NERW 6/22/15: iHeart Settles in Boston

In this week’s issue…  Limbaugh lands up the dial – Krenn’s back in the Burgh – More FM for Burlington – My buys in Ontario – Remembering NH’s Blacksmith, NY’s Doubleday, Ontario’s Costley-White

By SCOTT FYBUSH

Jump to: ME – NH – VT – MA – RI – CT – NY – NJ – PA – Canada

*Quick – what do you get if you combine a national sports morning show, an assortment of syndicated conservative talkers who’ve never gained much traction anywhere else in the market, and Rush Limbaugh in middays?

It’s the newest talk station in eastern MASSACHUSETTS, of course, and as we predicted last week, little WKOX (1430 Everett) is iHeart’s last-ditch move to retain a clearance for Limbaugh in market number ten when Entercom’s WRKO (680 Boston) pulls the plug on the show next week.

“Talk 1430” will launch on WKOX next Monday with a lineup that’s even more makeshift than the last Clear Channel attempt to provide an in-house clearance for Limbaugh. When WXKS (1200 Newton) launched as “Rush Radio,” it at least had a local morning show with Jeff Katz to try to bring some Boston relevance to the format. This time, it will be Fox Sports Radio filling the Talk 1430 airwaves from 1-9 AM, which might as well be dead air for all that Boston has ever embraced sports talk from outside the market. Glenn Beck will precede Limbaugh from 9-noon, with Sean Hannity following Rush from 3-6 PM. “America Now,” Mark Levin and Clyde Lewis will round out the schedule, such as it is.

For a comparison, we turn to Los Angeles and KEIB (1150), the “Rush and a bunch of other stuff” talker that iHeart created when it pulled Limbaugh off big-stick KFI (640) in 2014. With a 50,000-watt signal that covers a decent chunk of the market, a bit of external marketing and a lengthy period of cross-promotion to bring Rush listeners over from their long KFI habit, KEIB still hasn’t cracked a 1 share in the 12+ ratings. “Talk 1430” will launch with a far lesser signal and no promotional boost from WRKO; can it even get to an 0.5? (We’re betting on “not” – and what’s more, we’ll hazard a guess that WKOX’s talk ratings will be worse, both overall and in key demographics, than the station’s been doing with Spanish hits as “Mia 1430.”)

*Meanwhile at WRKO, morning host Jeff Kuhner has confirmed that he’ll replace Limbaugh in the noon-3 slot beginning next Monday. (He’s also making noises about going into syndication, which seems like a bit of a long shot.)

With Kuhner settled into middays, there are just two remaining shoes left to drop in this long Boston talk soap opera:

At WRKO, what will replace Kuhner in mornings? We’d heard rumors of a morning show co-produced with the Globe, but that was a while back and Entercom’s been good about maintaining, er, “radio silence” ever since. Will former channel 7 anchor Kim Carrigan, who auditioned as a Kuhner fill-in back in April, be part of it?

And what sort of a spoiler role might Salem play when it completes its purchase of WMKI (1260) from Radio Disney? Assuming Boston will get one of Salem’s “The Answer” talk formats, even the 1-share that Salem hosts such as Hugh Hewitt and Bill Bennett tend to draw could be a significant factor against WRKO, WKOX and WMEX (1510) as they all fight for the limited talk audience in town.

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*Radio people on the move in NEW HAMPSHIRE: Scott Laudani has been promoted to director of programming for all eight of Binnie Media’s Granite State stations. He’s been with the company for a little more than a year, initially as PD of WFNQ (106.3 Nashua), and of course has been a veteran programmer for almost two decades with stops in Providence, New Haven and Scranton as well.

Over at iHeart Media on the Seacoast, Jeff Pierce is departing after 19 years with the company and its predecessors. Pierce has been at WERZ (107.1 Exeter) since 2007 and has been operations manager at the cluster since 2010. Before that, he was at the then-Clear Channel cluster in Bangor, and now he’s headed back to MAINE to become operations manager at Saga’s Portland Radio Group, overseeing talkers WGAN (560)/WZAN (970)/WGIN (1400), hot AC WMGX (93.1), classic hits WYNZ (100.9) and country WPOR (101.9).

Back at iHeart in Portsmouth, they’re mourning Andy Blacksmith, part of the “Morning Buzz” cast on WHEB (100.3 Portsmouth) and WGIR-FM (101.1 Manchester). Blacksmith,a 17-year radio veteran, had been off the air since March, when he underwent surgery to try to keep his heart disease stable until a transplant could be found. Sadly, he didn’t make it long enough to get a new heart, and he died Saturday at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

WHEB played best-of Blacksmith segments over the weekend and will pay tribute to him on Monday’s Morning Buzz show as well.

*Back in November, Jeff Shapiro’s Great Eastern group completed the long-planned relocation of an FM signal all the way across VERMONT (and then some). The station formerly known as WWOD (104.3 Hartford VT), then with later temporary calls of WMXR, WMVY and WECM, signed on last November from a new transmitter site near its new city of license of Keeseville, New York, with a class C3 signal reaching back across Lake Champlain to the Burlington market. WECM stunted with Christmas music through the holidays and then for a few months longer as “Santa 104.3” before falling silent again – but last Monday at noon, it finally launched a permanent format.

The new “Kiss 104.3” takes the WJKS calls last seen in southern New Jersey on what’s now WDEL-FM (101.7 Salem). Like that station, the new Burlington-market WJKS is aiming urban, a curious choice in the rather pale market of Burlington-Plattsburgh.

Our content partner RadioInsight reports: “WJKS is utilizing Westwood-One’s recently launched Classic Hip-Hop network including Adam Bomb in mornings, Ms. Eklass in middays/afternoons, and Zakk at night.”

*In CONNECTICUT, Susan Tully has been named VP/general manager at NBC’s WVIT (Channel 30). Tully, who’d been VP of news for NBC sister station KXAS (Channel 5) in Dallas/Fort Worth, started in her new job Friday, replaces Ric Harris, who’s now VP/GM at NBC’s WCAU (Channel 10) in Philadelphia.

*In western PENNSYLVANIA, the founding general manager of public station WESA (90.5 Pittsburgh) is stepping down. DeAnne Hamilton came to town from WKAR in East Lansing, Michigan in 2011 to oversee the challenge of transitioning the former WDUQ from Duquesne University ownership to Essential Public Media, the group that edged out the previous WDUQ management for the license. Hamilton hasn’t announced where she’s headed next (and doesn’t appear to have any concrete plans); Marco Cardamone, chair of the WESA board, will serve as interim GM until a replacement is named.

Across town, Steel City Media’s WLTJ (92.9 Pittsburgh) has replaced one veteran morning host with another one. The former “Q92.9” morning team of John Cline, Dave Cook and Maria D’Antonio is out, and as of July 6, it’ll be WDVE veteran Jim Krenn doing mornings. Krenn was at WDVE from 1988-2011 and has been podcasting and doing commentaries of KDKA (1020) since then. WLTJ midday jock Debbie Wilde will join Krenn and his podcast team of Terry Jones, Mike Sasson and Mike Wysocki on the new morning show.

Philadelphia’s number-two sports station, Greater Media’s WPEN (97.5 Burlington NJ), has hired yet another host formerly heard on its top-rated rival, CBS Radio’s WIP-FM (94.1). This time it’s Rob Ellis, who’s been hosting “Breakfast on Broad” on Comcast Sports Network since leaving WIP. He’s taking over the 10 AM-2 PM slot on “97.5 the Fanatic” alongside Harry Mayes starting today, bumping Eytan Shander to as-yet-undisclosed new duties with the station.

In Union City near Erie, WFSN-LP (96.7) has filed for a license to cover. The LPFM belongs to the Union City Family Support Center.

*Nelson Doubleday inherited a publishing fortune and used some of it to buy the NEW YORK Mets, but we remember him this week as the owner, at least briefly, of New York’s WHN (1050) and WAPP (103.5). Doubleday had been in radio in other markets (including St. Louis, Minneapolis, Denver and Washington) when he laid down $8.7 million in 1982 to buy what was then WTFM, a sleepy (but successful) easy-listening station in Queens. Under Doubleday’s ownership, the FM signal jumped into the vacuum left by WABC’s flip to talk, challenging WPLJ and the new WHTZ in one of the more memorable radio wars of the 1980s.

In 1985, Doubleday paid Mutual $13 million for WHN (1050) and then moved the country station out of Manhattan, combining it with WAPP in new studios deep in the bowels of the old Kaufman Studios in Astoria, Queens. A year later, Emmis bought WHN, WAPP and Washington’s WAVA-FM from Doubleday for $53 million, quickly flipping WHN to sports as WFAN and WAPP to rhythmic top-40 as WQHT; the rest, of course, was history.

Doubleday went on to sell the Mets (after a 1986 World Series victory) and the publishing company, too. He was 81 when he died June 17 at his home in Locust Valley, N.Y.

*Alan Almond was most closely associated with Detroit, where his mellow tones were part of the nighttime at WNIC (100.3) for decades, but his “Pillow Talk” show was also heard in other markets, including at Rochester’s WRMM-FM (101.3). Almond never made public appearances or allowed himself to be photographed (much like David Alan Boucher at Boston’s WMJX), but that mystique helped him build a fan base that remembered him long after WNIC ceased to exist. Almond’s body was found at his Michigan home last Tuesday; he was 67.

*The NEW JERSEY Broadcasters Association held its 68th annual convention last week in Atlantic City. We weren’t there (your editor was wearing yet another of his many hats all week, filling in for a vacationing local talk host), but broadcast consultant and friend-of-the-column Clark Smidt was among the NERW readers in the crowd, and he submitted his notes –

Last week’s June 17-18, event in Atlantic City was a content champion, who’s who with military precision and excellent atmosphere. Once again, the NJBA Convention presented a showcase to learn, opportunity to network with the best and be an up to the minute focal point of breaking events.  “Broadcast Has a New Attitude” theme captured the atmosphere.

Sun Broadcast Group Founder & CEO Jason Baily added unprecedented support and breakthrough content delivery as the SBG partnership with Shazam made every minute available everywhere from smart phone to world-wide.  The strategic New Jersey location, strategy and Paul Rotella’s team brought out the Best from the Garden State, New York City and Washington, D.C.  In between, the ever present musically gifted NJ National Guard, “Paul’s Behind The Scene All Star Team” of outstanding friends and impressive sons, this was a 10 scale 14!

Before 11am, the agenda brought us Paul, NJBA Chairman Dave Coskey, Sub Broadcast CEO Jason Baily and NJ Army National Guard Major Andrew Lazarchick’s positive introductions to set the stage. A personal Next Radio Smartphone FM Chip update from founding catalyst Jeff Smulyan, a special audio multi-platform total measurement announcement from Nielsen’s Rich Tunkel and Jon Miller and a Who’s Who Super Session hosted by Jason Bailey, followed.  On stage and dueling jumbo-trons were Emmis CEO Jeff Smulyan, Shazam CEO Rich Riley, Borrell Associates CEO Gordon Borrell, Emerson Research guru Sean “Ross on Radio,” iHeart SVP Owen Grover, Bold Gold Media CEO Vince Benedetto, Livestream GM Clayton Rose and Group M Sr. Partner Taylor Wood.  Convention participants included Emmis NYC Market Manager Deon Levingston, Buckley CEO Joe Bilotta, Susquehanna Emmeritus Dave Kennedy, Philadelphia radio statesman Art Camiolo, NJ leaders including Longport’s Don Coskey, Townsquare’s Greg Janoff, Press Communication’s Rich Morena, Greater Media’s Hall of Fame inductee Dan Finn presented by CEO Peter Symth, Professor Dick Taylor and legal mavens John Griziglia, Dave Oxenfod and Frank Montero.

Super Sessions followed:

• Radio Reporters Roundtable including Fox News Channel Chief National Correspondent Jim Angle, WCBS PM Drive Anchor Wayne Cabot, CBS Chief Congressional Correspondent Steven Portnoy and ABC’s Scott Goldberg. 
• The Changing Ratings Game presented by Research Director Partner Charlie Sislen, Nielsen’s Rich Tunkel and Jon Miller announcing Total Audience Measurement innovations. 
• Creative in Today’s Audio World with the insights of VP iHeart Creative Services Group Dave Savage.
• The Future of Sales & Marketing Teams explained by Gordon Borell.
• From Student to Star guided by NJBA Life member & Professor Dick Taylor with WPLJ midday personality Race Taylor.

The Awards lunch highlighted by the special appearance, All-American address by Humanitarian of the Year Honoree, Fox Senior Analyst The Honorable Judge Andrew Napolitano was inspiring.  The logistical precision of the events, production, music and timing was awesome. 

Truth, preservation of the Constitution, halting intolerable taxation acts and providing live, local, emergency service are essential missions of State Broadcasting Associations.  When a gentleman who takes pride in Country, broadcasting, his home state, details, taking care of friends and extreme pride of family puts it all together, get outta the way.  June 22-23, 2016 is a MUST for the 69^th New Jersey Conference.  Thank you, Sir Paul.

(Our content partner Lance Venta at RadioInsight was also at NJBA and has a report here.)

*CANADA‘s fastest-growing small-market radio group is growing again. My Broadcasting is buying out Cobourg-based Pineridge Broadcasting, adding classic hits CHUC (107.9 the Breeze) and AC CKSG (Star 93.3) in Cobourg and AC CJWV (Magic 96.7) in Peterborough to its 17 existing stations. My’s purchase will close out the broadcast career of Pineridge president Don Conway, who’ll retire when the deal closes. In a statement, Conway called My “the ideal choice” to keep “super-serving the local community.”

No purchase price has been announced for the deal yet. In Peterborough, already one of My’s biggest markets, CJWV joins My’s existing sports-talk CJMB (Extra 90.5 FM); in Cobourg, CHUC and CKSG will extend a My chain of stations that already stretches eastward along the Lake Ontario shore through Brighton, Napanee and Gananoque.

(NERW notes that the sale in Cobourg, in particular, leaves nearby Belleville as an even more notable exception to the trend of chain broadcasting across small-market Ontario. Both clusters in Belleville, Quinte Broadcasting’s three stations and Starboard Broadcasting’s two FMs, remain locally owned.)

*Speaking of local ownership, Blackburn Radio is the latest incarnation of a long tradition in western Ontario, and last week it lost its leader, far too young. Richard Costley-White took over Blackburn in 2005 from the estate of his mother, Martha Blackburn, who’d died in 1992 at age 47. After Martha Blackburn’s death, the company sold off what had been its flagship properties in London: CFPL(AM)/CFPL-FM went to Shaw (later Corus), CFPL-TV to Baton Broadcasting (later CTV/Bell Media) and the London Free Press, which had been in Blackburn family hands since its founding in 1856, ended up with Sun Media.

Costley-White began rebuilding Blackburn with what remained: he added a second FM signal, CIBU (94.5) to CKNX(AM)/CKNX-FM up in Wingham, put new FMs on the air in Windsor and Leamington, added nested FM relays to CFCO (630) in Chatham-Kent and CHOK (1070) in Sarnia, and brought Blackburn back into London with the debut of CKLO (98.1 Free FM) in 2011.

Costley-White had been diagnosed with lymphoma of the central nervous system last year and appeared to be in remission earlier this year. The disease returned a few weeks ago and progressed quickly. Costley-White, who was just 48 when he died on Tuesday, had said he intended for the Blackburn stations to stay in his family. He’s survived by his wife, Caitlin Adamson, and two young sons.

*In the Maritimes, the CBC has been busy moving out of old facilities into newer, more compact ones. Its Halifax radio and TV stations moved a few months ago, and now it’s Moncton, New Brunswick making the move.

After 40 years in the big brick building at 250 University Avenue, the local services of CBC radio (CBAM 106.1) and Radio-Canada (CBAF 88.5 and CBAFT-TV 11) moved on Friday into smaller open-plan quarters at 165 Main Street.

The 61,000-square foot University Avenue building and the 1.55-acre property on which it sits is now listed for sale.

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