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VARTV News Archives - March & April 2013
» If you have any news, updates, additions or corrections... e-mail them to editor@VARTV.com.


Studio Center

:// Clear Channel Media and Entertainment Norfolk names Matt Derrick Operations Manager
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... Clear Channel Media and Entertainment Norfolk announced today that Matt Derrick has been named Operations Manager, effective immediately. Derrick will oversee all operations for Norfolk's four-station cluster. (read more - CCM&E Norfolk)

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:// WSVS up for sale
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Gee Communications' 10kW Classic Country "Virginia's Country Legend" WSVS/800 Crewe is up for sale. The station has been on the air since 1947.

Any interested party or group may contact hkeller@wsvsam.com or visit wsvsam.com for additional information.

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:// WSLS anchor Jay Warren and WDBJ weatherman (Jay Webb) move on
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Jay Warren, anchor at WSLS Channel 10 is leaving the Media General NBC affiliate at the end of the week. Warren, 42 said it was time for change. (read more - The Roanoke Star)

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:// Piper to exit Beach
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Max Media Hot AC "Beach 104" WCXL Kill Devil Hills NC Production Director/Afternooner Piper announced on air yesterday that she is leaving. Her husband is becoming a police officer in his hometown in New York.

Piper started with Beach 104 co-hosting mornings in March 2006. She heads to New York in two weeks.

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:// Shocker! Steele exits Sinclair Communications
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James Steele, Program Director and wearer of many other hats at Sinclair Communications, was let go today. Steele still images Emmis's KROX/KGSR/KLBJ-FM in Austin TX. Reach out to Steele at SteeleProduction@gmail.com.

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John Elliott, better known as Matt Nicholls to Richmond radio listeners, passed away yesterday at the young age of 58... (4/22/2013)

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Nearly a dozen new classified ads were placed on VARTV in the past 30 days! Click "Classified Ads" on the left navigation panel for complete details.

If your station/organization has any positions available (media oriented), get them on VARTV. You would be surprised who's reading..... (4/19/2013)

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:// WRVS-FM unsigned talent contest
Celebrating Public Radio Music Month

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89.9, WRVSFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... April is Public Radio Music Month. In celebration, WRVS-FM 89.9 is searching for the best unsigned talent in northeast North Carolina and Hampton Roads.

(read more - 89.9, WRVS)

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:// Comcast begins encrypting basic cable
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Comcast has decided to start encrypting its basic cable signal. If you have a cable box, this will mean absolutely nothing to you, but if you run the coaxial cable straight out of the wall into the back of the TV, you're going to have to get a digital converter... (read more - AdWeek)

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:// New (Richmond) radio station signs on
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96.1 The PlanetLadies and gentlemen, we have a rock-off (in Richmond).

Cuing up Led Zeppelin’s “Rock and Roll,” a new radio station let loose at noon today with the lyric, “It’s been a long time since I rock-and-rolled.”

(read more - Style Weekly)

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:// WTKR NewsChannel 3 honored with two Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards
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NewsChannel 3, WTKRFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... WTKR NewsChannel 3 wins two regional Edward R. Murrow Awards. The Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) announced the winners today, honoring WTKR NewsChannel 3 with awards for both Best Investigative Reporting and Best Newscast. (read more - NewsChannel 3, WTKR)

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:// Two Virginia Beach residents made it to finals of nationwide voice talent contest
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Studio CenterFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... Katie Cook and Barry McKay of Virginia Beach both made it to the finals of a four-month nationwide talent search, “The Next Great Voice Talent.”

(read more - Studio Center)

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:// 2013 Regional Edward R. Murrow Award winners
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The Radio Television Digital News Association has been honoring outstanding achievements in electronic journalism with the Edward R. Murrow Awards since 1971. (read more - RTDNA/Region 12)

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:// Blake, WNTX win radio news awards
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Deirdre Blake of WNTX–AM in Fredericksburg has been recognized by the Virginia Associated Broadcasters as the state’s best radio news anchor for the third straight year. (read more - The Free Lance-Star)

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:// Planet returns to Richmond’s orbit
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96.1 The Planet, W295BFClear Channel is preparing to return the Classic Rock “Planet” brand to Richmond, VA.

106.9 W295BF Midlothian, which Clear Channel purchased from Liberty University of $50,000 in March, has applied for a license to cover for its upgrade from 10 to 145 watts with a relocation to 96.1. When it signs-on it will do so as Classic Rock “96.1 The Planet“. (read more - RadioInsight)

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:// FredFM hits the airwaves (in Fredericksburg)
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FredFM, a radio station with a unique mix of music and programming, will begin streaming live at listen.fredericksburg.com and on air at 96.5 FM on Tuesday. (read more - The Free Lance-Star)

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:// Pedestrian killed Friday in Franklin County a former WDBJ employee
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Two separate traffic incidents took the lives of two pedestrians in neighboring counties Friday morning, Virginia State Police said. (read more - The Roanoke Times)

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:// Hot 100.5 Summer Fiasco at the nTelos Wireless Pavilion announcement
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... Hot 100.5 (WVHT-FM) will officially kick-off summer in Hampton Roads with a star-studded lineup for the first-ever Hot Summer Fiasco on Saturday, June 8, 2013 at the nTelos Wireless Pavilion. Artists appearing at the event include Carly Rae Jepsen, Icona Pop, Cher Lloyd, MKTO, Nikki Williams and Classified. (read more - Hot 100.5, WVHT)

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:// 92-9 The Wave race car
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Max Media Classic Hits "92-9 The Wave" WVBW Suffolk/Virginia Beach "is proud to sponsor NASCAR Late Model driver - Casey Wyatt in the NASCAR Whelen All-American Series this year at Langley Speedway."

This is Max Media's second car entry in this series. Country "97-3 The Eagle" WGH Newport News/Virginia Beach has also been the sponsor for Greg Edwards and the "97-3 The Eagle" Chevrolet that took The Eagle to Greg's 3rd championship last year at the track.

NASCAR Late Model driver - Casey Wyatt

The next race for the Late Models is April 20th at Langley Speedway in Hampton and 16 races this year at the track.

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:// Next Great Voice Talent finale
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Studio CenterFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... Studio Center Total Production will conclude its nationwide voice-over talent search, Studio Center’s Next Great Voice Talent, tomorrow, 9am to 5pm, at the Grand Finale event at 240 Business Park Drive, Virginia Beach. (read more - Studio Center)

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:// WTRM/91.3 sale finalized
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AFR, American Family RadioTimber Ridge Ministries agreed to sell its Class B licensed Southern Gospel "Southern Light 91.3" WTRM Winchester to Tupelo MS-based American Family Association (AFA). The sale has now closed. The price tag of $1.1M includes two translators in Pennsylvania -- W211AA/90.1 Harrisburg and W215AA/90.9 Millersburg (19 mi north of Harrisburg).

AFA runs two formats, one Talk and one Inspirational music, so it's uncertain what format WTRM will go to. AFA has a big signal in NE NC (WBKU/91.7 Ahoskie) and two stations in Richmond (WRIH/88.1 and WAUQ/89.7).

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:// Cox Communications (Hampton Roads) raises cable TV rates
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Cox Communications Inc. raised its cable rates this month, including an increase of 21.6 percent for the monthly rental of a digital TV receiver. (read more - The Virginian-Pilot)

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:// Radio Disney announces new morning show, Programming shifts
Radio Disney is heard in Richmond on WDZY/1290

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Radio Disney has launched a new morning show as it revamps its programming lineup. (read more - The Hollywood Reporter)

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:// Frankie Jupiter joins WDBJ from WCAV
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Frankie Jupiter has joined WDBJ, the CBS affiliate in Roanoke-Lynchburg, Va. (read more - TVSpy)

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:// Bill Phipps moves to FM in Harrisonburg
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Real Country 96.9, WSIGAfter 20 years with Verstandig Broadcasting's "NewsRadio 550" WSVA, Bill Phipps moves to Gamma Broadcasting's Classic Country "Real Country 96.9" WSIG for afternoon duties. Jonathan "JR" Ruppel recently moved from afternoons to co-host mornings with Dawn Marie. He continues as the station's Operation Manager.

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:// Richmond GSM exits
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General Sales Manager David Bandas, who has had "13 great years" at Clear Channel Richmond, is leaving after a "long storied career" and is taking his talents to Denver, to be Director of Sales for Max Media Denver.

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Over a half dozen new classified ads were placed on VARTV last month! Click "Classified Ads" on the left navigation panel for complete details.

If your station/organization has any positions available (media oriented), get them on VARTV. You would be surprised who's reading..... (4/2/2013)

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:// (Richmond-based) Lockwood Broadcast Group announces agreement to acquire WCWG in Greensboro...
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... Lockwood Broadcast Group announced today that it has signed an agreement with subsidiaries of TTBG LLC to acquire WCWG-TV, licensed to Lexington, NC (Greensboro DMA #46) for an undisclosed purchase price. The transaction will close later this year upon receipt of FCC approval. (read more - Lockwood Broadcast Group)

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:// 2WD repositions itself
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Entercom's Soft AC "2WD" WWDE/101.3 Hampton/Virignia Beach is now known as "The New 101-3, 2WD... We Make Your Workday Go Faster." The "switch" occurred at midnight.

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:// Blue Ridge PBS to go dark in far Southwest Virginia
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Television viewers in far Southwest Virginia will no longer be able to watch Roanoke’s PBS station due to the loss of state funding. (read more - The Roanoke Times)

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:// Hot 100.5 reaches Facebook milestone with 60,000 fans
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Hot 100.5, WVHTFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... Hot 100.5 (WVHT-FM) has reached a social media milestone by achieving 60,000 “likes” on their Facebook Fan Page. This makes Hot 100.5 the most loyal radio listening Facebook fans in Hampton Roads. (read more - Hot 100.5, WVHT)

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:// John DeTerlizzi named Director of Sales & Promotions at Real Country 101.7
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Real Country 101.7, WLQMFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... Real Country 101.7 announced today that John DeTerlizzi has been hired as the station’s Director of Sales & Promotions. He will lead the station’s sales team and have responsibility for the company’s promotions and branding initiatives beginning April 1, 2013. (read more - Real Country 101.7, WLQM)

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:// WRXL names Tamo Sein MD/PM Drive
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Clear Channel Media & Entertainment Alternative WRXL (XL102)/Richmond names Tamo Sein as MD/afternoons. Sein joins XL 102 on Tuesday, March 26th. (read more - AllAccess)

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:// Local TV puts stations on block
Stations include "NewsChannel 3" WTKR, WGNT/27 and "CBS6" WTVR...

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Oak Hill Capital Partners has put its Local TV LLC stations on the block.

Station staffs are being alerted across the Local TV footprint. (read more - Broadcasting & Cable)

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:// 3 (Richmond) area TV stations experiencing antenna problem
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Three Richmond-area television stations have had their broadcast signal power reduced by problems with the antenna they share. (read more - Richmond Times-Dispatch)

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:// Michael Baisden leaving radio but maybe not voluntarily
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Nationally syndicated afternoon radio host Michael Baisden, heard locally on (snip), Tweeted this morning that he is leaving radio. His final day is next Friday, March 29. (read more - Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Editor's note: Baisden is heard on CCM&E Urban AC "92-1 Kiss FM" WKSA in Hampton Roads, Radio One Urban AC "99-3, 105-7 Kiss FM" Richmond, Mel Wheeler Urban AC "Vibe 100.1, 97.7" Roanoke/Lynchburg and Howard University Urban AC 96.3 WHUR in DC...

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:// Former WVEC traffic reporter is ready for her '2nd act'
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For nearly a decade, Benita Adams lit up the WVEC-TV Channel 13 newscast with her fluorescent smile, animal-print fierceness and an occasional oversized flower pin adorning her tops. (read more - The Virginian-Pilot)

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:// Mitch Scott, radio executive, dies at 56
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Mitch Scott, the outgoing president of local radio company Great Scott Broadcasting and a beloved philanthropist in the Ocean City area, lost his battle with leukemia Sunday. He was 56. (read more - Salisbury The Daily Times)

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Clear Channel Media & Entertainment's CHR "Now 105" (105.3) Windsor/Norfolk has changed its call letters from WVMA to WNOH... (3/13/2013)

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:// (NBC12's) Matt Lincoln joins WPEC (West Palm Beach, FL)...
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Matt Lincoln is the new sports director at WPEC, he takes over for Pat Marphy who retired on Monday. Linco(l)n comes to WPEC from WWBT NBC12 in Richmond, Virginia. He was that station’s sports director and weekday anchor. (source: sfltv)

Editor's note: Lincoln's last day at Channel 12 was Friday, March 1. He was with them for 2˝ years...

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:// Mason goes crosstown
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Mason, who exited Clear Channel Media & Entertainment's Rock "XL102" WRXL/102.1 Richmond mid-February after 2˝ years, just debuted tonight on Cox Media's "Rock 96.5" WKLR Fort Lee/Richmond. He'll be LIVE weeknights 6 p.m. to midnight.

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:// Jock shuffles at Sinclair Norfolk stations
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US106-1, WUSH Sinclair Communications's Country "US106-1" WUSH Poquoson debuted the Nashville-based "The Bobby Bones Morning Show" this morning at 6. With the show's addition to WUSH, PD/morning host Brandon O' Brien moves to afternoons (3-7 p.m.). Dave Parker, who was heard noon to 6 p.m., takes the station's midday slot -- 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Kristi Michael keeps nights at 7 p.m. to midnight (was 6 p.m.-10p.m.)...

96X, WROXAlternative "96X" WROX/96.1 Exmore/Norfolk has re-added Michael to their line-up; middays 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Former middayer Lee Foster will now be heard at night from 7 p.m. to midnight. Mornings are still held by Nick Chappell and afternoons by PD James Steele. Pointed out, with the occasional voice-track here and there, 96X is live from 6 a.m. to midnight.

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:// WAVY-TV reporter to exit
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Sports reporter Ali Lucia with LIN Media's WAVY (10/NBC) Portsmouth, "FOX43" WVBT Virginia Beach is leaving the station. The huge hockey fan has accepted a position with the National Hockey League's Dallas Stars.

Lucia arrived at the duopoly just two years ago from Minnesota. She tweeted earlier this month, "Enjoying my last month in Virginia."

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:// WSVO Mix 93.1 welcomes Chris Carmichael as new morning show host
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(Clear Channel Media & Entertainment's) WSVO Mix 93.1, The 80’s ‘Till Now, announced today that Chris Carmichael has been named its new Morning Show Host, beginning March 11, 2013. (read more - Mix 93.1, WSVO)

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:// CORRECTION
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It was pointed out to me that the piece posted on Wednesday about Benita Adams's exit from WVEC-TV contained an error. Adams was with the station for ten years NOT 20 years as first posted.

VARTV used an article published about Adams in The Virginian-Pilot in 2009 for station tenure. The information in that piece is incorrect. The correct information is now shown in the initial post on VARTV.

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:// Final CAA Men's Basketball Tournament in Richmond to again be broadcast around the Commonwealth
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ESPN 950, WXGIFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... ESPN 950 WXGI announced today that for the ninth consecutive year it will provide radio coverage of the Colonial Athletic Association Men’s Basketball Tournament, March 9th through 11th at the Richmond Coliseum. The three days of action will be broadcast on-air, online and via multiple mobile apps. (read more - ESPN 950, WXGI)

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:// 92.9 The Wave and 7-Eleven partner to cure Kids Cancer at CHKD
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92-9 The Wave, WVBWFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... 92.9 TheWave (WVBW-FM) and 7-Eleven on Newtown Road at Greenwich Road in Virginia Beach are raising donations for Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters on Friday, March 8th from 5:00 AM to 1:00 PM. (read more - 92-9 The Wave, WVBW)

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:// New morning show on KCY Country
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Clear Channel Media & Entertainment's "KCY Country" WKCY/104.3 Harrisonburg has added the new Nashville-based nationally syndicated "The Bobby Bones Morning Show." The addition displaces PD Chris Carmichael to middays (10 a.m. to noon).

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:// Traffic reporter exits
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Belo WVEC (13/ABC) Hampton 10-year morning traffic reporter Benita Adams has been let go by the station. She joined Channel 13 in 2003.

A post on the station's Facebook page stated, "she is no longer with WVEC. It was a management decision back in January." A post on Adams' Facebook page made it appear that she was blind-sided by the decision.

Adams has been replaced by Chesapeake native Ashley Smith who was crowned "Miss United States" in 2011. Smith started her on-air career with Chesapeake's cable-only channel "WCTV."

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:// Jamey Singleton recovers from accident, feels good about the future
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ABC 13's (WSET, Lynchburg/Roanoke) Jamey Singleton is out of the hospital and at a rehab center in Rocky Mount recovering from the serious car accident that left him in intensive care for several days. (read more - ABC13, WSET)

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:// WGNT27 - Great February ratings!
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... It’s On! WGNT27. Hampton Roads just can’t get enough. Compared to February 2012, WGNT27 increased ratings in every time period between 8am and 10pm. (read more - WGNT)

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:// The Block fills middays
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East Carolina Radio's Urban "96-7 The Block" WKJX Elizabeth City fills middays with Karen Parker Chesson. Parker-Chesson was most recently with the City of Norfolk as the police department's spokesperson. Her last radio stop was with Entercom's Urban AC "95-7 R&B" WRNB Norfolk.

The Block PD Brion O' Brion says, "I am VERY happy to have her be a part of my team here. We hosted the morning show together on WVKL in VA Beach. Her experience and knowledge of radio will help take WKJX/96-7 The Block to the next level." "KPC" starts with The Block tomorrow.

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:// WAVY to team Livas, Schaad more often for newscasts
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WAVY-TV (Channel 10) has announced that Nicole Livas will join Tom Schaad to anchor its weekday newscasts at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. (read more - The Virginian-Pilot)

News Archives.....


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