Two radio stations serving the City of New York, an AM to the east on Long Island, a big AM serving the Midwest, and one of the biggest Rock stations in the U.S. are the five finalists for “Legendary Station of the Year,” as the NAB on Thursday announced its list of nominees for the 2025 NAB Marconi Radio Awards.
The awards will be live streamed in a video presentation hosted by two Washington, D.C. market air personalities — WMMJ-FM midday host Vic Jagger and WMAL-FM talk host Vince Coglianese.
Winners of the 2025 Marconi Radio Awards will be announced during a special dinner program on October 21 at the Edison Ballroom in New York, one day before the start of the NAB Show New York conference and expo. The awards are presented by Xperi Corp., parent company of DTS AutoStage and HD Radio.
Established in 1989 and named after inventor and Nobel Prize winner Guglielmo Marconi, the NAB Marconi Radio Awards are given to radio stations and outstanding on-air personalities to recognize excellence in radio.
What’s perhaps most notable about the “Legendary Station of the Year” nominees is that two of the stations can only be heard on the kHz band — perhaps a statement that Congress must pass the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, which has again stalled on Capitol Hill despite widespread bicameral and bipartisan support. Daytime-only WHLI-AM in Hempstead, N.Y., owned by Connoisseur Media, benefits from an FM translator reaching most of Nassau County, N.Y. Class A giant WLW-AM, an iHeartMedia talker, does not. Neither does WABC-AM in New York, although it is simulcast on WLIR-FM to improve its reach in Suffolk County.
This year’s NAB Marconi Radio Award finalists are:
LEGENDARY STATION OF THE YEAR
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WABC-AM, New York, NY
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WCBS-FM, New York, NY
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WHLI-AM, Nassau-Suffolk, NY
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WLW-AM, Cincinnati, OH
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WMMR-FM, Philadelphia, PA
LEGENDARY RADIO MANAGER OF THE YEAR
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David Yadgaroff, Audacy, Philadelphia, PA
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Nick Martin, Big River Broadcasting Corp., Florence, AL
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Derrick Corbett, WDAS-FM, iHeartMedia, Philadelphia, PA
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Jason Meder, Cox Media Group, Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL
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Dr. Maria Boynton, WVEE-FM, Audacy, Atlanta, GA
NETWORK/SYNDICATED PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
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Katie Neal, Audacy, Nashville, TN
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Ellen K, KOST-FM, Los Angeles, CA
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Colin Cowherd, Premiere Radio Networks, Inc., Los Angeles, CA
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Steve Harmon, Cumulus Media, Dallas, TX
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Enrique Santos, iHeartMedia, Miami, FL
MAJOR MARKET PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
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The Roula & Ryan Show with Eric, KRBE-FM, Houston, TX
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Mark “Hawkeye” Louis and Michelle Rodriguez, KSCS-FM, Dallas, TX
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The Greg Hill Show, WEEI-FM, Boston, MA
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Preston Elliot and Steve Morrison, WMMR-FM, Philadelphia, PA
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Karson & Kennedy, WWBX-FM, Boston, MA
LARGE MARKET PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
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Karen Dalessandro, KSLX-FM, Phoenix, AZ
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Tracy and Fizz, KYGO-FM, Denver, CO
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Lincoln Ware, WDBZ-AM, Cincinnati, OH
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Mitch Albom, WJR-AM, Detroit, MI
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The Smiley Morning Show, WZPL-FM, Indianapolis, IN
MEDIUM MARKET PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
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Skyler Cooper, KRMG-FM, Tulsa, OK
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Todd Hollst, WHIO-AM, Dayton, OH
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Larry Hansgen, WHIO-FM, Dayton, OH
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Dan Austin, WQHK-FM, Fort Wayne, IN
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Mo & StyckMan, WUSY-FM, Chattanooga, TN
SMALL MARKET PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR
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Jordan Jay, KATI-FM, Jefferson City, MO
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Matt & Amy in the Morning, KIKV-FM, Alexandria, MN
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Ian Rambo, KQRQ-FM, Rapid City, SD
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The Big Dawg DreDay with Comedian LP, WALJ-FM, Tuscaloosa, AL
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Mark Starling, WWNC-AM, Asheville, NC
MAJOR MARKET STATION OF THE YEAR
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KBXX-FM, Houston, TX
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WCBS-FM, New York, NY
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WMMR-FM, Philadelphia, PA
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WSB-FM, Atlanta, GA
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WWBX-FM, Boston, MA
LARGE MARKET STATION OF THE YEAR
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KDKA-FM, Pittsburgh, PA
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KKFN-FM, Denver, CO
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KOSI-FM, Denver, CO
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KTMY-FM, Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN
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WLLD-FM, Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL
MEDIUM MARKET STATION OF THE YEAR
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KBOI-AM, Boise, ID
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KRMG-FM, Tulsa, OK
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WBEN-AM, Buffalo, NY
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WTIB-FM, Greenville, NC
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WYCT-FM, Pensacola, FL
SMALL MARKET STATION OF THE YEAR
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KFGE-FM, Lincoln, NE
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WCHS-AM, Charleston, WV
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WIKY-FM, Evansville, IN
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WTAW-AM, College Station, TX
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WWNC-AM, Asheville, NC
ADULT CONTEMPORARY (AC) STATION OF THE YEAR
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KOSI-FM, Denver, CO
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KSTP-FM, Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN
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WKJY-FM, Nassau-Suffolk, NY
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WTBC-FM, Chicago, IL
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WWBX-FM, Boston, MA
BEST RADIO PODCAST OF THE YEAR
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“Inheriting,” KPCC-FM, Los Angeles, CA
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“Ransom,” KSL Newsradio, Salt Lake City, UT
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“Purple Daily,” KSTP-AM, Saint Paul, MN
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“WCCO Radio: 100 Years,” WCCO-AM, Minneapolis, MN
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“Behind The Song,” WDRV-FM, Chicago, IL
CHR STATION OF THE YEAR
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KTXY-FM, Columbia, MO
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WDJX-FM, Louisville, KY
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WPRO-FM, Providence, RI
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WXKB-FM, Fort Myers-Naples, FL
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WZPL-FM, Indianapolis, IN
CLASSIC HITS STATION OF THE YEAR
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KQRQ-FM, Rapid City, SD
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KXSN-FM, San Diego, CA
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WJJK-FM, Indianapolis, IN
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WOGL-FM, Philadelphia, PA
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WOMC-FM, Detroit, MI
COLLEGE STATION OF THE YEAR
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WKCR-FM, Columbia University, New York, NY
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WMSC-FM, Montclair State University, New York, NY
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WRHU-FM, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY
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WRRC-FM, Rider University, Lawrenceville, NJ
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WSOU-FM, Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ
COUNTRY STATION OF THE YEAR
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KATI-FM, Jefferson City, MO
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KCLR-FM, Columbia, MO
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KYGO-FM, Denver, CO
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WTHI-FM, Terre Haute, IN
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WYCT-FM, Pensacola, FL
NEWS/TALK STATION OF THE YEAR
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KFI-AM, Los Angeles, CA
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WABC-AM, New York, NY
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WBAL-AM, Baltimore, MD
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WBBM-AM, Chicago, IL
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WENG-AM, Englewood, FL
RELIGIOUS STATION OF THE YEAR
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KPWJ-FM, College Station, TX
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WGTS-FM, Rockville, MD
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WMCA-AM, New York, NY
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WMIT-FM, Charlotte, NC
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WPZE-FM, Atlanta, GA
ROCK STATION OF THE YEAR
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KCMQ-FM, Columbia, MO
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KISS-FM, San Antonio, TX
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WDRV-FM, Chicago, IL
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WIYY-FM, Baltimore, MD
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WXTB-FM, Tampa, FL
SPANISH LANGUAGE STATION OF THE YEAR
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KNDE-HD3, College Station, TX
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WAMR-FM, Miami, FL
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WMIA-FM, Miami, FL
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WOJO-FM, Chicago, IL
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WYUU-FM, St. Petersburg, FL
SPORTS STATION OF THE YEAR
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KILT-AM, Houston, TX
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WBZ-FM, Boston, MA
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WGFX-FM, Nashville, TN
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WIP-FM, Philadelphia, PA
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WXYT-FM, Detroit, MI
URBAN STATION OF THE YEAR
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KMJQ-FM, Houston, TX
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WDZZ-FM, Flint, MI
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WHUR-FM, Washington, DC
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WMBX-FM, West Palm Beach, FL
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WVEE-FM, Atlanta, GA
