OKLAHOMA CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 2, 2025--
Champlin Broadcasting and Chisholm Trail Broadcasting announce the appointment of Bill Hurley as President and Chief Operating Officer of both companies.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250902443012/en/
Founded by Hiram H. Champlin, the two companies collectively operate 11 radio stations from Enid to Oklahoma City. With deep Oklahoma roots and a strong belief in the power of local broadcasting, Champlin remains committed to keeping programming and leadership grounded in state values.
“As a fourth-generation Oklahoman, I’ve always believed radio should be built and led by people who truly know and care about our state,” said Champlin. “Bill Hurley not only grew up here, but he also brings decades of experience in radio that make him uniquely qualified to strengthen our stations and better serve our communities. With his leadership, we’ll continue building a network that champions local businesses and delivers the kind of hometown broadcasting Oklahomans deserve.”
Hurley brings nearly four decades of radio management experience to the role. A native of Oklahoma City, he most recently served for over eight years as Managing Partner at TeamRadio Marketing Group. Prior to that, he was Market President for Clear Channel/iHeart Radio for more than 13 years.
His career has also included key leadership positions in Utah, Arizona, California, and Illinois, along with many years of service in Oklahoma City. He is a former Chairman and board member of the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters.
“I’m thrilled to join Hiram and the team to grow a network that truly serves our local communities,” said Hurley. “Small businesses in Oklahoma often get overshadowed by national consolidation—but that doesn’t have to be the case. Together, we’ll expand heritage stations like News/Talk Freedom 96.9 and Country The Wolf 99.7 into platforms that champion the businesses and voices that make our region unique and resilient.”
With Hurley as President & COO, Champlin Broadcasting and Chisholm Trail Broadcasting are poised to further strengthen their trusted, hometown presence across Oklahoma.
For media and advertising opportunities, please visit EnidLIVE.com.
ABOUT CHISHOLM TRAIL BROADCASTING:
Chisholm Trail Broadcasting Co., headquartered in Enid, Oklahoma, is a locally owned media and broadcasting company serving north-central Oklahoma with community-focused programming. Its stations include KNID “107.1 Today's Best Country”, KXLS “Mix 95.7” (Adult Contemporary), KCRC “CTB Sports” (1640 AM/1390 AM), KWOF “106.3 The Wolf” (Classic Country), KHRK “97.7 The Hawk” (Classic Rock). Chisholm Trail Broadcasting also operates news platform, Enid LIVE!. For more information, visit www.EnidLive.com.
ABOUT CHAMPLIN BROADCASTING:
Champlin Broadcasting, Inc., based in Oklahoma City, serves the metro area with a locally focused portfolio that includes KWFF “99.7 The Wolf,” a gold-based country format blending contemporary and classic favorites, and KQOB “Freedom 96.9,” a conservative-leaning news/talk station and three HD signals 99.7HD2 “The Rooster”(Red Dirt Country), 99.7HD3 “The Hawk” (Classic Rock) and 99.7HD4 “The Gospel Station” (Religious). Champlin Broadcasting is committed to delivering entertainment and civic engagement while keeping Oklahoma voices central on its airwaves.
Bill Hurley Joins Champlin Broadcasting and Chisholm Trail Broadcasting as President & COO
UTICA, N.Y. (AP) — A New York prison guard who failed to intervene as he watched an inmate being beaten to death should be convicted of manslaughter, a prosecutor told a jury Thursday in the final trial of correctional officers whose pummeling, recorded by body-cameras, provoked outrage.
“For seven minutes — seven gut-churning, nauseating, disgusting minutes — he stood in that room close enough to touch him and he did nothing,” special prosecutor William Fitzpatrick told jurors during closing arguments. The jury began deliberating Thursday afternoon.
Former corrections officer Michael Fisher, 55, is charged with second-degree manslaughter in the death of Robert Brooks, who was beaten by guards upon his arrival at Marcy Correctional Facility on the night of Dec. 9, 2024, his agony recorded silently on the guards' body cameras.
Fisher’s attorney, Scott Iseman, said his client entered the infirmary after the beating began and could not have known the extent of his injuries.
Fisher was among 10 guards indicted in February. Three more agreed to plead guilty to reduced charges in return for cooperating with prosecutors. Of the 10 officers indicted in February, six pleaded guilty to manslaughter or lesser charges. Four rejected plea deals. One was convicted of murder, and two were acquitted in the first trial last fall.
Fisher, standing alone, is the last of the guards to face a jury.
The trial closes a chapter in a high-profile case led to reforms in New York's prisons. But advocates say the prisons remain plagued by understaffing and other problems, especially since a wildcat strike by guards last year.
Officials took action amid outrage over the images of the guards beating the 43-year-old Black man in the prison's infirmary. Officers could be seen striking Brooks in the chest with a shoe, lifting him by the neck and dropping him.
Video shown to the jury during closing arguments Thursday indicates Fisher stood by the doorway and didn't intervene.
“Did Michael Fisher recklessly cause the death of Robert Brooks? Of course he did. Not by himself. He had plenty of other helpers,” said Fitzpatrick, the Onondaga County district attorney.
Iseman asked jurors looking at the footage to consider what Fisher could have known at the time “without the benefit of 2020 hindsight.”
“Michael Fisher did not have a rewind button. He did not have the ability to enhance. He did not have the ability to pause. He did not have the ability to get a different perspective of what was happening in the room,” Iseman said.
Even before Brooks' death, critics claimed the prison system was beset by problems that included brutality, overworked staff and inconsistent services. By the time criminal indictments were unsealed in February, the system was reeling from an illegal three-week wildcat strike by corrections officers who were upset over working conditions. Gov. Kathy Hochul deployed National Guard troops to maintain operations. More than 2,000 guards were fired.
Prison deaths during the strike included Messiah Nantwi on March 1 at Mid-State Correctional Facility, which is across the road from the Marcy prison. 10 other guards were indicted in Nantwi's death in April, including two charged with murder.
There are still about 3,000 National Guard members serving the state prison system, according to state officials.
“The absence of staff in critical positions is affecting literally every aspect of prison operations. And I think the experience for incarcerated people is neglect,” Jennifer Scaife, executive director of the Correctional Association of New York, an independent monitoring group, said on the eve of Fisher's trial.
Hochul last month announced a broad reform agreement with lawmakers that includes a requirement that cameras be installed in all facilities and that video recordings related to deaths behind bars be promptly released to state investigators.
The state also lowered the hiring age for correction officers from 21 to 18 years of age.
FILE - This image provided by the New York State Attorney General office shows body camera footage of correction officers beating a handcuffed man, Robert Brooks, at the Marcy Correctional Facility in Oneida County, N.Y., Dec. 9, 2024. (New York State Attorney General office via AP, File)
