Clear Channel is currently aligning itself (even more than it already was) to program all of their stations centrally. Each Genre has one or two people responsible for the “National Platform” for that type of radio
Darryl Parks is the new “Brand Manager” for Clear Channel “Talk”. Since Clear Channel is the 600 pound gorilla in Radio, he will have a major say over the future of Clear Channel’s talk shows – currently Bob & Tom, Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Andy Dean and George Noory. There are probably legal reasons to keep Premiere a separate entity, but for all practical purposes it is the same thing – just offering the Clear Channel Talk Platform in markets where CC doesn’t have a news/talk station.
http://www.clearchannel.com/Radio/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=2810
Darryl Parks has been running the show at WLW in Cincinatti since 1999. WLW had been developed into the very successulf station it is by Randy Michaels and became part of Jacor – Jacor under Michaels had purchased Premiere, and then Jacor was gobbled up by Clear Channel which is how Rush wound up working for Clear Channel instead of ABC. Michaels left Cincinnati to run the entire company, leaving Darrly Parks as his replacement. Darryl considers Randy Michaels to be one of his two primary mentors in radio.
Here is a more detailed description of his education and background in radio
http://ftp.media.radcity.net/ZMST/insideradio/Interviews/ParksArticle09-29.pdf