Industry News

A coalition of public media workers is calling for a specific day — Nov. 10 — to serve as a way to highlight the need to take action when it comes to diversity.

The National Federation of Community Broadcasters said there have been too many public leaders defending systemic problems or reflecting criticism at those who complain, said Ernesto Aguilar, program director for the NFCB, which is leading the call for action. “It felt like time to say, ‘it’s not just you’ and remind those concerned about the need for public media’s evolution.”

[Read: Community Broadcaster: Inclusive Service Is the Future]

Public Media For All, a coalition of public media workers, is calling on the industry to recognize Nov. 10 as a day for reflection, learning and action. Calling it a first-of-this-generation kind of proactive remediation, Public Media for All is hoping that at least 500 people in the public media industry will use Nov. 10 as a day when they take the day off either to focus on their own mental health or to devote community service hours in an effort to bring attention to diversity, equity and inclusion issues.

“In the last few years, public media has had controversies across the nation,” Aguilar said. “The places are all different but the stories are similar — longtime hosts and managers behaving toward peers and subordinates in ways that do not exemplify a station’s mission; trends of people of color in the industry with identical stories even as they’ve been marginalized; and social media testimony exposing misconduct anonymously, as whistleblowers fear for their jobs amid public media’s economic contraction.”

“It felt like time to say, ‘It’s not just you’ and remind those concerned about the need for public media’s evolution that they are not alone,” he said.

Some of those steps of action and education might involve volunteering with local service organizations supporting communities of color or talking with stations, boards and managers about the importance of diversity for the future of public media organizations.

The public media space is ideal for leading the charge for the need for more diversity in media in general because public media has, for so long, centered the power of people’s lives and stories so it’s natural that this medium is one that is starting to take these matters more seriously, Aguilar said. However, it must be said that the media space as a whole, public and commercial, is having its moment related to diversity.

“The culture is changing, audiences expect better, and old excuses are less acceptable,” he said. “But here, as we are seeing in public media’s most high-profile incidents, institutions, staff and donors are no longer willing to suffer management complicity or leaders attempting to rationalize or slink away after presiding over misconduct.”

There are four silos of action on the Public Media For All’s website, actions that can be taken by people of color, by white allies, by organizations and by public media fans.

What’s most important is that — both before and after Nov. 10 — individuals and organizations make substantive commitments to prioritize diversity, equity and inclusion. “Such efforts can only make our organizations even better,” Aguilar said.

The post Coalition Calls for Day of Action for Diversity in Public Media appeared first on Radio World.

A highlight of the upcoming AES virtual convention, taking much of the month of October, will be a look at building and maintaining podcast studios. “Developing Versatile Performance Spaces for Podcast Production Studios” will be an on-demand session.

[Read: History and Mic Hygiene Are on AES Show Agenda]

Co-moderated by John Storyk, founding partner, WSDG Walters-Storyk Design Group, and WSDG Partner/COO, Joshua Morris, the panel will illustrate how dedicated podcast studios differ and how they are being used with respect to workflow as well as live performance production.

Panelists include Kevin Cole, senior director of programming/show host, KEXP(FM), Seattle; Jimmy Buff, executive director/show host, WKNY(FM)/Radio Kingston, Kingston, N.Y.; Steve Shultis, chief technology officer, WNYC Radio, N.Y.; and Austin Thompson, technical director, Gimlet (Spotify), Brooklyn, N.Y.; Los Angeles.

AES Show Broadcast and Online Delivery Track Chair David Bialik said, “The facility design session is usually one of the most attended.”

The post AES Show to Look at Podcast Studios appeared first on Radio World.

A highlight of the upcoming AES virtual convention, taking much of the month of October, will be a look at building and maintaining podcast studios. “Developing Versatile Performance Spaces for Podcast Production Studios” will be an on-demand session.

[Read: History and Mic Hygiene Are on AES Show Agenda]

Co-moderated by John Storyk, founding partner, WSDG Walters-Storyk Design Group, and WSDG Partner/COO, Joshua Morris, the panel will illustrate how dedicated podcast studios differ and how they are being used with respect to workflow as well as live performance production.

Panelists include Kevin Cole, senior director of programming/show host, KEXP(FM), Seattle; Jimmy Buff, executive director/show host, WKNY(FM)/Radio Kingston, Kingston, N.Y.; Steve Shultis, chief technology officer, WNYC Radio, N.Y.; and Austin Thompson, technical director, Gimlet (Spotify), Brooklyn, N.Y.; Los Angeles.

AES Show Broadcast and Online Delivery Track Chair David Bialik said, “The facility design session is usually one of the most attended.”

The post AES Show to Look at Podcast Studios appeared first on Radio World.

The author is senior vice president, Connoisseur Media.

WESTPORT, Conn. — At Connoisseur Media, we pride ourselves on our forward-thinking approach to technologies — especially those that help us engage audiences in new ways and give our advertisers intriguing new opportunities to reach consumers.

Advanced and evolving technologies drive our entire operation, which includes 13 radio stations and various digital brands in four markets: Frederick, Md., Nassau-Suffolk, N.Y., New Haven, Conn., and Metro Fairfield County, Conn..

When it comes to back-office systems like traffic and billing, we need technology solutions that will help our sales professionals negotiate and schedule advertising at maximum value.

Of course, any great traffic system needs to streamline and automate workflows and provide seamless, real-time access to consolidated sales, inventory and billing data. For more than 16 years, we’ve met these requirements with Marketron Traffic.

It is the “fan favorite” in our back office. It’s an integral part of our business and a popular solution with our traffic team.

The cloud-based platform gives all of our divisions transparency into the business from multiple locations. With this mature and easy-to-use solution, traffic personnel from various markets are able to step in and cover each other when needed. One of our markets even uses Marketron Traffic Hub — Marketron’s traffic management service — to handle all traffic department functions in that market.

Unified reporting

One of the strongest features of Marketron Traffic is the integrated reporting capability, which enables key personnel from every level of the business to work from the same set of data presented in a common format.

Based on their individual permission levels as governed by Marketron’s multilevel security, everyone — from sales managers at individual stations to GMs of station groups to managers at the corporate level — is able to access the reporting from a single, unified dashboard.

Even if a manager is only permitted to see a slice of the data, it’s the same data that will be reflected in larger data sets. This might seem like a simple capability, but it’s critical for avoiding confusion, reducing errors and unifying our teams.

With a clean cutoff for running reports and the ability to receive automated reports when we need them, we rely heavily on Marketron Traffic for managing key business metrics such as pacing.

Every morning, I get a PDF report in email with all of the data I need for daily management. It’s truly “set and forget it” — you give the system your own reporting parameters and it handles the rest. Without having to spend time churning out timely reports, our back office team is more efficient, and managers don’t have to spend their time pulling their own data out of the system.

Moving forward, we’re continuing to partner with the Marketron team as they refine their traffic solutions and introduce innovative new solutions.

For instance, we recently introduced the team to Marketron Pitch, an integrated digital ad platform that has allowed us to build up a substantial digital advertising business. Pitch takes into account the significant differences between digital sales workflows and more traditional radio, such as downstream partners that often need to be prepaid.

We’re currently testing a new beta version of Pitch that integrates seamlessly with Marketron Traffic; the result will be an end-to-end electronic workflow for our digital business from proposal to invoice.

With Marketron as our mainstay traffic partner, our radio business is poised for the next generation of profitability. With everyone in the company speaking the same financial language based on accurate and up-to-the-minute data, managers don’t have to work for the reports they need to make informed decisions that facilitate revenue growth.

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

For information, contact Todd Kalman at Marketron at 1-612-790-8464 or visit www.marketron.com.

The post User Report: Connoisseur Finds Marketron a “Fan Favorite” appeared first on Radio World.

The author is senior vice president, Connoisseur Media.

WESTPORT, Conn. — At Connoisseur Media, we pride ourselves on our forward-thinking approach to technologies — especially those that help us engage audiences in new ways and give our advertisers intriguing new opportunities to reach consumers.

Advanced and evolving technologies drive our entire operation, which includes 13 radio stations and various digital brands in four markets: Frederick, Md., Nassau-Suffolk, N.Y., New Haven, Conn., and Metro Fairfield County, Conn..

When it comes to back-office systems like traffic and billing, we need technology solutions that will help our sales professionals negotiate and schedule advertising at maximum value.

Of course, any great traffic system needs to streamline and automate workflows and provide seamless, real-time access to consolidated sales, inventory and billing data. For more than 16 years, we’ve met these requirements with Marketron Traffic.

It is the “fan favorite” in our back office. It’s an integral part of our business and a popular solution with our traffic team.

The cloud-based platform gives all of our divisions transparency into the business from multiple locations. With this mature and easy-to-use solution, traffic personnel from various markets are able to step in and cover each other when needed. One of our markets even uses Marketron Traffic Hub — Marketron’s traffic management service — to handle all traffic department functions in that market.

Unified reporting

One of the strongest features of Marketron Traffic is the integrated reporting capability, which enables key personnel from every level of the business to work from the same set of data presented in a common format.

Based on their individual permission levels as governed by Marketron’s multilevel security, everyone — from sales managers at individual stations to GMs of station groups to managers at the corporate level — is able to access the reporting from a single, unified dashboard.

Even if a manager is only permitted to see a slice of the data, it’s the same data that will be reflected in larger data sets. This might seem like a simple capability, but it’s critical for avoiding confusion, reducing errors and unifying our teams.

With a clean cutoff for running reports and the ability to receive automated reports when we need them, we rely heavily on Marketron Traffic for managing key business metrics such as pacing.

Every morning, I get a PDF report in email with all of the data I need for daily management. It’s truly “set and forget it” — you give the system your own reporting parameters and it handles the rest. Without having to spend time churning out timely reports, our back office team is more efficient, and managers don’t have to spend their time pulling their own data out of the system.

Moving forward, we’re continuing to partner with the Marketron team as they refine their traffic solutions and introduce innovative new solutions.

For instance, we recently introduced the team to Marketron Pitch, an integrated digital ad platform that has allowed us to build up a substantial digital advertising business. Pitch takes into account the significant differences between digital sales workflows and more traditional radio, such as downstream partners that often need to be prepaid.

We’re currently testing a new beta version of Pitch that integrates seamlessly with Marketron Traffic; the result will be an end-to-end electronic workflow for our digital business from proposal to invoice.

With Marketron as our mainstay traffic partner, our radio business is poised for the next generation of profitability. With everyone in the company speaking the same financial language based on accurate and up-to-the-minute data, managers don’t have to work for the reports they need to make informed decisions that facilitate revenue growth.

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

For information, contact Todd Kalman at Marketron at 1-612-790-8464 or visit www.marketron.com.

The post User Report: Connoisseur Finds Marketron a “Fan Favorite” appeared first on Radio World.

Coming in November is the 100th anniversary of the birth of modern radio broadcasting. In this issue, Radio World features a special report by James O’Neal about how KDKA came to be the standard-bearer for an industry.

Read it online here.

Prefer to do your reading offline? No problem! Simply click on the digital edition, go to the left corner and choose the download button to get a PDF version.

Regulation

AM Advocates Watch and Worry

The chief of the FCC Audio Division deems the AM revitalization effort “a big success story,” but critics fault the effort for not going far enough and focusing mainly on adding FM signals. What comes next?

Digital Radio

Taking the Fear Out of Hybrid Radio

A session of the virtual Radio Show will focus on RadioDNS and how U.S. broadcasters are beginning to support hybrid radio capabilities.

Also in this issue:

• Workbench: Time to Prepare for Ice and Snow
• Buyer’s Guide: Media Asset Management/Automation
• College Radio Grapples With Pandemic’s Implications

The post Inside the September 30 Issue of Radio World appeared first on Radio World.

Coming in November is the 100th anniversary of the birth of modern radio broadcasting. In this issue, Radio World features a special report by James O’Neal about how KDKA came to be the standard-bearer for an industry.

Read it online here.

Prefer to do your reading offline? No problem! Simply click on the digital edition, go to the left corner and choose the download button to get a PDF version.

Regulation

AM Advocates Watch and Worry

The chief of the FCC Audio Division deems the AM revitalization effort “a big success story,” but critics fault the effort for not going far enough and focusing mainly on adding FM signals. What comes next?

Digital Radio

Taking the Fear Out of Hybrid Radio

A session of the virtual Radio Show will focus on RadioDNS and how U.S. broadcasters are beginning to support hybrid radio capabilities.

Also in this issue:

• Workbench: Time to Prepare for Ice and Snow
• Buyer’s Guide: Media Asset Management/Automation
• College Radio Grapples With Pandemic’s Implications

The post Inside the September 30 Issue of Radio World appeared first on Radio World.

The Federal Communications Commission will vote this month on whether to allow AM stations in the United States to convert to all-digital HD Radio if they wish to do so.

Commission watchers have expected some action this year. Commissioner Ajit Pai announced the planned vote on his blog, calling AM revitalization “a passion of mine.”

Based on anecdotal evidence, the commission will likely approve it.

The details of the proposed report and order are expected to be public shortly. Among questions to watch for are whether all-digital AM operation would be allowed both day and night; what provision the FCC makes for a station to change its mind later; and whether the commission will waver from its stances on not allowing the use of other platforms like Digital Radio Mondiale and not allowing multicasts of an AM digital signal to be carried on translators.

Industry support

Industry comments on the idea of allowing optional all-digital operation have generally been favorable, with the caveat that any such transition must be voluntary.

It’s unknown how many owners would take advantage of the option, at least right away. The amount of real-world broadcaster experience is limited to only two stations that have tried it, one of which soon turned it off during the day after hearing listener complaints, and later ended its testing.

One veteran engineering professional told Radio World recently that he sees “no major U.S. radio companies showing any interest in investing in AM all-digital; and that for many owners, keeping their AM stations on the air now is pretty much just about retaining their FM translator footprint rather than keeping the AM on the air on its own merits.”

[Related: Read our special report on the AM revitalization effort to date.]

But the possibility that the FCC would allow a station to go all-digital is notable, and marks a potentially important milestone in the overall expansion of digital technology on U.S. radio stations.

If an AM station turns on all-digital transmission, listeners with analog-only AM radios will not be able to hear the signal. For that reason, for many years broadcasters swore that they’d never consider it.

But with the AM band’s ongoing problems; with more HD Radio receivers available in recent-model cars that can receive the signals; and with many AM owners now able to reach their markets with FM translators, the idea seems at least marginally less scary. Calls to allow the all-digital option have increased in recent years under the commission’s AM revitalization umbrella.

“Due to a number of technical constraints of the AM band and limitations of the HD Radio hybrid mode, fewer than 250 AM stations have implemented hybrid operations,” Pai wrote Monday.

“This October, the commission will vote on a Report and Order that would give AM broadcasters the option to convert to all-digital operations, which offer listeners a higher quality audio experience over a greater area.

“Since all-digital broadcasting would be on a voluntary basis, AM operators would decide for themselves if the transition is right for them and their listeners.”

Pai pointed out that WWFD in Frederick, Md., which has transitioned to digital AM through special temporary authority, has gone from having no ratings in the market to a being a Nielsen-ranked station.

“This hints at digital AM’s potential to bring AM stations back from the brink of extinction to become competitive players in the market.”

[Watch Radio World’s webcast “Digital Sunrise” for AM Radio.” ]

Three AM stations have received STAs to operate with all-digital AM; only one is currently active.

Hubbard’s WWFD has been using all-digital for three years. WIOE in Fort Wayne, Ind., recently tried all-digital both full- and part-time but now is not using it; the owner has said listeners weren’t ready. WTLC in Indianapolis has an STA but its owner Urban One has expressed disappointment that the FCC  did not approve its request that multicast channels of the AM test signal be rebroadcast over those two FM translators.

It has been seven years since then-Commissioner Ajit Pai hosted a session at a spring NAB Show exploring various possible futures for AM radio including an “analog sunset.”

At that time, then-CBS Radio Senior Vice President of Engineering Glynn Walden deplored AM solutions that “nibble around the edges.” The AM band, he said at that 2013 session, “is a hostile environment,” and Walden called for the commission “to declare an analog sunset” and for AM radio to move to an all-digital service.

Few broadcasters then or since have spoken publicly about any such enforced “sunset,” and this month’s planned vote to allow all-digital goes nowhere near that outcome.

The post The FCC Will Vote This Month on All-Digital AM appeared first on Radio World.

The Federal Communications Commission will vote this month on whether to allow AM stations in the United States to convert to all-digital HD Radio if they wish to do so.

Commission watchers have expected some action this year. Commissioner Ajit Pai announced the planned vote on his blog, calling AM revitalization “a passion of mine.”

Based on anecdotal evidence, the commission will likely approve it.

The details of the proposed report and order are expected to be public shortly. Among questions to watch for are whether all-digital AM operation would be allowed both day and night; what provision the FCC makes for a station to change its mind later; and whether the commission will waver from its stances on not allowing the use of other platforms like Digital Radio Mondiale and not allowing multicasts of an AM digital signal to be carried on translators.

Industry support

Industry comments on the idea of allowing optional all-digital operation have generally been favorable, with the caveat that any such transition must be voluntary.

It’s unknown how many owners would take advantage of the option, at least right away. The amount of real-world broadcaster experience is limited to only two stations that have tried it, one of which soon turned it off during the day after hearing listener complaints, and later ended its testing.

One veteran engineering professional told Radio World recently that he sees “no major U.S. radio companies showing any interest in investing in AM all-digital; and that for many owners, keeping their AM stations on the air now is pretty much just about retaining their FM translator footprint rather than keeping the AM on the air on its own merits.”

[Related: Read our special report on the AM revitalization effort to date.]

But the possibility that the FCC would allow a station to go all-digital is notable, and marks a potentially important milestone in the overall expansion of digital technology on U.S. radio stations.

If an AM station turns on all-digital transmission, listeners with analog-only AM radios will not be able to hear the signal. For that reason, for many years broadcasters swore that they’d never consider it.

But with the AM band’s ongoing problems; with more HD Radio receivers available in recent-model cars that can receive the signals; and with many AM owners now able to reach their markets with FM translators, the idea seems at least marginally less scary. Calls to allow the all-digital option have increased in recent years under the commission’s AM revitalization umbrella.

“Due to a number of technical constraints of the AM band and limitations of the HD Radio hybrid mode, fewer than 250 AM stations have implemented hybrid operations,” Pai wrote Monday.

“This October, the commission will vote on a Report and Order that would give AM broadcasters the option to convert to all-digital operations, which offer listeners a higher quality audio experience over a greater area.

“Since all-digital broadcasting would be on a voluntary basis, AM operators would decide for themselves if the transition is right for them and their listeners.”

Pai pointed out that WWFD in Frederick, Md., which has transitioned to digital AM through special temporary authority, has gone from having no ratings in the market to a being a Nielsen-ranked station.

“This hints at digital AM’s potential to bring AM stations back from the brink of extinction to become competitive players in the market.”

[Watch Radio World’s webcast “Digital Sunrise” for AM Radio.” ]

Three AM stations have received STAs to operate with all-digital AM; only one is currently active.

Hubbard’s WWFD has been using all-digital for three years. WIOE in Fort Wayne, Ind., recently tried all-digital both full- and part-time but now is not using it; the owner has said listeners weren’t ready. WTLC in Indianapolis has an STA but its owner Urban One has expressed disappointment that the FCC  did not approve its request that multicast channels of the AM test signal be rebroadcast over those two FM translators.

It has been seven years since then-Commissioner Ajit Pai hosted a session at a spring NAB Show exploring various possible futures for AM radio including an “analog sunset.”

At that time, then-CBS Radio Senior Vice President of Engineering Glynn Walden deplored AM solutions that “nibble around the edges.” The AM band, he said at that 2013 session, “is a hostile environment,” and Walden called for the commission “to declare an analog sunset” and for AM radio to move to an all-digital service.

Few broadcasters then or since have spoken publicly about any such enforced “sunset,” and this month’s planned vote to allow all-digital goes nowhere near that outcome.

The post The FCC Will Vote This Month on All-Digital AM appeared first on Radio World.

“DAB is now firmly established as the core future platform for radio in Europe.”

So argues WorldDAB, citing its most recent data on receiver sales, household penetration and the number of stations on the air.

[Read: DAB+ Lends a Hand in a Time of Crisis]

WorldDAB is an industry association that promotes DAB digital radio. “By the end of Q2 2020, over 93 million consumer and automotive DAB/DAB+ receivers had been sold in Europe and Asia Pacific, up from 82 million one year earlier,” it stated.

It released a detailed presentation offering a visual report card about DAB/DAB+ compared to FM in Australia, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland and the U.K.

“DAB is now firmly established as the core future platform for radio in Europe, a position underlined by a number of recent regulatory initiatives and the growing popularity of consumer and automotive DAB+ receivers worldwide,” it stated.

“On a pan-European level, the European Electronic Communications Code (EECC), adopted in December 2018, requires all new car radios in the EU to be capable of receiving digital terrestrial radio from 21 December 2020. Several EU countries — including Germany, the U.K. and Italy — have already introduced regulations to implement the EECC directive into national legislation, while other countries — including France, The Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, Greece, Czech Republic, Poland and Malta — have initiated procedures to implement the EECC into national legislation.”

WorldDAB President Patrick Hannon cited interest as well in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

View the WorldDAB presentation here.

The chair of Digital Radio Mondiale, another digital radio proponent, was asked by Radio World to comment on WorldDAB’s assertion that it is “the core future platform of radio in Europe.”

Ruxandra Obreja said the data from WorldDAB “gives impetus to the digitization of radio, in general.”

“We fully welcome the increase in numbers of receivers sold by DAB and the fact that the UK (DAB and DAB+), Germany (DAB+) and Norway (DAB+) continue to be on top,” Obreja wrote in an email to Radio World. “Detailed listenership figures to match the sales figures would enhance the announcement.”

She said uptake of various solutions in different countries shows that “flexibility is needed to respond to different geographic, social-cultural needs. After all, any technology, whether DAB, DRM or both, can only be the platform for good and multimedia services, excellent and attractive content which should be available to all the listeners wherever they are.”

The post WorldDAB Highlights Its Advances appeared first on Radio World.