CMA Announces 2011 Broadcast Awards Finalists

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Final nominees for the nation's top Country radio stations and broadcast personalities were delivered to Country Radio today, when the JaneDear girls revealed the 2011 CMA Broadcast Personality and Radio Station of the Year finalists live from Nashville's Ryman Auditorium. The announcements were carried live to Country radio stations by CMA's official radio partner Premiere Radio Networks.

The winners will be notified in mid-October and will be acknowledged at "The 45th Annual CMA Awards," to be held Wednesday, Nov. 9 (8:00-11:00 PM/ET) and broadcast live by the ABC Television Network from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood return to host "Country Music's Biggest Night" for a fourth year.

The CMA Broadcast Awards finalists were revealed at a press conference today where select CMA Awards finalists were also announced by Jerrod Niemann and Thompson Square. Additional CMA Award final nominees were announced this morning on ABC's "Good Morning America" by The Band Perry and Jake Owen.  

As always, the National Broadcast Personality of the Year category is filled with familiar faces. Two-time CMA National Broadcast Personality of the Year nominee and 2009 winner, Kix Brooks of "American Country Countdown," is back in the running with competition from Big D & Bubba and Lia Knight. Big D & Bubba were also nominated for the award in 2002 and 2007. "The Lia Show" has been nominated five times, and Knight took home the trophy in 2005 and 2007.

Five finalists are selected for CMA Broadcast Personality and CMA Radio Station of the Year in four categories: small, medium, large, and major market. The categories are established by market size based on population as ranked by Arbitron. Entries for Broadcast Personality of the Year are judged on aircheck, ratings, community involvement, and biographical information. Candidates for Station of the Year are judged on airchecks, ratings history, community involvement, and format leadership.

Three finalists are selected for National Broadcast Personality of the Year. To be eligible, candidates must be syndicated, short-form, hub voice-tracking, and satellite personalities heard in at least three markets with a minimum of 40 shows per year.

CMA members who are full-time, on-air personalities and CMA member radio stations in the United States and Canada were eligible to enter. The entries are judged by a panel of distinguished broadcast professionals, representing all market sizes and regions.

An aggregate score of the first round of judging and the second round, which is done by a different panel of judges, determines the winners. The international accounting firm of Deloitte & Touche LLP tabulates scoring by the judges. CMA Broadcast Award winners are not eligible to enter in consecutive years; therefore, those who received trophies in 2010 were not eligible in 2011.

CMA BROADCAST PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR:

National

• "American Country Countdown with Kix Brooks" (Kix Brooks) –  Citadel Media
• "Big D & Bubba Show" (Derek Haskins and Sean Powell) – Premiere Radio Networks
• "The Lia Show" (Lia Knight)  – Dial Global

Major Market

• "Ben & Matt Show" (Ben Campbell and Matt McAllister) – KNIX, Phoenix, Ariz.
• "Edwards & Lee" (Chuck Edwards and Linda Lee) – WYCD, Detroit, Mich.
• "Kelly Ford & Rider" (Kelly Ford and Mark Newman) – KYGO, Denver-Boulder, Colo.
• "Laurie DeYoung Morning Show" (Laurie DeYoung) – WPOC, Baltimore, Md.
• "Paul Schadt Morning Show" (Paul Schadt, Meg Butterly, and Geof Knight) – WKKT, Charlotte/Gastonia, N.C.; Rock Hill, SC

Large Market

• "Chris Carr & Company"  (Chris Carr, Jeffrey "Maverick" Bolen, and Jason Statt) – WUBE, Cincinnati, Ohio
• "Coffee, Country & Cody" (Bill Cody) – WSM-AM, Nashville, Tenn.
• "Jeff Roper in the Morning" (Jeff Roper and Angie Ward) – WTQR, Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High Pont, NC
• "Jess, Brian, and Amanda" (Jess Tyler, Brian Phillips, and Amanda Leonardo) – WCTK, Providence/Warwick/Pawtucket, RI
• "Q Morning Crew" (Mike Wheless, Marty Young, and Janie Carothers) – WQDR, Raleigh/Durham, NC

Medium Market

• "Kevin Richards Show" (Kevin Richards) – WGNA, Albany/Schenectady/Troy, N.Y.
• "Mornings with Brian and Kellie" (Brian Pierce and Kellie Michaels) – KFDI, Wichita, Kan.
• "The 97 Country Breakfast Club" (Tom O'Brien, Roger Todd, Melissa Moran) – WPCV, Lakeland/Winter Haven, Fla.
• "The Kat 103 Morning Show" (Steve Lundy and Gina Melton) – KXKT, Omaha, Neb./Council Bluffs, Iowa
• "Ellis and Bradley Morning Show" (Bill Ellis and Beth Bradley) – WSSL, Greenville/Spartanburg, SC

Small Market

• "Barrett, Fox & Berry" (Bill Barrett, Tim Fox, and Tracy Berry) – KKNU, Eugene/Springfield, Ore.
• "Bearman and Ken in the Morning" (Benny "Bearman" Martin, Ken Hicks, Daniel Wyatt) – WUSY, Chattanooga, Tenn.
• "Scotty and Carissa in the Morning" (Scotty Cox and Carissa Loethen) – KCLR, Columbia, Mo.
• "The Eddie Foxx Show" (Eddie Foxx and Sharon Green) – WKSF, Asheville, NC
• "The Good Morning Guys" (Brian Gary, Todd Harding, and Susan Moore) - KUAD, Ft. Collins/Greeley, Colo.

CMA RADIO STATION OF THE YEAR

Major Market

• KMLE – Phoenix, Ariz.
• KNIX – Phoenix, Ariz.
• WKKT – Charlotte/Gastonia, N.C./Rock Hill, SC
• WMZQ – Washington, DC
• WYCD – Detroit, Mich.

Large Market

• KASE – Austin, Texas
• KVET – Austin, Texas
• WFMS – Indianapolis, Ind.
• WQDR – Raleigh/Durham, NC
• WUBE – Cincinnati, Ohio

Medium Market

• KATM – Modesto, Calif.
• KFDI – Wichita, Kan.
• KUZZ – Bakersfield, Calif.
• WBBS – Syracuse, NY
• WYRK – Buffalo/Niagara Falls, NY

Small Market

• KCLR –Columbia, Mo.
• KUAD – Ft. Collins/Greeley, Colo.
• WKSF – Asheville, NC
• WKXC – Augusta, Ga.
• WUSY – Chattanooga, Tenn.

"The 45th Annual CMA Awards" is a production of the Country Music Association. Robert Deaton is the Executive Producer. Paul Miller is the Director. The special will be shot in high definition and broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1 channel surround sound.

Premiere Radio Networks is the official radio packager of the CMA Awards. Chevrolet™ is a Proud Partner of the CMA Awards and Official Ride of Country Music.  CMA is a Proud Supporter of DRIVE4COPD.

For Information, visit www.CMApress.com for CMA Awards history, photos, press releases and logos. On-line media credentialing for the CMA Awards begins Sept. 6. This is a protected site for the media only with restrictions on use.

SOURCE Country Music Association (CMA)