Joe Bilotta Named President & CEO of Buckley Radio
GREENWICH (August 1, 2011) - The Board of Trustees of Buckley Broadcasting announced today that long time Chief Operating Officer Joe Bilotta will succeed the recently deceased Richard Buckley as its President & Chief Executive Officer. Bilotta is a career long Buckley associate, serving as COO for the last 10 years. He has performed in a variety of capacities over the past 4 decades with the Company. Bilotta’s position will become effective immediately.
“In Joe Bilotta we enjoy someone who has unparallel institutional knowledge of our company and the radio broadcasting industry….He has our utmost confidence and we look to his leadership to continue the long broadcasting history we have with Buckley Radio” said Martha Fahnoe, the Trustee Board representative. Bilotta is a former Chair of the Radio Advertising Bureau and currently serves on their Board. He has served a 6 year term on the National Association of Broadcasters Board of Directors and is currently the affiliate Board representative on the New Jersey Broadcasters Association.
Bilotta said, “It is with a profound sadness that we in Buckley Radio move forward after Rick’s tragic and untimely death. We will all strive to remain in lockstep with his thoughts and ideas. Soldiering on will not be an easy task, but one that I and all hundreds of employees in our 6 markets and 17 stations will accomplish with integrity, intelligence, enthusiasm and tenacity”. Joe Bilotta is a long time resident of Westport Ct. with his wife Barbara of 38 years. They have 2 sons and 5 grandchildren.
##
A special message from Chief Operating Officer Joe Bilotta:
GREENWICH (July 31, 2011) - It is with a deep and profound sadness that I must inform you that early Sunday morning, Rick Buckley passed away. His passing was peaceful and without pain. He suffered a brain embolism on Sunday afternoon at his beach home in Quogue, NY.There is no more impassioned leader of any company than Rick Buckley.
He led the company that bears his name for over 4 decades and did so in a style and manner that reflected the family nature of his business. He loved Radio, loved his company and cared deeply for all of his employees.
At this writing, Connie and Jen have not announced their memorial plans and we certainly will be advising everyone. A company is an assembly of its parts and Rick had a favorite saying that, ‘People are our most important commodity’….You are and were his company. I trust that you will have him in mind with good thoughts and prayers. As we all soldier on, let’s remember him as the caring, loving leader that he was and work to insure that the legacy he labored so hard for lives on.
##
RICHARD BUCKLEY JOINS NEW YORK STATE BROADCASTERS 2011 HALL OF FAME:
Induction Ceremony Took Place at 49th Executive Conference June 27-28 in Bolton Landing, N.Y.
ALBANY (June 30, 2011) — The New York State Broadcasters Association (NYSBA) inducted Richard D. Buckley, chairman and CEO of Buckley Radio, into NYSBA’s 2011 Hall of Fame Monday, June 28th in Lake George, NY.
Buckley, a resident of Greenwich, CT, has been a part of the radio industry for more than five decades. He began his career as a page at the National Broadcasting Company. In 1972, after working in radio in various capacities ranging from sales to general manager, he succeeded his father as the operating head of Buckley Radio.
Today, Buckley Radio is one of America's remaining privately owned radio companies with 17 radio stations across the nation in addition to the WOR Radio Network, which serves more than 380 stations in the U.S. and Canada, feeding original programming 23-hours-a-day.
"The radio industry has changed drastically, particularly in the last decade," said NYSBA President Joseph A. Reilly. "Richard has been a part of that evolution and done a remarkable job of positioning Buckley Radio as a top-notch radio company and programming provider, while keeping the fundamental principles of a family-owned, independent business intact."
Buckley is a past chairman of the board of the Radio Advertising Bureau and past chair of the Southern California Broadcaster's Association. He currently serves as the finance chair on the Broadcasters of America Foundation's Board of Directors. A graduate of the University of Miami, he was instrumental in establishing the Richard D. Buckley Audio Lab at the institution's School of Communication.
He joined fellow Hall of Fame inductees, including: Joseph A. Reilly, NYSBA president; Regis Philbin, TV and game show host; William B. Williams, a New York City radio icon; Rod Wood and Carrie Lazarus, TV co-anchors from Central New York; and, Arnold Klinsky, a former WHEC-TV executive from Rochester.
Founded in 1955, the New York State Broadcasters Association (NYSBA) represents the interests of more than 1000 television and radio stations in the NYS Senate and Assembly; the US Congress, and various other legislative bodies. NYSBA also offers a variety of services to help the broadcasters of New York State better serve their communities.
##
