Feed aggregator

In another vote split down party lines, the Federal Communications Commission will mandate that cable and satellite television providers clearly disclose the total, or “all-in,” price for video service packages. The 3-2 vote was decided at the FCC’s March meeting and is the latest in Commissioner Rosenworcel’s push for pricing transparency.

This move targets the elimination of hidden fees often found in service advertisements and monthly bills, ensuring consumers are fully informed about the actual costs.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

An image from a brochure of the Bureau of Justice Assistance at the Department of Justice.

A proposed new event code to deliver broadcast alerts about missing and endangered adults is moving ahead at the FCC.

We reported earlier that the commission planned to consider whether to open a notice of proposed rulemaking. It did so today unanimously.

“Adding a new ‘Missing and Endangered Persons’ event code to the nation’s Emergency Alert System would help law enforcement agencies to issue timely alerts in accordance with the Ashanti Alert Act and galvanize public attention to these cases,” the FCC said in a press release.

“Similar to how law enforcement agencies successfully use Amber Alerts on TV and radio to help mobilize public attention and recover abducted children, this new Missing and Endangered Persons event code would trigger Ashanti Alerts to sound the alarm over other missing and endangered persons.”

Here is the text of the NPRM, as released in draft form prior to the vote.

The FCC says that in the United States in 2022, about 187,000 adults went missing but fell outside of the criteria for Amber or Silver Alerts. It says the new code would be particularly beneficial to native and indigenous women who have disappeared.

The federal Ashanti Alert Act of 2018 established a voluntary nationwide communication network to aid in the search and recovery of missing adults. It was named in honor of Ashanti Billie, who was abducted and killed in 2017.

Noting that alert originators use EAS by selecting from a list of codes — such as CAE for a Child Abduction Emergency, known as an Amber Alert — the FCC is asking for comment on creating an MEP alert code.

The commission noted that several states, territories and tribal communities have Ashanti Alert plans or missing/endangered person plans, or legislative proposals in the works. It wants comments about how those would fit in with its own plan. It’s also asking for comments on whether and how this idea could be used with the Wireless Emergency Alert system, which does not use event codes.

Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement that violence against Native women has a long history. “The cruel reality is that we continue to have a crisis of missing and murdered indigenous people, and it is especially acute for women and girls in tribal communities.” She said the success of Amber Alerts over three decades shows that the event code approach works.

Rosenworcel credited Native Public Media for its efforts to call attention to the issue of missing indigenous persons.

[Read a blog post on this issue from Native Public Media.]

As with other non-presidential EAS alerts, whether stations carry Ashanti Alerts and use the MEP event code would be voluntary. As far as what would be required on the broadcaster side, the FCC noted that EAS participants are required to have equipment capable of being upgraded by software to accommodate modifications. Stations would not be required to add the code until their equipment or software was replaced. The FCC added, “We also see no reason why a new event code could not be bundled with a software upgrade that EAS participants would otherwise install anyway, during the regular course of business.”

Once the NPRM has been published in the Federal Register, the comment deadlines will be set. Comments should be made in the FCC online system under PS Dockets 15-91 or 15-94

The post “Ashanti Alert” Code Advances at FCC appeared first on Radio World.

While referencing the Oscar-nominated film Killers of the Flower Moon, Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Rosenworcel introduced a proposal for a new event code within the Emergency Alert System aimed at enhancing the search for missing and endangered adults.

This Notice of Proposed Rulemaking complements ongoing efforts by the National Congress of American Indians, the Department of the Interior, and the Department of Justice.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

Despite experiencing substantial paper losses from stock buybacks initiated in 2020, Charter Communications remains steadfast in its investment approach. That message was sent loud and clear by Chief Financial Officer Jessica Fischer at Deutsche Bank’s annual Media & Telecom Conference on Wednesday.

Fischer affirmed the third-largest US pay TV operator’s confidence in its long-term business outlook, indicating no shift in its investment strategy is forthcoming.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

The Weather Channel will be staying on Charter in a new deal that presents an added bonus for customers with CTV.

Allen Media Group, founded by Byron Allen, has negotiated a multi-year renewal agreement with Charter Communications Inc. for the ongoing distribution of AMG’s cable networks. This agreement also extends to the retransmission of Allen Media Broadcasting television stations across Charter’s Spectrum services.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

The National Association of Broadcasters has selected Townsquare Media Senior Vice President of Digital Products Sun Sachs as the recipient of its 2024 Digital Leadership Award. He has been a key contributor to Townsquare’s “digital-first” business model since 2010.

Under his leadership, the company witnessed exponential growth in its digital audience and revenue, surging from 1 million unique monthly visitors in 2010 to 75 million in 2024, and increasing digital revenues from less than 5% to over 50% of total revenue by 2023.

Sachs developed Townsquare’s proprietary content management system and a mobile application platform that supports local radio stations as well as national brand websites.

Before joining Townsquare Media, Sachs held the position of Vice President of Product at AOL Media and had supported several New York-based digital firms. His work has netted him several industry awards, such as a Webby, IMA, MIXX, a Technology Emmy nomination, and the 2022 NAB PILOT Innovation Challenge award.

Sachs serves on the NAB Digital Officer Committee and the NAB Broadcast Engineering and Information Technology Conference Committee, and has also taken on moderator roles at NAB conferences.

Since 2015, the Digital Leadership Award has recognized individuals within the broadcasting sector who have played a crucial role in transitioning traditional broadcast operations into successful digital platforms.

Sachs is set to be honored at the Broadcasting Hall of Fame ceremony, taking place on April 15 at the NAB Show Main Stage.

After acquiring Frankly Media’s AMP suite in February, SoCast has unveiled its latest digital innovation for large radio broadcast companies, SoCast Reach Enterprise. Developed in collaboration with Canadian broadcaster Stingray, the platform is designed to scale digital business.

With 20% of radio’s revenue now coming from digital, Reach Enterprise aims to streamline the digital revenue growth process, by enhancing workflow integration across departments and managing digital sales operations from proposal to delivery that works alongside traditional ad sales.

SoCast Reach Enterprise is compatible with WideOrbit and integrates with all major demand-side platforms like Google and Meta.

Stingray Director of Digital Sales Ryan Shortt commented, “I can attest to the strength of our partnership with SoCast and the capabilities of SoCast Reach Enterprise. A standout moment in our collaboration was the rapid and seamless integration of SoCast’s Delivery Reports at a critical juncture when our previous provider was ceasing operations. This swift action by SoCast was crucial, preventing any potential disruption for our sales team and advertisers.”

SoCast COO Sandy Hurst said, “Every broadcaster is at a different stage of digital transformation. Our goal is to always provide the radio industry, from the enterprise level to start-ups, with solutions to help with their digital revenue transformation, and we keep the strategy one step ahead so that the innovation is already in place when radio broadcasters need it.”

Ahead of releasing its 2023 annual report to shareholders soon, Audacy released data this week about its business situation. It cited “significant sequential acceleration across key financial metrics and performance indicators.”

The company said it seeks to provide “additional visibility on its progress” since receiving court approval of its Chapter 11 reorganization. The FCC must still approve the plan. 

Audacy said overall revenue, as well as the radio portion of that revenue, were up 1% in January. The smaller digital portion was up 7%. First quarter revenues were pacing up 1% and second quarter were pacing more.

But revenues in the fourth quarter of last year were down 8.9% from the prior year, to $311.6 million, while cash operating expenses declined 9.1%.

Among other savings it said it completed real estate asset sales worth $10 million in the fourth quarter and $14 million during the first quarter.

Audacy did highlight gains in its share of both market revenue and ratings, and it said it “continues to deliver consistent, strong increases in streaming audiences, with 14 consecutive months of double-digit unique listener growth through January.”

It believes that the $350 million of debt it will carry after reorganization will give it “the strongest balance sheet among its industry peers.” The previous debt was $1.9 billion.

Randy Stine’s recent story “Audacy Prepares to Emerge From Chapter 11 Bankruptcy” has more about the company’s current situation.

[Sign Up for Radio World’s SmartBrief Newsletter]

The post Audacy Encouraged by Q1 Trending appeared first on Radio World.

We asked you to tell us what’s in your toolbag. John Cone doesn’t carry one; he uses a Pelican brand equipment case. And he says the most important tool inside is a Dymo Rhino Pro label maker.

Keep a Dymo label maker in your tool bag. You will find many uses for it around your facility.

John says that many radio stations seem to have been built without labels for their wires and cables. So when he is working on a facility and identifying wires and cables, he also takes the time to label them.

In his case he also carries a tone generator and probe; the latter is invaluable as an audio signal tracer. He also has a CTP Systems dBbox3 audio tester, again for analog audio signal tracing.

On the RF side, John has a small AEA vector network analyzer. He uses this instrument when he has a dozen unmarked coax cables inside the transmitter building and would like to be able to tell which one is for the 950 MHz STL. He also carries a small, very nice TTI spectrum analyzer as well as an old Pira.cz USB FM analyzer to assess whether a station is over-processed.

Bright at night

Ed Walters, K8DI, is with The Solution LLC in southwestern Michigan. At the top of his list of “must have” tools is a decent LED flashlight. Ed likes the Nitecore P10. He calls it “stupid bright” and says it’s not so expensive that he worries about losing it.

Ed says that at his age a magnifying glass also comes in handy, as does a small first aid kit that includes bandages, tweezers and antibiotic cream. Thinking of safety, Ed includes a box of latex gloves and a face mask, helpful for cleaning up rodent messes or in a medical emergency.

Ed Walters likes the Nitecore P10 LED flashlight.

He makes sure he has a fully charged cell phone, with reliable coverage for emergency calls and a camera for documentation.

It’s important to include at least one pair of pliers, a wrench or a crimper that’s big enough to hit something with! Ed’s preferred solution is a pair of Klein Tools electrical lineman’s pliers. (See our earlier column “New Uses for Your Handy Klein 9s.”) 

These days Ed installs audio gear in theme parks, but he recently converted an RCA BTA-1R1 into a ham radio transmitter. He says those “relics” are fun to work with. He says his rig has no PCB capacitors, just a wonderful old smell!

A lifesaver

Dale Lamm is director of engineering at Alpha Media’s WHBC(AM) in Canton, Ohio. At the top of his list is a good non-contact AC voltage sensor. Prices range from $20 to $30. 

Wave the sensor around any wiring that you plan to touch. Not everything has a shorting stick! An inductive probe can keep you from getting bit, or worse.

Like Ed Walters, Dale recommends a good camera phone. Take pictures of wiring before you disturb it, and you’ll have an easier job when it’s time to put everything back together.

Dale uses the photos to document his work in the transmitter logbook, which helps him address recurring problems. Those pictures also can be used to provide a progress report to the boss. 

And Dale agrees that your travel bag should include a well-stocked first aid kit. Scotch #3 makes for poor bandaging.

What’s in your bag that you can’t live without? Email me at johnpbisset@gmail.com.

News tool

Electro-Voice and Shure both make long-handle versions of their handheld omnidirectional mics that are so popular for news work, the EV635 and Shure SM63. It’s interesting that adding just a little more “reach” makes for much better audio.

A simple adapter adds length to an interview mic. Note the rubber O-ring, which makes for a snug fit.

But what if you already own the classic shorter versions and would like to get that extra reach? 

Jim Schultz of Schultz Communications in Warren, Conn., offers a solution. He purchased an XLR male/female extension adapter from Amazon ($8.99 for two). The adapter easily adds 2.5 inches to your microphone and is the same diameter as those EV and Shure models. Jim added a 5/8-inch O-ring on the female side to make for a snug fit into the microphone, as you can see in the photos. 

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

[Read Another Workbench by John Bisset]

The post Useful Tools for Your Travel Bag appeared first on Radio World.

When Mike Kernen came to Crawford Broadcasting as its Detroit market chief engineer in April 2020, he brought with him 32 years of experience, having supervised engineering at Greater Media’s Motor City properties and then serving Beasley Media for four years after it acquired the cluster. 

Crawford’s market stations brought a unique challenge. In addition to stalwart WMUZ-FM on 103.5, Crawford owns three AM stations in the region, all running directional arrays, most notably 1200 WMUZ(AM), “The Salt of Detroit.” Licensed to Taylor, it has a complex directional antenna system for its nighttime pattern.

“I was nervous about taking on the 10-tower array,” Kernen said. “I knew the theory behind AM broadcasting and had some experience maintaining (AM 760) WJR. But just the complexity with the setup, at first, was intimidating.” Kernen credits Cris Alexander, Crawford’s director of engineering and Radio World contributor, with giving him the tools he needed to succeed. 

“Cris showed faith in me that I could be an AM guy,” Kernen said. “I’ve come to love it; it’s the most exhilarating part of my job given its intricacies.” 

At Crawford’s Detroit-area properties, Kernen oversees everything technical, from ensuring that the grass at the transmitter and antenna sites is well-maintained, to managing its computer networking.

Troubleshooting Mike Kernen

WMUZ’s AM antenna array is located about 19 miles southwest of the center of Detroit in Huron Charter Township, nestled in a field between greenhouses and a couple of churches, in landscape that is quintessential outlying lower Michigan. 

The station signed on in 1990 as 25 kW day and 1 kW night. A frequency change by a co-channel station in Frankenmuth, Mich., a few years later made 50 kW day possible, and with the addition of more towers to narrow the directional pattern, 15 kW night was authorized as well in 1993. 

Crawford acquired the station from Radio One in 2017. The station was silent for several months that year, and its antenna site needed some upgrades.

“The site was in remarkably good shape overall,” Alexander said. “The biggest change we made out of the gate was replacing the main transmitter with a new Nautel NX50. That allowed us to operate the station more efficiently and in the hybrid MA1 digital mode.”

“It has been terrific, it works like a hose,” Kernen said of the NX50. WMUZ(AM) also has a 5 kW GatesAir transmitter for auxiliary purposes. 

The next order of business was troubleshooting the AM’s automatic switching from its 10-tower, 15.8 kW nighttime pattern to its four-tower, 50 kW daytime pattern. 

Intermittently, Kernen would receive alerts at sunrise that at least one of the 10 Kintronic Labs custom-made antenna tuning units had failed to switch, leading to an inability to transition to the daytime pattern. Consequently, the station would be off the air. 

The intermittent nature of the failures, and the variety of components subject to failure, led to a Whac-a-Mole process of troubleshooting. 

“You would make a change, see a response and the next thing you knew, the same issue would occur,” Kernen said. He replaced microswitches within the ATUs, changed coils on contactors and identified bad coil within the site’s phasor, which Kernen said is the size of a small bus. Yet the issue persisted. 

Kernen decided to measure the voltage coming back from the ATU with a multimeter. He found that the relay inside Tower 10’s ATU was receiving only 16.7 volts, indicating that over 9 volts were being lost across the loop of wire going to tower 10 and coming back to the controller. 

“There’s no way the length of the cable would be responsible for that great of a voltage drop,” Kernen said. The ultimate culprit? A wire inside the transmitter building wasn’t seated properly. Opening the screw on the terminal block and retightening the wire fixed the issue entirely. 

“A valuable takeaway from this experience,” Kernen said, “is that often, we can get caught up in the complexities and, based on our past experiences, overthink issues. Sometimes the answer lies in simplicity. It’s important to be aware of our tendencies and occasionally approach problems from a counterintuitive angle.” 

Alexander agreed and noted some common patterns savvy engineers like Kernen pick up on. “Other than the size of the components, AM antenna systems use the same basic blocks of LC circuits you would find in any RF device,” he said. 

Freshened up At the tower site.

Alexander has composed several documents that he shares with engineers during the on-boarding process. “I wrote a white paper years ago on dealing with problems in AM directional antenna systems,” he said. “In that document, Rule Number One is don’t try to fix antenna problems with phasor controls! Find the underlying cause and deal with it.”

Kernen is proud of the progress he and the team at Crawford have made at WMUZ, and the work has continued. Following his recommendations, a new storage building was constructed 50 feet from the transmitter building, for tractors and other equipment. New security cameras were installed at the site, along with interior and exterior illumination for the new structure. 

A new roof was installed on the transmitter building this year, followed by a repaint. New gravel was paved on the road to the site, and the west doors to the building were replaced; the previous ones had rusted due to the strong westerly wind that often blows in from the field. 

“For me, it’s a thrill, to go from a station left to go dark, to a site that we are proud of,” Kernen said, adding that he regularly receives QSL reports on 1200’s nighttime signal from as far away as Finland. 

There are, of course, other challenges that any engineers with complex sites in semi-rural settings can attest. WMUZ’s antenna site is in a very low area built on a former landfill and thus is prone to standing water, which means water intrusions can be frequent. 

“A contractor comes in once a month to deal with mice, wasps, bees and mosquitos during the warm season,” Kernen said, recalling a particularly challenging day last August when he was stung four times by bees.

“Nowadays, managing the 10-tower array is less challenging than overseeing the other two AM sites,” Kernen said. The transmitter site of WCHB 1340 in Royal Oak, Mich., took in an inch of water during one weather event; this was corrected with the installation of a whole new drainage system. The third Crawford AM in lower Michigan, 560 WRDT Monroe, broadcasts from separate sites for its daytime and nighttime patterns, and it has a separate 107.1 FM Detroit translator as well, all of which keeps Kernen often on the go. 

Kernen appreciates Crawford’s support for AM and expresses pleasure in his daily role.

“The saying is true, if you love what you do, you never work a day in your life,” Kernen said. “It’s a profound feeling, knowing that what you’ve worked on reaches millions. It’s truly inspiring.”

[Read more Newsmaker stories from Radio World.]

The post Kernen Keeps Crawford on the Air in the Motor City appeared first on Radio World.

On January 11, 2024, the Video Division, Media Bureau (Bureau) issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in response to a petition for rulemaking VPM Media Corporation (Petitioner), requesting the allotment of reserved noncommercial educational (NCE) television channel * 12 to Waynesboro, Virginia (Waynesboro), in the Table of TV Allotments as the community's first local television service and its first NCE television service. For the reasons set forth in the Report and Order referenced below, the Bureau amends FCC regulations by allotting channel * 12 at Waynesboro.

.

.

Special Relief and Show Cause Petition

Issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order and Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture to Word of God Fellowship, Inc. in the amount of $9,500 for violations of Commission rules.

Grants in Part and Denies in Part Informal Objection; Dismisses Application for New LPFM Construction Permit at Glocester, Rhode Island

.

In this letter to the editor, the author comments the story “New Program Nourishes High-School Interest in Radio.” Comment on this or any article. Email radioworld@futurenet.com.

Monterey High School in Lubbock, Texas, had a terrestrial radio facility as part of its electronics program. Originally an unlicensed AM “power line injector” in the 1960s, KMHS eventually became a licensed educational 10-watter with call letters KLSD, for Lubbock School District. 

KLLL in Lubbock donated an old Armstrong transmitter, and its IPA section was tapped to supply the necessary low power. The first song aired was Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.”

When the license was upgraded to 3,000 watts via a donation from McMartin, many more people were able to hear 91.1 FM — so many in fact that complaints about the call letters were received by Superintendent Ed Irons. He decided to ask the FCC for new calls and KOHM was selected.

Station promotions were led by the students. The electronics program had printed circuit screening capability, so they made a silkscreen with a unique logo. I have attached a photo of the artwork printed onto a jacket entrusted to me by the late Donald Hackler, who engineered radio facilities in San Francisco. He was a great mentor and helped me get through Fortran programming class at Texas Tech.

Kerns’ jacket, a gift of the late Donald Hackler.

I’m happy that youngsters want to learn the business but it bothers me that not many are jumping into chief operations and transmission maintenance. Believe it or not, the antenna at KOHM was built by the Monterey metal shop students working from blueprints designed by Dr. Charles Burford at Texas Tech. (My air shift was called “The Cherry Pepper Program,” named for Dr. Burford’s affection for that barbecue relish!)

Our instructor Charles Wilson was a fervent ham operator and a good teacher — although transistor biasing calculations had many of us scratching our heads for a few days. I have many great memories of KOHM before it moved to Dunbar-Struggs High School in the early 1980s. It eventually faded into eternity.

— Kerns Garza, KRFE(AM), Lubbock, Texas

[Check Out More Letters at Radio World’s Reader’s Forum Section]

The post Letter: High School Radio Memories appeared first on Radio World.

Circle City Broadcasting founder and owner DuJuan McCoy has been named the 2024 Small Business Person of the Year for Indiana by the U.S. Small Business Administration. This accolade celebrates McCoy’s contributions to small business and community service.

McCoy initiated his venture in the television industry with an SBA-backed loan during the 2008 financial crisis.

Circle City is the parent company of WISH-TV and WNDY, as well as a driving force behind the Muliticultural News Network. The SBA is recognizing McCoy for his role in job creation, economic advancement, and commitment to community education through his media outlets.

McCoy will attend the National Small Business Week in Washington, D.C., from April 28th to May 4th, where he will compete for the national title of National Small Business Person of the Year. He will face leading entrepreneurs across the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam.

He commented, “I am truly honored to receive the 2024 Small Business Person of the Year award for the state of Indiana. Thank you to the U.S. Small Business Administration for this incredible honor and for recognizing the great work that we at Circle City Broadcasting continue to do every day!”

Having kicked off in March 2024 for Women’s History Month, Radio World Assistant Editor Elle Kehres is interviewing women in broadcast engineering roles and other technical positions, highlighting their work and growing careers in a male-dominated field. This is an ongoing feature, as women’s industry contributions extend beyond the month of March. 

Shayna Sengstock, an up and coming broadcast engineer for New York Public Radio, inadvertently stumbled upon her career. With degrees in journalism and writing studies from Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., she found her passion for radio engineering by joining Hoftra’s college radio station WRHU(FM), albeit not for want of any technical positions.

Sengstock said she started at WRHU because she wanted to write scripts for its news show “Newsline.” So, once she joined the station, Sengstock became the student morning show director her sophomore and junior year. However, she would later become the student technical director while finishing up her studies junior and senior year.

“I actually wasn’t really thinking of running for the student technical director position and I wanted to be the next student talk programming director; however, one of the things I found myself constantly doing was following [WRHU] Chief Engineer Andy Gladding and previous Student Technical Director Jonathan Sanelli around the station.”

What started as a fascination to understand Gladding’s and Sanelli’s work blossomed into a desire to pursue engineering full-time.

“Once I grew a love for engineering, I decided it was only appropriate to run for student technical director,” said Sengstock. “Thankfully, I won the position and I have never looked back. Andy later helped me get my job at New York Public Radio.”

Sengstock installing a delay button in the WRHU production room. Photos provided by Shayna Sengstock.

In preparing for her work post-grad, Sengstock said the most valuable skills she learned at WRHU were how to calmly handle stressful situations and how to troubleshoot problems properly — the bread and butter of any engineer. 

“Honestly, the biggest part of any broadcast engineer’s job is making sure the operations of the radio station are going smoothly.”

“When I was the student technical director, I would get calls at a bunch of random times from 5 a.m. to 11 p.m., so I had to figure out how to walk people through their problems in a coherent way so that the broadcast could continue.”

Sengstock said her proudest accomplishment during her time at WRHU was getting the station’s technical department off the ground. While “Student Technical Director” had always been a title, there was no physical tech department at WRHU until Sengstock became the student director in 2021.

“It first started off small with me just teaching basic board operating and routing to the students and seeing who would be interested in learning more,” she said. “Then, after a while, I started to want to learn more intense technical work from Andy Gladding. Once I felt like I had more skills under my belt, I started asking other students if they wanted to join me by going to Andy and learning things from him as well.”

Soon enough, Sengstock said there were enough students who showed a passion for tech to not only launch the official WRHU Technical Department, but to create what would soon be known as “Tech Thursdays.”

“After a while, Andy and I also came up with the idea of having outside broadcast engineers come to Hofstra and give lectures to the students about broadcast engineering and what it entails,” said Sengstock. “With the large interest for tech at WRHU, the lectures from different professionals out in the field became a regular thing and it still goes on to this day.”

Speaking to Sengstock’s accomplishments, Gladding said “during her tenure at WRHU, Shayna single-handedly generated interest in broadcast engineering for my student technical cohort, increasing our weekly ‘Tech Thursday’ attendance from three to about 20 students per semester who want to learn about radio and TV engineering.”

“Her passion for mentorship and fellowship is unparalleled and she has been committed to creating and developing opportunities for college students in broadcast tech, especially women looking to thrive in STEM,” said Gladding.

Scenes from Tech Thursdays at WRHU. “This is when the tech department was learning about IP addresses,” said Sengstock. “We made ‘New England Clam Chowder’ the passcode for the IP addresses.”

Mentorship has been a big part of Sengstock’s professional career, both in giving and receiving.

“I find it extremely greedy when people do not look past themselves to help the future generations,” she said. “When I was at WRHU, I was a part of their mentorship program and taught many students about diverse aspects of radio. The only way that the majority of people are going to access great skills in their craft is by being shown how to do it from those who are more knowledgeable. If I didn’t have Andy showing me how to be a broadcast engineer, I would not be where I am today.”

When it comes to women looking to join and/or advance in technical careers, Sengstock said mentorship opportunities are especially important.

“It was only until the late 1960s through the early 1980s that women were even getting some opportunities to attend some Ivy League schools. Us as women should want to learn all that we can and realize we are very fortunate to be living in a time where we have more equality than our previous ancestors,” said Sengstock.

“I do realize that a lot of broadcast engineers tend to be older men, but right now it is our time as women to take over and add diversity to the ever-changing tech field.”

On-air in the WRHU production room and studio. Sengstock  was board op for WRHU’s  live coverage of the 2020 election. “It is a live four-hour multicase of the election called ‘Hofstra Votes Live.'”

It’s not just the technical side of radio that sees inequities between the ratio of men and women in the industry. According to research conducted by RTDNA and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, men continue to dominate all radio roles, making up 60.5% of the total workforce as compared to 39.5% for women.

While finding an “entry point” in the broadcast engineering field may seem daunting, especially for women, Sengstock said it’s important to not discredit yourself and to ask as many questions as you can. 

“You’d be surprised how many people would be willing to teach you how to do something if you just ask.”

“As well, Google is a beautiful thing, so if you are wondering how something works, Google it. And lastly, ask yourself questions. Everything functions a certain way for a reason, so remain curious.” 

Finally, for the curious engineers reading this, here’s what Sengstock is currently working on at New York Public Radio: “Right now we are working on switching our radio automation system from DAVID to Zetta. I find it very exciting because I learned how to ‘radio’ off of Zetta, so I am already very familiar with the way the software operates. We are in the final steps right now of setting it up, just working out the finishing little bugs the system may have.”

Want to nominate someone for the next Women in Engineering spotlight? Email Elle at elle.kehres@futurenet.com.

[Sign Up for Radio World’s SmartBrief Newsletter]

The post Women in Engineering: Shayna Sengstock of New York Public Radio appeared first on Radio World.