Radio World

The process of renewing a station’s license depends on several factors, including honesty in communications and proof the station is serving the public interest. In cases where these requirements are not met — and before outright denying to renew a station’s license — the commission must start proceedings for a hearing to evaluate the factors in question.

That’s where an Ohio low-power FM licensee now finds itself — on the cusp of hearing proceedings regarding alleged rules violations related to its license renewal.

A hearing designation order has been put in effect for the Marion Education Exchange (MEE) regarding WWGH-LP in Marion, Ohio. The hearing will determine if MEE violated the Communications Act and FCC rules, determine if the commission should renew the station’s license and decide if a forfeiture should be imposed.

A key issue in question: whether MEE misrepresented the composition of its board of directors, including whether it listed a dead woman as one of those members.

The hearing will also determine if MEE made misrepresentations to the commission and whether or not it failed to properly notify the FCC that a transfer of control occurred.

[See Our Business and Law Page]

According to the Media Bureau, MEE was registered with the state of Ohio as a non-profit corporation in May 2, 2019, with Shawn Craft as the registered agent. Seven days later, MEE and the station’s former licensee, Marion Midget Football (MMF), filed an application requesting the station’s license be transferred from MMF to MEE. At the time, MEE indicated no changes to the makeup of its board members, only the name of the licensee. The commission granted the reassignment application.

But during the license renewal process, the commission learned that one of the board members of MEE — Betty Compton of Marion — passed away on Nov. 7, 2016, more than two years before MEE filed the application listing her as one of five continuing members of MEE’s board.

In June 2020, an objection was filed by Spencer Phelps, the station manager of another LPFM station in Marion, alleging that MEE had misrepresented its board composition in its application because board members were “completely different people” than those listed on MEE’s application.

Phelps submitted copies of corporate materials filed by MEE with the state of Ohio, and the bureau saw that the five individuals listed on MEE’s initial application were removed. Instead, four different individuals were listed as board members.

After no response from MEE to Phelps’ objection, the bureau sent the first of three letters of inquiry requesting information regarding MEE’s board. The bureau gave MEE until Jan. 7, 2021, to submit copies of corporate materials listing its board composition. MEE did not meet this deadline, the bureau said.

As a result, on Feb. 12, 2021, the bureau dismissed the licensee’s renewal application, cancelled WWGH’s license and informed MEE that its authority to operate the station had been terminated.

Four days later MEE responded and asked the bureau to reconsider. The Media Bureau agreed to reinstate the license and the renewal application while it awaited additional information.

In MEE’s response, the Media Bureau said, the licensee appeared to explain away any inconsistencies between the board members listed in its assignment application and the ones identified in its response to the commission. MEE said that several of the board members that left MMF in 2019 became ill and had since passed away and that these board positions were filled with “members who knew the radio station and have had its best interests … at heart.” MEE also maintained that the station is fulfilling an important role as an LPFM in the community and is currently serving as the last station in Marion to provide hourly local news and weather.

Phelps responded again to say that MEE was untruthful in saying its station is the last hourly news and weather station in Marion and that MEE was in violation of FCC rules because it continued to operate the station for several days in February after the commission rescinded the station’s license.

When the bureau followed up with a second letter of inquiry to MEE directing it to provide information and documentation about its board composition, MEE revealed that the organization was incorporated in 2019 by the second group of board members — not those individuals listed as board members when the assignment application was filed in May 2019. (MEE did not allude to the death of Compton, who was listed on that original assignment application in May, the bureau said.)

In a third letter of inquiry sent by the Media Bureau (“because the second letter … raised more questions than it answered,” the bureau said) the bureau directed MEE to clarify statements it made in its last response.

MEE responded with a list of all current and former MEE board members and their dates of services and said that board changes happened when some members could not attend meetings on a regular basis. MEE stated that did not file a transfer of control application “because we had hoped that some of the original board members might have been able to return.”

As far as the questions surrounding why the late Betty Compton was listed as a board member, MEE said that “her successor had not been chosen.”

Phelps weighed in again, accusing MEE of lying to the commission about Compton and being untruthful about the existence of certain corporate documents like bylaws and meeting minutes.

In its current hearing designation order, the bureau reminded MEE of several key factors the commission must consider before a station’s license can be renewed, including that the licensee has not committed any serious violations of the Communications Act and FCC rules and that there is nothing to indicate a pattern of abuse by the licensee.

When a licensee does not meet these requirements, the commission can deny the licensee’s application to renew its station’s license but not before giving the licensee the opportunity to have a hearing with an FCC administrative law judge.

The bureau said that misrepresentation and lack of candor “raise serious concerns as to the likelihood that the commission can rely on an applicant … to be truthful” and the sort of serious violation that could be grounds for denying a license renewal.

In this case, the bureau said MEE repeatedly failed to fully respond to commission questions, failed to notify the commission of a transfer of control, misrepresented its board composition and was less than candid in its responses to the bureau’s letters of inquiry.

Among the bureau’s specific complaints: that a deceased person was listed as a board member, that other individuals were listed as board members when it appears that they were not, that MEE showed a lack of transparency in listing its board members past and present, that MEE failed to notify the commission of a transfer of control from MMF to MEE, and that MEE may have tried to convince the bureau to renew its license by claiming that WWGH was the last station providing local news and weather every hour in Marion. (Phelps stated that three other full-power FM stations and two low-power FM in Marion do the same.)

“[Different and inconsistent explanations] reinforced our initial concern that MEE knowingly submitted false information in the assignment application and engendered additional concerns that, in an attempt to cover up its original misrepresentation, MEE made additional misrepresentations to … the commission.”

When it comes to the issue of unauthorized operation, however, MEE is not in violation of the rules as a station retains its authority to operate while an administrative or judicial hearing is pending, the bureau said.

The decision on the renewal of WWGH’s license is now set to be reviewed by the FCC administrative law judge. The hearing will also determine whether a forfeiture should be issued against MEE of up to $55,052 for each violation of each commission rule.

MEE has 20 days to file a written document stating its intention to appear and present evidence. If MEE fails to file that document, the pending application will be dismissed.

The post Ohio LPFM Heading to Hearing Over Alleged Violations appeared first on Radio World.

DigitalBridge Group has named Jonathan Adelstein as its managing director and head of global policy and public investment.

Adelstein has been president/CEO of the Wireless Infrastructure Association since 2012 but is more familiar to broadcast readers as a former Federal Communications Commissioner (2002–2009).

Marc Ganzi, president/CEO of DigitalBridge, called Adelstein “a nationally recognized leader in digital infrastructure policy.”

After serving on the FCC, Adelstein headed the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service.

He’ll start in his new role in June.

Send news of engineering and executive personnel changes to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Adelstein Joins DigitalBridge appeared first on Radio World.

Cumulus Media promoted Keith Liesmann to the newly created position of regional vice president for Arkansas, where the company has 16 radio stations.

“Liesmann will continue to serve the company as market manager for Cumulus Little Rock, a position he has held since 2015,” it said in the announcement, “and will add responsibility for the oversight of Cumulus radio stations in Fayetteville and Fort Smith, with the vice president/market manager of those markets reporting to him.”

He is former market president for iHeartMedia-Springfield, Mo., and was vice president/market manager for Cumulus Topeka, Kan.

The announcement was made by Bob Walker, president, Cumulus Operations at Cumulus Media; he called Liesmann said a strategic and focused leader who has done a wonderful job in Little Rock, especially given the challenges all of us have had to overcome in the last two years.”

Send engineering and executive job announcements to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Cumulus Promotes Liesmann in Arkansas appeared first on Radio World.

Burk Technology has launched its “Arcadia24 Hosted Subscription Service,” making secure web-based remote control accessible to small groups and individual stations.

Based on Burk’s Arcadia system, Arcadia24 delivers remote facility control to station engineers and managers via their mobile devices. Hosted by Burk Technology on AWS, each customer’s Arcadia24 service is installed, configured, managed and maintained by Burk remote control experts.

Web links from mobile devices to the Arcadia24 server are locked down and encrypted using the latest generation of Transport Layer Security (TLS), ensuring that only authorized users can access and control each remote facility, the company said. Encrypted VPN tunnels and firewall protection guard communications between Arcadia24 and each remote site.

[Check Out More Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

As a cloud-based service, Arcadia24 communicates with each remote site at its optimum rate, accommodating variations in communications speed and performance. The most current data from all sites is then made available for instant display on authorized mobile devices.

Arcadia24 users are authenticated via Microsoft AD LDS, with each user’s access restricted to specified channels, sites, and station groups. Control of critical site functions can be strictly limited to key personnel while overall site performance may be made visible to a wider group of authorized users.

Burk provides customized graphical control screens for each site connected to Arcadia24, giving station personnel instant access to critical site information. Sites can be grouped based on regional hierarchy, engineering responsibility or other criteria, with easy drill-down to display performance summaries. The Arcadia24 user interface seamlessly supports smartphones, tablets and PCs, the company said.

“Burk’s original Arcadia remote access system brings flexible, secure mobile site control to large radio and television groups operating tens to hundreds of stations,” stated Burk Director of Sales Matt Leland. “The new Arcadia24 is hosted and managed by Burk, making it easy for smaller organizations and even individual stations to realize this same level of secure mobile remote access.”

Arcadia24 manages remote sites equipped with Burk Technology v5 ARC Plus or ARC Solo remote control systems.

Send your new equipment news to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Burk Launches Secure Web-Based Remote Control Subscription appeared first on Radio World.

Dan Slentz gets funky with Adafruit. Fred Jacobs reflects on the recent Consumer Electronics Show.

Paul McLane plays with smartphone apps. Lance Coon builds an EAS antenna.

And Frank Foti explains his new audio initiative called DejaVu.

Read it here.

The post Inside the March 2, 2022 Issue of Radio World appeared first on Radio World.

Expect to hear a lot more from Audacy about selling to “addressable” audiences.

The company has launched the Audacy Digital Audience Network, describing it as “an addressable aggregate of over 60 million listeners that other audio platforms and streaming platforms do not reach.”

Audacy local and national salespeople can use it when working with agencies and clients.

Chief Revenue Officer Brian Benedik said in the announcement, “The marketplace has moved to audience-based investment and our new ADAN offering is highly scaled with unduplicated digital listeners. We can target these audiences with precision and optimize campaign performance for better marketer outcomes.”

Audacy believes it reaches 200 million people every month and that 30% of them can be found on ADAN through streaming, on the Audacy app and on its podcasts. It says these audiences are more affluent, more likely to be college educated and more diverse than others.

“Through this high-performing audience solution, ADAN can target precise audiences at scale and deliver high-performing digital audio media strategies for Audacy’s advertising partners.”

The post Audacy Launches Addressable Audience Platform appeared first on Radio World.

Planning for the 2022 NAB Show is ramping up, and Radio World is asking exhibitors about their plans and expectations.

Gary Luhrman is sales & marketing manager at Inovonics Inc., which will be found in the new West Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Radio World: What do you anticipate will be the most significant technology trend for radio professionals at the show?

Gary Luhrman: There is a great deal of movement in AoIP applications for broadcast radio. I have spoken with many audio engineers who seem to be very happy with the audio quality and impressed with the ease of setting up AoIP connections, provided of course the cabling and switches are solid.

Inovonics has been incorporating Dante-based AoIP ports in all our latest models. This enables a simple connection with other Dante-equipped devices and gives AES67 AoIP interoperability among a wide range of pro-AV products. Dante is generally also compatible with proprietary systems from independent manufacturers of AoIP-enabled products.

In our world of radio broadcast, for example, this could mean incorporating our SOFIA 568 HD Radio SiteStreamer+ in a broadcaster’s Axia Livewire Network. We have a white paper explaining the setup procedure on our website.

RW: What will be your most important news or exhibit theme?

Luhrman: We’re very excited to introduce our new 551 and 552 HD Radio Modulation Monitors to this year´s NAB. We’ve been working on these in the background for a good two years now and we are extremely proud of the finished products. We believe these mod monitors are truly compelling products for our industry.

Actually, we were going to present the 551 and 552 for the first time last year when the show was cancelled. The big advantage of presenting them now is that both are already in production and shipping. It has also given us more time to work with a valuable group of beta testers, who have provided excellent feedback to enhance the reliability of the firmware and functionality of the products.

So, interested customers can be confident that what they see on the show room floor at NAB is what they will get when they place their orders. And like most Inovonics products, we typically have product in stock for fast processing of customers’ orders.

RW: How is it different from what’s available on the market?

Luhrman: The 551 HD Radio Modulation Monitor is unique to the market with a high-resolution 7-inch TFT Touch Screen that displays all the essential FM and HD Radio modulation data for accurate readings in a graphic format. The touch screen also displays HD Radio album artwork, station logos and similar visuals.

The Inovonics 551 HD Radio Modulation Monitor

In addition, all the essential information is remotely accessible from any web-enabled device through an interactive web interface. The 551 and 552 include a built-in BandScanner, a real-time clock and full SNMP functionality.

Full-time off-air program audio is available simultaneously as L/R-analog, AES3-digital and Dante-based AES67 AoIP streaming, all with adjustable levels, plus a multi-listener Internet IP stream and front-panel headphone jack.

RW: How has the lack of physical trade shows affected your clients or your own business?

Luhrman: The lack of physical trade shows and inability to safely meet in person with customers has required major adjustments for everyone. While we’re fortunate to have communications tools like Zoom, it is just not the same as shaking a hand and having a face-to-face conversation with a radio professional.

But we were all in the same boat and collectively have made business happen under the circumstances. I think Inovonics has managed pretty well by sticking to its core values and by anticipating some of the supply issues that have plagued many manufacturers. That is to say, we’ve managed to keep product on the shelf and broadcasters have responded to our fast deliveries, quality of our products, and excellent tech support.

Inovonics Booth: W4622

The post Exhibitor Preview: Inovonics at NAB Show appeared first on Radio World.

The author is co-founder of Telos Alliance and Syndicate of Sounds.

A number of years ago, 2003 or so, Steve Church and I had an idea to enhance HD Radio for FM. To our ears, the HD system for FM lacked a “wow” factor, as the conventional HD signal sounded very similar to the FM-Stereo counterpart.

Just as HDTV offered an incredible advance in visual resolution, we felt the listener needed to experience something similar, with HD broadcast audio. Basically, provide a significant reason why HD Radio was the next step beyond FM-Stereo.

At that time, the record label/audio industry was in the midst of promoting a couple of newer audiophile formats: SACD (Super Audio CD) and DVD-A (DVD Audio). Both of them allowed higher sampling rates, as well as offering discrete, linear 5.1 surround sound.

Record labels began reissuing older catalog material in newly produced 5.1 surround sound. Most were of the rock and classical genre, along with some box sets of complete album catalogs of well-known artists.

We found this exciting for a few reasons, as we were able to hear incredible recordings, by favorite artists, in a whole new light. Also, we got an idea of how to enable this on FM radio.

The new HD Radio platform was still fairly new, and looking for a means to attract consumers of the new tech. As mentioned we felt there was not a significant sonic reason why a consumer would be drawn to this — until we heard music in surround.

We’ve been very fortunate to have maintained a strong business and collegial relationship with the crew at the Frauhofer Institute (FhG), in Germany. On account of this, we learned they had recently developed a new method to transport 5.1 surround within a coded audio environment. This is known as MPEG-Surround.

A simple description explains the usage of the left/right stereo channels for audio transport coding, and at the same time data reducing the surround cues, which are transported alongside the main stereo audio. Then, during the decoding process, the surround cues will properly assign and derive each of the surround channels accordingly. This method provides discrete 5.1 surround and operates within a coded environment platform. The surround cues require very little data, normally around 5 kbps.

Given the data rate of the HD Radio system, MPEG-Surround was the perfect fit for FM broadcast. Automotive listening is the perfect experience for this, and it would surely add the needed “wow” factor to HD Radio, or so we thought.

Telos, along with FhG, built an operating prototype of this system, complete with demonstrations inside a BMW automobile at a couple of NAB Shows in Las Vegas. Anyone who heard the demo was blown away.

So, what happened?
Two mitigating circumstances negatively impacted this innovative idea: the record labels were too quick to pull the plug on producing more surround content, and broadcasters were reluctant to invest in the infrastructure changed needed to add this transmission method to their facilities — even though the Telos Alliance made this all easy and affordable via their AoIP tech, which allows 5.1 surround to easily coexist with stereo signals.

The lack of content was quite possibly the biggest challenge. It would have been very confusing to consumers as to whether their reception was stereo of surround.

Given all that has been expressed here, there has always been a concept that intrigued me. Would it be possible to render discrete 5.1 surround from existing stereo material?

Relevance to radio
This idea is not new, and there have been various upmixing applications available, which will output a “surround” signal.

Most, if not all, of these render surround using some form of simulation, or trickery to generate the added sound field. Most of them employ time delay, phase manipulation, reverb or switching to derive surround.

My goal was to develop an upmixer algorithm that operates in real time, without any of the aforementioned gimmicks — find a linear method that preserves original production integrity and creates discrete surround.

After much research into managing sound fields, I was able to develop a method that creates discrete surround, as it expands the original stereo stage into discrete Left, Right, Center, Left-Surround, Right-Surround, and LFE (Low Frequency Enhancement) or sub-woofer for short.

[Read More Guest Commentaries Here]

This method is now known as Déjà Vu and is marketed through Syndicate of Sounds. The accompanying image is a basic illustration.

The system has been vetted out by some of the biggest names in the recording industry: Gary Katz, Hugh Padgham, Frank Filipetti, Giles Martin and Jean-Michel Jarre to name a few. Each of them has provided the proverbial “thumbs up” to the tech.

So, how does this apply for streaming? Well, after all that background information provided here, it’s really very simple. All of the work done for the HD Radio application ports over 100% to streaming! After all, HD Radio is basically another streaming platform, except we’re not dealing with transmitters and receivers.

Instead of the need to rely on discrete produced 5.1 material, all we need is a great-sounding discrete upmixer for 5.1, and a transport mechanism, like MPEG-Surround, and we are good to go! For the consumer, just about any player app will automatically provide 5.1 surround if an MPEG-Surround signal is present. The players default to this now.

For the streaming installation, all that is needed is a transport codec that both employs the Déjà Vu upmixer and contains MPEG-Surround as a streaming selection. Basically, a stereo audio connection in, and the output is both stereo and surround, all neatly packaged in a standard streaming format.

For broadcasters who stream, this is an excellent way to add a truly amazing wow factor to your online signal, and it does not require any change to your existing infrastructure. Now all content can be presented in true discrete 5.1 surround.

As of early February, the Telos Alliance is finalizing a software update that will enable their streaming product to offer both the Déjà Vu upmixing function, coupled with MPEG-Surround for the transport stream.

Find out more about this topic at syndicateofsounds.com.

The post Déjà Vu: The Streaming “Wow” Factor appeared first on Radio World.

iHeartMedia faces a possible $20,000 fine in a contest rules violation case. The Federal Communications Commission said the company’s history of contest rule violations played a factor in the amount of the penalty.

The FCC Enforcement Bureau said the case involves a contest — ironically called “You Can’t Win” — that was held by WBGG(FM) in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

(via @CastronovoShow Twitter)

A person who attempted to participate on May 30, 2019, had won a separate station contest, the “Southwest Flyaway Fridays,” on March 1, so the station call screener didn’t allow him to participate. The listener then argued that the station wasn’t following its own contest rules.

When the FCC inquired, the company replied that an employee had applied a past exclusion rule incorrectly but it also said this wasn’t relevant because the listener would have been ineligible anyway. But the commission ruled that the “plain language” of the contest rules indicated otherwise.

Even if there was an ambiguity, it continued, FCC precedent is that ambiguous rules are to be “construed against the interests of the promoter of the contest.”

The commission also didn’t accept the station’s argument that the person raising the complaint didn’t have “standing” in the case. (Readers who are involved in creating radio station contest rules may wish to read the FCC NAL for specifics of why the commission didn’t accept iHeart’s various arguments.)

The base forfeiture in contest cases is $4,000 for each violation; the FCC opted to increase the proposed penalty to $20,000 in part because the station also failed to maintain the contest rules on its website for at least 30 days after the end of the contest, as required.

But another factor in raising the amount, the FCC said, is that “the licensee is the pro forma assignee of an affiliate with a history of violating the Contest Rule.” The commission listed several examples of contest cases 2000 to 2012 involving stations owned by what was then called Clear Channel.

The station has 30 days to pay the fine or to reply with any counter argument.

This was the second time in as many days that the FCC has mentioned problems of past rule compliance by a major broadcast group; in an unrelated case we reported earlier, the commission took Cumulus to task for various past EEO and other infractions.

The post No, Really, You Can’t Win appeared first on Radio World.

ASCAP reported record revenue for 2021, collecting $1.335 billion.

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers said, “Increases in collections from the audio streaming and audio-visual sectors pushed ASCAP’s domestic revenue to $1.011 billion in 2021, up 4.4%, an increase of $42.5 million over 2020. This was the first year that ASCAP domestic revenues from U.S.-licensed performances surpassed $1 billion.”

It said the strategic growth plan it launched in 2015 has driven revenues to grow at a 5% compound annual growth rate since then.

“ASCAP’s identification, matching and processing of trillions of musical performances drove record-setting distributions that exceeded $1 billion for the fifth year in a row and increased $41 million over the previous year, for a total oaf $1.254 billion available for distribution to its more than 850,000 songwriter, composer and publisher members in 2021.”

It said the total available for domestic distributions of licensed and administered performances was $912.6 million, a 2.4% increase over 2020. It said strong domestic performance offset a drop in revenue from foreign societies of 9.7% “due largely to business closures and the lack of vaccinations.” But its international distributions were up 5.9%.

Its annual report is posted at www.ascap.com/annualreport.

 

The post ASCAP Reports Record Revenue appeared first on Radio World.

From the People News page: Guntermann & Drunck announced two new sales roles in North America.

“To better serve the many western U.S. customers, and particularly to drive further market success, GDNA is continuing their North American expansion,” it said in an announcement. “Carlos Mira was appointed  director of sales for Mid America, Florida and Latin America, and Silvia van Lieshout joined GDNA North America Inc. as director of federal sales.

The sales team is joined by Andy Cooper, field application engineer.

G&D makes professional KVM extenders, switches and matrix switches; it is headquartered in Germany and has a North American sales and support subsidiary in California.

Send announcements for People News to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post G&D Beefs Up North American Sales Presence appeared first on Radio World.

There’s a new feature in the iHeartRadio app that lets listeners send voice messages to air talent on participating iHeart radio stations.

“Engage with your favorite on-air hosts and DJs in on-air conversations by tapping, recording, and sending your voice directly from within the iHeart app for iOS and Android,” the company tells listeners on its website.

The user navigates to a participating live station, taps the mic button and records a voice message up to 30 seconds, and hits Send. The voice recording is sent to the station.

The feature only works on participating iHeartRadio live radio stations. The user has to have the latest iOS or Android app.

TechCrunch reports that the feature also will roll out to interested iHeartRadio podcasters who opt in come April.

“What makes this offering unique,” TechCrunch reports, “is that the recordings aren’t just going to some inbox somewhere — Talk Back is integrated with the proprietary iHeartRadio content management system, so the voice recordings are available to use, live on air, within about 10 seconds after sending.”

The post iHeart Adds Talk Back Feature to App appeared first on Radio World.

The National Association of Broadcasters today, Mar. 1, urged broadcasters to refrain from carrying and state-sponsored programming associated with the Russian government or its agents. The call came in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is a fierce defender of the First Amendment and the critical importance of the ability to freely express views, both popular and unpopular,” stated NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt. “While the First Amendment protects freedom of speech, however, it does not prevent private actors from exercising sound, moral judgment.”

LeGeyt’s statement continued: “To that end, given the unprovoked aggression exhibited by Russia against the free and sovereign people of Ukraine, NAB calls on broadcasters to cease carrying any state-sponsored programming with ties to the Russian government or its agents.”

[Related: “Russian Broadcasters Leave EBU”]

The statement ended noting that NAB knows that such programs are extremely limited on U.S. airwaves, but “we believe that our nation must stand fully united against misinformation and for freedom and democracy across the globe.”

The question of how a broadcaster can tell the source of any given programming is timely. The NAB and other broadcast organizations have sued the FCC, opposing a new rule that requires stations to determine the source of foreign-based content. The association has argued that the requirement puts undue burdens on radio and TV stations, that that the rule is unconstitutional and that the problem the FCC is trying to solve is a “phantom harm.”

The post NAB Opposes Airing Russia-Sponsored Programming appeared first on Radio World.

How can Radio World do better?

It’s my goal to make our content as helpful and interesting to you as possible. Today I’m asking you to tell me how we can improve it.

I want RW stories to help you with your career. Do they?

I want our articles to help you understand changes in technology and how they might affect you or the organization you work for. Do they?

I aim to meet Radio World’s goal of bringing buyers and sellers together, to promote a vigorous marketplace for radio and audio technology. How are we doing?

I love to celebrate the history and personalities of radio, especially radio technology, while balancing that with an embrace of today’s tools and tomorrow’s important trends. Do we meet that goal?

Do our print and digital editions meet your needs? Do you read Radio World’s daily SmartBrief newsletter? Are we reaching you on the right social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter? Should we be using different outlets instead?

Do our ebooks cover the right topics, do you find our online events informative?

Is your experience of Radio World everything you’d like it to be?

Tell me at radioworld@futurenet.com.

Thanks as always for being part of the Radio World family.

The post What Could Be Better? appeared first on Radio World.

The College Radio Foundation said more than 50 stations around the world took part in a hastily organized audio event to show support for students and others in Ukraine.

Rob Quicke, founder of the foundation, invited messages of support that were then combined into a produced piece to be sent to the Ukrainians the next day.

“It was a truly international coalition of love and support,” Quicke said in an announcement.

The piece has been posted to SoundCloud.

 

He contacted OstRadio in Ostroh and STUD Radio in Lviv with the material.

OstRadio journalist Diana Khokhonik replied, “The only thing left for us is to remain calm and not to panic, to pray to God, to believe in the army that protects us, to protect our health and life. Ukraine wants a peaceful sky over its head!”

Roman Zajac, head of STUD Radio, said the station shared the audio with other universities.

“Zajac then coordinated a response from his students involved with student radio who live across Ukraine, including Lviv, Chornobyl, Donetsk, and the capital city Kyiv,” Quicke wrote. “The students sent audio recorded on their cell phones as they were sheltering from the war. The result was a piece that Zajac put together and asked Quicke to help finish produce, as Zajac could not access his radio studios.”

That message was also posted to SoundCloud.

 

“I am very moved by the bravery of the students in Ukraine to keep going and to make the effort to send a message to the world in such difficult circumstances. College radio stands with Ukraine. We must not forget them,” says Quicke.

The post College Stations Send Audio Support to Ukraine appeared first on Radio World.

The next time someone tells you that radio is just background noise for most people, point them to this study.

Cumulus Media is calling attention to a report that explores consumer attentiveness and ad skipping tendencies.

The company says the report demonstrates that AM/FM radio leads all media in advertising attentiveness, with the lowest levels of ad skipping.

It also found that consumers devote very high levels of concentration to podcasts “since listeners actively seek them out to learn something new, which justifies premium CPMs for podcasts.”

The report is from Cumulus Media/Westwood One’s Audio Active Group.

Cumulus summarized key findings:

“Attention grows in importance among marketers and agencies,” it wrote. “Nearly half of advertisers have discussed consumer attentiveness as a metric. Two out of three say it is important for measuring media investments.”

Also, traditional media ads have greater engagement compared to digital ads. “AM/FM radio, print, and podcast ads lead in attentiveness. Consumers skip social and digital ads the most.”

Further, it said, agencies and marketers tend to “overestimate consumer concentration of social media. Two consumer studies reveal social media has the lowest attentiveness of media platforms.”

AM/FM radio CPMs should be a premium to Pandora and Spotify, Cumulus said. “Pandora/Spotify audio impressions are not the same as AM/FM radio impressions. The greater proportion of spoken word content on AM/FM radio generates much higher levels of concentration and attentiveness. The information and personalities of AM/FM radio satisfy consumer need states for information and connection.”

Also, “Audio platforms satisfy unique need states. AM/FM radio is associated with information, connection, and entertainment. Podcasts are a source of information, learning, and entertainment. Music streaming entertains, relaxes, and lifts moods.”

The Media Attentiveness and Ad Skipping Report is aimed at marketers, agency media planners and buyers.

The post Radio Leads in Advertising Attentiveness, Study Finds appeared first on Radio World.

Cumulus Media is getting a tongue-lashing from the Federal Communications Commission.

The company faces a $32,000 penalty in a case in Georgia that involves EEO rules. But to explain why it chose to raise what might have been a smaller fine, the FCC criticized Cumulus more broadly about its habits in following commission rules.

In the notice of apparent liability, it pointed to past EEO rules cases in 2008 and 2017. But the commission then went on to talk about the company’s “prior history of non-EEO rule violations” and it posted a footnote that listed a string of Cumulus FCC cases over the past 19 years involving political files, public inspection files, broadcasting phone conversations, tower fencing, antenna painting and false certification in a renewal application.

“Indeed, the commission recently sanctioned Cumulus for its repeated violations of the commission’s sponsorship identification rules,” the commission wrote in the notice of apparently liability. “In that forfeiture order, the commission emphasized that repeated violations of the commission’s rules warranted upward adjustment — even if the prior violations do not relate to the type of violations at issue in the current matter.”

The commission didn’t stop there:

“While Cumulus’ history of repeatedly violating the commission’s rules would be problematic under any circumstances, its apparent disregard of the commission’s EEO rules is particularly troubling. Cumulus, in its own words, is ‘an audio-first media company delivering premium content to over a quarter billion people every month…’ Cumulus owns and operates several hundred radio stations in dozens of markets across the nation. In short, it is a highly sophisticated broadcaster with extensive operations that employs thousands of people and routinely fills scores of job openings annually. The commission’s EEO rules ensure that broadcasters take concrete and thoughtful steps to seek and attract diverse employees.  Repeated disregard of these rules by a broadcaster of Cumulus’ size and scope is contrary to the public interest.”

Radio World invited comment from Cumulus and will report any response.

In the case at hand, the FCC found that Cumulus Licensing LLC apparently violated the equal employment opportunity rules in regards to five of its former stations in Georgia: WEGC(FM) Sasser: WJAD(FM) Leesburg; and WKAK(FM), WQVE(FM) and WALG(AM), all in Albany. (The stations subsequently were sold to First Media Services, according to news reports.)

The commission said the company failed to upload its annual EEO public file report in the online public inspection files, failed to upload its annual report to the stations’ websites and failed to analyze its EEO program.

This came to light in the stations’ license renewal applications. According to the FCC, Cumulus indicated that it had not uploaded the EEO files  when required. When the Enforcement Bureau wrote asking why, Cumulus told it that the 2018 annual report had not been added to the public inspection files and websites until more than nine months after the deadline, because its business manager had “simply overlooked this requirement.” It blamed a routine administrative change and the loss of a former employee who had helped with this task in the past.

The commission said those facts don’t mitigate the violation.

The rules set a base forfeiture of $10,000 for each public file violation but the FCC has discretion to change the penalty. Here, the commission cited “Cumulus’ prior history of rule violations, including violations of the EEO rules,” as well as the longer list of past incidents mentioned above.

Cumulus argued that the forfeiture penalty should be decreased because its parent emerged from bankruptcy in 2018 and because the pandemic had hurt its ad revenue; but the commission rejected those arguments, quoting statements on the Cumulus website that the company had reduced its debt and increased its cash since emerging from bankruptcy.

The company has 30 days to pay the fine in the specific case or to reply seeking a different outcome.

 

The post FCC Has Harsh Words for Cumulus appeared first on Radio World.

Edison Research’s second look at South Africa through its Infinite Dial methodology finds online audio use has exploded over the past four years.

In the 2019 Infinite Dial South Africa report, 39% of respondents 15+ in major metro areas reported using online audio. In the 2022 report, that number increased to 61% of respondents.

Weekly radio listening held steady from 2019 to 2022 with 69% of respondents reporting having listened to the radio in the past week, up one percentage point from 68% in 2019. Ninety-four percent of respondents reported having at least one radio in their home, although 64% of respondents said they used a mobile phone, computer or television for in-home radio listening too, which was a significant (44%) increase from 2019.

Comparison of 2019 to 2022 reported radio listening in the past week among those 15+ (Edison Research)

In terms of in-car listening, 80% of respondents 18+ reported having tuned to AM/FM radio while driving or as a passenger within the past month.

Ninety percent of respondents 15+ reported owning a smartphone in 2022, and 32% said they owned a smart speaker. More than a third (36%) of people in 2022 reported having ever downloaded an AM/FM radio station’s smartphone app.

Podcasting also saw substantial gains with 26% of respondents 15+ listening to podcasts at least monthly in 2022 compared to 10% in 2019. Fourth-eight percent of respondents said they were aware of podcasts even if they didn’t listen to them.

Podcast listeners were slightly more likely to be male than female (53% to 47%) and aged 15–34 (51%), compared to 35–54 (38%) or 55+ (11%). Of the 20% of people who reported listening to podcasts weekly, they listened to four episodes on average each week.

Comparison of radio ownership in South Africa and the U.S. (Edison Research)

When it comes to streaming audio services, YouTube Music had the greatest brand awareness with 69% of those 15+ being aware of the service. Spotify followed at 36% and Joox, an Asia-based streamer that launched in South Africa in 2017, at 27%.

The Infinite Dial 2022 South Africa survey was conducted by Edison Research in November/December 2021 with in-person interviews of 1,500 people living in eight major metropolitan municipalities in South Africa: Nelson Mandela Bay, Mangaung, Johannesburg, eThekwini, Cape Town, Buffalo City, Tshwane, and Ekurhuleni. The data was weighted to reflect the gender, age, and race of the population. No margin of error was reported.

The National Association of Broadcasters South Africa commissioned the survey, which was sponsored by Triton Digital, and produced in association with The Broadcast Research Council of South Africa.

Larry Rosin, President of Edison Research, shared findings from the study in an online presentation today. Rosin added, “The increase in online audio consumption and podcast listening among those we surveyed in South Africa points to a space that can accommodate many audio platforms while radio stays strong. We hope this data that shows robust growth in audio consumption motivates advertisers to consider all of these various audiences.”

The post Radio Holds Steady in Infinite Dial 2022 South Africa appeared first on Radio World.

In light of Russia’s attack on the Ukraine, FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel has proposed action to help protect America’s communications networks guard against cyberattacks. Earlier in the week, the Department of Homeland Security warned U.S. organizations at all levels that they could face cyber threats stemming from the Russia–Ukraine conflict; the FCC said Rosenworcel’s proposal would begin an inquiry into the vulnerabilities of the internet’s global routing system.

If adopted by a vote of the full commission, the Notice of Inquiry would seek public comment on vulnerabilities threatening the security and integrity of the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), which the FCC says is central to the internet’s global routing system. The inquiry would also examine the impact these vulnerabilities would have on the transmission of data through email, e-commerce, bank transactions, interconnected voice-over-internet protocol (VoIP), and 911 calls — and how best to address these challenges.

BGP is the routing protocol used to exchange reachability information among independently managed networks on the Internet. BGP’s initial design, which remains widely deployed today, does not include explicit security features to ensure trust in this exchanged information.

As a result, the FCC said, a bad network actor may deliberately falsify BGP reachability information to redirect traffic. Russian network operators have been suspected of exploiting BGP’s vulnerability to hijacking in the past. “BGP hijacks” can expose Americans’ personal information, enable theft, extortion, and state-level espionage, and disrupt otherwise-secure transactions.

Working with its federal partners, the commission has urged the communications sector to defend against cyber threats, while also taking measures to reinforce the nation’s readiness and to strengthen the cybersecurity of vital communications services and infrastructure, especially in light of Russia’s actions inside of Ukraine.

Rosenworcel also recently shared with her colleagues a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would begin the process of strengthening the commission’s rules for notifying customers and federal law enforcement of breaches of customer proprietary network information (CPNI). The inquiry under consideration would build on those efforts, the FCC said.

The post FCC Takes Steps to Protect Against Cyberattacks From Russia and its Agents appeared first on Radio World.

Fig. 1: A simple fixture to lift grounds and swap conductors as you correct for Pin 1 problems.

San Francisco Projects Engineer Bill Ruck and I have been conversing via email about the Pin 1 grounding issue discussed in Workbench in December and January, especially the problem encountered when interfacing gear to an outside source, such as an event sound contractor.

Bill built up a variety of XLR adaptors that he keeps organized in one of those black cotton bags found at Harbor Freight. The first photo shows his male and female XLRs brought out to a barrier strip.

This adaptor makes lifting grounds or switching “HOT” pins on the XLR easier than disassembling and resoldering connector pins. Now Bill can try different configurations with only a screwdriver and see what works best. He can also change from balanced to unbalanced by moving the lugs on the barrier strip.

Fig. 2: The same idea, but bringing the conductors out to alligator clips.

The rig in the second photo can be used in a similar fashion, as it brings the terminals out to alligator clips. Bill made up two other adaptors, seen in the third image. On the left, this jumper has Pins 2 and 3 reversed. The assembly on the right lifts the ground, Pin 1.

You’ll note that Bill took advantage of his labeling machine to identify all the adaptors and to include his name — less of a chance of something “walking off.”

Bill also provided a link to an interesting series of papers about the “Pin 1 problem” should you want further information. The URL, appropriately enough, is www.pin1problem.com.

Gotta run for shade
Alan Peterson, national production director and weekend program coordinator for the Radio America Network in Arlington, Va., and former Radio World columnist, has been following our Pin 1 discussion too. He offered a simple mnemonic to remember the order of XLR connections: “2 is Hot, 3 is Not.”

Fig. 3: Additional adaptors that reverse Pins 2 and 3, and lift the Pin 1 ground.

Likewise, Alan reminded me that Kool & The Gang permanently cemented the standard in 1979 when they rolled out the song, “Too (2) Hot.” Hum that to yourself and you will never forget!

He adds that he wished XLR plug manufacturers would emboss larger numbers on those connectors. Yes, Alan, my eyesight is failing, too.

Alan then surprised me with news that he’ll be retiring in March from Radio America. Congratulations!

Man Cave
I’ve gotten a number of great comments about our description of Harry Simons’ living room studio, which he built in retirement. More than one engineer wanted to know what Harry’s wife had to say about turning the living room into a studio. No problem there, Harry’s single!

Slippery when cold
When it snows and sleets down in the Carolinas and Georgia like it did recently, you know it’s winter. And that means keeping something handy to keep your locks working.

We’ve written about the many great applications of WD-40 Multi-Use Product. Educational Media Foundation Field Tech Scott Todd writes that when it comes to spray lubricants, especially for locks, you may also want to try a couple of other options, both available from Amazon.

The reviews for PB B’laster Penetrant note that it stinks. Also, that it’s a great penetrating oil but not a silicon lubricant. PB B’laster Silicon Lubricant, on the other hand, contains a higher concentration of silicone than other brands, which means longer-lasting lubrication. It’s formulated with a Teflon polymer. This compound is a clear, non-evaporating formula that can lubricate and protect not only metal, but also plastic, wood, rubber, vinyl and leather products.

[Check Out More of Workbench Here]

Scott says that in his opinion, the gold standard in lock lubricants, bar none, is Kano Laboratories’ Penephite Graphited Penetrating Oil. On Amazon, this spray has a 78% five-star review. It consists of a combination of oils, solvents and micron-sized graphite in a suspension. The oils and solvents carry the graphite into infinitely small spaces to loosen frozen parts. Once deposited, the graphite provides long-lasting lubrication.

Strong not silent
Back in September 2019, we published a Workbench tip from EMF’s Ken Beckwith about constructing an EAS Loop antenna out of PVC. Carroll Broadcasting’s Lance Coon wrote in recently to say he was looking to build this antenna for his stations but needed clarification on one point.

In the article, we mentioned improving the “strength” of the loop by adding a piece of conduit down its middle.

Lance wanted to confirm that be “strength,” we meant the rigidity of the loop, not the strength of the signal.

Lance, you are right. To increase the signal strength or sensitivity, you’d add more turns of wire to the loop. Mounting shouldn’t be critical; just be sure the edge of the loop is pointing toward the EAS signal you want to receive. Be sure to send us a picture of your completed project, Lance!

John Bisset, CPBE, has 50 years in broadcasting and is in his 32nd year writing Workbench. He handles western U.S. radio sales for the Telos Alliance and is a past recipient of the SBE’s Educator of the Year Award.

Workbench submissions are encouraged and qualify for SBE recertification credit. Email johnpbisset@gmail.com.

The post Workbench: Adaptors Help Solve Pin 1 Problems appeared first on Radio World.