Radio+Television Business Report

Andrea Mitchell, the journalist who holds the title of Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent and Chief Washington Correspondent will be honored with the Gracies Icon Award at the 2024 Gracies Leadership Awards scheduled for November 19 in the City of New York.

Some sixty years ago, he conceived and executed a plan to build unaffiliated broadcast television stations in seven of the top 10 U.S. markets. He would later serve as EVP of the TV station division of Metromedia — the foundation of what is today FOX Television Stations. Now, many in broadcast media are paying tribute to Dick Block, who died on September 30.

The Commission has started to accept applications from graduating law students, recent law school graduates, and current judicial clerks for its Fall 2025 Attorney Honors Program. The application window closes on Thursday, November 21.

A broadcast television station linked with the non-secular Real Life Network that offers viewers "island-style, faith-filled television for the whole family" faces a substantial fine for violating the FCC's quarterly issues and programs list rules.

In this InFOCUS Podcast, presented by dot.fm, Kerri Black, who oversees two Fiorini Media radio stations in Englewood and Arcadia, Fla., shares how the storm impacted the area south of Siesta Key, where Hurricane Milton made landfall last week. She shares what the stations did to keep the lights on, and what her team did to ensure the safety of staff.

After almost 30 years with iHeartMedia and its predecessor company, Clear Channel Communications, Tom McConnell — a Division and Region President who has led several markets for the nation's No. 1 owner of radio stations — is retiring. This will see two company veterans each take Division President roles, as the company prepares for McConnell's formal exit.

In April, he departed as Region Senior VP of Sales for iHeartMedia's Washington, D.C., station group, concluding a nearly 6 1/2 year run there. Now, he's resurfaced as Director of Sales for the West Palm Beach-Boca Raton radio market's biggest group of AMs and FMs. 

It has played an outsized role in the aftermath of the devastation to Asheville, N.C., caused by Hurricane Helene and its remnants between September 27 and 28. On Friday, a Premiere Networks air personality found himself at the iHeartMedia-owned News/Talk radio station, co-hosting his daily syndicated program while raising needed funds for a significant recovery effort.

Hispanic consumers are 12% more likely than the total population to not have a cable or satellite subscription while some 62% are currently “cordless.” Concurrently, some 28% of U.S. Hispanics are content with their conventional TV service. Those are some of the key findings from a new Hispanic consumer research report.

Across every Gray Media broadcast television station, the National Anthem has been broadcast daily. Starting Tuesday, a new rendition of the anthem will begin airing, and it places a spotlight on the talent and dedication of younger generations.

Just how popular is the National Football League? In September, Thursday Night Football helped give Amazon Prime Video a 12% bump in viewership — leading it to match its platform-best share of TV set in both September and October 2023. That's according to the latest edition of "The Gauge" from Nielsen.

Futuri, the Daniel Anstandig-founded broadcast technology company driven by AI, has brought to market several "enhancements" to its TopLine sales intelligence platform. Among the changes: the automatic generation of real-time insights, with client information housed in a single, central location.

The enhancements include customization tools, a streamlined layout and design intended to bring users faster and easier access to local weather data, information and forecasts personalized to user needs and preferences.

Amid broad discussions on AI's impact on media and journalism, NPR is the first major broadcast organization to submit reply comments to the FCC's proposed rules on disclosure of AI-generated content in political advertising.

A FM radio station broadcast licensee serving Las Vegas and St. George, Utah, seeks to gain new business through the use of GeoBroadcast Solutions' "ZoneCasting" and "MaxxCasting." To see both technologies in action, a FCC Commissioner aligned with the Democrats last week took a visit to Las Vegas.

The station had been on the air for one year, and when he walked into the studios for the first time on that February 1948 day, he said, "This is for me. This is what I want to do." Thus began a more than 60-year career at KSDK-5 in St. Louis. Now, the television industry is pausing to pay tribute to Ray Hoffstetter, who has passed away at the age of 98.

A PhD student in the Department of Communication at University of California Santa Barbara, along with her research team, in February 2022 published a scholarly article that examines the role of Radio in a crisis. We are pleased to revisit this piece in the wake of both Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton.

From 1989 through early 2003, the station that is today "97.1 The River" served Atlanta as WFOX. Today, an AM using FM translators to reach listeners across the region has brought back the "Fox" branding to the market.  So, what Atlanta FM that was branded "The Fox" across the 2010s is being sold? Look to Michigan for answers.

The National Hockey League season has begun, and the league is advertising itself in a significant way on Spot Cable, the latest data from Media Monitors show. At the same time, the auto insurance specialist category is getting more competitive again at Spot TV.

One of the world's most renowned investors sees value in the satellite radio company looking to gain more ears through smart speakers and smartphone apps. With his investment firm's acquisition of Sirius XM stock, a big comeback was underway in Monday's trading after reaching lows not seen for 12 years.