Longtime sports/talk station WNDE-AM 1260 has beaten back newcomer WFNI-AM 1070 in a critical listener demographic despite
WFNI’s extensive promotion of hosts Eddie White and Indianapolis Star sports columnist Bob Kravitz.
I suppose you got the e-mail about Reynolds Wrap. Oh. Well, then, you’re among the few Amer icans who didn’t Actually, you might want to check your e mail after you finish reading IBJ. It’ll probably be waiting in your in-box Although I guess you really won’t have to, seeing as how I’m going to go ahead and spoil the surprise. Under a subject line full of typical Internet understatement (“OMG! THIS IS SO AMAZING! YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS!”)…
Now, I feel like the unlucky one. For the past two years, I’ve been privileged to be part of monthly media tours of Lucas Oil Stadium. I was there as the concrete bowl began to take shape, and as those steel trusses that would frame the retractable roof were put into place. I was there as the brick exterior began to climb, and when the concourses were little more than freshly poured concrete and empty spaces. I was there when…
At the same time, those same athletes, thrust into the spotlight, will find their failures magnified along with their successes. Media who normally shun gymnastics, or aquatic sports, or track and field, or cycling, or rowing, or even Taekwondo, will suddenly become instant experts, lifting up the victors and damning the vanquished. How well I know. It was my good fortune to cover three Olympics for the local daily: Seoul in 1988, Barcelona in 1992, and Atlanta in 1996. The…
Dear Win: I’m writing to say thank you. I’m not sure I’ve ever adequately done that. I’m not sure I ever can. I’m also not sure I ever quite grasped the gamble you took on me when I was a not-even-graduated college senior 28 years ago-not until the resumes and referral requests started filling my inbox and the risks of hiring rookies sank in. But this isn’t just between you and me. I hope this letter will prompt others to…
Last month, the front page of The Wall Street Journal featured 25-yearold Saeed Khouri, who paid at auction the equivalent of $14 million of our increasingly worthless American dollars for a license plate bearing “1.” His cousin, Talal Khouri, threw in $9 million in pocket change for tag “5” to tool around Abu Dhabi in his Rolls Royce. Get this, the Khouris declined to be interviewed because they didn’t want to be the center of attention. I am not particularly…
Local radio icons Big John Gillis and Jeff Pibeon will be broadcasting live this year from the Indiana State Fair. But
you won’t find their show on any radio station. Gillis and Pigeon have been hired by locally based Compton Strategies to create
audio-only, Internet-based shows for area events, companies and entertainment venues.
A housing crunch resulting from a flood of foreclosures has cast the spotlight on the deceptive practices that cause borrowers-particularly those with weak credit-to unknowingly pay more than necessary for a mortgage. The Federal Reserve earlier this month unanimously approved new lending rules in an attempt to tighten standards and prevent another such crisis. The changes will apply to all mortgage lenders and take effect Oct. 1, 2009. In the subprime category, a lender will have to assess a borrower’s…
Depending upon when IBJ lands in your hands, the 15th Allstate 400 at the Brickyard will be either coming to or going from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. So let’s talk racin’. Let me begin by saying how pleased I am that Tony George took that giant leap in 1994 and welcomed NASCAR to the hallowed openwheel grounds of IMS. By most accounts, the Brickyard 400 instantly became the second-most-coveted prize on the NASCAR circuit and it has remained in that…
Tim Russert died last month at age 58. He was Washington bureau chief for NBC and the moderator of “Meet the Press.” His physician, Michael Newman, described the cause of death as coronary thrombosis-sudden cardiac arrest. Russert’s untimely death was possibly preventable. We can learn something here that may save lives at our businesses. Russert had been diagnosed with asymptomatic coronary artery disease that he controlled with medication and exercise. According to Newman, his stress test in April was normal….
A few months ago, after considerable cajoling, my friend Erik convinced me to join yet another online social network. This one’s called Smaller Indiana. It bills itself as “making people and ideas findable.” So now, in addition to being “LinkedIn” with a few hundred of my friends and colleagues past and present, and in addition to being what BusinessWeek calls a “fogey on Facebook,” I’m also a Smoosier-the moniker for Smaller Indiana members. No sooner had I become a Smoosier…
It was a scary scene, reminiscent of the Great Depression: Customers lined up outside California’s IndyMac Bank branches to withdraw deposits after a bank run led to the bank’s failure. The images have driven some central Indiana customers-businesses and individuals-to take a more critical look at the strength of their banks and the safety of their deposits. Even as financial stocks rallied in mid-July, the risk remains for more bank failures. Dismal earnings reports and massive write-downs continued in recent…
This has been a dizzy stock market, maybe even ill, but it isn’t terminal. Learning how to manage one’s own emotions while investing is an important part of success. And, the most crucial factor is practicing realism over optimism, instead of the reverse. Hope is helpful in most areas of life because it gives us optimism and a reason to live, but in the investment arena, it can quickly drive our portfolio into negative territory. Our desire for excessive investment…
Arming patients with portable electronic medical records that physicians can access during emergencies is becoming more prevalent among health care providers. The Heart Center of Indiana in Carmel, a partnership between St. Vincent Health and The Care Group Inc., the state’s largest cardiology group, recently started the practice. Community Health Network and Dr. Tim Story, who chairs the largest group of physicians at Clarian North Medical Center, are among others who have rolled out portable records systems. The health information…
Of this, that and the other: Timing, as they say, is everything. The University of Notre Dame lost its athletic director, Kevin White, to Duke University on June 1 and has been actively engaged in identifying his successor. A couple of weeks later, Indiana University announced its athletic director, Rick Greenspan, would resign but serve in lameduck status until the end of the year. Somewhere in the middle of those circumstances was Indianapolis attorney Jack Swarbrick, a Bloomington native but…
Angie’s List CEO Bill Oesterle has paid nearly $1.5 million to buy Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in the Meridian-Kessler neighborhood and is renting it to the Indianapolis Opera to use as a multi-function center offering rehearsal space, classes and small performances. “I would have been hard-pressed to tell you much about the Indianapolis Opera before all of this. But I think they’ll be great neighbors,” said Oesterle, who lives on Washington Boulevard, directly north of the church parking lot….
On July 4, my college-aged sons came to visit. We grabbed a late lunch, talked for a while, and sat down in the family room to await the big party in the neighborhood courtyard. Austin and Zach got out their laptops and started browsing. I turned on the TV and started surfing. I landed on HBO’s production of “John Adams.” As we watched, the Continental Congress was in session in 1775 and 1776. The delegates-during and between meetings-were arguing various…
With supreme overconfidence garnered as a result of the Finish Line investment return discussed in my March 24 column, I instructed my retirement plan to purchase shares of Steak n Shake at $6 and change. Steak n Shake owns and operates full-service restaurants with counter and dining room seating. It also has drive-through and carryout service. I have enjoyed Steak n Shake for years, particularly the double steak burger platter and genuine chili. The place is always clean, the food…
Fast-growing Fishers has the kind of assets economic developers dream about-strong schools, affordable housing and median family income of $81,971. Now the town wants to build on that foundation by adding a high-tech business park to its list of amenities. “Businesses are looking to come to a site where they can find employees with the requisite level of education and the ability to get additional education close by. Education is the key,” said Fishers Town Council President Scott Faultless. “We…
Appliance retailer HHGregg is facing allegations that it improperly installed dryer vents in potentially thousands of consumers’ homes, despite warnings that such vents could cause fires or other safety hazards. A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court claims the Indianapolis-based retailer installed plastic or foil “slinky” vents, even though many dryer manufacturers specifically call for heavy metal ducts to be used. The suit asks that HHGregg replace the improper vents and pay an unspecified amount in fees and damages. “Our…
