Big Frog 104's afternoon jock, Matt 'Bullfrog' Raisman, is headed to Watertown in a deal that sends Froggy 97 (WFRY) morning man, Bean Pole (Tom Jacbosen), to Utica as the cluster's new operations director and WFRG afternoon guy. Raisman, who picks up program director duties at WFRY and ESPN Radio 1410 (WNER) and the afternoon shift at Froggy 97, follows Don Cristi who moved to Watertown last month from Utica to manage Regent Communications' cluster up north.
K-Rock's J.J. Herr is packing his bags for a new night gig at Curtis Media's active rock station, 96 Rock (WBBB), in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. Herr, who has been host of K-Rock's Total Request Morning show since last September when he moved up from evenings, started out at the station as a 16-year-old intern. A search is underway for his replacement.
The 570 WSYR news department has seen some staffing changes over the past few weeks. Maria Leaf leaves her weekend anchor job at WSYR and "Your Stories" producer gig at WIXT TV 9 for a morning co-anchor spot at WGY in Schenectady. Josh Bertaccini, an S.U. graduate who has worked for WSYR and SportsRadio 620 (WHEN), joins WSTM TV 3 as a part-time sports anchor. WSYR reporter Evan Hirsch signs on with WIXT as a weekend producer, while Kafi Drexel and Sarah Bynofski join WSYR as part-time reporters.
Dakota and Nicole Wilcox of Hot 107-9 (WWHT) are scheduled to appear on a BBC Radio program tonight. They'll offer an American perspective on the current conflict in Iraq. Dakota participated in a similar cross-Atlantic discussion in the days following the Sept. 11th terrorist attacks in 2001. The show will be simulcast locally tonight beginning at 7 p.m.
Local oldies band Dunes and the Deltunes have released a brand new CD of hits from the 50s and 60s called Let's Go to the Hop!. Oldies 92.1 morning man Gary Dunes, who fronts the band which he formed in the late 1970s, will have copies of the new release available during the Deltunes' appearance at this weekend's Custom Classic Car Show at the State Fairgrounds.
SportsRadio 620 (WHEN) will carry Westwood One's regional feed of the NCAA men's basketball tournament. That makes yet another radio station which listeners can listen to the Syracuse University Orangemen in action during the post season.
New Rock 105 (WWDG) has put together a new weekly local music show that features interviews, live performances, and classic cuts from local artists. The Backyard, which airs Sunday nights beginning at 6, is hosted by Josh Farrell, a former member of the now defunct SAMMY award-winning band Doctor Pocket.
WSEN's web site has a whole new look. Along with a redesign of the site's navigation and features, the upgrade to Oldies 92.1's online presense also includes the unveiling of a new station logo. Check out the changes at: wsenfm.com.
Syndicated shock jock Howard Stern is hot under the collar over the debut of ABC's reality series Are You Hot? in which contestants are evaluated on looks alone by three celebrity judges. Stern, whose morning show is heard in Syracuse on 95X, contends ABC stole his idea which resulted in the plug being pulled on a deal he was working on with another network. Because of that, he has filed suit against ABC for $100 million.
A 95X sponsored concert last night at the Onondaga County War Memorial brought The Scorpions, Whitesnake, and Dokken to town. 95X's night jock, Ryno, who introduced the bands, also managed to get in a shot or two at rival K-Rock early in the show. The Syracuse Post-Standard reports K-Rock's 'Silent Bob' Staffa, who was in the stands at the time, took to the floor and after some words were exchanged between the two, security got involved.