Industry News

The Federal Communications Commission is planning to vote on a proposal to improve the accessibility of the Emergency Alert System at its Open Meeting on Dec. 14.

In announcing the agenda for the meeting, Jessica Rosenworcel, chair of the FCC noted that “the Emergency Alert System (EAS) allows the President, FEMA, the National Weather Service, or state and local authorities to deliver warnings to TV viewers about dangerous weather and other imminent threats. Unfortunately, alerts sent using legacy broadcast technology have limited ability [to] relay text, which can create disparities between the information conveyed in the audio and visual alert messages, including during nationwide tests of the system. The Commission will vote on a proposal to improve the clarity and accessibility of EAS visual messages and tests, especially for persons who are deaf or hard of hearing or are otherwise unable to access the audio message.”

The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the changes to the EAS system would “propose to require use of a predetermined script as the visual message for legacy EAS nationwide tests, and propose to revise the terminology associated with the codes for nationwide tests, in order to improve the clarity of these visual messages displayed to the public for Common Alerting Protocol-based nationwide EAS tests,” the FCC said.

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It would also “propose to require that stations check for and use the available CAP versions of all State and Local Area alerts (which includes alerts issued by the National Weather Service) instead of the legacy EAS versions, to increase the use of CAP in light of CAP’s superior visual messaging capabilities.”

The Notice of Inquiry would “seek comment on how the legacy EAS architecture can be modified, augmented, or redesigned to enable alert originators to relay visual text that matches their audio message in legacy EAS alerts, as well as to enable more functionality within the EAS as a whole.”

The full agenda is available here.

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The post FCC Plans Vote on Improving Accessibility of Emergency Alerts appeared first on Radio World.

Tascam Portacapture X8 Recorder Top View

Tascam has launched the Portacapture X8, a new portable eight-track audio recorder. The unit can record with up to 32-bit floating point resolution, offers sampling rates up to 192 kHz and sports a 3.5-inch touchscreen.

Aiming to help users who might be unsure of what settings to use in a given situation, the unit offers a Launcher feature, which allows users to pick from a series of presets (“recoding apps”), with a half-dozen settings offered at press time — multitrack recording, interview, podcast, music recording and field recording.

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The Portacapture X8 has two detachable microphones with 14.6 mm diaphragms that can be mounted in either AB or XY orientation. Also onboard are Tascam’s proprietary HDDA preamplifiers, along with four XLR/TRS combo jacks, and Aux In and Line Out, which can optionally serve as audio input and output for a camera. The level of the camera output can be adjusted to the requirements of the respective model, while functions for marks and slate tones are also available.

DSP options on the Portacapture X8 include compressor, limiter, low-cut filter, noise gate, reverb, automatic level adjustment and more. Settings can be made via simplified or advanced pages within the user interface. Users can also control the unit remotely via Bluetooth and the Portacapture Control app for Android and iOS.

Tascam Portacapture X8 Recorder Side View

In total, the eight-channel recorder (six tracks + stereo mix) includes a USB interface, eight inputs and two outputs; additionally, for monitoring, a built-in loudspeaker is available. The Portacapture X8 can be used with microSD, microSDHC and microSDXC cards with up to 512 GB capacity.

Send your new equipment news to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Tascam Portacapture X8 Recorder Debuts appeared first on Radio World.

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The FCC’s full-service noncommercial educational (NCE) filing window earlier this month could result in the displacement of an existing LPFM station if there is an interference complaint from the proposed NCE station.

REC Networks is advising eight LPFM licensees to “closely watch the progress of new NCE applications and be prepared to take remedial action to change operations to a different channel as the result of a potential complaint by a new NCE station or highly intolerable incoming interference.” Low-power FM is considered a secondary service.

The NCE filing window, the first since 2007, included 20 reserved-band channels from 88.1 to 91.9 MHz.

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Michi Bradley, founder of REC Networks, stated on her website the FCC will not immediately shut down any LPFM as a matter of course once the full-service stations application is granted. However, if a complaint is sent to the FCC, the LPFM licensee must discontinue operations within 24 hours and only resume operations when directed to do so by the FCC, according to REC Networks.

“Unlike commercial stations, which must include a significant portion of the community of license within the 70 dBu City Grade contour, NCE FM stations operating on the reserved band channels (88.1– 91.9 MHz) are only required to place a 60 dBu contour over at least 50 percent of the designated community of license,” REC stated.

Here’s the list of potentially displaced LPFM stations:

• KAKU-LP Kahului, Hawaii
• KCWB-LP Crown King, Ariz.
• KEQQ-LP Grand Forks, N.D.
• KQLO-LP Clarksville, Ark.
• KTHN-LP Texarkana, Texas
• KWRK-LP Fairbanks, Alaska
• KXWR-LP Tsaile, Ariz.
• WKMP-LP Eastman, Ga.
• WYTC-LP Hyde Park, Vt.

LPFMs on second-adjacent channels of proposed NCE stations are not subject to displacement, according to REC.

The consulting group also placed another 19 LPFM stations on their “encroachment warnings” list for their co-channel and first-adjacent relationship with a proposed NCE FM. Those LPFM stations do not face displacement, but could potentially be operating within the interfering contours of a newly proposed full-service station. REC Networks notes those LPFM stations may or may not suffer incoming interference from the new NCE FM.

“The LPFM station must accept any incoming interference from those full-service stations, and they have no grounds to complain about a full-service station operating with their authorized facilities,” according to REC.

REC said a handful of low-power FM operators are seeking to secure a full-power noncommercial FM and in “most cases those LPFM stations have proposed their own channels.”

The FCC, which had more than 1,200 applications filed in the November NCE window, said it has begun to process NCE applications and is expected to announce winning bids that faced no competing applications. The FCC then will reach out to competing applicants with mutually exclusive applications and urge them to reach a settlement prior to completing the award process.

The FCC has said once the licensing of noncommercial FMs is completed, it expects to open another filing window for low-power FMs.

Comment on this or any article. Write to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post REC Networks Warns LPFMs of Potential Displacement appeared first on Radio World.

BOSTON — American Public Television (APT), the syndicator of content to U.S. public TV stations nationwide, is preparing for leadership changes in its Exchange, Syndication and Premium Service programming divisions.

The changes are prompted by the retirement of its Vice President of Syndication & Premium Service, and are effective December 17.

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For a generation of radio listeners, thanks to the programming influence of Bill Drake and a woman described by the Detroit Free Press as a “golden-eared tastemaker,” CKLW — “The Big 8” — became the dominant Midwest and Central Ontario Top 40 station of its day.

From taking a part-time job as a weekend switchboard operator to her rise in 1967 to Music Director, there’s perhaps been no person more influential to popular music and its dissemination via broadcast media than Rosalie Tromblay.

Now, former listeners of The Big 8 and radio industry veterans from across North America are pausing to pay tribute to Tromblay, who has died of complications from Alzheimer’s Disease at the age of 82.

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Just days after President/CEO David Field snapped up more shares of his company’s stock, Audacy Inc. stock on Wednesday continued its month-long downturn.

As the clock struck 1pm Eastern, AUD was down to a price last seen in late December 2020.

The price: $2.7250, reflecting a 4.4% dip from Tuesday’s trading.

If the closing price holds at this level, it would solidify a complete erasure of all 2021 share growth for the audio content and distribution company.

The latest dip sees Audacy Inc. shares fall by $1 per share since November 5, with AUD closing on that date at $3.75 per share.

Audacy’s market cap at 1pm was $385.5 million, and analysts maintain a $4.10 per share target price for AUD.

It was July 5 when Audacy stock was last at or near that price.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Media Bureau, together with the FCC’s Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau, will co-host a forum on December 2 to explore the state of closed captioning availability for online video programming.

The event will also see participants discuss ways to enhance accessibility, including the Commission’s authority to adopt new rules.

Furthermore, the Forum will explore current and prospective best practices and other existing or possible voluntary efforts that could enhance the availability of closed captioning online.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is scheduled to welcome Forum participants, while Senator Ed Markey (D-Mass.) will deliver keynote remarks.

The Forum will include two panels that will feature speakers such as television, cable, and online video programming distributors, academics and consumer advocates.

Additional details about the December 2 forum, including a full event agenda, can be found
here: https://www.fcc.gov/news-events/events/2021/12/video-programming-accessibilityforum-online-closed-captioning.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — With the nomination of Jessica Rosenworcel to formally take the Chair of the FCC unchallenged, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is expected to move forward with setting up a full Senate vote on President Biden’s pick to succeed Ajit Pai in a Committee markup session scheduled for Wednesday, December 1.

Once that markup concludes, get ready for some fireworks: Contentious FCC Commissioner nominee Gigi Sohn and National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information nominee Alan Davidson will be teed up for consideration.

Their nominations are be among the most politically polarized and heavily scrutinized in ages.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — As promised on November 19 by noted Houlihan Lokey media broker Elliot Evers, administrator of the “CXR Radio Station Trust, lawyers representing Apollo Global Management-controlled Cox Media Group and the trust have filed its Reply Comments in what’s officially “Media Bureau Docket No. 19-98” in “a timely fashion.”

To little surprise, the stance that CMG, and Evers, are taking is largely defensive, expressing the belief that poor economic conditions present an opportunity with precedent for the Commission to extend a divestiture deadline tied to Apollo’s majority ownership acquisition of Cox Media Group.

Making the argument on behalf of Evers? David Oxenford.

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Chris Imlay has been a stalwart at the Society of Broadcast Engineers for four decades. He is about to retire from that role. Read what he told us about his career and his passion for a particular musical instrument.

Also, making magic online: Buyer’s Guide offers a roundup of tools helpful for podcasting, streaming and online content delivery. John Bisset shares a tip about T-R-R-S connectors. And David DeSpain shares some shortwave memories.

(Note that his issue contains preview coverage of the IBC show, which subsequently was canceled.)

Read it here.

The post Inside the Nov. 24, 2021 Issue of Radio World appeared first on Radio World.