Headlines
Don’t Overlook Local Political Advertising Spend in 2023; Key Issues & Races Driving Spend Now
With the 2023 elections a little over two months away, BIA is estimating local political advertising will be around $534 million. This spend is an increase of 30% from $410 million in 2021, and more than double the $254 million in pre-pandemic 2019.
Deadlines Aren’t Optional, NAB Says, As It Asks Court To Push FCC Into Action On Quadrennial Review
The back and forth between the National Association of Broadcasters and the Federal Communications Commission over whether the 2018 quadrennial media ownership proceeding needs to be wrapped up before the 2022 proceeding can continue is coming down to what Congress meant when it wrote the law more than a quarter century ago.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Deal Digest: VCY America Nabs Its First FM In Delaware
VCY America has filed a $5 million deal to buy hot AC “Mix 99.5” WJBR from Beasley Media Group. In an exit from market No. 85 by Beasley gives the Christian broadcaster VCY America a 50,000-watt Class B signal that covers the Wilmington metro, portions of the Philadelphia market, southwest New Jersey, and northwest Maryland.
Paramount Global Drops Plan to Sell Majority Stake in BET
Paramount Global has decided to no longer sell a majority stake in its BET Media Group.
Television
Broadcasters Rethink Cloud With Hybrid Approach
Leaders from NBCUniversal Local, Fox Television Stations, Sinclair, Imagine and Bitcentral told a TVNewsCheck webinar last week the industry conversation has shifted from “moving” to the cloud to leveraging its technology.
Radio
Black-Targeted Cable TV Channel Looks To Expand Into Radio
The owners of the faith-based Impact Network on television are looking to expand into audio. Impact owner Bishop Wayne T. Jackson tells Detroit Metro Times that the company will launch a new satellite radio channel set to soft-launch in the coming weeks.
7 Digital Mistakes Radio Stations Make That Can Hurt Event Ticket Sales
These affairs can be a significant source of non-traditional revenue for radio stations. Yet many radio stations will make digital mistakes that prevent them from selling more tickets and making more money.
Digital
Teenagers Turn to YouTube Before TV, Precise TV Finds
Forget TV, teens are tuning into YouTube and they’re watching the ads, a new report from Precise TV said.
FCC
FCC Considering Birth of Three New TV Noncomms
Two cities in the Golden State, in addition to a municipality in Alamogordo, N. Mex., could be on the verge of getting their first local television service.
A Maryland LPFM Makes the Jump to Full Power
Low-power WHCP(LP) on the Eastern Shore of Maryland has become full-power WHCP(FM) and an NPR member station. It upgraded from 71 watts to 14 kW and changed frequency from 101.5 to 91.7 MHz, adding 5 million drivers to its signal footprint.
Verticals
FEC Asks for Public Comment on Petition for Rulemaking on the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Political Ads
The Federal Election Commission last week voted to open for public comment the question of whether to start a rulemaking proceeding to declare that “deepfakes” or other AI technology used to generate false images of a candidate doing or saying something, without a disclosure that the image, audio or video, was generated by artificial intelligence and portrays fictitious statements and actions, violates the FEC’s rules.
National
NABOB Podcast To Explain How To Buy A Commercial Broadcast Station
The National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters (NABOB) is launching a podcast series that describes and teaches the process of buying a radio or TV station. “How to Buy a Commercial Broadcast Station” is hosted by NABOB President/CEO Jim Winston and will debut Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2023.