LOCAL

iHeartMedia just had a round of layoffs that impacted Louisville. What happens now?

Sarah Ladd
Louisville Courier Journal

When iHeartMedia's efforts to "modernize" led it to announce a new organizational structure in mid-January, many were left wondering, what now?  

The media company promised to "take advantage of the significant investments it has made in technology and artificial intelligence (AI) and its unique scale and leadership position in the audio marketplace."

Meanwhile, radio personalities around the country were laid off. There's been no official count on how many people lost their jobs, though a spokeswoman told The Washington Post the layoff numbers were "relatively small" compared to the total employee count. 

In Louisville, several local iHeartMedia personalities took to social media to say they'd been canceled. Louisville lost Paul Rogers' voice on the morning show, , Amy Nic from "Jay & Amy," "Ramsey and Rutherford" and "The Leland Conway Show." 

Background:Louisville radio show hosts laid off, shows canceled amid iHeartMedia reorganization

What happens now? Here's what The Courier Journal knows: 

What will the new iHeartMedia structure look like in Louisville? 

IHeart's new structure has four main components, per news releases from the company: 

  • The Region Division, which will combine large markets like  New York and Los Angeles. 
  • The Metro Division, which includes Louisville, will cover metropolitan areas that serve more than one community. Louisville's division also includes Lexington, Somerset and Indianapolis. 
  • The Community Division, which will focus on the market in a single community. 
  • The Multi-Market Partnerships (MMP) Division. This is a new division, which iHeart said in a statement is "very successful," and "cuts across all markets." 

The company has not provided details about which cities fit into which divisions, and spokespeople have not returned numerous Courier Journal requests for information. 

The Washington Post reported on Jan. 31 that although iHeart referred to artificial intelligence in its announcement that it would fire hundreds of people, "Modern AI systems are not yet capable enough to replace people outright."

AI systems "excel at some tasks but still depend heavily on people for training, refinement and repair," The Post reported. "Some critics say executives end up using the systems as scapegoats, hoping to distract from old-school failures, portray themselves as futuristic and avoid public outrage." 

What shows will take the place of the canceled iHeart shows? 

There have been no official announcements about what will go in the slots of the canceled shows. The host stations have, however, updated their on-air lineups on their websites. 

  • The Leland Conway Show aired weekdays from 9 a.m. to noon. 840 WHAS now lists "Tony & Dwight" during that time. 
  • Paul Rogers was the sports reporter on the 5 a.m. morning show, which is anchored by Tony Cruise. Scott Fitzgerald is now the sports reporter in the morning. 
  • "Ramsey & Rutherford" aired from 3 to 6 p.m. on weekdays. 790 KRD now lists "The Afternoon Underdogs" in that slot.
  • Amy Nic from the afternoon show "Jay & Amy" on 97. 5 WAMZ was dropped after more than a decade. Now, the station's website lists Jay Cruze alone from 3 to 7 p.m. 

What are the laid-off hosts doing now?

Paul Rogers, 68, a beloved sports Kentucky Athletics Hall of Famer, will continue to do play-by-play for University of Louisville games.

Putting a positive spin on the abrupt news, Rogers told The Courier Journal in early January that he was excited to no longer have to wake at 4 a.m. for his early morning reporting. 

And he posted on Twitter Jan. 14 that he was "delighted that I will be able to continue calling the Cards games." 

Leland Conway, from "The Leland Conway Show," told The Courier Journal he's "currently weighing several options for what's next." Right now, he said he's focusing on his podcast, "The Disruption Zone."  

John Ramsey and Mike Rutherford haven't publicly announced their plans. Ramsey hasn't returned a Courier Journal phone call seeking comment, and Rutherford previously wanted to keep his official comments to tweets.  

The news came abruptly for the hosts, who said at the time they were not given a lot of notice. 

They both posted emotional Twitter tributes to each other when they announced their show had been canceled. Since then, they've both tweeted intermittently about sports. 

Nic, from 97.5 WAMZ, didn't respond to a Courier Journal Facebook message, but her public profile is full of smiles and sentiment after her announcement that she was leaving iHeart.

Her Facebook cover photo now has a simple message: "Out of Office," and she said goodbye to her iHeart friends over a Bachelor-themed party, according to a Jan. 16 post

How many states had layoffs?

There's been no official count from iHeart, but layoff reports came from the following states, in addition to Kentucky: 

  • Alabama
  • Arizona
  • Arkansas
  • California 
  • Colorado 
  • Connecticut
  • Florida
  • Georgia
  • Illinois
  • Indiana 
  • Iowa
  • Louisiana
  • Maryland
  • Massachusetts
  •  Michigan 
  • Minnesota
  • Missouri 
  • New Hampshire
  • New Mexico
  • New York 
  • North Carolina 
  • North Dakota
  • Ohio
  • Oklahoma
  • Pennsylvania 
  • Rhode Island
  • South Carolina
  • Tennessee 
  • Texas
  • Virginia 
  • Washington
  • West Virginia 
  • Wisconsin

Rolling Stone reported that the cuts mostly affected smaller markets, such as the Las Vegas market. And, artificial intelligence alone can't be blamed for the layoffs. 

"Now that a single Spotify playlist might command more than 25 million followers, giving it the power to create a global hit before lunchtime, the concept of a local radio station intent on serving a local community seems increasingly quaint," Rolling Stone's Elias Leight wrote. 

IHeart paid its CEO over $14 million in 2017, according to Rolling Stone. 

Reach breaking news reporter Sarah Ladd at sladd@courier-journal.com. Follow her on Twitter at @ladd_sarah. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/subscribe.