Industry News

The NAB on Friday filed comments with the FCC regarding a proposal to extend the Emergency Alert System to the Internet — including through streaming services. Congress is requesting a study of the issue.

But, the NAB cautions that updating EAS to enable internet alerts would be too complex, and likely infeasible, at this time.

Whether that is conjecture or a confirmed fact is perhaps up to debate. And, given the comments come on behalf of the biggest lobbying voice for broadcast media, there’s likely a tinge of defending radio and TV’s most important “go-to-now!” emergency traits before Congress.

That said, the concept of bringing EAS alerts to those streaming audio or video is clever, and likely one of concern for the American public.

Is it worth the investment in both time and dollars?

The NAB appreciates the Commission’s “forward-looking consideration of how EAS alerts may be disseminated through the internet,” consistent with legislation passed in this fiscal year. “The public interest benefits of expanded access to EAS alerts via internet services are plain, and we applaud Congress for requesting a study of this question,” the NAB’s top legal counsel say. “However, at least for the time being, certain technical challenges and open policy questions make it extremely burdensome, and likely infeasible, to update the EAS system to enable alerts to consumers provided through the internet.”

Before explaining why it would be so difficult, the NAB attorneys took the approach of demonstrating how broadcast radio and TV have a key role as “first informers” and are “essential service providers.” This empowers broadcast media to access disaster areas, the NAB says.

This led the NAB to illustrate the “reliability” of the EAS today, given how local radio and television stations “diligently implemented the ability to receive alerts from FEMA’s Integrated Public Alert & Warning System (IPAWS), routinely test and upgrade their
EAS equipment as needed and take other steps — both voluntary and mandated — to
support EAS, and at their own expense. In addition, broadcasters are often the leaders (and in some cases the only engaged members) of their State Emergency Coordinating Committees.’

The NAB and individual broadcast companies also partner with the FCC and FEMA on various emergency-related initiatives and advisory groups intended to further
improve public alerting.

Today, to the broadcast media lobbying group’s knowledge, there are no pure-play independent streaming services that participate in EAS. Furthermore, the only online audio outlets that may retransmit EAS messages are websites and apps while simulcasting radio stations, and similar online video outlets while simulcasting local television news programming, as well as over-the-top (OTT) services that livestream local television channels.

Yet, wouldn’t it be prudent if Netflix, Hulu or similar over-the-top services offered EAS messaging?

To be clear, any on-demand service would be, today, technically impossible to integrate into EAS. Pure-play content streamers, in the NAB’s view, are not “well-positioned to participate in the existing EAS ecosystem” for live streaming feeds or on-demand content.

Here’s why, as the NAB sees it: “With respect to ingesting EAS alerts, the FCC states that
streaming services’ ‘large geographic service areas’ presents a monitoring challenge. Of
course, ‘large’ does not begin to describe the reach of a cloud-based service which is
available everywhere access to the internet is available. Video and audio streaming services
routinely have thousands or even millions of customers worldwide. NAB understands that the current web-based design and architecture of online streaming services does not typically incorporate or even contemplate any localized infrastructure that would enable a streaming service to monitor for EAS alerts based on either geography or the type of event.”

But, isn’t geotargeting and addressability the hallmark of digital media — and couldn’t Netflix easily incorporate EAS alerts using this granular data?

The NAB isn’t convinced of such a possibility, at least in the near-term.

The broadcast lobby also claims that streamers “simply lack the infrastructure and local presence to monitor other EAS Participants or alert originators for EAS messages.”

As Spotify inches closer to radio-like services, having recently hired veteran Los Angeles programming executive Kevin Weatherly, this could also change given the right technological advancements it wishes to invest in.

The NAB is steadfast in offering a “don’t count on it”-styled response to such suggestions.

“Even if such a mechanism could be created, requiring streaming services to somehow monitor, manage and prioritize all EAS alerts from the thousands of sources in every municipality (or EAS operational area) across the entire country would be extremely problematic,” the NAB said, adding that it also dismisses the belief that creating a process for streaming services to differentiate between market areas they serve when determining what kinds of EAS alerts to monitor, even with advice from state and local government officials, would help solve this problem.

Then, there’s the scenario of a Florida-based family watching a local newscast live on a streaming app — only the newscast is from a California-based TV station. “This could lead to dangerous confusion” if an EAS alert came on, the NAB says.

That said, the viewer could likely realize that, if locales in California were mentioned, they would be thousands of miles outside of harm’s way.

With Rick Kaplan and Larry Walke signing off on the NAB petition, the association concludes, “In light of all these challenges, NAB urges the Commission to report to Congress that EAS should not be extended to internet-based services at this time.”

It’s now up to legislators on Capitol Hill to judge for themselves if the NAB’s efforts have merit, or are simply crafted to defend one of the most valuable traits of over-the-air media — owned by companies whose revenues have been battered by digital entities.

Logos of Bonneville’s Denver stations

Add Bonneville International to the list of U.S. radio companies that have agreed to consent decrees involving their online political files.

The Federal Communications Commission’s Media Bureau said it reached agreement with Bonneville International Corp. to resolve “the matter of … [Bonneville’s] public file derelictions.”

[Read: The FCC Can See Your Public File]

This follows the template that the FCC has taken with numerous other broadcast groups large and small, in which the companies have promised to implement compliance plans and follow the rules in future.

As Radio World recently reported, the commission as of early May had adopted about 135 of these consent decrees, covering approximately 2,100 stations, including those of major companies like iHeartMedia, Audacy, Beasley, Alpha Media and Salem.

As with those other large groups, Bonneville has agreed that the general terms of the compliance plan will apply to all of the commercial stations it owns. Bonneville owns 22 radio stations in six western U.S. markets

In addition, its four Denver-area stations whose license renewal applications prompted this review must file compliance reports later this year before the next general election.

 

The post Bonneville Joins FCC Consent Decree List appeared first on Radio World.

Most of the time we receive a reader e-mail or, on rare occasion, a hand-written letter from a RBR+TVBR Member, the topic of conversation is usually about our poor proofreading and copy-editing, our choice of wording in a Headline E-mail subject line, or request that RBR+TVBR gives up trying to win a Pulitzer Prize by offering up very lengthy stories on a very esoteric subject.

Today’s RBR+TVBR Mailbag, however, includes a letter that was worth sharing. The topic: the lack of presets on a brand-new Sport Utility Vehicle’s snazzy OEM in-dash entertainment system.

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Four years ago, 8 rack units brought to life the first ATSC 3.0 air chain. Then came a reduced footprint, in April 2019, followed by the 2020 arrival of the first 1-rack unit using a Blade server.

Now, a cloud application on Amazon Web Services (AWS) today is in place for what powers NextGen TV.

It’s the latest advancement since June 2017 for ATSC 3.0 Air Chain technology pioneered by DigiCAP.

The Seoul-based company provided Air Chain technology first moved forward with its ATSC 3.0 tools by working with the three major South Korean broadcast networks during the 2018 Winter Olympic Games, enabling them to transmit live 4K over the air.

These first-generation Air Chains were eight rack units (RU) tall.

After the PyeongChang games, DigiCAP analyzed data from their 14 live ATSC 3.0 broadcast sites. Two years later, they introduced an improved version that was only two RU tall, a 75% reduction in size. But the inside changes were significant.

Sang Jin Yoon, SVP of Business Development at DigiCAP, noted, “We took data from extensive field tests at our Korean broadcast sites and analyzed the data using static and dynamic code analysis to holistically optimize our software.  In addition, we rebuilt the software to be more useful in the US, including improving the user experience by redesigning the system administrator, making our software compliant with the evolving ATSC 3.0 spec, and providing more meaningful system status information, and adding features to make DigiCaster more operation friendly.”

in June 2020, as the first commercially licensed ATSC 3.0 broadcast stations were launching in the U.S., DigiCAP introduced a new version on a single RU COTS blade. Yoon noted, “Every year COTS servers get less expensive and more productive. The use of software infrastructure in this configuration is a way to take advantage of the savings and efficiency boosts. Migrating from appliance to software is the unstoppable trend.”

Then, in February of this year, DigiCAP posted the first ATSC 3.0 Air Chain on Amazon Web Services (AWS). “This service will enable installations to go more quickly and let broadcasters pay for their Air Chains with a low monthly service fee instead of a large upfront equipment charge,” DigiCAP said.

Yoon concluded, “Our software infrastructure approach is catching on. Of the 28 US markets that have launched ATSC 3.0, DigiCAP has one or more users in over half of them. Add to that the 14 broadcast stations we have in South Korea and it makes a solid footprint for moving forward.”

Last week, with NewFronts staged ahead of virtual Upfront presentations scheduled for this week, Discovery Inc. CEO David Zaslav and WarnerMedia CEO Jason Kilar spoke at the eighth annual MoffettNathanson Media & Communications Summit.

What timing! With the May 17 pre-market confirmation that WarnerMedia and Discovery Inc. will merge via a tax-free Reverse Morris Trust-engineered merger, the Wall Street firm’s leaders believe that “the rationale for today’s monumental news that
WarnerMedia will be merging with Discovery can be plainly found in our Q&As.”

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It was first reported early Monday, European time, by several business media outlets, with an announcement due no later than 12:30pm in London.

Like clockwork, the official word came from Dallas and from New York: Another blockbuster media merger had been consummated. Only this time, it involves two major players in a rapidly evolving MVPD arena seeking to remain as relevant in the connected TV world as it has been in the cable universe.

WarnerMedia and Discovery are merging.

To make this happen, WarnerMedia parent AT&T and Discovery Inc. will combine its entertainment, sports and news assets that include such brands as CNN, Home Box Office (HBO), TNT and TBS with Discovery’s array of channels, which include Animal Planet, HGTV, Food Network, TLC and ID.

The deal is also significant as Discovery on January 4 rolled out its discovery+ OTT platform, which has been heavily promoted across spot cable since its launch, Media Monitors data show.

For those who closely followed the merger acquisition of the former CBS Radio by Audacy, then known as Entercom Communications, terms of the Discovery/WarnerMedia deal are structured similarly in that a new entity is being created through a Reverse Morris Trust transaction.

Thus, AT&T will spin off WarnerMedia, and this will immediately enter into a merger upon closing with Discovery through an all-stock transaction that is tax free.

AT&T would receive $43 billion — subject to adjustment — in a combination of cash, debt securities, and WarnerMedia’s retention of some debt. For AT&T shareholders, they’ll receive stock representing 71% of the new company; Discovery shareholders would own 29% of the new company.

The Boards of Directors of both AT&T and Discovery have approved the transaction. The transaction is anticipated to close in mid-2022, subject to approval by Discovery shareholders and customary closing conditions, including receipt of regulatory approvals.

No vote is required by AT&T shareholders.

“The new company expects to maintain investment grade rating and utilize the significant cash flow of the combined company to rapidly de-lever to approximately 3.0x within 24 months, and to target a new, longer term gross leverage target of 2.5x-3.0x,” the companies said in a joint announcement. “WarnerMedia has secured fully committed financing from JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. and affiliates of Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC for the purposes of funding the distribution.”

For AT&T and its shareholders, the company believes “this transaction provides an opportunity to unlock value in its media assets and to better position the media business to take advantage of the attractive DTC trends in the industry. Additionally, the transaction allows the company to better capitalize on the longer-term demand for connectivity.”

ZASLAV TO LEAD

David Zaslav

Discovery President/CEO David Zaslav will lead the proposed new company.

Discovery’s current multiple classes of shares will be consolidated to a single class with one vote per share.

The new company’s Board of Directors will consist of 13 members, 7 initially appointed by AT&T, including the chairperson of the board; Discovery will initially appoint 6 members, including Zaslav.

Commenting on the merger, Zaslav said, “During my many conversations with [AT&T CEO] John Stankey, we always come back to the same simple and powerful strategic principle:  these assets are better and more valuable together.  It is super exciting to combine such historic brands, world class journalism and iconic franchises under one roof and unlock so much value and opportunity.  With a library of cherished IP, dynamite management teams and global expertise in every market in the world, we believe everyone wins … consumers with more diverse choices, talent and storytellers with more resources and compelling pathways to larger audiences, and shareholders with a globally scaled growth company committed to a strong balance sheet that is better positioned to compete with the world’s largest streamers.  We will build a new chapter together with the creative and talented WarnerMedia team and these incredible assets built on a nearly 100-year legacy of the most wonderful storytelling in the world.  That will be our singular mission: to focus on telling the most amazing stories and have a ton of fun doing it.”

‘DTC’ PLAYER DESIRE

The new company, which could remain named Discovery or see a new name by the end of 2022, seeks to compete globally in the fast-growing direct-to-consumer business.

And, it will very much seek to bring “compelling content” to DTC subscribers across a portfolio that today includes discovery+ and HBO Max.

With cord-cutting a factor that companies such as WarnerMedia and Discovery must accept, rather than battle, as viewer consumption platform habits evolve, the merger immediately signals their combined desires to compete directly against Netflix, Amazon Video, Disney+ and Hulu on their own turf.

Further, AT&T and Discovery note, “The new company will be able to invest in more original content for its streaming services, enhance the programming options across its global linear pay TV and broadcast channels, and offer more innovative video experiences and consumer choices.”

 

 

Advisors

LionTree LLC and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC served as financial advisors and Sullivan & Cromwell LLP served as legal advisor to AT&T.

Allen & Company LLC and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC served as financial advisors and Debevoise & Plimpton LLP served as legal advisor to Discovery. Perella Weinberg Partners and Wachtell Lipton, Rosen & Katz served as advisors to the Independent Directors of Discovery.

RBC Capital Markets served as financial advisors and Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP served as legal advisors to Advance.

Here are several of the recent letters to the editor published by our Opinion section.

Show Some Trust

Getty Images/Olivier Le Moal

Dear Editor:

Kudos to Chris Imlay’s commentary in the Feb. 3 issue, “The Integrity & Ethics of Broadcast Engineers.”

His letter seems apropos given the description of the case. Shouldn’t the FCC itself have made measurements?

Might I add a note to the FCC: If you insist on concluding all broadcast engineer interference investigations are inherently biased, why did you scale back the FCC field offices?

It sounds like the commission wants to have it both ways: no engineering presence but rejecting consulting engineers’ findings.

Rolf Taylor, Rocket Engineering and Consulting

 

A Mic Under Fire

Re the article “In Appreciation of the EV635A” in the Feb. 3 issue:

My appreciation for the 635A was on Feb. 12, 1974. A Delaware & Hudson freight train that had left Binghamton, N.Y. earlier that afternoon derailed four miles north of Oneonta. It had been traveling at 32 mph when the brakes were applied. Eight bulk propane tank cars were involved in the derailment.

I ran into my station in town, grabbed an EV635A to which I had added a coiled cord and cassette tape deck, and bolted to the site.

Shortly after 4 p.m., a propane car buried underneath the others blew. I was doing a take when the force of the explosion threw me into the air, dislodging the 635 from the cassette deck.

A photo of the train wreck, post-explosion.

My clothes were burned and I was semi-conscious. The tape deck rolled until the cassette ran out.

The EV? It stayed wrapped around my arm, its coil burned into my coat. It was unharmed, if a bit soot covered!

A copy of the tape exists today and is still somewhat chilling to hear.

Timothy Braddock, Oneonta, N.Y.

 

AM Is No Albatross

I’m sure many of us have witnessed the practice of branding an FM translator as “Big 93 FM” or some such while pretending the supporting AM signal does not exist.

Ponder this: Your FM translator has a serious failure and you are off for three days (or longer, if you have an overseas sourced transmitter or an antenna failure in winter).

If you had continued to mention your AM frequency, at least your more alert listeners would know they could still find you on AM. The opportunity to promote the AM as having a wider listening area is another value-added tool.

Adding “… and on 1090 AM” costs nothing.

The goal of AM revitalization is to strengthen and invigorate AM, but it appears that just the opposite is happening as owners actually discourage AM listenership by pretending it is an albatross.

I don’t know who is feeding you this bad advice, but please stop listening to it.

Bob Hawkins, Contract Engineer, Edinburgh, Ind.

Submit Letters to the Editor at radioworld@futurenet.com.

 

The post Letters: Ethics, AM Albatross, EV635 appeared first on Radio World.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Twenty-five members of the House of Representatives and six Senators have added their support to a resolution opposing “any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge” on local broadcast radio stations.

The Local Radio Freedom Act (LRFA), which signals members of Congress’s opposition to any potential legislation that imposes new performance royalties on broadcast radio stations for music airplay, now has 112 co-sponsors in the House and 14 in the Senate.

Adding their support recently for the Local Radio Freedom Act in the House are Reps. Ken Calvert (R-CA-42), Jerry Carl (R-AL-1), Joe Courtney (D-CT-2), Henry Cueller (D-TX-28), Mike Gallagher (R-WI-8), Sam Graves (R-MO-6), Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH-16), Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon (R-PR-AL), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ-5), Brett Guthrie (R-KY-2), Dusty Johnson (R-SD-AL), Mike Johnson (R-LA-4), Bill Keating (D-MA-9), Doug Lamborn (R-CO-5), Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO-3), Elaine Luria (D-VA-2), Ralph Norman (R-SC-5), Scott Perry (R-PA-10), Mike Rogers (R-AL-3), Brad Schneider (D-IL-10), Pete Stauber (R-MN-8), Claudia Tenney (R-NY-22), Glenn Thompson (R-PA-15), William Timmons (R-SC-4) and Jackie Walorski (R-IN-2).

Adding their support for the resolution in the Senate are Sens. John Boozman (R-AR), Susan Collins (R-ME), Jim Inhofe (R-OK), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Roger Marshall (R-KS) and Todd Young (R-IN).

Reps. Kathy Castor (D-FL-14) and Steve Womack (R-AR-3) are the principal cosponsors of the Local Radio Freedom Act in the House of Representatives. Sens. Martin Heinrich (D-NM) and John Barrasso (R-WY) are the lead cosponsors of a companion resolution in the Senate.

The 112 House cosponsors of the Local Radio Freedom Act include (new cosponsors in bold):

Rick Allen (R-GA-12)
Mark Amodei (R-NV-2)
Jodey Arrington (R-TX-19)
Brian Babin (R-TX-36)
Don Bacon (R-NE-2)
Troy Balderson (R-OH-12)
Jim Banks (R-IN-3)
Joyce Beatty (D-OH-3)
Gus Bilirakis (R-FL-12)
Mike Bost (R-IL-12)
Brendan Boyle (D-PA-2)
Mo Brooks (R-AL-5)
Anthony Brown (D-MD-4)
Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17)
Ken Calvert (R-CA-42)
Jerry Carl (R-AL-1)
Andre Carson (D-IN-7)
Buddy Carter (R-GA-1)
Kathy Castor (D-FL-14)
Steve Chabot (R-OH-1)
Tom Cole (R-OK-4)
James Comer (R-KY-1)
Jim Costa (D-CA-16)
Joe Courtney (D-CT-2)
Rick Crawford (R-AR-1)
Henry Cueller (D-TX-28)
Rodney Davis (R-IL-13)
Debbie Dingell (D-MI-12)
Tom Emmer (R-MN-6)
Dwight Evans (D-PA-3)
Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-1)
Jeff Fortenberry (R-NE-1)
Virginia Foxx (R-NC-5)
Scott Franklin (R-FL-15)
Mike Gallagher (R-WI-8)
Mike Garcia (R-CA-25)
Bob Gibbs (R-OH-7)
Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH-16)
Vincente Gonzalez (D-TX-15)
Jenniffer Gonzalez-Colon (R-PR-AL)
Paul Gosar (R-AZ-4)
Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ-5)
Kay Granger (R-TX-12)
Sam Graves (R-MO-6)
Glenn Grothman (R-WI-6)
Brett Guthrie (R-KY-2)
Jim Hagedorn (R-MN-1)
French Hill (R-AR-2)
Trey Hollingsworth (R-IN-9)
Richard Hudson (R-NC-8)
Bill Johnson (R-OH-6)
Dusty Johnson (R-SD-AL)
Mike Johnson (R-LA-4)
Jim Jordan (R-OH-4)
Marcy Kaptur (D-OH-9)
Bill Keating (D-MA-9) Fred Keller (R-PA-12)
Mike Kelly (R-PA-16)
Andy Kim (D-NJ-3)
Ron Kind (D-WI-3)
Adam Kinzinger (R-IL-16)
Annie Kuster (D-NH-2)
Doug Lamborn (R-CO-5)
Bob Latta (R-OH-5)
Al Lawson (D-FL-5)
Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO-3)
Elaine Luria (D-VA-2)
Stephen Lynch (D-MA-8)
Tom Malinowski (D-NJ-7)
Thomas Massie (R-KY-4)
Patrick McHenry (R-NC-10)
Dan Meuser (R-PA-9)
Seth Moulton (D-MA-6)
Markwayne Mullin (R-OK-2)
Greg Murphy (R-NC-3)
Ralph Norman (R-SC-5)
Devin Nunes (R-CA-22)
Steven Palazzo (R-MS-4)
Chris Pappas (D-NH-1)
Donald Payne, Jr. (D-NJ-10)
Greg Pence (R-IN-6)
Scott Perry (R-PA-10)
Dean Phillips (D-MN-3)
Bill Posey (R-FL-8)
Hal Rogers (R-KY-5)
Mike Rogers (R-AL-3)
David Rouzer (R-NC-7)
Bobby Rush (D-IL-1)
Gregorio Sablan (D-MP-AL)
Brad Schneider (D-IL-10)
Kurt Schrader (D-OR-5)
David Scott (D-GA-13)
Mike Simpson (R-ID-2)
Pete Stauber (R-MN-8)
Elise Stefanik (R-NY-21)
Van Taylor (R-TX-3)
Claudia Tenney (R-NY-22)
Glenn Thompson (R-PA-15)
Tom Tiffany (R-WI-7)
William Timmons (R-SC-4)
Michael Turner (R-OH-10)
Fred Upton (R-MI-6)
Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ-2)
Filemon Vela (D-TX-34)
Tim Walberg (R-MI-7)
Jackie Walorski (R-IN-2)
Bruce Westerman (R-AR-4)
Joe Wilson (R-SC-2)
Rob Wittman (R-VA-1)
Steve Womack (R-AR-3)
Don Young (R-AK-AL)
Lee Zeldin (R-NY-1)

 

The Local Radio Freedom Act’s 14 Senate cosponsors are (new cosponsors in bold):

John Barrasso (R-WY)
John Boozman (R-AR)
Susan Collins (R-ME)
Mike Crapo (R-ID)
Steve Daines (R-MT)
Joni Ernst (R-IA)
Maggie Hassan (D-NH) Martin Heinrich (D-NM)
Jim Inhofe (R-OK)
Cynthia Lummis (R-WY)
Roger Marshall (R-KS)
Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)
Jon Tester (D-MT)
Todd Young (R-IN)

 

“Congress should not impose any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge relating to the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station for broadcasting sound recordings over the air, or on any business for the public performance of sound recordings on a local radio station broadcast over the air,” reads the Local Radio Freedom Act.

It’s hardly a shocker: U.S. consumers who participated in a study for Publicis Media and Verizon Media want streaming options that are less costly.

And, they’d not mind if commercial advertising be seen to offset a subscription.

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Cadence George works in the booth at KPFG(FM) “The Pulse” at East Valley Institute of Technology in Mesa, Ariz.

If commercial radio is the major leagues, non-commercial high school stations represent the youngest of our farm teams.

Each year the John Drury Awards recognize the best of these. WLTL(FM) in Lyons Township High School in La Grange, Ill., was recently chosen as best high school station in the nation.

Additional awards during the December ceremony went to other high school broadcasters for best news feature story, best specialty music program and best website, among other honors.

Zach DeWitz

Zach DeWitz, general manager of WONC(FM) at North Central College in Naperville, Ill., is in charge of the awards.

“When I was a junior attending this school and working here at WONC John Madormo, our then-GM started these awards, and he named them after John Drury, a famed broadcaster who was on the air for decades in Chicagoland,” said DeWitz.

“My wife teaches high school and tells me that so many radio courses have been cut in these hard times, but it’s great to still see so many students dedicated to learning this craft, learning how to be good broadcasters.”

“Doing every job”

The Drury competition receives 200 to 300 entries across its various categories each year, mostly from high schools in the Midwest, though some come from as far away as California. DeWitz wants to reach more schools across the country in the future.

Awards are given in wide-ranging categories like talk programs, sports play-by-play, documentaries and social media. Thanks to the work of Nathan Ronchetti, awards coordinator and assistant to DeWitz, who designed its website, entries are now submitted each fall via www.johndruryawards.com, where airchecks and other content can be uploaded.

“In the pre-COVID days we would invite entrants to visit us here at the college for the ceremony, to tour our station and receive their trophies in person, and we hope to get back to that after the current health crisis,” said DeWitz. “For now it’s done virtually and we mail the awards out.”

DeWitz believes that young people are still very much interested in radio, if perhaps not in the same way as in years past.

“There are more media for them to investigate,” he said. “Students want to learn podcasting, making videos and everything else, and many are interested in radio as a hobby rather than a career. I definitely see that as a trend.

“Some of the students have what it takes to make it in professional radio, but for now they just want to experience a little of everything. Doing every job, as I did when I worked on the air at WONC, is the best way to prepare yourself and provide what employers want. They want one person who can do the job of more than one person.”

Interest in news

Chris Thomas is general manager and faculty advisor at the latest recipient of the top prize, WLTL. Like DeWitz, Thomas worked for his station on the air before reaching his current position.

“High school stations are not that common, especially FCC-licensed stations,” he said. “More and more schools are adding streaming operations, which is great, and some were even able to grab an LPFM license, but overall it’s a small percentage of stations out there. I don’t have a precise number, but we were able to find about 180 high school stations including FM, AM, LPFM and online, that are student-run.”

How does one go about funding this type of station? Thomas gets some money from his administration but also holds an annual on-air pledge drive.

Production work at WLTL(FM) in La Grange, Ill.

“The school is generous enough to ensure we have what we need in personnel, studio space and basic equipment,” he said. “But our fundraiser allows us to give the students what they will see elsewhere when they leave WLTL. For example, we purchased Axia iQ control boards, Comrex Access units and other equipment such as laptops, Electro-Voice RE20 microphones, Zoom H4n handheld recorders and Shure SM57 microphones. On average we’ll pull in about $25,000 from community members and businesses.”

Thomas, like DeWitz, sees radio interests shifting in young people.

“Podcasting and creating online content are huge areas right now,” said Thomas. “The students are also interested in audio production and we’re happy to help them.

“The other thing I see is more interest in news, especially in light of what has been happening over the last few years. I see more students interested in how news works, which is encouraging.”

Thomas does not agree with the oft-expressed opinion that radio is dying.

“Anyone who feels that way is invited to tune in to not only WLTL, but any high school or college station and hear what today’s students are doing with the medium. It may not be the radio we grew up on, because how we create content will continue to evolve and adapt. It’s a blessing to be part of it and watch the next generation of broadcasters.”

A little of this, a little of that

Dave Juday is a radio/audio production instructor at East Valley Institute of Technology in Mesa, Ariz. The student station at this Career and Technical Education high school is KPNG(FM), “The Pulse.”

“Our students are juniors and seniors who spend half their day with us and the other half tackling regular high school core classes,” he said.

“Our station is 15,000 watts and covers most of the Phoenix metro area, and we have a state-of-the-art digital recording studio here. While the students are with us, they are trained in commercial, promo, PSA and show production as well as music creation. The course also covers broadcast journalism, sports play-by-play and even engineering for live events.”

Evan Dean, Josh Simon, Spencer Cihak and Zach Larson of KPNG(FM) at Chase Field in Phoenix.

Juday said that many of his students are not necessarily interested in being on the air.

“Because our program covers so many aspects of radio and broadcast production the students have a lot of opportunities within ‘The Pulse.’ We have had several students go on to work in promotions, production and on-air positions in the Phoenix market, and we had one student who is the broadcasting and media content coordinator for the Oakland Athletics baseball team,” he said.

“The more versatile our students are, the more employable they are when they leave us. It’s possible that their first job in radio won’t be exactly what they were looking for, but chances are it could eventually lead to a position they are passionate about.”

A longtime RW contributor, author Ken Deutsch says he was a college radio disc jockey in the late 1960s when words like “far out” and “groovy” were uttered in earnest. 

Nominations for the 2021 John Drury Awards are open until May 31. Each radio station must be affiliated with an academic high school and be licensed as an AM or FM facility, registered as a carrier current station by the FCC or be heard online. Visit johndruryawards.com.

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