 Contents - Contact Us - News Tips - News Archive - Mailbag - Rant - Support DCRTV NYC/Philadelphia - Boston/Hartford/Providence - Station List - Daveland - Dave TV YouTube - Twitter - Facebook - Classified Ads - Advertise On DCRTV - DCRTV Plus Local news at fuzface.com: McPherson Occupy DC Encampment Raided By Park Police..... PGC's Jason Kidd Queried - 2/4 - FMQB talks to Jason Kidd, the new program director at CBS's urban contemporary WPGC, 95.5. Before joining PGC, he worked at Baltimore's adult hits WQSR, Jack 102.7, plus hot adult contemporary WWMX, Mix 106.5, and at the old contemporary hit WBSB, B104. Kidd shares his thoughts on the highly competitive DC radio market and the launch of dance-formatted Area 955 on WPGC's HD2 digital subchannel..... 2 Moves Sher's "Square Off" - 2/4 - Channel 2/WMAR moves Baltimore TV veteran Richard Sher's Sunday "Square Off" program from 10 AM to 11 AM. Baltimore's longest-running public affairs show ran for 19 years on on Channel 13/WJZ before moving to WMAR in 2009. Catch episodes at vimeo.com..... Dave TV: 98 Rock's KML, MAL's Harden & Weaver, More - 2/4 -  I open a surprise package from a DCRTV fan with memories of Kirk, Mark, and Lopez on 98 Rock, a WOL/WKYS/WMMJ Stone Soul Picnic t-shirt, a t-shirt from WPER on its fifth anniversary, the book "On The Radio" from WMAL legends Harden and Weaver, some Oprah memories, and more. Plus, Big Tigger to NBC4? And, it was 40 years ago this month that my parents moved the family to the DC area. All in today's "Dave TV" at DCRTV's Dave TV page.....DCRTV's Classified Ads - 2/4 - WTOP is looking for both a fulltime and parttime overnight digital editor as well as a parttime traffic reporter/producer. Fredericksburg's Star Radio Group is looking for a radio marketing consultant. SFMSports is looking for play-by-play talent and an account manager. And, Strauss Radio Strategies is looking for an account exec and a senior account exec. Those are the latest DCRTV Classified Ads, where you can reach many thousands of media professionals for $35..... Support DCRTV & Get DCRTV Plus Flashbacks - 2/4 -  DCRTV depends on your donations for a good chunk of our monthly operating expenses. If you haven't helped support DCRTV lately, this would be a great time to do so. Independent, one-man DCRTV is your best source of Washington and Baltimore area radio, TV, and media news, memories, and gossip. Make a donation via PayPal or the US Mail. Visit our Support page. Make your donation $29 or more and get a year of DCRTV Plus, which is loaded with DC and Baltimore radio and TV videos, jingles, tributes, tech specs, and more. Just added to DCRTV Plus - three new Photo Galleries, bringing the total to 93, with memories of Chris Core, Bill Trumbull, Doug Hill, and Vince Bagli. Today's DCRTV Plus Flashback is a 1973 playlist from "top 40" WEAM (right).....Big Tigger To NBC4? - 2/3 - Channel 4/WRC anchor Jim Handley Tweets that former WPGC morning man Big Tigger will be joining the NBC station's 4 PM newscast on Monday. A one-time appearance or a regular gig? Big Tigger got pink-slipped from the CBS urban contemporary outlet in December. More as we hear it..... WAMU's Jerry Gray Dies - 2/3 - DCRTV hears that Jerry Gray died yesterday. He was a well-known announcer in local commercial radio before he came to WAMU, 88.5 FM, to do its bluegrass show. More soon..... New XMTR For TOP - 2/3 - DCRTV hears that Hubbard all-newser WTOP just installed a brand spanking new Nautel NV40 digital/analog solid-state main transmitter for its 103.5 FM northwest DC signal. This single transmitter broadcasts both the analog FM signal and the digital HD Radio main signal and sub-channels. The old analog transmitter, a Harris HT25, will remain as a backup. Photos in DCRTV's 2/3 Mailbag..... Leonsis Slams WaPo - 2/3 - Wizards owner Ted Leonsis criticizes the Washington Post for a recent article about the low prices now being offered by ticket resellers for the losing team's games. At washingtonpost.com..... Oliphant To Nat'l Journal - 2/3 - Jim Oliphant joins the DC-based National Journal to be a deputy magazine editor. He comes from Tribune, where he covered national politics for the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. Before that he was editor-in-chief of Legal Times..... Bob Ryan Receives AMS Award - 2/3 -  Channel 7/WJLA meteorologist Bob Ryan (right) has received the American Meteorological Society's award for broadcast meteorology. Established in 1975, the award recognizes meteorologists for "their dedication to advancing the science of weather forecasting through broadcasting, education, safety, and support of colleagues." More at wjla.com. Also, Ryan sounds off on the controversial "Forecast The Facts" campaign, which is attempting to get TV weathercasters to side with the pro-climate change crowd. Writes Ryan at wjla.com: "We should all seek more information and knowledge and not be drawn, or seek out only to those who agree with our ideas, be they science, political, whatever. Let's drop the lightning rod labels... being thrown from opposite sides of the river of knowledge and understanding." Ryan joined WJLA in May 2010 after three decades with Channel 4/WRC.....Gurin Leaves FCC - 2/3 - Joel Gurin leaves his post as chief of the Federal Communications Commission's Consumer And Governmental Affairs Bureau. Kris Monteith, deputy chief of the FCC's Media Bureau, will serve as Gurin's "acting" replacement..... Baker Voices USPS Exhibit - 2/3 - Area voiceman Matt K. Baker was recently chosen by the US Postal Service to narrate its exhibit at the Smithsonian Postal Service Museum. More in a YouTube video. He's also been busy doing "Coast Guard Alaska" for the Weather Channel, "America's Wildest Roads" for the Travel Channel, and promos for Discovery's networks and 3Net. More at mattspeaking.com..... New Digs For WAMU - 2/2 -  American University has signed a contract to purchase a building to become the new home for WAMU, 88.5 FM. The seven-story edifice (right), located at 4401 Connecticut Avenue NW, DC, has 96,102 square feet. As the anchor in the building, public radio news talker WAMU and its music service, Bluegrass Country, will occupy more than half of the space to fit its current needs, with the potential for future expansion. "Our aspirations to develop and distribute more original content will be facilitated by this new location," says WAMU General Manager Caryn Mathes. "Our intention to continue our growth into a broadcasting powerhouse will be achievable, and our goal of truly being a community institution can be more readily realized. I'm excited for the future this building represents." WAMU's new home is approximately one mile from the station's current Tenleytown location and is easily accessible from the Van Ness Metro. WAMU is currently housed in 23,000 square feet at 4000 Brandywine Street NW, DC, which has been the station's home since 1993. More at wamu.org.....13 Tops Balto TV News Race - 2/2 - CBS-owned Channel 13/WJZ took the Baltimore TV news ratings crown for January with first place finishes at 5 AM, 6 AM, noon, 5 PM, 6 PM, and 11 PM. Hearst's Channel 11/WBAL has suffered from the loss of 4 PM's "Oprah," which delivered a large female audience for its 5 PM newscast, along with NBC's sagging primetime ratings, which have been a poor lead-in to its 11 PM newscast..... Rob Douglas Nabs Romney, Santorum Paul - 2/2 - WBAL radio veteran Rob Douglas snags GOP presidential candidates Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum for Friday's edition of his midday "Cari and Rob Show," which is co-hosted by Cari Hermancinski and is carried by talk radio stations throughout Colorado and the mountain west. More at cariandrob.info..... Phil Boyce To Salem - 2/2 - Phil Boyce, who was rumored back in November to possibly be lead programmer for CBS's new DC area all-newser WNEW, will head the talk radio efforts for Christian-based Salem, which owns DC's WAVA, 105.1 FM/780 AM, and WWRC, 1260 AM. Boyce, who used to program NYC talker WABC-AM and later headed programming for Talk Radio Network, which produces the DC-based America's Radio News Network and Laura Ingraham's DC show, will be based out of Salem talker WNYM in North Jersey..... Mike Coneen Guests With Arch - 2/2 - NewsChannel 8's Mike Coneen guests on this week's edition of "The Arch Campbell Show," which airs on NewsChannel 8 Thursday and Friday at 8:30 PM, plus 11:30 AM and 9 PM Saturday..... Paul Singer To USA Today - 2/2 - Paul Singer jumps to McLean-based Gannett's USA Today to be DC-based politics editor. He comes from Capitol Hill's Roll Call, where he'd been an investigative reporter since 2007..... Beard Anchors Charlottesville News - 2/2 - Nearby news. TVSpy tells us that Bob Beard is the new 5 PM and 7 PM anchor at Charlottesville triopoly WCAV-WVAW-WAHU. He was formerly a correspondent with NBC, CNBC, and CNN..... Comcast Adds 9's Bounce TV - 2/2 - Comcast has added African American network Bounce TV to channel 207 of its basic service in the DC area. It's received over the air via the 9.2 subchannel of Gannett's Channel 9/WUSA, which added it late last year. Comcast continues to carry WUSA's 9.3 Live Doppler 9000 HD radar weather on 203. Bounce TV on 207 replaces Universal Sports, which was discontinued on January 1 as a broadcast subchannel of NBC's Channel 4/WRC..... McKenna & Steinberg To Address Gelf - 2/2 - Former Washington City Paper sports media writer Dave McKenna gets a write-up at gelfmagazine.com, where he dicusses getting sued by Redskins owner Dan Snyder. And, gelfmagazine.com also talks to Washington Postie Dan Steinberg about his six years of the DC Sports Bog blog. The two will be speaking this evening during Gelf's Varsity Letters sports reading series in NYC..... Keys Return To WTHU - 2/2 - The Frederick Keys announce that Thurmont MD talker WTHU, 1450 AM, The Source, will serve as the official flagship station for Keys baseball for a second consecutive season. Along with all 140 regular season games being broadcast live, WTHU will air any Keys post-season games as well as a weekly 30-minute program, "The Keys Corner," every Saturday afternoon beginning April 7th. More at ballparkdigest.com..... Watergate Reunion For Woodward & Bernstein - 2/2 - There was an unexpected Watergate reunion at the Nixon Library in Yorba Linda CA featuring Washington Post legends Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein. At washingtonpost.com..... Reality TVers Converge On DC - 2/2 - For one week every January, the epicenter of reality TV is Washington. That's when network execs, producers, and agents descend on the Renaissance Hotel in DC to participate in four days of fevered pitching and industry navel-lint gazing. So reports Lisa de Moraes at washingtonpost.com..... WMMJ PD Gone - 2/1 - DCRTV hears that Jamillah Muhammad, the program director at Radio One's Majic 102.3, WMMJ, was fired today. She's been at the adult urban contemporary station only about a year from Chicago. "Hired a few of her on air crew from Chi Town when she got here. Guess they are not safe now," a source tells us. More soon..... Beaujon Leaves TBD - 2/1 - Andrew Beaujon jumps to the Poynter Institute to be a senior online reporter at its poynter.org journalism news-based website. He comes from Allbritton's TBD.com, where he has been arts editor since May 2010. Before that, he was managing editor of Washington City Paper for almost five years. Allbritton started TBD as a replacement for sister Channel 7/WJLA's news site, but has since scaled it back to local entertainment news..... Washingtonian Site Tops 2M Views - 2/1 - DCRTV hears that Washingtonian magazine's "ever-growing" washingtonian.com hit a milestone in January, topping 2 million pageviews during the month. On some days last month, the site had more than 100,000 pageviews, we're told..... WMAL De-Emphasizes AMer - 2/1 -  It sounds like WMAL is phasing out mentions of "AM 630" on its airwaves. The on-air moniker is now "105.9 WMAL." The Cumulus news talker added the FM relay in September, with the demise of classic rocker WVRX, 105.9 The Edge. But WMAL hasn't seen much of a ratings spike since simulcasting on FM, placing just 16th with its combined signals in the latest weekly radio ratings for the DC market. The station was frequently ranked higher when it was only on AM. No word if Cumulus is planning to make WMAL "FM only" later this year and do something new with the AMer.....Knox Joins Yahoo News - 2/1 - Olivier Knox joins Yahoo News as its first White House correspondent. He had been covering Congress for Agence France-Presse..... Centennial Ups Chuck Archer - 2/1 - Centennial promotes Chuck Archer to be operations manager of its Fredericksburg radio cluster. He's been production director at hot adult contemporary WBQB, 101.5 FM, and adult standards WFVA, 1230 AM. Before Centennial, Archer was assistant program director and music director at CBS's now-defunct classic rock WARW in DC. He's also held radio gigs in Hilton Head SC and Bluefield WV..... CSN To Carry Ravens Review Press Conference - 2/1 - Comcast SportsNet will air live coverage of the Baltimore Ravens' season-in-review press conference today at 2 PM. "SportsNet Central: Ravens' Year In Review" will be hosted by Chris Miller and Brad Jackson, and will feature Ravens Owner Steve Bisciotti, President Dick Cass, General Manager, Executive Vice President Ozzie Newsome, and Head Coach John Harbaugh..... FCC Indecency Complaints Fall - 2/1 - Just 538 complaints to the DC-based Federal Communications Commission about indecent or obscene radio-TV programming. That's for the third quarter of last year, and the number is a tiny fraction of what the Parents Television Council used to generate in the years following the Janet Jackson Super Bowl "wardrobe malfunction," so reports TRI's Tom Taylor. The commission hasn't issued any new fines in years, especially against radio, and that's because of the uncertain legal situation. According to FCC stats, it received 139 complaints last July, 97 in August, and 302 in September..... Bankruptcy Drains Tribune - 2/1 - Tribune's Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings have cost it $231 million, so far. And that's causing an erosion of the core business at the Tribune-owned newspapers - the continuing layoffs, and the talent who choose to leave rather than endure the uncertainty. TRI's Tom Taylor wonders why Chicago-based Tribune stayed in Chapter 11 so long? "Distressed debt investors," says Crain's Chicago Business. They saw a troubled company and jumped in, willing to hold on until the bitter end. The more traditional bankers would've cut their losses, settled this long ago, and moved on, Taylor adds. Locally, Tribune owns the Baltimore Sun and Channel 50/WDCW..... Plotkin Raged At WTOP Cleaning Crew - 1/31 - What got WTOP political commentator Mark Plotkin fired last week? According to Erik Wemple at washingtonpost.com, Plotkin chewed out the small crew of Latino workers who perform cleaning services at WTOP's office building. When he arrived at the Idaho Avenue facility, Plotkin found that a door to the stairwell wasn't opening, so he then walked into an open elevator, only to find that it was out of service. And he raged at a cleaning crew. The following day, Plotkin again yelled at a cleaning crew member. Adds Wemple: "When Plotkin took to screaming at the people who pick up after him, the radio station apparently decided that a line had been crossed"..... WTOP Again Atop Ratings, Fresh & PGC Up - 1/31 -  Hubbard all-newser WTOP is back atop, while CBS's 94.7 Fresh FM, WIAD, and remixed urban WPGC, 95.5, continue their upward trends in the DC radio ratings for the "first week" of January, full-day, age 6+: 1) WTOP [1st in both drivetimes], 2) WAMU [ME 1st, ATC 2nd], 3) WIHT [Kane 3rd], 4) WASH [L&L 6th], 5) WHUR [Harvey 4th, Baisden 7th], 6) WMMJ [Joyner 5th], 7) WIAD [McFly 9th], 8) WPGC, 9) WPRS [Yolanda 10th, Jackson 8th], 10) WRQX [Diamond 8th, Carson 14th], 11) WBIG [Griffiths 15th] and WWDC [Elliot 7th], 13) WKYS [Parr 14th], 14) WMZQ [Boxer 13th], 15) WETA-FM, 16) WGTS and WMAL [MM 11th], 18) WTEM [M&M 18th, Korny 11th, Czaban 15th], 19) WLZL [Biagi 20th], 20) WJFK [Junks 18th, Wise 23rd, Arrington 19th], 21) WDCN and WBQH and WFRE and WINC-FM and WFLS, 26) WAVA-FM, 27) WAFY and WNEW-FM. Arbitron ranked duplicative WMAL-AM at 20th and WMAL-FM at 21st. We have combined the shares in the above listing.....WWIN Tops Baltimore - 1/31 - Radio One's adult urban contemporary Magic 95.9, WWIN-FM, is again atop the Baltimore radio ratings for the "first week" of January, full-day, age 12+: 1) WWIN-FM [Joyner 2nd], 2) WLIF [G&D 6th], 3) WPOC [DeYoung 1st], 4) WERQ and WJZ-FM [N&D 3rd], 6) WIYY [M&A 3rd], 7) WWMX [JJ&R 10th], 8) WCBM [S&F 8th], 9) WBAL-AM [Durian 5th], 10) WZFT, 11) WCAO, 12) WYPR [ME 10th] and WQSR, 14) WZBA [Klug 10th], 15) WRBS-FM, 16) WBJC..... WaPo Makes Nixon Impeachment Blunder - 1/31 -  The error-plagued Washington Post runs a correction in its Tuesday edition apologizing for running a front page article yesterday that referred incorrectly to the impeachment of President Richard Nixon. Nixon resigned rather than face impeachment over the Watergate scandal, the correction adds. DCRTV's take: An embarrassing blunder for a once great newspaper that broke Watergate almost 40 years ago.....Junkie Flaim Pens Boxing Book - 1/31 -  JP Flaim, of WJFK, 106.7 The Fan's "Sports Junkies, pens a book about his alternate career as a professional boxer (right). "Chasing Rocky," according to a press release, "presents an inside look at the brutal training boxers endure, from facing fears to the dealing with the pain of getting punched." "Chasing Rocky" is available at Authorhouse.com, Amazon.com, BarnesAndNoble.com, and for iBooks, Nook, Kindle, and Kobo. And there's a Facebook page.....PressBox Publisher Jumps Into Bay - 1/31 - Stan "The Fan" Charles, publisher of Baltimore sports newspaper and website PressBox, jumps into the Chesapeake Bay for charity. At pressboxonline.com. Plus, the latest sports media column with news that Debbi Taylor will be leaving MASN's Nationals coverage, also at pressboxonline.com..... Noonan To "Anderson" - 1/30 - DCRTV hears that Terence Noonan will now oversee day-to-day operations at Anderson Cooper's "Andershow" afternoon talk show. Noonan used to produce medical news segments for Channel 9/WUSA..... Key Says Adios To Stacy - 1/30 - DCRTV hears that there's been a shake-up at Nassau's Key 103.1, WAFY in Frederick. Stacy Lyn was let go from the "Stace And Tommy" morning team Friday, leaving Tommy Jordon on his own - for now. And there's a new program director for the hot adult contemporary station, who's been brought in from Nassau's Philadelphia cluster, we're told. We hear that Stacy's looking for a new area gig - stacylynvoiceovers.com..... Gannett TV Revenue Down - 1/30 - McLean-based Gannett, which owns 23 TV stations across the country including DC's Channel 9/WUSA, says it countered a significant drop in political advertising in the fourth quarter with an 11.3% increase in non-political revenues. Gannett's television revenues for the fourth quarter were $192.4 million, $27.9 million less than the $220.2 million brought in during the same period last year. TVSpy has more..... Former Gannett CEO Gets $15M - 1/30 - Craig Dubow, former chairman and CEO of McLean-based Gannett, received a $14.7 million payment related to a physical disability that compelled him to resign in late 2011. Dubow's payment was revealed in Gannett's fourth quarter earnings call January 30, according to broadcastingcable.com. A 30-year Gannett veteran, Dubow took four months off in 2009 following back surgery. He took a leave of absence on September 15 to address continuing medical issues, before signing off for good October 6..... Donnie Simpson: Not Ready To Return To Local Radio - 1/30 -  DC radio legend Donnie Simpson (right) reflects on his life two years after leaving the morning gig at CBS's urban contemporary WPGC, 95.5 FM, on January 29, 2010. While he says that he enjoyed 40 years in radio, including many at WKYS before WPGC, Simpson reveals that his 41st year - the final one at PGC - was miserable. And, regarding the recurring rumors that he'll someday return to local radio, he writes on his Facebook page: "On my last show I was so careful
to say this is not a retirement, just a break and you will hear from me again.
Two years and several offers later, I cannot say with conviction that it's still
just a break, but I can say with conviction that I can only come back it if it's
fun again. I'm just not sure it would be".....Former 9er Diercks Loses Miami Gig - 1/30 - Ardyth Diercks has been removed as president and general manager of WTVJ-TV, the NBC-owned station in Miami. Before joining WTVJ in 2003, she headed Gannett's Channel 9/WUSA, CBS's DC affiliate..... More: WaPo Rate Hike - 1/30 - Earlier this month, DCRTV told you that the Washington Post quietly raised its weekday newsstand price from 75-cents to $1. With the Sunday edition jumping from $1.50 to $2. Now, we hear that the paper is raising rates for subscribers, too. Full-week delivery for the paper's eight-week billing period goes from about $48 to about $53. Subscribers pay 75-cents for weekday editions. Ombudsman Patrick Pexton says his paper should have better notified readers that it's raising prices. At washingtonpost.com..... WFBR & WCBM Veteran Ken Maylath Dies - 1/30 - DCRTV hears that Ken Maylath, who was a newscaster at Baltimore's old WFBR, 1300 AM, died Saturday. He was 75. Maylath worked at WFBR in the early 1960s, when it had a "top 40" contemporary hit format, and continued there into its talk format days, moving to news talker WCBM, 680 AM, in 1988. Maylath worked there until his retirement in 2005. More soon..... CapHill Slow To Replace BBG Head - 1/30 - There's a big vacancy at the DC-based Broadcasting Board Of Governors, with the resignation of its chairman, Walter Isaacson. And, apparently, Congress and the White House are in no hurry to replace him. The BBG oversees the Voice Of America, Radio Free Europe, and TV Marti. But the agency that enjoyed strong Congressional support during the Cold War is now languishing on Capitol Hill, claims Matt Armstrong at mountainrunner.us..... WKCY Tops Harrisonburg - 1/30 - Clear Channel's country WKCY tops the latest batch of radio ratings for Harrisonburg VA. More at radio-info.com..... McKenna Rocks Out With WaPo - 1/30 - Dave McKenna is back freelancing rock concert reviews for the Washington Post. He left his 26-year sports and media writing gig at the Washington City Paper at the end of 2011, after his November 2010 piece on Dan Snyder attracted a lawsuit from the Redskins owner. The suit was later dropped..... Dave TV: Plotkin, Wemple, Farhi, Core, More - 1/29 - I tackle a batch of topics in this weekend's "Dave TV." With Erik Wemple breaking the "Mark Plotkin-leaving-WTOP" story Thursday, why did the Washington Post get Paul Farhi to do the Friday print write-up? How about WTOP replacing Plotkin's politcal show with one hosted by Chris Core? And, OK, WMAL moved to FM in September, but why won't it make any programming improvements to prevent a ratings slide? Perhaps CBS should do something different with 1580, like a relay of El Zol or PGC's Area 955. And, maybe DC area stations should better promote their HD Radio signals. Also, should the Washington Post become a tabloid? Watch "Dave TV" at DCRTV's Dave TV page..... Pann Advocates Diversity In Climate Change Debate - 1/28 -  Baltimore-DC TV meteorologist Tony Pann (right) sounds off on the "modern day witch hunt going on in the debate over climate change. A political action group has started a movement... to try and get as many TV weathercasters 'in line' with their beliefs about climate change as possible. They go by the title of 'Forecast The Facts' and have gone as far as e-mailing every TV news director in the country urging them to get the on air talent to start doing more stories on global warming and to incorporate more of that information into the weathercasts." Adds Pann: "I am a scientist that does not agree with the science behind the man made climate change theory, but I am also an environmentalist... We can exist in the same space!" At examiner.com. More: The Washington Post Capital Weather Gang's Jason Samenow calls the campaign to influence TV weathercasters "misguided." At washingtonpost.com.....Jerry Phillips Seeks Kidney - 1/28 - DC radio and TV veteran Jerry Phillips tells us that he's suffering from chronic kidney failure and that he's a candidate for kidney donation. At dcmetrotalk.weebly.com..... Dozen Buyouts At WaPo's Gazette - 1/27 - A source tells DCRTV that the Washington Post-owned Gazette newspaper, which covers the suburban Maryland counties of Montgomery and Prince George's, saw about a dozen employees take buyouts this week. Some who had worked for the weekly for more than 18 years, we're told. More as we hear it..... More Cumulus Cuts Coming? - 1/27 - DCRTV hears that some programming gurus from Cumulus were in town this week eyeballing the operations of news talker WMAL and hot adult contemporary WRQX, Mix 107.3. Back in December, we reported rumblings of more cuts at Cumulus's DC radio cluster coming in January. But, so far, nothing. Might they instead be happening in February? Stay tuned..... CSN Debuts "My Life" - 1/27 - Comcast SportsNet will premiere "My Life 365: Kevin Plank" tonight at 7 PM. The Emmy Award-winning "My Life" series, which is hosted by Ron Thompson, chronicles the lives of the DC-Baltimore area's most influential sports figures, providing insight on their careers, families, and community involvement. Previous subjects of the series have included Ted Leonsis, Dominique Dawes, Grant Hill, and Allen Iverson. More at csnwashington.com..... Bankruptcy For Media General? - 1/27 - In its earnings call Thursday, execs of Richmond-based media giant Media General say they are hoping to modify the agreements for its $658 million in debt. If it can't successfully renegotiate the covenants, Media General could be at risk of bankruptcy. It's a threat that some analysts have been discussing quietly since last year, so reports TVNewsCheck. The firm, which owns 18 TV stations as well as 21 daily newspapers, including the Richmond Times-Dispatch, reported a 12 percent decline in fourth quarter revenue. Locally, Media General owns the News And Messenger newspaper in Prince William County and the insidenova.com Northern Virginia news website..... No Plotkin-Less Politics For WTOP At 10 AM - 1/27 - It will be the news, traffic, and weather "wheel" in the 10 AM hour on Hubbard all-newser WTOP today after yesterday's big news that Mark Plotkin's Friday "Politics Program" had been cancelled now that the longtime political analyst is no longer with the station. It's "back to basics," WTOP top programmer Jim Farley tells DCRTV. So far, the local politics show will not be resurrected with a new host..... No Credit For Wemple's Scoop In Farhi's Plotkin Piece - 1/27 - Why is it that, while Washington Post media blogger Erik Wemple broke the story Thursday at noon at washingtonpost.com that political columnist Mark Plotkin had been fired by WTOP, fellow Postie and media writer Paul Farhi does the official write-up for the Friday print edition at washingtonpost.com without even crediting or linking to Wemple's scoop? Why couldn't Wemple have penned the Friday print edition piece, too? He does have a long writing/reporting history with his many years at Washington City Paper. Hmmm. More. Wemple Tweets us: "Thanks for paying close attention to the coverage. It's a quirky system, for sure, but I have no issue with fairness at all"..... WUSQ Tops Winchester - 1/27 - Clear Channel's country WUSQ, 102.5 FM, again tops the radio ratings heap in Winchester. More at radio-info.com..... More Woes For Discovery's OWN - 1/27 - A management shake-up at Silver Spring-based Discovery's low-rated OWN, Oprah Winfrey Network. At washingtonpost.com..... Rogers To Examiner - 1/27 - Jenny Rogers jumps from local entertainment news site TBD.com to join the Washington Examiner as one of its "Yeas And Nays" gossip columnists..... Julie Wright To WNEW - 1/26 - DCRTV told you that Lisa Baden is the official morning traffic reporter for CBS's new all-news WNEW, 99.1 FM. And now we hear that Julie Wright is officially the afternoon traffic reporter at the CBS station. Wright, who works for Total Traffic, continues her morning traffic reports for Fox's Channel 5/WTTG..... CBS Ups Tillman - 1/26 - Thomas Tillman is the new deputy Washington bureau chief for CBS News. The University Of Maryland graduate has been at CBS News 22 years..... Plotkin "Fired" By TOP - 1/26 -   DCRTV hears that Hubbard all-newser WTOP and political commentator Mark Plotkin (right) have parted ways. Plotkin has gone missing from WTOP's website. No official reason given. Erik Wemple at washingtonpost.com reports that Plotkin, who has been with WTOP for nearly 10 years, will no longer be doing his Friday at 10 AM local politics show, and that Jim Farley, head of programming for WTOP, has confirmed the departure. WTOP has issued the following statement: "We are cancelling the 'Friday Politics Program' effective immediately. WTOP and Mark Plotkin are parting ways. We wish him the best in his future endeavors." A local radio guru tells DCRTV that he classifies Plotkin's departure as being a "firing." Might Plotkin soon be heard on WTOP's new all-news rival, CBS's WNEW? More: WNEW ran a "breaking news" bulletin at 1:47 PM reporting that "WTOP has fired Mark Plotkin." And it made mention of a "shouting match" dispute Plotkin had in early January with DC Council Chairman Kwame Brown at the studios of Channel 5/WTTG, which DCRTV first reported. We have video of that WNEW bulletin at DCRTV's Dave TV page. Carol Joynt has more on Plotkin's firing at washingtonian.com.....Dave TV: Money Demo Radio Ratings, TC's New Book, More - 1/26 - The "money demo" age 25-54 radio ratings for the 4th week of the "holiday" period for DC, and WTOP ain't on top. Plus, I take a look at some cool books from the DCRTV Library, including a new offering from DC radio vet TC called "Smoothies." Also, CBS finally closes on the 107.9 signal. And more in today's "Dave TV" at DCRTV's Dave TV page..... Fox's Jeanna Gibson To CBS - 1/26 - DC-based political booker Jeanna Gibson leaves Fox News for CBS's recently revamped "This Morning" team, where she will handle political guest booking and interview efforts..... News-Post To Restart Monday Edition - 1/26 - Three years after yanking it, the Frederick News-Post resumes publication of its Monday print edition as of February 6th. More at fredericknewspost.com..... WFRE Tops Frederick - 1/26 - More Frederick news. As usual, country WFRE, 99.9 FM, takes the top spot in the latest batch of Frederick area radio ratings. With DC all-newser WTOP in second place, via its 103.9 FM Frederick relay. News talker WFMD, 930 AM, places third. More at radio-info.com..... MHZ To Carry WikiLeaks Founder's TV Show - 1/26 - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will host a talk show on RT, an English language Russian TV network carried by Falls Church-based MHZ Networks on one of Channel 30/WNVC's digital subchannels. More at washingtonpost.com..... SOTU TV Numbers Down - 1/26 - More than 38 million watched President Obama's State Of The Union speech - down from previous addresses. More at washingtonpost.com..... Nats Cut Debbi Taylor - 1/25 - Nationals reporter Debbi Taylor will not be returning to MASN broadcasts for the 2012 season, so reports Adam Kilgore at washingtonpost.com. He adds that Taylor confirmed the news in an email. She wrote: "It seems they are eliminating the reporter position, unfortunately. It was great run"..... TC Releases Smoothie Book - 1/25 -  TC (left), the DC radio morning personality last heard daily on Donnie Simpson's morning show on CBS's WPGC, but perhaps best known as a personality on "The Real DC Morning Show" on Howard U's WHUR, has a new book out. "TC's Real Talk And Real Meals - Smoothies" features more than 150 recipes "blended in" with her brand of "real talk womens' empowerment, anecdotes, and writings," TC tells us. The book is available now at TC's website, realtalkwithtc.com, and through her publisher, booklogix.com. The book will soon be available nationwide at Barnes And Noble stores. TC, who describes herself as a "foodie" and a photographer, took all the photos in the book.....CBS Closes On 107.9 Purchase - 1/25 -  CBS Radio announces that it has closed the deal for 107.9 FM in Annapolis, acquiring the station from Family Radio. CBS had been leasing the station, which became Spanish El Zol, WLZL, which was moved from 99.1 FM to 107.9 on December 1, freeing-up 99.1 for new all-newser WNEW, which launched Sunday. CBS reportedly paid $8.5 million for the 107.9 signal. WLZL's studio remains at CBS Radio's DC area broadcast complex in Lanham. The four-decade WFSI religious format, previously heard on 107.9, can now be heard on Family Radio's 860 AM in Baltimore, which now sports the WFSI call.....Funds Missing From Local Emmy Board - 1/25 - Channel 9/WUSA's Bruce Leshan is reporting that potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars are missing from the local chapter of the National Academy Of Television Arts And Science. The non-profit organization, which stages the annual Mid-Atlantic region Emmy awards using funds contributed by local media outlets, has voted to proceed with filing criminal charges against Mike Cephas, a former Channel 5/WTTG accountant, WUSA reports. He was acting as the group's treasurer. The Emmy board funds, possibly more than $250,000, were discovered missing in November. However, an attorney for the board says that no charges have yet been filed and that the group has not yet contacted the FBI or local authorities, WUSA adds. More at wusa9.com..... 11 Moves Hamilton To 11 PM - 1/25 - DCRTV hears that Baltimore's Channel 11/WBAL moves Donna Hamilton to co-anchor with Rod Daniels on the NBC affiliate's 11 PM newscast, starting Super Bowl Sunday, February 5th. DCRTV broke the news midday Wednesday. The Baltimore Sun got the news hours later..... WTOP Back Atop DC Radio Heap - 1/25 - The DC radio ratings for the "fourth week" of the "holiday" period, just past Christmas, show all-newser WTOP jumping back to the top of the heap now that adult contemporary WASH is no longer running holiday tunes. Full-day, age 6+: 1) WTOP [1st in both drivetimes], 2) WASH [L&L 4th], 3) WAMU [ME 2nd], 4) WHUR [Harvey 3rd, Baisden 6th], 5) WIHT [Kane 5th], 6) WMMJ [Joyner 6th], 7) WPGC, 8) WKYS [Parr 10th], 9) WETA-FM, 10) WPRS [Yolanda 11th, Jackson 8th], 11) WBIG [Griffiths 17th], 12) WRQX [Diamond 8th, Carson 11th], 13) WMZQ [Boxer 13th] and WWDC [Elliot 8th], 15) WGTS, 16) WIAD [McFly 14th] and WMAL [MM 12th], 18) WTEM [M&M 13th, Korny 14th, Czaban 17th], 19) WJFK [Junks 17th, Wise 19th, Arrington 18th] and WLZL [Biagi 20th], 21) WAVA-FM and WFLS and WFRE, 24) WAFY and WNEW-FM, 26) WBQB and WINC-FM, 28) WPFW and WDCN. Arbitron ranked duplicative WMAL-FM at 20th and WMAL-AM at 21st. We have combined the shares in the above listing.....WLIF Tops Baltimore - 1/25 - Baltimore radio ratings for the four-week "holiday" period, full-day, age 12+: 1) WLIF [G&D 1st], 2) WWIN-FM [Joyner 2nd], 3) WERQ [Smiley 8th] and WPOC [DeYoung 5th], 5) WJZ-FM [N&D 3rd], 6) WIYY [M&A 6th], 7) WBAL-AM [Durian 4th], 8) WWMX [JJ&R 13th], 9) WZFT, 10) WCBM [S&F 7th] and WCAO and WQSR, 13) WZBA [Klug 10th], 14) WRBS-FM, 15) WYPR [ME 11th], 16) WBJC, 17) WASH, 18) WHUR, 19) WPGC, 20) WAMU..... 500 Podcasts For O'Meara - 1/25 -  DC radio veteran Mike O'Meara celebrates the 500th "regular" episode of "The Mike O'Meara Show" podcast at mikeomearashow.com, with more than 11 million downloads. "It's almost surreal that today marked the 500th regular episode of TMOS, although I'm not sure ANY of them have been regular," writes O'Meara sidekick Robb Spewak on Facebook. "Time truly flies when
you're having fun! My most sincere appreciation goes out to every listener,
downloader, streamer and supporter that made it such a great ride so far." O'Meara started the daily podcasts from his Manassas area home in late 2009, just after he lost his afternoon gig at WJFK, when the station flipped from "guy talk" to sports talk. He did mornings at classic rocker WVRX, 105.9 The Edge, until this past September, when that station was terminated in favor of an FM relay of news talker WMAL. Also on O'Meara's podcast: Buzz Burbank and Oscar Santana.....Celeb Newsers Do White House - 1/25 - Top celebrity network TV newsers were guests of President Obama at the White House yesterday for a pre-State Of The Union speech dinner. Including ABC's Diane Sawyer, NBC's Brian Williams, CBS's Scott Pelley, Fox's Bret Baier, CNN's Wolf Blitzer, MSNBC's Chris Matthews, and ABC's George Stephanopoulos. More at huffingtonpost.com..... Gannett Buys Fantasy Sports Ventures - 1/25 - McLean-based Gannett has bought Fantasy Sports Ventures, a web sports network best known for its Big Lead Sports site. Gannett invested in Fantasy Sports back in 2008. Fantasy Sports has more than 19 million unique users, and Gannett says that combining them with the audience for its existing sports sites will make it one of the internet top five sites. More at allthingsd.com..... WAYZ Tops Hagerstown - 1/25 - Country WAYZ, 104.7 FM, tops the latest batch of Hagerstown radio ratings. More at radio-info.com..... Hot 99.5's Kane To Also Do Mornings On Tampa Station - 1/24 - Hot 99.5, WIHT morning man Kane will also be heard in mornings on Tampa's WFLZ, starting February 20th. His WFLZ show will not be a direct simulcast of his Hot 99.5 show, we hear. Both are Clear Channel contemporary hit stations. Kane, who has been hosting the top-rated "Kane Show" on Hot 99.5 for the past six years, worked at WFLZ before coming to Washington. He's been voicetracking afternoons for WFLZ for the past eight years..... 5 Takes Blame For Xfinity Ad Goof During NFL Game - 1/24 - Channel 5/WTTG has officially acknowledged that those Comcast Xfinity ads that ran during the pro football action of the Giants-49ers game were a result of technical problems at DC's Fox-owned TVer. A station statement released Tuesday: "Sunday night, Fox 5 experienced technical problems that affected the airing of Comcast Xfinity commercials during the NFC championship game. We apologize for the impact these technical issues had on the viewing experience of Comcast subscribers and have taken additional steps to ensure that these problems do not happen again." More at washingtonpost.com..... WaPo To Cut 100 In Next 2 Years - 1/24 -  Departing Washington Post Managing Editor Raju Narisetti recently caused an uproar at his paper when he told a journalism confab that the Post will likely eliminate about 100 positions in the next two years. The cuts do not necessarily mean layoffs and could come from buyouts like ones the Post has done in the past. Last week, Narisetti anounced that he'd be leaving the Post for a gig at the Wall Street Journal. Romenesko has more.....Even WaPo Ombud Makes Mistakes - 1/24 - Even the Washington Post's ombudsman, who is charged with pointing out errors among the paper's staff, makes mistakes. Patrick Pexton says he erred when he criticized the Post for not publishing MLK holiday closings in print. At washingtonpost.com..... Stiller To Produce DC HBO Show - 1/24 - Ben Stiller will star, direct, and produce a new HBO series set in the Nation's Capital. According to the Hollywood Reporter, "All Talk" is being described as a "politically, religiously, culturally, intellectually, and sexually irreverent" show that "revolves around the daily and life-altering dramas of a Jewish family" in DC..... Dave TV: WNEW Gag Reel, Those Mysterious Comcast Ads, More - 1/24 - A mysterious source provides an audio "gag reel" for all-newser WNEW's first few days. And, we try to figure out what caused those mysterious Comcast Xfinity ads that ran on Channel 5/WTTG during the Giants-49ers game Sunday. Plus, more rewriting in the Washington Post. All in today's "Dave TV" at DCRTV's Dave TV..... WTOPer: Should WNEW Be Comparing Itself To Pepco? - 1/24 - The Examiner does a story on new all-newser WNEW, which quotes CBS Radio DC czar Steve Swenson as saying: "I think we refer to it kind of like Pepco - you turn on the light switch and you get lights. Anytime you tune in you'll never be more than one minute away from news or information." To which a top suit at rival all-newser WTOP tells DCRTV: "You can tell they are from out of town - comparing themelves to the most hated company in the region." Pepco has been slammed for its frequent and lengthy storm-related power outages..... BAL Postpones Sandler Meeting - 1/24 - A meeting that was supposed to take place last week between management at news talker WBAL, 1090 AM, and "Detour Dave" Sandler to discuss the veteran traffic reporter's future was postponed, Sandler says. Rumors are swirling that the ailing Sandler was being dropped by the Hearst-owned station, including its sister, WIYY, 98 Rock. Sandler had heart bypass surgery in 2009 and subsequent procedures to deal with related medical issues. Baltimore Brew has more. More: DCRTV hears from a top WBALer: "The meeting was postponed by Dave. He is recovering from surgery"..... "This Week" Ratings Rise With Stephy - 1/24 - With George Stephanopoulos back in the saddle, ABC's DC-based "This Week" enjoyed its most watched broadcast in 10 months - up to 2.7 million last Sunday. Christiane Amanpour had averaged around 2.3 million viewers. More at washingtonpost.com..... Plante Gets "Daily Show" Shot - 1/24 - WMAL's Chris Plante gets a cameo shot on Comedy Central's "The Daily Show." Jon Stewart used a clip featuring an interview that Plante gave to Fox News earlier this month. More at wmal.com..... Politico Pro Moves Zapler - 1/24 - Mike Zapler leaves the deputy tech editor gig at Politico Pro to be deputy Congress editor at the Allbritton Capitol Hill news organziation. Keith Perine leaves CQ Roll Call to be Politico Pro's new deputy tech editor..... Ravens' Game Sets Record For 13 - 1/23 - Channel 13/WJZ says that almost 1.2 million Baltimore market viewers watched the Ravens-Patriots game Sunday. That's a viewership record for the CBS-owned station and about 78,000 more viewers than watched the Ravens-Giants Super Bowl in 2001. WJZ-TV's audience hit almost 1.3 million during the final minutes of the game, when the Ravens missed a 32-yard field goal, costing them a shot at victory..... Comcast Says Mistaken Ads Were 5's Fault - 1/23 - DCRTV hears from a Comcast spokesperson who says that the mysterious insertion of several Xfinity promotional spots, which interrupted coverage of last night's Giants-49ers game, was actually the fault of Channel 5/ WTTG. Apparently, the DC TV station sends out a feed of its programming to area cable systems, including Comcast. And the error occurred on WTTG's end, we're told. More at washingtonpost.com..... Curley To Leave AP - 1/23 - After nearly nine years leading the Associated Press through a media landscape reshaped by unprecedented upheaval, President/CEO Tom Curley announced Monday that he will step down. Before joining AP in 2003, he had been president and publisher of USA Today and senior vice president of its parent, McLean-based Gannett. AP has more..... Comcast Runs Ads Over Fox 5's NFL Playoff - 1/23 - DCRTV hears that Comcast in the DC area ran ads for its Xfinity service at least four times during football plays of Sunday's Giants-49ers game. The ads were seen during Channel 5/WTTG's Fox coverage of the NFC championship game, a possible violation of FCC rules, which prohibit cable systems from running their content "on top" of local broadcast signals. "One aired during actual play, an OT punt, not just the time between plays," we're told by a viewer. More as we hear it..... CBS Launches WNEW At Noon Sunday - 1/22 -  CBS Radio launched new DC area all-newser WNEW, 99.1 FM, at noon Sunday. And we have live video/audio of the first few minutes of the new station at DCRTV's Dave TV page. The station was originally slated to launch last Thursday, but the date was later pushed to Monday. However, CBS pulled a surprise and launched it today. CBS announced that it would be starting DC's second all-newser, to compete with top-rated WTOP, back in November. Lots of first impressions about the new WNEW in DCRTV's Sunday Mailbag.....WaPo Corrects Story About Itself - 1/22 - The Washington Post finds the need to correct a story about its own managing editor joining the Wall Street Journal..... Ehrlich To Pen Column For Sun - 1/22 -  Former Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich plans to write a weekly op-ed column for the Baltimore Sun, a newspaper with which he clashed while in office. The Sun reported that Ehrlich, a Republican who served as governor from 2003 to 2007, will focus on national politics. The Sunday column will debut January 29. Ehrlich had a strained relationship with the newspaper as governor, banning state employees in 2004 from speaking with two Sun reporters after a series of articles about a state plan to sell preserved forestland to a construction company owner. The Sun sued to lift the ban but lost in federal court. More at wbaltv.com. More: DCRTV hears that Ehrlich's wife, Kendel, may host a talk show for WBAL radio. She and her husband hosted a Saturday morning talk show for the station before his unsuccessful re-run for governor in 2010.....More: Brian Mitchell To CSN - 1/22 - In his Sunday Washington Post DC Sports Bog column, print page D2 and at washingtonpost.com, Dan Steinberg takes a look at Brian Mitchell's new Comcast SportsNet show, "SportsTalk Live," which debuts Monday at 10:30 PM. The former Redskin has hosted radio shows for WTEM and WJFK, and done TV work for CSN and WUSA. More: Jim Williams talks to Mitchell, who co-hosts with Ivan Carter, about the new show at washingtonexaminer.com..... Older news goes to DCRTV's News Archive. Older gossip and commentary items can be found on DCRTV's Rant page. Copyright Dave Hughes/DCRTV.....  |
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