ATLANTA — With the release of the December 2024 Nielsen Audio ratings for the biggest market in the South, a Class C1 FM with a signal licensed to nearby Athens, Ga., climbed to No. 5 overall, earning a 6.5 share of all radio listeners thanks to its blend of Christmas-themed music.
Here, “104.7 The Fish” has been a ratings winner for Salem Media Group, which arrived in Atlanta in August 2000 thanks to an asset swap with Cox Media Group. Now, Salem is making a strategic move that strengthens its finances by parting ways with not only this CCM-focused FM, but all of its other stations airing Christian Contemporary Music.
As RBR+TVBR and co-owned Radio Ink first reported late Monday, Salem has reached an agreement with Educational Media Foundation (EMF) — the Goliath of CCM and parent of noncommercial Contemporary Christian network K-LOVE and Worship Music sibling Air1.
This sees EMF adding seven Salem stations to its portfolio of radio stations, pending FCC approval.
For $80 million — making the transaction one of broadcast media’s top deals of 2024 with hours to spare — EMF is getting the following properties:
- WFSH-FM 104.7 in Athens, Ga., a 24kw property covering Atlanta from the east. It was previously Adult R&B WALR “Love 104.7.”
- WFHM-FM 95.5 in Cleveland, Ohio, a Class B with a construction permit for a 25kw facility from a Highland Hills tower structure. Salem’s operation of this station dates to July 2001; it was previously Classical WCLV-FM.
- KBIQ-FM 102.7 in Manitou Springs, Colo., a 57kw Class C facility branded as “Q102.9.” Salem has owned the facility since fall 1996 and it serves Colorado Springs.
- KLTY-FM 94.9 in Arlington, Tex., a 99kw Class C serving Dallas-Fort Worth under its current presentation since a format swap in December 2000 with a smaller facility at 100.7 MHz. KLTY is one of the nation’s most heralded Christian Contemporary radio stations, receiving numerous honors over the last quarter-century.
- KFSH-FM 95.9 in La Mirada, Calif., a 6kw Class A facility long-known as an Orange County-focused FM. It was KEZY until 1999 and under Clear Channel ownership as KXMX from then, thanks to the company’s acquisition of the property (and its then-AM sibling) from Jacor Communications for $30 million. Salem obtained it in August 2000 as the FCC required Clear Channel to spin off certain assets in order to gain approval of its merger with AMFM Inc. KFSH covers a portion of the Los Angeles market; Orange County, Calif., years ago was measured independently by Arbitron.
- KKFS-FM 103.9 in Lincoln, Calif., serving the Sacramento market with a 6kw signal to the northeast, in Auburn. Salem has operated this station as “The Fish” since 2005, acquiring it from Bustos Communications.
- Class C2 KFIS-FM 104.1 in Scappoose, Ore., serving the Portland market from Stonehenge Tower to the southwest of downtown.
While the parties await closing of the transactions, an additional $10 million will be paid to Salem by EMF by way of an advertising and marketing agreement. This pushes total consideration for the 7 stations to $90 million.
The sale is directly linked to a concurrent debt payment that lowers its leverage ratio, and an infusion of funds from a new strategic investor.
Discussing the transaction, Salem Executive Chairman and co-founder Ed Atsinger said, “We have made a strategic decision to exit the Contemporary Christian Music format in order to pay off all of
Salem’s long-term debt.” Atsinger added that Salem “could not be more delighted that the buyer is EMF,” which has demonstrated
over many years “a unique ability and dedication to creating and distributing the highest quality Christian music content to its listeners in a positive and encouraging way. I am confident that their impact on
listeners and their communities will be incredibly effective.”
In its own statement released late Monday, interim EMF Chief Executive Officer Tom Stultz commented, “As Salem has leaned into its talk and information programming, we are honored to carry the torch and keep Christian music flowing over these frequencies,” said Tom Stultz, EMF Interim CEO. “These strong stations expand our coverage area and help us deliver on our mission to reach more people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We feel it is an incredible opportunity to continue serving listeners with Christian music in these important markets.”
FILET OF FISH
Once the deal is consummated, EMF says that “Q102.9,” KLTY and all stations branded as “The Fish” will either become K-LOVE or Air1 member stations, according to market needs.
In Los Angeles, what’s to come could be murky, as Class B KKLQ-FM 100.3 is the home of K-LOVE and Class A KYLA-FM 92.7 is where Air1 is housed. That said, the KYLA signal is notorious for its limited coverage of Orange County.
The answer as to what’s to come in Southern California, Atlanta and in the five other markets will arrive on February 1, when a Local Marketing Agreement cedes control to EMF.
