DISC & DigitalAudioTechnology (Music & Digital Audio/Video News) TM
A New Media Newsletter For The Music Industry
Vol 7-#39- 10/16/2009 - Commentary - News - And More
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The Industry's Inside Music, Digital Audio & Video News And Commentary Of Choice To Keep You Informed Since 2003

"Print It Out And Read It All!"
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THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 1
Commentary and One Man's Opinion

NO NEED TO MAKE ALBUMS ANYMORE, BILLY CORGAN SAYS SO

"I always felt if we were going in to do an album, there should already be a lot of structure already made up so we could get on with that and see what else happened." -- Jimmy Page

I reported weeks ago in the newsletter that Billy Corgan plans to release the new Smashing Pumpkins project, Teargarden By Kaleidyscope, one track at a time, as free downloads, starting in late October. "No strings attached, no e-mail address need be given, no fees, nothing, totally free.. A 44-song free-for-all!" says Billy. He adds, "I thought it would emphasize that each song is really important to me and also try to get myself up to the speed of a world that is absolutely devouring information."

In the new ROLLING STONE, Corgan says "I was never comfortable with the album format. It always felt so forced and was obviously an economic decision made by others and not an artistic decision made by creators. It can be draining to try to record 15 songs over a six-month period." (Source: http://tinyurl.com/ykkj9le )

This, from a man who once released a double-album mind you. I assume, based on his comments, he was forced to by his record company. NOT.

While Billy Corgan might never have "been comfortable with the album format", I think there is a long list of artists who have been, and are today. I don't think anyone at EMI forced The Beatles to make 'Sgt. Pepper' or that any "economic decision made them release the double "White Album.' 'Pepper' certainly wasn't an economic decision, the album cover was the most expensive ever done back then. You see Billy, The Beatles wanted to do it, they had a concept in mind when they recorded the album.

I also don't think any economics forced bands like Led Zeppelin, The Who ('Tommy'), The Rolling Stones, or artists like Bruce Springsteen, Elton John, The Eagles, Bob Dylan, and dozens more, to make and release double albums.

They did so because they wanted to, because they thought those double-albums were as significant as any single one they had released. Based on the greatest test of all, the test of time, those double-albums have held up pretty damn well.

As for Billy's comment that "it can be draining to try and record 15 songs over a six-month period", all I can say is "Are you kidding?" There are thousands of unsigned bands who would love to have the opportunity to be so "drained" while recording an album. I hope many of them get then chance, since you feel it's all too overwhelming. Maybe many of them will actually get the chance and make albums more significant than anything Corgan has recorded.

The industry talks frequently about the death of the album. Blame it on iTunes, illegal downloading, etc. Well, I suggest many now turn their blame game on artists like Corgan.

Billy goes on to say, "I want no limitations on what I can, and will do. I think the size and shape of the traditional album is just morphing into something much more in the moment. Four songs at a time will mean I can give my heart over to the music fully without giving away my now happy life."

So there you have it label execs, et al. It's the album that put limitations on what people can and cannot do, and releasing only four songs at a time makes much more sense, right? The "traditional album is morphing into something more at the moment." That's for sure, it's usually morphing into a collection of 10-12 songs put together, and usually only 2-3 are worth enough of a consumer spending money on.

If anything was responsible for changing what artists could and could not do in the studio, it was the ALBUM. When artists started making at their albums as cohesive pieces of content, everything changed. When The Beatles didn't put a single out on 'Rubber Soul' people bought more albums. And the same happened with every album released that stood alone by itself as a concept, or an entire piece. Sure, "pinball Wizard" is a nifty single, but when taken in the context of the entire 'Tommy' album, it is just one piece of an amazing musical journey.

In fact, when more artists made more great albums, the entire retail music business was different. I suggest Billy review ROLLING STONE'S list of the '500 Greatest Albums Of ALL Time' ( http://tinyurl.com/gnsxr ), no…make that LISTEN to the albums on that list to realize what it was that made each and every one of them worthy of being included on the list.

Many of the albums on that list are still selling today. The industry just saw Michael jackson and The Beatles sell millions of albums worldwide years after both stopped recording. Why? Because the ALBUMS contained a collection of great songs that made them timeless. They made people want to listen to them over and over again.

If the traditional album is morphing into something else" it's because there isn't enough work and effort on the part of many artists to make an entire album worth listening to over and over again. Hence, disposable music of the moment. If it's got a good beat and you can dance to it, great. If it's got a great video, great. If it's by an artist that MTV has rammed down the throats of their audience, it's hot. And (more frequently than not) if it's about S-E-X, it's going to sell. Of course, "Lick My Lollipop," that wonderful Lil' Wayne song that gave him so much notoriety, immediately comes to mind, but you can tune in t MTV to see a dozen more.

Billy says at the end of the article I referenced above, "I would rather be free than rich. The [major] labels are dead ghosts walking, and they know it. They never should have left this mystic free, because I am way more of a pied piper than they could ever fathom."

Well, there you go. It's all about freedom, and of course as we all know because Janis Joplin sang it, "Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose." ( Kris Kistofferson wrote that) In Billy's case, I guess he can't sell albums anymore in meaningful quantity. And even if he could, he doesn't want to. So bye-bye, Billy. Your relevance is fading., but now you're free!

I was going to close this commentary by putting in a whole bunch of quotes from artists about the importance of the album, but thought it would be redundant, save this one from Sting, "I see songs not as a commodity used up when the album goes off the charts, which is often the case with pop songs. I see them as a body of work. Life should be breathed into them."

Yeah. That about sums it up. Maybe if Billy saw things that way, he'd think differently.

Frankly, I don't remember the last time I pulled out any Smashing Pumpkins album and played it. Do you remember the last time you did?

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THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 2
PERFORMANCE ROYALTY BILL PASSES SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE…BUT NAB SAYS WAR IS NOT WON

Check out the news about the SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE approving its own version of a performance royalty bill for terrestrial radio. Like the previously approved HOUSE bill H.R. 848, The Performance Rights Act (S. 379) will force music radio stations to pay a performance fee to artists, musicians and rights holders for airplay.

Read the rest here on AllAccess: http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/65436/performance-royalty-bill-passes-senate-judiciary

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THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 3
ATTENTION MUSIC EXECS: WOMEN MORE EAGER TO HIT MUSIC SITES THAN MEN

Whether it's rapper Fabolous' health scare or Alicia Keys love life, women are far more likely to be heading to music news or listening sites than men, according to Nielsen NetView data. In August, women made up 56.1 percent of the Web traffic to online music sites. Overall, music sites pulled in 42.5 million unique female visitors in August.

Read about it here: http://tinyurl.com/ydvhez2

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THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 4
"THIS IS IT" MICHAEL JACKSON SINGLE STREAMING ON HIS SITE

To hear the new Michael Jackson single, just go to his website www.michaeljackson.com
As the news story below states, Michael co-wrote this single some time ago with Paul Anka.

The song will be featured on the 'This Is It' album and in the film.

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And Now For Some News….

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Solving The Internet Music Problem - Legalize It!
From Media Futurist.com

A must read letter published online and sent to Lord Mandelson, First Secretary of State, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation & Skills (UK), discussing The Digital Music License (DML) – why and how a new public license for the legal consumption of music on the Internet would provide a solid alternative to the proposed '3 strikes' legislation in England.

Much of what the author, Mr. Leonhard, talks about has been talked about in my newsletter for the past six years,. I’m glad to see someone with International stature is carrying the same torch that I have.

(And it all makes so much sense, you will ask yourself after reading it, why this can’t be done here in U.S. and elsewhere)

Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/yl2nnx2

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Tube Radio Helps Find Music On YouTube
From Cnet.com

YouTube's a great source of music, including live shows and bootleg recordings that are hard to find anywhere else, and application developers are taking advantage of YouTube's relative openness to help users find and organize that music in new ways.
Last month, London-based start-up TubeRadio.fm launched a Web application that lets you search YouTube, organize the content into playlists, and share those playlists with friends via an e-mail link, Twitter post, or Facebook profile update. If you go through the free registration, you'll be able to save playlists as well. The concept is very similar to that of Muziic, but without any software to download and install--this is strictly a Web application, like Grooveshark. (My favorite for listening to music online!)

Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/yheo5wb

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Facebook Soars, MySpace Shrinks and Twitter Slows
From MediaPost.com

New data from Hitwise highlights the dramatic reversal of fortunes in the social networking world. Facebook's share of U.S. traffic to social sites has grown nearly fourfold in the last year, to 58.6% from 19.9% as of September. Heading in the opposite direction is MySpace, which has seen its share tumble to 30.3% from 66.8%, a 55% plunge.

Hitwise last month offered evidence that Twitter's torrid growth has cooled since April, when visits as a share of all U.S. Web traffic and searches on "Twitter" appeared to hit a wall. The proportion of new users going to Twitter from other sites was also down in mid-September compared to April.

Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/ykmnbo3

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Apple's $10,000 iTunes Album Fee Problem
From Ars Technica

Apple has so far limited production of iTunes LP format releases to major labels by tacking on a $10,000 production fee, leaving indie labels out in the cold. But the format is still in its infancy, and its reliance on standard Web development technologies should make it easy to produce iTunes LPs once Apple documents its TuneKit framework.

Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/yh4o6so

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Piracy Sells Music
From Inside MusicMedia.blogspot.com

From Jerry Del Colliano's INSIDE MUSIC MEDIA posts, this week, another great article.
"The music crisis that has been adversely affecting the radio industry wasn't caused by the next generation….It was caused by a lack of the next generation of radio formats -- the ones embracing new media and personality-centric."

Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/yz8obtd

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Michael Jackson Estate Admits Paul Anka Co-Wrote 'This Is It'

The former '50s teen idol Paul Anka wrote the original song with Michael Jackson back in 1983.

Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/yhkw7tu

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Bon Jovi Teaming With NBCU for 'Artist' Promotion
MSNBC

Jon Bon Jovi and his band are launching a partnership with the "Today" show and NBCU. On a string of weekly "Today" appearances through November, the group will discuss their lives and music, culminating with the band playing their hits live.
The effort is part of a new project by NBC Universal called "Artists in Residence," in which Bon Jovi will appear on multiple programs on NBC and its affiliated cable channels throughout the upcoming month. The band kicked things off by unveiling its new video, "We Weren't Born to Follow," this week.

With the music business changing dramatically in recent years, Bon Jovi says he's up for the novel approach of partnering with the network. "It's a different way of getting the message of the music out to the masses," he says.

Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/yf24ywh

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Alliance Ushers In Wi-Fi Revolution
Businessweek

This week, the Wi-Fi Alliance, a tech industry consortium, said its members will release technology that effectively turns gadgets into mini access points -- or "hotspots" -- able to create wireless connections with other Wi-Fi-enabled gadgets or broadband modems within a radius of about 300 feet. The alliance includes Intel, Cisco Systems, Apple, and more than 300 other makers of the equipment that runs Wi-Fi networks, often used to provide wireless Web connections in homes, cafés, hotels, and airports. Until now, consumers have been required to hook up some gear and create their own hotspots to enjoy Wi-Fi. They'll still have to wait until mid-2010, when a tech upgrade is expected to make the Alliance's dreams a reality.

Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/yf9aqkn

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Miley Cyrus Quits Twitter…Another One Bites The Dust

Nelly Furtado, Judd Apatow, Larry David, Denzel Washington, Trent Reznor, all quit some time ago. Miley Cyrus joins them.

Perhaps Miley realized, as many other do after a short time, that inane posts and meaningless PR tweets do not make for a great online experience.

Whatever Miley's reasons (and she quit via a YouTube video), and the others mentioned above, for quitting, as the article I link to below states,"Nonethless, I know that you, together with the Twitter hierarchy, will cling on to the fact that one of the world's other great rappers, Kevin Federline, appears to still have a Twitter account."

Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/yjn5shb

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MORE CHICKENFOOT: Chickenfoot will rerelease their self-titled debut as a deluxe edition exclusively at Best Buy on November 1st. The new disc costs $9.99 and features a bonus track called "Bitten by the Wolf" and a DVD of backstage and live footage.

HOPEFULLY, THEY WON’T DO THIS WHILE DRIVING: According to Entertainment Weekly a Rock Band iPhone application is on the way that will have users tapping four spots on the screen for guitar, bass, vocals and drums.

SHE HAD SOME DREAMS, THEY WERE CLOUDS IN HER (STARBUCKS) COFFEE: Carly Simon has sued Starbucks. After they signed Carly to Hear Music (the Starbucks label being distributed in all locations), the label was closed in April of 2008, just five days before the release of her album. Former Hear Music A&R head Alan Mintz, who was fired during the dismantling and is now Simon's manager said: "There was always a challenge at Starbucks in terms of getting the stores to focus on our entertainment ventures. Once the word got out that we were shutting down the label, I think it put a message out to the field that this didn't matter anymore."

WHEN YOU’RE HOT, YOU’RE HOT, AND THIS GIRL IS ON FIRE: Taylor Swift confirmed that the second leg of her ‘Fearless’ tour will kick off March 4th, 2010 in Tampa, Florida with 37 new dates.

WHO NEEDS KANYE?: Just two weeks after her tour with Kanye West was cancelled, Lady GaGa has announced 'The Monster Ball Tour' with 20-plus dates in North America,

LAMBERT TO APPEAR ON AMA SHOW: American Idol runner-up Adam Lambert (prediction: he will outsell the winner Kris Allen by huge quantities) will appear on the American Music Awards show airing in November 22. He will performing his soon-to-be announced first single.

IN MEMORY OF LUCY IN THE SKY: Julian Lennon has recorded a song in honor of the "Lucy" who inspired the Beatles' "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" (a schoolmate named Lucy Vodden who died from Lupus). Julian will donate some proceeds from "Lucy," available at The Revolution.com, to Lupus research.

CARRIE XMAS: Carrie Underwood' will host a Christmas special that will air on Fox on December 7th. Dolly Parton and David Cook will be guests.

BROOKS TO VEGAS: Garth Brooks, one of Country Music's biggest superstars who has sold gazillions of albums, has announced that he will undertake an extended engagement at the Wynn Resort Hotel in Las Vegas.

DIVORCE COURT: After all the rumors about it were already out there for some time, it's confirmed: Avril Lavigne has filed for divorce after only three years of marriage.

MACCA HONORED: Paul McCartney was recognized for "All You Need Is Love," "Come Together" and "Hello Goodbye" and named Songwriter of the Year at the 29th Annual ASCAP Awards in London yesterday. Coldplay’s "Viva la Vida" picked up an award for Song of the Year.

YEAH, BUT DO YOU GLOW IN THE DARK IF YOU USE IT?: Scientists at the University of Missouri are developing a small nuclear battery that they say can hold a million times more charge than standard batteries. The radioisotope battery, being developed by Jae Kwon of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and other researchers, is the size and thickness of a penny.

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THE TOP 20 ALBUMS FROM THE BILLBOARD CHART
FOR WEEK ENDING 10/17/09

NEW - 1. Michael Buble, Crazy Love
NEW - 2. Kiss, Sonic Boom
NEW - 3. Toby Keith, American Ride
4. Barbra Streisand, Love Is The Answer
5. Jay-Z, The Blueprint 3
NEW - 6. Luke Bryan, Doin; My Thing
7. Mariah Carey, Memoirs Of An Imperfect Angel
8. Miley Cyrus, Time Of Our Lives
NEW - 9. This Is Us, Backstreet Boys
10. Breaking Benjamin, Dear Agony
11. Paramore, Brand New Eyes
12. Alice In Chains, Black Gives Way To Blue
13. Whitney Houston, I Look To You
NEW - 14. Bebe and CeCe Winans, Still
NEW - 15. Reliant K, Forget and Not Slow Down
16. Pearl Jam, Backspacer
17. Taylor Swift, Fearless
18. Harry Connick Jr., Your Songs
19. Miranda Lambert, Revolution
20. Madonna, Celebration

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TV WASTELAND, IT'S ONLY TV WASTELAND...
WHAT AMERICA'S WATCHING
The Top 20 Network Primetime Report - Based On Nielsen Ratings
Network Primetime Averages by Viewers

Week of 10/5/09 - 10/11/09
[Show, Network, Total Viewers in millions]
1. NCIS, CBS, 2O.7
2. Dancing with the Stars, ABC, 16.3
3. NCIS: Los Angeles, CBS, 16.3
4. NBC SUNDAY NIGHT NFL, NBC, 16.9
5. CSI, CBS,14.8
6. The Mentalist, CBS, 14.7
7. 60 Minutes, CBS, 14.5
8. Grey's Anatomy, ABC, 14.1
9. Criminal Minds, CBS, 14.0
10. House, Fox, 13.7
11. The Good Wife, CBS, 13.6
12. CSI: Miami, CBS, 13.4
13. Desperate Housewives, ABC, 13.4
14. Two and a Half Men, CBS, 13.2
15. Big Bang Theory, CBS, 12.5
16. CSI: NY, CBS, 12.4
17. Dancing with the Stars Results, ABC, 12.4
18. Sunday Night Pre-Lickoff, NBC, 12.3
19. Survivor:Samoa, CBS, 11.6
20. Amazing Race, CBS, 10.5

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Quotes Of The Week:

"Wearing some of those outfits I wore when I was 17 or 18. Those were explosions of wrong." -- Justin Timberlake, reminiscing about his 'N Sync wardrobe, in PEOPLE's 35th Birthday special issue.

"Gosh, I'm so emotional. It's not that time of the month, either!" -- Jessica Simpson, tearing up during her speech at an Operation Smile gala.

"I still love her. But she's retarded, too." -- Madaonna's ex, Guy Ritchie, in Esquire. Yeah, retarded and very, very, rich.

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THE ‘B SIDE
FROM ‘THE ONION’ – AMERICA’S FINEST (SATIRICAL) NEWS SOURCE (www.onion.com )

Report: Majority Of Newspapers Now Purchased By Kidnappers To Prove Date

NEW YORK—According to a report published this week in American Journalism Review, 93 percent of all newspaper sales can now be attributed to kidnappers seeking to prove the day's date in filmed ransom demands.

"Although the vast majority of Americans now get their news from the Internet or television, a small but loyal criminal element still purchases newspapers at a steady rate," study author and Columbia journalism professor Linus Ridell said. "The sober authority of the printed word continues to hold value for those attempting to extort large sums of money from wealthy people who wish to see their loved ones alive again, and not chopped into pieces and left in steamer trunks on their doorsteps."

Read the rest here and laugh: http://tinyurl.com/ygf8lqh

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THE RADIO INTERVIEW on 'THE AMERICAN PERSPECTIVE'

"Steve Meyer is on the front line of global music sales and distribution which he expects will soar to pocket-bursting levels. What's more, he shares his insight and ingenuity with us. Steve gives us both historical perspective and futuristic vision as he chats with Judy about the love of his work, trends of the business and his personal points of view about success, happiness and blending life with the lust for life. Steve joins Judy and helps us discover the thrill of having it all with a sense of balance and purpose. "

You can listen to an interview I did with Judy Piazza of 'The American Perspective' awhile back by clicking here: (It runs about 15 minutes)

http://thesop.org/index.php?article=10306

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Check out Jerry Del Colliano's (the founder of INSIDE RADIO) daily blog, by clicking here: http://www.insidemusicmedia.blogspot.com
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Check out attorney Ray Beckerman's website at: http://recordingindustryvspeople.blogspot.com/ where he prints news about the RIAA's ongoing activities
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Check out www.tinyurl.com where you can make a smaller URL that will work for any webpage you wish to link to or reference. (As you can see, I'm using it in my news stories above!)
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DISC & DAT is meant to be your "Forum" as much as mine, so your comments are always welcome and I encourage all to be pro-active in contributing ongoing dialogue and/or commentary. I answer ALL questions asked via direct e-mail.

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Smart Marketing Consulting Services has been in business sixteen years, and consults clients in the music, entertainment, attraction, media, and technology industry on branding, marketing, online exploitation, maximizing new media, and more.

And the beat goes on, the beat goes on ...drums keep poundin' rhythm to the brain.
"Work is life, you know, and without it, there's nothing but fear and insecurity." -- John Lennon

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DISC & DAT - Weekly Edition – 2009, online at www.freewebs.com/stevemeyer
Published By Steve Meyer
President/CEO - Smart Marketing Consulting Services
Editor, Digital Technology: www.allaccess.com
Las Vegas, NV
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I welcome and appreciate forwarding of the newsletters in their entirety or in part with proper attribution.

Unless otherwise expressly stated, all original material of whatever nature created by Steve Meyer and included in this newsletter and any related pages, including various news and other information, is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

ABOUT STEVE MEYER

Steve Meyer is a 38 year music industry veteran, having served in executive capacities at both Capitol and MCA Records before starting his own company, Smart Marketing, to consult clients in the entertainment, media, and broadcast industries. Steve was a recipient of many awards during his industry tenure, including Sr. VP/Promotion, and Record Executive Of The Year awards, as well as Billboard Magazine's Award for Excellence in National Promotion.

A respected authority on pop-culture and the entertainment industry, Steve was interviewed by Martin A. Grove, for three separate books on pop music.

In 2003, he started publishing the new media newsletter 'DISC&Digital Audio Technology', to address challenges the music industry was facing in the emerging online digital world. The newsletter is published every Friday, sent to almost 2,000 subscribers direct, and posted on the leading music industry resource www.allaccess.com and his own site www.freewebs.com/stevemeyer

In October 2004, Steve was a featured speaker at the Community Broadcasters Association convention in Las Vegas. His speech, ‘Digital Wars In The Brave New World’ was reprinted on several industry websites.

Since 2004, Steve has consulted labels, artists, managers, producers, and media companies.

Steve is also a freelance journalist, has also had articles published in various industry publications, and guest lectures at industry events, colleges, and elsewhere when requested.