The Savannah Music Group comes out against the performance tax

In a move against the proposed performance royalty to be paid by radio stations, an independent Nashville-based label is making a proposal of its own. The Savannah Music Group and subsidiary Savannah Records is calling on Congress to add an opt-out clause to allow stations to play the music of new and independent labels without additional payment to musicians and record labels. Savannah Music Group co-founder & CEO Jeff Cohen says, “This capitulation is a disaster not only for radio, but for independent artists, independent record labels and songwriters as well.” It is believed by SMG that independent artists would be at a disadvantage if the performance royalty passes, fearing that some music stations would change their formats to avoid paying the new fee.  Read More →

For Emmis shareholders, it’s a whole lot of wait-and-see today

The Street’s apparent reaction to Friday night’s second postponement of the special shareholders meeting: extreme caution. Shareholders were supposed to vote on founder/CEO Jeff Smulyan’s bid to take Emmis private. Today, the stock trading is at a trickle and the price is within a penny or two of Friday’s close of $2.07 a share. Smulyan is offering $2.40, but the major hangup is believed to be a “lock-up block” of preferred shareholders who want better terms to trade in their stock for new debt. The offers to holders of both common and preferred stock have been extended, and the shareholder meeting is now pegged for Friday evening (8/13).  Read More →

Radio revenues up 8% at Seattle-based Fisher Communications

The nearly $500,000 gain in top line revenue came as cash flow from the radio operations dropped $312,000 to $1.1 million. Fisher says that is “the result of higher sales commissions, advertising and programming costs.” In the past, some Wall Street analysts have questioned the relatively small margins produced by Fisher, and in the latest quarter (April-June) the margins shrank to 17%. Fisher CEO Colleen Brown has been focusing on Internet operations, and particularly the more than 100 hyper-local websites. Today, Fisher reports Internet revenue more than doubling, to $826,000. That represents about 2.7% of the total TV-division revenue, which was $31.1 million. Fisher reports net income today of $328,000, a turnaround from last year’s loss of $2.1 million.  Read More →

Regis & Kelly name their 10 “Women in Radio” finalists

The final 10 came from a paring down of 100 semi-finalists from the US & Canada. Two of the finalists are from New York City, so travel to the Regis & Kelly studios would be a subway ride. Carolina Bermudez is a co-host of the nationally syndicated Elvis Duran morning show, while Malikha Mallette co-hosts the WWPR-FM “Power” (105.1) morning show. Shannon Murphy is the morning co-host on Detroit’s “Channel 955” WKQI. Jayde Donovan says “she always wanted to do television” and is one-half of the “Johnny & Jayde” morning show on WXXL-FM (106.7) in Orlando. Kristen Cruz is the co-host of KOST-FM (103.5) in Los Angeles. Jenn Hobby is the morning co-host on Atlanta’s WWWQ-FM (99.7) “Bert Show.” Kim Iverson is a nationally syndicated host who says “someone needs to keep Regis in line” when Kelly is away. Andrea Hiland is the only finalist from a country station: KMLE-FM “Camel” (107.9) in Phoenix. Anji Corley hosts the midday show six days-a-week on Washington’s WPGC-FM (95.5). The last finalist is one of the nine semi-finalists who made the list from Canada. Ashley Greco started out doing traffic and is now the co-host on the CIDC-FM (103.5) morning show in Toronto. You can check out all 10 of the finalist videos and vote for your favorite here.  Read More →

Five are out due to budget cuts at KLOS-FM & KABC-AM in L.A.

Longtime Los Angeles newsman Michael Linder, who spent years at KNX-AM (1070) before joining KABC-AM (790) as their City Hall reporter, is the high profile name on the list of cuts at the Citadel-owned talk station. LARadio.com says that along with Linder, sales assistants Aki Tsuruoka and Hilda Banuelos, programming assistant Lindsay Mendoza and KLOS-FM (95.5) traffic and continuity assistant Leslie Taylor were all cut loose. The Los Angeles Board of Radio-Info is discussing the Friday afternoon cuts by KABC/KLOS GM Bob Moore and the place of news on a talk station – here.  Read More →

Ando Media’s Internet Audio rankings for June – Pandora up again, Soccer scores

Webcasting music service Pandora has grown from 391,000 “Average Active Sessions” in April to 403,000 in May, and now 419,000 in June. That’s reading the chart titled “Domestic” (U.S. only) and 6am-8pm weekdays, when most Internet radio listening occurs. CBS Radio, which includes AOL Radio and Yahoo LaunchCast, Clear Channel and Citadel were all basically flat, in the #2-#3-#4 slots. But there’s a new face at #5, and it’s ESPN Radio, driven by World Cup Soccer. Looking at another column named “Session Starts”: Pandora is also #1, this time up from about 148 million to 157 million. #2 CBS Radio rebounds somewhat, from 50.6 million to 52 million. Clear Channel slips a bit, from 24.7 million to 24.1 million. Read the latest Ando Media Internet audio rankers for June here.  Read More →

The End of “Local”

Is radio still a local medium? And more importantly, should it be? Guest contributor Mark Ramsey tackles these questions on his blog, Hear2.0.  Read More →

Louisville talk host apologizes for calling President Obama a “half-breed”

Saying on the air that she was “embarrassed and shocked that it came out of my mouth,” WHAS-AM (840) late morning talk host Mandy Connell apologized to listeners on Friday for comments she made about President Barack Obama. On Wednesday, Connell compared Obama with Oprah Winfrey, saying she was poor and had built “a billion-dollar media enterprise.” Speaking of the opportunities available in America, she went on to say, “At the same time it has allowed a young half-breed man — and I say half-breed not in a derogatory way, it was just the first thing I thought of — to become president.” The Clear Channel station received about 50 complaints, and one local rights group called Connell’s comments “an irresponsible racial slur,” according to the Louisville Courier-Journal. Clear Channel management accepted Connell’s apology and no disciplinary action is expected. Connell joined WHAS in April, following the unexpected death of host Francene Cucinello, who died of a heart attack and aneurysm at age 43.  Read More →

A Nevada translator owner faces revocation over a felony rap

Eddie Floyd was found guilty of providing land in Doyle, California that was used for the cultivation of marijuana, and given a 48-month sentence in federal prison. From that very prison, he filed three FCC applications that failed to mention his felony conviction on money laundering charges. As far as the FCC is concerned, the felony conviction and the failure to disclose it raise “serious questions about Floyd’s propensity to comply with the rules and his basic character qualifications.” It issues a hearing designation order on Floyd’s fitness to remain the licensee of K273AF in Carson City, Nevada. Wilks-Reno wants to buy the translator to simulcast its smooth jazz KJZS, Sparks, NV (92.1). In a separate decision, the agency does reduce the amount of a February 2007 fine against Reno resident Floyd (Walter Edward Floyd) for late license renewal for the translator, down from $7,000 to $500, in line other recent appeals by translator owners.  Read More →

CMT Picks Up New Peterman Sitcom

CMT had picked up a new sitcom, “Working Class,” starring Melissa Peterman, who also hosts CMT’s “The Singing Bee.” In the new show, which has a 12-episode order, Peterman plays a blue-collar single mom who lives with her brother and her kids in an affluent neighborhood. “Working Class” is one of four sitcoms CMT had been consumer testing for possible inclusion in its programming lineup. Another of the shows stars Tom Arnold. “Working Class” is from writer/executive producer Jill Cargerman (Gary Unmarried). Peterman serves as a producer along with her manager Darris Hatch. Production is tentatively scheduled to begin in October for a possible January premiere. Peterman is currently recording her debut comedy CD for Big Machine Records.  Read More →

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