Industry News

The audience for terrestrial radio remains high. That’s a point made by many of the leaders of commercially licensed broadcasting companies over the last several years.

Here’s the bad news: A Pew Research Center analysis of MEDIA Access Pro and BIA Advisory Services data confirm that average radio revenue dropped “fairly sharply” in 2020.

And, for the all-news format, the dip in revenue was no different.

Or, are the numbers skewed?

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The Radio Board of the National Association of Broadcasters has a new chair. He’s Bill Wilson, the CEO of Townsquare Media Group.

He succeeds David Santrella, the president of Broadcast Media for Salem Media Group, who now becomes chairman of the association’s Joint Board of Directors, succeeding Jordan Wertlieb of Hearst Television.

John Zimmer, president and owner of Zimmer Radio of Mid-Missouri Inc., was elected Radio Board first vice chair, while Kevin Perry, VP/COO of Perry Publishing and Broadcasting, was elected second vice chair.

Collin Jones, senior vice president of corporate development and strategy for Cumulus Media Inc., was elected as the Radio Board’s major group representative on the NAB Board’s Executive Committee.

[Read: Hershberger Honored With 2021 NAB Engineering Award]

On the TV side, Perry Sook, chairman, president and CEO of Nexstar Media Group, was elected as NAB Television Board chair. Lynn Beall, EVP/COO of Media Operations for TEGNA, was elected TV Board first vice chair. Pat LaPlatney, president and co-chief executive officer of Gray Television Inc., was elected TV Board second vice chair, while and Emily Barr, president and CEO of Graham Media Group, was elected third vice chair.

And Christopher Wood, SVP and associate general counsel for government and regulatory affairs at Univision Communications, was appointed to the designated TV network seat on the NAB Board’s Executive Committee.

The post Bill Wilson Is New NAB Radio Board Chair appeared first on Radio World.

Until today, Townsquare Media had separate digital content and radio content teams. Now, it is combining both units.

As a result, a new Chief Content Officer has been named. At the same time, additional responsibilities beyond his current programming duties are being given to Kurt Johnson, making him the company’s chief music industry liaison.

Jared Willig will hold the Chief Content Officer role. He’s a 10-year Townsquare Media veteran, and he’ll lead content strategy and execution across all platforms for 322 local radio stations, over 350 local websites and mobile apps, and Music & Entertainment brands XXL Magazine, Taste Of Country, Loudwire, Ultimate Classic Rock, ScreenCrush and PopCrush.

He will also continue to oversee AMPED, the monetization of the Townsquare brands’ digital platforms.

With Willig’s appointment comes the creation of the “Townsquare Content Team,” which Johnson will help lead under the new title of SVP/Content and Programming.

And, as aforementioned, he will continue to lead Townsquare’s music industry relations.

Jackie Corley, who had been overseeing Townsquare’s Digital Content team, widens her responsibilities to become the VP of Local Content and Programming.

Townsquare COO of Local Media Erik Hellum commented, “Given Townsquare’s multi-platform approach to entertaining and informing our audiences and our communities, we will no longer have separate central teams for broadcast and digital content, but rather one incredibly talented content team led by Jared, Kurt and Jackie.”

Prior to joining Townsquare in 2010, Willig spent almost 10 years at AOL as the GM overseeing entertainment brands such as AOL Music and AOL Radio, Moviefone, and AOL Television. Before joining AOL in 2001, he worked in online marketing at BMG Entertainment. Willig is also a former club and radio DJ in New York, Philadelphia and Central New Jersey.

Johnson is well known for his role from 2001-2011 as VP/Programming for CBS Radio in Dallas. He also served as OM of AMFM Inc.’s Philadelphia stations. Johnson is also the former Program Director of Adult Contemporary WLTW “106.7 Lite FM” in New York, and was PD of Active Rock WAXQ “Q104.3” in New York under Viacom ownership.

Corley has been with Townsquare since 2014, serving as Digital Managing Editor of Townsquare’s Mid-Hudson Valley properties in Poughkeepsie and Middletown.

This is one in a series of articles from the Radio World ebook “The Real World of AoIP.”

Radio World recently asked several manufacturers to identify the most important technical development or trend in the use of AoIP.

Doug Ferber, Tieline’s VP Sales, Americas, said that the most important trends in the studio are the widespread adoption of AES67 and Networked Media Open Specifications (NMOS), as well as the overall need for increased capacity for IP audio codecs.

“AES67 will make life easier in the world of AoIP with its promise of interoperability between competing audio via standards-based delivery without requiring specialized network equipment,” Ferber said.

“NMOS will provide a control and management layer in addition to the transport layer provided by SMPTE ST 2110 to also provide more straightforward interoperability between products so end users and service providers can build better systems.

“In addition to discovery and registration, device connection management and network control, NMOS will also feature audio channel mapping capability and interoperable security,” he said.

the most important AoIP trend Tieline sees is the need for more audio streams in a single rack unit.

“The move toward more centralized broadcast facilities and content delivery will require audio codecs to do more, or as we like to say in the AoIP world, have higher density. Radio station operations will continue to consolidate, and we think more content will be delivered from fewer locations so the audio encoders/decoders used will have to be equipped with more channels. These AoIP trends are reflected in the design of our new DSP-based codec, the Gateway.”

The post Doug Ferber on Trends in AoIP appeared first on Radio World.

The headlines are everywhere. Weekly online listening is at an all-time high. Sirius bought Pandora; iHeart bought Triton. Smart speakers continue to proliferate. Everyone is talking about audio.

In Radio World’s latest ebook we explore the premise that, if radio organizations want to succeed in the new wider world of audio, streaming needs to be a bigger part of their business strategy.

We ask how broadcasters can better monetize their streams, improve sound quality and promote their streams more aggressively. And we explain key terminology.

Also, what information can data analytics give managers now about their listeners? How should streaming strategies overlap with deployment for smart speakers, apps and voice-controlled car infotainment systems? Do streaming and podcasting benefit or conflict with one another in a media strategy?

The ebook explores these questions through interviews and commentaries from thought leaders and technology suppliers. Read it here.

The post Streaming for Radio in 2021: A New Ebook appeared first on Radio World.

At an online ceremony this week, Sue Zizza accepted the Norman Corwin Award for Excellence in Audio Theatre from the National Audio Theatre Festivals.

Zizza was honored as a producer of award-winning audio theater for radio, the web and commercial release for more than 40 years, as well as an influential teacher of sound for radio, television and film, starting at Hofstra University in 1987 and continuing at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Colleagues commented on Zizza’s extensive body of work and prolific output, and they roasted her mildly for an insistent work personality. One described her as “an ants in the pants artist,” another said, “You just can’t say no to Sue.”

Her fellow artist and Corwin Award recipient Brian Price commended her for helping to keep the flame of audio theater alive during the difficult years of the 1990s and early 2000s, before podcasting helped bring a wave of fresh interest in all things audio.

Participants said she was a worthy recipient of an award named for Norman Corwin, “the grand master of American radio theater.”

Zizza is also owner of Radio Waves Studios with her partner, Dave Shinn. Among her recent work, she was commissioned to create a radio program to help celebrate UNESCO’s World Radio Day in 2021.

Sunday evening’s video conference also served as the conclusion of the ninth annual Hear Now Festival, which celebrates the work of “master storytellers.”

The post Colleagues Honor Audio Theater Innovator Sue Zizza appeared first on Radio World.

Delilah has purchased the AM radio station where her career began.

Her company announced that the syndicated radio host acquired KDUN in Reedsport, Ore.

The nondirectional station, which is licensed at 1030 kHz for 50 kW daytime and 630 watts at night, had been owned by Post Rock Communications. Terms were not announced.

[Read: Delilah Thrives on Instant Connection]

According to FCC records, KDUN has been silent since December for technical reasons. It received Special Temporary Authority to remain silent earlier this month, though the commission noted in the letter that the owner had failed to submit a request to remain silent for most of the first part of 2021.

“The transmitter is still housed in the same small wood structure, that is literally in the middle of a cow pasture on the banks of the Smith River,” her company said in a press release.

“Delilah is feverishly working to restore the site in order to be able to again be heard on ‘KDUN, the voice of the Oregon Dunes.’”

Her company related the story that when young Delilah Rene was in middle school, she won a speech contest that was judged in part by Jerome and Steve Kenegy, brothers who owned the local radio station. The contest winners were invited to the studios. “The first time she was in the studio, Delilah says she felt ‘at home,’ and her passion for radio was born.” She eventually took a job there before moving on to become a DJ and later a syndicated host.

[Read more about the history of KDUN.]

It said she hopes to help cultivate “local young talent who have a passion for communicating” but that “for now, getting the station upgraded and updated is first on her agenda.” The company said that other radio professionals including Smokey Rivers, Gary Nolan, Chris Mays and Jim Ryan “have stepped up to the plate in this endeavor” to help.

She was inducted into NAB’s Broadcasting Hall of Fame in 2017.

The post Delilah Buys the Station Where She Started appeared first on Radio World.

Spotify is expanding its audio advertising marketplace to several new countries.

“Following a successful U.S. launch of the Spotify Audience Network in April, Spotify is taking its audio-first advertising marketplace on the road,” according to the announcement. “The network will now be available to advertisers and Megaphone publishers in Australia, Canada and the U.K. as of June 29.”

[Read: Are Podcast Listeners Open to More Ads?]

The company calls it an “audio-first advertising marketplace.” It includes the audiences that listen to podcasts from the company’s four studios — Spotify Studios, The Ringer, Gimlet, Parcast — and from third-party podcast publishers including ViacomCBS, the Wall Street Journal, Girlboss and adelicious.

According to a Spotify info page, “Advertisers have historically bought podcast ads on a title-by-title basis. And while title-based buying remains an effective way to align with trusted podcasts and hosts, an advertiser’s reach is limited to a specific title. This has made it challenging to target your customers at scale.”

Its marketplace, it says, provides audience-based targeting tools including demographic targeting, geographic targeting and audience segment targeting.

The post Spotify Expands Audience Network appeared first on Radio World.

David Santrella, president of Broadcast Media for Salem Media Group, was elected chairman of the NAB Joint Board of Directors, NAB announced today. Santrella takes over from Jordan Wertlieb, president of Hearst Television, Inc., whose term expired.

Bill Wilson, chief executive officer of Townsquare Media Group, was elected Radio Board chair by the NAB Radio Board. John Zimmer, president and owner of Zimmer Radio of Mid-Missouri, Inc., was elected Radio Board first vice chair, while Kevin Perry, vice president and chief operating officer of @Perry Publishing and Broadcasting Company, was elected Radio Board second vice chair.

Collin Jones, senior vice president of Corporate Development & Strategy for CUMULUS MEDIA, Inc., was elected to the Radio Board’s major group representative seat on the NAB Board’s Executive Committee.

Perry Sook, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. Media Group, was elected as NAB Television Board chair. Lynn Beall, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Media Operations for TEGNA, was elected as TV Board first vice chair, Pat L., president and co-chief executive officer of Gray Television, Inc., was elected TV Board second vice chair and Emily Barr, president and chief executive officer of Graham Media Group, was elected TV Board third vice chair.

Christopher Wood, senior vice president and associate general counsel for Government and Regulatory Affairs at Univision Communications, Inc., was appointed to the designated TV network seat on the NAB Board’s Executive Committee.

The Board elections took place at the NAB Board of Directors meeting, held June 28-29.

BizVibe has identified the expansion of OTT delivery systems as a major trend for the radio and television broadcasting industry.

Why? OTT services are rapidly becoming a primary source of news and public information. Several TV stations are expanding news coverage on OTT delivery systems such as Apple TV and Roku.

These platforms are trying to supplement traditional broadcasting services and open up new monetization opportunities. As BizVibe sees it, this trend is expected to have a strong influence on radio and television broadcasting companies around the world.