Media Info Bureau

The television industry is experiencing more consolidation than ever. Recently, Yahoo shut down IntoNow and

The National Alliance of State Broadcasters Associations began its life in 1985 as the Broadcast Executive Directors Association or “BEDA.” Even before the formality of incorporation, the Executive Directors of the State Broadcasters Associations had a long history of collaboration and interaction going back to the 1930s with the formation of the first State Broadcasters Associations.

Pioneers get shot. While there are many who counsel entrepreneurs to “embrace failure” or “be true to your passion”, most of the time entrepreneurs who pave the way with a new business model or even just a new business feel all alone and vulnerable. Of course, with greater risk there is greater reward and everyone knows that, but let’s be honest – most people are risk-averse. It’s much more comfortable to take a path that is well-worn. So, it’s no wonder that getting radio advertising prospects to commit to a test or a campaign is so difficult. They are terrified of something “new and unproven” or wasting their precious marketing resources. As someone who has seen the radio industry up close for more than 30 years, I have some advice for radio station sellers:

We stick our heads in the sand and go about fighting for our rates that we feel we deserve, or we can accept the realities of our situation and take a proactive approach to ensure our future success. The realities in the traditional media (and this is coming from a person who has worked in the traditional medium of radio since he was 21 years old) is that our competition is better than ever. Social media allows small businesses to tell their great stories and market their businesses for less and less paid advertising. Pandora, behavioral targeting, SEO, you know all of them in the digital marketing world. They all have great advantages to them. We are well past the crossroads in my opinion. And if we don’t accept the realities of the situation we may be able to “hold” onto our jobs and advertising outlets for a few more years but most people aren’t in the business of just “holding” onto their jobs.

As a good federal agency, the FCC is adept at producing prodigious amounts of paper and for decades it has been a worthy customer of the Government Printing Office. But due to the rise, complexity and increasing utility of the internet, much of the Commission’s commerce has moved online. If you have business to conduct with the Commission, unfamiliarity with the electronic transactional environment in which the FCC operates can severely hamper your efficiency, or worse, place you at a serious disadvantage.

Support for the Local Radio Freedom Act continues to be strong in the House and the Senate. Currently, more than 186 members of the House are on record in opposition to a performance tax. However, the NJBA is convinced that a stealth attack on free over-the-air-radio is very possible. In New Jersey, Local radio is very important and the prospect of a Performance Tax is akin to a Death Tax for broadcasters.

There’s been an open debate within the Streaming Audio, Advertising and Radio community for

At the National Alliance of State Broadcasters Associations (NASBA) meetings on 2/24, RBR-TVBR

At the annual NASBA conference in DC 2/24, there was an EAS Summit to go over some of the big issues broadcasters are facing on a state-wide and nationwide basis. Under laws going back to 1951, radio and television stations are already required to participate in the national Emergency Alert System and many stations – called Primary Entry Points (PEP) – have protected, government‐funded circuits connecting them to emergency command centers in Washington and in their states.

As we experience here in Tennessee every day and for the past

In this world of acronyms that we find ourselves living in, BEA (Broadcast Education Association) is one acronym broadcasters would be wise to become better acquainted with or, better yet, become a corporate associate member of.I’m honored to hold one of the two “Professional Representative”- designated seats on BEA’s board of directors (Christine H. Merritt, my esteemed colleague and President of the Ohio Association of Broadcasters, holds the other in her capacity as the Executive Committee’s “Vice-President for Industry Relations.”) Appreciatively, the BEA provides each of the NASBA-member state broadcasters association a complimentary associate membership in the BEA. Just yesterday, Ms. Merritt and I had the privilege of providing a BEA update at NASBA’s semi-annual meeting in Washington, DC, tasked with the responsibility of reminding each SAE (what do you know, another acronym, this time referencing State Association Executive) the tremendous value that BEA’s complimentary membership provides each of our associations, placing a wealth of resources and opportunities at our fingertips.

The State Leadership Conferences (SLC) for numerous state broadcaster associations are held in conjunction with the annual National Alliance of State Broadcasters Associations (NASBA) conference in DC. It’s a great opportunity for broadcasters and State Broadcaster Association execs to gather in our nation’s capital and share ideas and formulate solutions to the many pressing regulatory and legislative challenges facing the broadcast industry. They include:

Can you really blame people? Everyone is getting a little sales weary! From the second we get up in the morning until the moment our heads hit the pillow and our lids close we are getting pitched, asked, negotiated, told, closed, cold called, prospected, and so much more! I’m in media sales and I protect myself all of the time from it and I believe it is your right to protect yourself as well. Even though you are in media sales as well.

All Broadcast Associations are here to serve their members. We often need to react to what’s happening in our industry by providing new services that will help radio and television broadcasters navigate through concerns. In my recent visits with stations in Missouri, nearly every general manager voiced a common area of need; more sales people and good sales managers to lead them. The strength of a sales team and the revenue it produces is often dependent on the strength of its managers. This has led the Missouri Broadcasters Association to begin planning for an on-going sales manager training for our members. Stations must be able to attract good sales managers in order to hire good sales people. What does a good sales manager want in their place of employment?