NBC Brings Back The Golden Globes

The Golden Globes is returning next year to NBC, its longtime broadcast network, in time for the awards show’s 80th anniversary, the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn. announced Tuesday in a joint statement.

The L-A Times reports the move caps more than a year of chaos and uncertainty for the HFPA, which confronted withering criticism over its operations and the conduct of members. The group has embarked on a series of reforms in an effort to salvage its once high-profile awards show and get back into Hollywood’s good graces.

Last year, NBC dropped the broadcast of the 2022 Globes, a contingent of powerful publicists boycotted the organization and studios including Netflix and WarnerMedia cut ties after a Los Angeles Times investigation raised questions about the group’s ethical and financial lapses and revealed that not one of the then-87 members was Black.

September 21 Radio History

➦In 1943...WNYC-FM call letters debut.

WNYC began regularly scheduled broadcasts on the FM band on March 13, 1943 at 43.9 megacycles. Known originally as W39NY, the FM outlet adopted its present WNYC-FM call letters and its present frequency of 93.9 MHz within a few years.

➦In 1948..."Life With Luigi" debuted on the CBS Radio Network. It continued to March 3, 1953.

➦In 1965..KYW 1060 AM in Philadelphia flipped to an all-news format.

KYW began in 1921 in Chicago, Illinois. It was jointly owned by Westinghouse Electric Corporation and Commonwealth Edison. Westinghouse later bought out ComEd's share and became sole owner of the station.

In 1927, Westinghouse aligned its four radio stations (KYW, KDKA in Pittsburgh, WBZ in Boston and WBZA in Springfield, Massachusetts) with the NBC Blue Network, which originated from former sister station WJZ (the present-day WABC) in New York City. Westinghouse had been a founding partner of the Radio Corporation of America (RCA), NBC's original parent company.

On September 21, 1965, shortly after Westinghouse regained control of 1060 AM, the newly rechristened KYW once again dropped its NBC radio affiliation and was converted into one of the first all-news stations in the country.  Newsman Steve Porter read the first newscast. It had been edited by Fred B. Walters, the former Harrisburg bureau chief and eventual Executive Editor.

Five months earlier Westinghouse Broadcasting converted 1010WINS, KYW's New York sister station since 1962, from a Top-40 format to all-news.  A similar move was made three years later at another Westinghouse-owned station, KFWB in Los Angeles.  KYW has been one of the highest-rated radio stations in the country since that point and has been the market leader in Philadelphia for much of that time. The Westinghouse all-news trio, meanwhile, revolutionized and defined the all-news format. KYW's early format elements were shared with WINS, such as the distinctive teletype sound effect playing in the background, and the slogans "All News, All the Time", "The Newswatch Never Stops", "Listen 2, 3, 4 Times a Day" and "You Give Us 22 Minutes, We'll Give You the World".

KYW's present format runs on a 30-minute cycle. Regular segments include contains traffic and mass transit reports from Metro Traffic every ten minutes on the "twos" (six times an hour), sports updates every quarter-hour (twice an hour, at :15 and :45), weather reports as much as six times an hour (four regularly scheduled reports at :07, :14, :37 and :44 past every hour with breaking weather news plus special forecasts for the New Jersey Shore and the Poconos), and business news from Bloomberg twice an hour (at :25 and :55). When breaking news warrants, KYW will break format to provide continuous coverage of any event.

St. Louis Radio: KFNS Vic Faust Berates Co-Host In Leaked Audio

Vic Faust

While hosting a radio show last week, Fox 2 news anchor Vic Faust unleashed an off-air tirade of foul language, sexist remarks and personal insults directed at a female colleague, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Faust used profanity at least 40 times in a roughly four-minute leaked hot mic rant that berated co-host Crystal Cooper for, among other things, her weight and her parenting skills.

Faust’s off-air comments were digitally recorded and sent anonymously to the Post-Dispatch about 5 p.m. Friday.  On Monday, Faust confirmed that the confrontation took place.

“Well, it is,” Faust said, when told the audio clip was profane. He said there was “background” to the story but declined to comment further.

The outburst occurred last Tuesday morning on KFNS100.7 FM, a station known as “The Viper.” It came near the end of the 8-10 a.m. morning drive show, “The Edge,” that Faust regularly hosts on weekdays with other personalities.

Faust has been a main news anchor at KTVI (Channel 2), the local Fox affiliate, since 2015. He co-hosts the 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. weekday shifts with Mandy Murphey and Jasmine Huda.

The spark for Faust’s harangue seems to have occurred in the closing minutes of Tuesday’s radio show, which can be viewed on YouTube as a podcast. The station now has taken down its Facebook posting of the show.

Social Media Biggest Regulation Target Since Radio

Radio was still in its crib in 1910, but there were already calls for Congress to regulate the nascent medium.

It took Congress until 1927 to pass the Radio Act to regulate unrestricted use of the airwaves. Congress then approved the more comprehensive Communications Act of 1934. That established the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and created the regulatory protocols still in place today.

In fact, many radio station owners in the 1930s demanded congressional intervention. The problem is that there is only so much space on the electromagnetic spectrum. Broadcasters were stepping all over the signals of one another. No one controlled how much power each station radiated. There were problems with the allocation of frequencies. The FCC helped settle which station showed up where in the dial – and in which city. 

Today, Fox News Digital reports the internet was similar when it started. However, as activity online soared, Congress intervened. It approved the Telecommunications Act of 1996. A portion of that law addressed how internet firms were exempt from publishing indecent, obscene or even controversial content. That portion of the law is called Section 230. The 1997 Supreme Court case Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union found the "decency" portion of the broader Telecommunications Act to be unconstitutional. However, the High Court decided it could slice away Section 230 and allow it to stand. 

Lawmakers from both sides have argued over retooling Section 230. The concern now is that big tech firms and social media giants like Meta (which owns Facebook), Twitter and others enjoy an impenetrable legal shield that safeguards them from any challenges to what their users post. In fact, there are arguments that social media algorithms are calibrated in such a way to promote and manifest only the most controversial, sometimes diabolical, content. That creates a vicious circle as such posts generate more attention, fuel outrage in the real world and spur similar videos and articles which feed on themselves.

Syracuse Radio: Cumulus Media Promotes Three Staffers

Cumulus Media has announced that it has promoted three longtime Cumulus Syracuse radio programming professionals to expanded roles within the company’s four-station group.

Cumulus promotes Rick Roberts as Program Director and Digital Content Producer for heritage Top 40 station 93Q/WNTQ-FM. Roberts has been with WNTQ-FM for over 25 years and began his career with the station while still in high school. He has been Music Director and Afternoon Personality for 93Q since 2006 and Assistant Program Director since 2018. Roberts will continue to host afternoons on 93Q and can be heard weekdays from 3:00pm-7:00pm.

Also promoted within the Cumulus Syracuse programming team is Joe DeTomaso, Program Director, Content Production Manager and Midday Host for Alternative Rock station 95X/WAQX-FM. DeTomaso expands his purview as the new Program Director for Sports/Talk station The Score 1260/WSKO-AM. DeTomaso joined WAQX-FM in 2003 and was named Program Director for the station in 2011.

Additionally, Cumulus Media promotes Scott Dixon, Assistant Program Director and Afternoon Host for Alt Rocker 95X/WAQX-FM, to Content Production Captain for the company’s all-new streaming station, The SGNL (The Signal), bringing the AAA format to Syracuse music fans at https://www.sgnlsyracuse.com/. Dixon, who has been with Cumulus Syracuse for 11 years and is a 2019 SAMMY Hall of Fame inductee, will continue in his role as APD and Afternoon Host for 95X.

8 New Findings About Smart Speakers

While AM/FM radio dominates the audio landscape with mass reach and significant time spent, podcasts and smart speakers are fast growing platforms representing engaging environments for brands.

The recently released Cumulus Media 2022 Audioscape examines the podcast consumer and smart speaker trends using data from Edison Research’s “Share of Ear” Report from Q2 2022.

Here are the eight key findings on smart speakers:

1. Smart speaker ownership has stalled with the last growth spurt occurring Christmas 2020

From 2017 to 2019, smart speaker ownership soared from 7% to 33%. The pandemic froze purchases until Christmas 2021 when ownership jumped to 40% in Q1 2021. Since then ownership has stalled with no post-Christmas “pop” in 2021.

Early on, forecasters predicted a significant number of use cases for smart speakers. Perhaps ownership rates have stalled due to limited consumer applications besides playing music and answering simple questions. Since smart speakers are inherently at-home devices, consumer interest and attention might be more focused on out-of-home activities in the post-pandemic era.

2. Smart speaker ownership rates are in the mid-40s for 13-54s but only 27% for those over the age of 55.


3. As smart speaker ownership flattens, the share of AM/FM radio streaming on smart speakers also stabilizes

The proportion of total U.S. AM/FM radio streaming occurring via the smart speaker has stabilized as device ownership growth has stalled. According to Triton Digital, since 2021, AM/FM radio streaming via smart speaker has stabilized, growing slightly from 25% to 27%.


4. Smart speakers are vital to U.S. AM/FM radio as they are now more likely to be the only “radio device” in the home

Edison’s recent Infinite Dial study revealed that 40% of smart speaker owners do not have a radio in their home, up from 28% in 2018.

5. With an 80% penetration of smart speaker homes, Amazon Alexa is the dominant smart speaker device

32% of smart speaker homes have a Google Home. 12% of homes own both devices.


6. Given Alexa’s dominant device footprint, it is no surprise that Amazon Music is the most listened to platform on smart speakers

According to Edison’s “Share of Ear” Q2 2022, 20% of all tuning minutes on smart speakers goes to Amazon Music.

7. Aggressive promotion pays off as AM/FM radio is number one for smart speaker ad-supported audio shares

U.S. radio stations have aggressively promoted how to ask smart speakers to play favorite stations. AM/FM radio stations are consistently number one in ad-supported audio shares on smart speaker devices. No wonder as streaming now represents 16% of all time spent to AM/FM radio.

8. As with podcast listening, smart speaker ownership over-indexes in top markets and under-indexes in smaller markets

In the top 10 DMAs, smart speaker ownership is 17% more likely than average. In markets 51 and smaller, ownership is 20% less likely.


Click here to view a 9-minute video of the key findings.

Wake-Up Call Hurricane Fiona Ravages Puerto Rico

Most of the island of Puerto Rico remained without power last night after Hurricane Fiona unleashed heavy rains, massive flooding, and mudslides. The hurricane struck on Sunday, two days before the five-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria, the storm that devastated the island. President Joe Biden has authorized the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate disaster relief. According to The Weather Channel, the hurricane could pose a threat to Bermuda but will bypass the East Coast.

An entire bridge in Puerto Rico gets swept away by floods with over 778,000 people struggling with no power or drinking water. All due to #HurricaneFiona’s wretched wrath. pic.twitter.com/6Kws49l4SV

— 🍀Qᵁᴱᴱᴺ🔰ᴹᴬᴳᴬ🔰ᵁᴸᵀᴿA🍀 (@QueenMAGAUltra) September 19, 2022

✞QUEEN ELIZABETH THE SECOND BURIED AT WINDSOR CASTLE: Britain’s Queen Elizabeth the Second was interred next to her husband at Windsor Castle yesterday after a 25-mile display of pomp and circumstance like none seen in our lifetime. Thousands lined the route for the procession from Westminster Abbey to Windsor, led by King Charles the Third and accompanied by the queen’s Grenadier Guards, Royal Navy sailors, the Beefeaters, a Scottish bagpiper, and many more.

Today was the greatest day in the history of the British monarchy. Watched by tens of thousands on London's streets and billions worldwide when The Queen was laid to rest in St George's Chapel. I feel proud and privileged to have provided commentary for #Australia's @Channel9. pic.twitter.com/X5hhcAENXR

— Dickie Arbiter LVO 🇬🇧 (@RoyalDickie) September 19, 2022

CEO Bob Pittman Talks iHM's Metaverse Strategy

In latest edition of Remotely from Ad Age, iHeartMedia CEO Bob Pittman discusses how the radio company is preparing for Web3 and defining the future of podcasting with Ad Age Editor Jeanine Poggi.

Radio giant iHeartMedia has begun making strides into the metaverse, announcing plans last week to open a virtual stadium in Roblox to produce digital concerts. In the virtual neighborhood, people can collect in-game rewards and exchange them for “iHeartBucks.” Players can run their own radio stations, which are storefronts inside the neighborhood, and unlock songs and playlists.

During this episode of Remotely, Pittman will discuss how these initial concepts are laying the foundation for the company's Web3 plans. And beyond the metaverse, the former MTV CEO will assess the state of the advertising marketplace and the future of the podcasting business.

Tampa-Orlando Radio: Fernando Bauermeister Named SBS GM

Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc. named Fernando Bauermeister as General Manager of “El Nuevo Zol 95.3FM” – WPYO-FM Orlando and “El Nuevo Zol 97.1FM” – WSUN-FM Tampa. With over 25 years experience as a media sales professional, Bauermeister formed part of the SBS family in Puerto Rico from 1995-2005.

For the last 18 years, Bauermeister has successfully launched a variety of radio stations in the Orlando and Tampa markets. Now, with SBS, Fernando is in charge of running the day-to-day operations, hiring staff, & studio buildouts.

Fernando Bauermeister

“I am excited to come back to the SBS family and help the company grow its footprint in the Florida market. We’ve put together a dream team comprised of experienced and successful professionals who are actively helping local and national advertisers achieve their marketing goals. El Nuevo Zol’s programming features the most influential personalities, the hottest Latin contemporary music and limited commercial interruption, for the best overall listening experience,” commented Fernando Bauermeister.

“Fernando is a valuable asset to our company, he has extensive experience in the audio market, specifically in the Orlando and Tampa area. We are happy to have him on board and in a short period of time have seen great results,” commented Albert Rodriguez (President & COO of SBS).

Tim Scheld Becomes RTDNA Chair

Tim Scheld, News Director, WCBS-AM in New York, was installed as Chair of the Radio Television Digital News Association on Friday at RTDNA22 in Indianapolis. Scheld will serve in that role for one year.

 

Tim Scheld

“I am here to tell you that RTDNA has your back,” Scheld said. “We pledge to be a strong and tireless advocate for fact-based, responsible journalism. And we will fight like none other to protect your rights to report those truths.”

Scheld succeeds outgoing Chair Allison McGinley, News Director at WKMG-TV in Orlando, who will move into the role of Chair of the Radio Television Digital News Foundation for the final year of her three-year leadership cycle.

Scheld began his speech by thanking McGinley for her service as RTDNA Chair.

“Over the last year, you have led with strength and vision, always ready with support and passion, pushing RTDNA forward,” Scheld said. “You carefully and thoughtfully navigated every challenge that came your way with grace and helped others in leadership do the same. We thank you for guiding our board and our association. We thank you for your time and talent. And we look forward to your work with the foundation.”

Sheryl Worsley, Vice President of Podcasting, KSL Podcasts, has been elected Chair-Elect and begins a three-year leadership cycle.

The results of the other RTDNA Board of Directors races are as follows:

• Directors-At-Large: Monika Diaz, Director of Content, TEGNA, and Sean McLaughlin, Vice President of News, Scripps
• Region 3: Misty Montano, Digital Director, 9NEWS, KUSA/KTVD
• Region 4: Colin Benedict, Vice President of News, Morgan Murphy Media
• Region 5: Kim Wilhelm, News Director, KWCH/KSCW
• Region 6: Blaise Labbe, Group News Director, Sinclair Broadcast Group
• Region 9: Sherri Jackson, News Anchor, WIAT-TV
• Region 10: Alisha McDevitt, News Director, WMUR
• Region 13: Galean Stewart, Assistant News Director, WPTV

Press Shield Act Passes U-S House

Congressman Jamie Raskin’s (MD-08) Protect reports from exploitative state spying has passed the House of Representatives with unanimous, bipartisan support. Introduced with Representatives John Yarmuth (KY-03) and Ted Lieu (CA-33), Rep. Raskin’s legislation would safeguard a free and independent press by affording a federal statutory privilege to protect journalists from being compelled to reveal confidential sources and prevent federal law enforcement from abusing subpoena power.

“Today is a triumphant day for press freedom,” said Rep. Raskin. “With the PRESS Act closer than ever to becoming law, a federal press shield law is within reach that affords journalists protection from government overreach and abuse of the subpoena power. I’m grateful to Representatives Yarmuth and Lieu for their partnership in this effort to make good on this foundational constitutional promise, and I urge our colleagues in the Senate to advance the central, bipartisan mission of protecting a truly free and unmuzzled press—by sending this legislation to the president’s desk.”

TNF Attracts New Viewers To Amazon Prime

Amazon.com Inc.’s broadcast of “Thursday Night Football” attracted a record number of new Prime subscriptions for a three-hour period, even beating out events like Cyber Monday and Prime Day, according to an email reviewed by Bloomberg.

“By every measure, ‘Thursday Night Football’ on Prime Video was a resounding success,” Jay Marine, Amazon’s vice president in charge of the streaming service, said in the email.

Amazon has exclusive rights to broadcast Thursday night NFL games for 11 years, a $13 billion bet that sports coverage can broaden the appeal of Prime, which offers both streaming video and lower shipping rates for e-commerce goods. The first game also drew a record prime-time audience to Prime Video, according to Marine’s email.

“While we’re still waiting for official Nielsen ratings, our measurement shows that the audience numbers exceeded all of our expectations for viewership,” he said.

This is a big year for Amazon’s streaming service. In addition to getting exclusive rights to Thursday night NFL matches, the company launched a new series based on the popular “Lord of the Rings” fantasy books.

Judge Upholds Defamation Award Against Pacifica Foundation

Pacifica Foundation, the owner of five progressive, listener-supported radio stations, lost its bid to vacate a $300,000 arbitration award to a former interim executive director who was fired in 2019 after he had fallen out with the nonprofit's board over his handling of financially troubled WBAI in New York City.

Courthouse News Service reports U.S. District Judge Stephen Wilson in Los Angeles on Friday confirmed the arbitrator's decision to award John Vernile damages for defamation even though the arbitrator had agreed with Pacifica that he wasn't wrongfully terminated. Earlier this week, the judge had denied Pacifica's motion to throw out the award, rejecting the nonprofit's argument that the arbitrator had exceeded her power because some the purported defamation occurred after Vernile was fired and none of it "arose" from his employment.

Arthur Schwartz, a lawyer representing Pacifica Foundation, said that the arbitrator's ruling was an affront to free speech and that the nonprofit will appeal the judge's ruling.

SPARC Media, G Audio Networks Offering Workflow System

G Audio Networks, a Gen Media Partners company, is now offering SPARC Media Hub for barter to radio stations throughout the United States. SPARC Media Hub is a superb radio station workflow system, designed for radio people by radio people. The all-in-one platform helps station teams stay organized, communicate more effectively, and eliminate costly mistakes.

“Every day, SPARC Media Hub continues to develop its product to be the best workflow system available,” noted Rich O’Brien, Chief Development Officer for G Audio Networks. “Using customer feedback, researching the latest trends in media, and always thinking ‘what’s next?’ are just some of the pillars that make SPARC a leading-edge product in the industry. We’re very excited about bringing this superior product to radio stations.”

'23 Dates Unveiled For National Radio Talent System

National Radio Talent System (NRTS), a division of the Radio Advertising Bureau, announces today a number of Radio Talent Institutes scheduled to take place in-person across various college campuses next summer.

• Confer Radio Talent Institute at Bloomsburg University of PA    May 22 – 28, 2023
• Kellar Radio Talent Institute at Appalachian State University     June 5 – 14, 2023

In this first program of its kind broadcasters, universities and the National Radio Talent System produced by RAB work together to discover, develop, and prepare students to become the next generation of broadcast leaders.   

After a three-year break due to the pandemic, RAB brought back the Kellar Radio Talent Institute in June 2022 with the plan to strategically roll out additional existing and new programs in the coming months and years.