Dial Global Rebrands As Westwood One
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013 –– Dial Global has changed its name to WestwoodOne. The company will continue to lead the marketplace with unparalleled programming and client service under the
esteemed WestwoodOne brand. “We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished as Dial Global. Through our belief in the power of sound we are dedicated to continuously reinventing the industry and creating the most dynamic audio programming that connects people to their passions,” said Paul Caine (shown), CEO of Dial Global. “With the audio industry’s ever-changing landscape we know we’ve just scratched the surface of what’s possible for audio’s broad consumption. By reclaiming and reviving an iconic audio brand name, we are not changing who we are, but accelerating the great work we are doing to contribute to the growth of audio.”
Since Paul Caine took the helm of Dial Global in March 2013, the company has made significant strides in expanding its sports and entertainment programming and continued to develop innovative cross-platform marketing solutions.
LEW DICKEY: Dial Global Acquisition Will Lead To A More Competitive Marketplace
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013 –– During yesterday's conference call with analysts, Cumulus Chairman/CEO Lew Dickey was asked by Stan Meyers of Piper Jaffray Companies, Research Division how Premiere Networks may respond to its acquisition of Dial Global, plus how it might change their relationship? Dickey called Premiere great competitors adding they had 'a sort of a clear #1 slot and without any real strong competition. And so, now there's going to be good viable competition. And sports, because nobody was able to muster play-by-play along with good 24/7 across the street combined with this, some key distribution, now we have that to complete against our friends over at ESPN ... so sports, information, entertainment, talk, and even services, it's going to be a much more competitive marketplace today.' In summarizing his opening comments before questions, Dickey said we've acquired a leading audio content provider. "It's going to provide significant growth opportunities for us and we've identified substantial cost synergies, which really only represent 10% of the combined cost base of 2 business units that replicate the same infrastructure. And that's deleveraging transactions, we just discussed by about half a turn." READ ENTIRE EXCHANGE HERE
Deidre Richter Named CCME Dallas Market President
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013 –– Clear Channel Media and Entertainment Dallas announced that Deidre Richter has been named Market President, effective immediately. Richter will oversee the market's overall operations including programming and sales for the six-station cluster. Richter most recently served as Senior Regional Sales Director at Microsoft Corporation, where she managed the company's advertising sales to other brands across a four-state region. Richter had been with Microsoft since 2000, with pervious roles as a Vertical Sales Manager for Retail and Senior Account Executive.
MOTION: Pete McMurray Expands Airtime With Weekend Sports Show; Jerry 'Tug' Cowart Shifts To Afternoons At Kicks 101.5 Atlanta
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013 –– Pete McMurray (shown) was recently named as WGN Chicago's weekday nighttime host, but now will add hosting duties to its weekend Chicago Bears Post Game Show. The show will be called Two and a half Bears, a weekly series providing postgame analysis of the Chicago Bears. NFL Hall of Famer and Chicago Bears alumnus, Dan Hampton will join former teammate Glen Kozlowski, alongside WGN’s resident football fanatic Pete McMurray after every game. "When Jimmy deCastro asks you to do something, you say yes to everything. I mow his lawn on Saturdays too!" In addition to hosting at WGN Radio, Pete also contributes on the television side to the Fox Bears Pregame Show "Fox Kickoff Sunday" and is the host of NBC Chicago's Entertainment program "24/7." ––––––––––––– Kicks 101.5/Atlanta has named Jerry "Tug" Cowart as its new afternoon host. He follows Mike Macho. Cowart most recently worked mornings with Cadillac Jack and Dallas McCade. ––––––––––––– Alge Crumpler and J.P. Peterson will now comprise the all new “The Locker Room” on 790 the Zone Atlanta. They follow Mayhem in the AM which was dismantled following a bit back in June which mocked former New Orleans Saints player Steve Gleason who suffers from ALS. Crumpler is former NFL player who played with The Atlanta Falcons. J.P. Peterson arrives from Tampa where he's covered sports on TV for over 15 years.
Keith Urban Sets Sights On Radio Show
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013 –– Could Keith Urban be adding radio to career repertoire? The singer turned American Idol judge will now guest host an hour-long weekend show on Australian radio station smoothfm for several weeks starting from September 7, according to skynews.com Make no bones about it, the station is thrilled. "To have someone of the calibre of Keith Urban on our weekend line up. Our listeners love him and smoothfm is the station in Sydney and Melbourne who truly and passionately support his music,' program director Rohan Brown said in a statement. Before returning for his second season on American Idol, he'll be releasing his highly anticipated seventh album FUSE on September 13. And in case you want to listen, Urban will broadcast on smoothfm 91.5 in Melbourne and smoothfm 95.3 in Sydney on Saturday mornings from September 7 through to mid-October.
KEN MATTHEWS: I'm Not Your Grandfather's Talk Host
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013 –– Nice to see our longtime friend, Ken Matthews, featured in an expansive piece in pennlive.com. As Jockline Daily reported last week (JD 8/27), following a lenghthy audition, he finally got the thumbs up at WHP/Harrisburg for its afternoon slot. He told writer Julia Hatmaker it's not easy following a legend. "It's a little daunting just because Bob Durgin's a market legend," Matthews said. "Anytime you take over a show that has that level of respect and historic impact on the market there's bound to be some nerves ... It just seemed to me, as someone who had auditioned, that the auditions went on and on," Matthews recalled. "I said to myself 'When will this end and I can relax and know I am the guy or not?' When he finally heard the news, Matthews said he was "THRILLED." With a past that includes mornings on FM Music stations, its no surprise that he says his content will include politics, pop culture and people all kind of overlap," he said, "It'll be things that impact peoples lives in the listening area. "I'm not your grandfather's talk show host ... I love TV," he said, adding that among his favorite shows are "Breaking Bad," "Duck Dynasty" and "Graceland." He also keeps his toes in the pop, rock and jazz music scene, watching the VMAs and staying up with what's hot and what's not. READ ARTICLE HERE
Scottish Host Suzie McGuire To Stand Trial In Husband Shoe Assault
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013 –– Judging by the number of click-throughs from our last posting of this story, we felt you would appreciate an update. Radio Clyde's highly popular morning host, Suzie McGuire, is now set to stand trial after being accused of assaulting her husband with a shoe and throwing him down a flight of stairs. According to stv.tv, The case was due to start later this month but was delayed as the Crown may need a psychiatrist to clarify whether she is suffering from a depressive illness. McGuire, who currently is on suspension at Radio Clyde, has been charged under her married name of Susan Mitchell, but denies behaving in a threatening or abusive manner and assaulting him at their home last December. Her Lawyer asked that McGuire to be excused from appearing at the intermediate date and said she is in hospital on an unrelated matter.
Joe Rogan Does Dead-On Impression Of Alex Jones [VIDEO]
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013 –– This morning we learned two things about stand-up comedian, television host Joe Rogan we never knew before. One, he has a podcast called The Joe Rogan 
Experience. Secondly, we found out he does a spot on impersonation of syndicated Talker Alex Jones, Piers Morgan favorite foil. According to rawstory.com, on Monday's Rogan Experience he had Mick West share conspiracy theories about the Federal Emergency Management Agency along with its relative unfamiliarity with the mechanics of human burials (Metabunk.org). When explaining the coffins, which are grave liners that have been piled up in a field somewhere,” West explained. “Some people say they’re coffins that FEMA has been stockpiling, but they’re really just these plastic things they put over graves … Rogan then chimes in “Yeah, and they probably listen to Alex Jones,” along with laughs. He then launches into an impersonation of Jones, shouting about FEMA camps and coffins and the “ten thousand body holes” he witnessed. WATCH HERE
Clear Channel's Jesse Lozano Does BURNT Lines - [VIDEO]
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 4TH, 2013 –– If you're among the half dozen or so shows who haven't done some version of Robin Thicke's "Burned Lines," we thought you would enjoy, by our view, one of the best parodies we've seen so far. This one comes courtesy of Jesse 'Boy Toy' Lozano who handles mornings at Star 94.1 San Diego, afternoons at KIIS-FM LA and also VT's in Seattle. Somehow he found time to wrap some attrative ladies in hot dog and hamburger outfits for is rendition of BURNT LINES. Complete with his own grill, he dances and even wears HOTLINKS around his neck. It's the BBQing hit of the summer.
CHECK IT OUT HERE
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Geraldo Rips University After Panel Appearance Dropped Over Selfie
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2013 –– Syndicated radio talker and tv host, Geraldo Rivera announced via Twitter that he had been dropped by Duquesne University on JFK panel following his much publicized selfie (below). According to a university spokesperson, the move resulted from Duquesne’s Catholic principles. “The administration felt that Mr. Rivera’s decision to post a nearly naked picture of himself on so
cial media was inappropriate and inconsistent with who we are as a Catholic university and therefore asked the Wecht Institute to withdraw the invitation,” said Bridget Fare, assistant vice president of public affairs at Duquesne, in a statement to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Meanwhile, Geraldo, not happy with the action, said in a statement; "Are all prospective speakers similarly scrutinized, or is my sin receiving special attention? Does the 'selfie' over-weigh my Peabody, Emmys, RFK's and other professional achievements on Duquesne's scale of morality? Are the students of Duquesne so sensitive and protected that they will be unable to concentrate on the topic being discussed because they cannot unsee the image?" Of note, 'Selfie' was just added to Oxford Dictionary's new list of words for 2013.
Duped Albany Host Mike Lindsley Cut By 104.5 The Team
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2013 –– Looks like sports talker Mike Lindsley (shown) along with Brian Cady have been cut from Albany, NY's WTMM/ESPN Radio's 104.5 The Team. As Jockline reported in mid August, Lindsley, who had taken over the midday slot earlier this year, was duped by someone impersonating former New York Yankees outfielder Shane Spencer, who claimed there was rampant steroid use on the team when he played there. The real Spencer called in the next day to deny what was said. PD Stephen Giuttari was asked if the incident played a role in Lindsley's firing, he said, "No comment," according to The Daily Gazette. Cady had been the executive producer for "Game On with Bruce Jacobs," "Midday With Mike" and "Inside Pro Football" He hosted "Cady's Corner" and was co-host of "Section 2 Showcase." Giuttari said. "In the coming weeks, we’ll unveil our new local sportstalk lineup on WTMM."
REPORT: WGN Makeover May Give Leslie Keiling A More Prominent Role; Logo Rendering Explained
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2013 –– Once part of the iconic Steve & Garry Show on The Loop, Leslie Keiling (left), known then as "Lane Closure," has been a regular voice on Chicago's airwaves, including handling traffic for WGN AM. Now, blogger Robert Feder suggests she may become a more prominent role on Meier's afternoon show. Feder says "It's part of a top-to-bottom programming overhaul at the Tribune Broadcasting news/talk station under new president and general manager Jimmy deCastro. WGN's revamped lineup goes into effect this week." As deCastro said in an interview on August 20th, Meier "will be partnered with a co-host." But whether Keiling will actually be named co-host isn't certain. Either way, the move may be a way to increase the the role of women WGN. Keiling's new role would join newly added Marianne Murciano, Wendy Snyder on weekdays, as well as Kathy O'Malley, Judy Markey, Patti Vasquez and Hannah Stanley on weekends. - Meanwhile, rhe man behind the new logos for WGN's radio, online and new media components, now says they never were intended to be viewed as a single unit. Following much criticism on social media sites,, Mike Waterkotte, creative director of Waterkotte Inc., explained what they had seen was a presentation comp. It was done to show how WGN will unfold over the years. And while the big W will be used, he agreed that the row of letters would be awful if were a logo.
MWAHAHAHA: Alien Stunting Station Loses Power Just Before Format Flip
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2013 –– In a story Jockline Daily first told you about last week, the alien induced stuntage of Tuscumbia, AL's Star 94.9 experienced some added drama yesterday with the loss of power just before its new ship's takeoff. Star 94.9 PD Brian Rickman posted on Facebook: UPDATE! We're back on! Just in time for Tuesday! Holy crap. We went off at 1pm. Thanks to the power crews in Collinwood and to our engineer, Jeff Vaughan. None of those guys got a day off (yesterday). We appreciate their hard work!" This, of course, followed last week's 'War of the World' like promos by Star 94.9 which led to rumors that area schools would be bombed. Officials received calls from concerned parents as did 911 operators, police dispatchers and the Colbert County Sheriff’s Office. Rickman described the case as a game of ‘Telephone' that went terribly wrong. "I don't blame any of the listeners if they misunderstood. Rickman added the messages never mentioned anything to spark community panic, and that as a father, he takes school threats seriously. The promos then took on a 'friendlier' tone which led to the station's filp from CHR to a more Adult Hits format. Meanwhile, Brickman, who first sensed the bit may have been more successful than imagined, got his first tip when he noticed over 6,000 'likes' on its station's Facebook page. This led to added exposure at sites such as Drudge, Huffpo, TV networks and numerous other outlets. As of this morning, they were pushing 10,000 likes.
Timberlake Defends Cyrus: “She’s Declaring Her Womanhood" [AUDIO]
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2013 –– On the heels of one of the year’s best-selling albums, two sold-out tours, and a critically-acclaimed actingcareer, it’s never been more obvious that this is JT's
time.That said, he still finds time to make the radio rounds and last week rank up 97.1/Amp FM's Booker to weigh in on his recent reunion with fellow NSYNC bandmates. He also came to the defense of the much ballyhooed performance by Miley Cyrus during the MTV/VMA's. JT told everyone to chill out and give Miley Cyrus a break. He told Booker's listeners, “Y’all go easy on Miley. Man, you know? She’s declaring her womanhood. Let her do her thing, man!” Timberlake pointed out the VMAs are not the GRAMMYs. "This was not the Oscars. This is the VMAs. This is where Madonna came out in a wedding dress and humped the stage. This is like, you know, Britney did the strip tease. This is where you do it! What did you guys expect?” NSYNC PHOTO/Facebook - BOOKER PHOTO/CBS LISTEN TO INTERVIEW HERE
FINALLY: American Idol Fills 3rd Judge's Seat With Connick
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2013 –– Following last week's announcement that Dr. Luke would NOT be joining the judge's panel at Fox' American Idol,' some wondered if it would impact next season's production schedule. Now, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Harry Connick Jr. comes to the rescue. Having appeared many times as a mentor and performer, he'll now join Keith Urban and Jennifer Lopez for the 13th season, a source tells The Hollywood Reporter. Having dropped out of the running over possible conflict issues with his label, Sony Music, THR then reported that Connick was a contender. According to the report, last Thursday night, Idol producer Simon Fuller hosted a small party where he was joined by Randy Jackson (who will move from judge to mentor), Urban, Lopez and Connick there to make the announcement. PHOTO/Facebook
J-Si & Wife Welcome Chloe Into The World On LABOR DAY
THE MOUTH, SEPTEMBER 3RD, 2013 –– Congratulations are in order for longtime Kidd Kraddick Show member, J-Si and his wife Kinsey on the birth of their new daughter, Chloe, who arrived on LABOR DAY, with no pun intended. In third person, he posted on Facebook "Here I am taking my first breath, and hugging my mommy and daddy for the first time." She already has me wrapped around her finger." Chloe joins little brother Cason. Our best wishes to J-Si and family.
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