Radio News

The nation's largest audio media company on Monday afternoon released its third quarter financial results. And, like its peers in the radio industry, the focus is on month-by-month incremental revenue growth, rather than a year-over-year comparison in an age where COVID-19 fiscal impacts paint a bleak picture. So, just how did iHeartMedia fare in Q3 2020?

Entercom President/CEO David Field lauded the "great process" the audio media company had made with its ongoing advertising revenue rebound. However, investors weren't thrilled with the company's Q3, it appears. In early afternoon trading on Friday, ETM was off nearly 7% of Thursday's close.

Financial pros likely won't give up their year-over-year examination of Entercom's Q3 results. But, that word -- sequential -- matters for Entercom. And, as it turns out, the company led by President/CEO David Field beat Wall Street estimates for both Q3 revenue and its non-GAAP earnings per share.

With the recent transition of a heritage Columbus, Ohio, Alternative brand to streaming-exclusive operations, the future of the FM was one of speculation. It’s now known Hispanics of Mexican descent are the target. Urban One is the operator.

The FCC has issued a Declaratory Ruling in response to a request from the nation's No. 1 owner of radio stations to grow its foreign ownership percentage from 25% to 100%, should it choose to. What did the Commission rule on the ask from iHeartMedia?

Cumulus Media on Thursday presented its Q3 earnings results, following the arrival of third-quarter reports from peers Saga Communications and Beasley Media Group. The key takeaway?

Saga Communications' Q3 saw a swing to a net loss from net income, year-over-year, but its CEO said it hasn't "burned through" any investor dollars while turning his attention to Saga's local direct prowess.

A third round of layoffs has impacted multiple iHeartMedia stations across the U.S., with many program directors being part of a new reduction in force effort just one week ahead of iHeart's Q3 earnings report. 

On what has become a 15-minute to-the-point and question-minimal Q3 earnings call for Beasley Media Group, CFO Marie Tedesco quickly rattled off the audio and Esports company's radio advertising health by category. The overall portrait is expectedly gray, but not dark, owning to the recovery seen since the second quarter.

Historically, many Cumulus Media spoken-word AMs have ties to the former ABC Radio. Thus, it may not be surprising to some that Cumulus is adding more than 100 of its stations to the ABC Audio affiliate roster. What's noteworthy, however, is that the new affiliates are FM stations owned by Cumulus.

With little fanfare, Cumulus Media started Election Day 2020 by completing its offer to acquire roughly $47 million worth of its 2026 Notes. And, it was oversubscribed — a bit of good news for the audio media company led by CEO Mary Berner and CFO Frank Lopez-Balboa (pictured).

The Otto Bremer Trust has just handed one of the nation's leading noncommercial non-secular audio content creators and distributors a big-dollar grant "to build on work being done to increase cultural fluency within the organization and support new and expanded engagement with Black, Indigenous and people of color communities."

Vocal opposition to Nielsen Audio's decision as of today appears to outweigh those who support Nielsen's business decision to delete non-subscriber station analysis from all but its costly responder data. Now, the man who created the Independent Broadcasters Association (IBA) says he's ready for Eastlan to ramp it up as a bigger competitor to Nielsen Audio.

The FCC this week gave the green light to the voluntary transition to all-digital HD Radio transmissions for AM radio stations across the U.S. This may not lead many broadcasters to fully abandon their analog broadcasts, but it has prompted one radio station owner to move forward with a hybrid signal -- with an eventual cessation of analog AM broadcasts.

With four FMs, two FMs and two FM translators, Saga Communications has a formidable presence in Clarksville, Tenn., roughly one hour to the northwest of Nashville. Its operated via local brand Five Star Media Group, one of many used by publicly traded Saga across its markets. Now, Five Star is set to grow again.