Industry News

The author is project director for WorldDAB.

With the recent COP26 conference in Glasgow highlighting the global need to tackle climate change, a new study from Germany has showed how digital radio can help broadcasters reduce energy usage. Describing DAB+ as “green radio,” the report says on broadcasting a single service, between 70 and 90 percent of energy can be saved by switching from FM to DAB+.

The Bavarian Regulatory Authority for Commercial Broadcasting (BLM) and the Bavarian Public Broadcaster, Bayerischer Rundfunk (BR), in partnership with network operators and receiver manufacturers, compared the energy consumption of broadcasting and receiving radio programs via FM and DAB+.

In Bavaria, all services by private radio providers and BR are available via DAB+. With around 13 million inhabitants, 16 percent of Germany’s population lives in the state.

The studies showed that, with a comparable supply, the energy consumption when broadcasting a program via DAB+ is significantly lower than FM. BR would save around 75 percent per station, while Antenne Bayern would save 85 percent in energy if its audio service were broadcast exclusively via DAB+. Other providers in Germany see similar potential reductions.

Given the extensive infrastructure that radio broadcasting operates, the research found that the cumulative resulting effect is considerable.

The report also identified that significant energy savings would also be possible by replacing Germany’s 122 million FM radios. Although most new receivers are often equipped with additional functions such as displays or wi-fi, their power consumption has dropped by around 40 percent in recent years.

The findings of the report, “Green Radio: A Comparison of Energy Consumption on FM and DAB+” were featured at the recent WorldDAB Summit, which saw the publication of an English-language translation of the report.

[See our coverage WorldDAB Summit 2021]

Concentration of DAB Stations Across Germany as of January 2021 (Courtesy WorldDAB)

Speaking at the Summit to 500 delegates from around the world, Veit Olischläger, head of technology, media management and public relations at BLM, said: “As we know, climate change is a challenge for all of us. We asked what broadcasters can do — so we made an examination of the potential savings of energy consumption for transmission, FM versus DAB+, and reception.”

“Broadcasting via DAB+ saves up to 90 percent of energy,” added Olischläger. “And regardless of DAB+, the greatest energy saving effects would be achieved just by replacing older FM sets.”

In Bavaria, 42 percent of the population aged 14 and over already have at least one DAB+ receiver in their household.

Radio World invites industry-oriented commentaries and responses. Send to Radio World.

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Tournament Town has turned the page on how local broadcast television can be distributed and received by viewers.

Thanks, in part, to broadcast data network builder BitPath, the NEXTGEN TV train has rolled into Greensboro-Winston Salem. And, the market debut for NEXTGEN TV involves Nexstar Media Group, Sinclair Broadcast Group and Hearst Television.

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Until August, he was Chief Marketing Officer at Publicis-owned Epsilon. Earlier in his career, he spent some 3 years in a similar role at what is now TEGNA Marketing Solutions.

Now, he’s the CMO for a SaaS provider working with broadcast media in the digital realm.

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“As we reach the end of 2021, advertising growth is showing much faster expansion than previously anticipated, driven primarily by growth in the U.S., U.K. and China.”

That’s the highly optimistic conclusion of distinguished Global President of Business Intelligence at groupM, Brian Wieser, who recently appeared on the InFOCUS Podcast, presented by dot.FM. 

Where do television and audio advertising measure up? He’s crunched the numbers and has some intriguing conclusions. For audio industry players, the future isn’t so bright.

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NEW YORK — When it comes to radio programming executives most closely associated to superserving the African American consumer across the New York Tri-State Area, none perhaps comes close in recent memory to Skip Dillard.

For the past year, Dillard has served as VP of National and Community Partnerships for iconic Adult R&B FM WBLS and its hip-hop sibling, WQHT (Hot 97), under the ownership of Mediaco, the joint venture between Soo Kim’s Standard General and Jeff Smulyan’s Emmis Communications. For 12 years before that, Dillard was VP of Programming and Operations Manager for WBLS and Emmis-owned WLIB-AM in New York.

Now, Dillard has moved to 345 Hudson Street, and is now the Brand Manager for recently launched Rhythmic Adult Contemporary and classic hip-hop formatted WXBK-FM “94.7 The Block.”

The move solidifies the musical direction of the station, which is mass appeal and designed to attract Millennials who were raised on Ice Cube, Jay-Z, SWV, Ja Rule, 2PAC, and Aaliyah. Dillard will oversee WXBK’s full portfolio of broadcast, digital and live experience assets.

In explaining the selection of Dillard to lead “The Block,” Audacy/New York SVP/Market Manager Chris Oliviero said, “Skip knows the music, the artists, the community and this city and has a depth of knowledge and relationships that make him the premiere choice to be the building block for this new brand. His arrival solidifies our commitment to making classic hip hop and throwbacks a vibrant sound on the New York dial, and we are excited to welcome him to The Block.”

Dillard added, “I am truly grateful for the opportunity to join the Audacy team here in New York City. There’s nothing quite like the chance to build a new, fun and exciting station for the greater New York City area that will be rooted in the community. I am honored to accept the challenge.”

Dillard’s career in radio began at Hampton University’s WHOV-FM 88.1 as a student, working at the Smooth Jazz FM serving the Norfolk area. Early in his career, he worked in multiple radio markets as both a talent and programmer. Among the stations on Dillard’s resume: WPGC-FM in Washington, D.C.; WOWI-FM in Norfolk; WMXD-FM in Detroit: WBLK-FM in Buffalo; and WYLD-FM in New Orleans. He was recently reappointed to his second two-year term to serve on the FCC‘s Communications Equity and Diversity Council.

In a recent interview with AllAccess.com, Dillard was asked when and why he decided to go into radio. He replied, “I was a music junkie who’s love of radio as a child drove me to try out for my college radio station at Hampton. I failed the first audition, but someone said, ‘let’s give him one more try.’ After graduation, it seemed like every door opening for me was coming from the radio industry regardless of whatever else I tried (law enforcement, Air traffic controller, Ad agency rep, video producer, etc.).”

Also asked what frustrates him the most about the radio and the music industry, Dillard replied, “Lack of vision at times from the top and lack of investment in people. We’re also sometimes too slow to innovate.”

Now, Dillard will have the chance to innovate at a station that on October 22 dropped Country to embrace programming that would have broader appeal in the Big Apple.

Sennheiser HD 400 PRO Studio Headphones

Sennheiser has introduced its new HD 400 PRO studio reference headphones, intended for use in mixing, editing and mastering applications.

Built around a lightweight, open-back design fitted with soft velour ear pads, they are the first open studio headphones in Sennheiser’s PRO line, and offer a wide frequency response of 6 to 38,000 Hz.

The Sennheiser-developed 120-ohm transducers include a diaphragm made from a proprietary polymer blend; working with the headphones’ driver magnets, according to Sennheiser, the diaphragm is expected to provide deeper bass. Distortion is below 0.05% (measured at 1 kHz, 90 dB SPL), and the headphones are said to accurately reproduces audio beyond the audible frequency range.

[Check Out More Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

The headphone transducers sit at a slight angle, aiming to emulate the triangular listening position used when listening to monitor loudspeakers in a studio. This, along with the open-back design of the headphones is intended to provide a neutral soundstage.

The headphones are built around an ultra-light frame; the earcups feature soft velour earpads and the open, circumaural design offers ventilation for ears during long mixing sessions. The headphones come with a 3-meter coiled cable and a 1.8-meter straight cable, both fitted with a 3.5 mm (1/8″) jack plug for portable sources. A 6.3 mm (1/4″) adapter is included, ensuring that the HD 400 PRO connects to a typical mixing desk or audio interface.

The HD 400 PRO is available now and retails at US $249 (MSRP).

Send your new equipment news to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Sennheiser HD 400 PRO Studio Headphones Debut appeared first on Radio World.

A comparison of Tip-Ring-Sleeve and Tip-Ring-Ring-Sleeve plugs.

Consultant Frank Hertel of Newman-Kees RF Measurement needed to create a special audio interface recently.

He said he was not aware of a protocol for wiring Tip-Ring-Ring-Sleeve connectors, which are prevalent on laptop computers with only one audio jack.

The first image shows the difference between the typical Tip-Ring-Sleeve, with which most readers are familiar, and Tip-Ring-Ring-Sleeve connectors.

What surprised Frank was that the positive voltage for powering the electret mic is on the Sleeve of the Tip-Ring-Sleeve-Sleeve connector, and the Shield/Common/Ground connection for the electret mic and left and right outputs for the headphones are on one of the Ring connections, the one closest to the Sleeve (which, remember, is the positive voltage for powering the electret mic).

Therefore, if you want to connect any audio source other than the electret mic, you will need to add a DC blocking capacitor between the Sleeve and the hot phase wire of your external audio source (since that source does not require a DC voltage).

The hot signal wire from that source connects to the Sleeve of the Tip-Ring-Ring-Sleeve connector, through the blocking capacitor.

Frank said with a laugh that the protocol seems so foreign to the common one we used for years, in which the Sleeve is the connection for the Shield/Common/Ground. He suspects someone had a hangover when they decided to come up with this one.

He adds this note: When connecting an external audio source via the DC blocking capacitor, you may need to attach a resistor between the Sleeve (input) and the Ring (Shield/Common/Ground). If some current doesn’t flow between these connections, the computer’s input may not be activated. If you find that a resistor is required, a 2.2 K-ohm should do the job.

Computers vary. The best approach may be to add a 10 MFD DC blocking capacitor in series with the high lead of the external audio device, as well as the 2.2 K-ohm resistor connected across the Sleeve and the Ring terminals.

What is your experience? Email your thoughts to johnpbisset@gmail.com.

Stop the sound of silence

Contract and projects engineer Dan Slentz enjoys sharing clever, inexpensive ways of doing things.

He told us about a freeware silence sensor from Pira.cz. The software monitors the presence of an audio signal on a stereo program line or PC soundcard. When no signal is present for a specified time, pre-defined solutions activate.

This is useful for monitoring an STL feed or hard-drive playout system where continuous audio is required. If the audio drops below your chosen threshold, the Pira.cz Silence Detector will switch to a backup and notify you with an email alert.

Next, with COVID easing, you may see guests returning to your studios. If so, you know the importance of a “cough switch” on each microphone.

Dan found a compact, reasonably priced aluminum box that permits the user to toggle the mic on and off, so the box has dual usage — for the “Voice of God” in a stage manager’s TV studio setting, or a momentary mute cough switch for individual mics in an interview studio. Built for the pro audio industry, it is from AudioMan Products. At audiomanproducts.com, scroll down to “Push to Talk Ver. 2.”

Dan says the muting of the mic is quiet — no pops or clicks when the mute button is depressed. Plus, construction is solid, and it’s built with Neutrik XLR connectors.

The AudioMan Push to Talk Ver. 2 will work with dynamic or phantom-powered condenser microphones wired with balanced three-pin connectors. I’ve saved the best part for last: Push to Talk Ver. 2 is just $59, and quantity discounts are available.

An ideal addition to any talk/interview studio.

What’s the frequency, Workbench?

Finally, Tektronix is offering a free download of its colorful Worldwide Spectrum Allocations poster. We thank Brad Ohdner of Tektronix for sharing this resource with Workbench readers.

You can download this Tektronix Frequency Allocations Chart.

John Bisset, CPBE, has more than 50 years of broadcast experience and is in his 31st year at the Radio World Workbench. He handles western U.S. radio sales for the Telos Alliance and is a past recipient of the SBE’s Educator of the Year Award.

Workbench submissions are encouraged and qualify for SBE recertification credit. Email johnpbisset@gmail.com.

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A new IPAWS planning toolkit has been made available for alerting authorities and broadcasters interested in learning more about the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System.

Using the program planning toolkit, alerting agencies can create a customized plan tailored to their agency’s operational capabilities. The kit contains step-by-step directions for creating an alerting program plan and offers customized resources, best practices and program templates to aid federal, state, local, tribal and territorial groups as they’re developing their individual alerting programs.

[Read more from us about IPAWS]

The toolkit was developed by the Department of Homeland Security Science & Technology Directorate, working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s IPAWS system.

“Getting information to the public in a timely manner saves lives,” the IPAWS staff wrote in an email introducing the new application.

“The new toolkit will assist public safety agencies in developing comprehensive alerting plans that minimize alerting delay challenges; plan for future alerts, warnings, and notifications enhancements; facilitate interoperability across different technologies; and improve information sharing among emergency management and public safety officials.”

The post New Emergency Alerting Toolkit Introduced for IPAWS appeared first on Radio World.

ATLANTA – Gray Television has expanded its National Investigative Team, known as InvestigateTV.

This saw a series of promotions and additions to the team.

• Lee Zurik rises from Director of Investigations to Vice President of Investigations. Lee oversees the National Investigative Team in addition to anchoring and reporting at WVUE-TV in New Orleans.
• Executive Producer of Investigations Jamie Grey is promoted to Managing Editor of
  Investigations. Jamie has been with the team since 2018 producing stories, coordinating coverage and leading training events.
• Greg Phillips, News Director at WMC-5 in Memphis, is now Executive Producer of Investigations. In this position, Phillips returns to his investigative background, which
  includes eight years as Assistant News Director/Special Projects Director with the investigative team at WVUE.
• Gray has hired Daniela Molina as Investigative Producer. She is a recent graduate of the Arnolt Center for Journalism at Indiana University. This past year, she worked with InvestigateTV on its “Bridging The Great Health Divide” initiative.

The National Investigative Team intends to add an additional reporter and a photographer early next year.

“The expansion of our National Investigative Unit reinforces our commitment to strong
investigative journalism,” Gray Television Senior Vice President Sandy Breland said. “We’re proud of the work of this unit that is having a real impact in the communities we serve.”

The National Investigative Team/InvestigateTV produces stories for Gray’s 113 television stations and the InvestigateTV OTT App on Roku, Amazon Fire, and Apple TV. Early
this year, the team debuted a weekly InvestigateTV show that airs on all Gray stations.

InvestigateTV launched in 2018 and provides innovative, original journalism from a
dedicated investigative team and partners, including ProPublica, News21 at Arizona State
University’s Cronkite School of Journalism, and NerdWallet. It is available on Roku, Amazon
Fire, at InvestigateTV.com and across Gray’s broadcast and digital media properties.

Radio World is taking an in-depth look at “The Infinite Dial UK 2021” report this week.

Welcome to Part Three of Radio World’s summation of Edison Research’s “The Infinite Dial UK 2021”. In this installment, online audio listening by U.K. consumers is the focus.

The data comes from Edison Research President Larry Rosen’s online webinar, which was held Dec. 2, 2021, to release the findings of “The Infinite Dial UK 2021” survey.

The report is based on 1,000 telephone interviews with U.K. residents 16 and older, during the fourth quarter of 2021.

[Read more of our coverage of the “Infinite Dial” report]

U.K. online audio listening

According to Rosen, “75 percent of people in the U.K. age 16 and older told us that they’ve listened to some form of audio online in the last month.”

Online Audio Listening in the U.K. by Age Group (Courtesy Edison Research)

This usage is relatively consistent across age groups, he noted. “It’s highest for 16–34, as you might expect, at 81 percent. But even for 55+, 72 percent of people said they’ve listened to some form of online audio in the month before we called them for this survey.”

The 35–54 age group clocked in at 74 percent.

Intriguingly, a higher percentage of U.K. 16+ consumers listened to online audio in the past month (75 percent) than did U.S. 16+ consumers (68 percent).

In fact, “the U.K. number is the highest of any of the four English-speaking countries [U.K., U.S., Australia and Canada] where we have this data,” Rosen said. Australia’s 16+ monthly online audio listenership rate was 73 percent, while in Canada (18+) it stood at 71 percent.

Online Audio Listening by Country (Courtesy Edison Research)

The U.K.’s weekly listenership to online audio was similarly strong — 66 percent for all listeners 16+. Again, the spread was relatively consistent among age groups: 72 percent for 16–34; 65 percent for 35–54; and 62 percent for 55+.

At 66 percent overall, the U.K.’s weekly 16+ online listenership rate tied with Australia’s 16+ rate. The U.S. 16+ rate was 62 percent, while Canada 18+ was 61 percent.

Overall, when it comes to online audio listening, “the adoption seems to be as high in the U.K. as in any other place that we’ve surveyed,” Rosen said.

In Part Four of Radio World’s summary of “The Infinite Dial UK 2021,” we’ll look at the U.K.’s consumption of in-car media.

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