Headlines

Getting pirate radio broadcasters off the air has been a pet peeve of FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly for a very long time. At Radio Ink's Hispanic Radio Conference in Fort Lauderdale, O'Rielly's tune didn't change on the issue. In fact, he said it's still a huge problem in South Florida and has a disproportionate impact on the Hispanic radio community. But he went even further.

Things might be different today, according to a panel at the Radio Ink Hispanic Radio Conference on Tuesday. The panel was entitled, "What We Learned From the Election & Where We Go From Here." The NAB's Dennis Wharton pointed out that Donald Trump won a higher percentage (29%) of the Hispanic vote in 2016 than Mitt Romney (27%) did when he ran for President.

During our panel on the 2016 political election, former CBS Radio VP Harvey Nagler said the mood of the country is polarized and there is no leadership to bring it together. "It's a sad situation," he said, adding he's never seen people so mad at the state of the country. He also had an opinion about the President saying the media was the enemy.

The winners of the annual Medallas de Cortez (sponsored by vCreative) awards for excellence in Hispanic Radio were announced Tuesday at the Hispanic Radio Conference in Fort Lauderdale. Prestigious Broadcaster of the Year ho nors went to SBS EVP/Programming and Multi-Platform Coordinator Jesus Salas, while, as previously announced, Frank Montero of Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth received the Distinguished Leadership Award.

The 7th Annual Meggan Morency Wild West Night, recently held at Alligator Ron Bergeron’s Green Glades Ranch in Weston, Florida, was attended by over 700 people; $80,000 was raised, which will go to equine-assisted activities and therapy programs at Bit-By-Bit Medical Therapeutic Riding Center.

And it's just in time for our Hispanic Radio Conference taking place today in Fort Lauderdale. The issue features our cover story interview with Entravision’s “Erazno y la Chokolata," a profile on broadcast attorney Frank Montero, some of the greatest-looking radio facilities in the country, and much more. To subscribe to Radio Ink go HERE. And check out our Hispanic Radio conference agenda HERE.

The FCC Commissioner said a lot of work needs to be done removing outdated and unnecessary burdens imposed on broadcasters by the Commission. He admits broadcasters face some of the most archaic FCC rules, with many that no longer make sense in today’s competitive marketplace. One of those rules is the Main Studio Rule and O'Rielly wants it eliminated.

BIA/Kelsey is reporting that digital revenue for radio increased 14% in 2016, to $811 million, compared with only a minor increase in over-the-air revenue. The new data is part of BIA/Kelsey's first-quarter Investing In Radio Market Report. Over-the-air revenue was flat at $14.1 billion, according to the new report.

On March 21 Cumulus received the notification from the NASDAQ that it's not in compliance. Cumulus has 45 days, or until May 5, to submit a plan to regain compliance. If a plan is submitted and accepted, Cumulus may be granted an extension of up to 180 calendar days from the date of the notification letter to evidence compliance.

Entravision has inked its popular President and COO for another three years, through February 29, 2020. Liberman will be paid an annual salary of $650,000 and be eligible for a bonus of up to 100% of his base salary. He's also eligible for equity incentive grants under the company’s equity incentive plans.