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First, you should read the articles in the "Essential Reading" links category. We hope, after reading these excellent articles, you'll agree with us. If you do, you should check out "What can I do?" to find out how to bring about change in radio.
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ClearChannelSucks.org is a free speech website dedicated to educating the public about entertainment giant Clear Channel. Clear Channel owns over 1,200 radio stations and 37 television stations, with investments in 240 radio stations globally, and Clear Channel Entertainment (aka SFX, one of their more well-known subsidiaries) owns and operates over 200 venues nationwide. They are in 248 of the top 250 radio markets, controlling 60% of all rock programming. They outright own the tours of musicians like Janet Jackson, Aerosmith, Pearl Jam, Madonna and N'Sync. They own the network which airs Rush Limbaugh, Dr. Laura, Casey Kasem, and the Fox Sports Radio Network. With 103,000,000 listeners in the U.S. and 1,000,000,000 globally (1/6 of the world population), this powerful company has grown unchecked, using their monopoly
to control the entire music industry. If you find this alarming, ClearChannelSucks.org is the place for you.
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Clear Channel is expected to put the finishing touches on its Zero Tolerance Indecency Policy and begin enforcing its internal regulations as early as today in response to a record $1.75 million fine levied by the FCC against our favorite media giant.
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Posted by John M. Johnson on Wednesday, June 09, 2004 - 11:17 AM CST (91 Reads)
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The title says it all, and this says it even better :)
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Posted by Lenny_Nero on Friday, June 04, 2004 - 03:39 PM CST (131 Reads)
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A bit unrelated to Clear Channel, but important nonetheless. PBS has a FrontLine special online about the current state of the music industry. This show covers everything from record sales to radio station play and artists cut of the money. Clear Channel's involvement thoughout is obvious, though only mentioned a couple of times. Click Here for the Show's page.
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Posted by Lenny_Nero on Friday, June 04, 2004 - 03:10 PM CST (80 Reads)
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According to a Press Release, Kufala Recordings, an independent, authorized concert recording company, presents a small challenge to Clear Channel's recent LiveCD patent purchase. Due to a loophole in the patent, Kufala can record the show, then mail it to you a couple days after the show. It's not LiveCD, but it's a viable alternative.
Here's the PRNewswire link
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Posted by Lenny_Nero on Friday, May 28, 2004 - 04:58 PM CST (134 Reads)
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BensDad was kind enough to enlighten us to a current Bill pending House approval. Apparently the bill holds the venue, promoters, and a long list of other partners liable for drug use within the venue. Read more for link and smelly (like pine trees!) info :)
Note: Imagine, you manage to sneak it in, and if you get caught, CC has to pay for it :)
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Posted by Lenny_Nero on Thursday, May 27, 2004 - 11:55 AM CST (237 Reads)
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Apparently Clear Channel claims it owns the patent for the DiscLive technology used to sell recordings of a show, immediately following the show itself. They plan to use the technology exclusively within their venues. It is unknown if they will license the technology to other vendors.
More here and even more here.
Note: Thanks for forum member BensDad for letting us know about this one!
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Posted by Lenny_Nero on Tuesday, May 25, 2004 - 03:04 PM CST (263 Reads)
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Going thru some old email that the spam filter trapped, I came across several things I probably should have posted a few weeks ago. This one was too good to pass up. Read more for information and link....
Note: one point of note, I've personally changed my email filters to hopefully avoid a delay in stories sent to us. We try to get to them as soon as possible, but due to a greater need for spam filters, tend to miss some. We appologize for the delay and hope you understand.
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Posted by Lenny_Nero on Tuesday, May 25, 2004 - 12:47 PM CST (677 Reads)
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As promised, here's some more info on Clear Channel's format switch handed down to Dallas' only true rock station, 97.1 KEGL "The Eagle".
The format of "The New Sunny 97.1" does seem to be "lite rock" with zero focus on the local music scene. During the last hour, the station has played:
The Beach Boys, Carole King, Wham!, Elton John, Aretha Franklin, Rita Coolidge, Tina Turner and Fleetwood Mac.
For those who've lived in the Dallas area and frequented Deep Ellum, KEGL's move away from rock and local music is particularly hard to swallow in that it means the airwaves will no longer carry great Dallas area talent showcases like the Local Show. Thankfully, the gracious Robert Miguel will keep the live show going at Trees. I hope everyone in the area made it a point to attend The Eagle's farewell show tonight.
Many of our members in the Dallas area left some great comments in the wake of this article. I felt some deserved a place on the front page as they raise valid points and concerns that this site is geared to address.
by samsara on May 19, 2004 - 02:18 PM
Notice the "intrinsic commitment to community" mentioned on their homepage. And see if you can find anything on their website that cares about the listeners. I really didn't look, but they didn't have anything. I really don't want to spam them, but if they don't get the clue, then some drastic measures may have to be taken.
by AnnaAmanda on May 18, 2004 - 10:08 PM
Another concern we are wanting to voice is about the Dallas music industry. What great rock bands will come to Dallas now that we have no station to promote them on! We can almost GUARANTEE the loss of our local rock scene as well. How will new rock bands be discovered with no station to play them on!! Thanks Clear Channel, you've officailly KILLED the Dallas Rock Scene! This is an OUTRAGE!!!
by danabear1025 on May 20, 2004 - 02:50 PM
Listeners can be passionate about a free service. I respect that. I respected the Eagle as it was my sister station.
BUT WHERE THE HELL WAS EVERYONE WHEN THE RATINGS BOOKS CAME OUT?????????
Station Spr 03 Sum 03 Fall 03 Win 04 Format
KKDA-FM 7.2 6.2 6.3 6.0 Urban
WBAP-AM 4.6 4.1 4.5 5.0 News
KBFB-FM 3.6 4.6 4.4 4.2 Urban
KVIL-FM 2.8 3.2 3.6 3.9 AC
KPLX-FM 5.2 4.9 5.5 3.8 Country
KZMP-A/F 1.0 .9 1.0 3.8 Spanish
KLUV-FM 3.9 4.4 4.0 3.7 Oldies
KSCS-FM 3.8 4.1 4.1 3.7 Country
KESS-A/F 3.9 2.8 3.9 3.4 Spanish
KLTY-FM 3.5 3.2 4.8 3.4 Christian
KLLI-FM 2.5 1.8 2.2 3.3 News/Talk
KHKS-FM 3.2 3.6 3.1 3.2 CHR
KOAI-FM 3.3 3.5 3.2 3.2 Jazz
KDGE-FM 3.4 2.8 2.4 2.7 Rock Alt.
KTCK-KTDK 2.3 2.3 2.9 2.7 Sports
KLNO-FM 4.4 3.7 3.9 2.6 Spanish
KEGL-FM 2.3 2.5 2.5 2.3 Rock
Ties with 13th in the market!!! Jazz is kicking it's butt! Step up rock fans!
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Posted by John M. Johnson on Friday, May 21, 2004 - 10:10 PM CST (552 Reads)
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Details are sketchy, but around 2pm, 05/17/2004, the staff of 97.1 KEGL "The Eagle" , Dallas' (reportedly) only "real rock" station, were notified that the station would change formats. While no other details of the new format were available, the new station is to be called "The New Sunny 97.1". Read more for opinion and sketchy information (we will update as details are reported).
Note: Interesting note, and someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but The Eagle used to run Howard Stern in the mornings. I understand it is a CC station, but not sure if they dropped stern with the other 6 stations. Does anyone know if they continued running the show until the end?
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Posted by Lenny_Nero on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 - 12:21 PM CST (2764 Reads)
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That was the quote by Eileen Willenborg, Executive Director of the Chicago Local of AFTRA about their decision to seek Union Representation this week.
Alright, so I'm behind. Read more of the press release sent in by one of our readers :)
Note: I know at least one of our forum members will love this story :)
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Posted by Lenny_Nero on Friday, May 14, 2004 - 01:31 PM CST (286 Reads)
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Lifted from Reuters:
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Broadcaster Clear Channel Communications has set up a new business unit to produce live entertainment and related television programing with top advertisers, the company said on Tuesday.
The unit, Clear Channel Entertainment Properties, will help marketers cultivate advertising venues with live events from music to sports and theatrical performances, then develop them further into broadcast material for television or radio and recorded properties as well.
"Branded entertainment," in which an advertiser becomes closely linked with celebrity performances or broadcast programs, has become a sought-after service to reach consumers as network television viewership declines and commercial messages get lost in a barrage of ads.
"Clients have told us that it is now important for us to start creating customized television (services)," Bruce Eskowitz, president of the new unit, told Reuters. "It's not just about creating a one-day asset but to extend that ... to create DVDs or CDs that work for them on an ongoing basis."
Eskowitz said the new business venture grew out of promotion and sponsorship ties it developed for its live entertainment business, which helps handle such blockbuster tours as Bette Midler and Britney Spears.
Clear Channel, of San Antonio, Texas, is the largest U.S. radio station chain. It has developed promotions for such clients as soft drink giant Coca-Cola Co, brewer Anheuser-Busch and financial services company American Express . The company said Major League Baseball recently signed on for a promotion of its licensed sportswear.
Eskowitz said such promotions can cost anywhere from the "low six figures to the high seven figures." New marketing programs can help tailor an event by routing a concert tour to cities that are key to an advertiser's business and offer on site an instant recording of the concert, he said.
Clear Channel Entertainment owns, operates or books entertainment for nearly 135 live venues.
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Posted by John M. Johnson on Friday, May 14, 2004 - 08:33 AM CST (231 Reads)
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The Chicago Tribune (registration required) has an interesting article on the FCC's effects on the public by it's recent fining of Howard Stern.
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Posted by Lenny_Nero on Friday, May 07, 2004 - 01:50 PM CST (228 Reads)
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Sure, Howard Stern may have become the target/victim of the FCC's recent witchhunts and subsequent fine-fests. But is the nation's largest shock jock really all that upset at being dumped from 6 Clear Channel stations? Probably not.
And here's why:
Howard Stern's show has received enough media attention in the wake of the FCC fines and CC's well justified drop of the program to bump him back to number one in his home market, New York.
Monday's release of the Arbitron ratings showed Stern with a morning drive time total audience share of 7.2. 22 percent higher than last fall's ratings that marked Stern as a waning #2. These are the show's best numbers since the fall of 2000.
Stern was also returned to the number one spot in Los Angeles for ages 25-54 and fourth in total drive-time audience. Chicago ratings show Stern up 23 percent from 15th place to 9th.
Aside from heightened media exposure, one explanation for Stern's ratings jump may simply be that he now has something exciting to say. How long can a shock jock remain entertaining if he doesn't have anything left to shock you with? After being dropped from 6 major markets Howard has ammunition for ranting on the federal government, censorship and Clear Channel. Most Americans and certainly anyone reading this article would find these topics to be of considerable interest if not concern.
In a market where any asshole with a mic can launch a winning drivetime shock radio show, it's tough to continually innovate and find new material to rant about. It's an even more daunting task to keep your rants relevant on a national level.
My favorite asshole with a mic, Russ Martin, is the number one shock jock in the Dallas/FW market. He continually creates new material based on local events. Despite his creativity and mic presence, there's no doubt (in my mind or his) that Russ would eventually run dry and lose his effectiveness on a national audience just as Stern seemed to be doing before his FCC/CC troubles began.
On a whole, Clear Channel may have inadvertently saved Howard Stern's career by dropping him from their lineup. With ratings improving on the remaining 35 Infinity stations that still air his show, the company will gladly continue to cover the nearly $2 million in fines Stern has received from the FCC since 1990.
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Posted by jmj on Wednesday, May 05, 2004 - 03:35 PM CST (164 Reads)
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Nobody In Particular Presents, a Denver Concert promoter, has won an early legal battle which will allow them to present their case against Clear Channel to a jury. NIPP has alleged that Clear Channel used its influence on radio airplay in the Denver area to attempt to stifle competition from independent concert promoters. Obviously, this is something we've been talking about for quite some time, but it's nice to see it's going to be fleshed out in court. Judge Edward W. Nottingham's ruling was not all good news for NIPP, however, as he ruled that Clear Channel did not have a monopoly in concert promotions in the Denver market. Court documents suggest NIPP has a strong case, with emails and various Clear Channel internal documents indicating Clear Channel was vehemently attempting to crush competition in the concert promotions industry by denying airplay to artists who used other concert promoters. Rolling Stone has the full story.
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Posted by Clint Sharp on Friday, April 23, 2004 - 02:32 AM CST (181 Reads)
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In an email response to one of our users, Jim Richards, the Program Director of KIOZ, defended Clear Channel's position on dropping Stern from the six stations which carried his syndicated program. Richards said "The issue isn't CC censoring content for the public...rather it's us trying to protect our license under a new, more aggressive enforcement policy established by the FCC. If they want to revoke one of our licenses, they can." While we can certainly understand Clear Channel's position in this particular matter, it's certainly unfortunate that today's regulatory climate allows such lax ownership policies of our media but at the same attempts to enforce 1950s era morality on our broadcasters. Many thanks to icarius for posting his response.
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Posted by Clint Sharp on Friday, April 23, 2004 - 02:05 AM CST (161 Reads)
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Here's a link to a Reuters story about Clear Channel cancelling distribution of Stern's show on about six of their stations. Coming from the company that was proud of Bubba the Love Sponge, it's actually a little shocking.
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Posted by Clint Sharp on Saturday, April 17, 2004 - 04:28 PM CST (268 Reads)
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Clear Channel is in the AFL-CIO's sights for execessive executive compensation. The AFL-CIO has started a new website, Paywatch.org, to highlight corporate board members who were directly responsible for approving high executive compensation packages. Clear Channel's compensation committee is chaired by John Williams, who the AFL-CIO seeks to convince shareholders to not re-elect to Clear Channel's board. Nice to see we're not the only ones who think the nepitism running rampant at Clear Channel isn't quite proper for a publically traded company.
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Posted by Clint Sharp on Saturday, April 17, 2004 - 04:19 PM CST (159 Reads)
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The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has lodged a complaint with the FCC regarding offerings by Sirius and XM Satellite Radio, which are delivering local news and traffic reports to their subscribers. NAB's position to the FCC states that:
"This foray into local content is directly contrary to ... repeated and express promises that satellite radio service would be limited to delivering national programming to serve the unserved and underserved," according to Reuters.
Satellite Broadcasters are also looking to use GPS technology to tailor the broadcasts to the geographic location of the subscriber. How dare they! Slashdot is also covering the story.
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Posted by Clint Sharp on Saturday, April 17, 2004 - 04:07 PM CST (307 Reads)
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Boy, we're sloppy site maintainers (I'm sure many of you have been saying this for months). I've finally got the site back up after a month or so worth of it being down. Our machine was potentially comprimised (according to Brent, I never checked it for comprimise, I think it just ran out of disk space), so we've now moved to a new machine (better processor, more disk). Performance should be slightly better now.
OK, we're going to try to bring you some updated content. Clear Channel's all over the news these days, so I figure we ought to cover it here. If anyone's interested in writing for the site, please send me some email (address at the bottom of the page).
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Posted by Clint Sharp on Saturday, April 17, 2004 - 03:55 PM CST (106 Reads)
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We're Back! After an outage of I don't know how long, I've finally gotten around to fixing the site. My deepest apologies to all of you who emailed me telling me the site was down, but unfortunately being that I'm rarely in the US these days, this ranks fairly low on my priority list these days.
Which brings me to my second point, which is I'd like to get the CCS userbase to being implementing content changes on the site, since as you can see it hasn't been updated in quite some time. I'm really a bad site maintener, as I have an incredibly short intention span for things such as this. I still care, unfortunately I'm plagued by having a job which sends me to the Caribbean 3 weeks out of the month :). As word begins to get out we're back up, lets start a discussion on the message boards to talk about who the community feels would be good to maintain news postings etc for the site. Thank you all for your continued patronage even after my outright laziness.
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Posted by Clint Sharp on Friday, October 10, 2003 - 06:39 PM CST (683 Reads)
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