Radio World

A new IPAWS planning toolkit has been made available for alerting authorities and broadcasters interested in learning more about the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System.

Using the program planning toolkit, alerting agencies can create a customized plan tailored to their agency’s operational capabilities. The kit contains step-by-step directions for creating an alerting program plan and offers customized resources, best practices and program templates to aid federal, state, local, tribal and territorial groups as they’re developing their individual alerting programs.

[Read more from us about IPAWS]

The toolkit was developed by the Department of Homeland Security Science & Technology Directorate, working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s IPAWS system.

“Getting information to the public in a timely manner saves lives,” the IPAWS staff wrote in an email introducing the new application.

“The new toolkit will assist public safety agencies in developing comprehensive alerting plans that minimize alerting delay challenges; plan for future alerts, warnings, and notifications enhancements; facilitate interoperability across different technologies; and improve information sharing among emergency management and public safety officials.”

The post New Emergency Alerting Toolkit Introduced for IPAWS appeared first on Radio World.

Radio World is taking an in-depth look at “The Infinite Dial UK 2021” report this week.

Welcome to Part Three of Radio World’s summation of Edison Research’s “The Infinite Dial UK 2021”. In this installment, online audio listening by U.K. consumers is the focus.

The data comes from Edison Research President Larry Rosen’s online webinar, which was held Dec. 2, 2021, to release the findings of “The Infinite Dial UK 2021” survey.

The report is based on 1,000 telephone interviews with U.K. residents 16 and older, during the fourth quarter of 2021.

[Read more of our coverage of the “Infinite Dial” report]

U.K. online audio listening

According to Rosen, “75 percent of people in the U.K. age 16 and older told us that they’ve listened to some form of audio online in the last month.”

Online Audio Listening in the U.K. by Age Group (Courtesy Edison Research)

This usage is relatively consistent across age groups, he noted. “It’s highest for 16–34, as you might expect, at 81 percent. But even for 55+, 72 percent of people said they’ve listened to some form of online audio in the month before we called them for this survey.”

The 35–54 age group clocked in at 74 percent.

Intriguingly, a higher percentage of U.K. 16+ consumers listened to online audio in the past month (75 percent) than did U.S. 16+ consumers (68 percent).

In fact, “the U.K. number is the highest of any of the four English-speaking countries [U.K., U.S., Australia and Canada] where we have this data,” Rosen said. Australia’s 16+ monthly online audio listenership rate was 73 percent, while in Canada (18+) it stood at 71 percent.

Online Audio Listening by Country (Courtesy Edison Research)

The U.K.’s weekly listenership to online audio was similarly strong — 66 percent for all listeners 16+. Again, the spread was relatively consistent among age groups: 72 percent for 16–34; 65 percent for 35–54; and 62 percent for 55+.

At 66 percent overall, the U.K.’s weekly 16+ online listenership rate tied with Australia’s 16+ rate. The U.S. 16+ rate was 62 percent, while Canada 18+ was 61 percent.

Overall, when it comes to online audio listening, “the adoption seems to be as high in the U.K. as in any other place that we’ve surveyed,” Rosen said.

In Part Four of Radio World’s summary of “The Infinite Dial UK 2021,” we’ll look at the U.K.’s consumption of in-car media.

The post ‘Infinite Dial UK’ Digs into U.K. Online Audio appeared first on Radio World.

We’re pleased to announce that Roswell Clark is the recipient of Radio World’s Excellence in Engineering Award for 2021–22.

Recipients represent the highest ideals of the radio broadcast engineering profession and reflect those ideals through contributions to the industry. Roz Clark is the 18th person we’ve honored.

We are recognizing Roz for his accomplishments as senior director of radio engineering for Cox Media Group. In choosing honorees, we also look for people who are making a difference right now in our industry and whose work will benefit engineers in years to come.

Radio World readers know from our news coverage and ebook interviews that Roz is doing just that in his work with the NAB Radio Technology Committee’s Next-Generation Architecture Working Group.

We’re also honoring him for his important contributions to the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society, the Society of Broadcast Engineers, the National Radio Systems Committee and the Nielsen Technical Advisory Committee.

Given his decades of work on behalf of his employer as well as the broader world of radio, he is a worthy recipient.

“Technology is our business”

Clark, 59, oversees the technology aspects of Cox’s broadcast radio operations — “anything electrons flows through,” as he told me — which encompasses about 60 FM and AM signals in 11 markets.

Cox employs about two dozen technology team members in its markets.

“Anything to do with technology is our business,” Roz said. “Email servers, networks, broadcast, they’re all so intermarried that it’s difficult otherwise to make sure responsibility is properly focused and maintained.”

Roz is one of five senior directors who report to SVP/CIO Mark Beck and oversee areas such as radio, TV and network infrastructure, meeting weekly to coordinate and establish roadmaps. The radio market directors of engineering generally answer to local general managers and interact with Roz on a “dotted line” basis, though he has a few direct reports as well.

“It’s one big conversation. A finance product or an email function may be critical, but broadcast is real time and it needs to be completely seamless — that’s a whole different level of focus and attention. How do these systems interact with each other, and how do we safely connect them?”

[Read more about past Excellent in Engineering Award winners]

Meeting that challenge is a high bar, as broadcast engineers know well, but it also extends to software and anything that has a network connection. “We have to be very careful about the technologies we employ — that they’re actually suited and designed for such real-time functionality.”

When Cox Enterprises sold its majority interest to Apollo Global Management in late 2019, Roz also began to play larger role in the business continuity management for all of Cox Media Group, based on his experience dealing with Florida hurricanes and writing articles and giving presentations about disaster planning.

“We had tabletop exercises, getting key stakeholders together and talking about scenarios: What if your building caught fire and burned to the ground? What if your tower fell down?”

They even put together a scenario for a worldwide pandemic like bird flu — not expecting that within two months they would be activating it because of COVID-19.

Getting started

On the 1,500-foot tower supporting a new FM master antenna in Tampa in 2001.

Roz Clark wasn’t one of those people who knew at age 5 that he wanted to be a radio engineer. “I’ve always been a curious cat about how things work under the hood, but I wasn’t building Heathkit radios at home.”

He studied electronics in a two-year program at what is now Truman University in Kirksville, Mo. He then moved to Florida and ran a business selling and servicing C-Band downlink systems.

It was at this time that his uncle Max Sitero, the chief engineer at the local CBS O&O, urged Roz to give radio a try.

“This was in the days when the getting into the business as an engineer was very difficult. You had to have the First Class FCC license and a track record just for someone to answer your phone call.”

But his uncle’s passion and interest in broadcast were contagious. Sitero helped young Roz a part-time job. It turned out to be a great place to start.

CBS-owned WSUN(AM) was a full-service, country-formatted station and flagship of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, served by the world’s first AM directional array. Its sister station WYNF(FM) was a rocker with a popular, high-energy morning show, big-time concerts and lots of remotes.

“To work at this AM/FM combo was unbelievable. I mean, really? Many people had to work in small markets for many, many years, but I got my foot in the door at an epic AM/FM owned by CBS. It was a big deal.”

There he met two people who would play important roles in his life. One was his future wife Bobbie. The other was Chief Engineer Frank Berry, who mentored Roz and encouraged him to learn.

“Getting inside a radio station and seeing how all this technology worked together — it was all so exciting,” he said.

“I’m interested in everything from generators and power distribution to air conditioning and you name it. Everything comes together in a broadcast facility. I still feel like a kid in this business.

Roz Clark hangs out with actor Michael Richards, aka Kramer of “Seinfeld,” at a remote in 1989.

“Even today I just got off the phone talking about three completely different technology challenges and how to solve them. If you’re interested in solving puzzles or in having a different experience every day, I don’t think there’s any business more diverse than broadcasting — audio, RF, power distribution and computer networks, it goes on and on. The sky’s the limit on where your interests can take you.”

One thing he is not interested in is being on the air. This was squeezed out of him early. While waiting for a full-time position to open up at WSUN/WYNF, he took a gig as a board op at another station — playing from reel-to-reels and cart machines, recording the top of the hour, taking AM readings, fielding calls for the talk show host. And Roz didn’t like it.

“I was in nervous-sweat panic mode every second of that job. It was a nightmare for me. I understood how the equipment worked; but trying to make sure the content flowed and the on-air person got what he needed, making sure you didn’t forget to play the commercial, was very stressful.

“I have a great appreciation for board ops and people on the air, because as soon as that job option opened to get behind the curtain I was out of there. It was not for me!”

To Infinity and then back

Roz worked full-time at the CBS station for two years as assistant chief engineer, and loved the organization. Yet in 1988 he left to take part in an exciting engineering project.

Frank Berry had moved over to work at Infinity Broadcasting, which had studios a few doors away. Berry tempted him with the promise of working on the overhaul of WCBF, a recently acquired 50 kW AM facility.

As related by the website radioyears.com, Berry took that station off the air for an extended period to do a complete rebuild of the transmitter facility, including all of the towers, and gutting and reconfiguring the building, then installing new audio processors, STL gear, phasing and tuning equipment and remote control. The studios also were upgraded.

“Frank said, ‘We’re going to take this thing apart and it’s going to be off the air for four months while we completely rebuild it, studios and all,’” Roz related.

“Some readers might hear this story and say, ‘AM? What, are you crazy?’ But to build a 50 kilowatt station from the ground up within a span of four months, and do it right, with Frank Berry, and with consulting engineers like Alan Gearing, who were just masterminds — it was a great experience, never to be repeated.”

The station relaunched as WQYK; today it is owned by Beasley and has the call letters WHFS.

After that time with Infinity, Roz came back to CBS in 1992 to become director of technical operations at WYNF. It looked now as though he’d be with CBS for the long term — until the organization announced it had agreed to swap its Tampa properties with a Cox station in Dallas, and the local CBS employees were let go.

“I didn’t even reapply because I figured Cox had their own plans, but a week before they assumed control, they called me up and said, ‘Aren’t you going to apply for this job?’ So I did, in the role of assistant engineer.”

How do “solve for that”

Working a remote with air talent Jack Russell, right, for 620 WSUN(AM), circa 1985.

Since that time Roz has been a bulwark at Cox. He has been based in Tampa his entire career and worked his way up to chief engineer, then director of technical operations for Tampa (and later Orlando as well), and then to his current role as the company’s senior director of radio engineering.

During his tenure he has worked on numerous important internal issues including IT security, automation standardization, RF safety policies and broadcast data transmission under the wise leadership of Sterling Davis.

Roz wrote a mission statement to hang on his office wall to remind himself that the goal is not just to do good engineering, it’s to help the company meet its business challenges.

“How can we ‘solve for that’? Whether it’s your cell phone or your car or rockets, everything is about how technology can solve these sorts of puzzles, which seem to be insurmountable until you get smart people together.”

For example one memorable engineering project came about when Clear Channel acquired Jacor in the late 1990s and had to divest itself of several stations. Cox, which had three signals in Tampa, suddenly had six and decided to integrate them.

“Right about that time, my boss at Cox resigned. So I was the only engineer during a transition where we were taking over three stations. It was an exciting time, to say the least.

“We had to build radio stations from scratch. We built one in a closet and barely got it on the air — literally at the stroke of midnight, with the general manager walking around with the camcorder, all excited. We hit the post, so to speak, technically. No one knew the drama that was going on behind the curtain.”

During this time he has continued to expand his skill set, earning credentials as a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer, SBE Certified Professional Broadcast Engineer and SBE Certified Broadcast Network Engineer. He has twice won his employer’s Engineer of the Year honor.

Today he spends a lot of his time envisioning the future of the radio air chain, both at Cox and across the industry. When I asked him how engineers and managers can be better prepared for that future, he mentions certain core concepts to keep front of mind.

“Our businesses run on processes. People throw around buzzwords like cloud, but pretty much everything we do, whether it’s in an appliance or not, is software of some sort. We as engineers need to understand how the signal flows and how the business processes work. That includes remote systems management, remote broadcast and broadcasting from home.

“Then it’s the technologies of networking, whether it’s transporting real-time content or connecting systems together; these are so important. Then how do you configure or design systems so they are very secure — who’s allowed to do what, at what time and where — ‘managing identity.’

“And then monitoring and control. If we don’t know the system status of all of our assets, the critical parameters and how to react to those measurements, we’ve got a problem.”

To manage these facets efficiently, Roz said, a business must standardize where it can, so Cox Media Group is taking that concept to the next level, not only choosing to buy the same products or software across its various stations, but thinking more broadly about the company’s 60 stations as being part of one big market. “We can get the best solutions and put them across every market and have the best results in a consistent manner.” For Cox that doesn’t mean sweeping centralization as much as it means consistency and efficiency in the business approach.

Like all good radio technologists, Roz is also concerned that the medium keep its place in the dashboard and stay competitive in how it presents its product to consumers.

Given the emergence of hybrid radio systems that meld broadcast reception with online connectivity, he thinks consistency in the listener experience is crucial, which means broadcasters should be paying attention to metadata.

“It requires a deeper understanding by content creators and managers, to understand the technical capabilities of the different delivery mechanisms and make sure that we exploit and standardize that capability.”

For example Cox was an early participant in RadioDNS. It also signed on with Quu’s visual programming service, and it supports Xperi’s DTS AutoStage initiative, which Roz says does a “mind-blowing” job of presenting visual information to the listener.

“I don’t believe we should stake our ground in one thing in the digital world; we have to have relationships with all of these platforms, because not one solution fills all the holes.”

Business partners

Almost three decades since “flipping” to Cox, he remains a huge fan of the company.

“I can’t say enough about Cox as a whole and about Cox Media Group. It continues to do things right, empowering people and investing in them.

“I’ve been very fortunate to work with general managers who have a deep appreciation for engineering and the part it plays in the business. Keith Lawless, who now manages multiple markets for Cox, once described me to someone as a business partner. That’s a huge compliment. If the culture of your company appreciates the partnership that we in technology have with the business, that’s a big thing. I can tell you that, in Cox Media Group, we’re very much part of business decisions and strategy.”

Roz gives back to his profession in numerous ways.

He has delivered several papers and chaired sessions for the NAB Show, and he was involved in an NAB group that researched the use of separate antennas for HD Radio, a concept he conceived known as space combining.

For the NAB Radio Technology Committee, he chaired the HD Time Alignment group that developed a best practice document that was adopted by the NRSC. Today he chairs the Next-Generation Architecture group, helping the industry to learn how to put concepts like virtualization and the cloud to work in their air chains.
For the Society of Broadcast Engineers, Roz is an elected board member, chair of its finance committee and a member of the executive officers committee. In 2015 he was honored as the SBE Engineer of the Year. At Chapter 39 he has held multiple offices including that of chairman.

In the early 2000s he was actively involved in the Media Reliability and Security Council and the integration of

local Emergency Operations Centers in the Tampa Bay area into the EAS system. He has represented CMG in EAS Operational Areas 7 and 8.

Since 2009 he has been an active member of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Symposium; he chaired the event for three years and was an elected member of its ADCOM for two years.

He is the technical representative for CMG in the Broadcasters’ Traffic Consortium. He also is a ham radio operator,  WA4YNF, and serves on the board of a repeater network that serves a large part of Florida.

A lifestyle choice

Bobbie Clark holds grandson Lincoln, flanked by sons Justin, left, and Brandon.

When I asked him to describe his management personality, he replied, “I try to treat others as I would want to be treated. And at Cox there’s a culture of getting the right person and empowering them, giving them the tools they need and then letting them do their job.

“That sounds really easy, but it’s not,” he continued. “Technology is challenging, but the most important thing is getting the right people doing the right things — giving the right leaders the right boundaries and allowing them to do their job, supported by coaching and followup. For instance, recognizing that some people are more creative than task-driven.

“You have to understand the technology too — invest in reading, trade shows, learning from vendors and adjacent businesses. We have to lead by example with that,” he said.

“But we also have to make sure people are given the flexibility and freedom to execute and be successful on their own.”

Outside of radio, Roz enjoys camping and the great outdoors, and is active in his church. He also restores muscle cars and still owns a 1967 GTO that he purchased 40 years ago.

Roz and Bobbie have two grown sons, one of whom is a mechanical engineer, the other a business/marketing professional, as well as two small grandchildren.

Would he encourage a young person to get into radio broadcast technology today?

“It’s not like any other type of engineering job. If you’re interested in all sorts of technology, the answer would be yes — but understand that it’s a lifestyle choice.”

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

Excellence Honor Roll

2004 Andy Andreson
2005 Mike Starling
2006 John Lyons
2007 Clay Freinwald
2008 Jeff Littlejohn
2009 Gary Kline

2010 Milford Smith
2011 Barry Thomas
2012 Paul Brenner
2013 Marty Garrison
2014 Wayne Pecena
2015 David H. Layer

2016–17 Michael Cooney
2017–18 Larry Wilkins
2018–19 Russ Mundschenk
2019–20 Dave Kolesar
2020–21 Jason Ornellas
2021–22 Roz Clark

The post Roz Clark Embodies Business Continuity at Cox appeared first on Radio World.

I really appreciated the article from Mark Persons on amateur radio (“Alike, but Not Alike: Broadcast vs. Ham Radio”).

Unfortunately, as Mark mentioned, with cell phones and the internet, the youth of today can’t be bothered with amateur radio and that poses a problem to get new broadcast engineers. As a kid, I was really into music and where did music come from, why, the radio, where else. So I was addicted to AM radio.

While my parents watched television, I sat in a different room listening to radio, DXing the AM dial and the shortwave bands on an old Zenith chassis with its 12-inch electromagnetic speaker and its metal 6F6 output stage that burned the skin off my forearms more than once.

The good thing is that most of the hams at that time used AM so I could listen to them without the luxury of a BFO that the Zenith didn’t have. So after listening for years, I got the old Ameco study guide and a key from Olson Radio and went about getting a novice license in 1961. Had a lot of fun with a homebrew single 6L6 running off an old TV power transformer and 5U4.

[Check Out More Letters at Radio World’s Reader’s Forum Section]

When I got a “real” license I added another 6L6 and a 12AX7 and made an AM rig, wow, a Heizing choke and downward modulation on 40 all the way.

Well, that led to a First Phone license when I turned 16 and wound up as Chief Engineer of a commercial classical station after the Chief passed away on Christmas morning. Sure the transmitter was a lot bigger and a lot more sophisticated than the 6L6 rig but from the years of building ham transmitters, receivers, and antennas, walking into a broadcast station was not a shock (pardon the pun).

I think there are two things that make a great broadcast engineer, one is a background as a ham and second an appreciation for music as it trains your ears to good audio. I still have my ham license and operate regularly as does my wife. The old 6L6s are gone but still operate with some homebrew gear and a Collins S line; no solid-state gear here.

I am pushing 73 now and if I was 10, I would have followed the same path as I did knowing what I know now.

Ron Schacht
K3FUT

Share your thoughts with us. Write to radioworld@futurenet.com

The post Letter: Ham Radio, a Gateway to Broadcast Engineering appeared first on Radio World.

Jim Bohannon is headed to the NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame.

The National Association of Broadcasters said Bohannon will be inducted during the NAB Show in April. If current plans hold, that will be the first in-person spring NAB in three years.

Bohannon is host of Westwood One’s syndicated radio talk show, “The Jim Bohannon Show,” which airs on approximately 300 radio stations.

“Delivering his wit, wisdom and natural charm to listeners across the nation, Bohannon offers a unique blend of breaking news, informative reports on a wide range of topics and live conversations with listeners,” NAB stated in the announcement.

It noted that he has been in broadcasting for more than 50 years, and spent more than 31 of them as host of the early morning show “America in the Morning.” He previously hosted the weekend program “America This Week.”

NAB President/CEO Gordon Smith has been a guest on Bohannon’s program. “Jim encompasses the spirit of radio. His distinct voice, humor and engaging programs have informed and entertained listeners for 50 years, while addressing historic milestones affecting our nation,” Smith said.

Bohannon started in radio at KLWT(AM) in his hometown of Lebanon, Mo., in 1960.

“Following college and military service during the Vietnam War, he returned to radio in the Washington, D.C. market, covering news at both WTOP(AM) and WWRC(AM),” NAB wrote in a bio. “He later worked as a morning anchor at WCFL(FM) in Chicago and as a freelance reporter for CNN.”

He hosted a Saturday night phone-in program starting in 1984 and was principal back-up on the “Larry King Show.” In 1993, he took over King’s time slot.

“Bohannon joined Westwood One in 1983 and has anchored newscasts, political conventions and election night coverage in addition to his weekday programs.”

Read the list of past inductees.

The post Jim Bohannon Heads to NAB Hall of Fame appeared first on Radio World.

Jessica Rosenworcel, now chairwoman of the FCC, is shown at a Senate committee hearing in 2018. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The first woman to lead the Federal Communications Commission as its chair is Jessica Rosenworcel. She has been reconfirmed to the FCC by the U.S. Senate.

CNBC reports the vote was 68 to 31.

Her term was set to expire shortly; and because the commission is already down one member, the prospect that Rosenworcel would not be reconfirmed raised the possibility of a commission with a Republican majority despite a Democratic administration holding the White House.

The nomination of Gigi Sohn for the remaining seat is having a rougher go, and until she or another candidate is confirmed, the commission will consist of two Democrats and two Republicans, which most observers believe means the FCC must limit itself to relatively uncontroversial actions for now.

The National Association of Broadcasters congratulated Rosenworcel and called her appointment historic.

“She is a dedicated public servant who has demonstrated effective leadership and expertise on telecommunications issues during her tenure at the FCC. We look forward to continuing to work with her and her fellow commissioners on ensuring a vibrant future for free and local broadcasting.”

Commissioner Brendan Carr, a Republican, offered congratulations and said, “Under her leadership, the FCC has taken significant steps towards eliminating the digital divide, increasing support for telehealth services and enhancing the security of America’s communications networks.”

NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association said Rosenworcel “has demonstrated sound leadership, a keen command of critical communications issues and a firm commitment to preserving and expanding the nation’s essential communications capabilities,” in the words of NATE President/CEO Todd Schlekeway. “NATE has been pleased with Chairwoman Rosenworcel’s engagement with industry leaders and her continued support of NATE’s legislative and regulatory priorities, updating broadband maps, closing the digital divide and securing the nation’s leadership in 5G deployment.”

In a statement, Rosenworcel said: “People across the country count on the FCC to support the connections they need for work, learning, healthcare and access to the information we require to make decisions about our lives, our communities, and our country.  I look forward to working with the administration, my colleagues on the commission and FCC staff, members of Congress, and the public to make the promise of modern communications a reality for everyone, everywhere.”

The commission has not had a female chair until now. Mignon Clyburn was acting chairwoman for about six months in 2013.

 

 

The post Senate Approves Rosenworcel’s Reappointment appeared first on Radio World.

Audacy has added FM service to another of its iconic AM news stations, this time with KNX(AM) in Los Angeles.

“KNX News 97.1 FM” now carries the 24-hour news and traffic content of its AM sibling. The station most recently had been branded as “97.1 Now, LA’s Party Station,”

Audacy, the former Entercom, picked up a number of iconic AM news outlets through its 2017 acquisition of CBS radio assets. In the past year or so it has made similar moves onto FM in St. Louis with KMOX, Pittsburgh with KDKA and Philadelphia with KYW.

KNX is celebrating its 100th anniversary this month.

“For over 100 years, KNX has been the station Southern California has depended on for breaking news, important events and life changing moments,” said Regional VP Jeff Federman in the announcement.

“With spoken word audio consumption at an all-time high, this move allows us to significantly upgrade the existing KNX brand and create a news destination for a new generation.”

Audacy said this launch shows “its commitment to its local news brands, reflective via a multiplatform transformation announced earlier this year.”

The company no doubt is hoping that the AM/FM combo will help KNX do some leapfrogging in the ratings. In the Nielsen Audio top line ratings released this month, KNX(AM) was 10th in the market in AQH Share for Persons 6+, Mon-Sun 6AM-Mid overall; the only other AM in the top 10 was No. 8 KFI. Audacy’s former music format on 97.1 was much farther down the list.

Audacy describes itself as “the No.1 local news platform in the country, operating more than two dozen news stations across the U.S.” It has all-news formats in 26 markets.

The station launched with a tribute to some of the station’s biggest headlines over 100 years.



The post KNX Is Now Heard on FM, Too appeared first on Radio World.

Responding to Bob Meister’s letter (“Genset reset rethink,” Aug. 4 issue):

I couldn’t agree more with Bob on this matter! Safety should always precede convenience, particularly where electrical power is concerned.

There had to be a valid reason for the generator fault in the original situation described by John Bisset. Merely resetting it remotely without knowing the cause is bad practice.

The new transmitters I installed at my two (now-gone) stations featured automatic restarts — first two faults would pause then reapply HV, while a third would shut off and inhibit it. This was essential to protect the $10,000–$15,000 IOT finals from damage.

I declined to wire the transmitters’ fault-reset inputs to our remote controls in fear that a less-experienced MC op might destroy the finals or other expensive parts by repeated resets.

If you have spare status inputs on your remote, look into adding indicators that could warn you of impending problems and help you resolve little matters before they grow, or provide additional evidence that may help you decide between a simple “reset” visit and a major repair effort.

[Visit the Reader’s Forum for More Letters and Comments]

Also useful: temperature and light sensors; door switches; and fluid-detectors, which are easy to install and provide inexpensive insurance. Example: A simple “homebrew” pair of opto-isolators added to my Kohler transfer-switch alarm panel would confirm that all was well and whether we were on utility or generator power.

A personal note on safety: I’m truly grateful to have a touch of OCD. It has helped keep me (and others) alive when working anywhere near power.

Years ago, I was reunited with an old UHF TV transmitter that had seen better days. It featured a pair of doors that opened in front of a high-power Klystron (only 32 kV connections atop it!) along with various “deficiencies” like uncovered AC relays in another door and a “failed-shorted” interlock switch in yet other. A consulting engineer had come close to being electrocuted there months earlier, partly because the station engineer also misinterpreted his directions.

My mind insists on “pointing and saying” before I do anything potentially dangerous. Remember: You have many opportunities to get it right, but you may have only one chance to get it wrong.

Cheers and stay safe!

Michael Shovan, CBTE
fd&t technical services
Newburgh, N.Y.

Radio World invites industry-oriented commentaries and responses. Send to Radio World.

The post Letter: Genset reset rethink redux appeared first on Radio World.

KSJO(FM) in San Jose, Calif., is broadcasting geo-targeted radio advertising, according to technology supplier GeoBroadcast Solutions. The company said this was the first such field test with real radio spots.

The station aired several national breakfast promotions for Jack in the Box targeted to the areas of Livermore and Pleasanton along the I-680 corridor.

The station, owned by Universal Media Access and branded “Bolly 92.3FM, The Bay Area’s Bollywood Station,” has experimental authority from the FCC to test the GBS ZoneCastingFM booster system. GBS said its tests would continue during short parts of the broadcast hour through February.

The station also is experimenting with zoned traffic reports.

Jack in the Box CMO Ryan Ostrom was quoted saying the company is “only scratching the surface with our first test, and we will continue to lean into the unpacked potential of geotargeted radio activations.”

KSJO’s Brad Behnke, vice president and chief operating officer of station owner Universal Media Access, encouraged the FCC to allow such geo-targeting.

GeoBroadcast has asked the FCC to change its booster rules to allow this kind of content origination.

The post San Jose Station Tests Geo-Targeted Ads appeared first on Radio World.

Radio World is taking an in-depth look at “The Infinite Dial UK 2021” report this week.

In Part Two of Radio World’s summation of Edison Research’s “The Infinite Dial UK 2021” report we look at Edison Research President Larry Rosen’s findings on radio listening in the United Kingdom (and other countries), plus rates of radio/smart speaker ownership here and in the United States.

The report is based on 1,000 telephone interviews with U.K. residents 16 and older, during the fourth quarter of 2021.

U.K. radio listening

Based upon the complete mix of British AM/MW, FM, and DAB stations, 83 percent of the 16+ population surveyed by Edison Research listened to radio in the last week. By age group, this breaks down 80 percent for people 16–34; 84 percent for 35–54; and 80 percent for 55 and older.

Past Week Radio Listening in the U.K. (Courtesy Edison Research)

[Read more of our coverage of ‘Infinite Dial’ report]

“Some of you might be used to seeing slightly higher numbers from RAJAR for weekly listening,” said Rosen. “Let me remind you that this is a telephone survey where we’re just asking a single question about listening into the radio in any way in the last week, whereas RAJAR takes steps to jog people’s memories and remind them of all the cases where they might’ve listened to the radio.”

Compared to Canada’s 70 percent (18+), Australia’s 79 percent (18+) and the U.S.’s 59 percent (16+), the U.K. is doing pretty well in terms of radio listening.

“People are listening to the radio in the U.K., and they are remembering that they have listened to the radio in the U.K. in greater numbers than in these three other English-speaking countries around the world,” Rosen said.

Radio and smart speaker ownership

When asked, ‘Do you own a radio? Do you have a radio in your household?’, Edison Research found that 78 percent of U.K. respondents said yes while 22 percent said no.

Moreover, “Fourteen percent of people in the U.K. — consistent across age groups — said they have four or more radios in their household,” said Rosen. “So, you see, radio remains very central to the lived experience of people in the U.K.” He contrasted these numbers to the U.S., where 68 percent own radios (10 percent have four or more), and 32 percent do not.

Radio Receiver Ownership, U.K. and U.S. Compared (Courtesy Edison Research)

The differences continued when Larry Rosen looked at U.K./U.S. radio ownership and smart speaker ownership.

“Fifty-eight percent of everyone in the U.K. says they have a radio in their home, but don’t have a smart speaker,” he said. “20 percent say they have both the radio and the smart speaker in their home; 6 percent say they have a smart speaker but not a radio in their home. So, 6 percent of people seemingly have replaced radio in their homes with the smart speaker, and only 16 percent of people in their homes have neither a radio nor a smart speaker.”

Radio and Smart Speaker Ownership, U.K. and U.S. Compared (Courtesy Edison Research)

Meanwhile, 50 percent of Americans surveyed reported owning a radio but not a smart speaker; 19 percent said they owned both; 8 percent said they had a smart speaker but not a radio; and 23 percent had neither.

This last number caught Larry Rosen’s attention: “Here in the United States, we have more people saying that they neither have a radio nor a smart speaker.”

In Part Three of Radio World’s summary of “The Infinite Dial UK 2021,” we’ll look at the U.K.’s consumption of online audio.

The post ‘Infinite Dial UK’ Details U.K. Radio Listening, Ownership appeared first on Radio World.

The FCC recently threw out all eight applications for new NCE FM channels from a recently formed ham radio club in Washington state, citing “numerous significant and egregious technical defects.”

When the Media Bureau last month announced the settlement period for mutually exclusive applications filed in the recent window for new noncommercial educational stations, it also published a list of applications being dismissed due to technical defects.

The Fort Ward Amateur Radio Club was prominent on the list. The club, established in 2021 according to its website, is on Bainbridge Island, home of the historical Fort Ward WWII naval radio station. The club’s mission statement indicates that the club includes licensed amateur radio men, women, students and youths.

The FCC said it typically doesn’t review MX applications for technical defects at this early stage, but it made the effort to do so and the ham club’s technical defects were identified.

Attempts by Radio World to contact the Fort Ward Amateur Radio Club for comment were unsuccessful.

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The commission cited numerous technical conflicts in the club’s applications, including significant overlap caused to first-, second- and third-adjacent channels and co-channel licensees. It said the club also ignored interference treaty agreements between the U.S. and Canada.

A rejected applicant has one opportunity to file a minor curative amendment and petition for reconsideration, requesting reinstatement of the application, according to the FCC. Any amendments and petitions for reconsideration must be filed within 30 days of the dismissals.

“In order for an application to be reinstated, the amendment must correct all the application defects, propose only minor changes, comply with all the commission’s relevant rules, and not create any new application conflicts,” according to the rules.

Bainbridge Island is just west of Seattle across Elliott Bay from the city. The island is connected to Seattle by ferry, according to the city’s website.

The Fort Ward Amateur Radio Club was founded this year by Louis Charles Hoffmann Alloin, according to the club’s website.

The commission received almost 1,300 applications for noncom educational FM stations in the recent window. Out of those, there are 231 MX groups with a total of 883 applications.

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

The post FCC Rejects Ham Radio Club’s NCE Applications appeared first on Radio World.

On Dec. 2, Croatian media regulator Agencija za Elektroničke Medije (AEM) announced plans to consider applications for national DAB+ concessions, as well as local DAB+ concessions in Zagreb and nine counties. Applications for the 20-year concessions are due by year-end.

According to a report in the newspaper Glas Istre, AEM believes there is public interest in launching new digital radio services, especially in the Zagreb region, despite the low number of DAB+ receivers in the country.

Comment on this or any article. Write to radioworld@futurenet.com.

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A new partnership between Triton Digital and Pocket FM will give media buyers additional access to the digital audio space in India.

The agreement will make Pocket FM’s OTT platform — a free podcast app and audio show that has grown into the largest audio OTT platform in India, the company said — available on the Triton Audio Ad exchange, giving buyers access to Pocket FM’s inventory through more than 30 demand size platforms via Triton.

According to the company, Pocket FM has become a top-ranking music and audio app, clocking in more than 40 million downloads and 2.7 billion monthly listening minutes. Listeners have access to more than 100,000 hours of programming via long-format content, audio shows, stories, novels and podcasts in eight languages through Pocket FM.

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Through the partnership, the companies said, Pocket FM media buyers will have access to Triton’s Yield-Op capability, an audio-first supply-side platform built for broadcasters, podcasters and music streaming services. Yield-Op offers users controls to set up deals, manage demand and optimize yield. Users will also have access to Triton’s Tap OnDemand, which enables streaming audio services and web-only audio publishers to streamline advertising trafficking and maximize revenue with dynamic audio ad insertion (DAI) as well as coordinate campaign trafficking, delivery and reporting.

“Consumption has grown significantly over the past 24 months, making digital audio an important medium for marketers seeking to reach this engaged and growing audience,” said Aditya Summanwar, director of market development for Triton Digital, adding that 57.6 million people in India as of 2020 were consuming podcasts on a monthly basis. “That makes India the third largest country for podcast consumption, following the U.S. and China,” Summanwar said.

Rohan Nayak, co-founder and CEO of Pocket FM, said that the new partnership with Triton Digital will offer media buyers and publishers a deeper look into validated measurement of India’s growing digital audio consumption market. “In the coming months, Pocket FM intends to achieve 100 million users and introduce more genres on the platform, building the largest community of writers, artists and homegrown authors in India,” Nayak said.

Submit business announcements to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Triton Digital, Pocket FM Ink Partnership appeared first on Radio World.

The newest version of the Global Radio Guide is out.

Penned by author Gayle Van Horn, this edition of the publication lists by-hour schedules that include language services, frequencies and world target areas for more than 500 stations. The guide includes listings of DX radio programs, websites, entries for time and frequencies for many stations as well as a group of unique transmissions available on shortwave radio bands.

The guide includes articles that look at the current state of shortwave receiver technology, technology product reviews, a guide to shortwave music programs from around the world, and current radio news.

In this issue, Van Horn delves into covering the radio broadcast services of the People’s Republic of China, looking at the local, regional and international medium-wave and shortwave networks run by China’s Communist Party, including the country’s largest and most widely broadcast radio station, China Radio International.

The 17th edition also includes introductory articles on traveling the world via shortwave radio broadcasts, tips on monitoring shortwave action bands and a frequency list of high-frequency non-broadcast radio stations worldwide.

The current edition of the Global Radio Guide is available on the Teak Publishing website and via Amazon.

The post Newest Edition of Global Radio Guide Hits the Streets appeared first on Radio World.

 

Work is done on a 3.8-meter single-feed antenna aimed at satellite SES-11. This particular facility in Christmas, Fla., supports a Hearst Properties site for WESH(TV).

USSI Global said it has helped satellite company SES complete the first phase of the FCC’s accelerated C-band clearing and relocation activities.

As part of the FCC’s program to encourage the rollout of 5G, SES is seeking to clear 280 MHz of the C-band spectrum. Broadcasters with satellite infrastructure are among the business sectors that have been affected by the overall process, as Radio World has reported.

“Phase I required SES to relocate all of its existing services that are received by Incumbent Earth Stations out of the 3700–3820 MHz band,” USSI Global stated in a press release. “USSI Global made the necessary equipment changes on all associated Incumbent Earth Stations.”

SES selected USSI Global as its primary vendor to help manage and execute the transition of Incumbent Earth Station filtering to mitigate risks of 5G interference.

“USSI Global served as the lead project management firm and was responsible for outreach, IT systems integration, field support management and status reporting.”

The work included research about site-specific details, and then design, procurement, installation and commissioning of 5G filters and antennas. USSI Global supported approximately 600 Phase 1 Incumbent Earth Station site transitions, which helped SES meet eligibility for the first accelerated relocation payment from the government.

The company said it also has supported the clearing of more than 100 Phase II sites so far.

The post USSI Global Supports SES in C-Band Transition appeared first on Radio World.

The Poynter Institute for Media Studies has named the 40 public radio stations, 16 public television stations, and 19 joint licensees participating in the Digital Transformation Project.

Funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the Digital Transformation Project is a virtual training program for public media senior leaders and their staff looking to apply best strategies and tactics to transform their organization’s digital operations and culture.

“CPB’s commitment to advancing innovation and diversity continues to be reflected through our strategic investments helping system leaders advance a digital-first, audience-centric approach,” stated Patricia Harrison, CPB president and CEO in a release.

The five National Multicultural Alliance Organizations — Black Public Media, the Center for Asian American Media, Latino Public Broadcasting, Pacific Islanders in Communications, and Vision Maker Media — will join the 75 stations to form four cohorts of 20 public media leaders participating in the nine-month program. The first cohort begins training in January with additional cohorts starting the program every three months.

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In addition to one-on-one and peer group coaching sessions, the program includes a series of educational webinars, work exercises, and resource materials that span the program curriculum.

“The selected participants are some of the nation’s most trusted sources citizens turn to for local news and information,” stated Poynter President Neil Brown. “Our partnership with CPB will help public media outlets build digital-first strategies that inspire an even greater — and more sustainable — connection to grow with their communities.”

According to Poynter, each public media CEO will work with their team on a specific digital performance challenge with clearly defined business outcomes, such as attracting and growing new and diverse audiences, increasing audience engagement, converting audiences to loyal members, and driving new revenues from digital channels.

“A focus on digital transformation will pay off for public media by establishing even greater audience engagement and loyalty,” Brown stated.

The 75 participating stations/networks are:

Alabama Public Radio
Alaska Public Media, Anchorage
Arizona PBS
CapRadio, Sacramento
Classical KING FM, Seattle
CoastAlaska, Southeast Alaska
Colorado Public Radio
GBH News, Boston
Idaho Public Television
Illinois Public Media
Interlochen Public Radio, Michigan
Iowa PBS
KAWC/KOFA, Colorado River Public Media/Border Radio
KAXE/KBXE, Northern Community Radio, Northern Minnesota
KCUR FM, Kansas City, Mo.
KGNU FM-AM, Boulder/Denver, Colo.
KJZZ FM and KBAQ FM, Phoenix
KLCC-FM, Eugene, Ore.
KNBA FM, Koahnic Broadcast Corporation, Anchorage
KOSU-FM, Stillwater, Okla.
KPBS TV-FM, San Diego
KPCC FM, Southern California Public Radio
KTSU 90.9 FM, Houston
KUER-FM, Salt Lake City, Utah
KUNC FM and The Colorado Sound, Greeley, Colo.
KVIE TV, Sacramento
Maine Public
Marfa Public Radio, Texas
Mountain Lake PBS (WCFE), Plattsburgh, N.Y.
Nashville Public Radio
Nine PBS, St. Louis
NJ PBS
Northern California Public Media (KRCB/KPJK)
NPR Illinois
Oklahoma Educational Television Authority
PBS Fort Wayne
Pioneer PBS, Granite Falls, Minn.
Pittsburgh Community Broadcasting (WESA-FM and WYEP-FM)
Radio Milwaukee
St. Louis Public Radio
Twin Cities PBS (TPT)
USC Radio Group: KUSC, Los Angeles, and KDFC, San Francisco
Vegas PBS
WAMU FM, Washington, D.C.
WCNY TV, Syracuse, N.Y.
WDSE TV-FM, Duluth, Minn.
WERU Community Radio, Blue Hill, Maine
WFYI Public Media, Indianapolis
WGLT FM, Bloomington-Normal, Ill., and WCBU FM, Peoria, Ill.
WGVU Public Media, Grand Rapids, Mich.
WHUT TV, Washington, D.C.
WITF Public Media, Harrisburg, Pa.
WKAR Public Media, East Lansing, Mich.
WKMS FM, Murray, Ky.
WLIW TV/FM, Garden City, N.Y.
WMHT Educational Telecommunications, Albany-Schenectady-Troy, N.Y.
WNET/Thirteen, New York, N.Y.
WNIJ FM, DeKalb, Ill.
WPSU TV-FM, State College, Pa.
WQLN PBS/NPR, Erie, Pa.
WRTI FM, Philadelphia
WSHU Public Radio, Westport, Conn.
WTCI-TV, Chattanooga, Tenn.
WUNC FM, Chapel Hill, N.C.
WUSF Public Media, Tampa, Fla.
WUWF Public Media, Pensacola, Fla.
WUWM FM, Milwaukee
WVIK, Quad Cities NPR, Iowa/Illinois
WVPE FM, Michiana
WVTF FM (Radio IQ), Roanoke, Va.
WXPR Public Radio, Northern Wisconsin and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula
WXXI Public Media, Rochester, N.Y.
WYES TV, New Orleans
WYPR FM, Baltimore
Yellowstone Public Radio, Montana

The post 75 Public Broadcasters Selected for ‘Digital Transformation’ appeared first on Radio World.

Audio-Technica has long made well-regarded pro microphones with prices to match, but also has a growing presence in the prosumer realm, creating products at more retail-oriented price points intended for bedroom producers, content creators, streamers and the like. In recent years, A-T has been engaging the podcasting world with its AT2020 and AT2035 condenser mics, and now has stepped it up even further with the introduction of the AT2040 hypercardioid dynamic podcast microphone.

Audio-Technica AT2040 Hypercardioid Dynamic Podcast Microphone

Costing a very reasonable $99, this XLR mic does a nice job of providing its target users with a microphone attuned to the spoken word, while also landing under $100, thus attracting customers for whom the top feature is the price point. At that cost, yes, it’s entry-level, but it’s “good” entry-level, providing a decent product for those who will only ever buy one mic, while providing a solid first experience for emerging audio pros who will dive deeper into the company’s product ranges in years to come.

Out of the box

Right out of the box, the AT2040 makes a good first impression — it has a sleek design that looks good on camera, whether it’s a video podcast, work-from-home environment or Twitch stream. (The priority, of course, is how it sounds, but visuals are a valid concern for on-screen content creators.) The black finish isn’t easily dinged or scratched, and at 5.72” long and nearly 22 oz., it has a real heft to it.

Pulling it out of the box, it simply feels like you’ve purchased something of significance. The thick metal casing and strong grille are joined by a hard plastic AT8487 mounting clamp already attached, so it’s clearly made to withstand some abuse. The AT2040 is solid enough that if you accidentally bang it around, it will put a dent in your desk rather than the other way around.

Rounding out the accessories in the box are a threaded adapter for the clamp and a mic pouch.

In use

The AT2040 sports a hypercardioid polar pattern that does a nice job, even capturing the voice at a moderate distance and off-axis up to 90° (with the expected change in timbre, of course), as happens with users who aren’t disciplined about staying on-mic or perhaps don’t want the mic blocking them on-camera. However, when used like a proper broadcast mic, the AT2040 captures the voice very naturally; its large diaphragm gets the low-mids warm and out front, while the highs are curled back to provide shape but not rough edges.

[Check Out More Product Evaluations in Our Products Section]

One place where the mic particularly shines is its handling of plosives — pop filtering is provided by a multistage foam mesh windscreen inside, and it yanks plosives’ impact right down. The AT2040 does pick up stray clatter from usage, however. While there’s integrated shockmounting to reduce that, the mic is still best left untouched once it’s in a mic stand or boom, as handling and cable noise are readily picked up.

Overall

In all, it’s a solid first microphone; for many of its intended users, particularly the podcaster or streamer, this is all the mic they’re ever going to need. Meanwhile, for aspiring audio pros, it will make for a positive introduction to the Audio-Technica brand.

The post Audio-Technica Offers ‘Good’ Entry-Level AT2040 appeared first on Radio World.

The Opal on one end of the “Great Night” production.

We started our podcast “Great Night” in January of 2009. We’ve gone through several names, and along the way we’ve had several Billboard-charted comedy albums and have developed a large and loyal subscriber base. Currently, we’re doing a live variety show every Tuesday night, with a video component that we stream over Twitch and publish on YouTube.

For 11-and-a-half of those 12 years, we lived in different states. For much of that time, we were doing the thing that has essentially become the default podcast comedy technique during the pandemic: We were using Skype and recording our audio locally, then editing it together in post-production.

But the delays and hiccups caused by Skype were intrusive, and we wanted to find a full-duplex solution.

We learned about the Comrex Opal from a friend of ours who works at The Blaze. We had some challenges configuring our IP networks, but once it was set up, it was easy for everyone to jump onboard and learn how to use it.

[Read More Buyers Guide Reviews Here]

We would use video from Skype and connect our audio through the Opal, and there was an immediate difference in our audio quality. Even when Skype was failing, the Opal audio would continue to be precise with low delay, and it felt as though we were in the room with each other.

Skype has been the standard for podcasting forever, but not because anyone likes it. If you get a group of podcasters together in a room, eventually they’re all going to complain about Skype. People use it because it works well enough and most of us know how to fix it when it’s broken.

But every conversation, every interview, every interaction has an ebb and flow that happens in the milliseconds between moments. Just as it’s not possible to have an in-depth conversation over walkie-talkies, it’s equally impossible to preserve that nuance over Zoom and Skype. You need full-duplex real-time audio if you want to create real magic in audio.

Only Opal has brought us that experience.

When we shifted to Opal, our audience noticed. We got a lot of feedback from our listeners about the change — they couldn’t identify exactly what was different, but it felt electric. Suddenly we were both able to talk at the same time without any delay.

We have this weird fixation on Billy Joel, and we’ve been making Billy Joel jokes and singing parodies of Billy Joel songs for a while now. Suddenly, once we got Opal, we could harmonize. We could overlap our jokes and pick up on what each other were saying without having to deal with Skype ducking our audio. We were finally able to do our material in the best way possible.

A lot of podcasters think audio quality issues can be solved by local recording, and certainly that can be edited together even though it adds another layer to post-production. But they really don’t realize what an audio delay does to active conversations.

In a medium that is all about where a conversation goes, whether it’s comedy or a panel discussion, high-quality and low-delay audio is irreplaceable. Opal is the solution that every podcaster doesn’t realize they need.

Info: Contact Chris Crump at Comrex at 1-978-784-1776 or visit www.comrex.com.

Radio World User Reports are testimonial articles intended to help readers understand why a colleague chose a particular product to solve a technical situation.

The post User Report: Comrex Opal Makes Full-Duplex Audio Magic appeared first on Radio World.

Show hosts and station volunteers Steve Slentz and Larry Karoll are shown at the event.

December is a time of year when many radio stations perform particularly good deeds. One of them is low-power FM station WDNP in Dover, Ohio.

Radio World contributor Dan Slentz helped launch the LPFM station, and he reports that WDNP is now in its sixth year of conducting an annual Coat & Food Drive in partnership with the Salvation Army of Tuscarawas County.

“Usually we fill their truck with food and coats, but people give cash and other things that others can use,” Dan writes.

Lieutenant Andrew Allen of the Salvation Army giving a DNP mug and accepting a donation.

“Our thinking was that the station doing ‘Toys for Tots’ is awesome, but what if the kid doesn’t have a warm coat or the family is struggling to put food on the table? So we decided to focus on necessities.”

The local Pizza Hut provides its parking lot, the food and even some gift certificates for free pizzas. The radio station distributes logo mugs to each donor, and those mugs are sponsored, so there’s no expense to the station.

“It’s a good local promotion and helps a lot of people,” Dan says, adding that WDNP is run entirely by volunteers.

Submit news about your event to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Ohio LPFM Conducts Coat & Food Drive appeared first on Radio World.

Radio World is taking an in-depth look at “The Infinite Dial UK 2021” report this week.

In a bid to provide British broadcasters with the same market intelligence enjoyed by their U.S. colleagues, Edison Research conducted its first-ever “The Infinite Dial UK 2021” consumer measurement study.

Its conclusions are based on 1,000 telephone interviews with U.K. residents 16 and older, during the fourth quarter of 2021.

The original Infinite Dial survey, which is focused on U.S. consumer interactions with radio, has been conducted annually since 1998. Similar Infinite Dial surveys have been done in Canada, Australia, Germany, and South Africa.

The results of the first-ever Infinite Dial UK were announced in a Dec. 2, 2021, webinar hosted by Edison Research President Larry Rosen, and made possible through the sponsorship of Bauer Media and Spotify. This week, Radio World will be summarizing his presentation in five parts. In Part One, we’ll cover Edison’s findings on U.K. connected technology ownership and social media usage.

Connect tech ownership

According to Rosen, 83 percent of respondents to the Infinite Dial UK survey own smartphones, which is “just a bit lower than our estimate for the USA,” he said. This percentage is consistent across age groups. Meanwhile, 53 percent of those surveyed own an iPad or other tablet, while 25 percent own a smart speaker. The leading brand of smart speaker is Amazon’s Alexa, followed by Google Nest and Apple HomePod.

“The majority of people who have at least one smart speaker in their household have two or more, and 28 percent of people … have three or more,” said Rosen. “That’s a trend we’ve seen pretty consistently … People who get them tend to really like them and put them in multiple rooms around their house.”

Smart speaker ownership in the U.S. and U.K.

Social media usage

Eighty-six percent of respondents to the Infinite Dial UK study reported “they use some form of social media, including nearly everybody aged 16–34, and a very, very sizable majority of everyone over the age of 35 as well,” Rosen said.

Facebook has the highest level of brand awareness at 89 percent, followed by Instagram and Twitter at 85 percent and TikTok at 83 percent. Sixty-seven percent of people surveyed are aware of Snapchat, 58 percent have heard of LinkedIn and 55 percent of Pinterest.

[Read more of our coverage of ‘Infinite Dial’ report]

Actual usage of social media in the U.K. varies by platform and age group. The social platform used most often was Facebook (55 percent for 16+; 48 percent for 16–34; 56 percent for 35–54; and 62 percent for 55 and older). Second place was a tie between Instagram (9 percent for 16+; 14 percent for 16–34; 7 for 35–54; and 7 percent for 55 and older) and Twitter (9 percent for 16+; 7 percent for 16–34; 9 percent for 35–54; and 10 percent for 55 and older).

These were followed by:

• Snapchat (8 percent for 16+; 15 percent for 16–34; 6 percent for 35–54; and 3 percent for 55 and older);
• TikTok (7 percent for 16+; 10 percent for 16–34; 8 percent for 35–54; and 4 percent for 55 and older);
• Pinterest (5 percent for 16+; 3 percent for 16–34; 6 percent for 35–54; and 5 percent for 55 and older);
• Other platforms (7 for 16+; 3 for 16–34; 8 percent for 35–54; and 9 percent for 55 and older).

In another chart, Larry Rosen compared social media platform usage in the U.K. and U.S.

Social media platform usage in the U.K. and U.S. compared

“There’s a lot more usage in the United States of Facebook, Instagram. and Pinterest,” he said. “Snapchat is pretty equal; Twitter is a little higher in the United States. The two [social media platforms] that have higher usage just by a small amount in the U.K. as compared to the U.S. are LinkedIn and TikTok.”

All told, social media in the U.K. is a potent force for radio broadcasters to deal with, with Facebook being far and away the heavyweight in this market.

In Part Two of Radio World’s summary of “The Infinite Dial UK 2021,” we’ll look at Larry Rosen’s numbers on radio listening and radio/smart speaker ownership.

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