Ronn Owens
Encyclopedia
Ronn Owens is an American
talk radio
host. Owens is the top-rated talk radio host on KGO in San Franciscohttp://ratings.radio-online.com/cgi-bin/$rol.exe/arb009
. He hosted radio programs in Atlanta, Miami, Cleveland
, and Philadelphia before moving to KGO Radio of San Francisco in 1975. In 2004, the Disney/ABC-owned station signed Owens to an eight-year guaranteed contract to continue hosting The Ronn Owens Program.
The Ronn Owens Program has over 500,000 regular listeners.
Owens was off the KGO airwaves during an 88-day contract dispute that ended in February 1995. Reportedly, the dispute involved a difference of opinion over whether to allow national syndication of Owens's show.http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/1995/02/28/DD33639.DTL&hw=ronn+owens&sn=001&sc=1000
Between 1997 and 1998, Owens's show was simulcast in Los Angeles on KABC
, also owned by Disney. Owens took the time slot held by Michael Jackson
, whose ratings were declining. Despite signing a five-year contract to do the simulcast, after one year Owens himself vacated the time slot at KABC because his show had failed to generate adequate ratings in Los Angeles. Owens reportedly blamed both Jackson and KABC--Jackson for "taking shots" at Owens "on the air and off the air" and KABC for failing to promote Owens's show. Disney reportedly bought out the remainder of Owens's simulcast contract.
Ronn Owens left his broadcast two hours early on Monday, September 17, 2007, after spending his first hour sounding very lethargic. He returned to the air on September 24, 2007, explaining that he had been diagnosed with transient global amnesia
(TGA), which is a type of amnesia involving the sudden, temporary disturbance in an otherwise healthy person's memory.
magazine named Owens one of its 25 Greatest Radio Talk Show Hosts of All Time. He was ranked 13th, making him the top local personality in the country. http://www.talkers.com/greatest/index.html
In 2003 and again in 2010, Owens won the Marconi Award for Major Market Personality of the Year by the National Association of Broadcasters
. http://www.nab.org/Newsroom/PressRel/RS2003/R2203.htm
http://www.nab.org/documents/newsroom/2010_Radio_Show/093010_Marconi_Major_Market_Personality.htm
In 2005, 2007, 2008, and 2010 Owens was nominated for the National Radio Hall of Fame, but was not inducted.http://www.radiohof.org/2005_nominees.html
In 2006, he was named 2006 Talk Show Personality of the Year by Radio and Records http://www.radioandrecords.com/Conventions/TRS2006/awards/index.asp.
In 2007, he was inducted into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame.http://www.bayarearadio.org/hof/
His first book, Voice of Reason: Why the Left and Right Are Wrong, was published in 2004.
anchor Jan Black. They have two daughters, Sarah and Laura.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
talk radio
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
host. Owens is the top-rated talk radio host on KGO in San Franciscohttp://ratings.radio-online.com/cgi-bin/$rol.exe/arb009
Career
Owens began his career in broadcasting in 1968 after graduating from Temple UniversityTemple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
. He hosted radio programs in Atlanta, Miami, Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, and Philadelphia before moving to KGO Radio of San Francisco in 1975. In 2004, the Disney/ABC-owned station signed Owens to an eight-year guaranteed contract to continue hosting The Ronn Owens Program.
The Ronn Owens Program has over 500,000 regular listeners.
Owens was off the KGO airwaves during an 88-day contract dispute that ended in February 1995. Reportedly, the dispute involved a difference of opinion over whether to allow national syndication of Owens's show.http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/1995/02/28/DD33639.DTL&hw=ronn+owens&sn=001&sc=1000
Between 1997 and 1998, Owens's show was simulcast in Los Angeles on KABC
KABC (AM)
KABC is a Los Angeles radio station, and a West Coast flagship station for the Cumulus Media company. A pioneer of the talk radio format, the station went "all-talk" in 1960 and was one of the first stations to do so...
, also owned by Disney. Owens took the time slot held by Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson (radio commentator)
Michael Jackson is an American talk radio host based in the Los Angeles, California area. Jackson is best known for his radio show which covered arts, politics, and human interest subjects, particularly in the Los Angeles and greater Southern California area in the era before "shock jocks." His...
, whose ratings were declining. Despite signing a five-year contract to do the simulcast, after one year Owens himself vacated the time slot at KABC because his show had failed to generate adequate ratings in Los Angeles. Owens reportedly blamed both Jackson and KABC--Jackson for "taking shots" at Owens "on the air and off the air" and KABC for failing to promote Owens's show. Disney reportedly bought out the remainder of Owens's simulcast contract.
Ronn Owens left his broadcast two hours early on Monday, September 17, 2007, after spending his first hour sounding very lethargic. He returned to the air on September 24, 2007, explaining that he had been diagnosed with transient global amnesia
Transient global amnesia
Transient global amnesia is a syndrome in clinical neurology whose key defining characteristic is temporary but almost total disruption of short-term memory with a range of problems accessing older memories...
(TGA), which is a type of amnesia involving the sudden, temporary disturbance in an otherwise healthy person's memory.
Highlights and Accomplishments
In 2002, TalkersTalkers magazine
Talkers Magazine is a trade industry publication related to talk radio in the United States. Its slogan is "The Bible of Talk Radio and the New Talk Media"...
magazine named Owens one of its 25 Greatest Radio Talk Show Hosts of All Time. He was ranked 13th, making him the top local personality in the country. http://www.talkers.com/greatest/index.html
In 2003 and again in 2010, Owens won the Marconi Award for Major Market Personality of the Year by the National Association of Broadcasters
National Association of Broadcasters
The National Association of Broadcasters is a trade association, workers union, and lobby group representing the interests of for-profit, over-the-air radio and television broadcasters in the United States...
. http://www.nab.org/Newsroom/PressRel/RS2003/R2203.htm
http://www.nab.org/documents/newsroom/2010_Radio_Show/093010_Marconi_Major_Market_Personality.htm
In 2005, 2007, 2008, and 2010 Owens was nominated for the National Radio Hall of Fame, but was not inducted.http://www.radiohof.org/2005_nominees.html
In 2006, he was named 2006 Talk Show Personality of the Year by Radio and Records http://www.radioandrecords.com/Conventions/TRS2006/awards/index.asp.
In 2007, he was inducted into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame.http://www.bayarearadio.org/hof/
His first book, Voice of Reason: Why the Left and Right Are Wrong, was published in 2004.
Personal
Owens is married to former KCBSKCBS (AM)
KCBS is an all-news radio station in San Francisco, California, that is a key West Coast flagship radio station of the CBS Radio Network and Westwood One. Its transmitter is located in Novato, California. KCBS currently has studios on Battery Street, where it shares the location with co-owned KPIX...
anchor Jan Black. They have two daughters, Sarah and Laura.
External links
- Ronn Owens's official website
- KGO biography
- Talkers profile
- It's Ronn Owens' World, We Just Live In It
- In a world of demagogues and dittoheads, centrist Ronn Owens celebrates 30 years, San Francisco Chronicle, October 27, 2005
- Owens Marks 30 Years Of Talk At KGO, San Jose Mercury News, October 27, 2005
- http://w3.newsmax.com/a/apr09/local_limbaughs/ America's Top Radio Talk Show Hosts