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As more broadcasters struggle with "the digital thing," it becomes critical that there’s strategic vision in the boardroom.  There’s too much at stake, and too many silos demanding funding.  From where should radio’s investment in digital technology be siphoned?  At a time when stations are starving for promotion, marketing, and content dollars, how to best […]

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It’s amazing how accurate a sample of 31 people can be.  The name of today’s entry is a quote from "The Bedroom Project" – and we were surprised to hear it back in February of last year. I frequently reference that ethnographic study in this blog, and recently, a JupiterResearch study confirms a key finding […]

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In a new brief filed at the Supreme Court by some of the most influential people in broadcasting – Former FCC Chairmen Newton Minow and Mark Fowler, along with former FCC Commissioner Jim Quello – the FCC’s attack on indecency has been referred to as a "Victorian crusade."  Along with other top legal and regulatory […]

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Just when you think the musicFIRST coalition couldn’t come up with more outrageous arguments, they use the Clear Channel $24 billion sale as a rationale to extract more money from the radio business. Their Executive Director, Doyle Bartlett, offers this original argument: "Without music, this deal would be impossible.  Without music, Clear Channel’s radio empire […]

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AOL has released its fourth annual survey about email, and there’s a whole lot of addiction going on.  Nearly half of respondents say they’re hopelessly hooked on email (up from 15% a year ago).  One in five say they check email more than 10 times each day. How bad is it?  About a fifth say […]

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Well, Jacobs Media, in cooperation with R&R, is asking that question in a different way at this year’s Summit 13 in Austin, on September 18th.  We’re assembling a group of nine industry luminaries to give us their best prescription of what radio needs to do during these challenging times.  We’ve put together a forum that […]

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I’m writing this blog at 35,000 feet on a Northwest 757 heading to Seattle.  When I land, I’ll email it to the office, where it will be proofed and posted. In the not-so-distant future, I’ll be able to accomplish all of this from the plane.  That’s because Delta Airlines (which is buying Northwest) will have […]

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  With less than 200 days until the television we know and love goes all-digital, it is becoming clear that the conversion campaign has worked.  Are there still older people who don’t get it and are panicked about the changeover?  Of course.  But in the main, the Digital Transition Coalition has done a masterful job […]

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At the recent Arbitron Radio Advisory Council meetings in one of my favorite places on earth, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, the RAC Chair Chuck DuCoty made some tough observations about the diary system. As we know, many markets will never see PPM, and many others won’t be metered for several years.  As DuCoty noted, diary sample […]

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What does the presumptive Democratic nominee for President and the nation’s most successful Alternative station in the country have in common? They are both getting screwed by the companies that provide ratings to measure their relative competitive positions.  In Obama’s case, it’s all the pollsters that dutifully conduct survey after survey, providing the American public […]

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Jacobs clients are well aware of our emphasis on at-work campaigns, starting with a vengeance after we read and absorbed that groundbreaking 1997 study from Arbitron and Edison that illustrated the large scope of listening at Rock stations.  More than a decade and scores of Workforce-type promotions later, the value of branding stations with a […]

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Well, you may have been getting the kids ready for camp, starting your gardening/around the house projects, and shopping for Mother’s Day gifts. But the odds are also pretty good that you also watched online videos in May – and a lot of them.  According to comScore, Americans watched 12 billion (that’s with a "b") […]

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Bill Jacobs weighs in on the implications of Internet usage surpassing time spent listening to the radio.  The Internet is indeed a runaway train. A recent study released by The Media Audit finalizes the inevitable – web usage has passed time spent with radio for the first time.  (TV still has the lead, but it’s […]

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Trying to make sense of the digital transition is on everyone’s minds and plates these days.  What is the digital application?  And how can traditional radio stations figure out the best way to pull it off, utilizing existing content and smart digital tools? So at Summit 13 in Austin, we’re consulting with the doctor – […]

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With all the talk about Jay Leno leaving, Conan O’Brien taking over, and Jimmy Fallon getting started, an interesting detail has been missed by many media observers.  Instead of simply throwing Fallon to the wolves on "Late Night" (remember how critics hated Conan at first), NBC will actually start his TV hosting career online in […]

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We know a lot of radio broadcasters who are frustrated with their inability to effectively monetize their new digital offerings.  While some stations and clusters are making progress, it’s a process trying to move dollars over to digital. I recently participated in a fascinating day-long seminar with big players in newspapers, magazines, and television discussing […]

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Today Keith Cunningham lets us know that conducting artist interviews can be fun, entertaining and informative for your listening audience. If you missed Rush’s recent interview and performance on The Colbert Report, you missed some very entertaining television.  You can watch it below, or visit Colbert’s site to see even more.  As you watch this, […]

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In a story with resonance to those of us in radio, Nielsen has announced that it is dumping its phone-based sample for its paper diary samples, and is transitioning to a system that uses addresses instead. Why?  Because of the swift decline of TV homes provided by the landline telephone sample frame.  Nielsen indicates that […]

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