Radio & Television Business Report

Two heritage radio stations serving Blacks across North Texas for decades are being sold to Urban One. This results in the company led by Alfred Liggins III agreeing to sell its FM at 94.5 MHz to a regional broadcast ministry that plans to switch that station to Spanish-language Christian programming.

Brendan Carr made it clear that the FCC's early license renewal order handed to The Walt Disney Co. regarding its eight ABC Owned Stations properties is tied to potential DEI-linked discrimination and dates to a Commission look that began in 2025. Sen. Ted Cruz feels otherwise, broadening a gulf between Congress and the Commission.

An April 17 preliminary injunction from Sacramento-based Chief U.S. District Judge Troy Nunley prevents Nexstar Media Group from fully integrating the assets its acquired in its rule-busting merger with TEGNA. How that impacted a case against the FCC in the D.C. federal court of appeals became known Wednesday.

The newly highly-exposed successor to Barbara Kreisman has punted objections from two MVPD advocacy groups, paving the way for The E.W. Scripps Co. and Gray Media to complete an asset swap first announced in July 2026.

The Federal Communications Commission has commenced a review of the Commission's assessment and collection of regulatory fees for Fiscal Year 2026. Do you have any thoughts on the proposed rates? A comment period has been established for your input.

Together, Cumulus says the tools will give its account executives a framework for advertiser conversations built around category demand, consumer targeting, and competitive positioning rather than tuning data. The alliance comes as Cumulus continues its legal spat with Nielsen over coverage and pricing.

If there was any doubt as to the seriousness of the chatter regarding a potential merger between SiriusXM Holdings and iHeartMedia, the early Thursday Q1 2026 SiriusXM earnings call held for analysts and investors perhaps offered a subtle yet plainly obvious sign that talks are indeed ongoing and quite substantial.

It serves the blue-collar communities of Groton, New London and Norwich, Conn., with a Class A signal that as of today airs a Classic Hits format and is branded as a "Big" choice for local listeners. Soon, that will change, as Hall Communications has sold the station to the nation's biggest purveyor of CCM programming.

A Class A FM serving a portion of Florida's Panhandle region in mid-February debuted a Spanish-language format under a LMA agreement forged between the station's owner and JVC Media, led by John Caracciolo. Now, JVC is converting that lease deal into an outright purchase, adding to stations in the market. 

It simply awaits FCC approval of its restructuring plan, at which time it will unwind its debtor-in-possession status. Until that happens, Cumulus Media's executive leadership team, led by CEO Mary Berner and CFO Frank López-Balboa, remains focused on leveraging the company's "core strengths" to drive long-term value creation.

It is billed as "The Twin Pikes Superstation" as it serves both Pike County, Mo., in Northeast Missouri and Pike County, Ill., in the west central part of the state. Soon, it will be an FM under the ownership of Cornerstone Media Group.  

With a diverse group of businesses ranging from the Kaplan educational brand to a restaurant group in the Nation's Capital, Graham Holdings Company has released its Q1 2026 earnings report. How did its collection of broadcast TV stations with historical ties to the Washington Post and Newsweek fare?

DirecTV filed a petition to deny the $171 million transaction that would see 10 Allen Media Group TV stations wind up in the growing stable of the second-largest broadcast television licensee in the U.S.: Gray Media. Erin Boone's replacement as acting Media Bureau Chief tossed DirecTV's plea.

Global consumer spending on overall media content and technology grew 2.8% to $2.439 trillion in 2025, decelerating from a 4.4% increase in 2024, as there were no major international sporting events and fewer federal elections and related media buying.

Audio advertising intelligence and measurement firm Magellan AI has expanded its relationship with the nation's largest audio creation and distribution company, giving it access to iHeartMedia data that maps listeners exposed to broadcast radio to "measurable outcomes."

Known across the media industry for its revenue management and CRM products, Matrix forged a strategic partnership with Microsoft through the Cloud Accelerate Factory, an elite program that provides selected companies with a zero-cost investment of Microsoft’s architecture and development resources.