The Wires (Feb 2004)
Mark Davis: As a broadcaster, I care about the following rant more than you probably do, but let me try to impart why you should care more. Many of you -- especially those who tend to agree with me on conservative points of view -- probably have been celebrating since radio shock jock Howard Stern was yanked from six radio stations around the country last week by Clear Channel, the company that owns those stations. Clear Channel is a massive corporation whose acquisition of stations from coast to coast has sparked a debate about whether we are well-served by fewer companies owning more and more stations. I suppose there is a creativity issue there, as music playlists and formats and even some talk shows take on a national homogeneity as big companies gobble up more stations, but that's for listeners to decide. There is plenty of diversity to please most. But some of that programming diversity has come under fire, and Clear Channel has buckled under the pressure of the moment
(read Orlando City Beat - Sarah Kinbar) and (read Tyler Morning Telegraph) When Clear Channel made the decision to can Howard Stern's daily broadcast, the markets those stations supposedly entertain lost the very best thing they had going for them. Throwing caution to the wind and putting money down on the social conservatives, Clear Channel is sure to regret this move. The decision seems like pure foolishness on the surface, but perhaps Clear Channel is pandering to the FCC [Federal Communications Commission] for a reason
(read Seattle Times) The fallout from Janet Jackson's exposed breast and Clear Channel Communications' suspension of Howard Stern took center stage yesterday at a Seattle forum on "Fixing Radio." "I think it's the most cataclysmic week in radio since the deregulation act in the '90s," said Phil Manning, program director of KNDD 107.7 FM The End
(read Herald Tribune) Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry said radio stations are within their right to pull Howard Stern off the air if they object to the shock jock's racy show. "Howard Stern does have the right to say whatever he wants anywhere, but he doesn't necessarily have the right to say it on that station if the people who run the station don't want him to," Kerry said while campaigning in New York, where Stern's show is broadcast
(read Roanoke Times) Satellite radio may not spell the end of FM/AM radio, but many observers expect Satellite to change it. One major change is already looming. iBiquity Digital, a hardware corporation based in Columbia, Md., recently unveiled digital quality, Commercial High Definition Radio (HD) to improve sound quality on FM and AM stations. This could be the future sound of local radio. HD gives FM stations a digital sound like that of satellite radio and AM stations a sound similar to that of current static-free FM stations
FMQB: Viacom/Infinity: No Plans to Drop Stern Mel voices his support for Howard, while Infinity says it has no plans to dump his show.
Arbitron to Drop Internet Ratings Arbitron will cease monthly and weekly Internet ratings, and will offer a revamped service in the future.
Stern to Quit? One day after he was suspended from six stations, top shock jock Howard Stern railed on his show Thursday about the Bush administration and Mel Gibson, and spoke about how much he and "what this show represents" are feared by his opponents. Then he got on the phone with girlfriend Beth Ostrowsky and talked about the sex they had the night before. Many parts of their discussion, though, were blocked by WXRK-FM station manager Tom Chiusano. Stern, who has said he will meet March 8 with Mel Karmazin, president of station owner Viacom, sounded resigned to the possibility that he may soon be leaving the air (read Newsday)
(read Chris Baker - Washington Times) Congressmen praised the president of the nation's largest radio chain yesterday for pulling Howard Stern off the air, but scolded him for suggesting that his company might not pay the indecency fine levied against it last month. Dana L. McClintock, an Infinity spokesman, declined comment. Talk-show host Rush Limbaugh, whose program is distributed by a Clear Channel subsidiary, came to Mr. Stern's defense. "Smut on TV gets praised. Smut on TV wins Emmys. On radio, there seems to be different standards. ... When the federal government gets involved in this, I get a little frightened," Mr. Limbaugh said on his program
(see Buzz Babes on a CC Web site) Will the "Buzz Babes" be banned? Does Clear Channel's John Hogan consider CC's radio station's publicly accessible Web sites to be a part of their clean up campaign? It's a question that may be asked soon.
(read Washington Post) Infinity executives would not comment yesterday on Clear Channel's move and said only that Stern would not meet a similar fate on their stations. His show aired locally as usual on Infinity's Fairfax-based WJFK-FM yesterday. Two phone calls to WJFK General Manager Alan Leinwand were not returned
San Antonio Express: Clear Channel is taking its duty very seriously, said Andy Levin, the company's chief legal officer. "There's been public outcry about the coarseness of the content of both television and radio broadcast, and we intend to do something about it," Levin said. "Clear Channel does not want to be associated with indecency." To enforce its zero tolerance policy, Clear Channel plans to train its on-air talent and managers about the FCC's indecency rules and suspend people who violate them. "If a DJ is found to be in violation of FCC rules, there will be no appeals and no intermediate steps," John Hogan, Clear Channel's CEO of it radio group, said in a statement. "If they break the law by broadcasting indecent material, they will not work for Clear Channel." Also, Clear Channel has amended all of its contracts with on-air performers to provide for fines to DJs if they utter indecent material on the air
Indy Starr: Emmis Communications, the Indianapolis company that owns 27 radio stations across the United States, is preparing a "zero-tolerance" policy on indecent content. Rick Cummings, president of Emmis' radio division, said attorneys are reviewing details that will be included in such a policy. "We want it to be carefully thought out," he said. "It's no secret that (the Federal Communications Commission) standard is a little bit vague."
MLive: Under FCC rules and federal law, radio stations and over-the-air television channels cannot air material that refers to sexual and excretory functions between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., when children may be tuning in. The rules do not apply to cable and satellite channels and satellite radio. Dr. Frank Wright, president of the National Religious Broadcasters, questioned how long the broadcasters' concern about indecency will last. "Some of this hand-wringing in public is from the very people who have brought us a rogue's gallery of shock jocks," said Wright, whose association of Christian radio and TV broadcasters counts 1,700 members
Indy Star: Prominent broadcast personality Tom Griswold says he has no intention of testing a "zero-tolerance" edict on indecency issued Wednesday by the country's largest radio conglomerate. Griswold and co-host Bob Kevoian have made careers out of sexual innuendo and double entendres on morning airwaves, as their "Bob & Tom Show" is syndicated from Indianapolis to more than 130 radio stations coast to coast. Clear Channel owns the program's home station, WFBQ-FM (94.7)
(read NY Daily News - Richard Huff) Howard Stern is peeved at Jay Leno for hiring Stuttering John Melendez. Stuttering John (l.) with Leno on 'The Tonight Show.' Calling Jay Leno "creatively bankrupt," Howard Stern lashed out at the "Tonight Show" host yesterday for hiring away Stern show regular Stuttering John Melendez to be his announcer. Stern told listeners on his first morning back on the radio since Melendez gave notice that Leno called him twice since the announcement
RIAA's New Seal of Disapproval (DAT's Entertainment Thursday)...The movie, music and software industries stick the FBI seal on their products in hopes that would-be pirates will think twice before distributing copyright content illegally. It's a big waste of time, critics say. By Katie Dean.
(read John Nova Lomax - Houston Press) - Houston commercial rock radio has always been a wasteland, a badlands of tired music and dead trends. And it seems that the people of Houston know it. The Buzz -- our so-called alternative station (though it's now as mainstream, and intelligent, as Jessica Simpson) is the highest-rated rock station in town, which is all well and good, until you take a close look at the Arbitron ratings book. There, you'll find that the Buzz is tied -- with smooth jazz seephole the Wave, no less -- for ninth overall. KLOL -- the alternative to the alternative, as it were -- fares much worse. It's all the way down at No. 20, tied with the Point, an '80s station that might lead you to believe that absolutely nothing but crap was recorded in the whole decade
Net-Access Tax Ban: D‚j… Vu Again (Business Wednesday) Calling an alternative bill a tax cut for telecoms, U.S. senators push a temporary moratorium on Internet taxes. The lawmakers say the competing bill's proposed permanent tax ban would rob state and local governments of revenue.
Microsoft Windows Flaw: Microsoft Corp. said on Tuesday a "critical" flaw in most versions of its flagship Windows operating system could allow hackers to break into personal computers and snoop on sensitive data. Although no computers were reported to have been compromised, the world's largest software maker warned that Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 were at risk. Microsoft announced the flaw in its monthly security bulletin. The company offered software updates to fix the software flaw, which it assigned its most severe rating of "critical." "It does affect all (current) versions of Windows," said Stephen Toulouse, security program manager for Microsoft's Security Response Center. "We're not aware of anyone affected by this at this time.
Microsoft: Oops! We Did It Again (Technology Tuesday) Six months after researchers warned Microsoft about critical security flaws in Windows, the software company alerts users to the problem and offers a patch on its website. One researcher calls the delay 'just totally unacceptable.'
John Birchard - VOA: Two companies are betting Americans are willing to pay to listen to the radio, with the arrival of satellite radio in the cars and trucks on American roads ... the same satellite technology that makes possible global navigation and telephone communication is the basis for a new development in radio. The two companies competing for listeners in this new field are XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. We asked Chance Patterson, an executive with XM, how satellite radio works. "We have our broadcast headquarters in Washington, D.C. And from our headquarters here, we send 120 channels of programming up to our two satellites, called Rock and Roll," he explained. And those satellites send down the programming information nationwide, across the US." XM began its service in November of 2001, Sirius a few months later from New York City. A spokesman for Sirius, Ron Rodriguez, says one major advantage for listeners to satellite radio is choice. The fact that you can get a hundred channels and the vast majority of those channels are the types of programming that you can't get on terrestrial or traditional radio," he said.
Palm Beach Post: Often criticized for monopolizing radio and promoting right-wing politics, radio giant Clear Channel Communications Inc. is trying to improve its image by forming community advisory panels nationwide. The first panel is to be formed in San Antonio, followed by Sarasota and Cleveland. Local boards will be developed this year in West Palm Beach and the Treasure Coast, said Mark Bass, general manager of Clear Channel's six Treasure Coast radio stations -- including WSYR-FM 94.7, WQOL-FM 103.7 and WCZR-FM 101.7. Bass said the boards will likely be made up of government officials, business people and other community members. They'll offer feedback about how Clear Channel's radio stations are perceived in their respective markets, he added
Cleveland Plain-Dealer: XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. has made its music channels commercial-free, taking away an advantage touted by its more expensive rival, Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. Sirius executives have said their price was justified largely because Sirius delivers commercial-free music, though there are a few ads on its talk, news and sports stations. XM has a similar setup, though it had two minutes of commercials each hour on half of its music channels. Spokesman Jim Collins said Sirius' price will remain attractive because it has better programming, including National Public Radio and hockey, basketball and football games. But he added that there's room for both companies to thrive
read Daniel Rubin - Philly Inquirer: "We're not a radio company," says Joe Clayton, CEO of Sirius satellite radio, a genial, silver-haired Kentuckian. "We're an entertainment company." Whatever it is, satellite radio has taken off. Over the holidays, an unprecedented number of subscribers signed with XM and Sirius, the Coke and Pepsi of orbital radio, for programming that plays through special car or indoor receivers and can be heard coast-to-coast. The services have entered into partnerships with NASCAR, NPR, Fox, Playboy and others to create content that has regular broadcasters feeling earthbound. It is a moment like the arrival of cable television, a novelty 30 years ago, and now a drain on traditional broadcasters' audience and ad revenue. "I think the National Association of Broadcasters members are going to find themselves in a fight for their survival," said Bob Richards, spokesman for SkyWaves Research Associates in Ann Arbor, Mich. "My expectation is there will be a lot fewer AM and FM stations 20 years from now.
Streamingmedia.com: Patently Absurd? Streaming Users Face Acacia Patent Fight California-based holding company Acacia Research claims they hold patents on streaming, downloading and just about every form of digital audio and video distribution out there--including pushing MP3s from peer-to-peer groups, streaming newscasts from Internet radio sites and delivering movies through cable networks. (1/20/2004)
(read Feder of Chicago) While WRLL-AM (1690) seeks a replacement for Ron Britain, a lineup of legendary former Chicago radio stars will be filling in on the "Real Oldies" station's afternoon shift. First up will be Chuck Buell, best known for his run from 1968 to 1972 on WLS-AM (890). He'll be on all next week from 3 to 8 p.m. Tommy Edwards, program director, emphasized that Buell and the personalities who follow are not "auditioning" for the afternoon job. "We're just using this as an opportunity for some great Chicago DJs to go back on the air, play some great music, tell stories and have a lot of fun." + Jeff Flock is leaving CNN + Just in time for Super Bowl Sunday, WJMK-FM (104.3) afternoon personality Fred Winston is sharing his world-famous chili recipe with fans. It's available on his new Web site at: www.fredwinston.blogspot.com
(read Fortune SB) XM DJ's and their choices -- Perhaps XM's biggest selling point is that in this era of homogenized, chain-owned, centrally programmed radio stations, it offers an abundance of often quirky programming choices
KRON 4: An e-mail worm that looks like a normal error message but actually contains a malicious program snarled computers around the world on Tuesday. MessageLabs Inc., which scans e-mail for viruses, said one in every 12 messages contained the worm, called "Mydoom" or "Novarg." Security experts described it as the largest virus-like outbreak in months. The worm began spreading rapidly Monday during business hours in the United States. By comparison, many previous outbreaks had started during Asian business hours, allowing antivirus vendors to develop defenses by the time U.S. companies opened up shop. "Whenever a virus begins to start in the States, it usually becomes much bigger," said Vincent Gullotto, an antivirus researcher at Network Associates Inc. MyDoom is a mass-mailing worm that masquerades as a test message. MyDoom (w32.mydoom@mm, also known as Novarg, Shimgapi, Shimg, and MiMail.r) takes advantage of the ZIP file format's ability to pass through e-mail filters. It also uses Kazaa to spread. Within the first few hours, MyDoom spread quickly around the world. It affects only Windows users, not those using Macintosh, Linux, or Unix. Much of the worm's code is itself encrypted, and antivirus firms are still studying it. Because MyDoom spreads via e-mail and could severely slow or shut down e-mail servers with excess traffic, this worm rates a 7 on the CNET Virus Meter. How it works: MyDoom arrives as e-mail with the subject line "Mail Delivery System," "Test," or "Mail Transaction Failed. Full Report Here
Is CBS a Hippocrite? (read Star-Ledger Editorial), (read Congressman Bernie Sanders letter) CBS is refusing to sell a 30-second TV ad to a group that wanted to criticize President Bush during the Super Bowl. The ad is clever and well within the bounds of good taste. It argues that the Bush deficits will be repaid by our children and makes its point by showing unsmiling kids doing adult jobs, from factory work to garbage collection. If you consider that offensive, keep the remote handy. CBS still has babes in bikinis selling beer, and its Super Bowl line-up this year is stacked with spots on erectile dysfunction. The deficit piece, sponsored by MoveOn.org, is tame by comparison. CBS has a rule against issue advertisements on any of its shows. In practice, that means McDonald's can advertise its hamburgers but a citizen group can't buy time to warn about the danger of saturated fat. It means that on Sunday American kids will be more likely to ask daddy about Viagra than the national deficit You'll find this and other "Talk Bites" at RDN's sister site, www.talkradiodailynews.com
Businessweek: Investments in outer space don't pay off? Try telling that to shareholders of the two companies licensed to beam down radio programming from way up there: Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio Holdings. Their shares have soared into high orbit, and the market has been lapping up fresh offerings of their shares
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