UNITED STATIONS RADIO NETWORKS SALUTES THE HEROES & WINNERS OF 2006 WITH ITS ANNUAL SEASONAL COUNTRY MUSIC PROGRAMS

Specials Hosted By Heidi Newfield and Jack Ingram

Annual Specials Air as Thanksgiving and Year-End Programs

New York, NY – November 13, 2006 – United Stations Radio Networks, Inc., (USRN) an independent leader in the creation and marketing of network radio programming, today announced it has finalized its lineup for its Annual Holiday Country Music Specials and is offering stations its seasonal Country Heroes 2006 and Country Winners 2006 radio package. Newly solo recording artist Heidi Newfield will serve as host for the Thanksgiving special Country Heroes 2006, while Jack Ingram, who celebrated his first Number 1 song on the Country charts this year will fittingly anchor a year-end tribute to the most successful performers of the year with Country Winners 2006. This all-hit, star-studded country music package is written and produced for United Stations by Neil Haislop’s Country Forever Productions. Country Heroes and Country Winners are available to radio stations on a market exclusive basis through USRN.

Heidi Newfield earned an ACM Award with her group Trick Pony, and her hosting role on the first of these two seasonal country music programs kicks off her solo career. Country Heroes 2006 is a Thanksgiving weekend three-hour special that features the hottest stars in Country music paying tribute to the everyday heroes of their own lives while examining some of the “good news” stories of 2006. This show annually examines the little miracles that happen every day. From helpful neighbors and caring parents to national relief organizations that are on the scene when tragedy strikes, Country Heroes 2006 salutes parents, teachers and local community leaders who set daily examples of how to be a giving and charitable American as well as tell stories of heroism and sacrifice from our troops overseas and their families at home.

Heidi Newfield recently announced that she would be leaving Trick Pony to “branch out and try it on my own.” She’s been performing since the age of six and recorded her first project in Nashville when she was 13. Newfield eventually earned platinum-selling success with her trio known as Trick Pony. She and the group gained a 2002 ACM award for Top New Vocal Group and she received CMA, ACM and Grammy nominations, had a number one single, and recorded a gold and platinum album. This is Newfield’s first time hosting a nationally distributed radio program for United Stations.

Country Winners 2006 is the second three-hour holiday season retrospective set to air from the network, and this year’s edition will be hosted by Jack Ingram. The special profiles the year’s biggest winners, from the artists who took home top honors and various music awards throughout the year, to the breakthrough and comeback artists of 2006. This year-end special also offers exclusive reflection on the year in Country Music from the hottest stars in Country, and shines a light on the concert tours, the impressive songs and momentous occasions that shaped the year in the Country format. The show will feature interviews with Country Music’s top artists of the year along with backstage audio from the major awards shows. Additionally, Country Winners 2006 will name the “Number One Most Successful Country Star of 2006” based on hits, album sales, concert totals and big awards. The program airs nationally as a “year-ender” during the week following Christmas, the week of December 25 through December 31, 2006.

Texas singer-songwriter Jack Ingram hosts Country Winners 2006 and Ingram was a big winner himself this year. “Love You”, one of the studio tracks from his Live - Wherever You Are release reached the #1 chart position in Country Music earlier this year. The perennially independent Ingram now records for Nashville Big Machine label, promotes his own music festival outside of San Antonio, Texas, and hosts his own weekly radio show, “Jack’s Tracks” on one of the nation’s biggest country stations, KPLX “The Wolf” in Dallas. This is also Ingram’s first time hosting a nationally distributed radio program for United Stations.

Neil Haislop is recognized as one of Country Radios leading writers, researchers and producers. His association with United Stations, now in its second decade, includes his role as producer of the Country Giants series as well as these popular year-end "Heroes & Winners" specials and other seasonal specials. Haislop is also the author of "The Giants of Country Music," released by Billboard Books.

The Heroes and Winners shows join United Stations numerous other country music program offerings. These include The Crook & Chase Countdown and Updates, The Road, The American Christian Music Review (ACMR), Thunder Road, Morning Prep from the Launch Radio Networks and Country Comedy. United Stations Radio Networks, Inc., is the nation's largest independently owned and operated radio network. The company currently distributes and produces multiple format specific services to nearly 4000 rated radio stations across the country including Adult Contemporary, Album Rock, Contemporary Hit, Country, Oldies, Smooth Jazz, Talk and Urban. The New York-based company was founded in 1994 by radio pioneers Dick Clark and Nick Verbitsky.
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