Radio and Television Transactions

Nearly six months ago, local media reported that a 25kw Class C3 FM serving a rural area to the north of the Twin Cities was being transferred to a new owner. Now, paperwork at the FCC has finally been filed that confirms the plan. Who's the buyer? A longtime Minnesota radio station owner.

Was it a result of a failed geography lesson? Until now, Florida Public Radio has been the licensee of a 500-watt Class A poised to get a huge upgrade to 100kw Class C1 status. It's not in the Sunshine State. Rather, it's in an area of rural Iowa to the southwest of Des Moines. And, it's now being sold.

It boasts a Construction Permit for a 4kw signal from a tower in the heart of the Ozarks' resort region of Missouri. Now, it is being spun from one not-for-profit operation to another.

Some 19 years ago, a Class C AM serving a coastal North Carolina community began simulcasting an FM Talk station with a signal best heard in Morehead City, New Bern and points east. This gave the Talker better coverage of Jacksonville, N.C. Now, "The Talk Station" is saying goodbye to its AM component.

In Miami, a pair of television stations have carved a niche of late as a local news source -- en español -- with a Conservative lean. That programming tilt will soon be expanding to an AM radio station that's been offering a more balanced Spanish-language spoken word format for several years, thanks to a transaction that sees the executive of a "Put" agreement.

For nearly 12 years, Chattanooga, Tenn., sports fans seeking updates and programming from ESPN Radio have been able to tune to a Class A FM licensed to the town of Lakesite, Tenn. Soon, a change in listening habits will be needed, as this facility is set to transition to non-secular religious programming under a new owner.

Today is the last day "as we know it" for a 1,600-watt Class A FM serving Lynchburg, Va. A format change is on the way, as a Lease Management Agreement is taking immediate effect following the signing of an asset sale agreement handing this station to a new owner.

The sale was approved on March 26. Now, the transaction brokered by Kalil & Co. has closed. Get ready for the highly anticipated arrival of Air1 on a full-market signals serving the Twin Cities of Minnesota.

It boasts 6,000 watts of power, and provides "Today's Best Music" to communities due west of Midland, Mich. Now, it is trading hands, and Norm McKee and Michael Chires are the two individuals tied to the buyer.

The permitee and owner of five low-power television station construction permits has opted to sell them instead of moving forward with getting the properties up and running itself. The result? David Lampel is getting a check from an individual largely known for his role as the head of Edge Spectrum.

To the southwest of Corpus Christi, Tex., is Falfurrias, home to a Class B AM that has been owned and operated by a New Jersey-based Hispanic broadcast ministry since fall 2019. Now, Erick Salgado is saying goodbye to this station.

It has operated an AM and two FMs in the Augusta-Waterville, Maine, market since 2007. Now, it is converting this long-standing LMA into outright ownership.

As Q1 2021 came to a close, so did Star Communications Inc.'s intent to own an AM/FM combo and an FM translator serving a small West Virginia city situated between Charleston and Parkersburg. The facilities have been sold, and await FCC approval before being handed to a new owner.

It boasts the moniker "Key Weird Radio." And, it presently has a Construction Permit for a Class A signal putting 680 watts of power over the southernmost city in the continental U.S. Now, "the most diverse radio station" in Key West is heading to a new owner.

The Terre Haute, Ind., market, which largely includes nearby Paris, Ill., is the home of a non-commercial group of religious stations presently operated by Word Power Inc. On March 16, this group signed off on an agreement that would assign its two AMs, two FMs, two FM translators and one FM translator construction permit to a new licensee.