Industry News

For stock watchers, one thing has become very clear over the last several weeks on Wall Street: The nation’s No. 1 audio entertainment and media company, iHeartMedia, is seeing a strong recovery from its COVID-19 pandemic-fueled low.

On the other hand, shakiness abounds for Entercom Communications shares.

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Tune to 107.9 MHz in Central New Jersey, and you may hear a wide variety of Classic Hits and an announcer using a wee bit of reverb on “WOLD.”

That’s the call sign for a LPFM that happens to share a very tight short-spacing situation with an FM translator just down the road. While this would normally create interference, the facilities share the same programming, originating from Princeton University.

Now, the school has a plan to eliminate the interference, secure a second FM signal in the process, and air paid advertisements without running afoul of low-power FM rules.

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The Federal Communications Commission’s Enforcement Bureau has begun targeting property owners and managers that tolerate pirate broadcasting on their properties.

It started today by notifying owners of three properties in Queens in New York City that there is apparent illegal broadcasting happening at their buildings.

The bureau issued an announcement that it is exercising the FCC’s new authority under the recently enacted PIRATE Act, which gave the commission a significant new hammer in its anti-pirate toolkit: “Parties that knowingly facilitate illegal broadcasting on their property are liable for fines of up to $2 million,” it stated.

Enforcement Bureau Chief Rosemary Harold said, “It is unacceptable — and plainly illegal under the new law — for landlords and property managers to simply opt to ignore pirate radio operations. Once they are aware of these unauthorized broadcasts, they must take steps to stop it from continuing in their buildings or at other sites they own or control.”

If they don’t, she said, they risk a heavy fine, followed by collection action in court. “In addition, our enforcement actions will be made public, which may create further unforeseen business risks.” She emphasized what the FCC and broadcasters have been saying for years: that pirate radio is illegal, and can interfere with licensed stations and emergency alerting.

The bureau will provide written notice to property owners and managers that it thinks “are turning a blind eye to — or even helping facilitate — illegal broadcasting.” It also has created a new “Notice of Illegal Pirate Radio Broadcasting.” The notice provides owners a period of time to remedy the problem before any enforcement action proceeds.

The first three notices were mailed — first class and certified mail — to owners of buildings in Queens that are just a few blocks apart. The bureau said it traced a signal on 105.5 MHz from 3520 97th Street, Queens; another on 91.3 MHz from 3535 95th Street; and a third on 95.9 MHz from 3512 99th Street. They were given 10 days to respond; the FCC said the bureau will “consider any response before taking further action.”

Under the prominent headline “Notice of Illegal Pirate Broadcasting,” each letter’s language should get the attention of a landlord. It reviews the possible penalties, then adds: “If you do not respond to this Notice, the FCC may nonetheless determine that, as a legal matter, you have sufficient knowledge of the above-referenced pirate radio activity to support enforcement action against you. Service of this Notice to you or your agent establishes the foundation, along with other evidence, that could lead to significant financial penalties.”

Broadcasters have pushed for decades for the FCC to be more aggressive in combating illegal broadcasting. FCC Commissioner Michael O’Rielly has been a vocal proponent of giving the commission more tools to do that, and Congress did so in the PIRATE Act.

The argument is that landlords and property managers often know of the activity, and the bureau said it has previously sent warnings to landlords and sought cooperation from national property owners’ organizations to raise awareness. “With pirate broadcasts persisting despite these efforts, Congress took action and empowered the commission to penalize property owners and managers that knowingly permit pirate broadcasters to remain operating from the landlord’s buildings or unbuilt areas,” it stated.

“Landlords and property managers also may be found liable if a pirate station ceases operation for some period of time but later resumes at the same site.”

The post FCC Starts Crackdown on Pirate Radio Landlords appeared first on Radio World.

Mike O’Rielly, the FCC’s fieriest fighter in recent memory against the scourge of unlicensed FM radio broadcasters, may no longer be a Commissioner. But, his fight against pirate radio station operations lives on.

Property owners where illicit broadcasters originate from are now being advised that they could be subject to big new fines from the Federal Communications Commission.

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Without agriculture, and agribusiness, much of Wall Street, Madison Avenue and Silicon Valley would be “hungry, homeless, naked and sober.”

That’s why agribusiness is nothing city folk should scoff at, says Steve Alexander, who will succeed the legendary Orion Samuelson as the chief agribusiness reporter for Nexstar Media Group‘s legendary Chicago talk station, WGN-AM 720, come January 1.

Alexander spoke exclusively with RBR+TVBR Editor-in-Chief Adam R Jacobson about his new role, where he gets his information from, and why Nexstar elected not to sunset the reports — clearly seeing value in their continuation.

Listen to “The InFOCUS Podcast: Steve Alexander, WGN Radio” on Spreaker.

The author is membership program director of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. NFCB commentaries are featured regularly at www.radioworld.com.

With 2020 ending, many people in noncommercial radio are looking at the defining moments of the year. And though the big stories of the nation had a lot of resonance, one topic in particular towered over the community and public media industries.

COVID-19 had a stunning impact, including upon stations forced to change core operations and to lay off staff amid financial problems. The presidential election spawned an array of community discussions, such as escalating polarization and the complex issues opened up by misinformation. 2021 is likely to see both of these subjects dominating headlines and our popular consciousness.

[Read: Community Broadcaster: Difference Makers]

However, if you are a watcher of community media or public radio, nothing quite shaped the industry like diversity, equity and inclusion.

DEI was front and center in no small part due to the proverbial dam breaking in community and public media. Scandals had been brewing at prominent organizations since at least 2017. But where leaders once beset by controversy angled out of positions largely on their own terms, 2020 was the year jobs were withdrawn, people were fired, organizations committed to do better, and everyone ignoring problematic cultures was officially put on notice.

This year, noncommercial media outlets of many sizes saw their names tied to claims of racism, exclusion and abusive workplaces. St. Louis Public Radio and WAMU drew national headlines for serious internal issues. Social media and the internet became forums for workers at Georgia Public Broadcasting, GBH, PRX and elsewhere to speak out. Where staff may have once been quiet, this was the year they instead called for accountability at places like WNET in New York and NPR. Past issues sunk the jobs of Sonya Forte Duhé and Andi McDaniel; they had new positions at Arizona State University’s well-regarded journalism program and Chicago Public Media, respectively. Elsewhere, 2020 saw a wave of retirements and resignations by those caught up in staff conflicts, the most visible of which was American Public Media Group CEO Jon McTaggart. Even community radio saw the spotlight, with sexual misconduct and other issues being raised.

It was not all bad news. The killing of George Floyd and nationwide racial justice demonstrations pushed many communities to have dialogs about bias and equality. Seattle’s KEXP announced it was changing its DJ lineup in a bid to more accurately represent its diverse city. In July, Colorado Public Media offered a sober look at its own failings, pledging to do better. And in the fall, Public Media for All organized a day of action that mobilized dozens of major public media organizations and hundreds of employees to commit to improvements related to diversity, equity and inclusion.

How diversity initiatives will be executed in 2021 remains to be seen, though signs are good that such topics will continue to be a high priority. In December, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting hosted a discussion on diversity with managers across the industry. Organizations like Greater Public, NFCB and the Station Resource Group are leading conversations with their cohorts. And outlets such as Capital Public Radio, KALW and Blue Ridge Public Radio have agreed to accomplish at least one Public Media for All goal in their first 30 days of signing up.

2020 has been a most difficult year for radio. Yet, new calls for inclusion may make 2021 a year we step up to be more relevant, diverse and engaged.

The post Community Broadcaster: Diversity Was Radio’s Story of the Year appeared first on Radio World.

The Comcast-owned multi-platform video advertising unit known as FreeWheel has agreed to purchase a software as a service (SaaS) advertising company in a move that expands FreeWheel’s current programmatic marketplace capabilities across all forms of television and video advertising, including Connected TV (CTV) and Set-top Box Video on Demand (STB VOD).

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Republican Leader Greg Walden, who once owned radio stations in Hood River, Ore., become embarking on a career in state and federal politics is retiring from Congress after 22 years.

He’s already said his goodbyes on the floor of the full House. Now, Walden has shared more about his accomplishments — and thoughts on current tech policy debates including the Section 230 controversy that put Nathan Simington on the FCC — with a top Inside-the-Beltway federal news publication.

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With Lisa Knutson rising from the EVP/CFO role to lead the newly combined businesses of ION Media, the digital multicast channels under the Katz Networks brand, and its OTT-to-MVPD offering Newsy, The E.W. Scripps Company has appointed a television industry veteran with a surname matching its multicast unit to head them on a day-to-day basis.

Jonathan Katz as chief operating officer and head of entertainment for its new national television networks business.

Katz will report to Lisa Knutson, who Scripps previously announced will lead the newly combined businesses of ION Media, the Katz networks and Newsy. Both appointments will be effective upon the close of Scripps’ acquisition of ION Media.

Katz is founder, president and chief executive officer of the Katz networks, which Scripps acquired in 2017. In his new role, Katz will have responsibility for the networks’ entertainment brands including Bounce, Laff, Grit, Court TV Mystery and the ION networks as well as Brown Sugar and “The List.” He will have additional oversight of revenue, research, marketing and programming for the entire portfolio of Scripps’ national networks.

After starting the Bounce network in 2011 as the nation’s first-ever over-the-air broadcast television network dedicated to serving African-American audiences, he founded the Katz networks in 2014, expanding the portfolio to several additional niche-targeted over-the-air networks.

In his current role, Katz has steered the multi-platform networks’ year-over-year growth, outperforming expectations and delivering over-the-air audience growth while spearheading strategic launches of new networks, including the relaunch of the Court TV network in 2019, its expansion into the United Kingdom this year and the development of true crime-focused Court TV Mystery.

Katz’s visionary leadership in the television, news and entertainment industry will help Scripps transform its networks business into a powerful national leader in news and entertainment with broad consumer appeal and reach, said Knutson.

“With his many years of experience in launching, growing and expanding some of the country’s most-watched networks and leading best-in-class teams to fuel growth and innovation, Jonathan has proven time and time again his ability to anticipate and super-serve consumers’ diverse and evolving interests,” said Knutson. “Jonathan is a tremendous asset to Scripps as we bring our national networks businesses together to capture the momentum of over-the-air audience growth and multiplatform TV viewing.”

Katz’s career includes leadership roles at some of the country’s top television networks. Before founding the Katz networks, he was senior vice president and general manager of program planning and acquisitions for all of the Turner Entertainment Networks including TBS, TNT, Cartoon Network, Adult Swim and TCM, including acquisitions work for the original Court TV and The WB broadcast network. Additionally, Katz oversaw the re-branding and relaunch of WTBS in Atlanta as WPCH/Peachtree TV and led all aspects of the station’s operations as general manager.

Before joining Turner’s Entertainment Group in 2000, he was vice president of marketing for CNN Newsource.

Katz launched his career in local TV with roles in programming, advertising, publicity, promotion, production and news at WTOG in Tampa-St. Petersburg, Florida; WJZY in Charlotte, North Carolina; WDBB in Birmingham, Alabama; and WCFT in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

From Radio World’s Who’s Buying What page: WSEW(FM) in Maine will soon operate from a fresh tower site that includes a six-bay Dielectric DCR-H FM antenna with radome.

It’s shown here with four bays up during installation.

The site is across the border in Barrington, N.H., and will go live early next year.

The noncom Christian station is relocating from a tower site in Sanford, Maine, in order to improve signal strength and reach more people including listeners in Manchester, Nashua and Portsmouth, according to a press release from Dielectric.

Ron Malone is president of the licensee, Word Radio.

“WSEW’s market penetration was previously limited with the use of a log-periodic antenna system solution using linear, slant polarization,” Dielectric stated.

“In addition to the advantages of circular polarization, the side-mounted, six-bay antenna will have a prime position on the 400-foot tower to maximize coverage, with its center of radiation at 287 feet above ground level.”

The tower at the new site is owned by Vertical Bridge. Malone was quoted saying the project is intended to resolve issues that the station has had with multipath and occasional dropouts.

Users and suppliers are both invited to send news for Who’s Buying What stories to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post A New FM Site and Antenna for WSEW appeared first on Radio World.