March 2003 Archive
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Links- internally where there are follow-up stories we try, at the end of each story, to put a pertinent link to the top of the next relevant story. Regarding external links see note at end of page.
RNW March comment - is equipment design promoting form over function and making it too difficult to operate essential controls?
RNW February comment considers what we think copyright should be in the future.
RNW January comment considers our hopes for radio in 2003 with reference to regulatory and technological changes in train.
2003-03-31: The time seems to be coming when the relentlessly upbeat portrayal of war may be tempered by a different reality, a change that renders particularly relevant two US newspaper articles.
First from the Washington Post, an indication of the strong commercial reasons to go with the pro-war stance: It is in an article by Paul Farhi concerning advice from consultants to broadcasters that protest coverage turns off the US audience.
Farhi writes that McVay Media, a Cleveland-based company that describes itself as the largest radio consultant in the world has prepared a "War Manual" memo to its station clients saying, "Get the following production pieces in the studio NOW: . . . Patriotic music that makes you cry, salute, get cold chills! Go for the emotion. Air the National Anthem at a specified time each day as long as the USA is at war."
"Television-news consulting firm Frank N. Magid Associates," adds, Farhi, "recently put it in even starker terms: Covering war protests may be harmful to a station's bottom line."
The firm released a survey on the eve of war that showed that war protests were the topic that tested lowest.
"Some of the orientation," reports Farhi, "reflects opinion polls that show upward of 70 percent of Americans in favour of the war. "
"That means, as one local media executive put it yesterday, 'almost everyone wants to be seen as pro-military, if not necessarily pro-war. If one of our guys got on the air and started ranting against the war, it would create an unnecessary controversy. As a business, you don't want half the population hating you. So you plant your flag in the sand.'"
The decision to wrap themselves in the flag may well be sound business at the moment but as Susan Sachs reports from a Cairo dateline in the New York Times it also carries dangers.
The piece is centred on Arab reporting of the conflict rather than US reporting and notes the fact that n the 1967 Six-Day war Arab media trumpeted their successes with a subsequent let-down when the situation was speedily reversed.
Now writes Sachs, "Arab commentators began for the first time to criticize the war reporting of the Arab news media, saying its vainglorious tone does a disservice to the public."
"Since the war on Iraq began," she writes, " nearly all the Arab news media, reflecting their audiences' concern for the welfare of ordinary Iraqis, have concentrated heavily on recounting Iraqi civilian casualties and damage to Iraqi cities."
Sachs is of course writing from a US-oriented perspective and seems oblivious of the fact that many outsiders have similar feelings about the tenor - and possible ultimate accuracy - of US reporting on the war.
Certainly the perception of the war changes as you cross into Canada, a change reflected in a Toronto Globe and Mail article by Roy MacGregor entitled "The bleat goes on and on as U.S. talk-radio becomes a land of stars and gripes."
The article tackles head-on what MacGregor terms the "crass booing of the Star-Spangled Banner at a recent Montreal hockey game" and notes comments from talk host Mike Gallagher about this.
"It makes me sick!" he barks from the car radio. "Those bunch of sissies up in Canada are there booing while our boys are coming home in body bags."
"Canada," adds MacGregor, " it should be noted, gets only the rarest mention, is quickly dismissed as the ranting moves on to, say, the "cheese-eating surrender monkeys" of France or the "punks and degenerates" who were marching for peace in San Francisco."
He then moves on to comment on the US radio talk scene from a Canadian viewpoint, commenting, "What is most curious to a Canadian listener is that the hosts call their world 'alternative radio' and claim, endlessly, that the media is controlled by the liberals. It was this conviction that led to the rise of talk radio in the first place."
"And yet, no matter how fast or hard one spins the radio dial, there is no other side to be found apart from, at times, PBS, the public broadcaster, which is always careful to be balanced."
The question of war cover also led Gerry McCarthy's UK Sunday Times column on Irish Radio in which he reviewed an interview with BBC TV reporter Kate Adie by Pat Kenny on Irish radio.
Adie was "embedded" in 1991 when she accompanied British troops to Gulf War 1, she told Kenny but it was not called that at the time. "The Americans, she added, tend to invent a new word for something and then pretend it has never been done before. "
McCarthy writes, "Kenny, like many others, fell back on clichés about the fog of war. Adie's analysis sliced clean through the fog. "
"In a democratic country at war, she said, you have to tell people what is happening in their name. That, in a nutshell, is the role of the media. It had the authentic ring of BBC idealism. "
McCarthy then continues, "There were nuggets among the verbiage.
RTÉ's Carole Coleman, reporting from Washington for This Week, had seen footage of the family of one of the first American servicemen killed in action. She saw them first on the local Baltimore channel, angrily declaring that their son had died in a futile war. An hour later they were on nationwide network television, composed and dignified, speaking only of the pride they felt. "
"This might simply be the contrast between a gut reaction and a considered one, but it felt like manipulation. It felt, in fact, exactly like the kind of thing we're told happens in Saddam Hussein's Iraq. Should we be surprised if it happened in America? Adie thought not. The United States, she pointed out, is less used to bad news than Britain; they handle it less confidently and often resort to open propaganda."
Previous Columnists:
Previous McCarthy:
New York Times - Sachs:
Toronto Globe and Mail - McGregor:
UK Sunday Times - McCarthy:
Washington Post - Farhi:
2003-03-31: Toronto oldies station CHUM-AM has not removed any songs from its playlist because of sensitivities over the war with Iraq according to its station manager.
There had been reports that it had removed classics such as John Lennon's Give Peace a Chance, War by Edwin Starr and Soldier Boy, a Vietnam-era anthem by the Shirelles, but manager Brad Jones told the Toronto Star there were no songs banned on either CHUM-AM or CHUM-FM.
Reports had said a list of banned titles had been posted on the web site of CP24, CHUM's Toronto-based all-news TV channel but Jones told the paper, "I just can't believe how fast this spread and how misinterpreted that it got."
He suggested the reports had originated in a misunderstanding in a conversation between CHUM and CP24, with the radio station using the term "pulled" to mean a recording had been taken out for use.
In the UK, BBC Radio 1 has also said that it has not banned d any songs, although it has issued guidance in terms of sensitivities to the news context in which a song may be played.
Previous BBC:
Previous CHUM:
Toronto Star report:
2003-03-31: Veteran British DJ Tony Blackburn returns to national radio in the UK today as co-host with Laura Pittson of "The Sensational Breakfast Show with Tony Blackburn and Danish Bacon" on UBC Media's Classic Gold network.
Blackburn, who began his radio career in 1964 on pirate station Radio Caroline South, joining Radio London 2 years later and then moving to the BBC in 1967 on its "Light Programme."
He was the first DJ on BBC Radio 1 when it was launched in 1967 and hosted the channel's breakfast show until 1974. He then worked on other Radio 1 shows until 1984 before moving to Capital Radio in 1988 to launch their Capital Gold station. He left them in December last year.
Simon Cole, Chief Executive of Classic Gold parent company UBC Media plc said: "We're delighted that Tony is fronting the new Classic Gold breakfast show."
"The team at Classic Gold have steadily built the number of listeners over the past six months and Tony's move to the early morning slot is part of our strategy to continue that growth. Also, as consumer take-up of digital sets increases Classic Gold is an excellent position to become the pre-eminent classic hits service in digital radio."
Previous Cole:
Previous UBC Media:
2003-03-30: Last week when it was not so much current activity but the setting of a date - early June - as the target for production of new US media regulation rules was the most important regulatory development.
Elsewhere saw mainly more routine work, although in the UK there are rumblings of discontent amongst some peers about details of Britain's planned new regulatory regime.
In Australia, the Australian Broadcasting Authority has again been involved only in community radio decisions.
In Sydney it has opted not to allocate a new Sydney AM community licence for which it had received 8 applications - from 2AMB - Australian Muslim Broadcasting Radio Inc, Australian-Arabic Unity Inc, Hellenic Australian Radio Inc, Islamic Council of New South Wales Inc, Outfm Inc, Radio Tarana Australian Pty Ltd, Sydney Christian Broadcasters Ltd and Sydney Harbour Radio Inc.
The ABA has also opted not to make the frequency available on a temporary basis; it had been expected to transmit from the Homebush area whose transmission towers are the subject of controversy because of the proximity of new residential developments to the complex (See RNW Feb 27)
The ABA is also calling for submissions on its plans for the Innisfail licence area in Queensland where the ABA is proposing to allocate a frequency that was to have provided an open narrowcasting service be made available to the 4KZ commercial service at Tully.
It is asking for comments before making any final decision.
In Canada, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), has been involved in a number of routine licence issues.
Alberta:
*Revocation at the licensee's request of licence for Rogers (Alberta) Ltd. English-language radio network authorized to broadcast the hockey games of the Calgary Flames.
Nova Scotia:
*Extension of deadline for start of operations for a new Native Type B FM radio programming undertaking in Sydney.
Quebec: --
*Extension for the second time of deadline for the commencement of a new ethnic Fm station for Ottawa/Gatineau, formerly Ottawa/Hull.
*Approval of an additional 6000 watts transmitter in Trois-Rivières for CIRA-FM Montréal.
*Approval of a power increase from 4,500 watts to 14,450 watts for a new Québec FM for Cogeco Radio-Télévision inc; the station will become a C1 instead of a B.
Saskatchewan:
*Extension of deadline for start of operation of a Type B English-language FM community radio programming undertaking in Okanese Indian Reserve.
The CRTC has also given notice of receipt of applications of a number of applications for licence renewals under its streamlined process; the licences involved expire on August 31 and are:
In state order they include:
Alberta:
*Commercial stations CHRB-AM, High River; CKER-FM Edmonton; and CFMG-FM, Edmonton;
** Tourist/weather/traffic Information, Environment Canada stations:
- British Colombia:
Commercial Stations - CKST-AM, Vancouver;
Tourist/weather/traffic Information, Environment Canada- CBPK-AM, Revelstoke; CBPM Sicamous; CBPZ-AM, Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal:
- Ontario:
*Commercial stations CHSC-AM, St. Catharines, CFBG-FM, Bracebridge; and CKLP-FM Parry Sound.
* Tourist/weather/traffic Information, Environment Canada stations:
CKFW-FM Sorrell Lake;
* Community-based Campus- CIUT-FM Toronto;
Saskatchewan:
*Commercial station - CKBR-FM Dillon;
*Tourist/weather/traffic Information, Environment Canada stations:
CBPI-FM-1 Waterton Lakes National Park and CBPJ-FM-1 Waterton Lakes National Park
Yukon Territory: -
Native Type A station CHWA-FM Watson Lake
Ireland was again quiet but in the UK, the Radio Authority has awarded its 400th restricted service licence (See RNW Mar 27) and has also been concerned with commercial analogue licence awards.
The Oxford/Banbury area licence was re-awarded to Fox FM under the special fast-track procedure after no competing application was received.
The Authority also published its assessment of the Yeovil licence award to Ivel FM against competition from Merlin FM Ltd., Mirage FM Ltd., and
Yeovil District Radio (FM) Ltd. (YDR FM)
It said that the applicants had put an impressive amount of effort into their applications. However, Members were concerned that the selected applicant should be fully able to sustain a service in challenging market circumstances.
They noted that there would be competition against the established Yeovil and Taunton station Orchard FM, and considered that, as a subsidiary of Radio Investments Ltd., Ivel FM would "benefit from economies of scale and access to regional and national sales."
They also said the proposals for a mainstream, music-led programme service were "particularly coherent and realistic" but did note, in view of considerable feeling expressed about the award, that "Evidence of direct local support for Ivel FM was at a lower level than for other applicants, not least as the group had not conducted any Restricted Service Licence operations."
In the US, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Michael Powell has indicated an early June date for decisions on future media regulation and Democrat Commissioner Michael Copps has released the agenda for tomorrow's field hearing in Durham, North Carolina (See RNW Mar 29).
The FCC has also commenced its proceedings looking for comment on how more efficient receivers can improve the efficiency spectrum use (See Licence News Mar 16) and noted that its Media Bureau , formed from the merger of the former Mass Media and Cable Bureaus, has marked its first anniversary.
The Commission's Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau has released its quarterly report on complaints received for the final quarter of last year; it shows that complaints against broadcasters dropped by nearly 35% but it notes that the figure was distorted because the third quarter had included a one-time time mail- in campaign that inflated Disability complaints.
In all 253 consumer complaints concerning broadcasts were made to the Bureau, 97 of them relating to indecency and obscenity, a37% increase on the third quarter figure. Of the remaining complaints around 60 each concerned other specific programming issues, a similar number were general criticism of programming and 35 related to disability issues.
The FCC has also reduced a number of fines (See RNW Mar 25) and issued a red-flag concerning Susquehanna's purchase from Lancaster-York Broadcasting of WSOX-FM, Red Lion, serving York, location Susquehanna's Corporate HQ.
Susquehanna already has two stations in the market, news talk WSBA-AM and Soft Rock WARM-FM.
Previous ABA:
Previous CRTC:
Previous FCC:
Previous Licence News:
Previous UK Radio Authority:
ABA web site:
CRTC web site:
FCC web site :
UK Radio Authority web site:
2003-03-30: US National Public Radio (NPR) is to launch a survey net month to examine state-by-state the coverage it has in the country. The survey is part of Project Acorn -- "Acquire, Convert, Organizational Readiness and do it Now" and will be the first such survey since 1988.
The project is part of an initiative linked with public radio's hopes to add 300 new member stations and five million new listeners by 2010 according to Current magazine; it says the project will act as an umbrella project for endeavours such as pinpointing areas underserved by public radio and preparing stations for acquiring new signals.
US public radio currently only reaches around a tenth of the US population and many public broadcasters see room for expansion but are hindered by the absence of new frequencies and the cost of stations.
They want to be ready when the FCC lifts its six-year freeze on applications for new full-power stations, which observers expect could happen this year. They're also concerned about competition from religious broadcasters, whose growth has recently outpaced that of public radio --public radio stations grew by 46 percent from 1992 to 2000, while religious stations grew by 123 percent, according to NPR.
There has also been concern about the 600 plus translators that help many stations expand coverage, particularly in rural areas. In some areas, religious broadcasters have erected full-power signals that have quashed nearby translators, which under FCC rules have no claim to the airwaves.
Preliminary research before the full survey already shows that many US metro areas are underserved by public radio with many top-50 markets only having one NPR outlet, according to NPR's engineering VP Mike Starling.
"We suspect that things will leap off of the page as we compile those results, and that they will inform us of where there are both needs and opportunities we can pursue," Starling says.
Acorn was launched in summer last year after a meeting with A-reps - authorised representatives of NPR member stations - who ranked signal expansion as their top priority. A meeting this month ranked digital broadcasting at the top but signal expansion was second.
When the FCC lifts its filing freeze, NPR will contract an engineering firm to monitor applications and notify stations when a full-power signal might threaten a translator. The network last ran a similar service in the early '90s.
There is also the question of what to do with extra frequencies if acquired and policy to be followed when two public broadcasters; A-reps have already set out guiding principles in such cases urging collaboration on acquisitions and also supporting the idea of unique programming rather than duplication but there are no powers to enforce guidelines
Previous NPR:
Current Magazine report:
2003-03-30: Capital Radio's Xfm London station has received more nominations than any other UK station for this year's Sony Awards, the British radio industry "Oscars" that will be announced on May 8.
In all it has five nominations in various categories but it is absent from the coveted Station of the Year category where the contenders are Classic FM, BBC Radio 2 (yet again), and BBC Radio 4.
As usual the BBC, by far the largest radio broadcaster in the UK, has most nominations overall and dominates the comedy, drama and speech categories.
The nominations list is:
Station of the year (UK):
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 4
Classic FM
Station of the year (digital terrestrial):
BBC 6 Music
Oneword Radio
Saga Radio
Station of the year (one million plus):
BBC Radio Ulster
Key 103
Heart 106.2
Station of the year (300,000 - One million):
BBC Radio Leeds
Lincs FM
Pirate FM
Station of the year (under 300,000):
BBC Radio Foyle
FM103 Horizon
Spire FM
Music programming award - daily sequence:
Free Radio KISS - KISS 100
Late Junction - BBC Radio 3
Mid Morning With Gideon Coe - BBC 6 Music
Music: Response - Xfm
The Johnnie Walker Show - BBC Radio 2
Music programming award - single programme:
Dominic Mohan - The Who Special - Virgin Radio
The Incomplete And Utter History Of Classical Music With Stephen Fry - Classic FM
The Jonathan Ross Show - BBC Radio 2
The Selector - BFBS
Virgin Superstars - Virgin Radio
The breakfast award - music:
2CR FM's Morning Crew - Lloydie & Meryl - 2CR FM
Christian O'Connell's Breakfast Show - Xfm
The Brian Moore Breakfast Show - Metro Radio
The Kev Seed Breakfast Show - Radio City 96.7
Wake Up To Wogan - BBC Radio 2
The specialist music award:
Bobby Friction & Nihal Presents - BBC Radio 1
Charlie Gillettt - BBC London 94.9
Jazz on 3 - BBC Radio 3
Shortee Blitz & Big Ted - KISS 100
The Remix - Xfm
The entertainment award:
Christian O'Connell's Breakfast Show - Xfm
Jo & Twiggy - 96 Trent FM
Ricky Gervais & Stephen Merchant - Xfm
The Incomplete And Utter History Of Classical Music With Stephen Fry - Classic FM
The Jonathan Ross Show - BBC Radio 2
The music special award:
Axles, Engines, Music And Motown - BBC Radio 4
Bass Player Wanted - BBC Radio 1
First Hand - BBC Radio Wales
Jazz File - BBC Radio 3
The Musical Side Of The Family: Jamie Bernstein - Radio 4
The music broadcaster award:
Bam Bam - KISS 100
JK & Joel - Key 103
Mark Lamarr - BBC Radio 2
Paul Gambaccini - BBC Radio 2
Tim Westwood - BBC Radio 1
News coverage award:
Today Programme: Ethiopian Famine - BBC Radio 4
Firefighters' Strike - BBC Radio Scotland
Today Programme: Paedophile Priests - BBC Radio 4
The Six O'Clock News: The Queen Mother: A Nation Says Goodbye - BBC Radio 4
The Road To Jenin - BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 4 & BBC Five Live
The speech award:
At Her Majesty's Pleasure - BBC Essex
Between Ourselves: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder - BBC Radio 4
Mind Games - BBC Radio 4
Stark Talk: Joe Simpson - BBC Radio Scotland
Taking A Stand: Bud Welch - BBC Radio 4
The comedy award:
Just A Minute - BBC Radio 4 & BBC World Service
Little Britain - BBC Radio 4
Night Class - BBC Radio 4
The Incomplete And Utter History Of Classical Music With Stephen Fry - Classic FM
The Mark Steel Lecture: Ludwig Van Beethoven - BBC Radio 4
The drama award:
Autumn Journal - BBC Radio 4
Carandiru - Radio 3
Cross My Heart And Hope To Fly - BBCRadio 4
Milosevic In Black & White - BBC Radio 4
Speech broadcaster award:
Edi Stark - BBC Radio Scotland
Lesley Riddoch - BBC Radio Scotland
Sarah Gorrell - BBC Radio Cornwall
Stephen Rhodes - BBC Three Counties Radio
Stephen Nolan - Belfast City Beat
Previous Sony Awards (2002 Awards):
Sony Awards web site:
2003-03-29: Scottish Radio Holdings (SRH) has delivered a positive update in advance of its half-year results that says like-for-like radio revenues are expected to be 5% up on the period a year ago. It says this reflects an increase of 8% in national advertising, 3% increase in local advertising and 4% increase in promotions income.
When acquisitions are included, SRH broadcast revenues for the six months to the end of March are nearly a third up on the same period a year ago.
The results are in marked contrast to those released earlier in the week by GWR (See RNW Mar 28) and Capital Radio and better than the other positive results from Emap (See RNW Mar 27).
They also contrast with the situation at its larger Scottish rival SMG, which has been forced to sell of assets to trim its debt burden; the disposal its newspaper and magazine interests to US newspaper giant Gannett for GBP 216 million (USD 338 million) has just been approved by Britain's Department of Trade and Industry.
In the US, Sirius has followed satellite rival XM in releasing results that show a significant growth in subscribers and more secure funding but also increased losses (See RNW Mar 28 XM2). Sirius has completed a USD 1.2 billion recapitalization that eliminated 90% of its debt and raised USD 200 million of new equity. It says it can now cover its needs into the second quarter of next year.
In Sirius' case, it now has 30,000 subscribers, less than a tenth of XM's 350,000 at the end of 2002.
For the final quarter of 2002, Sirius has subscriber revenues of USD727, 000 against which it had to set USD107, 000 of costs associated wit a rebate programme. Overall revenues were USD 685,000 and a net loss to common shareholders of UD134 million (USD1.74 per share) compared to a net loss of USD83.6 million (USD 1.52 per share) a year earlier when it had not commenced commercial operation.
For the full year 2002, revenues were USD 805,000 and losses USD 468.5 million (USD 6.13 per share) compared to a 2001 loss of USD 280 million (USD 5.30 per share). Subscriber revenues in 2002 were USD 1 million, offset by USD 426,000 of rebate-associated costs.
Rival XM, which carried adverts on some of its music channels but whose USD 9.99 per month subscription rate is already USD 3 per month lower than that of Sirius, has now announced a family plan under which subscribers will be able to add subscriptions at USD 6.99 per month.
Spanish language network Radio Unica reported a strong final quarter last year with revenues up 26% to USD13.3 million; broadcasting revenues were up 18% to USD 9.9 million.
EBITDA for the quarter improved from a loss of USD5.1 million in 2001 to a loss of USD 100, 000 and Unica's net loss was trimmed from USD 11.1 million (USD 0.54 per share) to USD 5.9 million (USD 0.28 per share).
For the full year revenues were up 22% to USD45.7 million, with radio revenues up 13% to USD35.8 million. EBITDA improved to a loss of USD 2.4 million compared to a loss of USD14.7 million and Unica's net loss was trimmed from USD 42.6 million (USD 2.04 per share) in 2001 to a loss of USD24.6 million (USD 1.18 per share) in 2002.
Chairman and CEO Joaquin F. Blaya said that during 2002 Unica made "significant progress in improving our financial and operating results… Our fundamental trends are all moving in the right direction. As a result, we generated positive EBITDA for the final nine months of the year and reduced our overall 2002 EBITDA loss by 83%. Going forward, we will continue to operate the Company as efficiently as possible, while focusing on leveraging our national network to drive further improvements in our revenues and cash flows."
In other US radio business, First Broadcasting Investments is returning to the Sacramento area with the purchase from Moon Broadcasting of KZSA-FM, licensed to Placerville and serving the greater Sacramento area for an undisclosed amount.
Earlier this month First broadcasting announced a USD 24 million deal to sell KNGT-FM, Jackson, which is currently dark being upgraded to serve eastern Sacramento, to Hispanic Broadcasting (See RNW Mar 4).
Previous Blaya:
Previous Sirius:
Previous SMG:
Previous SRH:
Previous Unica:
Previous XM:
2003-03-29: Arbitron's contract with Infinity, renewed only for 12 months last year, ends again on Monday and in an SEC filing the Company says that its future contracts in general may be shorter than the four-to-five years that were previously typical until it has completed the roll out of its Portable People Meter (PPM).
Infinity accounts for around 9% of Arbitron revenues and its stations will continue to receive data until the Spring Survey is released this year. Another large customer ABC networks has a contract worth around a third as much that runs out with the release of the Spring figures.
Arbitron also notes in its filing that consolidation could put pressure on its earnings- Clear Channel and Infinity together account for nearly a third of its income and Arbitron says t would be "materially harmed" should a key customer opt not to renew its contract.
Previous Arbitron:
Previous Clear Channel:
Previous Viacom-CBS-Infinity:
2003-03-29: US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Michael Powell has said that a June 2 date has tentatively been scheduled for adopting new rules on US media ownership.
Powell and Republican commissioners want to ease current rules dating back to 1975 that limit media concentration and Powell told a Media Institute lunch in Washington DC that he favoured easing cross-ownership restrictions, commenting that it was "hard to see how a complete ban on newspapers' owning TV stations serves the public interest."
Current rules said Powell, were mainly were promulgated between 1940 and 1975 and the reasons for many had been rendered more uncertain by technological change and he noted that Congress had no changed the rules so that the FCC had to justify each regulation rather than its opponents having to justify change.
Democrat Commissioners favour more ownership regulation although so far courts have struck down a number of existing FCC rules. One of them, Commissioner Michael Copps, who has said that it is most important to get the right rules rather than just drop regulations, has now published the agenda for the field hearing on media concentration to be held on March 31 at Duke Law School in Durham, North Carolina.
The hearing will be divided into three panels - on Localism and Community Standards, News, and Diversity - and, as with previous hearings there will be an opportunity for members of the public to make comments after each hearing.
The Durham hearing will be attended by Copp's fellow-Democrat Commissioner Jonathan S. Adelstein as well as North Carolina Congressmen Richard Burr (Republican) and David Price (Democrat).
Previous Adelstein:
Previous Copps:
Previous FCC:
Previous Powell:
2003-03-28: US Radio sales and marketing company Interep, which has reported a strong final quarter last year, says that radio advertising in the US is already beginning to return, although it is still warning of uncertainty depending upon the duration of the conflict.
Its Chairman and CEO Ralph Guild commented, "While we are hopeful that there will be a quick resolution to the war with Iraq, the current situation has limited our ability to forecast revenue and Operating EBITDA."
"Due to the uncertain climate, many advertisers are releasing their budgets very close to the start date of their campaigns, reducing our visibility into the second quarter. Therefore, we will continue to update our guidance as needed as the year progresses."
"If the war progresses smoothly and its duration is limited, we believe the remainder of the year will rebound quickly, and we will return to more normal visibility patterns."
"If that is the case, we expect our overall commission revenue to be in the $87 to 90 million range and Operating EBITDA in the $17 to 20 million range for the full year 2003. Internet activity is included in our overall commission revenue and Operating EBITDA projections and should be break even with revenues and expenses of approximately $3 million."
Interrep commission revenues for the final quarter of 2002 were up 1.48% to USD24.0 million, including Internet revenue of $0.7 million, and its operating EBITDA increased 286% to USD16.0 million from USD4.1 million for the same period last year.
Interrep's net loss applicable to common shareholders for the quarter was up from USD9.3 million to USD11.3 million but for the full year it fell from USD19.9 million to USD17.8 million.
Interrep notes that the loss for the quarter and year includes a tax provision adjustment of USD6.6 million to reflect a 100% valuation allowance on the company's net deferred tax assets because the timing of its realization is uncertain.
XM Satellite Radio has also been upbeat in its comments together with the release of its final quarter and full year results, noting that it has closed a USD475 million funding package during the quarter and saying this gives it a "Clear Path to Cash Flow Breakeven".
It added 145,000 subscribers in the quarter to end the year with just fewer than 350,000 subscribers.
Revenues for the quarter were USD 9 million, compared to USD532, 000 a year earlier and EBITDA lass was cut from USD113.2 million in the final quarter of 2001 to USD 97.3 million.
XM's consolidated net loss available to common shareholders for the quarter was USD161.0 million compared to USD 149 million and for the full year was up from USD308 million to USD516 million.
Its operating loss for the quarter was fairly static at USD 141 million compared to USD136 million a year before whilst for the year it was up from USD282 million to USD 439 million.
XM says that in the first quarter of this year it will add more than 130,000 net subscribers and subscriber guidance for the full-year 2003 remains unchanged at 1.2 million at the end of the year.
In other US radio business, the US Department of Justice has now given the go-ahead to the USD2.3 billion Univision takeover of Hispanic Radio, although Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval is still awaited.
To gain the approval, Univision agreed to reduce its stake in Entravision from 30 percent to 10 percent over the next six years; it will also relinquish its rights to two seats on the Entravision board and its right to veto any Entravision business decisions.
In the UK, GWR in a trading update says its revenues in the first quarter of this year will be down 3.9% on a strong first quarter in 2002, in line with expectations; the figure includes a dramatic 18.9% drop in revenues at its Classic FM national station and a lower 4.7% fall in its local revenues.
For the full year to the end of March, GWR says its underlying group revenues will be down 0.6% and total revenues will be down 1.1%.
GWR puts the revenue fall at Classic FM for the quarter down largely to the affect of the Easter break falling a month earlier this year; last year revenues for Classic were up 13$ because of the placement of the break and the group expects to show a corresponding improvement in April this year.
During the year, GWR has re-organised its advertising, allowing its 32 local stations to pool their inventory and it commended that it was "particularly pleased with the ongoing strong performance by our team selling national radio revenues for the Local Radio Group, where revenues for the quarter are forecast to be up 8.7% year on year. "
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2003-03-28: The UK High Court case in which former British DJ and radio mogul Chris Evans is suing Virgin Radio owners SMG for GBP8.6 million (USD 13.6 million) over his dismissal and SMG is counter-claiming damages from him has been told that Evans could not accept that he had become an employee.
Bobby Hain, SMG business development director, who had been hired by Virgin Radio in 1997 when Evans controlled the country but later became Evans' boss after SMG bought the company and he returned to Virgin as an SMG director, said that Evans could not accept that he was an employee of Virgin, not its owner.
Hain said he was aware of Evans reputation as very talented but highly strung and demanding when the DJ joined Virgin Radio to host the breakfast show in 1997; Evans Group tool a controlling interest shortly after this and Hain said there were no problems for the first two years.
Hain left the company but returned in 2000 and relations deteriorated.
"Despite Chris's understandable belief in his own considerable talent, his refusal to play well-researched music in the required amounts undoubtedly damaged the overall appeal of the breakfast show," said Hain.
He rebutted Evans allegation that the fault lay with management for not offering assistance on the basis that the DJ refused to talk to station executives and said that, following Evans well-publicised absence from the show in May 2001, he returned with an entirely new format that was very poor.
Later in the day, Evans counsel accused Virgin Radio of covering up a meeting on March 28, 2001, at which, they alleged, the station's programme director Paul Jackson said he did not want to work with the DJ.
The issue of the meeting was brought up as a result of a call from Ian Grace, a consultant to Virgin Radio, to Hain saying he recalled the meeting at which Jackson said he couldn't work with Evans. If substantiated, this would have shown a determination to get rid of Evans by Jackson -at the time on gardening leave from Capital Radio - even before he joined Virgin.
Virgin Radio chief executive John Pearson said he had no recollection of the comment being made and denied that he and co-defendants had "put their heads together" to keep mention of the meeting from their witness statements, He also denied that he had asked Grace not to give evidence in the case.
The case has now been adjourned to next week.
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2003-03-28: Virgin Radio and Clear Channel retained their top station and network spots in the latest Arbitron-MeasureCast Internet ratings just released covering the week to March 16.
For the week, Arbitron-Measure Cast's top five stations ranked by Total Time Spent Listening (TTSL) with (in brackets) TTSL and Cume persons (a measure of the cumulative audience -CP) for the previous week - were:
1: Hot Adult Contemporary Virgin FM - TTSL 333,336 (340,545); CP 59,427 (62,800). Same rank but lower listening and reach.
2: Adult alternative Radioio Eclectic - TTSL 330,819 (337,075); CP 64,402 (63,564). Same rank with lower listening but higher reach.
3: Internet only artist-match MUSICMATCH - TTSL 317,131 (314,908); CP 132,808 (135,992). Same rank with higher listening but lower reach.
4: Classical format WQXR-FM- TTSL 240,597 (237,487); CP 34,246 (35,463). Same rank with higher listening but lower reach.
5: Jazz format Jazz FM - TTSL 231,713 (190,142); CP 33,305 (28,672): Same rank with higher listening and reach.
The top five networks for the week to March 16 (Previous week's figures in brackets) were:
1: Clear Channel Worldwide TTSL 1,748,610 (1,619,591): CP 224,486 (226,084)- Same rank with higher listening but lower reach.
2: Chain Cast/StreamAudio TTSL 1,569,934 (1,470,531); CP 215,076 (206,637). Same rank with higher listening although reach was slightly down.
3: MUSICMATCH Inc. TTSL 1,344,795 (1,337,260); CP 380,815 (389,992). Same rank with lower listening and reach.
4: Live365.com - TTSL 805,808 (721,866); CP - 148,872 (143,889) Same rank with higher listening and reach.
5: Warp Radio TTSL 752,711 (661,012); CP 137,036 (131,286) - Same rank with higher listening and reach.
Previous Arbitron-MeasureCast ratings:
2003-03-28: BBC Radio 1 has announced that it has signed up Zane Lowe, currently host of Capital Radio station Xfm's flagship Music-Response chart show and co-host of its All City show, to front its Tuesday through Thursday 8p.m. to 10p.m. slot.
The show replaced Steve Lamacq's Evening Session and is currently being fronted by Colin Murray, who will now focus on the Saturday morning show that he will co-host with Edith Bowman who previously presented a weekend show on Capital FM.
Radio 1 controller Andy Parfitt, commented, "Zane is one of the most exciting presenters I've seen or heard in years. He has masses of energy and passion for the music which is infectious - which makes him absolutely the person to connect our listeners to the new bands and the artists that they are really care about."
Lowe described the move as "a great opportunity for me to continue doing what I love but now it is going to be on a national platform."
Xfm has said that Ian Camfield will take over the Music:Response show from next Monday. Ian Baker will take over Camfield's afternoon show and Richard Bacon will host the afternoon show as well as continuing to handle his Sunday afternoon show.
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2003-03-27: UK Virgin Radio revenues were hit by millions of pounds by the behaviour of its breakfast host Chris Evans according to Evidence given in the UK High Court on Wednesday, the sixth day of hearings.
The court is hearing Evans claim for GBP8.6 million (USD 13.6 million) from Virgin owners SMG and Virgin Radio chief executive John Pearson said that the company's revenue and profits were dented by the DJs actions.
Predicted revenues of GBP37.8 million (USD 59.8 million) and a profit of GBP16.2 million (USD25.6 million) for 2001 became actual revenues of GBP27.9 million (USD 44.1 million) and a profit of GBP 9.3 million (USD 14.7 million) said Pearson, who added, "I believe it demonstrates that the decrease in Virgin Radio's sales and profit was caused by more than just market conditions."
"The single factor that effected Virgin Radio and no other commercial radio station during that period was the conduct and subsequent departure of Chris Evans."
Pearson said the station was left with no alternative but to fire Evans and claimed that some advertising agencies refused to deal with Virgin because of Evans unpredictable behaviour.
Pearson referred to a confrontation in a June 11 meeting in 2001 when he tried to talk to Evans about changes to the breakfast show and a subsequent letter that he felt showed Evans conduct to be "childish, cowardly and unprofessional" and written solely because his wishes to broadcast all day when England was in a soccer World Cup qualifying game had been rejected by the SMG radio head Bobby Hain.
Pearson said the situation became intolerable with a poor quality breakfast show, a presenter who refused to talk to station management and demonstrated contempt for it and eventually pushed things "past the point of no return."
In another exchange concerning Evans wedding to pop singer Billie Piper, Evans counsel Christopher Pymont QC, said that Virgin Radio wanted to intrude on the DJs private live to gain publicity for the station and said that the DJ was under no obligation to tell the station about his wedding plans.
Pearson, who said it was obvious to journalists and listeners that the station knew nothing about the activities of its DJ in the US, said that he agreed that there was no issue about solely private activities but there was if it impinged on Evans' job.
Pymont responded that Virgin could have simply said the host was taking a break and his private life was not its business. He also suggested that Virgin overloaded the host by expecting him to handle simultaneously the break-up of his six-year relationship with his original breakfast team, getting married and putting a new show together on his honeymoon.
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2003-03-27: Clear Channel has been stung into a response by a New York Times Op-ed article by Paul Krugman that suggested the radio giant was behind pro-war rallies organised by Philadelphia-based syndicated talk host Glen Beck.
Clear Channel Radio CEO John Hogan issued a statement that said the article was "pure fiction" and continuing, "The truth is Clear Channel radio stations are operated locally by local managers who make their own decisions about programming and community events, including rallies to thank and support the men and women in their communities who serve in the armed forces."
"Many of these local managers believe that showing support for our troops is particularly appropriate during a time of war and, with the encouragement of their listeners, have chosen to have their stations participate in these rallies. For Mr. Krugman to attempt to tie this show of community support on the part of local broadcasters to something more cynical and suspect is shameless and irresponsible."
In the Krugman article, he wrote," The company (Clear Channel) claims that the demonstrations, which go under the name, Rally for America, reflect the initiative of individual stations."
"But this is unlikely: according to Eric Boehlert, who has written revelatory articles about Clear Channel in Salon, the company is notorious - and widely hated - for its iron-fisted centralized control."
Krugman suggested that Clear Channel could be attempting, by taking a stance on the issue, was attempting to benefit its business interests as debate continues on US media regulation and then continued, "…Or perhaps the quid pro quo is more narrowly focused. Experienced Bushologists let out a collective 'Aha!' when Clear Channel was revealed to be behind the pro-war rallies, because the company's top management has a history with George W. Bush."
"The vice chairman of Clear Channel is Tom Hicks, whose name may be familiar to readers of this column. When Mr. Bush was governor of Texas, Mr. Hicks was chairman of the University of Texas Investment Management Company, called Utimco, and Clear Channel's chairman, Lowry Mays, was on its board."
"Under Mr. Hicks, Utimco placed much of the university's endowment under the management of companies with strong Republican Party or Bush family ties. In 1998 Mr. Hicks purchased the Texas Rangers in a deal that made Mr. Bush a multimillionaire."
RNW comment: Apart from our instinctive reaction that someone who has to begin a sentence saying "The truth " is probably about to try and mislead, we have to say it would be a very strange large corporation that actually gave the amount of control to local managers that is described by Hogan.
When we first read the Krugman article, we were somewhat sceptical of some of his conclusions but our first thought was not to dismiss as pure fiction the idea that Clear Channel had strong central controls.
Reading the Hogan comment, we'd certainly trust Krugman more than Hogan: Although it may be that in certain areas Clear Channel local managers do indeed have the degree of control suggested we would not like to take gambles on the prospects of a manager who tried to go out on a limb in a way that he or she knew would upset Clear Channel senior corporate management.
Nor, when most corporations have centrally-directed cost-related practices such as centrally controlled purchasing policies as do many major corporations - or voice-tracking at CCU, do we find Hogan's comments ringing true on the overall freedom of Clear Channel managers.
We also note that polls seem to indicate that most Americans, admittedly in general getting most of their international news through TV rather than print or radio, seem to have some dramatically unrealistic or inaccurate perceptions of the situation in the Middle East.
That makes it even more important than usual that a media corporation should behave responsibility.
In this case, to us, a broadcaster using the publicly-regulated airwaves as does Clear Channel should in our view be expected to have some general guidelines as to the degree to which it can be partisan as well as on responsible reporting of facts.
Hogan, who seems to want to exercise corporate power without accepting corporate responsibility, should consider Kipling words on harlots' prerogatives through the ages.
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New York Times - Krugman Op-Ed:
2003-03-27: There were mixed forecasts concerning the effects of the war on radio revenues this week from the UK where an update from Emap was more upbeat than that from Capital Radio.
UK Emap has bucked the advertising trend and in an update reported group revenues and underlying revenues each up 2% for the year to the end of March.
Its radio revenues, however, were down 2% on an underlying basis for the full year, although they were up 3% in the second half, offsetting a 7% fall in the first half.
Emap says that radio will be hit but by far less than TV, largely because there is less worry by advertisers that their spots will be aired next to news bulletins associated with the war. UK commercial stations carry comparatively little news cover and that is mostly in short bulletins so there is less chance of an advertisement coming up next to bad news from the war area.
Emap has outperformed the national radio market in the second half of the year after a period of underperformance in the first half; it describes is radio revenues as reasonable, and says it continues to perform well relative to the market as a whole.
It is launching its first sterling bond that it hopes will raise at least GBP 200 million (USD 300 million); it says it intends to use some of the funds to pay down debt - it currently owes banks some GBP220 million (USD 350 million) - and also for acquisitions.
In contrast to Emap, the new from Capital Radio was gloomier. Its update indicated a radio revenue decline of 3% in the first quarter of 2003, which it says "will result in a 5% decline in like for like radio revenue for the six months to 31st March 2003, in line with our expectations."
Capital says it expects the advertising market to remain under pressure for the rest of its financial year."
"The short term market," it says, "is very uncertain and we remain cautious regarding future advertising demand. "
The UK short-term situation appears to be similar to that in the US where advertisers have deferred spots much more on TV than on radio. So far the US experience seems to be of comparatively few cutbacks on radio, although overall US broadcast advertising revenues were estimated to be down by around USD100 million during the first few days of the conflict.
In Canada, a similar picture of reasonable prospects for advertising following an initial fall came from a half-day media conference sponsored by BMO Nesbitt Burns that featured presentations from executives of Canada's targets media companies.
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2003-03-27: The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has reduced from USD10, 000 to USD 2,000 on grounds of inability to pay, a penalty on a Florida pirate station operator.
The original penalty involved Homere Hyppolite 's operation of the station in the Naples area in May last year and a notice of apparent liability was issued in July that year.
Hyppolite had responded asking for cancellation or reduction of the penalty on the basis that he was only just testing the radio equipment and never intended to operate a radio station from his residence, that he immediately ceased operating the radio equipment at the request of the FCC agents, and was unable to pay the proposed $10,000 forfeiture. He provided financial information in support of his request for reduction of the proposed forfeiture.
The FCC pointed out that the other reasons given did not make an acceptable case for revocation of the penalty bit did accept the financial hardship case.
The FCC has also reduced from USD 5,000 to USD 2,400 penalties for tower offences levied on East Tennessee Radio Group L.P.
The offences concerned failure to post the ASR number on the tower for WSEV- AM, Sevierville, Tennessee and also for failure to notify the FCC immediately of a change in ownership of the antenna structure.
Initially notice had been given of penalties of USD 2,000 for the first offence and USD 3,000 for the second but East Tennessee responded with a statement from its contract engineer that, prior to an FCC inspection in May last year, he noticed the sign was missing and had promptly ordered a replacement sign that he was preparing to post when the FCC agent discovered the violation.
It had also imposed a USD3, 000 penalty because it had not been notified of the change of ownership to which East Tennessee had argued that the forfeiture should be set aside because it believed in good faith that its filing of a notification of consummation of the assignment of license for WSEV (AM) was adequate to notify the Commission of the change in ownership of the antenna structure.
The FCC accepted the arguments for the first offence and revoked the penalty and reduced that for the second to USD 2,000 in view of a past history of compliance.
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2003-03-27: The UK Radio Authority has now issued its 400th short-term restricted licence, licences that are issued for up to 28 days for broadcasts within a limited geographical area.
The latest licence went to Sabrang Radio, in Bradford, which will broadcast to the Sikh community of the city to celebrate the Sikh cultural and religious festival of Vaisakhi from 1 to 28 April.
The first such licence was issued to Ski FM, which broadcast, from December 1990 in the Highlands of Scotland.
Commenting on the issue of the latest licence, Tony Stoller, Chief Executive of the Radio Authority, said, "We have always been very proud of this RSL scheme. Short-term licences offer a great opportunity to large numbers of people to make radio for a variety of purposes and, by doing so, they provide a valuable service to their community."
" The popularity of the scheme grows year on year, and we are delighted to have reached this milestone."
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2003-03-26: Gaylord Entertainment has announced a USD 65 million cash deal to sell its two FMs -- WSM-FM and WWTN-FM - to Cumulus; in addition it is entering into a joint sales agreement for is WSM-AM station.
Gaylord President and CEO Colin Reed said the deal was part of its move to concentrate on its core businesses - Gaylord Hotels and the Grand Ole Opry.
He continued, "The Grand Ole Opry remains our premier entertainment brand, and WSM-AM is an integral component of our strategy to extend the reach of this brand. Our partnership with Cumulus strengthens both of these assets by extending the reach of the Opry over the Cumulus network and providing a more efficient platform for operation of WSM-AM."
The deal is subject to regulator approval but Cumulus is to programme and market the two FMs as soon as the anti-trust waiting periods expire. It is also to carry America's Grand Ole Opry Weekend on the Cumulus country network from April.
Cumulus already has three Nashville stations - WQQK-FM, WNPL-FM, and WEQQ-FM - and its
Cumulus Chairman and CEO Lew Dickey commented, "This acquisition is the most important strategic fill-in that our company could make because it completes our Nashville cluster and solidifies our position in our largest market. The stations have great signals, heritage brands and will put us in a position to challenge for market leadership with broad demographic coverage including: men and women, youth and adults and ethnic as well as general market."
In other US radio business, Pamal Broadcasting is to pay USD 8 million in cash for Western Massachusetts Radio Company's News-talk WPNI-AM and triple-A WRNX-FM, Amherst, in the Springfield market.
In Puerto Rico, Spanish miscellaneous station WGIT-AM is being sold for USD 1.3 million cash to Pedro Roman Collazo who already owns five stations in Puerto Rico.
At Interrep George Pine has been appointed President and COO, reporting to Chairman and CEO Ralph Guild.
In addition Interrep has appointed Kevin Garrity as President of its subsidiary company, ABC Radio Sales in succession to Pine.
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2003-03-26: The continuing UK High Court case in which former Virgin Radio breakfast host Chris Evans is claiming GBP8.6 million (USD 13.6 million) from Virgin owners SMG on Tuesday heard Virgin Radio chief executive John Pearson say that Evans failure to turn up for work after a drinking binge at the end of April 2001 had put the station in an "impossible position."
Pearson said no apology was offered for Evans behaviour, adding, "I find it amazing that Chris appears to think it was acceptable…In all my years in radio this behaviour was wholly unprecedented, the main presenter disappearing without explanation. We were then told he was ill, which subsequently turned out to be untrue."
He said that Evans was incorrect in saying that he (Pearson) wanted to get rid of the Virgin breakfast team and that he was trying to manage the station's most important talent to the best of his ability.
"Although I was the chief executive I felt powerless. The station was effectively being held to ransom by its star presenter," said Pearson.
Evans counsel Christopher Pymont QC said that it was not Evans fault that Virgin management had no contingency plan it place at two week later, a time at which Virgin had been told Evans would return to work by Evans' agent but no contact had been made with Pearson by Evans himself despite repeated requests.
Pearson said he accepted this but did not see it as relevant and detailed discussions the station had been involved in with Darryl Denham, now the Virgin drivetime host after a spell as its breakfast host (See RNW Jan 6), and Steve Penk for one of them to take over the drive time show and be Evans stand-in.
Denham, he said, was first choice but there were potential problems about Denham getting released from his existing contract and Penk was ultimately appointed as Virgin drivetime host (See RNW May 15, 2001) and took over from Evans.
He in turn walked out of Virgin some seven months later (See RNW Jan 26, 2002).
Penk rejoined Capital in June last year to present a late-evening show (See RNW June 19, 2002).
Penk was subsequently brought in to replace Evans when the latter had another row in June and was fired after failing to turn up for work six days in a row.
Pearson also revealed he agreed a fee for potential promotion to succeed Evans as compensation for Penk's losing the chance of taking over from Chris Tarrant on Capital Radio's breakfast show.
Andrew Mollett, who was Virgin finance director until March 2001, said that the breakfast show had become so bad they had discussed replacing the DJ but SMG counsel Geoffrey Vos suggested Pearson and Virgin were looking for a replacement as a prudent plan because Evans' five-year commitment to the station was drawing to its end.
Mollet said, "The reason was the show was so bad they had to do something about it" but he agreed no decision to fire Evans had been made when he left the company.
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2003-03-26: British radio stations are dropping songs that could remind listeners of war according to the UK Times, which details some of the titles removed from playlists.
The BBC it says has told producers to "to play music with a 'light, melodic' feel before and after news bulletins, especially when the reports are likely to detail coalition casualties."
At BBC Radio 1 songs listed as taken off its lists is the Transplants "Diamonds and Guns" and Hard Hot Heat's "Bandages", which has no connection to war with lyrics that go, "These bandages cover more than scrapes, cuts and bruises from regrets and mistakes . . . Bandages on my legs and my arms from you."
Capital Radio has similarly gone for a positive upbeat note at its Capital FM flagship and its XFm station has trimmed back its output of punk and nu-metal.
There was also controversy over the war on Monday night at the BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards where several performers made pro-peace protests. The Egyptian pop star Samira Said, who won a Middle East category award, refused to perform in protest at British involvement. The BBC now has to decide how much of the anti-war comment to air in the broadcast.
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UK Times report:
2003-03-25: Pictures were painted in the UK High Court on Monday of an atmosphere of fear at SMG-owned Virgin Radio following the arrival of programme controller Paul Jackson and, on the other hand, of its former breakfast host Chris Evans as being not ill but "happy as Larry" drinking with friends when he failed to turn up to host the show just before he was fired.
The portrayal of the atmosphere at Virgin came from Chris Gillett, the general manager of Evans' UMTV Company and former producer of his Virgin breakfast show, testifying at hearings on Evans' claim of GBP 8.6 million (USD13.6 million) claim against Virgin Radio owners, SMG.
Gillette said Jackson tried to "deliberately provoke" Evans and deride his capabilities as a DJ, adding that most of the DJs at the station were scared about losing their jobs.
He said Jackson, a week after arriving at the station "was writing a detailed letter to one of the country's finest entertainment talents, effectively telling him he did not know how to be a DJ."
SMG Counsel Geoffrey Voss QC challenged Gillett's interpretation of the letter, suggesting that its content was that Jackson was seeking talks with Evans about the breakfast show and in another exchange with Evans' agent Michael Foster suggested that the notion that Evans was ill was raised only to protect the DJ in any contract dispute.
Foster agreed in his evidence that he had not spoken personally to Evans before telling Virgin Radio's chief executive John Pearson that the DJ was ill and was going to see a doctor and also that Evans was in good spirits when he later saw him in the Nag's Head public house near the DJ's London flat . He added, however that Evans was not in his opinion "happy or mentally fit to do his show."
He said that he had not put to Evans the suggestion of a GBP 3million (USD 4.75 million) pay-off for the rest of the share options he was due under an agreement with the company, knowing that Evans would reject the offer. Evans was also offered a weekend show but turned that down, saying he only wanted to do the breakfast show.
Foster said that he had subsequently seen Evans at his home and it had been agreed that Evans would not accept the pay-off and that a letter should be sent to Virgin saying the DJ was going to return to work.
Vos then said, "So you knew at that point that Mr Evans was not ill because his reaction was to say, 'Right, I'm going back to work'" and Foster agreed
Pearson did not receive the letter and went to Scotland to discuss the matter with SMG management and on Wednesday June 27 Foster spoke to SMG chief executive Andrew Flanagan who said the point had passed at which Evans could return to work and the only option was to terminate his contact. The case is continuing.
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2003-03-25: The RADAR 76 (Radio's All Dimension Audience Research) Report just released by Arbitron shows Disney's ABC Daytime Direction Network again retaining the top rank followed by Westwood CNN Max Radio Network but Premiere Pulse Network took the third spot, displacing ABC Morning News Radio Network.
There were 37 networks in the ratings this time, compared to 33 for the RADAR 75 report (See (See RNW Dec 17) and they again reached three-quarters of US consumers during a typical week.
The ABC Daytime network had a weekly audience of 9.2 million, compared to just under 9 million in the RADAR 75 report, and the same 3.8 AQH rating whilst CNN Max had a reach of 7.4 million, up from just over 7.25 million and the same 3.1 AQH rating.
Premiere Pulse Network had a weekly reach of just over 5.4 million and an AQH of 2.3 compared to 4.4 million and 1.9 in RADAR 75, when it was ranked seventh.
In fourth place was ABC Morning News Radio Network with a reach of 5.36 million and AQH 2.2, compared to 5.6 million and 2.4 in the previous ratings. Fifth again was Premiere Morn Drive AM Network with a reach of just under 5.18 million and AQH of 2.2 compared to 5.11 million and AQH 2.2 in RADAR 75.
The ABC Young Adult Radio Network, fourth in RADAR 75, was down to sixth with a reach of 4.77 million and AQH 2, compared to 5.22 million and AQH 2.2.
The RADAR 76 report is totally diary based with a sample of just fewer than 50,000 and covers the period to December 2002.
As before radio did better with wealthier and better-educated Americans.
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Arbitron news release:
2003-03-25: Tennessee radio operator, Radio 810 Nashville, Incorporated , is being fined USD 10,000 by the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for offences relating to WMGC- AM, Murfreesboro.
The offences - failure to maintain properly calibrated indicating instruments, to terminate broadcast operation as required when WMGC operated in non- compliance with the technical rules, and exceeding authorized transmitter power by failing to reduce power at sunset - were the subject of a Notice of Apparent Violation in June last year.
No response was received to this notice.
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2003-03-25: The US government sponsored Arabic Radio service, Radio Sawa, much hyped before the war with Iraq began is dismissed as a waste of money by the Ibrahim Hilal , editor-in-chief of the al-Jazeera Arab TV station, in a Washington Post report, despite attempts to portray it as a competitor.
The paper quotes Norman J. Pattiz, the Westwood One founder who created Radio Sawa, as saying, "We are competing for attention with al-Jazeera. Our mission is to promote freedom and democracy through the free flow of information."
AL Jazeera claims some 35 million viewers all over the Arab world compared to which Radio Sawa is a minnow with limited and patchy listening and Hilal derided its chances of achieving any significant influence.
"American taxpayers are wasting their money on Radio Sawa," says Hilal. "Arabs understand that it is a tool of the U.S. government."
Radio Sawa's output is mainly Western and Arab pop music interspersed with news bulletins and its editor in chief Mouafac Harb, a Lebanese American who previously worked as Washington bureau chief for the Saudi-owned Al-Hayat newspaper, said that in contrast to al-Jazeera, Sawa does not report its news emotively.
"We try to de-emotionalize the news," he commented. "We don't use adjectives."
He and Pattiz dismiss criticisms of the service from internal critics at the Voice of America (VOA), whose Arabic-language service was axed to make way for the new radio station and are dismissive of Sawa's formula of pop music and news headlines.
Tim Shamble, president of the VOA journalists' guild commented. "I don't know what advantage we gain by primarily playing pop music to the Arab world. You may gain a larger audience of teenagers. That's like feeding candy to kids. But I don't think we are following the mission given us by the VOA charter of representing America in a comprehensive way to the rest of the world."
Its protagonists say Sawa has a broader reach than VOA's Arabic service but decline to give figures and Harb responded, "Before Sawa, the U.S. was not part of the media scene in the Middle East," said Harb. "You can have the greatest message there is -- but if nobody is listening to you, it doesn't do you any good."
Even if everybody is, however, it won't necessarily do much good as many Arabs say that unless the US changes its policies toward the Arab world, particularly over the Israeli-Palestinian issue, it will never have much influence.
"The struggle for Arab hearts and minds does not depend on cosmetic changes," says Hassan Ansari, director of Gulf studies at the University of Qatar. "It depends on substance."
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2003-03-24: Almost ineluctably, we have been drawn over the past week to comment on how radio has handled the war, in terms of direct reporting, how the lead-up was handled, and some of the complementary output to news cover.
The run-up articles share a common thread in that they are more about attitude and comment than the reporting of fact.
In the Boston Globe, Ellen Goodman, as she writes, "spent the week before the war: driving across the Florida landscape, locked in the alternate universe of talk radio."
"I tuned in," she continues, "as an act of professional penance, and I'm sorry now that I didn't take my hands off the wheel to make notes. But I took away lasting memories of propaganda, a souvenir list of fact-free opinions delivered by a cast of angry baritones."
Among the high - or low- lights, a host between Orlando and Tampa spending the morning "touting the discovery of an Iraqi drone as the smoking gun in the case against Iraq" and a little later a host between Tampa and Fort Myers, "who took antiwar women's groups angrily to task on the grounds that the women of Iraq were bitterly oppressed."
As Goodman accurately notes, "He didn't seem to know that Iraq -- which surely oppresses both genders -- is a secular state where women are more equal than among our friends the Saudis."
Later she notes thinking of the old adage, ''Truth is the first casualty of war.''
"But this time, " she continues, "truth became a casualty before the first shot was fired. Truth was wounded in the pre-war. Half-truth now limps dangerously to the front line."
"In many ways, talk radio seems to have taken up where yellow journalism left off. It bears the trademark disregard for history, casualness about facts, and a penchant for propaganda."
After recalling a little of US newspaper history, Goodman comments, "The old yellow haze has drifted over to the territory of Rush Limbaugh and Michael Savage, Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity. In that territory, the best defence of the right-wing media is an offense against the left-wing media. Facts are as fungible as the word 'infotainment.'"
"In that talk-war-world, it doesn't matter if the drones are deadly or comic, if the United States is part of a worldwide ''coalition'' or isolated, if the French simply disagree or are ''cheese-eating surrender monkeys.'' Half a truth is good enough."
Much of the talk radio in the US is carried on Clear Channel stations and before the war began a Chicago Tribune article by Tim Jones considered the sponsorship by Clear Channel stations of pro-war rallies.
"The sponsorship of large rallies by Clear Channel stations," writes Jones, "is unique among major media companies, which have confined their activities in the war debate to reporting and occasionally commenting on the news."
Its involvement he says has "raised eyebrows in some legal and journalistic circles" and breaks new ground in the way a large publicly regulated broadcasting company has become involved.
Former Federal Communications Commissioner Glen Robinson commented, "I think this is pretty extraordinary. I can't say that this violates any of a broadcaster's obligations, but it sounds like borderline manufacturing of the news."
Clear Channel spokeswoman Lisa Dollinger said the rallies - called "Rally for America" were the idea of Philadelphia-based syndicated talk host Glen Beck and commented, "They're not intended to be pro-military. It's more of a thank you to the troops. They're just patriotic rallies."
She also said that there was no corporate instruction involved, adding, "Any rallies that our stations have been a part of have been of their own initiative and in response to the expressed desires of their listeners and communities"
Dollinger denied that there was any connection with Clear Channel's lobbying in relation to US media regulation and Rick Morris, an associate professor of communications at Northwestern University, said the actions by Clear Channel stations were a logical extension of changes in the radio industry over the last 20 years, including the blurring of lines between journalism and entertainment.
From a business perspective, Morris said, the rallies were a natural fit for many stations, especially talk-radio stations where hosts usually espouse politically conservative views
When the war began, US radio responded in some cases by going to full-scale cover and in others by almost ignoring the events. Clear Channel went to long reports on News-Talk format stations and many music outlets and Infinity music stations stuck to formats but had frequent updates.
In the UK there was a similar range although the BBC switched Radio London to a rolling news format.
There are also tie-ups between the British Forces Broadcasting Service and the BBC and Virgin.
"BFBS, which runs radio stations for British forces the world over," notes Paul Donovan in his UK Sunday Times radio column, "began 60 years ago in November, in another desert, that of Algeria. It knows how vital it is that soldiers communicate with home, an unbroken thread through British radio history. It's All Yours, made by the Forces' Programme (now Radio 2), broadcast messages between children and their absent fathers during the Second World War, and gave nine-year-old Petula Clark her radio debut."
"Later, there was Family Favourites, Calling the Falklands and Gulf Link. And now this. Virgin-BFBS's show is not jingoistic: it simply connects with, and entertains, and supports at a difficult time, fellow citizens a long way away who are prepared for sacrifice."
But finally, to turn away from the war to a degree, comments from two other UK radio columnists.
In the UK Observer, Sue Arnold, after comments on some phone-in shows, went on, "If there's any truth in that theory that a butterfly flapping its wings in Peru causes an earthquake in China, the bombing should have stopped right then. It didn't, which leaves you wondering what point those phone-ins serve, apart from filling airtime cheaply. I'd rather have martial music."
"Or, better still, Jackie Mason, whose irreverent attitude to all factions - Arabs, Jews, gentiles, Bush, Blair - came as a welcome antidote to the broadcasting blitzkrieg. In The World According to Me, Mason, the rabbi turned stand-up comic, told some breathtakingly un-PC jokes. 'Did you know that Israel has had the hydrogen bomb for 20 years but they've never used it. Why? Because it cost $187 billion. You think we're going to throw this away on an Arab?"
And finally in the UK Sunday Times Gerry McCarthy writes, "There's nothing like an international crisis to highlight the absurdity of life in Ireland. Our tribunals rumble endlessly on: nobody pays much attention; everyone's watching the war."
He does provide some link though and later notes in relation to a re-enactment of the Morris Tribunal, "Nonetheless, the re-enactment opened a window to rampant surrealism. There is a certain irony to the context - whatever the truth turns out to be, these Donegal gardai were acting on the fringes of the conflict in Northern Ireland. As we listened to some of the evidence, it was difficult to avoid the conclusion that wars consist of more than rhetoric from leaders and fighting by soldiers: they are also a magnet for opportunists."
(RNW comment: Whoops. Back to US talk radio, where we started!)
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2003-03-24: The Boston-headquarters 'FNX Network changes significantly today with the Phoenix Media Communication Group's Massachusetts and New Hampshire stations - WFEX-FM, Manchester and WPHX-FM, Portsmouth --shifting formats but carrying the Boston feed and WWRX-FM, Providence, becoming an independent Modern station, ending its simulcasts of the network out of Boston.
FNX network's Program Director said that they had done really well in Providence but not grown as expected in Boston itself and so were going to focus more specifically on doing the best for each market rather than trying to find something that worked for all markets.
WWRX will still term itself 'FNX and will simulcast the morning show but then its own DJs and a format focused on bands such as Limp Bizkit, Godsmack and Korn.
Storm and Birdsey (Storm Zbel and Tom Birdsey) , who hosted afternoons for the network will do afternoons for WWRX with Brian Slater inked in for evenings.
The Lynn-based Boston flagship WFNX-FM, which has just marked its 20th anniversary, is to tweak its mix and more on bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters, U2, The Strokes and Coldplay with some 40 percent of its playlist containing older tracks.
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2003-03-24: Comedian Jerry Lewis is reported to be considering legal action against Infinity's KROQ-FM following a hoax call last week from the Kevin and Bean Show ( Gene "Bean" Baxter and Kevin Ryder) to French President Jacques Chirac.
The call was made by DJ Ralph Garman posing as Lewis, who is popular in France; he got through to Chirac for a conversation about why France opposed military action against Iraq.
Lewis's lawyer has complained that Lewis' name and voice were unlawfully appropriated to obtain an interview by deception.
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2003-03-23: Last week saw a regular flow of activity from most regulators but with no major developments, although the UK Radio authority has now published a report on its Access Radio scheme that was generally welcomed and seems to presage a permanent adoption of the idea.
In Australia, radio activity from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABA) included a formal announcement that it had extended the three commercial radio standards it set up in the wake of the cash-for-comment affair (See RNW Mar 18).
In addition it has advertised three new community licences.
One is for the Blackwater area of Queensland with an application deadline of April 14; a second is for the Horsham area of Victoria with a deadline of April 15; and the third is for the Moranbah area of Queensland with a deadline of April 17.
In Canada, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) issued statistics on the country's commercial radio revenues from 1998-2002 (See RNW Mar 20).
On the licence front, things were fairly quiet in the country. The CRTC extended until June 7 the deadline for Radio CJVR Ltd. To commence operation of a new transmitter for CJVR-FM Melfort at Waskesiu, Saskatchewan, and also issued a public notice concerning a number of applications.
Those involving radio included
British Columbia:
*An application for a corporation yet to be incorporated for a new classic rock English language FM in Port Alberni.
* An application by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation to increase the power of CBUX-FM Vancouver from 287 to 1280 watts.
Manitoba:
*An application for a new English language "eclectic" music format FM in Portage La Prairie for Golden West Broadcasting Ltd.
Ontario:
*Amendments of the licence for CKUE-FM, Chatham, to allow addition of a 400 watts transmitter at Windsor and also changing other conditions including that relating to the amount of local programming broadcast. This is to be increased from a minimum 42 hours a week to 84 hours.
In Europe, there was nothing from Ireland but in the UK the Radio Authority published a report on its Access Radio experiment that was generally welcomed (See RNW Mar 22).
Licence activity included the advertisement of the new Glasgow FM licence, the automatic renewal, because they provide or are committed to provide services on the relevant local digital multiplex, of the Manchester licences held by Piccadilly Radio Ltd. and Magic AM, and the announcement of details of the application for the Nottingham digital multiplex (see RNW Mar 19)
In the USA, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has slapped red flags on two deals.
One involves 18 of the stations involved in Qantum's purchase of Root Communications' entire 26-station holding (See RNW Mar 6); Markets affected are Brunswick, Georgia, Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, and Florence, South Carolina.
The other involves a station swap planned by Clear Channel and Regent Communications involving the swap of four of the latter's Minnesota stations plus cash for five Clear Channel Indiana stations (See RNW Feb 28)
The FCC has also dropped on fine for technical offences and confirmed two more and also dismissed 484 low power FM applications that did not meet third-adjacent channel protection requirements (See RNW Mar 19).
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2003-03-23: Sirius Radio CFO John Scelfo is to leave the company on April 7 and the company has launched a search for his replacement.
Scelfo has been with the satellite radio company since 2001 and commented, "Now that the recapitalization is complete and the company's balance sheet is strong, it's a good time for me to pursue an opportunity that arose."
Sirius President and CEO Joe Clayton commented, "John helped us through significant expense reductions and capital raising efforts including our recent recapitalization. He has indicated a desire to move on to different personal and professional ventures and we wish him well.."
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2003-03-23: Clear Channel chairman and CEO Lowry Mays received a USD 2 million bonus for 2002 in addition to his USD 1 million salary according to an SEC filing by the company. The bonus became due after the company met performance targets.
In 2001, Mays did not get a bonus but he did receive options on 750,000 Clear Channel shares; this year he received no new stock options.
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2003-03-22: The third day of High Court hearings in London into former DJ and radio tycoon Chris Evans GBP 8.6 million (USD13.6 million) claim against Virgin Radio owners, SMG, has heard that Evans felt he needed to have a hangover to operate.
The court was told of an attack on the station management during his live breakfast show a fortnight before Evans actual dismissal after a drinking binge and his failure to turn up to host the show.
On the day of England's World Cup soccer qualifying soccer game against Greece on June 6, Evans, who had announced that he would stay on air all day but had been told he could not, ended his show with the words "sod '3m" about Virgin management.
Evans was fired after failing to turn up to host his Virgin breakfast show after a drinking binge, details of which were given to the court by SMG counsel Geoffrey Vos QC, who said the effect had been to give his employers "a very public slap in the face".
The binge began on the morning of June 20, 2001, following his breakfast show, continued through the day and night, and then continued again June 21 at his local public house, the court was told.
It then resumed on June 22 with stories and pictures appearing in newspapers; Evans' agent told the station his client was unable to host his show because he was ill.
Evans himself denied that the reason he failed to turn up was because of his hangover "I've done most of my work hungover," he said. "It was my normal working zone because I like to go to the pub at night and I usually get up with a thick head - not to the extent I had that morning, but I would say I have done more radio shows hungover than not hungover."
Evans said that the real reason was tension with Virgin management.
"I was very, very upset that morning. I thought I was being played around by my employer," he said.
"I was unable to broadcast, in my opinion. To do a show like I was doing you have to be in a good mood and I was as miserable as sin. I was upset. I didn't know what to do."
He said he didn't intend to make it seem that Virgin was unable to exercise control over him or make them seem foolish.
The court was told that Virgin had offered Evans a GBP million pay-off, which had been refused. Evans said he had been willing to return to work the next week.
The case will continue next week.
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2003-03-22: Just as the war in Iraq began, news-hungry listeners in the area around Ajiloun in Northern Jordan gained an improved BBC Arabic service through the opening of a new FM transmitter that complements the existing FM service that has been broadcasting from Amman since 1998.
The Head of International Broadcasting Relations at the BBC Arabic Service, Hassan Abu Ala, said." This is a high-power project, carrying the strongest FM signal in the region to complement the Amman FM and to provide an excellent service to listeners in northern Jordan and adjacent areas who are hungry for accura