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(By John Shomby) If you were scheduled for a flight or forced to pay with cash at your favorite restaurant on July 19, you are aware of just how fragile our technological ecosystem can be. A global IT outage highlighted dangerous weaknesses around the world.

Radio executives have high hopes that political ad spending is going to pull the industry out of its flat-to-down revenue-growth quicksand. Media Monitors has put together a snapshot of which candidates are spending money on radio as we edge closer to actually casting votes. They compiled data from Omaha, Des Moines, and the Quad Cities of Iowa/Illinois to show what's happening in Iowa and in New Hampshire. They also pulled data from Boston and Portsmouth-Dover, NH. Here are the findings...Picture courtesy CNN.com

Broadcasters continued the fight to keep AM radio in autos yesterday for the second day of the AM summit in Washington DC. As the event closes, Radio Ink talked with some of the participants about their experiences on the Hill.

WIRK's Tim Leary and Chelsea Taylor in West Palm Beach set out on a campaign to raise $5,000 in 5 Days for The Wounded Veterans Relief Fund. They wound up raising over $6,500 to help veterans in Florida and they got to swim with sharks in the process. 

NPR says its radio broadcasts, podcasts, and digital reporting have all reached new heights in 2016. CEO Jarl Mohn says, “NPR’s increased ratings and digital engagement can be attributed to first-rate journalism, riveting storytelling, revamped newsmagazines, live reporting, and better user platforms."

ABC Audio announced some new programming at the Country Radio Seminar. 'Country Life' is a lifestyle-focused RSS feed featuring content from country correspondent Stephen Hubbard.

Hubbard Radio Seattle has hired Jeff Dubow as the new Executive Producer for Brooke & Jubal in The Morning. The Brooke & Jubal show is heard on Hubbard's KQMV in Seattle and syndicated on over 50 stations through Premiere Radio Networks.

iHeartMedia Chicago has raised $925,831 during its Lurie Children’s Radiothon supporting Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital. On December 11, the six-station cluster collected donations for pediatric care and research throughout the community.

Entravision has appointed Laura Saldivar (pictured) to SVP of Integrated Marketing Solutions in Los Angeles. In addition, Crystal Gomez has been promoted to VP Local Agency and National Sales for Entravision radio in L.A. Gomez was previously VP of National Sales, Western Region.

(Randy Lane) Consultant Mark St. John and I once learned, painfully, just how hard it is to replace a successful show when the legendary Mark & Brian left I-95 Birmingham for KLOS. We tried to do everything right. We didn't.