Entercom’s Content Innovation Group reaches to be a multi-platform media company

This morning Entercom announced the launch of its Content Innovation Group, a venture to produce exclusively developed programs for both on-the-air syndication and digital distribution. “We are pleased to kick off the year with this exciting and progressive move,” said Pat Paxton, Entercom’s President of Programming.

For more detail, RAIN News reached out to Liana Huth, VP of Programming Innovation at Entercom. Huth has a production background with several companies; she spent time with Madison Square Garden and owned her own consultancy for a while. She has been in her Entercom position since late 2015.

“People say ‘radio, radio, radio’ but I think in terms of a multi-platform media company,” Huth told us. There is not much detail in the new group’s programming vision yet; Liana Huth told us that some employees were starting in the group today.

We were keen to hear how podcasting might fit in, as commercial U.S. radio has not, on the whole, grabbed an inside track in the red-hot podcast category. Entercom, though, has been a player. Huth told us that the company acquired Beyond Reality Radio from Spreaker and put it in the AM/FM signal, plus distributing digitally. Huth said that she likes short-form programming to see what works, then developing longer forms.

“Looking at the Podtrac updates, it’s staggering to see the numbers,” Huth said, referring to Podtrac’s monthly industry report of podcast publishers, framed in size of audience and number of downloads/streams. “We have grown podcasting through locally produced, in-house shows, and are looking at developing a couple of short-form features for AM/FM, and longer form for platform syndication,” Huth said.

Direct management of the Content Innovation Group will be handled by Kyle McCann, Managing Editor, who reports to Huth. McCann came to Entercom from Townsquare Media. He has also held roles at Scripps and Fox Television. The remaining structure is filled out by three content managers: Lauren Hoffman, previously a country music blogger and an entertainment reporter for The Journal magazine in New Jersey, Joe Hyer, formerly a key member of Townsquare Media’s digital content team who led development of format-specific content for Townsquare markets across the country, and Maura O’Malley, formerly from Main Street Hub in Austin, Texas where she served as a senior content editor and social media community manager.

While the focus of the Content Innovation Group is original content development, there is also a curation aspect, according to Liana Huth: “With the creation of this new team, we will be focused on pushing out exclusive and original new content as well as pulling compelling and engaging local content to enhance the local listener experience.”