The Broadcasters' Desktop Resource

Greetings from your broadcast friends out on the Desert…
This is BDR Newsletter 883, Volume 17, #50 for July 15, 2026

AM ONLY?
Here is a strange thought to start the day: In an interview this week, President Trump expressed full support for the AM in Every Vehicle Act. That would seem good for broadcasters, but the BDR wonders if that might leave FM out of the mix, as already shown by Rivian, leaving an AM-only radio in new vehicles? Let us hope the whole issue gets some more thought.

DST BILL PASSES
The House has passed the Sunshine Protection Act Bill (308-117), sending it on to the Senate. It would mandate Daylight Saving Time for all year long, unless a state opted out. Given the way this would send some children to school in the dark, and keep AM Daytimers dark, the idea of extra sun in the evening is not welcome to all.

C-BAND VOTE AHEAD
If you get your programming from C-Band satellite services, it is in your interest to keep an eye on the FCC’s Open Meeting this next week. The working plan is to auction off virtually the entire segment of frequencies still used by broadcasters. For more information, you may wish to listen to Mark Johnson of LiNKUP Communications.

FREE PASSWORD GENERATOR
The recent FCC Order requiring – among other things – passwords be longer and not contain words has raised a number of questions. To help, the BDR has produced an app to generate one or more passwords instantly, and quickly copy them to your equipment. Perhaps the best part: the app is freeware, and works easily on most browsers.

Join us Thursday at 2 PM Eastern / 11 AM Pacific for a live demonstration to see how it works and how it will help you. The link for our presentation is at www.theBDR.net/TLG/ We will also be on YouTube live and the video will be archived on the BDR Lunch Gathering page.

By the way… we are not even asking for users to “register.” Of course, if you like it, we would appreciate knowing.

Our 328th Virtual Lunch Gathering will be on Thursday at 2PM Eastern / 11 AM Pacific. Join us and learn things! The link request is at www.theBDR.net/TLG/ … 

… and do not forget, on the same page we have hundreds of videos you can use on subjects you will want to learn about.