Headlines

(By Bob McCurdy) I was speaking with a salesperson last week who asked for some career advice. I strongly suggested that they identify ways to stand apart from the competition, stressing that making oneself identifiable is easy but that making them part of a daily routine is far more difficult.

In our continuing series of interviews with radio stations in the line of fire of Hurricane Florence, today we hear from Fayetteville Market Manager Erika Erika Beasley and Operations Manager Randy Bliss (pictured here) who say they are prepared for battle. "This is the time we as local broadcasters do what we do best, serve our local communities that we live and work in."

Reggie Dee works for Alpha Media in West Palm Beach. Today, he's very far from West Palm Beach. Right now Reggie is somewhere between Wichita Falls and Layton, Oklahoma. He's on his way to Seattle. You might think, so what, that's no big deal, a lot of people drive across the country. Reggie Dee is walking. He's walking for a cause and a promise. A promise he made to his mom.

The team at iHeartMedia sees the growth of podcasting and has decided it is real. The company announced on Thursday that it's buying Stuff Media, a huge publisher of podcast content, including the HowStuffWorks podcasting business as well as a slate of premium podcast content.

Newsday's Neil Best is reporting that an announcement could come as early as Monday that New York Mets broadcasts will shift from WOR-AM to WCBS-AM starting with the 2019 season. The Mets have been with iHeart's WOR for five seasons. Entercom's WFAN carries the New York Yankees.

The Milwaukee Bucks and WTMJ Radio have expanded their long-time partnership, with WTMJ continuing as the radio home of the team. Bucks games this upcoming season will air on 620 AM and 103.3 FM with Ted Davis and Dennis Krause calling the action. 

(By Ronald Robinson) For what purpose, one wonders, is it to the benefit of the radio industry to take extraordinary steps to improve the effectiveness and appeal of locally produced commercials? Although so obvious as to render the question rhetorical, the correct answer is: To generate better results for the advertiser.

Pai says FCC staff has already been deployed to survey the radiofrequency spectrum across critical areas of South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia, and the FCC our Operations Center is open 24 hours a day.

The National Association of Broadcasters sent a letter to members on Wednesday that included a link to the NAB's "Ten Steps to Disaster Preparation and Recovery" guide. The 4-page document details everything from staff safety to programming continuity to reviewing your risks. You may want to print it out and study it if you are in Florence's path. HERE it is.

And this one will not be sitting in the prize closet. Morrissey Boulevard in Boston is the home to Beasley's 92.9 FM, 96.9 FM, and 105.7 FM. A UPS package arrived to the building that contained what authorities believe to be 20 bags of marijuana.