Benjamin Homel, known professionally as Randy Michaels, is an American broadcasting executive and a former member of the

National Association of Broadcasters The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is a Industry trade group, trade association and lobbying, lobby group representing the interests of commercial and non-commercial over-the-air radio and television broadcasting, broadcasters in th ...

TV Board.

Biography

Michaels has been involved in large market radio broadcasting since the early 1970s, first in front of the mike as evening personality at adult contemporary

WGR WGR (550 AM) is a commercial radio station licensed to serve Buffalo, New York. Owned by Audacy, Inc., its studios and offices are located on Corporate Parkway in Amherst, and the transmitter site—used by WGR and co-owned WWKB—is in Hambu ...

in Buffalo. He later moved into management, and was CEO of

Jacor Communications Jacor Communications was a media corporation, existing between 1987 and 1999, which owned many radio stations in the United States. In 1998, Jacor was purchased by Clear Channel Communications, now iHeartMedia, for $2.8 billion. Jacor Communicat ...

in the 1990s selling to Clear Channel in 1999 and remaining there as CEO until 2002. Early in 2005, Michaels began working with Oak Hill Capital partners on acquisition opportunities, culminating in the creation of

Local TV LLC Local TV LLC was a television broadcasting company owned by Oak Hill Capital Partners which operated 20 television stations in the United States. The group was formed in 2006 by the acquisition of nine television stations owned by The New York T ...

, a company that acquired nine local network-affiliated television stations formerly owned by

The New York Times Company The New York Times Company is an American mass media corporation that publishes ''The New York Times'' and its associated publications such as ''The New York Times International Edition'' and other media properties. The New York Times Company's ...

. In early 2007, Michaels became CEO of the company. On December 22, 2007, Local TV announced it was acquiring eight large market stations from

Rupert Murdoch Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian - American retired business magnate, investor, and media mogul. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of List of assets owned by News Corp, local, national, a ...

News Corporation The original incarnation of News Corporation (abbreviated News Corp. and also variously known as News Corporation Limited) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media corporation founded and controlled by media mogul Ru ...

. On December 20, 2007 Michaels became executive vice president (EVP) of the Chicago-based

Tribune Company Tribune Media Company, also known as Tribune Company, was an American multimedia conglomerate headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Through Tribune Broadcasting, Tribune Media was one of the largest television broadcasting companies, owning 39 ...

and chief executive officer (CEO) of Interactive and Broadcasting operations as part of the management restructuring following the consummation of the Tribune Company privatization transaction. Under Michaels, Tribune Company was widely reported to have undergone a negative change in atmosphere, with instances of profanity from executives and strange memos being issued from management, as well as a controversial private poker party in Tribune Tower. ''The New York Times'' cited multiple witnesses who saw Michaels tell them to "watch this" before offering a waitress $100 to show her breasts at a Chicago hotel bar in 2008. The group he was with was "dumbfounded." On October 23, 2010, Michaels was asked to resign as Tribune's CEO by the board of directors, and was replaced temporarily by a four-member Executive Council, and later by Eddy Hartenstein, member of the interim council and publisher of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

''. Michaels is also the sole proprietor of Radioactive, LLC, a

holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the Security (finance), securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own Share ...

for radio broadcast licenses. Michaels also controls Merlin Media, LLC, which owned radio stations in New York City and Chicago. On October 14, 2011, Michaels was arrested for operating a vehicle while intoxicated in Middletown, Ohio. Michaels pled guilty to a construction zone traffic charge.

Notes

References

*Crain's New York Business.
"101.9 kills the talk, cues the rock 'n' roll"
July 17, 2012. After a yearlong experiment, Randy Michaels' Merlin Media pulled the plug on FM News 101.9 and started blaring alternative rock music once again. * Kinsley, Michael.
"My Most Productive Column Ever: Measuring Value by Word Count: What a Brilliant Idea!"
''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'', June 9, 2008. Accessed August 24, 2008. (Comments on Randy Michaels, with reference to article by Saba.) *Saba, Jennifer.
"Update: Tribune Hints at Big Staff and Page Cuts -- and Measuring Reporters' Value By the Inch
". ''

Editor & Publisher ''Editor & Publisher'' (''E&P'') is an American monthly trade news magazine covering the news media industry. Published since 1901, ''Editor & Publisher'' is the self-described "bible of the newspaper industry," with offices in Hendersonville, ...

'', June 6, 2008. (Subscription-only access.) {{DEFAULTSORT:Michaels, Randy Living people American radio personalities American telecommunications industry businesspeople Year of birth missing (living people)