Posts Tagged ‘A.J. Miceli’

Erie mainstream media shines spotlight on pirate radio operator

Now that the FCC has identified Marshall Jones as operating a radio station without a license, he is telling his story to Erie’s mainstream media.

Last night on WJET/WFXP, John Treanor reported a package on Jones where they showed that he continues to operate the station with a computer, some microphones and a transmitter connected to a small mast at the top of a building in Erie’s Little Italy neighborhood. Despite the possiblity of major penalties, Treanor reports that Jones is determined to continue with 90.1 The Movement:

But Jones, a former Super Soul Saturday DJ, tells us he can’t stop – if he’s not on air, a whole genre would disappear in the city.

“The question always remained, why don’t we have this 24 hours a day, what do we have to do to do it and basically I went ahead and said let’s see what happens, you know what I mean,” says Jones…

…Jones is staying on air as long as he can before getting fined – his dream is to make the movement legal.

“I have to I have to go forward and see what it is that has to be done to make this happen,” Jones says.

This morning (Thursday), David Bruce continues his reporting on the pirate radio stations in the Times-News, complete with pictures of Jones’s operation. Bruce describes the chain of events leading to the sign-on:

A club disc jockey and former announcer at Gannon University’s WERG-FM, Jones said that he started broadcasting in October because there wasn’t enough urban music being played in Erie.
“Blacks, whites, Hispanics all had a major concern about the type of music played in Erie 24/7,” Jones said. “It was my mission to get this station up and running.”
Jones said that he started broadcasting at the low-frequency limits, then increased power.
“The response from people was so strong that I just turned it up,” Jones said. “Then someone ratted me out to the FCC.”
One problem was that Jones’ signal was intruding on the signals of other, licensed, radio stations, said A.J. Miceli, who oversees WERG as Gannon University’s chairman of theater, communications and fine arts.
What’s a little frightening to me is that the FCC doesn’t need any more incentive to fine these guys; once they find a unlicensed station and cite it, the breaking of Federal law has already occurred. If you happen to have  a kindly Enforcement Agent who will write you a warning first, it’s wise to take that as a blessing and not push the issue. We’ll keep watching this unfold.

Friday historical evening in TV

In the middle of our wide-ranging conversation with A.J. Miceli on the P&T Podcast, he said something that was again revealed last night: the reason was programs like the evening newscasts still work is that the medium of television transcends media, but is a central facilitator of our popular culture.

That was so evident last night in a couple ways as no less than 22 broadcast and cable networks simultaneously aired the Hope for Haiti Now fund-raising telethon. The two-hour event was overwhelmed by stars of film, television and music, complete with some of the most tasteful and unique mashups of talent I’ve ever seen. One of my favorite moments was supplied by Justin Timberlake and Matt Morris.

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Later, the last Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien was a triumph (pun intended). He had some great moments, including his exit interview conducted by NBC employee Steven Carell.

The Huffington Post has the text and video of his final farewell to NBC, which was strikingly poignant.

Friday night showed that TV continues to be about shared experiences, which helps to bind us together as a nation. That’s a good thing, no matter what the circumstances that precipitated these events.

Press and Tower Podcast-Jan. 13, 2010

A.J. Miceli in the WERG Audio Production Studio

The significance of the tectonic change in the media landscape locally and nationally in the last decade has not been lost on AJ Miceli.

The chair of the Comm Arts department at Gannon University sounds off on the toll taken and opportunity embedded in the state of media today after such a period of change that we find ourselves in.  In our podcast, we discussed a broad range of topics, hopefully with a firm grasp of the tough reality that media organizations find themselves in. Thanks to AJ for taking the time with me and thanks to you for listening.

Download The Press and Tower Podcast for Jan. 13, 2010 or listen below.

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Miceli: Reality 451 tonight

A.J. Miceli is turning up the temperature on reality television Wednesday night.

One Book One ErieThe Gannon professor, and this editor’s career mentor, is presenting the lecture “Reality TV:  Meaner, Edgier, Nastier” at the Children’s Theatre area in the Blasco Memorial Library downtown tonight (Wed. 10/7/2009) at 7:00. The event is part of the One Book, One Erie and The Big Read campaign, described by it’s promoters as the following:

The idea of One Book, One Erie is to encourage all of Erie County to read the same book at the same time and then come together to discuss it. This year, we will again be reading  Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury in conjunction with The Big Read.

The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts designed to restore reading to the center of American culture. The NEA presents The Big Read in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and in cooperation with Arts Midwest. The Big Read brings together partners across the country to encourage reading for pleasure and enlightenment.

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