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Scripps (formerly Scripps-Howard Newspapers) is divesting its 24 Radio stations. They are hanging on to their TV stations, for now
Don’t blame McDonald’s for destroying the Amazon rain forest – it was the Harvard University endowment
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-03-01/harvard-blew-1-billion-in-bet-on-tomatoes-sugar-and-eucalyptus
The URL says sugar but it is really sugar cane for ethanol. Brazil had a huge government program for that since North America won’t buy their cheaper healthier sugar and prefers the less healthy HFCS.
I don’t have the numbers, so hypothetically, if switching from gasoline to ethanol prevents x amount of carbon from entering the atmosphere, does it make sense to do that if burning down the rain forest eliminates the jungle that had removed y amount from the atmosphere year after year?
It’s all about the money…. and that leads to a recommendation for “Slum Dog Millionaire” on your new TV. 😉
Tonight, we went to the Jewish Film Festival in a local theater and watched a documentary about Austrian Jews who escaped Hitler by fleeing to Shanghai.
We spent a few hours in the afternoon riding trams in Hong Kong, and visiting Statue Square in the Central District, following along on Google Earth. After the movie we investigated recipes for fish stroganoff.
Living with me is quite a roller coaster ride.
Fred, I like a decent conspiracy occasionally. So I wanted to run this one by you based on your experience. The Progressives have infiltrated the NYSE and other exchanges. Their virus makes bogus trades which lower the key indicators (DOW, S&P500 and NASDAQ) with the goal being to take the market growth and the world’s best economy off the table for the mid-term elections (and beyond).
You know the inner workings – is this possible?
Well, I have long believed that other countries interfere in the US elections to the detriment of Republicans. I have believed that since before working at NASDAQ, and it doesn’t need an elaborate technical technique.
I left NASDAQ in 2002, so my information is far out of date. What NASDAQ ran was essentially the wholesale side, supporting the traders of brokers and dealers. You didn’t need an official NASDAQ terminal to trade NASDAQ stocks, but if you did – the terminal was provided by NASDAQ, and connected to a private network run by MCI. Opening the case would disable the device and result in an investigation. At the time, the rules required that a human press a key to cause a trade to happen. NASDAQ wanted to prevent people from side-loading an interface to automate their trading algorithms.
Because there were other places to trade NASDAQ stocks without that rule, and because the NASDAQ network deliberately delayed traffic to mitigate the speed-of-light geographical advantage, the wholesale trading business moved elsewhere. The NASDAQ terminal became just a backup for the firms if their own system went down. While I was still there, they announced NASDAQ was going out of the business of providing trading terminals.
For whatever reason, millennial programmers seem to be SJW progressives. AI trading algorithms coded with ‘bear market bias’ could be one possibility.
Another involves words uttered by the illustrious Federal Reserve Chairman, such as “75 basis points”… which can sway things -much- more convincingly.
I seem to recall NASDAQ or another exchange using several coils (miles) of fiber-optic cable to delay transaction data by a few microseconds in order to impede High Frequency Trading predators from gaining advantage. Fred?
that sounds plausible. I seem to remember one of the strategies proposed was to slow down the time from receipt of the messages until they were executed. The system I designed for NASDAQ could have done that relatively easily.
It’s a complicated problem – the issue came up for me when the CBOT wanted an electronic trading system in 1989 – global access over relatively low speed connections. You not only have to delay the “close in” arrival of transactions, but also the outbound quote and trade updates. “At the same time” or “level playing field” are difficult concepts in reality.
The Internet (for the masses) arrives at Cuba
https://aeon.co/videos/frustrations-flirtations-and-family-reunions-the-first-days-of-public-wifi-in-cuba
Tease of things to come
http://conservative-talk.streamingradioguide.com/
Nice.
And the average age of the Fox New Channel is over 70 years. iphone, schmie phone, they don’t need it. 😉
Here is a list from 2015 of the age and gender breakdown of TV channels
http://www.multichannel.com/content/shift-network-median-age-and-gender-skew/401984
This is an industry publication – note that it isn’t “time spent watching”, just age and male/female. the first table is ordered by sex, with the heavy male audience first.
OTT stands for Over The Top, the extreme version of which Countess and I are doing – subscribing to the Cable TV company only for the internet access.
pretty much everyone seems to be bundling up the lower tier of cable TV programming for OTT – DirecTV, Youtube (Google), SlingTV, Hulu
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/currency/skinny-bundle-users-watch-other-over-top-services-comscore/166775
Good data. Everyone in it is 3 years older now. 😉
My implication was really more about the tease. I have to large screens connected to my PC and love the big screen. I wear bifocals. Small screen phones are my second choice for accessing the internet.
If you want a more popular site, or the new owner does, and all the advertising revenue to go with it, consider that resides in a phone app for each of Android and the iPhone.
Have a bunch of old DVDs sitting around?
Vudu will “convert them” to digital, which in reality means by proving you have the physical disc, then you register them for online playing, starting at $2 for SD format. since $2.99 seems to be the going price for streaming old SD movies, that doesn’t seem all that worthwhile
https://www.vudu.com/content/in_mobile_disc_to_digital.html
If you have the T-Mobile Tuesday app and are a T-Mobile customer, many weeks you get a free Vudo movie that you can watch on any device in HD.
I didn’t check yet to see what today’s free goodies are – it is Tuesday.
There are rumblings that the next generation of the Cox Media empire may be willing to unload their radio properties. Too bad nobody is left to buy them.
Cox is holding an “all hands” meeting with employees to discuss the future
Cox just sold off their newspapers in Austin and Palm Beach, where they have no other media properties
Over at Cumulus, WLUP-FM was a “lease with requirement to buy” from Randy Michaels and his Merlin Media. The Cumulus bankruptcy put that deal into play, allowing Merlin to sell this iconic Chicago radio station.
There is a buyer – our old friends at K-love (EMF) are plopping down a little over $21 million in cash. They had previously bought WWIQ-FM in the Philadelphia market for $20 million.
K-Love is like a virus attacking FM stations around the country. lol I don’t think I have seem them attach any AM stations… and I think all the FM stations stream the same audio with little to no local programming.
That is a different model than even iHeart and Cummulus that both own hundreds of stations, yet each has a different stream.
Overall, I see our country moving more to the K-Love model – basically one station that broadcasts from different transmitters in different cities. I saw that 25 years ago in the UK, not just with the BBC but with commercial stations. They would be on adjacent frequencies in adjacent cities so that if you are listening to 95.5 and it got weak, the old FM phase lock loop that locked on the station would lock on the next one without a need to manually tune. (Once FM radios advanced to internal crystals to control their locking in the late 70s and early 80s, manual tuning to the new frequency was required. )
The only time EMF buys an AM station is when it is a package deal. They turn off the AM and hire a broker to unload it.
The FCC just rescinded the main studio rule, so radio stations will gladly give up the costs of having a full time secretary and manager on site to handle all the in-person requests to see the Public Issues file. That is an important corner that was turned.
Probably a good thing. So I envision that in 20 years if people still listen to analog radio, we may see a format like “Rock 99” that is on stations all across the country on 98.7, 98.9. 99.1, or 99.3 depending on the city. We see some of that in Brazil and Argentina already. One brand and you never need to stray to other parts of the FM band when you travel.
I prefer the digital streams, so long as they are not locked down and require a subscription.
Damn, I hate that I have seen the high point in some many technologies and cultures.
Seriously.
Radio was awesome back in the day. It had a regional flavor. Every station was different.
K-Love sux. FM sucks anymore. Country music sucks. I don’t want an autonomous vehicle. I like my 1998 Jeep wrangler.
I think my diesel truck which is a 2005 model, the Cummins engine will burn JP-5 if I had to, and no urea. No regen process, to burn the crap out of a catalytic converter.
Local TV sucks, its a power point with mindless stories that we should pay more in taxes.
Computers ‘meh’ I use older keyboards they are better. The OS sux. They don’t want me using cash anymore.
you can’t go some places because of Obo and his thug gangs are still around. Thats annoying.
I guess CC ‘s note hit a nerve, I don’t like K-love, I like tuning my own radio. I like adjusting the HVAC controls in my car or rolling down the window. I love peanut butter and jelly sandwiches ( But they say the bread is bad for you) I miss those. Youtube is useless.
someone always ruins stuff you like. WOWO use to play some damn good music late at night .
parrott
The EU is going to put a tariff on US peanut butter – more for us!
Partott! Wow. At the SRG reunion, I hope you give me a ride just so I can roll down a window again. Haven’t been able to do that in decades with all the electric motors and window switches. How do you meet the new childproof standards for the snowflakes? lol
Next thing you will be telling us is that your cigarette lighter gets hot enough to start a fire! Call the Fire Department so they can monitor that traveling danger!
Here is one for you to enjoy. Be sure to roll that window down and flick the ashes on the street… and when you get close to the filter, toss that butt into grass by the side of the road as you fly by listening to this classic song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmOe27SJ3Yc
ALERT – Smokey “THE” Bear just advised me to revise my post and suggest that you instead use the ash tray that is built into your car door. … if you don’t, that Indian who cries when you pollute the rivers will cry again.
Oh no! Here he goes again. Paging MA Sen Warren!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Suu84khNGY
Here is an interesting update. “Cars That Parent US” and keep us from doing what we want them to do. Usually in the name of safety but for cars that do not let you disable the feature, they are actually reducing safety.
https://www.ericpetersautos.com/2018/03/18/cars-parent-us/
I frequently say to Countess that our 2001 car is smarter than I am. I still don’t know why it waited 17 years to tell me the front seats have heaters. The radio has a CD player that I have never used, and I think it may be able to play FM analog radio stations.
How astroturfing works when TV journalists close their eyes
http://thefederalist.com/2018/03/01/take-two-weeks-truth-emerge-parkland-students-astroturfing/
I will be celebrating the semi-annual (late) Jake Hartford Daylight Saving Time confabulation ceremony. Remember, Fall Forward, Spring Back. You don’t want to be late for church in the morning.
If it worked for Jake, why is he forever late? 😉
Heart attack from trying to do an early morning Radio show on WLS-AM
Fun fact:
https://www.mydaytondailynews.com/lifestyles/health/heart-attack-sufferers-more-likely-survive-doctor-away-study-says/wmpzoJBQzQdTqAKChB2rOM/
With the exception of Religion on the Line, WABC-AM’s entire Sunday schedule is informercials and brokered programming.
WABC has always had a crappy weekend and especially schedule… even before they dropped Bob Brinker’s Moneytalk.
WOR isn’t much better. Used to be on Saturday nights they had competing infomercials. I haven’t checked recently as I don’t have access to a streaming radio guide. 😉
Back in the day, I used to turn the dial to WPHT in Philadelphia or WCTC New Brunswick, the station were Bruce Williams got his start and where you could hear Mary Walter (now with Parrott’s WMAL) in the Morning.
One of her radio colleagues there was the father of one of the actors of the 80s hit tv show “The Wonder Years”, actor Josh Saviano. Josh’s dad, Ralph A. Saviano didn’t have an infomercial, but a regular show. That didn’t stop him from stealing $138k from elderly investors.
https://www.facebook.com/1450WCTC/posts/463648687051494
http://www.nj.com/somerset/index.ssf/2013/06/bridgewater_financial_adviser.html
Careful with the financial advisers that use radio to scam the elderly.
Crap. Per the NY Times, he wasn’t just a local guy, but had a nationally syndicated show
https://www.nytimes.com/1993/11/01/style/weddings-neale-s-godfrey-ralph-a-saviano.html
Having done more listening in the last week, it reinforces just how much of talk Radio’s content and advertising is designed to exploit people’s fears
I didn’t know where Mary Walter came from. She is nice and pleasant. She doesn’t annoy me in the mornings, when I am logging into the servers to check whats going on at work.
Yeah , whats up with all these bogus real estate and financial infomercial shows ? Cumulus local took Cigar Dave off to play that stupid (beep) .
I fired up WGNC to see if Don Imus was still on in the Mornings,thursday and friday last week, nope, some kind of espn sports crap.
Imus hasn’t been on his show for a long time now,
Luckily WEBY still has Tom Gresham gun talk on Sundays.
Parrott
Yeah, she is OK. If I recall, her show was called Mary in the Morning or something like that and it followed directly after Art Bell.
I can’t prove it, but I believe she does her WMAL show from NJ. Immediately prior to WMAL she was on WHAS in Kentucky and seemed to make the switch and never mention the old station. At WMAL, I had heard some back and forth during a break where it sounded like Mary was not in the same location with her on-air partner. I remember her husband is or was a physician in NJ and it is not easy to pick up and move a medical practice from state to state.
> “Yeah, she is OK. ”
Listening to WMAL this morning and she has a guest host, Lt Tony Shaffer, the guy that is on Fox News regularly. They are discussing the Uber car accident in Arizona where a homeless person stepped out in front of the car and was killed. Here was the conversation (from memory):
Lt Col Anthony Shaffer (talking with Mary): “You and I drive the roads in DC every day”
Mary Walter: “Yep.”
You be the judge.
Imus is ending his show at the end of March. He probably has vacation time. Often a radio station/network doesn’t want the risk of someone on the air.
Since Cumulus / Westwood One is in a contested bankruptcy, they probably tore up his contract.
Mary used to do a show on Fox News
http://www.marywalter.com/bio/
Almost nobody in talk radio goes to a radio station to do their show. Two? years ago Boston had a horrific snow storm. Jeff Kuhner, the only honest man in DC, was oblivious to just how much trouble Boston was in, because he wasn’t living there. Unlike Howie Carr, after work he was not going out and schmoozing with the local politicians and newspaper people. Listeners know.
Next you’ll tell me Art Bell did his show from The Philippines. 😉
well Carp . Tom Taylor newsletter has Canadian ratings for Toronto and other cities in Canada. CFMJ isn’t in the top tier. Tom forgot to put the Link to all the rating numbers at the end of his paragraph,,,,’here’ ! Durn it , C’mon Tom, FIX IT !
Grrrrr. I wanted to see CFMJ where crashed after dicking around with their format, the goobers.
Alex jones is allegedly being sued by some supposed Jesuits at Georgetown university and Clinton drones. That’s all he talks about anymore, how he going to kick their butts and please buy from infowars store ‘presidential bacon’ & some kind of ‘focus potion’.
I have drifted away, back to Dennis Pregar/Rush Limbaugh/ deleting files on the servers.
Have been looking at cats to adopt, but havn’t gone through with it yet. meh
parrott
The radio ratings are proprietary- he is able to print them because he has an arrangement, apparently.
Jaz McKay lost his job out in Bakersfield, California back in January. He thought it was a good idea to livestream on Facebook as he scanned through the radio dial on his car radio, and bemoaned how most of the stations were “Mexican”…
Larry Kudlow is going to officially work for President Trump. That puts his radio show in doubt. At some point, his show migrated from Cumulus to Salem radio
Enjoy a photo of Larry’s first known appearance on NBC, on NBC Nightly News in 1978 before he went to work for President Reagan in 1981.
I saw a recent interview with Larry where he said he would have to put his radio show on “hiatus”, whatever that means.
I hadn’t noticed he was no longer with Cumulus. I had been catching up on my podcasts and noticed that in or around January he had mentioned for the first time that people could stream his show live… and there were no mentions of WABC as there had been.
After reading your comment, I visited the WABC radio website and found Larry is no longer listed on the weekend lineup…. by the way, Joan Hamburg is. 😉
… and so is Larry Mendte. Remember I had commented in 2016 about him being “over qualified” for his show on 250 watt 1450 WILM in Delaware? (see http://streamingradioguide.com/startingover/?p=15577 )
I liked Larry’s show on saturdays. Local Cumu-lost station dropped him and put on pay per view infomercial on real estate. Its a sign up for their services deal or something. Crap.
I miss cigar Dave, he was good,
parrott
FRED! HEY! YOU!
DID YOU SELL OUR DATA TO THE 2016 TRUMP CAMPAIGN?
MAYBE THE ANSWER TO HILLARY’S QUESTION “WHAT HAPPENED?” WAS THE SALE OF THE SRG DATA TO THE TRUMP 2016 CAMPAIGN. MAYBE YOU ARE WORKING FOR PUTIN!
sorry for shouting, but the subject was march madness and i needed the shouting to sound like cnn / msnbc . was going to save this for april fool’s day but just couldn’t wait. hope someone enjoyed reading it as much as i did writing it. 😉
I can neither confirm nor deny if Russian or other government agents have stolen the tracking data from Streaming Radio Guide.
Former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, has in a single sentence in a New York Times “Op Ed” article, confirmed the beliefs of every conspiracy theorist – calling for the “simple” repeal of the 2nd amendment.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/27/opinion/john-paul-stevens-repeal-second-amendment.html
This may be the first instance in history of a Supreme Court Justice “trolling” Alex Jones
I posted a ‘suggestion’ on an MSM blog to trigger the giddy liberals: “Let’s just keep it simple and repeal them in order, starting with the 1st amendment.”
The liberals are already ahead of you on that, TheChairman. Anything they don’t like is called “hate speech” because they hate whatever they disagree with.
Well, he was already part way there – by characterizing the NRA as a special interest group, he seems to want to repeal the right of the people to assemble to petition the government for grievances.
Extending the 2nd amendment argument to the first, in 1776, the only way for a group of people to communicate in real time with each other was to “assemble”. One could send letters, publish a newspaper, send battle orders by displaying flags or blowing trumpets, but the founders could never have envisioned the telegraph, telephones, radio, satellites, fiber optics, airplane travel or the Internet, so clearly the 1st amendment only protects political organizing when people are physically assembled together.
As an aside (and related to CC’s comment) I came across an explanation of what ‘AntiFA’ actually represents. This might explain the spelling and capitalization often seen…
The MSM presents them as ‘Anti-Fascist’. But a former insider says it actually means: Anti First Amendment.
You can’t make this up
http://dailycaller.com/2018/03/27/al-sharpton-half-brother-charged-with-murder/
Not all these “March for Our Lives” performers are geniuses despite what they may want you to believe:
http://dailycaller.com/2018/03/26/vic-mensa-killer-mike-gun-debate/
Being arrested is not the same as having committed a crime.
I can’t wait until Countess gets home to report the rumor that Walmart is in talks to buy Humana, the largest purveyor of Medicare Advantage accounts – especially in states with large quantities of retirees. Soon, we may be able to get our tires rotated and buy velveeta while having our cataract surgery done in the back of the store.