Radio+Television Business Report

It’s been a challenging six months on the NYSE for Audacy shares. At 2:15pm Eastern Thursday, the company’s stock dipped as low as $2.93, continuing a fresh downturn that began August 5 but, on a grander scale, dates to mid-March.

Friday’s trading was a bright one, however, with heavier than average volume fueling a 9.8% rise.

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SAN LUIS OBISPO, CALIF. — With the NAB Show adopting a vaccination mandate for all attendees of its October conference and expo in Las Vegas and RBR+TVBR learning Friday that some sort of virtual option is in the works for fully registered participants, an event “where the world’s leading digital creators, platform innovators, and their fans converge in one place” won’t be happening less than two weeks later in Southern California.

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Until now, the National Association of Broadcasters has remained quiet with respect to whether or not individuals who do not travel to the 2021 NAB Show in Las Vegas will have an option to participate via the comfort of their home or office, digitally.

On Friday (8/20), welcome news for those who have opted not to get the COVID-19 vaccine, or are simply not comfortable with travel to a large indoor gathering due to the Delta variant of the virus arrived.

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A low-power FM radio station serving the Florida city of Palatka has avoided a FCC financial penalty for filing its license renewal application after the due date.

As such, this mini-radio facility is getting an admonishment, with its forfeiture cancelled by the Commission.

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It’s a broadcast television station owner with eight properties in 7 markets.

Now, it is adding a property in Virginia’s quintessential college town, Charlottesville.

The seller: Jeff Winemiller.

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Who knew that building awareness and inspiring consumers to get fit could benefit from a multiplatform marketing agreement with a company focused on audio content creation and distribution via streaming and broadcast platforms?

It’s the latest innovative ad sales partnership inked by iHeartMedia.

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Users of the donation-based local TV via IP service the NAB and the nation’s “Big Four” networks despise have another point of access now available to them.

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The Corporation for Public Broadcasting has awarded grants to public media stations in areas with high COVID infection rates.

The extra funds are designed to help them address “misinformation” in their communities.

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She’s spent 27 years as an active member of the Chicago local TV world.

Now, ViacomCBS is appointing her to the role of President/General Manager of CBS News and Television Stations’ local businesses in Chicago.

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Ronna Corrente has gained national acclaim for her leadership of Gray Television’s FOX affiliate in New Orleans.

Now, Gray is promoting her. She’ll be leading     the company’s Louisville operation.

What does that mean for WVUE, “FOX8”?

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Earlier this year, respected Local TV Leader Marla Drutz revealed that she’s retiring. Now, the Graham Media Group executive who oversees its flagship property in Detroit is formally ready to pass the baton to her successor.

Who’s getting the role?

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The former Chief of Staff and General Counsel at the Federal Communications Commission has joined one of Washington, D.C.‘s most respected law firms as a partner in the communications and information technology section of its regulatory practice.

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In an era of big data, content platforms are seeking personalization now more than ever. Among the newer video streaming entrants, it’s a trend Nielsen has noticed.

In a new observation piece, the nation’s dominant audience measurement and consumer data company shares that, compared with the early days of streaming, a handful of platforms are taking a more focused engagement approach.

This yielded some intriguing findings as to OTT consumption among Blacks and Hispanics.

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In early 2020, a Kansas City radio station operator made headlines for its decision to air six hours of programming each day from Russia-sponsored Sputnik Radio, as a result of a lease agreement with Florida-based RM Broadcasting LLC.

Now, the station’s owner has opted to part ways with a far-suburban silent FM translator. It’s a deal that will bring “vida” back to this dormant facility.

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John Moesch, the Vice President and General Manager of the West Texas Radio Group, oversees a group of radio stations in a region known as Permian Basin — and it’s a place where his company competes against another local operator, and against Townsquare Media.

What should media buyers and planners in places such as New York or Chicago know about locales including Midland and Odessa? How does local compare to national in a region of the country not widely known for its affluence?

Moesch answers these questions and more in this InFOCUS Podcast, presented by dot.FM.

Listen to “The InFOCUS Podcast: John Moesch, West Texas Radio Group” on Spreaker.

At the start of the lockdown when our lives migrated to Zoom, a CEO coaching client of veteran PR professional Rosemary Ravinal said he welcomed being distanced from the audience because his legs shake from nerves when speaking in person. He was excited about being able to read from a script on the screen seated with his legs out of sight.

“Can you guess what happened when we practiced for a high-stakes online speaking opportunity?,” Ravinal says.

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On August 16, Gen Media Partners rebooted its radio network sales and affiliate sales arm that was known as Sun Broadcast Group, rebranding it as G Networks. The shedding of the Sun name follows the late July exit of Danno Wolkoff as COO and Laura Wolkoff as Sun’s VP of Operations.

It is now known that their exit was a bit acrimonious. The Wolkoffs have filed a wrongful termination suit against the company.

As first reported in Streamline Publishing’s Radio Ink, the Wolkoffs are seeking a $2 million judgment against G Networks and GMP. The Wolkoffs first came into the GMP fold in 2020, when it acquired Envision, the company the Wolkoffs launched in the early 2000s.

The lawsuit alleges that the Wolkoffs received a termination letter alleging “gross negligence and gross incompetence in the performance of their duties and take reasonable measures to cured their conduct and its consequences within 30 days.” The Wolkoffs also say their salaries were also “suspended until further notice as a partial offset of the damages to its business caused by them.”

The Wolkoff suit also claims the termination notice failed to identify any specific conduct of Daniel and Laura Wolkoff that allegedly constitutes gross negligence, gross incompetence or willful misconduct. Plus, the notice failed to identify which duties the Wolkoffs allegedly performed with gross negligence, gross incompetence or willful misconduct and that the notice failed to identify what reasonable measures it deems necessary to cure the couple’s alleged gross negligence, gross incompetence or willful misconduct.

As reported by Radio Ink, Danno Wolkoff earned $250,000 at the time; Laura Wolkoff was being paid $200,000. They claim they were fired without cause and, as such, are owed  $2.1 million for a breach of their contract.

— Ed Ryan, with additional reporting by Adam R Jacobson

ATLANTA — Television viewers with the latest NEXTGEN TV-equipped capabilities in the largest city in the South can now enjoy viewing programs delivered with the new ATSC 3.0 digital broadcast standard.

Five channels, including all “Big Four” network homes in Atlanta, have their NEXTGEN TV signals up and running.

Participating stations include Meredith Local Media’s WPCH-17 and CBS affiliated WGCL-46, Cox Media Group’s ABC affiliated WSB-2, FOX Television Stations O&O WAGA-5, and
TEGNA-owned NBC affiliate WXIA-11.

For those pushing the voluntary rollout of NEXTGEN TV, the ignition of broadcasts in Atlanta promises viewers “an enhanced live broadcast viewing experience.”

Tom Casey, VP of Engineering and Technology for the Meredith Local Media Group, also notes that NEXTGEN TV “exclusively offers Voice + audio from Dolby, so viewers can
hear every voice, while also experiencing movie-theater quality sound and uniform volume
across different channels.”

Television models equipped with NEXTGEN TV capabilities are presently available from LG
Electronics, Samsung, and Sony, although features available on NEXTGEN TV vary by device.

Anne Schelle, managing director of Pearl TV, the broadcaster business group that is coordinating NEXTGEN TV station launches, is pleased that many NEXTGEN TV sets are available across the country ahead of the fall football season.

In January 2020, Brenda Floyd and James Allgood closed on their purchase of a pair of FM radio stations in Louisiana. The $200,000 deal was brokered by Bill Whitley of Media Services Group.

Now, one of those 50-50 ownership partners is selling their stake in the stations.

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Across New England, “Super” Frank Copsidas is well-known for his investment in local broadcast television. Earlier this year, Copisdas expanded his low-power TV holdings by grabbing a facility in Texas, and in late 2020 entered Indiana.

Now, Copsidas is getting recognition for an act that doesn’t even involve a Form 314 filing with the FCC, but has everything to do with how Washington, D.C., and Wall Street impact and shape the low-power television business.

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