Media Notebook--2-9-22

MEDIA NOTEBOOK

A curation of news items about the media from this past week, with a particular emphasis on Chicago.

RADIO/PODCASTS

 

 

*100 Years of WBBM-AM

=The Atlas family started the radio station this week in 1924 and were given the call letters WBBM. It’s a really interesting story, which you can read here. My late father-in-law grew up in Wheaton near the Atlas family, became friends with the kids, and told me some incredible stories from those early days, going all the way back to the ‘40s. His description of Mr. Atlas’ office in downtown Chicago was like something out of Citizen Kane.

 

*100 Years of WLS-AM

=They have been posting interviews with some of their all-time greats. This week, they added an interview with WLS legend Catherine Johns. 

 

 

*60 Years/The British Invasion

=February 9, 1964, The Beatles appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show, and launched The British Invasion. Dave Plier recently interviewed the owner of the Ed Sullivan library about that momentous day.

=Bob Sirott has been doing Beatles-related material all week. Enjoyed this segment about how they created their sound at Abbey Road studios.

=We have two Eckhartz Press books that have humorous stories about the Beatles on Ed Sullivan. I’ve posted free excerpts from John Landecker’s book Records Truly is My Middle Name and Chuck Quinzio’s Life Behind the Camera. Click on the book titles to read them.

=This interview is about Chicago’s connection to the Beatles. It involves the great Dick Biondi.

 

 *Q-101 Launches Podcast Network

=Among the offerings: The Brian & Kenzie Podcast (audio offerings from the morning show), Car Con Carne with former Q-101 stalwart James VanOsdol (the already popular “interview in a car” show), The ROMANce podcast (with morning co-host Kenzie and her husband Justin Roman, discussing their homelife), and  A Case For (with morning show producer Case making a Case for musical artists).

 

 

*Top Sports-talk Shows in the Country

=Barrett Sports Media ranked them and named Bernstein & Holmes the #4 midday show in the country. Carmen & Jurko came in at #6.

=In the afternoon slot, they ranked Parkins & Spiegel #2 and Waddle & Silvy #7. 

=They also ranked the program directors. Mitch Rosen (The Score) is #2 in the country. Danny Zederman at ESPN is #12. Zederman recently got promoted to Director of Content.

 

 

*Radio Producer’s Throat Grabbed by Actor

=This one hit close to home for me, as a former radio producer who was asked to do things like this. Joshua Fox (from radio station KIIS) tried to play a joke on Saltburn star Jacob Elordi in Australia, and the star didn’t play along and asked him to delete the tape. When Fox wouldn’t do it, Elordi allegedly went for his throat. The BBC has more on this story. 

 

*AI generated voices in robocalls are now illegal

=The FCC made the announcement this week.

 

*NPR’s Linda Wertheimer Retires

=The  former co-host of All Things Considered is an NPR legend (“Founding Mother”). Her farewell note to the staff is here.

 

*Podcast Corner

=Joe Rogan Wins the Lottery. He just re-signed with Spotify for (gulp) $250 million. 

=BIN jumps into the podcast world. Black Land will be hosted by Emmy-Award winning journalist Vanessa Tyler. 

*Rest in Peace

=Buddy Scott

Eddie Volkman alerted me to the sad news earlier this week: “Buddy Scott, the B96 program director who “created” Eddie and Jobo passed away this morning from heart trouble and multiple other health problems. Breaks my heart.”

=Toby Keith

The outspoken country music star was 62.

=Wayne Kramer

He was a guitarist for the groundbreaking group MC5. Kramer was 75.

=Mojo Nixon

The man who wrote “Elvis is Everywhere” was 66.

=Aston Barrett

Bassist and music director of Bob Marley & the Wailers. He was 77.

 

*The Loop Files

=Mark the date. I’m bringing the all-star team with me this time, John Record Landecker and Mitch Michaels.

 MEDIA BIRTHDAYS/MILESTONES

 

 

*February 4, 2009—Eddie Schwartz died

=Eddie was the overnight voice of Chicago for decades, first at WIND, then at WGN, and finally at WLUP. When I interviewed Eddie in 2007, he was already in declining health and was difficult to understand. Still, I’m glad I got the chance to get him on the record while I could.

 

 

*February 4—Jim Williams birthday

=The Channel 2 news anchor recently celebrated his 20^th anniversary at the station.

 

 

*February 5—Elizabeth Grattan birthday

=Elizabeth worked in Chicago at WZZN and WGN.

 

 

*February 5, 1971—Grease premieres in Chicago

=It opened at Kingston Mines, before going to Broadway.

 

 

*February 6, 1924

=WBBM-AM signs on the air (more about that in this week’s top story)

 

 

*February 6, 1964

=WCIU-TV signed on the air. It was Chicago’s first UHF station at the time.

*February 6--Paul Brian birthday

=I interviewed the WGN and WLS veteran in 2008.

 

*February 6—Ed Tyll birthday

=You might not like what he says, but he’ll say it anyway, Ed Tyll. The nighttime talker worked at AM 1000 for a few years in the early 90s. I interviewed him for Chicago Radio Spotlight in 2010.

 

 

*February 8, 2000—Bob Collins passed away.

=The legendary WGN morning man’s death was dramatic and shocking. He died in a plane crash. Chicago Radio Archives and Memories posted the audio of WMAQ’s coverage of that day. Photo of Bob Collins courtesy of Spike O’Dell.

 *February 8—Bob Shomper birthday

=The former program director of WGN (2006-2009) is now retired.

 

 

*February 10—Alex Burkholder birthday

=Alex was an investigative reporter/producer for WGN-TV (21 years) and WLS-TV (24 years) working alongside the great John Drury. Burkholder is the author Death of the Angels, about the fire that claimed so many lives at Our Lady of the Angels school in 1958.

 

 

TV/STREAMING

 

 

*The History of The NFL Today

=Jeff Agrest has a piece in the Chicago Sun-Times about this weekend's upcoming special about The NFL Today. It has many deep ties to Chicago. The show airs Sunday at Noon.

*Cheryl Scott’s Fertility Journey

=Last year she decided to have her eggs frozen, and she has chronicled that journey for the ABC-7 audience. You can read more about it and watch it here. 

 

 

*The Super Bowl

=How much does a 30 second ad go for in this weekend’s Super Bowl? $7 million.

 

*ESPN, Fox & Warner Brothers to Team Up for Sports Streaming Service

=It won’t launch until later this year, but the idea is to get as much sports as possible into one streaming platform. You’re not going to like the price. Read more about that here. 

 

 

*Joe Girardi Goes Back to New York

=The last few seasons Joe has turned up semi-regularly on the Marquis Network. That won’t happen this year. He has signed with the YES network to be part of Yankees broadcasts this year.

 

*CNN Cancels Morning Show

=I guess it wasn’t Don Lemon’s fault after all. Variety has the details. 

=The new strategy is less banter, more news. 

 

 

*The Grammys

=The show was a big ratings winner (16.9 million viewers). The Full list of winners is here.

=The biggest winner was probably Tracy Chapman. Her song “Fast Car” shot up to #1 on the iTunes chart.

=Didn’t see this coming…

Congratulations on topping the charts, Tracy Chapman! It was great seeing you on stage at the Grammys this weekend. I'm so glad a new generation is enjoying your terrific music. @tchapmanonline pic.twitter.com/Bitf0RT75e

— Senate President Don Harmon (@DonHarmonIL) February 6, 2024

*The Renewed Popularity of Gilmore Girls

=The best thing about streaming services is rediscovering series from the past you may have missed the first time around. I’m currently on a Perry Mason kick on Paramount+. The rest of you are apparently watching Gilmore Girls on Netflix.

 

*Rest in Peace

=Carl Weathers

He left behind a great legacy on film, particularly as Apollo Creed.

 

 

SOCIAL MEDIA

 

 

*Tucker Carlson’s Putin Interview

=Just what we needed. Russian propaganda straight from the horse’s mouth. You know who is most offended by this interview? Russian journalists…

Unbelievable! I am like hundreds of Russian journalists who have had to go into exile to keep reporting about the Kremlin's war against Ukraine. The alternative was to go to jail. And now this SoB is teaching us about good journalism, shooting from the $1000 Ritz suite in Moscow https://t.co/9R3lqy5O6v

— albats (@albats) February 6, 2024

 =The interview turned out to be a dud, but at least Carlson did bring up the Wall Street Journal reporter being held by Putin.

 

*X (Twitter) to Invest in Original Video Content

=They are going to pay celebrities and influencers to try to regain audience. 

As always, if you have any media story you’d like to share or think that I might be interested in sharing, drop me a line at rick@eckhartzpress.com or amishrick@yahoo.com. If you're in Chicago media and wondering why I didn't mention your birthday, it's probably because I don't know it. Drop me a line and let me know and I'll put you on my calendar.

Media Notebook--11-4-22

MEDIA NOTEBOOK

A curation of news items about the media from this past week, with a particular emphasis on Chicago…

RADIO/PODCASTS

 

*Radio Hall of Fame Inductions

=This week (November 1) the latest Hall of Fame class was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in Chicago. As usual it was a star-studded event. Ryan Seacrest flew in for the ceremony to induct his pal Ellen K from KOST in Los Angeles. But for Chicago radio fans, there were a few highlights as well. Congratulations to Lon Helton. The former WMAQ man will forever have a plaque on the wall in the Radio Hall of Fame. Former Chicago radio executive Marv Dyson (WGCI) was also recognized. His son Victor and former colleague Elroy Smith accepted the award on his behalf.

 

The Bears Will Have a New Radio Home

=This week the Bears announced they are ending their stay at NewsRadio WBBM and moving their games down the dial to ESPN 1000 for 2023 season. After 22 years it’s a bit of a shock, but it isn’t the first time the Bears have changed radio homes. Their games have previously aired on WGN, WMAQ, WIND, and WJJD.

=ESPN 1000’s Director of Content Danny Zederman said: “ESPN Chicago is thrilled to be adding the Chicago Bears to our play-by-play roster alongside the Chicago White Sox. Our on-air talent is incredibly passionate about our hometown team, and that passion will show within and beyond the in-game broadcasts, integrated throughout our programming year-round.”

=Chicago Sun-Times sports media columnist Jeff Agrest reports that the local Bears TV deal may also be moving to a new station, and he speculates that WGN-TV and the Marquee Network are two possible landing spots.

*Ron Gleason Retiring from NewsRadio WBBM

=The brand manager and news director announced it to his staff this week. He had been doing that job for 17 years. In the staff memo, he wrote: “I’ll be retiring from full-time management at the end of January, stepping down as WBBM’s Brand Manager/News Director. People have told me there’s something called free time out there, and I’d like to learn more about it….Frankly, I’m a workaholic, which is a great attribute when you’re on call 24 hours a day. But I’m older now, my kids are grown, and Linda and I are looking forward to spending more than just a few days a year at a home in the desert that’s been sorely neglected. This decision comes after months of planning, with much-appreciated support and understanding from [VP/Programming] Greg [Solk], [SVP/Market Manager] Rachel [Williamson], and all levels of the company.”

= Ron Gleason can be heard every weekend hosting the Bears pre- and post-game broadcasts. The timing (the end of the Bears contract and the Bears season and Gleason’s departure) is probably not entirely coincidental.

=Gleason retires after a stellar career that includes helping to launch The Score in 1991 and working as the play-by-play man for DePaul University basketball.

=By the way, Audacy is actively looking for his replacement. If you go to the Audacy career portal, here’s what it says about this position: “We are looking for an innovative strategic thinker with a passion for news and a multi-platform orientation to reimagine how we connect with and engage audiences for even greater success. The Brand Manager oversees editorial strategy and the WBBM newsroom, including broadcast and digital operations, with an eye towards audience and revenue growth and engagement on all platforms.”

*Chicago Radio Ratings

=The October PPM numbers came out this week, and the top five stations in Chicago are as follows…WDRV (The Drive), WLIT (Lite FM), WVAZ, WBBM (NewsRadio) and WOJO.

=Rounding out the top ten…WXRT, WBEZ (NPR), WLS-FM, WTMX (The Mix) and WGN.

=This is the last month of PPMs before the Lite goes all-Christmas music, which skews the ratings in their favor every year.

 

*Lite-FM Goes All-Christmas

=It began on Tuesday November 1^st, the earliest they’ve ever done it. They do it for a very good reason, by the way. The numbers are huge and people love it.

=If you’re wondering what the research says about the most popular Christmas songs to play on the radio, you might be surprised by the results. According to P1 Media Group, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” by Brenda Lee is #1, slightly ahead of “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms.

 

*Chicago Radio Archives and Memories

=The November issue of Illinois Entertainer is out and includes my interview with radio archivist Don Beno from the Facebook page Chicago Radio Archives and Memories. If you’re a Chicago radio fan, you really owe it to yourself to check out his page. Here’s a small excerpt from my interview: His page posts great old airchecks (on-air DJ tapes), photos, music surveys, and more from radio’s golden era of the 60s/70s/80s/90s. Anyone who has spent time on that page immediately recognizes the size and scope of Don’s collection. It’s way beyond anything you can imagine. “I have two thousand airchecks on tape,” he admits, “another 500 on CD, hours and hours of videotape, and four zip drives of old interviews.”

=Next month’s interview subject for Illinois Entertainer: Bulls radio play-by-play man Chuck Swirsky.

 

*Troy Hanson re-signs with Cumulus

=The program director of Q-101 is also the VP for programming rock formats and the VP of operations for Cumulus Chicago. Troy Hanson has signed a new three-year deal to stay with Cumulus in all three roles. RAMP247 has more information.

 

*RadioGirl Interviews John Drummond

=Bulldog Drummond was one of the all-time great local TV reporters in Chicago. Margaret Larkin (aka RadioGirl) interviewed him last week. He has some great stories.

 

*Len O’Kelly’s Tour of Haunted Radio Stations and Creature Features

=If you don’t read former Chicago radio programmer/personality Len O’Kelly’s blog, you’re missing out. I particularly enjoyed this piece, particularly the memories of WGN-TV’s Creature Features. Len is currently a professor at Grand Valley State University in Grand Rapids. I previously interviewed him for Illinois Entertainer a few years ago.

*British Radio Host Dies on the Air

=I don’t mean that metaphorically. How many people have you met in the radio business who said they want to do the job as long as they live? Well, this guy literally did that.

=I’m reminded of the death of the great comedian Dick Shawn (LSD in “The Producers”). He literally died on stage doing his comedy act. People thought it was a joke.

 

*RIP Laurie Kahn

=She was the founder of the Media Staffing Network, which helped media people find new jobs. Last Friday she passed away after a long bout with cancer. She wrote a blog about her struggle with the disease, which inspired many people.

 

*RIP Ken Alexander

=The long-time Chicago radio veteran passed away this week at the age of 93. Alexander worked in radio for more than 60 years. He is probably most remembered for his time at WAIT (over twenty years), and WNIB (for 16 years). He could most recently be heard on WDCB. Chuck Shayden and Steve Darnall are doing a 4-hour tribute to Ken on Saturday November 5, beginning at 1pm.

 

 

MEDIA MILESTONES & BIRTHDAYS

 

*The great sportscaster Jim Shorts celebrated his birthday on Halloween. (I've interviewed both Kevin--in English, and Jim in German, if you'd like to hear it.) Here’s a photo of Kevin Matthews with his star sportscaster, back in the old Loop days.

 

*Former Chicago television anchor Jane Pauley was also born on Halloween. She obviously went on to bigger and better things, but she did a stint here locally at WMAQ-TV, Channel 5.

 

*One last Halloween birthday. Program director Bill Gamble (Q-101, CD-94.7, et al) was also born on October 31. I interviewed him for Chicago Radio Spotlight back in 2009. He currently works for Midwest Family of Companies in South Bend, Indiana.

*Former radio producer/host Tom Sochowski (WJMK, WCKG, ESPN, The Fish) celebrated his birthday on November 1^st. That’s Tom on the left with John Landecker and me.

 

*Former WGN & WLS newscaster Judy Pielach also has a November 1^st birthday.

 

*Alex Quigley, who worked at several radio stations in Chicago including Q-101, WGN, and The Game, was born on November 3^rd. I interviewed Alex back in his WGN days (2010) for Chicago Radio Spotlight. 

 

*The great Catherine Johns (WLS, WJMK) turned 70 yesterday. I only mention the age because she mentioned it in her great newsletter. I’ve interviewed Catherine several times over the years. The first time was 15 years ago. 

*Another November 3^rd birthday is former ESPN producer J.R. Straus. He and his brother were featured together for a piece I wrote in 2008.

*Producer Tom Hush (the Steve Cochran show/WLS Radio) celebrates a birthday today (November 4^th).

 

TV/STREAMING

 

*MeTV’s Holiday Plans

=Coming off a very successful Halloween month of October, MeTV announced this week some of their plans for the upcoming holiday season. Here’s a notable portion of the announcement: On Sunday, November 20, enjoy a heaping helping of back-to-back Thanksgiving-themed episodes of classic TV favorites, including what is widely considered one of the best Thanksgiving TV episodes ever, WKRP in Cincinnati’s “Turkey’s Away.” 

=Their Christmas plans include a celebration of Charles Schultz’s 100^th birthday (November 26), and a classic holiday marathon of sitcoms on November 27^th including The Beverly Hillbillies, Gilligan’s Island, Green Acres, Mama’s Family, The Andy Griffith Show, Full House and M*A*S*H. 

 

*Marquee Network Ratings Are a Concern

=The Tribune did a long piece about the Marquee Network at the end of last week. Worth a read if you missed it.

*Les Moonves settlement

=Lots of unsettling details in this story about the former CEO of CBS Les Moonves. He and CBS agreed to pay millions ($9.75 million settlement, another $14.5 million to shareholders) in the sexual misconduct case brought by the New York Attorney General. The details are disturbing. The LA Police called up Moonves to let him know a confidential complaint was filed against him, and an underling with knowledge of the situation sold millions in stock before the news came out. The article also says that Moonves only has to pay about $2.5 million of that settlement. He made $12.5 million the year he was forced out, down from his normal salary of $47 million.

*Chris Cuomo Wants a Better Timeslot

=He just recently joined NewsNation, but according to the New York Post (I know, I know), Cuomo is already not happy with his timeslot as the ratings struggle.

*Cable News Corner

=The Washington Post did a story this week about the meteoric rise of CNN morning show co-host Kaitlan Collins.

=Shep Smith’s newscast was canceled by CNBC. His show was an attempt to do a non-partisan newscast, but the ratings weren’t good. In a memo to his staff, CNBC’s president wrote this: “‘The News’ set out on a bold mission of providing non-partisan, fact-based reporting on the most important stories of the day in the U.S. and around the world. The quality journalism Shep and his team delivered each weeknight was exemplary and not lost on us or our 7 p.m. audience.”

*Streaming Corner

=YouTube has jumped into the streaming world with both feet. Among the streamers you can now get through YouTube’s PrimeTime Channels service are Showtime, Starz, Paramount+, AMC+ and ViX+, with NBA League Pass coming soon.

SOCIAL MEDIA

 

*FCC Recommends a TikTok Ban

=Shanghai-based Byte-Dance owns TikTok, and the FCC claims that the Chinese company is damaging American national security by sharing private information of Americans. 

*Elon Musk’s Bumpy First Week

=First he claimed he had no idea who the new CEO was. (It was him).  Then he retweeted a bogus conspiracy theory about the attack on Nancy Pelosi’s husband, which he later had to delete when he found out that same outlet he retweeted had once reported Hillary Clinton was dead and replaced by a body double and that Bill Gates was responsible for polio. Now he is faced with a mass exodus of advertisers who fear the website has become or will become the hellscape he promised it would never be. And this morning he laid off a large percentage of the staff…via e-mail. Not a great first week.

*Truth Social’s Influence Grows

=According to the New York Times the social media outlet is becoming more influential, even as it struggles mightily financially.

 

OTHER MEDIA

 

*The Too-Muchness of Bono

=My wife and I recently traveled to Ireland and were shocked to discover how unpopular Bono was in his home country. We heard the same joke over and over again. “What is the difference between Bono & God? God doesn’t think he’s Bono.” David Brooks tackled the “too-muchness” of Bono in this piece for the Atlantic.

=My podcast co-host (David Stern) and I interviewed Irish actress Amy Shiels (Twin Peaks) recently, and this Bono love-hate was one of the topics.

 

*An Open Letter to Hollywood from John Leguizamo

=The famous Latino actor has drawn a line in the sand via the Los Angeles Times. He wrote this open letter to Hollywood to point out the inequities that still exist for Latinos in the TV and movie industries.

* Judge blocks Simon & Schuster merger with Penguin/Random House

=As a Simon & Schuster author (The Radio Producer’s Handbook), I have this to say to the judge: Correct decision. Now do Amazon.

 

If you have any media stories (Chicago or national) that you think I might like to share in future columns, feel free to drop me a line at rick@eckhartzpress.com or amishrick@yahoo.com