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Michael Scott Shannon (born July 25, 1947) is an American radio disc jockey best known as the announcer of The Sean Hannity Show. He also hosted the morning show for WCBS-FM in New York City from 2014 to 2022 as well as Scott Shannon Presents America's Greatest Hits which is syndicated nationally with United Stations Radio Networks and Entercom. He previously worked for WHTZ, WPLJ, and The True Oldies Channel.
After a brief stint at WMPS in Memphis, he moved to Nashville, where he was the evening disc jockey at WNQM (1300 AM), later becoming that station's program director. While at WMAK, interactions and an interview between Shannon and Neil Young were recorded for Young's film Journey Through the Past.
Shannon also hosted a "Where are they now?" radio program in 1989, where the subject of the day was the one-hit wonder Benny Mardones, who had the 1980 hit "Into the Night". Scott began putting the record in rotation in 1989, and soon after, many other DJs around the nation added the song to their playlists. The song re-entered the top 20 singles chart, prompting a resurgence in Mardones's career, including a new re-recording of the song, a tour, and a new album.
Shannon then took the concept to startup WHTZ (Z100) in New York City in 1983. Along with former disc jockey Ross Brittain of WABC's Ross & Wilson Show, he founded the Z Morning Zoo. He was the driving force in helping Z100 become the top-rated FM station in New York City within a mere 74 days of signing on the air. During this period, he served as one of the original VJs on VH1.
Beginning with the broadcast of September 4–6, 1987 the countdown switched from its own compiled countdown to the R&R CHR Top 30 chart; however, it used the chart from two weeks earlier. Thus, for this broadcast, the R&R chart used was that published in the issue dated August 21, 1987. This continued into 1990.
When the show was renamed Scott Shannon's All Request Top 30 Countdown in mid-1990, the show utilized a hybridized chart. Since the shows were recorded two weeks in advance, request data and the R&R CHR Top 30 chart were used to predict where songs would place on the chart during the broadcast weekend, giving the show more flexibility to add fast-climbing songs to its playlist despite the two-week production delay, while removing songs that were performing poorly.
In March 1992, Shannon left Westwood One Radio Networks; this effectively brought an end to the show. He went on to start a new show named Scott Shannon's Battle of the Hits, produced by Cutler Productions and aired over the July 4th weekend in 1992. The show was aimed to bring new life into the top 40 countdown format which had been struggling right along with the top 40 format.Billboard Magazine. May 30, 1992. P65+P66.
Rockin' America aired in the United Kingdom - proving particularly popular in Scotland - on Northants 96, Northampton Chronicle & Echo, 7 March 1987 Heart Dunstable Cambridge News listings, 21 February 1987-5 March 1988 where it was replaced by American Top 40, Cambridge Evening News listings, 12 March 1988 Signal Radio Staffordshire Sentinel listings, 28 February-23 May 1987 and Leek Post & Times listings, 11 March-8 July 1987 where it conversely replaced AT40, Staffordshire Sentinel listings, 21 February 1987 Marcher Sound, Liverpool Echo listings, 18 April 1987 and Cheshire Observer listings, 13 May-26 August 1987 Radio Tay and Moray Firth Radio,"Hot hits from States", Aberdeen Press & Journal page 5, 29 May 1987 Radio Wyvern, Sandwell Evening Mail listings, 1 May 1987-14 October 1988 Radio Clyde Paisley Daily Express listings, 8 August 1987-20 May 1989 where it was supported by McEwan's Lager,"Push down prices ...", Paisley Daily Express page 6, 14 July 1987 West FM, Daily Record listings, page 24, 5 September 1987 Radio Forth, Daily Record listings, page 24, 18 March 1989 TFM"Lara's theme: fun", The Northern Echo page 8, 9 June 1988 and very briefly on Viking FM. Scunthorpe Evening Telegraph listings on Newspapers.com, 9 & 16 May 1987 only When it was first imported to the UK it was supported by Coca-Cola, although it was taken by fewer ILR stations than the UK-produced US chart show fronted by Paul Gambaccini and sponsored by Pepsi."Win a top-class compact disc set", Coventry Evening Telegraph page 21, 5 March 1987
Also in the 1990s, Shannon also served as a radio consultant for WRNB in Philadelphia and WKCI-FM in New Haven, Connecticut.
On February 25, 2014, WCBS-FM (CBS-FM) in New York announced that Scott Shannon would be hosting a brand new morning show entitled Scott Shannon in the Morning starting March 3. Upon the release of the first run of ratings after Shannon took over at WCBS-FM, his show was rated number one, although most of the audience was already established since CBS-FM was doing very well ratings-wise before Shannon's arrival. Shannon carried over the "Big Show" name from WPLJ.
In October 2014, United Stations Radio Networks announced that Shannon would host their new syndicated radio program Scott Shannon Presents America's Greatest Hits, a four-hour classic hits program featuring music of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. Features include special countdowns on various topics or from the particular week from a past year, artist interviews, and other features such as one-hit wonders and hit cover versions of previous hit recordings. The new program premiered the weekend of November 1, 2014.
Shannon is also the host of the True Oldies Channel radio network and is the announcer for talk radio's The Sean Hannity Show.
On October 28, 2022, Shannon announced he was stepping down as the morning host of WCBS-FM and hosted his last show two months later on December 16, 2022.
On December 15, 2023, United Stations Radio Networks announced that Shannon's America's Greatest Hits program will end on December 31, 2023.
In 2003, he was inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame in Washington, D.C., and in 2006 he was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in Chicago.
In September 2010, Shannon was named Network/Syndicated Personality of the Year at the 2010 National Association of Broadcasters' Marconi Radio Awards.
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