WABC AM radio prez talks industry’s big boom, says digital ‘wearing off’

Chad Lopez. A VIP. The president of WABC’s AM news talk radio. So where’d the name Chad come from?

“My mother loved this one soap opera. Actor Chad Everett was on it. So I got named Chad. I was born in a New York hospital, lived in Queens, went to all boys Holy Cross HS, college, then the Navy and into the media after that.”

John and Margo Catsimatidis bought this station when it wasn’t exactly high-end. It’s now a big success. Why suddenly is radio blooming?

“Once the new shiny thing was digital. Big brands leaped to advertise and it exploded. But that’s wearing off. Broadcasting went to the wayside because all was too much to manage but not sustainable without traditional media, which just needed to shine up a bit. Phones and radio, a one-to-one connection, it’s theater of the mind.

“Streaming also popularizes radio because phones stream these shows. There’s 173 countries streaming us right now. Some don’t allow our content in at all. But we’re in 149.”

OK. Another thing. You did years in the Navy, can you explain that huge ship crashing into the bridge?