The Radio Station, Eighth Edition: Broadcast, Satellite and Internet Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This is the textbook for my broadcasting class and while it is a lot of information per chapter, it is still all good information and will really let you into the world behind the scenes at your local radio station. It really talking about the whole business of radio. I recommend to anyone seeking to find out all about the workings of modern day radio.

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Radio Station, Eighth Edition: Broadcast, Satellite and Internet


The Radio Station is considered the standard work on radio media. It remains a concise and candid guide to the internal workings of radio stations and the radio industry in all of its various forms. Not only will you begin understand how each job at a radio station is best performed, you will learn how it meshes with those of the rest of the radio station staff. If you are uncertain of your career goals, this book provides a solid foundation in who does what, when, and why.

The Radio Station details all departments within a radio station--be it a terrestrial, satellite, or Internet operation-from the inside-out, covering technology to operations, and sales to syndication. It also offers an overview of how government regulations affect radio stations today and how radio stations have adapted to new communications technologies. Drawing on the insights and observations of those who make their daily living by working in the industry, this edition continues its tradition of presenting the real-world perspective of where radio comes from, and where it is heading. The Eighth Edition of this classic text includes expanded sections on digital, satellite, and Internet radio; integration of new technologies; new and evolving formats; the uses and applications of podcasts and blogs; mobile multimedia devices; programming for the new radio formats; new contributions by key industry executives; digital studios; station clustering and consolidation; industry economics and statistics; and updated rules and regulations. The new companion website features the interviews and essays with industry professionals, an image bank, additional suggested reading, and a listing of helpful links to industry websites. This edition is loaded with new illustrations, feature boxes and quotes from industry pros, bringing it all together for the reader.

* Classic and candid guide to the internal workings of radio stations* Updated coverage of the podcasting boom, the clustering of radio stations and station management, the integration of new (digital) technology, and more * New analysis of satellite radio and its role in radio broadcasting today * Brand new companion website

* The Radio Station is now celebrating its 25th anniversary!

Click here for more information about The Radio Station, Eighth Edition: Broadcast, Satellite and Internet

Read More...

Olympic Media: Inside the Biggest Show on Television (Routledge Critical Studies in Sport) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I had the pleasure of reading Olympic Media: Inside the Biggest Show on Television by Andrew Billings two months before the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. Being a sports enthusiast and Olympics junkie, the only fix for my Beijing addiction prior to this book was the occasional Olympic Torch tidbit on the evening news or a visit to the official website of the IOC. Thankfully, Olympic Media came along in time to sufficiently whet my appetite for the largest sports spectacle in the world.
What Billings has accomplished in his examination of NBCs telecast of the Olympics is remarkable. He offers in-depth observations and analyses of the telecast by focusing on organizational processes, production influences, and viewer perceptions of this cultural (and often political) megaevent. In terms of cultural significance, the only other sporting event that rivals the importance of the Olympics is World Cup soccer. It is rare to find a study that explores the media effects process from inception (i.e., NBCs eight-year pre-production planning) to reception (i.e., viewer reactions to and perceptions of the Games). In just under 200 pages, Billings conducts interviews with the gatekeepers and storytellers at NBC Sports, performs content analyses of primetime coverage from the last 10 years of Olympic telecasts with a focus on themes of nationality, gender, and ethnicity, and analyzes the cultivating and agenda-setting effects of the Olympics telecast using survey data collected from viewers.
Chapter 1 opens with a historical review of the Olympic telecast. From the Berlin Summer Games in 1936 to the Torino Winter Games in 2006, he provides a review of key moments in Olympic telecast history. He concludes the chapter with sufficient rationale for this study (viewership, political influence, prestige, viewer attitudes) and his methods of analysis, and concludes with a preview of the remaining chapters.
Chapters 2 and 3 are quite possibly the most interesting chapters in the book because they contain interviews conducted with NBCs producers and reporters juxtaposed with relevant facets of the television production and narration process. Specifically, in chapter 2, Billings offers analyses and excerpts of his interviews with three producers and one director, most notably Dick Ebersol, executive producer of the Olympic telecast. Many questions concerning the evolution of the Olympic broascast are answered by Ebersol in this chapter, including decisions that directly impact viewership (e.g., Ebersol's decision to eliminate boxing from primetime). In chapter 3, Billings presents analyses and excerpts of interviews with seven NCA sportscasters including Bob Costas, primetime anchor, and Jim Lampley, the weekend/late-night anchor. For example, answers from Costas and Lampley to questions concerning "profiles and promotion" of prominent athletes that withdraw from competition or fail to win medals were illuminating and entertaining. Once again, Billings effectively synthesizes questions concerning the storytelling process with relevant, meaningful answers from a variety of sportscasters, many of which are former, multi-medal-winning Olympians.
Read more on this review in the upcoming issue of the Journal of Communication Studies, published by Marquette.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Olympic Media: Inside the Biggest Show on Television (Routledge Critical Studies in Sport)

Located in the United States, NBC (National Broadcasting Company) is the biggest and most powerful Olympic network in the world, having won the rights to televise both the Summer and the Winter Olympic Games. By way of attracting more viewers of both sexes and all ages and ethnicities than any other sporting event, and through the production of breathtaking spectacles and absorbing stories, NBC's Olympic telecasts have huge power and potential to shape viewer perceptions. Billings's unique text examines the production, content, and potential effects of NBC's Olympic telecasts. Interviews with key NBC Olympic producers and sportscasters (including NBC Universal Sportsand Olympics President Dick Ebersol and primetime anchor Bob Costas) outline the inner workings of the NBC Olympic machine; content analyses from ten years of Olympic telecasts (1996-2006) examine the portrayal of nationality, gender, and ethnicity within NBC's telecast; and survey analyses interrogate the extent to which NBC's storytelling process affects viewer beliefs about identity issues. This mixed-method approach offers valuable insights into what Billings portrays as "the biggest show on television".

Click here for more information about Olympic Media: Inside the Biggest Show on Television (Routledge Critical Studies in Sport)

Read More...