Casey No Longer At The Bat
• A major programming story that broke over the Thanksgiving holiday was the termination of Peter Casey from his longtime position as Director of News and Programming at WBZ-AM (NewsRadio 1030)/Boston, on the heels of the Entercom/CBS Radio merger and the station’s subsequent sale to iHeartMedia. The Boston Globe reported that Casey, who had been with the heritage News-Talk station for 24 years, became emotional as he made the announcement to the WBZ newsroom last Wednesday morning.
In a note to the staff later in the day, Casey cited many of the great WBZ personalities he had been privileged to work with over the years, including late, great market legends Dave Maynard, David Brudnoy and Paul Sullivan, as well as Gary LaPierre, Diane Stern, Anthony Silva, Paul Sullivan and Dan Rea, in particular.
“The city has changed,” Casey wrote. “The people have changed. What has never changed is the connection New Englanders have to this blowtorch of a radio station that pumps it out across the six states and beyond, Casey wrote. “From the three towers on that sleepy little street in Hull to this address where Hall of Famers spend their days cranking out news all day every day. The audience knows that you care about them. They know because when the city is sheltering in place, you do, too.”
Casey added, “I will cherish the memories of this place, of all of you and those that came before you. I will keep those memories with me. I will keep them a part of me even as I walk out the door today on my very last day at WBZ NewsRadio 1030.” Later, when reached by The Globe, Casey acknowledged that, while it had been a difficult day, he had only nice things to say about WBZ’s new owners, as he remarked, “The [iHeartMedia] people have been terrific with me — respectful and impressive.” [Image from Casey’s Twitter account]
