Jones Radio Networks
Encyclopedia
Jones Radio Networks & Jones Media Group were branches of Jones International
before being sold to Triton Media Group
. JRN and JMN provide local radio stations with satellite-delivered formats. They also offer other services to local radio such as news and talk programs, syndicated radio shows, music scheduling, show preparation, and music and sales Research. Jones Media Network also owns many national syndication shows such as Lia, All Night with Danny Wright
, The Ed Schultz Show
, The Stephanie Miller Show
, The Bill Press
Show, The Neal Boortz
Show, The Clark Howard
Show, and A&E Network's Live by Request
. Jones Media Networks & Jones Radio Networks own production studios in: New York, NY; Los Angeles, CA; Chicago
; Washington, DC; Seattle, WA; Centennial, CO; and Florida
. Clark Howard and Neal Boortz are broadcast from the studios of WSB-AM in Atlanta, GA; those shows are produced by Cox Radio
. Jones Media Networks reaches about 1.3 billion weekly listeners in radio. In 2006, Jones purchased TM Century, a Dallas-based company providing jingles and production services for radio stations across the country.
radio programming services. The company became legendary in its offerings such as music delivered on reel-to-reel tape, program consultation services, and station imaging. The company made its first foray into satellite programming in the late 1980s by launching five different full-time satellite-delivered formats. In 1990 Jones acquired Drake-Chenault.
Though satellite-delivered formats were not new, its presentation was. Many stations using satellite formats were required to clear up to two minutes of network commercials as part of their affiliation agreement. Drake-Chenault's formats were all commercial free, but the affiliate station paid more for the service rather than giving up commercial time.
This practice ended in 1993. Though affiliates now had to clear commercials like other networks, the format was available entirely through inventory barter, unlike its competitors, which required an affiliation fee plus inventory.
In 1996, Jones Media Networks started the cable network GAC (Great American Country)
. Up against stiff competition from CMT
, GAC failed to capture market share and was later sold to The E.W. Scripps Company, owners of Home & Garden Television and Food Network
. Earlier the company had launched the cable network Mind Extension University, which mainly featured adult education
programs, and later shifted to a technology focus as Knowledge TV before it was discontinued around 2000. Jones Computer Network was offered as a 12-hour channel in 1994. The channel featured in-house productions as well as programming from syndicated CNET TV and Turner Broadcasting. JCN was sold to Vulcan Ventures to eventually create channel space on Cable for their network, TechTV pre-cursor Ziff-Davis Television
, which removed the Jones Media Networks produced shows and added content from Ziff-Davis' magazine staff, including John C. Dvorak
.
In 1999, Jones International acquired and absorbed Broadcast Programming, a company that handled syndicated radio shows, including the popular evening program Delilah
. Delilah left Jones to join Premiere Radio Networks
, a division of Clear Channel
, in 2004.
In 2002, Jones Radio Networks entered into a deal with the Sports USA Radio Network
to distribute nationally syndicated sports programming, primarily National Football League
games.
In 2009, Jones Radio Networks ceased operations after all of their radio programs and remaining satellite formats were acquired by Triton Media Group
's Dial Global
.
and on major market HD Radio
subchannels, however they can also be used on some major market stations as alternate or permanent programming. They could operate their stations virtually unmanned with nothing more than a computer
and a satellite hookup offering major market talent that some radio stations could never afford. The "clock" included options for a 2-, 3-, or 5-minute newscasts
at the top of the hour, followed by other holes for local spots. While the programming was live
, DJ's had to avoid references to the weather
or anything else that would not be appropriate in many time zone
s. An 800-line was eventually added, allowing the live DJ's to take phoned in requests. On June 20, 2008, Triton Radio Networks, a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group
, announced the acquisition of Jones Media Group and its operating companies, Jones Media America, Jones Radio Networks and JonesTM from Jones International Ltd. Only two months prior, Triton had acquired two of Jones's three main competitors, Dial Global
and Waitt Radio Networks
(only Citadel Media remains not under the Triton banner). JonesTM (now renamed TM STUDIOS), a leading provider of music libraries, imaging products and jingles, will remain a separate reporting unit. As the end result, the satellite format division was slowly dismantled and has integrated into the "Dial Global Total" division of Dial Global as of January 6, 2009. Formats included:
, Texas
(USA
). It is currently the oldest radio jingle company still in business, with roots tracing back to 1955 when Tom Merriman
(the original "TM" in TM Studios) founded Commercial Recording Corporation (which closed in 1968). Tom Merriman left CRC in 1967 and founded TM Productions (later known as TM Communications, Inc. - a publicly traded company) with Jim Long
. By this time, Century 21 Productions (later known as Century 21 Programming, Inc.), another Dallas jingle company, was founded.
Both jingle companies remained in business until 1990, when TM Communications, Inc. and Century 21 Programming, Inc. merged to become TM Century, Inc.
Along the way, TM Productions acquired the ID jingle, syndication reels and production libraries of Media General Broadcast Services. Media General
was the purchaser of the former William B. Tanner Company (also formerly known as "Pepper & Tanner" and before that, "Pepper Sound Studios"). MG's operations in Memphis was shut down and the master backing tracks and sound libraries were boxed up and shipped to Dallas. All of the reference reels for the syndicated ID Jingles and customized production libraries and commercials were dumpstered in Memphis. TM Studios has placed these reels in the custody of Media Preservation Foundation, though the copyrights are retained by TM Studios. The production libraries were cherry-picked and incorporated in various TM Studios libraries still sold to this day.
Other entities and audio assets incorporated into TM and Century 21 over the years included the audio works of Ed Yelin, Ken Sunderland Productions, Sterling Sound and several other companies. Again, these assets were cherry-picked (or in some cases, just pulled out of the marketplace) and the master reels shelved.
Studio Dragonfly, a division of TM Studios, offers radio station jingles at low prices. Several of the jingles offered by Studio Dragonfly were previously produced by TM Productions, Century 21 and many others. TM Studios also has another division that exclusively handles commercial jingles known as JingleBank. In order to facilitate ID jingle enthusiasts the ability to purchase "personal cuts" TM Studios initiated a program called iJingles in 2006.
Over the years jingle composers such as Bruce Upchurch, Bruce Wermuth, Greg Clancy and Barry Young have composed jingle packages for TM Studios and its predecessors. Tom Merriman
who composed several jingle packages for the company, most recently KLUV's Greatest Hits in 2005, died on November 11, 2009.
Of all the radio stations using jingles from TM Studios and its predecessors, WPLJ
in New York City
has ordered more jingle packages to date: seven so far since 1991. JonesTM, a wholly owned division of Jones Media Group, acquired the company in September 2006 by buying out the then-current shareholders. JonesTM was acquired itself on June 20, 2008 by Triton Radio Networks and thereafter renamed TM Studios, Inc.
TM Studios produces a line of promotional music products aimed at radio stations, internet stations and professional DJ's. Four lines are currently produced: HitDisc, GoldDisc, PrimeCuts, and VidDisc. HitDisc is aimed at radio stations, as is GoldDisc. PrimeCuts mostly services the event entertainment market. The fourth product, VidDisc, contains music videos and is also aimed at event entertainment.
Jones International
Jones International University is a for-profit, regionally accredited university of undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate learning. The JIU corporate offices are located in Centennial, Colorado....
before being sold to Triton Media Group
Triton Media Group
Triton Media Group, LLC, is a portfolio company of a fund managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P., a global investment management firm. It is based in Los Angeles.-Triton Radio Networks:...
. JRN and JMN provide local radio stations with satellite-delivered formats. They also offer other services to local radio such as news and talk programs, syndicated radio shows, music scheduling, show preparation, and music and sales Research. Jones Media Network also owns many national syndication shows such as Lia, All Night with Danny Wright
Danny Wright
Danny Wright is a Seattle, Washington-based radio personality,The majority of his career and success was in the Cleveland, Ohio market, most notably at WGCL, where he was a Top-40 disc jockey known as "Dancin' Danny Wright." He departed WGCL when the station was sold by GCC Communications to...
, The Ed Schultz Show
The Ed Schultz Show
The Ed Schultz Show is a radio program hosted by Ed Schultz. It was formerly broadcast from KFGO in Fargo, North Dakota. It is heard on a network of over 100 stations , including seven of the 10 largest radio markets...
, The Stephanie Miller Show
The Stephanie Miller Show
The Stephanie Miller Show is a syndicated progressive talk radio program that discusses politics, current events, and pop culture using a fast-paced, impromptu style. The three-hour show is hosted by comedienne Stephanie Miller along with voice artist Jim Ward and the show's engineer and executive...
, The Bill Press
Bill Press
William "Bill" Press is a US talk radio host, political commentator and author.-Career:Press has a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Niagara University and Bachelor of Sacred Theology from the University of Fribourg. He started his broadcasting career in Los Angeles for TV stations KABC-TV and...
Show, The Neal Boortz
Neal Boortz
Neal A. Boortz, Jr. is an American Libertarian radio host, author, and political commentator. His nationally syndicated talk show, The Neal Boortz Show, airs throughout the United States on Dial Global . It is ranked seventh in overall listeners, with 4.25+ million per week...
Show, The Clark Howard
Clark Howard
Clark Howard , is a popular U.S. talk radio host of the nationally syndicated consumer advocate program The Clark Howard Show. The show covers consumer and financial news, with advice on how to spend less, save more and avoid rip-offs...
Show, and A&E Network's Live by Request
Live by Request
Live by Request is a television show on the A&E Network. On it, notable artists hold concerts where the set list would be determined by viewer phone calls. The show was created based on an idea by Tony Bennett. Bennett starred in its first episode, which ran on Valentine's Day 1997; during that...
. Jones Media Networks & Jones Radio Networks own production studios in: New York, NY; Los Angeles, CA; Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
; Washington, DC; Seattle, WA; Centennial, CO; and Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. Clark Howard and Neal Boortz are broadcast from the studios of WSB-AM in Atlanta, GA; those shows are produced by Cox Radio
Cox Radio
Cox Radio, Inc. is a division of Cox Enterprises that holds a number of radio stations. Cox Radio is headquartered at 6205 Peachtree Dunwoody Road in Sandy Springs, Georgia....
. Jones Media Networks reaches about 1.3 billion weekly listeners in radio. In 2006, Jones purchased TM Century, a Dallas-based company providing jingles and production services for radio stations across the country.
History
What became known as Jones Radio Networks started as a satellite format provider. The company originally started in the late 1960s as Drake-ChenaultDrake-Chenault
Drake-Chenault Enterprises was a radio syndication company that specialized in automation on FM radio stations. The company was founded in the late-1960s by radio programmer and deejay Bill Drake , and his business partner, Lester Eugene Chenault...
radio programming services. The company became legendary in its offerings such as music delivered on reel-to-reel tape, program consultation services, and station imaging. The company made its first foray into satellite programming in the late 1980s by launching five different full-time satellite-delivered formats. In 1990 Jones acquired Drake-Chenault.
Though satellite-delivered formats were not new, its presentation was. Many stations using satellite formats were required to clear up to two minutes of network commercials as part of their affiliation agreement. Drake-Chenault's formats were all commercial free, but the affiliate station paid more for the service rather than giving up commercial time.
This practice ended in 1993. Though affiliates now had to clear commercials like other networks, the format was available entirely through inventory barter, unlike its competitors, which required an affiliation fee plus inventory.
In 1996, Jones Media Networks started the cable network GAC (Great American Country)
Great American Country
Great American Country , is a Nashville, Tennessee-based country music cable television network.-History:The station launched December 31, 1995 and Garth Brooks' video "The Thunder Rolls" was the first video to air on GAC....
. Up against stiff competition from CMT
Country Music Television
Country Music Television, or CMT, is an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming includes music videos, taped concerts, movies, biographies of country music stars, game shows, and reality programs...
, GAC failed to capture market share and was later sold to The E.W. Scripps Company, owners of Home & Garden Television and Food Network
Food Network
Food Network is a television specialty channel that airs both one-time and recurring programs about food and cooking. Scripps Networks Interactive owns 70 percent of the network, with Tribune Company controlling the remaining 30 percent....
. Earlier the company had launched the cable network Mind Extension University, which mainly featured adult education
Adult education
Adult education is the practice of teaching and educating adults. Adult education takes place in the workplace, through 'extension' school or 'school of continuing education' . Other learning places include folk high schools, community colleges, and lifelong learning centers...
programs, and later shifted to a technology focus as Knowledge TV before it was discontinued around 2000. Jones Computer Network was offered as a 12-hour channel in 1994. The channel featured in-house productions as well as programming from syndicated CNET TV and Turner Broadcasting. JCN was sold to Vulcan Ventures to eventually create channel space on Cable for their network, TechTV pre-cursor Ziff-Davis Television
TechTV
TechTV was a 24-hour cable and satellite channel based in San Francisco featuring news and shows about computers, technology, and the Internet. In 2004, it merged with the G4 gaming channel which ultimately dissolved TechTV programming...
, which removed the Jones Media Networks produced shows and added content from Ziff-Davis' magazine staff, including John C. Dvorak
John C. Dvorak
John C. Dvorak is an American columnist and broadcaster in the areas of technology and computing. His writing extends back to the 1980s, when he was a mainstay of a variety of magazines. Dvorak is also the Vice-President of Mevio and well known for his work for Tech TV...
.
In 1999, Jones International acquired and absorbed Broadcast Programming, a company that handled syndicated radio shows, including the popular evening program Delilah
Delilah Rene
Delilah Rene Luke , almost always known mononymously as Delilah, is an American radio personality, author, and songwriter, best known as the host of a nationally syndicated nightly U.S...
. Delilah left Jones to join Premiere Radio Networks
Premiere Radio Networks
Premiere Networks is an American radio network. It is the largest syndication company in the United States based on popularity of programming...
, a division of Clear Channel
Clear channel
A clear-channel station is an AM band Radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. Usually known as class A stations since 1982, they are occasionally still referred to by their former...
, in 2004.
In 2002, Jones Radio Networks entered into a deal with the Sports USA Radio Network
Sports USA Radio Network
The Sports USA Radio Network is the largest independent nationwide sports broadcasting radio network, specializing in live broadcasts of American football, specifically of the NCAA football Division I-A and National Football League...
to distribute nationally syndicated sports programming, primarily National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
games.
In 2009, Jones Radio Networks ceased operations after all of their radio programs and remaining satellite formats were acquired by Triton Media Group
Triton Media Group
Triton Media Group, LLC, is a portfolio company of a fund managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P., a global investment management firm. It is based in Los Angeles.-Triton Radio Networks:...
's Dial Global
Dial Global
Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management....
.
Satellite formats
Jones Radio Networks, the largest independent radio network, provided many programming options for local radio stations. The company provided many satellite-driven formats to affiliate stations, mostly in small & mid-size marketsMedia market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area , Television Market Area , or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same television and radio station offerings, and may also include other types of media including newspapers and Internet content...
and on major market HD Radio
HD Radio
HD Radio, which originally stood for "Hybrid Digital", is the trademark for iBiquity's in-band on-channel digital radio technology used by AM and FM radio stations to transmit audio and data via a digital signal in conjunction with their analog signals...
subchannels, however they can also be used on some major market stations as alternate or permanent programming. They could operate their stations virtually unmanned with nothing more than a computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
and a satellite hookup offering major market talent that some radio stations could never afford. The "clock" included options for a 2-, 3-, or 5-minute newscasts
News broadcasting
News broadcasting is the broadcasting of various news events and other information via television, radio or internet in the field of broadcast journalism. The content is usually either produced locally in a radio studio or television studio newsroom, or by a broadcast network...
at the top of the hour, followed by other holes for local spots. While the programming was live
Live radio
Live radio is radio broadcast without delay. Before the days of television, audiences listened to live dramas, comedies, quiz shows, and concerts on the radio much the same way that they now do on TV. Most talk radio is live radio where people can speak about their opinions/lives....
, DJ's had to avoid references to the weather
Weather
Weather is the state of the atmosphere, to the degree that it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy. Most weather phenomena occur in the troposphere, just below the stratosphere. Weather refers, generally, to day-to-day temperature and precipitation activity, whereas climate...
or anything else that would not be appropriate in many time zone
Time zone
A time zone is a region on Earth that has a uniform standard time for legal, commercial, and social purposes. In order for the same clock time to always correspond to the same portion of the day as the Earth rotates , different places on the Earth need to have different clock times...
s. An 800-line was eventually added, allowing the live DJ's to take phoned in requests. On June 20, 2008, Triton Radio Networks, a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group
Triton Media Group
Triton Media Group, LLC, is a portfolio company of a fund managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P., a global investment management firm. It is based in Los Angeles.-Triton Radio Networks:...
, announced the acquisition of Jones Media Group and its operating companies, Jones Media America, Jones Radio Networks and JonesTM from Jones International Ltd. Only two months prior, Triton had acquired two of Jones's three main competitors, Dial Global
Dial Global
Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management....
and Waitt Radio Networks
Waitt Radio Networks
Dial Global Local is a national radio network based in Omaha, Nebraska, formerly owned by NRG Media and purchased in April 2008 by Triton Radio Networks...
(only Citadel Media remains not under the Triton banner). JonesTM (now renamed TM STUDIOS), a leading provider of music libraries, imaging products and jingles, will remain a separate reporting unit. As the end result, the satellite format division was slowly dismantled and has integrated into the "Dial Global Total" division of Dial Global as of January 6, 2009. Formats included:
| Network Ident | Format | Fate of Network |
| Adult Contemporary Adult Contemporary (radio network) Adult Contemporary is a 24-hour music format produced by Dial Global. It targets a general radio audience between the ages of 35-49 with soft rock music from the 1970s to right now... |
Adult Contemporary | Relocated into Dial Global Dial Global Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management.... 's portfolio on December 29, 2008. |
| CD Country CD Country CD Country was a 24-hour music format produced by Jones Radio Networks. Its playlist is composed of mostly modern country music from artists such as Tim McGraw, Gretchen Wilson, Keith Urban, Brooks & Dunn, Rascal Flatts and dozens more artists... |
New Country Country music Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music... |
Discontinued on December 29, 2008. Integrated into "Hot Country Hot Country Hot Country is a 24-hour music format produced by Dial Global. Its playlist is composed of country music released from the late 1990s to the present.Its competitors were "Country Today" by Waitt, CD Country, True 24-Hour Country, and U.S... ". |
| Classic Hits | Oldies Oldies Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day.... /Classic Hits Classic hits Classic hits is a radio format which generally includes rock and pop music from 1964 to 1989. The term is sometimes erroneously used as a synonym for the adult hits format, but is more accurately characterized as a contemporary style of the oldies format... |
Discontinued on December 29, 2008. Integrated into "Kool Gold Timeless Classics". |
| Classic Hit Country Classic Hit Country Classic Country is a 24-hour music format produced by Dial Global. Its playlist is composed of a diverse mix of mostly classic and some handpicked modern country music from artists such as Willie Nelson, George Jones, Dwight Yoakam, The Judds, George Strait and dozens more artists.Recently, Triton... |
New Country Country music Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music... |
Relocated into Dial Global Dial Global Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management.... 's portfolio on December 29, 2008. |
| Good Time Oldies Good Time Oldies Good Time Oldies was a 24-hour music format produced by Jones Radio Networks. Ittargeted the "baby boomers" and consists of oldies music from the 1960s to early 1970s by The Beatles, The Kinks, The Beach Boys, Hues Corporation, The Rolling Stones and dozens more artists... |
Oldies Oldies Oldies is a term commonly used to describe a radio format that concentrates on music from a period of about 15 to 55 years before the present day.... |
Discontinued on December 29, 2008. Integrated into "Kool Gold Timeless Classics". |
| Hot AC Hot AC (radio network) Hot AC is an industry leading 24-hour music network produced by Dial Global Networks. It targets a primarily female radio audience between ages 25-49 with hot adult contemporary and Adult Top 40 music of the 1990s through today, with artists such as Maroon 5, Train, Pink, Black Eyed Peas,... |
Hot AC | Moved to Dial Global Dial Global Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management.... 's portfolio on December 29, 2008, replacing "Bright AC Bright AC Bright AC was a 24-hour music format produced by Dial Global. Its playlist was mostly hot adult contemporary music spanning from the 1980s to this day from artists such as 3 Doors Down, U2, Nickelback Red Hot Chili Peppers, Kelly Clarkson, etc... ". |
| Jones Standards Jones Standards Jones Standards was a short-lived 24-hour music format that was produced by Jones Radio Networks. Its playlist is composed of mostly adult standards from artists such as Frank Sinatra, Barry Manilow, Johnny Mathis, Rod Stewart and a dozen more artists.... |
Adult Standards Adult standards Adult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens... |
Discontinued on September 30, 2008. Integrated into "America's Best Music America's Best Music America's Best Music is the on-air branding of an adult standards 24-hour radio network, known internally as Adult Standards and formerly known as AM Only, currently owned by Dial Global. It was one of the original Westwood One's Transtar networks... ". |
| Jones Variety Hits Jones Variety Hits Jones Variety Hits was a 24-hour music format produced by Jones Radio Networks. Its playlist was composed of adult hits from the 1970s to right now from adult contemporary/adult alternative artists of those eras such as Fleetwood Mac, John Mayer, Pat Benatar, Pearl Jam, etc; Variety Hits centers... |
Variety/Adult Hits Adult hits Adult hits is a radio format, popular in the early 2000s, that does not adhere to a specific music genre, but instead draws from a wider playlist... |
Discontinued on September 30, 2008. Integrated into "S.A.M.: Simply About Music S.A.M.: Simply About Music S.A.M.: Simply About Music is a 24-hour satellite-driven format produced by Dial Global. It's playlist consists of adult hits from the 1970s to right now from adult contemporary/adult alternative artists of those eras such as Fleetwood Mac, John Mayer, Pat Benatar, ABBA, etc that mainly attracts... ". |
| Music Of Your Life Music of Your Life Music of Your Life is a satellite-delivered radio network featuring the Adult Standards music format. Created by record executive and jingle writer Al Ham, and now under the direction of Marc Angell, Music of Your Life has more than 50 AM, FM and HD-2 radio station affiliates, and has been in... |
Adult Standards Adult standards Adult standards is a North American radio format heard primarily on AM or class A FM stations.Adult standards is aimed at "mature" adults, meaning mainly those persons over 50 years of age, but it is mostly targeted for senior citizens... |
Spun off to Planet Halo in favor of its own short-lived standards format. |
| Rock Classics | Classic Rock Classic rock Classic rock is a radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format features music ranging generally from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, primarily focusing on the hard rock genre that peaked in popularity in the... |
Relocated into Dial Global Dial Global Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management.... 's portfolio on December 29, 2008 and rebranded as "Classic Rock", replacing "Adult Rock and Roll Adult Rock and Roll Adult Rock and Roll was a 24-hour music format produced by Dial Global. Its playlist was mostly active rock music Adult Rock and Roll was a 24-hour music format produced by Dial Global. Its playlist was mostly active rock music Adult Rock and Roll was a 24-hour music format produced by Dial Global.... ". |
| Smooth Jazz Smooth Jazz (radio network) Smooth Jazz was a 24-hour music network produced by Jones Radio Networks. Its playlist consisted mostly of contemporary smooth jazz music from artists such as Boney James, Joe Sample, Kenny G., The Rippingtons, David Benoit and a dozen more artists... |
Smooth Jazz Smooth jazz Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles .... |
Discontinued on September 30, 2008. |
| Sports USA Radio Network Sports USA Radio Network The Sports USA Radio Network is the largest independent nationwide sports broadcasting radio network, specializing in live broadcasts of American football, specifically of the NCAA football Division I-A and National Football League... |
Sports Sports radio Sports radio is a radio format devoted entirely to discussion and broadcasting of sporting events. A popular format with an almost exclusively male demographic in most areas, sports radio is characterized by an often-boisterous on-air style and extensive debate and analysis by both hosts and... |
Active during live NFL National Football League The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing... and NCAA games. Relocated into Dial Global Dial Global Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management.... 's portfolio. |
| True 24-Hour Country True Country True Country is an American 24-hour music format produced by Dial Global Networks. Its playlist is composed of a diverse mix of classic and some handpicked modern country music from artists such as Brooks & Dunn, Toby Keith, Shania Twain, Keith Urban, Garth Brooks and dozens more artists.Recently,... |
Country Country music Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music... |
Relocated into Dial Global Dial Global Dial Global is a radio syndication company. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Triton Media Group and is a sister company to Townsquare Media, both of which are owned by Oaktree Capital Management.... 's portfolio on December 29, 2008. |
| U.S. Country U.S. Country U.S. Country was a 24-hour music format produced by Jones Radio Networks. Its playlist is composed of mostly modern country music music from artists such as Lonestar, Gretchen Wilson, Alan Jackson, Brooks & Dunn, Rascal Flatts and dozens more artists.... |
American Country Country music Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music... |
Discontinued on December 29, 2008. Integrated into "Mainstream Country Mainstream Country (radio network) Mainstream Country, known on air as The Best of the New and Gold: Your Kind of Country, is a 24-hour music format produced by Dial Global. Its playlist is composed of classic and modern country music in the mid 1980s to the present... ". |
TM Studios, Inc. (formerly JonesTM, Inc.)
TM Studios, Inc. is a radio jingle and promotional music service company based in DallasDallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
(USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
). It is currently the oldest radio jingle company still in business, with roots tracing back to 1955 when Tom Merriman
Tom Merriman
Thomas Wayne Merriman was an American music composer based in Dallas, Texas, who in 1955 created the first production company specializing in radio station advertising campaigns and jingles...
(the original "TM" in TM Studios) founded Commercial Recording Corporation (which closed in 1968). Tom Merriman left CRC in 1967 and founded TM Productions (later known as TM Communications, Inc. - a publicly traded company) with Jim Long
Jim Long
Jim Long is an Irish-American entrepreneur, whose pioneering marketing concepts and creative “firsts” are iconic in the broadcast music industry....
. By this time, Century 21 Productions (later known as Century 21 Programming, Inc.), another Dallas jingle company, was founded.
Both jingle companies remained in business until 1990, when TM Communications, Inc. and Century 21 Programming, Inc. merged to become TM Century, Inc.
Along the way, TM Productions acquired the ID jingle, syndication reels and production libraries of Media General Broadcast Services. Media General
Media General
Media General, Inc. is a media company based in the Southeastern United States. Its major properties include newspapers such as The Tampa Tribune, the Winston-Salem Journal, and the Richmond Times-Dispatch, as well as numerous television stations, such as flagship station WFLA-TV.The company was...
was the purchaser of the former William B. Tanner Company (also formerly known as "Pepper & Tanner" and before that, "Pepper Sound Studios"). MG's operations in Memphis was shut down and the master backing tracks and sound libraries were boxed up and shipped to Dallas. All of the reference reels for the syndicated ID Jingles and customized production libraries and commercials were dumpstered in Memphis. TM Studios has placed these reels in the custody of Media Preservation Foundation, though the copyrights are retained by TM Studios. The production libraries were cherry-picked and incorporated in various TM Studios libraries still sold to this day.
Other entities and audio assets incorporated into TM and Century 21 over the years included the audio works of Ed Yelin, Ken Sunderland Productions, Sterling Sound and several other companies. Again, these assets were cherry-picked (or in some cases, just pulled out of the marketplace) and the master reels shelved.
Studio Dragonfly, a division of TM Studios, offers radio station jingles at low prices. Several of the jingles offered by Studio Dragonfly were previously produced by TM Productions, Century 21 and many others. TM Studios also has another division that exclusively handles commercial jingles known as JingleBank. In order to facilitate ID jingle enthusiasts the ability to purchase "personal cuts" TM Studios initiated a program called iJingles in 2006.
Over the years jingle composers such as Bruce Upchurch, Bruce Wermuth, Greg Clancy and Barry Young have composed jingle packages for TM Studios and its predecessors. Tom Merriman
Tom Merriman
Thomas Wayne Merriman was an American music composer based in Dallas, Texas, who in 1955 created the first production company specializing in radio station advertising campaigns and jingles...
who composed several jingle packages for the company, most recently KLUV's Greatest Hits in 2005, died on November 11, 2009.
Of all the radio stations using jingles from TM Studios and its predecessors, WPLJ
WPLJ
WPLJ is a radio station in New York City owned by the broadcasting division of Cumulus Media. WPLJ shares studio facilities with sister station WABC inside 2 Penn Plaza in midtown Manhattan, and its transmitter is atop the Empire State Building. The station currently plays a Hot Adult...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
has ordered more jingle packages to date: seven so far since 1991. JonesTM, a wholly owned division of Jones Media Group, acquired the company in September 2006 by buying out the then-current shareholders. JonesTM was acquired itself on June 20, 2008 by Triton Radio Networks and thereafter renamed TM Studios, Inc.
TM Studios produces a line of promotional music products aimed at radio stations, internet stations and professional DJ's. Four lines are currently produced: HitDisc, GoldDisc, PrimeCuts, and VidDisc. HitDisc is aimed at radio stations, as is GoldDisc. PrimeCuts mostly services the event entertainment market. The fourth product, VidDisc, contains music videos and is also aimed at event entertainment.