There is trouble brewing at Black Rock, the headquarters of CBS, after the firing of Catherine Herridge, an acclaimed investigative reporter. According to Jonathan Turley, many were shocked after Herridge was included in layoffs earlier this month, but those concerns have increased after CBS officials took the unusual step of seizing her files, computers and records, including information on privileged sources.
Writing in The Hill, Turley says the position of CBS has alarmed many, including the union, as an attack on free press principles by one of the nation’s most esteemed press organizations.
"I have spoken confidentially with current and former CBS employees who have stated that they could not recall the company ever taking such a step before. One former CBS journalist said that many employees “are confused why [Herridge] was laid off, as one of the correspondents who broke news regularly and did a lot of original reporting.”
Catherine Herridge
"That has led to concerns about the source of the pressure. He added that he had never seen a seizure of records from a departing journalist, and that the move had sent a “chilling signal” in the ranks of CBS.
"A former CBS manager, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said that he had “never heard of anything like this.” He attested to the fact that, in past departures, journalists took all of their files and office contents. Indeed, the company would box up everything from cups to post-its for departing reporters. He said the holding of the material was “outrageous” and clearly endangered confidential sources.
Cumulus Media Inc. today announced that its Board of Directors has adopted a limited-duration shareholder rights plan to protect the best interests of all Cumulus Media shareholders. The Rights Plan is effective immediately and will expire on February 20, 2025. The Board may consider an earlier termination of the Rights Plan if circumstances warrant.
The limited-duration Rights Plan was adopted in response to the significant accumulation of Cumulus Media stock by group identified as Renew Group Private Ltd., an entity based in Singapore.
Twin Cities radio personality Brian Oake has departed KTCZ Cities 97.1 as part of a raft of changes announced by parent company iHeartMedia on Wednesday.
Oake confirmed to Bring Me The News that he's no longer with the station after the radio giant announced changes to its afternoon schedules that saw Zach Dillon moved from KDWB to Oake's Cities 97.1 drive time slot.
Dillon's co-hosting slot alongside Falen Bonsett on KDWB's "Falen & Zach" afternoon show is being filled by Colt Parkey, who is returning to KDWB after four years in Texas.
The statement from iHeartMedia made no reference to Oake or provide any clarity on his status. He was still listed on the Cities 97.1 schedule on Wednesday, but his picture had been removed from his profile, his name has been removed from the "On-Air" menu, and Wednesday afternoon's show was nonstop music.
"The audience has come to know and love Zach and his smooth style over the years while keeping Minnesotans up to date about what’s hot and happening in the Twin Cities," the statement says. "It’ll be great to take advantage of that for the Cities audience."
Oake was quietly moved to the afternoon slot at Cities 97.1 in November, having rejoined the station as morning show host in 2021. He served as Cities 97 afternoon host from 2001 before moving to mornings in 2012, and then left for rival The Current in 2016. But he left The Current in abrupt circumstances in 2019.
The iHeart announcement says that Dillon, who has been with KDWB since 2016, is taking on the afternoon host/assistant program director duties at Cities 97.1 while retaining his assistant program director duties at KDWB.
Bonsett, who was a longtime KDWB morning co-host on "The Dave Ryan Show," will be joined in afternoons by Parkey under the newly named "Falen and Colt Show."
Parkey is returning to the Twin Cities station after spending time at iHeart Radio's 106.1 Kiss FM at KHKS Dallas. He hosted afternoons at KDWB from 2018 to 2020 before his move to Dallas.
"The debut of the new Falen and Colt Show brings a fresh dynamic to the Twin Cities’ airwaves. With Falen’s 12 years of experience on 101.3 KDWB and Colt’s enthusiasm for interacting with listeners, it’s clear they’ll bring a lot of energy and entertainment to the afternoon time slot," said Greg Alexander, iHeartMedia Minneapolis Market President.
The Los Angeles City Ethics Commission unanimously rejected a proposed settlement between the city and Les Moonves on Wednesday, saying a tougher penalty is warranted for the former CBS chief executive accused of interfering with a police investigation into sexual assault allegations against him.
Moonves had agreed to pay an $11,250 fine to settle the ethics commission complaint, which alleged that he worked closely with a police department official to obtain information about a sexual assault victim’s confidential police report.
Ethics commission staff worked with Moonves on the proposed fine, but it still needed approval by the volunteer panel that oversees the commission, the Los Angeles Times reported.
The commissioners felt that the “extremely egregious nature of the allegations” warranted a stronger penalty, ethics commission president Jeffrey Daar said.
A Moonves representative declined to comment to the Times on Wednesday’s action.
Cory Palka
According to documents released last Friday, Moonves acknowledged working closely with then-Capt. Cory Palka of the Los Angeles Police Department in 2017 to get details of the police report.
Palka, who had provided private security for Moonves between 2008 and 2014 at the Grammy Awards, which CBS produced, notified network officials about the complaint against the executive in November 2017, the documents show.
Through Palka, they say, Moonves obtained an unredacted copy of the police report, which also included personal information such as the home address and phone number of the accuser. Moonves also met with Palka for an hour at a restaurant to discuss the complaint and ways to quash it.
Moonves was accused of three violations of city rules. Palka retired in 2021 as a commander after nearly 35 years with the LAPD.
Cumulus Media has announced that Wilmington, NC, radio stations WWQQ 101.3/WWQQ-FM (Country), 102.7 GNI/WGNI-FM (AC), and Coast 97.3/WMNX (Urban) and listeners came together to raise $70,528 for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital through its 26-hour 26th Annual Cumulus Cares for St. Jude Kids Radiothon.
The two-day fundraising event was held on Tuesday, February 14th and Wednesday, February 15th to support the lifesaving mission of St. Jude that no child should die in the dawn of life.
Eric McCart, Regional Vice President/Market Manager, Cumulus Wilmington, said: “I am so grateful for the generosity of our listeners and the time, energy, and love our amazing Radiothon Team invests in sharing the St. Jude stories of hope.”
Cumulus Wilmington on-air hosts including WWQQ Morning Host Eric Medler, WMNX Midday Host Sandra “The Mid-Day Miss,” WMNX Program Director Bigg B, and WGNI Program Director David Bartley broadcasted live in-studio, with special guests, interviews and more to support the kids of St. Jude. All funds raised by the Radiothon will go directly to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and will support St. Jude patients and families who never receive a bill from St. Jude for the cost of treatment, travel, housing or food.
Joining Cumulus Wilmington in this annual effort for kids were sponsors including: Online Donation Sponsor, O’Brien Service Company; Wall of Hope Sponsor, Howard RV Center; Presenting Sponsor, Perry’s Emporium; Phone Bank Sponsor, Myles Family Dentistry; Toteboard Sponsor, Speaks Law Firm; and Angel Hour Sponsors, Bryan’s Heating & Air, Cottman Transmission and Total Auto Care, Dynamic Dance Force, Eastern Turf Maintenance, Generator Super Center of Wilmington, Mister Sparky Wilmington, Nash Building Systems, Sea Tow Marine Towing and Assistance, and The Bluffs On the Cape Fear.
Health and living conditions in the "death zone" of Gaza are "inhumane" and only getting worse, lamented World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Wednesday. The WHO head pointed out severe malnutrition has increased from less than 1% to more than 15% in the Palestinian territory, where World Food Program workers aren’t safe enough to distribute supplies in the north and the largest hospital in the south is besieged and barely functional. Fears of mass starvation across Gaza grew Wednesday as the World Food Program was unable to deliver supplies to northern Gaza amid “complete chaos and violence due to the collapse of civil order.”
Gaza has been described as a death zone by the United Nations and World Health Organisation, with over 29,000 now killed and 1.7 million displaced people facing malnutrition. pic.twitter.com/OnJvfLQGb5
➤U-S SAYS LIKELY UN AGENCY AIDED OCT 7 RAIDS: A new U.S. intelligence assessment found it is likely that some employees of a U.N. agency that distributes aid to Palestinians took part in Hamas’s Oct. 7 assault on Israel. The U.S. can’t verify Israeli allegations that a larger number of U.N. workers have links to militant groups, though, people familiar with the report said. The U.S. and other Western countries last month suspended funding for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, after Israel shared findings that at least 12 Unrwa workers were connected to the Hamas killings and kidnappings that sparked the Gaza war. Meanwhile, humanitarian aid deliveries have slowed to a trickle, as security in the enclave deteriorates, leaving 2.2 million Palestinians faced with spreading famine, disease and desperation.
➤BOEING EXECUTIVE IS OUT: The Boeing executive in charge of the factory that built the jet involved in last month’s door-plug blowout is leaving the company. Ed Clark, who spent nearly 18 years at the aircraft maker, took over the Renton, Wash., plant in 2021 as the company worked to recover from fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019. Boeing also said it was creating a new position overseeing quality control at its commercial airplanes unit. The Alaska Airlines jet blowout occurred shortly after takeoff from Portland, Ore., on Jan. 5. Investigators believe critical bolts were missing when the plane left the factory. Because of the incident, the FAA ordered airlines to ground and inspect some MAX 9 planes; the jets were later cleared to resume flying. Regulators limited Boeing’s MAX production, too. Earlier this month, the company said that it was reworking about 50 undelivered MAX jets after a supplier’s employee found misdrilled holes on some fuselages.
➤RUSSIA 'DETAINS' BALLERINA: Former relatives and associates of a Russian-American woman jailed in Russia are calling for her release and return to the U.S. They identified her as Ksenia Karelina of L.A., an esthetician who had traveled to her hometown of Yekaterinburg around the New Year to visit family. She is being detained on suspicion of treason for allegedly raising funds for the Ukrainian military and faces a possible sentence of up to life in prison. Separately, Ukraine’s military spy chief predicted Russia will struggle to achieve its main strategic goal of seizing two eastern regions this year.
U.S. troops near the Ukrainian border in Poland are conducting drills amid concerns about Russia's invasion potentially reaching NATO territory. With funding stalled in Congress, the exercises for both American and Ukrainian forces are at risk of coming to a halt. pic.twitter.com/kmjMdw3z7z
➤IT'S BAAACK: After spending over a decade on a mission in space, a now-defunct satellite returned to Earth on Wednesday. ERS-2, one of the European Space Agency's first advanced Earth-observing satellites, made a "natural" reentry after staying in space for 16 years.
Meet ERS-2: The satellite was launched in 1995 and provided data for over 5,000 projects, including tracking Earth's shrinking polar ice, sea levels, and atmospheric makeup.
The crash: After spending over a decade on a mission in space, the 2.5-ton now-defunct satellite returned to Earth, splashing down in the Pacific Ocean somewhere between Alaska and Hawaii. The majority of it was expected to burn, with any remaining pieces to be spread out over a span of hundreds of kilometers.
➤EATING MOST EXPENSIVE IN DECADES: Eating continues to cost more, even as overall inflation has eased from the blistering pace consumers endured throughout much of 2022 and 2023. Prices at restaurants and other eateries were up 5.1% last month compared with January 2023, while grocery costs increased 1.2% during the same period, Labor Department data show. Relief isn’t likely to arrive soon. Restaurant and food company executives said they are still grappling with rising labor costs and some ingredients, such as cocoa, that are only getting more expensive. Consumers, they said, will find ways to cope.
➤FBI CHECKING ON SUPER MAYOR: The FBI is probing self-described “super mayor” Tiffany Henyard over mounting accusations of misconduct and misuse of office — as the Illinois Attorney General shut down her charity Tuesday, The NYPost has learned. The eccentric mayor — whose face is plastered across billboards in tiny Dolton, Ill. — is accused of spending taxpayer money on lavish and unnecessary trips and forking over one million dollars on a police detail then using them to retaliate against her perceived enemies. Lawrence Gardner, 57, said he visited an FBI office after Henyard shuttered his trucking business because he refused to renew a $3,500 political contribution.
Mayor Tiffany Henyard is accused of spending taxpayer money on lavish trips and a police detail. When he refused to give her campaign more money, officials claimed he was illegally selling alcohol out of his business and pulled his license, according to Gardner, who said the allegations against him were false. The FBI told Gardner they received scores of complaints against Henyard “but they were just starting an investigation,” he recalled.
🐶BIDEN BANISHES COMMANDER: President Biden’s now-banished German shepherd Commander inflicted more damage with bite incidents than previously known. Newly released records from the United States Secret Service to USA TODAY reveal the aggressive dog was involved in at least 25 biting incidents in less than a year. This month, the Secret Service released 269 pages related to a Freedom of Information Act request that included email traffic with anecdotes of bites. It included a table with the 23 incidents from October 2022 to July 2023. That doesn’t count two more incidents in September and October that finally prompted Commander’s removal. The list showed bites to agents’ arms, hands, thighs, back, wrists, elbows, waist, chest and an agent’s ammunition magazine pouch. At least 11 of the incidents required medical attention.
Audacy announces the addition of Andy Chanley as Afternoon Drive Host and Music Director of 93XRT (WXRT-FM) in Chicago beginning March 11. Chanley will be heard weekdays from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. CT.
“Andy Chanley is one of the most respected in the business and will be a tremendous addition to the XRT team,” said Laura Duncan, Brand Manager, 93XRT. “His passion for music and reverence for WXRT, the on-air team, and the city of Chicago makes Andy the perfect fit.”
Andy Chanley
“As an Indiana kid, being in Chicago was always thrilling — partly because I could hear bands like R.E.M., Big Star and Velvet Underground on FM radio for the first time,” said Chanley. “Even before I got into radio, XRT was the gold standard to me, and that opinion has never faded. I know what XRT means to folks here and around the world, and I’m honored to finally be a part of it. I can’t wait to get back to my friends and family!”
Chanley most recently hosted afternoons at KCSN in Los Angeles. He returns to the Midwest after over two decades on the West Coast, including ten years at The Sound (KSWD-FM) in Los Angeles.
The station subsequently announces current afternoon host Ryan Arnold will move back to nights and be heard weekdays from 7:00 p.m to 12:00 a.m. CT. Current night host Emma Mac will move to weekends.
Listeners can tune in to 93XRT (WXRT-FM) in Chicago on air and nationwide on the Audacy app and website. Fans can also connect with the station via X, Facebook and Instagram.
Andrew Haze has been promoted to host the afternoon drive shift for 101.1 WIXX. He first joined WIXX in 2022 as a fill-in and weekend on-air talent.
"It’s a dream come true," Haze said in a news release. "WIXX is such a legendary station with some of the greatest personalities. I'm honored to part of it. Let’s GOOOOO!!!"
Fox11 News reports WIXX Brand Manager Corey Carter praised Haze for his work with the station and his engaging, radio-friendly persona.
The first time we met Andrew we knew he was a special talent. His passion for radio, creativity, ability to run an entertaining, listener-intensive show as well as his social-media expertise will be a great asset for WIXX. We're extremely excited and happy to have him on-board!
In his new position, Haze will be on-air Monday through Friday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. He's replacing Dan "Huggie" Amsden, who was announced at the beginning of February as one of the hosts of WIXX's new morning radio show.
The last few months have been a wild ride for morning radio listeners in Northeast Wisconsin.
In early October, Jim Murphy -- who hosted Murphy in the Morning for 32 years -- announced he planned to retire on Nov. 28.
Two days later, longtime WIXX host Otis Day was revealed as the new host of 95.9 KISS FM's morning slot. His hiring came just over two weeks after KISS FM abruptly canceled “The Jake and Tanner Show."
On Dec. 8, Murphy in the Morning co-hosts Nick Vitrano and Katie Schurk departed WIXX after more than two decades. Chris Carson was hired to fill WIXX's vacant morning show slot in mid-December, but was let go about a month later.
FOX News Media (FNM) will provide extensive live analysis and reporting ahead of the South Carolina primary beginning on Thursday, February 22nd and leading up to special coverage the day of the primary on Saturday, February 24th.
Co-anchored by FOX News Channel’s (FNC) Bret Baier and Martha MacCallum, special coverage of the South Carolina primary will begin at 7 PM/ET on FNC this Saturday, February 24th. Throughout the evening, Baier and MacCallum will be joined by FNC’s Dana Perino and Harold Ford Jr., along with Bill Hemmer analyzing results in real-time on the electronic “Bill-board,” and Sandra Smith presenting the FOX News Voter Analysis results from the primary. Anchor John Roberts will also contribute to the coverage live from Senate’s End in Columbia, South Carolina with additional commentary provided by FNC analysts Karl Rove and Kellyanne Conway.
Life, Liberty & Levin (Saturdays, 8 PM/ET) and One Nation with Brian Kilmeade (Saturdays, 9 PM/ET) will be preempted that evening. The Big Weekend Show and FOX News Saturday Night will air in the 9 and 10 PM/ET hours respectively. The following morning, FOX & Friends Weekend will broadcast from South Carolina to provide analysis on the results from the primary.
Leading up to the primary, FOX & Friends co-host Lawrence Jones will broadcast live from Golden Egg in Surfside Beach, SC on Thursday, February 22nd, to speak with voters days before they cast their ballots. On Friday, February 23rd, FOX & Friends co-hosts Steve Doocy, Ainsley Earhardt and FOX & Friends Weekend’s Pete Hegseth will host the three-hour program live from Senate’s End while Lawrence Jones will speak with diner patrons at Eggs Up Grill in Columbia. Following, John Roberts will present America Reports live from South Carolina and Sean Hannity’s eponymous Hannity (weeknights, 9 PM/ET) will also broadcast live from the Palmetto State.
Kicking off South Carolina Primary day, FOX & Friends Weekend (6-10 AM/ET) will be live from South Carolina with co-hosts Will Cain, Pete Hegseth and Rachel Campos-Duffy. John Roberts will continue the on the ground coverage from 1-3 PM/ET with a special edition of America Reports. FOX News Live will air from 4-5 PM/ET followed by FOX Report with Jon Scott from 5-7 PM/ET for a preview of the evening’s polling.
Reporting live on the ground in the days leading up to the primary will be FNC correspondent Alexandria Hoff. On Saturday night, FNC correspondent Mark Meredith will join the network’s expanded coverage from South Carolina.
FOX News Channel’s (FNC) town hall Tuesday night in Greenville, South Carolina moderated by The Ingraham Angle’s Laura Ingraham featuring former President Donald Trump was the highest-rated cable news telecast of the night in both total viewers and the 25-54 demo, according to early Nielsen Media Research ratings.
Airing from 7-8PM/ET, Tuesday night’s town hall averaged over 3.2 million viewers and 327,000 in the 25-54 demo, not including out of home viewing which will be available tomorrow. The Ingraham Angle town hall represented 60% of the cable news share in total viewers and 55% of the cable news share in the key demo.
Last night’s town hall marked the highest-rated airing of The Ingraham Angle since taking over the timeslot. At 7 PM/ET the town hall with former President Trump notched a 45% increase in total viewers and 50% in the 25-54 demo versus the 2024 average.
In primetime from 7-11PM/ET, FNC notched 2.7 million viewers and 284,000 in the 25-54 demo, crushing the cable news competition winning combined across the board. FNC’s town hall quadrupled CNN in total viewers (742,000) and beat MSNBC by a triple-digit advantage (1.39 million P2+) in the 7 PM/ET timeslot.
Earlier this week, John Roberts’ Democracy 2024: Town Hall with 2024 Republican presidential candidate and former U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley, which aired on Sunday, February 18th at 5 PM/ET, delivered 910,000 viewers and 103,000 with the 25-54 demo. Combined with its 10 PM/ET encore showing, the program totaled 1.5 million viewers. Notably, the hour-long town hall outpaced the competition and outrated the average of all of CNN’s programming with viewers.
Pop and R&B/hip-hop superstar Beyoncé made a surprise announcement during Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 11, releasing two tracks noticeably different in sound from the bulk of her catalog: “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages.”
The former is officially being promoted to country radio, as announced in a Columbia Nashville email to stations Feb. 14 at 11 a.m. ET, and arrives as Beyoncé’s first entry on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart (dated Feb. 24), starting at No. 54 with 1.1 million in audience via 100 stations at the format in the tracking week ending Feb. 15.
The Country Airplay survey reflects songs’ audience impressions on nearly 150 U.S country radio stations as monitored by Mediabase and provided to Billboard by Luminate.
“We immediately added it [in] a sub-power rotation, which is where we put top-trending new music,” Alpha Media-owned KBAY San Jose, Calif., program director Bo Matthews tells Billboard of “Texas Hold ‘Em.” “I want people to hear it. One of the biggest artists in the world delivered a great country record for us to have fun with, and the song is really good. We are in the business of creating excitement for our listeners and I’m embracing the moment. Plus, there is plenty of room for great artists, even from other genres. It’s a big country tent.”
Beyoncé has banked eight No. 1 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 and seven No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200 as a soloist, starting in 2003. Plus, Destiny’s Child, with her as a member, logged four leaders on the Hot 100 and two on the Billboard 200, beginning in 1999.
As a soloist, Beyoncé boasts 12 career No. 1s on the Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart, 11 on Rhythmic Airplay, seven on Pop Airplay, five on Dance/Mix Show Airplay and three on Adult R&B Airplay.
Concurrent with its Country Airplay entrance, “Texas Hold ‘Em” opens at No. 38 on Pop Airplay, with its plays on 98 chart reporters translating to 1.3 million audience impressions at the format.
Notably, Rhiannon Giddens plays banjo and viola on “Texas Hold ‘Em.” She hit No. 6 on Country Airplay in 2017 as featured on Eric Church’s “Kill a Word.” (She has charted one No. 1 on the Americana/Folk Albums list, Tomorrow Is My Turn, in 2016, and, as part of Carolina Chocolate Drops, two leaders on Bluegrass Albums.)
ABC must face religious discrimination claims from two former General Hospital crewmembers who sued the network after they were fired for refusing the COVID-19 vaccination, marking one of the first rulings to clear the way for trial over terminations caused by blanket vaccine mandates widely imposed by studios amid the pandemic.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, a Los Angeles judge found that James and Timothy Wahl may have had "sincerely held" religious beliefs that ABC should have accommodated by affording them exemptions and allowing them to follow safety protocols implemented before mandatory vaccination policies were rolled out.
The ruling comes on the heels of ABC defeating a similar lawsuit from Ingo Rademacher over his dismissal from General Hospital for refusing to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Unlike with crewmembers who were not in close, unmasked contact with others, the court found in that case that it was impossible for unvaccinated actors to safely work on set during the pandemic due to the nature of their work.
ABC was among several studios that in the summer of 2021 carried out vaccine mandates, which were agreed upon by Hollywood's guilds and studios. The return-to-work protocols stated that vaccines could be required for those working in "Zone A" of a production - typically a project's main actors, as well as key crewmembers who work closely with them in the highest-risk areas of the set.
In 2022, father and son James and Timothy Wahl, both of whom worked in the special effects department for the show, sued ABC after their requests for religious exemptions were denied. The rejections were based on ABC's uncertainty as to whether their objections to taking the vaccine were based on their Christian faith.
ABC argued that the Wahls did not have genuine religious beliefs and that, even if they did, it could not have accommodated them without undue hardship. It also claimed that IATSE waived any rights members had to object to mandatory vaccination policies.
Ruling against ABC on summary judgment, the court concluded that the studio may have discriminated against the Wahls on the basis of their religion by failing to find a workaround for their refusal to get vaccinated.
➦In 1857...German physicist Heinrich Hertz was born (Died January 1, 1894). He was first to conclusively proved the existence of the electromagnetic waves theorized by James Clerk Maxwell's electromagnetic theory of light. The unit of frequency – cycle per second – was named the "hertz" in his honor.
The first successful radio transmission was made by David Edward Hughes in 1879, but it would not be conclusively proven to have been electromagnetic waves until the experiments of Hertz in 1886. For the Hertz radio wave transmitter, he used a high-voltage induction coil, a condenser (capacitor, Leyden jar) and a spark gap—whose poles on either side are formed by spheres of 2 cm radius—to cause a spark discharge between the spark gap’s poles oscillating at a frequency determined by the values of the capacitor and the induction coil.
Heinrich Hertz
To prove there really was radiation emitted, it had to be detected. Hertz used a piece of copper wire, 1 mm thick, bent into a circle of a diameter of 7.5 cm, with a small brass sphere on one end, and the other end of the wire was pointed, with the point near the sphere. He bought a screw mechanism so that the point could be moved very close to the sphere in a controlled fashion. This "receiver" was designed so that current oscillating back and forth in the wire would have a natural period close to that of the "transmitter" described above. The presence of oscillating charge in the receiver would be signaled by sparks across the (tiny) gap between the point and the sphere (typically, this gap was hundredths of a millimeter).
In more advanced experiments, Hertz measured the velocity of electromagnetic radiation and found it to be the same as light’s velocity. He also showed that the nature of radio waves’ reflection and refraction was the same as those of light and established beyond any doubt that light is a form of electromagnetic radiation obeying the Maxwell equations.
Hertz's experiments triggered broad interest in radio research that eventually produced commercially successful wireless telegraph, audio radio, and later television.
➦In 1907...Radio, TV actor & producer Sheldon Leonard (died: January 11, 1997 at age 89) was born in New York City. He was part of the cast of voice actors on the Damon Runyon Theatre radio show (1948-1949). He was part of the ensemble cast of the Martin and Lewis radio show. He also appeared frequently on The Adventures of the Saint, often playing gangsters and heavies. Leonard was also a regular on the radio comedy series The Adventures of Maisie in the 1940s. During the 1950s, Leonard provided the voice of lazy fat cat Dodsworth in two Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoons directed by Robert McKimson.
➦In 1910...Radio actor, announcer Ken Roberts was born Saul Trochman in New York City (Died from pneumonia at age 99 – June 19, 2009). He was known for his work during the Golden Age of Radio, especially on The Shadow, It Pays to Be Ignorant, Quick as a Flash & Easy Ace, sand for his work announcing the daytime television soap operas The Secret Storm, Texas and Love of Life, each for a two-decade span.
Ken Roberts
His first announcing job was at WMCA in New York lasting three weeks. Next at WLTH in Brooklyn. In an interview for the book The Great American Broadcast, Roberts told Leonard Maltin that he had started at the Brooklyn station in 1930, where his responsibilities included answering phones and sweeping the floors, in addition to on-air roles playing piano and reading poetry.
During the 1930s and 1940s, Roberts' voice appeared widely in live programming to introduce programs, moderate game shows and do live reads for commercials. Despite his Errol Flynn-like good looks and the frequent broadcasts featuring his voice, as often as several times each day, few listeners knew who he was or would have recognized him in public radio historian Jim Cox described Roberts' voice as neither "Yankee, Southern, Western or anything else". It was a voice that didn't "irritate anybody" and that "you just naturally liked to hear", making him "one of the leading lights of radio". Steve Beverly of The Daily Game Show Fix described Roberts as having "what executives called a golden throat", with a familiar voice that was one of broadcasting's most-recognized anonymous voices. He also found time to narrate dozens of theatrical movie trailers and "intermission" segments for traditional and drive-in theaters during the 1940s and 1950s.
In 1935, Roberts was one of the founders of the American Guild of Radio Announcers and Producers, one of the predecessors of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA).
➦In 1918...Longtime announcer Dominick George "Don" Pardo was born in Westfield, MA (Died– August 18, 2014 at age 96). His career spanned more than seven decades.
Don Pardo
Pardo was hired for his first radio position at NBC affiliate WJAR in Providence in 1938.
He joined NBC full-time as an in-house announcer in 1944, remaining on the network staff for 60 years. The radio programs on which he worked as an announcer include Barrie Craig, Confidential Investigator, the sci-fi shows X Minus One and Dimension X. During World War II, Pardo worked as a war reporter for NBC Radio.
For more than 30 years, Pardo was one of the rotating announcers on the KFOG San Francisco radio show "Ten at Ten", appearing at 10 a.m. and in syndication with Dave Morey on KFOG HD Radio.
In the early 1950s, he served as announcer for many of RCA's and NBC's closed-circuit color television demonstrations.
Pardo made his mark on game shows for NBC as the voice of the original The Price Is Right from 1956 until it moved to ABC in 1963. Pardo's next show was Jeopardy!, which he announced from 1964 until the original version of the series ended in 1975. This early version was hosted by Art Fleming. The current syndicated version of Jeopardy! has been hosted by Alex Trebek and since 1984 has been announced by prominent long time announcer, Johnny Gilbert. Pardo also announced New York–based NBC game shows such as Three on a Match, Winning Streak, and Jackpot!, all three of which were Bob Stewart productions.
Pardo squeezed in many other assignments at NBC, including the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (until 1999), WNBC-TV's Live at Five and NBC Nightly News.
Pardo was the on-duty live booth announcer for WNBC-TV in New York and the NBC network on November 22, 1963, and he was the first to announce to NBC viewers that President John F. Kennedy had been shot in Dallas, Texas.
Best remembered as the announcer for the first 39 years of ‘Saturday Night Live,’ he uniquely scored a 70 year career as announcer for NBC Radio & TV. He made weekly flights from his Arizona retirement home to New York to work live on SNL.
First Control Room
➦In 1922...WOR-AM signed on. WOR began broadcasting on February 22, 1922, using a 500-watt transmitter on 360 meters (833 kc.) from Bamberger's Department Store in Newark, New Jersey. Louis Bamberger's sale of radio sets to consumers explained their affiliation with the station. The WOR call sign was reissued from the U.S. maritime radio service.
The station initially operated limited hours, sharing time with two other stations, WDT and WJY, which also operated on 833 kc. WOR changed frequency to 740 kc. in June 1923 and shared time with WJY until July 1926, when WJY signed off for good and WOR received full use of the frequency. In December 1924, WOR acquired a studio in Manhattan.
On June 17, 1927, as a result of General Order 40, WOR moved to 710 kc., the channel it currently occupies (unlike most stations, it was not affected by NARBA in 1943). Later in 1926, WOR moved from its New York City studio on the 9th floor of Chickering Hall at 27 West 57th Street to 1440 Broadway, two blocks from Times Square.
Under the prepackaged reorganization plan filed in January, Philadelphia-based Audacy will hand control of the company over to a group of lenders, now led by a firm run by billionaire George Soros. In exchange, the lenders have agreed to reduce all but $350 million of Audacy’s $1.9 billion in debt. Existing shareholders are expected to be left with nothing to show for their investments, while larger creditors would be repaid with stock in the restructured company.
With the court signing off on the plan, Audacy expects to emerge from Chapter 11 after the company gets approval from the Federal Communications Commission.
Last week, court filings showed privately held Soros Fund Management acquired roughly $415 million of Audacy’s debt, positioning it to take a greater post-bankruptcy share of equity in the company than any other creditor. The firm essentially bought out much of the debt owned by New York hedge fund HG Vora Capital Management, which was the largest debtholder when Audacy filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last month.
Current CEO David Field
The new owners could choose to keep the current board and management or replace them. Industry experts say whoever is running the company will be charged with paring down costs such as personnel, real estate, stations and contracts while also trying to figure out a revenue model that is profitable for a company focused on radio and podcasting.
Audacy has struggled since its 2017 acquisition of CBS Radio, which made it the second-largest radio station operator in the country. The company quickly made significant investments in podcasting and related technology before the pandemic dealt a significant blow to advertising revenue. Critics said management did not move aggressively enough to cut costs and pare down debt as advertising revenue failed to rebound. Since the CBS deal was announced, Audacy’s stock price has plunged from $17 a share to 11 cents.
The big cost centers include personnel, real estate, technology and contracts related to content. There is a theory that radio companies can run a more centralized set of operations for stations. That would include sharing and repurposing content, which could take away some of the local flavor for news, opinion, sports and music stations.
With technology being what it is today, multiple radio stations can be located on one floor of an office building rather than taking up multiple floors.
