vocab Flashcards
artist and repertoire (A&R) executives:
Specialists who discover and develop the groups and performers.
MP3:
Compressed digital audio files that enable music to be downloaded from the Internet.
lyricist:
One who specializes in writing the words of a song.
jukebox:
A coin-operated music player.
independent label:
Record companies not owned by one of the major labels.
hip-hop:
The backing music for rap; also refers to the culture of rap.
high-fidelity (hi-fi) sound:
Recorded sound true to the original.
Gramophone:
Early playback device using a flat disc with laterally cut grooves on one side.
format wars:
Companies trying to put the incompatible devices of competing companies out of business.
digital recording:
Means by which sound is broken down electronically into a numerical code.
demos:
Demonstration recordings sent in to record companies by artists’ agents, managers, or the artists themselves.
copyright:
A legal right that grants to the owner of a work protection against unauthorized copying.
compact disc (CD):
Plastic disc with digitally encoded music read by lasers.
arrangers:
Those who adapt a song for specific singers and other musical elements.
analog recording:
A representation of the sound wave is stored directly onto the recording medium.
nickelodeon:
Early name for jukeboxes.
phonograph:
Originally, Thomas Edison’s name for his first recording device. The name eventually became generic for all home record players.
producer:
The person in charge of making a master audio recording.
ragtime:
Instrumental music with a steady syncopated beat.
woofers:
Large speakers that reproduce low pitched sounds.
Victrola:
Early hand-cranked record player introduced by the Victor Company.
tweeters:
Small speakers that reproduce high pitched sounds.
track:
A single recorded sound source, used in multitrack recording.
Tin Pan Alley:
District in New York City where songs were written “on order” for Broadway shows.
stereophonic sound:
Recording technique in which tracks are placed individually in the right or left speaker.
Soundscan:
A point-of-sale computer system that determines sales of best-selling records.
reporting stations:
The radio stations whose playlists are tracked weekly to determine airplay popularity for individual songs.
rap:
Music composed of rhymed speech over drumbeats.
amplitude modulation (AM):
Radio transmissions created by changing the power of the carrier wave.
format clock:
Graphic showing each feature of the programming hour
format:
format: recognizable sound and personality.
Federal Communications Commission (FCC):
Government agency in charge of regulating all means of interstate telephone and radio communication.
electromagnetic spectrum:
The range of frequencies that can be used for transmitting radio waves with electricity.
digital radio:
Signal transmissions by assigned numbers rather than analog waves.
dayparts:
The division of time for radio programming.
call letters:
Broadcast station identifications assigned by the FCC.
broadcasting:
The use of wireless technology to instantaneously reach a wide audience.
Audion:
Radio tube designed to pick up and amplify radio signals. Also known as the vacuum tube.
analog radio:
Transmissions based on an electronic waveform on a carrier wave.
frequency modulation (FM):
Radio transmissions created by changing the speed at which waves are generated.
wireless telegraphy:
Name for early radio transmissions, before human voices could be carried on the airwaves, which made radio essentially a telegraph that did not need wires.
turnkey network:
Company that provides fully automated around-the-clock programming for radio stations.
transistor:
A durable, solid-state, miniature version of the large and fragile vacuum tubes used in early radios.
Top 40:
Radio formats in which the current 40 best-selling songs are played in rotation.
toll broadcasting:
Early plan for radio revenue in which access to radio time would be by fee.
sustaining programming:
Regular unsponsored broadcast shows designed to maintain audience contact until advertising can be sold for that time.
spectrum scarcity:
Limited nature of broadcast frequencies.
shock jock:
Radio personalities who derive humor and ratings from lewd and tasteless comments, using tactics like vulgarity, racism, sexism, and cynicism.
Morse code:
Telegraph code of dots and dashes invented by Samuel Morse.
network:
A group of interconnected broadcast stations that share programming; also, the parent company that supplies that programming.
sampling:
Measurements taken from a small percentage of the audience chosen to represent the behavior of the rest of the audience. Broadcast ratings are a form of sampling.
public radio:
Broadcast outlets that derive their income from sources other than the sale of advertising time; also known as noncommercial.
pirate radio:
Low-power, unlicensed, illegal stations.
“public interest, convenience, and necessity”: A phrase from the Radio Act of 1927 requiring that broadcasting be good for the community.
payola:
The practice of record companies paying radio station personnel to play certain records.
noncommercial stations:
Broadcast outlets that derive their income from sources other than the sale of advertising time. Also known as public stations.
owned and operated stations (O&Os): Broadcast stations possessed by and run by the network.
network affiliate:
A local station that has a contractual relationship to carry a network’s programming.
affiliate:
A local station that is not owned by the network but has a contractual relationship to carry the network’s programming.
basic cable:
The programming lineup that is supplied with the least expensive program package the cable provider offers.
multiple system operator (MSO):
A company that owns several local cable service providers.
lines of resolution:
Rows of lighted dots, or pixels, that make up a television picture image.
kinescope recording:
Technique used before videotape was invented to film television programs from a studio monitor.
importation:
In cable television, the inclusion of additional signals from distant stations
high-definition television (HDTV):
Digital technology using more than double the standard number of scanning lines, creating a clearer, larger picture.
geostationary:
Placement of satellites so that they orbit the earth at the same speed that the earth rotates, effectively “parking” them over one spot.
direct broadcast satellite (DBS):
A satellite system that delivers television programming to individual homes.
digital video recorders (DVRs):
Specialized computers with oversized hard drives on which video signals are saved.
Community Antenna Television (CATV):
The first cable television system, designed to give viewers in hard-to-reach areas satisfactory reception of their nearest broadcast television signals.
channel allocation:
The placement of assigned spots on the electromagnetic spectrum to individual broadcast stations.
Must-carry rules:
FCC regulations that require cable systems to carry all local television stations within the system’s area of coverage.
very high frequency (VHF):
The “main channel” television stations broadcasting on Channels 2 through 13
video tape recorder:
A device for recording sounds and images on reels of magnetic tape.
video cassette recorder:
An improvement on the video tape recorder (VTR) that uses cassette tapes instead of reels.
video on demand (VOD):
Services that allow cable TV subscribers to order recent feature films, sporting events, concerts, news items, and special events at any time.
V-chip:
An electronic device that can be set to recognize and block programs with a particular rating.
ultra high frequency (UHF):
Term used to describe broadcast stations using the transmitting channels 14 and up.
time-shifting:
Recording of a television program for playback at some later time.
sweeps months:
Those in which local stations use the ratings to set their basic advertising rates for the next three-month period. Currently November, February, May, and August.
superstation:
A local station whose signal is delivered to cable systems via satellite.
off-network syndication:
Programs that were shown earlier on one of the television networks and are now being licensed on a station-by-station basis.
strip programming:
Showing a program in the same time period five times a week.
share:
The percentage of homes in which the radio or television is in use and tuned to a particular station.
rating:
The percentage of all homes equipped with radios or televisions that are tuned to a particular station at a particular time.
Public Broadcasting Service (PBS):
Government-sponsored association of public television stations designed to facilitate the sharing of programs.
program syndication:
The sale of programs directly to stations or cable channels.
premium cable channels:
Those that provide programming to cable subscribers for an additional fee, over and above their basic cable subscription fee.
pixels:
Lighted dots that create a television picture image (picture elements).
pay-per-view:
System that allows cable TV subscribers to order recent feature films, sporting events, concerts, and other special events when scheduled.
original syndication:
The station-by-station licensing of new television programs that were not earlier shown on a network.
