Industry News

What are the most active brands using spot radio?

The list of companies isn’t so different for the week ending April 4 than it was in the prior week. And, that’s good news for Radio.

Why? It demonstrates stability, with certain brands committing to the medium. Among those brands: Progressive, Indeed, and GEICO. That said, Bank of America is back, with a No. 7 placement in the most recent Spot Ten National Radio report.

With GEICO firmly in place as the top brand using Spot TV, by play count, there’s lots of new activity at over-the-air television with respect to campaigns getting a boost.

For the week ending April 4, a Unilever brand and a Procter & Gamble Co. brand, in particular, made waves with consumers.

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With T-Mobile President/CEO Mike Sievert gushing with confidence and a big trade marketing budget in play, TVision was designed to change pay TV for good.

It failed to catch on with consumers. But, one Wall Street feels Sievert’s plan worked — to the long-term detriment of MVPDs.

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With all eyes last week turned to Washington, D.C., and also fixated on a major audio media company’s name change, attention is just now being placed on the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Here, a judge has cleared the way for Alpha Media to exit from debtor-in-possession status.

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She holds a Juris Doctor from Fordham University School of Law and until now has been a senior associate at Mayer Brown LLP.

Starting today, she’s now the lead in-house counsel for Townsquare Media.

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Taking the role of SVP/General Counsel is Allison Zolot.

At Mayer Brown, she served as an associate in Mayer Brown’s New York office and a member of the Litigation & Dispute Resolution practice. Her practice focused on representing financial institutions, pharmaceutical companies, and other multinational corporations in complex commercial and securities litigation in federal and state courts.

Specifically Zolot concentrated on the areas of banking and financial services, including actions involving alleged violations of the securities laws and allegations of fraud or misrepresentation in the sale of complex financial instruments, such as residential mortgage-backed securities (“RMBS”) and other derivative instruments.

Townsquare CEO Bill Wilson said the local audio and digital media company is “thrilled to have such a talented lawyer” join the company.  He continued, “Allison is a strong and effective leader who will make a great addition to our senior management team.  I look forward to working with Allison as we continue to drive long-term growth and shareholder value through the execution of our ‘Local First’ strategy.”

Allison Zolot, Townsquare Media

Zolot said she is “humbled by the opportunity to work with Bill and the company’s senior management team.”

Mayer Brown has been her lone professional position following her receipt of a Fordham J.D. in 2009.

In late February, RBR+TVBR first shared the news that TEGNA was adding to its pot of digital multicast networks by stirring up a third creation.

As of today, Twist is on the air, putting a focus on women — and perhaps the LGBTQ+ crowd, too.

With a focus on lifestyle and reality programming including Top Chef Masters, Clean House, Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, Dance Moms, Tabatha Takes Over, Tiny House Nation and Flipping Out, Twist is already available in 41 TEGNA markets — and 43 of the top 50 Nielsen DMAs.

Aside from the TEGNA stations, Twist will also be found as a digital multicast for 11 Univision stations — a huge boost giving the network access to viewers in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Philadelphia.

Then, there are 31 stations licensed to HC2 Broadcasting, a company that is paring down assets but intent on operating a core group of low-power TV stations in various markets.

In Indiana’s biggest market, DuJuan McCoy‘s Circle City Broadcasting has placed Twist on a digital multicast channel associated with WISH-8 in Indianapolis.

Other partners include Adell-owned WADL-38 in Detroit and CNZ Communications’ WIWN-TV in Milwaukee.

“With today’s launch of Twist, reality TV just got much more exciting for over-the-air viewers,” said Brian Weiss, president and general manager of TEGNA’s entertainment networks. “Audiences craving lifestyle and reality programming, who have been underserved in the multicast space, now have free access to high quality shows that have never before been available over-the-air.”

For nearly four and a half years, he has been linked to a group of Cumulus Media stations comprised today of WSBN-AM “ESPN 630” and highly regarded Talker WMAL-FM in Washington, D.C.

Before that, he led sales for iHeartMedia’s D.C. and Baltimore stations as a Sr. VP of Sales, a job he took in September 2009.

Sadly, his current post at Cumulus will be his last, as Ken Roberts has passed away. According to one media report, he was 65 years old.

Cumulus Media EVP/Operations Dave Milner confirmed Roberts passing, with a statement distributed to radio trade publications early Monday. “This is such tragic news and our thoughts and prayers go out to his family,” Milner said of Roberts. “Ken was a passionate and smart professional, who cared greatly for the team in D.C. He had been a friend and coach to so many in radio and we’re all better because of our time with Ken. We send our heartfelt thoughts and prayers to Ken’s family, and are grateful for the time we had with him.”

Roberts in November 2020 had been promoted to VP/Market Manager from VP/Sales of the Cumulus/D.C. duo. He succeeded Jake McCann, who “returned home” to Philadelphia in
late December to lead The HOW Group, a real estate investment group.

With that promotion, Roberts said, “I am proud to continue our mission of super serving our listeners, employees and client partners. I am humbled to be part of our great history and excited to be part of our future.”

Among those already mourning the loss of Roberts is Jay Rosenberg, President/CEO of Rosenberg Media. “We lost a friend, a great husband and father, and great leader in the radio community.”

According to Rosenberg, Roberts died on Saturday. The cause of death has not been formally released. However, RBR+TVBR has learned that Roberts suffered from a suspected heart attack.

Roberts arrived in the Baltimore-Washington corridor in fall 2009, after spending 19 months in Phoenix as Director of Sales for Bonneville’s stations. From March 2001-February 2008, he was GSM of Susquehanna Radio’s former Dallas station group. It was his entry into radio, having served before that as VP of Videoaxs, which created “unique revenue programs that incorporated advertising and content distribution platforms.”

Roberts is a graduate of Rutgers, the state university of New Jersey.

Funeral arrangements were not disclosed by Cumulus Media.

He is not to be confused with original KROQ station owner Ken Roberts, who passed away in May 2014 at the age of 73.

The recent Radio World article “Quick, We Need a Temporary AM Antenna” showcased the ingenuity of WMJC engineers as they scrambled to get a station back on the air quickly.

While improvised antennas are one way to return to the air and can serve as an acceptable emergency or auxiliary antenna in a pinch, they may not be the best or easiest way to get an AM station back on the air. 

The HPR.0990 is designed to handle transmitter power up to 250 Watts.

AM stations faced with the dilemma of a damaged antenna, or one down for maintenance or replacement, have a commercially available option that is cost-effective and quickly deployable, one that allows them to remain on the air with reasonable coverage.

The Information Stations Specialists HPR.0990 is a resonant center and top hat loaded vertical monopole antenna with an integral 50 Ohm transmission line matching unit and optional quick-deployment ground radial system. 

A typical installation requires setting a simple wood or metal support pole or a short tower to mount the self-supporting antenna using a quick deployment ground radial system or a connection to the station’s existing ground radial system at its base. 

The antenna is side-mounted on the support using the included saddle clamps to attach it to the support pole. Due to its resonant design and integral impedance matching, the HPR.0990 can be directly connected to the transmitter’s 50 Ohm coaxial output without the need for an additional impedance matching network.

The base of the antenna is ideally mounted about 15 to 20 feet above ground level, which places the tip of the antenna about 45 to 50 feet high. This installation configuration, using the quick deployment ground radial system, shows a measured efficiency of 100 mV/m per kilowatt at 1000 kHz increasing to 175 mV/m at the top of the AM band. HPR.0990 efficiency declines gradually as the operating frequency moves toward the bottom of the band AM band due to the longer wavelengths, but despite its small stature, the HPR.0990 can still produce efficiency of 55 mV/m per kilowatt at 540 kHz.

Tuneup and installation are quick and easy once the support mast is erected and secured. The HPR- 0990 is designed to handle transmitter power levels of up to 250W. 

There are currently four HPR.0990 installations in commercial temporary use, serving stations in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Iowa. In addition to commercial applications, the HPR.0990 is well suited for use under Part 90.242 as a higher efficiency Travelers Information Station antenna.

My familiarity with the HPR.0990 comes from my role assisting Information Station Specialists with the design, development and field testing of this antenna as a contract engineer. The antenna was born out of the need for a more efficient cost-effective compact AM and TIS antenna capable of medium power levels. 

Based on its field deployment success, the HPR.0990 has achieved those goals.

The author worked for Collins Radio, then spent most of his career with General Motors engineering and Delphi/Delco Electronics as an advanced development engineer and engineering manager for the design of automotive radios and infotainment products. He founded engineering project firm PD Technologies.

The post ISS Antenna Is an Option in an AM Pinch appeared first on Radio World.

The latest quarterly broadcast station totals have been released from the FCC.

And, when one compares the numbers to the end of the third quarter of 2020, there’s one clear takeaway: noncommercial FM radio continues to be a growing opportunity for licensees, as the total number of commercially licensed FMs, and AMs, declined.

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Fig. 1: Ohm’s Law chart

This popular article was originally published in the Jan. 16, 2019, issue of Radio World and Jan. 24, here at the website.

Understanding electronics and electronic troubleshooting starts with knowing Ohm’s Law. This is not difficult and can make your work so much easier.

Ohm’s Law was a constant companion over my long career as a radio broadcast engineer. The relationships among volts, amperes, ohms and power made it all so understandable.

German physicist Georg Ohm published the concept in 1827, almost 200 years ago. It was later recognized as Ohm’s Law and has been described as the most important early quantitative description of the physics of electricity.

Fig. 1 is a list of simple formulas for using Ohm’s Law. Nothing complicated, just good answers to your questions. You don’t need to be a mathematician to run the calculations. The calculator on your smartphone will handle this easily.

P is for power in watts, I is current in amperes, R is resistance in ohms and E is voltage in volts. Solve for any of those knowing two of the other parameters.

Ohm’s Law on Current

When I look at a 100 watt light bulb, I think 120 volts at about 0.8 amperes (0.8333 amperes is more exact). That is 100 watts of power being consumed.

So how many lights can be put on a 15 ampere circuit breaker? Let’s see — 15 ampere circuit capacity, divided by 0.8333 amperes for each bulb in parallel = 18 lamps. Conversely, it is 18 lamps X 0.8333 amperes per lamp = 14.9994 amperes … right at the limit of the circuit breaker.

The rule here says you don’t put more than an 80% load on any circuit breaker for fuse, which is 14 lamps in this case. Always keep some headroom in a circuit. As you know, breakers and fuses are used to protect against fires or other dramatic failures during circuit problems. They get unreliable at their current limit. You don’t need nuisance break trips or fuse burn-outs from running too close to the line.

Ohm’s Law

There are not many high-level plate modulated AM transmitters around anymore. The Gates BC-1 series is an example of this 1950 to 1970s technology. The design typically has 2600 volts running the RF power amplifier tubes.

Fig. 2: Bleeder resistors in a Gates BC-1G transmitter Photo: Mark W. Persons

Power supplies like that need a “bleeder” resistor between the high voltage and ground to bring down/bleed the high voltage to zero when the transmitter is turned off. This should happen in only a second or so of time. The power supply could stay hot with high voltage for minutes or hours if the bleeder resistor fails open. That is a serious safety issue for the engineer working on it, if he or she fails to short the high voltage filter capacitor before touching any part of the transmitter.

The bleeder in a Gates BC-1G transmitter is R41, a 100,000 ohm/100 watt wire-wound resistor. You see one hand-held on the left side of the photo in Fig. 2.

Ohm’s Law tells us that 2600 volts across the resistor squared (times itself) then divided by 100,000 ohms resistance equals 67.6 watts of power dissipation required on a continuous basis on a 100 watt resistor. You would think that the 32.4% safety margin would be enough. This resistor typically failed after 10 years of use. The answer is in the ventilation the resistor gets for cooling. The 67.6 watts in heat has to go somewhere. This transmitter model has some, but not a lot, of air flow on the bottom where the resistor is located.

My answer was to replace the 100 watt resistor with a resistor rated at 225 watts, as seen in the center of the photo. It gave more surface area so it ran cooler, thus longer. A 100 watt resistor is $15.14 vs $18.64 for a 225 watt unit. It is only a $3.50 difference for a huge increase in reliability and safety. The screw that holds it in place will need to be longer if you do this modification. No big deal.

Yes, there is a meter multiplier resistor string next to the resistor and high-voltage capacitor. It samples the high voltage for the PA voltmeter. Dirt has accumulated on the high-voltage end of the string. It is high voltage that attracts dirt, requiring frequent cleaning to maintain transmitter reliability. It’s maintenance.

The RF dummy load in this transmitter has six 312 ohm/200 watt noninductive resistors. The transmitter sees the 52 ohms because the resistors are in parallel. Simple math, 312 ohms divided by 6 resistors = 52 ohms. Yes, 52 ohms, 51.5 ohms, 70 ohms and other impedances were common in the past before solid-state transmitters more or less forced the standard to be 50 ohms. Tube-based transmitters will tune into almost any load while solid-state transmitters are designed to perform into 50 ohm loads … and don’t give me no VSWR!

Ohm’s Law on Voltage

Let’s say we know that 2 amperes of current is going into a 100 ohm resistor. What is the voltage across the resistor?

The formula is 2 amperes x 100 ohms resistance = 200 volts. From that, we can solve for power in the resistor. It is 200 volts x 2 amperes current = 400 watts.

Ohm’s Law on Power

A Continental 816R-2 FM 20 kW FM transmitter might have 7000 volts on the plate of the PA tube with 3.3 amperes of current drawn. Ohm’s Law tell us that 7000 volts x 3.3 amperes = 23,100 watts of power. That is transmitter power input, not output. The power output is subject to the power amplifier efficiency, which is typically 75%. Then, the transmitter power output is 17,325 watts. That also means that 25% of the input power is lost in heat. That is 23,100 watts of input power x .25 = 5775 watts of heat.

Be sure to check the manufacturer’s data sheets for exact numbers for each transmitter model.

Half Power?

Half power doesn’t mean the transmitter’s PA voltage is half. If it was half, then the PA current would be half and RF output would be one-quarter. You’ll remember when local Class 4 (now Class C) AM stations ran 1000 watts day and 250 watts at night.

A Gates BC-1 transmitter might have 2600 PA volts and 0.51 amperes of PA current during the day. We can determine the resistance of the power amplifier by taking the PA voltage of 2600 and dividing it by PA current of 0.51 amperes. The answer is 5098 ohms.

That same PA resistance applies regardless of the power level of this transmitter. At quarter-power, the PA voltage is 1300 volts. Ohm’s law, using the same 5098 ohms, tells us that the PA current should be 0.255 amperes. Yes, it worked out that way in practice. The simple trick was to connect 120 VAC to the primary of the transmitter’s high-voltage transformer for night operation in place of 240 VAC in the day.

With quarter-power, the antenna ammeter read half and the signal field intensity was half, not one-quarter. Let’s examine this. If you have a 50 ohm antenna and 1000 watts of power, what is the antenna current? Using Ohm’s Law, take 1000 watts divided by 50 ohms = 20. The square root of that is 4.47 amperes. Divide 250 watts by the same 50 ohm antenna resistance and you get 5. The square root of that is 2.236 amperes, half of the day antenna current. It’s Ohm’s Law.

Think Ohm’s Law when you are on the job. It answers your questions and makes perfect sense.

Mark Persons, WØMH, is an SBE Certified Professional Broadcast Engineer; he was named the Robert W. Flanders SBE Engineer of the Year for 2018. Mark is now retired after more than 40 years in business. His website is www.mwpersons.com.

The post Ohm’s Law Answers Your Questions appeared first on Radio World.