18 February 2014
The North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) has announced its new executive team. Robert J. Ross, CBS’ SVP of East Coast Operations has been appointed by the NABA Board of Directors as President. Mr. Ross takes over the role from Robert Briskman, Technical Executive for Sirius XM Radio who served as NABA President since 2012.
Mr. Ross comes to the NABA Presidency at a time of ongoing change for the broadcasting industry and with it an array of new challenges and opportunities regarding how broadcasting is distributed to a digital multi-platform world. As a longstanding member of the NABA Board of Directors and Executive, he has developed a great appreciation for the rapid pace of change and innovation at work in the NABA community.
“Bob has had a tremendous impact on our industry and is well known for making things work and getting the trains to run on time. When we call Bob a “Fixer” it is with great respect and considerable awe. Bob understands the industry issues and I look forward to his leadership along with his NABA Executive team over the next two years.” said Michael McEwen, Director General NABA.
Mr. Ross oversees all East Coast operations and engineering for the CBS Television Network and has worked for 37 years in all areas of broadcast engineering. He was elected into the 2009 class of the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame and is the past chair of the Toolkit working group of the Media Security and Reliability Council (MSRC). He is also a Fellow of the Society of Motion Picture & Television Engineers (SMPTE), and a member of the Society of Broadcast Engineers.
John Lee, Executive Director, Media Technology Services, CBC/Radio-Canada and Richard Friedel, EVP & GM, Fox Networks Engineering & Operations, Fox Entertainment Group were also named as Vice-Presidents.
The NABA Board of Directors appointed the new executive at their Annual General Meeting Event held on February 12, 2014 at HBO in New York City. (Source: Press Release)
13 February 2014
Eurosport will take sports fans on a global journey of discovery in 2014 with the launch of a unique series of intimate sporting portraits.
Called “Sports Insiders” Eurosport will be drawing on its unrivalled access to the world of sport to present monthly programmes showing unseen stories from Eurosport’s own pillar sports alongside insights into new environments and experiences.
The “Spring Collection” of shows running from March until June will travel first to Gran Canaria in Spain to join the professional Tinkoff-Saxo cycling team during its first preparation camp for the 2014 season. Led by Alberto Contador, the team gave Eurosport unprecedented access to its rider bonding sessions, its strategic planning for the racing season ahead and shows how it creates vital team spirit for the campaign ahead, blending riders of different nationalities, ages, experience and talents.
Stefano Bernabino, Eurosport’s Head of Cycling and Executive Producer for the Sports Insider series said: “This is a fascinating insight into the dynamics of a UCI World Tour cycling team. It is one of the few occasions in the year that everyone gets together before travelling starts to the many different races. It is a time for the riders, the technical staff and all the different, wider members of the team’s operations to be together, to plan and build the relationships needed for the racing year ahead. It is a unique environment and one that only Eurosport was granted access to.”
Philippe Mauduit, Tinkoff-Saxo Sporting Director said: “Gran Canaria is the first and most important camp of the season, especially because it integrates new riders and staff members, helps them discover the life rules of the team and enables them to introduce their own thinking. These 15 days to build team spirit are crucial and experience shows that if the camp goes well, the rest of the season is successful too, but, if not, it’s hard to correct things afterwards. We let Eurosport film the camp because it was an opportunity to show another vision of cycling. Fans often tell us they do not know how riders prepare and work, contrary to some other sports. Here, viewers will see riders’ skills are not limited to only pedalling and things are much more complex. The Eurosport crew quickly gained the confidence of the team which explains why they really could let go and talk freely.”
As with any business the previous year is reviewed and Eurosport captured the frank assessment of the sporting performances as well as the preview of the 2014 calendar. Individual riders also have their annual performance reviews and Eurosport was given unprecedented access to Czech rider Roman Kreuziger’s session with the team management discussing his contribution in 2013 and objectives for 2014.
The first edition of Sports Insiders featuring Tinkoff-Saxo will be broadcast on Wednesday March 12 at 20:00 CET.
The remaining shows in the “Spring Collection” take us to Brazil in May, home of the 2014 FIFA World Cup to present a view of the football culture in the favelas of Rio ahead of global competition this summer.
The show then travels back to Europe in June to follow US actor and racing driver Patrick Dempsey as he returns to tackle the infamous Le Mans 24 Hour Race for the third time.
The 26 or 52 minute Sports Insiders shows will give fans of sport a proximity and insight into both mainstream sports, and many new ones as well.
The “Winter Collection” of Sports Insider shows starts in September with a look at adventure racing, followed by tennis in October, Skiing in November and the legendary Four Hills Ski-jumping event in December. (Source: Eurosport press release)
13 February 2014
Romania’s leading news TV channel Antena 3 has expressed genuine solidarity with the recent protests against censorship of freedom of expression and Internet use in Turkey.
A letter from Antena 3’s journalists has been delivered to His Excellency, Mr. Ömür ŞÖLENDIL, the Ambassador of Turkey in Romania, to state their support for all the Turkish citizens who believe in and fight for fundamental human rights.
Adrian Ursu, one of the Antena 3 journalists present at the Turkish Embassy said that „We try to convey the message that any form of censorship must be condemned the very moment is under debate. Unfortunately, we were silent when Hungary had enforced all kinds of legislative measures to impose restrictions on the press, thinking it was an isolated episode that would have no consequences. Unfortunately, we see it has proved to be a pattern for other powers in this space of ours, more tempted to return to dictatorship, sometimes. That is why we have decided to send this letter of protest.”
Sabina Iosub, Antena 3 anchor, added „Imagine that you wrote something on Facebook and someone you do not know and will not know, decided that your posting is dangerous and removed it without appeal. That can happen in Turkey if the new Internet law will pass. Turks, like us, are passionate people, but I am convinced that eventually reason will prevail. After all, progress comes out of discussion, not monologues, and contrary points of views have led the world further, always.”
For Ionut Cristache, Antena 3 reporter, the only natural reaction is revolt. „As a journalist, you can only revolt against such an abuse which is on the brink of regulation! Any attack on freedom of speech is an attack on persona, an attack to one’s right to be free and to think freely!”
Through this action of solidarity, Antena 3 wishes to offer its support to the Turkish people who have campaigned for freedom of expression in the past days, and to spread their message further, hoping that the Turkish authorities will choose to respect the principles of democracy and fundamental human rights.
Antena 3 is the leading news channel in Romania, affiliated with CNN International and part of Intact Media Group, the largest media group in Romania. (Source: Antena 3 press release)
10 February 2014
Although television remains the most prevalent medium in Russian households, Internet access is rising dramatically nationwide, according to media research data released today by the Broadcasting Board of Governors.
“On the eve of the Olympics, it is fitting that we can be here today to discuss this data and how we as broadcasters can effectively use taxpayer dollars to provide news and information that Russians just aren’t receiving from their local press,” said BBG Governor Michael Meehan. That data, he explained, informs the BBG on how best to reach Russian audiences.
Russia’s restrictive media environment is increasingly limiting broadcast avenues for non-state media. Television and radio stations carrying programming deemed “unfavorable” by Russian authorities often find themselves targeted by the Kremlin and pushed off the air.
These restrictions are not going by unnoticed — the data from the BBG media survey show that there is dissatisfaction among Russians with the limited news and opinions that major Russian media provide; 30% of adults said that Russian media do not offer enough variety in perspectives on current events and issues. A 2013 Gallup World Poll survey of Russia found that only 48% of respondents felt that media in Russia was free, and Freedom House ranked Russia 176 out of 196 countries for press freedom in 2013.
The Internet, however, is one of the least-controlled avenues for news and information in Russia. The survey results released today show that as more Russians get Internet access – seven in 10 have access at home in 2013 – more of them are getting their news online. A majority of Russians (56.4%) said they receive their news from the Internet at least once a week. The Internet outdistances traditional media such as newspapers and magazines (49.8%) and radio (43.8%) as a source for weekly news. And, as Paul Tibbitts, RFE/RL Director of Market Insight and Evaluation observed, “With this increasingly Internet savvy audience that expects on-demand, personalized news, a robust Internet strategy is key to engaging younger, digital audiences and expanding reach in Russia.”
A research brief and presentation further information about this data can be found here, and a recording of the briefing will be added in the coming days. More information about the BBG’s media research series is available here.
10 February 2014
Arab Satellite Communications Organization (Arabsat) and Morgan for Information and Communications Technology (MICT) signed a contract where Arabsat will provide Morgan with satellite capacities on 5-C at the orbital position 20° East, with full coverage to the African continent, in addition to Arabsat usual coverage to the Middle East and large parts of Asia and Europe.
Eng. Khalid bin Ahmed Balkheyour, President & CEO of Arabsat expressed Arabsat’s full support and commitment to provide the best services for MICT.
MICT CEO Eng. Kazem Zain said, “The importance of this agreement is not only in its value and financial returns, but also in the glimmer of hope it gives despite the difficulties and challenges facing the region. It’s a message that we still care and hold a lot of hope and a little of the well-fare to all the communities of the African continent. That orientation of Morgan towards Africa with the help of Arabsat as an Arab organization that has its weight on the regional and global level and in accordance to Morgan’s vision to become the most reliable provider in Africa give this agreement a strategic level which comes within the Social Responsibility towards Africa. The implementation of this contract starts with building and operating two ground stations in Africa this year, to be expanded in the coming years to accommodate the growing needs of the African and the region.”
(Source: Arabsat press release)
