News

It’s the ESPN Chicago 1000 duo’s 10th anniversary on the air and what better place to celebrate than Mexico? The pair broadcast live yesterday and will do so again today, from El Dorado Resort in Riviera Maya.

In part three of our three-part preview of Brad Kelly's Radio Ink cover story interview, we ask Kelly what the giant ratings firm is doing to help radio succeed? after all the radio industry pays bucket loads of cash to Nielsen to produce a product it hopes will be accurate and produce a nice return on their investment.

Earlier this year, Shelly Easton was voted Radio Ink's #1 Country PD. In May, she made Radio Ink's Best Program Directors in America list. Next month, she'll be on Radio Ink's Most Influential Women in Radio list. And Thursday, CBS promoted Easton to VP of Music Programming in Philadelphia for WXTU-FM, WTDY-FM and WOGL-FM. She keeps her role as PD at WXTU.

WWCN-FM in Fort Myers is a Beasley sports station that mixes in ESPN with local shows. On Thursday, the company announced Pete Sheppard would take over afternoon drive with co-host Craig Shemon. Sheppard most recently worked at WEEI in Boston as a part-time fill-in host.

Brian Hall has been named Senior VP of Programming for iHeartMedia Asheville, NC. iHeartMedia’s Ashville presence includes News Radio 570 WWNC, 880 The Revolution, 97.7 The Brew, 99.9 Kiss Country, Star 104.3, and Rock 105.1. Hall will be responsible for spearheading the programming, promotions, and digital strategies for all six stations in the market.

The deal between Artificial Intelligence provider Veritone and CBS Radio gives CBS Radio a license to the Veritone Platform. That enables CBS to leverage artificial intelligence-based cognitive computing to process, transform, and analyze its audio data. CBS will now have near real-time ad and content tracking, comprehensive analytics, faster content extension, and smarter media management for their broadcasts from 117 radio stations in 26 markets.

The announcement was made by FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, meaning Michelle M. Carey will continue the work she has been doing as acting chief. Before serving in this role, Ms. Carey served for six years as deputy chief of the bureau she now leads.

(By Georgia Beasley) While I’m sure many general managers may think attracting Millennials is as simple as throwing a few beanbags on the floor and supporting a local non-profit, if our industry is serious about growing and retaining young, talented superstars, then keep reading...

(By Deborah Parenti) Over the years, David Benjamin (pictured here) has launched, operated, and sold two successful radio groups. Today, he presides over Benjamin Media Investments, which is focused on investing in radio deals. What criteria do investors look for in placing their money?

(By Tom Zarecki) Show prep rule of thumb: It’s a fact — the more planned your next show is, the more casual, conversational, and spontaneous it will sound. Obviously, when there’s a one-time event in your market, you’ll talk about it (concert, flood, local bank robbery, etc.), but what do you do on the days when there’s not much going on?