The Kansas Association of Broadcasters has announced its Class of 2023 Hall of Fame Inductees and the recipient of the Distinguished Service Award. The prestigious honor will be bestowed upon four renowned figures at a special dinner on October 22 in Overland Park, KS.
With a 45-year-long career, Mike Manns holds the Guinness Book of World Records for the Longest Running Morning Show in Radio, Hooker & Manns, airing on 107.7 KMAJ in Topeka for 33 years. Manns has received multiple awards, including KAB’s Hod Humiston Award for Outstanding Contributions to Sports Broadcasting in 2010. He retired in 2018.
Serving as KAKE’s second Chief Engineer for 42 years, Dale Morrell is recognized for maintaining the tradition of quality and reliability at Wichita’s KAKE. His career spanned 55 years, starting as a master control operator in 1967 and serving as Chief Engineer from 1980-2022.
Randy Picking’s versatile career includes roles as an announcer, news reporter, news director, public service director, sales representative, storm chaser, and talk show co-host across multiple stations. After retiring in 2019, he returned to radio in November 2022 to co-host KINA’s “Coffee Talk.”
Recognized with the Distinguished Service Award, Ian Punnett is a professor of practice at Kansas State University, where he specializes in media business, media history, podcasting, and serves as the chief operator/faculty advisor for Wildcat 91.9. He has been honored more than three dozen times for his creative work across various platforms and continues to contribute on the radio show Coast to Coast AM.
