It was a difficult decision for former Houston TV reporter Dan Lauck to retire early. But the progression of his Parkinson's disease left him little choice. One year later, Lauck is still battling Parkinson's (read more - Houston 13 ABC)

There are some stations that do an especially good job of repackaging the music to create memorable special programming. I call this "shuffling the deck" because it involves playing many of the same songs but in a different format. The now-famous "Classic Rock A-to-Z" is a good example, as is the ubiquitous "Top 500 Countdown," typically scheduled over Memorial Day Weekends (read more - Fred Jacobs - Jacobs Media)

Sydney's highest-rating radio personality, Alan Jones, has announced he is suffering prostate cancer and will undergo surgery (read more - The Australian AU)

Religious broadcaster KGNW-AM/820 has dropped its afternoon local talk host, Thor Tolo, and is looking for a replacement - One candidate for that job, who is doing a fill-in stint on the show this week, is Michelle Mendoza (read more - Bill Virgin - Seattle PI)

In his 40th season broadcasting Edmonton Eskimos football, Bryan Hall has started to negotiate a new contract with CHED (read more - Jonathan Huntington - Edmonton Sun CA)

Bill Luzmoor, president of WYORADIO, said during an interview with the STAR last Friday that his company will partner with Jones Radio Networks and launch KMRZ 106.7 on July 15.  The station will also mark the beginning of the Wyoming Hispanic Network, pending the acquisition of two more “C” class FM stations in key markets (read more - David Martin - Green River Star)

Those HD advocates have gone and done it. As Kurt Hanson reported in RAIN recently: The ASCAP has proposed to the Radio Music License Committee that HD2 radio pay a music license royalty. Broadcasters maintain that since they're generating no revenue from their HD2 channels, a royalty isn't justified. In making their case, the ASCAP cited research, long ago debunked, that predicted 30 million HD receivers in the market by 2012 (read more - Jerry Del Colliano - Inside Music Media)

Ad Age's Top 10 Most-Liked, Most-Recalled New TV Spots of the Month (view 'em - Ad Age)

News Directors aren’t supposed to like music formats but when we changed the format at WRKO to music in 1967, Roger Allan embraced it. When we launched the 20/20 news format Roger was like a little kid - Roger Allan Bump suffered renal failure and died on Tuesday, July 1 (read more - Mel Phillips)

HDNet’s Mark Cuban told CableFAX that consolidation has tilted the playing field and may extinguish the voices of independent programmers (read more - CableFax)

CelleGrams is allowing listeners of a radio program on CelleCast to easily share memorable utterances by hosts with others by bookmarking and sending that precise program clip right from their phone for someone else to hear. “Until now, great moments in radio vanish into the ether the moment they are heard,” said Andrew Deal, CelleCast founder and CEO. “We’ve created a very simple way to virally share radio in a way that anyone can do, simply by pressing 3 while listening” (visit CelleCast)

Wednesday July 2, 2008 Edition

Word on the street and from reliable sources is that ABC Radio's Radio Disney will move from its Dallas HQ's to Burbank

It's still early, but WOR (710 AM) is hearing some good news about its decision to bring back John Gambling as morning host. In Arbitron's Portable People Meter (PPM) ratings for May, Gambling averaged 5.4% of the audience for third place (read more - David Hinckley - NY Daily News)

"An estimated 33 million people in the United States alone are weekly listeners of internet radio, and that number is growing," George Parthimos said. "As connectivity to the internet becomes more ubiquitous, including wireless broadband, access issues holding back internet radio go away and more listeners will tune in." (read more - Richard Conrad - News AU)

ARBitron numbers for Dallas-Fort Worth,  Minneapolis-St Paul, Buffalo-Niagara Falls and Tampa-St Petersburg (read the numbers)

The Radio-Television News Directors Association has announced the 2008 winners of the coveted Edward R. Murrow Awards, honoring excellence in electronic journalism (read the winner's names)

Half of adults in the United States believe the FCC should regulate the Internet like it does radio and television, according to a poll by Rasmussen Reports. 49 per cent of respondents agree with the idea, while 35 per cent disagree (read more - Angus Reid)

The once-sad story of Cara Carriveau turned out to have a happy ending after all. In 2006, after eight years at Emmis Communications classic rock WLUP-FM (97.9), Carriveau was fired as midday personality after she spoke out in a letter to this column about so many local radio icons being out of work +
Seandale, morning co-host on Crawford Broadcasting urban contemporary WPWX-FM (92.3), hosts "Raw TV," a new weekly showcase for Chicago's music and entertainment scene (read more - Robert Feder - Chicago Sun-Times)

"The Jacor name is retired from broadcasting," but the roaring bark of Jacor's mascot bulldog is being heard loud and clear in Chicago. That bark added more bite this week when Tribune Interactive President Marc Chase named Jana Gavin senior director/business development for Tribune Interactive (read more - Forbes)

The iPod dock in the car is another device that is coming of age as Chrysler gets ready to roll out UConnect Web -- that's what they're calling it. So, WiFi on Wheels is the latest wake up call to the radio industry to look beyond the transmitter and tower business and jump into Internet content. That, and mobile content will be the future. Radio CEOs won't like it, but the people they employ are perhaps the most qualified to produce content beyond terrestrial radio (read more - Jerry Del Colliano)

From Jay Marvin -- One of the things I think is wrong with talk stations today is lack of local content. But you know what? The NPR station here(KFCR) is not much better. The only thing I ever hear them do is pull stuff off the bird from NPR, and there's a limit to how much of it I can take (read more - Jay Marvin)

From John Rook -- With the exception of the expert coverage of Chicago area broadcasting by Robert Feder at the Sun Times, very few newspapers deem local radio and television important enough to be reported. But with the drop in circulation in my own area the editors of the Spokane Spokesman-Review have now awakened to proudly gush about being a participant in the programming of one of the town’s news/talk facilities. Now-a-days with newspaper circulation in a deadfall, columnist and editors at the Tribune Corporation have suddenly found themselves taking direction from radio programming wizards Randy Michaels and Lee Abrams (read more - www.JohnRook.com)

Julie Lane and Nancy Vaeth-DuBroff, highly respected and accomplished Radio industry professionals and members of the Mentoring and Inspiring Women (MIW) in Radio Group, will speak at the Radio Advertising Bureau's (RAB) women's management training program, Rising Through the Ranks (read more - RAB)

FCC commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate is the key to XM-Sirius vote (read more - Peter Kaplan - Reuters)

The Sound KSWD-FM adds Mike Powers as the new night host with his first 8 p.m. to midnight show on Monday, July 7

There are times when Radio seems almost Third World in its efforts to catch up to other media, when it comes to technology and digital strategies. But there's one area where Radio is often ahead of the curve - email databases (read more - Fred Jacobs - Jacobs Media)

Microsoft's brute-force bid to boost its search business by acquiring Yahoo! may have been shuttered, but the software giant hasn't given up on challenging Google. Now, it may be trying a more literate approach (read more - Andy Greenberg - Forbes)

John Kincade has signed an extension with 680 'The Fan' (read more - John Manasso - Atlanta Biz Journal)

Premiere Radio's Blair Garner is enlisting listeners to give something back to U.S. troops in celebration of Independence Day by visiting www.BlairGarner.com to send a message of support to a sailor, marine, soldier, airman or coast guardsman through American Supports You - a Department of Defense program that provides opportunities for citizens to show their support for the U.S. Armed Forces

Air America Media has named Bennett Zier, a veteran media industry executive and entrepreneur, as its chief executive officer (read more - Washington Post)

With so little format competition on the local radio dial it seems newsworthy when one station goes after a competitor in the same market. As of this writing, one Chicago all sports radio station takes a poke at the other on Wednesday (July 2) afternoon. Mike North, whose contract was not renewed after June 30th as morning and midday host for more than 16 years at WSCR "The Score", and who has been off the air for almost 2 weeks, makes a media return this week (read more - Dave Kohl)

Greater Media has officially launched “Good Time Oldies” on WCTC 1450 AM in New Brunswick, New Jersey with a station line-up that includes “The Morning Show with Jack Ellery” from 6 AM to 10 AM and “good time oldies” throughout the rest of the day (listen live)

Rush Limbaugh has renewed his contract with Premiere Radio Networks and Clear Channel Radio, continuing syndication of The Rush Limbaugh Show many years into the future. The deal also includes  The Rush Limbaugh Morning Update, The Limbaugh Letter and  RushLimbaugh.com with Rush247.com (read more - PR Newswire)

Although I have no vested interest in the proposed XM-Sirius merger, it’s a relief to see that someone has confidence that it not only will happen but the company, at least Sirius, is a good investment right now. That’s the only explanation for Merrill Lynch’s Glen Campbell raising his rating on Sirius from hold to buy (read more - Mel Phillips)

A bit of a set back developed late Tuesday for Nikki Leigh, KEXL106.7 12 - 3 pm air personality. Things are not progressing as well as the Doctors have hoped after her surgery in Omaha Monday afternoon (read more - KEXL)

Nick St. John (Aubrey Cook) who worked at San Antonio's KEXL passed away after a battle with cancer. There'll be a gathering Saturday July 12th at the San Antonio Botanical Gardens for a goodbye tribute to Nick (read more)

In the fall of 1976, the Plain Dealer’s weekend entertainment magazine, Friday, did a cover story, titled “The over-40’s make it in rock,” written by the paper’s music editor Jane Scott, who incidentally was also a member of that club. The cover featured our own Murray Saul - then forty-eight years old - in a photo shot at a WMMS World Series of Rock at the Cleveland Stadium earlier that year, doing his trademarked “Get Down” to a crowd of over 88,000 (read more - John Gorman)

XM makes the NavTraffic service, a $4-per-month add-on to the $12.95 monthly XM satellite radio subscription, available to pre-installed systems in Cadillac, Porsche, Nissan, Toyota, Infiniti, Chevrolet and other makes and also on aftermarket in-car systems from Pioneer, Alpine, Garmin and Kenwood. In short, if you want the service, you can get it (read more - Mark Kellner - Washington Times)

In spite of every new bid for audience attention, the radio remains the main place people discover new music and the biggest driver of new purchases. You thought the internet was a threat? (I thought the internet was a threat. I thought all computers were a threat. I thought soon the youth wouldn't even know how to turn a radio on, they'd just sit stroking it, wondering why its mouse pad wasn't working. Like tiny, stupid Aladdins.) The internet is not a threat, it is a supplement - they hear things they like on the radio, can buy them immediately online, listen to them for a bit, then go back to the radio (read more - Zoe Williams - The Guardian U.K.)

Tuesday July 1, 2008 Edition

Lawmakers fear minorities will be shut out in Sirius-XM merger (read more - Anthony Calypso - Black Enterprise
 

In these tough economic times, the Clear Channel banks are cutting the loan price to attract buyers (read more - Pierre Paulden - Reuters)

SIRIUS Satellite Radio announced financial guidance for 2009 assuming the completion of the merger of SIRIUS and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. Based upon the company's preliminary analysis, it said that total synergies, net of the costs to achieve such synergies, for the combined company are expected to be approximately $400 million in 2009 (read more - Reuters)  (read more - Sirius) (read more - Sarah McBride - Wall Street Journal)

KIOA Iowa radio's Dic Youngs has filed an age and disability discrimination lawsuit against Saga Communications (read more - KCCI 8)

Howard Stern may have a Sirius dilemma.  Financial problems at Sirius and XM mean the lavish deals with Stern and other top talent may be a thing of the past (read more - Scott Moritz - Fortune)

Six of Chicago radio's biggest morning personalities will turn up together to show what good sports they are. Dan Bernstein, afternoon host of CBS Radio sports/talk WSCR-AM (670), will moderate the star-studded roundtable from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. July 11 at Smith & Wollensky + A wave of firings Monday swept through Univision Radio Chicago, with at least five staffers fired from the Spanish-language station cluster (read more - Robert Feder - Chicago Sun-Times)

DIRECTV on DEMAND is now offering customers access to thousands of movies, TV shows, special interest programs and more to watch on their own schedule, available at no extra charge to DIRECTV customers (read more - DirecTV)

ARBitron numbers for Dayton, St. Louis, Tucson, Phoenix, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh (read the numbers)

Arbitron has introduced the PPM Passport Training Program, a series of complimentary advanced sessions to help advertising agencies successfully plan and buy media using Portable People Meter ratings (read more - Arbitron Training)

Last week's debut of Chrysler's mobile Internet service set to appear in 2009 vehicles was muted by the harsh reality of just how much this service will cost you. Says PC Magazine: Since this is ultimately a cellular service, despite its emphasis on WiFi, the pricing will be complex: "The U.S. Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) for the router module is $449," Chrysler says (read more - Mark Ramsey - Hear 2.0)

As we continue to work diligently to prevent the proposed XM-Sirius monopoly from becoming a reality, I have to ask the question that is slowly dawning on me: why doesn’t Washington like free radio? I have been spending a lot of time lately calling on members of Congress to explain to them why, despite FCC Commissioner Kevin Martin’s recommendation to approve the proposed transaction, a merger to monopoly of the only two satellite radio companies will be so devastating both to terrestrial broadcasters and to the public interest (read more - CEO Peter Smyth - Greater Media)

I don't see why anyone, let alone a group supposedly acting on behalf of consumers, would care about the companies making an interoperable receiver before they are allowed to merge. Up until now, if you want the content that Sirius offers, you would buy a Sirius receiver, but if you wanted XM's content, you would buy an XM receiver. It's kind of like the whole MAC/PC argument. You know the commercials - "Hi. I'm a MAC!" People make a decision concerning which type of computer they want to buy the same way that people choose Sirius or XM. OK. So maybe you don't like that analogy. Well, how about cell phones? (read more - Brian K. Hoover - Penn Live)

The radio business has been on the decline for years and shows no signs of improving unless it can find a way to get the next generation to give up their new media for radio - not likely. No one can know for sure what will happen once Lee & Bain take over, but there are some clues. Here's my take:
1. Retaining John Hogan is the perfect move for the new owners. He has a multi-year record of presiding over a declining Clear Channel. It's nothing personal, but some people think Hogan has no game when it comes to running the largest radio group (read more - Jerry Del Colliano - Inside Music Media)

All Comedy Radio "News Burps"
* Barack Obama and Bill Clinton had a 20 minute phone conversation Monday. Some things never change. Clinton started the conversation by asking, “So - what’s Michelle wearing?”
* Meanwhile, Barack gave a major speech yesterday on patriotism. And yes, he did plan to make his wife read it.
* The French military accidentally shot 17 people at a military show when live ammo was used instead of blanks. Immediately upon learning of the incident the army surrendered to a local Boy Scout.
* Will Smith denies the school he and his wife are helping build a Scientology school. However, students will be required to hand over to the school 50% of their milk money.
* Pamela Anderson ripped Jessica Simpson during an interview on radio, calling Simpson a “bitch” and “whore” because she eats meat. The attack against Miss Simpson drew immediate criticism from PETA. People for the Ethical Treatment of Airheads.
"All Comedy Radio" - www.allcomedyradio.com - A unique and diverse format service is currently on HD-2 stations 24/7 in Seattle, Portland, Sacramento, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Denver, Kansas City, Memphis, New Orleans, Buffalo and others. For affiliate information for your HD-2 station contact: Al Perrotta at acrnews@mac.com

Now that AOL and CBS Radio have hooked up in what CEO Dan Mason says is a merger that "has instantly doubled our daily audience of listeners," it's another victory for strong brands. For years, AOL has offered generic streaming radio stations that were as exciting as wallpaper. Now with 150 CBS Radio stations to choose from, AOL-goers can actually find a better radio listening experience - or can easily find a radio station they've heard from during their travels around the U.S. (read more - Fred Jacobs - Jacobs Media)

From Jimmy Rabbitt -- This week in Rock n' Roll History, the Rascals are awarded their second gold record in 1968 for the Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati composition "A Beautiful Morning." Between 1965 and 1971, they had 18 Billboard Hot 100 hits, including three million-selling singles: "Groovin'" (which hit # 1 for four weeks in 1967), "A Beautiful Morning" (which hit # 3 in 1968) and "People Got To Be Free" (which hit # 1 for five weeks in 1968) (read more - www.TheRabbittReport.com)

HipCricket has appointed Dennis McCormick as vice president of sales and client development. With nearly three decades in broadcast sales, McCormick has extensive experience growing revenue for radio and television affiliates in Seattle (read more - Business Wire)

Way back in February, 2007 XM agreed to be purchased by Sirius. In March of 2008 the Department of Justice cleared the deal. In June FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said he would recommend approval of the deal and the merger should be approved by the end of June. Of course he never said what year that would be. And here we are on July 1 with bupkus. This is not what Mel Karmazin had in mind (read more - Mel Phillips)

Anheuser-Busch is slashing their ad spending due to cost cuts to fend off a hostile takeover bid (read more - Jeremy Mullman and Andrew Hampp - Ad Age)

An upbeat Miss Jones played a bunch of "goodbye" records yesterday for her morning audience at WQHT (97.1 FM). She's leaving to go full time at WPHI in Philly starting Monday (read more - David Hinckley - NY Daily News)

Last year John Hogan made $2,166,308. His base is $775,000. The rest came from performance bonuses and stock and options. How does it feel to be a Clear Channel parvenu? Privileged number one son and Clear Channel CEO Mark Mays said in memo, “This management team will be on point to compete successfully against newspapers, cable, television, and all of our other competitors. Did he really utter the word “newspapers?” (read more - John Gorman)

The Georgia Radio Hall of Fame is urging you to make your reservations now for the 2nd annual induction dinner and awards program October 4 event (visit www.grhof.com)

A cat stuck on the end of a vacuum cleaner, Sally Mugnusson's fluffy bits and a right old ding-dong about whether local radio is "crap" with the BBC's Pat Loughrey. It can only be one thing - the opening session of the Radio Festival in Glasgow. It has now become traditional - well, for two years in a row, anyway - to open the festival with a debate (read more - John Plunkett - Media Guardian U.K.)

Former Capital Radio personality Chris Tarrant is returning to radio on the GMG network and will go head to head with Jonathan Ross on BBC 2 (read more - Mirror U.K.)

From Happy Hare -- I left the air in 1971, and showed that I meant it by turning down the morning news/talk hosting at KSDO under VP/GM Peter Lund, later the president of CBS. Well, not all of my judgment was solid. I chose to enter Sales because KSON GSM Mike Stafford gave me the store. A big guarantee, a lofty life insurance policy and a fancy car. The company, Jefferson Pilot, even stowed away a generous retirement nest egg for me. The capper: I was in my mid-40’s without “medical.” I abhor vacuums Another capper: Stafford was going to avert his eyes while I went to L.A. at least once a week, to do national V/O’s (read more - www.HappyHareOnline.com)

Warner has joined the Nokia music download service (read more - Crain's NY Biz)

The KCBS radio plane was forced to land (read more - CBS 13)

Voted yet? Who will be inducted into the 2008 Texas Radio Hall of Fame is now in the hands of the voting member.  Thus far, these individuals are receiving the most support : (Updated July 1 - in alphabetical order) Chris Baker, Russ Bloxom, "The Big Bopper" (J.P. Richardson), Steve Eberhart, John H. Hicks, Jo Interrante, Dave Jarrott, Joe Leonard, Jr., C.C. McCartney, Jerry Miller (Mueller), Michael O'Shea, Lee Randall, Larry Shannon, Jerry Thomas, Susan Price Thompson and Bill Ward (visit www.texasradiohalloffame.com to vote or become a voting member)

Shane McBryde, 37, has been let go from co-hosting a morning show on Cumulus' WMAC News Talk 940 in Macon after being arrested on June 24 when he admitted to a police officer that he had a small bag of marijuana (read more - Jennifer Burk  - Macon Telegraph)

News Talk 850 WFTL Fort Lauderdale will add Westwood One's Dennis Miller Show on July 7 at 10pm-1am, following the Michael Savage Show

We all must live in the here and now - meaning that programming must deliver ratings that sales can sell today. Budgets must be met. We all understand this reality. Unfortunately, that leaves little room to re-think, re-tool, re-deploy assets (stations) with new, inventive, and radically changed products. Products that may not be a big ratings draw--at first. Eventually the day will come and these changes will have to be made. Will it be too late? (read more - Harve Alan)

Almost-all-rerun radio is done at WWWL-AM-1350. WWWL is carrying a lineup of ESPN Radio network programs, some of which had been running on WODT-AM-1280 (read more - Dave Walker - New Orleans Times-Picayune)

London Broadcasting of Dallas has purchased KFDA-TV NewsChannel 10, along with three sister stations, in a package deal from Drewry Communications based in Lawton, Oklahoma (read more - KFDA 10)

Monday June 30, 2008 Edition

As a musician and producer who lives and breathes for new technology in audio entertainment, I am convinced of two things concerning the future of radio: 1. Terrestrial radio is a dead man walking. 2. Satellite and Internet radio are the going to be the new and permanent sheriffs in town. Now I think we all know why The National Association of Broadcasters is so against the Sirius/XM Merger. Their business model is so outdated it has rust flaking off the chassis. Don't think so? Let's speculate for a minute (read more - Gino Lattarulo - Seeking Alpha)

John Hogan has signed on for 5 more years as CEO of Clear Channel (read more - Michele Gershberg - Reuters)

Today's average "gas at the pump price per gallon" is $4.09 and crude oil is above $143 a barrel. $3.66 a gallon is what you'll pay today in Joplin (read more - Gas Buddy)

Starting this morning on WCBS-FM (101.1), the station is counting down its "entire music library" through next weekend, PD Brian Thomas says + Starting tomorrow, WNNJ (1360 AM) in Newton, N.J., will pick up Scott Shannon's "True Oldies" channel (read more - David Hinckley - NY Daily News)

The HD Digital Radio Alliance unveiled an expanded marketing campaign aimed at converting awareness into buying action with an innovative mobile marketing initiative and expanded online resources for retailers and auto dealers to the next flight of on-air radio ads (read more - HD Radio Alliance)

Platinum 96.7 is shining and The Twister 96.7 is gathering dust in a Dallas-Fort Worth corner. Can the Ron Chapman magic work "just one more time?" Larry Dixon's doing mornings with Gail Lightfoot in the newsroom. Vic Thomas will be on air for middays and Wendi Westbrook will do afternoon drive. Chapman, who spent more than 45 years as an on-air personality in the market and is a member of the Texas Radio Hall of Fame, will serve in a consulting role and be responsible for putting together the station’s talent, imaging and music  (listen online - Platinum 96.7) (read more - Alan Peppard - Dallas News)

Philly is getting Miss Jones all for itself again. The morning-radio host also known as Jonesy, heard since November on WPHI (100.3) in a syndication deal with New York's Hot 97, last week got the ax in the Big Apple. Elroy Smith, operations manager for Radio One in Philly, yesterday said Jones would start exclusively on WPHI (The Beat) on July 7 (read more - Michael Klein - Philly Inquirer)

Why do journalists mourn Tim Russert so? Scratch the surface of all those glittering tributes for Tim Russert and you might find an undercoating of journalistic insecurity. The NBC analyst was hailed as a symbol of old-fashioned, carefully balanced, substance-driven reporting, an approach that, while not exactly extinct, often seems drowned out by today's loudmouth television culture. But why was his passing depicted as the end of an era? (read more - Howard Kurtz - Washington Post)

Format shifts bring no bling to radio stations WRDU and 99.9 The Fan (read more - Tri City Journals)

One company owns seven of the nine commercial radio stations in Cache Valley. The same company sells much of the advertising for one of the other stations, and the remaining station is a small AM operation in Preston, Idaho. Monopoly? Depends on whom you ask (read more - Mike Wennergren - Salt Lake City - Deseret Morning News)

Our session at the Conclave focused on what I have learned from The Next Generation that I wanted to share with radio folks. It included the future of terrestrial radio, a glimpse of what future radio might be and some exercises for those who wanted to get started on the road to becoming better at generational media (read more - Jerry Del Colliano - Inside Music Media)

CRTC allows foreign investors to acquire large stakes in Canadian broadcasting companies - eespite Canadian ownership and control restrictions (read more - Mondaq)

Springs sports fans are striking out on the radio. Sports-talk station KKML (1300 AM) "The Sports Animal" has changed formats to classic country and be renamed KCS. The switch leaves Colorado Springs without a sports-talk station (read more - Andrew Wineke - Colorado Springs Gazette)

Within hours of the death of the American comedian George Carlin being reported, I received a couple of dozen emails directing me to various tribute sites where Carlin's routines were preserved for posterity. Most came from radio listeners who had first heard Carlin's scabrous comedy on a late-night show I did in Sheffield in the late 1970s - Comedy is a hugely underrated commodity on the radio (read more - Martin Kelner - The Guardian U.K.)

All Comedy Radio "News Burps"
* Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton made nice-nice at their Unity rally Friday in New Hampshire. It was the most unlikely display of affection since Michael Jackson kissed Lisa Marie.
* Serious flooding in Lincoln County, Missouri after muskrats helped wreck a levee. No truth to early reports the muskrats were squeaking, “Allah Akbar!”
* A judge has halted any distribution of the sex tape featuring Mini Me Vern Troyer. And a grateful world breathed a collective sigh of relief.
* How was Amy Winehouse’s weekend? She performed for Nelson Mandela at one show, attacked a fan at another show, and then reportedly checked into a hospital. In other words: same-ol’, same-ol’.
* MTV says they’d love to have Britney Spears return to this year’s VMA’s. Responded Britney, “I was on last year’s VMA’s?!”
"All Comedy Radio" - www.allcomedyradio.com - A unique and diverse format service is currently on HD-2 stations 24/7 in Seattle, Portland, Sacramento, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Denver, Kansas City, Memphis, New Orleans, Buffalo and others. For affiliate information for your HD-2 station contact: Al Perrotta at acrnews@mac.com

We're switching to digital broadcasting in the UK in a few years, which gives people a few more channels. Radio's not going to be fully digital for decades. Broadcast is still going to be a dominant form of content distribution in ten and maybe twenty years time, it just won't be the only one. And five years from now there will clearly be more bottom-up media, just as there are more weblogs now than five years ago, but I'd be surprised if it had really eradicated any major media outlets (read more - Bruce Sterling - Wired)

SIRIUS Satellite Radio broadcast a fan tribute to George Carlin to honor the life, career and influence of the comedy icon on Sunday. The special featured personal reflections and memories from fellow comedians and fans interwoven with classic Carlin stand-up material and was satelcast on SIRIUS Raw Dog Comedy Uncensored channel 104

Unless something happens today the XM-Sirius merger won’t be approved by the end of June but the merger is odds-on to pass with conditions. One key condition will be a radio which will be compatabile to hear both satellite services. While there may not be that radio available in the foreseeable future, HD Digital Radio is taking no chances. They’ll be takin’ their message to the streets with a $57 million, 13-week marketing campaign that will be heard in 100 markets on more than 700 radio stations (read more - Mel Phillips)

There was a time only a decade or so ago in Rock Radio where we had it all to ourselves. We controlled our music and our pop culture. Sure, some of Rock's featured bands would appear on Saturday Night Live, and there was always the competition from MTV. But for the most part, if you worked for a big Rock or Alternative station - even in a smaller market - you controlled the agenda for how music and concerts were exposed and promoted. Today, you're competing with virtually everyone (read more - Fred Jacobs - Jacobs Media)

AM 760's Jay Marvin has won 5280 Magazine's Top Of The Town Award for "best talk show" host by both the readers and the editors. In the write up they pointed out Jay was isolated on a small station on the dial, but was one of the only talk show hosts who is truly interested in having conversations with the listeners instead of yelling at them

Summer celebrations are in full swing at Channel 95-5 (WKQI-FM) and 97.1 The Ticket (WXYT-FM/AM) as both stations bask in the glow of ratings success + There is an interesting battle in Washington D.C. going on between record and radio industries - The arguments on both sides are very compelling to me (read more - Mike Austerman - MichiGuide)

Sid Michaels could never forget Paul Oles. Many area sports fans won’t forget Oles, who passed away Saturday, but for Michaels, he won’t forget his first boss. “I ,’’ said the formerwas right out of college, and got a job at WCDL-AM WBRE-TV and WYOU-TV sports anchor. “He did everything for them.’’ Oles had a long broadcasting career, first in radio and later at WNEP-TV (read more - Scranton Times-Tribune)

Bob and Tom are pushing their newest comedy CD, "Donnie Baker: My Job Sucks" (read more - Philip Potempa - NW Indiana Times)

A&O's Conclave 2008 session was a full house on Friday morning, right between Jerry Del Colliano on radio's high tech/younger demo future and NAB President and CEO David Rehr's rousing pro-radio pep talk (read more - Jaye Albright)

Twice a week inside the Central Square studios of WRCA-AM (1330), Gil Matos debates with his Spanish listeners the latest in Red Sox, Celtics, and boxing news on the show "Sus Deportes" ("Your Sports") - Matos is one of the city's few broadcasters who move from English to Spanish with the ease of a switch-hitter (read more - Johnny Diaz - Boston Globe)

Tom and Ray Magliozzi, the brothers who’ve turned a call-in show about car trouble into a weekly highlight for National Public Radio listeners, have long seemed ripe for a television show - They have landed in an animated sitcom on PBS, “Click & Clack’s As the Wrench Turns”  (read more - Elizabeth Jensen -  NY Times)

From Claude Hall -- The death of George Carlin shook me up a bit. In the 70s, I did a story with George, once a disc jockey. I considered it one of the saddest stories I’d ever written for Billboard because he was honest about drugs, etc + I love Don Imus. Always have. Since his Palmdale, CA days. He has been helpful to me at times. I consider him a good man. Now, it’s true that none of us are perfect. I’m sure that I’ve said things many times that have irritated the devil out of at least someone and more than likely several someones. Sometimes, I did this on purpose. Sometimes by accident. I, personally, would hate for Imus to be forced off the air (read more - www.ClaudeHallOnline.com)

Best Buy and Radio Shack will both sell iPhone 3G when it becomes available in July (read more - Michael Kwan - Mobile Mag)

The magic of radio will be explored in a new exhibit opening July 3 at the Merced County Courthouse Museum. "Radio of the Past" will showcase the radio receiving sets used in the 1920s and early 1930s, the pioneering years of commercial broadcasting (read more - Merced Sun-Star)

From Tommy Kramer --  “Yeah, that’s true.” “Uh huh.” “Yep, that’s right.” “That’s great.” Wasted words. Meaningless, pointless agreement. They don’t ADD anything to the conversation. So why say them?  (read more - www.TommyKramer.net)

The most dominant cable news channel for nearly a decade and a political force in its own right, Fox has seen its once formidable advantage over CNN erode in this presidential election year, as both CNN and MSNBC have added viewers at far more dramatic rates (read more - Jacques Steinberg - NY Times)

Voting is underway now for choices of those who will be inducted into the 2008 Texas Radio Hall of Fame.  Thus far, these individuals are receiving the most support from voting members: (Updated June 30) Chris Baker, Russ Bloxom, "The Big Bopper" (J.P. Richardson), Ken Collins, Tyler Cox, Steve Eberhart, John H. Hicks, Jo Interrante, Mark Mays, C.C. McCartney, Jerry Miller (Mueller), Dr. Bruce Nelson, Michael O'Shea, Larry Shannon, Jerry Thomas, Paul Williams (visit www.texasradiohalloffame.com to vote or become a voting member)

Alistair Cooke will be resurrected on Radio 4. Figuratively. Five editions of "Letter from America", his confiding weekly talk, which ran for 58 years, are being excavated as the new Book of the Week, called Cooke’s Elections - The key person in this process is Justin Webb, the BBC’s North America editor, who introduces all the Cooke letters this week. Though smooth, even slightly oily, in manner, Webb has guts: when he was Washington correspondent in 2006, he told an internal BBC meeting that the corporation failed to ask serious questions about why the USA is “as successful as it is, why the system it invented works. And, in the tone of what we say about America, we have a tendency to scorn and deride. We don’t give America any kind of moral weight in our broadcasts” (read more - Paul Donovan - The Times U.K.)

How badly do you want to listen to Sirius Satellite Radio programming on your Apple iPhone? With a little determination, you can (read more - Robert Holmes - The Street)

ARBitron numbers for Akron, Cleveland, Hartford, Baltimore and Washington DC (read the numbers)

Glenn Beck has returned to Cincinnati's 55 KRC

Former Pennsylvania radio talk show host Bruce Bond has been indicted on charges of using stolen bank account information in a $4.3 million forged check scheme (read more - Philly Inquirer)

KHJ's new format hit the air and we managed to get it right. We had hit the vein of young folks fed up with "old style" radio, and just about everything else. It was hard not to be "with it," since we were playing new Beatles' tunes every few months and presenting concerts by the Rolling Stones, Simon & Garfunkel, Jimi Hendrix, The Mamas & The Papas, etc. through the summer of '65. Then, one day a white-label promo copy ABC-Dunhill Record arrived. It was different from anything we, or anyone, were playing. Sure, Bob Dylan and others filled the traditional role of minstrel and folk singer, capturing the zeitgesit. But they got little airplay: their messages were cloaked in poetry and new musical sounds. We put "Eve Of Destruction" on the air, tentatively, ready to pull it if it bombed or caused a stink. It did neither (read more - Ron Jacobs)

How would you feel if you turned on your radio, tuned into your favourite station and were greeted with just the crackle and hiss of empty airwaves? Most radio listeners see little reason to replace old sets that work perfectly well. And it's not because your favourite station has gone bust; rather, it's because FM radio has been banished from the broadcast spectrum. That's the slightly scary future of radio mooted earlier this week by the Digital Radio Working Group, a committee set up in November to look into the future of radio, with a particular focus on digital radio, known as DAB (read more - Claudine Beaumont - The Telegraph U.K.)

Radio stations have just received the latest round of unofficial Portable People Meter ratings from Arbitron, and though they show some improvements for urban and Hispanic stations, they’re still not winning over critics of the controversial new system. The data was leaked to Crain’s (read more - Matthew Flamm - Crain's NY Biz)

Is the Latino media getting a cold shoulder from campaigns? The burst of anger on the Barack Obama campaign’s recent news media call was unexpected, but it should not have been a surprise (read more - Gebe Martinez - La Prensa San Diego)

Arbitron wants my opinion, and I couldn't be more tickled - These days Arbitron is most keenly interested in my sons' diaries. They emphasized several times that they don't get enough feedback from males 18-25. They're going to get it, but they're going to be surprised. My guys aren't your typical teenage radio listeners. As for me, all I'm going to say is, Scratch, you and Cumulus owe me one (read more - Brenda Shoffner - NFW Daily News)

In the face of new technology, he (Marc Fisher) wrote, "I find a business and an art form in trouble: Just when radio cries out for creative revival, it is instead slipping into a disgruntled decline." The stations he loved to listen to as a child, he writes, have now "silenced local programs, choosing instead the cheap route of taking nationally syndicated music and talk shows off the satellite." Fisher is critical of both talk and music radio. Local talk shows, he says, "have largely given way to Rush Limbaugh and a legion of imitators." And music stations strike him as "superfluous - a selection of tunes nowhere near as varied as what iPod users choose for themselves, and without the added value that knowledgeable and entertaining DJs once provided" (read more - Ben Fong-Torres - San Francisco Chronicle)

On Costas on the Radio this weekend: Bob Costas will feature interviews with Fay Vincent - former MLB Commissioner and author of We Would Have Played for Nothing: Baseball Stars of the 1950s and 1960s Talk About the Game They Loved + George F. Will - famed writer/political commentator and author of One Man’s America: The Pleasures and Provocations of Our Singular Nation

Former radio talk show host CKNW's Rafe Mair has won in the Supreme Court of Canada in the case over the 1991 Surrey School same sex book controversy when he was sued for libel (read more - Vancouver Sun CA)

Friday June 27, 2008 Edition

Oil prices hit a record high - above $142 a barrel and the average "gallon at the pump price" for gas is $4.07 (read more - Gas Buddy)

Radio ratings are an inexact science - no matter what stations or the ratings company, Arbitron, want you to think. It's about as good as it can get using the current system, but that system is about as outdated as a wire recorder.  Currently, ratings are tabulated using a diary - The obvious flaw jumps right out at you: The system relies on memories, and memories can be faulty. They can also be influenced by billboards or other advertising, such that someone may write down that he listened to a station when he may have listened to another - or not at all. Less obvious is the diary return rate of certain demographics; if low, Arbitron adjusts the "weight" of each person in a particular group. This can lead to wild fluctuations in ratings between quarters, and under- or over-estimates of the popularity of numerous stations.  Arbitron executives understand these problems and have been working to make a better system. They think they have it in the Portable People Meter, a device a listener wears during a ratings period (read more - Richard Wagoner - The Daily Breeze)

ARBitron numbers for Boston, San Jose, San Francisco and Monterey-Salinas (read the numbers)

One of the conditions for the proposed Sirius- XM Satellite Radio Merger is the set-aside of 4% of the spectrum for non-commercial programming without censorship. Many people think of this as educational programming, but there is a potential here for much more than just insightful education. Both Sirius and XM are participants in the National Alert System, which replaced the Emergency Broadcasting System in 1994. However, the NAS has been found to be dangerously lacking. The FCC have a once in a lifetime opportunity to provide the public with a true national emergency and disaster preparedness system by approving the merger of the two companies. Perhaps this could even happen in time for it to be operable before the next Katrina or 9/11 (read more - Stan Muse - Seeking Alpha)

For an anchorman who barely lasted two years in the market, Ron Hunter left an indelible impression on Chicago television. Unfortunately, it was for all the wrong reasons (read more - Robert Feder - Chicago sun-Times)

It had all the makings of a juicy scandal when radio shock-jock Don Imus made yet another race-related remark about a sports figure the other day. Except for one thing. This time, America yawned (read more - Jon Friedman - MarketWatch)

It’s hard not to feel a little bad for Kelly Stevens and Alpha Trevette, two dutiful foot soldiers for B98.5 who left the airwaves Friday morning after nine-plus years at the soft-rock station and 20 years together as a team - But when Steve McCoy & Vikki Locke became available, Cox Radio -  owners for B98.5 - had to make a strategic choice (read more - Rodney Ho - Atlanta JC)

The FCC has voted to consider new "embedded" ad rules (read more - Peter Kaplan - Reuters)

Dan Patrick was here this week, too, visiting advertising clients and originating his radio show from local affiliate KBME (790 AM), and he seems to be happy with life after ESPN. "My mom tells me, 'You don't sound as corporate,' " Patrick said + Arbitron says KILT (610 AM) remains the week-long leader in the Houston sports radio derby + KFNC, in fact, has pulled within a tenth of a point in morning drive to KILT  (read more - David Barron - Houston Chronicle)

Glenn Beck on June 25: "If I were President of the United States I would go on national television and say ladies and gentlemen of America the Supreme Court says we don't have Guantanamo so that is over - we're going to release all of them, but I want you to know that from here on out our policy is to not have prisoners -  we're going to shoot them all in the head." If we think that they are against us we're gonna shoot them and kill them - period - because that's the only thing we've got going for us - if we can put them away and get information - if we can't put them away and they're going to use our court system, kill them" (hear the audio - YouTube)

While watching a recent streaming video segment from CNBC - "The Business of Innovation" - featuring Mel Karmazin, it reminded me of Mel's talent for proofing ideas and forcing his people to exercise logic, strategy, and fiscal sense (read more - view the video - Fred Jacobs - Jacobs Media)

It's 11 A.M., four days into her new gig, and Adaora Udoji is already exhausted. "It sounded like such a good idea a year ago, to get your ass up at midnight," she says, laughing. "But it's for a great cause." The cause for which Udoji and her cohost, John Hockenberry (both of whom are award-winning TV correspondents), are willing to upend their days is a radio program called The Takeaway. The upstart morning show is not only an audacious bid to take on NPR's Morning Edition, whose 12.9 million listeners make it the second-most-popular radio show in the country, after Rush Limbaugh's, but it is also an effort to tackle the challenge that keeps public-radio programmers up at night: how to engage with an audience that's migrating to cell-phone headlines and podcasts for its news (read more - Linda Tischler  - Fast Company)

All Comedy Radio "News Burps"
* The Supreme Court struck down Washington, DC’s tough anti-hand gun law, ruling that people do have a right to own guns for self-defense in their homes. Critics immediately said the Court is discriminating against, quote, “gun-loving homeless.”
* San Francisco is naming a sewage treatment plant after President Bush. “We’re not trying to insult him,” insisted an official, “We’re just saying he takes a lot of crap and makes the most of it.”
* Florida police have busted a brothel on wheels. “It’s just like the Partridge Family bus,” insisted the operators, “’C’mon, get happy. Come on, get REAL happy.”
* Madonna and director Guy Richie are heading for a divorce. Madonna hired Paul McCartney’s divorce lawyer. And Guy has hired a detective to find the balls he had before getting married.
* OJ Simpson was complaining to a radio station about his upcoming trial in Vegas, saying, “If I was anybody else, I wouldn’t be going to court.” True. If you were anybody else you’d be going to the chair.
* A sex tape is out starring “Love Guru” co-star and former Mini-Me Verne Troyer. The scariest thing? It’s only the second most embarrassing movie he’s been in this month.
"All Comedy Radio" - www.allcomedyradio.com - A unique and diverse format service is currently on HD-2 stations 24/7 in Seattle, Portland, Sacramento, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Denver, Kansas City, Memphis, New Orleans, Buffalo and others. For affiliate information for your HD-2 station contact: Al Perrotta at acrnews@mac.com

Most of the calls we receive don’t get on-the-air for a host of reasons - mostly because they are not entertaining. Well, let me clarify that: most of the calls we record during songs or commercials don’t get on-the-air. When we switch to live call-mode - which is like playing Audio Russian Roulette - then all bets are off. (Thank goodness for our 8-second delay.) So, who are these Callers from Hell? I will try and describe the basic types and if you recognize yourself in any of then, don’t be offended – be amused (read more - Corey Deitz - About)

There was another side to George (Carlin) that came to light, from ESPN fantasy sports maven, Matthew Berry. Just out of college, Berry was a gofer for Carlin on a Fox TV show. Every week, people would send in loads of pictures and memorabilia for Carlin to sign, and he dutifully and cheerfully complied. When Berry asked him why, Carlin offered this comment: "I always do it. No matter what. Look, it's 30 seconds out of my life. And now those people had a good experience. And the next time my name comes up, for the rest of their lives, they'll say 'Yeah, I met Carlin once. He was nice.' I'd much rather that than a lifetime of 'Yeah, I bought all that guy's albums and then he wouldn't even sign my hat. That guy was a jerk.' Thirty seconds for a lifetime? I'll do that every time" (read more - Fred Jacobs - Jacobs Media)

A group, the National Black Church Initiative, representing more than 16,000 black and Hispanic churches has urged federal media regulators to reject the merger of XM Satellite Radio Inc. and Sirius Satellite Radio Inc., citing its objections to a segment of Sirius shock jock Howard Stern's show in which audio clips of country singer Dolly Parton were manipulated into racist and sexually vulgar comments (read more - Kara Rowland - Washington Times

WIOQ (102.1) has hired Elvis Duran to do mornings, starting July 23. Duran's show, out of Q102 sister station Z-100 in New York, is being poised for national syndication (read more - Michael Klein - Philly Inquirer)

One of the many reasons radio has lost the next generation is that music stations are unremarkable. They are vanilla. Sound the same. Too repetitious. Too many commercials. Too phony. Not real. After four years of my teaching sabbatical -- I have concluded that if I owned a radio station, I'd get to know what these young folks really want -- even if it is unlikely that they would ever become big radio listeners (read more - Jerry Del Colliano - Inside Music Media)

Back on June 10th (”FCC Commisioner Takes On The Media and Government” in my archives) I wrote a feature on FCC Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein who took on the media in a speech about “thinly disguised payola” being used both on TV and radio in the form of subtle viewings and mentions of commercial product without identifying them as such. Well according to yesterday’s notice of inquiry issued by the FCC, the agency is taking that “thinly disguised payola” seriously (read more - Mel Phillips)

The BBC has promoted the man in charge of its marketing division to run its national radio stations. Tim Davie replaces Jenny Abramsky (read more - BBC News U.K.)

WTOC AM 1360 will sign-on with Scott Shannon’s True Oldies Channel in Suxxex County July 1

Clear Channel Radio says that, using their own technology, all of their 350 HD2 stations are now iTunes Tagging compatible and can be added to an iPod when tagged by a tagging-capable receiver (devices now available from Polk Audio and Alpine). With just a push of the ‘tag’ button, songs can be previewed, purchased and downloaded

Dave Graveline and his "Into Tomorrow" team bring you the latest in tech gadgetry and wizardry this weekend via www.graveline.com when they broadcast from the home base in Miami

Easy steps to turn your radio station into a web widget (read and take the steps - Mark Ramsey - Hear 2.0)

Got good content on your website? Share it. Have your listeners include your station widget on their My Space, Twitter, or Facebook page. It's easy (read more - Harve Alan)

XM borrows $100M and extends Chairman Gary Parsons' contract until November 2009 (read more - Jeff Clabaugh - Washington Biz Journal)

Emmis Interactive will provide sales and technology services for Lincoln Financial websites in its four media markets

President Bush has nominated former Dow Jones Chief Executive Officer Peter Kann to be a member of the Broadcasting Board of Governors (read more - Henry J. Pulizzi - CNN Money)

Ventura radio station KVEN-AM (1450), "The Boomer," is tweaking its oldies music format after the retirement of Lee Marshall, its longtime morning show host and program director with Don Imus, who was blasted for making what some considered a derogatory racial remark on Monday (read more - Jim McLain - Ventura County Star)

Thursday June 26, 2008 Edition

I anticipate the company (XM-Sirius after the merger) will eventually become part of a larger media or media - technology company that could make the required investments to finally realize the long promised financial success of satellite radio. The company that could most benefit by such as acquisition is Microsoft. There are two key selling points that make the combined entity attractive to a company like Microsoft. First and most obvious is content. No entertainment platform will offer breadth of original content that the combined company will have. From Howard Stern and Opey and Anthony, to the NFL and Major League Baseball, to Oprah and Martha Stewart, to CNBC and Bloomberg, music of all genres, etc, etc, etc. Second and most important is the potential to dominate the automobile environment (read more - Dave Davidson - Seeking Alpha)

According to Arbitron Inc., 33 million Americans listen to Internet audio every week. Most hear the audio streams through computer speakers, but that's a lousy deal when the PC is in one room and you're working or relaxing in another. Luckily, a solution is at hand - These early Wi-Fi radios are too pricey for the mass market, but that's bound to change, given the growing demand for online audio. Cheap Internet radios will quite likely be commonplace in a few years. They will probably pick up AM and FM stations as well, not that anybody will care (read more - Hiawatha Bray - Boston Globe)

ARBitron numbers for Detroit and Bakersfield (read the numbers)

It was the kind of sarcastic joke, folding back on itself a couple of times, that fits Imus' radio style and sense of humor. Some folks weren't buying, however, and the relatively brief, but intense crossfire triggered by the comment proved two things. One, Imus will probably always wear a bull's-eye on his back because a lot of people would still like him gone. Two, when Imus thinks his critics are just being stupid, he turns into Clint Eastwood (read more - David Hinckley - NY Daily News)

NBC Universal has settled a lawsuit that was filed after someone swept up in the Chris Hansen "To Catch a Predator" program committed suicide (read more - USA Today)

Chrysler announced today that it's making wireless Internet an option on all its 2009 models. The mobile hotspot, called UConnect Web, would be the first such technology from any automaker (read more - PR Newswire) (read more - Ken Bensinger - LA Times)  (read more - John Rook)  (read more - Mark Ramsey - Hear 2.0)

George Carlin summed up his very full life right before the end, saying, "I know that I've accomplished a good deal." The beloved comic told psychologytoday.com in his very last interview before his death from heart failure (read more - NY Post Page Six)

If I know Mike North (WCSR - The Score), his only regret is that news of the final blowup with his bosses didn't make the front page of the papers -  Although technically his bosses withdrew their last offer to renew his contract - a deal that would have kept him in mornings for the time being at half the $1.5 million-a-year he had been making - North sealed his own fate when he rejected it at the end of last week (read more - Robert Feder - Chicago Sun-Times)

Macon radio talk show host Shayne McBryde said he's been suspended indefinitely from his job at WMAC News Talk 940 pending an internal corporate investigation. McBryde, 37, said he met with Cumulus Broadcasting representatives Wednesday morning after being arrested for misdemeanor marijuana possession about noon Tuesday (read more - Amy Leigh Womack - Macon Telegraph)

XM Satellite Radio and EMI Music Publishing today announced that they have resolved the lawsuit brought by EMI Music Publishing against XM over its Pioneer Inno, a portable satellite radio with advanced recording features (read more- XM Radio)

A U.S. House subcommittee is expected to pass a bill Thursday that would