Eric & Kathy nominated for Radio Hall of Fame again

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Eric Ferguson and Kathy Hart

Eric Ferguson and Kathy Hart

Will this be their year? Eric Ferguson and Kathy Hart, Chicago radio’s most successful morning team for more than 20 years, have been nominated again for the National Radio Hall of Fame.

Twenty-four nominees in six categories were announced Monday, including a second appearance by the durable morning duo from Hubbard Radio hot adult-contemporary WTMX FM 101.9. Last year Eric & Kathy lost out in the balloting to Kurt “Big Boy” Alexander of Los Angeles.

Four categories, including the one in which Eric & Kathy are nominated, will be voted on by a 400-member industry panel made up of radio executives, programmers, past inductees, executive directors of state broadcast associations, and members of the trade media. Two other categories (Music Format On-Air Personality and Spoken Word On-Air Personality) will be voted on by the public through social media balloting, starting June 20.

National Radio Hall of Fame

National Radio Hall of Fame

Among programs nominated in the Networks/Syndication category are “Wait, Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!,” hosted by Peter Sagal and produced at Chicago Public Media WBEZ FM 91.5, and “The Steve Harvey Morning Show,” which airs here on iHeartMedia urban adult-contemporary WVAZ FM 102.7.

"The sheer depth of talent in our industry never ceases to amaze me,” said Kraig Kitchin, National Radio Hall of Fame chairman. “After much discussion and deliberation, our nominating committee is very proud of this year's class of nominees. We're all looking forward to seeing the voter outcome from our industry peers and listeners nationwide."

All six inductees — plus as many as three more chosen directly by the steering committee — will be announced July 11. They’ll be honored November 17 at the 2016 induction ceremony at the Museum of Broadcast Communications, 360 North State Street.

Here are the nominees in the four categories to be voted on by the industry panel:

Longstanding Local/Regional (20 years or more)

  • Jeff & Jer (Jeff Detrow & Jerry Cesak), San Diego
  • Charles Laquidara, Boston
  • Bobby O'Jay, Memphis
  • Garland Robinette, New Orleans

Active Local/Regional (10 years or more)

  • Tom Barnard, Minneapolis
  • BJ & Migs (BJ Shea & Steve Migs), Seattle
  • Eric & Kathy (Eric Ferguson & Kathy Hart), Chicago
  • Preston and Steve (Preston Elliot & Steve Morrison), Philadelphia

Networks/Syndication (10 years or more)

  • "American Top 40" and "On-Air With Ryan Seacrest," Ryan Seacrest
  • "The Fabulous Sports Babe," Nanci Donnellan
  • "The Steve Harvey Morning Show," Steve Harvey
  • "Wait, Wait . . . Don't Tell Me!," Peter Sagal

Longstanding Network/Syndication (20 years or more)

  • "Delilah," Delilah
  • "Gospel Traxx with Walt 'Baby' Love," Walt "Baby" Love
  • "The Jim Rome Show," Jim Rome
  • "The Kim Komando Show," Kim Komando

Here are the nominees in the two categories to be voted on by the public:

Music Format On-Air Personality

  • Sean "Hollywood" Hamilton
  • Tom Kent
  • "The Kevin & Bean Show" (Kevin Ryder & Gene Baxter)
  • Bob Kingsley

Spoken Word On-Air Personality

  • Diane Rehm
  • Mike Francesa and Chris Russo
  • Michael Savage
  • Sean Hannity