NOTE TO KEN AND KITTY FANS: We appreciate your reading this article, which has apparently been linked to their website.However, Ohio Media Watch is not connected to either the show, or to the former radio home of the show. We are an independent online media publication that owns no broadcast facilities.If you wish to reach Ken and Kitty, please hit the BACK button on your browser and contact them directly via their website.Thank you!--The Management-------------We've got some flotsam and … [Read more...]
Controversy With Drennan
Posted on March 26, 2007 · Leave a Comment
Our title, of course, is a play on the name of sportscaster Bruce Drennan's former WKNR/850 morning show, "Mornings With Drennan". Feel free to sing it out loud in the style of, say, a show tune...Ever since regional sports network SportsTime Ohio announced that Drennan would host a daily talk show on the channel ("All Bets Are Off"), the Northeast Ohio media world can't stop buzzing about the hiring of a man who so recently walked out of a federal penitentiary, he has to get a work release … [Read more...]
WHBC’s Early Talk Debut
Posted on March 24, 2007 · Leave a Comment
UPDATE 3/26/07 1:35 PM: As reported and expected, the WHBC talk format has launched. We'll keep the item open for comments until later tonight, as opposed to starting another item... --The Management------------OMW hears from numerous sources that the debut of the talk format on NextMedia's WHBC/1480 Canton will happen on Monday.The date that had been floated out of the building for the debut was April 2nd.But WHBC is apparently ready at the starting gate for March 26th - perhaps because they … [Read more...]
Where Else Does Dennis Go?
Posted on March 23, 2007 · Leave a Comment
The latest entertainment industry entrant into the talk radio realm debuts his Westwood One syndicated talk show Monday.And at launch or soon after, comedian/commentator/former football TV voice/actor/raconteur (whew!) Dennis Miller will have over 80 affiliates in his list, including some in reasonably large markets - including a clearance in his hometown of Pittsburgh, on CBS Radio's new FM talk station WRKZ/93.7.Well, it's rocker WRKZ now. Starting April 2nd it'll be WTZN "The Zone - … [Read more...]
A Few Random Items, AllAccess Style
Posted on March 22, 2007 · Leave a Comment
Here are some local quickies, courtesy of AllAccess:WHBC IS FOX: With a nod to our ongoing coverage of the move of NextMedia oldies WHBC/1480 Canton to talk, AllAccess reports another piece of that puzzle is complete.As rumored here for a long, long time, WHBC is indeed turning to a sports network to fill its non-game-night evening hours. FOX Sports Radio will begin airing on 1480 starting next Monday, from 7 PM to midnight and "around the clock" on weekends.We presume WHBC will keep its … [Read more...]
Starting The Week
Posted on March 19, 2007 · Leave a Comment
Consider this something of a light breakfast. Not too filling, but at least it puts some media food into you...SKYFOX HD FLYING: We earlier mentioned some visuals from the Cleveland market's first HDTV-equipped news helicopter, the newly-minted "SkyFOX HD".Well, we haven't seen it ourselves yet, but the station has begun promoting the new HD helicopter capabilities with the same booming station voice which first trumpeted the station's entry into HDTV news some time ago.It's not only the first … [Read more...]
The Mason Has Landed
Posted on March 16, 2007 · Leave a Comment
With much fanfare, WAKS/96.5 "Kiss FM" programmer Dan Mason left the Clear Channel Cleveland top 40 outlet for the warmth of South Florida.He left Northeast Ohio to take the program director's chair at sister top 40 station WHYI/100.7 "Y100" in Miami.It seemed like the perfect match for one of America's fastest rising top 40 PDs, and one of the country's iconic stations in that format.And it lasted, well, not very long.Before you could say "Miami Vice", Mason was out at "Y100".We're not very … [Read more...]
Winding Down
Posted on March 15, 2007 · Leave a Comment
Yes, we're still here, for now. So we probably owe you some updates...MORE WHBC TALKING: As NextMedia oldies WHBC/1480 Canton moves towards what looks like a firm date for the launch of its talk format on April 2nd, we have been pondering who will take the mid-morning time slot - you know, 10 AM-noon, the slot between the morning show with Fred Chenevey and Pam Cook, and Westwood One syndicated talker Dennis "Obscure Cultural References" Miller.Did you notice? We said "pondering".And for good … [Read more...]
Tuesday Madness
Posted on March 13, 2007 · Leave a Comment
Stuff we have to get out of our heads...JOHNY D LANDS: Just a couple of months after getting bounced from his morning drive gig at Cumulus Toledo top 40 outlet WTWR/98.3 "Tower 98-3", Johny D has landed.And it's a pretty soft landing, too.Toledo Blade media columnist Ron Musselman reports that Johny D will launch a new two-hour weekday show on CBS Radio FM talker WKRK/97.1 Detroit, a station which carries both the "Live" and "Free FM" banners.We were also not aware that Johny's picked up a … [Read more...]
Brian Jennings Riding In To Program WGAR
Posted on March 12, 2007 · Leave a Comment
Clear Channel country WGAR/99.5 Cleveland has found its replacement for former program director Meg Stevens, who left the station to program Clear Channel's country outlets in Washington DC and Baltimore.He's Brian Jennings, who's spent over 8 years in Lincoln NE at another Clear Channel country outlet - KZKX "96KX - the last 6-plus as its program director.OMW hears Jennings will start at Oak Tree on April 2nd.With a new PD installed at WGAR, Clear Channel cluster VP/Programming Kevin Metheny … [Read more...]
