July & August, 2001

August 29, 2001

The continuous downsizing of the workforce at Wilks Broadcasting in Des Moines continues.  KHKI morning man and Music Director J.C. Walker, KJJY midday jock Ashley Hart, and three sales people are gone.  Replacing Walker in mornings at The Hawk is Big John McCoy, who Wilks fired from KJJY a few weeks ago.  Marc Hansen's Des Moines Register column has documented this soap opera in recent months.....One of the people fired from Wilks, Jim Franklin formerly of KHKI is now doing mornings at WPKR Appleton-Green Bay-Oshkosh, WI.....KFMW (Rock 108) Waterloo has tabbed Promotions Director Scott Steele to join Loo Waters as the new co-host of "The Big Show" weekday mornings.....KCHA-AM Charles City has changed format from News/Talk to Adult Standards using Westwood One's service.....KWMM (98.7 Kiss FM) Osage/Mason City has added Rick Dees to AM Drive.....The debut of the UPN station to serve the Cedar Rapids-Waterloo market has been delayed.  A shortage of guy wires, which are used to support the tower, has caused the latest delay.  As a result of the softening advertising market, the tower will be 1,500 feet instead of 2,000 feet as originally planned.  Owner Bill Smith told the Waterloo Courier that he hopes to get the station on the air by late December.....KCCI reigns supreme once again in the Des Moines TV news Nielsen ratings.  In the July Nielsen's KCCI had a 39 percent share of all people watching television in the Des Moines market at 6 p.m. while WHO was second with a 29.  At 10 p.m., KCCI had a 43 share vs. WHO's 23 share.  WOI was a distant third.  In the 9 p.m. battle, KDSM's "Fox 17 News at Nine" got a 4 share while "WHO-TV 13 News Primetime at Nine" which airs of Pax station KFPX didn't have enough viewers to earn a rating.                  

August 23, 2001

In documents filed with the Bankruptcy Court, Des Moines radio station KJJC (The Jock) has been placed into receivership.  Judge Larry Eisenhauer has named Thomas H. Burke, an attorney with Whitfield & Eddy, as receiver and has put him in charge of selling the assets and FCC licenses of The Jocks owner Lifestyle Communications.  This basically means that the station will remain on the air, but it would be sold in the future with the money from any sale going to creditors.....Mediacom has big plans for its new cable systems in Iowa.  The company announced a 30 month, $300 million investment plan.  After buying AT&T Broadband's Iowa assets, Mediacom serves about 90 percent of Iowa's cable customers.  The company plans to upgrade all systems so digital cable and high speed internet will be offered by all its systems.....New to KAZR (Lazer 103.3) Des Moines in PM Drive is Fish who comes from KRNA Iowa City-Cedar Rapids.  Adam Tool is promoted from local producer of "Mancow's Morning Madhouse" to nights.  Brian Whitaker is the new Imaging Director for Lazer in addition to the same title at KSTZ (Star 102.5) and Production Director of Saga's Des Moines Radio Group (Courtesy of All Access).....KWWL-TV Waterloo has reassigned Jim Licko from news reporter to sports reporter/anchor, he replaces Jeff Mickey who left to take a job outside of broadcasting.....The Cyclone Radio Network has hired Ben Bruns, who was an all-conference center for the Cyclones last year, to be part of the pre-game and halftime shows for Iowa State football broadcasts.  

August 17, 2001

TV News & Notes:.....A new television station that would serve the Quad Cities has been blocked from going on the air due to a petition a rival company filed with the Federal Communications Commission.  The station is scheduled to sign on September 1 but Grant Broadcasting, the owners of Quad Cities Fox station KLJB and WB station KGWB, filed a petition against Northwest Broadcasting, the owner of Channel 53 and Second Generation of Iowa, which will manage the UPN affiliate.  The petition says that there is enough competiton in the Quad Cities market.  As a result, the first two University of Iowa football games will air on KWQC instead of Channel 53.....KIMT Mason City meteorologist Ryan Burchett has left to go to KGAN in Cedar Rapids.....Ed Heiland joins WHBF Quad Cities as co-anchor.    

August 15, 2001

Eugene Machael, better known to radio listeners as Lee Gillette, died in Clinton on August 13.  Gillette was an on-air personality in Cleveland, Boston, Miami, Detroit and the Quad Cities.  He also did voiceover work.  Lee Gillette was 41.....There are some changes in Clear Channel's North Iowa group.  KWMM in Osage has dropped its Nostalgia format for what is described as a Hot AC/CHR "Kiss FM" format.  Upper Midwest Broadcasting reports that the station has applied to increase power from 6,000 watts to 25,000 watts in order to better serve Mason City.  The Mitchell County Press-News reports that the business office of KWMM has been closed and moved to Charles City because KWMM could not generate enough revenue to cover expenses.  Clear Channel also relocated the studios and offices of KCZE in New Hampton.  KCZE has simulcast KCHA-FM in Charles City for several years.....A new Christian radio station based in Mason City is scheduled to go on the air on August 31.  KJCY, owned by Minnesota-Iowa Christian Broadcasting, will be on 95.5 on the FM dial.  The exact format may be along the lines of Contemporary Christian Music as the owners have stated that they want to reach a younger audience than other stations that they own attract.....Changes at KSUX (The Super Pig)  Sioux City as All Access  reports that morning man Jack Seymour has resigned.  Midday man Bob Rounds is promoted from Assistant PD to Program Director.  Tony Michaels moves from afternoons to mornings and is named Assistant PD.       

August 13, 2001

Facing a budget reduction of $652,000 as a result of the state budget crunch, Iowa Public Television is making cuts in its schedule.  IPTV has been forced to go off the air overnight, a time when it aired college credit telecourses and educational programs that teachers could tape and use in their classrooms.  Some of these shows will run during daytime hours but other shows will have to be bumped.  The Des Moines Register reports that according to IPTV an estimated seventy percent of Iowa teachers use these shows.  In addition, two local productions, "Iowa This Weekend" and "Student Voices" have been cancelled.  IPTV plans to save utility costs by reducing its broadcast time by 1,200 per year.....KWWL-TV in Waterloo has hired former Iowa quarterback Paul Burmeister as a sports reporter.  Burmeister formerly worked at KCRG-TV Cedar Rapids.....WHTS (All Hit 989) Quad Cities presents its "Back To Class Music Bash II" headlined by Jessica Simpson's Dreamchaser Tour August 18 at the Southpark Mall parking lot in Moline, IL.  Also scheduled are Eden's Crush, Youngstown, Toya and Plus One as well as extreme games for those in attendance to participate in.  The promos say the show will take place in a traveling arena that can hold 10,000.          

August 3, 2001

Marty Tirrell, co-host of KXTK (The Big Ticket) "Talkin' Sports" afternoon call in show is leaving the station to accept a position with a sports talk station in Boston.  He will host a Boston Celtics post game call in show on WWZN (The Zone.)  Tirrell's last day at KXTK will be August 23.....The new Quad Cities UPN affiliate is scheduled to begin broadcasting on September 1 with the first program being the Iowa/Kent State football game.  It will broadcast on UHF channel 53.  Call letters are not known at this time.....Des Moines radio where are they now:  Clutch formerly with KAZR is now doing nights at WRWK in Toledo, OH. He is also Music Director.  Former KGGO/KRKQ Program Director Mark Hendrix is now PD at WTPT in Greenville, SC.     

July 29, 2001

The future of "Mancow's Morning Madhouse" heard in Des Moines on KAZR (Lazer 103.3) is up in the air.  Mancow's contract with his Chicago flagship WKQX and it's owner Emmis Communications expired last week and the two parties have not come to terms on a new deal.  Rumors out of Chicago are that Mancow may leave Chicago and take his show to another syndicator.  At least for now, "The Worst of Mancow" is being aired.....The stepmother of KWWL-TV Waterloo reporter Tara Rosenblum was gunned down in front of the family's North Miami Beach home July 24.  Police say that robbery was not an apparent motive in the homicide of 44 year old Joni Rosenblum....."The Scott, Mark and Cecily Show" has ended its run on Iowa City's KKRQ (The Fox) as two thirds of the afternoon drive show have moved on.  Mark Allen, who was recently named the new play by play voice of Iowa women's basketball, is focusing on his sportscasting duties and will co-host the morning show on Cedar Rapids' WMT with Tim Boyle starting August 6.  Cecily Gabel has left the radio industry.....Allen's replacement as the voice of Iowa wrestling on KXIC in Iowa City has been named.  It is former Hawkeye wrestler and two time NCAA champion Mark Ironside.        

July 24, 2001

Mediacom's purchase of Iowa's AT&T Broadband cable systems became final July 18.  Company officials say that customers shouldn't notice any changes until at least September.  AT&T sold the systems as part of a strategy to concentrate on larger metropolitan areas.....The latest name that is out at Wilks Des Moines is longtime KJJY personality Big John McCoy.  Hatfield McCoy Show partner Eddie Hatfield will go solo.....All Access reports that KCCQ (Channel Q) Ames night man Ace Ubom is leaving to return to school.  

July 17, 2001

The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports that KXIC Iowa City Sports Director Mark Allen will become the new play-by-play voice of University of Iowa Women's Basketball.  This is dependent upon the station finding a replacement for him as the voice of Iowa Wrestling, which he has done for the past six years.  Allen would replace Mike Grimm who accepted a job at KMOX in St. Louis.  In addition to sports, Allen is also part of the Mark, Scott and Cecily Show on sister station KKRQ (100.7 The Fox).....Reports are that J. Michael McKoy is the latest to be fired from Wilks Des Moines.....KFMW (Rock 108) Waterloo is looking for a new morning co-host as Mike Anthony moves on to KDOT in Reno, NV to do mornings.  He will be reunited with former boss Jave Patterson who is the PD and morning co-host there  .....Chuck O'Brien resigned as Program Director of the Quad Cities KBEA (B100) after less than a month on the job to do mornings at WAAG in Galesburg, IL.....Ron Oelke is out as co-anchor at WHBF-TV Quad Cities.  His contract did not get picked up after it ran out at the end of June.....Jason Koma moves from KFXB-TV Dubuque where he was Sports Director to become weekend sports anchor at WHOI-TV Peoria, IL.         

July 6, 2001

All Access reports that Don Morehead exits after only six months as the General Manager of Cumulus' Waterloo stations. (KOEL, KCRR and KKCV).....The rumor mill is active in Des Moines about what Wilks will do next.....KWWL-TV Waterloo has extended its weekday morning newscast another half hour.  It now begins at 5 am which is also when KGAN starts theirs.  The question now is when will KCRG follow suit?.....In other happenings at KWWL, sports reporter Jeff Mickey has given his notice of resignation to take a job outside of the television broadcasting industry which will make Rick Coleman a one man sports department for the time being.....June was a record setting month for both the Iowa Media Resource Page and the Iowa Media Message Board.  Thank you for making us your choice for news, views and discussion about radio and TV broadcasting in Iowa.  Also a special thanks to those that have provided news tips for this page.