the HOT List

"Nexstar pulls or threatens to pull their stations from the customers of TV providers to increase fees for stations far beyond their value," says DirecTV and U-Verse parent AT&T in response to the impasse with the broadcast TV company that has led to a "blackout" of its stations.

Univision Communications has confirmed that its Board of Directors is reviewing strategic options for the company. It comes in a response to a Wall Street Journal article, citing unnamed sources.

Hurricane Michael caused extreme damage to a group of FM stations then-owned by Powell Broadcasting Company. Rather than rebuild the station’s facilities, Powell abandoned them, and in May 2019 agreed to sell three of them to a Fort Lauderdale-based attorney. He's now spinning them for a big profit.

As first reported by RBR+TVBR via Twitter late Monday, Stephens Media Group is acquiring 37 radio stations from Mapleton Communications. It's a deal that sees the family-run company take a giant leap forward on a national scale. But, it may not like all of that attention.

The sale of 37 radio stations to a Tulsa-based broadcasting company marks the end of ownership for a media entity that grew quickly in the early 2000s, only to find itself burdened by debt by the end of the decade. Here's the story of Mapleton Communications.

Who's Soo Kim? He's the CEO of the entity that's just entered into a partnership with Emmis Communications that will see his Standard General take 76% ownership of Mediaco. It's first two assets are the nation's biggest radio stations superserving African Americans.

Rumors that a deal involving at least one of Emmis' radio stations in New York was in the works came to fruition on Monday. However, WLIB-AM isn't involved. Rather, Emmis is partnering with a private investment firm on a partnership with two big FMs.

Mark July 18 on your calendar for a somewhat monumental day in the history of a company once called Clear Channel Communications. That's when its Class A common stock will return to trading on Nasdaq, making iHeartMedia's exit from Chapter 11 status complete.

WABC-AM 770 in New York -- a faded legend steeped in radio lore -- is set to get a rebirth of sorts. It's just been sold to a local businessman who has a penchant for Talk radio. This led Cumulus Media's leader, Mary Berner, to use a hashtag to quell employee concerns.

On Tuesday, the steady and punishing slide for Comscore's shares seemingly reached its zenith, with a big private stock sale designed to raise millions in cash getting a big thumbs down from Wall Street. A 18% slide for SCOR was logged. On Wednesday, the bleeding continued.

ACA Connects has urged the FCC to grant a complaint filed by member MVPD C Spire against Gray Television on the grounds that Gray invalidated federal “market modification” rules and violated the FCC’s “good faith negotiation” rules. Gray now assails ACA for the claim. On Wednesday, Gray's VP of Government Relations & Distribution told RBR+TVBR in an exclusive interview that the comments of ACA Connects are "pure fiction."

A big stock sale designed to raise millions in cash -- and perhaps millions more -- has come along with a significant strategic partnership. How did Wall Street react? Comscore shares immediately sank in early trading on Tuesday. At the Closing Bell, a punishing 18% nosedive was logged.

After 43 years of working in, owning and running radio stations and radio broadcasting companies, the President/COO of Hubbard Radio will be retiring at the end of 2019. The news came via an internal memo distributed to employees by company Chair Ginny Morris.

The USA as a whole is graying. The median age of the nation rose by one full year between 2010 and 2018. But, the pace of this aging is different across race and ethnicity groups, newly released 2018 Population Estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau show. What does this mean for broadcast radio and television?