Bold Gold Newsman Mike Sakell to Retire
Bold Gold Media announces that Catskills news & sports director Mike Sakell is retiring from his role with the company after more than four decades broadcasting in the region. Sakell first began working in Sullivan County in 1980 when he joined WVOS. Bold Gold Media NY region general manager Dawn Ciorciari says,
“There are certain sounds that define a place, and for Sullivan County, Mike’s voice is one of them. For 45 years, it’s been the sound of calm, trust, and perseverance. His life has been a true lesson in resilience. His legacy will live far beyond the airwaves.” Bold Gold Media CEO Vince Benedetto adds, “Mike’s retirement is truly an end of an extraordinary and historic era in local broadcasting. In every way, he was ‘The Voice of Sullivan County.’ He will be missed by all of our listeners, and most of all, by all of us in Bold Gold. His example of broadcast excellence will endure and be carried on by all of us who have learned so much from him. We wish him a wonderful retirement and thank him for his long, distinguished service to our communities.” Sullivan County native Dylan Price is assuming the Catskills news & sports director role.
Ciorciari says, “Taking a legacy AM radio station and re-imagining it into an additional radio format in a local market is an exciting expansion of Bold Gold’s local broadcast portfolio, and is a testament to an incredible team of local broadcast professionals, a supportive community, and the importance that local radio continues to have to provide local news, talk and information.” Bold Gold Media New York director of programming Chase Daniels comments, “The launch of ‘Catskills News Talk’ marks another BOLD move in our New York market as we expand our programming offerings and bring back the heritage ‘Voice of Sullivan.’ Putting this station together required a lot of well-thought-out decisions and I’m honored to have had the opportunity to bring it all together.” Beyond morning drive, the company has not revealed programming details other than to say, “Popular radio shows covering a variety of topics including financial market updates, investing, lifestyle, health, politics, sports and others will round out the station’s programming.”