Tampa Bay Jocks Battling COVID-19
• We are sending our best wishes to five longtime Tampa Bay radio personalities who are currently battling coronavirus. According to two stories in the Tampa Bay Times, the COVID-19 virus has affected employees at Cox Media Group and Beasley Media Group. On the CMG side, WHPT (102.5 The Bone) morning personality Mike Calta and co-host Anthony “Spanish” Polichemi have both tested positive, but will continue to soldier on from home studios.
Across the street at Beasley Rhythmic WLLD (WiLD 94.1), PD Orlando Davis and his morning Freak Show co-hosts Broderick “Buckwheat” Scott and Jose “Joey Franchize” Alvarado have also tested positive, and shared the news on social media. The Tampa Bay Times says a staff memo stated that an employee in the building had tested positive, and at that point, WiLD and the other Beasley stations — including WQYK, WPBB (98.7 the Shark), WRBQ (Q105) and WYUU (92.5 Maxima) — closed their St. Petersburg offices to all but essential employees. The news comes as Florida reported a record 2,783 new cases — the largest one-day increase so far.
Davis, who has remained asymptomatic so far, updated his situation on Tuesday via Facebook, noting with an emotional note of relief that his daughters have tested negative.
Alvarado said he feels “pretty alright” but lost his senses of taste and smell; his girlfriend has also tested positive. Scott reported “mild symptoms,” and was “coming to the end of my 14 days.”
As the Times accurately notes, “Radio studios can be incubators for disease during normal cold and flu seasons, with DJs in close quarters projecting into shared microphones.” On top of that, most of these guys are also in close contact with the outside world –Davis has attended Black Lives Matter protests in St. Petersburg and Tampa, as well as a June 9 speaking engagement in Tampa. Others, like Alvarado, also have side gigs as club DJs, so the art of social distancing can be nearly impossible. [Photo from Facebook]
