BALTIMORE, M.D.—Sinclair Broadcast Group has announced that Amy Villarreal, the company’s associate group manager, has been named Broadcaster of the Year by the Texas Association of Broadcasters.

The Texas Association of Broadcasters (“TAB”) honors broadcast leaders throughout the Lone Star State for their work in advancing local communities.

“Being recognized with TAB’s prestigious Broadcaster of the Year Award is a testament to Amy’s hard work and her dedication to the communities of Texas,” said Rob Weisbord, Sinclair’s COO and president of Broadcast said,  I am extremely proud of all that she and her teams have accomplished to make a positive impact on their local regions across the state.”

Villarreal has served as VP/GM of KEYE-TV CBS Austin since 2005 and launched a Telemundo affiliate in the market in 2009. In 2020, Villarreal was elevated to Associate Group Manager and currently oversees stations in Amarillo, Beaumont, Corpus Christi and Abilene, in addition to the Austin stations.

“I am honored to be recognized for my 24 years of being a General Manager in my home state of Texas. However, this award is really about my incredible teams who give back to their communities through raising awareness, keeping families safe and providing credible, relevant, and engaging content every day on all platforms. I would not have received this award if it were not for them,” said Villarreal.

In addition to her work in television, Villarreal has a long history of volunteering and giving back her local community, serving on such boards as Make-A-Wish Central & South Texas, Headliners Foundation, Derrick Johnson’s Defend the Dream Foundation, Rodeo Austin and more.

Villarreal will be presented with the award at the Texas Radio & Television Broadcasters Gala on August 3.

AUSTIN—The Texas Association of Broadcasters announced in an email that its exhibits for the TAB Show in Austin in August have sold out, with 100 vendors booking space.

TV Tech's sister publication Radio World took it as our prompt to check in with the TAB on its plans for holding a physical trade show on Aug. 3 and 4. It would be one of the first events in the U.S. radio industry to “go back live” since the pandemic began early last year.

Oscar Rodriguez is TAB’s president.

Radio World: It looks like TAB is moving firmly ahead with plans to hold a physical event. I’m sure you have a sense that you will be one of the first. What factors led you to decide to proceed in physical form?
Oscar Rodriguez: Our members. They’ve been hunting down vaccines since they first became available and now there’s an ample supply in Texas, so that was our primary consideration. But ultimately, they’re ready to meet and do business.

They want to explore new gear and revenue building strategies that’ll make them more efficient and profitable … lessons learned during this long-running disaster. They want to reconnect with friends across the state. And they know they’ll get a big bang out of the very few bucks it all costs.

RW: Will there be a virtual component as well?
Rodriguez: We definitely considered a virtual component or hosting a hybrid event. After much discussion, we decided to move forward and dedicate our resources to bringing in some top-notch presenters/panels and encouraging folks to join us—safely—in-person in Austin.

After more than 18 months of virtual events, most folks are burnt out on virtual gatherings.

RW: Describe the precautions show planners are taking, and how the attendee experience will be different. 
Rodriguez: Our team has been working diligently with the JW Marriott (our host venue) since last year to make sure all safety precautions are in place. Believe me, this has been no easy task with everything changing so quickly.

The JW currently requires wearing of face masks in all indoor public areas, and we will enforce that or whatever requirements are in place at the time of the event.

We also are asking all registrants to agree to our health and wellness waiver before they are allowed to enter the show. Of course, we are setting the events/meetings and including floor decals to allow for social distancing, providing many hand sanitizer stations and working with the JW to stay on top of frequently sanitizing common areas, etc.

We’ve also redesigned our big meal events to ensure safety and comfort, while making sure everyone has the sustenance they need for the non-stop schedule we always present.

RW: What will the experience of visiting a booth be like, and are there rules or guidance for those interactions?
Rodriguez: Initially, we’d planned to have 166 booths in the Trade Show. In order to respect social distancing rules, and best use our contracted space, we had to widen aisles and leave more open space, forcing us to reduce the exhibits to 100 8x8-foot booths.

Booth sales opened at the beginning of March (our latest start date ever) and sold out May 4, and we already have a waiting list.

In terms of the experience of visiting a booth, to be honest, we don’t know. Every exhibiting company will have their different level of comfort, and we will work with them to make sure we make that happen.

We’ll have our lead retrieval system in place so there won’t need to be any need to exchange business cards. But a lot of our exhibitors have hands-on equipment that they want to demo. And we are leaving it up to the individual exhibiting companies to decide how they want to handle their one-on-one interactions.

We’ve heard from some attendees/exhibitors who just don’t feel comfortable traveling yet, or their companies won’t allow it. We completely understand that and know that we’ll see them back in Austin in 2022.

For the most part, however, we’ve been hearing from both our exhibitors and broadcast attendees that they are ready to travel and reconnect in person with industry clients and friends who they haven’t seen in close to two years. They are excited—and we are too!

We’re expecting exhibitors to send fewer reps to work the show. And where a broadcast station might have sent five or six people in the past, they’ll most likely be sending fewer … though we’ve had some register more team members than ever before, so it may balance out.

Our Convention Committee has been working diligently on crafting a fantastic schedule of sessions and events and I’m confident their hard work will pay off in terms of broadcast attendees.

RW: What will the experience of attending a session be like?
Rodriguez: In the past, we set the meeting rooms to max capacity. Obviously, that’s not an option this time around. We’re setting each room to allow for social distancing and encouraging mask wearing whenever not seated.

RW: What else should we know?
Rodriguez: We’ll be celebrating 100 years of broadcasting in the Lone Star State! The 2021 TAB Show coincides with the centennial anniversary of the first broadcast signal in Texas, by WRR Dallas, on Aug. 4. That celebration, of course, will cover a lot of history. It’ll also be rooted in the present as the agenda focuses on the technology and practices powering modern radio stations, as well as the ATSC 3.0 “Next Generation” TV standard that’s already on-air in Texas.

Information including a list of exhibitors, sponsors, registration fees and schedule are at https://www.tab.org/convention-and-trade-show. Session topics and presenters for the sales, marketing and technical programs are pending.

AUSTIN, TEXAS—Bill Buchanan, Dan Giesler, John Kittleman, Joe Oliver and Mike Wenglar have been named as the five honorees of the Texas Association of Broadcasters’ Annual Awards Gala. The ceremony, which takes place during the TAB convention and trade show, will be held on Aug. 11.

John Kittleman

Receiving the TAB Broadcaster of the Year award from the organization is John Kittleman, general manager for the Rio Grande Valley ABC affiliate KRGV (TV). The station recently began offering Spanish-language translation to help serve its market, which is 90 percent Hispanic. A veteran of the broadcast industry for three decades, Kittleman has also served on the TAB board of directors on multiple occasions.

Mike Wenglar has been awarded the TAB’s George Marti Award for Engineering Excellence. Recently retired from the Austin ABC affiliate, KVUE (TV), Wenglar is still serving as the owner and operator of KULP (AM).

KSHN (FM) Liberty owner and operator Bill Buchanan will be recognized with the Pioneer of the Year award. After 50 years of working in the industry, Buchanan still does a daily show on his station, as well as cover breaking news and football.

Dr. Joe Oliver, a retired professor from Stephen F. Austin State University, will receive the TAB Educator of the Year award. Dan Giesler of Giesleer Broadcasting Supply has been tapped for the Associate of the Year award.

Tickets for the event can be purchased through Beth Bobbit; contact her via email. The Awards Gala will take place from 7-10 p.m. at the Renaissance Austin Hotel on Aug. 11.