Audacy has announced a new Sunday evening show on KILT 100.3 FM The Bull in Houston to showcase Texas country music at its finest. “Sounds Like Texas” will transport listeners to a time when KIKK-FM was the only country radio station in Houston, featuring classics from legendary artists like Cody Johnson, Parker McCollum, Randy Rodgers Band, Aaron Watson, Josh Abbot Band and more.
“Sounds Like Texas” will air Sundays from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. CT, beginning May 22.
“The Bull understands the deep, organic relationship between Texans and their own brand of country music,” said John Foxx, Brand Manager, 100.3 The Bull. “The arrangement, instrumentation, song writing, production strategy and touring schedules are all integral pieces of what defines Texas country music and we recognize its importance to the region. We look forward to debuting this show with our audience and sharing the very best of what this genre has to offer.”
Listeners can tune in to 100.3 The Bull (KILT-FM) in Houston on air, as well as nationwide on the Audacyapp and website. Fans can also connect with the station on social media via Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Renowned actor and television personality Mario Lopez will host the Celebration of Service to America Awards on June 7, 2022, at The Anthem in Washington, D.C. Produced by the National Association of Broadcasters Leadership Foundation (NABLF), the ceremony recognizes local broadcasters’ outstanding service to their communities.
The 2022 program will be held in person and professionally produced for airing later on television stations across the country.
Lopez, a two-time Emmy Award winner, New York Times best-selling author, producer and host, will emcee the first in-person Celebration of Service to America Awards since 2019. Lopez is the host of NBC’s “Access Hollywood” and “Access Daily.” He also hosts two national iHeartMedia radio programs and has starred on Broadway in the 2008 revival of "The Chorus Line."
Celebrity guests will present awards to station winners that will be announced at the June 7 event. Featured celebrity presenters include CBS Sports’ James Brown, a three-time Emmy Award Winner and Hall of Fame Sportscaster; Emmy Award-winning co-anchor of ABC News’ “Nightline” Juju Chang; American rock and soul artist Maggie Rose, who will also perform the National Anthem; and Angela Yee, co-host of nationally syndicated radio show “The Breakfast Club.”
Following is the list of honorees by category in alphabetical order: Service to Community Award for Radio, Broadcast Ownership Group
Beasley Media Group, 2021 Beasley Best Community of Caring Initiative
Service to Community Award for Television, Broadcast Ownership Group
Cox Media Group, CMG Gets Real
Hearst Television Inc., Project CommUNITY: History & Hope
Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., Sinclair Cares: Supporting All Veterans
Service to Community Award for Radio, Large/Major Market
WSB-AM, Atlanta, Ga., Cox Media Group, 95.5 WSB Care-a-Thon
WTLC-FM, Indianapolis, Ind., Urban One, Inc., Feeding Families for 365 Days Plus
➦In 1901...Reginald Fessenden applied for high-frequency dynamo patent. Fessenden (October 6, 1866 – July 22, 1932) was a Canadian-born inventor, who did a majority of his work in the United States and also claimed U-S citizenship through his American-born father. During his life he received hundreds of patents in various fields, most notably ones related to radio and sonar.
Fessenden is best known for his pioneering work developing radio technology, including the foundations of amplitude modulation (AM) radio. His achievements included the first transmission of speech by radio (1900), and the first two-way radiotelegraphic communication across the Atlantic Ocean (1906). In 1932 he reported that, in late 1906, he also made the first radio broadcast of entertainment and music, although a lack of verifiable details has led to some doubts about this claim.
Reginald Aubrey Fessenden, is generally ignored and largely unknown. On December 24, 1906, at 9 P.M. eastern standard time, Reginald Fessenden transmitted human voices from Brant Rock near Boston, Massachusetts to several ships at sea owned by the United Fruit Company.
The host of the broadcast was Fessenden. After giving a resume of the program Fessenden played a recording of Handel's "Largo" on an Ediphone thus establishing two records - the first recording of the first broadcast. Fessenden then dazzled his listeners with his talent as a violinist playing appropriately for the Christmas season, "Oh Holy Night" and actually singing the last verse as he played. Mrs. Helen Fessenden and Fessenden's secretary Miss Bent, had promised to read seasonal passages from the Bible including, "Glory to God in the highest -and on earth peace to men of good will," but when the time came to perform they stood speechless, paralyzed with mike fright. Fessenden took over for them and concluded the broadcast by extending Christmas greetings to his listeners - as well as asking them to write and report to him on the broadcast wherever they were.
The mail response confirmed that Fessenden had successfully invented radio as we know it.
Technically, he had invented radio telephony or what radio listeners would call "real" radio as opposed to Marconi's Morse code broadcasting. Fessenden could truly lay claim to be the inventor of radio and he fully expected the world to beat a path to his door. Instead, he never received his due recognition, lost control of his patents and the ensuing revenue which made other inventors and companies immensely wealthy. Even today the Encyclopedia Canadiana does not give him a separate listing. Mention of him is only included under the listing for his mother Clementina who established Empire Day in Canada. Reginald is mentioned as one of her four sons, "inventor of the wireless telephone, the radio compass and the visible bullet for machine guns, he also invented the first television set in North America in 1919."
➦In 1919...The Canadian Marconi Co. was licensed for XWA (Experimental Wireless Apparatus) in Montreal and in 1920, it became the first commercial broadcast radio station (CFCF) in Canada, operating at 600 AM.
➦In 1954...Bill Haley’s “Rock Around the Clock” was released. It didn’t catch on until it appeared on the soundtrack of “Blackboard Jungle” the following year.
➦In 1960...WRCA 660 AM in NYC became WNBC...again.
WNBC signed on for the first time on March 2, 1922, as WEAF, owned by AT&T Western Electric. It was the first radio station in New York City.
The call are popularly thought to have stood for Western Electric AT&T Fone or Water, Earth, Air, and Fire (the 4 classical elements). However, records suggest that the call letters were assigned from an alphabetical sequence. The first assigned call was actually WDAM; it was quickly dropped, but presumably came from the same alphabetical sequence.
In 1922, WEAF broadcast what it later claimed to be the first radio advertisement (actually a roughly 10-minute long talk anticipating today's radio and television infomercials) which promoted an apartment development in Jackson Heights near a new elevated train line, (the IRT's Flushing-Corona line, now the number 7 line).
In 1926, WEAF was purchased by the Radio Corporation of America, making it a sister station to WJZ. RCA then formed the National Broadcasting Company, which operated two radio chains.
WEAF became the flagship station of the NBC Red Network. The other chain was the NBC Blue Network, whose programming originated at WJZ (now WABC), also owned by RCA. As a result of the North American Radio Broadcasting Agreement of 1941, WEAF became a clear channel station, and could be heard across most of the eastern half of North America at night.
On November 11, 1928, WEAF moved from 610 to 660 AM. The move that solidified WEAF's position as the most pretigious of all broadcasters took place in the autumn of 1933, when NBC moved to 30 Rockefeller Plaza and became the "radio" that gave Radio City its name.
In 1943, the United States Supreme Court ordered RCA to sell off one of its radio networks, citing antitrust concerns. The company decided to keep the Red Network, and it was rebranded as the NBC Radio Network after the Blue Network was divested, along with several stations (including WJZ), to Edward J. Noble and rechristened the Blue Network as the American Broadcasting Company. WEAF's call letters were changed to WNBC in 1946, then to WRCA in 1954, and back to WNBC in 1960.
➦In 1988...Howard Stern fans disrupt WMMR's & John DeBella's "Louie Louie" parade in Philadelphia.
➦In 2011…John Cigna died at age 75 following a stroke ( Born - December 11, 1935). He spent 28 years at KDKA 1020 AM in Pittsburgh, starting in 1973 until his retirement in 2001.
Cigna was born in 1935 in Brooklyn, New York. He worked at radio stations in West Virginia, Ohio and Indiana before moving to Pittsburgh in 1969 to take up a position at WJAS as the sports anchor and morning news director.
John Cigna
Cigna moved to KDKA-AM in Pittsburgh on March 11, 1973, when he hosted a talk show from 9:00 PM to midnight. Cigna became known for his often brash and confrontational demeanor, unafraid call unreasonable listeners 'stupid' when provoked. He also became known for his famous catchphrases, including 'babycakes', 'piece of cake', 'I don't believe this', and 'Oh, brother!'.
Cigna's late night tenure lasted until 1983, where he moved to the morning slot after previous morning host Jack Bogut moved to WTAE-AM. The show, dubbed "John Cigna and the K-Team" consisted of Dave James, Fred Honsberger and sportscaster Nellie King.
Management, fearing a ratings dip after Bogut's departure, embarked on a heavy advertising campaign to promote Cigna on co-owned KDKA-TV, where Cigna appeared in a number of self-depricating promos that usually began with "John Cigna is learning firsthand about...", and depending on the ad, it would be KDKA news, the KDKA Storm Center, and the KDKA Traffic Copter, among others.
Cigna also became noted for performing two stunts in the KDKA news promo, where he jumped onto the hood of a moving station vehicle, and having a door slammed into his face (accidentally) by then-News Director Honsberger. Though KDKA was long-established as the top-rated station in Pittsburgh, ratings remained fairly steady after Cigna's move to mornings.
Cigna was paired with Honsberger in 1996 to do the morning show, now dubbed The Morning News with John Cigna, but Honsberger was moved back to his afternoon slot 6 months later.
Upon his retirement in September 2001, Cigna's on-air absences had been getting more frequent, to the point where billboards promoted "Where's Cigna?". Cigna's health began to decline since suffering injuries in a motorcycle crash two years prior. He was succeeded by Larry Richert as host of the morning show.
➦In 2014...77-year-old Bill Berg, a popular afternoon-drive talk show host on WGN 720 AM in the 1970s, died of complications from Parkinson's disease. Berg's first radio job was with a station in a small town in Illinois.
Bill Berg
He then worked at stations in Springfield, Lafayette, Ind., Detroit and Milwaukee before moving to Chicago in May 1966 to host an overnight program called "Nightwatch" on WIND.
In 1969, Mr. Berg began, hosting and producing a nightly sports talk radio show at WIND and working as its sports director. He also moderated a talk show featuring then-Cubs manager Leo Durocher. In 1970, Mr. Berg spent a season helping out on Bulls broadcasts.
In August 1971, Mr. Berg joined WGN as its afternoon drive-time music and talk show host.
Berg generated strong ratings at WGN during the 1970s. He also worked occasional Cubs games on the station and on WGN-TV, and also broadcast DePaul and Loyola basketball games and the Big Ten football game of the week. With Merri Dee, Mr. Berg co-hosted a short-lived WGN-TV show in 1973 called "Our Town Today."
Cher is 76
🎂HAPPY BIRTHDAYS:
Actor David Proval (“The Sopranos”) is 80.
Singer-actor Cher is 76.
Actor Dave Thomas (“Grace Under Fire,” ″SCTV”) is 74.
Musician Warren Cann of Ultravox is 72.
Actor Dean Butler (“Little House on the Prairie”) is 66.
Jon Pardi is 37
Guitarist Jane Wiedlin of The Go-Go’s is 64.
Actor Bronson Pinchot is 63.
Singer Susan Cowsill of The Cowsills is 63.
Actor John Billingsley (“True Blood,” ″Enterprise”) is 62.
Actor Tony Goldwyn (“Scandal”) is 62.
Singer Nick Heyward of Haircut 100 is 61.
TV personality Ted Allen (“Queer Eye for the Straight Guy”) is 57.
Actor Mindy Cohn (“Facts of Life”) is 56.
Guitarist Tom Gorman of Belly is 56.
Rapper Busta Rhymes is 50.
Bassist Ryan Martinie of Mudvayne is 47.
Actor Matt Czuchry (“The Good Wife,” ″Gilmore Girls”) is 45.
The Gauge, the monthly total TV viewing snapshot from Nielsen, revealed that streaming reached another record high in April, capturing 30.4% of total TV viewing and surpassing its previous record of 29.7% set in March 2022. While overall TV viewing dropped by 2.1% from March, streaming volume was virtually identical to the prior month, helping to increase its share by over 0.6%.
The Gauge, the monthly total TV viewing snapshot from Nielsen - April 2022
The Gauge also showed that HBO Max achieved a 1% share of streaming for the first time, allowing it to move out of the "Other Streaming" category and stand alongside fellow streaming platforms that have previously exceeded the 1% share threshold. The "Other Streaming" category, which includes any high-bandwidth video streaming on TV that is not individually broken out, has grown by more than two share points since The Gauge debuted with May 2021 data. This category's consistent growth reflects insights into audiences' rising engagement with the growing number of streaming platforms, as detailed in Nielsen's State of Play report.
Broadcast viewing was down 3% in April and lost 0.2 share points from March, driven by a nearly 15% decrease in content from the Drama genre as season finales began to air, in addition to a 38% drop in sports on broadcast networks. Broadcast news viewing remained flat compared to March.
Cable also lost 0.2 share points in April and saw a month over month usage decline of 2.5%. While sports viewing on cable increased 17% from March, driven primarily by both the NBA playoffs and the NCAA Final Four, cable news saw its first downward trend in several months (-16.9%) which hampered cable's overall share.
About The Gauge
The Gauge is underpinned by Nielsen's TV ratings service and Streaming Platform Ratings. The latter provides clients with audience measurement data that details the amount of time consumers spend streaming and on which platforms. This broad look at platform usage provides complimentary insights to Nielsen Streaming Content Ratings, which details viewing to subscription-based video on demand (SVOD) content at the title, program and episode level. By showcasing both the micro and macro-level data sets, the industry has a full picture of how this media is being consumed, as well as when and by whom.
Cumulus Media announces that it has appointed Andrew “Latty” Latimer as On-Air Host, Mornings, for Memphis Country radio station WGKX KIX 106. Latimer, a native Memphian, graduated from Germantown High School and attended The University of Memphis before launching his radio career. He was previously Morning Host for Memphis Classic Hits station Q107.5/WHBQ-FM and was also an on-air personality for Memphis radio stations I96/WIVG-FM (Rock) and 101.9 Kiss FM/KWNW-FM (Top 40). Latimer will debut on KIX 106 on Monday, May 31st, and can be heard weekday mornings from 6:00am-10:00am.
Morgan Bohannon, Vice President/Market Manager, Cumulus Memphis, said: “Latty is a Memphis guy and is excited about being on a heritage brand like KIX 106, which will celebrate 40 years on-air in 2023. He’s high energy, smart, creative, and lives an active lifestyle with a great work ethic. He’s just the perfect fit.”
Chad Heritage, Program Director, KIX 106, commented: “We are excited to have Latty join the KIX 106 morning show. He knows the market and is going to bring a lot of energy and creativity to Cumulus Memphis and will help make the KIX 106 brand even bigger and better.”
Andrew “Latty” Latimer remarked: “I’m honored and humbled to be part of a legendary station like KIX 106. I grew up listening to the station and now it’s a dream come true to work for them and do morning radio in the city I grew up and love. Let’s sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride!”
Former WOMX Mix 105.1 on-air personality Jay Edwards has announced that he will be joining WDBO 107.3 FM/580 AM as an on-air producer and host. This new position follows Edwards’ two-decade run at Mix 105.1, reports The Orlando Sentinel.
“I’m so excited!” Edwards said about his new position. “It’s something completely different than I’m used to but I’m so excited [to learn] new things and different ways of doing things and a different station. WDBO is coming up on their 100th anniversary in a couple of years [and] to be able to say that you’re a part of that is really cool.”
Edwards was released from his contract at Mix 105.1 in 2021 following more than 20 years on the air. “You’re at one station [for] over two decades and then [you] don’t get your contract renewed,” Edwards recalled, adding that he drove a limo for a few months while he was “trying to figure out what I want to do when I grow up.”
However, Edwards is more than ready to leave his limo-driving days behind as this new opportunity feels like a homecoming in a way.
“The timing and everything just happened to present itself perfectly with WDBO,” Edwards says.
“The cool thing about it is I have so many friends that used to work with me at my old station that are over there now. It’s like a homecoming. Some of my best friends, and some of the people that gave me my first shot in radio are over there,” he said. “Even though I had never worked for Cox Media Group or anything, it was cool just kind of walking in the building and [see] so many familiar faces.”
The Biden administration has “paused” its controversial plans to create a Disinformation Board, causing its would-be leader to resign, reports The NY Post.
In a statement Wednesday, Nina Jankowicz, the “disinformation expert” tapped to head the panel, said that “[w]ith the Board’s work paused and its future uncertain, and [sic] I have decided to leave DHS [the Department of Homeland Security] to return to my work in the public sphere.” Jankowicz’s departure and the decision to scrap the board was first reported by the Washington Post.
The board had been the subject of weeks of backlash from Republicans, libertarians and even some liberals, who likened the scheme to the Ministry of Truth from George Orwell’s classic novel “1984.”
The Washington Post reported that DHS had decided to stop the board’s work on Monday and Jankowicz had drafted a resignation letter as of Tuesday morning. The outlet added that she had been given the option to stay on in a call with DHS officials Tuesday evening.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre attempted to distance the West Wing from the disastrous initiative, insisting “we did not have involvement in this at all” when asked if top officials had ordered the halt.
Nina Jankowicz
The Biden administration had quietly announced the creation of the board last month, saying it was meant to fight the spread of “disinformation” spread by agents of Russia, China and Iran that “can affect border security, Americans’ safety during disasters, and public trust in our democratic institutions.” Amid the backlash, DHS insisted that the board “does not have any operational authority or capability,” and was meant to preserve rather than limit free speech.
Critics likened the disinformation board, which was set to be led by Nina Jankowicz, to a “ministry of truth.”
However, Jankowicz’s idea of standing up for the First Amendment included letting “verified” Twitter users “edit” other users’ tweets if the blue-checked chosen think they’re misleading.
Jankowicz also repeatedly tried to spread doubt about The Post’s own reporting about Hunter Biden’s notorious laptop, telling the Associated Press in October 2020 that it should be viewed as “a Trump campaign product.” In addition, Jankowicz pushed the since-debunked claim in 2016 that then-presidential candidate Donald Trump had a tie to Kremlin-linked Alfa-Bank, an allegation at the center of an ongoing trial of a Clinton campaign lawyer accused by special counsel John Durham of lying to the FBI.
The misinformation maven was also ripped for a bizarre TikTok performance from February 2021 in which she altered the lyrics to the “Mary Poppins” song “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” to be about fake news.
WXKS 107.9 FM Kiss 108′s “Matty in the Morning” welcomed longtime cohost Lisa Donovan back to the airwaves Friday after almost a month-long hiatus.
The Boston Globe reports it marked the first time Donovan had been on the air since before the abrupt departure earlier this month of Matt Siegel, the show’s namesake, after more than four decades.
Donovan told listeners that she “took a couple weeks to take care of my parents, my family” in South Carolina.
On the May 3 “Matty in the Morning” show, during which Siegel announced his retirement, cohost Billy Costa said Donovan’s mother had been sick.
Lisa Donovan
Both Siegel and Donovan had been mysteriously absent from the morning show since April 19, and listeners quickly began asking where they’d gone. On May 3, Siegel, 72, announced to listeners he was calling it a career after 41 years.
“As of now I am retired, leaving Kiss 108 and starting my new life as a mediocre golfer,” Siegel said in the announcement, adding by his own admission that the last year had been “rough.”
“I had brain surgery. I had a broken foot. I started getting a little grumpy on the radio, which I hate because all I want to do is make people laugh,” Siegel said. “That’s my job, just to make people laugh. And I got off target, I guess you would say.”
Costa said he would be taking over as the show’s main host. Donovan was absent from the farewell episode.
During Monday’s show, Donovan briefly touched on Siegel’s retirement, saying she wished him “all the best.”
“I just remember so many amazing moments from live shows to concerts to the iconic ‘Right Now’ segments with him — all of his interviews,” she said. “He had an amazing career. Forty-one years. I was here for 20 of it. An amazing career, a Boston icon in radio. So I wish him all the best in his retirement.”
On her first day back on air, Donovan gave fans and listeners her take on some of the top stories she’s missed: Tom Brady’s new Fox deal, the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard trial, the Kentucky Derby, the “Ozark” ending, and this year’s Met Gala looks.
iHeartMedia Minneapolis’ KTCZ Cities 97.1, Uniquely Twin Cities, announced Wednesday that Naima will join “Brian Oake in the Morning,” effective immediately. “Brian Oake in the Morning” broadcasts weekdays from 6 – 10 a.m.
“Brian Oake in the Morning” features Oake’s signature irreverence and quick wit while he banters about music, popular culture and all things Minnesota.
“It’s always great when I can bring back a prior employee who our audience loved,” said Rich Davis, Program Director of Cities 97.1. “Naima’s infectious energy both on and off the air and her unique accent make her instantly recognizable. She’s the perfect talent to help anchor our Uniquely Twin Cities music mix along with the one and only Brian Oake.”
“I’m ecstatic to be rejoining Cities 97.1 and returning home to where it all started for me. Plus, I’m beyond chuffed to be partnering with Brian Oake to wake up the Twin Cities! Massive thank to Rich Davis and the Twin Cities management team for welcoming this weird Londoner back into the fold once again,” said Naima.
Naima joins the Minneapolis market from Radio 1 in the United Arab Emirates, where she most recently served as Morning host. Prior to that, Namia worked at Gulf news as a Digital Content Editor for their radio stations and as a Production Manager at Swerve Entertainment both in Dubai. She began her career at Cities 97.1 in 2012 as a board operator and part time host and eventually graduated to hosting the weekday night show. She has a BA Hons degree in television and theatre production from Buckinghamshire University in England.
NATO doesn't expect either Russia or Ukraine to make significant battlefield gains in the coming weeks, CNN reported yesterday, citing an unnamed NATO military official with knowledge of the intelligence as saying, "I think we'll be in a standstill for a while." The official further said the current NATO discussion is that the momentum has shifted significantly in favor of Ukraine, and the debate is over whether it's possible for Ukraine to retake Crimea, which was seized by Russia in 2014, and the eastern Donbas region, taken by Russian-backed separatists, also in 2014. The official said they believe Ukraine could do so, but questioned whether they should, citing a potential backlash by the population in some of those areas.
Meanwhile, the first captured Russian soldier to be put on trial by Ukraine on war crimes charges pled guilty yesterday to killing a civilian and could be sentenced to life in prison. The soldier, 21-year-old Sergeant Vadim Shishimarin, said, "Yes. Fully yes," when asked by the judge if he accepted his guilt. He was accused of shooting a 62-year-old unarmed Ukrainian man in the head through a car window in the early days after Russia invaded in late February.
The abuses include beating and electrocuting city officials and robbing homes, according to the intelligence finding. https://t.co/Z8i4jHRzDy
U.S. Reopens Embassy in Kyiv: The U.S. Embassy reopened in Kyiv on Wednesday, three months after it was closed in the days before Russia's expected invasion, and one month after Russia gave up its attempt to seize Ukraine's capital city. A dozen embassy employees watched as the American flag was raised.
💸HIGH INFLATION RAISES RISK OF DOWNTURN:The global economy is in danger of entering a period of so-called stagflation, or high inflation and weak growth, policy makers and corporate leaders say, which could erode living standards around the world.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday became the latest leader to warn of turbulence for the global economy. “Certainly the economic outlook globally is challenging and uncertain,” Ms. Yellen said in Bonn, Germany, ahead of a meeting of leaders of seven wealthy nations. “Higher food and energy prices are having stagflationary effects, namely, depressing output and spending and raising inflation all around the world.”
Growing fears of high inflation rippled through financial markets Wednesday after large retailers reported disappointing earnings due in part to their own higher costs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 1,164 points, or 3.6%, as of 4 p.m. ET in its worst day since 2020. The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell more than 4%. Target Corp. shares sank 25%, putting the company on track for its largest single-day percentage decline since 1987.
👼BIDEN INVOKES DEFENSE PRODUCTION ACT FOR BABY FORMULA: President Biden invoked the Defense Production Act yesterday to speed up production of baby formula amid the current shortage, and also authorized flights to import formula from overseas. The Defense Production Act order requires suppliers of formula manufacturers to fulfill orders from those companies before other customers, and the Defense Department is being authorized to use commercial aircraft to fly formula supplies from overseas. Baby formula has been hard to find for many people in recent weeks, after a February recall by Abbott Nutrition made ongoing supply chain disruptions worse.
➤HOUSE PASSES DOMESTIC TERRORISM LEGISLATION IN WAKE OF BUFFALO SHOOTING: The House passed legislation last night that would increase federal resources to prevent domestic terrorism, the action coming after the racist mass shooting at a Buffalo, New York, supermarket on Saturday. Currently, three federal agencies already work to investigate, prevent and prosecute domestic terrorism. The bill would require each agency to open offices specifically dedicated to those tasks and create an interagency task force to combat the infiltration of white supremacy in the military. The measure was passed on a near party-line vote, with Rep. Adam Kinzinger the lone Republican to vote for it.
➤OFFICER PLEADS GUILTY IN GEORGE FLOYD KILLING: One of three former Minneapolis police officers set to go to trial in Minnesota on charges of aiding and abetting in the killing of George Floyd pled guilty yesterday to aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter. As part of Thomas Lane’s plea agreement, the more serious charge of aiding and abetting second-degree unintentional murder will be dismissed. Former Officer Derek Chauvin, who kneeled on Floyd's neck for more than nine minutes, was convicted on murder and manslaughter charges last year. State trials will go forward in June for former Officers J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao on charges of aiding and abetting manslaughter and murder. Lane will be sentenced in September, with the state and Lane’s attorneys having agreed to a recommended sentence of three years.
For the first time, gas prices in all 50 U.S. states have hit an average of at least $4 per gallon, according to AAA data. https://t.co/g0bSurSrao
🚗DESPITE EXPENSIVE GAS, ABOUT 40 MILLION IN US EXPECTED TO TRAVEL MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND: Even with the price of gas soaring, nearly 40 million people are expected to travel long distances over the upcoming Memorial Day weekend (Friday, May 27th- Monday, May 30th). The AAA said in its annual forecast released yesterday that it expects 39.2 million people will travel 50 miles or more in the United States over the holiday weekend. That would be an 8.3 percent increase over the same weekend in 2021. Of the total figure, AAA expects that most people—about 35 million—will travel by car. About 3 million are expected to travel by plane, and 1.3 million by bus or some other mode of transportation. Experts say part of the reason for the expected increase is a desire for vacations after two years of COVID-19, and this Memorial Day weekend is the first since the pandemic began during which most coronavirus restrictions will have been lifted. The AAA also noted that the average lowest airfare this Memorial Day weekend is a little bit more expensive than last year, and gas prices are of course way up. As of yesterday, the national average for a gallon of regular gas was $4.57. This time last year the average price for a gallon of gas was $3.04.
➤RINGLING BROS. CIRCUS RETURNING, BUT WITHOUT ANIMALS: Five years after the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus closed down after 146 years, it announced yesterday that it's coming back, but its new incarnation won't have any animal acts. A 50-city North American tour is planned starting in September 2023, with international dates after that, according to the circus' owner, Feld Entertainment. Criticism over its use of animals was a major factor in Ringling Bros. shutting down, playing a role in declining ticket sales, as well as leading to costly court battles over the use of elephants.
🦻PARENTS SUE APPLE OVER AMBER ALERT DAMAGING SON'S HEARING: A Texas couple sued Apple this week, charging that an Amber Alert caused permanent hearing loss in their now 14-year-old son, who was 12 at the time his hearing was damaged. Carlos Gordoa and Ariani Reyes of San Antonio say their son was watching Netflix on his iPhone using his AirPods Pro in 2020 when an Amber Alert came through the phone. The suit says that even though he was watching Netflix at a low volume, the Amber Alert came through without warning at such a loud volume that it tore apart his ear drum, damaged his cochlea, and caused significant injuries to the hearing in his right ear. The suit says he'll need a hearing aid for the rest of his life, and that he also suffers from dizziness, vertigo, nausea, and tinnitus. They complain in the suit that AirPods, quote, "do not automatically reduce, control, limit, or increment notification or alert volumes to a safe level," and that they don't have a warning that alerts could sound at a volume that could cause damage.
🏥STUDY..WOMEN WAIT LONGER FOR HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ROOM CARE THAN MEN: This is pretty scary. Northwestern University researchers found that on average, women patients coming into the emergency room wait 12 minutes longer to be evaluated and treated than men do. Men wait an average of two hours, 52 minutes, while women wait an average of three hours, four minutes. Women also have to wait about three minutes longer than men to be “triaged,” or evaluated and prioritized for care in the ER. On average, they wait 52 minutes to be triaged, while men wait an average of 49 minutes. Researchers write, “These findings suggest potential gaps of care that may be excellent targets for quality improvement of existing processes of assessment and triage and discharge planning.”
😭CLINIC ‘CHARGED PATIENT $40 FOR CRYING’: What won’t you get charged for these days? YouTuber Camille Johnson, from New York, says her sister has a rare disease and has been struggling to find appropriate care. She says during a recent trip to a clinic, her sibling “got emotional because she feels frustrated and helpless. One tear in and they charged her $40 without addressing why she is crying, trying to help, or doing any evaluation, any prescription, nothing.” On Twitter, she posted the bill, and pointed out that the “Brief emotional/behave assmt” cost more than blood tests or a vision test. Many online were shocked by the charge.
🏀WARRIORS DEFEAT MAVERICKS 112-87 IN GAME 1 OF WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS: The Golden State Warriors defeated the Dallas Mavericks 112-87 in Game 1 of the NBA Western Conference finals last night at home. Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 21 points, with Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole adding 19 points each. While Mavericks star Luka Doncic had 20 points, Golden State was effective at keeping him to shooting 6 for 18 and 3 of 10 from deep. Game 2 is Friday night.
🏒NHL PLAYOFFS: Results from second-round games yesterday:
Carolina Hurricanes 2, New York Rangers 1 (OT) - Carolina leads series 1-0
🏈ALABAMA COACH SABAN CHARGES TEXAS A&M USING NIL DEALS TO BUY PLAYERS: Alabama football head coach Nick Saban last night accused Texas A&M of using name, image and likeness (NIL) deals to effectively buy players. While speaking at an event in Birmingham, he said, "We were second in recruiting last year. A&M was first. A&M bought every player on their team. Made a deal for name, image and likeness. We didn’t buy one player." Many in college sports have expressed concern that NIL deals are being used as recruiting inducements and what amounts to pay-for-play.
⚾METS ACE SCHERZER LEAVES GAME WITH SIDE PAIN: New York Mets ace Max Scherzer left in the sixth inning of last night's game against the St. Louis Cardinals with pain in his left side, taking himself out with a four-run lead. The three-time Cy Young Award winner plans to get an MRI today. He said after the game, "I don’t think this is a major strain. I was kind of tight and then all of a sudden it went. But I don’t feel like I really ripped it. It just kind of got worse. So hopefully I got out of there quick enough to prevent a major injury[.]" The Mets went on to win the game 11-4.
🏌DECHAMBEAU WITHDRAWS FROM PGA CHAMPIONSHIP: Bryson DeChambeau withdrew from the PGA Championship that gets underway today after a practice round yesterday at Southern Hills Country Club. DeChambeau recently had surgery to repair a bone in his left wrist and has missed more than a month. He tweeted late yesterday, "I want to make a full return when I am 100% ready to compete at golf's highest level." The 28-year-old is at Number 22 in the men's world ranking.
➤NEW NOAA STUDY FINDS INCREASE IN ATLANTIC HURRICANES LINKED TO CLEANER AIR: One good thing doesn’t always lead to more good things. A new study from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) finds that “reducing air pollution does not always decrease the risk of hazards from tropical cyclones,” according to NOAA scientist and study author, Hiroyuki Murakami. The researchers say that in recent years, Europe and North American have reduced particulate air pollution from automotive, and energy industries. NOAA says this has had a significant impact on water temperatures in the tropical Atlantic Ocean basin and the development of tropical cyclones. The experts say the absence of the particles actually equates with warming ocean waters, which is one of the key ingredients in the formation of tropical cyclones. Dr. Boris Quennehen, Lead Atmospheric Scientist at Plume Labs, who was not involved with the study, says, “Adding more particles in the atmosphere is not a viable solution for the Earth and humankind. More particles means more health impacts but also oceanic acidification which may lead to the extinction of many marine species.” Murakami predicts that in the next decade, increased greenhouse gases will significantly influence tropical cyclones-- more so than human-caused particulate air pollution.
Without mentioning CNN Plus, new CNN CEO Chris Licht set out the company’s plans for the rudderless news network, reports NextTV.com.
Those plans involve a morning show, a Sunday-night showcase and avoiding the kinds of advocacy journalism that has infected cable news.
CNN was shocked by the sudden firing of its president Jeff Zucker because of an undisclosed relationship with another CNN executive and by the abrupt decision to shut down streaming subscription service CNN Plus after just 33 days.
New owner Warner Bros. Discovery hired Licht, who had been executive producer of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, to fix the original cable news network.
“When [WBD CEO] David Zaslav put me in this role. He gave me one simple directive: enhance CNN's leadership as the definitive source for reliable news and exceptional, journalism globally,” Licht said at Warner Bros. Discovery’s upfront Wednesday.
“This organization is unrivaled in its fact-driven coverage, its ability to gather and report news where it happens and its commitment to telling meaningful stories about our people and events in our world,” Licht said.
“The next chapter of CNN is one where we aspire to be a beacon for the kind of journalism essential to a functioning democracy,” he said.
Licht said CNN would be making changes in its morning show. “We are seeking to be a disrupter of the broadcast morning shows in this space and we believe we have the people and resources who can do it,” he said.
He also plans to establish a CNN Sunday franchise that will feature Chris Wallace’s interview show, retrieved from the CNN Plus scrapheap, and a new “topical long-form" show, which will showcase our existing correspondents and contributors “telling new stories they enterprise from around the world.” He wants the show to become an “exciting outlet for the stories that can have real impact and blister the CNN brand.”
Who's Talking to Chris Wallace and the new long-form show will be joined by existing CNN originals like Stanley Tucci's Search for Italy; Say It Loud, about the history of Black television from LeBron James and Maverick Carter; and The 2010s, as wells as CNN Films.
In the first question Karine Jean-Pierre took as she began her White House press secretary tenure on Monday, a reporter asked how she viewed her job, according to Fox News Digital.
"Do you view your primary role here as speaking for the president and promoting his interests?" Zeke Miller of the Associated Press asked. "Or are you committed to providing the unvarnished truth to the American people so that they know what their government is doing on their behalf?"
"I actually think that’s hand in hand," she said. "I don’t think there’s – that there is any separation to that."
The question got to the heart of what a press secretary is supposed to be and how they handle the inherent tensions of the job; on one hand, they serve at the pleasure of the president and are supposed to make the White House look good, but they also are expected to disseminate accurate information, work with reporters on their stories, and serve as a conduit between the press and the commander-in-chief.
How they manage those duties that inevitably come into conflict determine how effective they are in that role. Thirty-four others have filled the public-facing job before Jean-Pierre, the first Black and openly gay individual to hold the post.
"Your salary is paid by taxpayers," a former White House correspondent told Fox News Digital. "You are the spokesperson for the president, but you are also the chief spokesperson for the executive branch of the U.S. government. It’s not a job that is solely spin and political. You have a responsibility to provide reliable and factual information on the activities of the U.S. government."
Karine Jean-Pierre (AP)
"You’re not simply there to spin for the president. You’re there to represent the interest of the press corps," the former correspondent said.
Fox News political analyst Brit Hume, who was ABC News chief White House correspondent from 1989 to 1996, pointed to Dee Dee Myers under Clinton and Marlin Fitzwater under George H. W. Bush as two examples who hit those marks well.
Jean-Pierre got off to a rocky start in the view of some in the briefing room on Monday, as she stumbled over a question about inflation by calling for corporations to pay their fair share of taxes, and said she had no timeline for resolving the agonizing baby formula shortage gripping the country.
Her predecessor Jen Psaki received high marks in some corners for calling on a variety of outlets, working well with reporters and reliably holding briefings – according to the White House Transition Project, she held 224 over about 16 months, more than the 205 combined over all four years of the Trump White House. But she had her share of tense moments and had to sell spin like blaming Vladimir Putin for inflation, passed judgment on the false "whipping of migrants" narrative at the border, and ripped into critics of the widely panned Disinformation Governance Board that the Biden administration mothballed this week.
Psaki was popular enough with a left-leaning press corps that a war broke out for her services from major outlets like CNN and MSNBC once she left the White House; she's expected to join MSNBC in the coming months.
"When you heard from Jen Psaki, you did not get the feeling she was speaking for Biden," another White House correspondent told Fox News Digital. "She was part of a team actively making as little news and answering the least amount of questions possible. Jen Psaki successfully leveraged the job into a sweet MSNBC news gig, but she did more to promote herself than promote the president."
Taylor Swift received an honorary degree from New York University on Wednesday at Yankee Stadium, and assured the Class of 2022 in an aspirational commencement speech that it’s OK to make mistakes, reports The NY Daily News.
“I was a teenager at a time when our society was absolutely obsessed with the idea of having perfect young female role models,” Swift told the new graduates.
“I became a young adult while being fed the message that if I didn’t make any mistakes, that all the children of America would grow up perfect angels. However, if I did slip up, the entire Earth would fall off its axis, and it’d be entirely my fault. ... It was all centered around the idea that mistakes equal failure and ultimately the loss of any chance at a happy or rewarding life. This has not been my experience.”
Dressed in a black cap and purple gown, Swift, 32, waved and blew kisses to the Bronx crowd as she arrived on the field, then unleashed a big smile as she accepted her honorary doctor of fine arts degree.
Her nearly 25-minute speech balanced advice and personal anecdotes with moments of humor and references to her songs.
“I would like to thank NYU for making me, technically, on paper at least, a doctor,” Swift quipped. “Not the type of doctor you would want around in case of an emergency, unless your specific emergency was that you desperately needed to hear a song with a catchy hook and an intensely cathartic bridge section, or if your emergency was that you needed a person who can name over 50 breeds of cats in one minute.”
Audacy has announced the launch of a new show from its sports podcast studio 2400Sports in partnership with Major League Baseball. “Unwritten: Behind Baseball’s Secret Rules,” premieres June 1st.
Hosted by MLB broadcasters and former players Ron Darling and Jimmy Rollins, the show explores a different unwritten rule of the game each week - bat flips, no-hitter jinxes, retribution and more. Episodes feature special guests from around the game including Larry Bowa, Gary Sheffield, and Sean Casey. Every episode delves into the history of a rule, its origins, and the most famous controversies surrounding each one, putting them in cultural context. Rollins and Darling, players of different eras, give their personal history with these rules and share never-before-told stories from their legendary careers. New episodes will be available weekly.
“Unwritten rules have been in the game forever so I am looking forward to talking to Jimmy and some of our guests about how they were perceived while they played, and how these rules have changed over the years,” said host Darling. “Great baseball topics to discuss and debate.”
“I am thrilled to partner with Ron on ‘Unwritten,’” said Rollins. “Coming from two guys who played at two different times and both cover the game in its current state as broadcasters, we have so much knowledge and experience to pull from. It’s going to be unlike anything else out there.”
Darling, a former right-handed pitcher and 12-year MLB veteran who was a member of the 1986 World Champion New York Mets, is a broadcaster with SNY, Turner, and MLB Network. Rollins, a shortstop whose 17-year MLB career included a World Championship with the 2008 Philadelphia Phillies, a National League MVP award, and four gold gloves, is currently a broadcaster on Turner’s Major League Baseball coverage and recently rejoined the Phillies as a Special Advisor to the President of Baseball Operations.
