This week the NHAB co-sponsored the NH Political Library event that honored former New Hampshire Governor Walter Peterson, Governor Mitt Romney, Senator Bill Bradley and CNN political reporter Candi Crowley. The event was a fundraiser for the Library and celebrated the First in the Nation Primary we have here in the Granite State. Those of you that know me know I’m a political geek and I can’t get enough of this stuff. To have so many politicans and one of my favorite personalities from CNN in the same room is the equivalent of Christmas morning to me.

But getting to my point, the conversation between Crowley, Romney and Bradley on stage inevitably led to the role the media played in their NH Primary experience. Crowley, being the consumate professional that she is, posed questions to both men steering clear of her own bias as a member of the media. Neither of the former candidates painted “the media” in a favorable light, then again, neither of them were successful in New Hampshire or in their bid for President so its not hard to see why they think they “got it wrong.” I’m tired of listening to slighted politicians who blame the Big Bad Media for their shortcomings.

Obviously it’s difficult for a single reporter to sum up a two-plus hour town meeting that covers everything from the treatment of gerbils to the candidate’s stand on STDs without leaving something out.  I think, however, its an unfair and incorrect assessment that only a few hot button issues are being highlighted about each candidate and that we really don’t know these people. With the onslaught of print, broadcast and Internet media surrounding each candidate running for office, there’s really nothing left out anymore. You don’t have a limited view on these candidates as there was historically because there’s an inbedded reporter from every network, local media, bloggers, student videos on YouTube and everything in between covering their campaigns. What can we possibly be missing? We know about their childhood, their marriages, their children, their college mishaps, their crazy preachers, their favorite foods and TV shows, their hobbies, their healthcare plans, their views on abortion, gay marriage, the environment and the price of oil - at this point those of us that get coverage from various mediums have little left to know short of their shoe sizes.

No body loves to see themselves through other people’s eyes because it leaves us vulnerable and exposes our flaws - but that’s the role of the media. Quite frankly, the more people’s eyes we get to see these candidates through, the better understanding we have of who we’re voting for as Commander in Chief.

A client said a horrific thing to me this morning. “Do people still listen to the radio?” This is the same man who believes his business gets maximum exposure from newspaper ads. Of course it depends on the demographic you’re talking about. In his case, that may be true - right now. But visit any newsroom and the publisher will tell you their subscriptions are down and readership is suffering. Meanwhile, our radio guys are worried about competing with iPods and satellite radio. TV execs are biting their nails over ratings that weren’t helped by the Writers’ Strike. (By the way - I’m SO glad my shows are back!) Everyone whose paycheck depends on a media outlet will tell you their numbers aren’t great. But I wouldn’t go as far to say these are dying mediums. It’s just people’s preference for how they receive the media that’s changing. Most broadcasters and our print counterparts get it. They’re all going online. And it’s slow to start especially in this state, but it will get there. Research shows that by 2010 New Hampshire will be the sixth oldest populated state in the country. But it also shows as those baby boomers age, they’re catching on to new media too. A few years ago, people in their 70’s didn’t know how to turn a computer on. But my 72-year old grandmother now has an email address and a member of the Geek Squad on speed dial.

The trick is to build the wave so that when people feel comfortable, they’ll ride it. Think of vinyl records and VCRs. They’re not obsolete - just rare. There are people that prefer them over the modern alternative. For that reason, I don’t believe that in ten years we’ll have no traditional form of radio or television - or (sorry guys) even newspapers. There will always be a demand for this - but the demand for alternative forms and modernized versions of it will increase dramatically and it serves our best interest as broadcasters to deliver it. If not, we will lose the fight and die out.

Many of my fellow (but much more prestigious) bloggers have had their say about the “controversial” remarks Tim Robbins made at NAB this past week. Some believe the NAB didn’t know what they were getting themselves into, some criticized their naivety for thinking the outspoken political activist and actor would not use this opportunity to speak his mind about corporate media and cross-ownership, conservative talk show hosts that have been less than kind to him and his disdain for the Bush administration and the Iraq War. As one journalist recounted, “It’s a good thing the FCC wasn’t listening.” And they are probably right. But not much of what Mr. Robbins had to say, in my opinion, was untrue - although slightly dramatized for the audience in a satirical manner. And what was so controversial about it? Is he the first celebrity to stand in front of a crowd and speak out against the establishment in a sarcastic tone? And for that matter, I don’t believe for a second that the NAB didn’t know what they were doing. If there’s anything NAB President David Rehr knows, its how to draw attention to his Broadcasters. Having a “controversial” key note address open the festivities that makes noise on TV, radio and the Internet for days to come is the best thing that can happen. After all, broadcasters know more than anyone there’s no such thing as bad publicity.

Behind the jest, I heard Mr. Robbins challenge the crowd to dig back to the roots of broadcasting and rise above the pressures of the bureaucracy of the business today (including that red tape from the FCC). He called for the return to the truth and wisdom of our founding broadcasters that pioneered the airwaves with their own, at the time, ”controversial” speech and programming. Maybe it’s the news geek in me, or maybe it’s the time zone change that’s got my head in a fog, but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with using your First Amendment right to encourage an industry founded on that Right to exercize it. But maybe that’s just me…

Al and I are off to NAB/RTNDA events in Las Vegas tomorrow so I won’t be posting until we return. On the agenda: seeing Tim Robbins, CNN’s John King and Barry Manilow! But I promise there will be lots of productive time spent with our fellow State Broadcasting Association colleagues as well talking about the hot-button legislative items. Enjoy your week!

While in Washington DC recently we spoke with our Congressional delegation about Senate Bill 1223 - The First Responders Act of 2007. This legislation would give broadcasters the distinction of ‘First Responders’ in a major disaster or other emergency situations. This first came about following Hurricane Katrina when broadcasters in affected areas worked around the clock to inform listeners and viewers of emergency information and turned stations into shelters for their staffs and their families. Senator Mary Landrieu of Louisiana has pioneered the effort to ensure that broadcasters have access to fuel, generators, and other vital resources as well as passage to otherwise blocked roads to bring essential information to the public. The bill also calls for additional primary entry point stations to be established across the country, including one in New Hampshire. These stations are designated to provide public information in local or national emergencies where there is no power.  In the event that New Hampshire continues to experience major seasonal flooding, this will be an important resource and protective measure for our Granite State Broadcasters.

We were pleased this week to hear from Senator Sununu and Senator Gregg that both have signed onto support this bill. There is a similar House Bill, H.R. 2331 that was introduced by Congressman Charles Melancon of Louisiana and we hope that our two Representatives will support this important initiative as well.

Some people are accusing us of making too big a deal out of the Digital Television (DTV) Transition and scaring people into thinking their sets won’t work after February 17, 2009.  But there’s a lot of misinformation out there and a lot of information that hasn’t reached those that will be affected by this switch-over. For example, many don’t know that in the North Country, (Coos, Carroll, Grafton and Sullivan Counties) over-the air viewers will need a specific kind of converter box to view WMUR TV as well as other digital channels.  This was brought to our attention by Senator Sununu and our always intuitive chairman, Jeff Bartlett of WMUR TV (and now you can check out his Broadcaster of the Year video here!) But I digress…Since low power television stations are not part of the DTV Transition, viewers watching WMUR on Channels 38, 29 or 27 (which are low power and not switching to digital) will still need to receive an analog signal as well as a digital one. Therefore, you will need one of six converter boxes with the correct “analog pass-through.”While there are over forty converter boxes being manufactured, the six that will help residents receive these stations are: Philco TB 150HH9, Philco TB100HH9, ECHOSTAR TR-40, Magnavox TB-100MG9, DIGITAL STREAM DX8700, and DIGITAL STREAM DSP7700T.

I’m not an engineer so I don’t claim to know the technilogical ins-and-outs of all this, but I will do my best to relay any and all information that may help prevent even one television set from going dark next February. So bear with me as this will most likely be the first of many posts regarding the Transition!

I have to start this week’s blog with a special shout-out to our good friends (and mulitple NHAB Golden Mike Air Personality of the Year recipients) Mark and Danielle from WOKQ. They not only let Al and I take cover from the rain in their WOKQ van while waiting to go into the Josh Turner and Carrie Underwood concert at the Verizon Wireless Arena this past week, they graciously allowed us to tag along to the backstage meet-and-greet with the one and only Ms. Underwood. 

Carrie appeared to be almost nervous as she chatted with us and a crowd of lucky fans. She was shy and humble and many times throughout her live show she thanked the audience for blessing her with such good fortune over the last few years since being crowned the winner of American Idol. Both she and Josh Turner (a great opening act I might add) acknowleged numerous times that were it not for the people in the crowd listening to them on the radio and buying their albums, they wouldn’t be where they are today and realizing their every dream.

Then as I saw the lines for the merchandise on my way to the concession stand, I thought: this is all because of broadcasters. Think about it. If Carrie Underwood never went on American Idol and millions of Americans didn’t watch her perform and listen to her sing and vote her the winner, she wouldn’t have gotten a record contract. And if she didn’t get a record contract and gain popularity through television, she wouldn’t have received any air time on the radio. And if she didn’t receive any air time on the radio, she wouldn’t have sold millions of albums, concert tickets and t-shirts and posters. And she certainly wouldn’t have won Grammys and every other music award possible. She is where she is today because of the work the broadcasters do to promote her, her music and her concerts. And that, my friends is why we don’t need a Performance Tax.

We just returned from Washington DC for the NAB State Leadership Conference and one of the hot topics was the FCC’s Localism Proceeding. Since our return, this debate has heated up even more.

Here’s the issue in a nutshell: the FCC doesn’t believe enough stations are putting local programming on the air. This, of course, is related to their feelings on ownership and large corporations that run several stations out of one studio, simulcast and air syndicated programs rather than cover local school board meetings, debut never-before-heard local artists and hold regular food drives for their local homeless shelter. Don’t get me wrong, there are stations that do just that, but the beauty of free over-the-air broadcasting is variety. Some people want to hear their favorite talk show host that may be based in a different part of the country. Some people want to hear Billboard’s top song list. Some people want no DJs. Some people don’t watch the news. Some people only watch PBS. Heck, some people only watch cable. There are stations out there for everyone.

I was at the FCC Localism Hearing in Portland, Maine this past summer and the complaints from “residents” ranged from unreasonable to ridiculous. Someone complained about Howard Stern and Opie and Anthony’s foul mouths. Last time I checked, they weren’t on local radio. Someone else complained about their ABC affiliate showing the film Shindler’s List. Another person complained that they didn’t like the kind of music one of their local stations plays. There are buttons on most radios and televisions I’ve seen in my life time - one changes the station, another turns it off completely. No one’s forcing you to consume their programming.

And in this digital age, it makes more sense to me to progress forward rather than turn back the clock on broadcasting regulations. The impact of this Proposed Rulemaking won’t be felt by the conglomerates that the FCC speaks out against - it will cripple the small, LOCAL stations that pride themselves on reading school closings every wintery day, that still report the scores of their Little League Baseball teams and can report an accident on Main Street to the people that are truly affected by it. These are the stations that exemplify localism to the core.

I know it’s preaching to the choir but if your station would like to tell the FCC what kind of local programming and community-based work you do, file comments directly at http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/prod/ecfs/upload_v2.cgi. Make sure to cite proceeding #04-233 for the Report on Broadcast Localism and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

Those of you who know me and Al know that neither of us are ever really at a loss for words. So when we were looking for ways to bring new technologies and interactive options to this web site in the coming year, we immediately threw out ideas about pod casting and blogging – because as Al says, “it’s all the rage.” Of course, most of you know that even in New Hampshire, these things are not exactly NEW but let’s just let Al think he’s hip for a minute, shall we?

In true brainstorming fashion, where you begin is nothing close to where you end up. The first idea Al had was to do a pod cast. Now as with most things Al thinks are cool, he knows they are cool but doesn’t really know what they are or how they work. So our resident web geek, Steve, and I had to explain what a pod cast is. Simply, we said, it’s like a video or audio blog. “Oh,” he said. “That’s cool!” And once again the world makes sense.

We very quickly eliminated the idea of doing a video pod cast because Al should never have a video camera in his office with a live feed over the Internet for obvious reasons. Then we told him he could do an audio pod cast from his desk and he loved that idea. “I have a radio show – of course I can do that!”

But then what would he discuss? He suggested a monthly pod cast of our newsletter, On the Air, but I thought, “Who the heck wants to hear Al read a newsletter to them? Certainly not me.” He said he could just talk about industry news and legislative updates – or you know, whatever. Then it became painfully obvious to me that he would run out of material and this would become my project soon enough. So I suggested that I do it instead. He agreed (much too quickly I might add.) And even though this is a broadcast-related Association and my formal training is in broadcasting, I didn’t want to pod cast. Mostly because I don’t like the sound of my own voice – which is probably why I knew I’d never make it on the station side of this industry! Sorry to disappoint you. Instead, we decided I’d have a weekly blog. So here it is. Enjoy!