UPDATE 8/21/13 8:30 AM: The always plugged in Bob Finnan sheds more light on WKNR's Tuesday talent purge, where veteran personality Kenny Roda and the station's Will Burge and T.J. Zuppe were let go in one day. The News-Herald sportswriter says that Michael Reghi will have a more limited role as well, appearing only on the station's official Cleveland Browns programming...as host of "The Rob Chudzinski Show" with the Browns head coach (also appearing on co-flagship CBS Radio sports WKRK/92.3 … [Read more...]
Akron/Canton News
Posted on August 16, 2013 · 12 Comments
And we don't mean the former TV newscast which aired on WVPX/23 and Time Warner Cable... DELUCA'S LANDING: When former D.A. Peterson top 40 WDJQ/92.5 Alliance "Q92" program director John Stewart took a ride down U.S. 62 and I-77 to downtown Canton to a new radio home, many expected him to "bring a friend". But it took the departure of Rik Elliott from the morning show at NextMedia hot AC WHBC-FM/94.1 "Mix 94.1" for the long-expected change to happen. Now programming "Mix" from Market South, … [Read more...]
Chuck’s Head
Posted on July 30, 2013 · 2 Comments
Tuesday was an ordinary day, sort of, for Rubber City Radio Group operations director Chuck Collins. He made his way to the station's West Market Street studios in Akron's Wallhaven area, and was heard on oldies/news WAKR/1590's "Ray Horner Morning Show". Ordinary, except did we mention that Chuck had brain surgery just a couple of weeks ago? Thus, it was hugs all around at the Akron Radio Center, where Chuck is also program director and midday host at WAKR. (Photo courtesy: Facebook, WAKR … [Read more...]
Quick Hits For May
Posted on May 13, 2013 · 2 Comments
Some quick hits before we focus on Cleveland's media obsession this past week...which will be in a separate item as soon as we get a Round Tuit(tm)... SUNNY FORECAST: Congratulations to former Scripps ABC affiliate WEWS/5 "NewsChannel 5" morning weather forecaster Christine Ferreira. As predicted, she's landed at a TV station in her new/returned to hometown area of Central Pennsylvania, Hearst NBC affiliate WGAL/8 in Lancaster PA...where she's that station's midday and weekend … [Read more...]
Bleeping Bleep, You’re Fired
Posted on April 25, 2013 · Leave a Comment
An administrative note, first: Ohio Media Watch is on "deep hiatus". Things Offline(tm) have conspired to reduce our available free time to almost zero. We'll try to continue getting the Big News up here as soon as possible...items like the last few ones, for example. Any other items will be posted as soon as possible to our growing social media presence. You don't need to be signed up at Facebook or Twitter to read our items... just click here or read the feed at the right of this page. If … [Read more...]
Our Funny Little Valentine (Stories)
Posted on February 15, 2013 · 3 Comments
We have a backlog of stuff that we're never going to get to, and what do you know, Life Intervenes(tm) with a vengeance. But we had to share these stories. We'll put up a "Quick Hits" item to clear out the list later... REUNITED, WILL IT SOUND SO GOOD?: CBS Radio AC WDOK/102.1 "New 102" has found the man who will replace "Trapper Jack" Elliot, the 17-year morning drive fixture who was shown the We're Not Renewing Your Contract Door along with 18-year "Infoman" Jim McIntyre last December. And … [Read more...]
Jeff Kinzbach’s Radio Return
Posted on February 2, 2013 · 10 Comments
We have a whole stack of items we don't have time - yet - to cover. Look for them in the next few days...we hope. But for now, we can't ignore the Radio Topic Elephant In The Room. Jeff Kinzbach, with partner Ed "Flash" Ferenc, dominated Cleveland morning drive radio as "Jeff and Flash", morning drive ringmasters as the "Buzzard Morning Zoo" on iconic rocker WMMS/100.7...until Howard Stern showed up in 1992 and took over top ratings from "Jeff and Flash" not long after. Now, Kinzbach will try … [Read more...]
Of George, Nash And Other Stuff
Posted on January 24, 2013 · 6 Comments
It's a "name" theme this time around for your Mighty Blog of Fun(tm)... GEORGE OF RESERVE SQUARE: Raycom Media CBS/MyNet combo WOIO/19-WUAB/43 has a new anchor who started this week, and he's coming off a national stage. George Smith was a reporter for sports TV giant ESPN for nearly 10 years, and moves to "19 Action News" as 4:30 PM and 5:30 PM weekday anchor (with Danielle Serino) and reporter for the station's 10 PM news on "My43 The Block", and the 11 PM news on "CBS 19". Smith's "Action … [Read more...]
Welcome To A Busy 2013
Posted on January 5, 2013 · 2 Comments
And as usual when we start a new year, or return from a hiatus, there's stuff waiting to land like so many airplanes. We are probably missing a topic or three, so don't be surprised if there's a crash...we'll pick up where we left off in a future update... UPDATE 1:35 AM 1/5/13: Cox and Raycom have reached an agreement, and OMW social media followers tell us that the local stations, WOIO/19 and WUAB/43, are back in the Cox lineup. Here's part of what we originally wrote before Friday … [Read more...]
Press Release Theatre (Vol. 9), The Time Warner Cable SportsChannel Edition
Posted on December 20, 2012 · Leave a Comment
UPDATE 12/20/12 10:07 PM: We're told that the network actually launched in August...we haven't had Time Warner Cable's digital service since before then. But TWC's own release talks about the network in terms of "will be" and "will bring", so they must see this as a post-soft launch statewide. Some wording fixed... ----- Having apparently lost or abandoned its reported bid to buy SportsTime Ohio, Time Warner Cable is going ahead full steam with its own statewide sports network...called "Time … [Read more...]
