Excerpted from www.suntimes.com/output/feder/cst-fin-feder141.html October 14, 2004 BY ROBERT FEDER SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST Now that Disney/ABC Radio has appointed a new boss for news/talk WLS-AM (890), the fate of morning stars Don Wade and Roma finally may be resolved at last. But in taking so long to get down to business, ABC unwittingly allowed a door to open for the Wades at another Chicago station. Four months after Zemira Jones left as president and general manager for a top operations post at Radio One, ABC this week named John Gallagher, a 19-year ABC veteran, as his successor. Gallagher, who most recently was director of sales at WJR-AM in Detroit, also will head Radio Disney's WRDZ-AM (1300). Gallagher inherits a station that has been without its morning-drive franchise since Sept. 14, when the Wades' last contract extension expired. Long-stalled negotiations with WLS are getting under way in earnest just as a new suitor has entered the picture. Salem Communications, which is about to acquire WIND-AM (560) in a swap with Univision Radio and transform the Spanish-language station into a general market news/talk outlet, is believed to be a serious alternative for the Wades. Although Salem's official plan for WIND is to air Bill Bennett's syndicated morning show, luring the Wades from WLS would be a major coup. Fueling the speculation is the fact that Salem's director of network programming is Tom Tradup, the former president and general manager of WLS who retained the Wades when the station turned to news/talk. While most observers expect WLS to come to terms with the Wades eventually, the sudden emergence of another player provides a distinct advantage to the husband-and-wife team. The soap opera surrounding Don & Roma's contract talks is just one of several dramas being played out on Chicago's morning radio stage.Talks with Don & Roma getting down to business
Nice to hear some good news about Don and Roma for a change.
Thanks!