10 Questions with ... Steve Cannon

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

Air Personality in Philadelphia, Allentown, PA, Charleston, SC, Memphis, TN, Austin, TX, Little Rock, AR and many others. Program Director in Indianapolis, Austin, Memphis, Milwaukee, Little Rock, Raleigh-Durham and a few stops in between.

1. How would you describe your first radio gig?

I would hang around the local radio station (WCRV/Washington, NJ) and watch the jocks and even take out the trash. I guess they got tired of me sitting around, so they offered me the Sunday morning "God Squad" shift, running tapes when I was 14 years old. I then got a regular 4 hour shift and moved up the ladder. Between school and the radio station, I was a busy kid, but I loved every minute of it.

2. What led you to a career in radio?

When I was 8, I saw the local radio station doing a remote broadcast and was fascinated by how it was done. Back in those days, they would actually spin the records from the location. That same year, our school class took a trip to the newspaper to see how they created the daily paper and they had a radio station. I saw the newsman actually read the news on the air and I was hooked.

3. You've been part of the Midwest Communications family for many years now. What makes the company such a great place to do radio?

This is a radio company plain and simple. The company gives you the tools to win and they let you do the job. Our company was founded by the late Duke Wright. Duke loved radio and knew everything about the industry. He was an incredible mentor and you could always learn something new from Duke. With Duke's passing, Peter Tanz has that role and will continue with Duke's vision of creating great radio every day. We are fortunate to have Jeff McCarthy as our Vice President of Programming. Jeff is a smart broadcaster and allows you to do your job and not dictate your job. I have worked at a lot of places, and this is the best company I have ever worked for, thanks to Duke and Jeff's guidance.

4. How does 'The Mix Morning Show' with Kevin & Brooke jump start the rest of the station's broadcast day?

Local. Local. Local. They are connected with our Wabash Valley community and do a family friendly show. They work well together and our listeners enjoy their show. If it's going on in our local community, they have it on the show.

5. In addition to overseeing WMGI, you also helm the company's four other properties in town. Any tricks to share about making sure that all the balls stay in the air?

Good question. I am the Operations Manager for the Terre Haute cluster and actually program WMGI and our Country station, WTHI on a daily basis. Scott Steele is our Brand Manager for Classic Rock WWVR, Classic Hits WBOW and Talk WIBQ. It makes my job easier that I have complete trust in Scott's ability to guide those stations. It takes a real focus to operate this many stations and I'm fortunate to have the right people in the right seats in this cluster.

6. Are you finding that the 'next generation' of broadcasters are interested in a career in radio?

I am. Indiana State University here in Terre Haute actually operates a radio station and we have gotten various students from there to work at our cluster over the years. Baley Halberstadt, our midday person on HI-99 and Promotions Director was a student at I.S.U. Baley started as a part time employee on WMGI and later landed our midday slot on WTHI a few years later. Baley has been with us for about 7 years and we are happy she is here.

7. How do we become more attractive to the potential Gen Z and Generation Alpha audiences?

Continue to make radio exciting and interesting to them. Talk to the schools in your area and show them how fun radio can be.

8. What's your all-time favorite backstage memory?

Meeting Garth Brooks back in '94 in Tallahassee. A very nice, genuine person who I sat and had two beers with.

9. What was your favorite station(s) to listen to when you were a kid? Jock(s)?

I loved WABC, New York and especially 'Big' Dan Ingram. I was fascinated on how he could tell a story in just 8 seconds. He was witty and genuine. I liked Jim O'Brien on WFIL in Philadelphia for the same reason. Oh, Joel Denver on WFIL was pretty darn good too.

10. Who were your mentors? Who would you say has influenced your career the most?

The late John Roberts, who I met at WEEX/Easton-Allentown, PA. John loved radio as much as I did and together we set out to be the best program directors we could be. Randy Michaels and Marc Chase at Clear Channel. Two of the most creative people I have ever met in my life. I wish I was half as creative as those guys. Duke Wright at Midwest Communications. Duke was a radio guy. He loved this business as much as I do and cared for his people who worked for him. Truly a great man.

With the venue of choice at your disposal and an unlimited budget, which 6 acts would you pull together to throw a massive listener concert?

Wow! I don't know. Probably Garth Brooks, Blake Shelton, George Strait, Luke Bryan, Luke Combs and Reba McEntire. Something for everybody.