Atlanta producer Will Packer, known for films such as “Ride Along” and “Girls Trip,” will produce the 2022 Oscar ceremony.
“The power, the beauty, the romance of the imagery in movies has always attracted me,” said Packer in a press release. “I’m fully embracing the challenge of bringing an ode to one of the most iconic mediums in the world to life. What an honor!”
Packer’s background is primarily in scripted TV and film and reality TV. His other credits include “Straight Outta Compton,” “Roots,” BET’s “Being Mary Jane,” OWN’s “Ready to Love” and ID’s “The Atlanta Child Murders” docuseries.
Awards shows have seen massive drops in ratings in recent years, exacerbated by the pandemic and the growth in streaming services. The Oscars drew 10.4 million overnight viewers earlier this year, down from 23.6 million in 2020.
ABC executives are hoping Packer can provide a fresh take on the telecast.
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Credit: NEW COUNTRY 101.5
Credit: NEW COUNTRY 101.5
J.J. Kincaid and Dallas McCade, the morning show at Cumulus’ New Country 101.5, will be syndicated on 25 radio stations nationwide starting Oct. 11.
“We are all elated,” Kincaid said in a press release. “You can go an entire career and never feel the depth of connection I have with my morning family of Dallas, Producer Amanda, and Garrett. We can’t wait to welcome more listeners into our offbeat world.”
Kincaid joined New Country near the end of 2019 after the station rebranded from its old name Kicks 101.5. He previously has worked at top 40 stations in New York (Z100), Minneapolis (KDWB), Dallas (106.1 Kiss) and Denver (95.7 The Party).
McCade has been a veteran country radio host who has worked in Atlanta since 1989.
She worked for many years as a morning host on Y106 (then Eagle 106.7) with the late Rhubarb Jones, who passed away suddenly in 2017. After Eagle changed format in 2008 to oldies, McCade was moved to Kicks to co-host with Cadillac Jack. The pair worked for nearly a decade together. For a brief time, McCade was a mid-day host at Kicks until she re-joined the morning show with Kincaid two years ago.
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Credit: WSB
Credit: WSB
Jay Black, who previously spent 14 years at WSB radio, has joined The Atlanta Journal-Constitution as its audio and podcast program manager.
“We have high hopes for Jay to lead the effort to turn our small but mighty stable of audio and podcasts into a thriving portfolio of compelling content offerings that will help us reach larger and larger audiences,” said Leroy Chapman, managing editor for the AJC.
Black, on Facebook, said he “can’t wait to lead this new venture. In the coming weeks and months you will be hearing all about it. Yes, there’s more than a few podcasts out there, but these are smart people who really know their stuff with a lot of stories to tell that you haven’t heard. Please listen to all that we will have to offer, spread the word and offer any ideas that you want to listen to. So let’s roll. I’m back.”
He was let go from WSB in April, where he was a jack of all trades, covering traffic, sports and hard news over the years.
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