New research commissioned by England's Radiocentre shows that almost 8M adults working from home listen to commercial radio every day to help accompany their working day.
Radio Today reports the research, by DRG, also shows how those working from home have saved money in the last year, have big spending plans and will seek to continue working from home once the restrictions are lifted.
This new Radiocentre research New Ways of Working, New Ways of Connecting, is the industry body’s fifth listener study since the pandemic started and explores how commercial radio can help advertisers connect to 56% of the total full time working from home audience.
The research, which was in field in February, looked at the financial status of the working from home audience, as well as their shopping habits and spending intentions. It discovered all those now working from home full-time are predominately (83%) aged between 25 and 54.
50% of the commercial radio listeners who are working from home full-time are listening for longer than pre-pandemic, and this has increased from 45% since the first lockdown in March 2020, suggesting new listening habits were established at the very start of the pandemic and that these have become entrenched.
This audience relies on radio to lift their mood, stay up to date with news and keep them company while they go about their work. With nine out of ten (89%) of the working from home commercial radio audience specifying that they listening to more now because they can have the radio on while they do their work, the findings suggest that commercial radio is giving advertisers access to this high value audience during the working day at times where they may have been unlikely to have been listening pre-pandemic. This working from home audience is receptive to advertising, with 52% of them admitting that they search for something when they have heard it advertised on the radio.
Lucy Barrett, Client Director at Radiocentre, said: “Radio helps listeners stay connected which is especially important during lockdown. What is particularly interesting about this research is that it explores the ways working from home audiences have adapted, continuing to spend during lockdown and their plans for big ticket purchases once restrictions are lifted.
“Now we have an impressive vaccine rollout and people are getting closer to returning to offices, it’s also interesting that this audience is keen to retain some form of working from home in the future and radio will always be there to keep them company.”
Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch believes the ratings hit that Fox News took after the November election is turning around and will continue to over the next four years while they play the role of the “loyal opposition” during Joe Biden’s presidency, reports The Wrap.
“Going forward, if history is any lesson, the main beneficiary of the Trump administration, from a ratings points of view, was MSNBC,” Murdoch said Thursday at the (virtual) 2021 Morgan Stanley’s Technology, Media and Telecommunications Conference.
“MSNBC had the biggest lift, relative to where it was before to its peers, throughout the Trump administration. We think that that’s because they’re the loyal opposition. They called out the president when he needed to be called out. That’s what our job is now with the Biden administration, and you’ll see our ratings really improve from here and will do so for at least the next four years.”
In January 2021, Fox News was down double digits in both total-day and primetime ratings. During a Feb. 9 earnings call, Murdoch compared the 13% drop in ratings Fox News saw following Biden taking over for Donald Trump as POTUS to CNN being -17% and MSNBC -10% after the 2016 presidential election, which Trump won over Hillary Clinton.
Murdoch said Thursday that Fox is “No. 1 again in primetime [viewers] and were sort of neck and neck with MSNBC in total-day viewers,” after recovering from the drop-off it expected to see after Trump lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden.
News Corp. CEO Robert Thomson said Thursday “the terms of trade for content are changing fundamentally,” citing a global news sharing deal the company signed last week with Google.
According to Deadline, that deal was announced as Facebook banned news for users and publishers in Australia, to protest a law requiring a more balanced bargaining process for compensation. The law was tweaked, the ban revoked and Facebook announced revenue sharing agreements with three smaller Australian publishers. Thomson said News Corp. “continues to haggle” with the social media giant.
European governments are also examining how digital giants compensate publishers for news content.
Thomson called the payments “akin to retrans, or retrans 2.0′ — referring to the revenue-enhancing fees multichannel video programming distributors like cable operators pay broadcasters to carry local programming.
He didn’t reveal many more specifics of the deal that will see publications from the Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, MarketWatch and the New York Post in the U.S. to The Times and The Sunday Times and The Sun in the UK and a range of platforms in Australia join a product called Google News Showcase. “It is a very thoughtful deal… They are establishing what their content priorities are and we are learning a lot.”
➦In 1927...The newly-authorized Federal Radio Commission held its first meeting.
The FRC existed until its replacement by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 1934.
The Commission was created to regulate radio use "as the public interest, convenience, or necessity" requires. The Radio Act of 1927 superseded the Radio Act of 1912, which had given regulatory powers over radio communication to the Secretary of Commerce and Labor. The Radio Act of 1912 did not mention broadcasting and limited all private radio
Prior to 1927, radio was regulated by the United States Department of Commerce. Commerce Secretary Herbert Hoover played a strong role in shaping radio. His powers were limited by federal court decisions, however; in particular, he was not allowed to deny broadcasting licenses to anyone who wanted one.
Herbert Hoover cira 1930
The result was that many people perceived the airwaves to suffer from "chaos," with too many stations trying to be heard on too few frequencies. Others believed the government simply wanted to control content. (Initially only two frequencies were available for broadcasting with one of these being reserved for "Crop reports and weather forecasts.") After several failed attempts to rectify this situation, Congress finally passed the Radio Act of 1927, which transferred most of the responsibility for radio to a newly created Federal Radio Commission. (Some technical duties remained the responsibility of the Radio Division of the Department of Commerce.)
The five-person FRC was given the power to grant and deny licenses, and to assign frequencies and power levels for each licensee. The Commission was not given any official power of censorship, although programming could not include "obscene, indecent, or profane language." In theory, anything else could be aired. In practice, the Commission could take into consideration programming when renewing licenses, and their ability to take away a broadcaster's license enabled them to control content to some degree.
➦In 1940...The NBC Radio Show 'Fibber McGee & Molly' introduced its on-going comedic gag of opening the overstuffed and clutter closet.
The episode was titled "Cleaning the Closet" with Molly opening the closet looking for the dictionary and is promptly buried in Fibber's "stuff" ("arranged in there just the way I want it"). Cleaning out the closet becomes the show's plot, inventorying much of the contents along the way: a photo album, a rusty horseshoe, a ten-foot pole. After repacking the closet, Fibber realizes the dictionary has been put away too — and he opens the closet again, causing an avalanche.
A staple of the NBC Red Network for the show's entire run and one of the most popular and enduring radio series of its time, the prime time situation comedy ran as a standalone series from 1935 to 1956, then continued as a short-form series as part of the weekend Monitor from 1957 to 1959. The title characters were created and portrayed by Jim and Marian Jordan, a real-life husband and wife team that had been working in radio since the 1920s.
Fibber McGee and Molly, which followed up the Jordans' previous radio sitcom Smackout, followed the adventures of a working-class couple, the habitual storyteller Fibber McGee and his sometimes terse but always loving wife Molly, living among their numerous neighbors and acquaintances in the community of Wistful Vista. As with most radio comedies of the era, Fibber McGee and Molly featured an announcer, house band and vocal quartet for interludes. At the peak of the show's success in the 1940s, it was adapted into a string of feature films; a 1959 attempt to adapt the series to television with a different cast and new writers was both a critical and commercial failure, which, coupled with Marian Jordan's death shortly thereafter, brought the series to an end.
➦In 1957...Rock'n'Roll radio personality Allan Freed appeared on the TV game show 'To Tell the Truth', where he is seen defending the new "rock and roll" sound to the panelists, who were all clearly more comfortable with swing music: Polly Bergen, Ralph Bellamy, and Kitty Carlisle.
➦In 1958...Andrew Roy Gibb born (Died March 10, 1988). He was an English singer, songwriter, performer, and teen idol. He was the younger brother of the Bee Gees: Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb.
Gibb came to international prominence in the late 1970s with six singles that reached the Top 10 in the United States, starting with "I Just Want to Be Your Everything" (1977), followed by three other top 20 singles. Gibb's success was brief due to drug addiction and depression. He died just five days after his 30th birthday.
➦In 1960...Elvis is officially discharged from active duty. Although the official date of release was scheduled for March 23.
After receiving his mustering out check of $109.54 and his formal honorable discharge, he and Colonel Parker travel by limousine, 'mysteriously vanishing', the press reports, 'from a snow-packed and fan-laden highway'.
➦In 1963…Patsy Cline died in a plane crash along with several other country music artists (Born Virginia Patterson Hensley; September 8, 1932). She was 30. 49-year-old Cowboy Copas (Alabam) and 41-year-old Hawkshaw Hawkins (Lonesome 7-7203) also died when their small plane crashed near Camden, Tennessee, about 90miles from Nashville.
Her hits began in 1957 with Donn Hecht's and Alan Block's "Walkin' After Midnight," Hank Cochran's and Harlan Howard's "I Fall to Pieces," Hank Cochran's "She's Got You," and Willie Nelson's "Crazy," and ended in 1963 with Don Gibson's "Sweet Dreams." Millions of her records have sold since her death.
➦In 1977..., President Jimmy Carter took questions from 42 telephone callers in 26 states on a radio call-in program moderated by Walter Cronkite. His official papers refer to the show as “Ask President Carter.”.
The program was the brainchild of Walter Cronkite, who anchored the “CBS Evening News” from 1962 to 1981. After a 20-minute practice session, the president and the anchorman went live on the air. With Cronkite serving as the program’s host, Carter, seated at his desk in the Oval Office, answered questions from callers throughout the country.
More than 9 million calls flooded CBS’s switchboard in New York during the two-hour broadcast. The questions addressed topics ranging from Carter’s decision to pardon Americans who had dodged the draft during the Vietnam War to his support for the pending Panama Canal Treaty. He was also asked why he decided to send his daughter, Amy, to a D.C. public school rather than to enroll her in a private school.
➦In 1983…The Country Music Television (CMT) network debuted on Cable TV. CMT, originally launched as CMTV, is an American pay television channel that is owned by Viacom. Its name is an initialism for "Country Music Television", which has since been de-emphasized. It was the first nationally available channel devoted to country music and country music videos.
The network launched on March 5, 1983, at 6:19 p.m. CT, beating its chief competitor, TNN, to air by two days. The first video clip to air on CMT was Faron Young's 1971 hit "It's Four in the Morning". The following summer, MTV filed a trademark infringement lawsuit over the initials CMTV, and the network changed its name to simply CMT.
➦In 1984....Harry Salter, a music director and an orchestra conductor for radio and TV programs, died.
Harry Salter
One of Salter's radio orchestras in the late 1920s had as members Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey, Artie Shaw, Gene Krupa and Jack Teagarden. He was the orchestra leader for such radio shows as the Hit Parade, Your Unseen Friend, Philco Show, Hobby Lobby and Mr. District Attorney. He also conducted for performers such as Lanny Ross and Milton Berle.
Salter was also the creator, the executive producer, as well orchestra conductor, for the TV show Name That Tune from 1952 to 1959, and was the creator and the musical director of Stop the Music on both radio and television which was broadcast on radio from 1948 to 1949 and became a one-hour TV show on ABC from May 1949 to April 1952, and came back again as a half-hour show from September 7, 1954, to June 14, 1956.
➦In 2012…John Madigan, a longtime Chicago newsman who worked with CBS-TV and was for many years political director at WBBM-AM radio, died of complications from a stroke. Madigan, 94, was a reporter for the Chicago American newspaper and also worked for Newsweek magazine before joining CBS, according to WBBM Newsradio 780 and 105.9 FM.
➦In 2014…Radio, TV personality Geoff Edwards died from pneumonia at age 83 (Born - February 13, 1931). He was a TV actor, game show host and radio personality
Edwards began his career while in college, working for a radio station in Albany, NY. By the late 1950s, though, he relocated to Southern California, landing his first job at KFMB-AM in San Diego, hosting an evening show and co-hosting the "Don Ross/Geoff Edwards Show".
Geoff Edwards - 1977
As a news reporter for KHJ-AM radio, Edwards was present in the basement of Dallas police headquarters when Jack Ruby shot suspected John F. Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald on November 24, 1963. Edwards was one of the witnesses interviewed by NBC television correspondent Tom Pettit on the scene.
In its 11th annual radio selections for the Best of 1967 column, The Los Angeles Times selected Edwards for its Personality of the Year for Edwards' on air work at KFI.
After a few short stints at other stations, Edwards was hired at KMPC in Los Angeles, occupying the 9 a.m.-noon slot for several years beginning in February 1968 until December 1979 when he resigned to focus on his TV career.
He later worked at KFI from 1987 to 1989.
Later, Edwards was a morning DJ with KSUR (now KKGO) in Los Angeles. One of the features of his radio show was "Radio's Answer Lady," in which listeners could call in with questions — some serious, some not so serious — and he would answer on the air, sometimes with serious answers, sometimes with quips.
🎂HAPPY BIRTHDAY:
Actor Paul Sand (“St. Elsewhere”) is 89.
Actor James B. Sikking (“Hill Street Blues,” ″Doogie Howser, M.D.”) is 87.
Actor Dean Stockwell (“JAG,” ″Quantum Leap”) is 85.
Football player-turned-actor Fred Williamson is 83.
Actor Samantha Eggar (“The Molly Maguires,” ″Dr. Doolittle”) is 82.
Actor Michael Warren (“Soul Food,” ″Hill Street Blues”) is 75.
Eva Mendes is 47
Actor Eddie Hodges is 74.
Singer Eddy Grant is 73.
Keyboardist Alan Clark of Dire Straits is 69.
Actor-comedian Marsha Warfield (“Night Court”) is 67.
Magician Penn Jillette of Penn and Teller is 66.
Actor Adriana Barraza is 65.
Actor Talia Balsam (“Divorce,” ″Mad Men”) is 62.
Musicians Charlie and Craig Reid of The Proclaimers are 59.
Actor Paul Blackthorne (“Arrow,” ″24″) is 52.
Guitarist John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers) is 51.
Singer Rome is 51.
Actor Kevin Connolly (“Entourage”) is 47.
Actor Eva Mendes is 47.
Actor Jolene Blalock (“Enterprise”) is 46.
Model Niki Taylor is 46.
Actor Kimberly McCullough (“General Hospital”) is 43.
Actor Karolina Wydra (“Wicked City,” “House”) is 40.
Actor Sterling Knight (“Sonny With a Chance”) is 32.
Beasley Media Group announces legendary WMMR 93.3 FM personality Pierre Robert has signed a multi-year extension hosting middays in Philadelphia. The move guarantees Robert will celebrate 40 uninterrupted years with the radio station this November.
The radio icon is one of the most recognized personalities in the City of Philadelphia. Robert joined the rock station in 1981 and has been hosting the midday show with his unabashed love for music, his listeners and the city.
He does this with a welcoming ‘Greetings Citizens’ salutation, along with his big heart and warm voice. Pierre encompasses everything that rocks – the new and familiar, rock and alternative, punk and singer-songwriter… whether presenting in the air studio, on-stage, or unearthing treasures in the MMaRchives. His daily features, including Noontime Workforce Blocks, Pierre’s Vinyl Cut, exclusive artist interviews, live in-studio performances and “On This Day” history lessons are fully enjoyed by a large and dedicated audience.
“Pierre Robert remains the heart and soul of WMMR,” said Beasley Media Group Vice President of Talent Development and WMMR Program Director Bill Weston. “His longevity and relevance are rare radio attributes. During the pandemic’s darker days, it was so good to hear listeners tell how his familiar presence and re-assuredness helped them through the uncertainty.”
“When you write the 50-year history of WMMR and Rock in Philadelphia, Pierre’s “fingerprints” will be all over the pages,” said Beasley Media Group Vice President and Market Manager, Joe Bell. “He is an integral part of an iconic brand!”
“WMMR is one of the most unique and successful radio stations in America today,” said Robert “The music, the staff and the personalities, along with a warm connection with our listeners, have allowed us an almost unheard of 53 years on the air here in Philly. Thanks to Caroline Beasley and Steve Mountain. I’m thrilled to sign up again for several more myself. In fact, in November, I’ll have been here at ‘MMR for 40 years… so very cool… the journey continues!”
Los Angeles rock station KLOS 95.5 FM , in connection with Toad Hop Entertainment and the Toad Hop Network, announced the launch of their HD2 radio station, KLOS 2. Hosted by morning show Frank Kramer, the all-talk HD channel has also revealed a fresh, new logo. Kramer also adds “KLOS2 Program Director” to his resume.
“I’m excited to bring all-talk radio back to Southern California,” said Frank, of “The Heidi & Frank Show.” “The listeners have been hungry for it since KLSX ended in 2009, and now that over half of the cars on the road have HD radios, it’s perfect timing.”
Initially, KLOS2 will be a 24-hour Heidi & Frank Show channel, giving the duo’s loyal fan base more access to their edgy talk show throughout the day. But Kramer says it won’t stop there. “The 24-hour loop is just phase one. In the coming months, my team and I will be adding original programming, special features and even more surprises. KLOS2 will ultimately become a full-fledged talk radio station, courting new advertisers and personalities. I appreciate Meruelo Media for trusting my vision to double-down on personality-driven radio, and I can’t wait to get started.”
“We’re excited to offer Frank a second audio platform to expand his creative brand and explore bold new ideas,” stated Otto Padron, President of Meruelo Media. “While 95.5 KLOS-FM will continue to be the flagship station for the daily live version of ‘The Heidi & Frank Show,’ we are certain that fans will love more listening options; which includes the KLOS2 mobile app.”
“KLOS 2” is immediately available at 95.5 KLOS HD2, the KLOS2 mobile app and KLOS2.com
Jack Dorsey’s Square, Inc. has purchased a “significant” majority ownership stake in Jay-Z’s Tidal for $297 million in cash and stock, reports The Wrap.
Tidal board member and shareholder Jay-Z, real name Shawn Carter, is expected to join Square’s board of directors subject to the closing of the transaction. After the deal has closed, all of Tidal’s artist shareholders will continue to be co-owners of Tidal.
“It comes down to one simple idea: finding new ways for artists to support their work,” Dorsey, cofounder and CEO of Square, said in a statement. “New ideas are found at intersections, and we believe there’s a compelling one between music and the economy. I knew Tidal was something special as soon as I experienced it, and it will continue to be the best home for music, musicians, and culture.”
Jay-Z aded: “I said from the beginning that Tidal was about more than just streaming music, and six years later, it has remained a platform that supports artists at every point in their careers. Artists deserve better tools to assist them in their creative journey. Jack and I have had many discussions about Tidal’s endless possibilities that have made me even more inspired about its future. This shared vision makes me even more excited to join the Square board. This partnership will be a game-changer for many. I look forward to all this new chapter has to offer!”
Tidal and Square expect the transaction to close in the second quarter of 2021, pending regulatory approvals.
Capitol Police said yesterday that they have intelligence of a, quote, "possible plot" by the Three Percenters militia group to attack the U.S. Capitol today. The threat appears to be connected to the conspiracy theory mostly promoted by QAnon supporters that former President Donald Trump will return to power today, the original presidential inauguration date until it was moved to January 20th in 1933. The FBI and Department of Homeland Security also sent an intelligence bulletin Tuesday warning a militia group had discussed trying to take over the Capitol on Thursday. Capitol Police said they are, quote, "aware of and prepared for any potential threats." There is also still fencing around the Capitol complex that was put up in the wake of the January 6th attack. However, the House ended its work for the week last night due to the threat of violence.
U.S. Capitol Police say they're aware of and preparing for a threat by an unidentified militia group to breach the Capitol complex on March 4.https://t.co/5m3wCA5vSZ
➤HOUSE PASSES SWEEPING VOTING RIGHTS LEGISLATION: The Democratic-led House passed sweeping voting rights legislation last night on a near party-line vote, the action coming at the same time as Republican-controlled states are moving towards enacting tighter voting restrictions. Its prospects in the Senate are very uncertain, where it will have little chance to get the 60 votes that would be needed to break an expected Republican filibuster. The Democrats claim the legislation is needed to fight voter suppression efforts, while the GOP claims it would inject federal interference in states' authority to conduct their own elections. Among its provisions, the legislation would: require states to automatically register eligible voters; offer same-day voter registration; limit states’ ability to purge registered voters from their rolls; restore former felons’ voting rights; require states to offer 15 days of early voting; and allow no-excuse absentee voting. It would also mandate that nonpartisan commissions handle the redrawing of congressional districts to block partisan gerrymandering, and force the disclosure of donors to "dark money" political groups.
➤CUTOFF THRESHOLD LOWERED FOR DIRECT PAYMENTS IN $1.9 TRILLION COVID RELIEF BILL: President Biden and Senate Democrats agreed yesterday to lower the income cutoff threshold for the direct payments that will go to Americans under Biden's $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief bill, agreeing to what moderate Senate Democrats wanted. Under the legislation, individuals earning up to $75,000 will get $1,400 and couples earning up to $150,000, will get $2,800. The version approved by the House would gradually reduce that amount as salary increases until individuals making $100,000 and couples earning $200,000 get nothing. Under the compromise, the cutoff would be moved down to $80,000 for individuals and $160,000 for couples. However, the moderates didn't win on weekly emergency unemployment benefits, which will remain at $400 weekly in the bill, and not be reduced to the $300 weekly they'd wanted.
The White House staff would never be given permission to cut President Trump’s video feed, which raises the question, who is running the White House? pic.twitter.com/RcG35kt8T2
➤U-S WARNS OF POSSIBLE MILITARY RESPONSE TO ROCKET ATTACK ON IRAQ BASE: The U.S. warned of a possible military response to a rocket attack early Wednesday on an air base in Anbar province in Iraq where U.S. and coalition troops are housed. A U.S. contractor died, reportedly of a heart attack, after at least 10 rockets hit the base. No group claimed responsibility, but the attack came after the U.S. bombed Iran-backed militia targets along the Iraq-Syria border last week. Those U.S. strikes came in response to an attack on American forces in Iraq earlier in February.
➤CUOMO APOLOGIZES AGAIN, SAYS HE'S NOT RESIGNING: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo apologized again yesterday after three women have come forward to accuse him of sexual harassment and inappropriate touching and remarks, two of them former members of his administration, but rejected calls for him to step down, saying he's not resigning. In his first public appearance since the accusations came out, the governor said he'd, quote, "learned an important lesson," saying, "I now understand that I acted in a way that made people feel uncomfortable. It was unintentional and I truly and deeply apologize for it." He said that what he called his "customary greeting" of kisses and hugs isn't acceptable, as, quote, "sensitivities have changed and behavior has changed." He also stated, "I’m embarrassed by what happened... I’m embarrassed that someone felt that way in my administration." He said he will fully cooperate with the independent investigation that will be carried out overseen by the state attorney general. But asked about the calls from some for him to step down, Cuomo said, "I wasn’t elected by politicians, I was elected by the people of the state of New York. I’m not going to resign."
Fox’s Hannity slams “swooning” mainstream media for failing to hold Andrew Cuomo accountable pic.twitter.com/rYwQdYYbu8
➤SUV IN CALIFORNIA CRASH IN WHICH 13 KILLED CAME THROUGH CUT OUT PART OF BORDER FENCE: Immigration officials said yesterday (March 3rd) that an SUV that crashed in Southern California near the border with Mexico Tuesday, killing 13 of the 25 people who were packed inside, had driven through a section of border fence that had been cut away, apparently by smugglers. Surveillance video showed the vehicle carrying migrants trying to sneak into the U.S. illegally driving through the opening. The SUV was hit by a tractor-trailer shortly after going through the fence.
13 people killed in California SUV crash were among 44 who came through hole in border fence https://t.co/xvTreMzGAL
➤RESTAURANTS ARE REPORTEDLY BEING HURT BY REFUND REQUEST SCAMS: Restaurants across the U.S. are being hurt by people scamming them for refunds. Los Angeles-based restaurant Spoon By H wrote on February 22nd, “We are heartbroken to find ourselves sharing the very news we hoped we would never have to share… Spoon By H will be closing. Although we put up our very best fight, we could no longer hold out against the growing barrage of fraudulent disputed charges and the countless refunds issued.” Similarly, Bell’s BBQ, based in Henderson, Nevada, has reportedly been affected by this new “dine and dash” scam on third-party delivery apps. The restaurant’s owner says he and his team try to be thorough when they fulfill orders, but that items can be marked as incorrect, which usually results in a partial refund from most delivery services. GrubHub and DoorDash have released statements saying they do not tolerate misuse of their platforms, while Postmates and UberEats both have web pages that state there are policies in place to address potential fraud. As for Spoon By H, a GoFundMe campaign was started by a customer and raised over $71,700 for the 9-year-old restaurant.
➤MERCURY, JUPITER TO APPEAR SIDE BY SIDE IN WEEKEND SKY: The smallest and largest planets in the solar system will meetup as the first week of March concludes. Friday morning, Mercury and Jupiter will appear side by side in the sky in an astrological event called a conjunction. This type of conjunction is not particularly rare, and it’s the second time this year that Mercury and Jupiter are converging in the night sky. To see it, you’ll need to look southeast about an hour before sunrise with the two eventually fading away as the light from the sun brightens the sky in the approach to daybreak. Saturn will also be glowing nearby, above the duo and off to the right. The event will be visible around the entire globe, but the placement of the planets will look slightly different for those skygazing from south of the equator. If cloudy conditions obscure the sky on Friday, people can check out the event Saturday (March 6th) or Sunday (March 7th) morning, as they’ll still be close to each other, but not as close as they will be on Friday.
🏈WASHINGTON FOOTBALL TEAMS DROPPING CHEERLEADERS FOR COED DANCE TEAM: The Washington Football Team is dropping its cheerleaders and replacing them with a coed dance team, part of its efforts to rebrand. Former Laker Girls manager Petra Pope, who also launched the Knicks City Dancers and redesigned the Nets' entertainment when they moved from New Jersey to Brooklyn, was hired yesterday (March 3rd) as an adviser to overhaul the performing group. Pope told AP, "I’ve been asked to create a more modern entertainment team that is inclusive and diverse. We just want to follow that mode of being more modern and a more modern franchise." The future dance team doesn't yet have a name. Pope said the previous cheerleaders would be able to try out for the new dance team, quote, "as long as they have that athletic skill set."
🏀HARDEN HAS TRIPLE-DOUBLE IN RETURN TO HOUSTON AS NETS WIN 132-114: James Harden had a triple-double for the Brooklyn Nets in his first return to Houston to play against his former team as the Nets topped the Rockets 132-114. Harden, who was traded to the Nets on January 14th, had 29 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists. He got a mixed reception from the reduced capacity crowd of 3,615, with some boos when he was first introduced, but also cheers as the Rockets played a video showing some of the highlights of his eight seasons with Houston during a first-quarter timeout.
🏀PACERS' MCCONNELL SETS NEW STEALS RECORD: The Indiana Pacers' T.J. McConnell broke the NBA record for steals in a half last night when he got nine steals in the first half of the Pacers' 114-111 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. The 28-year-old finished the game with 10 steals, part of a triple-double with 16 points and 13 assists, the second of his career.
➤EX-NFL PLAYER WINSLOW SENTENCED TO 14 YEARS IN PRISON FOR MULTIPLE RAPES: Former NFL player Kellen Winslow II was sentenced Wednesday to 14 years in prison for multiple rapes and other sexual offenses against five women in Southern California. The 37-year-old former Cleveland Browns star, who was once the highest-paid tight end in the NFL, where he played for 10 seasons, declined to comment before his sentencing, but said, "In the future, I do plan to tell my story." Among Winslow's victims were a homeless woman, a hitchhiker, and a passed-out teenager at a party.
⚾YANKEES MANAGER BOONE TAKES LEAVE TO GET PACEMAKER: New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone took a leave of absence Wednesday (March 3rd) to get a pacemaker for a low heart rate. The team said the procedure went as expected and Boone plans to return to the Yankees in a few days. Bench coach Carlos Mendoza took over as acting manager for last night's spring training game against the Toronto Blue Jays, which the Yankees won 4-1. The 47-year-old Boone, who is entering his fourth season at Yankees manager, underwent open-heart surgery in 2009.
➤REPORT...NO FANS FROM OTHER COUNTRIES TO BE ALLOWED AT TOKYO OLYMPICS: Plans are still on for the Tokyo Olympics to be held this summer, after being delayed from last year due to the pandemic, but no fans from other countries will be allowed to attend, according to report. The Japanese newspaper Mainichi reported yesterday (March 3rd) that the decision had been made to exclude foreign fans because of pandemic concerns. The new president of the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee, Seiko Hashimoto, hinted at that yesterday after online talks with International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach and others. She said a decision will be made by the end of the month.
Listening on a mobile device now accounts for 30% of all time spent listening to audio by those age 13+ in the U.S., an increase of 67% since 2014, according to the latest Share of Ear® report from Edison Research. Listening on a mobile device has been growing steadily since Edison Research’s Share of Ear study began tracking audio consumption among Americans in 2014.
The gap between listening on a traditional radio receiver and a mobile device among those age 13+ has narrowed remarkably quickly since 2014: 31 percentage points separated the two in 2014 and only five percentage points separate the two today. The traditional AM/FM radio receiver does account for the largest share of audio consumed but has decreased the most since the survey began, now accounting for 35% of all audio consumption compared to 49% in 2014.
Mobile devices have already surpassed traditional radio receivers in the younger age groups. Among those age 13-34, 46% of total daily audio consumption is done on a mobile device and 20% is done on a traditional AM/FM radio receiver.
It is important to note that these statistics speak to device only, not the audio product that is delivered by the device. Mobile devices can deliver a wide range of audio products, including radio station programming.
“Mobile devices, particularly of course the phone, have been gaining on the traditional radio receiver as the primary listening device for as long as we have been measuring Share of Ear, but with the disruptions of the last year the gap has narrowed dramatically.” said Edison Research President Larry Rosin. “As fewer people have a standard radio receiver in their homes these days, naturally more listening comes through digital devices.”
COVID-19 disruptions meant Americans spent more time consuming audio at home in 2020 and less time consuming audio in-car, the prime location for listening to a traditional AM/FM receiver, which could explain some of the change in the past year. Further data analysis in the coming year will be needed to see if these audio habits remain post-quarantine.
How the Share of Ear® study is conducted: Edison Research conducts a nationally representative study of Americans ages 13 and older to measure their time spent listening to audio sources. Respondents complete a 24-hour diary of their audio listening on an assigned day. Diaries are completed both online and by-mail using a paper diary. Diaries are offered in both English and Spanish. The Share of Ear study is released quarterly and is available on a subscription basis.
iHeartMedia has announced that Kristy Beebe has been named Market President for Indianapolis, effective immediately.
As Market President, Beebe will work closely with the programming, business and sales teams and oversee all of the station’s on-air and digital programming as well as create new revenue opportunities. She will report to Earl Jones, President for iHeartMedia Kentucky-Indiana Metro.
Beebe will be based in Indianapolis and most recently served as the Region Senior Vice President of Sales for the Kentucky-Indiana Metro. She has held various sales leadership positions throughout her career, including Local Sales Manager and General Sales Manager for iHeartMedia Toledo and iHeartMedia Louisville. She began her career in sales at iHeartMedia in her hometown of Toledo, Ohio and is a graduate of Lourdes University.
“I am so excited for Kristy’s well-deserved promotion to Market President,” said Jones. “She has earned the opportunity to lead our Indianapolis market. Kristy has been an incredible sales leader, coach, and major contributor to the success of iHeartMedia Kentucky-Indiana Metro.”
“I am so thankful to Earl Jones and the iHeartMedia team for this new leadership opportunity,” said Beebe. “I am ready to lead the Indianapolis team to new heights as we work together to provide unmatched service to our listeners, advertisers and the community.”
CUMULUS MEDIA announces that it has signed sports journalist Buck Reising as On-Air Host for WGFX 104.5 The Zone, Nashville and Middle Tennessee’s premier live and local sports station and the flagship home for the Tennessee Titans and Nashville affiliate for University of Tennessee Volunteers.
Reising will be heard Monday through Friday from 10:00am-1:00pm, debuting on Wednesday, March 3rd. Reising has been a frequent guest host on WGFX, but is mostly known for his popular “615 Sessions” podcast and live weeknight show, “A to Z Sports Primetime”, heard on https://atozsportsnashville.com/.
In addition to the weekday show, Reising will be adding original podcasts, and will continue hosting his popular “615 Sessions” podcast and nightly “Primetime” show with A to Z Sports, with more collaboration between WGFX and A to Z Sports likely.
Paul Mason, Program Director, 104.5 The Zone, noted: “Buck Reising is everything you want in a talent in 2021. He has demonstrated with A to Z Sports an unmatched ability to connect with a diverse audience in the digital space. I look forward to that continuing, along with Buck’s new role on The Zone’s on-air lineup, making him the ultimate Dual-Threat in Nashville sports!”
Zach Bingham, Co-Owner and Host, A to Z Sports, commented: “We’re excited for Buck to start his new show with 104.5 The Zone.”
Austin Stanley, co-Owner and Host, A to Z Sports, added: He will continue to bring energy and plenty of Titans talk to our followers and now to The Zone’s loyal audience.”
Buck Reising remarked: “I’m incredibly excited to start this new opportunity with 104.5 The Zone. I don’t love anything the way I love this city and the people in it. The content will be different, diverse, and occupy every possible media space.”
Allison Warren, Vice President/Market Manager Cumulus Media-Nashville said: “Today’s announcement solidifies104.5 The Zone as Nashville and Middle Tennessee’s premier live and local sports station. Nashville and Middle Tennessee residents craving topical and relevant, opinion-driven sports talk are about to be challenged, entertained, and engaged like never before.”
Comcast CEO Brian Roberts said Wednesday the company is betting big on theme parks and streaming as the media giant looks ahead to 2022.
The Philadelphia Business Journal reports Roberts anticipates a resurgence for parks and the continued growth of streaming entertainment to help Comcast's hard-hit NBCUniversal division rebound in the next year, the CEO said during a conference hosted by Morgan Stanley. NBCUniversal has been battered in the last year as theme parks, movie studios and theaters shut down during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Comcast wants to be seen as a streaming company, Roberts said, and the sharp rise in streaming is on the “hockey stick side” of value creation. Peacock, NBCUniversal’s new streaming service, had more than 33 million signups in 2020 following its launch in April, 50% more than the company initially expected, Roberts said.
Brian Roberts
A report from Morning Consult found that Peacock was one of the fastest-growing brands of 2020, second only to Zoom. Comcast is now looking at ways to take advantage of that growth and whether it should invest more in Peacock, he said.
The outlook for Peacock hinges on the content the platform will have, Roberts said, whether it’s licensed content, original content like NBC shows or upcoming events like the Olympics. Comcast’s strategy is to make Peacock a “must-have” streaming service, he said.
Streaming could help produce a big cash bump for Comcast, as the company is set to exit its one-third position in streaming giant Hulu in 2024, Roberts said. Comcast will be able to move the content it has on Hulu to other streaming services, like Peacock, he said.
The Summer Olympics in Tokyo — still on track to happen this year after being postponed in 2020 — and 2022’s Winter Games in Beijing will be major events for Comcast. The Olympics bookend Super Bowl LVI, which will also be broadcast on NBC. The Olympics could begin to satisfy the world’s “pent-up demand” for celebration after a year of Covid-19, Roberts said.
On the theme parks side, Roberts announced Wednesday that NBCUniversal will resume construction on the Epic Universe park in Orlando. The company halted construction last year because of the pandemic and said it would not resume until the economic future was more certain. Epic Universe was originally slated to open in 2023, and Roberts did not provide additional details on the park’s timeline.
Sinclair Broadcasting Group is implementing “enterprise-wide reductions” in its staff due to the “profound impact” of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to The Hill citing multiple reports.
A spokesperson for Sinclair told Variety that the company is letting go 5 percent of its workforce. The company employs more than 9,211 people, meaning about 460 staffers will be affected.
The spokesperson said in a statement to Variety that the impact of the pandemic “continues to be felt across all sectors of the economy, something that can have a profound impact on a company as diversified as ours.”
“From local businesses and advertisers to distributors and partners, no component of our business’s ecosystem has been fully shielded from the impact of the global pandemic,” the statement said. “In response to this, we are currently undergoing enterprise-wide reductions across our workforce, including corporate headquarters, to ensure we are well-positioned for future success.”
In a memo to staff obtained by CNN Business, Sinclair CEO Chris Ripley said the decision “was not made lightly.”
“Over the last year, we saw many of our peers make reductions en masse, a step we refrained from taking while we took cuts elsewhere, including in capital budgets, discretionary spending, and non-essential expenses.”
Sinclair on Feb. 24 reported a 7 percent decrease in total revenue for the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to the fourth quarter in 2019. However, total revenues for 2020 increased 40 percent over 2019.
Sinclair operates roughly 190 television stations in 88 markets, and owns multiple national networks.
Westwood One has filed suit against Local Radio Networks for patent infringement over LRN's voicetracking system. Filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Fort Wayne, IN, the suit alleges that LRN violated WWO's patents for its voicetracking system by offering the similar cloud-based Radio Velocity Control (RVC) automation technology. LRN says RVC provides custom localization and station owner controls that integrates into most existing playout systems.
The suit claims that LRN has targeted former Westwood One employees for hiring, who "have knowledge of the workings of Westwood's patented program" and alleges that they "are presently attempting to use this knowledge to lure customers away from Westwood by informing customers in the market that the LRN program is comparable."
In its suit, WWO says it sent cease and desist letter to LRN in May 2020. And that LRN knew about the patents in the suit before then, since LRN hired several former Westwood executives who knew about the patents. “Defendant’s infringement is of particular concern given LRN’s targeted employment of former Westwood employees,” the suit says.
“LRN’s employees Chris Reeves, Jonathon Steele, Chris Hatton, Matt Caldaronello and Patrick Crocker, are all former Westwood employees,” the suit says. “These employees have knowledge of the workings of Westwood’s patented program. Furthermore, these employees are presently attempting to use this knowledge to lure customers away from Westwood by informing customers in the market that the LRN Program is comparable. Such acts constitute willful and deliberate infringement, entitling Westwood to enhanced damages and attorney’s fees.”
WWO argues that “continuing to make, use, sell, offer for sale, or import the LRN Program” after being served with the suit “constitutes willful infringement.” It also accuses LRN of intending its broadcast affiliates to infringe upon the patent by using the LRN Program.
LRN has not yet filed a response to the complaint with the court. However the company issued a statement Wednesday afternoon calling the suit “legally and factually baseless,” adding that it developed and uses its own technology and intends to vigorously defend itself against the claims.
Walt Disney Co. announced Wednesday it will close at least 60 Disney Stores throughout North America this year. The company said it would focus more on e-commerce while reducing the number of bricks-and-mortar locations it operates, reports The Wall Street Journal.
During the pandemic, consumers have increasingly shifted to purchasing more goods and services online as governments both in the U.S. and abroad implemented lockdowns in an attempt to curb the spread of Covid-19. Some major retailers, especially those located in shopping malls, have suffered losses. Meanwhile online retailers, such as Amazon.com Inc. or Target Corp , which has scaled up its e-commerce business, have seen their fortunes soar as consumers became more dependent on online shopping.
The U.S. Dept. of Commerce estimated that total e-commerce sales rose 32.4% to $791.7 billion in 2020 compared with the previous year.
“While consumer behavior has shifted toward online shopping, the global pandemic has changed what consumers expect from a retailer,” said Stephanie Young, president of Disney’s consumer products games and publishing.
The National Football League is on the verge of signing new rights deals with media partners that could see Amazon.com Inc. carry many games exclusively and TV networks pay as much as double their current rate, reports The Wall Street Journal citing people familiar with the matter.
New agreements could be in place as early as next week, the people said. The television deals for the league’s Sunday and Monday franchises with Fox, CBS, NBC and ESPN are likely to run for as long as 11 years, they said.
ESPN’s deal would go into effect after the 2021-22 season while the Fox, CBS and NBC agreements would kick in after the 2022-23 season.
A deal with Amazon would result in a significant number of Thursday night games exclusively on its Prime Video platform and represent the league’s deepest foray into streaming, some of the people said. Those games wouldn’t be available on traditional television outside of the local markets of the two teams playing, they said.
Amazon has become an aggressive bidder for sports rights here and abroad. The company already has a relationship with the NFL as it has held streaming rights for Thursday night football since 2017. Those games have also been televised by the league-owned NFL Network and most recently by the Fox network.
If completed, an Amazon deal wouldn’t take effect until after the 2022 season, when Fox’s current pact for Thursday night football expires. Fox is now paying $660 million a season for that package, The Wall Street Journal previously reported. If the Thursday games go to Amazon and there is no other video component beyond the local TV markets of the teams playing, that yearly fee Amazon pays could reach $1 billion, people with knowledge of the discussions said.
A deal with Amazon for most Thursday night games would solve a potential problem for the NFL. While Thursday games get strong ratings compared with any other programming, the high price tag was making it a tough sell with broadcasters who already carry NFL packages such as Fox, which analysts and industry insiders estimate loses $250 million a season. Prior to Fox’s deal, CBS and NBC shared Thursday games and their combined losses were more than $200 million, people familiar with those agreements have said.
The trial of a Des Moines Register reporter who was arrested covering racial justice protests last summer is slated to begin next week in what experts said is a rare criminal prosecution of a journalist on assignment in the USA.
Andrea Sahouri
Andrea Sahouri faces charges of failure to disperse and interference with official acts and is set to stand trial starting Monday.
At least 126 journalists were arrested or detained in 2020, but only 14 still face charges, according to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker. The group's managing editor, Kirstin McCudden, said it's "surprising and unknown" why Sahouri's charges remain.
Media and journalism groups called for the charges to be dropped, including the Committee to Protect Journalists and students and staff from the Columbia University School of Journalism, where Sahouri earned a master's degree. The human rights organization Amnesty International has also taken up the cause.
"That this trial is happening at all is a violation of free press rights and a miscarriage of justice," the Des Moines Register's Editorial Board wrote in an editorial.
Sahouri was arrested while on assignment at a mall in Des Moines to cover protests in the days after the killing of George Floyd, a Black man who died as a white police officer knelt on his neck. Floyd's death provoked unrest across the country, and Des Moines experienced days of protest demanding racial justice and changes to policing.
Police and prosecutors have provided few details about the incident May 31. Sahouri said she repeatedly told officers she was a journalist working in her official capacity to report on the protest.
The Des Moines Register, which is owned by Gannett, the same parent company as USA TODAY, reported that another reporter at the newspaper who was with Sahouri and not arrested corroborated her account of the events.
