KFI and KNX clean up at Golden Mike Awards for SoCal radio news coverage

KFI (640) and KNX (1070 AM, 97.1 FM) were among numerous Golden Mike award-winners honored for excellence in broadcast news by the Radio and Television News Association (RTNA) of Southern California. In all, 44 Golden Mikes went to local stations for over the air content or locally-produced podcasts at the 74th awards banquet held on March 30 at the Universal Hilton hotel in Universal City.

KNX was honored with four Mikes, including awards for Best Newscast over 15 minutes, Best Traffic Report, Best News Talk Show or Public Affairs Program, and Best Government and Political Reporting.

KFI earned even more, with 11 Mikes in the categories of Best Newscast Under 15 minutes, Best Continuing News Coverage, Best Live Coverage of a News Story, Best Specialty Program, Best Long-Form Program, Best News Reporting, Best Serious Feature Reporting, Less Than One Minute, Best Entertainment Reporting, Best Medical and Science Reporting, Best Use of Sound, and Best Digital News Reporting.

KPCC (89.3 FM) won for Best Environmental Reporting, Best News Podcast, and Best Podcast Feature Reporting.

In the Division B — smaller market stations — KTIE/San Bernardino (590 AM) won for Best Traffic Report, while KCLU/ Thousand Oaks-Ventura (88.3 FM) won Division B honors for Best Individual Writing, Best Live Coverage of a News Story, Best News Reporting, Best Entertainment Reporting, Best Business and Consumer Reporting, Best Government and Political Reporting, Best Medical and Science Reporting, Best Environmental Reporting, Best News Podcast, and Best Podcast Feature Reporting.

The Golden Mikes are a prestigious award honoring a station’s commitment to local news reporting and public service. The stations honored are not surprising, as they definitely stand out by serving their local audiences. We are fortunate to still have stations with a local news presence, as so many others both locally and across the country have dropped news coverage completely.

The Golden Mikes are just part of the RTNA’s focus. The group is a nonprofit organization of professional broadcast journalists dedicated to maintaining a free press through advocacy efforts with government, facilitating media coverage of important news events through coordinating pool cameras, providing member stations and employees a forum for discussion of relevant issues facing the broadcast news industry , and encouraging the development of excellent student journalists through their scholarship program.

The focus is not just radio but also television. But as you know, television is just a fad and probably won’t last long.

Gunslinging drivers?

Wondering what “Motorman” Leon Kaplan has been doing since leaving KABC (790 AM)? He’s been hanging out — occasionally, at least —  with Jeff Taverner and friends on “The Gunslingers Show,” airing locally on KRLA (870 AM) Sundays from 7 to 9 p.m.

He’s not on weekly … for now it’s just occasionally, perhaps only one time so far. But reader Brian Tominaga says the last time he was on a few weeks ago made for quite a fun time.

“They call it the MotorSlingers Show and it was great to hear Kaplan on the air again!” Tominaga exclaimed, adding “The last time he was on, the show ended up being more about cars than firearms, but Leon was great and one of his old regular callers — Richard the joke guy from Whiteman Airport — is now a regular caller to Jeff’s show. It was good to hear them all together.”

Kaplan plans to join the show once more on Fathers Day, which is June 16. Save the date …

Radio podcast

A podcast about radio? Who would have thought? Well, Michael Stark and I did one for many years via the LA Radio Studios once located at Ports O Call in San Pedro and distributed through Stark’s  LA Radio Sessions online.

For various reasons we went on hiatus toward the end of last year. But due to popular demand, we will be starting it up again, albeit in a modified — and modern — form. We’re still working out the details, but expect a debut on or around May 1.

Richard Wagoner is a San Pedro freelance columnist covering radio in Southern California. Email rwagoner@socalradiowaves.com