John ‘Records’ Landecker Returns to WLS-FM Fulltime. Cumulus Oldies WLS-FM, Chicago, brings back John “Records” Landecker for 6-11pm, starting Monday (Jan. 23). That moves Dick Biondi to an 11pm-2am shift. Biondi will also host a weekend special. Says Cumulus SVP of Programming Jan Jeffries, “Landecker and Biondi back-to-back personifies the heritage and expectation of WLS and will bring a new excitement to night radio in Chicago”
‘Lazer’ Becomes ‘Kiss’ in Kansas. Great Plains Media Hot AC “Lazer 105.9″ KLZR-FM, Lawrence, Kansas, serving the Topeka and Kansas City areas, flips to CHR-Top40 “105.9 Kiss FM” with the slogan “Nothin’ but the hits.” The launch of the new format followed stunting with continuous Lady Gaga recordings. Kidd Kraddick’s syndicated show continues in mornings, with other personalties from co-owned stations voicing other dayparts. The new “Kiss” website is online here.
Harrisburg Gets ‘Z Country’. Following a period of stunting, the former “Channel 106.7″ launches its new format as “Z Country 106.7″ on WMHX-FM, Hershey-Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The former format had featured 90s pop hits. Now the Cumulus station will compete directly with Clear Channel’s Country “Bob 94.9″ WRBT-FM. The format flip represents a return to Country for 106.7, which was once “Z107″ and later “Cat Country” before a series of pop music formats. “Z Country” launches with 10,000 songs, commercial free.
iHeartRadio Adds KCRW-FM and KUSC-FM. Clear Channel announces that two public radio stations are being added to iHeartRadio. Santa Monica College KCRW-FM, Los Angeles and University of Southern California KUSC-FM, Los Angeles, will begin streaming next month. “We’re thrilled to add KCRW and KUSC to iHeartRadio and make public radio stations available for our listeners,” says Clear Channel Digital President Brian Lakamp. “We want to be everywhere our listeners are with a variety of programming options to appeal to the widest possible audience, and adding these public radio stations to iHeartRadio offers listeners an even more interesting and diverse listening experience.” KCRW features an eclectic mix of independent music, news, talk and arts programming. KUSC is a Classical station.
Mario Lopez Joins ’104.3 MYfm’ Los Angeles. Television personality and actor Mario Lopez will join Hot AC “104.3 MYfm” KBIG-FM, Los Angeles, January 23, for a 7-11pm show. The music-intensive show will include Lopez sharing entertainment stories, celebrity interviews and listener interaction. “This opportunity to have my own radio show is particularly meaningful because it allows me to expand on yet another platform to showcase another side of my personality,” says Lopez. “Plus, it’s going to be a blast on MYfm here in Los Angeles. Great music, hot topics and lots of laughs!” KBIG-FM Program Director Andrew Jeffries tells us, “The addition of Mario Lopez is the final puzzle piece to our new Los Angeles lineup. We’ve been working on this partnership for quite some time and it sends a clear message of our commitment to success.”
Cox SVP of Digital and Strategy Gregg Lindahl Exiting. Cox Media Group Cox Media Group SVP of Digital and Strategy Gregg Lindahl will exit at the end of the month, about a year after he was promoted to that position. Lindahl says he and Cox are parting on good terms. He has been a digital strategist for Cox for more than a decade, previously as Cox Radio’s VP of Interactive and New Technologies. Cox will divide his duties between VP of IT Mark Beck and VP of Digital Strategy Leon Levitt. Lindahl previously was President and COO at mp3radio.com, and has held executive positions at Eagle Research and ABC Radio.
Las Vegas FM for Sale on eBay. Aurora Media’s Rock “Jelli 94.5″ KXLI-FM, formerly KVBE-FM, Moapa-Las Vegas is listed for sale on eBay, as a “Commercial FM broadcast station” which serves “Las Vegas, Nevada, Clark County, USA.” The listing shows the auction starting at $1,000, although so far there have been no bids. The auction ends January 29. A “buy it now” price listed in the description is $8.95 million. The eBay listing notes that “Sale is subject to the final approval by the FCC.” The listing also offers “one day shipping” for $25.
Maybe the FCC Just Doesn’t Like Contests? Clear Channel is facing an FCC Notice of Apparent Liability in the amount of $22,000 for contest violations in Los Angeles. The contest, which was conducted on the websites of radio stations in the cluster in 2008, brought complaints to the FCC, which ultimately resulted in the NAL. Contestants were invited to create their own video commercials for Chevrolet autos and post them on Clear Channel websites. The winner would receive a car. Clear Channel failed an attempt to get the matter thrown out because it was conducted online and not over the air. The Commission says the contest was promoted on all of the Los Angeles cluster radio stations making it an FCC matter. The stations involved in the contest were KFI-AM, KOST-FM, KHHT-FM, KBIG-FM, KYSR-FM and KIIS-FM. Complaints included an accusation that the contest was rigged in favor of a person with a connection to a Clear Channel employee, although the FCC found Clear Channel not liable on that. The problems cited in the NAL include insufficient broadcast announcements about contest rules and ambiguity about the duration of the contest.
Matt Saunders Named Clear Channel St. Louis DOS. Clear Channel St. Louis appoints Matt Saunders, Director of Sales. “We are thrilled to add Matt to our Sales Management Team,” says President and Market Manager Beth Davis. “Matt is a seasoned radio marketing veteran with invaluable knowledge of the local business landscape. As Clear Channel continues to grow, he will bring his extensive experience and unique ideas to the local advertising community.” Saunders’ background includes time as a Local and National Sales Manager with CBS Radio, the St. Louis Cardinals Radio Network, Bonneville International, Heritage Media and Emmis Communications.
CBS Again Tells Merlin to Stop Infringement. Merlin Media CEO Randy Michaels has received another “stop infringing” letter from CBS intellectual property and litigation attorneys. CBS claims Merlin’s “FM News 101.9″ WEMP-FM, New York, is infringing on their trademarks: “You Give Us 22 Minutes. We’ll Give You the World” and “Traffic And Weather Together.” CBS is demanding Michaels stop the station from using similar slogans on the air claiming the WEMP-FM phrases – including “Give us 10 minutes, we’ll give you the world” – and others being used “intentionally are confusingly similar” to the well-known CBS Radio slogans. Ironically, CBS-TV in New York is airing commercials for WEMP-FM’s “FM News” programming.
Scott Paulsen and Bill Crawford Join Pittsburgh’s WDVE-FM. Scott Paulsen and Bill Crawford join Rock WDVE-FM, Pittsburgh. Paulsen re-joins WDVE as an Executive Contributor for the station and morning show. He will also join the morning show on a weekly basis and guest host across WDVE programs. Comedian Crawford will join the DVE morning show’s Randy Baumann, Val Porter and Mike Prisuta on a regular basis. “The return of Scott Paulsen and the addition of Bill Crawford to WDVE will round out an all-star staff for WDVE and Pittsburgh listeners,” says President and Market Manager Dennis Lamme. “We are excited about the creative spark these two personalities will bring to the station.” Paulsen was previously on the WDVE Morning Show for 13 years.
Crawford is a Pittsburgh comedian and has been performing stand-up comedy on a local and national level for the past eight years, and has been a frequent guest of the morning show.
Radio Host Charged With Practicing Medicine Without License. The host of a brokered medical advice show on Salem’s WMCA-AM, New York, is charged with practicing medicine without a license. Former doctor Alan Lupinacci, 65, is accused of illegally operating a health clinic in Wyckoff, NJ. He admitted to sexually molesting patients more than a decade ago, say authorities, who claim he recently practiced medicine without a license and used an alias to illegally operate the health clinic. Lupinacci is charged with financial facilitation, theft by deception, misconduct by a corporate official, impersonation and practice of medicine by an unlicensed person, according to Bergen County (NJ) Prosecutor John Molinelli. Lupinacci’s medical license was revoked in 1995 after he pleaded guilty to 10 counts of criminal sexual contact with patients at his West Paterson practice, says Molinelli.
Philadelphia Sports Talker Apologizes. Sports Talk “97.5 the Fanatic” WPEN-FM, Philadelphia, parent company Greater Media has issued an apology on behalf of night host Tom Byrne. The sports talker was arrested after allegedly assaulting a cab driver whom he had first refused to pay a $5 fare, according to a police report. “Tom deeply regrets his behavior and realizes that it was inexcusable,” says Greater Media spokeswoman Heidi Raphael. “He also extends his sincere apology to the cab driver and would like to make amends if possible. Tom will be taking a leave of absence from the station while he works through these issues, and we support him in those efforts.” Byrne was charged with aggravated assault, robbery and related charges after he was arrested one block from where a taxi driver told police that Byrne had punched him repeatedly and dragged him on the ground after he refused to pay for his cab ride and taunted the driver by saying “I’m a celebrity. This is my neighborhood. What are you gonna do about it?” Byrne has a preliminary hearing February 3, according to Philly.com and Daily News columnist Dan Gross.
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