-
2026 WBA Awards for Excellence Rulebook available now
Hello Wisconsin Broadcasters, On behalf of your WBA Awards Committee, we hope you have had a great first half of the year, and that you have been saving your potential entries for this year’s contest. You are a part of the largest state broadcaster awards program in the nation, and we can’t wait to see…
-
Ambassador program extends to second UW campus
The WBA campus ambassador program is expanding to a second campus after its pilot year at UW-Oshkosh. Two students at UW-Whitewater will serve as WBA ambassadors starting in the fall semester. The ambassador program was launched in 2025 on the UW-Oshkosh campus with two students: Dylan Przybylski and Jacob Link. The students acted as representatives…
-
Wisconsin Broadcaster available now
The September/October issue of Wisconsin Broadcaster is now available. Highlights from this issue:
-
Shockleys establish Young Broadcasters Development Fund
WBA Hall of Famers Terry and Sandy Shockley are the founding grantors of the newly established Young Broadcasters Development Fund, aimed at inspiring career building in the broadcast industry. “Our mission with this fund is to inspire and motivate young people to pursue a career in broadcasting,” Terry and Sandy Shockey said. “The rewards are…
-
Student scholarship competition underway
Do you know a student who could use assistance with educational expenses? The Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Foundation offers three $2,500 scholarships and one $1,500 scholarship. Students who meet eligibility requirements are encouraged to apply for these scholarships. The application process is online. It’s available on the WBA website at wi-broadcasters.org/scholarships Students who have completed at…
-
Getting outside broadcast bubble
One of the lasting impacts of the pandemic is the shift in the way Americans live their lives. “Work from home” used to be a perk companies offered on occasion to their employees. Today, it’s almost an expectation. The result is this has changed the way people consume entertainment, and as a result, has to…
-
Radandt, Lancaster join Legacy Club
Two WBA members are joining the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Foundation’s Legacy Club. Kelly Radandt, the general manager at Woodward Radio Group in Appleton and Al Lancaster, the VP and general manager of WSAW in Wausau, were named to the Legacy Club this summer. The Legacy Club was formed in 1998 to provide a formal procedure…
-
Nationwide EAS test successful in Wisconsin
On Aug. 11 at 1:20 p.m. CDT, FEMA conducted a nationwide EAS test. The Wisconsin EAS Network successfully distributed the test across the state. The only reports of a couple stations not receiving the test were due to poor reception on their EAS receivers. There were some reports of intelligible but sub-standard audio, which are…
-
Photos provide important reminders
Perhaps it wasn’t noticeable, but in newsletters since the outbreak of the pandemic, we haven’t seen much of you. We love including photos in the newsletter from our events and station visits, because, well, who doesn’t like to see photos of your fellow broadcasters? Thankfully, many of you were gracious enough to share photos with…
-
Weekly Radio Addresses focused on children, schools
This week’s Weekly Radio Addresses from Wisconsin’s Capitol discuss children and schools. These addresses are available for Wisconsin broadcasters to use as they see fit. Here are the summaries from WisPolitics: — In this week’s Republican radio address Rep. Jon Plumer praises a bill that would allocate at least $100 million in American Rescue Plan…
-
Broadcasters should be ‘proud to serve’
Each year, Mike O’Brien and I team up at the Student Seminar for a session on advertising sales. The session provides a great introduction to radio and television sales and demonstrates how it impacts station operations. We also talk about the traits that are important in a broadcast salesperson…the salesperson DNA. Every year Mike uses…
-
WBA Board welcomes new members
Changes were made to the WBA Board of Directors at its August meeting and General Membership meeting, including the naming of a new chair. Don Vesely, WMTV-TV, Madison, was named chair and board members Judson Beck, WLAX-TV/WEUX-TV, La Crosse was named to the role of Secretary and Alesse Fielder, NRG Media, Stevens Point/Wausau was named…
-
How a line from ‘My Cousin Vinny’ describes a career in journalism
This fall marks my 20th year in the classroom. Teaching was supposed to be a temporary job until I could land my next TV gig. Remember Marisa Tomei’s character Mona Lisa in “My Cousin Vinny”? She learned about automotive issues not from school or career but from firsthand experience in her family’s auto mechanic business.…
-
Changes made to Foundation Board
The WBA Foundation Board added a new member at its August meeting after Scott Trentadue declined to seek another term on the board. Chris Bernier, Radio Plus, Marinette/Fond du Lac will take the seat held by Trentadue. Bernier was already serving on the board as a representative from the WBA Board. WBA Board member Colleen…
-
Raffle winner donates prize to WBA Foundation
The winner of the 50/50 raffle at the WBA Summer Conference donated their winnings to the WBA Foundation. Jerad Clark from Mid-West Family in Madison won the raffle during the Wednesday reception at the WBA Summer Conference and donated his winnings to the Foundation. The raffle generated $2,220 for the Foundation. Thank you Jerad!
