iHeartMedia Boston’s WBZ NewsRadio has won a National Edward R. Murrow Award in the Excellence in Innovation category for its implementation of the social media platform TikTok — a trendy audience growth tactic not often pursued by radio stations.
“We started our TikTok account two years ago and in that time Matt Shearer and handful of other reporters have grown the account to more than 125,000 followers,” said WBZ in its award submission. “As a result of our initiatives our 18-34 numbers have been increasing as a whole new generation discovers WBZ NewsRadio.”
The Murrow Awards, issued by the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA), are recognized as one of the most prestigious awards in the journalism industry.
According to RTDNA’s website, these awards have been honoring stations that “demonstrate technical expertise and exemplify the importance and impact of journalism as a service to the community” since 1971.
“We are always looking to broaden our brand awareness and with this award we can proudly say WBZ NewsRadio is the number one station in the nation for innovation,” said Bill Flaherty, WBZ NewsRadio’s director of programming and operations, in a press release.
Earlier this year, WBZ won four Regional Murrow Awards including Excellence in Innovation, Breaking News Coverage, Best Newscast and Excellence in Sound. In 2022, WBZ NewsRadio also won three Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards and the National Edward R. Murrow Award for Breaking News.
WBZ(AM) broadcasts on 1030 kHz, with its studios located in the Boston suburb of Medford. The station features an all-news radio format for most of the day with some talk radio programming at night and on the weekends.
