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Lisa López has been a private mobile DJ for more than 15 years. As Kansas City Community Radio — 100kw KKFI-FM —notes, López played for all types of crowds, so she has plenty of music knowledge.

Sadly, that knowledge can no longer be shared with the community, as López was identified as the one individual slain during a mass shooting on Wednesday as the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl victory parade turned from celebratory to somber.

López was a co-host of KKFI’s “Taste of Tejano,” joining in March 2022 to co-host with Tommy Andrade and Monica Frias McGee.

López’s death was shared via Facebook by KKFI.

For some 15 years, she was viewed as the architect, leader, and manager of Compass Media Networks’ play-by-play sports platform as well as West Coast entertainment production.

Now, Michelle Salvatore has ser her sights on new opportunities outside of the company.

Salvatore has resigned from Compass to pursue an entrepreneurial opportunity outside of media, the company said late Wednesday. She will continue to work for Compass Media Networks through the spring and will advise the company on a transition plan.

“Back in Spring of 2009, during the chaos and sleepless nights involved in launching this national media company, the media gods sent me an angel in the form of Michelle Salvatore,” said Peter Kosann, CEO/Founder of Compass Media Networks. “Michelle faced down every challenge, worked tirelessly and with good cheer, and set a gold standard of excellence for not only Compass Media Networks, but our industry.”

Under Salvatore’s guidance, Compass Media Networks has broadcast live, play-by-play of major sporting events involving college men’s basketball and football (including the Big Ten Tournament and the Big Ten Championship Game), NFL 1pm and 4pm Sunday Doubleheaders, Major League Baseball regular season games, and complete coverage of the Dallas Cowboys and Las Vegas Raiders.

“Michelle has been one of the most important people in my career,” said Kevin Burkhardt, lead play-by-play voice for FOX Sports. “She believed in me from the start, and gave me opportunities to call college football and Dallas Cowboys games for Compass Media Networks. She produced me and made me better, and I would not be where I am today without her.”

Salvatore commented, “Working at Compass Media Networks literally changed my life for the better. I was able to travel the globe, producing games throughout the United States, Latin America and Europe, and had the chance to work with incredibly talented, passionate, and kind people. I am forever grateful to my dear friends at Compass Media Networks.”

Added Kosann, “We love and will miss Michelle dearly. Our goal is to build upon the greatness she created as we move ahead into the next chapter of our evolution.”

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Telos execs Scott Stiefel and Frank Foti update us on trends in their business.

For Will Payne, radio truly is in his blood; read our profile of the broadcaster.

Also, Karl Zuk offers soldering tips for beginners.

John Bisset helps you to label it, bag it and stash it quick.

And Buyer’s Guide offers products for your sports and remote broadcasts from Comrex, AEQ, Tieline, Henry, Telos and Yellowtec.

Read it here.

The post Read the Feb. 14, 2024 Issue of Radio World appeared first on Radio World.

The Federal Communications Commission plans to fine a man $40,000 for alleged pirate radio broadcasts in the eastern Pennsylvania city of Hazleton.

It has issued a notice of apparent liability against Brigido Danerys Gonzalez for radio signals on 90.1 MHz. It said it first became aware of the station, known as “La Bakana,” thanks to a consumer complaint, and that Gonzalez, aka “Super Dany,” has been directly involved in the operation of the station since at least May 2022.

The commission first traced the signals to the address of a grocery store. “Agents spoke with the owner of a supermarket located at the first transmission site who stated that he paid an individual who went by the name ‘Super Dany’ approximately $50 per month to advertise on La Bakana,” according to the FCC summary.

“Based on information provided by the owner of the supermarket, agents contacted the owner of the building at the first transmission site who stated that she was not aware of any pirate radio station transmitting from her building, but described ‘Super Dany’ as a famous radio personality in Hazleton.”

On subsequent visits to the area, the FCC agents traced the 90.1 broadcasts to two other transmission sites. The commission said the agents also found references to La Bakana online, and that in a YouTube video of an interview with “Super Dany,” he stated that his name is Danerys Gonzalez.

Radio World emailed Gonzalez and will report any comment. People facing a pirate radio NAL have 30 days to reply to the FCC, to explain why they should not be required to pay the fine.

[Related: “Pirate Radio Is Not Just a Big-City Problem”]

 

The post FCC Plans Pirate Fine Against “Super Dany” appeared first on Radio World.

April Rodriguez has moved forward with the acquisition of a trio of FM radio stations in Wyoming, paperwork filed with the FCC on Wednesday for its regulatory approval confirms.

Also in TRANSACTIONS TODAY: AM sales in Phoenix and in Ohio, with the latter brokered by Roger Rafson.

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In a move some may view as a structural change similar to that seen at Paramount unit CBS News & Stations, The Walt Disney Company on Wednesday moved ahead with the formation of a business unit that aligns ABC News with ABC Owned Stations and the ABC networks.

Leading the new group for Disney is Debra OConnell. She’ll hold the title of President/News Group and Networks under Disney Entertainment.

ABC News President Kim Godwin and ABC Owned Television Stations President Chad Matthews will report to OConnell.

The move means OConnell is adding ABC News to a purview that includes WABC-7 in New York; KABC-7 in Los Angeles; WLS-7 in Chicago; WPVI-6 in Philadelphia; KGO-7 in San Francisco; KTRK-13 in Houston; WTVD-11 in Raleigh-Durham; and KFSN-30 in Fresno-Merced.

Furthermore, OConnell is gaining P&L responsibilities for the ABC broadcast network, Disney Channels, FX Networks, Freeform and National Geographic Channels.

Since November 2020, OConnell has served as President of Networks in the Disney Media Media & Entertainment Distribution segment of the company. Before that, she spent 3 years until March 2021 as President/GM of WABC-7 in New York and as the Disney company lead on the syndicated “Live with Kelly and Ryan,” a program born as “The Morning Show” at WABC some 40 years ago.

“The newly formed News Group and Networks unit places key businesses and operations in a single vertical under OConnell to better enable synergy and collaboration,” Disney said in a late Wednesday announcement.

“I consider it a privilege to advocate for the best networks, the best news organization and the best stations in the world, and thank Dana for her leadership and trust,” OConnell said. “I’m excited to work with Kim, Chad and these exceptional teams on strategies to superserve our viewers for years to come.”

Longtime radio industry professionals will also recall that OConnell shifted to television within ABC in September 1999 with her acceptance of an Account Executive role at WABC-7. For nearly 2 1/2 years before that, she was in sales for WABC-AM and WPLJ-FM in New York under ABC ownership. OConnell earned that role in June 1997 after two years as an AE and Executive Producer for WBAB-FM and WBLI-FM in Nassau-Suffolk under Chancellor Broadcasting ownership.

Furthermore, OConnell took a leap into broadcast media sales in 1995 after four years as a Marketing Director and sales rep for DiCarlo Food Service.

“Debra is an excellent executive who has succeeded in a wide range of leadership roles around our company and knows very well the extraordinary power of ABC News and its world-class journalists,” said Dana Walden, co-chairman, Disney Entertainment, to whom OConnell will continue to report. “This new role gives her oversight across all our linear operations, where she will be able to optimize our iconic brands and shepherd them into the future. I look forward to having her lead these incredibly talented teams as we build on our success.”

Debra OConnell is on the board of directors for A&E Networks, National Geographic Partners and TVB, a not-for-profit trade association representing America’s local broadcast television industry. She also serves on advisory boards for the Ryan Seacrest Foundation and League of Women Voters of New York City.

In recent years, the Dominican segment of the U.S. Hispanic population has grown significantly, and in particular in certain regions of the nation where Spanish-language media content has been lacking. Among those areas is Northeastern Pennsylvania.

Brigido Danerys Gonzalez saw the need to reach this important audience of consumers. But, he didn’t do it legally. Now, he’s been handed a proposed fine from the FCC for his not-so-fine broadcast activities there — which could also involve an unlicensed operation in Brooklyn, N.Y.

 

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As part of this year’s World Radio Day celebration, which marked 100 years of radio, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) called upon the technology and automotive industries to ensure that radio remain available in cars.

The statement comes as AM radio advocates continue the fight on Capitol Hill to keep the senior band as a mainstay in electric vehicles and new models, some of which have already dropped the service.

In a joint statement issued on Feb. 13, UNESCO and a notable contingent of worldwide broadcast organizations, including AMARC International, the European Broadcasting Union, the Public Media Alliance and the World Radio Alliance, urged the design of future automobile models to include broadcast radio.

“Radio has its place in the digital transformation of the information ecosystem, complementing the internet and digital platforms,” the statement read. “The evolution of communication technologies should advance people’s right to receive information and ideas through any media — instead of regressing it.”

UNESCO lauded radio for proving itself as a “crucial medium” in times of crisis, including when broadband service is unavailable or power is disrupted. Radio was also highlighted for demonstrating the trust it has with citizens through “repeated studies” — ranked above television, the internet or social media.

“Radio is a triumph of accessibility, immediacy and intimacy and there’s a strong public-interest case for protecting it and our access to it,” UNESCO said.

UNESCO said it believes that the exclusion of radio from vehicles would limit people’s access to information solely to online platforms. Regardless of how radio broadcasts are received, via analog or digital means or delivered through terrestrial over-the-air signal or internet stream, the statement underscores that “radio in cars should not just be easy to find, it must be impossible to miss.”

The joint statement concludes by calling upon “governments, regulatory bodies, the technology and automotive industries, and all members of the global radio community to put safeguards in place to ensure that radio continues to thrive; to protect the free and unfettered access radio provides to a plurality of opinions and to trusted information.”

Read UNESCO’s World Radio Day statement.

[Read more stories about the future of AM radio in cars]

The post UNESCO Calls On Automakers to Keep Radio in Cars appeared first on Radio World.

An assortment of media organizations superserving America’s Spanish-speaking consumers have come together to push “get out the vote” efforts in the U.S. Hispanic community ahead of the 2024 presidential election and key local and state ballot choices.

Helping in the effort: the NAB.

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Engineers. With the sponsorship of SCMS the webinar was free, so the next time you deal with SCMS, please express your appreciation for their help in educating engineers and their support of the society. You can watch the webinar on demand. 

When I shared a tip about organizing the parts in your workshop, I showed Fig. 1. Dave Morgan, CBRE, director of engineering for Sinclair Telecable in Norfolk, saw something eerily familiar. He shares Fig. 2, a “master” parts depot at a transmitter site. Similar shelving, bins and methodologies!

Fig. 1: Our image from the SBE Workbench webinar.

Dave admits that his bins are a work in progress, as his team sorts and consolidates parts from various transmitter sites accumulated over decades. This particular site has the room for a “master” parts depot as well as equipment storage. 

Given the disappearance of local electronics parts stores, the diversity of parts in this depot amazes Dave. The assortment includes resistors, transistors, ICs, terminals, fasteners, indicator bulbs and wire nuts. Old electrolytic capacitors were tossed due to age, but there are plenty of fresher ones on hand from recent repair projects.

Fig. 2: Dave Morgan’s “master” parts depot.

Dave asked us to share with you his system for sorting and storing parts like small capacitors, resistors, transistors, diodes and ICs. It can be awkward to store through-hole components with long leads in the tiny plastic bins that come in a multi-bin cabinet. And carrying them en masse from one site to another is a challenge. 

Dave uses Ziploc or similar brand plastic parts bags that come from the supply houses. They fit perfectly inside a Akro-Mils shelf bin (part number 30150, available in various colors and measuring 7 inches wide by 4 inches tall by 12 inches deep). Plastic dividers are part number 40150. The bin can be seen in Fig. 3.

Fig. 3: There’s even a bin for small parts.

Dave organizes parts in ascending numerical order by value and arranges them like an old-fashioned library card catalog. For electrolytic capacitors there are many bags for a certain capacitance, then sorted by voltage rating, form factor (radial vs. axial), bipolar/non-polar and Audio Grade. Dave has yet to sort through other capacitor types like ceramic and film. 

Resistors are sorted into bins for the various wattages, then bagged according to type (e.g. carbon film, metal film) and tolerance. Wire-wound resistors are kept in separate bins. 

The plastic baggies can be reused; just apply new labels atop the old ones, or scratch through the old markings with a Sharpie or similar brand marker and write in the available white space. New bags are available from Amazon. 

A benefit, aside from getting organized, is that the bins are comparatively easy to transport from one site to another. If an older transmitter needs to be recapped or have carbon composition resistors replaced as they age, you just take whichever bins are needed and go.

So what about ICs, transistors, and semiconductors? You’ll have to wait for the next issue’s Workbench to discover how Dave handles those components.

Power cables in color

For a studio upgrade project, Ray Lewis at WHJU(FM) in Conyers, Ga., found that EIA AC power cables are available on Amazon in a variety of colors including red, blue, green, black and white. 

Ray is using the color coding when routing to individual uninterruptible power supplies. During an outage, this code for the various UPS units will be helpful and can save time; he’ll know what’s plugged in where. 

On Amazon, enter “Cable Leader universal power cord — colored” for a listing of cable types, lengths and wire gauges.

Home-brew transmitter 

Clifford Kotchka is a retired television engineer and a ham radio enthusiast. Figs. 4, 5 and 6 show a variety of views of the homebrew 500-watt Class C power amplifier, using 813s, that he constructed. Beautiful work. See what you can do in retirement?

Click to toggle between photos.

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

[Read Another Workbench by John Bisset]

The post A Place for Every Part … appeared first on Radio World.

A New York-based company known for workflow automation and ad management for audio content creation and distribution companies is team up with an ad management platform brand catering to publishers and media companies as part of a joint effort to deliver “quicker, more accurate requests for host-read ads.”

The combined offering of Frequency and Boostr “brings greater operational efficiencies to podcast networks to drive revenue growth and increased profitability.”

Specifically, API integration between the two companies connects their respective podcast ad management platforms to streamline and automate workflows.

As flights are added to Boostr’s order management system, production requests are triggered in Frequency with details such as ad types, copy execution, approval requirements, and more.

The automatic creation of production requests feeds into Frequency’s Production Automation workflow, where teams can manage the back and forth to finalize host-read ads for launch.

With requests centralized and communication streamlined, users can track details, set reminders, use bulk editing tools, QA recordings, and provide feedback.

Learn more at FrequencyAds.com

He’s a veteran news commentator and journalist who has worked at FOX News and ABC News. Starting this evening, he’ll now be serving as a correspondent-at-large for the cable TV network owned by Nexstar Media Group.

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Jerry Del Colliano

The author of this commentary is the publisher of Inside Music Media, where this commentary first appeared. Subscription info can be found here. 

It is becoming more apparent that SiriusXM sees the decline of in-car subscribers for their satellite monopoly and is now betting on the digital future instead – the only problem is, in digital they have endless competitors.

Satellite radio is a legal monopoly; the two authorized satellite companies XM and Sirius merged, giving them a clear path to take advantage of radio’s faults (commercials, lack of variety, fewer personalities).

Now at 34 million subscribers, satellite radio has peaked and the costly process of broadcasting from orbits above the earth is deemphasized.

The sat company is offering subscriptions for as low as several dollars a month.

In some cases, for example, Amex picks up 100% of the charge for Platinum card holders.

Ironically, the paid satellite service that competed for decades against free radio is in many ways also becoming free radio, prompting a change in strategy.

Late to digital

SiriusXM is embracing digital streaming like it is something new, but Spotify and Apple Music already dominate the sector, with many other digital options to compete with now.

SiriusXM controls the original music streaming service Pandora, which has not been able to keep up with Spotify and Apple Music, so their new plans include expanding out their satellite channels for digital delivery even to the point of keeping them aligned with the offerings available in cars.

BUT, SiriusXM is offering no new digital approach that would attract younger consumers – the ones they don’t currently have in the car and must have in any successful digital initiative.

I can tell you I have yet to find even one college student interested in SiriusXM at any price, either in the car or delivered digitally, although all have either or both Spotify and Apple Music.

The podcasting mistake

SiriusXM is not learning from Spotify’s costly and public flirtation with podcasting, in which they spent hundreds of millions of dollars to attract exclusive podcasts available only for paid subscribers – the experiment failed.

Spotify recently ended many costly podcaster exclusives and is keeping a few like Joe Rogan under very different circumstances and pay incentives making the podcasts available everywhere without a subscription.

Meanwhile SiriusXM is dropping $100 million on Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes and Will Arnett as part of a large deal between SiriusXM and SmartLess Media. That’s higher than the $90 million they are currently paying for Howard Stern’s services.

They may be signaling a reluctance to reup the 70-year old Stern when his contract expires – at least at present numbers.

SiriusXM, like terrestrial radio, seems to be searching for something other than their core radio business, which is by all measures eroding – gross profit down 3% in 2023 – but terrestrial radio will not benefit from their retreat because satellite radio never hurt it in the first place.

To keep investors happy, SiriusXM is eliminating another 160 jobs as part of a rolling layoff that will help prune expenses.

The bottom line

Satellite radio missed its earlier opportunity to profit from the crass commercialization of radio and seems just as willing as its free radio competitor to virtually give away car subscriptions to join the digital revolution that may have already peaked.

Comment on this or any story. Email radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Commentary: SiriusXM Is Retreating From Cars appeared first on Radio World.

The largest Spanish-language media and content company has launched 12 free ad-supported TV channels on a popular “FAST” channel platform offering from Amazon Video, expanding the potential audience for ViX programming.

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When it comes to “brand lift,” Chief Marketing Officers are more demanding than ever for results from advertising campaigns. A new tier of Veritonic’s “Brand Lift” offering promises to offer a new, wider dimension to brand health measurement, with enhanced metrics designed to further educate marketers and brand managers on their promotional efforts.

The self-serve Brand Lift Pulse tier provides brands with access to “actionable awareness, favorability, use, intent, and recall data for audio campaigns of all sizes,” Veritonic claims. “Additionally, audio platforms and networks can now offer this highly coveted data to clients at every spend level and campaign size, providing invaluable insights that were historically reserved for substantial campaign investments.”

Elaborating on the new offering, Veritonic founder and CEO Scott Simonelli commented, “At Veritonic, we are firm believers in democratizing access to essential data for audio success, advocating for the principle that every brand, agency, and platform should have the tools they need, irrespective of their size, scale, or investment capacity. Brand Lift Pulse not only levels the playing field, but also empowers every player incorporating audio into their marketing strategy. It ensures that all stakeholders can maintain a keen awareness of market dynamics, equipped with the essential data and metrics necessary for informed decision-making in both current and future audio campaigns.”

Similar to Veritonic’s Standard and Custom tiers of Brand Lift, Pulse includes demographic segmentation, custom questions, reporting, best practices, and in-platform access to data.

Veritonic Chief Revenue Officer Korri Kolesa added, “Brand Lift has long been a measurement modality reserved for more established brands spending significant amounts of money, and ones that focus on top of funnel brand metrics. Brand lift metrics are crucial for brands of all sizes and as the audio space has matured, so has the needs of its advertisers. Brand Lift Pulse goes beyond the conventional focus on bottom-of-the-funnel metrics, providing comprehensive support for brands seeking a holistic understanding of their impact. Similar to how the advent of attribution transformed the advertiser mix in audio, we are now witnessing brand lift spearhead the next era of confidence in the medium.”

“The best in classic television” with programming including classic second-run episodes of Doctor Who, Naked City, The Beverly Hillbillies, One Step Beyond, The Ray Bradbury Theater and soap opera The Doctors is returning to a fast-growing DMA after being absent there since 2021.

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Planning for the 2024 NAB Show is ramping up, and Radio World is asking exhibitors about their plans and expectations. Doug Vernier is president of V-Soft Communications.

Radio World: What is the most important technology issue or trend for radio engineers and facility managers in 2024?

Doug Vernier: For AM it’s the cost of doing business, particularly when the property you use for your tower is worth much more being sold for a different purpose. The price of electricity will continue to rise so the average engineer will be asked to find ways to lower the cost by using Modulation Dependent Carrier Level (MDCL) technologies or other processes such as Adaptive Carier Control and Modulation Companding.

Many more AM stations will go off the air. FM operating expense will have to be trimmed and this will be the engineer’s biggest issue. The trend in transmitters is smaller is better.

There will be a continued movement from the older tube technology to the newer solid state that produces considerably less heat and requires a smaller footprint at the transmitter. Unfortunately, HD transmission uses more energy, so there will be even more questioning of its use, particular in the smaller cities where it never really caught on.

Doug Vernier

RW: In what way(s) will AI-based tools change radio broadcasting workflows most substantially?

Vernier: I see AI as infiltrating every aspect of the broadcaster’s business. More than just on-the-air hosts and copy writing, we will see the AI integration in all areas of running the business and doing the engineering. AI [will] be talking to other AI systems to form a cohesive whole to all the facets of station operation, not the least of which is audience research. (ZoneCasting may make sense to some, but it will take AI to make it work with the least effort.) This will change the whole profile of broadcasting in the drive to find the wisest way to profitability.

RW: What news will your company feature at the convention — any new products or services? 

Vernier: V-Soft Communications has spent more than 30 years in the business of  communicating with engineers and other users to develop better and faster methods of solving coverage and frequency allocations issues with software. Its programs have been improving exponentially with each of those releases. Our company will be demonstrating these many new features and updates with it’s AM-Pro-2, FMCommander and Probe 5 software.

RW: Are there any other important technology trends that you’d like to comment on?

Vernier: Radio’s rapid movement toward virtualization will continue and be more powerful with the use of AI. There will be fewer studios to maintain because the definition of a studio is changing, and with it the need to pare down physical facilities. Much of the work will translate to computer maintenance, development of in-house AI systems and knowledge of streaming techniques. There will be fewer engineers who know R.F. which well elevate the need for more contract engineers.

RW: What else will you be watching for at the convention?

Vernier: This will be the year of AI at the show. It will be interesting to see how this changes all broadcast products and how this will impact stations and their audiences.

V-Soft Communications booth: W3147

[For More News on the NAB Show See Our NAB Show News Page]

The post Exhibitor Preview: V-Soft Communications at the NAB Show appeared first on Radio World.