Agri Broadcast Network
Encyclopedia
The Agri Broadcasting Network (ABN) was a radio news
network in the U.S. state
of Ohio
. ABN programming was heard on more than 60 radio stations statewide, including the major markets of Canton, Toledo, and Columbus.
Its direct successor to the original ABN,the Ohio Ag Net now airs on most of the original affiliates.
, President of Agri Communicators Inc., which included the Agri Broadcasting Network (ABN Radio), Ohio's Country Journal, a monthly farm newspaper, and the television program AgriCountry. Johnson, a well-known farm broadcaster formerly of WRFD-AM in Columbus, launched the network with a small number of radio stations, and delivered programming over the telephone from his farm in Ostrander, Ohio. His unmistakable enthusiasm, passion for agriculture, and unique broadcast style won a faithful following, and the network grew. The network, by the late 1970s finally leased a land line loop to affillaites which also fed programming from the Ohio News Network and Sports Ohio Network (now ONN Sports). By the mid 1980s, the ABN became a satellite operation.
Adding the television program to his efforts in 1982, Johnson's fame grew from that of a well-respected agricultural journalist to a household name in Ohio. In 1992, he launched the magazine Ohio's Country Journal. The size and scope of the ABN Radio network also grew, expanding to a footprint exceeding 72 radio stations in Ohio, Indiana, and West Virginia.
Following Johnson's death in 2001, the Johnson family sold the ABN to Clear Channel Communications
, who moved network operations from Columbus and merged the network and programming into its Lima, Ohio
cluster. In early 2007 Advance Broadcast & Communication Ltd, parent company of the Buckeye Ag Radio Network (aka: "the BARN") acquired the ABN, reintroduced Johnson's well-known preference for broadcasting "from the farm," and in early 2009 returned broadcast operations to Columbus.
In December of 2010 Advance Broadcast and Communications ceased operations as mentioned on its website (now defunct and now redirects to AndyVance.com).
Lindsay Hill, associate farm director and co-founder of Buckeye Ag Radio Network "The Barn" (and wife of Vance) died in a two vehicle accident at the intersection of Ohio State Routes 235 and 41
just north of New Carlisle
and west of North Hampton
near Springfield, Ohio
on Thursday morning May 19,2011 while she was a new employee for AgDay
, a television program produced by Farm Journal Magazine. Hill began her career as an ABN intern under Johnson's mentoring. Husband Andy Vance began his career at WRFD where Johnson started his.
Following the sale of ABN to Clear Channel, the Johnson family maintained the Country Journal, but Johnson's weekend television program, AgriCountry, aired on 11 television stations across Ohio, was cancelled. The program aired over 1,000 episodes over its twenty-year run. The Johnson family business Agri Communicators Inc. continues to publish Ohio's Country Journal in addition to Ohio Ag Net, a new radio network founded in 2007 under the ownership of Johnson's son Bart and his wife Sheryl Johnson. ABN veteran anchor (and successor to "'ol E.J.") Dale Minyo anchors most of its programming.
Another staple of the Johnson years was the use of ABN "Stinger." http://www.buckeyeag.com/ABNStinger.mp3 This brief synthesizer logo (resembling a banjo riff) was used as a sounder at the beginning of each ABN broadcast. Clear Channel discontinued the use of the stinger after acquiring ABN..A similar-styled version of the sounder using an actual group of musicians playing a banjo and other instruments was used by Clear Channel to play the familiar brief melody.
Maintaining the tradition and heritage of the Johnson years, the company dedicated the "Ed Johnson Memorial Studio" at the network's Columbus newsroom in July, 2009. Johnson was honored posthumously for his work by the National Association of Farm Broadcasting in 2005 with enshrinement in the NAFB Hall of Fame.
On September 16, 2008, in partnership with WOSU
Public Media, ABN announced the network would move its studios and network operations to the Fawcett Center for Tomorrow on the Campus of the Ohio State University. Flanked by WOSU General Manager Tom Reiland and OSU President Gordon Gee
, Vance & Hill explained their desire to reconnect ABN to its roots in Columbus and reaffirm the traditional connection to the University. Renovating the original WOSU radio studios throughout the Fall and Winter of 2008, the network signed on from Columbus in January 2009.
As part of the university partnership, ABN employed a number of student interns in programming, operations, and marketing. In Fall 2009, ABN opened a learning laboratory in its studios to students in the Agricultural Communications program within the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.
As of 2011 Ohio Ag Net became the sole farm radio network serving Ohio continuing the tradition started by ABN founder Ed Johnson in 1972. In January of that same year, the familiar ABN synthesizer sounder began aired at the beginning of all programs aired on Ohio Ag Net after the demise of ABN (under the ownership of AdVance.)
News broadcasting
News broadcasting is the broadcasting of various news events and other information via television, radio or internet in the field of broadcast journalism. The content is usually either produced locally in a radio studio or television studio newsroom, or by a broadcast network...
network in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
. ABN programming was heard on more than 60 radio stations statewide, including the major markets of Canton, Toledo, and Columbus.
Its direct successor to the original ABN,the Ohio Ag Net now airs on most of the original affiliates.
History
The Network was founded in 1972 by the late Ed JohnsonEd Johnson (broadcaster)
Ed Johnson was the founder of Agri Communicators, Inc., the parent company of the Agri Broadcast Network .-The ABN:...
, President of Agri Communicators Inc., which included the Agri Broadcasting Network (ABN Radio), Ohio's Country Journal, a monthly farm newspaper, and the television program AgriCountry. Johnson, a well-known farm broadcaster formerly of WRFD-AM in Columbus, launched the network with a small number of radio stations, and delivered programming over the telephone from his farm in Ostrander, Ohio. His unmistakable enthusiasm, passion for agriculture, and unique broadcast style won a faithful following, and the network grew. The network, by the late 1970s finally leased a land line loop to affillaites which also fed programming from the Ohio News Network and Sports Ohio Network (now ONN Sports). By the mid 1980s, the ABN became a satellite operation.
Adding the television program to his efforts in 1982, Johnson's fame grew from that of a well-respected agricultural journalist to a household name in Ohio. In 1992, he launched the magazine Ohio's Country Journal. The size and scope of the ABN Radio network also grew, expanding to a footprint exceeding 72 radio stations in Ohio, Indiana, and West Virginia.
Following Johnson's death in 2001, the Johnson family sold the ABN to Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
, who moved network operations from Columbus and merged the network and programming into its Lima, Ohio
Lima, Ohio
Lima is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Ohio, United States. The municipality is located in northwestern Ohio along Interstate 75 approximately north of Dayton and south-southwest of Toledo....
cluster. In early 2007 Advance Broadcast & Communication Ltd, parent company of the Buckeye Ag Radio Network (aka: "the BARN") acquired the ABN, reintroduced Johnson's well-known preference for broadcasting "from the farm," and in early 2009 returned broadcast operations to Columbus.
In December of 2010 Advance Broadcast and Communications ceased operations as mentioned on its website (now defunct and now redirects to AndyVance.com).
Lindsay Hill, associate farm director and co-founder of Buckeye Ag Radio Network "The Barn" (and wife of Vance) died in a two vehicle accident at the intersection of Ohio State Routes 235 and 41
Ohio State Route 41
State Route 41 is a north–south state highway in the southern and western portions of the U.S. state of Ohio. Its southern terminus is at the Ohio River on the Simon Kenton Memorial Bridge in Aberdeen ; and its northern terminus is along State Route 48 at U.S. Route 36 in Covington...
just north of New Carlisle
New Carlisle, Ohio
New Carlisle is a city in Clark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 5,735 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:New Carlisle is located at ....
and west of North Hampton
North Hampton, Ohio
North Hampton is a village in Clark County, Ohio, United States. The population was 370 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:North Hampton is located at ....
near Springfield, Ohio
Springfield, Ohio
Springfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Clark County. The municipality is located in southwestern Ohio and is situated on the Mad River, Buck Creek and Beaver Creek, approximately west of Columbus and northeast of Dayton. Springfield is home to Wittenberg...
on Thursday morning May 19,2011 while she was a new employee for AgDay
AgDay
AgDay is a syndicated daily half-hour television program presented in magazine format focusing on agriculture news, agribusiness, and country living. It generally airs in early morning timeslots on stations throughout the country and also airs weekday mornings on the digital cable and satellite...
, a television program produced by Farm Journal Magazine. Hill began her career as an ABN intern under Johnson's mentoring. Husband Andy Vance began his career at WRFD where Johnson started his.
Following the sale of ABN to Clear Channel, the Johnson family maintained the Country Journal, but Johnson's weekend television program, AgriCountry, aired on 11 television stations across Ohio, was cancelled. The program aired over 1,000 episodes over its twenty-year run. The Johnson family business Agri Communicators Inc. continues to publish Ohio's Country Journal in addition to Ohio Ag Net, a new radio network founded in 2007 under the ownership of Johnson's son Bart and his wife Sheryl Johnson. ABN veteran anchor (and successor to "'ol E.J.") Dale Minyo anchors most of its programming.
"From the Farm, Good Morning!"
Launching his morning radio show from his farm in Ostrander (Delaware County), Johnson infused his reports with stories of his life on the farm. He always opened his broadcast with the trademark phrase "From the Farm, Good Morning!", followed by the crow of his legendary rooster sidekick, Abner. Prone to talking about his Belgian draft horses, Johnson enjoyed a relationship with his listeners that transcended his news and market commentary.Another staple of the Johnson years was the use of ABN "Stinger." http://www.buckeyeag.com/ABNStinger.mp3 This brief synthesizer logo (resembling a banjo riff) was used as a sounder at the beginning of each ABN broadcast. Clear Channel discontinued the use of the stinger after acquiring ABN..A similar-styled version of the sounder using an actual group of musicians playing a banjo and other instruments was used by Clear Channel to play the familiar brief melody.
Johnson's passing
Johnson survived a heart attack in November 1992. Dedicated to his work, he was back at the microphone shortly after his surgery. He suffered a massive heart attack in February 2001 and passed on at the age of 63. His death caused a series of key transitions, including the sale of ABN to Clear Channel, and the subsequent purchase of the network by Advance.Maintaining the tradition and heritage of the Johnson years, the company dedicated the "Ed Johnson Memorial Studio" at the network's Columbus newsroom in July, 2009. Johnson was honored posthumously for his work by the National Association of Farm Broadcasting in 2005 with enshrinement in the NAFB Hall of Fame.
2400 Olentangy River Road
For the majority of the Johnson era, ABN's studios were located at 1515 West Lane Avenue, just West of the Ohio State campus. The proximity to the University and Johnson's faithful passion for his alma mater led the network to create a well-known internship program. Numerous students worked in the ABN studios, including its owners Vance and Hill. Following their acquisition of the network from Clear Channel in 2007, the couple began the process of moving ABN from Lima back to Central Ohio.On September 16, 2008, in partnership with WOSU
WOSU
WOSU may refer to:* WOSU Public Media, a nonprofit broadcasting organisation* The WOSU Stations, a group of broadcasting stations administered by WOSU Public Media:...
Public Media, ABN announced the network would move its studios and network operations to the Fawcett Center for Tomorrow on the Campus of the Ohio State University. Flanked by WOSU General Manager Tom Reiland and OSU President Gordon Gee
Gordon Gee
Elwood Gordon Gee is an American academic. He is in his second term as the president of The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio; he was previously president from 1990 to 1998....
, Vance & Hill explained their desire to reconnect ABN to its roots in Columbus and reaffirm the traditional connection to the University. Renovating the original WOSU radio studios throughout the Fall and Winter of 2008, the network signed on from Columbus in January 2009.
As part of the university partnership, ABN employed a number of student interns in programming, operations, and marketing. In Fall 2009, ABN opened a learning laboratory in its studios to students in the Agricultural Communications program within the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.
As of 2011 Ohio Ag Net became the sole farm radio network serving Ohio continuing the tradition started by ABN founder Ed Johnson in 1972. In January of that same year, the familiar ABN synthesizer sounder began aired at the beginning of all programs aired on Ohio Ag Net after the demise of ABN (under the ownership of AdVance.)
Sources
- Reese Medal and Gerlach Awards Presented at Ohio State http://www.osu.edu/osu/newsrel/Archive/01-10-18_Reese_Medal,_%20Gerlach_Awards_presented.html
- ABN History http://www.buckeyeag.com/hiredhelp.asp
- National Association of Farm Broadcasting Hall of Fame http://www.nafb.com/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=27
- Columbus Business First http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/09/15/daily23.html?q=abn%20ohio%20state
- Death of Lindsay Hill http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/springfield-news/one-killed-in-head-on-crash-1164224.html
- Lindsay Hill tribute by husband Andy Vance http://www.andyvance.com/?p=546