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➦In 1905..."Scientific America" published an advertisement for the "Telimco", a device guaranteed to received signals for as far as one mile. It cost $8.50.
The Telimco system included a battery-operated spark transmitter, shown on the left, plus a tapping-coherer receiver, also battery operated, shown on the right. (The use of a spark transmitter and tapping-coherer receiver meant it could only be used to send and receive telegraphic dots-and-dashes, and not full audio.) This small ad--which measured just 2-1/4 inches wide by 1-1/8 inches high (60 by 28 millimeters)--appeared on the back pages of the magazine, mixed in with the advertisements for sundry offering by numerous other small firms. It is generally believed that this was the first-ever advertisement run by a company selling complete radio systems to the general public.
The Telimco brand name was a contraction of The Electro Importing Co. In addition to Telimco Wireless Telegraph Outfits, you could also buy Telimco Experimental X-Ray Outfits, Telimco-meters, Telimphones, etc.
➦In 1910...the first opera was broadcast on Radio, courtesy of the New York Metropolitan Opera.
The first public radio broadcast consisted of performances of Cavalleria Rusticana and Pagliacci. Riccardo Martin performed as Turridu, Emmy Destinn as Santuzza, and Enrico Caruso as Canio. The conductor was Egisto Tango. This wireless radio transmission event of the Italian tenor Enrico Caruso of a concert from the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City is regarded as the birth of public radio broadcasting.
The New York Times reported on January 14, 1910,
"Opera broadcast in part from the stage of the New York City Metropolitan Opera Company was heard on January 13, 1910, when Enrico Caruso and Emmy Destinn sang arias from Cavalleria Rusticana and I Pagliacci, which were "trapped and magnified by the dictograph directly from the stage and borne by wireless Hertzian waves over the turbulent waters of the sea to transcontinental and coastwise ships and over the mountainous peaks and undulating valleys of the country." The microphone was connected by telephone wire to the laboratory of Dr. Lee De Forest.”
The few radio receivers able to pick up this first-ever "outside broadcast" were those at the De Forest Radio Laboratory, on board ships in New York Harbor, in large hotels on Times Square and at New York city locations where members of the press were stationed at receiving sets. Public receivers with earphones had been set up in several well-advertised locations throughout New York City. There were members of the press stationed at various receiving sets throughout the city and the general public was invited to listen to the broadcast.
The experiment was considered mostly unsuccessful. The microphones of the day were of poor quality and couldn't pick up most of the singing done on stage. Only off-stage singers singing directly into a microphone could be heard clearly. The New York Times reported the next day that static and interference kept the homeless song waves from finding themselves.
➦In 1913...producer/host Ralph Edwards was born near Merino Colorado. Best known as producer/host of TV’s This is Your Life, he came to prominence as the host of radio’s zany Truth or Consequences, a game show which ran for 38 years on radio & TV. As producer he brought to the airwaves TV’s The People’s Court, still on the air 25 years later. He died of congestive heart failure Nov. 25 1997 at age 84.
➦On 1918...actor Steve Dunne was born in Northampton Mass. He succeeded Howard Duff on radio as the star of The Adventures of Sam Spade. On TV he starred in the series Professional Father & The Brothers Brannigan, and appeared repeatedly on Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Brady Bunch, The Millionaire & Lux Video Theatre. He died Sept. 2 1977 at age 59.
➦In 1922...WHA 970 AM in Madison, Wisconsin began broadcasting.
WHA's history dates back to 1914 when Professor Edward Bennett started using the call sign 9XM. A year later, the call sign was transferred to the University of Wisconsin and used for many experiments in the physics department. Professor Earle M. Terry managed many of these tests, and he eventually decided that the station should start making regular weather broadcasts. From December 4, 1916 onward, the station transmitted regular reports in Morse code.
While most early radio stations in the United States were shut down when the country entered World War I, 9XM's early transmissions were considered important enough to continue, spending much of the war broadcasting weather information to ships sailing on the Great Lakes.
Regularly scheduled audio broadcasts began in February 1920. A six-day-per-week schedule began on January 3, 1921, notable for the introduction of the first radio broadcast of a weather forecast. The station received its WHA call sign on January 13, 1922.
➦In 1928…The first public demonstration of television was given by Ernst F. W. Alexanderson. The first television broadcast in the United States was to his home in Schenectady, New York in 1927.
➦In 1934...a comedy-variety hit of early radio The Al Pearce Show debuted on NBC Blue, after 5 successful years on KFRC San Francisco.
➦In 1958...St. Louis radio station KWK (now KXFN 1380 AM) declared Rock n’ Roll dead. (Ha ha ha ha ha.) After giving their rock records a final play, the station staff broke them
➦In 1962..."The Twist" by Chubby Checker hit Number 1 again, over a year after it first reached the top spot on the charts. The only other song ever to do that was Bing Crosby's "White Christmas."
➦In 1970...Los Angeles DJ Sam Riddle forms the Sam Riddle Organization to be known as SRO for coordinating five separate companies headed by Riddle. The divisions include concert promotions, television appearances, record production, publishing and artist management. Riddle is host of “Get It Together” on ABC-TV and still syndicates “Boss City” on TV. He was still heard on 93/KHJ.
➦In 1970....David Sarnoff, the man who put radio into the American home, resigned as chairman of RCA Corp. because of ill health.
➦In 1970....Host Bob Grant completes the final two-way talkshow over KLAC, Los Angeles, ending the station’s run as an aggressive “in-your-face” talk format. The station has been transitioning into a MOR music format for the past few months.
➦In 1980...Orchestra leader/arranger Andre Kostelanetz, whose radio program was one of America's most popular from the 1930s to the 1950s, died at the age of 78.
➦In 2006...Bob Grant did last long-form form talk show at WOR 710 AM.
➦In 2011...the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council banned Dire Straits ‘85 hit “Money For Nothing” because a homophobic epithet in the song is no longer acceptable. “The panel concluded that, like other racially driven words in the English language, ‘faggot’ is one that, even if entirely or marginally accepted in earlier days, is no longer so,” said CBSC chair Ron Cohen in an official statement. Many Canadian stations ignored the ban.
➦In 2012…Former Radio/TV newsman (CBS, ABC) Richard Threlkeld was killed in a car accident at age 74.
➦In 2016…Retired sportscaster (NBC-TV, NBC Radio, ESPN, ABC, CBS, TNT)/National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Famer Jim Simpson died at the age of 88.
The Ron & Don Show is no more. The popular talk radio show aired weekday afternoons with hosts Ron Upshaw and Don O’Neil, reports Q13 News.
KIRO 97.3 FM announced the news Friday morning in a Facebook post — stating that Ron & Don had hosted their final show Thursday night.
Later Friday, KIRO 97.3 FM announced The Candy, Mike & Todd Show which would air weekdays 3 – 7 p.m. starting Monday, Jan. 14.
“This is an exciting moment in the continuing evolution of KIRO Radio,” says Dave Pridemore, VP/Market Manager for Bonneville Seattle Media Group. “We feel that Candy, Mike and Todd will bring a variety of fun, entertaining and diverse perspectives that best represent the communities that KIRO Radio serves.”
“We’ve put together what we feel is a winning team,” says KIRO Radio Director of News and Programming Ryan Maguire. “Candy, Mike and Todd are a fun, entertaining and intelligent trio. They will be a perfect complement to the news, traffic and weather elements that KIRO Radio listeners expect every weekday afternoon.”
Candy Harper most recently served as the afternoon producer on KIRO Radio. She came to the station in 2015 as a traffic reporter and held roles as a weekend and fill-in host as well. Harper grew up just Southeast of Seattle on Lake Sawyer, where she got the itch to do radio at a young age. Prior to coming to KIRO Radio, she hosted successful shows at radio stations in Madison, Charlotte, Albany and Seattle.
“I can’t wait to get started,” says Harper. “Mike, Todd and I are three opinionated friends who may disagree on almost everything but love to talk about why. Turns out, people are quite capable of disagreeing on issues and still being decent human beings. This show is going to be unique.”
KIRO 97.3 FM (55 Kw) Red=54dBu Coverage
Mike Lewis has worked at KIRO Radio as a reporter and fill-in host since 2016. Originally from Modesto, California, he moved to Seattle in 2000 when he began working for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer as a politics and policy reporter. Locally, he has also worked as regional editor for AOL’s Patch.com. Prior to living in Seattle, he spent eight years working for McClatchy Newspapers, and two years working for the Los Angeles Daily Journal.
“This is a great opportunity and I’m excited to work with Candy and Todd,” says Lewis. “Listeners can expect a show that is authentic, relatable and well-informed. Hopefully, we can provide listeners with something that makes their commute home a little more enjoyable.”
Todd Herman has been the afternoon show host on KIRO Radio’s sister-station KTTH-AM since 2015 and worked as a fill-in host on both KIRO Radio and the nationally syndicated Rush Limbaugh Show. A Spokane native, Herman has a vast background in broadcasting, technology and politics. Prior to KTTH, he worked in Washington D.C. as the Chief Digital Strategist for the Republican Party. Additionally, he started the MSN Video business unit for Microsoft and founded the first internet radio network, The Dial.
“This job is a dream come true for me,” admits Herman. “One of my goals in life is to be a force for bringing people together and to lend a genuine, conservative point of view to major media. I feel this show will truly do that. Candy, Mike, and I view life very differently. If you don’t want to live in a bubble, you’ll enjoy what the three of us have to say.”
KTTH 770 AM Seattle has announced a revamped lineup for their “conservative commute” format:
The Saul Spady Show will air weekday mornings from 6:00-9:00 a.m
The Jason Rantz Show headlines afternoon drive-time from 3:00pm-6:00pm
Nationally syndicated Ben Shapiro Show moves to weeknights from 6:00pm-9:00pm
“The ‘Conservative Commute’ has never been more fresh and dynamic,” VP/Market Manager for Bonneville Seattle Media Group, Dave Pridemore, explained. “Between Rantz, Medved and the addition of Spady, we’re positioned to continue to be the region’s most dominant and local conservative station.”
Spady is very active in local politics, most recently leading a successful grassroots effort to repeal Seattle’s Amazon head tax. An accomplished small businessman and lifelong Washingtonian, Spady’s family is very well known to the region, his grandfather the founder of the iconic Dick’s Drive-In. He is passionate about helping people tell their stories and establish a millennial voice in Washington state.
“I’m excited for this opportunity to create a new type of conservative talk radio show in mornings that gives a 21st century perspective both locally and nationally,” said Spady. “I hope to connect with listeners both new & old, transplant & local alike in our quest to create a rational opposition to the rudderless leadership we have in Seattle & Olympia.”
Rantz now leads afternoon drive, after handling morning drive for over a year. Rantz is a forceful, respected local voice in the conservative movement, understanding the pulse of the local political scene, frequently breaking exclusive news stories. Rantz has appeared on FOX News, NBC Nightly News, KIRO, KING and KOMO television, and in The Seattle Times. His blog has become the most-viewed on MyNorthwest.com.
KTTH 770 AM (50 Kw-D, 5 Kw-N DA2)
“I’m excited to take over afternoon drive and continue tackling the stories that impact everyone’s daily lives,” Rantz said. “From homelessness and the opioid epidemic, to the war on cars and demonization of cops, there are a lot of issues we need to shine a light on or champion, and I look forward to continuing the conversations in the afternoon.”
Shapiro got his solo start with KTTH in 2014 and has since launched into syndication with Westwood One. Shapiro wraps the KTTH “conservative commute” with biting, thoughtful analysis on national political and cultural news. Shapiro is the Editor in Chief of the Daily Wire, a best-selling author, and frequent guest on FOX News.
“I’m incredibly excited to be returning to three hours a day in Seattle,” Shapiro said. “Having hosted on KTTH a few years back, I’m pumped to be coming back — and I can’t wait to talk with the terrific Seattle audience every day.”
Between Spady and Rantz, AM 770 KTTH broadcasts the Rush Limbaugh Show and Michael Medved Show. Mark Levin, Tom Shillue, and America’s 1st News with Matt Ray round out the lineup. Todd Herman, previously heard in afternoons, departed KTTH for Bonneville-owned KIRO-FM/Seattle.
Megyn Kelly enjoyed a steady career at Fox News for 13 years, but she lasted a little over 18 months at competitor NBC.
The controversial journalist formally – and finally – parted ways with NBC News on Friday night, nearly three months after she stirred controversy by defending the use of blackface in Halloween costumes on her Oct. 23 show.
"The parties have resolved their differences, and Megyn Kelly is no longer an employee of NBC," the network told USAToday in a statement.
Wave 'bye Kelly
Financial terms were not disclosed, but according to CNN, NBC bowed to the terms of her contract and will pay Kelly the remaining sum of money, believed to total about $30 million.
She will, however, be subject to an industry standard non-disparagement clause, limiting what she can say about her time at NBC and her interactions with the network executives.
She is not believed to have a non-compete clause.
Kelly, 48, has been missing in action for 11 weeks since the tearful, on-air apology she made following her on-air gaffe. Kelly apologized for saying that blackface was "OK when I was a kid as long as you were dressing like a character.” She had also defended a “Real Housewives” star who was slammed for donning blackface for a Diana Ross costume. "I was wrong and I'm sorry," said Kelly.
But her apology wasn’t enough to keep “Megyn Kelly Today” afloat. After two days of reruns, NBC canceled her 9 a.m. hour of the “Today” show on Oct. 23. The following Monday, her former colleagues stepped in to replace her.
Kelly’s next move is up in the air. The lawyer and mother of three has been on the air in one capacity or another since 2003. “You’ll definitely see me back on (television),” Kelly told TMZ just this week when caught on the street in New York City.
CBS Corporation and Nielsen Friday announced an agreement for Nielsen national, digital and local audience measurement.
The renewal encompasses a range of services. CBS Television Network, CBS Television Distribution, Showtime Networks, Smithsonian, Pop, CBS Sports Network and CBS’ 27 owned-and-operated local television stations will continue to use Nielsen’s total audience measurement services as part of the deal. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“CBS is a longstanding leader in world-class video content. We are thrilled to continue our long partnership with them as we innovate for the future,” commented David Kenny, Chief Executive Officer, Nielsen.
“We are very pleased with this new agreement we were able to achieve with Nielsen,” said Joe Ianniello, President and Acting CEO, CBS Corporation.
“It meets our strategic goals, and will allow us to benefit from important advances in measurement as they are rolled out. CBS programming is perennially the most-watched content rated by Nielsen, and there is significant upside ahead as next-generation advertising continues to flourish.”
Amazon honcho Jeff Bezos stands to lose millions of shares of company stock during his pending divorce, according to a Business Insider report.
The company founder—who recently announced he was parting ways with his wife MacKenzie Bezos after 25 years—owns about 16 percent of Amazon's shares. Under Washington state law, BI notes, MacKenzie could be eligible to collect half of those shares, which make up a sizable chunk of the couples' estimated net worth of $137 billion.
Not long after Jeff Bezos tweeted the news of the couple’s breakup, The National Enquirer published the results of a four-month-long investigation into the Amazon exec's alleged relationship with news anchor and pilot Lauren Sanchez, which the tabloid claimed involved "raunchy messages and erotic selfies."
It's unclear how those revelations will affect the divorce proceedings, and TMZ reports the couple did not have a prenup. But this much is clear: By year's end, Jeff Bezos will likely be only slightly richer than the Romanoffs, according to Brian Raferty at Wired.com.
Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Robert Iger saw the value of his total compensation last year surge 81% to $65.6 million, the company said in a securities filing Friday.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the biggest driver of the increase was $35.4 million in stock awards, a portion of which was due to the extension of his contract through December 2021. Iger’s salary for the year ended in September rose to $2.9 million from $2.5 million.
The value of all of Mr. Iger’s stock-award holdings, assuming that the highest level of performance conditions are achieved and the deal for 21st Century Fox Inc.’s entertainment assets closes, would be $149.6 million for 2018, according to the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Following shareholder pushback, Disney’s board last month raised the targets Mr. Iger would have to clear to collect his performance bonus. Disney shareholders had rejected, in a nonbinding advisory vote, the compensation plan for Mr. Iger and other executives.
In comparison, Mr. Iger’s total pay a year earlier was valued at $36.3 million, which included $9 million in stock awards.
An executive at a San Diego television station that accused CNN of rejecting an appearance by one of its reporters for political reasons conceded Friday he didn’t really know why the network turned him down, reports The Associated Press.
After CNN reached out to KUSI-TV to see if reporter Dan Plante would come on the air Thursday to talk about how a border barrier was working in the San Diego area, the segment never happened.
CNN said plans change all the time, and that the network chose to have its own reporters talk about border security. But KUSI saw other motivations.
Steve Cohen, KUSI’s news director, said he told CNN that it might not want Plante because his reporting has concluded that a border wall there has worked well, and that such a conclusion might not fit the cable network’s “narrative” against the wall. He said he never got a call back.
Thursday morning, @CNN called the KUSI Newsroom asking if a reporter could give them a local view of the debate surrounding the border wall and government shutdown. After we informed them about our past reports, they declined to hear from us.
CNN said it had also reached out to reporters at other local stations about a possible segment but didn’t follow through when the plans changed. “This happens many times every single day,” the network said in a statement. “This is a non-story.”
Cohen said he never actually spoke to anyone about CNN about why Plante wasn’t used.
“It’s certainly plausible that they didn’t want it for the viewpoint, or they just didn’t want it,” he said. “Both are plausible conclusions. I made one rather than the other.”
KUSI-TV is unaffiliated with any broadcast network and owned by McKinnon Broadcasting Co. Its general manager, Michael McKinnon, was described by the San Diego Business Journal as a “longtime supporter of conservative causes and candidates in the San Diego area.”
CNN noted that it had aired another report from KUSI about border security in November.
After four days of demonstrating the bright future made possible by technology, CES 2019 came to a close Friday.
More than 4,500 exhibitors showcased the latest tech innovations to some 180,000 attendees across more than 2.9 million net square feet of exhibit space in Las Vegas. From global brands to visionary startups, these companies set the world abuzz with the promise of technology.
"CES showcases the power of innovation to solve global problems and improve lives around the world,” said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO, Consumer Technology Association (CTA). “The passion, ideas and business connections at CES make this the most significant global tech event – and the most inspirational week of the year.”
“Every business must now embrace technology to succeed,” said Karen Chupka, executive vice president, CES. “And companies like Procter & Gamble, John Deere and Raytheon proved that at CES 2019.”
The CES 2019 keynote stage featured some of the biggest names in tech, including AMD, AT&T Communications, IBM, LG and Verizon. CTA released its 2019 International Innovation Scorecard grading countries on how well they support innovation, and announced it will invest $10 million in venture firms and funds focused on women, people of color and other underrepresented startups and entrepreneurs. CTA also released its newest book, Ninja Future, exploring the skills needed to remain competitive in the rapidly-changing future.
CES is the only show where the entire 5G ecosystem – the backbone for transportation, virtual reality, sports technology and digital health – comes together. “5G will change everything – 5G is the promise of so much more than what we have seen from wireless technology,” said Hans Vestberg, CEO, Verizon, during his keynote. Fellow keynoter John Donovan, CEO of AT&T Communications, discussed the company’s recent launch of its 5G Evolution network.
CES 2019 showed artificial intelligence will influence every aspect of our lives. IBM Chairman, President and CEO Ginni Rometty’s opening keynote explored how AI will prove data is the “world’s greatest natural resource,” enabling revolutions from smart cities to health care, transportation to robotics. During Rometty’s keynote, Delta CEO Ed Bastian and Walmart EVP of Food Charles Redfield shared examples of AI and blockchain technology in their businesses.
CES 2019 was a turbo-charged mobility show, with 11 of the world’s leading car manufacturers highlighting the future of transportation – including an air taxi from Bell Helicopter and an electric motorcycle from Harley-Davidson. Self-driving technology will save lives, enable greater accessibility and improve productivity.
The CES Sports Zone showcased the entire sports tech ecosystem – innovations in smart venues, training, virtual and augmented reality and esports creating immersive content that will change the way we play, watch and experience sports. Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver discussed how their partnership proves social media can promote fan engagement, and the Gamespot eSports truck featured 10 gaming kiosks for both professional gamers and attendees to showcase their skills.
C Space brought together content creators, Hollywood, the advertising industry, media and leading CMOs – such as Proctor & Gamble’s Marc Pritchard, IBM’s Michelle Peluso, Unilever’s Keith Weed – to explore the future of brand marketing and entertainment. Exhibits and conference sessions explored the effect of AI on marketing and consumer engagement, mobile and over-the-top video, and content consumption.
Eureka Park, the home for startups at CES, featured more than 1,200 companies from over 50 countries offering disruptive innovations, attracting investors and big-name brands. This year Eureka Park – which has launched successful companies including Ring, Benjilock and LifeFuels – included a pitch competition, sponsored by the Consumer Technology Association Foundation and AARP.
Digital health technologies were a major theme, and attendees experienced the latest advances and trends in health care. Over 260 doctors and other health professionals attended the Disruptive Innovations in Health Care conference, which offered Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits at CES for the first time.
Resilient technologies will keep the world healthy, safe, warm, powered, fed and secure. Sustainable technologies from companies including YOLK and Zero Mass Water will produce efficient energy solutions and help provide drinking water to developing nations, while reducing the global carbon footprint. Others like Higher Ground Technologies keep us connected anywhere in the world.
A banner demanding RCA Records and its parent company Sony drop R. Kelly over alleged sexual misconduct flew over the companies' Los Angeles headquarters on Friday, according to Billboard.
The airplane was commissioned by women's rights group UltraViolet, reading, "RCA/Sony: Drop Sexual Predator R Kelly." The organization says it has additional plans for physical protests in days to come.
UltraViolet's protest comes following the explosive Lifetime documentary series Surviving R. Kelly, which aired last weekend, sparking outrage with multiple accounts alleged predatory sexual behavior.
The organization has previously spoken out against Kelly -- along with other activist groups including the #MuteRKelly campaign and Women of Color within the Time's Up movement -- applauding Spotify's now-reversed decision to remove Kelly from its editorially curated playlists and condemning those doing business with him.
"It is long past time for RCA to dump R Kelly and take a stand against abuse," said UltraViolet Chief Campaigns Officer Karin Roland in a statement on Thursday. "Their inaction is beyond shameful. RCA can no longer pretend that R. Kelly's music can be separated from his violent actions."
Meanwhile, a Chicago radio station has decided to drop R. Kelly's music.
Chicago’s 95.1 FM Clubsteppin, W236CF Chicago and 95.1 W236CG Bolingbrook IL which are fed by Spanish Broadcasting Systems’ WLEY 107.9 HD2 Aurora, will no longer play any music by R.Kelly because of the controversy that resurfaced after Lifetime’s “Surviving R. Kelly” documentary series.
Lamont Watts, CEO of the station that launched in August, said he made the decision because the station’s audience is primarily African-American women.
The Chicago Sun-Times reports Cook County court records show that an eviction order was entered against Kelly on Monday to vacate the warehouse/studio space. The building’s owners sued him in June, alleging he owed nearly $80,000 in back rent.
During the more than 30 people turned out for a demonstration across the street from Kelly’s warehouse/studio space.
The group, largely made up of women, chanted “black girls matter” to show support for Kelly’s accusers. A volunteer activist with #MuteRKelly, a national group leading protests against the Chicago singer, described the latest accusations as “atrocities.”
At the warehouse, a couple dozen people could be seen filing into the building. Outside, a woman stood on the sidewalk calling the protestors “liars.”
R. Kelly's estranged daughter posted a long message on her Instagram story Thursday addressing the sexual assault allegations surrounding her father. Buku Abi, previously known as Joann Kelly, said it has been years since she and her two siblings have spoken to their father and that their mother, Andrea Kelly, has not seen or spoken to him in years either.
According to CBS News, she apologized for staying silent regarding multiple women's claims against her father, writing: "The same monster you all confronting me about is my father. I am well aware of who and what he is. I grew up in that house. My choice to not speak on him and what he does is for my peace of mind."
Controversial radio and internet personality Alex Jones was ordered Friday to hand over emails and other documents tied to his claim that no one died in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
According to The NYPost, the decision by Connecticut State Superior Court Judge Barbara Bellis is part of a defamation case against Jones filed by the families of seven of the 26 children and adult staffers killed in the massacre.
The judge said Jones must hand over “letters, memos, emails, text messages, instant messenger logs or other electronic communications” transmitted on the tragic shooting. He must also turn over “all business and marketing plans, marketing data, web analytics, sales analytics and/or web traffic” on his website Infowars.
The families sued Jones and InfoWars for defamation last year, accusing them of perpetuating a “monstrous, unspeakable lie: that the Sandy Hook shooting was staged and that the families who lost loved ones that day are actors who faked their relatives’ deaths.”
The families are also seeking to depose Jones. The judge is expected to hear arguments on that next week.
➦In 1925...WGBI-AM (now WBZU) Scranton, PA signed on the frequency of 1250 kHz owned by Edward Megargee.
In 1927, the station moved to 1300 kHz which it time shared with Scranton's other radio station, WQAN (now WEJL). The two stations which were time sharing a single frequency, moved to 880 kHz in 1931, and then again to 910 kHz by 1941 (the later move, forced by a nationwide frequency reassignment which took place in 1941). WGBI remained at 910 kHz (at 1,000 watts) when WQAN moved on to its own broadcast tower and new frequency of 630 kHz in 1948. This meant that WGBI had full-time use of the 910 kHz frequency where it remains to this day, as WBZU. WGBI was a CBS Radio network affiliated station by the 1940s.
The Megargee family's company, Scranton Broadcasters, spawned an FM station (now WGGY) and northeast Pennsylvania's second television station (now WYOU). The Megargees held on to the radio stations well into the 1990s. By the turn of the century, WGBI had been sold to Entercom and become a repeater of WILK-AM, existing mainly to improve its signal in Scranton. While WILK's daytime signal easily covers most of Scranton, the northern portion of the city only gets a grade B signal. At night, WILK-AM must power down to 1,000 watts, leaving most of Scranton with only a grade B signal.
WBZU in 2007 moved its transmitter to the tower location atop the Times Building at 149 Penn Avenue in downtown Scranton also being used by WEJL's transmitter. The full-time switch over to the new transmitter facility and tower location happened on August 2, 2007. This tower sharing arrangement repeats an arrangement the stations shared over 60 years ago in their early history. The efficiency of the new transmitter tower location also caused WBZU to slightly reduce its power to 900 watts to keep within FCC rules on signal strength and coverage.
➦In 1926..."Sam 'n' Henry" began a two-year stay on Chicago's WGN Radio. The show's creators, Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll, quit the show and WGN when the station rejected a proposed syndication deal for the series. Since contractually their characters belonged to WGN, they changed the title and reworked the premise in 1928 to create the long running Amos'n'Andy show, orginally broadcast from WMAQ in Chicago.
➦In 1932...columnist & future TV host Ed Sullivan joined CBS radio in a program of gossip and interviews.
➦In 1951...Rush Hudson Limbaugh IIIIwas born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Limabugh is the most popular and most listened to conservative radio host in the United States.
Limbaugh began his career in radio as a teenager in 1967 in his hometown of Cape Girardeau, using the name Rusty Sharpe. Limbaugh graduated from Cape Girardeau, Missouri Central High School in 1969. He played football. Because of his parents' desire to see him attend college, he enrolled in Southeast Missouri State University but left the school after two semesters and one summer. According to his mother, "he flunked everything", and "he just didn't seem interested in anything except radio."
After dropping out of college, Limbaugh moved to McKeesport, PA. In 1972, he became a Top 40 music disc jockey on WIXZ, a small AM radio station that reached much of the Pittsburgh area. He started with an afternoon show and later did mornings, broadcasting under the name Jeff Christie. Limbaugh moved to Pittsburgh station KQV in 1973 as the evening disc jockey, succeeding Jim Quinn. He was fired in late-1974, when the station was sold to Taft Broadcasting.
Jeff Christie Aircheck: Click Here (courtesy of Jeff Roteman's radio website)
Limbaugh was reportedly told by management that he would never make it as on air talent, and should consider going into sales.
For the rest of the '70s, Limbaugh took jobs at several radio stations, working in music radio, before settling in Kansas City. In 1979, he left radio and accepted a position as director of promotions with the Kansas City Royals baseball team. There he developed a close friendship with then-Royals star third baseman and future Hall of Famer George Brett; the two remain close friends.
In 1984, Limbaugh returned to radio as a talk show host at KFBK-AM in Sacramento, CA, where he replaced Morton Downey, Jr. The repeal of the Fairness Doctrine—which had required that stations provide free air time for responses to any controversial opinions that were broadcast—by the FCC in 1987 meant stations could broadcast editorial commentary without having to present opposing views.
On August 1, 1988, after achieving success in Sacramento and drawing the attention of former ABC Radio President Edward McLaughlin, Limbaugh moved to New York City and began his national radio show. He debuted just weeks after the Democratic National Convention, and just weeks before the Republican National Convention. Limbaugh's radio home in New York City was the talk-formatted WABC 770 AM. Limbaugh now hosts from West Palm Beach.
➦In 1954...Howard Stern was born in Roosevelt, New York.
Stern's Class Photo
His first on-air job in radio was WRNW, where covered shifts in late December 1976. Stern was hired full-time, working a four-hour midday shift for six days a week on a $96 weekly salary. He subsequently became the station's production and program director for an increased salary of $250.
In 1979, Stern spotted an advertisement in Radio&Records for a "wild, fun morning guy" at rock station WCCC in Hartford, Connecticut. He submitted a more outrageous audition tape featuring Robert Klein and Cheech and Chong records with flatulence routines and one-liners.Stern was hired.
It was at WCCC where Stern met Fred Norris, the overnight disc jockey, who has been Stern's writer and producer since 1981. According to news reporter and author Paul Colford, Stern was influenced by listening to tapes of Steve Dahl sent from Chicago. In early 1980, Stern left WCCC after he was denied a pay increase.
1983
On April 21, 1980 Stern began a new morning position at WWWW, a rock station in Detroit after management praised Stern's audition tape during their search for a new morning man. Stern was determined to be more open on the air, "to cut down the barriers ... strip down all the ego ... and be totally honest" to his audience. However, the station struggled to compete with the city's three more popular rock stations. By January 1981, when Stern's quarterly Arbitron ratings showed no signs of a strong audience, the station changed to a country music format, much to Stern's annoyance. He lasted two weeks on the air as "Hopalong Howie" before his departure. He declined offers to work at WXRT in Chicago and CHUM in Toronto, Canada.
Following his exit from Detroit, Stern moved to Washington, DC, to host mornings at rock station WWDC on March 2, 1981. Feeling determined to develop his show further, he looked for a co-worker with a sense of humor to riff with on news and current events.[49] The station then paired Stern with Robin Quivers, a newscaster and consumer affairs reporter from WFBR in Baltimore.
In 1982, NBC approached Stern with an offer to work afternoons at WNBC 660 AM in NYC. After he signed a five-year contract worth $1 million in March 1982.
On April 2, 1982, NBC Magazine aired a news report on "shock radio" by Douglas Kiker that featured Stern in DC. The piece caused NBC executives to discuss the possible withdrawal of Stern's contract; however, Stern began his afternoon program in September 1982 with management closely monitoring the show and advising Stern to avoid sexual and religious discussions.
In his first month, Stern was suspended for several days for "Virgin Mary Kong", a segment featuring a video game where a group of men pursued the Virgin Mary around a singles bar in Jerusalem. The station also installed a "dump button" that could cut Stern off the microphone should potentially offensive areas be discussed. This became the task of program director Kevin Metheny, who Stern nicknamed "Pig Virus".
In 1985, after hiring his new agent Don Buchwald, Stern signed a five-year contract with WNBC to continue his radio show. Despite management's restrictions, Stern's popularity increased.
In May 1985, Stern claimed the highest ratings at WNBC in four years with a 5.7% market share. In a sudden turn of events, Stern and Quivers were fired for what management termed "conceptual differences" regarding the show on September 30, 1985 Though Stern was not told whose decision it was, Stern believed that Thornton Bradshaw, chairman of RCA who owned WNBC, heard his "Bestiality Dial-a-Date" segment that aired ten days prior and ordered him to be fired.
Stern declined offers to work in Los Angeles, wishing to stay in New York to "kick NBC's ass". He signed a five-year contract with Infinity Broadcasting worth an estimated $500,000 to host afternoons on its rock station WXRK from November 18, 1985. Determined to beat Imus and WNBC in the ratings, Stern moved to the morning slot in February 1986.
The show entered national syndication on August 18 that year when WYSP in Philadelphia began to simulcast the program.
➦In 1955...WTRN 1340 AM signed-on. WTRN's beginnings were part of a boom in local radio station construction in the northern and central part of Pennsylvania that began in 1950. In 1947, Allegheny Mountain Network founder the late-Cary H. Simpson helped build WHUN, where he also would serve as program director, in his hometown of Huntingdon, PA; approximately 20 miles southeast of Tyrone in Huntingdon County. Inspired by the station's success, Simpson built the first station in his group, WKBI-AM in St. Marys, PA. As this was the very first station in his group, WKBI served as the flagship station for the other stations that Simpson would build and put on the air over the next four decades.
courtesy of radio-locator
Desiring to put a station on the air in his newly adopted hometown of Tyrone, Simpson petitioned the FCC for an AM license to be assigned to Tyrone. A construction permit was granted, and Simpson signed WTRN on the air on January 12, 1955. Simpson also successfully applied for an FM license to also be assigned to Tyrone. That station, WGMR (which was sold to Forever Broadcasting in Altoona in 2008), was granted license to operate at 101.1 FM and signed on August 15, 1961.
As WTRN was close to his home, Simpson moved AMN's corporate operations to this station. Many of AMN's properties were in communities that were large enough to make the radio business profitable, but perhaps not quite large enough to support a typical radio station's staff at the time. Thus, many duties were centralized (traffic, billing, upper management) in the Tyrone office, requiring only airstaff and sales consultants at the individual stations. This business model would start to become the accepted standard following the first round of FCC ownership limit changes that began in 1992.
In the early summer of 2009, WTRN began broadcasting in Tyrone on W264BZ. ➦In 1956...At the KHJ Studios in Hollywood, Frank Sinatra recorded "I've Got You Under My Skin." He first sang this song in 1946 but he didn't actually record it until 1956 where it became a big hit for him.
➦In 1959...Berry Gordy Jr. borrowed $800 from his family and rented an eight-room house in Detroit at 2648 W. Grand Boulevard, which became Hitsville U.S.A., the home of his Motown Records and its subsidiary labels. His first release, "Come To Me" by Marv Johnson on the Tamla label, came nine days later. ➦In 1963...In London, Bob Dylan recorded the BBC Radio play "Madhouse on Castle Street," featuring his first recorded version of "Blowin' In The Wind" and his only recording of the original "Swan on the River." ➦In 2003...Bee Gees member Maurice Gibb died of a congenital bowel condition that he was unaware he had. He was 53.
➦In 2007...28-year-old Jennifer Lea Strange of Rancho Cordova, Calif. died after guzzling a large quantity of water as part of Sacramento radio station KDND-FM’s contest.
➦In 2015...Lou Miliano, who reported for CBS Radio News on the local and national levels as part of a distinguished 40 year career as a broadcast journalist, died from lung cancer in a Pinellas Park, Fl., hospice.
He was diagnosed with lung cancer several years ago; he was 67. Miliano spent much of the 1980s overseas as radio correspondent before joining the local News Radio WCBS 880 AM in New York in 1989, where he could also be heard nationally on other CBS-owned stations.
➦In 2018...Keith Jackson, widely regarded as THE voice of US college football, died at age 89. After a decade at KOMO 4 in Seattle, Jackson began his national career in 1964 and spent some 50 years calling the action for ABC & ESPN in a folksy, down-to-earth manner that made him one of the most popular play-by-play men in the business.
A San Diego television station on Thursday said that CNN had asked for a "local view" and then "declined to hear from us" after past reports from the station showed that a border wall was effective, reports The Hill.
Immigration, the partial government shutdown and President Trump's proposed border wall have all been topics dominating the cable news landscape since the shutdown began three weeks ago.
"Thursday morning, CNN called the KUSI Newsroom asking if one of our reporters could give them a local view of the debate surrounding the border wall and government shutdown," a report by KUSI, an independent station in San Diego that began airing in 1982, begins.
"KUSI offered our own Dan Plante, who has reported dozens of times on the border, including one story from 2016 that was retweeted by former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich, and posted on DrudgeReport.com," it continues while linking to a border fence tour report.
"We believe CNN declined a report from KUSI because we informed them that most Border Patrol Agents we have spoken to told us the barrier does in fact work," it concludes. "We have continuously been told by Border Patrol Agents that the barrier along the Southern border helps prevent illegal entries, drugs, and weapons from entering the United States, and the numbers prove it."
Thursday morning, @CNN called the KUSI Newsroom asking if a reporter could give them a local view of the debate surrounding the border wall and government shutdown. After we informed them about our past reports, they declined to hear from us.
CNN Chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta was mocked on social media after his report from a steel wall from the border "didn't show anything resembling a national emergency" in the area of the border that the president will be visiting Thursday in McAllen, Texas.
I found some steel slats down on the border. But I don’t see anything resembling a national emergency situation.. at least not in the McAllen TX area of the border where Trump will be today. pic.twitter.com/KRoLdszLUu
According to The Hill, Republican lawmakers and media members, including President Trump, House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) and former CNN political analyst Peter Hamby took to Twitter to suggest Acosta was unknowingly making the president's argument for funding from Congress to build a steel wall in order to stop what he calls a "humanitarian crisis" at the border.
Fox Corp. confirms that it does not intend to bid for any of the Fox regional sports networks that Disney may sell as required under terms of its $71 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox Inc. assets, according to a regulatory filing.
Disney was said to plan to sell 22 regional sports networks to different suitors
The New York Yankees are said to be in talks with Amazon, Sinclair Broadcasting Group about teaming up to bid for the team’s regional sports network YES, according to reports on Dec.28.
The second round of bids for those regional sports networks are due at the end of January, the sources said. Sinclair seems to be the sole bidder. Amazon is not bidding after considering a deal. The private equity firms Blackstone and Apollo had hoped to partner with Fox on a bid, the sources said.
Twenty-first Century Fox sold movie studio and television assets to Disney last year, and the new Fox, run by Lachlan Murdoch, is focused on news. Disney, which owns the sports network ESPN, has said it would sell the regional sports networks acquired in the Fox deal.
Fox will also begin preliminary talks to sell senior unsecured notes to partially fund an $8.5 billion dividend.
Buoyed by its best New York Yankees ratings in six years, the YES Network finished 2018 as the most-watched regional sports network (RSN) in the country in both primetime and total day. This marks the 14th time in 16 years that YES has been the most-watched RSN in the country.
2018 YES Network highlights
● YES averaged 25,000 TV households in total day in the New York DMA in 2018, 39 percent greater than the #2 RSN, NESN, which averaged 18,000 TV Households
● YES' 25,000 TV households total day average was greater than that of the other three New York RSNs combined
● YES averaged 61,000 TV households in primetime in 2018, 9 percent greater than NESN, the #2 RSN, which averaged 56,000 TV Households
● The 61,000 TV Households was YES' best primetime delivery in six years -- since 2012
● YES had its best unduplicated market reach among millennials (persons 18-34) in three years
● 45.6 percent of YES' average total day audience in 2018 was female, the highest such percentage among all New York RSNs in the DMA
2018 Yankees on YES highlights
● Yankees games on YES averaged a 3.60 TV Household rating this past season, its best Yankees ratings since 2012 (six years)
● Yankees primetime games on YES ranked #1 in the New York market in primetime this past season, beating the primetime average of every other TV network in the DMA
● Yankees games on YES generated more viewing in New York (6.6 billion minutes consumed) than the top 11 primetime entertainment shows combined (6.1 billion minutes consumed)
● From Memorial Day to Labor Day, ratings for Yankees primetime games on YES were the second-highest among all primetime programming in the New York DMA, trailing only 60 Minutes
● For the entire 2018 season, ratings for Yankees primetime games on YES out-rated all late evening newscasts in the New York DMA
● YES' Yankees games achieved six-year highs in key demos such as males 25-54, persons 25-54 and females 25-54
The popularity of the Yankees on YES beyond the New York DMA:
● YES' Yankees viewership grew by 36 percent when adding audience from 11 outer markets to New York DMA figures
● Yankees games on YES averaged a 2.0 TV Household rating or better in eight of the 11 outlying DMAs (beyond the New York DMA), including:
A Seattle TV station has fired an editor after airing video footage of President Donald Trump’s Oval Office address on immigration that appears to be altered.
Accord to The Associated Press, FOX affiliate Q13 broadcast video from the Tuesday night speech that showed a more orange-toned Trump with his tongue hanging out languidly from his mouth after making a statement.
The video’s filtered colors look more saturated and the tongue appears doctored. Mynorthwest.com posted side-by-side videos showing the discrepancies.
Q13 news director Erica Hill said: “This does not meet our editorial standards and we regret if it is seen as portraying the president in a negative light.”
Hill also confirmed on Thursday that the station investigated the incident and fired the editor involved.
Trump in his televised address had urged for border wall funding amid the federal government shutdown that’s lasted nearly three weeks.
Both Democrats and most news media are yelling as often as they can that there is no border "crisis," even though they spent the last year telling everyone there was and even though they had no problem explicitly calling it a "crisis" in 2014, when the situation was the exact same as it is now.
"We now have an actual humanitarian crisis on the borer that only underscores the need to drop the politics and fix our immigration system once and for all," then-President Barack Obama said in the Rose Garden in 2014. "In recent weeks we've seen a surge of unaccompanied children arrive at the border, brought here and to other countries by smugglers and traffickers."
This is no different than what President Trump said from the Oval Office on Tuesday, reports The Washington Examiner.
"Last month, 20,000 migrant children were illegally brought into the United States -- a dramatic increase," he said. "These children are used as human pawns by vicious coyotes and ruthless gangs."
The only difference is how the media are covering it.
The Washington Post on July 12, 2014, referred to "the current crisis on the Southwest border, where authorities have apprehended tens of thousands of unaccompanied Central American children since October ..." The story's lead author was Karen Tumulty, now a columnist for the Post, who completely dismissed the idea of any crisis at the border this week.
"We are headed to this extraordinary situation where the president declares a state of emergency, which does not exist, and the law does not really explain what we do if the president manufactures an emergency," she said Tuesday on MSNBC.
On June 5, 2014, a New York Times article began, "This is what it looks like when an immigration system is overwhelmed by tens of thousands of women and children from Central America." It further noted that, "The Federal Emergency Management Agency has been ordered to coordinate efforts to contain the crisis."
The Times editorial board this week, however, said that the crisis is actually "in the Oval Office."
According to The Washington Examiner, the border crisis didn't change between 2014 and now. The only thing that changed was who's in the White House and how the media are reporting on it.
Country Radio Specialists Mike O’Malley and Becky Brenner have announced their 25th annual Pre-CRS seminar, Wednesday, February 13, 2019 at the brand new AC Hotel, Downtown Nashville, from 8:30-11:30am.
The A&O&B team will present the first highlights from their 14th annual online perceptual study, “Roadmap 2019.” Data analysis from thousands of P1's from across the U.S and Canada will be included.
Are country fans flocking to smart speakers at the same rate as the National Average (32% - Adobe Analytics)? In Roadmap 2018, only 18.2% of Country P1’s owned one or more smart speakers.
Did the 52% who said they "may purchase in the future" actually buy a smart speaker? 88% of these Country P1s were still using Facebook every day. Did the controversy plaguing Facebook in 2018 cause them to move away from the platform? Has the popularity of Podcasting reached these country fans? In 2018 77% had never listened to a Podcast.
Attendees will also have the opportunity to see presentations on personal career growth, important topics facing country radio and tips on growing ratings and revenue in 2019.
“Every year the status quo is changed by disruption. But at the same time great, new opportunities are created.” said Partner Mike O’Malley. “That’s why spending a half day exploring topics in-depth, in an intimate setting, like we’ve done for more than 25 years is so exciting to be a part of. The takeaways are always plentiful.”
Riley Green
Consulting Partner Becky Brenner adds “Country music is at the core of everything we do. We are thrilled to partner with BMLG Records to introduce Riley Green; with a special acoustic performance.”
Born in Jacksonville, Alabama and raised on the sounds of old traditional Country, Bluegrass, and Southern Gospel music, Riley learned the spirit of songwriting and performing at a young age while spending time with his grandfather, Bufford Green, who ran Golden Saw Music Hall.
With a mixture of outlaw-rebellion and respect for tradition, Riley’s original music has already tallied over 42 million streams to date; while his latest music video for “Bury Me In Dixie” has been viewed over a million times since last fall.
Named one of Rolling Stone Country’s “Artists You Need to Know,” his recently released IN A TRUCK RIGHT NOW EP on BMLG Records was produced by Dann Huff and features four songs he co-wrote; including his debut single “There Was This Girl” currently sitting at #13 on the airplay charts. For tour dates and more information on Riley Green visit https://www.rileygreenmusic.com/.
The A&O&B Pre-CRS Seminar is free, and is open to all clients, as well as to broadcasters in non-competitive situations. You can RSVP to Mike O'Malley - mike@aandoandb.com or Becky Brenner becky@aandoandb.com.
