Hurricane Ian coverage

[davideduardo]

I had one college professor who said I should try to lose my accent if I wanted to succeed in the business world. I don't think I ever did.

My best friend went to the Don Martin School of Broadcasting in Hollywood, which for many was actually a very good training center for the programming and technical operations side of radio.

But she was told that her accent would probably prevent her from ever getting a good job in radio. She's from a smaller town in Jalisco, México.

After working her way through XEPRS, middays at KTNQ and KHJ, a return as PD of KTNQ she created the "Recuerdo" format at KRCD in LA and programmed it while doing mid-days in Houston, Austin, San Antonio, McAllen, Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix, LA, San Francisco, Fresno, San Diego and Albuquerque.

So much for career predictions.

 

[Harvey_Dogg]

The first person I hired in commercial radio was a girl from Mexico. She spoke perfect English and Spanish.

Now if you want an accent that's difficult to understand try a Scottish accent.

 

[CTListener]

My best friend went to the Don Martin School of Broadcasting in Hollywood, which for many was actually a very good training center for the programming and technical operations side of radio.

But she was told that her accent would probably prevent her from ever getting a good job in radio. She's from a smaller town in Jalisco, México.

After working her way through XEPRS, middays at KTNQ and KHJ, a return as PD of KTNQ she created the "Recuerdo" format at KRCD in LA and programmed it while doing mid-days in Houston, Austin, San Antonio, McAllen, Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix, LA, San Francisco, Fresno, San Diego and Albuquerque.

So much for career predictions.

I don't know why anyone would say that to a woman who was interested in the programming side of radio. A Mexican accent wouldn't be a hindrance even if she wound up programming English-language formats, just as long as her command of English was good and the people she worked for and with could understand her. Yes, heavy foreign accents aren't generally accepted on English-language formats, but if she had no desire to be air talent, why would that matter?

(Oops, just noticed she did middays on KHJ. With an accent or did she Americanize her on-air accent? And yes, I know that Mexico is part of the Americas, so no pedantry, please.)

 

[Battenkill50]

WONQ - Oviedo-Orlando - 1030 La Grande back on now....

kw - melbourne (no regional accent)

 

[gr8oldies]

I don't know why anyone would say that to a woman who was interested in the programming side of radio. A Mexican accent wouldn't be a hindrance even if she wound up programming English-language formats, just as long as her command of English was good and the people she worked for and with could understand her. Yes, heavy foreign accents aren't generally accepted on English-language formats, but if she had no desire to be air talent, why would that matter?

(Oops, just noticed she did middays on KHJ. With an accent or did she Americanize her on-air accent? And yes, I know that Mexico is part of the Americas, so no pedantry, please.)

Would that have been the English language KHJ or the Spanish language KHJ.

 

[secondchoice]

My best friend went to the Don Martin School of Broadcasting in Hollywood, which for many was actually a very good training center for the programming and technical operations side of radio.

But she was told that her accent would probably prevent her from ever getting a good job in radio. She's from a smaller town in Jalisco, México.

After working her way through XEPRS, middays at KTNQ and KHJ, a return as PD of KTNQ she created the "Recuerdo" format at KRCD in LA and programmed it while doing mid-days in Houston, Austin, San Antonio, McAllen, Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas, Phoenix, LA, San Francisco, Fresno, San Diego and Albuquerque.

So much for career predictions.

In Atlanta we have "English Nick" on 97.1 middays. He has been in the market for years. He has a British accent. Which type I don't know. Remarkably from what I have heard of him no southern has crept in. It is kind of interesting when he pronounces Xfinity. He always refers to Falcon and Bulldog games as "American" football which he does "hosting" for tailgates as a station event.

Also Atlanta had Craig Ashwood on the old 94 Q. I believe he has an Australian accent. He did the voice over for the Outback Steak Houses.

Several of the TV reporters can ask questions in Spanish and translate live on the air.

 

[gr8oldies]

In Atlanta we have "English Nick" on 97.1 middays. He has been in the market for years. He has a British accent. Which type I don't know. Remarkably from what I have heard of him no southern has crept in. It is kind of interesting when he pronounces Xfinity. He always refers to Falcon and Bulldog games as "American" football which he does "hosting" for tailgates as a station event.

Also Atlanta had Craig Ashwood on the old 94 Q. I believe he has an Australian accent. He did the voice over for the Outback Steak Houses.

Several of the TV reporters can ask questions in Spanish and translate live on the air.

There's a British guy who has worked on air in Sevierville, TN for at least a decade.

 

[secondchoice]

I wonder will any station / cluster will rethink their studio location, STL, or transmitter site? I realize just getting back on the air is the goal now but if a property has been under water there is always a chance for mold. My dads hometown has had 3 or major floods since 1986.. If you live in the "100 year flood plain" you can get flood insurance from a government program, but a lot of folks have given up after the third rebuild and moved out of the flood plain.

 

[CTListener]

Would that have been the English language KHJ or the Spanish language KHJ.

Oh right, I forgot about that. Given the other details of her background as provided by David, I'd guess the Spanish one.

 

[CTListener]

In Atlanta we have "English Nick" on 97.1 middays. He has been in the market for years. He has a British accent. Which type I don't know. Remarkably from what I have heard of him no southern has crept in. It is kind of interesting when he pronounces Xfinity. He always refers to Falcon and Bulldog games as "American" football which he does "hosting" for tailgates as a station event.

Also Atlanta had Craig Ashwood on the old 94 Q. I believe he has an Australian accent. He did the voice over for the Outback Steak Houses.

Several of the TV reporters can ask questions in Spanish and translate live on the air.

I remember an Englishman doing middays on WKSS Hartford back in the '80s, can't recall his name. I don't think accents from other English-speaking countries have ever been much of a barrier to getting jobs in American television or radio -- unless you're looking to work in an Urban or Country format or do play-by-play of American sports.

 

[davideduardo]

I don't know why anyone would say that to a woman who was interested in the programming side of radio. A Mexican accent wouldn't be a hindrance even if she wound up programming English-language formats, just as long as her command of English was good and the people she worked for and with could understand her. Yes, heavy foreign accents aren't generally accepted on English-language formats, but if she had no desire to be air talent, why would that matter?

She spent over 20 years on-air, including the highly rated mid-day shift at KTNQ in most of the 80's.

(Oops, just noticed she did middays on KHJ. With an accent or did she Americanize her on-air accent? And yes, I know that Mexico is part of the Americas, so no pedantry, please.)

KHJ was Spanish after 1989. I was her PD there.

 

[vchimpanzee]

I wonder will any station / cluster will rethink their studio location, STL, or transmitter site? I realize just getting back on the air is the goal now but if a property has been under water there is always a chance for mold. My dads hometown has had 3 or major floods since 1986.. If you live in the "100 year flood plain" you can get flood insurance from a government program, but a lot of folks have given up after the third rebuild and moved out of the flood plain.

That's what should happen.

 

[Harvey_Dogg]

My sister took this photo of her street in Cape Coral today. They hope to have power Saturday.

 

[davideduardo]

I wonder will any station / cluster will rethink their studio location, STL, or transmitter site? I realize just getting back on the air is the goal now but if a property has been under water there is always a chance for mold. My dads hometown has had 3 or major floods since 1986.. If you live in the "100 year flood plain" you can get flood insurance from a government program, but a lot of folks have given up after the third rebuild and moved out of the flood plain.

In many cases, transmitter sites on flatland are either on high foundations or stilts. STLs and studios tend to be, today, in rented facilities and it seems that susceptibility to flooding is often not considered.

When a station is in an office building and has a generator, that equipment is almost always required to be at ground level or in an outbuilding (a few are on rooftops if they run on commercial gas line).

AM stations don't have much choice generally. Directional stations have a very limited area in which they can locate and still cover the population well. Non-directionals want to be on the flattest, most moist land possible to get good coverage.

Quite a few AMs built on purpose on flood plains have guy anchors, the tower base and the ATU as well as the transmitter building about the "100 year flood" level.

Of course, the worst is salt-water flooding from tidal surges, as the salt and minerals in salt water are very hard to remove. Fresh water can often be dried off well with the equipment going back into operation afterwards. Not so much with salt water.

 

[Ai4i]

PS this is why FM tuners should be in cell phones

No, I would say to include the seven NOAA weather radio channels between 162.4 and 162.55 MHz.
They specialize in reporting the weather, all the weather, and nothing but the weather.

 

[drt]

Does anyone know of all the SW Florida radio stations were knocked off the air? If so, then I'm guessing residents had to likely rely on out-of-market signals down there such as 102.5 WHPT and 107.9 WSRZ to get information.

Well, here it is a year later and I’m just now reading this!! At any rate 89.1 WSMR, 54,000 watts is on the same tower as WSRZ and they dropped their classical music format for several days, in favor of giving extensive coverage of Hurricane Ian, giving damage reports, etc. It was very comprehensive.

 

[Yabadabado1]

They should pass a law that all buildings down there should be built with palm trees/palmetto bushes and their fronds. There they are whipping back and forth in the wind, getting a salt bath and the next day......voila!....back looking as good as ever, like it was nothing but a dog that peed on them.

 

[terabitz]

At any rate 89.1 WSMR, 54,000 watts is on the same tower as WSRZ and they dropped their classical music format for several days, in favor of giving extensive coverage of Hurricane Ian, giving damage reports, etc. It was very comprehensive.

Kudos to WUSF Public Media for doing that! However, I think they must have only done that to WSMR-FM since I don't recall them preempting the classical music on W280DW 103.9 nor 89.7 HD2 around or after the storm. I could be wrong, though.

 

[drt]

Kudos to WUSF Public Media for doing that! However, I think they must have only done that to WSMR-FM since I don't recall them preempting the classical music on W280DW 103.9 nor 89.7 HD2 around or after the storm. I could be wrong, though.

I can’t speak to the 103.9 translator, as I live out of range to the 103.9 translator and now live out of range of the primary signal of 89.1, which can be either WUFT 89.1 or WSMR depending on which way the wind is blowing!, I was listening on the HD2, so the HD2 did pre-empt the classical music format, now on 89.1 I was hearing what appeared to be the Hurricane Ian feed, but I cannot rule out the possibility that it could have been WUFT 89.1 running the same Ian feed.