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Thursday, August 17, 2023
Apple Podcasts: Glenn Beck Is Back After A Trademark Dispute
Edison Research: Here's How Listeners Listen
The audio space is a dynamic environment, and Edison Research’s unique Share of Ear® survey has been recording the changes in this space for nearly ten years. As has been well documented, the biggest transformations they have seen over time relate to the rise of the smartphone and the reallocation of listening time from other devices to the mobile phone.
Despite those changes, listening to AM/FM remains a powerful force in total audio listening, particularly with regard to reach. Bearing in mind that Share of Ear respondents are keeping a one-day audio diary, fully 63% of respondents (among the total sample, Americans age 13 and older) are reached by AM/FM radio content every single day. That is really a huge total – in a typical day, way more than half of everyone age 13+ in the U.S. listens to AM/FM radio.
So this week Edison Research decided to look inside that number – at those people who listen to radio in a typical day. The goal was to see how they are listening. Is it on a ‘radio set’, meaning ‘over-the-air’? Or are they listening to the streams of AM/FM stations on a digital device (phone, computer, smart speaker, internet-enabled television, video game console, etc).
As the graph below shows, 84% of daily radio listeners report listening exclusively over-the-air, and 5% of radio listeners reported listening only to streams. A sizeable portion – 11% of respondents (or about 7% of all Americans age 13 and older) recorded both.
TV Ratings: AGT Climbs Back To The Top
NBC's "America's Got Talent" returned to the top of the prime-time ratings after a five-week absence, while "60 Minutes" was the week's only other prime-time program to top 4 million viewers.
"America's Got Talent" averaged 5.676 million viewers, its largest audience since June 27 when it averaged 5.97 million viewers, to finish first for the third time this summer, according to City News Service in Los Angeles citing live-plus-same-day figures by Nielsen.
Each of the summer's 10 original episodes of "America's Got Talent" has been the week's most-watched entertainment program.Since the last time "America's Got Talent" finished first, the first- place finishers were "60 Minutes", Fox's coverage of Major League Baseball's All-Star Game, the combined viewership for Fox's English-language coverage and Telemundo's Spanish-language coverage of the United States-Vietnam 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup game, Fox's coverage of the United States- Netherlands game 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup game and NBC's coverage of the NFL Hall of Fame Game.
CBS finished first in the network race for the seventh time in eight weeks, averaging 2.65 million viewers. NBC averaged 2.18 million viewers to finish second, a week after being lifted to first by the NFL Hall of Fame Game. ABC was third for the second consecutive week after back-to-back second-place finishes and three in four weeks, averaging 2.09 million viewers. Its most-watched program was "Celebrity Family Feud," third for the week averaging 3.863 million viewers.
The 20 most-watched prime-time programs consisted of the NBC alternative series "America's Got Talent" and "American Ninja Warrior"; "60 Minutes"; reruns of eight episodes of CBS scripted series; five episodes of ABC alternative series; three episodes of the CBS alternative series "Big Brother"; and the Aug. 8 edition of the MSNBC political talk show "The Rachel Maddow Show," the most-watched cable program, averaging 2.749 million viewers, 18th overall.Univision was the most-watched Spanish-language network for the 53rd consecutive week and 191st time in 193 weeks, averaging 1.09 million viewers. Telemundo was second, averaging 680,000 viewers, followed by UniMas (270,000) and Estrella TV (80,000).
📺CABLE TV
Fox News Channel was the most-watched cable network for the seventh consecutive week and eighth time in nine weeks, averaging 1.754 million viewers. It was first among cable news networks for the ninth consecutive week and 129th time in 130 weeks.
MSNBC averaged 1.41 million viewers to finish second among cable networks for the fourth consecutive week. HGTV was third for the second consecutive week, CNN was eighth for the week, averaging 581,000.
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| Graphics Courtesy of RoadMN |
On the programming front, for the second consecutive week, Fox News has six of the 10 most-watched daily cable news shows this past week, including the top four.
The cable prime-time top 20 consisted of 12 Fox News Channel weeknight political talk shows -- four broadcasts each of "Jesse Watters Primetime," "Hannity" and "Gutfeld!"; five MSNBC political talk shows -- four editions of "The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell" and the Aug. 7 edition of "The Rachel Maddow Show"; the 8 p.m. Sunday edition of the western "1883: A Yellowstone Origin Story" on Paramount Network and seven minutes of interstitial programming leading into the 9:13 p.m. episode; and the first hourlong segment of the USA Network professional wrestling program "WWE Raw."
Family Feud: Diamond Sports Sues Parent Sinclair For $1.5B
Bankrupt Diamond Sports Group has sued its parent company Sinclair Broadcast Group for fraudulently withdrawing as much as $1.5 billion from the regional sports business, according to Reuters citing a lawsuit made public on Wednesday.
Diamond Sports, which broadcasts nearly half of NBA, NHL and MLB local games through its "Bally Sports" branded channels, said that Sinclair began siphoning the company’s assets away almost immediately upon acquiring it in 2019. Sinclair's actions defrauded Diamond and its creditors, because Sinclair knew that Diamond was "careering toward bankruptcy" due to declining revenue from cable and satellite television subscriptions, according to the lawsuit.
"Throughout this entire period of precipitous decline, Sinclair unrelentingly continued to carry out its plan to 'milk' Diamond for Sinclair's own benefit and to extract whatever value it could salvage before Diamond's inevitable bankruptcy," Diamond wrote in a complaint filed in U.S. bankruptcy court in Houston, Texas.Sinclair said on Wednesday that Diamond's claims were without merit and that it would vigorously defend itself. Sinclair said last month that it was aware that Diamond had filed a lawsuit under seal.
Sinclair acquired Diamond, which previously broadcast games under the "Fox Sports" brand, in a $10 billion deal that helped clear the way for Disney's acquisition of Twenty-First Century Fox Inc's film and television assets.
Diamond's complaint alleges that Sinclair quickly used Diamond's funds to pay off part of Sinclair’s costs in acquiring the company. Sinclair later collected "extortionate" management fees from Diamond and pocketed most of the money raised in a deal that rebranded Diamond’s channels as "Bally Sports," according to the complaint.
Diamond filed for bankruptcy in March, seeking to finalize a settlement with its lenders and renegotiate its MLB contracts. Diamond has said it needs the right to stream baseball games online to make up for lost revenue from declining customer cable subscriptions.
SiriusXM Disputes $150M SoundExchange Lawsuit
SiriusXM has responded to the SoundExchange lawsuit alleging more than $150M in unpaid royalties and late fees owed for the use of recordings on the satellite streaming service.
Hypeboth.com reports the suit alleges that SiriusXM used an artificially low revenue calculation to determine payments by ascribing “excessive and unjustified value” to its webcasting services sold within bundled packages and removing that value from the satellite radio royalty pool.
In its response, SiriusXM says that it has “always respected the rights of creators and artists” and argued that its calculations adhere to Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) regulations.The satellite broadcaster also said that in the last ten years, it had paid SoundExchange royalties over $5 billion, representing over 80% of the statutory royalties that the PRO distributes to record labels and performers.
“While we are disappointed with the actions taken by SoundExchange today,” the SiriusXM statement continued, “we remain committed to paying artists fairly for their work and will continue to work collaboratively with SoundExchange, as we have for decades, to ensure they are paid properly under the governing regulations.”
8/17 WAKE-UP CALL: Super Trial Expected Day Before Super Tuesday
The prosecutor in Atlanta who obtained an indictment this week against former President Donald Trump and 18 others wants to take the case to trial in March. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said in a proposed scheduling order filed with the court Wednesday that she wants the trial to start on March 4. That would have the trial starting a day before Super Tuesday, when the most delegates are at stake in the primary contest to decide the next Republican presidential nominee. Roughly 14 primaries are set to be held across the country, from California and Texas to Massachusetts and Maine. Trump is currently his party’s dominant frontrunner.
➤TRUMP TO BE PROCESSED AT JAIL, NOT COURTHOUSE: The Fulton County Jail, plagued with overcrowding and detainee deaths and under investigation by the DOJ, could make history as the first location where any U.S. president — current or former— gets a mug shot taken. Former President Donald Trump and the 18 others indicted this week in Fulton County will be booked there like any other pre-trial defendant, the sheriff’s office said. “At this point, based on guidance received from the District Attorney’s office and presiding judge, it is expected that all 19 defendants named in the indictment will be booked at the Rice Street Jail,” Fulton County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Natalie Ammons said in a statement.
➤MAJORITY APPROVE TRUMP PROSECUTION: In a new poll, most Americans said they support the decision by special counsel Jack Smith to prosecute former President Trump for trying to overturn the 2020 presidential election results. Fifty-four percent of all Americans, including 12 percent of Republicans, said they think Trump should face criminal charges, according to the poll from Quinnipiac University. And 68 percent said they think a convicted felon should not be eligible to run for president. But the same poll found that Trump’s big lead over his rivals for the 2024 Republican nomination is growing. He now leads Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, his nearest rival, by 39 points.- In a separate poll by the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 64 percent of Americans said they “definitely” or “probably” would not support Trump for president. But 54 percent also said they would “definitely” or “probably” not support Joe Biden for reelection.
As Maui looks to recover from the deadliest wildfire in modern U.S. history, Airbnb guests and hosts say the site has fallen short in consistent communication, potentially costing both those groups thousands of dollars as a result. https://t.co/BTrOjOt4My
— NBC News (@NBCNews) August 17, 2023
➤DEATH TOLL EXPECTED TO RISE: The loss of human life continues to climb in the wake of the devastating inferno that swept through Maui on August 8. The fire claimed at least 110 lives as it raged burned though the historic town of Lahaina, once the capital of the Hawaiian Kingdom, Maui officials said Tuesday. That makes it one of the deadliest wildfires in history. It is second only to a 1918 fire in Minnesota as the deadliest wildfire in the United States since 1900. Even among the deadliest wildfires in world history since 1900, on a list published by Statista, the Lahaina fire stands fifth. The island's death toll is expected to climb. As the grim search for victims continues, Maui's police chief John Pelletier has pleaded with people to stay out of the burned over areas in respect for the bodies of those who haven't yet been recovered.
➤NO SIRENS, NO WARNING: Maui's emergency management chief on Wednesday defended his agency's decision against sounding sirens during last week's deadly wildfire amid questions about whether doing so might have saved lives. Herman Andaya, administrator of the Maui County Emergency Management Agency, said sirens in Hawaii are used to alert people to tsunamis. Using it during the fire might have led people to evacuate toward the danger, he told reporters. The grassland fire on Aug. 8 raced down the base of a volcano sloping into the tourist resort town of Lahaina, killing at least 110 people and destroying or damaging some 2,200 buildings. "The public is trained to seek higher ground in the event that the siren is sounded," Andaya said during a press conference, which grew tense at times as reporters questioned the government response during the fire.
➤MAUI HOUSE SPARED: New photos show the two-story house with white walls and red roof, miraculously unharmed amidst the apocalyptic devastation surrounding it. The oceanfront home's garden also appears to have kept a semblance of greenery in contrast to the ashes and charred trees. Social media users have named the house 'The Red House That Survived Hawaii Wild Fires' giving it a quasi-mythological status. The wildfires have left at least 110 people dead and caused billions of dollars worth of damage.
Twin Cities Radio: KDWB Adds Vont Leak For Evenings
iHeartMedia Minneapolis’s 101.3 KDWB, the Twin Cities #1 Hit Music Station, has announced on-air personality Vont Leak will join “The KDWB Night Show,” effective August 21st. “The KDWB Night Show” broadcasts weekdays from 6p-11p.
“The KDWB Night Show” features the iHeart Radio Hitlist, a countdown of today’s biggest hits and topical phone interaction with KDWB’s nighttime audience.
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| Vont Leak |
“I’m fanatical about radio. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine being blessed with the privilege to live my dream so soon, hosting a night show at a powerhouse like 101.3 KDWB. I’m beyond grateful to Rich Davis for believing in my potential, and I can’t wait to see if my New Jersey and New York winters have anything on Minneapolis,” said Vont Leak.
Leak joins the Minneapolis market from a brief stop at KKDM in Des Moines, Iowa where he most recently served as an On-Air Talent for 107.5 KISS FM and Morning Producer for Newsradio 1040 WHO. He also served as the Program Director for WPSC at William Paterson University where he created a morning radio show which was named Best College Morning Show in the Country, Best College On-Air Personality in the Country, Best College Program Director in the Country twice and led the station to winning a Marconi Award for College Radio Station of the Year in 2021.
Chattanooga Radio: Jed Mescon New PD, Morning Host At WGOW
Cumulus Media announces that it has appointed Jed Mescon as Program Director and On-Air Host for Talk Radio 102.3 FM / 1150 AM/WGOW in Chattanooga, TN. Mescon will debut on WGOW on Monday, August 21st, and can be heard weekday mornings from 6:00am-10:00am.
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| Jed Mescon |
John Lewis, Vice President/Market Manager, Cumulus Chattanooga, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Jed to WGOW and our Cumulus Chattanooga team. Jed has amassed an impressive career in media and his unique perspective, connection to the community, and skillset will undoubtedly take WGOW to the next level.”
Scott Chase, Operations Manager, Cumulus Chattanooga, remarked: “Jed is one of the most recognizable and trusted talents in the market. He brings unmatched enthusiasm and positivity and is totally plugged into the needs of the community.”
Mescon commented: “I spent 28 years waking up at 2:45am to bring the news to Chattanooga. This brings me back to my roots, doing both news and co-hosting mornings from 6-10am on WGOW Talk Radio 102.3.”
For more information or to stream WGOW, visit: www.wgow.com.
NPR Names Eva Rodriguez As VP/Executive Editor
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| Eva Rodriguez |
Rodriguez will join NPR on the heels of her tenure as editor in chief of The Fuller Project, a nonprofit newsroom that covers issues affecting women globally. She previously held various leadership roles at The Washington Post and The New York Times, managing and editing teams focused on both U.S. and international news. She will report to NPR Editor-in-Chief Edith Chapin.
As the Post's deputy foreign editor, Rodriguez led teams that won awards for their coverage of corruption in Mexico and the growth of cities in Africa.
Red Apple Audio Networks Reaches 200+ Affiliates
Red Apple Audio Networks continues to build momentum across the country with 214 affiliates since its launch just 18 months ago.
Over 50 new affiliates have been added since January, including:
- WLS-AM Chicago - Larry Kudlow Show
- KMOX-AM St. Louis - Other Side of Midnight with Frank Morano
- KWAM-AM Memphis - Other Side of Midnight with Frank Morano
- WCNS/WXJX-AM Pittsburgh - Rita Cosby Show
R.I.P.: Jerry Moss, the ‘M’ of A&M Records
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| Jerry Moss (1935-2023) |
Jerry Moss, the record executive who was the “M” in the seminal West Coast label A&M Records, has died. He was 88, according to The L-A Times.
His death was announced on Wednesday by his family. “Our, husband, father, grandfather/great grandfather and friend died peacefully ... in his home in Bel Air, CA,” the statement read.
A&M, the label Moss co-founded in 1962 with trumpeter and bandleader Herb Alpert, was home to many of the bestselling acts of the rock era, including the Carpenters, Cat Stevens, Joe Cocker, the Police, Styx, Peter Frampton and Soundgarden. Such success was the byproduct of A&M being designed as a safe haven for artists, a label that built careers by allowing musicians to take risks.
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| With Herb Alpert |
It wasn’t the only time Moss adapted to fit the times. He helped reshape A&M’s roster in the late 1970s, bringing in new wave acts the Police and Joe Jackson while also finding space for the modern R&B of Janet Jackson.
Alpert and Moss sold A&M to Polygram in 1989 for a reported $500 million. They remained at the label but clashed with Polygram management and left in 1993.
In 1994, they formed a new label, Almo Sounds, releasing albums by Garbage, Ozomatli and Gillian Welch over the course of five years.
Moss and Alpert were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006 as nonperformers.
Radio History: August 17
➦In 1900...Quincy Howe born (Died from cancer at age 76 – February 17, 1977). He was best known for his CBS radio broadcasts during World War II. Howe served as director of the American Civil Liberties Union before the Second World War, and as chief editor at Simon & Schuster from 1935 to 1942.
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| Quincy Howe |
Howe joined CBS in June 1942, doing the opening news summary on the radio network's The World Today newscast. He left CBS in 1947 to join ABC. In the fall of 1955, he hosted four episodes of the 26-week prime time series Medical Horizons on ABC before he was replaced in that capacity by Don Goddard.
Howe moderated the fourth and final Kennedy/Nixon debate on October 21, 1960. Howe retired from broadcasting in 1974.
➦In 1943...writer Norman Corwin’s first success debuted on CBS radio. It was Passport for Adams, starring Robert Young who played a small-town newspaper editor. Norman Corwin earliest and biggest successes were in the writing and directing of radio drama during the 1930s and 1940s.
Corwin was among the first producers to regularly use entertainment—even light entertainment—to tackle serious social issues. He also wrote and produced such radio classics as This is War, An American in England and We Hold These Truths.
➦In 1963...Ed Gardner died at age 62 (Born - June 29, 1901). He is best remembered as the creator and star of the radio's popular Duffy's Tavern comedy series.
In the early 1940s, Gardner worked as a director, writer, and producer for radio programs. In 1941, he created a character for This Is New York, a program that he was producing. The character, which Gardner played, became Archie of Duffy's Tavern.
The successful radio program aired on CBS from 1941 to 1942, on the NBC Blue Network from 1942 to 1944, and on NBC from 1944 to 1951. Speaking in a nasal Brooklyn accent, and sounding like just about every working class New Yorker his creator had ever known, Gardner as Archie invariably began each week's show by answering the telephone and saying, "Duffy's Tavern, where the elite meet to eat, Archie the manager speaking, Duffy ain't here—oh, hello, Duffy."
Duffy the owner never appeared, but Archie did, with Gardner assuming the role himself after he could not find the right actor to play the role.
➦In 1969…It was the third and final day the Woodstock Music Festival in Bethel, NY. Performing were Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, the Who, Jimi Hendrix, Ten Years After, John Sebastian, Sha Na Na, Joe Cocker, Country Joe and the Fish, the Band, Ten Years After, Johnny Winter and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band.
Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Linear TV Drops Below 50% of July Viewing
Broadcast and cable’s share of viewing dropped below 50% (to 49.6%) as streaming hit a new high in July, according to Nexttv citing a report from Nielsen.
Broadcast’s share was 20% in July, a new low, down from 20.8% in June. Cable had a 29.6% share, down from 30.6%. It’s the first time cable’s share had been below 30%. It’s worth noting that cable had a 40.1% share as recently as June 2021.
Streaming’s share rose to 38.7% in July, the highest since Nielsen began issuing monthly reports, and up from 37.7% in June.
Overall TV usage increased 0.2% in July, with viewing by viewers under age 18 up 4%. Time spent streaming was up 2.9%. Streaming usage is up 12% from a year ago.
Illustrating the shift from linear TV to streaming, Nielsen said that Suits — a former cable TV series — had more than 18 billion minutes of viewing on Netflix. That contributed to Netflix’s 4.2% increase in viewing in the month. Nielsen noted that a year ago, Netflix original Stranger Things had 18 billion viewing minutes for Netflix.
Cable usage was down 2.9% month over month, and down 12.5% from a year ago.. ESPN’s Home Run Derby and College World Series were the top two cable programs in July, followed by When Calls The Heart on The Hallmark Channel.
RTDNA Unveils Edward R Murrow Award Winners
he Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) has unveiled the national winners of the 2023 Edward R. Murrow Awards. More than 100 outlets were honored for their exceptional contributions in digital, radio, and television journalism.
"The Edward R. Murrow Awards serve as a testament to the unwavering dedication of journalists who illuminate the world with their stories,” said RTDNA President and CEO Dan Shelley. “These awards celebrate not just excellence, but the very essence of journalism that shapes our understanding of events and fosters a more informed society."
This year’s Murrow awards celebrated outstanding journalism performed in 2022, a history-making year that included:: the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade, the deadliest shooting at a Texas public school in Uvalde, the aftermath of Hurricane Ian — the deadliest hurricane since 2005 — and numerous other significant events.
“The Edward R. Murrow Awards remind us that journalism is a powerful force for truth and accountability,” said RTDNA Chair Tim Scheld. “These awards honor those who courageously navigate the complexities of our world to deliver stories that matter, stories that resonate, and stories that uphold the integrity of our profession."
In various categories, eight organizations clinched national awards for their Overall Excellence.
Here are the winners of the Overall Excellence awards:
- Small Digital News Organization: Center for Public Integrity: Investigating Inequality – Washington D.C.
- Large Digital News Organization: The Texas Tribune – Austin, TX
- Small Market Radio: WCHS MetroNews Radio – Charleston, WV
- Large Market Radio: Texas Public Radio News – San Antonio, TX
- Radio Network: ABC News
- Small Market Television: WPRI – Providence, RI
- Large Market Television: WFAA – Dallas, TX
- Television Network: ABC News
In addition to the National Winners, RTDNA recognized eight student organizations from seven universities as recipients of the National Student Murrow awards.
A full list of all the winners of the 2023 National Murrow Awards can be accessed here.






























