KBA'S WEEKLY NEWSLETTER

APRIL 8, 2021

LEADERSHIP TRANSITION AT NAB

GORDON SMITH LEAVING CEO ROLE AT YEARS END

National Association of Broadcasters President and CEO Gordon H. Smith announced today his plans to transition to an advisory and advocacy role effective Dec. 31, 2021. The organization’s Chief Operating Officer Curtis LeGeyt has been named the next president and CEO of NAB effective Jan. 1, 2022.

In a video message to members, Smith said, “It has been my great honor to give the lion’s roar for broadcasters – those who run into the storm, those who stand firm in chaos to hear the voice of the people, those who hold to account the powerful – and to stand with those of the fourth estate who have the hearts of public servants.”

Smith joined NAB as president and CEO in November 2009. Previously, he served as a two-term U.S. senator from Oregon and later as senior advisor in the Washington offices of Covington & Burling, LLP.

NAB Joint Board of Directors Chairman Jordan Wertlieb, president of Hearst Television, thanked Smith for his service to the industry. “Gordon is the ultimate statesman, bringing people together from both sides of the aisle to discuss ideas, find common ground and lead NAB to success on countless fronts,” said Wertlieb. “On behalf of the leadership of NAB, we extend our sincere gratitude for more than a decade of service to the broadcast industry. We look forward to continuing to work with Gordon and benefiting from his guidance for years to come.”

Wertlieb noted that Smith worked closely with the board leadership on a succession plan that will enable him to continue to serve NAB in a special advisory role through December 31, 2024, which includes lobbying on behalf of the broadcasters.

“I am also delighted to share that NAB is in the enviable position of having cultivated top talent within the organization to provide for a smooth and stable transition in leadership,” Wertlieb announced. “Curtis LeGeyt has the utmost confidence of the NAB leadership and staff to lead our association into the future.”

LeGeyt has been with NAB for nearly a decade, during which time he led several highly successful legislative advocacy efforts on behalf of broadcasters, including the permanent reauthorization of the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act Reauthorization (STELAR), inclusion of $1 billion in RAY BAUM’s Act to reimburse stations impacted by the spectrum auction repack, and successful passage of the Music Modernization Act.

Prior to assuming his current role as chief operating officer, LeGeyt served for five years as NAB’s executive vice president, Government Relations. Before joining NAB, LeGeyt was senior counsel to then-Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy (VT).

“I am honored and humbled to be named the next leader of this great organization,” said LeGeyt. “To represent the broadcast industry and the local stations that bind our communities together in a moment of such tremendous change across the media landscape is a privilege. Our stations’ role in communities across this country has never been more important, and I look forward to working every day to ensure their ability to grow and thrive.”

BUD WALTERS VOTED RADIO'S #1 LEADER

Bud Walters Voted Radio's #1 Leader - Radio Ink

In the April issue of Radio Ink Magazine, mailing out to subscribers this week, we published our 2021 Top 20 Leaders List. Cromwell Media CEO Bud Walters was voted the number one leader in radio by his peers in the industry.

Read more
radioink.com

WAVE-TV THANKS ESSENTIAL WORKERS

Gray Television’s NBC affiliate WAVE-TV Louisville, Ky., began airing a new public service announcement campaign in April to thank essential workers in the COVID-19 shutdowns. The PSA, available here, honors police officers, grocery store and restaurant employees, firefighters and healthcare personnel, among others, who are developing a new normal during the COVID-19 pandemic.

#OWENSBORO SINGS

CROMWELL STATIONS UNITE COMMUNITY

Cromwell Media Owensboro wants to help bring Owensboro, Ky., and surrounding cities together for a few minutes to sing together! All seven stations will play “My Old Kentucky Home” on April 11 at noon. They are asking listeners to join the city-wide choir and post a video using the hashtags #owensborosings and #cromwellmedia.

RAB LEADERSHIP MASTERCLASS

NEXT CLASS BEGINS JULY 8TH

"I honestly feel it is one of the best peer trainings I've done. The different perspectives that each manager (GM or Sales) brings to the table is really insightful. Well worth the time investment."

-Travis Shortt, GM, Forcht Broadcasting, London, KY

Empowering, equipping and inspiring the managers of sales teams is vital to the growth and success of an entire organization. The RAB Leadership MasterClass (LMC) is designed for that purpose. It combines the highly-acclaimed Certified Radio Sales Manager course along with monthly group coaching to address the on-going challenges our sales leadership face. With limited class size and limited number of sessions each year, this is an exclusive opportunity where managers and soon-to-be leaders build community through a support network of other managers. Completing the program is a distinction that sets them apart; they will belong to an elite group of leaders in media management.

Participants will work through CRSM certification program with live sessions hosted by Jeff Schmidt, SVP of Professional Development, RAB. These half-day sessions each week, for six consecutive weeks, minimizes time away from their team. This schedule also allows class members to put new tools into action immediately after learning, providing opportunity to share success and ask questions during weekly meetings. At the conclusion of the six-week course work, members will attend monthly one-hour group coaching sessions for eight consecutive months to review materials learned or address specific needs and challenges in their local markets.

Certified Radio Sales Manager Certification Course Topics

Setting Goals and Achieving Them
Compensation Plans That Drive Successful Organizations
Problem Solving Skills
Holding Your Staff Accountable
Demystifying Digital Marketing
Developing Your Team Effectively
Having More Productive Meetings
Creating and Managing a Budget
Inventory Control, Pricing and Yield Management
Managing Personality Types
Managing and Leadership
Building and Keeping a Top-performance Team
RAB Resources That Drive Revenue

LEARN MORE

U.S. SUPREME COURT

UNANIMOUS VICTORY FOR BROADCASTERS

After hearing oral arguments by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and NAB in January, the Supreme Court unanimously decided last week that the FCC's recent and long-overdue modernization of its broadcast ownership regulations was lawful and appropriate.

In 2017, the FCC attempted to update many local broadcast ownership rules, including eliminating the 1975 newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership ban and the 1970s-era radio/TV cross-ownership rule; reforming the local TV ownership rule to permit the ownership of two TV stations in smaller markets, as well as the largest ones; and eliminating the rule treating the joint sale of advertising time by TV stations as equivalent to common ownership.

NAB applauded the long overdue modernization of these rules. However, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals overturned this order by a 2-1 vote in 2019, once again subjecting broadcasters to analog-era rules that the FCC had found were no longer in the public interest.

In response, NAB joined the FCC in appealing the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court and mounted a successful legal strategy to reinstate the FCC's modernization of media ownership rules.

After the announcement of the Supreme Court's decision, NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith said, "For almost two decades, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals has blocked common-sense changes to outdated broadcast ownership regulations to the detriment of local journalism. We are gratified that the time has come to allow the FCC to modernize its rules. It is critical that the Commission continue to examine its media ownership rules to ensure that America's broadcasters are able to compete and meet the needs of local communities across the nation in today's media landscape. We look forward to working with the FCC on this effort given the essential role radio and television broadcasters play for all Americans."

LBS WEBINAR FREE FOR KBA MEMBERS

TUESDAY, APRIL 13TH @ 12:00 PM ET

OVER-THE-TOP:

WHAT EVERY LOCAL TV AND RADIO SELLER MUST KNOW AS YOU'RE SELLING FOR, OR COMPETING AGAINST, OTT

This fast-growing segment of media sales is doing more than taking your money. In many ways, it's defining the future of advertising. So, drop in and find out the things you should consider and know about what's available to your clients on this "new TV" front. "But wait", you say, "OTT isn't television!" Really? Your advertisers think it is!

Hear Mark Landon, Co-Founder & Managing Principal at OTTBuyer.com. OTTBuyer.com, a Recrue Media division, supports TV and radio stations nationwide to compete in the OTT space successfully. They are also a television media planning and buying company. They provide agencies and advertisers with high-quality video advertisement solutions. "Unlike other providers in this space, we do not own inventory; we resell it."

JEFF SCHMIDT'S SALES TIP OF THE WEEK

DO YOU HAVE A HIGH-PERFORMANCE CULTURE?

When you have the honor of working with multiple companies and thousands of sellers and managers each week, you gain a unique perspective. There is a feeling you get, sometimes inexplicable, but there none the less of teams that are on-fire, cohesive and performance-driven. It’s also easy to identify those that are not.

In a white paper entitled: Reap What you Sow: How fostering a culture of ongoing performance reviews drives growth from the Cornerstone Group They share three things necessary to shift from performance reviews to a performance culture:

Make performance discussions ongoing. Establish regular check-ins with employees to discuss goals, performance benchmarks and measure employee progress. Using these less formal chats as a chance to embrace employee feedback.
Align employee goals with company objectives. Just 7% of employees understand their company’s goals or how they fit into them. Managers need to communicate the organization's goals so that team members can see how their work fits in the bigger picture
Offer training to boost skills. The global workforce lists “an opportunity to grow” as one of their top needs. Managers having weekly informal reviews, (In our radio world we call these the one-on-one’s) can discuss learning opportunities that help build the skills identified during the discussion.

The report suggests that a lack of training has devastating consequences. Organizations with only a minimal investment in talent development see 74% lower profit margins and no training leads to a 35% higher turnover rate. The traditional approach of company-provided training boosts retention by 93% and improves morale.

Annual performance reviews are still a routine part of company life. At the same time, one study found 95% of employees are dissatisfied with the process and 90% don’t believe they provide accurate or useful information.

In our industry, I believe we have been ahead of this curve with weekly one-on-ones and check ins with our sellers. Have we also included programming and the business office in this process? Are we checking in regularly with them? It seems the more frequent, less formal check-ins can have some amazing results. According to a study from the Brandon Hall Group companies that switch from yearly evaluations to a culture of ongoing, less formal reviews see:

70% increase in revenue
72% decrease in turnover
54% boost in customer satisfaction scores

Sounds like important enough results to consider changing our approach.

Jeff Schmidt is the SVP of Professional Development at the Radio Advertising Bureau. You can also connect with him by email JSchmidt@rab.com or on Twitter and LinkedIn.

NEWSLETTER QUICK NOTES...

BROADCASTERS CALENDAR: DUE APRIL 10TH

Quarterly Issues/Programs List Due—All full-power radio, full-power television, and Class A television stations must upload to their Public Inspection File by this date the Quarterly Issues/Programs List covering the period January 1, 2021 through March 31, 2021.

Class A Television Continuing Eligibility Certification—Class A television stations are required to maintain documentation in their Public Inspection File sufficient to demonstrate continuing compliance with the FCC's Class A eligibility requirements. We recommend that by this date Class A television stations generate such documentation for the period January 1, 2021 through March 31, 2021 and upload it to their Public Inspection File.

Quarterly Fundraising Reports—All noncommercial educational TV and radio stations that changed or suspended their regular on-air content to conduct third-party fundraising to benefit a non-profit organization must generate relevant documentation for the period January 1, 2021 through March 31, 2021 and upload it to their Public Inspection File by this date.

KBA SCHOLARSHIP DEADLINE IS MAY 1ST

Applications are now being accepted for both the KBA High School Senior Scholarship Fund and the Harry Barfield Scholarship. The deadline to submit an application for either scholarship is May 1, 2021.

To lean more about KBA's scholarship opportunities and to submit an application, click here or find on KBA's website under the RESOURCES tab.