLX 100.7FM PD Mike Thomas who recently added another program director hat at WBCN 104.1FM when Dave Wellington was let go after four years.(BRW 6/23). As for Wellington, he wasn't out of a job for long. His next stop is Washington DC/Baltimore market.  He starts as program director for Clear Channel's Alternative WWDC-FM (DC 101)/Washington and the newly-launched Alternative WCHH-FM (Channel 104.3)/Baltimore on July 28.

I-listening to the future : Mobile devices and on-line content is the future of terrestrial radio. And, at least one local radio operator is actively starting to look beyond towers and transmitters for non-traditional sources of revenue. WEEI AM/WRKO AM/WAAF FM/WMKK-FM corporate owner, Entercom recently announced that will add all of its stations programming to the FlyTunes content network. Under the agreement, Entercom stations in Boston and other markets will be available on the IPhones in the next three months. Entercom's stream hosting provider Liquid Compass will facilitate the launch by incorporating FlyTunes' FlyCast server software throughout their Content Delivery Network.

Remembering Roger Allan Bump : Longtime WRKO AM 680 news and public affairs director passed away on July 1st at the age of 79. The Globe's story is here.

Thursday July 3, 2008

published 07/03/08 6:05am

New venue for WBOS’ summer concerts

Radio 92.9(the station formerly known as WBOS 92.9FM) has released the show dates for this summer’s City Steps Concert Series , featuring performances by Thriving Ivory(July 17), Tracy Bonham(July 31), and The English Beat(August 21).  The big change this summer is the new venue for the station’s long running summer music series. In keeping up with its new strategy of mass-marketing the station to a greater audience, WBOS will trade the Copley Square Park for the spacious surroundings of City Hall Plaza. 

Each performance will also feature a local Boston band that will be selected by fans on Radio 92.9’s OurStage.com webpage (www.ourstage.com/go/929citysteps). To be considered bands are to upload their music to the website for fans to vote on.

“We're excited to bring Boston more free live concerts to City Hall Plaza,” says Radio 92.9 Program Director Dana Marshall in a press release.  “We’re thrilled that this summer series will feature great national acts as well as emerging local bands chosen by Radio 92.9 listeners.”  

BRW Notebook :

GRLZ power : Greater Media announced it’s teaming up with GRLZ Radio(formerly R-Log AM 540) to implement a sophisticated, cutting-edge summer internship program to benefit one Boston teen.  Mirayah Rivera, 15, of Jamaica Plain, a current GRLZ Radio participant and DJ, is the first to be awarded such an internship position.  She will spend her summer working with some of the nation’s top radio broadcasters and producers at Greater Media. GRLZ Radio is an internationally recognized radio station and after-school program based in Dorchester hat gives young women a voice in their communities. In her new role with Greater Media, Rivera will produce a weekly GRLZ Radio program to air on WBOS’s HD2 multicast station – “Radio You” Boston.

So you want to be Boston’s next country music star? : Country 102.5/WKLB-FM is joining forces with Hard Rock Café Boston and country music superstar Kenny Chesney in search of Boston ’s “Next Big Star!!”. Country 102.5 is currently accepting video submissions or audio submissions with accompanying video.  Contest is open to musicians age 21 or older who are residents of the United States .  Entrants can be an individual or a band/act.  All entries must be received at the Country 102.5 WKLB studios by 5pm, Friday, July 11, 2008.  Interested parties should log onto www.wklb.com for complete details and contest rules. Country 102.5’s “The Next Big Star” contest will be narrowed down to four contestants who will then perform before a panel of judges at Hard Rock Café Boston on Friday, July 25th.  The winner from this event will open for Kenny Chesney’s sold out “Poets & Pirates” Tour the following day (July 26th) at Gillette Stadium.

Ingraham returns : Conservative talker Laura Ingraham returned to the radio this week after about a month's absence due to contractual dispute with her syndicator Talk Radio Network. She said in her opening comments: "I've missed you so much I don't know how to put it into words. I am ecstatic to be back on air." Ingraham  can be heard weeknights on WTKK 96.9FM from 10pm to 1am(tape-delay).

Rush renews : Talk radio’s biggest star Rush Limbaugh who celebrates 20 years of his program in August has been rewarded with an 8-year contract extension with a whopping $100 million signing bonus and $38 million annually by his syndicator Premiere Radio Networks which is owned by Clear Channel. Limbaugh is heard on WRKO AM 680 from Noon to 3pm and is currently ranked 12^the in the Boston market, the Boston Herald reports.

Wednesday June 25, 2008

published 06/25/08 7:25am

Imus’ response to his latest controversy : 'misunderstood'

Don Imus, responding to criticism about racial remarks on his radio show Monday(BRW 6/23), said on the air yesterday that he was trying to "make a sarcastic point" about unfair treatment of blacks in the criminal-justice system but had been misunderstood.

Yesterday, he said he was calling attention to the unfair treatment of blacks - in this case the arrests of suspended Dallas Cowboys cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones.

"What people should be outraged about is that they arrest blacks for no reason," Imus said. "I mean, there's no reason to arrest this kid six times. Maybe he did something once, but everyone does something once."

The latest comments by Imus were aired during a conversation about Jones' run-ins with the law.  The exchange came seven months after Imus' return to work with a new show syndicated by Citadel Broadcsating(heard locally on WTKK 96.9FM( after his firing from MSNBC and CBS Radio for using a derisive term to describe the Rutgers University women's basketball team.

The Boston Herald has a comment from Imus’ Boston station which stands behind him once again.

BRW Notebook :

Pop goes country : The Boston Pops has announced that country music superstar band Rascall Flatts will star at its annual Fourth of July celebration on the Esplanade this year. Same arrangements as last year for the 4^th of July radio broadcast  : Classical WCRB 99.5FM is back as the media partner and will carry the Pops concert starting at 8:00pm. Ironically, this will be the first time since WCRB-FM and WKLB-FM swapped frequencies in December 2006 that country music will be heard on 99.5FM frequency. In addition to WCRB 99.5FM, WBZ AM 1030 will once again carry the simulcast of its sister TV station Channel 4(8:30-10:30pm) and the fireworks music(starting at 10:30pm). Jordan Rich will have a special pre-show on WBZ AM 1030 from 7pm to 8:30pm.

Summer releases : National talk radio host Glenn Beck will present a live broadcast of his one-man stage show, Beck 08 -- Live, in movie theaters, including AMC/Regal theaters in Boston, Framingham and Marlboro. The show will be presented at 8 p.m. Thursday, July 17 from the Majestic Theatre in Dallas.

Beck can be heard locally on WRKO AM 680 on Saturdays from 7 to 10pm(when there's no Red Sox games). WRKO has carried his weekend show since February 2006.

More info and complete list of movie theaters carrying Beck’s special July broadcast can be found here.

Return of the Tai-rade : Veteran local DJ Tom “Tai” Irwin who had his Boston Herald “Tai-rade“ blog bounced (BRW 4/29) two months ago after being critical of the struggling daily, its publisher and its iconic columnist and WRKO afternooner Howie Carr is back in circulation, so to speak. No permanent spot on the digital highway for Tai yet but former WFNX/WRKO/WROR/WZLX personality put out the following e-mail a couple days ago…with yet another indirect shot at the ‘1960’s ere columnist leaning on last year’s conent’. [Ed. : Hmm…Wonder who he meant? :-]

To the Boston Media Community:

When Pat Purcell yanked my blog off the Boston Herald’s web site recently, it was directly after I mentioned staff layoffs.  I had no direct knowledge that they were imminent.  This latest news, combined with the out-of-town publishing desperation exemplifies exactly what I was pointing to in my final month writing my column, “the Tai-rade.”   Mass media is in crisis mode; some outlets are missing targets and consolidating staff, while others are actively devaluing their products and bordering on irrelevance.  We should all want the Boston Herald to offer another voice in New England , but silencing critical opinion and favoring gasoline consumption over local jobs doesn’t seem like a productive route.  Perhaps more multimedia involvement is the answer – why isn’t there a Herald show on a prominent Boston radio station?  Not a 1960’s era columnist leaning on last year’s content and cheap shots, but someone like Joe Sciacca leading topical discussions with area leaders and journalists.  “Live from the Herald – This is Boston Today.”  And how about hiring a real killer team to make the website totally unique?

FCC Can't Touch this : A pirate community FM station in the Boston area, operating as Touch FM 106.1 since November 2006, was recently fined $17,000 for operating without a broadcast licenese by the FCC. (If the "Touch" tag sounds somewhat familiar, this is was the name of the syndicated R&B format briefly heard on AM 1150 in the summer of 1998 while the station was awaiting ownership transfer). On Monday(6/23), members of station's staff and listeners protested in front of FCC local office in Quincy. The Boston Globe ediotrial calls for the FCC to ease its interference rules and allow more Low Power FM stations. Currently, there are no FM or AM stations in the Boston market featuring fulltime Urban AC or Classic R&B format.

Monday June 23, 2008

published 06/23/08 8:00pm

Imus’ latest on-air tackle causes stir

They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. Don Imus may be proving them wrong. Less than 15 months after losing his gig on CBS Radio and MSNBC for making racially charged comments regarding the Rutgers women’s basketball team(BRW 4/12/07), Imus has danced dangerously close to, and arguably over, the line again.

This morning on his syndicated radio show heard locally on WTKK 96.9FM, Imus in an exchange with veteran radio/TV sportscaster Warner Wolf once again waded into racially treacherous waters. The conversation was about NFL badboy and new Dallas Cowboys cornerback, Adam Jones. When Warner Wolf said that Jones no longer wished to be called by his nickname(“Pacman”) so that people might forget his record of multiple arrests in recent years, Imus asked, “What color is he?’’

“He’s African-American,’’ Mr. Wolf responded.

“Well, there you go,’’ Mr. Imus said. “Now we know.’’

Audio is here.

The story first appeared on Politico.com blog this afternoon but since has hit the mainstream media with hurricane strength force. All morning network news show are now planning to cover it as well.

It appears Imus won't be taking this one sitting down and will address this latest controversy on Tuesday morning.   The New York Times'  Jacques Steinberg reports that he emailed Imus, asking what he meant by the comment.   Imus wrote: “I meant he was being picked on because he’s black.’’ He added that Dick Gregory, a veteran comedian and activist who is black, would be a guest on his show on Tuesday, to discuss the death of George Carlin. “We’ll see what he thinks,’’ Mr. Imus wrote. “I mean…come on!’’

Imus returned to the airwaves last December with a new employer - Citadel Broadcasting - and a new twist...a 21-second delay to keep him out of controversy.(BRW 11/30/07).

No comment from Imus’ syndicator Citadel Broadcasting or his Boston affiliate WTKK 96.9FM.

BRW Notebook :

Two for one : WBCN 104.1FM’s General Manger Mark Hannon didn’t have to look long or far for the heritage rocker’s new program director. Last Friday(6/20), Hannon named classic rock WZLX 100.7FM PD Mike Thomas as WBCN’s new programmer. Thomas replaces Dave Wellington who departed on June 10.  Thomas came to WZLX from San Diego’s KGB-FM in February 2006.

Thursday June 19, 2008

published 06/19/08 7:35am

Bill Simmons, ESPN and entire national sports media universe….eat your heart out!

Celtics days are here again : WROR pays tribute to the C’s

WROR 105.7FM is paying tribute this morning to the new NBA Champions, the Boston Celtics. Starting at 11:00am, the radio station will be playing “We are the Champions” 17 times in a row.

Long-time Boston radio morning personalities, Loren and Wally, who woke-up listeners with the news of the last Celtics NBA Championship win 22 years ago, will be providing commentary during the special “105.7 WROR Celtics Tribute”.

“This is an incredible time to be a sports fan in Boston and we are proud to pay homage to the Boston Celtics, the 2008 NBA Champions,” said 105.7 WROR Program Director Ken West in the press release. “We encourage people from across Greater Boston to tune into 105.7 WROR and join us as we honor the Celtics.”

BRW Notebook :

Bowen Bows Out : On the heels of Dave Wellington leaving WBCN 104.1FM, another program director’s chair just became available in the Boston radioland. Late last week, Ron Bowen left WXRV 92.5/The River where he worked as Operations Manager, Program Director and morning host since Febraury 2007(BRW 2/15). The reason for departure were apparently some philosophical differences. Bowen was working without a contract at the River for the past three months.

Assistant PD/music director Catie Wilber is now programming the River on interim basis. Rita Carey moves up from nights to fill the morning slot(6am-10am). Irene Collins fills in Carey's 7-Midnight shift. Lisa Garvey(10am-2pm) and Bob Stuart(2-7pm) continue on in their current dayparts.

Prior to joining Haverhill’s AAA outlet last year, he was program director of classic hits WCOO-FM/The Bridge 105.5) in Charleston, SC. Before that, he spent eight years as PD of Classic Hits WXRC-FM/The Ride/Charlotte. He's also programmed AAA WRNR-FM/Baltimore.

ESPN’s bonehead sports babe suspended : WBCN 104.1FM’s “Toucher and Rich” get credit for getting ignorant idiot ESPN.com columnist Jemele Hill suspended for hateful and disturbing remark in her column reports the Herald.

Wednesday June 11, 2008

published 06/11/08 7:05pm

WBCN's PD bows out

In an unexpected move yesterday, CBS Radio's WBCN 104.1FM program direcot Dave Wellington parted ways after nearly 4 years with Boston's 40-year rock radio institution. Wellington replaced legendary programmer Oediups in August 2004. Oedipus was WBCN's PD for 23 years. Wellington was transferred to WBCN from sister station KXTE 107.5/Xtreme Radio in Las Vegas where he was PD for six years. Prior to that, he worked for stations in his native Detroit.

Under Wellington's watch, WBCN went through some pretty major revamping in AM and PM drives and some setbacks in personnel changes and music shifts. Replacing gigantic personality like Howard Stern not once but twice(David Lee Roth and then Opie and Anthony), removing popular Nik Carter from afternoons and installing unknown Hardy from Wellington's former Las Vegas station weren't the best of moves.(Hardy was eventually shifted to nights in favor of "Toucher and Rich"). But when things were finally starting to be where Wellington wanted them as far as personnel and music went, as he discussed it with trade industry mag FMQB last month, he was shown the door this week. No replacement has been announced but a new PD usually means one thing...more changes. Rock on!

BRW Notebook :

Where are they now : One of Boston radio's all-time greats Joe Martelle is returning to the local airwaves next month. Martelle will be on the air with Jordan Rich on WBZ AM 1030 on July 13th to discuss his upcoming new book as well talk about very serious health issues he and his wife Kim have recently faced. You can read his entire update on www.VisitingNewEngland.com. Click  right here(scroll down to Joe Martelle).

Calling out Jay : Computerworld's resident super geek Don Tennant has a bone to pick with WTKK 96.9FM's afternoon disturber Jay Severin.

Talk radio static : Speaking of WTKK 96.9FM, Laura Ingraham's show which airs on tape-delay from 10pm to 1am on the FM talk station has been in best-of-reruns or filled in with replacement hosts since June 2nd. On her website she posted a cryptic message  saying she can't reveal why she isn't on the radio due to contract problems(with her syndicator Talk Radio Network). Ingraham has been in radio syndication since April 2001. This lockout thing is not new for her. Five years ago(July 2003) when she switched syndicators(from Westwood One to TRN), she was off air for much of the summer. Sounds like a standard operating procedure for Ingraham when her contract comes up for renewal and she begins to shop her show around to different syndicators. If you can afford her, you can have her. (Ed. Note : Money talks as Laura walks. But if you really need to get your Laura Ingraham fix, she starts a new weekday TV show on Fox News Channel next Monday(6/16) at 5pm. No, thanks.)