» Ike Causes Texas Size Clean Up: It's going to take more than just a few weeks to clean up the mess left behind by hurricane Ike over the weekend. Stations up and down the Texas Gulf coast have moved from storm coverage to info on recovery efforts for thousands who are without electricity, food and water. Check out the KTRH/Houston WEBSITE for some incredible pictures and the latest update on conditions in that city. Meanwhile, Clear Channel/San Antonio has already sent 300,000 pounds of ice and 250,000 bottles of water to the area, with tanker trucks full of needed gasoline and more trucks of water and ice on the way today. The company is also hosting a "Good Samaritan Ike Relief Drive" all day today to collect needed supplies for victims in the stricken area. Look for radio nationwide to step-up in the next few days to begin the flow of things like non-perishable food, diapers and baby food to areas ravaged by the storm.

» SRN Spearheads Relief Efforts All hosts of the Salem Radio Network are joining forces with Feed The Children to raise funds nationwide for the victims of Ike. Hosts Bill Bennett, Mike Gallagher, Dennis Prager, Michael Medved, Hugh Hewitt and Janet Parshall are all devoting time on their programs today and tomorrow to appeal for donations from listeners via a specially set-up WEBSITE or by calling a special toll-free telephone number, (800) 604-0300. A $35 contribution provides 250 pounds of relief supplies, $70 sends 500 pounds, etc. Supplies being purchased for delivery to Southeast Texas through the Salem hosts' efforts include ready-to-eat meals, bottled water, personal care and hygiene items, baby supplies, cleaning supplies, blankets and sleeping bags and more. While many more volunteers are needed on site in Texas, officials note that cash donations to replace depleted supplies from warehouses outside the stricken areas are really the most critical need right now.

» NAB Weathers The Storm: Broadcasters planning on heading to the NAB Radio Show in Austin this week will find little visible evidence that hurricane Ike wreaked havoc in other parts of the Lone Star State. In fact the storm brought a cold front through, breaking a lengthy heat spell in the area meaning that convention-goers will find plenty of sunshine in Austin all week with daytime temperatures in the 80's and overnight lows in the upper 50's to mid-60's. Although many folks from the storm region evacuated to Austin, area hotels report that they will be holding and honoring all NAB Radio Show room reservations. Registration for the convention opens tomorrow with a "meet and greet" reception scheduled to kick-off at 4pm in the lobby of the Austin Convention Center.

» The Other Big Storm: While Ike was inundating southeast Texas over the weekend, a financial storm also blew through Wall Street with a force that is shaking the financial markets worldwide today. NTS Aircheck Today asked Chris Markowski, host of Talk Radio Network's syndicated Watchdog On Wall Street weekend show, to offer his insights on what all the turmoil means to the "average Joe" in America. "The average investor is what I would call collateral damage in the ongoing situation," he says. "All of the garbage assets and banks impacted need to work their way through the system before we get any semblance of order. The investor who has a financial plan in place with the idea of putting assets in the path of goals over the long term will ride out this proverbial financial hurricane and do well. Those who try to trade their way through this will get steamrolled. Get more insights and contact Markowski HERE.

» "McCain 570" And "Obama 1260" Debut In DC: OK, to be fair, both stations were already conservative and liberal Talk stations respectively, but newly arrived WTNT & WWRC/Washington PD Greg Tantum piggybacks on the buzz of the upcoming Presidential election by re-christening the stations with new politically-charged monikers. "McCain 570" features a lineup of syndicated conservative yakkers including Bill Bennett, Laura Ingraham, Mike Gallagher, Dennis Miller and Michael Savage, while "Obama 1260" will offer a field of syndicated liberal talkers including Bill Press, Stephanie Miller, Ed Schultz, Lionel, Rachel Maddow and Ron Reagan. News on WTNT will be provided by FOX News Radio with money news from Dow Jones, while WWRC offers news from CNN and financial analysis from CNBC. Tantum reports that personalities from both stations will do live community forums on the election "to help listeners become better informed voters."