Tom Poleman
Senior Vice President Programming & Marketing
Z100 & Clear Channel Radio New York
Tom Poleman is not only the SVP Programming/Operations Manager for Z100, the most listened to CHR radio station in America; he is equally responsible for the strategic vision of six Clear Channel radio stations in New York City.
Poleman is the Senior Vice President of Programming & Marketing for the incredibly successful Clear Channel New York cluster of stations, which includes Z100, WLTW, WKTU, Q104.3, Power 105.1, and WALK. He works closely with each of the program directors for fresh, new and inventive ways to increase overall ratings and listenership. He is committed to providing superior content to listeners not only through traditional broadcast means but also via new technology including, but not limited to, station web-sites. He played a key role in the January 2006 launch of FIVE exciting new HD2 digital-radio multicasts for CCNY including: Lite Classics, Z100 New Music, Q104.3 Deep Classics, Power Latino, and New York Country.
On a national level, Poleman helps navigate new technologies to expand each station’s radio brand. He has been instrumental in the development of new media programs for Clear Channel Online and Radio including HD Radio, mobile phones, social networking and music content.
Poleman joined Z100 in 1996 as Program Director and led the station’s shift back to its Top 40 roots, doubling the ratings and returning Z100 to a dominant position in the New York market. Over the years, Poleman has also held senior corporate programming roles in Chancellor Broadcasting and AMFM. He also held programming and on-air positions at KRBE/Houston, WKCI-WAVZ/New Haven, WALK/Long Island, and WVBR/Ithaca.
In 2006, Poleman was named National Programming Executive of the Year at Radio & Records Magazine Industry Achievement Awards. In March 2005, he was ranked number one in Billboard Radio Monitor’s Top 40 Programmers in Top 40 Radio issue. He was named Crain’s New York Magazine’s “40 Under 40” executives to watch in 2003. Poleman has been honored numerous times as Major Market Mainstream Top 40 Program Director of the Year at the Radio Music Awards and in Billboard, Radio and Records, FMQB, and Gavin magazines. For the past several years, he has also made the list of Radio Ink’s Most Influential Programmers.
Tom is well known as a leader of the entertainment industry and is often sought after for comments in the media. Along with being involved in many community programs, Tom serves on the Board of Directors for Musicians on Call. He was honored in November 2006 by the Explorer’s Club, 2004 by LIFEbeat - The Music Industry Fights AIDS, and in 1999 as the recipient of the Gloria Swanson Humanitarian Award by the American Cinema Awards Foundation and an honoree at the T.J. Martell Foundation Music Industry Roast. A Cornell University alumnus, he resides in Larchmont, NY with his wife Ginny and their two children, Michael and Kelly.
