L-A Radio: KCRW Names Co-Hosts For Its MBE Show

KCRW 89.9 FM President Jennifer Ferro and Program Director of Music Anne Litt has announced the new co-hosts of Morning Becomes Eclectic (MBE), Novena Carmel and Anthony Valadez. MBE, the station’s flagship music program, weekday mornings from 9 a.m. to noon, has been a powerful source of music discovery since 1978. This is the first time two hosts will lead MBE.

Novena and Anthony both come from KCRW’s after-midnight roster, where unique and exciting voices have the opportunity to experiment and bring adventurous listeners into the KCRW fold. From podcasts and livestreams to viral videos, Novena and Anthony have collaborated extensively over the course of their years-long friendship. This authentic camaraderie and willingness to explore and experiment will make for a natural synchronicity as co-hosts of Morning Becomes Eclectic.

“I am so excited to pass the torch of MBE to Novena and Anthony,” says Anne Litt. “Novena is pure joy and Anthony is the heart and soul of Los Angeles. Together, they will explore fresh, new ways to reach music lovers globally.” She continues, “My journey will be to delve deeper into my role as Program Director of Music, bring our roster of incredible DJs to their fans, and capitalize on the boundless talents of our entire music department across all of our platforms.”

Anne Lit

Of her new role, Novena says, “I feel ecstatic and a bit like I’m dreaming. I greatly admire Anthony’s work and what I would call his ‘creation ethic;’ he seems to never stop creating and finding inspiration for creativity everywhere. We already have a lot of fun and exciting ideas for the show, and I’m so looking forward to collaborating more with the KCRW team and connecting with the listeners.”

“I’m excited to wake up with L.A. and Novena,” says Anthony. “She’s my best friend, but what I admire the most is her ability to stay positive and always add perspective.” Of his new role, Anthony notes, “I’m a fan of the show’s celebrated history and hope to be an extension of it moving forward. It’s not a position I take lightly. I’ve always wanted to be at the intersection of ‘culture’ and ‘institution.’ KCRW has been the launching pad for ideas that fuse tech, social media, and execution of music discovery. These varied platforms have given me creative freedom to spotlight emerging artists and talent, and while I get the sense my aesthetic is perceived as ‘the sound of LA,’ in reality, it’s the sound of the world.”

“Music is part of the genetic code of KCRW,” states KCRW President Jennifer Ferro. “Our approach to this important role of MBE host was to really push the boundaries of what it means to be a DJ in today’s on-demand world. Novena and Anthony, together, make a powerful and joyful duo who will help KCRW be where the people are and share the magic of KCRW music. With these new hosts plus Anne Litt solidly at the helm of our strategy we are ready to define a new era in music.”

In 2019 Anne Litt became KCRW’s first female Program Director of Music and host of Morning Becomes Eclectic. She will continue hosting the show until after the New Year, and then remain an on-air presence with her own show; time and day TBD.

Country's Martina McBride Says Vaccine 'First Step' To Live Music Return

Martina McBride

The coronavirus vaccine is another step toward the return of live music, country music star Martina McBride told FOX Business Network's “After the Bell” Tuesday.

“I am optimistic about the future,” she said. “The vaccine is the first step toward us being able to get back out on the road and bring our music to the fans.”

The "The Time Has Come" singer noted out-of-work musicians and industry employees were all hit “extremely hard” by the pandemic, as concerts and live entertainment were canceled globally. But McBride said she’s anticipating a comeback in the new year.

“It just trickles down to so many people who literally had their livelihood taken away,” she said. “So it’s been a tough year for everyone involved in the music business, for sure. But we are optimistic that we’re going to be out on the road next year in 2021.”

Country music star Martina McBride teams up with Red Cross | https://t.co/vA2CTtVXDa

— Tom Benson (@Tombenson1) December 9, 2020

While the stage curtains have been drawn, McBride has joined forces with the American Red Cross and Suburban Propane to encourage blood and plasma donations in response to the virus. She shared her advocacy for the cause and spread “very important” awareness for America’s need for donations.

“When I started digging into blood donations and the need for blood donations, especially during the holidays when everyone gets really busy and also during this COVID pandemic, it just made perfect sense to get the word out,” she said.

Alongside McBride, Suburban Propane has donated a propane-powered outdoor experience, complete with a pizza oven and fire pit, for donors to win as a prize.

Pew: Measuring News Consumption in a Digital Era

A transition to digital technologies has brought upheaval to the news media industry by way of a multitude of new providers and ways to get news. 

Just as American news organizations have had to drastically reevaluate their business models, it would make sense that researchers who are trying to measure public news consumption need to reexamine the traditional methods they have used. A new Pew Research Center analysis explores how best to measure public news consumption – asking, which current survey practices work well and where might changes be in order?

This study took a multimodal approach to investigating these topics, drawing on cognitive interviews, split-form survey experiments, comparisons between passive data and self-reported survey data, and a full, nationally representative survey. First, 21 cognitive interviews were conducted through RTI International in late February and early March 2020 to obtain qualitative feedback on the public’s understanding of emerging concepts about news consumption in a digital age and inform the development of survey experiments. Second, split-form survey experiments were conducted to test different survey approaches to measuring news consumption, among 1,031 respondents April 17-19, 2020, and a further 1,018 respondents April 24-25, 2020, on Ipsos’ KnowledgePanel.

Third, the Center used passive data collected from 1,694 Ipsos KnowledgePanel members who consented to participate in the monitoring of their online activity. Researchers collected passive data on these panelists’ digital activity (such as which news websites and apps they visited) between May 16 and June 15, 2020, to compare with their responses to a survey fielded by Ipsos June 2-11, 2020. Finally, that June survey queried an additional nationally representative sample of 2,021 respondents on Ipsos’ KnowledgePanel about their awareness and use of different aspects of media and news.

Among the key findings of this study:

• Americans are familiar with newer digital platforms, but few use them for news, limiting the topics researchers can reasonably ask about in surveys. The June survey finds that while U.S. adults are broadly familiar with five newer digital technologies asked about in the survey (streaming devices, internet streaming services, push notifications and alerts, smart speakers, smartwatches), few say they use them regularly for news consumption, and results from the cognitive interviews suggest that many don’t even think of these platforms as ways to get news.
• Only 9% of U.S. adults are “very confident” they can tell if a news organization does its own reporting, though just over half (55%) say they are at least “pretty confident.” When asked whether six sources do their own news reporting (ABC News, Wall Street Journal, HuffPost, Google News, Apple News and Facebook), nearly a quarter of U.S. adults (23%) could not identify correctly whether any of the six sources do so.
• When asking respondents whether they pay for news, survey researchers need to carefully specify what they mean in an era of changing media business models. For example, when asked a general question, “In the past year, have you paid for news?” most Americans (83%) say they have not paid for news. More specific questions, however, reveal that this seemingly straightforward question does not capture the full range of how Americans pay for news. When asked a specific follow up question about whether they had paid for a “subscription to a newspaper, magazine, or news website” or “donation to a public broadcaster or other news organization,” some Americans who said no to the initial question about paying for news reported that they or their household actually had paid for news in one of these ways.
• While there is no “silver bullet” for perfect survey measures of news consumption, the split-form survey experiments reveal that a series of refinements could drive marginal improvements, such as around the goal of reducing overreporting of news consumption. Some changes do not affect overall measures of news consumption, but may make important differences for measuring consumption of specific platforms. The study tested a number of concepts including adding a reference period when asking about news consumption frequency. For instance, adding a specific reference period appears to get more accurate measures of radio consumption (e.g., asking how many days respondents got news from public radio “in the past week” vs. “in a typical week”).
• Researchers also tested listing news consumption frequency options in reverse order (“… never, rarely, sometimes, often”); including examples of sources (“Cable TV news, such as CNN, Fox News or MSNBC”); and asking about relative or specific time frames (“How many days a week?” vs. “How often? … often, sometimes, rarely, or never”) to see if these yielded substantially different results. (Dig deeper.)

7 Entercom Country Stations To Air Concurrent Radiothons

Entercom has announced a unified launch of its annual Country Cares for St. Jude Kids radiothon series, running December 10 and 11, in support of the lifesaving mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital: Finding cures. Saving children.

Several Entercom country stations will devote on-air time to support St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, asking listeners to become Partners In Hope and give monthly. Because of generous supporters, families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – because all a family should worry about is helping their child live.

Programming will run from 5:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. local time on December 10 and 5:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time on December 11. Participating stations include U.S. 101 (WUSY-FM) in Chattanooga, US99 (WUSN-FM) in Chicago, 99.5 WYCD (WYCD-FM) in Detroit, New York’s Country 94.7 (WNSH-FM) in New York, KMLE Country @ 107.9 (KMLE-FM) in Phoenix, Y108 (WDSY-FM) in Pittsburgh, and 103.7 KSON (KSON-FM) in San Diego.

“We’re fortunate to unlock the generosity of our audiences with powerful stories of healing and hope, raising lifesaving funds to support children’s health and the selfless work of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital,” said Pat Paxton, Chief Programming Officer, Entercom. “Children’s health is an important priority within Entercom Serves. We are thankful, in the midst of such a challenging year, for the opportunity to leverage our scale and unite with our listeners to support the St. Jude mission.”

“Entercom continues to be a kindhearted, steadfast partner to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital each year, and we are thankful for its support through our Country Cares for St. Jude Kids program,” said Richard Shadyac Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude. “We are truly grateful to the on-air talent, executives and listeners who support this radiothon and are helping to make the lifesaving work of St. Jude possible, giving our patients and their families hope.”

Houston Radio: KLOL Radiothon Raises $320K+ For Children's Hospital

Entercom raised over $320,000 to benefit Texas Children’s Hospital during KLOL Mega 101 FM’s 10th annual “Mega Radiothon” in Houston. All funds raised will provide services to children in the local community who would otherwise not have access to proper medical attention.

“Every year the Mega listeners amaze me with their generosity,” said Sarah Frazier, Senior Vice President and Market Manager, Entercom Houston. “It is incredibly gratifying to know that, even despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic this year, our community still rallied together to give hope to so many children. It was like watching a miracle and I can’t thank them enough.”

The “Mega Radiothon” was broadcast live from the Mega 101 FM studio from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. CT on Thursday, December 3 and Friday, December 4. Programming featured stories and vignettes from families who have received help for their children from the hospital.

Texas Children's Hospital is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to create a healthier future for children and women by leading in patient care, education and research.

Entercom is committed to supporting the health and success of the communities that are the heart of its business. “Mega Radiothon” is a part of Entercom Serves, the Company’s social impact platform that raises awareness of social issues and brings communities together for good. Entercom unites with its listeners and brands to support sound communities through several pillars of impact: children’s health, mental health and anti-bullying, veterans and service members, the environment, civic education, and diversity, equity and inclusion.

Nashville Radio: WSM-AM To Air Classic Kingsley Countdowns

Bob Kingsley’s unmistakable voice will always be with us, and soon, a collection of his extensive countdown programming, Bob Kingsley’s Countdown Classics, will air on WSM 650 AM Nashville and stream worldwide via www.wsmonline.com.

Bob Kingsley

“I can think of no better holiday gift for Bob than this announcement,” states Nan Kingsley. “The weekends were always special for Bob and me. We’d wake up, walk the dogs, brew some coffee, sit back and listen to the countdown. Every week he would tell me it was the best show he’d ever done. I am so pleased that our friends at Opry Entertainment Group and WSM are not only giving me the chance to relive those moments, but now his many fans across the globe will be able to tune-in and listen again to these great shows each week. In trying times like these, perhaps Bob’s voice can bring a bit of comfort.”

Bob Kingsley, who is a member of the National Radio Hall of Fame and the Country Radio Hall of Fame, passed away on October 17th of last year. Following Bob’s passing in 2019, Bob Kingsley’s CT40 with Fitz began running on more than 300 stations. The show is produced by North Star Audio & Hubbard Radio Group, with syndication via Skyview Networks.

“We began speaking with Bob & Nan and their team about the chance to bring his archives to WSM-AM last year, before Bob passed,” notes WSM Director of Content & Programming J. Patrick Tinnell. “He expressed his desire to be able to end his storied career on the station that the Opry calls home. It was a proposition that caused him to light up. Everyone here at WSM Radio is honored to be able to make Bob’s dream a reality.”

Bob Kingsley’s Countdown Classics will air Saturday from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. CT, beginning January 2, 2021.

December 9 Radio History

➦In 1902...Brace Beemer born  (Died from a heart attacked at age 62 – March 1, 1965). He was a radio actor and announcer at radio station WXYZ-AM, Detroit.

He is best known as the radio voice of the Lone Ranger.  Beemer became the third radio voice of the Lone Ranger on April 18, 1941, and remained so until the series' last new episode on September 3, 1954. During the 13 years and 3,000 episodes that Beemer played the title character, he was required by contract to restrict his radio acting to that one role until the program left the air.

The experienced and popular Western film actor, Clayton Moore, was chosen to take over the role for the TV series. Although Beemer had the right voice and had made many public appearances as the Ranger, he had no experience as a film actor, as he preferred live action to television. However, Beemer's voice as the character was so familiar that Moore imitated his sound in the earliest TV episodes.

Beemer also portrayed "Sergeant William Preston" of the Yukon on Challenge of the Yukon, for a brief time after the Lone Ranger series ended.

Beemer's last TV appearance, was an interview in 1965 with former film actor, Bill Kennedy on his "At the Movies" show on CKLW TV9 from Windsor, Ont., Canada. Brace Beemer died the very next day.

➦In 1921...Ted Rogers Sr., who would later invent the first alternating-current vacuum radio tube, and give birth to Toronto’s CFRB Radio, became the first amateur radio operator in Canada to successfully transmit a signal across the Atlantic. He was taking part in a competition sponsored by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL).

➦In 1933...Talk show host Morton Downey Jr. was born in Los Angeles.  Unsuccessful as a pop & country singer, in the 1960’s he turned to deejaying at radio stations in Bakersfield, San Diego, and Miami as “Doc Downey the DJ.”

He perfected the abrasive, right-wing populist style of talk radio at Sacramento’s KFBK before transferring it to TV out of New York. (He was replaced at KFBK by Rush Limbaugh.)

Downey died from lung cancer Mar 12, 2001 at age 67.

➦In 1940...the radio panel show that originated with joke-telling sessions at the Friar’s Club, 'Can You Top This' debuted on WOR New York.  It would hit the networks 22 months later, and run on first NBC, then Mutual, ABC, and then NBC again, until 1954.

➦In 1940... the Longines Watch Company signed for the first FM radio advertising contract — with experimental station W2XOR in New York City. The ads ran for 26 weeks and promoted the Longines time signals.

➦In 1968...Early computer pioneer Douglas Carl Engelbart (January 30, 1925 – July 2, 2013) first demonstrated the computer mouse.  He is best known for his work on founding the field of human–computer interaction, particularly while at his Augmentation Research Center Lab in SRI International, which resulted in creation of the computer mouse, and the development of hypertext, networked computers, and precursors to graphical user interfaces. 

➦In 1977...Gene Klavan last show at WNEW 1130 AM NYC.

Klavan is most known for his time as half of the morning program "Klavan and Finch." The program ran from 1952 to 1968; prior to 1952, Dee Finch had co-hosted the show with Gene Rayburn. Co-host Finch departed and Klavan continued solo until 1977.



He wrote a biography in 1964, "We Die at Dawn", that largely focused on the morning show. He followed it up in 1972 with "Turn That Damned Thing Off", a book about the news media industry. In 1977 he moved to 710 WOR and left radio in 1980. He later became a commentator at WCBS-TV, a host for the AMC channel, and a columnist for Newsday.

➦In 1998...CBS Corp. raised $2.9 billion by selling a 17 percent stake in Infinity Broadcasting Corp., its radio and outdoor advertising business. The initial public offering of stock was the largest ever in the media industry.

➦In 2004...David Barry Brudnoy died at age 64 (Born -- June 5, 1940) was an American talk radio host in Boston from 1976 to 2004. He was known for espousing his libertarian views on a wide range of political issues, in a manner that was courteous. Thanks to wide signal reach of WBZ 1030 AM, he gained a following from across the United States as well as Canada. On December 9, 2004, he succumbed to Merkel cell carcinoma after it had metastasized to his lungs and kidneys.

David Brudnoy

Brudnoy began a career in broadcast commentary in 1971 on Boston's local PBS television station, WGBH-TV.

In 1976, David Brudnoy took over as host of his friend Avi Nelson's radio show on WHDH, in the midst of the city's unrest over forced busing and desegregation in schools. From 1981 to 1986, he appeared on former Top 40 WRKO, which was now news and talk, before moving to WBZ. The top-rated talk radio host in New England, he appeared in a regular weekday evening slot until his retirement. At the end of his career, Brudnoy was among the most-listened-to evening talk hosts in the United States.

Over the years, Brudnoy also appeared as a news commentator and host on local TV stations besides WGBH, including WCVB-TV (ABC), WNAC-TV, and WBZ-TV (CBS). He also appeared nationally on the CBS Morning News. He wrote movie reviews for Boston magazine and local community newspapers. During the 1970s he wrote articles for the National Review, and befriended its editor William F. Buckley.  He also wrote for The Alternative (later known as The American Prospect) in the early 1970s, but quit because of the editor's unwillingness to adopt a more liberal position on gay rights.

In 1990, his WBZ show was canceled, but a mass public response, including a letter writing campaign sponsored by The Boston Globe, helped lead to his quick return to the station's lineup.

His popularity in Boston was so great that when he returned to the air in early January 1995, after his first battle with HIV/AIDS kept him off the air for ten weeks, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino formally declared January 5 as "David Brudnoy Day."

Brudnoy was awarded the Freedom of Speech Award from the National Association of Radio Talk Show Hosts, and nominated for the "Personality of the Year" Marconi Award, both in 1997.

Cliff St. James

➦In 2016…Cliff St. James, a TV weatherman and radio broadcaster for KSD and KWK, died at age 91 from pneumonia.

In 1962, he became a freelance announcer at KSD-TV, St. Louis’ only television station. He later became the TV personality Corky The Clown loved by children of the era. His show, “Corky’s Colorama,” aired seven days a week and at one time there was a three-year waiting list to attend the live television show.  It was the first locally produced color program in St. Louis. 

🎂HAPPY BIRTHDAY

• 

  Lori Greiner is 51

  Actor Judi Dench is 86. 
• Actor Beau Bridges is 79. 
• Football player-turned-actor Dick Butkus is 78. 
• Actor Michael Nouri is 75. 
• Singer Joan Armatrading is 70. 
• Actor Michael Dorn (“Star Trek: The Next Generation”) is 68. 
• Actor John Malkovich is 67. 
• Country singer Sylvia is 64. 
• Singer Donny Osmond is 63. 
• Bassist Nick Seymour of Crowded House is 62. 
• Comedian Mario Cantone (“Sex and the City”) is 61. 
• Actor David Anthony Higgins (“Malcolm in the Middle,” “Ellen”) is 59. 
• Actor Joe Lando (“Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman”) is 59. 
• Actor Felicity Huffman (“Desperate Housewives,” ″Sports Night”) is 58. 
• Keyboardist Jerry Hughes of Yankee Grey is 55. 
• Singer-guitarist Thomas Flowers of Oleander is 53. 
• Guitarist Brian Bell of Weezer is 52. 
• Singer-guitarist Jakob Dylan of The Wallflowers is 51. 
• Businesswoman and TV personality Lori Greiner (“Shark Tank”) is 51. 
• Actor Allison Smith (“The West Wing,” ″Kate and Allie”) is 51. 
• Former “American Idol” judge Kara DioGuardi is 50. 
• Country singer David Kersh is 50. 
• Actor Reiko Aylesworth (“24″) is 48. 
• Drummer Tre Cool of Green Day is 48. 
• Rapper Canibus is 46. 
• Singer Imogen Heap is 43. 
• Actor Jesse Metcalfe (“Desperate Housewives”) is 42. 
• Actor Simon Helberg (“The Big Bang Theory”) is 40. 
• Actor Jolene Purdy (“Under the Dome,” ″Donnie Darko”) is 37. 
• Actor Joshua Sasse (“Galavant”) is 33. 
• Actor Ashleigh Brewer (“The Bold and the Beautiful”) is 30.

SiriusXM Radio: Renews Howard For 5 More Years

Howard Stern and SiriusXM today announced a new agreement under which the legendary broadcaster will continue to produce and host The Howard Stern Show exclusively for SiriusXM for the next five years, and the Howard Stern archive of audio and video will continue to be licensed to SiriusXM for an additional seven years. 

 The news was first reported by Stern live during his show this morning.

Howard Stern has never been bigger. Regularly recognized as the best interviewer in the business, Howard's insightful and revealing celebrity interviews gained even more acclaim since broadcasting from home under the Covid quarantine, bringing A-level comedians, musicians and actors via virtual connections into his home and he into theirs. His edgy comedy is sharper and more timely than ever. And his relationship with SiriusXM is at its strongest, as SiriusXM has grown to be the largest audio entertainment company in North America.

"Fifteen years ago, I joined SiriusXM, a fledgling group of broadcasters. I had been in a toxic relationship with terrestrial radio. And no matter how well I treated the medium, no matter how successful I made them, they abused me. Going to SiriusXM liberated me. I felt like Tina Turner freeing myself from Ike," said Stern. "And despite the naysayers and the ridicule, we have persevered, and are thriving. I've been proven right about satellite radio over and over again. With this contract renewal, I can't wait to see what else I'll be right about. Certainly, I have a lot more to say about Metamucil crackers and stepmom porn. Plus, now that I can work from home, I simply don't have an excuse to quit."

"I would like to thank my incredible crew that I work with every morning and of course the talented Robin Quivers," said Stern. "Robin, we make a great team. Like Sonny and Cher, Captain and Tennille, Charles Manson and Squeaky Fromme, we continue our great friendship. I look forward to more laughs and good times. As a proud member of Bachelor Nation I say…Robin, will you accept my rose and dare I say, should you forgo your individual room, will you join me in the fantasy suite?"

Stern added: "I am honored to be a part of the greatest content provider in media today. SiriusXM, I love you and I'm thrilled to continue our journey together. If you haven't listened to this wonderful service filled with music, talk, sports and just about anything you could want, please check it out. The SiriusXM app continues to grow and you will enjoy all of the Howard Stern and SiriusXM video content on there. Our next five years together will be incredible. Join the party."

"As the leading audio entertainment company, we couldn't be happier to have Howard, the leading host in all of radio and audio, continue to make SiriusXM the home for his show, channels, and archives while at the peak of his broadcasting career," said Jim Meyer, CEO of SiriusXM. "Howard's home has been SiriusXM and it will remain that way, but we've expanded SiriusXM in recent years too, and we are excited about finding the right ways that select content from Howard can find audiences on additional platforms. May I add, I consider Howard a close friend and look forward to listening to him for years to come."

NYC Radio: Charlamagne tha god Renews With iHM

 

NY Times photo

After inking a TV talk show deal, and amid his soaring stardom as a political pundit, there was much speculation Charlamagne tha God would leave his radio show “The Breakfast Club”.

But the NY Post reports he has signed a new, very lucrative five-year deal to remain with iHeartMedia.

This means that Charlamagne will stay on as host of the nationally syndicated “The Breakfast Club,” which he has fronted for 10 years — plus the media and entertainment firm is giving him an expanded role as an executive.

Charlamagne will continue to host “Weekends with The Breakfast Club,” a three-hour weekly program featuring a countdown of the top 20 songs on the charts and signature interviews, in addition to a new quarterly and exclusive one-on-one interview show.

He’s also coming off the heels of a successful launch of his “Black Effect Podcast” network, a 50/50 joint venture with iHM — which has already garnered 10 million downloads — making his one of the biggest deals in syndicated radio history.

He exclusively told The NY Post's Page Six about his decision to stay at iHeart — amid numerous other offers from TV networks and media outlets, “iHeart has shown me that they have my back. It’s a great partnership and great partnerships are very hard to find, especially in this era that we are in right now.

ViacomCBS Partners With AWS For Global Broadcast Operations

 

Today, Amazon Web Services, Inc, and ViacomCBS announced an agreement that makes AWS the preferred cloud provider for ViacomCBS’s global broadcast media operations. 

As part of the strategic agreement, ViacomCBS will migrate operations for its entire broadcast footprint, which spans 425 linear television channels and 40 global data and media centers, to the world’s leading cloud – one of the first such large-scale transformations in the media and entertainment industry. The migration will enable ViacomCBS to drive greater efficiencies and cost savings, simplify access to content for its licensing partners, and reliably deliver new viewing experiences to consumers by broadcasting and streaming content on any device.

ViacomCBS will leverage AWS’s industry-leading infrastructure and comprehensive cloud capabilities, including serverless, containers, databases, media services, analytics, and machine learning, to build a cloud-based broadcast and media supply chain operating model. This new cloud-based hub will help the broadcaster spin up new channels faster, dynamically assemble live content to optimize delivery over any distribution channel, add image and video analysis to applications, and automate workflows. ViacomCBS plans to use AWS Elemental media services as well as AWS machine learning technologies, including Amazon Rekognition (AWS’s service that adds intelligent image and video analysis to applications) and Amazon SageMaker (AWS’s service for building, training, and deploying machine learning models), to quickly scale video processing resources, automate workflows, and predict audience preferences. 

These capabilities will aid ViacomCBS in producing and streaming dynamic content and enabling efficient national and local news distribution on CBSN, CBS News’s 24/7 digital streaming service.

“We are expanding our strategic relationship with AWS to support our industry-leading technology and operations transformation,” said Phil Wiser, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at ViacomCBS. “With AWS, we will be able to automate and streamline our processes for content production, licensing, and distribution to consumer streaming services and innovate faster to deliver improved customer experiences. We are thinking and acting aggressively to build on the major disruptions that ViacomCBS is bringing to the market with our leading global content and services. AWS’s deep portfolio of services will help us unleash the power of content in new and interesting ways that benefit our advertisers, licensing partners, and streaming services.”

“We are excited to deepen our relationship with ViacomCBS to redefine video delivery of media and entertainment content for global audiences across any platform,” said Greg Pearson, Vice President, Worldwide Commercial Sales at Amazon Web Services, Inc. “Moving its broadcast media operations to AWS gives ViacomCBS the agility to lower costs, take advantage of new distribution models, and drive efficiency and innovation across its entire global media operations. Using AWS’s proven operational experience and unparalleled portfolio of services, ViacomCBS can create and deliver new video content experiences with the utmost reliability and reach audiences no matter what platform they use."

Nielsen Sets Major Measurement Changes

Today, Nielsen announced its plans to launch a single, cross-media solution to drive more comparable and comprehensive metrics across platforms. Nielsen’s transformative cross-media solution, called Nielsen ONE, will evolve the current metrics that underpin the more than $100 billion video advertising ecosystem using a phased approach. The company plans to launch its single measurement solution beginning in fourth-quarter 2022 with the intention to fully transition the industry to cross-media metrics by the Fall 2024 season.

More so than ever, consumers today have virtually endless choice in terms of platforms on which to watch their favorite video content. Nielsen data shows that between March and August 2020, U.S. adults spent 12.2 trillion minutes with digital, 11.1 trillion minutes with linear TV and 2.8 trillion minutes streaming—and these numbers continue to exponentially grow. As audiences move seamlessly between linear, streaming and digital, advertisers are demanding a single, deduplicated view of their audiences across all platforms and mediums. Concurrently, publishers want to provide more ad options for buyers and improve the overall viewer experience.

Doug Ray

“With the rapidly evolving landscape and on-going shifts in consumer behavior, it is no longer acceptable to take a siloed approach to our clients’ video plans,” said Doug Ray, CEO, Dentsu Media. “Cross-media measurement is paramount to maximize reach across platforms with the right frequency. We are encouraged by Nielsen’s commitment to a single measurement solution and unified framework that will drive comparability across TV and digital video so that our clients can better allocate dollars and maximize ROI.”

With Nielsen ONE, advertisers and publishers will be able to transact using a single metric across linear and digital that is trusted, independent and standardized across the industry. With a single, deduplicated number, marketers will have visibility into total video consumption regardless of platform or device. Marketers will also benefit from a better understanding of unique audiences, the ability to better understand frequency and reduce double counting, inflated metrics and advertising waste. Nielsen ONE will also underpin the company’s outcomes solutions, thus enabling the industry to optimize media plans and maximize performance across platforms.

Karthik Rao

“With Nielsen ONE, we are delivering a single, comparable metric for TV and digital that will provide video consumption across all platforms, services and devices. For media buyers and sellers, this means better monetizing their assets and maximizing their investments,” said Karthik Rao, COO, Nielsen. “Today’s announcement marks a major milestone for Nielsen as we put our cross-media vision into motion. We’ve made significant enhancements over the last year to turbocharge the tech and data science required to make an industry wide cross-media solution a reality.”

Nielsen has already begun transforming its audience measurement solutions to increase resilience and flexibility. As previously announced, Nielsen is future-proofing its digital measurement, evolving its National TV currency to include addressable measurement and expanding connected TV (CTV) coverage to include additional smart TV manufacturers and digital video platforms in 2021. Starting in fourth-quarter 2022, Nielsen will release parallel cross-media ratings that will deliver metrics at subminute intervals for individual ads and content, providing greater comparability across platforms and ad models, along with expansive campaign reporting. Nielsen expects this measurement will ultimately become the foundation of the cross-media buying and selling process, succeeding the current form of TV and digital measurement no later than the Fall 2024 season.

Adam Gerber

“Today’s fragmented measurement landscape makes planning, implementing, and validating cross-platform campaigns overly complex and increasingly less predictable,” said Adam Gerber, Global Chief Media Officer, Essence. “As we shift to addressable models, prioritize reach, and optimize to outcomes, it’s critical that we develop and adopt consistent, single-source measurement solutions. Nielsen’s new cross-media approach is an important step in delivering the confidence and transparency that advertisers require to support holistic campaigns.”

“Any innovation that moves the needle on capturing true ROI across media, especially across platforms to create consistency in reporting so people aren’t grading their own homework, gets a thumbs up from IPG Mediabrands. We look forward to holding all media to the same standards of performance accountability and transparency as a result of Nielsen’s new product,” said Daryl Lee, Global CEO, IPG Mediabrands.

Nielsen has begun unifying its technology platform to help make its audience measurement products more interoperable, flexible and scalable. This solves for cross-media measurement by embracing a “ONE” mindset to modernize its panels, platforms and products.

• ONE Platform: Nielsen has developed a unified, cloud-based platform that allows easy integration and normalization of big data sets including automatic content recognition (ACR) data and return path data (RPD), as well as direct integrations with digital platforms and CTV providers. It will also be underpinned by a flexible technology stack which enables large scale models using machine learning techniques and algorithms to more quickly deliver true comparability and consistency across sources.
• ONE Panel: Nielsen will unify its gold-standard panels and meters into one single-source, geographically representative panel that will gather viewing across devices including TV, CTV, mobile devices and computers. The Nielsen ONE panel underpins its new ID resolution system to validate audiences and deduplicate exposures across ads and content.
• ONE Product: Nielsen is simplifying its TV and digital solutions portfolio into a single cross-media product that provides reach and frequency metrics by delivering a holistic, deduplicated view of both content and ad performance regardless of screen, device or platform. A key component of this solution is a new proprietary technology that will measure every single ad on linear TV at the subminute level to account for exact commercial minutes.

Nielsen has architected the backbone for delivering holistic, cross-media metrics across all video and continues to lay the foundation that will underpin outcomes measurement and help advertisers maximize ROI. With ownership of the technology stack and back-end infrastructure as well as access to broad data sets, Nielsen will swiftly launch new products, feature sets and data insights that maintain the quality and continuity of its measurement services and adapt to ongoing changes in the technology and privacy landscape.

The AM Rundown: Report..Trump Admin Passed On Early Vaccine Offer

The Trump administration passed on the chance over the summer to lock in an order for millions more doses of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine, and now a second delivery from them may not be available until next summer, as Pfizer fulfills orders from other countries, the New York Times reported Monday.

Pfizer’s vaccine, which trials have shown to be 95 percent effective, is expected to be approved by Food and Drug Administration advisers as soon as this week. A delivery of 100 million doses, which is enough for 50 million Americans since two shots weeks apart is required, will be coming in the next months, with people expected to begin being vaccinated by the end of the year. Health care workers and those in nursing homes and long-term care facilities will be first in line. 

The administration's contract with Pfizer committed it to buy an initial 100 million doses, with the option to buy as many as five times more. The Times report says that the White House this summer decided against locking in another 100 million doses for delivery in the spring of next year. The White House denied the report yesterday, and said that between the Pfizer vaccine and another from Moderna with similar effectiveness that's also expected to get emergency FDA approval this month, as well as with others coming, any American who wants the vaccine will be able to get it by the end of June next year. 

Margaret Keenan, 90, has become the first person in the world to receive the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine outside of a trial following its rapid clinical approval https://t.co/gE1RtgWcYE pic.twitter.com/MK3mi7PF0a

— Reuters (@Reuters) December 8, 2020

U.K. Begins Vaccinating: The U.K. began vaccinating people today, with the first 800,000 doses to be going to people over 80 who are either hospitalized or already have outpatient appointments scheduled, as well as nursing home workers. Britain is the first in the world to administer the Pfizer vaccine after the country's regulators gave emergency authorization on December 2nd. 

Georgia leaders reject Trump's push to overturn election results https://t.co/VildeNFKX8

— CBS News (@CBSNews) December 8, 2020

➤GEORGIA RECERTIFIES ELECTION WIN FOR BIDEN AFTER SECOND RECOUNT: Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Monday recertified election results showing that President-elect Joe Biden won the state and its 16 electoral votes after the completion of a recount requested by President Trump. It's the second recount in Georgia, after a hand recount was first done because of the closeness of the result. Biden's final margin of victory was less than 12,000 votes. Raffensperger said during a news conference, "We have now counted legally cast ballots three times, and the results remain unchanged." Trump's attorneys have filed dozens of failed legal challenges to the vote count in several states, including Georgia, as the president continues to make baseless claims of widespread voter fraud. Trump has also criticized Raffensperger, who's a Republican, as well as Republican Governor Brian Kemp for not taking actions he believes could help him change the outcome of the election in the state. But Raffensperger has defended the integrity of Georgia's election, and Kemp has said he has no power to intervene in elections.

BREAKING: World War II flying ace Chuck Yeager, the first pilot to break the sound barrier, has died at 97. https://t.co/dhhE5189kZ

— The Associated Press (@AP) December 8, 2020

➤BIDEN REPORTEDLY TO CHOOSE RETIRED GENERAL LLOYD AUSTIN AS DEFENSE SECRETARY: President-elect Joe Biden will nominate retired four-star Army general Lloyd J. Austin to be secretary of defense, according to media reports Monday. 

Lloyd Austin

If he's confirmed by the Senate, the 67-year-old would be the first Black defense secretary. There's likely to be some opposition to naming a career military officer instead of a civilian to head the Pentagon, and he would in fact need a congressional waiver since a recently retired military officer -- out of uniform for less than seven years -- is barred from holding the position to ensure civilian control of the military. 

Only two career military officers have been defense secretary, George C. Marshall and James Mattis, who was President Trump's first defense secretary, and who had to himself get a congressional waiver. Austin is a West Point graduate who served in the military for 41 years before retiring in 2016. 

👌TRUMP SAYS COVID-STRICKEN GIULIANI 'DOING VERY WELL': President Trump said Monday that Rudy Giuliani was, quote, "doing very well," after tweeting the day before that his personal attorney and former New York City mayor had tested positive for the coronavirus. If was reported later Sunday that the 76-year-old Giuliani had been hospitalized at Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, D.C. and was experiencing symptoms. Trump told reporters yesterday that he'd spoken to Giuliani, stating, "Rudy’s doing very well. I just spoke to him. No temperature." 

😷'ESSENTIAL WORKERS' TOP READER'S POLL FOR 'PERSON OF THE YEAR': Essential workers, the health care workers, delivery people, grocery store employees and others who continue to risk their lives by working amid the coronavirus pandemic and keeping the country functioning, were the winners of Time's reader poll for 2020 Person of the Year. Essential workers got 6.5 percent of the more than eight million votes cast in this year's poll that asked to choose the person or group of people who had the greatest influence on 2020.

Coming in second with five percent of the vote was Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and a member of the White House coronavirus task force, who emerged as a trusted figure for information on the pandemic.

Firefighters were third with 4.3 percent of the vote, for their dangerous work battling historic wildfires in places including the western U.S. and Australia.

In fourth place with four percent of the vote were the Black Lives Matter activists who led and inspired nationwide and global demonstrations against systemic racism and police brutality after the police killings of George Floyd and several other Black Americans, including Breonna Taylor.

President-elect Joe Biden, who beat President Trump in Trump's re-election bid, was fifth with 3.8 percent of the vote.

'Time' will announce its annual pick for Person of the Year in the first-ever 'Time Person of the Year' TV special on NBC on December 10th at 10 p.m. ET, and on time.com.

Cardi B asked fans if she should spend $88,000 on a purse. After backlash, she offered to match charitable donations. https://t.co/yzQtC9x65R

— CBS News (@CBSNews) December 8, 2020

🎅PARENTS ARE DESPERATE—‘ZOOM SANTAS’ ARE CASHING IN: Being a Santa or Mrs. Claus actor is rough this year in one sense—as interactions with the characters have changed drastically. Some are suiting up and offering visits from behind plexiglass, but others are suiting up and making video calls. 

Don White, age 79, and Mary Rogers, age 73 are two of many actors who have taken their job digital this year, and White says they’re “expecting to triple or quadruple our income this season.” He adds, “We went from not thinking we’d be busy at all this year to being busier than ever; we started earlier, before Thanksgiving, too. Parents are desperate to find entertainment and something for their kids to do.” Mary’s son, Josh, runs VisitFromTheClauses.com, connecting the actors with their clients. 

Some bigger companies have employed a similar tactic this year, including Macy’s and Sam’s Club—with the latter offering free chat sessions with Santa for its paying members. Cherry Hill Programs, one of the largest providers of Santas in more than 700 shopping malls across the US and Canada, is also offering high-production Zoom calls with Santa via CreateHolidayMagic.com. Another organization, Santa’s Club, just launched in July, and the successful company has about 60 employees, and dozens of Santas—who can earn up to $40 an hour. The company has lots of positive reviews and even uses its own video chat tool (as opposed to Zoom or Skype) and is aiming to be an early leader in virtual visits with Santa.

FINAL: @WashingtonNFL takes down the Steelers! #WashingtonFootball #WASvsPIT

(by @Lexus) pic.twitter.com/04HoNbIdDY

— NFL (@NFL) December 8, 2020

🏈STEELERS NO LONGER UNDEFEATED, BEATEN BY WASHINGTON 23-17: The Pittsburgh Steelers are no longer undefeated, losing to Washington 23-17 on Monday in their 12th game of the season. Washington came back from being down 14 points in the second quarter to get the win. They scored a tie-breaking field goal with 2:04 left, and then kicked in another field goal after Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was picked off by Jon Bostic with 1:59 remaining.

🏈BILLS BEAT 49ERS 34-24: The Buffalo Bills defeated the San Francisco 49ers 34-24 last night, led by quarterback Josh Allen, who threw for 375 yards and four touchdown passes. It was the fourth game of the season for the 24-year-old Allen with at least 300 yards passing and three touchdowns, setting a new franchise record.

🏈JETS FIRE WILLIAMS AFTER DEFENSE CALL COST SEASON'S FIRST WIN: The New York Jets fired defensive coordinator Gregg Williams on Monday (December 7th) after a defense call at the end of Sunday's game against the Las Vegas Raiders cost the Jets what would have been their first win of the season. Williams was widely criticized for calling an all-out blitz with the Jets seconds away from winning. Raiders quarterback Derek Carr threw a 46-yard touchdown pass to Henry Ruggs III, who was in man-to-man coverage with rookie cornerback Lamar Jackson, with five seconds left, giving Las Vegas a 31-28 win.

🏈OLE MISS-TEXAS A&M GAME CANCELED OVER POSITIVE CORONAVIRUS TESTS: The college football matchup between Ole Miss and Number 5 Texas A&M that was scheduled for Saturday has been canceled because of positive coronavirus tests in Ole Miss' program. If the game isn't able to be rescheduled, it will be deemed a no-contest. Ole Miss has suspended team activities, and they won't resume until at least Friday.

🏆TRUMP HONORS LEGENDARY WRESTLER/COACH GABLE WITH MEDAL OF FREEDOM: President Trump on Monday presented the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, to legendary Iowa wrestler and coach Dan Gable, who won a gold medal at the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics. Trump said during the White House ceremony, "He’s the greatest wrestler, probably ever. He's made our country very proud and he’s a true GOAT." Gable was a champion wrestler at Iowa State University, and had a very successful coaching career at the University of Iowa, where his teams won 15 NCAA titles.

⚾SEVEN-TIME ALL-STAR DICK ALLEN DEAD AT 78: Seven-time All-Star Dick Allen, who was the 1964 National League Rookie of the Year and the 1972 American League MVP, died on Monday after a lengthy illness. He was 78. The Philadelphia Phillies, who Allen played for during the first seven years of his 15-year career and then two more years towards the end of it, retired his Number 15 in September. Allen, who played first base, third base and left field, also played one season each with the St. Louis Cardinals, L.A. Dodgers and Oakland A's, and three seasons with the Chicago White Sox, with whom he won the 1972 MVP.

Major-Shake-Up At MSNBC

MSNBC named Rashida Jones as the network’s president, reports The Wall Street Journal citing people familiar with the matter, a major shake-up at a news channel that has raised its profile with political coverage but struggled to keep pace with rivals this year.

Jones, who is currently serving as senior vice president for MSNBC

News, is succeeding longtime network president Phil Griffin, catapulting her to one of the highest echelons in television news and making her the first Black female executive to run a major general news cable network.

Jones will officially take over for Griffin in February, NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde said in a note to employees Monday.

The elevation of Jones is the first major executive change made by Mr. Conde, who took over the NBCUniversal unit in May. NBCUniversal is a unit of Comcast Corp.

Rashida Jones

Jones has been in NBCUniversal’s news group for seven years, serving as an executive producer and managing editor before being promoted to her current position. In her most recent role, she helped oversee coverage of the coronavirus pandemic and the 2020 presidential election.

“If you’ve worked with Rashida on any of those endeavors, you know that she has an outstanding track record and she leads with a laser-like focus and grace under pressure,” Mr. Conde said in his note.

Griffin has been at MSNBC News for a quarter-century and has been president of the division since 2008.

Conde, who became chairman of NBCUniversal News Group earlier this year, is already beginning to put his stamp on the company’s news division. Shortly after he took over as head of NBCUniversal’s news group, Mr. Conde challenged the division to aim for 50% of its staff to be women or people of color in the coming years.

Like Fox News and CNN, MSNBC has logged an increase in ratings tied to the presidential election, but it often has struggled to keep pace with its rivals when politics takes a back seat to other breaking news. MSNBC’s viewership has increased dramatically in recent years.

MSNBC’s mix of news and political commentary has at times been a source of tension within NBC News. Some NBC News talent that appear on MSNBC have expressed concern that the strong liberal opinion shows in the evening lineup hurt the independence of the news operations, people with knowledge of the manner said. There are similar issues at conservative Fox News between its commentators and news personalities..

Detroit Radio: WJR N-D Dick Haefner To Retire

Dick Haefner 2013

News Talk WJR 760 News Director Dick Haefner has announced his retirement after a remarkable 51-year career in radio news. 

Haefner, an award-winning newscaster, reporter, and news director, has been WJR News Director since 1989 and his tenure is unmatched by any other Detroit broadcast news director. He is one of the most recognizable news voices in his hometown of Detroit, signing on to radio news in 1969 and signing off on December 11, 2020, Haefner’s last day on-air.

Under Haefner’s leadership, WJR News has been honored with nearly every national and local news award in the broadcast business, including: the Peabody Award, Associated Press national award for Best Broadcast Reporting, Edward R. Murrow Awards, and numerous state news awards. His most recent awards were for “Best Newscast” and “Best Feature” in 2019 from the Michigan Association of Broadcasters (MAB). It is believed that Haefner may be connected to more news awards from the MAB than any other broadcaster.

Some of Haefner’s projects have changed laws. A series on suburban toxic waste dumps resulted in tighter rules for handling waste. An investigation of fraud at gas stations brought about new regulations on service station inspections and fuel hauling, and even changed the way the IRS taxes the fuel hauling industry. Among the biggest stories Haefner has broken are Coleman Young’s baby, the Nancy Kerrigan – Tonya Harding incident heard around the world, and Detroit’s two side-by-side sports stadiums.

In 2005, Haefner was diagnosed with prostate cancer and became one of the first patients to undergo robotic surgery. He tracked his own surgery and recovery as a reporter, and used his experience to produce a series. “Robots In The O-R” is the only radio production to win the National Association of Medical Communicators award, the top honor in the field of health and medical reporting.

Haefner broke one of the most tragic and long-running mysteries in local history. He first reported the existence of “The Oakland County Child Killer” the day after Christmas 1976, following the murder of a Royal Oak girl. Haefner said: “I could never have imagined we would be doing stories about this 44 years later. The stories haven’t changed that much, except for the duration of time.”

On a more personal level, Haefner commented: “Anything I may have accomplished is because of other people, my wife Judy and my family who allowed me to pursue adventures in broadcast news, and especially my co-workers. My most important job was to put them in position to do their best work. What they accomplished every day is my greatest reward. I have had the best job in Detroit radio news for almost 32 years. I’m the luckiest person I know.”

Steve Finateri, Vice President/Market Manager, Cumulus Detroit, commented: “Dick Haefner can be considered one of the all-time brand ambassadors for News/Talk 760 WJR Radio and Cumulus Detroit. He is one of the most talented in our industry and has upheld the highest standards of integrity and professionalism each and every day he has graced our airwaves.”

Beasley Names Tina Murley VP/Sales

Tina Murley

Beasley Media Group announces Tina Murley has been promoted to Vice President of Sales at Beasley Media Group. She will begin his new role, effective immediately.

Murley has served as Director of Sales of the company’s Boston-based radio cluster since 2014. She brings over 25 years of combined media, sales, marketing and management experience. In her new role, the media executive will be responsible for overseeing the traditional and integrated sales efforts on behalf of the entire company.

“Tina brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to her new role as VP of Corporate Sales,” said Beasley Media Group Chief Executive Officer Caroline Beasley.” Her positive attitude and commitment to excellence on behalf of our advertisers and the company made her the perfect choice to lead our company’s sales efforts into the future.”

“Beasley Media Group has incredible sales talent that is committed to offering full-service integrated marketing solutions,” said Murley. “I look forward to leading those sales efforts and collaborating with our content teams to deliver creative, results-driven solutions for our advertisers. I want to thank Caroline and the entire Beasley family for giving me this incredible opportunity.”

Murley received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Economics from the University of Rhode Island. She will continue to be based in Boston, Massachusetts.

L-A Radio: Progressive Talk KBLA Searching for Talent

LA’s newest talk radio station, KBLA Talk 1580, is scheduling open on-air auditions for its 9 p.m. – 12 a.m. weekday host lineup. The station will discover and introduce to the Southern California talk radio market new voices yearning to be heard at this critical time.

“The all new ‘Unapologetically Progressive’ KBLA Talk 1580 is conducting a citywide talent search for its late night talk show tandem,” said Lyle Gregory, veteran LA talk radio producer and executive in charge of the talent search.

“This historic moment is pleading with us to lift up a new generation of young, insightful voices to contribute to a vibrant and productive conversation. For too long now, talk radio in this city has been all day, all night, all white. We are building a conversational talk radio station that sounds like our city looks,” said Gregory.

“We are confident that our search will result in a new talk radio team that is whip-smart, imaginative and sharp-witted in discussing the current events and issues that matter to all fellow citizens.”

KBLA will soon announce its official sign-on date, and will reveal the first slate of on-air audition teams when it introduces its All-Star daily talk lineup.

To receive information about the station’s launch, please visit https://kblatalk1580.com/.

Talkers interested in the on-air host auditions need not have prior talk radio experience, and can learn more visiting KBLATALK1580.com.

Dems Want To Torpedo FCC Nominee

Two Senate Democrats and a coalition of digital rights groups are hoping to derail the confirmation of telecom lawyer Nathan Simington to the FCC, arguing that his appointment during the lame-duck session would hamper President-Elect Joe Biden's policy agenda, reports Mediapost.

“Simington has been wrong on issue after issue after issue,” Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) said Monday afternoon.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut) added that Simington is a “deeply dangerous” nominee, and that his appointment would likely result in gridlock at the agency.

“In the midst of a pandemic, what we need is an FCC commissioner who will champion broadband, connectivity, devices, for the 16 million Americans or more who lack access to the internet,” Blumenthal said.

Last week, the Senate Commerce Committee voted 14-12 along party lines to advance Simington's nomination. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has signaled that the full Senate could vote on the nomination as early as Tuesday.

If confirmed Biden will begin his term with the FCC evenly split between Democrats and Republicans -- which could hinder policy goals like restoring net neutrality rules. In recent years, FCC Democrats have voted in favor of net neutrality regulations, while Republicans have voted against them.

Blumenthal said Monday that Simington's “sole qualification” for the job is that he was “more than happy to do the president's bidding,” referring to his role in trying to weaken Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

President Trump nominated Simington to the agency after withdrawing the re-nomination of FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly, who publicly suggested the agency should refuse to consider Trump's request to gut Section 230 -- the 24-year-old media law that undergirds the modern web.

Simington, a senior adviser at the Commerce Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration, helped write the agency's petition to the FCC for rules to weaken Section 230. He also reportedly attempted to influence Fox News' coverage of controversies surrounding Section 230.

Section 230 protects web publishers from liability when users' posts are defamatory or otherwise unlawful. It also immunizes companies from lawsuits for decisions about content moderation decisions. The First Amendment also shields companies from decisions about content moderation, but Section 230 can offer companies an easier path to victory when they're sued over moderation decisions.