Industry News

Since September 2020, he’s been a Senior Advisor at the Mozilla Foundation, the entity that brought internet users the Firefox web browser.

His past experience includes roles as Director of Digital Economy for the U.S. Department of Commerce, and from 2005-2012 was an Americas Director of Public Policy for Google.

If Congress says yes, he’ll become the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information at the Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), where FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington last worked.

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Among the more colorful entrepreneurs in broadcast media is Frank Copsidas, an individual well-known across New England who is now leading the recently launched LPTV Broadcasters Association. 

Copsidas has bought and sold many LPTVs. Now, he’s spinning a property licensed to a town of less than 2,000 in the Deep South. The buyer? Gray Television.

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Is a bumpy road ahead for broadcasters across the rest of the Biden Administration, now that Jessica Rosenworcel is set to officially become Chairwoman of the FCC and Gigi Sohn, a “net neutrality” champion, is the White House’s nominee to become the fifth Commissioner?

There’s already chatter Inside the Beltway about what could come for the Rosenworcel Commission — or, perhaps, what won’t come. Ahead of his exclusive Forecast 2022 appearance, BIA Advisory Services Senior Vice President and Chief Economist Dr. Mark Fratrik shares his views on whether or not “regulatory burdens” seen under the Wheeler Commission could come back. Deregulation? Don’t count on it, he says in this InFOCUS Podcast, presented by dot.FM.

Listen to “The InFOCUS Podcast: Dr. Mark Fratrik, BIA” on Spreaker.

Antenna and RF systems manufacturer Dielectric has announced the appointment of Daniel Bizet to international sales manager.

Bizet was most recently with Broadcast Electronics as a Latin America sales manager.

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His focus at Dielectric will reflect his past life and work experience by centering on Latin and South American sales. Bizet spent much of his life in Venezuela.

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

The post Bizet Joins Dielectric appeared first on Radio World.

Not long ago, the term “survival” was a distant thought. Now it’s difficult not to think about it several times daily. We must continually consider how we survive this terrible pandemic both physically and financially. We must plan carefully now for the future.

Being local is no longer an option for terrestrial radio. The choice is to be local or to risk irrelevance. As listening habits continue to shift toward more time spent with Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, podcasts and other choices, being a radio station without localization is a long-term losing proposition.

Where’s the local opportunity?

[Read: Take Time to Renew Relationships]

The most obvious is in news, talk and information. It may be difficult for programmers under 40 years old to remember local news on anything other than an actual full-time local news station, since consolidation has unsparingly wiped out local news on music stations.

For the most part, these had been inexpensive news operations; often the “news department” was one dedicated staff member and a few part-timers.

When they were eliminated, local newspapers initially filled the void. But then so many newspapers folded that it left hundreds of towns — especially those without TV stations — with little to no local news.

However, some local news websites, often based on formerly printed publications, survived; and we have seen radio stations partner with or buy these local news websites and then promote and sell advertising in combo.

This is a great plan if you’re able to replicate it.

There is an opportunity in many cities to bring local news back to radio, especially during drivetimes. There is no reason why your :60– to :90–second local newscasts can’t be recorded slightly in advance of use to maximize your sole reporter’s time.

Another strong option continues to be the talk/news hybrid with local hosts. If you don’t think the talent is out there, I refer you once again to the relatively new “Clubhouse” app, where thousands of hosts are honing much of the same skill set required for local talk radio.

When a radio station pursues a news, talk or information agenda, it is a gathering place for community. This leads to loyalty, which is any station’s key to success. Another understated benefit is that when people listen to spoken-word programming — even when it is part of a music station — it is not usually heard as mere background; rather, it engages actively, a huge benefit to local advertisers who are counting on people to hear their messaging.

Who is consistently the top-billing radio station in America? It’s WTOP, the all-news station in our nation’s capital. Other success stories include Trenton’s NJ101.5 in the talk/news format since 1990, when Walt Sabo not only innovated localization, but also convinced ownership that it belonged on FM.

And for those who think this can’t work in a small- to medium-size town, check out KXRA in Alexandria, Minn., with a county population of 36,529. The “Voice of Alexandria” has local news and sports, a daily updated event calendar, an on-air “Swap Shop” and a strong, locally focused website. And it’s all supported by enthusiastic hometown advertisers.

To be clear, this is not about positioning statements. If you say “we’re local radio” but don’t actually deliver the goods, you will not win fans. This proposition is for courageous programmers and owners who realize that it’s past time for radio to return to its roots in localization.

The post Bring Back Local News appeared first on Radio World.

BALTIMORE — Sinclair Broadcast Group has awarded scholarships to seven university students as a part of its annual Diversity Scholarship program.

Having provided more than $100,000 in tuition assistance during the last six years, the scholarship program aims to invest in the future of the broadcast industry.

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There’s a new Market Manager overseeing a 50kw Class A AM in Chicago, a station that was once the legendary WCFL.

At the same time, the station’s current owner, Good Karma Brands, has selected a Market Manager to lead its Madison, Wisc., operations.

Now leading WMVP “ESPN 1000” in Chicago, starting Nov. 1, is Keith Williams. As Market Manager, Williams will be responsible for overseeing the station’s sales, marketing and content strategy and execution.

Williams is a 22-year veteran of the company and has spent time managing ESPN Cleveland and ESPN Madison, as well as the company’s Mid-Atlantic digital markets.

Speaking of Madison, that’s where Tom Olson will become Market Manager on Nov. 1, replacing Williams. Olson has held a variety of roles throughout his career at Good Karma Brands, including managing the company’s business development team, and most recently as the Director of Sales & Marketing at ESPN Madison.

Olson began his career with Good Karma Brands in 2011 as an intern.

Remember that infamous Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup coffee mug former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai frequently used? Investors and analysts who actively watch broadcast media companies better get two ready for Thursday, November 4.

A sixth licensee of broadcast stations has scheduled their third-quarter 2021 earnings release on this date, with the results distributed following the day’s Closing Bell.

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According to The New York Times, the White House is moving forward with making acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel the agency’s official Chair — making her the first woman to formally hold the seat.

The newspaper also hears from an unnamed source that the Biden Administration is indeed bringing Gigi Sohn back to the FCC, not as Rosenworcel’s successor but as a progressive Commissioner who has been the subject of rumors for months.

While Rosenworcel’s confirmation as FCC Chair is widely expected to come easily, a Congressional battle over Sohn’s nomination could come with precious weeks remaining in this legislative year — keeping a 2-2 deadlock in place. Then, there’s the unthinkable — a 2-1 Republican majority with a Democrat in the White House as Congress blocks both nominations, leading to the end of Rosenworcel’s term and her exit from the Commission.

With so many broadcast media proposals at the Commission, what should radio and TV station C-Suite leaders keep their eyes on? A Forecast 2022 session picks up where our October 12 InFOCUS Podcast left off, with noted Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth co-Managing Partner Frank Montero moderating a panel set to include Colorado Broadcasters Association President/CEO Justin Sasso, Kagan Senior Research Analyst for Broadcast Media Justin Nielson, PMCM TV and Press Communication LLC CEO Bob Mc Allan, and BIA Advisory Services SVP and Chief Economist Dr. Mark Fratrik.

The coming leadership solidification at the FCC is a topic every broadcast management and ownership leader needs to keep on top of. Being at Forecast 2022 offers the best opportunity to stay abreast of what’s ahead in Washington, from Rosenworcel’s desk to Capitol Hill.

Listen to “Frank Montero, Fletcher Heald & Hildreth” on Spreaker.

Roku has enabled publishers to measure channel content on Roku devices with Nielsen Digital Content Ratings (DCR).

The ratings, Nielsen and Roku note, provide access to deduplicated reach and demographic insights for channels on Roku devices to identify which programs most effectively reach key audiences.

This increase in coverage helps content owners and advertisers navigate the expanding world of TV streaming and is “a major milestone on the path to Nielsen ONE, Nielsen’s transformative, cross-media solution that will enable advertisers and publishers to transact using a single metric across linear and digital television.”

Nielsen will enable publishers to measure content across Roku’s 55.1 million active accounts (as of Q2 2021).

Nielsen Digital Content Ratings (DCR) provides audience measurement of digital content consumption, including streaming video, static web pages and mobile apps, across computer, mobile and TV streaming devices.

DCR is a census-based, panel-calibrated solution that provides syndicated, granular reach and volumetric reporting to provide advertisers and publishers.

“This strengthens the close collaboration between Roku and Nielsen,” said Lougman Parampath, VP of Product Management at Roku. “DCR’s syndicated, independent measurement provides market transparency and immediate value to our publishers around understanding audiences in their channels. This bolsters our commitment to delivering for our customers and underscores our focus to continue to be an innovator in the evolving TV streaming measurement landscape.”

Nielsen GM of Digital and Advanced TV Commercial Strategy Ameneh Atai added, “TV streaming is the wave of the future for digital video consumption, and Roku is a major player in CTV penetration,” said . “With the addition of Roku, DCR will have the capability to measure the majority of CTV platforms devices as well as provide channel partners with an understanding of their overall reach across CTV devices. Armed with these insights, media buyers and sellers can make critical decisions around ad strategies and publishers can create informed programming and content distribution strategies.”

Nielsen and Roku forged a strategic alliance earlier this year.

Furthermore, Roku acquired Nielsen’s Advanced Video Advertising (AVA) business, which includes Nielsen’s video automatic content recognition (ACR) and dynamic ad insertion (DAI) technologies.

The acquisition furthers Roku’s launch of an end-to-end DAI product for TV programmers.

“Nielsen and Roku will continue to integrate complementary Nielsen ad and content measurement products into the Roku platform and further advance Nielsen ONE, the company’s cross-media measurement solution,” the companies state.