The Pros And Cons Of Advisory Boards George Noory’s Music Of The Night Who Is Aneesh Chopra?

Much Ado About Advisory Boards – A panel of Talk media experts weighs in on the good, the bad and the ugly of the FCC’s potentially mandated community advisory boards. Story on page one.

Breaking New Music On Talk Radio – Coast-To-Coast AM host George Noory offers an on-air break for up and coming music artists. Details on page two.

The Longest Title – Find out how big the business card of President Obama’s latest appointee will need to be just to list his title. See page two.

Read it all here in NTS MediaOnline Weekly.

Talk radio, the Internet and news operations around the country were thrown into a sudden all-hands-on-deck mode Thursday afternoon to report on the death of pop star Michael Jackson. The singer, 50, had been scheduled to revive his career with a series of sold-out concerts in London this summer. Jackson reportedly suffered a heart attack and was not breathing when paramedics arrived at his home in the Holmby Hills section of Los Angeles. He was pronounced dead at UCLA Medical Center at approximately 3:15pm (PDT). The reports of Jackson’s death came only hours after confirmation that actress Farrah Fawcett had died following a long struggle with cancer. She was 62. Fawcett played numerous roles over her acting career but will forever be remembered for her stint on Charlie’s Angels and for her iconic “red swimsuit” poster (pictured) that graced the walls of many of her male fans in the 1970s.

For her latest foray into Talk media, comedian, actress and activist Rosie O’Donnell has signed with Sirius XM Radio to host a new daily morning show. Rosie Radio will air Monday-Friday from 10am-noon (ET) on the satcaster’s Sirius XM Stars channel. The new show is described as “a two-hour talk show on which the multi-talented entertainer will blend her many passions and interests — an eclectic mix of humor, pop culture and serious conversation.” O’Donnell is no stranger to Talk media having hosted her own highly successful nationally syndicated daytime TV talk show, as well as having served a controversial stint as a co-host of ABC-TV’s The View. “This is an exciting new adventure,” said O’Donnell of her move to satellite radio. “Two hours of talk show entertainment without having to wear make up. Perfection!” The new program is set to launch on a still-to-be-announced date this fall.

Entercom/Portland, OR ups Erin Hubert to Market Manager of the company’s 7-station Rose City cluster. Concurrently Dave Saxe moves from the company’s Madison, WI cluster, where he was VP/Market Manager, to assume duties as VP/Sales in Portland … WGSP/Charlotte flips to Spanish-language News/Talk on June 29th using Mexico-based Radio Formula … FOX Business Network anchor and VP/Business News Alexis Glick (pictured) will be the keynote speaker at this year’s Radio Luncheon to be held on September 25th during the annual NAB Radio Show in Philadelphia … Talk Radio Network syndicated Watchdog On Wallstreet Chris Markowski wil guest on Fox Business Network tomorrow morning at 7am (ET) on Money For Breakfast … Among the nominees for induction into the Radio Hall of Fame’s “Class of 2009″ are Dial-Global/Cox Radio Syndications Neal Boortz, longtime Miami talk host Neil Rogers, Citadel Media Money Matters host Bob Brinker, WOR Radio Network’s Joey Reynolds, DC radio legend Ed Walker and pioneering WLW/Cincinnati personality Gary Burbank. Learn more about this year’s candidates and vote for your choices HERE.

Following numerous press reports that venerable CBS News anchorman Walter Cronkite is “gravely ill,” his son Chip released a statement that has been posted on the TVNewser website to set the record straight about his dad’s health. “In order to dispel false rumors Walter Cronkite’s family wants it known that he has apparently suffered for some years with cerebrovascular disease and he is not expected to recuperate. He is resting comfortably at home with family, friends and a wonderful medical team. We thank you for your prayers and good wishes.” Cerebrovascular disease (CVD) includes all disorders in which an area of the brain is transiently or permanently affected due to insufficient blood flow to the brain, or bleeding involving one or more cerebral blood vessels. CVD, which frequently is the root of strokes, is said to be the third leading cause of death in the U.S. after heart disease and cancer.

We’re saddened to report that Philadelphia Talk radio legend Irv Homer has died at the age of 85. Homer was stricken Wednesday evening during an appearance at Eastern University and was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. Born and raised in Philly, Homer was a bartender and a regular caller to a number of talk shows before he took to the mic himself in the early 1960’s. Over the next three decades he would become an icon of Philly Talk radio with a long stint at then-Talk WWDB. When that station flipped formats in 2000, Homer moved to suburban Philadelphia Talk outlet WBCB/Levittown where he continued to broadcast until the day he died. You can read WBCB’s tribute to Homer HERE.

More Condolences: To the family and colleagues of Chicago broadcaster John Callaway who died Tuesday (6/23) at age 72. Remembered primarily as the creator and longtime host of WTTW-TV’s Chicago Tonight, Callaway retired from that gig in 1999, only to return to the station in 2006 as host of The Friday Night Show, a weekly half-hour interview program. Callaway began his Windy City broadcast career in 1957 at WBBM-AM as a reporter and later as News Director for the all-newser. He moved to New York in 1968 after being named VP/CBS Radio before returning to his native Chicago and WBBM-TV in 1973. Funeral arrangements are pending.

ABC News Radio correspondent Matt Gutman (in black vest) recently spent some time embedded with the U.S. Marines Fox Company of the 2nd Battalion/3rd unit who are serving in Afghanistan. Today is the day that you can help send care packages to American heroes like these guys and thousands of other U.S. military men and women serving overseas by supporting Move America Forward’s second annual Troop-A-Thon. Find out how you can “Honor Their Service” right now at www.troopathon.org.

Few topics of discussion have generated more mail to our inbox than the combination of attempts to resurrect the Fairness Doctrine and the potential mandating by the FCC of so-called “community advisory boards.” In this week’s NTS MediaOnline Weekly we tackle the pros and cons of implementing such boards at radio, and explore why some think the industry has actually been setting itself up for increased government intervention into on-air programming. Community advisory boards: a good idea or a recipe for disaster in an already financially-troubled radio industry? Read what our panel of experienced Talk media veterans have to say on the topic only in the June 26th edition of NTS MediaOnline Weekly, arriving in your inbox tomorrow morning.