Former Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell, who led the state during a period of political turmoil and enacted ethics reforms, has passed away at age 78. Rell died in a Florida hospital after a brief illness. She was from Brookfield and represented it in the State House before ultimately becoming Governor in 2004 following the resignation of John Rowland (ROLL-and). She was then elected to a full term in 2006. Known for her bipartisan leadership, Rell championed health care expansions, child care, and ethics laws, and signed the nation’s first civil union law in 2005. State flags in Connecticut have been ordered to fly at half-staff in her honor. Funeral arrangements are pending.
Ed Histed
Ed launched his radio career in 1975 and has spent more than five decades in the broadcasting industry. During that time, he has served in a wide range of roles including Air Personality, News Director, Sales Manager, Operations Manager, and General Manager at numerous radio stations in various markets across the country. Beyond on-air and management responsibilities, Ed has also worked extensively on the technical side of broadcasting. His background includes RF engineering and information technology, with particular experience configuring digital automation systems and remote voice-tracking platforms used by stations across the country. Ed was also among a select group of industry professionals invited by Google to its California headquarters following the company’s acquisition of Scott Studios. He was one of just 12 broadcasters nationwide chosen to participate in discussions and provide input during the design and rollout of Google’s digital broadcast automation platform. Although the majority of Ed’s career—spanning roughly four decades—was rooted in music radio, he transitioned into news and information programming in 2012. He says the move into spoken-word broadcasting was a natural evolution after decades of experience in multiple areas of the industry.