BNM Writers
Talk Radio Should Watch Spotify Closely
Joe Rogan has committed the crime of having conversations with people on his show who do not parrot the talking points of CNN, MSNBC, and the White House.

Published
1 year agoon
By
Pete Mundo
In recent days, Joe Rogan and Spotify have been at the center of the media world. Washed-up rock nâ rollers (Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, and others) who most under the age of 70 donât know or thought were dead are pulling their libraries from the popular streaming platform over Joe Rogan.
This podcaster has committed the crime of having conversations with people on his show who do not parrot the talking points of CNN, MSNBC, and the White House.
Spotify did announce that it would add disclaimers to any podcast episodes that discuss COVID-19. Usually, Iâd laugh off the absurdity. I still want to. But thereâs a part of me that wonât allow it.
Thatâs especially true after White House press secretary Jen Psaki spoke about the situation this week and said something that should concern any proponent of free speech.
âThis disclaimer is a positive step, but we want every platform to continue doing more to call out mis- and disinformation while also uplifting accurate information,â Psaki said in response to a reporterâs question at her regular press briefing.
Notice there still has not been any concrete outrage over what Rogan has specifically said that they would label as âdisinformation,â but I digress. âOur view is itâs a good step,â Psaki concluded. âItâs a positive step, but thereâs more that can be done.â
That is one of the scariest and most underreported comments from a White House official in modern American history.
We can all have our political differences over what the best policy is in a given economic or international scenario. But for the most powerful in government to be twisting the arm of media companies to censor and shut down speech they donât like is dangerous.
Thankfully, Spotifyâs CEO Daniel Ek isnât falling for the outrage. Specifically said on an earnings call this week, the company is just as much a platform as a publisher, meaning they are a place for the content to be distributed but are not necessarily a creator of it.
Thatâs a great first step, and I sure hope Ek doesnât budge off his position. But the mob doesnât go away after a few comments on one earnings call.
However, given the moment, those in power, and their willingness to publicly support censors of speech they disagree with, what should talk radio stations and hosts be thinking?
Iâm not writing this predicting the government will be shutting down talk radio any time soon, but as these free speech debates linger on. Furthermore, the censorship requests are generally only coming from one side of the political aisle; itâs fair to wonder how far this could go, how deep it runs, and who/what is next?
As has always been the case with cancel culture, thereâs always something and someone next. There has to be to keep the movement alive. One scalp has never been enough, and history proves as much time and time again.
Itâs more critical than ever that regardless of how the CEOs of major media companies feel about any content unless concrete, undeniable facts are being misrepresented, they are protecting the most basic American right we have: the ability to have free and open discourse.
Stand strong with Daniel Ek. Your time is now.

Pete Mundo is the morning show host and program director for KCMO in Kansas City. Previously, he was a fill-in host nationally on FOX News Radio and CBS Sports Radio, while anchoring for WFAN, WCBS News Radio 880, and Bloomberg Radio. Pete was also the sports and news director for Omni Media Group at K-1O1/Z-92 in Woodward, Oklahoma. He’s also the owner of the Big 12-focused digital media outlet Heartland College Sports. To interact, find him on Twitter @PeteMundo.
BNM Writers
Dagen McDowell Is Ready For A New Adventure With Fox Business
âEvery decision in America is born of policy, On the show, we bring that to our show. Talk about the news of the day.â

Published
4 days agoon
February 3, 2023By
Jim Cryns
To know Dagen McDowell, you must understand what she comes from, where she comes from. You wonât know her until you know the lessons, kindness, and determination set forth by her parents.
Her parents operated a small grocery store, LW Roark and Company. Charles and Joyce McDowell were high school sweethearts and both went to college but decided to go back home and open a business. âThis is in the middle of nowhere,â McDowell said. âIt was a wholesale grocery store. They sold it in the late 90s.â
She said her parents were smart, encouraging, and took every opportunity to teach McDowell and her brother.
âTheyâd constantly talk up people who came into the store. Both of them have and had an insatiable curiosity about everything. They felt they learned things through their customers. It was more fun to learn about things from other people.â
McDowellâs parents never took a week off work. Never. The family took no vacations as most families would. Once while McDowell was in college at Wake Forest University, the family visited the Air and Space Museum on the Mall in D.C.
âBoth of my parents were very interested in architecture and landscapes. Weâd go to Williamsburg and just look at the buildings.â
McDowell joined FOX News Channel in 2003 and helped launch FOX Business Network as a founding anchor in 2007.
Her mother passed away three years ago and her father is still very much a part of her life. Her father was a constant teacher.
âOne time my father, who we called Dowell McDowell, was putting up an outbuilding and asked me how long one line should be if the other line was such and such. He taught me the Pythagorean theorem when I was about 4 years old.â
McDowell was nurtured by parents with endless curiosity.
âI was raised by parents who would always debate and converse around the dinner table. We shared breakfast and dinner together every day. They loved learning, were always inquisitive, never afraid to ask a question. My parents shared a fearlessness and passed that on to me. Iâve never been embarrassed to ask people questions. I love talking to people and finding out about things.â
For a long time, McDowell had no idea what she wanted to do for a living. She knew if she worked at different jobs sheâd eventually figure out what she was good at.
âI knew I was a decent writer, but I always tried to get information out of people, what they were doing. Ask if they were fulfilled and happy.â
At Wake, Forest McDowell majored in art history and had every intention of working in a museum, possibly as a curator.
âI interned at the Center for Contemporary Arts. I lived in Venice, Italy for a while. Wake Forest owns a house in Venice.â
After that it was Colorado. She moved back to New York during the recession of 1991 with a duffel bag. She took the Amtrak to New York City and sublet an apartment for six months.
âI had no TV, just a radio. I knew I could find something good to do in New York, there were so many jobs. I always wanted to live in the city. Either the city or way out in the country. Nowhere in between.â
She said being in New York made her feel anything was possible. This was January in 1994 when job ads were still in the physical newspaper, like the New York Times. McDowell interviewed at Institutional Investor through a referral from a friend.
âIt was a brilliant magazine with terrific writing,â McDowell explained. âVery prominent in the industry. They were looking for someone to work with the newsletter written for the financial community.â
Sheâd cover topics like the bond business, Wall Street, and money management. The magazine made her take a reporting test where youâd make up a story and write it. She was offered a job and worked there for three years.
âI learned to be a journalist there,â McDowell said. âI could write but I became a better journalist. Weâd break news, create our sources, and learn more and more about finance. People love to talk about what they do if you show interest.â
The next big job was SmartMoney.com, a resource and web newspaper for private investors. There McDowell wrote a personal finance column. She started doing commentary on television shows, the way a lot of people in different professions tend to do. âThen I started making more appearances on weekend financial or business shows,â McDowell said.
She got a call from Neil Cavuto about 20 years ago and he told McDowell, âKid, you want a job? I know you donât have much professional TV experience. Weâll give you some training and youâll figure it out. If you do, you stay. If not, you go.â
McDowell said she was glad she was a writer first before she arrived at Fox. She writes her own scripts and has a background in finance and business writing.
âBefore the business network was launched, they had only one business reporter and two senior business correspondents,â she said. âIâve gotten to do so many different jobs, use different muscles, so to speak. As the years have passed Iâve discovered other talents I may have and Iâm incredibly grateful for that.â
Thereâs a new show in town. McDowell and Sean Duffy will co-host The Bottom Line which will air on weeknights from 6-7:00 PM ET.
McDowell said she and Duffy come from extremely similar backgrounds. Duffy is from rural Wisconsin and McDowell is from Virginia.
âWe know what small-town living is like, âMcDowell said. âI might live in New York City but where I grew up affects the way I view the world. Iâm still grounded in my hometown. On the show, we look south and west with everything we cover. You have to think of your audience. Rather than talking about them, we talk with them. Thatâs our shared background and vision. Sean is extremely down to earth and generous.â
McDowell said the show is not financially based, but steeped in business.
She said Duffyâs experience as a former U.S. Congressman, he understands policy as well as financial matters.
âEvery decision in America is born of policy,â she said. âOn the show, we bring that to our show. Talk about the news of the day.â
This is different from anything McDowell has done in the past.
âItâs a two-anchor show in the evening,â she explained. âThis is not taking place during market hours. We tie all the business happenings together from the day. Again, itâs not about Washington or New York. Itâs about the people we grew up with. We talk to them. Build a relationship with them on the air. For me, this is not just sitting in front of a camera. I can run off at the mouth as well as anyone, hang in there with the filibuster.â
McDowell says she is blunt, but hopes she isnât rude. During a recent interview for the new show she used the terms âpig potatoesâ and âchapped backsides.â
âThose are terms I just made up,â she said. âI make up a lot of phrases and donât always know what they mean. I have an entire repertoire of those kinds of phrases.â
Duffy assumed they were southern phrases he had to learn from McDowell, but she assured him sheâd never heard them anywhere else.
âIâm just making stuff up,â McDowell said. âYou canât curse. Canât say BS. At least you shouldnât say BS on television. You donât want to say manure. You never want to say something that makes people wince or evokes a smell.â
Dealing with people directly and bluntly seems to come from her mother.
âMy mother had grit,â McDowell said. âShe was also very kind, never syrupy. I used to say she had no magnolia-mouth.
Thatâs got to be a southern phrase.
McDowell said her mother was not a servile flatterer, but she was kind. Always there when somebody was in need.
âShe had real grit. Sheâd stand and fight for her friends and family members.â
Her mother passed away after being diagnosed with stage-four cancer.
âShe went through unimaginable pain,â McDowell said of her mother. âFor nearly six years. You want to talk about somebody who was tough. There was nobody more pugnacious than my mother.â
She explained even with her illness, her mother was always on the go. Continuing to live her life. When questioned about being so active while she was ill, her mother continued to show grit.
âMy mother would say she didnât want to walk around looking like she had cancer. She asked, âWhat choice do I have? I could lay in bed and wait to die, or I can get up and do what I can .ââ
McDowell said her motherâs illness taught her to be a caregiver in ways she never could have imagined. Her mother taught her to find moments of joy every single day, in the smallest of things.
âIt can be as simple as telling a stranger to have a great day. Treat a perfect stranger with kindness. I do it all day long. I know it sounds corny, but I want to be known as a person who brings a casserole to a friend when theyâre ill.â
A one-sheet from Fox tells you McDowell and the culmination of her background is perfect for The Bottom Line. The fact is, itâs true.

Jim Cryns writes features for Barrett News Media. He has spent time in radio as a reporter for WTMJ, and has served as an author and former writer for the Milwaukee Brewers. To touch base or pick up a copy of his new book: Talk To Me – Profiles on News Talkers and Media Leaders From Top 50 Markets, log on to Amazon or shoot Jim an email at jimcryns3_zhd@indeedemail.com.
BNM Writers
Airing The Tyre Nichols Video Was A Necessity
There were hard moments to watch in those videos, hard sounds to hear. But they aired.

Published
5 days agoon
February 2, 2023By
Bill Zito
Far be it for me not to address this outrageous and embarrassing instance in humanity. After the videos of Memphis police brutally beating Tyre Nichols were shown on television there really seemed to be more outrage emerging from society this time than from the media, for a change. One would think thatâs how we wish things to be.
In instances like this, where the video and audio images are far from brief but are instead chaptered as they unfold, there are few options other than to let them run their course. Clocks — breaks hard and soft — are out the window, just as in live coverage.
Because thatâs what this was, only the live this time was us, and as we all absorbed and reacted to actions disapprovingly familiar yet somehow foreign at the same time, the impact was still becoming apparent even though we already knew the outcome.
Itâs happened before.
Not always like this but weâve seen it before, police encounters shown on the news overtakes and become the news.
It takes effect as the sights and sounds are digested, dissected, and discussed, often before their potential impact could really be imagined.
In 1991, when the Handycam footage crossed screens for the first time and we learned Rodney Kingâs name, we didnât know then but we had a feeling.
We were on the right track, though as newsrooms evolved and street reporting incorporated a different type of storytelling.
I was a cop in 1991. Changes came. Some.
Itâs 2023, Iâm no longer a cop. Changes will come again. Some.
Turning points — or the overused watershed moments — mean just as much to the news media as they do to law enforcement.
The “why’s” that make this a turning point are more society and community based this time around than they were in 1991.
At least I think so. And I donât think it makes a bit of difference whoâs involved this time.
There were hard moments to watch in those videos, and hard sounds to hear. But they aired. Where they couldnât air, they were described in great detail; descriptions sometimes can be worse than the real thing. Sometimes, not this time.
And they should air, they shouldnât stop airing. This is what happened and this is what people need to see and hear and this is exactly why we are here.
Warn them, provide them with a heads up that theyâre not going to like what happens next. Itâs life and we show life, and we show what some of us do with it when itâs someone elseâs.
Overall, I would say the news platforms held their composure, even after the videos were released. I saw, read, and heard some refreshingly neutral coverage, even from outlets where I expected hard turns into the lanes on either side of the road.
Legitimate questions were asked by anchors and reporters and much of the time, the off-balance issues were raised more by those on the sidewalks and those on the other side of the cameras and microphones.
As much as I find myself in disagreement with what I often see on the cable networks — all the cable networks — I did find a sense of symmetry watching CNNâs Don Lemon speak with Memphis City Council Chair Martavius Jones in the hours after the videos were released.
Regular protocols be damned, Lemon and producers lingered patiently as Jones, visibly overcome by emotion, struggled to regain breath and composure enough to be able to speak. Rather than cut away or move to other elements, they stood fast and it became an example of what often requires no words.
There were fewer punches pulled on other platforms as well.
The sounds of the screams, the impacts, and the hate-filled commands were broadcast through car radios.
As were Tyre Nicholâs calls for his mom. They aired. They had to.

Bill Zito has devoted most of his work efforts to broadcast news since 1999. He made the career switch after serving a dozen years as a police officer on both coasts. Splitting the time between Radio and TV, heâs worked for ABC News and Fox News, News 12 New York , The Weather Channel and KIRO and KOMO in Seattle. He writes, edits and anchors for Audacyâs WTIC-AM in Hartford and lives in New England. You can find him on Twitter @BillZitoNEWS.
BNM Writers
Does the Republican Establishment Get It?
For many it seemed that the Republican establishment stood idly by as Democrats changed the rules and worked behind the scenes to alter elections.

Published
7 days agoon
January 31, 2023
In a move that seemed to go against the wishes of the patriotic American grassroots, the Republican party on Friday re-elected RNC Chairperson Ronna McDaniel.
The media immediately took notice, as many on television and radio are now wondering why the party would re-elect a chairperson who has been so unpopular with the base of its party.
Grant Stinchfield discussed this issue Friday night on his program, Stinchfield Tonight, which airs on Real Americaâs Voice network.
âRonna McDaniel holds on to her chairmanship of the Republican Party. By a whopping total of — what were the numbers– 111 to 54. Harmeet Dhillon only received 54 votes. Mike Lindell 4 votes. This is proof to me that the Republican establishment is dug in,â Stinchfield — formerly of Newsmax — said. âDonât tell me theyâre out of touch. See, you tell me theyâre out of touch, that implies ignorance. Theyâre not ignorant about anything.â
As sentiment for Dhillon grew in the days leading up to Fridayâs vote, many influential politicians and party donors publicly offered her their support and endorsement. These included Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), as well as donors Mike Rydin, Dick Uihlein, and Bernie Marcus.
Also on board were musician and outspoken conservative John Rich, along with the state GOP of Nebraska and Washington State. Countless journalists and media personalities, such as Charlie Kirk, Miranda Divine, and Lou Dobbs, also came out publicly in support of Dhillon. Former President Donald Trump remained neutral, not making a public choice of either of the three candidates.
For many of Dhillonâs supporters, the deciding factor was public sentiment across the partyâs base.
âTheyâre reading the same chat boards. Theyâre getting the same emails Iâm reading. I will literally post something about this race when I was supporting Harmeet Dhillon. There was not one comment – not one – that supported Ronna McDaniel. Everyone wanted change,â Stinchfield said, noting that the party elite saw the same groundswell of support for change.
âNow, nobody has an issue as Ronna McDaniel is some evil kind of person. I donât believe she is. I believe, though, that she is part of the establishment. Sheâs been around too long as far as the establishment goes. And sheâs been ingrained in doing business as usual. Itâs not working.â
In making their choices known, many Dhillon supporters simply pointed to the scoreboard during McDanielâs reign.
âThink about where we are. 2018, we lost the House. 2020, we lost everything. 2022, we won the House, but we should have really steamrolled the House and we should have taken back the Senate, which we didnât do,” Stinchfield said. “That means weâre on a real losing track since she took over. I donât like being on a losing track. I like being on a winning track.
“Something has got to change when you talk about all of this. So how does Ronna McDaniel get 111 votes and Harmeet Dhillon only get 54 votes, when everyone, every Republican voter I talk to said it was time for change?â pondered Stinchfield.
And even more than the losses, for many it seemed that the Republican establishment stood idly by as Democrats changed the rules and worked behind the scenes to alter elections. The most recent example of which came in Arizona, where presumptive gubernatorial favorite, Kari Lake, was âdefeatedâ when countless voting irregularities occurred in some of the stateâs most deep-red areas.
âUnder her watch, Democrats instituted a mail-in ballot scheme. That may be even worse than losing, when you talk about the House and the Senate and all these things. The fact that we now have a junk mail-in ballot scheme across the country under Ronna McDanielâs watch is serious trouble. Very serious trouble,â Stinchfield said on Friday. âAnd so the reason it is is because the Democrats are rigging the system.â
For years – until Donald Trump descended the golden escalator and took the world by storm – the Republican party had the reputation of being the party of the rich. Rush Limbaugh used to refer to this wing of Republicans as âthe country club crowd.â President Donald Trump flipped the narrative completely, offering a clear vision of hope and patriotism to working-class America.
Reputable polling — such as Richard Barisâ Big Data Poll — consistently showed Trump running well ahead of almost every Republican candidate during the 2022 mid-term election cycle. In other words, Trump still maintains considerably more support across the country than most of the individual Senate or House candidates experienced.
Many experts believe this is because voters still view Trump as an outsider, while they view the Republican party much less favorably.
âLetâs tell you how out of touch they are, how elitist they are,â Stinchfield said, calling out the GOP establishment. âThis meeting that went on, do you know where it is? Itâs at the Waldorf Astoria Monarch in California. One of the most expensive resorts in America. Youâre lucky if you get a room for a thousand dollars a night down there on Dana Point. Now, itâs a beautiful hotel, but why is the Republican Party holding an event there? Then I went back and I looked at what RedState did. RedState went back and looked at some of the expenses that the Republican Party under Ronna McDanielâs leadership was spending money on.
“Take a look at this. $3.1 million on private jets. $1.3 million on limousine and chauffeur services. $17.1 million on donor mementos. $750,000 on floral arrangements. Now you compare this to the Democrats. The Democrats spent $35,000 on private airfare. A thousand dollars on floral arrangements. A thousand. Not $750,000. A thousand. And the $17.1 million they spent on donor mementos, the Democrats spent $1.5 million.
“Democrats know where to put the money. Itâs not giving donors gifts. Donors shouldnât want gifts. If you give money, give money. You donât need the fancy pin to put on your lapel.â
Following her loss, Dhillon warned her party that it must listen to the base, saying, âif we ignore this message, I think itâs at our peril. Itâs at our peril personally, as party leaders and itâs at our peril for our party in general.â

Rick Schultz is a former Sports Director for WFUV Radio at Fordham University. He has coached and mentored hundreds of Sports Broadcasting students at the Connecticut School of Broadcasting, Marist College and privately. His media career experiences include working for the Hudson Valley Renegades, Army Sports at West Point, The Norwich Navigators, 1340/1390 ESPN Radio in Poughkeepsie, NY, Time Warner Cable TV, Scorephone NY, Metro Networks, NBC Sports, ABC Sports, Cumulus Media, Pamal Broadcasting and WATR. He has also authored a number of books including “A Renegade Championship Summer” and “Untold Tales From The Bush Leagues”. To get in touch, find him on Twitter @RickSchultzNY.