SUPPORT DCRTV'S ADVERTISERS /\ \/  Contents - Contact Us - News Tips - News Archive - Mailbag - Rant - Support DCRTV Station List - Classified Ads - Advertise On DCRTV - DC - NYC - DCRTV Plus Savage Leaves Globe For NY Times - 5/8 - Big loss for the Boston Globe: Charlie Savage, who won a 2007 Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of the Bush administration's sweeping expansion of executive power, is headed to the New York Times. He'll start there later this month. More from thephoenix.com..... Globe's Pfeiffer To WBUR - 5/6 - Boston Globe reporter Sacha Pfeiffer is joining Boston University noncommercial WBUR as health and science reporter. Pfeiffer, part of the Globe team that won a Pulitzer Prize for a series exposing sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, was with the paper for 13 years..... CVB To Test Interactive TV - 5/5 - From Broadcasting And Cable: In the coming weeks, a few station executives should get a clearer picture of whether interactive television will finally be the paradigm-shifter it's long promised to be. Later this month, select Boston viewers will be able to add to their TV experience by clicking their remote to find more information on a coming storm, Big Papi's success against lefties, or a new SUV they've seen on the air. Hearst-Argyle's WCVB completed installation of Backchannelmedia's interactive TV software last week, and will be the first station to test the program with special set-top boxes in a few hundred homes. A select group of local and national advertisers will also be taking part. Stations such as Media General's WJAR Providence, Meredith's WFSB Hartford and those in the New Age TV group are also in talks to test the program..... NY Post Retracts O&A Story - 5/5 - From the NY Post: "On April 23 we reported that the fiancée of Gregg 'Opie' Hughes, one half of the Opie and Anthony radio show, was involved in an X-rated sex video with MTV star Bam Margera. We reported that Hughes was taking legal action against a disgruntled ex-employee of the radio duo who had acquired the rights to the video. We have since learned that this information, supplied by Steppin' Out's Chaunce Hayden, was entirely incorrect. There is no sex tape. Further, Hughes' fiancée has never met the MTV star. The Post sincerely regrets the error"..... DCRTVideo - 5/4 - Some Channel 5/WCVB news opens from 1978. At DCRTVideo at the bottom of the right column of this page..... PRO ND Gone - 5/2 - Robert Kennedy leaves his news director gig at Citadel news talk WPRO (630 AM) in Providence..... Clear Channel Unloads Maine Outlets - 5/2 - Blueberry Broadcasting has agreed to acquire 17 Clear Channel Radio outlets in Augusta and Bangor, Maine. Blueberry is a Maine-based company headed by President/CEO Louis Vitali and VP/COO Bruce Biette..... Low-Key Farewell For Lobel - 5/1 - Like other Boston TV legends who have come and gone, he deserved a fitting, farewell tribute. But WBZ-TV Channel 4 sports icon Bob Lobel insisted yesterday that he didn’t want one, a day after he unceremoniously anchored his last sportscast. The only hint of his departure came near the end of Tuesday's 11 PM news when Jack Williams said to him: "Good luck buddy, I'll miss you," an ad-libbed line that wasn’t in the script. More in the Boston Herald..... JMN & RCH Top Radio Ratings - 4/29 - WJMN tops the Boston radio ratings and WRCH tops the Hartford radio ratings..... CBS Radio Slumps - 4/29 -  CBS Radio reports that revenue fell 9 percent, as ad sales remained weak and the unit was affected by the sale of nearly 40 stations in 10 markets. At radio stations the company has owned at least a year, revenue slipped 6 percent. However, as a whole, CBS's quarterly earnings rose 14 percent, helped by greater profits on the TV side. More from MarketWatch.....Jerry Remy Plans Eatery - 4/29 - Boston Red Sox color commentator Jerry Remy plans to open Jerry Remy's Sports Bar And Grille next spring just a block from Fenway Park. The Boston Herald has more..... "Boston's Scrappy Herald" - 4/28 - The Washington Post looks at "Boston's Scrappy Herald, Screaming For Readers"..... Heart Surgery For Jim Lehrer - 4/25 -  Jim Lehrer (right), the longtime anchor of PBS's signature evening newscast, underwent a successful heart valve procedure on Wednesday. "Jim plans to be back at full speed and on the program within a few weeks," the network said in a statement on Friday. A spokeswoman for Lehrer said he first felt ill last Friday. Lehrer, whose program is produced by DC's WETA, checked into the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston for the procedure. Substitute hosts will fill in for Lehrer on "The NewsHour" for the time being. Lehrer decided not to anchor "The NewsHour" from WQED, the PBS station in Pittsburgh, this week to highlight the Pennsylvania primary. More from nytimes.com.....7 GM Gets "Treatment" After Outburst - 4/25 - Channel 7/WHDH bigwigs are standing behind troubled general manager Randi Goldklank, wishing her a "speedy recovery" from the unspecified medical treatment she's undergoing after her arrest for an alleged alcohol-induced outburst aboard a Boston-bound flight. So reports the Boston Herald..... New PRI Morning Show To Debut On WGBH - 4/24 - On Monday, 4/28, PRI and NYC's WNYC launch a new morning radio show, "The Takeway With John Hockenberry And Adaora Udoji." The one-hour news program, which will be carried on Boston's WGBH, will feature editorial collaboration with the BBC World Service, the New York Times, and WGBH. More at thetakeaway.org..... Boston TV Sports Vet Don Gillis Dies - 4/24 -  From the Boston Globe: Don Gillis (right), Boston's first TV sports anchorman, died on 4/23 at the age of 85 in Falmouth. He had suffered from Alzheimer's disease in recent years. "We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of our former colleague, the dean of Boston television sports, Don Gillis, and extend ourheartfelt sympathies to his family," WCVB/Channel 5, his former station, said in a statement. In October 1962, Gillis became New England's first nightly TV sports anchor on the old Channel 5/WHDH. Gillis, who got his start in radio in New Bedford, was well-known as both a sports anchor and host of the "Candlepins" program. After the old Channel 5 went off the air, he served as sports director at WCVB from 1972 to 1983 and hosted the bowling program until 1995. His resume also included doing play-by-play for the Celtics, Bruins, Patriots, and Red Sox.....More On Opie Fiancee Sex Tape - 4/24 - From All Access: MTVer Bam Margera joined Opie and Anthony via telephone this morning on their XM Satellite Radio and CBS Radio show to deny the existence of a sex tape featuring himself and Opie's fiancee Lindsay. The denial comes after the NY Post reported on "Steppin' Out" publisher Chaunce Hayden's insistence that such a tape does exist and that a former O&A staffer bought the rights to the tape from Margera for distribution. "I think it's nonsense," Margera said of the story, adding that he, like Opie, would pay $100,000 to see the tape. "I really don't think it's true, and I'd match you on the hundred grand," the MTV "Jackass" and "Viva La Bam" star told O&A..... Opie Rages At Bam Over Alleged Sex Tape - 4/23 - "There is no sex tape. There is absolutely no sex tape," said an enraged morning radio man Gregg "Opie" Hughes today in response to a New York Post Page Six report about a sex tape involving his fiancee, Lindsay, and MTV/Jackass star Bam Margera. The gossip column wrote, "A disgruntled ex-employee of the radio duo recently acquired rights to the video from Margera and it's soon to be released on a pay-for-play website, reports Steppin' Out's Chaunce Hayden. 'They're doing the nasty - and I mean nasty,' Hayden says. 'Hughes is taking legal action to prevent its distribution. Apparently, he's so distraught, he's banned the name 'Bam' from being mentioned on the show.'" FMQB has more. Opie and Anthony are heard on WBCN..... More On 7 Honcho's Arrest - 4/23 - From the Boston Herald: Channel 7 honcho Randi Goldklank was put on leave following an alleged booze-fueled and vulgarity-strewn assault on state police at Logan International Airport - even as sharp contradictions emerged yesterday between her version of what transpired and official reports. Ed Ansin, president of Sunbeam Television, which owns WHDH-TV, said in a statement yesterday that Goldklank "has been placed on administrative leave subject to further review by management." More in the Herald..... 7's GM Placed On Leave After Airport Incident - 4/22 - From whdh.com: Channel 7/ WHDH general manager Randi Goldklank has been placed on administrative leave following an incident at Logan International Airport. Goldklank was arrested at the airport Sunday night and charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Her leave is subject to further review by management. Goldklank's attorney, David Eisenstadt, releasing this statement, quote, "as an attorney, it is not my practice to litigate these matters in the press. I think the process should play itself out and I'm confident my client will be well-served by the justice system"..... 7's GM Arrested At Airport - 4/22 - The general manager of Channel 7/WHDH was arrested Sunday night at Logan International Airport after an airline called state police to complain about an "unruly passenger" on an inbound flight. Randi Goldklank, the vice president and general manager of NBC affiliate WHDH and sister station Channel 56/WLVI, was charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest at 9:35 PM, said State Police Trooper Eric Benson. Goldklank, 40, defended her behavior last night, telling the Herald she was inappropriately touched by a male passenger seated beside her on a flight from Philadelphia to Boston. More in the Boston Herald..... FNX Turns 25 - 4/21 - From the Boston Globe: In the beginning, 25 years ago, the station played a format without a name. Calling itself "the new rock on the block" and "rock the boat radio," WFNX-FM (101.7) aired rock music, but not the familiar sound of market giants like WBCN-FM (104.1). Broadcasting lesser known artists, more imports, and the more out-there sounds of punk and new wave, the little Lynn-based station was a pioneer, broadcasting what would become known as the new rock, modern rock, or alternative format..... MA's McGilvray Wins Awards - 4/21 - Brighton, Massachusetts native Al McGilvray, now the news director at TalkRadio WRNR-AM in Martinsburg WV accepted three first-place awards and four second-place awards from the Associated Press at the annual AP-Charleston awards dinner on Saturday, 4/19. The station earned "Best News Operation," "Best Talk Show," and "Best Sports Talk Show." The four second-place awards were also sports-related. In addition, McGilvray was elected to the AP-Charleston WV board of directors..... CC Asks Judge For Help In Buyout Bungle - 4/16 - The legal battles over the deal to buy radio giant Clear Channel continues, as CC has now asked a New York state judge to dismiss counterclaims brought against it by a group of banks embroiled in a dispute over financing the company's buyout by two private-equity firms, Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners. More from FMQB..... MarketWatch Honored - 4/15 - MarketWatch Radio Network has won the Excellence In Financial Journalism Award from the New York State Society Of CPAs. A team of reporters, led by managing editor John Wordock, won for their entry "Tales From The Home Front: America And The Housing Slump In 2007." MarketWatch is heard on WBZ radio..... Harvard Wants BZ Property - 4/14 - Harvard University is in ongoing talks with WBZ to purchase the television and radio station's nine-acre property in Allston as part of its continuing campus expansion in Boston. An agreement is still a long way off, a WBZ executive said yesterday, but talks have intensified recently, as Harvard officials propose alternative locations for the station that has been at its Soldiers Field Road location since 1948. More in the Boston Globe..... CBS Re-Signs O&A For 3 Cities - 4/10 -  DCRTV hears that CBS Radio has re-signed Opie and Anthony (right) to continue airing on Boston's WBCN, NYC's WXRK, and Cleveland's WKRK. Following the move of Howard Stern to Sirius Satellite Radio, O&A aired on about a dozen major FMers across the country. But they got dropped from a batch of stations due to low ratings. XM Satellite Radio will continue to air O&A for five hours daily, including two exclusive hours from 9 AM to 11 AM.....Monica Crowley To WTKK - 4/9 - Monica Crowley signs with Talk Radio Network to syndicate "The Monica Crowley Show" on more than 75 new affiliates, including Boston talker WTKK (96.9 FM). Crowley worked as a commentator on National Public Radio's "Morning Edition" for four years. She is also a panelist on "The McLaughlin Group" and a Fox News analyst..... RKO's Finneran Plans Lobbying Biz - 4/9 - Just two months after WRKO radio talk show host Tom Finneran supposedly squashed plans to represent special interests on Beacon Hill over protests from station bosses, the ex-House speaker says he is launching his own lobbying business. inneran told the Boston Herald that he's starting up Finneran Global Strategies with his old law partner, James Byrne, and plans to continue to host his morning-drive show on the Entercom-owned WRKO-AM (680) for "years"..... Most Radio Suits Still Men - 4/9 - Women are gaining ground, if only slightly, when it comes managing radio stations. As of late 2007, just 15.9 percent of the 10,625 US radio stations were managed by women, according to the annual General Manager Gender Analysis Study by the Mentoring And Inspiring Women In Radio group. That's a slight gain over 2006, when women managed 15.3 percent of all stations. Radio One comes in above average, with 26.3 of its station managers female. Citadel has 25 percent, with Clear Channel at 21.7 percent. CBS has just 14.5 percent female managers. More from Radio And Records..... David O'Leary: From WSNE To WMJX - 4/7 - David O'Leary has left the assistant program director/music director/afternoon gig at Clear Channel's hot adult contemporary WSNE (93.3 FM) in Providence. He's jumping to Greater Media's adult contemporary WMJX (106.7 FM) in Boston to become production director..... 25's Mark Ockerbloom Profiled - 4/7 - After years sharpening his skills in other markets, native son Mark Ockerbloom is bringing a local accent to Fox 25 News. There's more in the Boston Globe..... Burton To Replace Lobel At 4? - 4/4 - From News Blues: Boston insiders speculate that Steve Burton will replace departing Channel 4/WBZ sports icon Bob Lobel when he officially steps down later this month. Burton joined the CBS-owned station in 1994..... Peter Bush Leaves WEBE - 4/4 - Peter Bush leaves afternoons at Bridgeport CT adult contemporary WEBE to pursue auto racing. Larry Cardinger will fill-in until a permanent replacement is found..... WBZ Cuts Signal Big Change For Local TV - 4/3 - The buyouts this week of three of WBZ-TV's highest-paid star reporters, including sportscasting legend Bob Lobel, could signal the end of the celebrity lineup at local news stations struggling with declining advertising revenues and shrinking viewership. More in the Boston Globe..... 4 Cuts Bob Lobel - 4/2 - Marking the end of an era in broadcast news in Boston, WBZ/Channel 4 sports icon Bob Lobel is being cast to the sidelines in a stunning budget cutback that will bring his three-decade dominance to a close while sending shock waves through Hub living rooms and the local TV landscape. More from the Boston Herald..... WJMN & WRCH Are Tops - 4/2 - WJMN takes the top spot in the latest radio ratings for Boston. More at radioandrecords.com. WRCH takes the top spot in the latest radio ratings for Hartford. More at radioandrecords.com..... 30 Pink-Slipped At BZ-TV - 4/1 - From the Boston Herald: Channel 4/WBZ whacked 30 employees yesterday on what station insiders instantly dubbed "Black Monday." After a wave of layoffs at CBS-owned and -operated TV stations across the country, Channel 4 slashed jobs throughout their Brighton headquarters - hitting the newsroom, the Web unit, sales, the engineering department and promotions. Some employees were swiftly escorted out the door by security, sources said. It's the second round of layoffs in just over a year at WBZ, a station that has been struggling with poor ratings and an identity crisis. Among those cut were managing editor David Kaplar; investigative producer Maggie Mulvihill; senior writer Casey Sherman; longtime writer Julia Christopher; longtime senior engineer Fred Boudreau; Tiffany Middleton in promotions; and Roger Lyons, a producer in commercial production..... Boston Sees Radio Revenue Slump - 3/31 - The numbers are in, and 2007 was not a good year for radio in Boston. Despite earlier predictions that radio revenue would begin to bounce back after two years of decline, the estimated gross revenues for the local market are again down - and expected to sink further. More from the Boston Globe..... New ND For 6 - 3/31 - FTVLive tells us that BJ Finnell will be the new news director at Providence's Channel 6/WLNE. He's currently the #2 at WOIO in Cleveland and previously worked for WLNE General Manager Steve Doerr when Doerr was news director at WOIO. Finnell used to be the news director at Channel 10/WJAR in Providence..... Erin Hawksworth To 25 - 3/31 - News Blues tells us that Erin Hawksworth, a sports reporter and fill-in anchor at WFAA-TV in Dallas, is joining Fox-owned Channel 25/WFXT as a reporter and fill-in anchor..... CC Buyout Hits More Turbulence - 3/28 - Clear Channel said the private equity firms trying to buy it may not be able to close the deal on time because their banks will not provide financing, according to a Friday regulatory filing. The warning comes a day after a Texas judge issued a restraining order effectively preventing the banks from backing out of their commitment to finance the $19.5 billion deal, which was slated to close Monday. AP has more..... Rumor: NBC Wants Boston's 7 - 3/28 - DCRTV hears rumblings that NBC Universal, which just announced plans to sell its Hartford station, is interested in picking up Boston. Specifically, buying NBC affiliate Channel 7/WHDH from Sunbeam. "If this happens, this will fulfill a long held dream of NBC to have an O&O in Boston. In the late '50s/early '60s there was an effort by NBC and RKO-General to swap (DC's) WGMS-AM-FM in DC and WRKO-AM-FM and WHDG-TV to NBC in exchange for (DC's) WRC-AM-FM-TV, but the deal died for a lot of reasons." More as we hear it..... Entercom Has Growth Plans For WEEI Network - 3/27 - Entercom/Boston plans to launch a syndicated regional network this spring using the programming airing on WEEI-AM. The Sports/Talker has been ranked #1 in the country for eight consecutive years by Rick Scott Associates' Sportsradio.com. The WEEI brand currently airs on three of O&O'ed stations: WEEI-FM/Providence, WVEI-FM/Springfield, MA, and WVEI-AM/Worcester, MA. Radio Online has more..... Cuts At CBS? - 3/27 - CBS insiders tell News Blues that the TV network has ordered an across-the-board belt tightening at its 29 owned-and-operated stations after the corporation reported a 14.6 percent drop in fourth quarter profits on slipping revenue. CBS owns Boston's Channel 4/WBZ. More soon..... CC Buyout On Brink - 3/27 - What happens if the deal doesn't get done? That's the question looming over Clear Channel and its shareholders now that the long-awaited $19.5 billion deal to take the company private has become engulfed in litigation. On Wednesday, private equity firms Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital Partners, Clear Channel's would-be acquirers, sued the deal's lenders in state courts in New York and Texas to force the banks to complete the deal. The two firms claimed that the banks wanted to replace a long-term financing package of at least six years with short-term, three-year bridge financing. Forbes has more..... 25 Ups Frank Mallicoat - 3/26 - Newsblues tells us that Frank Mallicoat, a refugee from the pre-Sunbeam "Ten O'Clock News" on Channel 56/WLVI, has been promoted to weekend news anchor at Fox-owned Channel 25/WFXT. Mallicoat joined the station in May 2007 as a Sunday morning anchor and weekday reporter and has been filling in as weekend anchor for the past 8 months following David Wade's jump to CBS-owned Channel 4/WBZ..... CC Buyout Going Bust - 3/26 - It looks like that big buyout deal of radio giant Clear Channel is near collapse because of a disagreement over financing. Shares of Clear Channel plunged about 20 percent in after-hours trading on Tuesday. More from marketwatch.com..... DirecTV Drops Ball On Sox - 3/25 - Both the NESN and ESPN2 telecasts of this morning's Boston Red Sox season opener against the Oakland Athletics went missing on DirecTV. The Boston Globe has more about the issue in a blog post..... Jack Armstrong Dies - 3/24 - "Top 40" radio legend Jack Armstrong died on 3/22 at his home in High Point NC. He was 63. Among the many stations Armstrong worked at during his lengthy career: Boston's WMEX and Hartford's WPOP. More soon..... Macklin Files Age Discrimination Suit Against 7 - 3/24 - According to the Boston Globe, Michael Macklin, former Channel 7/WHDH reporter, has filed an age discrimination suit against the station. Macklin, 56, who worked at WHDH for 13 years, claims the station fired him last year after he complained that he was discriminated against because of his age. The suit, filed last week in Suffolk Superior Court, alleges that Channel 7's news director, Linda Miele, began cutting back on his work shifts in January 2006 while at the same time hiring several younger reporters. When Macklin questioned why he was passed over for a staff position, Miele told him she "did not think he was aggressive enough, and that he missed elements of stories that other stations did not," according to the suit, filed by Macklin's lawyers, Burns And Levinson. Macklin is seeking reinstatement, compensation, attorney's fees, and court costs..... Imus To Pittsfield - 3/21 - Pittsfield talker WBEC picks up Don Imus for morning drive, starting 3/31. The Vox AMer has been running Doug Stephan's "Good Day"..... 7 Replaces Hall With More Youthful Williams - 3/20 - Channel 7/WHDH is yanking distinguished, station vet Jonathan Hall off the morning and noon anchor desk and replacing him with the youthful Adam Williams. Channel 7’s spin is that its expanding the investigative unit and Hall’s new assignment is working alongside longtime investigative ace Hank Phillippi Ryan. The Boston Herald has more..... WPRV Goes True Oldies With Imus - 3/19 - From Radio Online: Citadel flips WPRV (790 AM) in Providence to Scott Shannon's True Oldies format as "790 Rhode Island's True Oldies." Syndicated Don Imus and his cast will air in mornings with the True Oldies format occupying the rest of the day. WPRV is also home to the New York Yankees regular season games in Providence. Scott Shannon commented, "Imus in the Morning, Shannon all day... I can't wait! It will be great radio for Providence. Listeners and advertisers will love this station." Operations Manager Tony Bristol added, "790 True Oldies is going to be so much fun to listen to. It's full of hit music you grew up hearing on Providence radio"..... Scott Chapin Is 7's Voice - 3/19 - From the Boston Globe: You know the voice. " '7 News at 11' starts now," the smooth, high baritone announces, welcoming viewers to the late-night newscast on WHDH-TV, Channel 7. If the story is light, his tone teases like a comedic uncle. If the news is tragic, his voice is softer and slower, weighted with compassion. "It's like an art form, and if you don't think it is, try and do it sometime!" says Scott Chapin, the man behind the voice. "What I bring to the table is attitude more than voice"..... Clear Channel Completes TV Sale To Providence - 3/17 - From FMQB: After controversy and lawsuits, Clear Channel Communications has completed its $1.1 billion sale of 56 television stations to Newport Television, a division of Providence Equity Partners. CC originally agreed to sell off the 56 stations in April 2007 for $1.2 billion, but over the past month, the deal hit a number of snags. Clear Channel filed a lawsuit in February to force Providence to complete the sale, then lowered the price. Next, Wachovia filed a suit over its financial commitment to the deal. However, all these issues and suits have been settled as a result of the final completion of the sale..... Fire Hits 5 Anchor's Home - 3/13 - From the Boston Herald: Channel 5/WCVB anchor Heather Unruh made news herself Sunday when her Natick home caught fire. Luckily, the blaze, which started in the basement, was small and quickly extinguished by local firefighters. Heather and her family were at home at the time but she still managed to report for duty for her new 6 and 11 PM newscast shifts at Channel 5 later that night..... Providence's Score Goes Oldies - 3/12 - The clock has run out on the Score sports yakkers Scott Zolak and Andy Gresh, who were kicked off WSKO and replaced by a flick-a-switch oldies format at the money-strapped Providence station."It was time to move on to bigger and better things," said Zo, the ex-back-up QB who co-hosted the 9 AM-to-noon yakfest for four years. "We were kind of stuck in the mud anyway." More in the Boston Herald..... 7 Sports Vet John Callaghan Dies - 3/12 - John Callaghan, a longtime sports anchor for Boston's Channel 7, died 3/5 at Fairview Commons in Great Barrington of lung cancer. He was 81. Starting in the late 1950s, Mr. Callaghan, of Pittsfield, spent 21 years covering some of the greatest Boston sports moments for WNAC-TV, including the 1967 Impossible Dream Red Sox and the Boston Celtics' domination of the NBA. Mr. Callaghan helped popularize the nickname "The Cardiac Kids" to describe the '67 Sox, his family said. More in the Boston Globe..... NECN Promotes Melville - 3/11 - New England Cable News veteran Thomas Melville has been promoted to news director. Melville takes over for Charles Kravetz, who is replacing outgoing president Philip Balboni next week. Balboni is stepping down to start a website devoted to international news. More from the Boston Herald..... 3's Kara Sundlun Profiled - 3/11 - From Hartford Business: It's easy to assume that TV broadcast personalities are divas who waltz onto the scene with an entourage of cameramen and assistants in tow- but that’s not how it works when you're starting out in the business. Kara Sundlun, news anchor and host of Channel 3/WFSB's "Better Connecticut," was once a one-woman operation, working as on-air talent, scriptwriter, camerawoman and more in Charlottesville VA, one of CBS’s smallest affiliates..... Big Changes At WSKO - 3/10 - From turnto10.com: The only all-sports station with a local signal in Rhode Island is going silent. Citadel Broadcasting told employees Monday that WSKO-AM and FM are changing formats. WSKO's FM Signal, 99.7, will begin simulcasting WPRO-AM's programming on Tuesday. To avoid confusion with the existing WPRO-FM signal, it will be called "Newstalk Radio 630 and 99.7" on the FM side. The AM signal, 790 The Score, will continue to carry "Imus In The Morning" and will carry syndicated ESPN programming for the rest of the week. The station's rating began to decline when WEEI moved into the market with its FM signal..... RKO's Shattuck To TKK - 3/8 - From the Messenger blog at bostonherald.com: WRKO-AM (680) executive producer Tom Shattuck is jumping ship to WTKK-FM (96.9), giving his notice less than two weeks after he told friend and longtime host Moe Lauzier that WRKO was firing him after 25 years. Lauzier, 65, was vocal and upset with the way WRKO handled his abrupt dismissal, calling it disrespectful. He also believes his age was a factor in the station's decision to let him go, which WRKO executives deny..... Freq Flip For Coastal CT - 3/7 - Come 3/18, Citadel will swap the frequencies of talker WXLM, currently on 102.3 FM, and classic hits WMOS, currently on 104.7, in the coastal Connecticut market anchored by New London. More from the New London Day..... Heather Unruh Joins 5 - 3/6 - The Boston Herald looks at Heather Unruh, who'll be debuting as Channel 5/WCVB's newest news anchor..... Critic: 61 Newscast Needs More News - 3/4 - In the Hartford Courant, TV critic Roger Catlin says the new morning news show on Fox61 is in need of more news..... Glenn Ordway To Take Time Off From WEEI - 3/3 - Boston sports radio personality Glenn Ordway, host of WEEI's popular "Big Show" afternoon program, announced today on the air that he is taking time off to be with his wife and newborn child, both of whom are ailing. Ordway said there were complications with the delivery of his daughter late last week that caused significant injury to both his wife and newborn baby. The Boston Globe has more..... Mike Moran Leaves WSAR - 3/3 - Morning radio personality Mike Moran has parted ways with 1480 WSAR amid a schedule shakeup at the Fall River station. "WSAR is in the process of making some changes to our morning show and as part of that change, it was necessary to move Mike Moran’s program," said Hector Gauthier, WSAR general manager and Moran's former co-host, in a statement. "Unfortunately, because of Mike's fulltime position outside the station, he could not accommodate the change. We are sorry that things did not work out and thank Mike for his dedication and commitment. We will miss him and wish him well." More from wickedlocal.com..... Buyouts Coming To Globe - 3/3 - The Boston Globe says it plans to cut 60 jobs by offering voluntary employee buyouts. Publisher P. Steven Ainsley is telling staff that the buyout packages are a difficult but necessary step to lower costs and keep the business healthy. The plan is part of a broader cost-cutting effort. More from AP..... Supreme Court To Look At Broadcast "Indecency" - 3/3 - The Supreme Court this week may reopen for the first time in more than 30 years the debate over what qualifies as an "indecent" broadcast. The media environment has changed dramatically since the court last ruled on this issue in 1978: Viewers and listeners today are exposed to the more freewheeling cable television, internet, and "shock jocks" on satellite radio. The issue before the court now is delicately described as the problem of "fleeting expletives" in over-the-air broadcasts, which are still regulated. Television viewers who watch some of the entertainment industry's award shows may be familiar with the phenomenon. More in the Boston Globe..... Globe Excerpts New Book By Jerry Williams - 3/2 - Jerry Williams brought talk radio to Boston in 1957, on the old WMEX, 1510 AM. The Boston Globe examines what it was like, in an excert from a new book, "Burning Up The Air: Jerry Williams, Talk Radio, And The Life In Between." More about the book at jerrywilliams.org..... "Dump Button" Saves 680's Finneran From His Mouth - 2/29 - WRKO (680 AM) yapper Tom Finneran lost his cool the other morning, sputtering "bull (expletive)" twice on his show after hanging up on a woman who dared to talk over the serial chatterbox. Lucky for the fuming, foul-mouthed Finneran, his producer apparently pushed the "dump button" in time and people tuning into terrestrial radio didn't hear the offensive language, which carries a steep FCC fine. More in the Boston Globe..... 7 Tops At 11 - 2/29 - The recent TV writers' strike took a toll on the ratings of Boston TV stations: Every local newscast lost a significant number of viewers at 11 PM during the competitive February sweeps period. Channel 7/WHDH finished first at 11 PM, reports the Boston Globe..... Logan Byrnes Joins 61 - 2/28 - From the Hartford Courant: He's back. Hartford television news anchor Logan Byrnes, that is. Byrnes, who was the morning anchor at WVIT, Channel 30, from 1999 to 2003 and then returned to the station in 2004 before leaving again in 2006, has been lured back to local news again. He has joined WTIC, Channel 61, where he, along with Rebecca Stewart, will co-anchor the new morning news show, "Fox 61 Morning Show," which will be broadcast from 6 AM to 8 AM..... Boston TVers Hype News For Ratings - 2/27 - Boston's TV news stations spice up their promos with dramatic music, graphics, and other bells and whistles to grab viewers during sweeps. More in the Boston Globe..... FCC Head Holds Hearing On Broadband Traffic Management - 2/27 - FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said yesterday that the government is prepared to act on complaints that broadband network providers are unfairly obstructing access to file-sharing applications that they say are hogging bandwidth. At a public hearing in Boston, the Federal Communications Commission heard perspectives on network management practices from high-speed internet providers Comcast and Verizon, technology firms, academics, and consumer groups. At issue - if and how internet service providers should be able to prioritize access to certain types of content when managing traffic over their networks. More in the DC Times..... CBS Radio Slumps - 2/26 - CBS Radio, which owns a bunch of stations in the Boston area, reports that earnings fell 21 percent on a 10 percent decline in revenues on lower advertising revenues, as well as the sales of radio stations in 10 cities. More from AP..... 7 Doesn't Renew Contract Of Dr. Lites - 2/26 - Channel 7/WHDH is cutting loose health reporter Dr. Deanna Lites. Her contract is up at the end of March and isn’t being renewed. The Boston Herald has more..... Prov Partners To Buy Fewer Stations From CC - 2/25 - From Radio And Records: Weekend discussions between Clear Channel and Providence Equity Partners that began on 2/22 over the pair's 10-month-old deal for Providence to buy Clear Channel’s 56 television stations for $1.2 billion, has resulted in an agreement that reduces the deal by $100 million..... WRKO Says Adios To Moe Lauzier - 2/23 - WRKO (680 AM) radio cut a quarter-century talk veteran from the airwaves yesterday amid rumors it is making way for full days of paid programming on Saturdays. Saturday morning man Moe Lauzier went on the air at 6 a.m. yesterday only to be told 15 minutes later by executive producer Tom Shattuck that it would be his last show. Lauzier would have celebrated his 25th anniversary with the station in June. "The way they handled it is just terribly disrespectful," he told the Boston Herald..... 7's Julie Donaldson Profiled - 2/22 - The Boston Globe talks to Channel 7/WHDH sports reporter/anchor Julie Donaldson..... Liz Brunner Leaves 5's 11 PMer - 2/21 - News Blues tells us that Liz Brunner, veteran news anchor at Channel 5/WCVB, is coming off the 11 PM newscast, after seven years. Morning anchor Heather Unruh will replace her. Brunner will continue to anchor the 6 PM news, where she has been since Natalie Jacobson's departure in July. Also, Bianca de la Garza, former reporter and weekend anchor at Channel 25/WFXT, replaces Unruh on the morning shift. She'll be competing with her husband, David Wade, who anchors mornings across the street at Channel 4/WBZ..... Sara Underwood Leaves 4 - 2/21 - The Boston Herald reports that Channel 4/WBZ, 5:30 PM news anchor Sara Underwood is out the door after eight years. Her contract won't be renewed when it expires in early March..... Radio Ad Revenue Plunges - 2/20 - The Radio Advertising Bureau reports that local radio revenue for all markets was off by 5 percent in January, when compared to January 2007. National radio revenue fell a stunning 13 percent, while combined local and national revenues dipped 7 percent. More from Radio And Records..... Changes For 61 - 2/19 - The changes just keep on coming to Hartford's WTIC, Channel 61. The station added Connecticut native and WTIC-AM (1080) meteorologist Bob Cox as weekend meteorologist for its 10 p.m. nightly newscast. Born and raised in Milford, Cox is part of a developing agreement between Channel 61 and WTIC-AM (1080). Cox will continue to provide weather reports for WTIC-AM, WTIC-FM (96.5), WRCH-FM (100.5) and WZBG-FM (93.7). Also, KarraLynn Strickland has been named producer of the station's "Morning Show," launching in March. She moved to Connecticut from Greensboro NC, where she was the evening-news producer at the CBS affiliate WFMY. More in the Hartford Courant..... Clear Channel Suit Called "Baseless" - 2/18 - From Reuters: Private equity firm Providence Equity Partners said on Sunday a lawsuit brought by radio operator Clear Channel to force it to complete a $1.2 billion deal was "baseless." Marking the latest deal to turn nasty amid the credit crunch and downturn in the economy, Clear Channel filed a lawsuit on 2/15 in the Court Of Chancery, Delaware, to force Providence to complete the deal to buy the radio operator's 56 television stations. The lawsuit is filed against "Newport," a company set up by Providence to make the acquisition..... Boston Radio T-Shirt War - 2/18 - From the Boston Herald: WEEI gadfly Mike Adams says all he wanted was some t-shirts. But the story making its way around Boston radio circles is that Adams, WEEI’s nighttime sports yakker, got into a brawl with WRKO-AM's mid-morning host, Reese Hopkins, because the station ordered up T-shirts for the new guy and not Mikey, who - if you don’t know - is Sports Radio 850’s resident Rodney Dangerfield. (FYI, WEEI and WRKO are both owned by Entercom Communications and share their Brighton digs.) Word is, the I-get-no-respect-shirt scuffle devolved into fisticuffs. And Reese’s producer, who, we’re told, called Mikey a not-so-nice name, ended up being laid off last week..... 6 Sees News Shakeup - 2/18 - The Providence Business News reports that a news shakeup at Channel 6/WLNE is "yielding results"..... Balboni Leaves NECN - 2/15 - The Boston Globe reports that veteran journalist Philip Balboni, who built New England Cable News into the nation's largest regional news network, is leaving the station next month to start the first US-based website devoted exclusively to international news..... WBIX Expands Biz Base - 2/15 - WBIX-AM (1060) is proving to be the little station that could. Slightly more than two years after former owner Alex Langer regained the moribund station, which had been put into receivership after the fraud conviction of then-owner Bradford C. Bleidt, the business-oriented AM is expanding again, replacing syndicated programming with original local shows. Soon, the Framingham-based station will unveil four new and several revamped shows and a schedule refocused on business. More in the a Boston Globe..... New Haven's "Back Page" Returns - 2/15 - From the New Haven Register: At 18 and just out of East Haven High School, Jason Gontarek worked eagerly as a stringer describing high school football games for WELI-AM. Now going by the name Jason Page, the 30-year-old's voice returns to Radio Towers Park Monday on WELI's sister station WAVZ-AM. A new sports talk show called "The Back Page" will be simulcast on Hartford’s WPOP-AM (1410) and WAVZ (1300), both ESPN Radio stations, from 3 to 7 PM weekdays..... Jess Cain Dies - 2/14 -  Longtime Boston radio personality Jess Cain (left) has died after a long battle with cancer. He was 81. Michael Cain says his father died early today at his Beacon Hill home. Cain hosted the morning show on WHDH-AM for 33 years until his retirement in 1991. He was famous for his song parodies, including "The Yaz Song," a tribute to Red Sox star Carl Yastrzemski inspired by the team’s 1967 Impossible Dream season. More from AP and the Boston Globe.....DOJ OKs CC Buyout - 2/14 - As expected, the Department Of Justice has given its approval to the sale of Clear Channel to Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners. However, there are conditions set on the transaction of the radio industry giant to the two private equity firms. As part of an agreement with the DOJ, Clear Channel must sell off radio stations in Cincinnati, Houston, Las Vegas, and San Francisco. More from FMQB..... Radio Cuts In Boston - 2/14 - The Boston Herald looks at recent radio employee cuts by Entercom and CBS in the Boston area. CBS has reportedly cut WZLX producer Jeremy Leahy and WODS morning show member Jimmy Del Ponte..... Courant To Suffer Tribune Cuts - 2/13 - Tribune Company employees were notified Wednesday that many jobs will be cut at the Hartford Courant, Chicago Tribune, and Los Angeles Times - the first cutbacks since billionaire Sam Zell took the media company private last year. A total of 400 to 500 cuts companywide, focusing on corporate staff, will be made at the Chicago company's nine major newspapers. More from Editor And Publisher..... Clear Channel Reaches Deal On Club Fire - 2/13 - From Radio And Records: In a tentative deal reached by Clear Channel lawyers and the lawyers representing hundreds of survivors and victims' relatives, the broadcaster will pay a $22 million settlement for the 2003 West Warwick RI nightclub fire. The settlement, which was filed in court in Providence on 2/13, and awaits approval from the bench, will bring the total money that Clear Channel has paid to victims and survivors to more than $70 million. A handful of participants and corporations were sued after the fire, including Clear Channel which sponsored and promoted the concert through its local station, WHJY. WHJY evening personality and the show's emcee, Mike "The Doctor" Gonsalves, died on stage during the fire, as did the band's lead guitarist, Ty Longley..... DOJ Approval Of Clear Channel Buyout Could Come Today - 2/13 - The $23 billion buyout of radio giant Clear Channel could get antitrust approval from the Department Of Justice as soon as today. The proposed buyout by Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners, which was announced more than a year ago, was approved last month by the Federal Communications Commission on the condition that the company sell some radio assets. More in the NY Times..... Balboni Leaving NECN? - 2/13 - The Boston Herald reports that New England Cable News founder and president Phil Balboni, who turns 65 on Friday, has one foot out the door of the Newton newsroom. Balboni, a former Channel 5/WCVB exec and TV guru, is credited with creating "Chronicle" and also was the brains behind pairing Natalie Jacobson and Chet Curtis on the anchor desk..... Cramer: Radio Stocks "Over" - 2/12 - TV financial guru Jim Cramer calls radio stocks "over." He says that "great cashflow" is not enough, anymore. The video is at thestreet.com..... Entercom Announces Sox Team For WEEI - 2/11 - Entercom Boston announced its Red Sox radio team today for the 2008 season, a quartet of talent that includes WEEI midday host Dale Arnold. Veteran play-by-play man Joe Castiglione is set to begin his 26th season of calling Red Sox games, while Dave O Brien enters his second year in Boston, and will call the bulk of the games, a minimum of 135 this season. When O'Brien is away from the Red Sox booth to attend to his ESPN national baseball duties, the role will be filled by either Arnold or studio host Jon Rish. Arnold most recently was the Bruins' play-by-play announcer for NESN, a role he served for 11 seasons. More in the Boston Globe..... Finneran Drops Lobbying Plan - 2/11 - Former House speaker Thomas Finneran, host of a morning talk show on WRKO, is bowing to pressure from the radio station's management and will abandon his plan to set up a Beacon Hill lobbying practice. More in the Boston Globe..... Big Bowl Ratings For 25 - 2/5 - The Super Bowl on Boston's Channel 25/WFXT attracted 80 percent of all available Boston area TV viewers on Sunday with a massive 54.4 rating. The game attracted "only" 65 precent of available viewers in the NYC market..... Julie Donaldson To WHDH - 2/5 - Julie Donaldson - SportsNet New York's reporter covering the Knicks, Nets, and Mets - has ditched the cable station for Boston's NBC affiliate, WHDH. Donaldson, a former Miss Florida, will be WHDH's sports reporter and anchor, covering the Celtics, Red Sox, and the 18-1 Patriots. Donaldson officially begins duty later this month at spring training in Florida with the Sox..... More: Changes At WBOS - 2/5 - From the Boston Globe: The question isn't why WBOS-FM (92.9) changed its format, but why now? The adult album alternative (a.k.a. "soft rock") station made its move this past Friday at 5 PM, dropping its on-air announcers to go DJ-free in the style of "Mike" WMKK-FM (93.7). The station, which now calls itself Radio 92.9, expects to retain or rehire several staffers in part-time, fill-in, or off-air positions, with only full-time DJ John Laurenti entirely gone from the station at this point. WBOS has also changed its playlist to focus on alternative rock from the past two decades with automated announcements between most of the songs, by the likes of Peter Gabriel, Pearl Jam, Jane's Addiction, and Offspring. The station also dropped Holly Harris's long-running Sunday blues show..... Globe Profiles New 4 ND Jeff Kiernan - 2/5 - When the results from the November 2007 ratings sweeps appeared on his computer in the Channel 4/WBZ newsroom, Jeff Kiernan was quietly thrilled. The station, perennially stuck in third place in most of the day's newscasts, had captured first place in the hotly contested and lucrative 11 PM newscast. "There was a genuine sense of accomplishment and a genuine sense of pride in the work that was done that month and a tremendous amount of appreciation that viewers tuned in," says Kiernan, WBZ's new news director. "At the same time, there was a sense of, 'Golly, we can turn some eyeballs.' To sustain that will require a tremendous amount of hard work and further evolution." More in the Boston Globe..... Chris Tyler To Program XKS & JMN - 2/4 - Chris Tyler, assistant program director and music director of Clear Channel's rhythmic contemporary WXKS, Kiss 108, gets the program director gig there and at sister station, urban WJMN, Jam'n 94.5. He replaces Cadillac Jack, the operations manager of CC's Boston radio cluster, who is heading to NYC to program CC's urban WWPR, Power 105.1..... AAA WBOS Relaunches - 2/4 -  Radio And Records tells us that Greater Media triple A WBOS Boston relaunched as Radio 92.9 WBOS at 6 PM on 2/1. The new approach appears to be a triple A and alternative hybrid, or adult alternative. The station's website, "Want more music and less talk? Then 92.9 is the only place on the dial to get exactly that! Radio 92.9 brings you the best music from artists you love - Nirvana, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Green Day, Pearl Jam, the Dave Matthews Band and many more." According to acting Program Director Dana Marshall, "We view Radio 92.9 as being a next-generation triple A station, focusing more on the younger side of the adult demo. We are very excited to put a fresh face on WBOS and give Boston a rocking stations for adults".....Older news goes to DCRTV's News Archive. Copyright Dave Hughes/DCRTV.....  |
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