Thursday, May 14, 2026

A Portable HD Radio? It Exists, But Does Anybody Care?

At a company gathering on Sunday, RBR+TVBR saw for the first time a portable HD Radio. Who even knew it existed? The bigger, perhaps more depressing question, is this: Who cares? There's a reason why we ask, and it is one the radio industry's leadership may wish to read at their leisure today.

Tips On Championing D&I Within Your Organization

Organizations often launch diversity and inclusion initiatives as strategic imperatives to create more equitable and inclusive work environments. While it’s the right thing to do, it’s often assumed that there’s immediate buy-in across the board. That’s not always the case, however, culturally integrated market research agency ThinkNow says.

What Local Advertisers Are Buying, Spending, Planning

Borrell Associates has just completed the analysis of its annual local advertiser survey, conducted in April, May and June. The findings are now available for all to digest. What's the biggest takeaway?
John Link

Perfecting Ad Monitoring and Attribution in OTT/Advanced TV

"Those who utilize these technologies and end-resulting capabilities can more fluidly understand their audiences, how those audiences are reacting to creative content and ultimately drive attribution models resulting in real-time, data enhanced and directional outcomes." That's the conclusion of AdImpact VP John Link, who offers an exclusive thought piece for RBR+TVBR.

A Fitness and Wellness Pact with iHeart

Who knew that building awareness and inspiring consumers to get fit could benefit from a multiplatform marketing agreement with a company focused on audio content creation and distribution via streaming and broadcast platforms? It's the latest innovative ad sales partnership inked by iHeartMedia.
Rosemary Ravinal

Seven Steps to Fearless Public Speaking

Public speaking on Zoom is not a panacea for nervous speakers. On the contrary, it poses its own set of challenges that can be overcome with practice, focused exercises, and good coaching. In this column, Ravinal provides a variety of exercises and techniques to counter glossophobia, the scientific term for performance anxiety or stage fright.
Vote

Connected TV’s Coming Political Dollar Siphon

While linear TV vehicles have long been a mainstay of political ad spending, viewer consumption habits have changed drastically in the last year alone. Now, new findings suggest that in the next election cycle, 17% of political ad spend will to shift to streaming. That's a whopping $1.5 billion not going to broadcast or cable television.

Here Comes TikTok, Local Ad Execs

Borrell Associates has released another nugget from its April to late June 2021 Local Ad Agency Survey. Here's what broadcast media executives and sales associates need to know about how this rise could impact their chances of a buy — or not.

The Quest For OTA’s OTT Solutions

As the competition for consumer attention heats up with traditional, big-tent broadcasters continuing to launch their own streaming services — i.e. Peacock, Paramount+, and Discovery+ — one big question arises. How can local TV broadcast networks stay competitive with streaming apps of their own?
The RBR+TVBR Editorial Office radio, purchased at a Brookstone in Washington, D.C., prior to December 1995. Honestly, it's so old we can't remember when we bought it. Our point: Who buys a radio anymore?

Radio Listening Reaches a 16-Month High. Do Advertisers Care?

Nielsen has some happy news for those who own or manage radio stations. Listening levels are at their highest point since April 2020.  That said, were radio listening levels acceptable prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic? Here's a RBR+TVBR OBSERVATION you won't want to miss ... and will want to respond to.
Rosemary Ravinal

‘Play and Practice’: Ways To Make Near-Perfect E-Presentations

How can you take a playful approach to planning and practicing for your next gig? If you are going it alone without a public speaking coach, here are six steps from veteran PR pro Rosemary Ravinal you can take on your own to prepare for your presentation through playtime.

Gallup: Blacks, Latinos Don’t Care About Racial Terms

The term "Latinx" has emerged in recent years as one used when discussing Hispanic Americans without making a gender specification. Some have argued that the term needs to be retired, as few Hispanics use the term themselves. A new Gallup poll solidifies this argument, while also showing that Blacks aren't clamoring to be defined as "African American."
Michael Nathanson

U.S. Media: ‘The End of Those Easy Compares’

After taking a close look at domestic digital advertising growth, noted media analyst Michael Nathanson uses the word "only" to describe the acceleration in dollars for the GAFAN group.  What does this mean for broadcast media companies set to release their Q2 earnings reports, if Facebook, Alphabet, Twitter and Snap were disappointments to Wall Street observers like him?
Hyundai Veloster

Revving Up A ‘Sábado Futbolero’ Sponsorship

Hyundai has teamed with Univision as the new presenting sponsor of Sábado Futbolero — its "Saturday Soccer" program slate. The campaign, #BecauseFútbol, features three new Spanish-language TV spots.
Rosemary Ravinal

Five Features of Effective Business Storytelling

There are thousands of stories all around you. You simply need to understand what makes for good stories and how to use them for strategic communication, veteran public relations executive Rosemary Ravinal notes in this column.