Into Action - NTS MediaOnline

The Year That Was: 2007
November 7, 2008
Split Personality
WFLA/Tampa afternoon host, and Dial-Global nationally
syndicated personality Todd Schnitt is a busy guy. So is
“MJ,” the morning guy down the hall at legendary Tampa
Bay CHR WFLZ. Both shows have dominant ratings in their
respective dayparts and both have been rated #1 in 25-54 adults
simultaneously in their drive time slots. Why
is that interesting? Well, “Todd” and “MJ”
are one in the same person. I managed to
grab a few mobile minutes with Schnitt as
he cruised the supermarket aisles on the way
home from his two-a-day hosting schedule
to talk about his new nationwide radio show
Todd Schnitt
and his concerns that a new administration in
Washington could bring about a return of the Fairness Doctrine.
Talk a little about your split personality.
I don’t really think there is one. I’m the same guy on both
shows, just the formatics and some of the content are different.
But, they’re both talk shows.
Who were some of the first talk hosts you listened to?
I tuned into music radio at a very early age. I was fascinated
by radio and always knew it was what I wanted to do. As a
teenager I got a job as a weekend board op at WNIS/Norfolk
running network talk shows and I listened to hosts like Ira
Fistel, Ray Breem, Bernard Meltzer, Michael Jackson, Owen
Spann and Sally Jesse Raphael. Those were really the first Talk
radio shows I listened to.
What’s the essence of your afternoon talk show and have you
had to make any adjustments to it since the national rollout?
Issue 74
We were on regionally before the national deal, so I think the
show had already adopted a national scope personality. And
keep in mind that Florida -- or, as I call it, ‘the freak show state’
-- is always a hotbed of news and topics for discussion. There’s
a reason why Fark.com has a Florida tag, ya know? This state
can be pretty bizarre. So even a lot of the local and regional
stuff ends up being national fodder. As to the essence of the
show, I just take a look at the world everyday and decide what’s
important to talk about in an irreverent and humorous way. And
we try to keep things pretty fast-paced.
As stations continue to evolve and look for the next generation
of national Talk show hosts, what do you think makes your show
one that programmers should consider including in their lineup?
I hear a lot of predictable Talk radio out there and I think we
deliver a show that is totally unpredictable and packaged in
a way that is different and a lot edgier than some of the more
dry and stodgy shows I hear out there. Our show is all about
entertainment first. I’m not the preacher and I’m not the teacher.
I just want to be the entertainer. And within that parameter we
can deal with it all - the funny and the serious. We can deal with
everything from the most intricate issues to pop culture morons
who are in the news.
You don’t specifically do a political talk show, but you do talk
about issues that are political. So what’s your take on the potential
of a return of the Fairness Doctrine from the new Democratic
administration and congress moving into DC next January?
My eyes have been on this issue for a very long time, I have
a folder about 8 inches thick with material on the Fairness
Doctrine. I think it’s scary and it is clearly an attempt to
©200 8 News • Ta lk • S p o r t s Airc h ec k ™ — Al l r i g hts re s e r ve d. To s u bs c r i be v i s i t www.ntsaircheck.com
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(continued on page 3)
News • Talk • Sports Weekly
November 7, 2008
Airchecklets
WEPN (1050 ESPN)/New York creative director Joey Salvia has
released a CD called Long Lost Weekend. You can check out the
tunes and buy it on Joey’s web page at <www.1050espnradio.com>
… St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bryan Burwell will join the
lineup at Bonneville/St. Louis’ “Sports/Talk 101.1” which is set to
launch on January 1. The new FM Sports radio outlet has also signed
a three-year deal to serve as the flagship for St. Louis University
Billiken men’s basketball … Kudos to WGN/Chicago entertainment
reporter Dean Richards on being honored with the Illinois Theater
Association’s 2008 “Award of Honor” which recognizes individuals
and organizations for promoting quality theater throughout the state
… Danny Bonaduce segues from CBS Radio FM talker KLSX/Los
Angeles to mornings at co-owned Rock outlet WYSP/Philadelphia
… Momentum Media Marketing taps Christian “Frenchie”
Lind as creative producer for the Vancouver, BC-based marketing
agency headed by Shawn Smith. Lind’s background includes stints
with CityTV, Shaw Television, PinkPlanet.tv, Corus Entertaiment,
planetRADIO and MZTV.
Network/Syndication Aircheck
KGIL/Los Angeles moves Talk Radio Network’s syndicated
Michael Savage to a new 5-7pm daily timeslot. The Mt. Wilson
Broadcasters-owned Talk station also adds TRN’s Monica
Crowley Show for 11pm-1am … Former Jones Radio Network VP/
Sales & Marketing Susan Love is named SVP/Network Ad Sales
at Westwood One. Also joining the network is Michael Reznick
as SVP/Metro Traffic Sales. He was most recently EVP at In Focus
Advertising … In other news from WW One, the network strikes
a deal to handle syndication chores for The Content Factory’s
new Into The Night with Tony Bruno which debuts next Monday
(11/10) from 7-10pm (PT) via flagship KLAC/Los Angeles …
WOCA/Gainesville-Ocala, FL signs on as the newest affiliate of
the Radio Shopping Show Sales Solution System. The barterbased system is marketed by Tim Disa-owned AirTime Media
Emerging Talk Media
Kurt Hanson’s Slipstream Radio will offer a lineup of 25
Christmas-themed online channels for broadcasters to use on their
Page 2
stations’ websites for the holiday season. The channels are delivered
via a custom-designed player designed to match the look of your
station. Check out the channels at www.accuradio.com/holidays
… Among the five finalists in the RAB’s search for the “best radio
website” in America are the websites of FM talker KLSX/Los
Angeles (www.97FMtalk.com) and Bonneville/Seattle’s shared
site for News/Talkers KIRO and KTTH (www.mynorthwest.
com) … Congrats to Alan Levy, CEO of BlogTalkRadio on
being named to the Silicon Alley Top 100 list of influential media
and technology players in the New York City area. Sirius XM
Radio CEO Mel Karmazin also makes the list.
Gig Alerts
Looking to leave the country? Great Britain’s City Talk 105.9
is seeking a programmer for its new Talk outlet in Liverpool,
England. Apply to Station Director Richard Maddock at richard.
[email protected] … Citadel Broadcasting is looking
for a Market Manager for it’s 5-station Baton Rouge cluster
that includes ESPN Radio Sports/Talker WIBR. Minimum 5
years outside sales and management experience preferred. Email
a cover letter and your resume with “General Manager, Baton
Rouge” in the subject line to [email protected] …
Got a gig open? Need a new challenge? Send details and your
contact info to [email protected] and we’ll post it here FREE!
Witnessing History
That’s ABC
News Radio
correspondents
Ann Compton
and Alex
Stone (seated)
covering
this week’s
Election Night
celebration for
President-elect
Barack Obama in Chicago’s Grant Park. Compton has covered
every U.S. presidential campaign for the network since 1974.
©2008 News • Ta lk • S p o r t s Airc h ec k ™ — Al l r i g hts re s e r ve d. S e n d n e ws to [email protected]
News • Talk • Sports Weekly
November 7, 2008
“ I’m not the preacher and I’m not the teacher.
I just want to be the entertainer.”
(continued from page 1)
suppress free speech. I would imagine if it is reinstated, it will
ultimately end up being challenged to the Supreme Court.
Although I think our show has the ability to adapt better than
most, it’s an issue we should all be concerned about. I don’t
think it will come up right away, but face it -- [Senate leader]
Harry Reid and [Speaker of the House] Nancy Pelosi have
both said they want it. I think they really want to get back at
Talk radio. It’s personal for them. But it is just such a bankrupt
notion. Let liberal talk succeed or fail on it’s own. Let the
marketplace decide what it wants and what it doesn’t. Trust
me, there isn’t a radio operator in America who wouldn’t flip
every AC or Country station they own to liberal Talk tomorrow
if they thought they could make money with it. Actually they’d
probably do it by eight o’clock tonight, they won’t even wait
‘til tomorrow.
So, any advice for Talk radio in the months ahead as this issue
potentially evolves?
Pay attention to the enemy and keep your powder dry. I would
hope there would be a huge outcry from Americans over any sort
of attempt to resurrect the Fairness Doctrine, stifle free speech,
trample on the first amendment and change the media landscape,
as we know it. I think it would result in the equivalent of a radio
civil war.
So, at the end of the day, what is it that you hope a listener will
take away from your show after agreeing to spend a couple of
hours with you?
Number one, I hope you were entertained. I also hope you
leave a little bit more informed and it makes you say to a
friend, “Hey, you won’t believe what I just heard on Schnitt.” I
want to be the guy who people say, “It’s three o’clock, turn on
the Schnitt show.”
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[email protected].
Contact NTS Aircheck
Al Peterson:
858-486-7559
[email protected]
Brooke Trissel:
512-218-8228
[email protected]
©2008 News • Ta lk • S p o r t s Airc h e c k ™ — Al l r i g hts re s e r ve d. S e n d n e ws to [email protected]
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