West Michigan: February 2012 Archives

Jeff Murri, FOX 2 General Manager, has died

 FOX-owned WJBK-TV Ch. 2 (Fox 2) is reporting this afternoon that Jeff Murri, the station's General Manager, has died. No other details were revealed when the information was first released.

From the station: "It is with an extremely sad heart that we report the news that WJBK Fox 2 General Manager Jeff Murri has died. We knew him as a wonderful, energetic and giving person. We are deeply saddened and shocked by his loss. Right now our entire staff at the station simply sends our collective thoughts, love and prayers to his family."

Full story: Jeff Murri, General Manager of WJBK Fox-2, Has Died (Thu, 2/2)

WSJM-FM/AM St. Joseph:

The sound of a radio tower hitting the ground could be heard in the city of South Haven on Wednesday. AM 940 went off the air for good early this month, and now its two towers in the marshy Celery Pond have been taken down. Midwest Family Broadcasting engineer Terry Green told us that it takes some preparation to remove a couple of 220 foot towers.

Full story: South Haven Radio Towers Demolished (Wed, 2/1)

The Day the Music Died beautifully explained

Don McLean's "American Pie" is played a lot on February 3rd because that is the when many rock & roll fans feel it truly was "The Day the Music Died".

McLean's tribute was released in 1971 and it that was also about the time that Scott Westerman was a DJ on East Lansing's WVIC while a student at Michigan State University. He was known as Scott "The Hugger" Westerman and today, after a successful career in broadcasting and cable television, he heads up the MSU Alumni Association.

A couple of years ago he produced an incredible explanation of the lyrics to "American Pie" and it will change the way you hear the song from now on. It's been posted under "Airchecks" on the new Motor City Radio Flashbacks site (www.mcrfb.com). Listen directly by clicking here.

Grand Rapids Press:

Kevin Matthews couldn't be happier. The Grand Rapids radio icon, fired in November from WLAV-FM, soon traded broadcasting for podcasting.

Full story: Kevin Matthews, former WLAV radio personality, enjoying new career as a podcaster (Fri, 2/3)

For hunters and fishermen, Fred Trost, host of "Michigan Outdoors," and later, "Practical Sportsman," was must-see TV. Once described as the "first outdoor media star," he had a folksy, non-politically correct style, and a love for the outdoors that endeared him to Michigan outdoorsmen.

Full story: Family of outdoors host Fred Trost in fight over debts, show tapes (Thu, 2/2)

Former radio personality Todd Chance has been named the Grand Rapids Entertainment Concierege for MLive Media Group, it was announced today.

Full story: Todd Chance named Grand Rapids 'Entertainment Concierge' for MLive Media Group (Thu, 2/2)

The Oakland Press:

WJBK-TV Vice President and General Manager Jeff Murri has died. Murri, 50, of Shelby Township, died Thursday, according to a statement posted on WJBK-TV's website, myfoxdetroit.com. The death has been ruled a suicide, according to the Oakland County Medical Examiner's Office.

Full story: WJBK-TV general manager's death ruled a suicide (Fri, 2/3)

Detroit Free Press:

WJBK-TV (Channel 2) vice president and general manager Jeff Murri died today at the age of 50, representatives from Fox said.

Full story: Jeff Murri, WJBK-TV general manager, dies at 50 (Thu, 2/2)

Detroit News:

WJBK-Fox 2 is mourning the loss of its vice president and general manager, Jeff Murri, who died Thursday at age 50.

Full story: Fox 2 general manager Jeff Murri dies (Thu, 2/2)

AllAccess.com:

ALL ACCESS confirms that CBS VP/Top 40 Programming DOM THEODORE has left the company. THEODORE had been PD at Top 40 WXRK (92.3 NOW)/NEW YORK, and at WDZH (98.7 AMP RADIO)/DETROIT. DOM told ALL ACCESS, "After 3 years non-stop on the road, and hundreds of naked photos through TSA security checkpoints, it was time for a change."

Full story: CBS VP/Top 40 Dom Theodore Exits (Mon, 2/6)

Muskegon Chronicle:

Muskegonites' first chance to watch TV was on Sunday, Dec. 7, 1947, when Industrial Electrical Supply hooked up an RCA model so locals could gawk at Milwaukee station WTMJ's first, short broadcast. The Chronicle was apparently underwhelmed by this momentous event, its three paragraph story omitting exactly what it was the station broadcast.

Full story: Lookback: When TV came to Muskegon (Mon, 2/6)

Flint Journal:

As millions sit down to watch Super Bowl XLVI today, many are looking for commercials, expecting to be entertained. But Becky Butcher, the president and CEO of NBC25, WEIY-TV will be watching those ads from a different perspective. She sees them as revenue.

Full story: Super Bowl the 'biggest revenue day of the year' for WEYI-TV (Sun, 2/5)

Countdown to "April in the D" begins with search for next Fox Sports Detroit Girl

Winter will soon give way to warmer weather and another exciting spring sports season in Detroit which means the arrival of FOX Sports Detroit's fifth annual "April in the D" campaign.

This year the network is searching and casting for a new FOX Sports Detroit Girl to serve as a Fan Ambassador in April. The winner will help promote a lineup of more than 40 telecasts that month among the Red Wings, Pistons and Tigers, which includes the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs and the beginning of a much-anticipated baseball season for the reigning American League Central Division champions.

Through February 25, interested fans can go to FoxSportsDetroit.com where they can upload a video up to two minutes describing/demonstrating their affinity for Detroit sports and why they should be the next FOX Sports Detroit Girl. Five finalists will be selected by the network, with online voting from March 1-15 to help determine the winner. The new FOX Sports Detroit Girl will be announced April 1 during that night's Red Wings telecast. Entrants must be at least 18 years of age and a Michigan resident.

The new FOX Sports Detroit Girl will be featured throughout April in on-air promos and web/print advertisements. The winner also will make personal appearances at community events and game venues throughout the month.

The current FOX Sports Detroit Girls - Allison and Lauren - were introduced last April and have proven to be popular additions to the area sports scene through their on-air promos, community appearances and social media interaction.

"We've had numerous inquiries about how one becomes a FOX Sports Detroit Girl, so this is a great opportunity," said Lauren Pober, Director of Marketing, FOX Sports Detroit. "We look forward to seeing the entries from our female fans who share our network's passion for Detroit sports."

Bloomberg Businessweek:

Broadcasters are attracting record political advertising from the Republican presidential primaries, a super-PAC-driven windfall for television stations that promises to grow even larger in the general election. The biggest winner may be Lin TV Corp. The Providence, Rhode Island-based owner of 17 stations in the 12 closely divided swing states identified by Gallup Inc. may see revenue rise 12 percent to a record $457 million this year. Hearst Corp. has 12 battleground-state outlets and CBS Corp. has 10.

Full story: Lin TV Wins Big as Swing-State Cash Spreads to Local Stations (Thu, 2/9)

Grand Rapids Press:

WOOD Radio (1300AM/106.9 FM) listeners may have been startled Thursday morning when they heard longtime competitor Kevin Matthews on the air with WOOD hosts Gary Allen and Steve Kelly.

Full story: Kevin Matthews joins WOOD Radio to host annual Fat Tuesday party at The B.O.B. (Thu, 2/9)

A federal jury on Wednesday awarded the widow of TV outdoorsman Fred Trost nearly $195,000 in her lawsuit against his son.

Full story: Federal jury sides with widow of TV outdoors host Fred Trost over his son (Wed, 2/8)

WEMU-FM 89.1 Ypsilanti:

Citing personal reasons, Dr. Arwulf Arwulf, host of the popular traditional jazz program 'The Sunday Best,' (Sundays 10a - 1p) has stepped down as host, effective immediately. 89.1 Jazz host, Nik Thompson will fill in for the short term.

Full story: 'Sunday Best' host Dr. Arwulf Arwulf steps down after 25 years (Wed, 2/8)

Detroit Free Press:

Jeffrey Zaslow, the West Bloomfield-based author who wrote best-sellers such as "The Last Lecture" about a professor dying of pancreatic cancer and a recent book on U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' recovery from a gunshot wound to the head, was killed Friday in a car accident in northern Michigan. Mr. Zaslow, 53, was a Philadelphia native who was married to Sherry Margolis, a Fox 2 Detroit news anchor since 1987, and the father of three daughters.

Full story: Jeffrey Zaslow, West Bloomfield best-selling author, killed in northern Michigan crash (Fri, 2/10)

 Plymouth-Canton Schools' WSDP-FM 88.1 "The New 88.1" will host an Alumni On-Air Day on Saturday Feb. 11, as part of the celebration of the station's 40th Anniversary.

Alums from all decades of the station's operation will be visiting the studio.

One of the special parts of the day will be a one hour show put together by class of '73 alum Rob Milford. Rob has worked in radio news since he graduated. He is currently the morning host at News Radio 1620 in Pensacola Florida. Rob has been interviewing WSDP Alums for the past couple weeks and has put together a one hour show featuring those interviews.

The show will air as part of the Alumni On-Air Day on Saturday at 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. It will re-air on Tuesday Feb. 14, at Noon.

WSDP signed on the air Feb. 14, 1972 and can be found on the Internet at 881theescape.com.

MLive.com:

Watch out, Bill Steffen. Clips have been circulating on various social sites that show Tom Murphy, news director for Alpena-based CBS/Fox affiliate WBKB-TV, absolutely crushing a series of weather segments. Murphy, a relatively new hire at the station, peppers his weather segments with amusing references to sports and pop culture.

Full story: Does WBKB-TV in Alpena have Michigan's coolest weather man? (Thu, 2/8)

WOOD Radio's Cicchini promoted

News anchor/reporter Paul Cicchini has been named as News Director for Clear Channel news-talk combo WOOD-FM/AM 106.9/1300 in the Grand Rapids market. Cicchini has been with the stations since 2010.

Benton Harbor LPFM station offered on eBay (update: auction removed)

It appears that City of Benton Harbor has decided to get out of the low-power FM business and is offering the equipment used for WBHC-LP up to the highest bidder on eBay.

The auction starting price was $5,000 and as of Saturday afternoon, there were 2 bids that pushed the price up to $5,100 - not including what's listed as a $1,000 shipping price. The auction is scheduled to close on February 16th at about 6:30 p.m. ET.

In addition to the station's license, the auction includes the antenna, a Crown Broadcast 250 Transmitter, 3 MCA SP1 Mics / with mounting desktop stands, a Mackie 1402 14-channel mixing console, 2 professional CD players, a PBX Port Hybrid, and an Air Tool 600 broadcast audio delay unit ... and patch cords too.

Check out the auction on eBay here

Update 10:55 p.m- the auction has been removed.

Kalamazoo Gazette:

The Glenn Beck Program can no longer be heard on Kalamazoo radio. On Monday, WKZO stopped broadcasting the show from the conservative radio host. Jay Morris, Program Director for the station, said the decision was based on the decline in the show's ratings.

Full story: Glenn Beck off the air at WKZO, replaced with local news hour (Fri, 2/10)

MLive.com:

Mark Renzenbrink has been a customer of Tuttle's Select Cigars almost since the tobacco retailer opened in 1994, as Grand Rapids first cigar smoking lounge.

Full story: Two years after losing job, longtime customer decides to buy one of his favorite stores (Sat, 2/11)

TVSpy.com:

SJL Broadcasting announced today that WTVG news director Brian Trauring has been tapped to oversee news operations for all of the company's stations. Trauring will continue serving as WTVG's news director as he takes on the additional title of executive news director for SJL Broadcasting.

Full story: WTVG News Director Tapped to Oversee SJL Broadcasting's News Operations (Fri, 2/10)

The Oakland Press:

Radio station WRIF-FM (101.1) today announced it is partnering with Kid Rock's Clarkston-based Made In Detroit brand to create a co-branded T-shirt. The black T-shirt features the station's well known WRIF oval logo with the Made In Detroit logo replacing the "0" in 101.

Full story: WRIF teams up with controversial Clarkston-based Made In Detroit for new T-shirt (Mon, 2/13)

The Maddow Blog / MSNBC.com:

On Friday, we reported on the sale of Benton Harbor, Michigan's city-owned, low-power FM radio station. The state-appointed emergency manager has closed WBHC and listed the equipment and the license on eBay for $5,000. Under Michigan law, an emergency manager can do just about anything he or she wants, including firing elected officials and moving to abolish the town. Selling the station is just one more executive action, really, regardless of how the city feels about it.

Full story: The silencing of Benton Harbor, Michigan (Mon, 2/13)

TVSpy.com:

Funeral services were held this afternoon for Jeffrey Zaslow, the best-selling author and husband of WJBK's Sherry Margolis. Zaslow died in a car accident Friday morning in northern Michigan. WJBK, which recently mourned the loss of general manager Jeff Murri, remembered Zaslow in a long segment during its 10 p.m. newscast on Friday.

Full story: WJBK Remembers Jeffrey Zaslow, Husband of Anchor Sherry Margolis (Mon, 2/13)

WWMT-TV Ch. 3 Kalamazoo:

Newschannel 3 is finding new ways to bring you the news in West Michigan. In early February we started using a new technology to bring you live reports from the field. Live TV has always relied upon live trucks to send video back to the station, which is then rebroadcast to your television through our transmitter.

Full story: A new way to bring you the news (Mon, 2/13)

Detroit Free Press:

As a Catholic TV station based in Ferndale becomes increasingly popular around the world, church officials are trying to tell the public that the media outlet does not represent Catholicism. In two public statements, the Archdiocese of Detroit has taken the unusual step of publicly criticizing Real Catholic TV, saying "that it does not have the authorization required under church law to identify or promote itself as Catholic."

Full story: Views on provocative Real Catholic TV station anger Detroit archdiocese and others (Mon, 2/13)

Grand Rapids Press:

The website Mother Nature Network recently took it upon itself to rank "America's hottest weather forecasters" - and it resulted in WOOD-TV 8's Matt Kirkwood getting a little extra attention.

Full story: Website ranks WOOD-TV 8 meteorologist Matt Kirkwood among 'America's hottest forecasters' (Tue, 2/14)

Fine Tuning:

• Birach Broadcasting Oldies WOAP AM 1080 (The Big 1080) Owosso is now broadcasting in AM Stereo, becoming the first station in Michigan to add the feature in a number of years.

 

• Former WWTV-TV/WWUP-TV Ch. 9/10 Cadillac-Traverse City/Sault Ste Marie morning anchor and health reporter Robyn Haines has landed in Columbus, OH at WCMH where she's taken on reporter duties. Haines left TV 9 & 10 earlier this winter.

ABC 57 South Bend, IN:

According to the Federal Communications Commission, The Benton Harbor community radio station license that was on eBay last week cannot be sold in that manner.

Full story: FCC: Benton Harbor owned radio station can't be sold on eBay (Wed, 2/15)

Jackson Citizen-Patriot:

With ingredients like bleu cheese, red wine and smoked sea salt, All-Pro Realty's winning chili recipe at last year's K105.3 FM Chili Cook-Off and Salsa Competition was anything but a tradition concoction.

Full story: Spice it up!: Annual K105.3 FM Chili Cook-Off and Salsa Competition is Sunday (Wed, 2/15)

Grand Rapids Press:

The first thing you'll notice when you meet the band The Crane Wives is their age. They are a young band. But don't let that dissuade you from thinking their music doesn't have depth.

Full story: The Crane Wives: Big winners at The WYCE 2012 Jammies (Wed, 2/15)

Michigan Radio:

A new talk radio show hits the airwaves tonight. It's called "Can U Relate?" and it's produced by and for Detroit Public School students. Ania McKoy is a junior at Detroit School of Arts, and is one of the handful of DPS students working on the new show. She says each episode of "Can U Relate?" will tackle a different topic - like teen pregnancy, bullying, homophobia.

Full story: Detroit students launch new talk radio show for teens (Wed, 2/15)

MLive.com:

The Detroit Tigers will have five games moved to FOX's "Saturday Baseball Game of the Week" regional broadcast as part of the network's regular-season coverage, FOX announced Wednesday.

Full story: FOX announces five Detroit Tigers games to be regionally televised, blackouts expected (Wed, 2/15)

Marketplace Morning Report to broadcast live from Michigan

Marketplace Morning Report, a nationally distributed business program from American Public Media, will broadcast live from Michigan Radio's (WUOM-FM 91.7 Ann Arbor / WVGR-FM 104.1 Grand Rapids / WFUM-FM 91.1 Flint) studios in Ann Arbor the week of Feb. 20. Throughout that week, the show will focus on the economy of Michigan and the Midwest, highlighting the bright spots, the struggles, and what's at stake in Michigan's upcoming presidential primary election. Michigan Radio reporters will also be contributing to this week of special coverage. The show can be heard that week on Michigan Radio at 5:50am, 6:50am and 7:50am.

Hosted by Jeremy Hobson, Marketplace Morning Report offers listeners a look at business and economic news from a global perspective, with a glance ahead to the news which will be making headlines throughout the day. In the time it takes listeners to drink their first cup of coffee, Marketplace Morning Report brings them the morning business news "for the rest of us." Marketplace programs are currently broadcast by more than 500 public radio stations nationwide across the United States and are heard by more than 9 million weekly listeners, the largest audience of any business or economics program on radio or television.

Fine Tuning:

• CBS Radio/Detroit WYCD-FM 99.5 has missed out on receiving CMA awards this year. The station had received nominations in January for Major Market Station of the Year and Major Market On-Air Personality Of The Year for the station's afternoon drivers, Chuck Edwards and Linda Lee.
• Tuesday night's Detroit Red Wings - Dallas Stars hockey game in which Detroit earned its NHL-record 21st consecutive home victory will be re-aired by FOX Sports Detroit on Thursday, Feb. 16 from 7-9 p.m.
• Public Radio WDET-FM 101.9 Detroit host Craig Fahle and Detroit City Council President Charles Pugh will take part in a "listening session" with Oakland County residents on Thursday, February 23rd from 5 - 8 p.m. at the Community House in Birmingham. More details, including ticket information, here.
• Classical/Jazz WRCJ-FM 90.9 Detroit continues its series of live Detroit Symphony Orchestra broadcasts on Friday (Feb 17) at 10:30 a.m. Pianist Emanuel Ax joins Leonard Slatkin and the DSO to perform the Mozart Piano Concerto No. 22. The DSO will also play Mahler's Fifth Symphony. WRCJ's Dave Wagner and Chris Felcyn host.
• Josh Lewin, Former FOX Sports Detroit play-by-play voice for the Detroit Tigers, has been hired by WFAN AM New York where he'll join the broadcast team for the New York Mets.

 Cumulus Broadcasting has started regular operations of FM translator W273AR 102.5 in the Kalamazoo market with a Country format and 10,000 songs in a row as "102.5 Great Country - The 90s to Now". The 250 watt translator provides the immediate Kalamazoo area with coverage of the new format.

The translator rebroadcasts the HD2 channel of Cumulus' WKFR-FM 103.3 - those with digital radios will have two options to receive the new offering on either WKFR-HD2 or the analog 102.5 translator.

The country format in Kalamazoo had previously been provided primarily by Clear Channel's WBCT-FM 93.7 from Grand Rapids and Midwest Communications' WNWN-FM 98.5 from Coldwater/Battle Creek until yesterday's startup of Great Country.

Muskegon Chronicle:

Local radio personality Andy O'Riley has announced he is leaving The Rock 101.7 WMRR. The popular disk jockey, who has participated in numerous community events throughout his twelve years in Muskegon broke the news on his Facebook profile Feb. 18.

Full story: Popular Muskegon radio personality leaving The Rock 101.7 (Tue, 2/21)

TVNewsCheck:

 Matt Stevens on Monday was named news director of Adell Broadcasting's WADL Detroit (DMA 11). WADL debuted its 9 p.m. newscast on Monday, Jan. 16. Stevens has 30 years of TV news experience as a reporter, anchor, producer and manager. Most recently, he was senior correspondent at WOIO Cleveland.

Full story: WADL Detroit names Matt Stevens News Dir. (Mon, 2/20)

Grand Rapids Press:

If you're like me, the extent to which you are connected to New Orleans and Mardi Gras is pronouncing the word guarantee as "gair-ohn-tee" like ca jun chef Justin Wilson would do in his classic videos.

Full story: Gumbo contest and live music at the B.O.B. with WOOD radio and Kevin Matthews (Tue, 2/21)

AllAccess.com:

CC MEDIA HOLDINGS has reported financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended DECEMBER 31st, 2011.

Full story: CC Media Holdings 2011 Revenues Increase 5% To $6.16 Billion (Tue, 2/21)

Fine Tuning

• Thanks to several e-mailers who report from the Indian River area in Northern Michigan that the recently-licensed WGRL FM 95.3 Tuscarora Township isn't currently on the air. If the station has operated at all, apparently it wasn't for very long. WGRL is owned by David L. Smith.

Detroit Free Press:

Retired Detroit broadcasting great Dick Purtan will be back on the air for today's Salvation Army Bed & Bread Club Radiothon, but he thinks it might be the last time he's behind the mic ... Purtan is scheduled to be on the air with WJR-AM (760) hosts Paul W. Smith (7-9 a.m.), Frank Beckmann (11 a.m.-1 p.m.) and Mitch Albom (4-6 p.m.) before joining all of the show's on-air hosts from 8 to 10 p.m.

Full story: Names and Faces (Fri, 2/24)

Charlotte (NC) Observer:

Brenda Matthews, the new midday host on WKQC-FM ("K" 104.7), grew up in suburban Detroit in the Motown era, surrounded by great music coming from the radio. Once a week, she'd run down the street to a nearby record store to get the radio station hit lists when they came out. But it was still strange she chose a career in radio - she was shy as a kid.

Full story: Host on 'K' beat shyness for radio work (Fri, 2/24)

WNEM-TV Ch. 5 Bay City:

Old time radio lovers will be happy to hear about a big event going on in Lansing this weekend. On Saturday, Feb. 25, the Michigan Historical Museum welcomes all those interested in the Golden Age of radio, and particularly those who have an antique set on hand that needs a little TLC. The Michigan Antique Radio Club will be at the museum for "Radio Rescue" beginning at 1 p.m. Club members will be available to discuss the history of radio and its effect on Michigan. Visitors are invited to bring in their cherished, time-worn radios for personalized advice on repair and restoration.

Full story: Celebrate Golden Age of radio in Lansing Saturday (Fri, 2/24)

Grand Rapids Press:

Another Friday, another update on the Rock Paper Scissors challenge. It was a pretty slow week. I didn't get too many matches tossed my way. But it's a long, long road to 1,000 wins and I'm sure there will be busier weeks.

Full story: Gravy from 105.3 HOTFM the next challenger for the citywide Rock, Paper, Scissors challenge (Fri, 2/24)

WXYZ-TV Ch. 7 Detroit:

 After more than 38 years interviewing sports celebrities and covering every major sporting event from the Super Bowl to the NBA finals, 7 ACTION NEWS Sports Director Don Shane will retire from WXYZ in March. Before joining WXYZ-TV in 1989, Shane worked at WBZ-TV in Boston, WMAQ-TV in Chicago and WDIV-TV in Detroit. He has received numerous awards for his reporting including 23 Michigan Emmy Awards, a best sports anchor honor, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Silver Circle Award, as well as awards from the Michigan Association of Broadcasters and the Associated Press.

Full story: 7 Action News Sports Director Don Shane announces he will retire after 23 years at WXYZ (Wed, 2/29)

Shiels exits "Michigan's Morning Show"

Michael Patrick Shiels has exited "Michigan's Morning Show", heard from 5:30 a.m. - 9 a.m. on nine radio stations across the state. The program originated at Cumulus' WJIM AM 1240 Lansing and is produced and syndicated by the Cumulus-owned Michigan Talk Network. A series of guests will fill in temporarily while the search is on for a new permanent host.

Shiels leaves after hosting the program for the past seven years. "The fact of the matter is I decided to leave Cumulus Broadcasting. It was an amicable parting and I'm hoping I'll get the opportunity down the road to re-connect with my Michigan listeners," commented Shiels.

Detroit News:

Local PBS affiliate WTVS-TV (Channel 56) has a lot to be proud of as of late. The station's production of "Il Volo Takes Flight," which features the amazing trio of young Italian tenors, is going national. Detroit Public Television partnered with the Michigan Opera Theatre, using the Detroit Opera House and MOT's 49-member orchestra, for the October concert. It was broadcast locally in December and will air nationally beginning this weekend as a part of PBS' national fundraising drive.

Full story: WTVS-TV expands locally and takes flight nationally (Wed, 2/29)

Fine Tuning

• Today's Real Detroit Weekly celebrates its 'Best Of Detroit' issue. Best Media TV and radio winners include Huel Perkins, FOX 2 News, ClickOnDetroit.com, Jay Towers, Jay Hudson, Drew and Mike, Valenti and Foster, 89X, Glenda Lewis, and Dan Miller.

 

• Listeners of Cumulus' Contemporary Hits WIOG-FM Bay City/Saginaw helped raise $64,128 during last week's Radiothon for Flint's Hurley Medical Center.

Toledo Blade:

A Toledo television station has officially informed the state that it plans to lay off 63 employees this spring when the station is sold. The Blade reported in January that WUPW, Channel 36, was being sold to American Spirit Media. The layoffs are expected to take place between April 24 and May 8, according to a letter from LIN Media, which owns WUPW, to Ohio's Office of Workforce Development.

Full story: Toledo TV station WUPW plans to lay off 63 employees (Wed, 2/29)