November 2002

Utica’s WARM 93.5 (WRFM) jumps on the holiday band wagon. The Clear Channel station has switched formats to all seasonal music through Christmas.

Syracuse’s Oldies 92.1 (WSEN) is changing its Sunday night lineup of syndicated programs. Goddard’s Gold moves to 5 p.m., replacing MJI’s Oldies Countdown, and new to the schedule is Back to the 70’s, hosted by Charlie Tuna, from 8 – 10 p.m.

Beginning this Friday, Big Mike’s annual Christmas CD will be available at all ten area Wegmans stores. This, the 8th annual collection of holiday music performed by local musicians, is a compilation of the best of the first seven albums. Artists include: Benny Mardones, Ronnie Leigh, Todd Hobin, Gary Frenay, and Street Corner among many

There wasn’t much shifting of rank in the latest monthly trend numbers for Syracuse released yesterday by Arbitron. Market leader B104.7 picked up nearly a point, which puts them comfortably ahead of second place 93Q. WSYR inched ahead of Hot 107-9 to move into fourth place. Numbers are for all listeners in all dayparts and

Cary Pall has been named the new program director of Oldies 107.9 (WODB) in Columbus, Ohio. Pall, who spent a few years at WTLB in Utica during the 1970’s as Rock Marshall, was most recently the program director of the Clear Channel cluster in Toledo.

Former Hot 107-9 jock Matt Johnson is on the move again. Johnson, who left Syracuse for WDBT in Jackson, Mississippi in January, is headed to Dayton, Ohio to program Clear Channel’s KISS-FM 94.5. He replaces Dino Robataille who left to work with Hot’s Jason Kidd as assistant program and music director of KISS 96-1 (WKST)

For the second year in a row, Y94FM will flip formats for the holidays. Starting Wednesday at 3 p.m., the adult contemporary station will switch to a 24/7 holiday music rotation which will run through Christmas day.

It was just over a year ago that Reggie Jordan moved from Richmond, VA to Central New York to head up Citadel Communications’ Syracuse radio stations. Jordan is on the move once again, this time to Charlestown, SC as vice president and general manager of Citadel’s group of stations there.

Regent Communications’ request to buy 11 of Brill Media radio stations out of bankruptcy has been approved by the FCC. Regent, which has been operating the stations through an LMA since September, owns nine stations in Utica and Watertown.

TV Guide is reporting that Art Bell is working with country music legend Merle Haggard to help turn him into a radio talk show host. Bell, who is retiring at the end of the year, sees Haggard as a good bet to host a show that mixes music with talk of the paranormal similar to