NorthEast Radio Watch 10/30/2023: A Big Loss in Boston

In this week’s issue… Remembering WZLX’s Karlson, WCBS-TV’s Diaz – Adios to “Lulu y Lala” – Rogers shutters Ottawa AM – Marconis signal wins for NE broadcasters

By SCOTT FYBUSH

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*This week’s column was already going to be heavy on news of Boston morning shows – but now it starts with some very sad news, as iHeart’s WZLX (100.7) mourns the sudden loss of longtime morning co-host Kevin Karlson, who suffered a fatal heart attack sometime Thursday night.

Karlson and co-host Pete McKenzie had worked together since 1985, with stops all around the country in markets including Charleston, South Carolina, Tulsa, Richmond, Toledo and at WPDH (101.5) in Poughkeepsie and WZNE (94.1 the Zone) in Rochester.

They were best known, though, for their long runs in Boston, initially at WEGQ (93.7 the Eagle) in the 1990s before moving to Rochester for a few years in the early 2000s.

By 2005, they were back in Boston at WZLX working with partner Heather Ford, a remarkable run of stability as so much of the rest of the market changed around them. The team survived intact as WZLX sister station WBCN went away, and then later on as the sale of CBS Radio to Entercom led to WZLX being spun off to iHeart.

On Friday, WZLX devoted much of its day to phone calls and memories from listeners, and we’d expect more of that during the usual Karlson and McKenzie slot this morning – and beyond that, we’re sure iHeart in Boston is as much in shock as the rest of us.

Karlson was just 59.