Huey inks op-ed for StopTheCap.com

Your humble host inked a recent guest blog post for StopTheCap.com, a protest blog site that gained traction surrounding the recent Time Warner internet metering case, which is far from over:

Do they honestly think we’re that stupid?

The sudden announcement by the cable monopoly known as Time Warner to not cancel–but postpone its Road Runner internet metering/pricing scheme–is not a victory by any means. If anything, this company ought to be downright ashamed at insulting the intelligence of its Piedmont Triad customer base.

The Triad area of central North Carolina stretches into a 12-county area engulfing mid-size metros of Greensboro, High Point and Winston-Salem, about an hour from Charlotte and Raleigh, respectively. And while this area is not a tech-heavy base, Time Warner, unfortunately, has a cable monopoly here. AT&T and Clearwire are other providers of Internet service, but are not as big players here as Time Warner.

And while we’re an area that’s been in major transition even before the recession started (with a dwindling economic base, double-digit unemployment and a huge brain-drain), for this company to pull the stunt it attempted to pull off was laughable.

Its customer base was furious, and the outrage it caused in this area was enormous.

But company officials still believes tiered pricing is the best option for customers:

Time Warner Cable Chief Executive Officer Glenn Britt said, “It is clear from the public response over the last two weeks that there is a great deal of misunderstanding about our plans to roll out additional tests on consumption based billing. As a result, we will not proceed with implementation of additional tests until further consultation with our customers and other interested parties, ensuring that community needs are being met. While we continue to believe that consumption based billing may be the best pricing plan for consumers, we want to do everything we can to inform our customers of our plans and have the benefit of their views as part of our testing process.”

The (Greensboro) News-Record quoted Time Warner spokeswoman Melissa Buscher:

“It’s clear from the response we’ve gotten from Greensboro and other areas that there’s a lot of misinformation out there,” Buscher said. “What we heard is no one knows what their usage is.”

To solve that issue, Time Warner is developing ways to help explain the fee structure and educate customers on their usage. Buscher said the company is working on a Web site that customers could go to that would monitor their Internet usage, similar to some utility company sites.

Do you think your Triad customer base is that “backwoods” and uneducated, Melissa? Are we that stupid?

For a company that just announced big losses and layoffs in its core cable television business not long ago, one would think that perception, customer service and respect would be a priority. Sadly, that didn’t happen. And as a commenter said, it was Time Warner that was just educated by its customer base — now a dwindling customer base.

It is also saying a lot when it takes a U.S. Senator from NEW YORK to open his mouth for something to get done in North Carolina. The leadership (and response) in North Carolina to this issue was horribly pathetic; the response among our local representatives was equally paltry.

And for this company to say it will postpone its plans tells us that they plan to roll it out once again, eventually. What few customers this company has left by that time will be ready…to bolt. My household is already looking at what few options there are to shelve (using their words) Time Warner in favor of another provider.

What’s needed? Competition. Plain and simple. Our customer base is not stupid, but this issue squarely points out that our local leadership needs to get wise and get techno-savvy very quickly.

Erik Huey is a local community activist, a local public education and local media analyst and a communications/political strategist residing in south Greensboro. Huey is a former journalist for the High Point Enterprise and Las Vegas Review-Journal newspapers, a former reporter for various airline business trade publications in Washington, DC, and a one-time Guilford Co. Board of Education candidate in 2008. Huey now runs Triad Media Watch, which monitors the media across the Triad.

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One other issue that I've pondered....the relationship between Time Warner and its News 14 Carolina division, and 14's role in this discussion. Here are some examples (hat-tip: StopTheCap.com) that should begin the dialogue on whether or not News 14 having a journalistic responsibility to report the story in a fair-and-balanced manner, or should it merely be the corporate cousin mouthpiece for Time Warner.

News 14 Carolina - Time Warner Shelves Usage Based Billing
by dampier

News 14 - Time Warner Introduces Metered Road Runner
by dampier

WFMY prepares to turn 60

Hard to believe that the big "2" is about to be 60...hat-tip to YES! Weekly for noting that CBS-2 (WFMY) station brass are preparing to commemorate its 60th anniversary. Events on May 20th will include a special celebration in Greensboro's Center City Park, the airing of historic news segments over the past 60 years, along with other community milestones.

E.C. :)

"New" N&R debuts as mixed figures on circulation/readership released

I haven't grabbed today's "new" new-and-improved version of the News & Record, but I plan to do so later today...just to be curious.

This as the paper's senior staff report that circulation is down, but readership is up, according to national auditors.

See editor John Robinson explain here.

E.C. :)

Clear Channel axes talent nationwide

Mega-conglomerate Clear Channel axed about 590 jobs at stations nationwide yesterday. Locally, we know of one victim, 105.7 (KISS FM) program director Brian Anthony (hat-tip: Radio Online).

From Inside Music Media:

Clear Channel President and CEO John "The Chiropractor" Hogan has now completed an adjustment on his patient.

In one day (yesterday) -- 590 people were fired from Clear Channel. Add this to the 1,800 or so that were cleared out in January and all the "little firings" in between and you can see why Hogan has become the CEO (Chief Execution Officer).

A sad day in radio.

E.C. :)

WZTK suffering from tropospheric ducting

Watch out for that tropospheric ducting, according to WZTK (101.1FM)...the natural phenomenon is making the station's incredibly strong signal weak in some parts of the greater listening area, according to station officials.

And what is tropospheric ducting?

Tropospheric ducting is a type of radio propagation where instead of radio waves reflecting off the ionosphere and back down again like as for a skywave, tropospheric ducting is where radio waves are reflected up and down in a duct formed by humidity and moist air, acting very much like an optical fibre. The ducting is most common at microwave and UHF frequencies, working its way down into the VHF range in pronounced cases. Tropospheric ducting often results in reception of television and FM broadcast stations hundreds of miles distant.

So there...

E.C. :)

Radio Disney suffers signal problems

If my daughter doesn't have her Radio Disney in the car, she's frustrated. And last Thursday provided that frustration as signal problems from the nationally syndicated network feed pulled the local Radio Disney affiliate (1320 AM) off the air periodically. Not to mention the signal seems to be incredibly weak lately.

TMW will keep a keen eye on what's going on over there.

E.C. :)

Stunning losses at MG, Gannett

Ouch!

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Media General Inc (MEG.N) reported a wider net loss on Friday and an 18 percent drop in revenue because of falling newspaper advertising sales, sending its shares down 12 percent.

The publisher of newspapers such as the Richmond Times-Dispatch and Tampa Tribune said its first-quarter net loss was $21.3 million, or 96 cents a share, compared with a loss of $20.3 million, or 92 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue fell 18 percent to $159.5 million.

Publishing revenue fell on a 25 percent drop in ad revenue. Lower automotive ad spending contributed to a 19 percent drop in revenue at Media General's television stations, a trend that likely will show up at other U.S. TV station owners such as Meredith Corp (MDP.N) and News Corp (NWSA.O).

Media General, like other U.S. newspaper publishers, is grappling with weaker ad sales, especially in its classified ad business, as more people seek news online for free.

The financial crisis in the past year has accelerated an erosion of real estate, job and automotive ad sales.

The Richmond, Virginia-based Media General's results come a day after USA Today Publisher Gannett Co Inc (GCI.N) reported a 60 percent drop in its quarterly profit because of ad revenue declines.

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E.C. :)

Elmquist leaves N&R

N&R cops-and-crime reporter Sonja Elmquist seeks greener pastures from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. JR wishes her well.

E.C. :)

N&R makes big changes

TMW predicted some major changes were coming to the N&R and it has happened...combined sections will begin printing later this week. Wonder if they're going to the "book format" a la NewsDay/NY Post/Chicago Sun-Times?

Editor John Robinson:

The move also essentially codifies a practice we've been following for a while -- we're a local newspaper first. Two sections made sense when the front section was for national and world news and the second section was for local. But in this day and time, when we normally fill the front page with local news, having the two sections seems disorganized.

E.C. :)

Thanks for the recognition

After a one week hiatus, I'm back...and right on time...thanks and mega-kudos to YES! Weekly (and you) for the honorable mention in this year's "Best of the Triad" in the 'Best Blog' category.

Thank you all again...

E.C. :)

TW postpones pricing scheme, insults Triad's customers

Do they honestly think we're that stupid?

Yesterday's sudden announcement by the cable monopoly known as Time Warner to not cancel--but postpone its Road Runner internet metering/pricing scheme--is not a victory by any means. If anything, this company ought to be downright ashamed at insulting the intelligence of its Piedmont Triad customer base.

Excerpts from the announcement:

Time Warner Cable Chief Executive Officer Glenn Britt said, “It is clear from the public response over the last two weeks that there is a great deal of misunderstanding about our plans to roll out additional tests on consumption based billing. As a result, we will not proceed with implementation of additional tests until further consultation with our customers and other interested parties, ensuring that community needs are being met. While we continue to believe that consumption based billing may be the best pricing plan for consumers, we want to do everything we can to inform our customers of our plans and have the benefit of their views as part of our testing process.”

Time Warner spokeswoman Melissa Buscher:

Company spokeswoman Melissa Buscher said Time Warner still believes tiered pricing is the best option for customers.

“It’s clear from the response we’ve gotten from Greensboro and other areas that there’s a lot of misinformation out there,” Buscher said. “What we heard is no one knows what their usage is.”

To solve that issue, Time Warner is developing ways to help explain the fee structure and educate customers on their usage. Buscher said the company is working on a Web site that customers could go to that would monitor their Internet usage, similar to some utility company sites.

Do you think your Triad customer base is that "backwoods" and uneducated, Melissa? Are we that stupid?

For a company that just announced big losses and layoffs not long ago, one would think that perception, customer service and respect would be a priority. Sadly, that didn't happen. And as a commenter said, it was Time Warner that was just educated by its customer base--now a dwindling customer base.

It is also saying a lot when it takes a U.S. Senator from NEW YORK to open his mouth for something to get done in North Carolina. The leadership (and response) in this state to this issue was horribly pathetic, the response among our local representatives was equally paltry.

And for this company to say it will postpone its plans tells us that they plan to roll it out once again...eventually. What few customers this company has left by that time will be ready....to bolt. My household is already looking at what few options there are to shelve (using their words) Time Warner in favor of another provider.

What's needed? Competition. Plain and simple. Our customer base is not stupid, but this issue squarely points out that our local leadership needs to get wise and get techno-savvy very quickly.

Ed Cone and Sue Polinsky are talking this up. Roch chimes in also. Let's hear from you too.

E.C. :)

N&R sheds jobs

Sad news from E. Market Street as the News & Record yesterday cut 25 more jobs, six of which were newsroom positions. It is unknown publicly just who from the newsroom may have received walking papers.

N&R:

The News & Record has had previous job reductions, an early retirement program, buyouts and unpaid furlough days to lower payroll costs. The company has also tightened its operating expenses, including using less newsprint.

"Unfortunately the effects of this economic recession are more severe than we had anticipated, and all of these efforts have not been enough to bring our operating expenses in balance with our revenues," publisher Robin Saul stated in an e-mail Thursday afternoon to employees.

Saul stated that the job cuts and other expense reductions are designed to ensure the "long-term financial stability and health of the News & Record."

Further expense reductions, including changes to the newspaper, will be implemented during the next few weeks, Saul stated. More details will be shared with employees beginning next week.

TMW mentioned recently that something big was coming down the pipeline shortly from the N&R. Guess this is the other shoe dropping.

E.C. :)

N&R site unveils redesign

News & Record officials unveiled a redesign of its News-Record.com website this morning. The paper said today the changes include:

• Snapshot of key stock market indices at the top of the home page
• Expanded weather information throughout
• A cleaner, easier-to-use site menu
• Simplified site search
• Convenient access to helpful tools

N&R officials also said the redesign was intended "to give news-record.com a fresher, more engaging treatment while reducing the number and size of elements users' web browsers were required to download in order to properly display the site."

E.C. :)

CBS-2 has the best weather, according to WeatheRate

CBS-2 (WFMY) is now laying claim to having "the most accurate weather in the Triad." This, according to an independent firm called WeatheRate.

Triad Media Watch investigated WeatheRate, here's what was found:

WeatheRate is a Phoenix-based firm that's been in business since late 2003. According to the site's Q&A section, its representatives review the four-day forecasts from local TV stations in major U.S. metropolitan areas. The forecast and observed weather data are fed into its software, which compares the forecast with the actual observed conditions. Through a series of mathematical calculations, WeatheRate determines which TV stations have the best daily, weekly and monthly accuracy. Then, every March, they offer their "seal of approval" to the TV station that provides the most accurate weather forecasts in their list of cities.

The company claims it is the only independent, non-partisan, weather verification company in the United States.

Although I find it interesting that the firm has not issued a press release since early 2006.

I report, you decide.

E.C. :)

CBS-2 News @ Noon sounds like a community bulletin board

Not necessarily a criticism but merely a thought...if you watch CBS-2 (WFMY) News @ Noon, it sounds like a community bulletin board for 22 minutes. Where's the hard news, Channel 2? List the upcoming events on your website, and save the news...for the news.

Just a thought...

E.C. :)

Brad & Britt defend decision not to discuss Time-Warner situation

Time for your daily dose of Road Runner Rampage...the rampage over Time Warner's new internet metering billing scheme for its Road Runner internet service.

Briefs for Tax Day, April 15, 2009:

1. WZTK's Brad & Britt (101.1fm) are publicly defending their decision not to discuss the Time-Warner situation on their morning radio show. See, Time Warner advertises heavily on the duo's show, with both airing original spots on behalf of the cable giant.

Local blogger "gedblog" chastised Brad & Britt for not discussing the issue on the air:

Britt Whitmire is extremely tech savvy and has dragged his older partner, Brad Krantz, kicking and grumbling into the world of Facebook and Twitter. Britt’s even joined the fake Twitterer’s club and created for-fun accounts for Fake Dan Rather and Little Rush so we can enjoy his musings at any time of the day or night. But even Britt seems powerless to rock the boat when it comes to corporate sponsorship.

When the news about Time Warner’s preposterous rate changes first broke in Greensboro, I sent an @reply to Britt to see if they could raise the topic on their morning show. Britt’s response disappointed me, but deep down, I understood it. I often must resist writing blog posts critical of services or companies for which I do design work for at the Iconfactory. But unlike Britt, my job isn’t to get people talking about national and local news & events. FM Talk’s management have no doubt cut the duo out of the loop on this important issue, which is unsettling.

Britt tells gedblog:

Just to clarify, neither of us has been told by management to avoid the topic. We have made that decision on our own.

So there...

2. Demonstrations are planned in front of Time-Warner's offices on Spring Garden Street this Saturday. News & Record reports the protest will take place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 1813 Spring Garden St.

N&R:

The announcement was met with outrage from customers and threats of legislation to block the change. In reaction, Time Warner postponed its tests in Austin and San Antonio, big areas for tech business.

For the Triad and Rochester, the company announced two additional tiers, including a “budget” tier allowing 1 GB of data use per month for just $15 and a “super-tier” allowing up to 100 GB of data use for $75. The company also said it would limit overage fees to no more than $75, essentially creating an “unlimited” plan for those willing to pay the fees.

Many Triad customers are still angry about the plan, saying that Time Warner has a virtual monopoly on high speed cable Internet in the area and is using it to make customers pay more unless they bundle services, order Digital Phone service or pay more for a Business Class Internet plan. Customers have contacted city leaders, state representatives and even their congressmen. Other customers have filed complaints with the Better Business Bureau and contacted the attorney general's office.

3. Apparently, the Triad is not tech-savvy enough. Whereas Time Warner postponed this scheme in Austin and San Antonio, Greensboro and Rochester have become ground zero in this protest. And that has small businesses up in arms. As Ed Cone said over the weekend, this proposal threatens the livelihood of tech businesses, small businesses, and for that matter...anyone who chooses to call the Triad home.

Today's News & Record points this out:

“It’s the same amount of bandwidth if you use their service or someone else’s,” said Stephen Matlin, a self-employed Greensboro Web designer who uses Skype for phone calls through his Time Warner Cable Internet service. “Why would they charge only the people who choose not to pay for their digital phone service? It’s to discourage competition, to penalize you unless you subscribe with them.”

Last week, Greensboro Mayor Yvonne Johnson said she would look into bringing in competing Internet providers such as AT&T U-Verse and Verizon FiOS but no progress has yet been reported.

City leaders in High Point said they’re also concerned about how it will affect residents — especially business people.

“To single our area out at a time when we’re trying to attract new business, when everyone is trying to cut costs, is bad for the city,” High Point City Councilman Mike Pugh said. “We shouldn’t be at that disadvantage.”

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E.C. :)

Road Runner rampage for 4/13/09

Herein, the latest from the insanity that is Time Warner...

1. Ed Cone inks a great column in yesterday's News & Record talking about the potential economic impact from Time Warner's flawed scheme.

Cone says:

This is a big deal for local consumers. Even if you don't watch much Web video now, your habits might change as your options continue to grow. Renting DVDs is unnecessary when movies arrive via the 'Net. Television shows, new and old, are available online whenever you want to watch them. Last year's Olympics were online, too -- but the site had a warning label advising people with metered plans not to watch. Meanwhile, applications beyond entertainment, such as communications with your health care providers, will become increasingly popular.

There are broader issues as well. As a test market, we will face economic development constraints not felt by other cities across the country.

And their latest pricing model, released late last week stirred up even more angry feelings among local consumers. Like Ryan Shell says, it is becoming a local public relations nightmare for the local cable monopoly.

2. Not to mention, Time Warner continues to run spots all over TV touting their "price-lock" bundled guarantee for new customers. Will all that change as a result of this?

3. Time-Warner owned-News 14 Carolina also is stepping up its advertisements lately (have you noticed???)...saying it's not available on Direct TV, not available on Dish, not available from the phone company. Think they're feeling the pressure, by proxy?

E.C. :)

Court rules in favor of Rhino Times

Judges with the state Court of Appeals have granted approval for the Rhino Times to go to court to determine the actual and punitive damages to be awarded in its long-withstanding trial with the Ku Klux Klan.

The Rhino Times had sued a branch of the Klan for wrapping its propaganda around copies of the Rhino Times. Rhino brass have repeatedly objected to its material being used to promote Klan literature and viewpoints.

View the story from the Rhino here.

E.C. :)

Time Warner's inept response

At least, they recognized that they caused a firestorm.

And now, the evil empire has responded:

Statement from Landel Hobbs, Chief Operating Officer, Time Warner Cable
RE: Consumption based billing trials
4-9-09

Some recent press reports about our four consumption based billing trials planned for later this year were premature and did not tell the full story. With that said, we realize our communication to customers about these trials has been inadequate and we apologize for any frustration we caused. We’ve heard the passionate feedback and we’ve taken action to address our customers’ concerns.

With the ever-increasing flood of content on the Internet, bandwidth consumption is growing exponentially. That’s a good thing; however, there are costs associated with this increased Internet usage. Here at Time Warner Cable, consumption among our high-speed Internet subscribers is increasing by about 40% a year. As a facilities based provider, we’ve built a network that must be maintained and upgraded. We have increasing variable costs and we have to continue to invest in the network itself.

This is a common problem that all network providers are experiencing and must address. Several other providers have instituted consumption based billing, including all major network providers in Canada and others in the U.K., New Zealand and elsewhere. In the U.S., AT&T has begun two consumption based billing trials and other providers including Comcast, Charter and Cox are using varying methods of monitoring and managing bandwidth consumption.

For good reason. Internet demand is rising at a rate that could outpace capacity within a few years. According to industry analysts, the infrastructure may not be able to accommodate the explosion of online content by 2012. This could result in Internet brownouts. It will take a lot of money to fix the problem. Rather than raising prices on all customers or limiting usage, we think the fairest approach is to move to a tiered model in which users pay more if they use more.

If we don’t act, consumers’ Internet experience will suffer. Sitting still is not an option. That’s why we’re beginning the consumption based billing trials. It’s important to stress that they are trials. The feedback we’ve received from our customers has been very helpful. We’ve made changes to the terms in our current and upcoming trial markets as follows:

• To accommodate lighter Internet users and those who need a lower priced option, we are introducing a 1 GB per month tier offering speeds of 768 KB/128 KB for $15 per month. Overage charges will be $2 per GB per month. Our usage data show that about 30% of our customers use less than 1 GB per month.

• We are increasing the bandwidth tier sizes included in all existing packages in the trial markets to 10, 20, 40 and 60 GB for Road Runner Lite, Basic, Standard and Turbo packages, respectively. Package prices will remain the same. Overage charges will be $1 per GB per month.

• We will introduce a 100 GB Road Runner Turbo package for $75 per month (offering speeds of 10 MB/1 MB). Overage charges will be $1 per GB per month.

• Overage charges will be capped at $75 per month. That means that for $150 per month customers could have virtually unlimited usage at Turbo speeds.

• Once we implement this trial, we will not immediately start billing customers for overage. Rather, we will first provide two months of usage data. Then we will provide a one-month grace period in which overages will be noted on customers’ bills, but they will not be charged. So, customers will have an opportunity to assess their usage and right-size their service packages before usage charges are applied.

• Trials will begin in Rochester, N.Y., and Greensboro, N.C., in August. We will apply what we learn from these two markets when we launch trials in San Antonio and Austin, Texas, in October, but we will guarantee at least the same level of usage capacity in these trials.

• As we launch DOCSIS 3.0 in the trial markets, we plan to offer a 50/5 MB speed tier for $99 per month.

Again, the Internet is dynamic and continually evolves, so our plans will evolve as well and aren’t set in stone. We appreciate the feedback we’ve received. We’ll look forward to more dialogue as we progress in these trials. You can send your comments and feedback to us at realideas@twcable.com.

Landel Hobbs
COO
Time Warner Cable

For questions, etc:

Jeff Simmermon
Director, Digital Communications
Time Warner Cable

Find us on Twitter at: @jeffTWC, @MsmarTWC, @MelissaTWC_TX

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Thanks to TMW reader Bruce for passing this link along after midnight last night. What does this mean for you and I?

Reader Bruce says:

Honestly it makes less sense to me than the first set of plans did. Can you look into it and let us know what it means? To me it looks like I will pay close to $150 for my internet when my current cable bill plus internet is only $120 (Internet is $49). On the bright side it looks like we are getting faster speeds so we can go over the cap quicker.

Thank you
Bruce

I would tend to agree. I'll be monitoring what Roch and Sue say later today and will have a follow-up shortly.

News & Record has a story here.

E.C. :)

Times-News here to stay, says editor

Burlington Times-News editor Madison Taylor writes in his blog a few days ago that any rumors regarding the early demise of the Burlington Times-News is just that...rumors.

Taylor:

Today, however, the Times-News is part of the rumor. We did not create this situation. It’s now my job to clean it up. Whether that’s fair or not isn’t the issue. It’s my job.

So here it goes: The Times-News is not closing - not no way, not no how. We are not shutting the doors and locking them behind us today or next week or next month or six months from now.

There, I said it.

Need more? Well, our reporters are still reporting, our photographers are still shooting and Frances Woody continues her remarkable run of dispensing common sense advice and two columns a week. Our advertising agents are traversing the asphalt for clients, our graphics artists are designing and our classified advertising representatives are standing by. At night our copy editors are writing headlines, our pressmen are plating up and carriers are depositing our daily product upon thousands of Alamance County driveways.

And for those who come through the front door, Vicki Davis is there with a smile same as always.

I submit this for your approval, as the late Rod Serling might’ve said, to clear up a, “Rumor has it …” in the community that the Times-News is closing and soon. In short, it’s untrue and then some. Fact is, the Times-News is operating in the black even as some of our larger brethren are deep in the red.

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E.C. :)

Danville paper saved with new editor

TMW learns that the Danville Register & Bee has been saved from extinction, partly due to a new editor...in Danville (not Lynchburg).

via Danville Register & Bee/Life at a Media General Newspaper:

Rumor has it that Robert Benson is the new editor of The Danville Register and Bee. That's possibly the BEST thing that could have happened to the newspaper. Robert has toiled hard behind the scenes, kept his mouth shut when he was supposed to and opened when it was expedient. An award winning writer he knows Danville, has solid values and COULD quite possibly turn the newspaper around if Lynchburg doesn't hamstring him. Look for good things from Robert once things settle down. He's waited a long time for this. Congratulations Robert!!

E.C. :)

WUNC opens Downtown Greensboro studio

The Business Journal reports WUNC (91.5FM) has opened its long-awaited Greensboro studio. Located on S. Elm Street just above Triad Stage, the NPR affiliate will use its new facility to continue improving its service to the Triad. Reporter Jessica Jones, who joined WUNC in 1999, will staff the bureau, the article says.

E.C. :)

WTQR personality discusses his battle with lung cancer

WTQR (104.1 FM) afternoon personality Bill "Brother Bill" Dotson spoke with NBC-12 (WXII) last week about his recent battle with lung cancer.

He tells Channel 12:

"Freaked me out dude. I was on an emotional roller coaster there for awhile," he said. "But I was lucky because we caught it early."

He expects to back to work in a few weeks.

God bless you, Bill.

E.C. :)

Online radio audience doubles over the last three years

Media Daily News reports that 42 million Americans over the age of 12 listen to radio during an average week, more than double the 2005 figure of 20 million, and up 27% from 33 million in 2008. The figures mean that online radio currently reaches about 17% of Americans over the age of 12, up from about 8% in 2005 and 13% in 2008.

MDN:

This week, Katz Online Network and Ando Media renewed and expanded their deal for measurement of radio audience. Under the terms of the new deal, data from Ando's measurement platform will be made available, in real time, to all national sales agents who work in digital radio. Overall, the Katz Online Network delivers more than 4 million listeners per week, or 10% of the total online radio audience according to the figures from Arbitron and Edison Research.

In October, Targetspot, another big online radio ad network, acquired Ronning Lipset Radio, creating a combined network of over 1,000 online radio stations, including the Web portals of traditional radio stations. At the time, the network reached more than 6 million listeners a week. Among the merged network's partners are CBS Radio, Entercom, Yahoo, AOL and Live 365.

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E.C. :)

Road Runner rampage for 4/8/09

Herein, the latest news on Time Warner's Road Runner rampage for April 8, 2009:

1. Greensboro Mayor Yvonne Johnson is open to discussing recruiting alternative competitors for Time Warner's beleaguered Road Runner internet service, now under major scrutiny for implementing a new metering pricing scheme. Good soundbites from Sue Polinsky also (click the Channel 2 icon below for the story):




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2. Two new sites have popped up in recent days:

Stop TWC (at http://www.stoptwc.info)

And

Drop Time Warner Cable (at http://droptimewarnercable.com)

See their commercial here:



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3. Lawmakers in Washington are getting wise to Time Warner. Online Media Daily reports U.S. Rep. Eric Massa (D-N.Y.) is vowing to stop Time Warner from forging ahead with its metering plan and may introduce legislation soon to do just that.

OMD:

"This is an incredibly ill-conceived idea and a very repressive step backwards," U.S. Rep. Eric Massa (D-N.Y.) said of the cable company's plan. "At the very moment when access to digital information is at the heart of economic recovery, they're going to go for corporate greed."

Massa added that he is considering introducing legislation to rein in the company. "In many markets they are a monopoly and we are going to invoke every tool necessary to ensure they don't proceed with this," he said.

Massa's district includes Rochester -- one of four cities in which Time Warner plans to test the new pay-per-usage billing system. The others are Austin and San Antonio (Texas), and Greensboro, N.C.

Massa also issued a statement Tuesday criticizing Time Warner's plan as "an outrageous, job killing initiative."

4. The new digital divide? News & Record editor John Robinson late yesterday called this fight "a different digital divide." Is he right?

Robinson:

What does it mean that one group is abuzz and another is quiet? It is a different sort of digital divide. Naturally, bloggers would be upset by TW's tiered pricing plan. It socks them in the digital solar plexis. As Allen says, there is fierce discussion on the blogs and in the comments.

Letter writers to the newspaper? (Warning: This is an assumption, an informed assumption but an assumption nonetheless.) Many letter writers are primarily newspaper readers and seek the forum that the printed editorial page provides. They spend time online -- most of the submitted letters come via e-mail -- but they don't live online. They don't tend to be of the generation that watches video online or builds Web sites from home or measure time in gigabytes.

No big deal, you might say. Different audiences. Different ways to express opinion. Personally, I think that Time Warner's pricing plan should interest everyone who is a customer of the business. And that is most of the people around here. (I admit I was surprised by two council members who said they were not customers of Time Warner. Dish users? Rabbit ears? No TV?)

More to come...in the meantime, let's talk about it.

E.C. :)

Consumer Tips to fight Time-Warner's Predatory Pricing Scheme

Cross-posted with GreensboroMetro...

The case with Time-Warner's new predatory pricing scheme with its Road Runner internet service has two issues...one, complaining to the proper individuals themselves...and two, the tepid response by those supposed to represent us.

First, the response, and Roch Smith has been all over this, doing a heck of a job with his citizen journalism. See his two-action plan here and here.

Second, the delayed and albeit-terrible reply by Greensboro City Council. N&R story today explains some of their responses, but it was Smith that broke the story that the city no longer has a franchise control over Time Warner.

It puts Greensboro (and the larger metro area) at a terrible disadvantage economically.

Sue Polinsky had a good point recently...she worked so hard to bring ConvergeSouth to Greensboro all those times, and yet it seems as though only one Greensboro City Council member embraced it.

Sad. The lack of progressiveness of this area is really disheartening.

E.C. :)

Wendy (of Bob & Wendy) joins Relay for Life

Wendy Gatlin, one-half of the show formerly known as "The Bob & Wendy Show" on Majic 94.1FM has become a big fan of Triad Media Watch since their former show ended a couple of months ago.

This time, Wendy writes in and asks for your help in a very noble cause:

I wanted to see if you could direct folks to a blog that I have. It's usually dedicated to American Idol, but I am joining in on Relay for Life this year. My father was diagnosed with rectal cancer last July, and has had a bevy of challenges, since. It's been truly a challenge for our family, as I'm sure it is for many other families.

I am seeking donations in an unconventional way. I am circulating a video on the internet that I hope can be shared and resent over and over...kind of a pass it on kind of deal.

The blog is www.thegat.blogspot.com

Thank you so much,

Wendy

Your father will be in my prayers, Wendy. Let's help them out, shall we?

E.C. :)

Concert Review: Smooth Jazz Guitarist Does Not Disappoint Loyal Triad Fan Base

A better-than-modest crowd poured into the High Point Theatre Saturday evening to witness smooth jazz recording artist Stanley Jordan.

Known as the innovator of the “tapping” technique of guitar playing, in which notes are created by tapping the fretboard, rather than via conventional strumming and picking, Jordan and his trio (including bass guitarist Charnett Moffett and drummer Kenwood Dennard) took the stage at 8:10pm and failed to disappoint his loyal and diverse Triad fan base for 110 minutes.

Performing renditions of old favorites from "Someone to Watch Over Me," "Mercy Mercy Mercy," and "Somewhere Over the Rainbow," to tracks from his latest CD titled State of Nature, Jordan even fascinated the audience with a unique and jaw-dropping performance of "Mozart's Piano Concerto # 21," part of his State of Nature album.

At one point in the show, Dennard engaged in a fierce percussion solo during a rendition of Bob Marley's "Get Up, Stand Up" that had the audience on their feet for several minutes. The standing ovations were numerous and the hoots and hollers for more of the melodic sounds were proof positive that the show won fan approval almost instantly.

Jordan and his Trio even made it a point to meet the audience and sign copies of State of Nature in a receiving line immediately following the show, a move indicative of the closeness smooth jazz artists have with their loyal, niche fan base.

And the acoustically-pleasing intimate venue of the High Point Theatre could not have been more of a perfect location for this show.

From the radio spots promoting the show on WZTK's (101.1FM) "Smooth Jazz Weekend," it was clear from the Saturday evening show that smooth jazz fans from across the Triad ache for more of this blend of music and more visits from these artists to our area.

Said concert-goer Leo Bucey of Jamestown, who signaled his seal of approval, "All I needed was a bottle of scotch to go along with this show and it would have been perfect."

Scotch or no scotch, the show was indeed...perfect.

E.C. :)

More Time-Warner Fallout

I wouldn't want to be working in Time-Warner's media relations office this morning (right, Ryan Shell???)

That's because the fallout from yesterday's announcement of a new internet metering scheme here in Greensboro has angered so so many people that many calls are going out for citizens to cancel their service in protest, to the News & Record comment section overflowing from this morning's article, to links of protest websites surfacing.

Make no mistake,this case reopens the discussion advocating for true competition of cable and internet services in the Triad. And a great many of those in the echo chamber want Verizon's FIOS to make a grand entrance in this area.

More coverage today:
Sue Polinsky
Roch Smith
Ed Cone
News & Record-Allen Johnson, Doug Clark
StoptheCap.com
Talk back to Time-Warner here. And here.

Or call them:

Melissa Buscher
Director, Media Relations (919) 654-4618

Susan Leepson
RVP, Communications (704) 206-6964

E.C. :)

Time Warner prepares to rip off Road Runner subscribers

Unfortunately, the bird seed will be charged by the consumption very soon.

In fact, what can be compared to a back-door consumption tax, Time Warner Cable's Road Runner internet subscription service will begin expanding metered internet usage pricing to the Greensboro market. In plain English, Time Warner plans to charge internet customers based on how much data they consume with a new tiered pricing scheme in several markets. Beside Greensboro, markets in New York and Texas are also going to be affected.

My friend Roch Smith is all over this:

Smith:

According to Business Week, Greensboro will be the Guinea Pig for TWC's attempt to "upend a longstanding pricing strategy among Internet service providers." This is a serious affront to Greensboro's economic viability and demands all hands on deck.

If ever Greensboro was serious about inspiring innovation, attracting creative young people and fostering prosperity in industries of the future, it must recognize that impeding access to broadband internet in a way like only three other U.S. cities is a big, bold, speedy move to the bottom. It is the modern equivalent of being one of only a few cities where citizens must pay a fee for every mile they drive. Nobody would move to such a place. No business would expand to such a place. No energetic college student is going to stay in such a place after graduating.

This move demands swift and decisive action from Greensboro's leaders. This cannot be met with genteel, sleepy contemplation.

I wholeheartedly agree.

I'm with you, Roch. And TMW will assist in getting your complaints all the way to the front office, if necessary. I'm in complete opposition to this.

As Roch is suggesting, we need to demand the city rework (or even yank) the franchise agreement with Time Warner. Why don't we have viable competition for cable in this area? Ask or demand they postpone implementation and simultaneously, our city leaders need to look at municipal WiFi. The flip-side is that you will see a stepped-up presence by other ISPs such as AT&T and Clearwire because of this.

What about our schools, public buildings, health facilities, all of whom are likely Time Warner/Road Runner customers? Contracts, already inked...

This is probably more for my sister blog GreensboroMetro, but this area had better start getting serious about its long-term future. Because frankly, its viability and vitality are in serious doubt.

More from the News & Record, BusinessWeek.

E.C. :)

FOX-8 censors The Osbournes

Since FOX-8 (WGHP) is no longer a network O&O (owned and operated) station, they are no longer bound by the network to air the network slate on time. Which is apparently what FOX-8 officials decided to do with the airing of the new Osbournes show this past Tuesday.

The News & Record reports the show didn't air locally until after midnight Tuesday, a decision made by station manager Karen Adams after viewing a preview of the show late last week. Adams reportedly objected to some of the content in the show.

According to a Washington Post report, several other FOX affiliates around the county either chose not to air it or to delay broadcasting of the episode.

N&R:

WGHP station manager Karen Adams said she opted to delay the show after seeing the preview video Friday night. The hugely popular "American Idol" is a family-friendly show, Adams said. This debut episode of "Osbournes Reloaded," she added, was not.

When "American Idol" ended at 9:25 p.m. Tuesday, WGHP ran a special episode of "Deal or Dud," a news segment that evaluates popular consumer products.

"I like Ozzy," Adams said. "I just didn't like him at 9:25 coming off of 'American Idol.'"

Adams said the station got about 60 e-mails from viewers. About 40 percent praised the decision to not air it in prime time. The remaining 60 percent were critical. Adams said many of them had missed the station's announcement that "Osbournes Reloaded" would be delayed and did not see the show.

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I can see why Adams may have made this decision, but I'm not the biggest fan of censorship in this matter. I'm not defending the show, but let families and households make the decision to turn the channel or turn the TV off, as is done in our home.

And believe me, the stuff young people watch today, either on cable or online, or on their portable video players/i-Pods illegally brought to school, is a lot more haunting compared to what's on the Osbournes show.

E.C. :)

"Big Brother" casting call this Saturday

CBS Television is hosting an open casting call for its hit show "Big Brother" this Saturday, April 4. Open auditions will be held at the Carolina Kia/Hyundai dealership on N. Main St. in High Point beginning at 10am. Click here to go to CBS-2 WFMY for additional information.

E.C. :)

Jazz artist Stanley Jordan at High Point Theater this Saturday

A little off-topic, but I said before that I'm a big jazz fan, and I'm a big connoisseur of contemporary jazz. Having said that, one of the things I'd like to do in the coming months is to profile those in the local media scene who have some sort of relationship with jazz, be it jazz DJs (WNAA and WSNC come to mind) or what-have-you.

Anyway, just a shameless plug (I'm not being paid for this) for this Saturday's jazz concert at the High Point Theater featuring contemporary jazz guitarist and legendary recording artist Stanley Jordan. I don't have tickets, can't afford tickets, but I saw this guy in concert many years ago and he can burn up some guitar.

The show is this Saturday, April 4. Doors open at 8:00 PM. Tickets are $25
orchestra, $20 balcony, available through www.highpointtheatre.com. Kudos to the High Point Theater for bringing this guy to town.

E.C. :)

Our tape-delayed CBS Early Show and the Peay Brothers

I don't want to speculate on why the Greensboro's Peay Brothers lost the CBS Early Show's Singing Family Face-Off Competition, but one has to wonder...did the fact that the CBS-2 (WFMY) tape-delay of the Early Show by one hour contribute to the brothers not winning? A number of other major markets around the country obviously had a jump-start on the voting likely because the Early Show broadcasts from 7-9am live. I don't have a dog in the fight one way or the other, but again, one has to wonder.

E.C. :)