Relating to radio, the departure of David Rehr as CEO of the NAB will likely be a welcome change.
The industry has been under a lot of strain during his tenure, and although most of what he has faced was outside of his control, the parades he has stepped in front of to lead have been disappointments. Radio Heard Here has been castigated as a flat and lifeless appeal. Radio 2020, even with its laudable tenets which we have offered to help them achieve, were correctly interpreted in action as mostly a shill for HD Radio. The HD Radio parade itself has drifted off onto a country road to nowhere.
I like David and wish him the best, but for the sake of the radio industry, I hope we quickly get someone who will actually sit down with innovators, syndicators and stations together to create solutions that can bring the industry truly in line with the times, and defy the criticism of radio’s detractors.
Kudos to those who saw it coming 6 months ago, and let there be mercy on an industry in genuine transition.
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