Wake-Up Call: Sanibel Island, Fort Myers Severely Damaged

President Joe Biden will visit Florida on Wednesday to survey the damage left behind by Hurricane Ian, with the official death toll set to rise as search operations continue.

Ahead of his trip to the state, the president will go to Puerto Rico on Monday, which was hit earlier in September by Hurricane Fiona, the White House said. Biden, who has pledged to commit the full strength of the federal government to recovery efforts, said on Saturday that Florida’s hurricane damage is “likely to rank among the worst” in US history. Power and communications operators reported a significant return of services on Sunday.

The death toll in Florida, unofficially 58, was uncertain and shifting. In hard-hit Lee County, home to Fort Myers, Sheriff Carmine Marceno said on Sunday there were 42 confirmed deaths in his county alone. On Saturday night, the Florida Medical Examiners Commission reported 30 deaths in Lee County and 44 statewide.   The majority of Florida’s victims died by drowning, according to the state’s Medical Examiners Commission.  Four deaths have been reported in North Carolina and three in Cuba.

Ian, which had weakened to a post-tropical cyclone, “fully dissipated overnight” Saturday, the National Weather Service reported. “Widespread showers and storms” will continue in the mid-Atlantic and central Appalachians, reaching southern New Jersey.

TO THE RESCUE: Helicopter rescues people stranded on Sanibel Island, Florida after Hurricane Ian. Officials say there were multiple fatalities on Sanibel, and that the island is currently "not habitable." https://t.co/pCuXJ0VsoC pic.twitter.com/rXbExUSZfA

— ABC News (@ABC) October 3, 2022

More than 640,000 customers in Florida are still without power, according to PowerOutage.us. Electricity has been restored to more than 1.8 million user accounts across the state, figures from the Florida Division of Emergency Management showed on Sunday.

Governor Ron DeSantis visited the cities of North Port and Arcadia over the weekend, where flooding hasn’t subsided, according to local media reports.

In Lee County, on the state’s southwest coast, Sheriff Carmine Marceno said on Sunday that 42 people had died there. “We have buildings, multiple-floor buildings that have been washed out, OK? It is incomprehensible what we’re looking at,” Marceno said. “Those numbers could go up. I don’t know. I pray and hope that they don’t.”

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio tells @JonKarl there’s no comparison between Hurricane Ian and past storms.

"Fort Myers Beach no longer exists. It'll have to be rebuilt. It'll be something different. It was a slice of old Florida that you can't recapture." https://t.co/rLrzqLoDxb pic.twitter.com/jQ2JBDQBw9

— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) October 2, 2022

Emergency officials in Lee County, Florida, only issued a mandatory evacuation order for the areas likely to be hit the most by Hurricane Ian on Tuesday, giving residents less time to evacuate, the New York Times reported.  While much of the areas set to be affected had told their residents to flee on Monday, Lee County officials opted to wait to see how forecasts for the hurricane evolved overnight.

On Friday, the FCC reported that five TV stations, 6 AM radio stations and 15 FM stations were still off-air in Florida.

NFL Legend Terry Bradshaw Reveals Cancer Battles

Terry Bradshaw, a Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback and one of the co-hosts on "FOX NFL Sunday," revealed he battled cancer twice over the last 12 months.

Fox News Digital reports Bradshaw sparked concerns of NFL fans watching the pregame show last week and addressed them on Sunday’s episode before the rest of the schedule kicked off.

"Last week on this show, I ran out of breath, and Howie (Long) helped me up. And a lot of people are asking what’s wrong with me, what’s happened to me physically. I just want to address it and let you know what has happened in my life," the former Pittsburgh Steelers star said.

"In November, I was diagnosed with bladder cancer. I went to the Yale University Medical Center – surgery, treatment. As of today, I am bladder-cancer free. That’s the good news.

"Then in March, feeling good. I had a bad neck. I get an MRI. Now we find a tumor in my left neck. And it’s a Merkel cell tumor, which is a rare form of skin cancer. So I had that surgery done at M.D. Anderson in Houston.

Dominion Voting Wants To Question Fox News' Pirro

Dominion Voting Systems is putting Fox News star "Judge Jeanine" Pirro back on the legal hot seat in its clash with the network in a $1.6 billion defamation suit over baseless claims of fraud in the 2020 elections, NPR is reporting.

In documents filed in a Delaware courthouse, the voting tech company explicitly identified Pirro, a former Westchester County district attorney and New York state judge, as central to its case. Its filings argue that by questioning Pirro, Dominion can meet the key legal threshold of proving Fox showed "actual malice" when it broadcast false claims the firm sought to throw the race to Joe Biden over then-President Donald Trump.

Jeanine Pirro

The case is at a pre-trial phase of the litigation, where both sides are able to obtain testimony and documentary evidence from key figures in a process called "discovery."

"Discovery has revealed that...Fox News host Jeanine Pirro help[ed] spread the verifiably false yet devastating lies against Dominion," the company's lawyers wrote in the legal documents.

Earlier this month, NPR revealed that a Fox producer had warned colleagues in an email against putting Pirro on the air in the days after the election, saying she was pulling conspiracy theories from extremist conspiracy-minded websites to justify Trump's lies. That was just one example of the vast cache of documents and testimony that Dominion has acquired.

Trump campaign attorney Sidney Powell made false allegations on Pirro's show.

Jonathan Brewster Named CEO For El Dorado Broadcasters

El Dorado Broadcasters today announced the appointment of Jonathan Brewster as Chief Executive Officer. Brewster most recently held the same position at Cherry Creek Media, whose sale to Townsquare Media in June was the largest pureplay radio deal in over three years.

“Jonathan has a proven track record of success in radio and local media” said Jason Wolff, President of Frontier Capital Management, El Dorado’s parent company. “I’m looking forward to seeing where he can take El Dorado.”

“The El Dorado Broadcasters team has stayed true to the mission of local media: professionals committed to serving their communities with compelling content and helping local businesses succeed. El Dorado’s dominant position in each market is proof that locally focused media still wins.” said Brewster. “I’m excited to join the team and will focus on enabling innovation and expansion in this great organization.”

El Dorado is a regional media company with 10 radio stations, events, news websites and digital solutions serving California and Arizona.

WI Radio: Magnum Media Closes on WCFW 105.7 FM

Bushland Radio Specialties/WCFW, has closed on its sale of  WCFW-105.7 FM and 99.1 W256AE-FM, both licensed to Chippewa Falls – Eau Claire, Wisconsin to Magnum Radio, Inc., d/b/a Magnum Media.  Roland and Patricia Bushland, have owned and operated WCFW since its inaugural broadcast on the airwaves on October 20, 1968.

Rollie Bushland stated, “Pat and I appreciate the many well wishes we’ve received from our loyal listeners and business associates since we announced the sale to the Magnums back in June. As I said back then, it takes time for these transactions to wind their way through the FCC, but we got through it without any hiccups.”

Pat Bushland said, “Rol is 88, and I’ll be 83 later this month. After nearly 54 years, we’re both looking forward to being able to sleep through storms without having to worry about equipment getting damaged and taking us off the air. Now it’s Dave, Ty, Reid and Chelsey Magnum’s turn.”

Warner Bros. Discovery CEO Dismisses Comcast Acquisition Rumors

If Comcast really is in the market for another streaming service after selling its stake in Hulu to Disney in 2024, it may have to look somewhere besides HBO Max and discovery+. 

According to The Streamer citing a story from Deadline, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav addressed a company-wide town hall meeting via Zoom last week and stated flatly, “We are not for sale, absolutely, not for sale.”

The speculation about a possible Comcast-WBD merger dates back to the summer of 2021, when Zaslav and Comcast CEO Brian Roberts met at the Allen and Co. Sun Valley Conference. The rumors began to swirl again in mid-September when a report suggested that after the regulatory period for Discovery’s acquisition of WarnerMedia ends in 2024, Comcast would be interested in purchasing. the combined company.

Radio Resources Expands Products & Services

Radio Resources has expanded its platform with more products and services for medium to small market radio broadcasters, it was announced today by Alex Quintero, Director of Products and Services. 

The newly added products and services include additional programming options, a traffic system, sales training, and more.

“We continue to grow our platform to address the critical areas of owning and operating radio stations with top quality products and services that can not only improve overall station operations, but can deliver financial efficiencies, as well,” said Quintero. “With a more robust platform, we can better serve the specific needs of medium and small market broadcasters in our industry. Radio Resources makes the customer journey more streamlined, cuts costs, and saves time for owners, managers, and their teams, with the added benefit of increasing asset appreciation.”

Radio Resources is a unique, single-source turnkey platform that can solve resource and budget hurdles across all aspects of radio station operations. The first phase launched in July with programming, a texting platform, workflow solutions, IT and cyber security, 24/7 formats, imaging and production, research, online and digital Integrations, and back-office operations. The expansive platform allows broadcasters to choose products and services a la carte from an exclusive list of recognized and trusted providers. Flexible deals are available for cash, barter, or a hybrid combination.

USA Today Promotes Silva, Portman To Managing Editors

USA Today has promoted Cristina Silva and Jennifer Portman to managing editor positions, placing them in charge of the national news desk, reports MediaPost.

That team covers national breaking news and issues such as health care, education and climate change.

Silva is a deputy managing editor for enterprise.

Prior to joining USA Today in 2018, Silva was news director at Newsweek, and has also served in editing and reporting roles at the International Business Times, The Associated Press, The St. Petersburg (now Tampa Bay) Times, The Boston Globe and the Miami Herald, USA Today writes. 

Portman is currently a senior editor for enterprise.

Before joining USA Today in 2019, she was news director at the Tallahassee Democrat and worked in editing and reporting roles at the Springfield News-Leader in Missouri and the Wilmington News-Journal in Delaware.

“We’re excited to have Cristina and Jennifer leading our Nation desk, which covers so many significant news stories and many important issues confronting our nation,” says Jeff Taylor, executive editor and vice president/news & investigations. “They’re incredibly talented journalists and strong leaders who care deeply about their teams and the coverage we give to readers every day."

FCC Issues New Guidance On Emergency Alerts

The Federal Communications Commission has  urged broadcasters and managers of emergency alert systems to stop transmitting alerts from legacy systems and switch to its newer internet-based system.

The FCC announced updates on Thursday to its Emergency Alert System designed to improve the accuracy of alerts shared on TV and radio. Keeping communication networks open and ensuring they deliver accurate information can save lives, FCC Chairperson Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement.

Report: Gen Z's Favorite Brand Unveiled

What can we learn from Gen Z’s favorite brands?

While marketing to Gen Z is notoriously challenging, some brands seem to have it figured out, according to The Hustle.

October 3 Radio History

➦In 1901...The Victor Talking Machine Company, was incorporated.  In 1929 it was bought by the Radio Corporation of America and became RCA Victor.

Nipper

The famous Victrola phonograph logo, with Nipper the dog, and the words “His Master’s Voice”, appeared on all RCA Victor phonographs..

➦In 1946...singer Dennis Day, a popular tenor featured on The Jack Benny Show, started his own NBC show, A Day in the Life of Dennis Day (1946–1951). Day having two programs in comparison to Benny's one was the subject of numerous jokes and gags, usually revolving around Day rubbing Benny's show, and sometimes other cast members' and guest stars' noses in that fact (e.g., "Dennis, why do you have two horns on your bicycle?" "Why shouldn't I? I've got two shows!"). His last radio series was a comedy and variety show that aired on NBC's Sunday afternoon schedule during the 1954–55 season.

➦In 1949...Radio station WERD 860 AM Atlanta became the first to be owned and programmed by African Americans.

➦In 1952...The sitcom The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet started airing on ABC-TV.  It continued until April 23, 1966 The show starred Ozzie Nelson and his wife, singer Harriet Nelson, and their sons, David and Ricky.