Metro Detroit: December 2011 Archives

9 & 10 News adds Grand Traverse area translator

Hoping to improve reception for viewers in Traverse City, CBS affiliate WWTV-TV Ch.9 has added a translator on Ch. 40 serving the Grand Traverse area. The station should be available to viewers after rescanning their digital equipment.

AllAccess.com:

CPR PROMOTIONS VP/Fun & Games & Extremely Weird & Very Bizarre Stuff PAIGE NIENABER has been inked by CBS RADIO/DETROIT beginning today.

Full story: CBS Radio/Detroit Brings Paige Nienaber Into The Building (Thu, 12/1)

Crain's Detroit Business:

Since Dick Purtan retired in March 2010 after 45 years on Detroit's airwaves, local radio has been in turmoil from format shifts, station ownership changes, job cuts -- but also has been growing revenue. It's a confusing landscape, but one beginning to grow barren of veteran stars behind the microphone. Non-air talent also is being pared to save money.

Full story: Change echoes through radio market (Sun, 12/4)

Ann Arbor Journal:

An Ann Arbor-based organization is currently seeking to launch the city's first low-power community radio station. The Make This World Foundation is a registered nonprofit corporation formed in Michigan in 2009. The group is particularly focused on promoting local voices and greater diversity on the airwaves by providing access to audiences traditionally under-represented in media, including African Americans, women and seniors.

Full story: Make This World Foundation wants to launch local radio station, plans fundraiser (Sun, 12/4)

AllAccess.com:

TOWNSQUARE MEDIA Hot AC WLHT 9CHANNEL 95-7)/GRAND RAPIDS brings in JOE KNIGHT to be APD/afternoon host. KNIGHT has held on-air and programming positions at WZYP/HUNTSVILLE, AL; U93/SOUTH BEND, IN and SL100/HATTIESBURG, MS. Most recently, he was doing nights across the street at WBCT show at B93.

Full story: WLHT Names Joe Knight APD/Nights (Tue, 12/6)

CLEAR CHANNEL Top 40/Mainstream WKQI (CHANNEL 955)/DETROIT and its MOJO in the Morning show have qualified over 100 listeners for a $15,000 shopping spree at the TWELVE OAKS MALL in NOVI. The lucky winner will be chosen TONIGHT at CHANNEL 955's Jingle Jam at THE FILLMORE in DETROIT and the shopping spree will take place TOMORROW, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7th.

Full story: WKQI's Mojo Offers $15K Shopping Spree (Tue, 12/6)

WYCD/Detroit's annual radiothon wraps up

CBS country WYCD-FM 99.5 Detroit wrapped up it's annual St. Jude Country Cares Radiothon on Friday; the two day event resulted in listener pledges of $454,387.

The event raises donations for St. Jude Research Hospital in Memphis, TN - radiothon's are sponsored by country radio stations across the country to help the facility help fight childhood cancer.

Michigan Radio's WFUM radio and CMU's WCMZ TV to have temporary outages today

Listeners to Michigan Radio on WFUM-FM 91.1 and viewers of CMU Public Television on WCMZ-TV Ch. 28 in the Flint area will be without their stations for awhile today as the stations plan to sign off at approximately 10 a.m. so that workers can make repairs to the lighting on the broadcast tower located near Goodrich.

Detroit News:

Cyndy Canty is eight days from unemployment, and she just received yet another cheery, you-can-do-it note. This one was from a woman getting radiation treatments for lung cancer. You can't say that put things in perspective, because Canty's perspective has always been fine. But it was another nice reminder that she hasn't been talking to the walls for 32 years.

Full story: Radio's Cyndy Canty stays upbeat about the future (Wed, 12/14)

All 66 regular-season Pistons games will be televised locally, the team announced Wednesday. All but one game will be on Fox Sports Detroit or, when there's a conflict with the Red Wings, FSD-Plus.

Full story: All 66 Pistons games to be on TV (Wed, 12/14)

Bay City Times:

The year was 1952 when a young disc jockey at local radio station WSGW heard something come in on the news wire. Grabbing the piece of paper, he rushed to read it on the air. But it wasn't breaking news. It was a recipe.Reading that recipe changed the lives of thousands of housewives across the Tri County area, made Fred Krell a household name and led to the evolution of the area's longest-running talk show -- "Listen to the Mrs."

Full story: For 60 years, 'Listen to the Mrs.' has been a place to share (Wed, 12/14)

WOMC/Detroit morning host Bobby Mitchell goes tower climbing to help collect 10,000 toys

CBS Radio classic hits WOMC-FM 104.3 Detroit will be collecting unwrapped toys for "Santa's Toy Castle" today, Friday December 16th from 6 a.m. - 10 p.m, and again tomorrow, Saturday December 17th from 8 a.m. - 10 p.m. outside the TCF Bank in Canton (45375 Ford Road, Canton, MI 48188).

Morning show host Bobby Mitchell has pledged that he'll remain up in a broadcast tower until 10,000 toys are collected - even if it requires sleeping on the tower.

All toys collected will be distributed through The Salvation Army to children and families in need this Christmas.

The event will also include a visit from Santa who will be available for photos from 12 - 4 p.m. on Friday and from 1 to 5 p.m.on Saturday. Kids will be able to create a Christmas ornament and there will be food and beverage samples available as well.

Listeners can also drop off unwrapped toys at any TCF Bank during business hours to help them "Stuff the Vault" for Santa's Toy Castle - Or, drop off toys at the front desk of the WOMC lobby on Friday, December 16 from 8:30 a.m to 5:30 p.m. at 2201 Woodward Heights Blvd in Ferndale.

Grand Rapids Press:

A local radio station is working to make a difference in the lives of West Michigan children. STAR 105.7 is hosting the T.O.Y (Think Outside Yourselves) Radiothon to raise money for the Helen DeVos Children's Hospital. The annual event which kicked off Wednesday, runs through 6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 15.

Full story: Kevin Matthews returns to air waves for Helen DeVos Children's Hospital fundraiser (Thu, 12/15)

AllAccess.com:

CUMULUS Sports WTKA-A (SPORTS TALK 1050)/ANN ARBOR has named IRA WEINTRAUB as PD. WEINTRAUB had been the APD/Morning Show Producer since MARCH 2009.

Full story: Ira Weintraub Named PD At WTKA (Thu, 12/15)

TVSpy.com:

Maurielle Lue has moved from Cleveland to Detroit, joining Fox O&O WJBK as a reporter. Lue spent the past three years working at WEWS in Cleveland, where she served as a general assignment reporter, morning traffic reporter, breaking news reporter, and morning anchor.

Full story: Maurielle Lue Moves From Cleveland to Detroit (Thu, 12/15)

AllAccess.com:

PHIL TOWER is back as PD of News WOOD A/F and Talk WTKG-A.

Full story: Phil Tower Rejoins WOOD And WTKG-A As PD (Mon, 12/19)

HomeTownLife.com:

As he wraps up his radio career, Jim Harper wasn't making an commitment about his retirement plans except for Dec. 16, 2012. "(Wife) Lynn and I will be cruising Ford Road waving like royalty," said Harper, after Dec. 16, 2011, was proclaimed Jim Harper Day in his hometown of Westland. A 1971 Westland John Glenn High School graduate, Harper has worked nearly 45 years in radio and mainly in the Detroit area. He officially retires on Friday, Dec. 23, with his last morning show at Magic 105.1/WMGC-FM where he has worked since July 2001 as morning host and program director.

Full story: Westland honors hometown celeb, Jim Harper (Sun, 12/18)

Ann Arbor's 107one helps gather 203 tons of food in 5-day event

Despite a challenging economy, the community, once again, helped Ann Arbor's 107one (WQKL-FM), Food Gatherers and Kroger exceed their goal for the food bank's largest annual outdoor food drive, Rockin' for the Hungry. The five day event (December 7th - 11th) raised 203 Tons of food for those in need in Washtenaw County.

Volunteers and radio personalities braved long hours, and at times, frigid weather outside Kroger on South Maple in Ann Arbor, MI, to collect food and financial contributions for Food Gatherers' food rescue and food bank program. Through their efforts and generous contributions from sponsors Bank of Ann Arbor, Donaldson & Guenther Dentistry, The Quarter Bistro & Tavern, IBEW Local 252 NECA, Suburban Chevrolet Cadillac Saab, Cueter Chrysler Jeep Dodge, Cozy Home Solutions, Blue Tractor BBQ & Brewery, DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen, Enspire Dental, Golden Limousine, and UA Local 190 Plumbers, Pipefitters and Gas Distribution Workers, this event exceeded the Rockin' goal of 200 Tons.

This generous support allows Food Gatherers to meet the urgent and pressing demand for food in our own community. "On behalf of all the people seeking food assistance this year, we are so grateful to ann arbor's 107one, Kroger and the citizens of Washtenaw County for making a real difference in our community," said Eileen Spring, President and CEO of Food Gatherers. "When we needed you most, you rose to the challenge."

TVNewsCheck:

Multi-screen media measurement firm Rentrak Corp. today announced that Post-Newsweek Stations has signed a long-term, group-wide contract for Rentrak's StationView Essentials local market census-based ratings service.

Full story: Post-Newsweek, Rentrak in group-wide deal (Mon, 12/19)

f Nielsen's local TV ratings service doesn't improve, Post-Newsweek Stations may drop it, said Alan Frank, president of the six-station group. "Our Nielsen contract is still in effect, but we have not made any plans to renew it," he said via email.

Full story: P-N's Frank: Local Nielsen problems 'severe' (Tue, 12/20)

Detroit News:

On Friday morning, Detroit radio veteran Jim Harper signs off on Magic 105.1/WMGC-FM's morning show for the last time. A native of Hamtramck, Harper started out on the air at WYNZ-AM in Ypsilanti in 1967, at the tender age of 13, broadcasting a show about "teen issues." His voice has been a mainstay on Motor City airwaves ever since, for most of the last 44 years.

Full story: Jim Harper to retire from Detroit's Magic 105.1 (Wed, 12/21)

Midland Daily News:

Mike Avery has never been afraid to try something new. When he graduated from Ferris (then State College) and landed an industrial TV production job with General Motors, "I discovered this isn't where I want to be" and moved on ... And now, the Midland resident is leaving behind part of that -- the TV show -- to focus on radio. Avery's last Outdoor Magazine TV show debuts Thursday at 7 p.m. on the Sportsman Channel.

Full story: Avery's last outdoor TV show Thursday (Thu, 12/20)

Grand Rapids Press:

Phil Tower's back at WOOD radio. The veteran radio personality has been named program director at WOOD-AM (1300) and WOOD-FM (106.9), his former home for a decade.

Full story: Phil Tower's back at WOOD radio in Grand Rapids (Tue, 12/20)

Detroit Free Press:

Rich Homberg, president and general manager of Detroit Public Television, says it's a "tremendous honor" that the station's "Beyond the Light Switch" is among the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award winners for 2012. The two-part documentary and online initiative is one of 14 projects to be honored during a Jan. 19 ceremony.

Full story: Detroit Public Television documentary 'Beyond the Light Switch' wins award (Wed, 12/21)

Grand Rapids Press:

Everybody knows a turkey and some mistletoe will help to make the season bright, but what are some fresh and novel ideas for sparking up the season? Leave it to the sparkiest of them all, West Michigan's morning television news anchors, who shared their coziest traditions and brightest notions for greeting Christmas with good cheer.

Full story: TV news personalities from West Michigan share their favorite holiday traditions (Thu, 12/22)

Greater Media's WMGC-FM 105.1 Detroit has ended its extended stay with Christmas music programming and returned to an adult contemporary format - but one that has been tweaked a tad to focus more heavily on 1980s music than it featured prior to it's pre-Halloween switch to 'Christmas 105.1'. Now positioned as 'Soft Rock 105.1', the station sends it's prior identity as 'Magic 105.1' away, essentially coinciding with the retirement of now former morning man Jim Harper; he stepped away from the mic last Friday.

The format adjustment accomplishes a several things, including moving the station back into a musical segment that had been essentially abandoned by WMGC itself for the past several years and by the station's most direct competitor, Clear Channel's WNIC-FM 100.3. In the months before the annual Christmas marathons started, both WMGC and WNIC had been competing musically with not only themselves but also with Cumulus' adult pop focused WDVD-FM 96.3. The adjustment at WMGC also ends speculation that 105.1 might be moving in a completely new direction with a format such as country or sports and likely saves on-air roles for veteran hosts Chris Edmonds and Mitzi Miles.

The launch of Soft Rock 105.1 is being done commercial and jock free for at least now. Those missing Christmas music on Boxing Day can still receive 'Christmas 105.1' online at the station's new web site at softrock105.1.com or with an HD radio at 105.1 HD2.

Plymouth's WSDP-FM 88.1 stunting toward new format

Plymouth's WSDP-FM 88.1 is planning to debut a new format on Saturday Dec. 31, 2011 at Noon. The station began teasing the format change on Tuesday Dec. 27, 2011 at 10:45am.

The station's independent alternative rock format ended when the station played The Alarm "Blaze of Glory" and R.E.M's "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)."

You can follow the changes at the station by listening at their website 881theeescape.com.

"The new sound will bring a fresh new start for the station," said Bill Keith, Station Manager, "But we will always remain committed to serving the Plymouth-Canton Community."

WSDP is owned and operated by the Plymouth-Canton Community Schools. 88.1FM is staffed by students at Canton, Plymouth and Salem High Schools. The station has been serving the Plymouth-Canton Community since February 14, 1972.

Over-the-air TV viewers in northern Oakland and southern Genesee Counties report new station on Ch. 26

WHNE-LD Flint, a lower-powered digital television station, is apparently on the air from the Holly area performing some testing as several viewers in that area have noted the station operating on subchannels 26.1, 26.2, 26.3, 26.4, 26.5, primarily with programming from RetroTV with no audio.

Information being transmitted indicates that the station may launch featuring RetroTV, Jewelry TV, America One, and Tuff TV on its various subchannels.

TVSpy.com:

Bill Harris, who returned to WJRT for "special projects" in May just one month after being let go by the new management team, says he is officially done with the Flint ABC-affiliate ... Harris says he is in talks with two rival WJRT rival stations...

Full story: Bill Harris Leaves Michigan's WJRT, For Good (Wed, 12/28)

Observer & Eccentric:

Life's script couldn't have come together any better for Amy Lange. The Emmy Award-winning Fox 2 Detroit general assignment and investigative reporter hit the city streets running as a 24-year-old reporter -- and hasn't stopped, or regretted it, ever since. Lange, who moved to Farmington nine years ago with her husband, Michael Shore, a Fox 2 Detroit videographer, said it's been quite a ride so far.

Full story: Days, nights on the beat fast-paced for TV reporter Lange (Thu, 12/29)

Radio Ink:

At the end of every year Radio Ink magazine picks a single broadcaster who has had an outstanding year and names that person Broadcaster of the Year. For 2011 that person is Ed Christian. As of yesterday the Saga Communications (SGA, AMEX) stock price is up 38% YTD. That's PLUS 38%. For the most part Radio has become the ugly duckling of media stocks on Wall Street.

Full story: Christian named Broadcaster of the Year (Thu, 12/29)

Flint Journal:

Longtime WJRT (Channel 12) news anchor Bill Harris says he has worked his last day for ABC12. Harris said today that his work on special projects for the station ended with this year's Holiday Pops concert and said he is in active discussions with both WNEM (Channel 5) and WEYI (Channel 25) about joining one of those rival stations.

Full story: Longtime Channel 12 anchorman Bill Harris says he won't continue work for station; in talks with WNEM and WEYI (Wed, 12/28)

TVSpy.com:

Brad Edwards is speaking out on his recent dismissal from Indianapolis CBS-affiliate WISH, saying he was "fired up to serve elsewhere."

Full story: Former WISH Reporter Brad Edwards: 'My Dismissal Is As Mundane As Money' (Fri, 12/30)

Note: Edwards is a former reporter/anchor for WJBK-TV Detroit, WOOD-TV Grand Rapids, and WLNS-TV Lansing

WXYZ-TV Ch. 7:

There will be no ball drop in downtown Royal Oak on New Year's Eve like there was last year. Businesses like Lily's Seafood will miss not having the ball drop be a continued tradition. "I think the city itself and the folks who live here would like to see it come back, as would we," said Bob Morton, co-owner of the restaurant. Morton said they are working with other local restaurants and businesses to bring the event back after Cumulus Media decided not to put on the event this year. Cumulus Media bought Citadel Broadcasting who organized last year's event.

Full story: No ball drop will drop this year on New Year's Eve like it did last year in downtown Royal Oak (Fri, 12/30)

Grand Rapids Press:

A Cascade Township couple who welcomed a new baby and fought breast cancer in 2011 were chosen to smooch in the New Year in Times Square as the winners of Nivea's Kiss of a Lifetime contest.

Full story: Grand Rapids-area couple wins contest to give New Year's Eve kiss on TV in Times Square (Sat, 12/31)

This section of Michiguide.com contains all of the news and information entries for the year 2011.

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