May 12 Radio History

In 1908...wireless Radio broadcasting was patented by Nathan B Stubblefield

Stubblefield

Stubblefield (November 22, 1860 - March 28, 1928) was an American inventor and Kentucky melon farmer. It has been claimed that Stubblefield demonstrated radio in 1892, but his devices seem to have worked by audio frequency induction or, later, audio frequency earth conduction (creating disturbances in the near-field region) rather than by radio frequency radiation for radio transmission telecommunications.

He made public demonstrations of voice and music transmission to five receiving locations on the courthouse square in Murray on January 1, 1902, witnessed by at least 1,000 people, apparently using voice frequency transmission through earth conduction, to a radius of one-half mile. Later he demonstrated wireless telephony in Washington, D.C. on March 20, 1902, where voice and music transmissions were made over a third of a mile from the steamer Bartholdi to shore. He demonstrated wireless telephony as well in Philadelphia on May 30, 1902 to a distance of a half mile. His experiments were discussed in leading scientific journals.

In 1903, he could transmit 375 feet without earth connections, using induction. In 1904, he could transmit 423 yards. The total wire required for the transmitting and receiving coils was of a greater length than what would be required to simply interconnect the transmitter and receiver, but the invention would allow mobility.

By 1907, with a 60-foot transmitting coil, he could work 1/4 mile or 1,320 feet "nicely." On May 12, 1908, he received U.S. patent 887,357 for his Wireless Telephone, using the voice frequency induction system. He said in the patent that it would be useful for "securing telephonic communications between moving vehicles and way stations". The diagram shows wireless telephony from trains, boats, and wagons. In foreign patents he showed wireless telephony with cars. However, there is no indication that he was using voice-modulated continuous high frequency waves, as used for radio today.

Stubblefield's inventions did not lead directly to radio as the technology works today, but the public demonstrations in 1902 and the press coverage in the New York Times, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Washington Post, the Louisville Courier-Journal, Scientific American, and elsewhere helped to spur public interest in the possibilities of wireless transmission of voice and music. Most other inventors of the era sought to provide point-to-point messaging, to compete with telephone and telegraph companies.

Stubblefield in the 1902 was in a sense the "Father of Broadcasting", in that he said to the St. Louis Post Dispatch reporter in 1902, "..it is capable of sending simultaneous messages from a central distributing station over a very wide territory. For instance, anyone having a receiving instrument, which would consist merely of a telephone receiver and a signalling gong, could, upon being signalled by a transmitting station in Washington, or nearer, if advisable, be informed of weather news. My apparatus is capable of sending out a gong signal, as well as voice messages. Eventually, it will be used for the general transmission of news of every description".


In 1930…Syndicated gossip columnist Walter Winchell made his radio debut on WABC-New York. From 1930 to the late 1950s, his Sunday night broadcasts on the ABC Radio Network were heard by an estimated 20 million people.

Here's audio from a 1941 broadcast...




In 1965…In Hollywood, the Rolling Stones re-recorded "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," which they had first recorded in Chicago two days earlier. It was this Hollywood version that was released. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Satisfaction" #2 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, runner-up to Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone." In 2006 it was added to the Library of Congress National Recording Registry.

FOX Says Next Season Is Last for 'American Idol'

“American Idol” is finally coming to a close. The fifteenth and final season will premiere January 2016.

Variety reports Jennifer Lopez, Harry Connick Jr. and Keith Urban will return as Season 15 judges, along with host Ryan Seacrest.

While searching for the final “Idol” superstar, the last season will also serve as a “celebratory event,” paying tribute to fourteen seasons of contestants, winners and fans.

Fox TV Group chairman-CEO Gary Newman said it was “not an easy decision” to call it a wrap for “Idol” after much discussion with producers.

The show will air in its usual Wednesday-Thursday pattern to start and then consolidate to one performance and results show on Thursday, execs said.

“American Idol,” created by Simon Fuller, debuted in 2002 with original judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson. Throughout its fourteen seasons, other A-list judges have included Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, Steven Tyler, Kara DioGuardi and Ellen DeGeneres. It ranked as the No. 1 series on broadcast TV for eight of its 15 seasons.

Boston Radio: WBWL Adds Colton Bradford For Evenings

Colton Bradford

iHeartMedia/Boston has announced the addition of Colton Braford to the station.  He'll host evenings on Country WBWL 101.7 FM The Bull starting today.

The 22-year-old Bradford has been producing the morning show and was evening personality at iHR's WKSJ 94.9 FM 95KSJ.

That's a jump from market #96 to #10

"We can’t wait for Colton to hop on The Bull here in Bpstpm,” said PD Lane Houston. “He is a rising star in the Country music industry, and his passion for entertaining is nothing short of incredible.”

He started at 95KSJ as an intern.

WBWL 101.7 FM (13.5 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area

Orlando Radio: Paul McCartney Performs At Graduation Party

Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney sang a vintage Beatles song at a private party Saturday night in Florida May 9 celebrating the graduation of his stepson Arlen Shevell, son of wife Nancy Shevell, Josh Walther, leader of the band Josh Walther and the Phase5 who McCartney sang with on stage told Beatles Examiner May 10.

Walther called it the “thrill of a lifetime.”

He said the gig, which took place at Interlachen Country Club in Winter Park near Orlando, was arranged by Shevell herself.

“She called us about this event last year, but I didn't know who she was,” he said. “I didn't figure it out until about two weeks ago when she casually mentioned it on the phone.

He said Shevell and McCartney specifically picked Phase5 for the party. “They found us on the internet. Nancy said they searched for bands in the area and we were their first choice.”

NYC Radio: The Mikes Are Moving To Manhattan

ESPN is taking its longtime morning radio show “Mike & Mike” from its home at the sports media giant’s Bristol, Conn. headquarters to ABC’s studio in New York City, where the two companies within the Walt Disney Co. empire plan to work together on programming tie-ins.

The Wall Street Journal reports beginning next February — the day after the Super Bowl — Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic will broadcast from a set directly above ABC’s “Good Morning America.”

The two programs will share talent. GMA’s Robin Roberts, for example, may appear on “Mike & Mike” to talk sports, ABC analyst Ryan Smith could join to cover legal matters, while chief meteorologist Ginger Zee could report on how a weather event may affect sporting events.

Greenberg and Golic will likewise appear on “GMA,” according to ESPN, which plans to announce the move at its “upfront” event for advertisers on Tuesday.

The one-two punch of “Mike & Mike” and “GMA” will enable the ABC and ESPN advertising sales teams to sell joint ad deals.

“I think the marketplace is interested in the impact possibilities when you bring an ESPN and ABC together,” said Geri Wang, president of ad sales for ABC.

Molly Qerim

The glitz of Times Square will be a noticeable change for those that watch — instead of listen — to the radio show, which is available on ESPN2 in addition to ESPN radio, SiriusXM and other digital platforms. “Mike & Mike” currently inhabits a modest studio in Bristol strewn with bobblehead tchotchkes, and many guests phone in. The new program will highlight New York’s buzzy streets and feature more live appearances, ESPN said.

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While the focus will remain on the Mikes, an enhanced presentation will include an ensemble cast, more New York-based sports and celebrity guests and more on-camera guests from remote locations, instead of via phone.

“Mike & Mike has been an extremely successful sports talk show for its first 15 years,” said Norby Williamson, ESPN executive vice president, programming and production. “The physical move to New York combined with a strong working relationship with ABC will help evolve it into a very powerful and engaging morning sports entertainment talk show.”

M-C has also learned that Molly Qerim is leaving NFL Network to move cross-country and join Mike and Mike. This marks the first time the show has added a permanent third voice since Greenberg and Golic first started working together in 1998, when Greenberg was a substitute host. He became the show’s permanent host in December 1999.

Qerim is leaving her job as one of the hosts for “NFL AM,” NFL Network’s daily morning show that has gone on hiatus until the preseason starts. Its last show was Friday, and NFL Network executives plan to make some subtle changes to it when it comes back.

Mike & Mike is the number one sports morning show in America:

• Multi-platform, distributed live across the largest number platforms – ESPN Radio, ESPN2, ESPNRadio.com, ESPN Radio app, SiriusXM, iTunes Radio, TuneIn, Slacker
• More than 4.6 million TV viewers per week
• More than 4.2 million weekly listeners on terrestrial radio
• More than 1.1 billion minutes spent streaming & 18 million On Demand downloads in 2014

Liberty Media Revenue Rises on SirusXM Growth

Liberty Media Corp. Friday reported revenue grew 6.9% in the first quarter due to strength in the performance of SiriusXM Holdings Inc., in which Liberty owns a majority share.

The media conglomerate is controlled by billionaire John Malone, considered a pioneer of the cable industry. In addition to SiriusXM, it owns the Atlanta Braves.

As of April 24, Liberty has a 57.8% stake in SiriusXM. The satellite-radio provider reported earlier that it had 27.7 million total subscribers at the end of the period, up from 25.8 million a year ago, as it boosted its revenue guidance for the year.

Overall, Liberty Media reported a loss of $19 million, compared to a year-earlier profit of $22 million.

Revenue rose to $1.08 billion from $1.01 billion a year earlier.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected revenue of $1.1 billion.

Saga's Ed Christian: Radio 'Vitals Are Good'

Ed Christian

There’s no question the first quarter of the year was distinctly mediocre for the radio industry, with most companies reporting that revenues were flat or down in the first three months of the year.

The not-so-stellar news last week included Saga Communications, where total revenues slipped 1.2% from $29.4 million in the first quarter of 2014 to $29.1 million in the first quarter of 2015.

MediaPost reported within these figures, radio revenues as reported on a same station basis were flat at $24.3 million; on an actual basis (including divested stations) they were down 2.4% from $24.9 million. The company’s smaller TV division saw revenues increase 6.6% from $4.5 million to $4.8 million.

Saga CEO Ed Christian attributed the results to general weakness in the radio business, noting that “nobody in the broadcast industry is happy with Q1.” However, he was optimistic about the rest of the year, citing signs of an economic recovery and returning consumer confidence.

On last week's analysts conference call Christian said "if there are thoughts of broadcasting as a troubled industry, please dispel them. Our vitals are good, and there is a healthy pulse. We are relevant. We’re not aged. In short, radio and TV advertising, if done properly still works and generates results."

He added, "There are other companies that are like us and believe that this business is built on people and our assets go home every day and if we don’t have well-trained committed people in our stations, then we lose. And I think that that’s one of the big issues that the industry faces right now is we have this race to squeeze and see how much we can rely on having empty shelves of radio stations by importing them."

Smulyan: 1Q 2015 Was Good for NextRadio

During last week's conference call Emmis CEO and President Jeff Smulyan told analysts that 1Q 2015 was "really a remarkable quarter for NextRadio"

He reported the NextRadio App was now up to about post to 2.5 million downloads and the recently launched awareness promotion help greatly.  "We started our industry campaign at the end of February and I can say in a word it is working it proves we were at radio works."

Jeff Smulyan

"We told the listeners of the American radio stations that there was an FM chip in every smartphone and they responded remarkably. And I can tell you that the impact to that is being felt everywhere, whether it's at the carriers, whether it's in Congress, whether it's with the public at large, whether it's people at the FCC. The one word I would the one phrase I would say is, it is working dramatically."

Smulyan added all the metrics indicated that consumers who are exposed to NextRadio love it.

"We all know that the average PPM session in America is nine minutes and 30 seconds, but when people use NextRadio because of the interactivity, their time spent with the station goes up to 18 minutes, if we can replicate that across 300 million smartphones and other devices, it really does reinvigorate the American radio industry."

NYC Radio: Johnny Donovan Hangs-Up His WABC Headphones

Johnny Donovan

After Forty-four years of service at both MusicRadio and TalkRadio 77 WABC production guru Johnny Donovan  has quietly retired.

He grew up in Poughkeepsie, New York, nicknamed "Sarge," after his father's rank in the United States Army during World War II. A radio enthusiast from an early age (with an amateur radio station K2KOQ in a corner of the basement)' in 1963, he became a DJ ("Large Sarge") on WHVW in nearby Hyde Park. He went on to stations in WBAZ in Kingston, WENE  in Binghamton, New York and WMID in Atlantic City, NJ before landing in New York City,

In 1968 Donovan landed overnights on WOR-FM, where he was named "Johnny Donovan"  by Bill Drake.



He was doing middays 4 years later at WOR-FM, when he moved from the FM dial to the AM dial on July 9, 1972, and to his home for the last 43 years, WABC.

"During the music days at WABC, Donovan was the glue that held the place together as the main fill in person, as well as holding down his own regular weekend shifts", longtime WABC engineer Frank D'Elia stated in an eMail..



For the last several years before talk, Johnny held down a Monday through Friday mid-day shift.

When WABC switched in May 1982 from Musicradio to Talkradio, Johnny stayed on as a Staff Announcer, but that position quickly morphed into the position Production Director as Johnny became one of the pre-eminent voice and production people in the radio business.



For the last 35 years, Donovan's voice has been involved in thousands of commercials and spec spots, show opens (no one else can say that they’ve been the voice of the Rush Limbaugh Show since it debuted in 1988), WABC station production pieces, and special programming (he produced and was the host for 10 years of the yearly WABC Rewound broadcast that looked back every Memorial Day weekend at the Musicradio days of WABC).

L-A Radio: KIIS-FM's WangoTango Termed Success

Kanye West headlined the 17th  edition of 102.7 KIIS-FM's Wango Tango concert, but just as exciting for attendees was Justin Bieber's return to performing at a major event.

The event at the Stub Center in Carson ran nearly six hours starting at 4pm Saturday. West, as the headliner, was granted 40 minutes. Every other performer got no more than 20 minutes, with some on stage for 10 minutes — enough time for two songs and a plug for their next album.

Other acts included were Calvin Harris, Nick Jonas, David Guetta, Meghan Trainor and Ne-Yo. Sia, Jason Derulo, Tori Kelly and L-A locals Echosmith.

Ryan Seacrest hosted the show.


#WangoTango Tweets

FCC Refuses To Delay Net Neutrality

The FCC has denied the requests of several broadband providers and trade groups asking the agency to delay its net neutrality rules.

The FCC, late Friday, denied petitions for a stay of its net neutrality rules from Daniel Berninger, founder of the nonprofit Voice Communication Exchange Committee, the American Cable Association, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association, USTelecom, the Wireless Internet Service Providers Association, AT&T and CenturyLink.

Berninger asked the FCC to delay its entire net neutrality order, approved in February, while the trade groups and broadband providers sought a delay in the portion of the order reclassifying broadband from a lightly regulated information service to a regulated common carrier.

The groups had asked the FCC to delay the rules from going into effect while courts deal with seven lawsuits challenging the regulations.

Appeals Court Back Broadcasters In FCC Dispute

On Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a long-anticipated ruling in a dispute between the FCC and TV programmers, including CBS Corp., 21st Century Fox, Walt Disney Co. and Viacom Inc.

The LA Times report the testy dispute did not delve into whether the FCC should allow two huge media mergers to go forward. Rather, the programmers' case became something of a sideshow, complicating the government's processing of information that it had sought in its merger reviews.

In a win for broadcasters who sued the FCC last fall, the appeals court on Friday ruled that the FCC's demand that CBS, Disney, Fox and the other programmers reveal sensitive contract information to third parties was flawed.

The FCC had sought the information as part of its review of two media mergers announced last year: AT&T's application to acquire DirecTV and Comcast Corp.'s now scuttled bid for Time Warner Cable.

"We are delighted the court sided with broadcast networks and the National Assn. of Broadcasters in protecting highly confidential information from being widely disseminated during merger reviews," NAB spokesman Dennis Wharton said in a statement.

Even though the FCC set up a mechanism to protect confidential business information from being widely disseminated, broadcasters worried that their rivals were taking advantage of the situation to gain easy access to sensitive details about affiliate fees and other contract points.

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Cleveland Radio: 'Rock' Returns To 1260 AM

Radio Disney, whose nationally programmed pop-rock music has aired since 1998 on 1260 AM as WWMK, has gone silent. Replacing it, on the signal whose incarnations have included WDOK, WIXY and WBBG, will be the religious talk programming of WCCR, for Cleveland Catholic Radio, branded as "The Rock."

According to cleveland.com, the new owner is St. Peter the Rock Media, a local nonprofit "lay apostolate" formed almost two years ago with the goal of launching a Catholic station. Local Attorney Jerry Monroe leads a board of directors that includes a retired NASA scientist, the Cleveland-based marketing head of the nonprofit EWTN media company and longtime broadcaster Dick Russ.

Monroe expects the station's on-air debut will be at 3 p.m. Monday.

After seeing a majority of Radio Disney's young audience move to such platforms as smartphone apps to listen and even watch, the company decided to switch the service to digital distribution. The company last year put 23 of its 24 Radio Disney stations up for sale, keeping only flagship KDIS-AM in Los Angeles.

The sell-off represented opportunity for St. Peter the Rock Media, which this week completed the $895,000 purchase of AM/1260 that includes its 5-antenna transmitter array on 20 acres in Brecksville.

With a 10,000-watt daytime signal and 5,000 watts at night, the Cleveland station has a potential reach of 2.4 million listeners, of whom 800,000 are Catholic.

Tulsa Radio: Country KXBL, T-U Ink Sports Broadcast Deal

The University of Tulsa Intercollegiate Athletics Department and its exclusive multimedia rights holder, Golden Hurricane Sports Properties, has announced a new five-year agreement has been reached between Scripps of Tulsa and its radio stations Country KXBL 99.5 FM, News/Talk KFAQ 1170 AM, Top40 KHITS 106.9 FM and Classic Hits KBEQ 92.9 BOB FM.

Beginning with the 2015-16 athletic season, terms of the agreement call for Big Country 99.5 FM to air all football, men's basketball and one-hour seasonal coaches' shows. Additionally, the cluster of Scripps radio stations in Tulsa will provide increased promotional opportunities for The University of Tulsa Athletics events. Golden Hurricane Sports Properties, a property of Learfield Sports, oversees all aspects of the Golden Hurricane Sports Network.

KXBL 99.5 FM (100 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area

"We appreciate the opportunity to create a new partnership with 99.5 KXBL and Scripps," said The University of Tulsa's Vice President and Director of Athletics Dr. Derrick Gragg. "They have outstanding coverage and this is a terrific marketing platform for our fans and customers."

"We're happy that Big Country 99.5 FM and Scripps of Tulsa will serve as our new radio home for the Golden Hurricane Sports Network in Tulsa," said Golden Hurricane Sports Properties' General Manager Joe Druten. "KXBL is a 100,000-watt FM station with a regional coverage pattern. This will be a great fit for Hurricane fans and alumni."

"Scripps' radio stations have an intense focus on local programming that connect us to the people of Tulsa and the surrounding areas." said Vice President/General Manager Tulsa Operations at Scripps Bill Berry. "We are thrilled about our long term partnership with the University of Tulsa and Golden Hurricane Sports Properties.

2015 Radio Mercury Award Finalists Announced

113 radio spots and campaigns have made it to the finals of the 2015 Radio Mercury Awards, which honors outstanding radio created by advertising agencies, production companies, radio stations and students. iHeartMedia Creative Services lead this year’s entries throughout multiple categories, with DDB Chicago close behind. The Radio Marketer of the Year will be awarded to SUBWAY at the June 3 awards event.

The 2015 finalists incorporate a wide range of small to large advertising agencies and radio stations alike, as well as national and regional advertisers from the automotive, consumer packaged goods, beer, entertainment, fast food, financial services, home repairs, insurance, telecommunications and retail categories. Entries were judged on their creativity, originality and effective communication of a brand’s message.

“Great radio is about compelling, entertaining stories to help cultivate a client’s brand and messaging,” said Jim Elliott, global chief creative officer, Arnold Worldwide and Chief Judge for the 2015 Radio Mercury Awards. “These finalists represent the best creative storytelling that only radio can provide.”

“Building brand awareness and driving ROI, is radio’s best attribute no matter the advertiser or marketer,” said Erica Farber, president and CEO of the Radio Advertising Bureau. “The bar is always set extremely high for our entrants. This year’s set of finalists have met and exceeded that creative level of excellence we always hope to honor. The caliber of creative executions and the ways in which radio was leveraged throughout these entries is extraordinary.”

The final round judging panel included Chief Judge Jim Elliott, global chief creative officer, Arnold Worldwide; Chris Beresford- Hill, executive creative director, BBDO NY; Pete Harvey, partner, creative director, barrettSF; Gustavo Lauria, co-founder, We Believers; Jaime Robinson, executive creative director, W+K NY; Robert Rooney, creative director, Y&R New York; Marty Senn, executive director, senior partner, Carmichael Lynch, and Christopher Warmanen, senior vice president, creative director, Leo Burnett Chicago.

2015 Radio Mercury Awards Finalists: To listen to this year’s finalists click here.

Sportscaster Pleads Guilty To Disorderly Conduct

Nick Boynton

A contrite and apologetic Nick Boynton pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct Friday in Buffalo City Court, hoping to put behind him a drunken rampage at Seneca Buffalo Creek Casino last March that embarrassed his family and the Arizona Coyotes.

The 36-year-old Boynton had yelled and cursed at casino workers and patrons, shoved one patron off a chair and bit a police officer on the hand during an incident at the casino March 26. (Click here for original post). He was in town with his job as a radio commentator for the NHL Coyotes, but was suspended shortly after his arrest. Boynton said Friday he plans to contact the Coyotes’ management and seek reinstatement.

The Buffalo News reports in pleading guilty to the violation, instead of more-serious misdemeanor charges, the former Boston Bruins defenseman agreed to perform 100 hours of community service and lead a law-abiding life. He also agreed to continue with alcohol counseling and to avoid the downtown Buffalo casino for one year under terms imposed by Judge JaHarr Pridgen.

Boynton could have been sentenced to up to 15 days in jail.

“I feel terrible. I want to apologize to my family, to the Arizona Coyotes,” Boynton said outside the courtroom following his sentencing. “I want to put this in my past and learn from my mistakes and make sure this does not happen again.”

“I’m hoping to be back with the organization,” said Boynton, a Phoenix resident.

May 11 Radio History

Just about the only day of the year with nothing to note.