After 52 years on the radio, talk show host Lincoln Ware is seldom at a loss for words.
But he didn’t want to talk about being nominated for a prestigious Marconi Radio Award for best "large market personality of the year" from the National Association of Broadcasters for the second time in three years. He didn’t want to jinx his chances.
“I’m just going to stay low key and see what happens. Maybe they’ll feel sorry for an old man after 52 years,” Ware says with a laugh. His talk show airs 10 a.m.-1 p.m. weekdays on WDBZ-AM (1230) and repeats 4-7 p.m.
WLW-AM, which began broadcasting in 1922, has been nominated as a “Legendary Station of the Year,” the Marconi Awards’s top honor, for a third consecutive year. “The Big One” faces big competition: WABC-AM and WCBS-FM in New York; WMMR-FM in Philadelphia; and WHLI-AM in Long Island, New York.
The only Cincinnati station to win “Legendary Station of the Year” was WEBN-FM — WLW-AM’s sister station — 25 years ago.
No other Cincinnati stations received nominations. However, Dayton’s WHIO-AM has two nominees for "medium market personality of the year” — morning host Larry Hansgen, who joined the station in 1981, and Todd Hollst, who hosts the afternoon drive Evening Edge show (5-7 p.m.)
Last year WGRR-FM won the Marconi Award for “classic hits station of the year.” Chris O’Brien and Janeen Coyle, WGRR-FM’s Married with Microphones morning team, won the “large market personality” Marconi in 2022.
Ware began his career on WCIN-AM in March 1973 after being discharged from the U.S. Marines. He did three stints on WCIN working overnights on WLW-AM; hosting music on Middletown's WPFB-FM; and working at WIZF-FM. Ware has been the face and voice of "The Buzz"(WDBZ-AM) since the station started in 2000.
"I never thought it would happen working at a small AM station," Ware said after his first Marconi nomination in 2023. "But with apps, the internet, and Facebook Live it makes the station and the personality larger."
The 2025 winners will be announced Oct. 21 in New York. See the full list of nominees on the National Association of Broadcasters website.
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