Industry News

Jeff Katz Helps Lead “Shredtoberfest”

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Pictured above is WRVA, Richmond afternoon drive talk host Jeff Katz helping the Central Virginia-based non-profit organization “Tech For Troops” which provides education and training for veterans who are returning to civilian life and/or seeking new careers post service. The group also accepts donations of electronics which it then repairs and provides free of charge to vets. Katz created “Shredtoberfest” in which – for a $5.00 donation – community members had their old hard drives shredded all while enjoying beer, brats, pretzels and a going away gift donated by Jeff.

Industry News

Industry Mourns Passing of CRN Digital Talk Founder Mike Horn

CRN Digital Talk Radio Networks founder Mike Horn has died at 74, after a long illness. Horn – then an air personality on KFI-AM, Los Angeles founded Cable Radio Network in 1983 as a service that provided commercial radio programming to local cable television systems. After imglearning that KMET, Los Angeles was earning ratings in the Phoenix market because it was airing on a local cable system, he launched the radio-on-television concept in the San Fernando Valley on cable provider King Cable. The business grew from there as Horn got more local cable systems to use CRN. Years later, Horn transitioned CRN from music to talk programming as CRN Talk and finally to CRN Digital Talk Radio in 2007. In addition to providing celebrities such as Ed McMahon, Robert Conrad and talk radio legend Barry Farber with platforms for talk shows, Horn himself hosted programs centered on his interests in food and wine. Horn’s daughter Jennifer Horn serves as the vice president of CRN Digital Talk Radio and is the host of “The Morning Answer” on Salem Media’s KRLA, Los Angeles and KTIE, San Bernardino.

TALKERS publisher Michael Harrison issued the following statement on the passing of Michael J. Horn, “Mike Horn was a true talk radio hero. He had the vision of an eagle, the ears of a programmer, and a heart of pure gold. His ingenious invention – ‘CRN’ – provided the industry for decades with an ever-evolving alternative platform for a wide variety of programs, running the gamut from undiscovered gems to pre-maturely discarded treasures.”

Industry News

TALKERS News Notes

FSR Debuts College Alumni-Focused Series. FOX Sports Radio, a division of Premiere Sports Network, launches, “Who We Are: Penn State,” the first podcast in the new “Who We Are” alumni-focused podcast franchise, hosted by FOX Sports Radio host and former Penn State All-American linebacker LaVar Arrington.

CBA Announces Award Winners and Hall of Fame Indictees. The Connecticut Broadcasters Association enshrined its class of 2026 Hall of Fame inductees and presented CBA awards to  winners at the Aqua Turf Club in Plantsville on Wednesday (10/7). Among the award winners was WTIC-AM, Hartford’s “Nighttime Neighbors” – hosted by Morgan Cunningham – winning Best Talk Show (Radio).

KUT, Austin Adds Three to Newsroom. KUT Public Media brings three new staffers aboard as multimedia journalist and cinematographer Brian Diggs, award-winning investigative reporter Toluwani Osibamowo, and former Texas Standard intern Charlie Sharpe join KUT News and The Texas Newsroom. KUT says the hires “expand our ability to serve Central Texans through compelling visual storytelling, investigative reporting that holds powerful institutions accountable and deeper reporting on issues affecting older Central Texans and their families.

Industry News

Top News/Talk Media Stories This Past Week (October 5-9)

Here are the most talked about stories of the past week (10/5-9) on news/talk radio and related talk media according to TALKERS:

Stories

  1. Midterm Elections / Trump on Campaign Trail
  2. The Economy / Gas Prices
  3. Iran War / B1s Leave UK Air Base
  4. AI Concerns / Data Center Controversies
  5. Cornell Protests / France Protests
  6. New SCOTUS Term
  7. Russian Pneumonic Plague Case
  8. CNN Absorbed by Skydance
  9. Christa Pike Case
  10. Hurricane Isaias

People

  1. Donald Trump
  2. Ken Paxton / James Talarico
  3. Abdul El-Sayed / Mike Rogers
  4. Scott Bessent
  5. Dario Amodei
  6. Sam Altman
  7. Jensen Huang
  8. Xi Jinping
  9. Vladimir Putin
  10. Christa Pike

To see the full TALKERS Stories, Topics, and People Charts, please click HERE.

Industry Views

AI Doesn’t Clear the Rights

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By Matthew B. Harrison
TALKERS, VP/Associate Publisher
Harrison Media Law, Senior Partner
Goodphone Communications, Executive Producer

imgYour competitor breaks a story. You can report the facts, but you cannot assume that running its article through AI makes the resulting script yours to use. A rewrite button is not a rights-clearance department.

A September federal appeals court ruling supplies a useful reminder. Ross Intelligence used Westlaw’s editorial summaries of judicial decisions to train a competing AI legal-research service. The Third Circuit rejected its fair use defense: the underlying court opinions were available, but Westlaw’s original summaries carried copyright protection.

The court focused on Ross’s commercial competition, similar purpose, and market harm. Using AI did not make that copying fair. Ross’s tool was not generative AI, however, so the ruling does not decide every dispute involving chatbots or AI-written scripts.

For broadcasters, the distinction is familiar. Nobody owns the fact that the mayor resigned; somebody may own the original language explaining what happened. Fair use can permit borrowing for reporting or commentary, but neither attribution nor changing a few words automatically resolves the copyright question.

Follow the facts, write your account, and evaluate what you borrow. Expect the same consideration when someone uses your material. AI can speed up production. It cannot supply permission you never obtained.

Matthew B. Harrison is a media and intellectual property attorney who advises radio hosts, content creators, and creative entrepreneurs. He has written extensively on fair use, AI law, and the future of digital rights. Reach him at Matthew@HarrisonMediaLaw.com or read more at TALKERS.com.