State Broadcast Associations Split on Conventions During Delta

State broadcast associations are split on whether to proceed with conventions and member gatherings in the face of the surging COVID-19 delta variant, association leaders said in interviews.

The Kentucky Broadcasters Association (KBA) announced Friday its annual membership conference will be delayed until 2022. The Massachusetts Broadcasters Association postponed a Hall of Fame event originally set for next Monday. Meanwhile, the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association went ahead with its Summer Conference this week, and the Texas Association of Broadcasters (TAB) convention was held earlier this month with about 1,000 attendees. WBA didn't respond to requests for comment.

Other state broadcast associations that canceled or postponed their 2021 gatherings include Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Mississippi and Wyoming. State broadcast associations that held or plan to hold 2021 member gatherings include Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina and Virginia. “No Thanks,” the National Alliance of State Broadcasters Associations emailed when asked to comment.

“Everybody’s local circumstances are different,” said Sharon Tinsley, Alabama Broadcasters Association president. “Our circumstances aren’t the same as Vermont’s.” The ABA moved its 2021 convention to January, largely because of Alabama’s rising COVID-19 case count and low vaccination rate. The Vermont Association of Broadcasters held its convention Aug. 18 outdoors.

Every association president interviewed said the decision to move ahead or postpone was made after consulting members. “The biggest impact on our decision was the uncertainty of our members about attending,” KBA President Chris Winkle said in an interview. Unlike most conventions, KBA’s event is free to the attendees, and many were reluctant to come, he said. That could be a bad sign for future events, Winkle said.

“Our members were ready to meet up,” said TAB President Oscar Rodriguez. He said he had been concerned that state policies against mask mandates might lead to a COVID-19 surge that could jeopardize his show in Austin but found members were still enthusiastic. “We were pleasantly surprised,” he said. In 2019, TAB’s show had 1,400 attendees, but a drop was to be expected, Rodriguez said. Some attendees wore masks, he said. Rodriguez said he received only one report of a positive COVID case after the convention, in a case not clearly connected to the gathering. “This industry is highly vaccinated,” Rodriguez said.

Many associations planned their conventions before the rise of the delta variant, when COVID-19 appeared to be more under control, associations told us. Illinois and Indiana broadcaster groups with events planned for October haven’t announced any changes. “If I was them, I would wait as well,” said Tinsley, noting that delta eventually waned in Europe. Associations with July events -- such as the Florida Association of Broadcasters -- appear to have largely held them, while associations with events in August appear split. “It’s not objective, it’s subjective,” said Arkansas Broadcast Association President Luke Story. ArkCon 2021, set for earlier this month, was postponed until 2022. “We didn’t anticipate the delta variant would take hold the way it did,” Rodriguez said.

The South Carolina Association of Broadcasters Star Awards were held Aug. 14, and SCAB President Margaret Wallace said the decision to proceed was a difficult one. “We ended up in the midst of all this, I really wasn’t sure how this was gonna go,” she said. “I feel like we skated in just under the deadline.” The Star Awards had over 100 attendees, with most going unmasked, Wallace said. She said members were part of the reason the event went ahead, but contracts and planning deadlines were also a factor. Winkle said one reason the Kentucky convention was canceled was that his members wanted to wait until a week before the event to decide, and the association's contracts didn’t allow that.

The perception of risk for holding and attending these sorts of gatherings depends on local transmission rates, said Ajay Sethi, associate professor of population health sciences at the University of Wisconsin. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists Austin as having a “high” rate of community transmission, the worst rating. Every county in Kentucky, South Carolina, and Arkansas has the same rating, as does every county but one in Alabama. “We’re first in football and in COVID,” said Tinsley. CDC also lists Sheboygan County, where the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association event was held, as high.

When indoors, people in places with a high transmission rate should be wearing a mask, even the vaccinated, Sethi said. “No county has a high enough vaccination rate to avoid a surge in delta.” In localities where mask requirements aren’t allowed, there usually isn’t a rule against wearing one, he said. “If you’re interacting with people indoors who aren’t a part of your household, you should wear a mask.”

While association leaders differed on member gatherings, most said they still plan to attend the NAB Show in Las Vegas in October. Tinsley said the ABA is sending 27 people to the event. “October is a long time from now, time for this to come under control.” She said the show’s recently announced vaccine mandate (see 2108180061) is encouraging. Rodriguez said the TAB would have required proof of vaccine for its convention if it could have without violating local rules. “I fully anticipate the NAB Show is going to be a success; people need to get out there,” he said. An NAB spokesperson said the trade group is working on the process to verify vaccination status for the event and plans to announce details soon.