NewsChannel
Jan/Feb/Mar '05 |
WBGL/Champaign
has named PD Jeff Scott as the new General Manager
replacing Chuck Pryor who recently joined KSBJ/Houston as
PD. Scott, who also hosts the morning show has been with
WBGL since 2002 and had this to say about the promotion “I
am honored and humbled by this new opportunity, we have an
awesome team and look forward to a great God centered
future for our team.” (6/30)
EMF
Broadcasting has named WQCK/Baton Rouge Sales Manager Chip
Bailey as the Regional Manager overseeing it's stations in
Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and Alexandria, LA. Bailey says
K-LOVE programming should be on the air in Baton Rouge on
WQCK by Friday July 1st. EMF Purchased WQCK (92.7 The
Bridge) from Touch Family Broadcasting in April for 3.2
mil. (6/29)
Spoken
Word Images, Inc. signs on with Christian AC 107.5 FM CJFY
/Blackville/Miramichi, New Brunswick for station imaging
VO and promo work.
Spoken Word Images is also providing VO for The Hot 20
Countdown with Keith Groves heard on a dozen
Canadian affiliates! Check them out on the web by clicking
here.
(6/29)
WAY
FM/Nashville Network Programmer Dave Senes was interviewed by
"Hardball with Chris Matthews" on MSNBC. The program was
titled "Selling The Spirit" and referred to Nashville as the
belt buckle of the Bible Belt... with the highest number of
houses of worship per capita in the U.S. Matthews called WAY
FM" a powerhouse radio station in Nashville" that plays
Christian music 24/7. Senes had the opportunity to mention WAY
FM's mission to encourage youth and young adults through the
music and introduce non-believers to Christ. (6/29)
Karrie Hardwick is
now the Manager/National Promotion at PLG. (6/27)
EMI
Music Reactive is being launched by EMI CMG in an effort to
enlarge it's mainstream promotion and marketing. Tooth & Nail
Records, Gotee Records and releases from EMI CMG Label Group
will all be promoted by Reactive. EMI CMG has named Cheryl
Broz as Reactive VP. Broz's career includes stints at Crave
Records, Columbia Records and Arista Records. Broz's team will
include Los Angeles-based director of national promotion and
marketing Jeffrey Naumann; New York-based director of national
promotion and marketing Michele Block-Rhoades; North Central
regional Craig Diable; Midwest regional Sharon Doheny;
Northeast regional Michael Fang; West Coast regional Holly
McCormack; Southwest regional Kathie Romero; and Southeast
regional Darrin Schnur. (6/22)
LATEST MUSIC NEWS
FROM CMCENTRAL:
Inpop signs new
band Casting Pearls...
Joy Williams
scores multi-format #1 hit with Hide...
Casting Crowns
announce dates for first headlining tour...
(6/17)
The
Christian Radio and Record Community is mourning the loss of
Ronald Winans who past away this past week at the age of 48.
Ronald
was a member of the quartet
"The Winans" since being discovered by Andrae Crouch in 1981.
The Winans family was with Ronald in Detroit at the time of
his death. If you recall Winans had suffered then recovered
from a masssive heart attack in 1997. (6/17)
New Chairman of
the GMA Board Of Directors Charles Dorris will begin his 2
year term at the position at the board's meeting June 21.
Dorris is currently VP/Head of Christian Music at The William
Morris Agency in Nashville.
Dorris was elected as board
Chairman last year by the GMA Board of Directors and has been
serving as Chair-elect. (6/17)
WQFL/Rockford PD
Chris Carmichael says he will exit the station at the end of the month.
Chris will be announcing his future plans soon. Taking his place as WQFL
PD is MD/Afternoon jock Rick Hall. (6/16)
BITS: Laura
Best exits her Promotion position at KCBI/Dallas next week to
enter Dallas Baptist University... Mike Carter joins WTGN/Lima
next month as the stations new Morning host coming from WDWG/rocky
Mount. NC... Entercom is selling it's CCM station WOLI-WOLT/Greenville
to Davidson Media for 6.7mil. (6/15)
The
Moody Broadcasting Network (MBN) welcomes Kai Elmer as National
Assistant Music Program Director. A 2005 graduate of the Moody
Bible Institute (MBI), Kai was most recently station manager at Moody
Campus Radio as well as part-time staff at WMBI/Chicago and promotions
assistant for WTMX/Chicago. (6/14)
Focus
on the Family and CRISTA Ministries have launched a new
syndicated program for Christian radio called "Sharing Life
Together". The program, now available, blends contemporary
Christian music with compelling conversation and is hosted by
KCMS/Seattle top-rated night-time personality Martha Hadley.
(6/14)
After going dark
for weeks WZRX-AM/Jackson has been re-launched as a Gospel
station calling itself "Glory 1590". The staion owned by Clear
Channel, will feature artist such as Edwin Hawkins, Andre
Crouch, The Winans, and Aretha Franklin. (6/14)
Moody
Broadcasting Network’s (MBN) 35th owned and operated station,
WMFT/Tuscaloosa hit the air Monday June 13th. WMFT (88.9FM) is
the first Christian radio station to serve Tuscaloosa.
(6/14)
WFSH/Atlanta
(104.7
The Fish) was honored by the Georgia Association of Broadcasters at the
2005 GABBY Awards by taking top honors in the large radio-market AAA
category. 104.7 The Fish was named Station of the Year in the major
market for the third time in the past four years, while the morning team
of Kevin Avery and Taylor Scott (Kevin & Taylor in the Morning) won Best
Radio Program and PM Drive host Dan Ratcliffe won Best On-Air
Personality. The station was also awarded the Community Service Award
and Best Produced Commercial. In all, the station swept the GABBY Awards
with honors in five of the 11 categories. (6/13)
The
Marketing Group/Impact Radio Networks today announced that it
will be opening an expanded studio facility on Music Row,
effective July 1, 2005. The new studios will be called Impact
Media Studios. The new address will be: 1025 16th
Avenue S Ste 102, Nashville TN 37212. Impact Radio Networks
serves more than 850 affiliates in all 50 US States and
Canada, producing 11 syndicated programs and features for the
Country and Christian formats. The Marketing Group was formed
in 1998 by Jim Wood, its Chairman/CEO. (6/13)
Internet station
KNET180radio.com, announces it has partnered with several
organizations to launch the "KNET Summer Concert Tour 2005".
Over the summer, KNET180radio.com will be visiting three of
the nations’ largest Christian Music festivals: The
Alive Festival near Akron Ohio June 21-25th will be the first
stop on the tour, followed by Creation East in Mt. Union Pa.
June 29-July 2 and Kingdom Bound at Six Flags Darian Lake, NY
July 31-August 3. These partnerships are a "natural fit" says
KNET General Manager, Cles Holbrook. "As soon as I heard
about Songtouch.com I knew we had to find a way to work
together." says Holbrook. "The plans for the KNET
Summer Concert Tour were already in motion and the addition of
Songtouch.com just completed the vision" said Davina Holbrook
KNET Promotions/Marketing Director. (6/13)
WHIF/Palatka,
Florida Manager Robin Toole checks in with HisAir.Net to say their
station is now using the on air name "Hope FM". They've also got a
new logo, are doing more station events and adding more voices on the
air. Toole said, Hope FM revealed the new logo and name at a concert
with Trevor Morgan. Since going on the air 9 years ago, WHIF has only
been known by their call letters, which stand for Where Hope Is Found.
(6/10)
BITS: HisAir.Net
hears the flip at WQCK/Baton Rouge to K-LOVE is expected to happen
around June 20 when EMF officially takes over the station... KCGN/Milbank,
SD got knocked off the air when it's transmitter site was destroyed by a
storm... Jayme Crawshaw joins KCWJ/Kansas City as Sports Producer...
(6/9)
CCM
Radio Magazine announces that Wade McShane and Elizabeth Grattan will be
the show's cohosts. McShane currently is OM at Salem's "Today's
Christian Music Network" and The World Praise Network". Grattan was with
Salem at WFHM/Cleveland and most recently left WAY FM/Nashville.
(6/8)
Chuck
Pryor has been selected as the new PD at KSBJ/Houston
succeeding John Hull who has recently been upped to
VP/Operations. Pryor's career spans over 20 years including
the last five as Station Manager at WBGL/Champaign. He's
expected to start his new position in July. (6/8)
WONU/Chicago
"Shine.FM" announces its new "Rise and Shine Chicago" morning show,
debuting Monday June 6. Returning to head up the morning show is Johnny
Rock (PD John Eltrevoog), along with Abbie Mantor, traffic, and "E,"
news, weather, and features. The show airs in Chicago weekdays from
6:00-9:00 a.m. on 89.7 FM, and is broadcast streaming on the station's
website,
http://www.shine.fm. Meanwhile
Justin Knight moves to middays and Steven Reyes takes PM drive.
(6/3)
BITS: "Amen 900"
KPYN/Atlanta, TX drops Southern Gospel and hit the air with CCM on June
1st... Michele Childs exits afternoon drive at KCWJ/Kansas City, night
guy Paul van cicle takes the open slot... WKWC/Owensboro, KY leaves the
Christian format for bluegrass... WAWZ/New York (Star
99.1) PD/morning man Johnny Stone married his morning show co-host
Stacey Austin in Central Park last Saturday...
Prayers go out to WMBI/Chicago morning host Mark Elfstrand who is
recuperating from a quintuple bypass on May 13th... And former WONU/Chicago
GM/PD Bill Dewees is available to voice track for your station. Bill has
25 years of
major market experience and is
Scott Studios equipped. Contact Bill at
bdewees1@comcast.net.
(6/1)
Seven
new directors were elected to the GMA Board of Directors by
the GMA membership and new vice presidents were named and
announced by John W. Styll, president of the GMA. The newest
directors of the GMA board will serve two-year terms,
beginning with their first meeting in June. They are:
• Larry Blackwell, Jr., vice
president of gospel music for EMI Gospel
• Karen Clark, manager of the Nashville Music Private Banking
Division at SunTrust Bank
• David Crace, a senior vice president of EMI CMG
• Jim Cumbee, president of non-broadcast media for Salem
Communications
• Tim Marshall, senior vice president of artist relations for
Word Records
• Dale Mathews, president of Brentwood-Benson Publishing
• Don Moen, artist, songwriter, and worship leader, as well as
Integrity Label Group President
Later, the Board of
Directors elected four new vice presidents to join the board:
• Demmette Guidry, vice
president/general manager of Urban Records Group Music
World/Sanctuary Urban Group Inc.
• Cheryl Moore, director of Christian retail marketing of
Verity/Zomba
• Luis R. Fernandez Jr., senior sales manager for Latin
America for Integrity International Group
• Nina Williams, vice president of label operations for
Provident Label Group
Founded in 1964, the
4,500-member Gospel Music Association is dedicated to
exposing, promoting and celebrating the gospel through music.
(6/1)
From
CMCentral:
Exciting new
Internet radio station goes live today!...
BMI Christian
Music Awards to be presented on June 20...
The Ambassador
makes impressive Billboard debut.
(6/1)
Industry
veteran Lloyd Parker is leaving the EMF Broadcasting leadership to join
WAY-FM Media Group in their corporate office as the new Chief Operating
Officer; a position vacated by the recent promotion of Dusty Rhodes to
Senior Vice President. “I am so excited about Lloyd joining the
leadership team at WAY-FM,” says founder and CEO Bob Augsburg. “Dusty
and I have known Lloyd for about 20 years and couldn’t be happier that
he will soon be playing a strategic role in the future of WAY-FM Media
Group. I feel so blessed to have industry leaders like Lloyd
Parker on our team.”
“I have
long admired Bob, Dusty and the WAY-FM radio ministry and I am
really looking forward to joining the team. Their mission to
reach youth and young adults, coupled with their effective
listener interaction on a local level makes for very exciting
radio.” Parker added.
Since 1996,
Parker served at EMF as K-LOVE and Air1’s General Manager. In
early 2004 he moved into the new role of EMF Director of
Corporate Relations. In 2002 he founded Christian Music Planet
magazine with a current circulation of 150,000 and since
January of this year served exclusively as its Editor in
Chief.
Prior to
his time with EMF, Lloyd served for 16 years as Vice President
and General Manager of WLIX/Long Island, NY. This is the
second announcement of a Christian radio veteran joining
WAY-FM in recent weeks. Recently Jim Marshall, chairman
of CMB and General Manager of WMHK-FM accepted the GM position
at WAY-FM/WAYF-FM in West Palm Beach, FL. (5/26)
WPTR/Albany,
NY (Pulse 96.7) welcomes Matt Hubbell to as their new 3-7p
personality. Matt comes to Pulse from the Utica, NY market
with over 16-years of radio experience in both Christian and
mainstream radio in New York state. Morning host Gary Mac said
he’s excited to have Matt on the Pulse 96.7 air staff. “It’s
great to have talent like Matt joining our staff. I know he’ll
take our afternoon drive to a new level of excitement. Since
my arrival in January, I’ve seen Pulse have some great success
in our mission to impact upstate New York. I know Matt will
play a great role in that mission as well.” Pulse 96.7 (WPTR-FM)
is a part of the Crawford Broadcasting Company. (5/23)
Huntsville’s
88.1 WAY-FM held its annual Share-A-Thon the week of May 9th
and for the first time in the stations two year history it was
able to obtain 100% of its goal. General Manager Thom
Ewing said “We are thankful for our friends all over the
Valley helping us become fully-funded.” Monies received during
Share-A-Thon will help the ministry operate during the 2005
fiscal year and will also help provide a new translator that
will cover Cullman, Alabama. (5/23)
Changes:
WFFH/Nashville programmer Vance Dillard takes on additional duties of
Salem's "Solid Gospel Network"...
Also at Solid Gospel PM
personality Greg Goodman slides into middays shift in addition to
production director plus weekender Jeremy Sweat takes afternoons while
Suzanne Thunder grabs that midday shift, got all that... Family Worship
Center headed by Evangelist Jimmy Swaggart is selling KPYN/Atlanta (AM
900) to Freed Am Corp.... (5/20)
As
we reported first on HisAir.Net KSBJ/Houston morning co-host Dave Cruse
will return as Morning Co-Host at The JOY FM network based in Sarasota,
FL. Cruse will anchor and direct the morning show, renewing a
partnership with current co-host Bill Martin. The JOY FM network has 5
full power FM stations in Florida and several translators.
“I can hardly wait to get back to
the Sun Coast. Reuniting with Bill Martin to bring The
Morning Cruise out of mothballs is going to be a huge
kick”, Cruse remarked. “The first time around was one of
the most enjoyable seasons of my radio career and I am
confident that Bill and I will be able to pick right up where
we left off. Save me a spot at the Hob Nob, I'm coming home."
The JOY FM’s Program Director
Steve Swanson added, “We're excited to welcome Dave back to
Florida and The JOY FM staff. I'm sure our listeners will
quickly embrace 'The Morning Cruise with Dave and Bill”.
Current JOY FM Morning Co-Host
Laura Chase is transitioning to the newly created position of
Ministry Relations Director. (5/19)
The
Christian Hit Radio Satellite Network (CHRSN) announces that two more
radio stations have added
Total Axxess to
their evening line-up.
KWOF, (The New 89.1-The Spirit-
Cedar Rapids, IA), and KYTT-FM (Southwestern Oregon’s Christian
Music Station- Coos Bay, OR), both began
airing Total Axxess on
May 9.
“It’s exciting for us to have
these two new affiliates of the show,”
commented CHRSN Affiliate Manager, Faron Dice. “They
are both great operators that are already doing a great job.
We’re excited about the continued growth of Total Axxess!”
(5/18)
After four years
Dave Cruse will leave the morning co-host slot at KSBJ/Houston
and head back to Sarasota in late June after KSBJ's shareathon.
Click
here to go jobs
page to get details on the opening. (5/18)
Rocketown
Records VP of radio promotion Derek Jones is moving to Word Label Group
as VP of national promotion, effective June 1. The move comes as Lori
Cline ends her four-year stint at the label as national promotion
director. Jones, who has been at Rocketown since the independent label’s
founding in 1996, will head an expanded four-person promotion team at
Word, which will include current senior national promotion manager James
Riley and two new staffers to be named later.
Cline, who made her exit on May
13, says she is starting her own company, offering services to labels,
radio stations, artists and managers. “It’s an exciting time and I leave
with an expectant heart of what God has for me personally and what God
has for Word Label Group and the artists that make it what it is today,”
Cline said. “So get ready for lots of great things coming from this
camp!”
Jones officially leaves his Rocketown position May 24.
Rocketown has not announced any plans to replace Jones. Andrew Greer
will oversee Rocketown’s radio team, working with independent promoters
Jill Tomalty and Shannon Becker. (5/16)
Johnathon
Eltrevoog joins the staff of WONU/Chicago as Program Director.
He leaves Moody Broadcasting Network in Chicago, where he
served as the Network's Music Assistant. The move is effective
immediately. WONU Interim GM Justin Knight will concentrate on
management duties full-time. (5/16)
MOVEMENT: Lori
Cline has resigned her promotion position at Word Entertainment
effective immediately. Lori plans to start her own independent promotion
and marketing company... AIR1 MD Bryan O'Neal is leaving the network and
will join KTSL/Spokane as PD in June. (5/13)
 Salem
Communications announced that Carl Miller has been named to
the newly-created post of director of national program
placement reporting to Ron Walters, vice president of
national programming and ministry development. Miller will
work with Salem's Christian Teaching and Talk radio stations
in meeting the ongoing demands of national ministries for
air time.
Ron Walters noted. "Salem's continued growth both
geographically and exponentially, and the increased demand for
air time by national block programming partners, solidified
the need for this new role."
Miller has made career stops at Crawford Broadcasting
and Bott Radio Network. In 1982, Miller joined Ambassador
Advertising in Fullerton, Calif., heading up production.
(5/11)
WMHK/Columbia,
SC GM Jim Marshall will join WAY-FM as General Manager at
WAYF-FM in West Palm Beach, FL. Jim will continue his duties
as Chairman of the Christian Music Broadcasters (CMB)
Educational Track. “I’m
thrilled to be joining WAY-FM,” Marshall remarked. “I
have a real appreciation for their vision to reach our
culture of youth and young adults.” WAY-FM Senior Vice
President Dusty Rhodes added, “Jim is the right person to
serve in the leadership of WAYF, and we are excited to
welcome an industry leader of integrity into our ministry
organization to help us reach out further to where we need
to go!”
For the past 8 years Marshall served as Regional Manager
overseeing WMHK as well as sister station WRCM/Charlotte. Previously
Jim worked at Moody Broadcasting in Chicago, IL for 11 years
in engineering, programming and management, and was a regular
fill-in for the nationally syndicated program, “Prime Time
America.” Jim just became the new Chairman for the CMB
Educational Track, the radio division of the Gospel Music
Association convention held annually in Nashville.
Current WAYF General Manager Mike West is leaving July 1st
to accept a call from his local church to serve as Executive
Pastor. (5/9)
Word
Entertainment announces it will acquire Spirit-Led Records,
including Fervent Records. Spirit-Led Records had been
owned independently by Founder and President Susan Riley.
(5/6)
Salem
Communications Corporation announced today results for the
first quarter ended March 31, 2005. Commenting on these
results, Edward G. Atsinger III, President and CEO, said, "Our
first quarter performance, which significantly exceeded that
of the overall radio industry, was driven by revenue growth of
25.5% from our national advertising business as well as 15.7%
same station revenue growth at our Contemporary Christian
Music radio stations. We also were able to leverage our 11.0%
same station revenue growth into 17.5% same station operating
income growth." (5/5)
The UK syndicated
show "U JAMZ" announces that the weekly program will now be
hosted by Olga Kinsman on a solo basis. Former co-host Carl
Kinsman will be focusing on his production duties full-time.
Visit
U
JAMZ
on line for more on the program. (5/3)
WHMX/Bangor,
ME- “105.7” The X” officially switched over to “105.7
Solution FM” on today (5/2/05). Solution FM station
Manager, Pencil Boone, said “The name change is a continuing
progression in the growth of the station. The name “Solution
FM” is really not a gimmick, but a statement of who were are
and a life style we are trying to cultivate with today’s
global youth culture. We are tired of the youth
culture being labeled as a part of society’s problem.
We want to reach out to them and tell them that they can be
a part of the ultimate solution!” Solution FM also rolled
out a new morning show with PD Tim Collins &
Jolie Littlefield
along with their new logo and a new website
www.solutionfm.com.
Solution FM has also announced that they will be adding two
new frequencies later this year. 101.9 FM will be reaching
Calais, ME and St. Stevens, New Brunswick sometime in mid
summer. While 92.1 FM will be heard in Ellsworth, ME.
(5/2)
Former
WAY FM morning personality Elizabeth Grattan's "RadioElizabeth"
announces new clients Sirius, Salem Communications, CCM
Radio Magazine, Parent Talk On Call & Sonrise as well as
WAKW/Cincinnati. Visit
www.radioelizabeth.com.
(5/2)
Congratulations
to WRBS/Baltimore who scored
a 3.0 rating
in the ARB Winter ’05 Mon-Sun 6am-12am, persons 12+ AQH.
WRBS’ listening audience has grown 66% since the Winter ’04
ratings period. “What
we've tapped into is the power of encouragement,” notes
Steve Lawhon, General Manager of WRBS. “Every person
needs more of it, and the truth of the Gospel is its
beginning and end. That's what we're about, and that's what
people are responding to." WRBS i a 50,000 watt
station on the air since 1964. (5/2)
Family
Stations buys WBGR-AM and WBMD-AM/Baltimore from Infinity
for an as yet undisclosed price. Family Stations already
owns WFSI/Annapolis. Just two weeks ago Family sold it's San
Francisco property KERN to Infinity and announced it will
acquire KFRC AM/San Francisco from Infinity.
(5/2)
WMKL/Miami
(91.7 The Call)
has upgraded their power
to 50kw
and improved their signal with a higher tower that will now
enable them to reach more than 1.5 million potential
listeners.
An additional 1.9 million people
live in the fringe coverage area of the new signal. WMKL
made the boost on the air with a flip of the switch last
Friday. Visit the station website at
www.callfm.com
to view pictures of the move. (4/25)
WFCM/Murfreesboro,
TN has increased it's power to 2,500 watts and re-located
it's tower as well. The improvements will enable WFCM to
provide better coverage in the greater Nashville area.
WFCM is a repeater station (97.1) of Moody Broadcasting and
WMBW/Chattanooga. (4/24)
WAY-FM
Media Group has upped COO Dusty Rhodes to SVP for the group.
In That position he will direct donor development and
overall group wide branding initiatives. In addition WAY-FM
Station Managers including Matt Austin of WAYM/Nashville;
Mike West of WAYF/West Palm Beach; Jeff Taylor of WAYJ/Ft.
Myers; Thom Ewing of WAYH/Huntsville, AL; Steve Young of
WAYT/Tallahassee, FL; Zach Cochran of KXWA/Denver; Danny
Houle of KWYQ/Vancouver, WA; Bonnie Schwam-Munoz of KYWA/Wichita;
and Faron Dice of CHRSN (Christian Hit Radio Satellite
Network) are all now General Managers of their respective
stations. WAY FM has tripled in size since 2003. A
replacement for Rhodes is being sought. If interested
contact Human Resource Director Tracy Cole at
tracy@wayfm.com.
(4/21)
John
W. Styll, president of the GMA said today, that GMA Week
2005, experienced a record attendance of more than 3,600
people, including registrants, speakers, media, musicians,
artists, exhibitors and sponsors. Paid registrations for GMA
Week 2005 totaled 1,375, up more than 100 registrants from
2004 and the second highest registration number since 2000.
“GMA Week 2005 was among the most memorable I’ve been
associated with in my 25 years in gospel music,” said Styll.
Paid registration by tracks
was up in three of the four convention tracks. Christian Music
Broadcasters (CMB) had the largest increase and largest
overall attendance with 519 registrants, compared to 460 in
2004. Following was the Industry & Associates Track which had
342 paid registrants in 2005 compared to 333 last year.
Managers, Agents and Promoters (MAPS) track had the second
largest increase in number of registrants with 49 more paid
registrants attending GMA Week 2005 for a total of 292,
compared to 243 in 2004. The Christian Music Retailer
Conference (CMRC) Track had a decline of 11 paid registrants
to 222 attendees this year.
Some comments from GMA Week
attendees:
"GMA was a true buffet of
Christian music. From hard rock and worship to pop and hip
hop, this year’s conference provided a healthy opportunity to
see the state of the Christian music industry. GMA is breaking
down the implied walls within Christian music with an awesome
conference that is educational, profitable and a rich blessing
to the body of Christ.” Richard Picart, Chief Operating
Officer for GospelCity.com/AG Media Group
“GMA week is an amazing
opportunity to connect with the best Christian music has to
offer: radio, industry, artists and retail. I have been
attending for over 10 years and each year I look forward to
gaining new knowledge that will impact my station, staff and
listeners. I always budget for GMA - it's worth it!” Marcy
Rinehart, Station Manager for WNZR, Mount Vernon, Ohio
“This was my first time at
GMA Week and I was blessed. God was there and He was
glorified. I was educated at the classes, inspired and
encouraged by my peers, entertained by the artists and most
importantly I grew closer to the Lord at GMA Week 2005.” Ramzy
Blanch, DJ/Promotions Director/Hip Hop Programmer for M88/KLYT
in Albuquerque
“This year was one of the
best of the 20 conventions I've attended. The CMB track will
have a hard time topping it next year. Almost every seminar I
attending gave me solid action points that will create
measurable improvements in my stations.” Jim McDermott Lake of
the Ozarks, Missouri President and GM, Spirit FM-KCVO
Next year’s GMA Week is
scheduled for April 1-5, 2006 in Nashville. (4/21)
UPDATES:
Former WAYM/Nashville morning host Elizabeth Grattan checks
in with HisAir.Net to let us know she is concentrating on
RadioElizabeth, (www.radioelizabeth.com)
her company for voice work, imaging, tracking, consulting,
copywriting, and speaking. She left WAY FM and CHRSN just a
little over a month from taking the MD slot in March.
According to Grattan, the departure was “a mutual decision
to go in different directions.” Grattan previously spent
time in Cleveland at WFHM and WCRF... As reported on
HIsAir.Net first WQCK/Baton Rouge has been sold to EMF
Broadcasting for 3.2mil. EMF will reportedly take over the
station sometime this summer with their K-LOVE format...
Alan Riggs is the new PD for the Atlanta-based “Holy 106.3
FM,” Riggs replaces DJ Lace. Lace will still be
involved at "Holy 106.3", but will now focus more
exclusively on his own company.
(4/21)
A
new online Christian radio station for homeschool students,
hoping to provide an added value to families involved in
homeschooling their children, has been launched. Learning By
Grace, a national online homeschooling group, calls the
station Radio Grace (www.RadioGrace.org)
and provides
four distinct channels of Christian music: praise and
worship, gospel, rock and contemporary. Homeschool students
and parents program the channels by e-mailing their comments
to the station. “There’s a lot of music out there, Christian
and secular, being delivered in a lot of traditional ways,”
said Ralf Augstroze, VP of solutions development for
Learning by Grace. “Our purpose is to develop a very
different, convenient and attractive delivery method for the
best Christian music available to the largest audience
worldwide.” RadioGrace.org is available to all Internet
users at no cost.
(4/21)
WAY-FM/Nashville
and the Christian Hit Radio Satellite Network (CHRSN)
announce the addition of Nate Thomas to CHRSN. Thomas began
hosting afternoons on April 11th, and comes to
the network from KDUV/Visalia, CA. “I love Nate’s energy on
the air,” comments Dave Senes, network PD, “It’s all about
connecting, and Nate knows how to connect with 18-34 year
olds.” (4/20)
A
new CHR Christian countdown program is airing in Canada. The
"Hot 20 Countdown" hosted by CHRI/Ottawa afternoon drive
personality Keith Groves wil be the first nationally
syndicated Christian countdown originating in Canada.
“The Christian format is one of the fastest growing formats
in radio. We started with one station in 1997, now
there are close to 30 across Canada.” explains Groves, host
and producer of The Hot 20 Countdown. “The Christian
format is the only one that has to appeal to every
demographic. ” The Hot 20 Countdown will air initially
on; Alive 99.5 in Medicene Hat AB, New Song FM in Saint John
NB, KAOS in Peterbough ON, Hope FM in Woodstock ON, CHRI
99.1/ 88.1FM Ottawa / Cornwall ON, Grace FM London ON, Life
107.5 / 101.1 Blackville / Miramichi NB, Joy FM Fredericton
NB, 98.5 Hope FM Truro NS, CVCR FM Aylesford NS. The Hot 20
Countdown is free for mp3 download. Contact Keith
Groves to find out more, 613-247-1440 ext 13 or visit the
website
www.thehot20countdown.com
(4/20)
After
a 9 month search WAY-FM/West Palm Beach has filled it's
afternoon drive opening (Drive South Florida Home), with
Randy Haze. Randy has 16 years of radio experience, mostly
in mainstream CHR. “I just want to do good radio that
has purpose and meaning”, says Randy. WAY-FM Program
Director Donna Cruz adds, “We are thrilled to have Randy
here. He is very talented and brings a unique style to
afternoons!” Randy will join WAY-FM June 1st.
(4/20)
Southwest National
Religious Broadcasters (SWNRB)
2005 has been awarded seven scholarships from Grace to You,
Hope for the Heart, The Christian Law Association, Love
Worth Finding, and Focus on the Family to host Hispanic
broadcasters who would like to participate in the July
21-23, 2005 convention in Dallas/Fort Worth, TX. SWNRB 2005
will offer simultaneous translation and workshops with a
Hispanic emphasis. For scholarship qualifications or to
apply contact Dolly Martin at 877-772-6446. For more
information on SWNRB 2005 go to
www.swnrb.com.
(4/20)
HisAir.Net
sends prayers out to Ben and Hannah Stacy of the new
Southern Signal Records group KAINOS who are recovering from
a serious hit & run car accident that occured Monday night
in Nashville.
They were returning from dinner
at a local restaurant with their publicist Brian Mayes of
Nashville Publicity Group when Mayes' Ford Explorer was
struck by another vehicle that ran a red light
at a high rate of speed. The heavy impact caused the
Explorer to spin and roll
over, totaling the vehicle.
"God was with us, and I
could feel His hand keeping us from continuing to roll
over," comments Hannah. "It was a reminder that we are
mortal, and at any time we can go home."
To the surprise of rescue workers, there were no
serious injuries, but a lot of bumps and bruises. The driver
fled the scene but was caught by police moments later and
deemed to be under the influence. Mayes and the Stacy's are
recuperating at home. (4/20)
BITS:
HisAir.Net hears Elizabeth Grattan has left the morning show
at WAYM/Nashville and CHRSN... Paul Ladd joins World
Christian Broadcasting as Director of Follow-Up...
Salem is projecting net broadcasting revenue growth of
approximately 10% and same station net broadcasting revenue
growth of approximately 10% for the first quarter of 2005
compared to the same period in 2004. (4/15)
WORD/Pittsburgh
talk show host Marty Minto has been fired after three years with the
station for comments he made on his show
last week in which he discussed
Catholicism and took a call from a listener asking whether the Pope
would go to heaven. Minto, 39, a senior pastor at a Pittsburgh area
church, said he was told that he was alienating listeners. "As far as
I'm concerned, I was doing what I've always done on the radio — look at
events around the world from a biblical perspective. I've always been
willing to talk about controversial subjects," said Minto, who has also
had shows in Albany, N.Y., Denver and Phoenix. Last week, Minto
questioned some of the Catholic church's beliefs, such as purgatory, and
fielded a question from a caller who asked whether the pope would go to
heaven. Minto said he told the caller that whether someone was
born-again was personal and "between an individual and the Creator."
Chuck Gratner, WORD GM, didn't dispute Minto's description and said he
was let go because of differences in how he conducted his show. "WORD-FM
needs to function in this city in support of the entire church — that
means everybody — and not focus on denominational issues," Gratner said.
(4/14)
The
GMA Awards are history and in case you missed it the big
winners include Switchfoot, The Crabb Family, Casting Crowns,
Jeremy Camp. and Nicole C. Mullen. Click
here
for a recap from the GMA on the evening and click
here
for a list of all winners in all categories. Or go
here for GMA
pics. (4/14)
CHANGES: Desmond
Pringle has left his Director of Urban Gospel A&R slot at Word
Entertainment... WCCD AM/Cleveland has been purchased by New
Spirit Revival Center Ministries from Salem for 2.1mil... Adam
Winkler will join KNEO/Neosho, MO. as station Manager when he
graduates from college in May. (4/14)
 Salem
has announced that Jon Horton is now VP of operations
reporting to Joe D. Davis, executive vice president and
chief operating officer. In addition to his management
responsibilities with certain Salem radio stations in the
northwest and Great Lakes regions, Horton will continue to
advise Salem's Contemporary Christian Music-formatted
stations in the area of programming. Davis commented, "Jon
has proved himself over the years as a seasoned broadcaster
and as a consultant to our music stations. He'll make a
solid addition to our senior management team and we are glad
to have him aboard. His unique perspectives, combined with
his broadcast experience, will bring added value to each of
our strategic formats."
Horton, who has been a consultant to Salem since
February, 2005, began his radio career in 1963. He spent 10
years with Emmis Broadcasting, holding positions at both the
station and corporate level in Indianapolis and in Los
Angeles. For the past 11 years, Horton was chief operating
officer for Mondosphere Broadcasting, with oversight
responsibility for station clusters in multiple markets in
California and Florida. Remarking on his appointment, Horton
said, "On both personal and professional levels, I am grateful
for this opportunity to join Salem Communications. I have the
highest respect for Salem's management team and I'm looking
forward to my role in this dynamic organization." (4/13)
The
Gospel Music Channel Director/Promotion & Affinity Marketing Alvin
Williams has been promoted to Director/Music Industry Development.
Williams primary role will be the contact for record labels, artist
management, artists, booking agents, promoters and the film industry,
and he will work towards securing artist participation in Gospel Music
Channel programming and events. Williams was previously Director of
Music World Gospel in Houston. (4/11)
WYLL/Chicago
has upped its power to 50,000 watts day and night. Previously,
the radio station's signal strength was limited at night.
WYLL's 50,000-watt daytime signal covers an area with a
population count of more than 9.0 million people. The new
nighttime signal closely mirrors the daytime coverage,
reaching an area that includes nearly 8.7 million residents.
The nighttime coverage area for the radio station travels
north to Racine, Wis. and south to well past Kankakee, Ill.
David Santrella, general manager of WYLL (1160 AM) and WIND
(560 AM), said, "The implications of this for our listeners,
programmers and advertisers are tremendous. We now will be
able to offer consistent service to our listener base 24-hours
a day, seven days a week, and our advertisers and program
clients also will benefit from our increased reach."
(4/10)
CHANGES:
John Butler has been promoted to VP/Promotion at Curb Records. John has
been with the label since 2001... HisAir.Net hears that EMF Broadcasting
has agreed to purchase WQCK/Baton Rouge (The Bridge)... WKNZ/Hattiesburg
will become the next K-Love affiliate... (4/5)
From CMCentral:
(click on headline)
Dove Award
performers and presenters announced; All 44 awards to be given during
this year's show...
Gospel Music
Association announces Dove nominees for Songwriter of the Year...
Joy Williams' Hide
makes record-setting debut at radio... (4/3)
The
Weekend Top 25 Countdown (AC) announces the following new
affiliates: KMOC/Wichita Falls, TX, KGCB/Phoenix, AZ, KBMQ/Monroe,
LA, WMSJ/Freeport, Maine, and WAYR/Brunswick, GA
In addition The Weekend 22 (CHR)
announces the following new affiliates: WAYK/Grand Rapids,
WHMX/Bangor, KJIL/Meade, KS, WEWT/Bloomington, IL, WZFI/Bridgeton,
NJ, and at Faithrock.org. The Weekend 22 currently airs in
over 150 markets across the country, including stations in
Canada and Guatemala, Central America.
The Weekend Top 25 Countdown and
The Weekend 22 are an AmpedCreative production. (4/3)
The
Christian Hit Radio Satellite Network announces three new affiliates for
it's syndicated "Total Axxess".
"The Point" KTPT/Rapid
City, SD, "Truth 103" WEWT/Bloomington,
IL, and KKJD/Borrego Springs, CA,
have recently added Total Axxess to their weekday evening line-up. “We
believe that Total Axxess is the right show for us because it provides
us with something way beyond what we could do for ourselves,” according
to Joe Standish, KTPT PD. “We love the fun, the phones, and the chance
to bring our audience closer to the artists.”
Total Axxess broadcasts live,
coast-to-coast from Nashville each weeknight, offering listeners and
radio stations “access” to their favorite Christian artists. (4/3)
Newschannel History
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