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Volume 24, Issue 196, Jim Carnegie, Editor & Publisher

Monday Morning October 8th, 2007

Radio News ®

Emmis projects another down Qtr, But Smulyan optimistic
CEO Jeff Smulyan says he sees encouraging signs, but the guidance from Emmis for the current quarter is that it will again underperform a sluggish domestic radio industry, with KMVN-FM Los Angeles cited as the culprit. Results reported Friday for fiscal Q2 (June-August) had domestic radio revenues down 8.7% to 63.8 million and revenues for the entire company down 3.5% to 96.4 million. That was in line with the low expectations of Wall Street analysts. For the current fiscal Q3 (September-November), Emmis says to expect domestic radio revenues to be down in the mid single digits. CFO Pat Walsh told analysts that for Q2, Emmis' radio stations would have been in line with the markets, except for WRKS-FM New York and KMVN LA. For the current quarter, he says the Emmis stations will be in line with their markets except for KMVN. "We're actually very encouraged by the things we've seen this quarter," Smulyan insisted as he began his quarterly conference call with analysts. He pointed to switching national representation to Katz, said ratings are up for most Emmis stations and that sales are improving.

RBR observation: Emmis going forward has three issues that may be challenging. 1) Emmis has Urban in NYC. PPM has not been kind to Urban. 2) WKQX is still suffering from the loss of Mancow. It is 25th in the market 12+, plus the Alternative format is where technology is hitting first. Classic Rock WLUP is 16th 12+ and losing to Bonneville's "Drive." 3) 'Movin' in LA has not caught on. Rick Dees is miscast and there are plenty of stations duplicating the music they play. When you are challenged in New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, it doesn't matter how your stations in Indianapolis are doing. Smulyan must execute formats better in 2008 or face another long year of little or no growth.

Emmis execs upbeat on PPM
Some Wall Street analysts have expressed concerns that Emmis, with some of its largest stations in Urban formats, could take a hit as Arbitron rolls out PPM to its markets, with New York now in pre-currency mode and the next market set to go live with PPM measurement. Emmis Radio Division President Rick Cummings has been leading an effort by Urban radio stations to educate ad planners and buyers about the switch to PPM. He insisted in the company's quarterly conference call that PPM will turn out to be a plus for Urban stations. Cummings said the first objective is to explain that nothing has really changed. "The audience isn't smaller. It's just as loyal, just as big - in fact, PPM shows that the audience is actually bigger on a cumulative basis - but it's a different measurement system. So 100 points in the diary world equals 70 points in this new system. It's like going from Francs to Euros or kilometers per hour to miles per hour. We've got to teach the buyers that first. Then the second thing we have to teach is that 100 equals 70 in the general market, but with Spanish-language and Urban stations it is more like 60. There's no change in the size of that audience. It's a different measurement system." The only thing new, he insisted, is that stations whose heavy listeners over-indexed in diary measurement are not going to over-index as much in a PPM world.

What PPM adds is that you can really identify who is listening to a particular station and who is not. That means that radio stations can now prove things to advertisers that could not be demonstrated with diary data. "For example, the theory that you could reach the African-American audience with general market stations. It cannot be done. And now we can show that," Cummings said.

RBR observation: At one point, Cummings mentioned the report out from an Arbitron executive last week that a third-party tracking service has found that "rates" are up in Philadelphia under PPM. We are not surprised that cost per point is up 20% or more. How could it not be, when an audience that used to constitute 100 points is now 70 points? Just to get back to even you would have to increase CPP by nearly 43%.

Suleman says Imus
deserves another chance
Citadel Broadcasting CEO Farid Suleman, who is believed to be on the brink of returning Don Imus to radio, told the NY Times last week that Imus' firing by CBS Radio and MSNBC last spring was sufficient punishment for his derogatory comments about the Rutgers women's basketball team and that he deserved another chance. "He did something wrong," Suleman told the paper. "He didn't break the law. He's more than paid the price for what he did. I think he should be evaluated by what he does going forward." Suleman would not comment on widespread reports in recent weeks that his company was working toward an agreement with Imus. But three other people apprised directly on the status of the negotiations characterized the two sides as having reached an understanding for Imus to take over morning drive on WABC. Still, no contracts have been signed, the story said. If the negotiations proceed on course, though, Imus would return to radio in the on or around 12/1, said the story.

RBR observation: Of course, the likelihood is Citadel would place Imus on some of its big market AM News-talk stations from the recent ABC Radio acquisition (along some of its other stations), and then syndicate via its ABC Radio Networks. Of course, a trial period would have to take place to see how things gel with listeners and advertisers on WABC.

FCC off the hook
for document suppression
The FCC's Inspector General could find no evidence that there was any attempt by senior officials to suppress documents on topics related to media ownership believed to be unfavorable to those supporting deregulatory policies. The investigation was spurred by an exchange between FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) last year. Carla Conover, Deputy Assistant Inspector General for Investigations, handled the case. In a release, the Office of the Inspector General said, "Based on the extensive and wide-ranging investigation conducted by Ms. Conover and her colleagues, the Inspector General found no evidence that there had ever been a pattern or practice of suppressing research at the Commission." 150K pages of documentation were examined and 35 current and former employees were interviewed, including "...staff and management, economists and lawyers, among them the former Media Bureau Chief and the current Chairman's Chief of Staff."

Missing in the investigation was an interview with Adam Candeub, currently a professor and the Michigan State University College of Law and former Media Bureau employee. He is the one who made the allegations about document suppression in the first place, but he refused to participate in Conover's investigation and could not be compelled to testify. Referring to one of the allegedly suppressed studies, OIG wrote, "We neither saw nor heard any direct evidence that anyone in senior management at the Commission stated orally or in writing that he or she disliked the results of the Local TV News Report." The hunt for a similar smoking gun in a radio industry review also came up empty.

RBR observation: Wouldn't it be nice if we private citizens could do this over, say, a speeding ticket? "That's OK, officer, I'll have my Inspector General look into it -- honey, how fast would you say I was going?" (We'll just have to hope she doesn't question the kids -- they'll turn on you in a heartbeat.) If the chief accuser won't defend his allegations, even though he is far removed from the possibility of supervisory reprisal, there really isn't much the OIG can do, is there? Anyway, we stand by our own belief that the reports hardly matter. The commissioners lean either pro-deregulation or anti-consolidation to one degree or another, and no report is likely to change that very much. It remains more a matter of what Martin thinks he can slip past Congress and the courts before a new administration settles into the White House.

Dissidents on News Corp. ballot
When shareholders of News Corporation hold their annual meeting October 19th, they'll be voting on some routine items, plus two proposals that are opposed by Rupert Murdoch and the company's board. One would dramatically dilute Murdoch's voting power, but it is not considered likely to pass, despite a key endorsement. Proposal No. 4 on the shareholder ballot would switch the company from having two classes of stock to only one - with all shareholders having equal voting rights. News Corporation currently has voting stock designated as Class B and non-voting shares designated Class A. In a statement supporting his proposal, shareholder Stephen Mayne of Australia cleverly notes that News Corporation discovered the difficulties of two-tiered voting schemes this year. "As News Corporation discovered when it first approached Dow Jones & Company, a two tier voting system can appear highly undemocratic and discourage attractive takeover bids. News Corp's suite of strategic assets would be highly attractive to private equity bidders, yet the two-tier voting structure discourages their interest," Mayne stated. While Mayne personally owns only 150 voting shares, he got a boost recently when Institutional Shareholder Services advised its big money clients to vote "yes," saying proportional voting is always preferable, in its view, to dual-class structures. But even with ISS support, the proposal is given little chance of passing.

The other dissident proposal on the News Corporation ballot comes from Evelyn Davis, an activist shareholder well known to many a corporate CEO who's been treated to a tongue-lashing from her at the open microphone of an annual shareholders' meeting. She wants News Corporation to switch from staggered terms to electing all directors every year, as do most public companies. "I have absolutely NO connection with John Malone, and/or Liberty Cos." Davis notes in her supporting statement, and says annual elections would make all directors more accountable to all shareholders each year. She notes that the same proposal on last year's ballot was supported by about a third of the votes cast. It also has ISS backing.

RBR observation: What is unusual about News Corporation is that there is actually at least a theoretical possibility that these measures could pass. In many companies with dual voting structures, CBS, Emmis and Radio One to name a few examples, one shareholder has majority voting control by virtue of their super-charged shares and can effectively veto any idea they don't like. But while Rupert Murdoch and his family members own the biggest chunk of News Corporation's voting stock, that still only amounts to 39% voting power. Should Mayne's proposal pass, that would be reduced to under 15%.

Money, money, money

Republican presidential candidates have weighed in with their latest fund-raising results, according to the Associated Press. The momentum appears to be with Rudy Giuliani (R-NY). He picked up 11M in Q3, taking his total fundraising up to 44M, plus he leads his competitors with 16M cash on hand. Mitt Romney (R-MA) is in the same ballpark, with 10M raised Q3 to an even higher total of 45M, although only 9M is still in the bank. Fred Thompson (R-TN) picked up 7M Q3 to 12.7M with 7M in the bank, and the surprising Ron Paul (R-TX) gained 5M Q3, more than doubling his total take to 8M with 5.3M still on hand. John McCain (R-AZ) refused to acknowledge reports that his campaign was on life support and picked up 6M Q3, bringing the total take to 30.9M, although most of this money is gone -- he has only 3.6M in the bank. Giuliani and Romney would have come in a distant 3rd and 4th on a list comparing Q3 results for all candidates. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) pulled in 27M and Barack Obama pulled in at least 20M.

RBR observation: No one is conceding anything in the Democratic race, and it's even more wide open here. It will be interesting to see how the candidates' strategies play out in the heavily front-loaded primary schedule. But one thing is for sure -- it won't do anybody any good to have cash on hand after being soundly squashed on Super Duper Tuesday 2/5/08. Look for most of this cash to be spent by then, particularly that held by the lower-tier candidates.

Wall Street Business Report TM

Time to meet The Street
Westwood One holds a conference call with Wall Street analysts this morning to answer their many questions about last week's renegotiated deal with CBS (10/4/07 RBR #194). A few questions were answered when WW1 filed copies of the new agreements. For example, we now know that WW1 will pay CBS Radio an annual programming fee of 12.5 million for exclusive syndication rights to CBS Radio News, along with a five million additional payment at the end of the agreement. No doubt the analysts will still have many, many more questions to ask.

Programming Business Report

The Steel City has got game
As reported in Friday's MBR (10/05/07 MBR), CBS flipped talker 93.7 The Zone back to the future, returning to it's once 18-49 dominant CHR brand B-94. Friday's flip completes the circle for B-94, the market's big gun from 1981 until 2004, when it was dismantled to build K-Rock for Howard Stern, then moving on to a run as Free FM Talk and finally The Zone, with O&A, Dennis Miller and a bunch of local guys. Why the flip back? Here's the deal: Across town, Clear Channel locked in their lineup on WPGB-FM with local radio star Jim Quinn, who has been in the Steel City for over three decades and is one of the most recognizable talents in town today, added Rose and a roster of the usual right-of-center Talk suspects such as Sean Hannity, Rush, Glenn Beck and Savage. That left The Zone with no shot. It was only a matter of time until The Zone talk was tossed off the 93.7 frequency for a format with a real chance of doing better than the one-share CBS was getting from its lineup of second-stringers.

CBS CEO Dan Mason already has the News-Info-Older Talk end sewed up with legendary KDKA. WPGB scooted underneath 'KD and solidly into the #2 slot. Talk radio is about having the biggest stars, and WPGB has them, along with Pirates baseball. Bottom line: There just are not enough Talk superstars to go around for three radio stations, so once The Howard (Stern) left FM radio and Quinn & Rose re-upped with 'PGB, 93.7's days as a Talk station were over. Latest May, June, July Arbitrends prove it - daypart Mon-Sun 6A-Mid, demographic persons 12+, list by rank on AQH share:

KDKA-AM	8.2	# 2
WPGB-FM	5.3	# 5
WTZN-FM	1.0	# 19t

Up for grabs is around 90 million bucks in market revenue. National total around 18 million and local bottom lines at about 73.25 million. A one-share's estimated worth in Pittsburgh is roughly 900K bucks depending on format and spot load, so do the math. Sad news is the Steel City is showing no growth in population and revenue. RBR estimates that market revenue will be off 5% in 2008, continuing a consistent decline.

RBR Observation: Re-branding of the heritage B-94 "Pittsburgh's Hit Music" station was a no-brainer and is Mason's current MO. Less expensive to flip back to a heritage brand, especially with the same dial position, while paying out the heavy six figure cost of all those pink slips. Most stations have a tougher time doing the retro-flip, but, in this case, the original B frequency is the new address, and so are all the pieces from the old B-94 still line up, making it much easier for the listeners to "get it." B-94 can coast for the next 90 days by playing the hits and relying on plenty of street and local media buzz while assembling an inexpensive on-air staff. There were a couple of "bring back the B" blogs in Pittsburgh over the years and CBS can count on those happy P-1s to share the good news on the Web, too. Now the real challenge: B-94 should have no problem picking the low hanging revenue fruit and growing the new B as a younger demo female Top-40 up against Kiss without crunching the toes of Star, the CBS-owned Hot AC that plays music from the 80's, 90's, and Today. RBR recommends not even attempting cross-market protection of Star as it does not work today.

Ad Business Report TM

Giuliani launches radio effort in NH
Republican presidential hopeful Rudy Giuliani launched new radio ads last week, trying to build on close poll results and a day spent campaigning there. Giuliani and his 60-second emphasizes his executive experience and fiscal record - both key in his effort to overtake former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. The ads will air only in New Hampshire, reported The AP. "I've been tested in a way in which the American people can look to me. They're not going to find perfection, but they're gonna find somebody who's dealt with crisis almost on a regular basis and has had results, results people thought were impossible," says the former New York mayor, whose role during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks cemented his national reputation. The ad closes with an argument Giuliani aides have been making in recent weeks: Giuliani is the only Republican who can beat a Democrat in November 2008. "Rudy Giuliani. The Republican that Democrats just don't want to run against," the announcer says.

U.S. Trust launches 25 million dollar campaign today
U.S. Trust, Bank of America's Private Wealth Management division, launched its national campaign today which spotlights the changing profile of today's wealthy individuals and families and recognizes them as architects of their own success. The 25 million effort marks the first major initiative for U.S. Trust since its acquisition by Bank of America earlier this year. The brand-building effort represents the most extensive private wealth management campaign that either legacy organization has ever undertaken. The mix includes national and local print, television, and radio. The campaign is expected to run in nearly 50 markets. Boston-based Hill Holliday handled.

Media Business Report TM

iPhone examined
RBR asked Gene Keenan his take on iPhone. With nearly 30,000 news stories and an estimated 500 million US in free media generated by it for Apple you would think we would all be tired of hearing about the iPhone but the general public apparently is not. Every time I take my iPhone out a small crowd gathers around me and wants to see it, play with it and... lust after it. Instead of doing a mechanical review of the iPhone (there are hundreds) I would like to focus instead on what this device means to consumers and the wireless industry at large and therefore important to agencies like us.

| Interesting Analysis here |

Media Markets & Money TM

Deal struck for troubled Mobile FM
WAVH-FM Daphne AL was to be sold by debtor-in-possession Barry D. Wood to Cumulus Media, according to a contract filed with the FCC 2/6/03. That deal fell through, and according to a new filing, Styles Media offered to buy the station. Cumulus decided it wanted an opportunity to outbid Styles. That deal fell through as well, with Woods and Cumulus winding up in court. Now Woods, doing business as Baldwin Broadcasting Company Reorganized, has a bankruptcy court-approved deal to sell the station to Donald G. Bigler's Bigler Broadcasting for 3.6M. The contract stipulates that the court will hold an auction if bidders come forward with a willingness to pay more; that Bigler will receive 3% of the highest bid as a breakup fee plus up to 30K in expenses; and that various amounts of cash will be held in escrow pending resolution of several issues, including the disagreement with Cumulus. Bigler holds no other broadcast licenses.

__FIRST__ __SECOND__,
here is another transaction brokered by Kalil & Co., Inc.

Washington Business Report TM

Support builds behind shield victory
Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) met with journalists last week urging their help in keeping momentum behind the Free Flow of Information Act of 2007, which cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee with a solid 14-3 vote (it was originally reported as 15-2, but one vote was subsequently reversed). "What I hope to convince you of is why we need to continue to work together for a federal shield law. I would ask you to continue to work with us to find a solution to this problem." Society of Professional Journalists National President-Elect Clint Brewer said, "Today's vote demonstrated real progress in the fight to allow journalists to protect the identities of their confidential sources. The SPJ urges journalists and free speech proponents across this country to get involved, act and communicate with their legislators to let them know a free press is a requirement for a healthy democracy." "Having these bipartisan bills advance to this stage is very encouraging," echoed RTNDA president Barbara Cochran. "A federal shield law would safeguard journalists' ability to gather important information from sources who would otherwise be reluctant to come forward. This is not an absolute privilege; this is not about disclosing information that would compromise security -- for the nation or for individuals."

Internet Business Report TM

BK extends gaming with entry into mobile entertainment
Burger King announced a licensing arrangement with Seattle-based, mobile content provider Mobliss to create downloadable cell phone games featuring BK-branded content, including the King. The initial game currently in development will feature players vying for the role of the King's protégé by facing challenges and progressing in the virtual world of a BK-themed city. As various tasks are completed successfully, points are earned, advanced levels are unlocked and gamers face more difficult challenges. The result is a unique gaming experience enhanced by the peer-to-peer interaction of the community. BK will promote through in-restaurant signage and packaging. Customers will send a text message to download and purchase the games. The games are scheduled to launch in spring 2008. Mobliss has direct publishing agreements with national carriers, including Sprint, AT&T, U.S. Cellular, Verizon, Alltel and T-Mobile.

Ratings & Research

Spring 2007 Diary Credit Update: Internet Radio
Less than 1% of in-tab diaries continue to contain listening to internet radio. During a 30 market Fall 2006 analysis, the following info was gathered by Arbitron on internet radio: Diarykeepers that record internet radio tend to be Older, Male and Other. Diarykeepers tend to identify the AM/FM station listened to online by its call letters more so than frequency. 66% of diarykeepers who record AM/FM internet radio listening identify a local station. Of these diarykeepers, 78% recorded listening to the station online as well as over-the-air. The most commonly used term to identify the listening is "Internet." Diarykeepers also use terms such as: .com, .org, .edu, online, streaming. Recorded internet radio listening is credited to the AM/FM station based on simulcast status.

If a station is 100% simulcast (including commercials and PSA's), the AM/FM station receives credit. If a station is not 100% simulcast, the listening is included in Persons Using Radio (PUR) but the station does not receive credit. According to the returned Spring 2007 SIPs: 45% of AM/FM stations indicated streaming. 20% of AM/FM stations reported 100% simulcast streaming.

Internet ad revenues exceed
5 billion for the first time
The Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers released the IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report covering Q2 and the first six months of 2007. US internet ad revenues for the first six months of 2007 were nearly 10 billion, setting yet another new record and representing a nearly 27% increase over the first half of 2006. Internet advertising revenue totaled nearly 5.1 billion for Q2, exceeding the 5 billion mark for the first time in a quarter, a 25.4% increase over the same period in 2006.

Monday Morning Makers & Shakers

Transactions: 8/20/07-8/24/07
Wow. Three weeks into August, and total radio trading value has yet to break into double digit millions. Or even come close -- the figure you see below (under the click) is the new high for the month. Television deals have kept the broadcast total respectable, and this week was no exception. Fisher's move into the Bakersfield television market put at least modest bulk into the bottom line.

8/20/07-8/24/07	Total
Total Deals	8
AMs	5
FMs	2
TVs	1
Value	61.136M

| Complete Charts |

Radio Transactions of the Week
Going for broker
| More... |

TV Transactions of the Week
Fisher lands one in Bakersfield
| More... |

Transactions

41M KCOY-TV Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-San Luis Obispo (Santa Maria CA, CBS 12) and KION-TV Monterey-Salinas CA (Monterey CA, CBS 46) from Newport Television LLC (Sandy DiPasquale), a subsidiary of Providence Equity Partners to Cowles California Media Company (Elizabeth Allison Cowles, William Stacy Cowles, Steven R. Rector). 3.15M escrow, balance in cash at closing. In Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-San Luis Obispo, also includes KKFX-CA (San Luis Obispo CA, Fox 24) and K44DN-LP (Paso Robles CA, CBS 44); in Monterey-Salinas also includes KMUV-LP (Monterey CA, Telemundo 23) and LMA of KCBA-TV (Salinas CA, Fox 35, licensed to Seal Rock Broadcasters LLC). [File date 9/26/07.]

450K KHBC-AM Hilo HI from Hilo Broadcasting LLC (Hugh Gordon) to Parrott Broadcasting LP (Scott D. Parker). 50K loan forgiven, 250K cash at closing, 100K cash within one year. Combo wiht KHWI-FM Hilo HI. LMA until closing. [File date 9/19/07.]

N/A WKCJ-FM Lewisburg WV from WVJT Inc. (Todd P. Robinson) to Michael D. Kidd dba Greenbrier Radio. swap for WRON-FM Ronceverte WV. Combo with WRON-AM Ronceverte WV. [File date 9/20/07.]

Stock Talk

Stocks rise on jobs report
Good news in the government's monthly employment report sent stock prices higher on Friday. The Dow Industrials rose 92 points, or 0.7%, to 14,066.

Radio stocks were also strong. The Radio Index was up 2.561, or 2.1%, to 127.513. Emmis was up 4%, despite telling Wall Street to expect another soft quarter. Up even more was Radio One, with its Class D up 5.6% and Class A 4.8%. Entravision rose 4.2%.

Radio Stocks

**Here's how stocks fared on Friday**
Company	Symbol	Close		Change	Company	Symbol	Close		Change
Arbitron	ARB		46.40	+0.88	Google	GOOG		594.05	+15.02
Beasley	BBGI		7.77	+0.26	Hearst-Argyle	HTV		25.68	+0.03
CBS CI. B	CBS		30.43	-0.40	Journal Comm.	JRN		9.87	+0.09
CBS CI. A	CBSa		30.41	-0.44	Lincoln Natl.	LNC		67.95	+1.71
Citadel	CDL		4.15	+0.09	Radio One, Cl. A	ROIA		3.93	+0.18
Clear Channel	CCU		37.15	+0.16	Radio One, Cl. D	ROIAK		3.97	+0.21
Cox Radio	CXR		13.68	+0.24	Regent	RGCI		2.69	+0.04
Cumulus	CMLS		10.51	+0.06	Saga Commun.	SGA		8.08	-0.29
Debut Bcg.	DBTB		1.02	+0.04	Salem Comm.	SALM		8.31	-0.03
Disney	DIS		35.47	+0.57	Sirius Sat. Radio	SIRI		3.45	+0.05
Emmis	EMMS		5.51	+0.21	Spanish Bcg.	SBSA		2.55	-0.02
Entercom	ETM		21.57	+0.68	SWMX	SMWX		0.04	-0.01
Entravision	EVC		10.56	+0.43	Westwood One	WON		3.00	+0.11
Fisher	FSCI		49.95	-0.10	XM Sat. Radio	XMSR		14.31	+0.17

Bounceback

Send Us Your Opinions We want to
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Below the Fold

Programming Business Report
The Steel City has got game
Talker 93.7 The Zone back to the future CBS really had no choice but they have brand heritage on their side...

Ad Business Report
U.S. Trust launches
25 million dollar campaign today mix national and local print, television & Radio...

Media Markets & Money
Troubled Mobile FM
Deal struck for WAVH-FM Daphne AL sold by debtor-in-possession to Cumulus Media...

Ratings & Research
Internet Radio
Spring 2007 Diary Credit Update less than 1% of in-tab diaries continue to contain listening...

Stations for Sale

Market your Stations For Sale
in our daily epapers.

Contact
June Barnes
[email protected]

Radio Media Moves

Moving down the hall
Justin Carson, who had been mid-day personality at CHR KZCH-FM "Channel 963" Wichita has moved "down the hall" to join the staff of Clear Channel cluster mate KZSN-FM "Kissin' Country 102.1." Starting today, Carson will fill the afternoon opening that was created last week when Rockin' Rick Regan became a part of the Kissin' Morning Show with Dancin' Don Hall.

RBR observation: Doesn't Justin now need an "-in'" name, besides the one he was born with?

Saxe to Entercom
Entercom announced that Dave Saxe has been named Vice President/Market Manager of its three radio stations in Madison, WI, WOLX-FM, WCHY-FM and WMMM-FM, filling the spot left open by the promotion of Amy Griesheimer (10/4/07 RBR #194). Saxe previously worked for Journal Broadcast Group, but most recently was Managing Partner of Workshop Tools Partners, a retail store with operations throughout the greater Tennessee region.

Special ops for McColly
Dan McColly is already operations manager for Journal Broadcast Group's two-AM, four-FM radio cluster. Journal Boise VP/GM Bob Rosenthal has added to his workload by giving him responsibility for KIVI-TV and KSAW-LP. "It's a great opportunity for Dan to infuse more of his creativity across multiple platforms," said Rosenthal. McColly will be coordinating promotions and marketing, among other things.

More News Headlines

Talkers double
down on Iran
It was all because of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's visit to the US. During the week of 9/23-28/07, the visit propelled Iran to the top of the Project for Excellence in Jounalism coverage chart with 13% of the newshole. Talkers found this story to be over twice as fascinating, giving it 28% of their time. They also came close to doubling the news focus on the 2008 election - newsers gave it 11%, talkers 20%. PEJ felt compelled to comment on a general difference between the two types of current events practioners. Whereas journalists strive to stay out of the way of the story, and talkers are known for bringing their attitude to bear on the news, the week featured two talkers - Bill O'Reilly and Rush Limbaugh - becoming stories themselves due to their remarks on two completely unrelated topics.

RBR observation: For newsers, such a situation is generally cause for embarrassment; but for talkers, it can be cause for increased ratings, especially in Limbaugh's case. His "phony soldiers" remark was inextricably tied to the earlier MoveOn.org "General Betray-us" incident and had Congress up in arms. But for all the heat Limbaugh took, there was no shortage of media voices rushing to his defense, nor was there a rush of paying advertisers from his show.

Mars opens
new business
Former Liberman Broadcasting Corporate Vice President of Liberman Broadcasting Andrew F. Mars has formed the Mars Media Family, offering "Out of this World training" and sales acceleration services to broadcasters throughout the US. In addition, Mars is working with advertising agencies and advertisers in the areas of account development and brand growth. The new firm has already been retained to spearhead market development for Kindervision, a non-profit child and teen safety, education, and protection program.

Got something to say?
The perfect time to say it is right around the corner. The Media Institute is getting set to kick off Freedom of Speech week, which runs from 10/15-21/07. National Association of Broadcasters Educational Foundation, National Cable and Telecommunications Association and Newspaper Association of America Foundation are all taking part. Two individuals, E.W. Scripps CEO Kenneth W. Lowe and former broadcaster and White House press secretary Tony Snowe, are set to receive honors.

RBR Radar 2007

Radio News you won't read any where else. RBR--First, Accurate, and Independently Owned.

Rehr wants hearing on
record company/artist relations
In the battle over performance royalties for airplay, the music industry trotted out musicians to carry the water. But will the musicians end up with the cash? The NAB thinks Congress should try to find out before it crafts any legislation.

RBR observation: This addresses the big question about the latest airplay royalty grad, which many believe is simply part of an all-points thrust to make up for money lost as the recording industry adjusts to new internet realities. Will cash taken from broadcasters benefit artists or multinational conglomerates?
10/05/07 RBR #195

Allbritton embraces local content
Local video makers in the DC area don't have to just post their videos on the Internet and hope that someone will click. Allbritton Communications and flagship WJLA-TV have launched Local Point TV as a digital simulcast channel to carry strictly local content from local artists. The channel is also being cleared on Comcast and FiOS in the market.

TVBR observation: Sure, it's a broadcast twist on YouTube, but what's wrong with that? YouTube is an online twist on television. What's great here is that people will be able to tell their friends to tune in on TV to watch the video they've created - and even groups can watch on a real TV screen, not a small box on a computer screen. What the online component adds, along with non-linear playback access, is an opportunity for viewers to discuss the videos, often with the creator.
10/05/07 TVBR #195

WW1 stock up on CBS deal
Westwood One shares rose Wednesday, but not dramatically (only single digits), after sealing a long-awaited deal to separate its management from CBS Radio but continue its programming and distribution deal with CBS Radio through March 2017 (10/3/07 RBR #193). Wall Street analysts say the deal removes some uncertainty for WW1, but there are still issues remaining to be dealt with. Wall Street guys took a look see, Bear Stearns note that the renegotiated deal will allow WW1 (stock ticker "WON") to focus on operations, put the company in a better position to negotiate an amendment of its bank covenants and free the company to pursue strategic initiatives. Goldman Sachs are sticking with their "Sell" rating. More details in RBR
10/04/07 RBR #194

Westwood One set free
in new deal with CBS
At long last, Westwood One announced that it has entered into new agreements with CBS Radio running through March 2017. the new deal, once ratified by WW1 shareholders, will establish a new relationship between CBS Radio and the WW1 network and Metro Networks divisions, through March 31, 2017 in exchange for certain programming and/or cash compensation.

RBR observation: Let the bidding begin! This is the move that Wall Street awaited. Now free from CBS, Westwood One is free to put itself up for sale. Who will Norm Pattiz, with his founder's stock, find a suitable buyer? Inquiring minds want to know. For the complete details see this report page in RBR.
10/03/07 RBR #193

Westwood One set free
in new deal with CBS
At long last, Westwood One announced that it has entered into new agreements with CBS Radio running through March 2017. the new deal, once ratified by WW1 shareholders, will establish a new relationship between CBS Radio and the WW1 network and Metro Networks divisions, through March 31, 2017 in exchange for certain programming and/or cash compensation.

RBR observation: Let the bidding begin! This is the move that Wall Street awaited. Now free from CBS, Westwood One is free to put itself up for sale. Who will Norm Pattiz, with his founder's stock, find a suitable buyer? Inquiring minds want to know. For the complete details see this report page in RBR.
10/03/07 RBR #193

Citadel pulls the plug
on nighttime HD
Why? Their HD signals are interfering with their own analog signals cross-country on WABC NYC and WJR Detroit-and they're getting listener complaints-more in some markets than others. Citadel VP/Engineering Martin Stabbert tells RBR the move is temporary to tweak the HD engineering with iBiquity Digital. RBR noticed a problem weeks ago (9/21/07 RBR #185). See HD Radio 2007.

RBR observation: It may be just radio DX'ers complaining about reception. In many far-outlying areas the groundwave from WABC, for example, fights with the skywave already at night, so any added noise on the WABC analog there would be problematic for sure for areas like Poughkeepsie and Atlantic City. For most in-market listeners, the problem was likely minimal. More details in RBR section Engineering Business Report.
10/03/07 RBR #193

Journal Sentinel begins staff cuts
The Milwaukee daily newspaper that's the flagship of Journal Communications, began a voluntary employee separation program to cut the size of its staff. The plan is to eliminate 35-50 positions or about 3.5-5% of the newspaper staff - and if the voluntary program doesn't accomplish that, there may be some involuntary pink-slipping.

TVBR observation: Just one more example of just how tough the newspaper business is these days. Oh yea, also add how tough it is to manage and make a profit with Paper as It is an Electronic Media World.
10/03/07 TVBR #193

Jerry Lee puts his money
where his mouth is
Guarantees to advertisers to prove the value of radio. Well, he's not just talking, he's doing. Lee has big ideas for the future. His challenge is with four proposals to move radio forward. Lee is already trying to implement them in Philadelphia, where he owns WBEB-FM, to prove that they work. He told RBR that he has met with the advertising decision maker for the Ford dealers in the Philadelphia area with a proposal to prove that radio can move cars - with a money-back guarantee. "We need to take charge of our own destiny. We need to do 4 things and if we do them right, our future will be very bright.

RBR note: Lee's points and details outlined in RBR.
10/02/07 RBR #192

Emmis leaves Interep for Katz
Emmis Communications has ended its long-time rep deal with Interep and its D&R Radio Sales and moved over to Katz Radio Group.

RBR observation: It has been no walk in the park to rep Emmis stations lately in New York, LA and Chicago, as their ratings have been falling on stations like Power 106 and Q101. So it's more critical mass for Katz and Stu Olds - who may some day buy the rep firm from Clear Channel. And for Interep it is another contract buy out.
10/02/07 RBR #192

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