Radio Wires (August 23, 2002)

Radio Wires (August 20, 2002)

1. KHJ* March 18, 1922
2. KFI March 31, 1922
3. KNX** May 4, 1922

* KHJ call letters were not in use for a brief time in the late 1990s until a Spanish-language format embraced the historic calls.

** KNX had been licensed earlier in December 1921 as KGC and changed call letters when the station moved from Hollywood to downtown Los Angeles.

Radio Wires (August 20, 2002)

(August 19, 2002 8:56am) In a new tactic that shows the massive strength of the RIAA, a website, apparently out of China, that the record company lobby organization disapproves of, has disappeared from at least the American Internet screen. The RIAA sued UUNET, A&T Broadband, Cable & Wireless, Sprint and Advanced Network Services, demanding they block the website Listen4ever.com. The RIAA claimed that the website was based in the People's Republic of China, and had been set up to target American audiences to allow unlawful copying of musical recordings. For the first time, the RIAA has targeted the Internet itself as responsible for the content that U.S. audiences (and perhaps the world) can see. What is even more shocking is that a few companies have the ability to pull the plug on any website they don't want on the Net, as Listen4ever has immediately disappeared from U.S. Internet users. As one observer noted this morning, now we're going to find out what it's like to live in a Communist country. If Listen4ever website can be blocked, so can any that disagree with the RIAA and any that criticize the political power as well. Lost in the irony, may be the RIAA's own (former) espousal for the rights to freedom of speech.

http://news.com.com/2100-1023-954176.html?tag=fd_ots

Radio Horizon:
GO>>>
Clear Channel to Name Veteran Executive John Hogan Head of Radio Unit

Clear Channel Communications Inc. (NYSE:CCU - News) is expected to name veteran company executive John Hogan to head its radio unit, according to people familiar with the matter.

The move to name Mr. Hogan chief executive of Clear Channel's radio operations is intended to signal a smooth transition following the abrupt departure last month of former chief Randy Michaels. Mr. Hogan has been president and chief operating officer of the radio operation since August 2001.

A longtime collaborator with Mr. Michaels, Mr. Hogan has been seen as the main implementer of Clear Channel's radio sales strategy, which has aimed at coordinating its approximately 1,200 stations to sell national and regional packages of advertising. The company has said that it now wants to focus on knitting together its assets operationally, after years of acquisitions that have left it by far the biggest radio operator, as well as the country's largest concert promoter and a major outdoor advertising company.

Clear Channel announced last month that Mr. Michaels, perhaps the best-known executive in the radio business, would step down to head its new technology ventures. The abrupt announcement, which came as a surprise to Clear Channel radio executives and investors, sent the company's stock down sharply. Clear Channel moved quickly to restore confidence, announcing its second-quarter earnings a week early, and its shares have recently risen.

RIAA sues ISPs for Allowing Users to Access Music Trading Web Site

(Reuters) The world's largest record companies sued major Internet service and network providers on Friday, alleging their routing systems allow users to access the China-based Listen4ever.com Web site and unlawfully copy musical recordings.

The copyright infringement suit, filed in Manhattan federal court, seeks a court order requiring the defendants to block Internet communications that travel through their systems to and from the Listen4ever site. The suit says the plaintiffs have not been able to determine who owns the Web site.

Plaintiffs in the suit include such major labels as UMG Recordings, a unit of Vivendi Universal EAUG.PA , Sony Music Entertainment, a unit of Sony Corp 6758.T .; The RCA Records Label, a unit of Bertelsmann AG'sBTGGga.D BMG; and Warner Brothers Records, a unit of AOL Time Warner AOL.N .

Defendants in the suit are AT&T Broadband Corp., a unit of AT&T T.N ; Cable & Wireless USA, a unit of Cable & Wireless CW.L , Sprint Corp FON.N ., Advanced Network Services and UUNET Technologies, a unit of WorldCom WCOEQ.PK .

The suit alleges that the Listen4ever site enables Internet users to download music from a centralized location containing thousands of files. This allows them to make unlawful copies of as many recordings as they choose.

The suit alleges that Listen4ever uses offshore servers located in the People's Republic of China to host the Web site through which the illegal copying occurs. The plaintiffs allege that Listen4ever provides its services to Internet users in the United States through backbone routers owned and operated by the defendants.

According to the suit the artists whose works are being unlawfully copied and distributed through Listen4ever are: Christina Aguilera, Bruce Springsteen, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eric Clapton, Barbara Streisand, Lenny Kravitz and Whitney Houston.

The suit alleges that the Listen4ever site also features albums that have not yet been commercially released. For instance, it alleges that the most recent album by artist Mary J. Blige, "Dance for Me," was available on the site before released to stores on August 13.

The suit states that the Listen4ever operators also seem to be based in China. However, the plaintiffs said that "strikingly absent" from the site is any indication of the persons or entity who owns it.

The recording companies said the only information they have been able to find is that the domain name appears to have been registered to an individual in Tianjin, China. Even the site's links for contacting operators sends e-mail to an anonymous Yahoo! e-mail account.

The suit states that despite Listen4ever's connections to China, the site uses a U.S. domain name, is written entirely in English, appears to target an American audience by focusing on U.S. works and does not appear to feature Chinese music.

"Listen4ever has clearly located itself in China to avoid the ambit of United States copyright law," the suit said.

The suit is the latest in a long-term attack by record labels on Web sites and services that allow trading of digital music files. Such offerings, like Napster and Scour, have been hit with massive lawsuits claiming billions of dollars in damages from violated copyrights.

The labels have blamed file-sharing on weak sales and lower profits, and the music business has, over the last year, started making its own heavy forays into digital music as a way to try and capture some of the cost savings of online distribution while still generate revenue for their works.

Lee Ann Womack visits KSON (August 19, 2002)

TONY AND KRIS IN THE MORNING, the morning duo from San Diego's KSON, welcomed Lee Ann Womack in studio Monday morning. It just happened to be Lee Ann's birthday and in honor of her ACM dress, which bared more than a little cleavage, the guys had a special "Boob" cake made for Ms. Womack. They also had suprise birthday phone calls from Mally Roncal, Lee Ann's make-up artist and Harry Connick, Jr., who is a good friend of Lee Ann's and recently joined her in studio to record a Christmas duet.

WSRadio (August 18, 2002)

Call Letter Change (August 18, 2002)