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Entercom picked the Audacy name for a reason. Chairman David Field told his hometown newspaper the Philadelphia Inquirer that the old name no longer fit: “Entercom reflected radio only. We’ve outgrown it. It’s broader than that, and it also didn’t fit our aspirations.”

Audacy’s aspirations are now on full display in a wonderful new piece titled “State of Audio — What’s Next & What Advertisers Need To Know.”

It’ll take you at least 30 minutes to absorb this detailed 40-page promotional piece. Worth it? Yes! This is a must-read for everyone in broadcasting, podcasting, audio services or advertising. The nicely designed layout makes it easy to find sections that are of specific interest, but this statement of purpose is best digested whole.

It begins with a lovely, if hyperbolic line: “Advertisers who want to engage deeply with audiences are embracing Audio like never before.”

This intro makes me smile because it’s mostly true and offers promise for the future. The amusing part is that young media buyers will likely believe this line, not knowing much about broadcast radio’s many decades of dominance prior to television.

[Read More Promo Power Here]

While it may appear I’m poking fun here, I’m impressed with the way Audacy restates audio’s selling proposition saying, “New research affirms that Audio stirs emotion like no other medium.”

Audacy Chief Digital Officer J.D. Crowley states: “In a world where screen time has reached a new and sometimes uncomfortable peak, it’s the ears, not the eyes, that always connected most deeply. And it’s the ears that are generating the most excitement and energy in media today.”

So true. And it’s so important that a generation of advertising newbies receives this education.

There are sections of metrics that lay out the growth of smart speakers, podcasts and at-home listening. Audio is described as an immersive experience, beating out video, television and even social media. Your local sales staff should understand this playing field and be prepared to discuss it with clients.

There’s a terrific section on podcast listening, revenue generation, and a proposition on how to reach youthful audiences. Celebrities are rightly repackaged as Influencers with instructions on how to utilize their trust to generate results. I particularly enjoyed the “right moment, right message” section on how dynamic creative can run at just the right moment to match the weather, sports, or other events.

The final chapter paints a future for audio based on voice-commands (like shopping by voice), the cloud and the arrival of 5G. Nothing about the smart dashboard in a car, which seems like a miss.

The elephant in the room for our industry shows up on a graph from Edison Research on page 8, concerning the use of broadcast radio. There’s an attempt to paint a rosy picture with broadcast radio commanding the largest percentage of audio listening at 39%. If accurate, that’s a sad state of affairs. Those at the top would be wise to admit that it’s past time to invest significant time, energy and money into stopping this decline and determine how to start a resurgence for broadcast stations.

Audacy has proven its prowess at positioning new forms of audio for the future.

The fly in the formula: According to RAB/Borrell Associates data, digital ad revenue in 2020 hit $1.1 billion. This accounts for about 14% of total ad sales. While it’s fantastic to see digital sales growing for radio, without broadcast station revenue, the business model doesn’t work.

Can Audacy and other leaders leverage their clearly proven creativity to rejuvenate our core broadcast radio product? That’s a manifesto I hope to read in the near future.

Comment on this or any article. Email radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Audacy’s Audio Manifesto Reviewed appeared first on Radio World.

This week, we’re taking a look at NPR/Edison Research’s new report on spoken word audio.

While the latest NPR/Edison Spoken Word Audio Report defines spoken word as anything other than music, podcasting is clearly the 500-pound gorilla in the room. The research suggests that podcasting’s share of time with spoken word audio has increased by 176 percent over the past seven years, up 16 percent in the last year alone, and that those who prefer to listen to spoken word most often via podcasts has increased by 27 percent.

[Read more our coverage of “The Spoken Word Audio Report”]

When the report parses the data by distribution of spoken word audio listening by platform, however, the results suggest that AM/FM radio has maintained a clear lead over podcasts, audio books and other platforms. That lead is steadily eroding though, falling from 79 percent in 2014 to 48 percent in 2021.

“The Spoken Word Audio Report” shows radio remains the most commonly used medium for listening to spoken word audio.

In addition to podcasts, mobile devices, according to the survey, are a key driving force in spoken word audio’s impressive growth. When broken down by demographics for share of time spent listening to spoken word audio on a mobile device from 2014 to 2021, the average increase is 278 percent.

The 18–34 demographic went from 19 to 51 percent, a 168 percent increase. Those aged 35–54 saw a 216 percent increase, up from 12 to 38 percent. Another big surprise in this report are the numbers reported for the 55+ demographic. In what seems to be a monumental game of catch up, they went from 2 to 18 percent — an 800 percent increase!

When the report breaks the numbers down by share of listening by content type of device, music is still the dominant player across the board. That said, mobile devices lead the spoken word segment with 35 percent, followed by AM/FM radio receivers with 29 percent. And the survey emphasizes that this 29 percent is actual over-the-air listening, and not listening to an AM/FM station’s stream. This is followed by computers with 27 percent and smart speakers with 24 percent.

Comment on this or any article. Email radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Most Spoken Word Audio Listening Happens via Radio appeared first on Radio World.

One of the nation’s biggest retailers has emerged as the biggest user of Spot Cable, by far, according to the latest report from Media Monitors.

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It’s about time.

One of the most prolific users of spot radio has surged to the top of the latest Media Monitors Spot Ten Radio report.

That would be The Home Depot, which is at the top of the list thanks to nearly 59,400 spot plays as detected by iHeartMedia-owned Media Monitors.

By comparison, category competitor Lowe’s is at No. 7 with some 38,385 spot plays.

 

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KBEST Media, LLC enters into consent decree to resolve political file investigation

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Americom Limited Partnership enters into consent decree to resolve political file investigation

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Office of Economics and Analytics (OEA) and the Media
Bureau of the FCC have identified two mutually exclusive short-form applications to participate in Auction 111.

Here’s what happens next, with settlement agreements due by November 30.

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NEW YORK — What could be Gordon Smith‘s final public appearance as President/CEO of the National Association of Broadcasters was met with a standing ovation and words of praise from the heads of Beasley Media Group and Hearst Television as the former Oregon Senator prepares to enter retirement at years end.

Smith, the NAB’s head since November 2009, received the Radio Ink Lifetime Achievement Award at Forecast 2021, held Tuesday at the Harvard Club.

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The National Association of Broadcasters Leadership Foundation has elected leaders at iHeartMedia, Cox Media Group and Allen Media Group to serve on its Board of Directors in accordance with Leadership Foundation bylaws.

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NEW YORK — When it comes to Washington, D.C., activities of significance to broadcast media, there is perhaps no bigger topic of conversation today than the nominations from President Biden of Jessica Rosenworcel to serve as the full Chairman of the FCC and the selection as a Democratic nominee for FCC Commissioner of Gigi Sohn.

Sohn’s chances of winning a seat on the Commission is vitally important, and a Forecast 2022 session tackled the subject.

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Leadership changes are on the horizon for two working groups of the National Radio Systems Committee focused on important technical matters for U.S. radio broadcasting. One focuses on digital radio standards development, the other on radio metadata.

The NRSC is a technical standards-setting body co-sponsored by the National Association of Broadcasters, representing the transmission side of the radio broadcast industry, and the Consumer Technology Association, representing the reception side.

Alan Jurison

The NRSC’s IBOC Standards Development Working Group, which is a subgroup of the Digital Radio Broadcasting (DRB) subcommittee, will be chaired by Alan Jurison, a senior operations engineer with iHeartMedia. Jurison has served as chair of the NRSC’s Metadata Usage Working Group since 2012.

Jurison will be tasked with overseeing headline-making activities within the IBOC standards group. This work includes developing an NRSC guideline for all-digital AM radio stations and updating the NRSC-5 digital radio standard (the technical standard behind Xperi’s HD Radio digital radio system).

Updating that standard is a task undertaken by the group every five years.

“Having Alan as the new [IBOC group] chair is a great development,” said Glynn Walden, consultant to Audacy and co-chair of the DRB subcommittee. “Alan has been a major contributor to NRSC technical documents and done an outstanding job at the helm of the [Metadata Usage Working Group].”

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David Bialik

As for the Metadata Usage Working Group, consultant David Bialik of David K. Bialik & Associates takes the helm as chair. The working group is a subgroup of the Data Services and Metadata Subcommittee, chaired by Steve Shultis, CTO of New York Public Radio.

Right off the bat, Bialik will be responsible for leading the development of NRSC-G304, a guideline for streaming audio metadata.

“David’s expertise in the area of streaming for broadcast audio will be put to good use as the new chair,” Shultis said. “Radio broadcasters rely increasingly upon their audio streams and the NRSC is eager to help develop better standards in this area.”

Jurison succeeds Randy Woods, who until recently was with New Hampshire Public Radio. Bialik succeeds Jurison as chair of MUWG.

The post NRSC Names New Chairs for Working Groups appeared first on Radio World.

Have you harbored a dream of tracking down modern-day pirates? Two new job positions recently opened by the Federal Communications Commission may give you that chance.

The FCC recently posted two openings for field agents as part of the commission’s Enforcement Bureau. The first position is located in Chicago; the second is in New Orleans.

Both positions revolve around enforcing regulations, resolving radio frequency interference, educating users and investigating unlicensed radio operation violations (thar be your pirates).

Posted salary range: roughly $92k–$132k.

The position includes performing fieldwork, serving as a point of contact in matters of fixed and mobile radio direction-finding and interference resolution, and participating in enforcement and engineering projects with regional or national applications. Candidates must be able to operate and understand all field-ready technical equipment, including RF spectrum analyzers, field-strength meters, radio frequency radiation survey meters and radio receivers.

[Visit Radio World’s Business and Law Page]

The position also requires candidates to initiate official notices of violation, participate in regional emergency planning meetings, serve as a local expert in emergency communications restoration, and assist in planning bureau enforcement and compliance workshops.

A certain amount of field ruggedness is required, too. Agents will operate an SUV during routine field activities, which may happen during adverse weather conditions or in darkness.

The position has clear eligibility requirements too — either a degree in professional engineering or a combination of education and specialized experience.

The official announcement has further details on the positions and applicants can apply directly on the USAJOBS website. Job applications are being accepted through Nov. 22, 2021.

The post FCC Looks to Fill Two Enforcement Agent Positions appeared first on Radio World.

SEATTLE — FEMA and Bonneville International Corp.‘s Seattle radio stations are preparing to unveil an “all-hazards upgrade” to what is considered to be the “Primary Entry Point” facility at one of the market’s leading spoken word radio stations.

Bonneville News/Talker KIRO-AM will light up its PEP Transmitter site on Friday (11/19).

The modernization to the emergency studio increases KIRO-AM’s resiliency to continue broadcasting under all conditions, including natural disasters and acts of terrorism.

The facility is one of 77 across the country that serve as a National Public Warning System Primary Entry Point (PEP) station, participating with FEMA to provide emergency alert and warning information to the public before, during and after incidents and disasters.

KIRO-AM is the 14th station in the country to work with FEMA to complete the all-hazards
upgrade, which includes increased sheltering capabilities, expanded broadcast capacity, and
sustainable power generation for all types of hazardous events.

Friday’s event, which begins at 11am Pacific, includes official remarks, a Q&A session, a tour of the facility, and live demonstration at the KIRO-AM PEP station emergency studio.

Bonneville International President Darrell Brown will be joined by local dignitaries and staff at the event.

He’s been VP and Director of Sales and Marketing for The CW Seattle since 2017 and, for three years before that, the station’s Local Sales Manager. He joined the station in 2012.

Now, this nearly decade-long station veteran has been promoted to VP/Station Manager for the CBS News and Stations property serving the biggest market in the Pacific Northwest.

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