Radio News

The NAB on Monday filed Reply Comments with the FCC in support of a rulemaking that would allow AM radio stations to voluntarily broadcast an all-digital signal. The concept has been pioneered by a Hubbard Broadcasting property serving Frederick, Md., and much of the western half of the National Capital Region.

These are challenging times for many broadcast media companies, due to the novel coronavirus crisis. As such, Sun Broadcast Group (SBG) says it has "restructured" all of its 24/7 formats and long-form shows "to make them more accessible to stations."

Sinclair owns and operates the ABC and Univision affiliates serving the Pacific Northwest's biggest market, in addition to three radio brands the company inherited from Fisher Communications. The radio and TV stations have a new GM, and is relocating from the Mitten State.

The criteria for emergency grant qualifications from the Broadcasters Foundation of America has now been revised to provide aid to broadcasters who meet the non-profit organization's requirements and have been infected by COVID-19.

Small business owners, in particular those owned by Hispanics, have been greatly impacted by COVID-19-fueled "stay in place" policies. Now, a Univision radio station in L.A. has responded with the launch of a program designed to offer current and aspiring small business owners the tools and information to start, grow and keep the lights on at a mom-and-pop operation.

Nevada Public Radio has served listeners via a Class C2 FM signal based in the city of St. George, Utah. That said, two in-state pubcasters can be tuned to, offering much of the same programming. As such, Nevada Public Radio is exiting the popular retirement and outdoor enthusiast hub. The buyer? The No. 2 licensee of radio stations in the U.S.

"I am deeply saddened that we need to make these painful moves at this time." Those are the words of Entercom head David J. Field, who in an internal memo to all employees Thursday morning revealed that the coronavirus pandemic -- which led the audio media company to exhaust all available dollars under the revolver portion of its credit agreement -- is claiming jobs.

The FCC's April Open Meeting agenda was discussed Wednesday by Chairman Ajit Pai in a blog post. While the docket is full of 5G-related items, one final item is of high interest to any radio broadcasting company with an FM signal in a market where low-power FMs have a presence, such as New Orleans.

Furloughs and permanent job cuts have been made at some of the biggest radio broadcasting companies, including HeartMedia and Townsquare Media, respectively. It is now known that Beasley, which has suffered a significant decline in its stock price that even pre-dates the coronavirus pandemic-fueled Wall Street downturn, has also said goodbye to more than five dozen employees.

An esteemed Wall Street analyst has reviewed just where the satellite radio company and home to Howard Stern stands today and perhaps in the near future. His call? Things will be down, but not so bad. The report comes as Stern announced Tuesday morning on his show that six weeks of free access — via streaming.

A group of radio stations serving Boise, Idaho, announced a new initiative designed to help local businesses get the word out that they are open. Ten hours later, the stations closed the program: All of the spots made available were claimed.

Due to its operations being impacted by COVID-19, Urban One is unable to finalize and file its annual report on Form 10-K on a timely basis to meet its annual report filing deadline. That was Monday (3/30). A SEC order made March 25 allows a 45-day extension, and Urban One is taking it. When will the company likely file the annual report?

With furloughs and layoffs clouding the efforts of media companies who continue to excel during one of the most difficult eras for the U.S. since World War II, thanks to the novel coronavirus pandemic, some good financial news is most certainly welcomed. Look no further than the Q4 and full-year 2019 results released late Tuesday by Spanish Broadcasting System.

With physical distancing the "new normal," it was only a matter of time before an annual shareholders' meeting for a broadcast media company took a virtual turn. The first company to publicly make the move: the Camarillo, Calif.-based entity known for Christian-themed and conservative talk audio programming.

On Thursday, iHeartMedia disclosed that it was taking a big chunk of money out of a credit line established with its emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy, while withdrawing its full-year 2020 guidance. The reason is directly tied to the extreme impact to media of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hours later, Salem Media Group moved forward with a coronavirus-fueled move of its own.