In a recently posted interview, author, speaker and longtime friend of the radio industry, Tim Sanders, talks with businessman and entrepreneur Nolan Bushnell about his new book, Finding The Next Steve Jobs: How To Find, Hire, Retain and Nurture Creative Talent. In the book Bushnell — who founded companies including Atari and Chuck E. Cheese, and who was also Steve Jobs’ first boss — offers a strong argument that companies simply must focus more on hiring those who can bring passion and creativity and into their organizations if they really want to gain a competitive advantage and succeed. Asked how to identify those with the sort of creative enthusiasm that he saw in a young Steve Jobs, Bushnell told Sanders, “Make sure they are passionate about something. Make sure that something makes their eyes light up. If they’re not passionate about anything? Next.” In a radio industry that most of us would agree is in serious need of a booster shot of passion, creativity, and leadership, Sanders’ interview and Bushnell’s book should be added to your “must read” list today. Read the full interview HERE.
An amendment to the Telephone Records Protection Act, introduced yesterday (5/16) by a bipartisan group of lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives, would protect not only journalists, but all Americans from having their phone records seized by the government without a court order. Wired.com’s Kim Zetter reports the proposed amendment — which comes in the wake of the Associated Press scandal in which federal investigators obtained and reviewed the phone records of AP journalists — would require any federal agency seeking to seize telephone records to first get a court order that states “specific and articulable facts” to prove that the information being sought is “relevant and material to an ongoing criminal investigation.” Current legislation on the books allows the feds to demand records from telephone service providers using only an administrative subpoena. The bill was introduced by representatives Justin Amash (R-MI), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Jared Polis (D-CO) and Mick Mulvaney (R-SC) who said in a statement, “If the case in favor of acquiring this information is so compelling, it seems a requirement that the government get a court order should be no impediment to the conduct of a valid government investigation.”
After leaving his post as GM for WABC-WPLJ/New York to become Station Manager at crosstown WOR just six months ago, Steve Borneman (pictured) has reportedly left the building at Clear Channel’s Big Apple News/Talker. No word yet on just where Steve’s headed next, or who might succeed him at WOR … J.D. Hayworth, former Republican Congressman and current morning co-host at San Diego Sports/Talker “Mighty 1090,” will fill-in all next week for Mike Huckabee while Huck is on vacation from his daily Cumulus Media Networks nationally syndicated talk show … As of June 1st, The Food Nation Radio Network with Elizabeth Dougherty will join the roster of programming available from the Business TalkRadio Network. Genesis Communications-owned WWBA/Tampa serves as the weekly food talk show’s flaship outlet. Look for more “Network/Syndication News” on page two of today’s edition of NTS MediaOnline Weekly HERE.
From our “Not Exactly Talk Media News” Department: Late yesterday afternoon (5/16) word came down that legendary Top 40 radio programmer Paul Drew died at a suburban Los Angeles assisted living facility. He was 78. Many in the Talk radio industry either worked with Drew (pictured), or were at the very least influenced by listening to the radio stations he programmed including KFRC/San Francisco, CKLW/Windsor-Detroit, WIBG/Philadelphia and KHJ/Los Angeles – from where he presided over the programming and playlists for all of the then RKO Radio Top 40 stations nationwide. Both feared and revered by those who worked for him — and by those in the music industry who sought his blessing for whatever current single they were promoting — Drew was a larger-than-life figure during AM Top 40 radio’s golden days. His unique stylistic approach, along with the ultra-strict formatics he installed at his stations, defined the sound of Top 40 radio for many years and influenced hundreds of past and current on-air personalities and programmers. In his recently released memoir, Records Truly Is My Middle Name, legendary Chicago radio personality John “Records” Landecker recalls the highs and lows of working for Drew at Philly’s WIBG. It’s a great story and you can read it HERE.
Veteran broadcast manager Steve Sinicropi has been named VP/GM for Entercom/Greenville’s five station cluster that includes News/Talk WORD-AM & FM. Prior to the recent sale of Cox Media Group’s Greenville stations to SummitMedia, Sinicropi served for the past decade as VP/GM of the crosstown cluster. His radio resume also includes management stints at CBS Radio/Detroit and All Pro Broadcasting/Milwaukee. “I’m excited to have Steve join Entercom to lead our team,” said Entercom RVP Michael Doyle. “His years of success in the Greenville market make him the right person to lead our strong team and incredibly strong brands in upstate South Carolina.” For his part, Sinicropi says he’s “thrilled” to be joining Entercom, praising the cluster’s “five powerful brands and great digital assets, along with the largest audience in the Greenville Spartanburg market.”
CBS Radio News reports the network will air Combat Stress: Finding The Way Home, a one-hour special for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend focused on the impact that post-traumatic stress has on the lives of our returning military veterans and their families. 60 Minutes correspondent Steve Kroft anchors … FOX Sports Radio continues its UFC coverage this weekend (5/18) with a Saturday night simulcast of UFC On FX: Belfort vs. Rockhold. Coverage begins at 9pm (ET) … Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has been hitting the media circuit this week in support of his new book, Rumsfeld’s Rules: Leadership Lessons in Business, Politics, War, and Life. That’s Rumsfeld pictured above with Todd Starnes, host of the daily one-minute FOX News Radio syndicated feature FOX News & Commentary.
Salem Radio Network VP/News & Talk Programming Tom Tradup (right) presents Congressman Louie Gohmert (R-TX) with a petition containing more than 125,000 signatures in support of the Second Amendment and gun owners’ rights. Also pictured is Tim Schmidt (left), CEO of the United States Concealed Carry Association, which co-promoted the online petition with SRN … WQAM/Miami welcomes David Wolfman as Local Sales Manager for the Beasley Broadcast-owned Sports/Talker. Most recently General Sales Manager for Clear Channel’s crosstown South Florida cluster, Wolfman’s sales experience includes prior positions with Interep National Radio Sales, ABC Radio Sales/Atlanta and D&R Radio/New York. He’ll report directly to Beasley/Miami Director of Sales Keriann Worley.
The Radio Advertising Bureau has launched Finding Consumer Trends (F.C.T.), a new service to help member radio stations sell locally and highlight the buying power of radio listeners coast-to-coast. Developed in conjunction with Presslaff Interactive Revenue, the F.C.T. reports are turn-key online surveys of a station’s audience that provide salable insights and qualified leads on purchase interests in top ad categories. Among the key findings of the latest F.C.T. study (that included 28,000 respondents 18+): The closer listeners get to purchasing or leasing a vehicle, the more important a part radio advertising plays. Also, radio is a top “must-have” in-dash entertainment option for automotive buyers of every age. The RAB and Presslaff will present Data To Drive Your Automotive Sales, a members-only webinar detailing the study, on May 21st at 10am and 3pm (CT). Find out more HERE.
SHALL WE DANCE? We’re not exactly sure what caused Ronda Rousey – the first-ever female UFC fighter — to step out on the floor with FOX Sports Primetime’s Pat O’Brien during a visit to the FOX Sports Radio studios this week, but here’s photo proof of the duo’s spontaneous terpsichore. No word on what dance they were doing, but our guess would be the ‘FOX Trot’ … Dial Global taps former Conde Nast exec Christina Albee as Chief Marketing Officer. Albee will be responsible for the company’s positioning and branding, while overseeing the conception and execution of the company’s advertising, marketing, and communication strategies. She’ll be based in New York City and report to Dial Global CEO Paul Caine … Congrats to Bloomquist Media namesake Randall Bloomquist as his Atlanta-based marketing communications and public relations firm has been honored with two 2013 Communicator Awards for its involvement with A Grateful Nation, the Memorial Day radio show that helped raise awareness and funds for the Fisher House Foundation. A new 2013 edition of A Grateful Nation will air again this coming Memorial Day weekend. Click HERE to reserve the program (distributed via Premiere Networks) for your station.
Commenting on yesterday’s breaking news that the United States Department of Justice had secretly seized both the professional and personal telephone records of news reporters and editors for the Associated Press has prompted a stern rebuke from Vincent Duffy, Chairman of the Radio Television Digital News Association, who released the following statement: “This unprecedented invasion of privacy involving confidential information is a blatant violation of basic rights afforded by the First Amendment. This action is unwarranted and absolutely strikes at the heart of the press freedoms we cherish in the United States. These critical freedoms are protected by both the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights and have clearly been thrust aside by the federal government through this action. RTDNA is working closely with other media groups to seek answers as to why the Justice Department took such a serious and, in our judgment, blatantly unconstitutional action toward an unknown end. Our efforts are directed toward reversing this assault on these basic and important freedoms.”
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