the HOT List

The "Television Viewer Protection Act" has taken one small step forward in getting a full vote in the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives. The affirmative vote came despite calls from retiring House E&C minority leader Greg Walden to allow STELAR to sunset as scheduled at year's end.

Yes, Viacom's fiscal Q4 results saw year-over-year declines in both Earnings Per Share and for its consolidated revenue. But, the company that will soon reunite with CBS Corporation by effectively gobbling it not long after after Thanksgiving Day beat the Street in both key performance categories. As such, shares of Viacom's publicly traded Class B shares were up 1.9% on Thursday.

Comscore shares soared on Wednesday -- a residual effect from the installation of a new CEO and, perhaps, a positive shout-out from the nation's No. 1 owner of broadcast TV stations during that company's Q3 earnings call. Indeed, Nexstar could be indirectly responsible for a 23% surge in SCOR's value.

While one may pity the President and acting CEO of CBS for "only" serving under Bob Bakish as Chairman/CEO of what will become the CBS business unit within ViacomCBS, they need only look at the huge financial windfall Ianniello will be receiving for his loyalty to NAI -- and for turning his back on disgraced former CBS CEO Les Moonves.

It may be a Federal holiday, but U.S. stock markets were open on Veterans Day. As such, Cumulus Media decided to release its Q3 results immediately after the Closing Bell on the postal and bank holiday. How did the company fare for the three months ending September 30? Adjusted EBITDA fell, while net income went up.

In August, Entercom shared that it had acquired podcast producer Pineapple Street and the outstanding shares of major podcast company Cadence 13. Today, podcasts and digital account for 12% of Entercom revenues. With a strong outlook for 2020, ETM shares caught fire on Friday.

In a victory for the owner of DirecTV, AT&T TV NOW and U-Verse, the Media Bureau on Friday granted a complaint from AT&T that pointed fingers at seven broadcast station groups for failing to negotiate in good faith for consent to carry the signals of their stations.

The FCC has filed a petition in the Third Circuit Federal Appeals Court seeking an en banc review of the panel's 2-1 decision vacating its cross-ownership media rule "modernization" order. The move signals that the Commission has no interest in reworking its rules and wants a Court sign-off.

After weeks of conducting a strategic review and the failure to attract a buyer, the parent company of the nation's dominant audience measurement and consumer data provider -- Nielsen Holdings plc -- will spin off its "Global Connect" business. David Kenny will lead "Global Media."

If the often-overused buzzword "transformational" could only apply to one company, perhaps iHeartMedia qualifies as one. On July 18, it began trading on Nasdaq as "IHRT," following a successful exit from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Today, it can celebrate "strong results" in Q3.

In a move that will certainly upset broadcast media leaders including Emily Barr and the NAB, Republican Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi has moved forward with the introduction of the "Satellite Television Access Reauthorization" (STAR) Act's introduction in the upper body of Congress.

By all accounts, Comscore's Q3 earnings results were a bit of a surprise: While its revenue fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.4%, the troubled company with a brand-new CEO lowered its quarterly per-share loss -- and beat the Street, big time. Investors on Wednesday responded positively.

Nexstar Media Group on Wednesday released its Q3 earnings results. A day before, it made a deal designed to provide richer revenue in perhaps Q3 2020 and beyond. The nation's No. 1 owner of broadcast TV stations late Tuesday confirmed that it is conducting a buy-and-sell deal with FOX.

Townsquare Media enjoyed healthy increases in its Q3 advertising net revenue. Total Townsquare Interactive revenue surged by 26% from Q3 2018. But, direct operating expenses were also up. Did that impact Townsquare’s net income in the quarter? Nope.

"Outdoor, radio and print-based media rarely see the focus that pure-play digital and television-related media do, but continue to offer significant opportunities for marketers," says Group M's Brian Wieser. While he affirms radio's effectiveness, those with buying decisions need to overcome a few issues.