The Radio Receiver That Tunes in the Dead

Or so they claim.  From the BBC:

In 1969, a mysterious middle-aged Latvian doctor turned up in Gerrards Cross with a large collection of tape recordings.

He had, he said, been conducting experiments in communication with the dead, and had established contact with Hitler, Stalin, Mussolini and many other deceased 20th Century statesmen. The recordings - 72,000 of them - contained their voices.

His name was Konstantin Raudive, and he called his technique Electronic Voice Projection, or EVP.

It wasn't real-time interactive communication. You asked your questions, and then left the tape running, recording silence.

But listening back, through the mush and static, you could sometimes just about make out people speaking.

Gerrards Cross was the home of a publisher, Colin Smythe, whom Raudive hoped would publish a book on his findings.

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This Should Be a Very Interesting Radio Discussion

From today's Radio and Internet Newsletter:

In today's USA Today "Money" section (here), journalist Chris Woodyard suggests the very existence of AM/FM radio may be endangered by a wave of Internet-delivered audio entertainment in the car.

Most of us closer to the webcasting, broadcasting, and automotive industries doubt IP-delivered content in cars spells doom for American broadcasters. But that's certainly not to say it's not a crucial issue. Jacobs Media president Fred Jacobs wrote last week (here), "The automakers are perfectly content to give consumers lots of choice and let Darwinian-driven choice take over. May the best content win. And that’s where radio needs to rethink its assumptions and givens."

RAIN Summit West (now just two weeks away on April 7 in Las Vegas) leads off by picking up this very important discussion. Moderated by Roger Lanctotfrom tech-focused research and consulting firm Strategy Analytics, the "Dashboard Discussions" panel will hash out some strategies for competing for the attention of drivers and passengers with a world of media options at their fingertips.

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Winners at Thursday Night's CMW Industry Awards Dinner

The radio, recording and music retail industry met last night to hand out a bunch of honours.  Read about the Hall of Fame recipients here.  The award winners were as follows (Via NewCanadianMusic.ca)

ALLAN SLAIGHT HUMANITARIAN SPIRIT AWARD

SIMPLE PLAN

ROSALIE AWARD RECIPIENT

BETTY SELLIN

ALLAN WATERS LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

JOHN DONABIE

MUSIC INDUSTRY HALL OF FAME

RALPH JAMES

COLIN JAMES

GRAHAM HENDERSON

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What Unmanned Drones Mean to Radio

"Drones?" you're thinking.  "You mean those things that go after military targets?  What can they possibly have to do with radio?"  A lot, actually.

It's just not the military buying these small flying surveillance machines.  There are plenty of companies that will sell drones to private companies.  And while at first glance they may seem expensive--a good one starts at about $50,000--they're actually quite cost effective in certain situations.

Take traffic reports.  Helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft are awfully expensive to maintain.  First, you need to acquire your aircraft, find an airport to store it and pay for its operation and maintenance.  You need a reporter/pilot (or one of each) plus all kinds of insurance.  And human-powered aircraft can't safely fly in certain types of weather.

Compared to that, a drone is much, much cheaper and much more versatile.  Hell, you could have several of them for the annual cost of a single airborne traffic team.  Think about how much more maneuverable (or intrusive) they are. Link them to traffic-reporting smart phone software and you a have full-time real-time flow of news and information, 24/7.

The first adopters will be TV stations in LA for traffic reports and high-speed car chases.  You watch.  More here.

Digital Closing Gap on AM/FM Radio

There's a lot of talk about the future of radio, the rise of digital and the importance of social media at this year's Canadian Music.  VisionCritical, a research organization, released a study on the changes in consumer behavior. 

From Radio and Internet News:

While two-thirds of American and Canadian adults listen to broadcast radio (either via AM/FM or streamed online) every week, leading online sources like YouTube, Pandora, and Spotify "have gained a strong foothold." This is especially true in the U.S., as Pandora and Spotify are not officially available to Canadians.

More than 1 in 4 American adults regularly listen to music online, according to Vision Critical, while only about 1 in 5 Canadians do.

Just sayin'.