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DCRTV Front - NYC - Contact Us - Mailbag - Advertise - Support DCRTV - DCRTV Plus Boards: RI Boston Radio - RI Providence Radio - RI Hartford Radio John Mayer To Do PMs At KCI - 2/1 - FMQB tells us that contemporary hit WKCI in New Haven names John Mayer its new assistant program director and afternoon drive talent. Mayer fills the void left when Trey Morgan segued to contemporary hit WHTZ, Z100, in NYC..... 4's Hasbrouck To Chicago - 1/28 - Dawn Hasbrouck, a weekend anchor and weekday reporter at Boston's Channel 4/WBZ, heads to her native Chicago to anchor the noon news at Fox's WFLD-TV..... Former GBHer Pleads Guilty To Embezzlement - 1/26 - A former accounting manager at Channel 2/WGBH pled guilty late Friday to embezzling nearly $500,000 from the station and using the cash on vacations, golf, dining, liquor and clothes.Philip McCabe, 49, was sentenced to two years in the House Correction, six months to serve, with the balance suspended. Superior Court Judge Peter Lauriat ordered the Reading resident to pay $25,000, the amount of the deductible not covered by the insurance which reimbursed most of the loss. The Boston Herald has more..... 5's Huff To Keep Job Despite Husband's Senate Win - 1/22 - Addressing husband Scott Brown’s historic US Senate win, Channel 5/WCVB reporter Gail Huff said she plans to keep her TV reporting job and won’t be granting any interviews - including to her own station. The Boston Herald has more..... New Senator's Wife Works At 5 - 1/21 - The spotlight shining on Senator-elect Scott Brown now lands on a family member who largely avoided the campaign glare: veteran Channel 5/WCVB reporter Gail Huff, Brown’s wife, who has carved out her own niche as a broadcast journalist and working mother. The Boston Globe has more..... WEEI Cans Pete Sheppard - 1/21 - Pete Sheppard, who spent more than 10 years as a contributor and fill-in host on sports radio WEEI's "The Big Show," has had his position eliminated by Entercom Communications, which owns the station. The Boston Globe has more..... Former 7er Sentenced For Kiddie Porn - 1/20 - Bob Gamere, a former sports guy at Channel 7/WHDH who pleaded guilty in September to charges of transporting and possessing child pornography, was sentenced yesterday to five years in federal prison and a lifetime of probation. He's 71. The Boston Globe has more..... Health Issues Sideline Vicevich - 1/14 - Hartford's WTIC-AM (1080) "Sound Off Connecticut" late morning host Jim Vicevich is off the air for health reasons. Until he returns, Ray Dunaway's morning show is extended until 10 AM, with a Sean Hannity repeat from 10 AM until noon..... Clear Channel Plans Talk For New WXKS-AM - 1/14 - Clear Channel plans to debut a new conservative AM talk radio station in April and is trying to steal WRKO lynchpin Rush Limbaugh - who has been on ’RKO’s airwaves for 15 years. Spanish music station WXKS-AM (1200) - which recently upgraded to 50,000 watts and is based in Newton - is flipping to a news talk format. Clear Channel is currently in talks with its subsidiary, Premiere Radio Networks, which syndicates Limbaugh’s show. Clear Channel also wants to snag Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck, whose show airs on WRKO-AM (680) on Saturday night. The Boston Herald has more..... Clear Channel To Move WXKS-AM Calls - 1/14 - From Tom Taylor at Radio-Info.com: Clear Channel’s new 50-kw Boston talker will take the “WXKS-AM” calls. The station is the current WKOX at 1200 and Clear Channel has been waiting for years to get its 50-kw technical upgrade built and to install a new mainstream format. WKOX was historically licensed to suburban Framingham, out between the I-495 and Route 128 – halfway to Worcester, in other words. It operated with 10-kw daytime and 1-kw at night. Finally, it’s got 50,000 watts day and night, from new city of license Newton, closer in to Boston – and Clear Channel says they’ll launch a news/talk format on April 1. Boston is the one top 10 market where Clear Channel has a smallish cluster – just two FMs (top-ranked CHR “Kiss 108” WXKS-FM and rhythmic “Jam’n’ 94.5” WJMN) and two AMs. One of those is WKOX at 1200 and the other is the Everett-licensed WXKS-AM at 1430. It’s currently doing Spanish contemporary, and now we learn that Clear Channel will pull the calls off of 1430 (where they don’t do much for the Spanish format) and use them on the news/talker at 1200. We also know who will be running sales for WXKS-AM – Alan Chartrand. Before he managed Greater Media talker WTKK (96.9) for four years, he was the GM at Jam’n. Most recently he’s been running his own Simply Good Marketing. Tom McConnell is Clear Channel’s market manager for both Boston and Providence..... WPRO's Cianci Eyes Political Run - 1/13 - Disgraced ex-Providence mayor and WPRO talk radio gabster Vincent "Buddy" Cianci Jr. said he's considering getting back into the political arena with a run against US Representative Patrick Kennedy or the city's current mayor. The Boston Herald has more..... WRCH Tops Hartford - 1/13 - WRCH tops the Hartford radio ratings. The numbers are at Radio-Info.com..... WDBY Goes Country - 1/11 - Danbury, Connecticut's WDBY flips from hot adult contemporary Y105 to country as "Kicks 105.5." The Cumulus station is licensed to Patterson NY..... WAMG & WLLH Back To Spanish - 1/11 - Boston-area WAMG (890 AM) and WLLH (1400 AM) sell for $1.8 million and will go Spanish. The new owner is Ivon Gois of Gois Broadcasting. WAMG, Dedham, and WLLH, Lowell, had programmed Spanish tropical before J Sports flipped the combo to all-sports in 2005, when the stations sold for $9 million..... Andy Gresh To WBZ-FM - 1/7 - "Mad Dog Radio" host Andy Gresh has exited Sirius XM and NYC regional cable sports network SNY to return to New England at CBS Radio's sports WBZ-FM, The Sports Hub. He'll be doing fill-in work, for the time-being. The Boston Herald has more..... Bone Break For Lobel - 1/7 - Bob Lobel, the legendary Boston media personality who took a buyout in April 2008 from Channel 4/WBZ, slipped and fell in his yard last week, shattering his femur in four places. The break required surgery, his 11th trip to the operating room in 10 years, the Boston Herald has more..... Boston Globe Loses Foon Rhee - 1/6 - Foon Rhee, the deputy national political editor for the Boston Globe, will be joining the Sacramento Bee as an associate editor starting February 1. Rhee, writing both editorials and columns, plans to cover national and local politics, as well as public affairs, for the California paper. The Politico has more..... FNX Makes Changes - 1/4 - FMQB reports that Boston alternative rocker WFNX is starting the New Year with a new on-air lineup with major changes throughout the day. Beginning in AM Drive, the station has cancelled "The Sandbox" morning show, replacing it with a new show co-hosted by longtime WFNX personality and program director Keith Dakin and the "Sandbox's" Fletcher, with news and current events covered by morning mainstay Henry Santoro. Elsewhere, former ‘FNX and WBCN personality Adam 12 returns to the station to take on afternoons, replacing Big Jim Murray, who will focus full-time on off-air duties, including a creative role in the new morning show. Also, syndicated 10 PM to midnight program "Loveline" will no longer air on the station. Night-time personality Paul Driscoll will expand his shift to replace "Loveline." Julie Kramer's midday show, including the long-running "Leftover Lunch" music feature, will not be affected by the changes..... 2 GBH TVers To Do GBH Radio Shows - 12/30 - Boston public radio outlet WGBH-FM (89.7) adds "The Emily Rooney Show" for middays, followed by "The Callie Crossley Show," starting 1/11. They're both personalities at sister WGBH-TV, Channel 2..... Brett Richards To WODS - 12/21 - Boston market veteran Brett Richards joins CBS's oldies outlet WODS, 103.3 FM, for weekend work..... FCC To Protect Sports Broadcasts - 12/16 - The Federal Communications Commission is moving to prevent cable operators from withholding local sports broadcasts from other television providers, including satellite and telecom companies. If approved, cable rivals would be able to gain access to all sorts of programming that previously has been off-limits. Dish Network, for example, would no longer be locked out of Philadelphia sports games owned by Comcast. AT&T's U-verse customers could get access to San Diego Padres games that it complains Cox is withholding from competitors. And Verizon Fios could obtain the rights to show high-definition sports events at Madison Square Garden. The Washington Post has more..... Weatherman Kaprielian Gone From NH TVer - 12/16 - From the Boston Herald: His over-the-top eccentric flare has made New Hampshire weatherman Al Kaprielian an iconic fixture, but the Derry TV station he's called home for a quarter-century isn't in his forecast anymore. Kaprielian - whose offbeat style and screechy voice have given him a cult-like status - was handed a pink slip this holiday season along with seven other "MyTV" employees. "They're doing some downsizing here. I'm going to stay in the area though. I’ve been up here 26 years," said the 48-year-old meteorologist, whose last day is December 31..... TIC Tops Hartford - 12/16 - WTIC-AM tops the Hartford radio ratings. All the numbers are at radio-info.com..... 12's Koles To Michigan - 12/14 - Steve Koles, assistant news director at Channel 12/WPRI in Providence, heads to Kalamazoo, Michigan, to be news director at WWMT-TV..... Peter Gammons To MLB Net - 12/8 - Peter Gammons is leaving ESPN after the winter meetings to join MLB Network. Gammons joined ESPN in 1989 and has been an integral part of its baseball coverage. He wrote for the Boston Globe starting in 1969 and also worked for Sports Illustrated from 1976 to 1978 and from 1986 to 1990. The Boston Globe has more..... New Studios For 61 - 12/8 - Tribune-owned Channel 61/WTIC, the Fox affiliate in Hartford, will debut its new high-definition studio at 10 PM Sunday in space that doubles as the Hartford Courant newsroom..... Julie Ruditzky Leaves 6 - 12/8 - NewsBlues tells us that Julie Ruditzky, a reporter at Channel 6/WLNE in Providence for the past five years, is out the door..... NYT Won't Sell WTG - 12/7 - The New York Times Company said today it won't sell the Worcester Telegram And Gazette after spending several months exploring a possible sale. The Boston Globe has more..... It's Official: Comcast Buying NBC - 12/3 - As expected, Comcast, the largest US cable-television company, makes the official announcement today that it will start a joint venture with General Electric's NBC Universal unit, creating an entertainment company valued at about $37 billion. Comcast will merge cable channels worth $7.25 billion with the NBC Universal assets, valued at $30 billion, the companies said today in a statement. Comcast also will contribute $6.5 billion in cash. The cable operator will own 51 percent of the new entity, which Jeffrey Zucker will lead. The deal gives Philadelphia-based Comcast the USA, CNBC, MSNBC, and Bravo cable channels, NBC's broadcast networks and stations, a film studio, and amusement parks. Bloomberg has more..... Comcast Purchase Of NBC Gets Closer - 12/1 - General Electric has reached a tentative agreement with the French media conglomerate Vivendi that clears the way for the sale of NBC Universal, including the flagship NBC network, to Comcast, the nation's largest cable operator. The NY Times has more..... "NewsHour" Partners With GlobalPost - 11/30 - The reformatted "PBS NewsHour" does a news gathering partnership with Boston-based GlobalPost. The TV news program will collaborate with GlobalPost's network of approximately 70 correspondents around the world. GlobalPost correspondents and videographers will jointly produce weekly video news segments that will air on "NewsHour" and will also appear on the show's website..... Imus To Hartford - 11/30 - Hartford's classical WCCC-AM adds NYC-based Don Imus for mornings..... GBH Transforming 89.7 Into News Talker - 11/29 - WGBH said it plans to air more of its popular TV programs on the radio as part of its effort to reinvent 89.7 FM as Boston’s next full-time news and information radio station - and set it apart from competitors that dominate the market. WGBH officials said the station will draw from its catalog of TV programs such as “Beat The Press,’’ “Nova,’’ and “The News Hour’’ and adapt them for 89.7 FM. The station also will give WGBH’s “Greater Boston’’ TV host Emily Rooney and “Beat The Press’’ commentator Callie Crossley a midday weekday show to discuss local news. Their untitled show, set to start January 4, will serve as the centerpiece of the new programming lineup that debuts Tuesday. The Boston Globe has more..... Art Lake Dies - 11/23 - Art Lake, an icon of broadcasting in Rhode Island whose long career at WJAR spanned from the heyday of radio to the arrival of high-definition television, died early Sunday. He was 85. Lake's death was announced by WJAR-TV, NBC10, where he worked for 60 years until his retirement three years ago. A cause of death was not given. More from the Providence Business News..... WEEI Tweet Sidelines Simmons - 11/23 - ESPN has suspended Bill Simmons, colloquially known as "Mr. Sports Individual," from Tweeting (aside from comments pertinent to his book tour). This is the eventual fallout from a series of tweets Simmons made a few weeks ago in response to Boston's WEEI that was critical of him. More from sbnation.com..... Journal Inquirer Sues Courant For Plagiarism - 11/19 - The Journal Inquirer has brought a lawsuit against the Hartford Courant, seeking financial damages for news stories the Courant acknowledged plagiarizing from its suburban competitor this summer. The JI's suit, filed in Hartford Superior Court alleges violation by the Courant of federal copyright law and Connecticut's Unfair Trade Practices Act. The suit documents 11 incidents of plagiarism by the Courant in July, August, and September and says there may have been more. More from the Journal Inquirer..... Kaiser Adds Duties At MRQ - 11/18 - Morning host Kaiser adds music coordinator duties at Hartford alt rocker WMRQ..... Marks-Bronner To Head NECN - 11/18 - NewsBlues has learned that Stacey Marks-Bronner will be named station manager of New England Cable News. NECN was purchased outright by cable giant Comcast from Hearst in June. Marks-Bronner was VP-general manager of the Fox-owned TV stations in Chicago for 11 years before being displaced in April 2004..... WCAP To Air College Hockey - 11/17 - Lowell MA's WCAP will air University Of Massachusetts/Lowell hockey, which are simulcasted on the school's WUML. Bob Ellis and Chaz Scoggins will call the action..... Butch Stearns Leaves 25 - 11/10 - Butch Stearns, sports anchor at Fox-owned Channel 25/WFXT in Boston, leaves due to a contract non-renewal. The Boston Herald has more..... KC101's Trey Morgan To NYC - 11/9 - Trey Morgan jumps from night duties at Hartford's WKCI, KC101, to do late night duties at Clear Channel contemporary hit sister WHTZ, Z100, in NYC..... XKS Leads Boston - 11/5 - WXKS-FM tops the Boston radio heap for October. More at Radio-Info.com..... Man Parachutes Off CT TV Tower - 11/5 - From the Hartford Courant: Police are investigating a report that someone parachuted off a television transmission tower on Rattlesnake Mountain near Hartford this morning. Police towed a car from near the transmission tower but did not know if it had any connection to the alarm and the person who may have parachuted off the tower. The tower was built in the early 1980s for Fox61 when Arnold Chase owned the station. Chase still owns the tower and rents space to Fox61 and WTXX, as well as Connecticut Public TV. Dozens of other tenants use the tower as well, including WRCH-FM, police departments and other communication companies, a Fox61 official said..... WSJ To Close Boston Bureau - 10/29 - The Wall Street Journal is closing its Boston bureau. The nine reporters in Boston will be able to apply for openings elsewhere at the NYC-based financial-oriented newspaper..... Globe Circ Down 18% - 10/26 - E&P is just out with the latest circulation numbers for newspapers around the country - and it ain't pretty. The Boston Globe saw a plunge of about 18 percent..... Raines Leaves XRV - 10/23 - Beau Raines has reportedly exited as program director of adult alternative rocker WXRV (92.9 FM) in Boston. He'd had the job not quite a year..... Andrew Gobeil To 6 - 10/21 - Veteran news anchor Andrew Gobeil is joining Channel 6/WLNE in Providence. Beginning 10/21, Gobeil will be joining Doreen Scanlon weekday mornings between 5 and 8 to co-anchor "Good Morning Providence." More from pbn.com..... Howie Carr "Stuck" At WRKO - 10/20 - Boisterous talkmeister Howie Carr has made no secret that he feels trapped at WRKO (680 AM) - but it appears he's stuck there. Peter Smyth, chairman and CEO of radio station owner Greater Media, which owns rival talker WTKK (96.9 FM), said yesterday that he has no plans to go after Carr again. Carr's contract with rival WRKO is up in 2012. The Boston Herald has more..... NY Times Won't Sell Globe - 10/14 - The New York Times Company said it has decided not to sell the Boston Globe, saying the paper’s financial performance had “significantly improved” in recent months. The company had been exploring a sale of New England’s largest newspaper and had received two bids to buy the Globe and the Worcester Telegram And Gazette, which it also owns. The Times Company said it is continuing to assess "strategic alternatives" for the Worcester paper. The Boston Globe has more..... TIC Takes Hartford - 10/13 - WTIC-AM tops the Hartford radio heap. All the September numbers are at Radio-Info.com..... DCRTV's On Twitter & Facebook - 10/9 - Get local radio and TV news, gossip, and commentary the instant it fires on DCRTV Dave's brain synapses at twitter.com/dcrtv. Also, check us out at facebook.com/dcrtv..... WEEI Remains Top Sports Talker - 10/9 - Boston’s new FM sports talk radio station, “98.5 The Sports Hub,” may be off to a strong start, but it still doesn’t stack up to sports powerhouse WEEI, new ratings show. Newcomer WBZ-FM scored a weeklong overall 4.0 share, good for 11th place, among men in the coveted 25- to 54-year-old demographic during September, the station’s first full ratings month on the air. Leading the pack was WEEI-AM (850), which nabbed the top spot with a 7.7 share. The Boston Herald has more..... Jim Hummel To WPRO - 10/9 - NewsBlues tells us that Jim Hummel, who abruptly quit as senior reporter at Channel 6/WLNE in Providence in July 2008, saying he was "just not comfortable with the direction that the station is going," is returning to investigative reporting in a new multimedia partnership with WPRO radio and the Ocean State Policy Research Institute..... XKS 1st In Boston - 10/9 - WXKS-FM tops the Boston radio heap. All of the September PPM numbers are at Radio-Info.com..... WEEI & ESPN Join Forces - 10/8 - From weei.com: The WEEI Sports Radio Network and ESPN Radio will join forces to bring ESPN’s national programming and personalities to New England’s top-rated sports radio station. The Boston- and Bristol-based broadcasters announced an affiliation agreement that will bring ESPN weekend and overnight programming to WEEI 850 AM. It also will bring a variety of play-by-play programming, including the Major League Baseball playoffs, the NBA and NBA playoffs, and the college football Bowl Championship Series, highlighted by the 2010 BCS national championship game in January. MLB playoff programming will begin this week. Staring November 2, WEEI will syndicate ESPN’s overnight programming, including AllNight with Jason Smith (1-5 AM Monday through Friday), as well as select weekend programming in and around its local coverage. As part of the agreement, Adam Schefter, ESPN’s NFL insider, will join Dennis and Callahan every Friday during the NFL season beginning this week, and Peter Gammons, ESPN’s veteran Major League Baseball insider, will join "The Big Show" with Glenn Ordway every week during the baseball playoffs and once a week next season. A slew of ESPN personalities also will be joining WEEI shows on a regular basis, throughout the week and the weekend..... Banks Don't Like CC's Debt - 10/7 - The NY Times is reporting that several big banks are reportedly not feeling the love for Clear Channel after being forced to uphold lending commitments in the buyout of the radio and billboard giant last year. Clear Channel's private equity owners have gone hat in hand to some big banks to help them keep Clear Channel from defaulting on its loans. However, the banks are have rejected the requests for help, which could mean Clear Channel could default by year-end or early next year. Locally, Clear Channel owns five radio stations in the DC area and four in Baltimore - including DC101, WPOC, Hot 99.5, WASH, WCAO, and Big 100.3..... Tierney To FNX - 10/5 - Mike Tierney becomes vice president of broadcast operations for the WFNX Radio Network. He comes from NYC's WXRK, where he was program director during its rock period..... Alan Dary Dies - 10/5 - Former Boston area radio and TV personality Alan Dary died on 10/2 at age 89. He worked at WBZ-AM, WHDH-AM, and WXKS-AM in the 1970s..... WTKK Lops Off Last 2 Hours Of Imus - 10/4 - The Boston Herald reports that talker WTKK (96.9 FM) is cutting back Don Imus and bringing in the locals to shore up its morning-drive slot in the highly competitive radio battle for commuting listeners in Boston. Starting Monday, the Greater Media-owned WTKK is moving the “Jim and Margery Show” - hosted by Jim Braude and Margery Eagan - to the coveted 7 AM-to-10 AM slot. Imus, who used to broadcast from 5 AM to 9 AM, will have the last two hours of his show lopped off, as he prepares to start simulcast broadcasting of his nationally syndicated show on Fox Business Network..... Feds Charge Rennie - 10/2 - The Boston Herald tells us that federal prosecutors filed criminal charges against a former financial adviser and radio host from Quincy who allegedly defrauded clients of at least $3.2 million. Gregg T. Rennie faces 13 counts of fraud in connection with the purchase or sale of securities and a single count of wire fraud, according to documents filed Wednesday in US District Court by the US Attorney’s Office in Boston. ennie, who was licensed to sell mutual funds and annuities, and provided investment advice as a host of the “Your Money” radio talk show on WBIX-AM (1060), allegedly bilked clients by enticing them to invest in funds that he diverted to pay personal expenses and business debts..... WNAC Moves MyNetworkTV To Subchannel - 9/30 - WNAC-TV in Providence is debuting MyNetworkTV on a new digital channel October 1 after years of airing it late-night on the Fox affiliate. The new channel, dubbed MyRITV, will air MyNetworkTV programming from 8 PM to 10 PM. WNAC had aired it from 11 PM to 1 PM since the mini-network's launch in 2006. B&C..... Former Columnist Sues Courant - 9/30 - A former Hartford Courant consumer-affairs columnist sued the newspaper and its owner on Tuesday, accusing the companies of violating his free speech rights by forcing him out of his job. Management took issue with columns and blog entries that were critical of Courant advertisers, saying the newspaper couldn't afford to lose the business, George Gombossy said in a complaint filed in Hartford Superior Court. He is seeking past and future economic losses, including fringe and retirement benefits, punitive damages and attorneys fees. AP has more..... Car Wreck For Howie Carr - 9/29 - The Boston Globe reports that Boston Herald columnist Howie Carr is apparently okay after crashing his car into a telephone pole in Wellesley Sunday morning. According to police, the 57-year-old scribe and WRKO talk-show host was driving south on Wellesley Avenue, between Oakland and Forest streets, when his 2004 Acura suddenly crossed into the oncoming lane, hit a curb, and slammed into a telephone pole. Wellesley police Sgt. Marie Cleary said Carr refused medical treatment and the car was towed. (The pole was split in half.) Carr was cited for a marked-lanes violation. "There were no signs of alcohol or anything suspicious of that nature," Cleary said yesterday. "It's a windy road there. I'm not sure if he was distracted for a moment"..... WW1 Unveils Cuts, Furloughs - 9/29 - DCRTV tipped you last week. And now we hear that Westwood One, which operates Metro Traffic, is unveiling more "cost saving" measures. Pay cuts that amount to five days' pay in the fourth quarter, on top of recent 5 percent salary cuts, to go with five furlough days. Employees are being told that every other week, from 10/12 to 12/20, their pay will be reduced by one day's pay. Basically, 10 days pay lost the rest of the year. For all full-timers. Those unpaid furlough days will include Thanksgiving and the day after. Part-timers aren't affected by today's plan. There's more at rbr.com..... GlobalPost Does CBS Deal - 9/28 - NewsBlues tells us that CBS News is expected to announce today that it has formed a partnership with Boston-based GlobalPost, a foreign news website that will provide CBS with reporting from its approximately 70 affiliated correspondents in 50 countries. GlobalPost was founded by Phillip Balboni, the creator of New England Cable News network, and Charles Sennott, a longtime foreign correspondent at the Boston Globe..... Cape Cod Broadcasting Files For Bankruptcy - 9/24 - Cape Cod Broadcasting, the Hyannis-based owner of four FM radio stations on Cape Cod, a classical music network and the CapeCod.com Web site, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection yesterday. The locally owned and operated broadcaster has insufficient funds to continue operating the business, unless the court gives it the go-ahead for a loan of up to $500,000. The company listed less than $50,000 in assets and $10 million to $50 million in debt in its bankruptcy filing. Cape Cod owns WQRC-FM (99.9), WOCN-FM (104.7), WKPE-FM (103.9) and WFCC-FM (107.5). The Boston Herald has more..... 4's Roche Has Rough Raft Ride - 9/23 - Channel 4/WBZ's Dan Roche has a very rough ride on a North Carolina rafting trip. And breaks his nose. More at wbz.com..... Botched Contest At KLB - 9/23 - The Boston Herald on a botched contest at Boston country outlet WKLB..... Wade & De La Garza Headed For Divorce - 9/23 - NewsBlues tells us that David Wade, who anchors mornings and noon on Channel 4/WBZ, and his wife of 12 years, Bianca de la Garza, who anchors mornings at Channel 5/WCVB, are headed for divorce. The gossip rags claim the marriage has been in trouble for some time, and Wade is broken-hearted..... Jade McCarthy To NESN - 9/23 - Jade McCarthy, who does news and sports fill-in work for Philadelphia's Channel 10/WCAU, is getting married this weekend and moving to Boston, where she'll join New England Sports Network in January..... WGBH Buys WCRB - 9/21 - Boston's commercial classical WCRB is being sold to non-commercial WGBH. Price: $14 million. Seller Nassau Broadcasting is doing a debt-for-equity swap with lender Goldman Sachs, and the biggest single station in its portfolio is WCRB (99.5 FM), licensed to Lowell MA. Now Goldman steers it to public radio/TV broadcaster WGBH, which already operates news/classical WGBH (89.7 FM) and PBS outlet Channel 2, WGBH-TV. According to Radio-Info.com, it's not yet clear whether WGBH will run WCRB as a non-commercial station, or continue its operation as a commercial station through a subsidiary..... WCTK Cans Sam Stevens - 9/21 - WCTK, Cat Country 107.1, in Providence fires longtime on air personality Sam Stevens, the radio trade pubs are reporting..... WRCH Tops Hartford Radio Heap - 9/16 - In Hartford, CBS keeps the top three spots to itself, as usual, starting with soft AC WRCH, 8.9 to 8.3. Then comes rhythmic WZMX (7.9 to 8.0) and talk WTIC-AM (7.1 to 7.6). More from Radio-Info.com..... Bruins Voice Fred Cusick Dies - 9/15 - Fred Cusick, the popular play-by-play voice for the Bruins for more than 40 years, has died. He was 90 years old. Cusick, who is scheduled to be inducted to the Massachusetts Broadcasters Hall Of Fame tomorrow night, was a signature voice of the Bruins during their 1970s heyday. His simple trademark call of "Score!" whenever Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito, Cam Neely and countless other Bruins put the puck in the net served as familiar punctuation on their goals. The Boston Globe has more..... More Boston Sports Radio Shifts Coming - 9/14 - From the Boston Globe: ESPN Radio's Boston affiliate, WAMG (AM 890), will go off the air today after four years plagued by a weak signal and limited local programming. But ESPN may not lack an outlet in the Boston market for long. According to multiple industry sources, ESPN is in discussions to air some of its national programming on WEEI (AM 850) during nights and weekends, with WEEI intending to move to an FM station within months. Entercom Communications, which owns WEEI, also owns two FM stations in Boston: WAAF 97.7/107.3, and Mike 93.7. ESPN Radio would then take over the 850 spot on the dial. The new ESPN 850 station would then be affiliated with the ESPN Boston website. This development adds to the recent frenzy in Boston sports radio competition, which became considerably more contentious in mid-August, when the CBS Radio-owned "98.5 The Sports Hub" launched on WBZ's FM signal, issuing the first legitimate challenge to WEEI's local dominance..... 1510 To Carry 5's Newscasts - 9/14 - From the Boston Globe: Boston audiences won't actually have to watch television to tune into Channel 5/WCVB's morning and evening newscasts. Commuters can listen to WCVB's news on WWZN (AM 1510) in their car radios. The two media outlets are partnering to simulcast WCVB's 6 AM and 5 PM newscasts on the Quincy radio station. The deal is promotional and does not include financial terms or advertising agreements. For WWZN, known as "The Zone" and "Revolution Boston" for its talk and sports shows, the partnership gives fans of WCVB, which wins most of the day's newscasts in Boston, a reason to check out the radio station..... 11 AM Newscast For 61 - 9/11 - Tribune's Channel 61/WTIC in Hartford adds an 11 AM newscast, starting 9/21.The station already has a 4-plus-hour morning show..... WTIC Promotes Ryan Jones - 9/4 - Morning show producer Ryan Jones is promoted to assistant program director and music director at hot adult contemporary WTIC in Hartford..... WFHN's Sharon Fogaren Dies - 9/4 - Sharon Fogaren, morning show co-host at WFHN in Providence, passed away on 9/2 from complications from a heart attack she had on 8/20. She was 43..... Cuts At WGBH - 9/1 - Two years after opening an $85 million state-of-the-art headquarters, WGBH - producer of "Frontline," "Nova," and other PBS shows - must trim about $7 million from its budget. Some now view the new headquarters as a monument to excess. "The question many employees had was, what is the benefit of building this relative sort of palace?" says a laid-off employee. The Boston Globe has more..... Salem Promotes Pat Ryan - 8/31 - Salem appoints Pat Ryan to be general manager of its three Boston radio outlets - WEZE, WROL, and WWDJ. Ryan, a Boston native, is a 14-year broadcasting vet, all in the Salem Boston cluster. Most recently, she served as the cluster's general sales manager..... WBCN Calls To NC - 8/31 - CBS Radio has "parked" the legendary WBCN calls on a Charlotte NC sports talker it owns, as Boston's hot adult contemporary 104.1 picks up the WBMX calls, which had been on 98.5, now sports talker WBZ-FM..... Colin McEnroe To WNPR - 8/27 - Colin McEnroe, former CBS Radio WTIC-AM host, joins Connecticut Public Broadcasting's WNPR in Hartford for a one-hour show at 1 PM starting 8/31..... New LSM At KLB - 8/27 - Susan Remkiewicz has been named local sales manager of Greater Media's country WKLB in Boston. She comes from Live Nation, where she served as director of sponsorship sales..... Red Sox Return To WEEI - 8/25 - Entercom New England announced today that, effective with the team's game against the Chicago White Sox Wednesday evening, August 26th, all future Boston Red Sox games will be carried on WEEI, 850 AM, in Boston, the flagship station of the WEEI Sports Radio Network. From 1995 to 2006, Red Sox games were carried exclusively on WEEI. In 2006, the games were shifted to Entercom sister station WRKO, AM 680. More at weei.com..... Cox Promotes Faller - 8/25 - Cox Radio promotes Robin Faller to vice president and market manager for its Southern Connecticut cluster. He'd been general manager for Cox's stations in Stamford and Norwalk..... Controversial Cut At Courant - 8/18 - The Hartford Courant and its former consumer columnist, George Gombossy, agree on one thing: that Mr. Gombossy was laid off this month. But was it because he would not stop unfavorable articles about advertisers, or because his job was simply eliminated? The NY Times has more..... RCH Tops Hartford - 8/17 - Adult contemporary WRCH tops the Hartford radio heap. All the market's early summer numbers are at radio-info.com..... Bob Walker To WCTK - 8/17 - Bob Walker gets names program director and on-air talent at Providence country outlet WCTK, 98.1 FM. He comes from WKTU in Milwaukee..... XKS Tops Boston - 8/13 - Contemporary hit WXKS-FM takes the top spot in the latest Boston radio ratings round-up. All the July PPM numbers are at radio-info.com..... CBS Launches Boston's "Hub" Sports Talker - 8/13 - From the Boston Globe: The game is on between Boston’s sports talk radio stations as the newest player, CBS's 98.5 FM The Sports Hub, debuts today with its lineup of on-air personalities. The station launched at 1 PM. Mornings, from 6 AM to 10 AM, will be hosted by Fred Toucher and Rich Shertenlieb, better known as Toucher and Rich. The lineup includes Gary Tanguay of Comcast SportsNet and former New England Patriots' quarterback Scott Zolak from 10 AM to 2 PM; Comcast SportsNet personality Michael Felger and Boston Globe sportswriter Tony Massarotti from 2 PM to 6 PM; and Damon "D.A." Amendolara from 6 PM to midnight..... 7 Back To UHF - 8/13 - The FCC has granted Channel 7/WHDH permission to move its digital signal back to the UHF band after numerous reception complaints since the Sunbeam station moved its digital signal from UHF to its old channel 7 analog "home" on 6/12..... BCN's Final Hours - 8/12 - CBS Radio pulls the plug on legendary Boston rocker WBCN. More in the Boston Globe. BCN will continue as a digital HD2 outlet and webstream - but no longer as a main-signal, fully-staffed radio station..... New Haven Register Parent Out Of B'ruptcy - 8/12 - Journal Register, publisher of the New Haven Register and other newspapers, said it has emerged from bankruptcy protection and secured new financing from its lenders, six months after making its Chapter 11 filing. The bankruptcy process was relatively quick because the company, before making its filing in February, had reached an agreement to cancel its stock and become a private company controlled by its lenders. AP has more..... Ira Apple Dies - 8/12 - Ira Apple died Tuesday in a hospice in Maryland after suffering a series of aneurysms in early July. He was 74. Apple programmed a number of radio stations, including Baltimore's WBAL, Pittsburgh's KDKA, and Boston's WBZ, before his current job with the Traffic Directors Guild Of America. He also served as a sales manager with CBSI..... LCMedia Plans BCN Documentary - 8/10 - FMQB tells us that LCMedia is working on a documentary about legendary rock station WBCN/Boston, titled "The American Revolution," covering primarily 1968-1974, as well as its final days this summer. More information can be found at WBCNthefilm.com. The filmmakers are also looking for personal recollections, memorabilia, audio, photos, and more, and can be contacted through their website..... NYT Confirms Globe Is Up For Sale - 8/6 - The New York Times Company today confirmed for the first time that it is seeking a possible sale of he Boston Globe. The Times Company disclosed in a quarterly financial report filed with the Securities And Exchange Commission that it hired Wall Street bank Goldman, Sachs, And Co. "to explore the potential sale of its New England Media Group," which includes the Globe, Worcester Telegram And Gazette, and their websites. More in the Globe..... Infinity Radio Founder Dies - 8/3 - Michael A. Wiener, a founder of the Infinity Broadcasting chain of radio stations, which once includes Boston's WBCN, who in retirement focused more on philanthropic work supporting the performing arts and research on heart disease, died on Sunday. He was 71. The NY Times has more..... George Taylor Morris Dies - 8/2 - George Taylor Morris, (left) who was the morning host on Sirius XM Satellite Radio's Deep Tracks classic rock channel and did the "XM Artist Confidential" series, has died at his home in Reston from throat cancer. He was 62. Over the years, Morris, nicknamed "GTM," worked at the NYC area's WHLI, WWDJ, WPIX-FM, as well as Boston's WCOZ, NBC's young adult radio network "The Source," and at the Westwood One Radio Network. In 1984, Morris was recruited by the Global Satellite Network to write, produce, and host "Reelin' In The Years," a weekly syndicated album rock show that was a mix of music, interviews, commentary, vintage commercials, plus film and TV clips. More details about Morris' career is in DCRTV's 8/2 Mailbag..... Merloni To Stay With WEEI - 7/28 - Boston sports radio newcomer WBZ-FM made a fierce bid for WEEI regular Lou Merloni, but the former infielder has inked a deal to stay with the sports powerhouse and Glenn Ordway’s “The Big Show.” Merloni said that he auditioned last week for a spot as Michael Felger’s afternoon-drive co-host on the new WBZ-FM (98.5) “The Sports Hub.” Felger plans to go up against Ordway when the CBS station debuts August 13. CBS made Merloni a lucrative offer but the Entercom-owned WEEI-AM (850) stepped up in the end, and Merloni decided to stay. More from the Boston Herald..... Bill Cusack Dies - 7/27 - Boston area radio veteran Bill Cusack, who worked at the old WXKS-AM and at WPLM-FM/AM, died on 7/21 at age 76 after a long illness..... Fisch & Smart To WMRQ - 7/24 - FMQB tells us that modern rock WMRQ in Hartford enlists the services of Fisch for afternoons and Ryan Smart for nights. Smart was last seen in middayys at contemporary hit WKCI in New Haven. Fish will also continue as producer for ESPN Radio..... NYT To Sell Sox, NESN - 7/24 - The New York Times Company said it expects by January to sell its stake in the Boston Red Sox and New England Sports Network. But the company's executives declined to address the possible sale of the Boston Globe. The Globe has more..... BCN Plans On-Air Goodbye - 7/23 - From Radio-Info.com: WBCN is throwing itself a "Farewell"� event on the air - a four day tribute to the station and its legacy as "The Rock Of Boston."� The on-air event kicks off Saturday, August 8 at 10 AM. WBCN is going away on August 13, when CBS moves the Hot AC WBMX "Mix 98.5"� to WBCN's 104.1 frequency, to make room for a new FM sports talk outlet at 98.5. WBCN has been on the air as a rock station for more than 40 years, and was the home for such legendary radio personalities as Charles Laquidara, Howard Stern, Oedipus, and more..... Globe Union OKs Contract - 7/21 - After rejecting an earlier offer, the Boston Globe's largest union voted overwhelmingly Monday to approve a new contract that would give the financially struggling newspaper $10 million in concessions. AP has more..... Reilly New JFK Imaging Voice - 7/20 - John Reilly, the production director of CBS Radio's WBCN in Boston, is the new imaging voice for CBS's new DC sports talker, WJFK, 106.7 The Fan..... Walter Cronkite Dies - 7/18 - Walter Cronkite, America's preeminent television journalist of the 1960s and 1970s who as anchor and managing editor of "CBS Evening News" played a primary role in establishing television as the dominant national news medium of that era, died Friday night at age 92. The Washington Post has more..... 30's Local News Goes HD - 7/17 - NBC-owned Channel 30/WVIT in Hartford has become the first Connecticut TVer to broadcast local TV news in high-definition, as of 7/16. Also, WVIT has trashed its "NBC30" branding, in favor "NBC Connecticut"..... CBS Pulls Plug On BCN - 7/15 - Wednesday's Boston Globe has more on yesterday's shocking news that CBS Radio is essentially pulling the plug on rocker WBCN (104.1 FM) after 40 years. The legendary station will be moved to 104.1's digital HD Radio subchannel, which few listeners have the gear to hear..... CBS To Put Sports On Boston's 98.5, Mix To 104.1 - 7/14 - From Radio-Info.com: CBS Radio's recent success doing sports in markets like Detroit leads Dan Mason to make two more flips - and in the case of Boston, that means the demise of Boston rocker WBCN at 104.1. CBS is going to transfer its hot AC "Mix" WBMX from 98.5 to 104.1. On August 13, the new "Sports Hub" will debut on 98.5, featuring play-by-play from the NFL Patriots and NHL Boston Bruins, plus the current WBCN morning show of Toucher and Rich. New call letters for 98.5 - WBZ-FM. That station will directly challenge Boston's entrenched all-sports station, Entercom's WEEI at 850 AM. In Washington, CBS confirms the much-rumored conversion of talker WJFK to sports as "The Fan," as of July 20. The lineup will include the NBA Washington Wizards, plus the Westwood One NFL package..... 8's Cohn To Tampa - 7/9 - NewsBlues tells us that Alan Cohn, an investigative reporter at Channel 8/WTNH in New Haven, has been hired at WFTS-TV in Tampa..... Shelly Sinland Sues 61 - 7/8 - A veteran political reporter at Hartford's Fox61 filed an age and gender discrimination complaint with the Connecticut Human Rights And Opportunities Commission and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Tuesday. Shelly Sindland, 40, who has been a reporter at the station for more than 14 years, alleges in the complaint that the station has engaged in a pattern of discrimination against older women at the station by demoting those over the age of 35 and paying some of the female reporters less than the male reporters. The complaint “speaks for itself,” Elizabeth Conklin from the law firm of Livingston, Adler, Pulda, Meiklejohn, and Kelly said Tuesday afternoon. Conklin said once a complaint like this is filed the commission has more than 200 days to investigate and depending on the outcome of the investigation it may then become a lawsuit. More at ctnewsjunkie.com..... WGBH's Lou Wiley Retires - 7/3 - Lou Wiley, the longtime executive editor of PBS's "Frontline," has retired. Wiley worked for Boston's PBS station WGBH, which produces "Frontline," for 33 years. He was involved in the creation of the show, along with other programming. More from TVNewser..... Lenders Steering CC To Bankruptcy - 6/29 - From mysanantonio.com: The signal from Clear Channel's radio empire may be fading out. When holding company CC Media Holdings announced this month it wanted to reposition debt between its radio and billboard units, lenders for last year's massive private equity acquisition of Clear Channel signaled their intention to block the move. The lenders evidently want to steer the company into bankruptcy so they can pick up the assets cheap and sell them. The lenders apparently believe that is the way to get the most amount of money back from the loans made when Boston-based firms Bain Capital Partners and THL Partners acquired the San Antonio company in one of the last big private equity deals as the credit crunch worsened..... TV Pitchman Billy Mays Dies - 6/28 - Billy Mays (right), the burly, bearded television pitchman whose boisterous hawking of products such as Orange Glo and OxiClean made him a pop-culture icon, has died. He was 50. According to AP, Tampa police said Mays was found unresponsive by his wife Sunday morning. A fire rescue crew pronounced him dead at 7:45 AM. It was not immediately clear how he died. He said he was hit on the head when an airplane he was on made a rough landing Saturday, and Mays' wife told investigators the TV personality didn't feel well before he went to bed that night..... Zellner Jumps From Sirius XM To CC - 6/25 - DCRTV hears that Jon Zellner is leaving Sirius XM as the satrad firm's vice president of music programming to join Clear Channel as its senior vice president of programming. He'll work with 25 major and mid-sized markets..... 25 To Move 5 PM News To 6 PM - 6/23 - Come September, Channel 25/ WFXT will shift its 5 PM newscast to 6 PM, clearing the way at 5 PM for a new syndicated talk show hosted by Dr. Mehmet Oz, Oprah Winfrey’s regular health expert. The Boston Globe has more..... 25 Starts HD News - 6/21 - Fox owned-and-operated Channel 25/WFXT becomes the last Boston TVer to begin broadcasting local news in high-definition, as of 6/14. Now, all of Boston's TV news stations are broadcasting local news in 16:9 high-def. More from Boston TV News..... Comcast Buys All Of NECN - 6/18 - B&C tells us that Comcast said Thursday that it has acquired the remaining 50 percent interest it didn't already own in New England Cable News from Hearst, for an undisclosed sum. NECN, the largest 24-hour regional news network with more than 3 million subscribers in all six New England states, was formed in 1992 as a joint venture between Hearst and Comcast's predecessor cable operator in the area, Continental Cablevision. Continental became MediaOne in 1996 and in 1999 MediaOne was purchased by AT&T. Comcast purchased AT&T Broadband in 2002..... CBS Syndie Arm Sues 6 - 6/17 - CBS Television Distribution is suing Global Broadcasting, owner of Channel 6/WLNE Providence, for failing to pay nearly $2.2 million in license fees on such CTD-distributed shows as "Dr. Phil," "Inside Edition," "Rachael Ray," "The Insider," and "Entertainment Tonight." According to the complaint, filed Monday at the Los Angeles County Superior Court, Global and WLNE has only paid $682,023 of the $2,852,564 that the company owes on the five syndicated programs. More from B&C has more..... New Chief Of Globe's DC Bureau - 6/16 - Christopher Rowland gets named head of the Boston Globe's Washington news bureau. He replaces Peter Canellos, who was named editor of the New York Times-owned Globe's editorial pages last week..... Christensen Leaves TIC-TV - 6/16 - Susan Christensen, who has anchored the 10 PM news on Tribune's Channel 61/WTIC in Hartford for the past 13 years, is leaving the station Friday. She wants to spend more time with family. The Hartford Courant has more..... NY Times Prepares To Sell Globe - 6/10 - The New York Times Company appears interested in getting rid of he Boston Globe, hiring investment bank Goldman Sachs to manage a potential sale of a newspaper that has plummeted in value since its purchase in 1993. The Globe, citing two potential buyers it did not name, said Goldman Sachs would request bids for the 137-year-old newspaper in the next couple of weeks. The Times Company previously announced it had hired the investment bank to sell its 17.5 percent stake in the Boston Red Sox and related sports properties. AP has more..... Globe Union Rejects Concessions - 6/9 - The Boston Globe's largest union Monday night narrowly rejected $10 million in wage and benefit cuts, and about an hour later the paper's owner declared an impasse in negotiations and imposed a 23 percent pay cut on the union's members, effective next week. The Globe has more..... Globe Truckers Accept Concessions - 6/8 - The union representing more than 200 Boston Globe delivery truck drivers approved $2.5 million in wage and benefit cuts, leaving only one major union to ratify concessions that the Globe’s owner, the New York Times Company, says it needs to continue to operate the paper. More from the Globe..... Severin Returns To WTKK - 6/3 - Jay Severin, the right-wing talk show host on Boston's WTKK radio who was suspended for a month after making derogatory statements about Mexicans, returned to the air yesterday and offered a "sincere apology" for his "hurtful, unkind, and wrong" commentary. "Most especially to the members of the Mexican community and Mexican-American community, I regret my remarks and apologize for them," he said, reading from a statement. But it didn't take long for Severin to return to familiar subjects - abortion, the Supreme Court, Muslims - and switch from contrition to more churlish language. The Boston Globe has more..... Randy Price To 5 - 6/2 - NewsBlues tells us that Randy Price, who abruptly resigned in February as primary news anchor at Channel 7/WHDH in Boston after a series of clashes with management, has been hired across the street as the new morning news anchor at Channel 5/WCVB. He replaces Jim Boyd, who left in December..... Mish Michaels Leaves 4 - 6/2 - NewsBlues tells us that Mish Michaels, a part-time meteorologist and full-time environmental reporter at Channel 4/WBZ in Boston, is leaving the station on 7/31. She joined the CBS-owned station in 2001 from the Weather Channel..... Severin To Return To WTKK - 6/1 - Greater Media talk WTKK (96.9 FM) host Jay Severin will return to the airwaves on Tuesday, 6/2, after being suspended on 4/30 due to controversial remarks about illegal aliens and swine flu. A statement from Greater Media says, "We have had conversations with Jay Severin over the past several weeks about his hurtful, inappropriate remarks. He understands that we will not accept this type of commentary on our airwaves in the future." More from R&R..... 4 & 25 Share Plan Hits Snag - 6/1 - NewsBlues tells us that plans by CBS-owned Channel 4/WBZ and Fox-owned Channel 25/WFXT in Boston to strike a news content sharing agreement have hit a union snag. The two stations were scheduled to begin today sharing chopper video, and, in about a month, the arrangement was to have been expanded to news conference coverage.But IBEW Local 1228, which represents photographers and behind-the-scenes staff at both stations, has filed a grievance with the National Labor Relations Board over the proposal..... 4 & 25 To Pool News Video - 5/27 - Several months after Fox and NBC began modeling their content pooling sevice, known as LNS - Local News Service, Boston's CBS O&O Channel 4/WBZ and FOX O&O Channel 25/WFXT are planning to pool video content starting 6/1st. Many local TV stations are viewing the recently launched FOX-NBC model as a very inspired move. More from B&C..... 4 & 5 Top Boston TV Ratings - 5/22 - In the highly competitive May ratings period, Channel 5/WCVB captured the top ratings for most of the daytime newscasts, while Channel 4/WBZ maintained its perch as the top-rated station at 11 PM. More from the Boston Globe..... Randy Price Talking To 5? - 5/21 - Longtime Boston TV newsman Randy Price may be returning to the local news scene - as a reporter/anchor for Channel 5/WCVB . Price, the face of Channel 7/WHDH for 12 years and the city’s first openly gay anchorman, was dumped by 7News in February after a series of clashes with management over the direction of the newscast. He's reportedly met with the big guns at WCVB and will try out with morning anchorgal Bianca de la Garza as the station seeks a replacement for Jim Boyd, who decamped to thebostonchannel.com back in December. The Boston Herald has more..... Connecticut To Honor Tommy Edison - 5/20 - The nation's first blind traffic reporter, Tommy Edison, will honored by State Of Connecticut and local Officials on 5/21 in a special ceremony in Milford. The governor is the proclaiming the day for him and for his "remarkable dedication to helping others in traffic while being completely visually impaired since birth." Edison is a life-long Connecticut resident and has worked at Star 99.9 for the past 15 years..... Liz Walker To Do Show For 5 - 5/20 - Liz Walker, who retired from Channel 4/WBZ in Boston in December after nearly three decades at the CBS station, has been hired across the street at Hearst-Argyle's Channel 5/WCVB to front a weekly series, “Better Living With Liz Walker.” The first show debuts on 6/4.... CSB To Survive Bankruptcy - 5/19 - Dick Robinson,who founded the Connecticut School Of Broadcasting in 1964, has won approval to buy back the bankrupt business and campuses in seven states for about $1 million. More from the Hartford Courant..... Boston TV Ad Rev Down - 5/14 - Advertising revenue in the Boston TV market fell more than double the national average last year, according to a new report, as politicians spent less on commercials in Massachusetts than in other states and the recession caused auto dealerships and other companies to cut back on TV ads. In all, ad revenue for Boston TV stations fell $66 million, or 13 percent, with WFXT-TV (Channel 25) having the biggest drop, losing more than a quarter of its revenue in 2008, according to a survey of 210 TV markets by BIA Financial Network. Nationally, stations on average had a 6 percent revenue decline in 2008. There's more from the Boston Globe..... Hartford's 104.1 Back To WMRQ - 5/14 - From Radio-Info.com: The $7.9 million sale of WURH-FM, Waterbury, CT (104.1) to Red Wolf Broadcasting was approved by the FCC in April, and as it closes, the station will re-claim the call letters it used until October 2003 - WMRQ. The modern rock music format is being adjusted to play an "alternative/eclectic" mix, including groups like Coldplay and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Fuller moved the studios to Glastonbury, and says the station could double or even triple its current staff in 12 to 18 months. John Fuller's Red Wolf Broadcasting owns WBMW-FM (106.5) and WWRX-FM (107.7), both in New London, Connecticut..... 6's Paul Mueller Resigns - 5/13 - NewsBlues tells us that Paul Mueller, the 5 PM anchor at Channel 6/WLNE abruptly resigned yesterday, telling friends he'd had enough of the TV news business and wanted out. Mueller says he plans to become an online day trader..... Times Postpones Globe Closing Threat - 5/5 - After wringing concessions from all but one of the Boston Globe's labor unions, the New York Times Company on Monday postponed its threat to start the process of closing the Globe, leaving the newspaper's immediate future resting on talks with the largest union, the Boston Newspaper Guild. More from the Times..... Suspended Severin Meets With WTKK Management - 5/4 - From Radio-Info.com: WTKK-FM (96.9) and Jay Severin, along with his agent, will meet sometime today to discuss his future with the talk station. Severin was yanked off the Greater Media-owned station, following on-air remarks discussing the swine flu outbreak: In these on air remarks, Severin called Mexicans "criminaliens," said Mexico's leading export was "women with mustaches and VD," and that their children "retard" US schools, among other comments. Recently, Severin's ratings have plummeted to 14th place in afternoon drive in Boston, according to Arbitron PPM data. Sources tell the Boston Herald that management "has been dissatisfied with the 'hateful' tone his show has taken." Severin is in the early part of a 7-year contract with WTKK, running through 2013 and which pays the conservative talker $1 million-per-year, plus bonuses..... NY Times Could Shutter Globe - 5/4 - The New York Times Company said last night that it is notifying federal authorities of its plans to shut down the Boston Globe, raising the possibility that New England's most storied newspaper could cease to exist within weeks. The Boston Herald and the Washington Post have more..... NESN's Jerry Remy Out Sick - 5/4 - The Boston Globe reports that beloved NESN announcer Jerry Remy will miss at least the remainder of this road trip with an illness, the symptoms of which are the same as those that kept him sidelined for the outset of spring training. Remy will fly home to Boston from Tampa tomorrow and might return for Wednesday's game against the Cleveland Indians at Fenway Park. Buck Martinez will fill in for Remy tonight, as he did for last night's 13-0 Red Sox loss to the Rays. Martinez usually works for TBS and MASN, the local broadcasting channel for the Baltimore Orioles..... Dave Roberts To NESN - 5/4 - From the Boston Globe: Dave Roberts's legs are already a part of Red Sox lore. Now fans will get to know his voice as well. NESN announced today that Roberts, the former Red Sox outfielder and postseason hero, has joined the network to serve as a studio analyst. Roberts will join Hall Of Famers Dennis Eckersley and Jim Rice on NESN's pre- and post-game shows..... WTKK Suspends Severin For Swine Flu Comments - 5/1 - The Boston Herald reports that conservative WTKK radio host Jay Severin won't be on the air again today as his indefinite suspension for making offensive on-air remarks about illegal Mexican immigrants and the swine flu remained in effect. Sources within Greater Media, owner of WTKK-FM (96.9), said yesterday's suspension was the culmination of dissatisfaction with the "hateful" tone Severin's show has taken. WTKK received complaints about Severin’s immigarnt remarks all week, the sources said. During Monday's show, when talking about the swine flu, Severin called Mexicans crossing the Arizona border "criminaliens," said hospital emergency rooms had become "condos for Mexicans," and called the virus a "swine-aka-Janet Napolitano flu," according to WTKK's online recording...... 7's Owner Sues Nielsen - 5/1 - In a lawsuit that could fundamentally remake the television industry, Ed Ansin's Sunbeam Television yesterday accused Nielsen Media Research of "recklessly, arbitrarily, capriciously" understating the audience of its shows. Ansin, who owns Boston's Channel 7/WHDH and Channel 56/WLVI, asked a federal court to declare the ratings company an illegal monopoly. The Miami Herald has more..... 6 Launches 10 AM 'Cast - 5/1 - Providence's Channel 6/WLNE launch a local newscast at 10 AM, which the station said will be the only one in this time slot in southern New England. The Providence Biz Journal has more..... WZID's Bronson To NYC - 4/29 - Bob Bronson takes over mornings at Clear Channel's adult contemporary WLTW (106.7 FM) in NYC. He'll be partnered with Christine Nagy, who had been working alongside Karen Carson since late 2006, when the two women replaced 17-year WLTW morning host Bill Buchner. Bronson comes from Manchester NH's adult contemporary WZID (95.7 FM)..... Jeannine Jersey Leaves TIC-FM - 4/27 - Radio Online tells us that Jeannine Jersey resigns as program director/music director and afternoon co-host of CBS Radio's WTIC-FM (96.5) in Hartford. She's been there eight years..... New ND At WMUR - 4/27 - Alisha McDevitt, assistant news director since 2003, has been chosen to head the news department of Manchester's Channel 9/WMUR, a Hearst station..... Sasha Issenberg Leaves Globe - 4/27 - Sasha Issenberg leaves the Boston Globe's DC bureau for a magazine called Monocle, where he will be DC correspondent. He has already been writing a monthly column there..... Courant Publisher Had Role In Employee's DUI Case - 4/27 - The publisher of the Hartford Courant was involved in an incident last Saturday in which a woman was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol twice within three hours. Richard Graziano, who is also general manager of WTIC-TV, Fox 61, was in a car with Elsa Veisor, a Fox 61 employee, when she was first arrested about 1 AM in a parking lot on Route 4 in Farmington, according to police reports released Friday. She was arrested and charged with operating under the influence. Police confiscated her license and suspended her driving privileges for 24 hours. Police say they released Veisor to Graziano, who drove her back to her car at the Tunxis Fore Driving Range. She was then arrested again, elsewhere on Route 4, about 3:40 AM. The second time the charges were drunken driving, speeding, and driving while her license was under suspension. She was alone in her car the second time. Earlier in the evening, Veisor and other Fox 61 employees, including Graziano, had been at a fundraiser and then a restaurant in South Windsor. Veisor then headed to a West Hartford restaurant but ended up on Route 4 in Farmington. More from the Courant..... Macklin To BZ Radio - 4/23 - Mike Macklin joins Boston's WBZ radio as an anchor and reporter. He comes from gigs at WBZ-TV and WHDH-TV..... NY Times Company Continues To Slump - 4/21 - The New York Times Company fell into a deeper financial hole during the first quarter as the newspaper publisher's advertising revenue plunged 27 percent in an industrywide slump that is reshaping the print media. Its shares dived Tuesday. The owner of the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the International Herald Tribune, and 15 other daily newspapers said Tuesday that it lost $74.5 million, or 52 cents per share, in the opening three months of the year. That compared with a loss of $335,000 at the same time last year, which was break-even on a per-share basis. AP has more..... Pam Landry Leaves PLR - 4/20 - After 19 years at Cox rocker, Pam Landry leaves New Haven's WPLR. The music director and midday host and exits over budget cuts. The Wigmaster takes over the slot..... NBC's Les Kretman To Retire - 4/15 - DCRTV hears that Les Kretman (right), a producer for NBC's DC news bureau, is leaving after 30 years. He'll be retiring at the end of April. Kretman has been producing NBC's White House news reports for the past eight years. Before that, he was NBC newsman Bob Hager's producer. Also, Kretman was deputy bureau chief in the 1980s. Before joining NBC, Kretman worked in Boston as assistant news director for WBZ-TV, and was executive producer at WHDH-TV and WCVB-TV..... 7 Does About Face, Will Air Leno At 10 PM - 4/13 - NBC affiliate Channel 7/WHDH in Boston says it will air Jay Leno's 10 PM weekday show when it launches this Fall. "Upon further consideration, we have decided to telecast Jay Leno at 10 PM starting in September," said Sunbeam owner Ed Astin in a statement. "Jay is from Andover where I went to school. I enjoy his humor. We hope the new show is a big success." "We are very pleased that WHDH will carry Jay Leno's new primetime comedy show at 10 pm this fall on NBC," said John Eck, president of NBC TV Network in a statement. "We look forward to working closely with the station on a successful launch in Boston of this show, featuring one of the most bankable stars in the business." B&C has more..... Former WBZ VP/GM Dies - 4/13 - Lamont "Tommy" Thompson, former vice president general manager of WBZ-TV and radio, died on 3/26 of bone cancer. He was 92. Thompson joined WBZ in 1964 and was upped to VP in 1968. He retired in 1979..... WMAS Drops Oldies For Sports - 4/9 - Citadel flips Springfield MA's WMAS (1450 AM) from "True Oldies" to sports talk as WHLL, "The Hall," using ESPN Radio..... FCC Fines WMJX For Contest - 4/9 - From Radio-Info.com: Boston's Magic 106.7, WMJX, advertised a “Cool, Hot or Green” car promotion featuring a Mercedes, an Audi and a Prius. But the FCC says it failed to disclose on the air just how the contest would work – and what the prize really was. Owner Greater Media now owes the FCC a contest-violation fine of $4,000. The winner thought she was getting her choice of a new car. But it turned out she'd won a two-year lease, and she’d need to qualify for it, credit-wise. She was one of the qualifiers who got a gas card for $106 and then won the chance to choose either a “cool” car (a Mercedes-Benz C-series sedan), a “hot” car (Audi TT convertible) or a “green” car (Toyota Prius). WMJX acknowledges that the complete rules were spelled out only on the station website and that the on-air promos didn’t refer listeners to the site. Greater Media says it’s undertaken “remedial measures” to prevent future problems with contests..... 3 Boston TVers Offer To Run Leno - 4/6 - Three Boston TV stations called NBC yesterday and expressed interest in joining the peacock network and taking homeboy's Jay Leno's new primetime show if Channel 7 rolls out a 10 PM newscast, a source told the Boston Herald. "Jay Leno fans will not be disappointed. Make no mistake, the new Leno show will air at 10 PM weeknights in the Boston market on NBC," John Eck, head of the NBC TV Network, said in a statement. Last Thursday, WHDH-TV announced plans to launch an hourlong, 10 p.m. newscast in September, ditching Leno's new talk show. NBC quickly threatened to strip Channel 7 of its NBC affiliation if it bumped Leno..... NY Times Theatens To Shutter Boston's Globe - 4/4 - In a striking example of corporate hardball, the New York Times Company has threatened to shut down one of its journalistic jewels, the Boston Globe, unless the New England paper's unions agree to sweeping concessions. The Globe quoted union officials last night as saying that Times and Globe executives made the demands in a 90-minute meeting with union officials. The unions were asked to quickly agree to $20 million in cost-cutting moves to avoid the potential shutdown. The executives told the union leaders that the Boston paper will lose $85 million this year without serious cutbacks, the Globe report said. An employee briefed on the discussions was quoted as saying the Globe lost $50 million last year. The Washington Post has more..... WPRV To Go Talk - 4/3 - Citadel plans to drop "True Oldies" from Providence AMer WPRV (790 AM) for talk, come 4/13. Don Imus will continue in mornings, with Joe Scarborough, Bloomberg Radio's business news, and CNNer Lou Dobbs joining the line-up..... 7 Refuses Leno At 10 PM - 4/3 - WHDH Channel 7, Boston's NBC affiliate, is refusing to air host Jay Leno's new talk show in the lucrative 10 PM hour in favor of its own hour-long local news show, and NBC doesn't like it one bit. "WHDH's move is a flagrant violation of the terms of their contract with NBC," said John Eck, president of NBC TV Network. "If they persist, we will strip WHDH of its NBC affiliation. We have a number of other strong options in the Boston market, including using our existing broadcast license to launch an NBC owned and operated station." The Boston Globe has more..... Copyright Dave Hughes/DCRTV.....

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