A U-S Bankruptcy Court recently approved Audacy’s Plan of Reorganization, allowing the company to exit Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings pending approval from the FCC. Under the approved plan, Audacy will significantly reduce its debt from approximately $1.9B to approximately $350M. Importantly, all unsecured creditors will be paid.
Audacy is poised to capitalize on growth opportunities as a leading multi-platform audio content and entertainment company. The restructuring aims to position Audacy for success in the dynamic audio business, leveraging its exclusive premium audio content and robust capital structure upon emergence.
However, Senator Ted Cruz and other conservatives have expressed concerns about what they perceive as “George Soros’s takeover” of Audacy’s nationwide radio network. The company’s ownership structure, including foreign ownership exceeding 25%, has raised questions, and Audacy has requested an FCC waiver to address this issue. Cruz has urged fellow Republicans on the FCC to ensure a thorough review of the transaction, emphasizing the importance of transparency and accountability in licensing decisions 3.
Audacy has said it expects FCC approval of the reorganization plan by the end of September. The company hopes to shed 80% of its heavy debt by exchanging debt for equity.
The FCC collects complaints from viewers about the content that comes into their homes over the airwaves, the cable or streaming platforms, and reading through the 546 complaints lodged with the FCC over the past year from residents of Pennsylvania ― obtained through the Freedom of Information Act ― confirms that a large number agree with Minow's 1961 assertion that TV is a "vast wasteland."
The York PA Daily Record recently published a story about PA TV Viewers who sent sending compliants to the FCC. Many made sense, while some were completely incomprehensible.
Prescription drug ads attracted a large number of the complaints, sometimes for reasons that may not occur to you. Take, for instance, a pair of complaints filed about commercials for Sotyktu, a medication used to treat plaque psoriasis. One complaint, filed in October from Chesterbrook, alleges the ad “showed actual or implication man in speedo teasing character of biological minor daughter (incest) or teasing step or adopted daughter implying literal dominance of non biological daughter through literal consequence of money paid for her home (pyramid scheme of sterile or soon to be sterile male (and/or promoting inferior offspring with possible birth defects) when man character already has wife and/or girlfriend.”
Ads for prescription drugs attracted a lot of complaints. One sort of summed it all up, filed under the title, “I need this question answered.” The complaint read: “So why is tv allowed to advertise drugs and gambling during all times of the day? I see it on all the main channels (CBS, ABC, NBC, etc) pretty often. And at dinner time it's ED meds and stuff for 'bent carrot syndrome,' along with stool softeners and anything else entirely inappropriate for day-prime time. Hell I don't even want to see this trash at night! It's like visiting the worst part of town every time a channel takes a commercial break. I'd like answers as to why this is on tv. I know the real reason is money, but there should be some oversight. TV has become a cesspool.”
An ad for Apretude, a drug used to treat HIV, attracted complaints from viewers who objected to its depiction of, well, they can speak for themselves:
“Stop showing gay porn,” one complaint from South Park Township was titled. It read, “Two men kissing in a television commercial is gay soft porn. If you force people to watch gay soft porn every day, they will turn gay.”
“This is getting out of hand,” the complaint read. “Transgender commercials for MTV DRAG QUEENS on a family channel TV Land channel 44 on Spectrum this is Not in good taste at all! On CBS a new show TRACKER was on after the SUPERBOWL GAME. Started out good until 2 lesbians were laying in bed together. Putting lesbians or gays on a TV show is in again, poor taste, sickening it seems to be happening more and more since Biden's world began.”
There were also complaints about racism in commercials.
One complaint from Monroeville, stated, “I am a black man and we (black people) make up only approximately 13.4% of the US population. Why is the FCC allowing over representation of black people in commercials? This is a false narritive and in no way, shape, or form is a true representation or helpful to our country. It creates a false illusion to black people and is insulting to both white and hispanic viewers. I am a wartime veteran and I would appreciate your effort in correcting this issue and catering to ‘wokism.’”
Specific Fox News personalities also drew complaints. One viewer from Pittsburgh wrote, “On October 5th, 2023, Fox News host Greg Gutfield was advocating for a new ‘civil war’ because elections don't work. This man constantly lies and incites violence to the people who watch his program.”
Fox News wasn’t the only network to draw complaints. One viewer complained about CNN broadcasting a Trump town hall meeting, calling it “an affront to common decency” and writing that it “elevates an ordinary liar to national stage.”
President Biden offered some more insight into why he dropped out of the presidential race on Sunday during an interview with CBS News, and said his Democratic colleagues told him his campaign would hurt members of the party down-ballot.
"A number of my Democratic colleagues in the House and Senate thought that I was going to hurt them in the races. And I was concerned if I stayed in the race, that would be the topic, you’d be interviewing me about why did Nancy Pelosi say -why did - and I thought it’d be a real distraction," Biden told CBS News' Bob Costa.
Biden announced at the end of July that he would be bowing out of the presidential race and quickly endorsed Vice President Harris. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Chuck Schumer and other Democrats reportedly called on Biden to drop out in private in the weeks following his first debate with Donald Trump.
"The polls we had showed that it was a neck-and-neck race, it would have been down to the wire," Biden added.
President Biden sits down with CBS News chief election & campaign correspondent @costareports for his first interview since announcing his withdrawal from the presidential race. He talks about his decision and his family; his support of the Harris-Walz ticket; and what he sees as… pic.twitter.com/njNECYJVCV
Fox News Digital reports Pelosi recently revealed that she and Biden have not spoken since he dropped out of the race.
The former House speaker also continues to deny she told the president to drop out. She told reporters during a recent interview that the president didn't have a path to victory.
Elon Musk is due to interview Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on the X social media network on Monday in an event that could inject more surprises into the turbulent U.S. presidential election.
Reuters reports the interview, scheduled for 8 p.m. Eastern, could provide the former president an opportunity to seize the limelight at a time when his campaign is seen as sagging.
His Democratic rival for the Nov. 5 election, Vice President Kamala Harris, has erased Trump's lead in opinion polls and energized Democratic voters with a series of high-energy rallies.
The interview on Musk's social media platform could allow Trump to reach a different audience than the conservative faithful who attend his rallies and watch his interviews on Fox News. However, similar events on the platform have been plagued by technical problems.
The interview will be hosted live using Trump's official X account, his campaign said on Sunday. Trump's access to his account, @realDonaldTrump, was restored a month into Musk's ownership of X after being suspended by the platform's previous owners following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on Congress by his supporters. Trump frequently posts on his Truth Social social media platform, which was launched in February 2022. He has returned to X only once since his access was restored with a post, opens new tab in August 2023 appealing for donations and showing his Fulton County jail mug shot.
Former Boston radio personality William Abbate passed suddenly, on Aug 9, 2024.
Born in Boston, Abbate attended high school at ASIJ in Tokyo, Japan, where he discovered his passion for on air radio announcing.
He worked as a rock DJ at several college and Boston FM radio stations, most notably WFNX-FM and WBCN-FM, where he also produced and hosted the popular NE Patriots Rock Radio Network Pre/Postgame shows for several years.
He also taught radio classes for a brief period at Northeast Broadcasting School, Boston. A keen musicologist, he attended countless performances, he interviewed hundreds of national musical artists, helped local Boston musicians with exposure, and curated a voluminous and eclectic personal music library.
Radio industry changes led him to a career change in college admissions.
The U.S. Men’s Basketball Team’s down to-the-wire 98-87 victory over France – the teams were separated by three points with less than three minutes to play – averaged 19.5 million viewers on NBC and Peacock to rank as the most-watched gold medal game since the 1996 Atlanta Olympics (chart below), based on fast national data from Nielsen and Adobe Analytics.
The game peaked at 22.7 million viewers from 5-5:15 p.m. ET as Team USA pulled away for the win.
Led by Peacock, the game ranked as the most-streamed event of the Paris Olympics across NBCU digital platforms, with an average minute audience (AMA) of 2.7 million viewers.
Earlier on Saturday, the U.S. Women’s National Team’s 1-0 victory over Brazil in the gold medal soccer match (11 a.m.-1 p.m. ET) averaged approximately 9.0 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, marking the most-watched gold medal soccer game since the 2004 Athens Olympics.
NBCUniversal’s presentation of the final Saturday of Paris Olympics competition on NBC, Peacock, and across key NBCU platforms posted a projected Total Audience Delivery (TAD) of 30.7 million viewers, according to fast national data from Nielsen and Adobe Analytics – nearly tripling the audience for the comparable Saturday of competition for the Tokyo Olympics (11.7 million across all platforms).
Beginning with Friday’s Opening Ceremony, NBCUniversal has a posted a 16-day Total Audience Delivery average of 31.3 million viewers across the combined live Paris Prime (2-5 p.m. ET) and U.S. primetime (8-11 p.m. ET/PT) time periods – up 82% from Tokyo (17.2 million).
Total Audience Delivery is based upon live-plus-same day fast national figures from Nielsen and digital data from Adobe Analytics. Live viewership from 2-5 p.m. ET (Paris Prime) is inclusive of NBC, Peacock, USA Network, E!, CNBC, Paris Extra 1, Paris Extra 2, and additional NBCU digital platforms. Primetime viewership includes NBC, Peacock, USA Network, Paris Extra 1 and Paris Extra 2.
In Addition to Winning Gold, Steph Curry’s “Mr. Throwback” Scores as Yesterday’s #1 Series on Peacock
In addition to scoring a Team USA-high 24 points in its gold medal victory, Steph Curry won with his new comedy series “Mr. Throwback,” which ranked #1 on Peacock yesterday, reaching more accounts than all other series on the platform. All six episodes, starring and executive produced by Curry, are streaming now exclusively on Peacock.
Sen. JD Vance made the rounds on major news networks on Sunday, appearing on ABC, CBS and CNN, while his Democratic counterpart, Gov. Tim Walz, was nowhere to be found.
Fox News Digital reports Vance gave an extended interview with ABC News' Jonathan Karl, with their conversation airing in full on Sunday. Vance detailed plans for deportations and defended his support for family voting.
Walz will be ordered to do battle with the media, but will cancel the interview the day before and then tell everyone he did it anyways. https://t.co/u27NqMfLCC
Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign has attacked Vance for past comments, suggesting that parents should get extra votes when they have children.
"The Democrats are talking about giving the vote to 16-year-olds, but let's do this instead," Vance said in a speech at a private event. "Let's give votes to all children in this country, but let's give control over those votes to the parents of those children. When you go to the polls in this country as a parent, you should have more power."
Vance described the comments on Sunday as a "thought experiment" and not a policy proposal.
"Do I regret saying it? I regret that the media and the Kamala Harris campaign has, frankly, distorted what I said," he said. "They turn this into a policy proposal that I never made. … I said, I want us to be more pro-family."
Vance went on to elaborate on former President Donald Trump's plans to handle illegal immigration, specifically regarding calls for mass deportations. The Ohio senator said that a second Trump administration would take a "sequential approach" to removing the nearly 20 million illegal immigrants living in the U.S.
Marty Lyons is leaving the NFL Jets’ radio booth after 22 seasons as an analyst and will be replaced by former Jets tight end Anthony Becht, the team announced on Thursday.
Newsday reports Becht will make his debut alongside play-by-play man Bob Wischusen for the Aug. 24 preseason game against the Giants.
Lyons’ 45-year association with the organization will continue, though. He will be an “ambassador” for the team, serving in a variety of roles that include engaging with fans and business partners as well as making media appearances on the team’s digital and broadcast programming.
Lyons, 67, played for the Jets from 1979-89 as a defensive lineman and is a member of the team’s Ring of Honor. He and Wischusen began together as the radio team for the 2002 season. The Jets this season will move from their longtime radio home on ESPN New York to Q104.3-FM.
“[I’m] definitely going to miss the booth, because there's been a 22-year relationship up there with Bob and [producer] Joe [Loughran] and all the guys,” Lyons told Newsday. “But I'm excited about this new opportunity.”“I think the timing is right, not just for the organization, but also for myself,” Lyons said.
“You know, 22 years up in the booth, 45 years being with the organization, and I'm very thankful to Hymie and [communications vice president] Eric [Gelfand] and [owner] Woody [Johnson] for giving me this opportunity.”
Becht, who turned 47 on Thursday, played in the NFL from 2000-2011, the first five of those seasons with the Jets, for whom he scored 17 touchdowns. The Jets drafted him 27th overall in 2000.
News Corp CEO Robert Thomson called for “commercial consequences” for the now-defunct left-wing advertising cartel accused of organizing an ad boycott against a slew of news outlets and platforms – including The Post.
The Global Alliance for Responsible Media, or GARM, was abruptly shut down Thursday after a damning report by the House Judiciary Committee uncovered evidence that its far-let boss Robert Rakowitz coordinated a campaign to stifle free speech and restrict ads.
Thomson said The Post’s parent News Corp is now “considering our legal options in confronting the blatant political bias of advertising industry bodies who have done serious damage and denied many advertisers access to a significant audience.”
Robert Thompson
“We applaud the work of the US House Judiciary Committee in pursuing the misnomer that is the Global Alliance for Responsible Media or GARM, and its coordinated boycott of media platforms perceived to be unfashionable by illiberal liberals,” Thomson said on the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call Thursday.
GARM was a nonprofit initiative formed by the World Federation of Advertisers, an international trade group whose members include dozens of top corporations that account for 90% of global marketing spending, according to its website.
Earlier this week, Elon Musk’s X filed an antitrust suit naming GARM, the WFA and a handful of specific companies — CVS Health, Mars, Orsted and Unilever – as defendants.
X is seeking trebled compensatory damages and injunctive relief over claims that the defendants participated in an illegal ad boycott. The lawsuit, filed in Texas, claims X lost “billions of dollars in advertising revenue” as a result of their actions.
WFA pointed to the House Judiciary Committee’s report and X’s antitrust lawsuit as key factors in its decision to shutter GARM.
Celine Dion‘s team is criticizing Donald Trump for his unauthorized use of her Titanic classic at a recent campaign rally, according to Billboard.
On Saturday (Aug. 10), Dion’s management team and record label released a statement on social media slamming the former president for including her 1998 hit “My Heart Will Go On” in a playlist during his rally in Bozeman, Mont., on Friday. Attendee-captured videos from the event also show a video of Dion singing the famous track.
Today, Celine Dion’s management team and her record label, Sony Music Entertainment Canada Inc., became aware of the unauthorized usage of the video, recording, musical performance, and likeness of Celine Dion singing “My Heart Will Go On” at a Donald Trump / JD Vance campaign… pic.twitter.com/28CYLFvgER
“My Heart Will Go On,” which spend two week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in February 1998, closed out the Oscar-winning film about the 1912 shipwreck. The ballad was co-written by Titanic composer James Horner with Will Jennings.
Trump will face off against Vice President Kamala Harris in the upcoming 2024 presidential election after President Joe Biden bowed out of the race. The two candidates will appear in a debate scheduled for Sept. 10 on ABC.
Dozens of top artists and songwriters have objected to Trump’s use of their songs at political rallies since he first ran for president in 2016, including The Rolling Stones, Adele, Rihanna, Sinead O’Connor’s estate and Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler.
➦In 1877...Thomas A Edison gave the first public demonstration of his invention: the phonograph.
The phonograph, also called gramophone, is a device introduced in 1877 for the recording and reproduction of sound recordings. The sound vibration waveforms are preserved in the form of a groove engraved into the surface of a rotating cylinder or disc. As the recorded surface rotates, a playback stylus traces the waveforms and vibrates to reproduce the recorded sound waves.
While other inventors had produced devices that could record sounds, Edison's phonograph was the first to be able to reproduce the recorded sound. His phonograph originally recorded sound onto a tinfoil sheet phonograph cylinder, and could both record and reproduce sounds. Alexander Graham Bell's Volta Laboratory made several improvements in the 1880s, including the use of wax-coated cardboard cylinders, and a cutting stylus that moved from side to side in a "zig zag" pattern across the record.
In the 1890s, Emile Berliner initiated the transition from phonograph cylinders to flat discs with a spiral groove running from the periphery to near the center. Other improvements were made throughout the years, including modifications to the turntable and its drive system, the stylus or needle, and the sound and equalization systems.
The disc phonograph record was the dominant audio recording format throughout most of the 20th century. From the mid-1980s, phonograph use declined sharply because of the rise of the compact disc and other digital recording formats. While no longer mass-market items, modest numbers of phonographs and phonograph records continue to be produced in the second decade of the 21st century.
➦In 1925...KMA-AM in Shenandoah IA begins radio transmissions
The station was founded by seed salesman Earl May. May and Henry A. Field of Shenandoah were rivals in the seed business. In 1925 Field of Field's Nursery founded radio station KFNF while May founded KMA. While both stations offered farm news; the two were to become most competitive by offering live productions of hillbilly music. According to KMA's website more than a million people traveled to small town Shenandoah to hear the music.
May built the station headquarters and Mayfair Auditorium (demolished in 1964 due to its being declared structurally unsafe by the Iowa State Fire Marshal) across the street from the nursery business. Between music sets, May would pitch his seeds and tell nostalgic stories. In 1926 May won the third annual Radio Digest Gold Cup Award, after being voted the "World's Most Popular Radio Announcer" by over 452,000 people throughout the United States.
The KMA shows which were broadcast in the afternoons were called the "KMA Country School" and according to the format emanated from the fictional KMA District No. 9 school with the shows beginning with the ringing of a school bell.
The most famous celebrities in KMA's history were the Everly Brothers, Don and Phil. In their early teen years, the brothers and their parents would appear on KMA to sing as "The Everly Family", but by 1952, they were discovered by a talent agent, and made their way to fame in Hollywood with such hit songs as "Wake Up, Little Susie".
With the high visibility KMA operated on a slogan of "Keep Millions Advised", which was adopted in early 1926, after sorting through a reported 4,000 suggestions. KFNF was to operate on "Keep Friendly, Never Frown."
The county school shows were discontinued in the 1950s and the station continued to offer its farm show and farm housewife shows until the late 1990s; the current format revolves around ABC Radio news at the top of each hour, with some agricultural news, regional high school sports and their "Elephant Shop" where listeners can buy, sell, trade or give away personal property on the air.
➤READ MORE: About KMA from radio veteran Marlin R Taylor: Click Here
The 920 AM frequency formerly occupied by KFNF is now KYFR, a Christian radio station owned by Family Radio.
➦In 1937…Comedian Red Skelton made his radio debut on NBC Radio Network's "Rudy Vallee Show."
➦In 1977...Cousin Brucie Morrow did last show at WNBC 660 AM NYC (now WFAN).
➦In 2001..XM Satellite Radio began broadcasting program content.
