Friday, July 10, 2026

The End Of The Road For Mapleton

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.

Meet The Man Who Created Mediaco With Jeff Smulyan

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.

Emmis Teams With NY Investment Firm For Gotham Deal

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.

IPO Nixed For iHeart As Grand Return To Nasdaq Is Set

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.

Cumulus Cuts Loose WABC For $12.5 Million

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.
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Nightmare on Wall Street Continues For Comscore

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.

Gray Slams ACA Connects, C Spire For ‘Pure Fiction’ Complaint

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."

New and Novel Ways to Lose Your Station’s FCC License

Six years ago, RBR+TVBR published its most-read article to date: “How to Lose Your Station’s License.” Now, attorneys Erwin Krasnow and John Wells King say, "The time has come to update our article, thanks to the conduct of four AM stations in the St. Louis area."

Comscore Shares Collapse On Word Of Funding Move

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.

Veteran Radio C-Suiter Drew Horowitz To Retire

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.

This U.S. State Is The Only One Getting Younger

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?

KYW Union Employees Ink New Entercom Deal

RBR+TVBR has confirmed that on-air talent represented by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) have agreed to a new contract with Entercom Communications-owned all-News KYW-AM 1060 in Philadelphia.

The Bad News Continues On Wall Street For Comscore

It's been nearly three months since CEO Bryan Wiener and President Sarah Hofstetter departed Comscore, leading investors to protest. On Friday, the company's stock hit another new low, and is now worth one-third of what it was just months ago.

Will Deregulation Be Radio’s Deal-Making Catalyst?

What will trigger station trades in the Radio industry? What's the mood among TV station owners? Those questions were the focus of a Kagan Media Summit panel discussion held Thursday afternoon at the Hotel Edison on media deals and finance.

Kagan Panelist Prediction: A Plethora Of Growth Sources For TV

High-level executives on a Thursday morning Kagan Media Summit panel predict TV industry growth will come from a variety of diverse sources — including private equity, core and emerging advertising categories, and the promise that the next-gen broadcast TV standard holds.