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MB has unveiled the COALS and OPIF changes that will allow broadcasters, cable and OVS operators, and DBS providers to provide and update their carriage election contact information

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Heil Sound has launched its new PR 37 vocal microphone.

Aimed towards professional vocalists, the new microphone is said to have an upper mid-range response designed to cut through a mix. It features a 1.5-inch diameter dynamic element and has a frequency response from 50 Hz to 18 kHz and output level of -51 dB @ 1000 Hz.

The company worked with several FOH mix engineers, both with the initial design and subsequent field testing of the new microphone. John Hopkins, FOH for the bands Sleep, Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats, stated, “The PR 37 immediately moved to the top of the list for my go-to vocal mic. It’s a super transparent mic and the rejection of stage noise is incredible.”

Adam Pike, working with Red Fang noted, “The Heil PR 37 is a beast. Very rich and smooth low-mids along with the pristine high-mids that Heil is known for. The extremely sturdy casing is also a great added bonus.”

The PR 37 is expected to begin shipping in July, retailing at $269.

NAB Show Booth: C2956

Info: www.heilsound.com

 

The post NAB Sneak Peek: Heil Sound Debuts PR 37 Vocal Mic appeared first on Radio World.

The National Association of Broadcasters has narrowed down the entries in this year’s NAB Crystal Radio Awards program to 50 finalists.

The finalists are:

• KBFB(FM) Dallas
• KCLY(FM) Clay Center, Kan.
• KKZY(FM) Bemidji, Minn.
• KMVP(FM) Phoenix
• KPWJ(FM) College Station, Texas
• KRMG(FM) Tulsa, Okla.
• KRSP(FM) Salt Lake City
• KRWM(FM) Bellevue, Wash.
• KSFI(FM) Salt Lake City
• KSL(FM) Salt Lake City
• KSTP(FM) St. Paul
• KTAR(FM) Phoenix
• KTMY(FM) St. Paul, Minn.
• KUBL(FM) Salt Lake City
• KUPD(FM) Phoenix
• KVTY(FM) Lewiston, Idaho
• KWHL(FM) Anchorage, Alaska
• KWLM(AM) Willmar, Minn.
• KXKT(FM) Omaha
• KZFN(FM) Moscow, Idaho
• KZKX(FM) Lincoln, Nebraska
• WBUL(FM) Lexington, Ky.
• WBYT(FM) South Bend, Ind.
• WBZZ(FM) Pittsburgh
• WCCO(AM) Minneapolis
• WDNS(FM) Bowling Green, Ky.
• WDRM(FM) Huntsville, Ala.
• WDSY(FM) Pittsburgh
• WFEZ(FM) Hollywood, Fla.
• WHPT(FM) St. Petersburg, Fla.
• WHUB(FM) Cookeville, Tenn.
• WHUR(FM) Washington, D.C.
• WIL(FM) St. Louis, Mo.
• WJJY(FM) Baxter, Minn.
• WKQI(FM) Detroit, Mich.
• WKRQ(FM) Cincinnati
• WLBC(FM) Muncie, Ind.
• WMCI(FM) Mattoon, Ill.
• WQNZ(FM) Natchez, Miss.
• WRBR(FM) South Bend, Ind.
• WREW(FM) Cincinnati, Ohio
• WSGW(AM) Saginaw, Mich.
• WSUN(FM) St. Petersburg, Fla.
• WTAW(AM) College Station, Texas
• WTFX(FM) Louisville, Ky.
• WTMJ(AM) Milwaukee
• WUBE(FM) Cincinnati
• WUSL(FM) Philadelphia
• WUSQ(FM) Winchester, Va.
• WWJ(AM) Detroit

Finalists and winners will be recognized Tuesday, April 21, at the We Are Broadcasters Celebration on the main stage at the 2020 NAB Show.

[Learn about the 2019 Crystal Radio Award winners]

Last month, NAB announced that Cedar Falls, Iowa’s KCVM(FM) will be honored with the Crystal Heritage Award.

The NAB Crystal Radio Awards were introduced in 1987 to highlight radio stations’ community service efforts.

The post 2020 Crystal Radio Awards: Finalists Announced appeared first on Radio World.

This article is updated periodically. We will add information as we learn more about the 2020 NAB Show and colocated events.

The 2020 NAB Show is scheduled for April 18–22 and will be held at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The annual trade show is expected to draw some 90,000 attendees and more than 1,600 exhibitors to the Nevada desert to learn about broadcast and entertainment industry trends, experience new technology and research gear to purchase. 

BROADCAST ENGINEERING & IT CONFERENCE

The Broadcast Engineering & Information Technology Conference track begins Saturday, April 18 and runs through Wednesday, April 22. Sessions will be held in the North Hall Meeting Rooms of the Las Vegas Convention Center.

According to the NAB Show website, this year’s BEITC has a “decidedly forward-looking focus” due to technical presentations with an “emphasis on next-generation systems throughout the media-delivery ecosystem.”

BEITC education partners include IEEE Broadcast Technology Society, Society of Broadcast Engineers and the North American Broadcasters Association.

Find information about the agenda and speakers as the program is filled in on the BEITC page at the NAB Show website. 

KEYNOTES

FCC Chairman Ajit Pai is scheduled to speak with NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith during the NAB Show Welcome event on Monday, April 20. According to the announcement, they will discuss communications policy issues currently on the FCC’s docket, including spectrum policy and media ownership.

ACHIEVEMENT IN BROADCASTING DINNER

The Achievement in Broadcasting Dinner is scheduled for Monday, April 20, at the Encore in Las Vegas. The evening will feature Broadcasting Hall of Fame Award inductions and presentation of the NAB Digital Leadership Award to Entercom Chief Digital Officer J.D. Crowley.

The event is by invitation only, according to the NAB Show website.

EXHIBITOR INFORMATION

NAB Show says the 2020 show floor will feature more than 1,600 exhibitors and several pavilions of “exhibitor communities” and subject-specific theatres.

PRODUCT PREVIEWS

Every year, we highlight notable product introductions as we learn about them. Here are those we’ve covered so far:

• 2wcom Debuts HDR-CC
• Dielectric Releasing Switch Controller

SBE ENNES WORKSHOP

The Society of Broadcast Engineer’s annual Ennes Workshop is scheduled to kickoff Saturday, April 18, at 9 a.m. at the Las Vegas Convention Center. 

To attend, you must register for the NAB Show, selecting either a Conference Pass, Session Three-Pack or BEITC Pass, all of which are available to SBE members for a discounted price.

APRE PRE CONFERENCE

The Association of Public Radio Engineers will host its annual Public Radio Engineering Conference April 15–17 at the Tuscany Suites & Casino. 

Attendees are required to register and pay in full prior to the event. 

Contact Jobie Sprinkle via 877-887-2261 for more information.

CORONAVIRUS CONCERNS

The National Association of Broadcasters “affirmed” its plans in a mid-February press release amid growing concerns over the potential impact of the COVID-19 outbreak, also known as coronavirus.

The announcement noted, “While the NAB stands firm in its commitment to hold the convention as planned, the health and safety of attendees and participants are NAB’s top priority.” However, the same release emphasized business as usual — or better — ahead of the event: “NAB Show has experienced an uptick in exhibit sales, attendee registration and hotel bookings in recent weeks, and conference program speakers are confirmed daily.”

NAB has created a COVID-19 resource page for NAB Show attendees and exhibitors, featuring updates related to the trade show as well as information about steps NAB and the LVCC are taking to ensure the health of all involved. 

Because the coronavirus disease 2019 was first identified in Wuhan, China, and is widely believed to be the epicenter of the outbreak, NAB Show organizers also indicated that they will continue to “evaluate options for those unable to attend due to travel restrictions.” However, they emphasized that fewer than 2% of 2019’s total registered attendees came from China.

The post 2020 NAB Show: Schedule, Exhibitor Info, Updates appeared first on Radio World.

PONTECCHIO MARCONI, Italy — The first time I saw Guglielmo Marconi’s childhood home, I felt as if I was entering hallowed ground.

Villa Griffone is the childhood home of Guglielmo Marconi.

After 30 minutes of driving from central Bologna, located in the Emilia-Romagna region northern Italy, the roads became smaller and the landscape of farms lined with pencil-shaped Cypress trees opened up. We were presented with a lush, rolling countryside accentuated with picturesque Italian villas, some of which are hundreds of years old.

Then we made a hard left turn off the small road in the village of Pontecchio Marconi, and carefully drove toward

Guglielmo Marconi’s house on an old bumpy road. Driving down the long driveway, we saw rising before us a magnificent buttery yellow house, with three floors, 17 front-facing windows and a circular driveway in front of its heavy, green doors.

MAKING HISTORY

These are the same doors that a young Marconi would have used thousands of times as a child growing up in his father Giuseppe’s house. The huge house, called “Villa Griffone,” is a remarkable place in its own right, but what has secured its place in history and as a national Italian monument is the fact that it was in this house that radio as we know it was invented. The successful experiments that young Marconi conducted, remarkably without having received a college degree or much formal education, would reverberate around the world and forever change wireless communications history.

I was here with a small team from William Paterson University, where I am professor and chair of the communication department, to create a moment, albeit small, of radio history. Our radio station, WPSC — Brave New Radio, was here to broadcast a live, three-hour show on World Radio Day (Feb. 13), as well as to launch a brand-new radio station called Outside Radio.

Rob Quicke (left) stands with Professor Giovanni Emanuele Corazza.

To make the event even more remarkable was the fact that it was also happening in the 125th anniversary year of Marconi’s first successful wireless transmissions from that very house in 1895. We would be broadcasting to the world in the very place that radio technology was invented. We would also be launching a radio station that we had somehow had a hand in inspiring from our own studios back at William Paterson University, New Jersey.

Back in August 2019, Giovanni Lenzi, an Italian student visiting us from Bologna, experienced two weeks at our radio station, Brave New Radio. That experience, as part of our Summer Youth program, proved to be a remarkable one. Under the guidance and training of one of our students at the station, Bridget Charlton, Giovanni was able to take to the mic at the end of the two weeks and have his own radio show.

Giovanni is autistic, and his ability to communicate so fluently and passionately on the radio astonished his family and friends. It was as if sitting in front of a microphone unlocked his ability to communicate. The radio station literally helped him to find his own voice.

Deeply moved by this event, Giovanni’s father, Alberto, was inspired to create Outside Radio in Italy for his son, and others like him, who could present radio programming from their point of view and find inclusion for those who may struggle with special needs. It was a radio station for outsiders to create programming not heard anywhere else.

COINCIDENCE

The official promotional graphic for the event.

Shortly after Giovanni’s summer experience, Alberto flew over to see our radio station for himself. As he was about to leave, we passed our trophy cabinet, and I pointed out our Marconi Radio Award that the National Association of Broadcasters had awarded us in 2018 for Non-Commercial Radio Station of the Year. It’s an award that is considered the highest accolade possible in the radio industry, and we are very proud of it. Alberto responded with delight, “Wow! Did you know Marconi was born in the city where I live? Bologna.”

That seemed like an unbelievable coincidence. I suggested an idea: What if we could help launch his new radio station at the Marconi house and also coincide the launch to celebrate World Radio Day 2020? He enthusiastically agreed to contact the Marconi Foundation and propose the idea.

Soon after, we were thrilled to hear that the Marconi Foundation embraced the idea, as it was also the 125th anniversary of Marconi’s first successful wireless radio transmissions. It all seemed to come together in one, now potentially historic, event.

I contacted UNESCO, the organizers of World Radio Day, next. Alex Da Silva, at UNESCO’s department of Media Development and Society, responded positively and shared that UNESCO “want to highlight your initiative of a radio run by students with autism.” It seemed that our proposal resonated with their theme for WRD2020, which was “We Are Diversity Radio.”

The press conference at the University of Bologna. Pictured from left to right are Dr. Rob Quicke, Professor Corazza and Alberto Lenzi.

The project seemed absolutely compatible with this theme, as Outside Radio was giving a voice to those perhaps marginalized in society because of their special needs, and giving them an important outlet for their views and opinions.

SETTING THE STAGE

At 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 12, the day before the main broadcast,  I took part in a press conference at the University of Bologna, along with Alberto Lenzi, Giovanni’s father and founder of Outside Radio, and the President of the Marconi Foundation, Professor Giovanni Emanuele Corazza. The University of Bologna is the world’s oldest university, founded in 1088, and home of over 85,000 students, who busily pass through the ancient corridors and lecture rooms.

I must be honest and admit that in the press conference I did not understand anything that the other two gentlemen were saying to the cameras, but a translation of Italian was not necessary when Alberto was very emotional talking about how his son Giovanni had found his voice on Brave New Radio and now was launching his own radio station. The next day we were on the Italian TV news as well as in several newspapers and websites.

The adrenaline of being at that press conference got my heart pumping but the next day, we found ourselves setting up our remote radio studio in a room full of Marconi’s wireless inventions and a life-size photo of Marconi, who seemed to be overlooking our efforts to make this broadcast happen. The combination of excitement, nerves, and adrenaline added urgency to our preparations, and it felt surreal that this was actually going to happen. We would go live at 2 p.m.

WPSC — Brave New Radio’s, Sebastian Escobar (center) co-hosts the radio show.

Villa Griffone is the site of the Marconi Museum, dedicated to the origins and development of radio communications. After Marconi died in 1937, the villa also became the home of the Marconi Foundation, set up in 1938, to keep alive the memory of the great inventor and to continue his work promoting innovation and creativity.

The foundation is closely tied to the University of Bologna. Its president, Giovanni Corazza, is also a professor at the university. We all felt honored by his participation in our broadcast.

INTERNATIONAL PARTICIPATION

One of the many inventions in Marconi’s Museum.

Now we were about to go live from the center of a room, which had Marconi’s inventions literally surrounding us in display cabinets and on the walls. The air was thick with history and that only put pressure on us to make sure our broadcast would be successful.

Precisely at 2 p.m. local time in Bologna (8 a.m. in New Jersey), our mics went live and our broadcast began. Much that happened in the three hours we were on the air, and those that regularly broadcast on the radio know that it feels like time goes by very quickly when you are on air. This broadcast was no exception.

Some highlights of our broadcast included greetings from all around the world, such as Hong Kong, Finland, Sweden, United Kingdom, the United States, Ireland, Oman, Spain, Italy, and other countries, all recorded specifically for our program.

WPSC — Brave New Radio, student broadcaster Alyssa Robbins takes the mic.

I was also deeply proud of our communication student from William Paterson University, Alyssa Robbins, who interviewed the  Marconi Foundation’s president live and asked him some great questions. My co-host was Brave New Radio Station Manager, Sebastian Escobar, who also did a brilliant interview with Barbara Valotti, the director of the Marconi Museum. She’s an expert on Marconi’s early years, and she gave some fascinating insights into the mind of a young Marconi in 1895.

In the second hour we officially launched Outside Radio, and we presented the team of eight students with an engraved trophy from the Brave New Radio team, congratulating them on launching their station. They were clearly delighted and surprised by the gesture.

GREAT CONTENT

The Outside Radio team had recorded some great content, which we played on the air, including an interview with Marconi’s surviving daughter Elettra Marconi, who gave extraordinary insight into how she experienced her father’s legacy firsthand. They also produced and played the “Impossible Interview with Guglielmo Marconi,” a piece that imagined an interview with Marconi if he were alive today, and his thoughts about how far we’ve come with the technologies he invented.

Presenting the Outside Radio team with medals celebrating their launch.

I was also pleased with my interview with Mirta Lourenço, chief of Media Development and Society at UNESCO. She was thrilled with our launch and congratulated the team on the event and the launch of Outside Radio. It felt that our efforts had been legitimated by our recognition from UNESCO and Mirta’s kind words to us: “Congratulations! What a nice story! … How important it is that these students will be able to access and express themselves and have their own radio station. I think Marconi would be proud!”

Similarly enthused, Alberto Lenzi was both moved and moving in his words, which paid tribute to his son Giovanni and the journey that Outside Radio was now embarking upon.

Then, just before the very end of the broadcast, we surprised everyone and presented them with specially engraved medals that recognized the historic event and also the launch of Outside Radio.

A job well done! The team assembles outside after the broadcast.

When we finally closed the mics at 5 p.m. We knew that all had gone smoothly and we had accomplished something special and memorable. In the birthplace of radio itself, a new radio station had been launched. We had paid tribute to Marconi and his enduring legacy, and radio stations around the world had taken the livestream on their own airwaves and contributed material to the broadcast.

MORSE CODE

It’s hard to know for sure how many countries participated, but we estimate at least 12 countries and more than 50 radio stations were a part of this historic broadcast. We were able to use the World College Radio Day network of stations that I had co-founded to share the news of our broadcast and encourage their participation in the event.

The Morse printer, still working more than 125 years after its invention.

As we packed away the last of the microphones and rolled up all the cables, I noticed something left on the table that we had used to broadcast from. It was something that had been given to us just before the broadcast began: A very thin strip of paper that could have easily been mistaken for trash and been thrown away.

The thin strip of paper had a series of dots and dashes on it, with letters written under each series of them, denoting their corresponding Morse code letter. It read “Brave New Radio.” Just before we went on the air, one of the tour guides had set up Marconi’s equipment, the same as he had in 1895, and had tapped out our radio station name wirelessly, which then came out on a paper feed from a Morse printer next to it. We all watched with amazement, as likely those 125 years before us also had. I now held the tiny strip of paper in my hand and marveled at how something so small had been, in fact, so revolutionary. It had changed the world. Now, isn’t that something?

Dr. Rob Quicke is professor of Communication, Chairperson of William Paterson University’s Communication Department, and general manager of WPSC Brave New Radio. Dr. Quicke would like to thank Alberto Lenzi and the Outside Radio team for their kind hosting of the team for this event. We thank the live producer of the radio program, Carlo Magistretti. Dr. Quicke would also like to thank the Marconi Museum and the Marconi Foundation for their kind support and participation of this broadcast event. Thanks also to UNESCO for participating and promoting the event to its global network of participating media. Finally, thanks to William Paterson University for making it possible for the team from Brave New Radio to travel to Italy and participate in this historic radio event.  

The post Brave New Radio Airs Live From Marconi’s Home appeared first on Radio World.

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2wcom has developed the HDR-CC, an HD Radio capture client for the delivery of additional HD Radio channels.

The company explains that by using the unit, users can set-up the importer IP address and directly connect audio to the small box’s XLR connectors. The box is able to accept one digital or analog stereo audio channel and provide it to an importer. The unit also sends the compressed audio via IP using an HD Radio codec. The HDR-CC can thus be located in a different location than the importer. Due to HDR-CC’s sound processing capabilities the loudness is almost the same as on the main program.

In addition, 2wcom says the unit simplifies audio switching for emergency alerts. Utilizing a new feature Xperi has implemented in Generation 4 importers, a single HDR-CC is able to provide the entire emergency alert for all supplemental channels on the transmitter.

The company points out that the only set-up required is an AES audio connection to the capture client and a GPI to trigger the alarm. When the alarm is triggered the HDR-CC logs into the importer and replaces all supplemental channels (HD2–HD4) with the alarm program. After the GPI is released the HDR-CC logs out and the importer continues with normal operation.

NAB Show Booth: C12431

Info: www.2wcom.com

The post NAB Sneak Peek: 2wcom Debuts HDR-CC appeared first on Radio World.

FCC’s head honcho, Chairman Ajit Pai, will make his way to Sin City to take part in a keynote conversation during the 2020 NAB Show.

Pai has been slated for a conversation with NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith during the NAB Show Welcome event on Monday, April 20, where they will discuss communications policy issues currently on the FCC’s docket, including spectrum policy and media ownership.

Also during the NAB Show Welcome event, Smith is scheduled to give his “State of the Broadcast Industry” address, as well as present the NAB Distinguished Service Award.

The NAB Show Welcome event will be at 9 a.m. on April 20 on the Main Stage in the North Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center.

The 2020 NAB Show takes place from April 18–22.

 

The post FCC’s Pai to Speak at 2020 NAB Show appeared first on Radio World.

Getting out of the NAB Show gate early, antenna maker is teaming up with remote control systems developer Burk Technology to add to its transmission support products line with a new dual RF switch controller.

According to a release, “The new DRFSC [Dual RF Switch Controller] device integrates SNMP and secure web-based capabilities to streamline the management of waveguide and coaxial transfer switch activation for modern TV and radio transmitters.”

It adds, “Benefits include plug-and-play adaptability to accelerate installation, streamlined hardware requirements, and networked status monitoring with richer data sets.”

The DRFSC can control up to two, four-port RF switches to provide RF routing in systems with auxiliary transmitters and/or antennas.

At the heart is Burk’s specialized Plus-X protocol. This can provide connectivity to Burk’s ARC Plus remote control system via a network connection, allowing engineers to centralize functions with other control and monitoring applications.

Dielectric explains, “Benefits include plug-and-play adaptability to accelerate installation, streamlined hardware requirements, and networked status monitoring with richer data sets.” In addition, “The DRFSC’s integrated SNMP control differentiates the unit from other RF switch controllers on the market. SNMP is a universal networking protocol integrated with most transmitter systems currently available.”

Dielectric Western Regional Sales Manager Steven Moreen, noting the influx of modern, digitally controlled transmitters in the last decade said, “All of these transmitters have built-in SNMP capability, and we are bringing this modernized solution to our customers for the purpose of simplifying how they remotely access, control, monitor and communicate with their RF systems.”

Commenting on the technology and business partnership between the two companies, Burk Technology’s Director of Sales Matt Leland said, “This powerful combination allows customers to integrate switch control into an overall facility view with graphical control screens, automated functions and flexible alarm reporting. The DRFSC represents the next-generation solution in switch controllers. We look forward to continuing our partnership and assisting our common customers with technical support and integration.”

NAB Show Booth: C2622

Info: www.dielectric.com

 

The post NAB Sneak Peek: Dielectric Releasing Switch Controller appeared first on Radio World.

The Kybio Media end-to-end monitoring and control platform from Connect is expanding beyond its on-premises offering to a new cloud-based software-as-a-service offering, which will officially launch at the 2020 NAB Show in Las Vegas.

Kybio is designed to assist with ensuring operational continuity and efficiency across the entire value chain from media acquisition, production to distribution. As a SaaS offering, the system will now be available to consumers who may not have the man-power to deploy and maintain a full on-premise system.

[Check Out More Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

Kybio as a SaaS service will be offered with a monthly subscription that will provide access to Kybio’s entire range of functions, while platform hosting, administration and general maintenance will be handled directly by Connect.

There will be automatic software updates and corrective patches as well.

Connect will showcase the Kybio SaaS offering at booth N5206 during the 2020 NAB Show, which takes place from April 18–22.

The post Connect’s Kybio to Launch as SaaS appeared first on Radio World.

Cumulus Media, looking to reduce its debt load further, is looking at possibly selling some or all of its 250+ tower sites that are spread around 32 states.

President/CEO Mary Berner made the announcement on a conference call reporting annual financial results Friday. “We are considering strategic alternatives regarding our tower portfolio,” she said.

CFO John Abbot said Cumulus is the last major U.S. radio group that owns such a large collection of sticks. “Given the dynamics in the tower market where multiples are well in excess of multiples in our industry, we may be able to take advantage of a sale/leaseback opportunity that could be beneficial to us.” He emphasized that these discussions are in an early stage.

Berner said the company is also “working on ways to monetize some land we own in Nashville.” Cumulus has multiple locations in that city and is looking at possible consolidation there.

[Related: “Diplex Two Four-Tower DA Stations 60 kHz Apart? No Way!”]

Berner expressed pride in the company’s 2019 results, including growth in its digital business and “active cost management across our platforms.”

The reduction of “leverage” is an important theme for the Cumulus leaders. Abbot said debt was reduced by more than $220 million in 2019 and by more than $275 million since emergence from bankruptcy. “The company has paid down debt that equates to over $13 per share.”

Berner said, “We are optimistic about 2020 and our continuing ability to drive strong operating and financial performance while aggressively reducing net leverage.”

 

The post Cumulus Considers Selling Tower Holdings appeared first on Radio World.