ARTICLE on HD RADIO!

My Article was called "HD Radio Crying Out to be Heard" from the New York Times. Click HERE to view a copy of this article! (it was from lexisnexis so you may need to log in to view it).

The article was all about how HD radio is trying to make a name for itself now. It is about how sirius and satellite were taking over but the article was describing HD radio as "a digital broadcast that's cleverly blended in with the analog AM or FM signal that you already get. Same stations, paid for by the same ads, but upgraded for superior digital sound." It is giving the readers a positive view of HD radio and trying to make people think that is going to out do the competition.

The article also talks about the difference in sound that a person will hear by using HD radio. . .This really relates to my groups topic of "The Future of AM Radio" so i thought this article was a perfect topic especially AFTER we did our webisodes for the class.

My group tried to show the good and the bad of AM radio and how the future is unclear. One thing we talked about was HD radio and how although there is all of this great talk about it, that there are still glitches within HD especially during thunder storms. It is very easy to lose signal in HD radio and a lot of people do not realize that. In the article there was a quote that said,
"Better yet, about half of HD radio stations are taking advantage of multicasting: separate, different FM broadcasts -- shadow channels -- beamed out on the same frequency. They permit radio stations to experiment with niche, experimental and even interactive programming, usually commercial-free. WCBS-HD, an oldies station in New York, for example, has two shadow HD channels: one playing '80s hits and one that's a better-sounding version of the AM news channel."

This shows that they are trying to show the advantages of HD. This goes along with my group really well because the future of AM is not clear yet and a lot has to do with the technology forming in other radio opportunities, one being HD Radio.

Here is a video of a "REVIEW" on an HD radio....

NFL Films-Interview with Professional

NFL FILMS located in Mt Laurel New Jersey
Producer-Eric Monaco

What does your professional do? Eric is one of the main producers at NFL Films. He started off as an associate producer but quickly climbed his way up. He is responsible for a lot of the shows airs through to NFL network inclusing one called PLAY BOOK. He is the eyes of the operation and makes most of teh decisions when it comes to what and how to edit each show.

How did they get started? Eric started off working for a really small TV station making practically nothing and then NFL films got in contact with him through seeing his work and he got the job at NFL Films. He has been an NFL fanatic his whole life so he loves his job which he says is a lot of the reason why he thinks he does so well in his work.

What experiences led them to this position? For Eric he said it is all about taking what you can get at first in this industry and since i want to go into this field that was great advice for me. He started off making less that 14,000$ a year which is nothing and he said he knew he had to do it for experience and then finally it all paid off and he landed this job, but he said you just have to get experience and the more the better becuase it pays off in the end.

What do they like and dislike most about their job? All Eric said he dislikes about the job is the fact that he is a perfectionist so meeting deadlines is sometimes tough because he wants everything perfect. He loves that he gets to be around football all day and study and work with what he loves. He loves the editing side of it and being able to control what is on the show. It is like living in your dream world basically.

How do they feel new technologies will impact the media industry in the future? NFL Films uses pretty high tech equipment like the editing rooms and systems they use. He told me about the old stuff compared to the new stuff and everything is turned into HD now which is a big step considering NFL Films used to use black and white film. He thinks it is impacting them in a great way because they are a film industry so the easier way to edit and make great films the better.

Where and how can students get started? By doing internships and getting experience. Network themselves through resumes, online portfolios, meeting professionals like i did with him. It shows that you are willing to put yourself out there and actually WANT this profession and will work for it.

How important is experience and what is the best place to get experience? This is the one industry where experience matters ten times more than your college GPA. With experience in broadcasting that is what professionals care about because it shows you took the time to learn the ropes and that you are willing to learn more. The more experience the more likely you are to land a job in this industry, because without experience you have nothing to show for it.

I really enjoyed meeting with Eric Monaco because this is the industry i strive to be in one day. He was truely inspirational with his stories about going from the bottom up and this experience helped me out as well because he gave me the opportunity to help him out next season with high light films for 2010NFL season which is amazing. I just want to get as much experience as i can so that when i graduate in December i will have a packed resume with a lot to show for it.

Here is a picture from my visit to NFL Films: This is where the magic happens! This is where they film the shows!

Click HERE to be directed to NFL Films Website!!

Future of Radio/Television

Radio ONLINE-Free Podcasts/Blogs/Concerns...A Whole New Way to Look at Radio

There is a website that is fairly new called Radio Magazine (Click HERE to be directed to the website) which is geared towards all types of radio however you can find it on the internet. This is a new source of technology because even the radio stations have noticed how much trouble they are in as far as an audience goes.

I think this is a good idea for now because I know when I first read the website and all that it had to offer it made me think of radio and I dont think a lot of others care about the radio as much anymore. This website has gotten a lot of feed back including being "The Radio Technology Podcast Leader."

I think this will impact audiences because it is on the internet which is the most visited source of information right now. If people can get what they would get from the radio online, they are more likely to listen to the radio more. It targets the younger generation that have not always been as familiar with radio since they are consumed by MP3 players and online music sources.

The site also gives people a chance to post there own "techinical difficulties" that they find in the radio industry. This helps the radio industry because nothing is better than constructive criticism to help improve something that obviously needs it in this technologically advanced world we all live in.

I personally think anything that radio is doing to get there status back up cant hurt. They are and have been taken over by other advances in techonolgy like internet, hd radio, ipods, TV, etc...This website gives a bit more insight to why this is happening and also news and breaking stories to update the public. I found it pretty interesting when I came across it which is why I chose to blog about it.

Media Example:

Click HERE to be directed to an example of a radio podcast found through this website! (podcast made 3/25/2010)

Interview with professional-Tom Shinn 94.5WPST

• Tom Shinn-Night Show DJ-94.5 WPST (Trenton, NJ)
• I did an internship with Tom last semester but it was mainly all about me and the things i was learning so in this case it was my chance to interview him
• I am not using this interview for my station profile (I am using NFL films for that) but i figured it would be a good idea to use one radio station and one TV station for the blogs

• What does your professional do? Tom is a very famous and well known DJ in the tri-state area. He has been working as the night show DJ for over 5 years. He is very well known because of his charasmatic personality and the fact that he does off air promotion as well like DJing at bars as "the PST Dj." This not only gets his name out there more, but the stations as well.
• How did they get started? Tom's father was on the radio his whole life and this made Tom want to do the same thing. It has been apart of his family for years. He started off doing AM radio and small stations not as popular.
• What experiences led them to this position? It is all about working your way up. Tom said that he was working for PST as an assistant DJ and then they asked him and another DJ to take over the night show. At first it was just the to of them, but Tom did such a great job that they had him take over the show by himself and gave him responsibility to have college interns help him with the night show.
• What do they like and dislike most about their job? He loves everything about his job. He says he gets the best show because at night you get to be more lenient with the things that you can talk about on the air. The only thing that he dislikes are the hours sometimes because it is from 6pm to midnight. However he still gets weekend off and he has full range of the show now to run it how he wants to. He also gets to meet a lot of famous people in the music industry which is a big plus as well considering the free concerts and back stage passes.
• How do they feel new technologies will impact the media industry in the future? Right now they use all new digital media (touch screen) which Tom has down and can pretty much do without looking. It has impacted the industry in a positive way because it is easier to give the audience what they want. Everything is more accessible. The internet is right in front of him at all times during the show.
• Where and how can students get started? Start off doing internships because this is the best way to learn and the best experience a student can get. It shows tat you are willing to work and learn without getting paid which means you really do take an interest in this type of industry.
• How important is experience and what is the best place to get experience? Experience in the radio industry is important because of the technology used and the best way to get that as said before is internships because internships are where you can mess up and not get penalized for it. It also makes you look good when you get an actual job that you know more than they expect you to know.
• What qualities/characteristics are important for someone getting started in the industry? You need to have a bubbly and outgoing personality. No one wants to listen to someone boring on the radio because all they rely on is your voice and the entertainment that you are giving them. That is why Tom has made it so far in this industry because he is fun and outgoing and his voice is one you remember.

Doing the internship taught me a lot about radio it also made me see that I do not want to do radio for a living. It works for Tom because he likes just his voice being heard and he enjoys the perks of radio. I would rather be on TV or doing something more out in the open. Had i not done this internship i would not have known that this is something i didn't want to do so it was a great experience. However, the things he said in this interview can be applied to any job or industry a person wants to pursue. Getting experience and working your way from the bottom up is the only way to get what you want out a dream you have.

Click here for Shinn's personal PST blog.

This is a video of Tom Shinn interviewing famous pop star Miley Cyrus:

The Future Radio/Television (Blog Post 1)

This is the article i got my information from (it is from The New York Times):

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/26/technology/26apple.html



The new "Tablet" by Apple is being called "a time machine" by New York Times Magazine. It is the newest and most wanted technology right now by people everywhere. It allows a person using it to "undo mistakes of the past" (NYTimes). The Apple Tablet lets people read news and books and also allows a person to basically have the ipod, itouch, and computer all in one.

The tablet is going to help many companies with advertising because it will charge people to read magazines, books, and get channels on the Tablet. The NY Times for example said that they are going to do there own version of the newspaper for the Tablet so that people can download there newspaper and subscribe to it. It is not only going to be a goldmine but it is a new way for technology rather than just buying these books and magazines. It is taking technology to a whole new level.

I think this is going to be huge for advertising industries, magazines, and newspaper because for so long people stopped subscribing to these things because they have a computer, but they also had an ipod, and an i touch, and other sources of technology. Instead of carrying around 3 different things, now people can have a "Tablet" which they can listen to music, browse the Internet, read the paper, catch up on there latest gossip, and do anything else they wanted. I definitely think people WILL spend money on this because people like "easy technology" now a days.

In the book it talks about how new media is what gets peoples attention in pages 67-69 it talks about television and promotions and advertising. Imagine if all of this could be on one device like the Tablet...

Here is a video i found about the Tablet.