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Black Talk Radio Weekly Newsletter - Oct 8, 2017

Hello, Friends of Black Talk Radio,

This week we will be looking at some noticeable trends in the terrestrial radio industry that may signal a long drawn out death of the medium as a business and the possible impact the FBI report on "Black Identity Extremism" could have on Black radio programming. We'll also include some the statical highlights of the week for podcasting and digital radio broadcasting on the world's #1 non-corporate black media platform.

Is Internet Radio Killing The Traditional Radio Station Model & What Does It Mean For The Industry?

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Smartphones, Digital Radio Boxes, Digital Television Sets, Laptops, Tablets, PCs & Macs All Stream Digital Media

In the very first weekly newsletter which was published last week, I discussed the growing number of "ethnic" listeners who are increasingly tuning into digital radio stations and consuming other streaming media like podcasts. Both digital mediums have over the past decade continued to gain in listeners by the millions in the 12-year old and up demographic among Americans.

Since the medium is based on the Internet, as more people become connected via affordable devices and internet accessibility, it stood to reason that Internet Radio would threaten the traditional terrestrial radio business model.

Smartphones and other connected devices have contributed to this growth particularly among the growing black digital radio demographic who use smaller battery powered devices like smartphones rather than desktop or laptop computers.

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Does internet radio mean the end to your local station? - Paul Glister

Paul Gilster, a professional writer of 20 plus years who has written books with titles like "The Internet navigator" 1993, "Finding it on the Internet" 1994, "Digital Literacy" 1997 and "The Web navigator" 1997, recently published a column in the business section of "The News & Observer" in which he seems to predict a coming end to the terrestrial radio business model.

"Does internet radio mean the end to your local station? - Paul Gilster"

Gilster writes in his column after sharing his radio station listening habits with the reader, "But listening to distant stations doesn’t keep local stations alive, and it’s conventional AM/FM radio – what we all grew up with – that is threatened, according to a new report out of New York University. Is traditional radio – the stations that broadcast a signal over an antenna and fill up drive-time hours for so many drivers – headed for an inevitable decline?".

The simple answer to the question on whether or not terrestrial radio is trending downward is yes. Chalk it up to one of the industries and business models bound to be impacted by advancements in technology. Internet based radio stations continue to eat up chunks of the radio listening audience.

Internet based Music Radio Stations

The most profitable area of radio broadcasting of any format is music. Large corporations that own a multitude of terrestrial radio stations typically have more stations playing some type of music genre. While the stations will off some live morning programming, possibly even a line up of personalities through the drive time evening hours. However, most of the programming consists of automated playlists and it is not unusual for some music stations to carry no on-air local talent but will syndicate shows picked up nationally.

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Centova Cast is a software licensed by Centova Technologies Inc. to manage internet radio streams and is the software licensed by the Black Talk Media Project for the use of it's clients.

From any location in the world as long as there is Internet access, a person or a team of people can run a digital music station and simply upload and scheduled music playlists. You can create pre-recorded content or include public service announcements, advertisements, news content that consists of short segments on the local, national and global headlines. Anything a terrestrial radio station can do in terms of the programming it offers, a digital station can emulate and stream it online without many of the expenses that terrestrial stations have. Without going into details, marketed correctly, a digital station could easily supplant the local terrestrial station that has been broadcast for decades to that market.

The Black Talk Media Project offers affordable radio streams on a month to month or yearly basis and can assist those looking to build their own streaming platforms and take advantage of this entrepreneurial opportunity being presented by a changing radio industry.

FBI Report Takes Aim At Those With A Black Identity

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An FBI report that blames "Black Identity Extremism" for shootings targeting law enforcement personnel that have occurred in recent years was quietly issued on August 3, 2017, and is just now making its media rounds. The report which has been redacted is 12 pages long including its cover.

FBI warns ‘black identity extremists’ pose growing threat to law enforcement - NY Daily News

The report has troubling and vague language identifying those interested in building independent "black institutions" as a characteristic found in individuals who have picked up arms and used violence against police like several Black United States veterans have committed out of frustration with all the reports of police brutality and the lack of accountability for cops who kill American citizens unjustly which has been highlighted by the continued demonstrations by NFL players recognizing the Americans who continued to experience extrajudicial murders and brutality at the hands of American Cops.

Considering that Black Talk Radio Network has been described by some activists as becoming a "Black institution" after going on 9 years in existence, would it be considered by the Trump administration to be an expression of "Black Identity Extremism".

The Black Talk Radio platform and affiliated digital radio station make it known via station disclaimers that the views and opinions expressed by program hosts and callers are not necessarily those of the Black Talk Radio Network or the Black Talk Media Project, however, the platform was built to provide a safe digital space for Black expressions recognizing that a hostile environment exists in the United States as various elements have historically sought to silence its critics in the Black community. There are programs with radio hosts who discuss topics related to those labeled as "extremist" in the report.

"The FBI assesses it is very likely some BIEs are influenced by a mix of anti-authoritarian, Moorish sovereign citizens ideology, and BIE ideology. - FBI

I will delve deeper into the report on my BTR News radio program which airs 12 pm est - 2 pm est Monday through Friday.

BTR 1st Quarter October Statistics

The Black Talk Radio Network has compiled podcast download statistics through the first week of October 2017.

The average podcast download was 1,088 per day during this period. However, when including podcast downloads we distribute through other platforms, our totals are raised to 19,184 total podcast downloads at a rate of 2,740 downloads per day.

The top podcast downloaded from the BTRN platform last week was "BTR News: Deadly Las Vegas attack claims hundreds of victims, Black radio audience continues to grow".

The top live program streamed on the Black Talk Radio digital radio station last week was New Abolitionists Radio's "New Abolitionists Radio: Slavery Has Never Been In America’s Past When It Is Part Of The Present".

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Top Countries by Listener Sessions

The digital radio station Black Talk Radio's audience was down -1.97% last week. However, the 14-day trend showed growth of 9.12% and the 30-day trend stands at 2.22%. Last week, US-based listeners tuned in more than all other listeners combined with 360 connections by Brazilian listeners who came in a distant second to the US audience of 7,734 connections during the week.

Summary

As I stated in last week's newsletter, the future of internet radio and podcasting is trending upward and in some cases can present some economic opportunity but more importantly can provide media independence in a media-driven world. Historically the Black community has always found challenges and oppositions to those who remain firm in their cultural identities and heritage and while the times have changed, the tactics of traditional enemies have not. Working together to resolve differences and implementing solutions to identified problems can overcome any obstacles presenting themselves.

Kind regards,
Scotty T. Reid
Founder of Black Talk Media Project &
Black Talk Radio Network

5-14-2016 12-21-14 PM

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