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KBA SCHOLARSHIPS
APPLICATION WINDOW OPENS TODAY
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Applications are now being accepted for both the KBA High School Senior Scholarship Fund and the Harry Barfield Scholarship.
KBA High School Senior Scholarship Fund
The KBA High School Senior Scholarship is awarded to children of individuals who are currently employed at an active KBA member radio or television station. This is a one-time scholarship to be strictly used toward the recipients postsecondary education plans. The KBA shall annually award up to fourteen (14) scholarships valued at $2,100 each.
KBA Harry Barfield Scholarship
Four scholarships of $3,500 each are available to students who are currently majoring in broadcasting or communications at a college or university in Kentucky. The scholarships are awarded through a competitive application process which includes academic achievement, recommendation of a faculty member, extracurricular activities and a 500 word essay. Since the scholarship awards are renewable for a second year provided recipients continue to meet specified criteria, priority consideration will be given to students who are rising juniors.
Application deadline is April 1, 20026. Click HERE to learn more and apply.
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CONGRATULATIONS
BUD WALTERS HONORED WITH AWARD
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The Ten-Minute Trainer Network during their Rising Above Summit has announced the creation of the Lifetime Learner Award, a new honor named after longtime trainer and industry leader Chris Lytle, recognizing a career defined by continuous learning, mentorship, and impact.
The award was established to celebrate professionals who embody a commitment to growth, education, and elevating others in the media and sales industry.
As part of the inaugural presentation, Bud Walters has been named the first-ever recipient of the Lifetime Learner Award — recognizing his decades of leadership, service, and dedication to advancing both people and the profession.
“Chris Lytle represents what it means to stay curious, stay relevant, and stay committed to improving,” said Speed Marriott, co-founder of the Ten-Minute Trainer Network. “Naming this award in his honor reflects the influence he’s had on generations of sellers and leaders.”
Derron Steenbergen added, “Bud Walters is the perfect first recipient. His career reflects the spirit of this award a passion for learning, a heart for helping others, and a legacy that will continue to inspire our industry.”
The Lifetime Learner Award is intended to serve as an ongoing tribute to professionals who invest in personal growth, champion education, and leave a meaningful mark on the industry reinforcing the Ten-Minute Trainer Network’s mission to elevate talent through training, leadership, and real-world insight.
The award was presented as part of a Ten-Minute Trainer Network event honoring excellence, innovation, and impact within the broadcast and media community.
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BE VIGILANT
FCC ISSUES BEST PRACTICES FOR CYBERSECURITY
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The FCC issued a Public Notice last Friday that strongly urges broadcasters to implement cybersecurity best practices to help prevent malware, such as ransomware, that could negatively impact your operations.
- The Public Notice states that intentional cybersecurity disruptions continue to rapidly grow, both in number and sophistication.
- The FCC describes the various ways ransomware can be introduced into broadcast operations, and the substantial harm ransomware can inflict.
- The Public Notice lists simple steps that broadcasters should take to help prevent malware, and how to respond quickly and effectively to a ransomware attack. The FCC also identifies other resources for advice on how to implement the various best practices.
Stations are urged to review this information and to implement the useful advice stated in the Public Notice.
Implementing these measures can help mitigate service disruptions, protect sensitive information, and protect the reputation of your station and broadcasting generally as the most reliable, secure media outlet.
Click HERE to review the Public Notice.
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BROADCAST ADVOCATE
FUTURE OF BROADCASTING THROUGH A CES LENS
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In this episode, host Casey Jones (Michigan Association of Broadcasters) sits down with Fred and Paul Jacobs of Jacobs Media to break down what CES 2026 revealed about the future of broadcasting. From the rise of applied AI to the growing importance of companionship, collaboration, and presence, the conversation focuses on how broadcasters can intentionally claim their place in an increasingly crowded media ecosystem. Rather than chasing trends, the Jacobs brothers argue that the future belongs to broadcasters who engage early, make room at the table, and help shape what comes next.
Click HERE to view episode 9 of the Broadcast Advocate.
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LBS WEBINAR
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10 @ 12:00PM ET
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SOCIAL MEDIA IS SHIFTING AGAIN!
ARE YOU KEEPING UP?
Lori Lewis, LBS Social Media Expert
Every broadcast seller and manager needs to understand the seismic changes happening across social media right now. If your station offers social media services, staying ahead of the curve isn’t optional. It’s the difference between leading your market and getting left behind. And if your station doesn’t offer these services, someone else in your market certainly does(!), and you need to know exactly how they’re positioning themselves.
This webinar session will push you to rethink what you know. We’ll explore the expanding influence of the non‑follower, how personalized feeds are reshaping discovery, what’s replacing the hashtag era, how users are reinventing social platforms in real time, and which metrics now matter far more than “likes.” Expect a fast‑moving, insight‑packed hour filled with practical takeaways you can use with prospects and clients immediately.
Lori Lewis has an extensive background in broadcasting, starting out as an on-air personality and evolving into an award-winning Program Director. In 2008, she left day-to-day programming to lead the way and help brands better understand how to leverage social media.
LBS webinars are provided as a complimentary member services to KBA member stations. Click HERE to register.
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MEMBER PIC OF THE WEEK
DON'T FLURRY, BE HAPPY
| | Neither rain nor snow nor heat nor gloom of night will stop the news crews across Kentucky from keeping their viewers and listeners informed. Pictured above is a wintery mix falling at the WLKY-TV studios in Louisville. | | We want to promote YOU! Send us your staff additions, promotions and special events. Email Chris at chris@kba.org | | |
ARE YOU HALLUCINATING?
Recently, a publication printed an article about an exciting new RAB Research report. The problem is, we produced no such report. When talking to the editor, they indicated that they had relied on AI to help craft the article.
There is no denying the benefits of AI as a tool, as a resource, and as an assistant. But there is a downside. It’s not always correct. In the tech world, they call errors with AI “Hallucinations”. Why they can’t just say it’s wrong is beyond me.
Here is some verified research (with links) to indicate how prevalent this problem is. I did notice a trend that the more specialized the data, the higher the percentage of hallucinations. You’ll see that much of my sourcing for this research comes from medical websites.
There isn’t a single, universally agreed-upon “percentage” because hallucination rates vary widely across models, tasks, domains, and evaluation methods – ranging anywhere from three to nine out of ten times on various LLMs. But multiple studies give us real data points:
1. Hallucination Rates Across Tasks & Models
- Some peer-reviewed studies found that GPT-3.5 hallucinated 39.6% of the time and GPT-4 hallucinated 28.6% of the time when producing accurate academic references, while another model accidentally fabricated 91% of citations.
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Source: National Library of Medicine
- Larger benchmarking studies show widely varying performance: in some legal-domain tests, models hallucinated across 50% to 80% of queries.
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Source: Healthcare IT News
2. Dependency on Context
- What counts as a hallucination in one study (e.g., invented legal/medical facts) might be different in another (fabricated citations vs. harmless inaccuracy). This means the risk is higher for fact-intensive professional output than casual use.
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Source: Scientific Reports
3. Errors in News & Verification Contexts (This is what happened to us)
- A recent cross-platform analysis of AI assistants found that around 45% of news-related answers contained at least one significant error, and sourcing problems in roughly 72% of some models’ outputs.
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Source: Reuters
The key takeaway: Verification Isn’t Optional — It’s Essential
For public-facing information like news articles, academic claims, press releases, organizational statements, etc., you should:
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Always double-check AI outputs against authoritative sources (original documents, people, or trusted databases).
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Insist on direct sourcing (e.g., “show me the primary source / URL / official publication”).
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Use human reviewers with domain expertise, especially in high-impact or reputational contexts.
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Deploy AI with retrieval-augmented systems that pull from verified data rather than relying solely on generative predictions. This is what we’ve done with our AI tools on RAB.com
AI can generate impressive text, graphics, video, etc., but can’t yet guarantee factual accuracy on its own. Research shows hallucinations — from minor inaccuracies to completely fabricated information — occur frequently enough in real-world use cases to require mandatory human verification and quality control before any public dissemination.
It can happen to all of us. This is one of the main reasons RAB has developed RAB-AI tools on RAB.com that ONLY look at our verified, accurate, and trusted information. Our CopyWrite tool was written based on industry best practices for creative, and our Why Radio AI tool only looks at our research archives. This way, you know that when you use RAB’s AI tools, you are getting verified, accurate, and trustworthy information.
Verify, verify, verify. The editor of the publication that made an error with our research was highly embarrassed and apologized profusely and will be printing a retraction. That hurts. You don’t want to put yourself in that position.
| | Jeff Schmidt is the SVP of Professional Development at the Radio Advertising Bureau. You can also connect with him by email JSchmidt@rab.com or on Twitter and LinkedIn. | | |
FEBRUARY 19, 2026
9:00am - KBA Board of Directors Meeting - held via Zoom
MAY 20, 2026
5:00pm - KBA After Hours - Lexington
MAY 21, 2026
9:00am - KBA Board of Directors Meeting - Lexington
AUGUST 19, 2026
5:00pm - KBA After Hours - Bowling Green
AUGUST 20, 2026
9:00am - KBA Board of Directors Meeting - Bowling Green
NOVEMBER 18, 2026
5:00pm - KBA After Hours - Louisville
NOVEMBER 19, 2026
9:00am - KBA Board of Directors Meeting - Louisville
*All times shown are Eastern
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