Lynn Samuels, the former left wing radio host on WABC, died of a heart attack on Saturday. The 69-year-old had missed her Saturday morning Sirius XM radio, so, the Post reports, "SiriusXM sent someone to her apartment, and that person notified police, who found her body." more ›

Well, that's rather offensive! Last week reports surfaced that, according to a new tell-all book, Sarah Palin once bedded NBA player Glen Rice. And because this is former VP candidate and half-term Alaskan governor Sarah Palin we're talking about, the story got lots of media attention. And among all those talking heads it seems that one Mike Tyson gets the cake for most offensive public response, which he gleefully shared with KWWN, ESPN's Las Vegas affiliate. more ›

Bob Sherman, the radio executive who hired Howard Stern (good idea) and re-hired Don Imus (bad idea) at WNBC, has passed away, at 69. His son told The New York Times that the cause of death was cancer. more ›

Hot 97 DJ Mister Cee, who was caught in March being orally serviced in his car by a young man who sometimes goes by the name Brooke-Lynn, pleaded guilty to loitering for the purpose of engaging in a prostitution offense today. He was ordered to complete 12 sessions of counseling with a doctor for the violation. more ›

Veteran NY sports reporter Jared Max revealed to his ESPN-1050 listeners yesterday that he was gay. Max is the third prominent person in the sports world to come out of the closet in recent weeks; while discussing whether fans would accept gay sports stars, he made his pronouncement: "I am gay. Yeah, Jared Max the sports guy with one of the most familiar voices in New York sports isn't quite like the majority." more ›

Whoops? Early last Wednesday morning Calvin Labrun (a.k.a. Hot 97 DJ Mister Cee) was arrested by the NYPD for public lewdness after he was found in a parked car being fellated by a man half his age. However, he's denying it on his Twitter, "Nah that shit not true.. You know how i rock." more ›

Earlier we wanted to cry happy tears when we heard that Ted Williams would no longer be homeless, would likely have too many job offers to choose from, and would soon be seeing his mom in Brooklyn, for the first time in a long time. And now we want to cry sad tears, because TMZ reports that Williams, scheduled to be in New York right now (the Today show is flying him for a Thursday morning appearance)... is actually stuck in Ohio, unable to fly because he doesn't have his birth certificate! more ›

The noncommercial Pacifica radio network, which is headquartered in Berkeley, will begin broadcasting Al Jazeera English in five markets, including WBAI in NYC, where listeners can tune in to Al Jazeera broadcasts at 5 a.m., starting, oh, today! (You can stream this morning's broadcast here.) Pacifica station KPFT in Houston also started airing Al Jazeera this morning, and KPFA in Berkeley started yesterday. This is the first time Al Jazeera English has been brought to radio audiences in North America, and Arlene Engelhardt, director of the Pacifica Foundation, says, "It is part of our mission at Pacifica to act as a bridge between cultures and to present stories that are too often overlooked by other media in the United States." more ›

As recently as this week, Mayor Bloomberg has repeatedly denied that he has any interest in running for President in 2012. Considering that most people don't really want him to run, maybe he's got the right idea. And yet...things keep making us question his true intentions. And that thing today is Gov. Paterson, who discussed Bloomberg's presidential ambitions on the radio: "He is watching and positioning just in case, so he would have that option...If the situation presented itself, he's been a risk-taker and a very successful entrepreneur and an elected official - I think he would take the shot." more ›

Governor David Paterson is a lame duck, what with the State Legislature ignoring his requests to balance a budget, and we imagine he's just sort of going through the motions at this point; even his staff's secret internal emails turned out to be kind of meh. But on the plus side, he can spend his last weeks in office getting progressively more unhinged day-by-day. Paterson had a farewell tour interview on WFAN sports radio this afternoon, and he ended up just shooting the shit about how much it sucked to be Governor: "It's been very challenging, very difficult, very painful at times." more ›

It seems as though Mayor Bloomberg had a serious case of the Fridays this morning during an appearance on a radio show. Or maybe he went out for drinks after last night's storm, and was hungover. Either way, Bloomberg and Health Commissioner Thomas Farley appeared together on John Gambling's WOR-AM radio show to discuss the proposed smoking bans, and what ensued was a veritable "Who's on First" routine, with the Mayor confusing Farley's name with former Health Commissioner Thomas Frieden, as well as NY Times columnist Thomas Friedman. more ›

Governor Paterson may very well shut down the government—which would lead to ""unimaginable chaos— if the Legislature doesn't agree on a budget. But here's something else about Paterson: He loves talk radio. He calls into programs all the time. He loves it so much the NY Times has a front page article (see) about "David from Harlem" or "David from Manhattan." more ›

As you may have heard by now, Air America has gone bankrupt, having announced on their website yesterday that they'd be ceasing live programming operations immediately. The progressive radio station's chairman explained in his statement: "The very difficult economic environment has had a significant impact on Air America's business. This past year has seen a 'perfect storm' in the media industry generally. National and local advertising revenues have fallen drastically, causing many media companies nationwide to fold or seek bankruptcy protection." more ›

Yesterday the sad news came out that Howard Stern sidekick and comedian Artie Lange attempted suicide over the weekend by stabbing himself nine times. His mother found him in his Hoboken apartment around 9:30 a.m. Saturday morning. Wishing the incident hadn't hit the press, Stern addressed it on his show once it did (listen below), saying in part: "I'm pissed off that this story got out there. I'm pissed off at the shithead who maybe got paid 10 bucks to tip off Page Six." more ›

Citadel Broadcasting, which syndicates Don Imus's radio show, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy yesterday. The NY Times reports it did so "after agreeing to turn over control of the company to its creditors in exchange for reducing its debt. The filing by the company, which owns 224 stations across the country... was not unexpected but does reflect the troubles plaguing the radio industry amid steep declines in advertising revenue and big debt loads." The AP adds that Citadel also owns KABC-AM in Los Angeles, WLS-AM in Chicago, WABC-AM and WPLJ-FM in New York and KGO-AM in San Francisco and that "Citadel's WABC is home to several syndicated hosts, including Don Imus, Rush Limbaugh, Joe Scarborough and Mark Levin." more ›

It wasn't bumbling prosecutors, arguing jurors, or untrustworthy mob informants that kept mob scion John Gotti Jr. from being found guilty in his racketeering and murder trial. The former Gambino boss told reporters after his fourth mistrial yesterday that his deceased father was watching out for him — and sending him messages on the radio through songs like "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" and Sting's "Fields of Gold," according to the Times. more ›

After splitting up last year, Mike Francesa and Chris Russo were back on the air together—at least for today. Newsday's Neil Best writes, "Their mini-reunion at Yankee Stadium began with the old 'Mike and the Mad Dog' theme music, and Russo's familiar, 'Aaaand, good afternoon everybody!'" (Here's video.) Russo said, "This will put the kibosh on the idea you and I hate each other," and "I miss talking sports with you." Aww. Apparently the pair will sit together during tonight's game. more ›

Today WNYC Radio celebrates the 20th anniversary of the Brian Lehrer Show. Lehrer will be hosting a special anniversary broadcast taking a look back to when it all began in 1989. more ›

The Great New York Times Company Fire Sale of 2009 continues this week as the media company announced Tuesday it has sold WQXR-FM, the last classical-only radio station in New York. In a deal worth $45 million, WNYC and Univision will take over operation of the station but won't change its format, pledging to continue its broadcast partnerships with the Philharmonic, Met, and Juilliard. What listeners are likely to notice is a change in WQXR's spot on the dial—105.9 will be the new home for the station. It's also going to be broadcasting a weaker signal, which will reach about 4.5 million fewer people. So, with its future a little more certain, now all WQXR has to do is find funding, and WNYC's already raising money on that front, having begun a campaign to pay for the station that concert pianist Emanuel Ax calls "the sonic equivalent of saving Carnegie Hall from the wrecker’s ball." more ›

Before MTV made the full switch to becoming a universe inhabited by the Spencer Pratts and Tila Tequilas of the world, there was a strange moment in the late '90s when the network appeared to be at a crossroads. After years of serving as the launching pad for models-turned-VJs, one face on the network stuck out like a sore thumb when he arrived on the scene—Matt Pinfield's. Pinfield quickly made a name for himself as the only guy on the air who appeared to be completely serious and passionate about the music he played, as he would sputter off obscure punk references while engaging bands in ways they were unaccustomed to when dealing with MTV. He went from hosting the weekly alternative video show, 120 Minutes, to appearing on-air so often at one point that the Post joked they just give him his own daily block and call it "360 Minutes." more ›

Yesterday was Cardinal Egan's final "Conversation with the Cardinal on Sirius Radio's Catholic Channel. The NY Times reports that he tried to set the record straight: "In jocular, yet pointed remarks, he said that he would not, in fact, retire to a penthouse apartment in Paris; that he did not play Mozart sonatas for friends on the baby grand at his residence behind St. Patrick’s Cathedral; that he does not dine frequently at 'Upper East Side gourmet eateries'; and that he was not against continuing the rule of celibacy for priests." Egan, who also turned 77 yesterday, explained why he went on satellite radio, "I live in a town where the media are not friendly. They feel that they are going to be important only to the extent that they pull down not only ourselves, but any other institution that seems to have some standing. So I think it’s important to talk over the media." The new Cardinal, Timothy Dolan, will be installed on April 15, 2009. more ›

Don Imus, the (in)famous longtime morning DJ, announced on his radio show this morning that he has stage II prostate cancer. During "Imus in the Morning" (now on WABC 770 AM), he sounded optimistic saying, "I have great confidence in my doctors. I'll be fine. If I'm not fine, I won't be fine. It's not a big deal. The prognosis couldn't be better." The 68-year-old Imus said that he thought stress could be a factor, something he hasn't been lacking in recent years. He shared few details on his diagnosis or treatment, but did add, "The day you find out is fine. But the next morning when you get up, your knees are shaking. I didn't think I could make it to work." more ›

If you haven't heard by now, WFMU (91.1 on the FM dial), New York's most loved listener-supported radio station, is on week two of their two week pledge drive. They only ask for handouts once a year, so drop some change in their jukebox. Currently they're $556,000 away from their goal and need help to "pick up the pace and make our goal by this Sunday." Tonight's a good time to tune in, from 8 to 11 p.m. musicians Ted Leo and Aimee Mann will play songs for pledges on Tom Scharpling's show, and they'll also be joined by comedians Paul F. Tompkins and John Hodgman. If you don't pledge, get ready for a future filled with even more soul-crushing, mind-numbing Top 40 tunes. Oh wait, that's already happening. Yesterday K-Rock announced it'll be dropping Pearl Jam and Led Zeppelin for the likes of Beyoncé and Justin Timberlake. What's more, the station will be re-branded 92.3 NOW FM, and a senior VP at CBS Radio notes that “It’s the first new mainstream music station to be launched in New York in nearly 30 years" and the change is meant to “diversify our radio portfolio in New York City.” more ›

If you believe Page Six, then you might believe that Rudy Giuliani may be headed to the radio. Bill O'Reilly is going to be ending his radio show to focus on Fox News, so... "Now, Page Six has learned the leading candidate to succeed him is Rudy Giuliani (above). Westwood One, which syndicates the O'Reilly show, is negotiating with the former mayor." more ›

Last night at the Garden was the annual Christmas concert thrown by Z100 known as the Jingle Ball. Perusing a list of its performers is a bit of an eye-opening experience for some of us in realizing just how long it's been since we had "the phrase that pays" rolling off the tips of our tongues. But dare we say that in its thirteenth year, the Jingle Ball has been running for long enough to be considered an adolescent institution here in the Big Apple. Plus we can always delude ourselves of our relative youth status by reading the Daily News description of the tweenage girls "having one heck of a good time." more ›

The new home of WNYC might not be much to look at on the outside compared to its old perch at the iconic Municipal Building, but it's what's on the inside that counts. Since June, the station has been in its own space for the first time since 1922, only taking about eleven years from when it became independent of city ownership. Still the two and a half floors of former printing plant at 160 Varick Street, just a few blocks from the entrance to the Holland Tunnel in sort of a nebulous confluence of SoHo and TriBeCa which developers want to call Hudson Square, is a welcome change. more ›