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While the specifics of precisely who got axed during this week's Clear Channel "restructuring" are still woefully incomplete, a perusal of the cobbled together lists reveals that sales departments may have taken the biggest hits.  Tom Taylor's "Radio-Info" reports that Bain Capital has a preference toward sales people who have been around a long time.  […]

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Jacobs Media's Bill Jacobs provides insight regarding the popularity of iPhones among the middle class. As a not-so-cheap device, there’s a sense that the main people buying iPhones are those who are well-off.  Odds are that’s somewhat true when it comes to smartphones from other manufacturers such as Blackberry, but there’s plenty of evidence that purchases of iPhones […]

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While the body count numbers continue to roll in, and AllAccess does the tallying (amazing their server hasn't melted down), the much-rumored Clear Channel cutbacks, layoffs, and axings have finally been announced.  Mark Mays reports it will amount to a 9% reduction in the company's workforce. The fact they chose to hide behind Inauguration Day is […]

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While Classic Rock stations argue about whether they should expose a Springsteen track from the much-awaited new album, Working On A Dream, or Triple A's debate whether they should play the single two or three times a day, and Active Rockers ignore it all together, NPR has figured it out.  And in the process, they've […]

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Jacobs Media's Keith Cunningham weighs in on the immediacy – and impact – of Social Networking on the news & current events: Think back to last week when US Airways flight 1549 splashed into the Hudson River.  While the heroism of the pilot and rescue workers has dominated the headlines – and deservedly so – […]

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We've all been on one side of the desk or the other.  (Some of us have been on both sides.)  The sales manager walks into the PD's office, and the conversation begins.  Could the morning show do a live endorsement?  Or could the afternoon guy make an appearance for a key advertiser?  Or how bad would […]

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In the Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst year since the (gasp) Great Depression, two stocks stand out as lone exceptions – Wal-Mart and McDonald's.  Both companies' stock prices actually went up last year.  What can we learn from this finding, and how does it apply to our own businesses? In tough times, consumers run to […]

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In an interesting confluence of events, a couple of often beaten up broadcast entities had a good week.  Both Arbitron and their PPM ratings, and iBiquity and their HD Radio product, each came away with a few points in the win column. For Arbitron, it started with the Attorneys General of both New York and […]

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Actually, in Subaru's case, their sales actually increased by 1% in '08 (through November), in the midst of the worst slump in memory for automakers.  Living here in Detroit and witnessing the people-impact of the Detroit 3's strategy and actions generates even more respect for Subaru's accomplishment.   So what has this mid-market car brand actually […]

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What does it say about the state of creativity when the Christian Science Monitor reports that network TV has become too safe?  Citing the lack of breakout, cutting edge programming, writer Gloria Goodale calls out television's powers-that-be for not taking chances on bold new shows.  Even during a time when viewers are staying home and […]

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What does it say about the state of creativity when the Christian Science Monitor reports that network TV has become too safe?  Citing the lack of breakout, cutting edge programming, writer Gloria Goodale calls out television's powers-that-be for not taking chances on bold new shows.  Even during a time when viewers are staying home and […]

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Our good friend, Greater Media's Buzz Knight, is spending this week at the Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas.  This puts him in a very small elite group of radio guys, as he discovers what the rest of the world is doing.  While news reports from CES describe a more muted environment because of the economy, […]

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Today's guest blog comes from our Internet Strategies Director, Tim Davis, who advises us that the Boomer generation has very strong purchasing power, and should not be overlooked. Most people who work and focus on the digital space spend their days (and nights) thinking about the younger generations – Tweens, Gen Y, and even Gen […]

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News item: New York FM ranks 34th – In Atlanta Because of heavy use of weighting in PPM, four panelists gave WBLS, New York an average weekly cume of 23,300 listeners in Atlanta when they went to the Big Apple for Thanksgiving.  The following week New York's "Power" WWPR-FM had a similar fate.  PPM critics […]

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As of this writing, our 15th iPhone app has rolled out, generating thousands of downloads, and I'm finding myself listening to more streaming radio than ever.  Of course, new media is a learning process, and I'm absorbing lots of new material.  Please permit me to share a few takeaways with you. 1. The sound of your […]

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Less than two years ago when it was first released, the iPhone cost early adopters $600.  Now, these devices are just under $200, and Apple is doing everything it can to make them mass appeal mobile gadgets. Last week's announcement that iPhones will be available in Wal-Mart stores changes the game, as the marketing rapidly moves […]

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One of the things I've learned from incessantly watching CNBC over the years is how totally wrong most of the pundits have been about the stock market, oil prices, the economy… and well, you name it. So when this report from FitchRatings came out recently predicting media spending trends for '09, I read it with an […]

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    Have a very Happy and Safe New Year!  The JacoBlog will return on Monday, January 5.

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As we come off a tough political election campaign, the subject of "attack ads" is a constant in post-election analysis.  Did either McCain or Obama's attacks hit the mark, did they backfire, and who did the best job of playing offense and fending off attacks?   While I'll leave that discussion to you political junkies, let's […]

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Jacobs Media's Paul Jacobs provides us with insight on how the RAB and local broadcasters can become proactive and compete for shrinking newspaper advertising dollars. Consider these two headlines from earlier this month: December 16, 2008 – Detroit Newspapers Announce Suspension of Home Delivery Four Days/Week December 17, 2008 – The RAB Announces "Imagine A […]

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