Industry News

Round One of November PPMs Released

imThe first of four rounds of ratings data from Nielsen Audio’s November PPM survey has been released for 12 markets including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nassau-Suffolk (Long Island), Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, San Jose, and Middlesex-Somerset-Union (New Jersey). The November 2023 survey covered October 12 – November 8. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. In New York, Red Apple Media’s news/talk WABC dips one-tenth for a 3.0 share finish and remains ranked #11, while iHeartMedia’s news/talk WOR adds one-tenth to finish with a 1.3 share and rises to the #22 rank. In Los Angeles, iHeartMedia’s news/talk KFI rises six-tenths to a 5.1 share that lifts it to the #4 rank. In Chicago, Nexstar Media’s news/talk WGN falls two-tenths to a 3.4 share good for the #10 rank, while Cumulus Media’s news/talk WLS-AM is steady at a 1.5 share but rises one notch to the #23 rank. See Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets here.

Industry News

iHeartMedia Expects $100 Million in Proceeds from BMI Deal

iHeartMedia, Inc announces that in connection with the previously announced acquisition of Broadcast Music, Inc (BMI) to a shareholder group led by New Mountain Capital, LLC, it expects to receiveim approximately $100 million of proceeds related to its equity interest in BMI, subject to approval of the transaction by BMI shareholders and customary regulatory approvals. iHeartMedia says it plans to use the proceeds for general corporate purposes, which may include the repayment of debt. The transaction is expected to close by the end of Q1 2024.

Industry News

WTVN, Columbus Unveils New Morning Program

iHeartMedia’s Columbus news/talk WTVN-AM launches a new 5:00 am to 9:00 am show called “Columbus’ Morning News” hosted by station program director Mike Elliott. Contributors to the program include sports director Matt McCoy, news reporter Scott Jennings, traffic reporter Johnnyim Hill, and producer Michael Campana. The station says, “Thirty-year market veteran, Elliott, who started at WTVN in 1999 as the producer for Columbus radio legend Bob Conners, will continue to serve as program director for 610 WTVN. ‘Columbus’ Morning News’ will also feature timely guests and newsmakers to wake up information-hungry listeners with the local and national news they need to start each day in Ohio’s Capital City. Elliott adds, “I’ve done everything on WTVN except host my own show, and now I get that chance. I’m grateful to be working with the most talented team in the business every morning to bring the news to the best audience out there!”

Industry News

KFI, Los Angeles Presents 13th Annual PastaThon

Los Angeles news/talk outlet KFI announces the 13th annual “KFI PastaThon” event to benefit Caterina’s Club – a local charity that provides more than 25,000 nutritious meals every week to childrenim in need in Southern California. The charity also helps families get back into stable home environments and teaches teens the skills they need to work in the hospitality industry. On ‘Giving Tuesday’ (11/28), the iHeartMedia station will host a live, all-day broadcast at the Anaheim White House featuring station personalities Bill Handel, Amy King, Gary & Shannon, John & Ken, Tim Conway Jr and Mo Kelly during which they’ll ask listeners to collect money and pasta and sauce donations for Caterina’s Club. 100% of donations collected go directly to Caterina’s Club. Also, from November 15 through December 3, Smart & Final locations in California, Arizona and Nevada and Wendy’s restaurants in Southern California will offer customers an option to donate to the “KFI PastaThon.”

Industry News

TALKERS News Notes

UK radio and outdoor firm Global inks an exclusive platform distribution and ad sales deal with iHeartMedia in which Global and iHeartMedia will license, distribute and represent each other’s podcast portfolios.

The Philadelphia Eagles and Audacy announce a multi-year extension to their 30-year partnership through the 2028 NFL season. As part of the new agreement, “SportsRadio 94WIP” will continue to serve as the team’s official flagship radio partner. The broadcast team is led by Eagles Hall of Famers Merrill Reese and Mike Quick in the radio booth and longtime 94WIP personality Howard Eskin on the sideline.

iHeartMedia chairman and CEO Bob Pittman & president COO/CFO Rich Bressler will participate in a question and answer session during the Wells Fargo TMT Summit on November 29 at 3:45 pm ET. A live webcast of the session will be available to the general public at the start of the session through a link on the Investors homepage of iHeartMedia’s website.

PodcastOne acquires the exclusive sales and distribution rights, as well as certain ownership and IP/derivative rights, to true crime podcast, “Lost In Panama.” PodcastOne president and co-founder Kit Gray comments, “We continue our stated strategy of rolling up the fragmented podcast industry to deliver the best podcast library with the lowest cost per acquisition. We are excited and look forward to more announcements in the near future.”

Industry News

KFI, Los Angeles’ Ken Chiampou Announces Retirement

According to numerous Los Angeles-area media reports, Ken Chiampou (right) – one half of the iHeartMedia station’s “John & Ken Show” afternoon program – announced to listeners on Monday (11/13) that he willim retire from the station on December 6. After his departure, John Kobylt (left) will continue in the daypart as a solo host. He quipped, “I am saying goodbye. After very little thought, this is what I’m gonna do.” The duo rose to prominence during their time at WKXW-FM, Trenton “New Jersey 101.5” beginning in 1988. They moved to KFI in 1992 and briefly went into national syndication in the late 1990s. That move drove a wedge between them and then-KFI owner Cox Communications and they left to do mornings at crosstown Disney-owned KABC, Los Angeles. That didn’t last long, and they returned to KFI where they’ve flourished since 2001. Read the Los Angeles Daily News’ coverage here.

Industry News

Simon Conway Adds Orlando Morning Show to Hosting Duties

iHeartMedia news/talk radio personality Simon Conway is assuming the lead host role on the morning show on the company’s Orlando talk station WFLF-AM “Newsradio WFLA.” Conway – who continues his role hostingim the afternoon drive show based at WHO-AM, Des Moines and syndicated to WMT-AM Cedar Rapids and WOC-AM, Quad Cities – takes over the new morning show role from Bud Hedinger, who retired from the station after 20 years. Conway says, “It is such an honor to have been given the keys to this amazing morning drive show in the heart of Central Florida. We have a great crew and we are aiming to be hard-hitting, fun and entertaining all at the same time.”

Industry News

WRKO, Boston Raises Over $172k for Disabled Vets

iHeartMedia’s news/talk WRKO, Boston raised more than $172,000 during its eighth annual “DAV Radiothon” to benefit the Disabled American Veterans Department of Massachusetts last Friday (11/10). Over 13 hours, WRKO’s on-air personalities Jeff Kuhner, Chuck Zodda, Mike Armstrong, Graceim Curley and Howie Carr encouraged listeners to donate and raise funds for the DAV of Massachusetts’ homeless shelter and transportation programs. iHeartMedia Boston director of operations, news, talk and sports Bill Flaherty says, “Year after year, the WRKO listeners overwhelm us with their generosity. This year, they have helped to raise $172,852 for the DAV of Massachusetts. It’s an honor to dedicate a day of programming to those who have given so much of themselves for this country.” Since 2016, the “DAV Radiothon” has raised over $1,058,000 to benefit veterans in the community.

Industry News

iHeartMedia Names Angel Jarquin SVP of Programming

iHeartMedia announces that Fresno market programmer Angel “Visa” Jarquin is named SVP of programming for the Pacific Area that includes Fresno, Riverside, Monterey, Modesto, Stockton,im Bakersfield and Spokane. In his new role as SVP of programming, Jarquin will be responsible for the oversight of programming and promotions across all Pacific Area iHeartMedia stations. iHeartMedia Pacific Area president Steve Darnell says, “Angel has a successful track record programming some of the most dynamic station brands in the market. His creativity, leadership and background on-air make him perfectly positioned to lead our station programming to connect with listeners throughout the Pacific Area.”

Industry News

iHeartMedia’s 2023 Third Quarter Revenue Falls 3.6%

iHeartMedia released its operating results for the third quarter of 2023 and reports revenue of $953 million, a decrease of 3.6% over the same period in 2022. The company reports operating income of $69 million compared to the operating loss of $211 million it reported in Q3 of 2022. iHeartMedia reports a net loss of $9 million during Q3 2023, down significantly from the net loss of $310 million it reported in Q3 2022. The company breaks down revenue into three segments – the Multiplatform Group (broadcast radio, networks, and sponsorship & events), the Digital Audio Group (digital excluding podcast, andim podcast), and Audio & Media Services Group. In the Multiplatform Group, broadcast radio revenue was $455 million, down 6.1% year-over-year, and networks revenue was $116 million, a decline of 8.6%. In the Digital Audio Group, digital excluding podcast revenue was $165 million, an increase of 1.1%, while podcast revenue was $103 million, an increase of 12.5%, year-over-year. iHeartMedia chairman and CEO Bob Pittman says, “We’re pleased to report that our third quarter results were at the high end of our Adjusted EBITDA and Revenue guidance ranges. Our Digital Audio Group’s performance reflects the strong flow-through characteristics of the business and Podcasting continues to be a strong growth engine for the Company; additionally, while the Multiplatform Group does continue to be impacted by advertising industry uncertainty, we’ve seen sequential gradual quarter to quarter improvement throughout the year and we remain confident that the Multiplatform Group will be an additional growth engine for the company as the advertising marketplace recovers.”

Industry News

WFDF, Detroit Begins Simulcast on HD Signal

Detroit news/talk outlet WFDF-AM adds an FM HD signal to its broadcast via Audacy’s WOMC-HD2 at 104.3 FM. The Adell Media-owned station recently flipped from urban talk (with a very brief stint as sports talk in between) to conservative news/talk and now positions itself as “910 AM Superstation –im Detroit’s News/Talk Radio Station.” The station features local host Justin Barclay in morning drive with Premiere Networks syndicated shows including “The Glenn Beck Program,” “The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show,” “The Sean Hannity Show,” “The Jesse Kelly Show,” Key Networks’ “The Bill O’Reilly Show” and Red Apple Media’s “The Other Side of Midnight with Frank Morano.” The station is promoting itself with a heavy media schedule on iHeartMedia’s adult contemporary WNIC-FM, Detroit voiced by Sean Hannity. Adell Media CEO Kevin Adell says, “910 AM Superstation is living up to its name. The audience growth we’ve seen since launching our conservative news/talk lineup in September has been exponential, and we’re looking forward to reaching even more listeners on 104.3 HD2.”

Industry News

Round Three of October PPMs Released

imThe third of four rounds of ratings data from Nielsen Audio’s October 2023 PPM survey has been released for 12 markets including Portland, Charlotte, San Antonio, Sacramento, Pittsburgh, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Orlando, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Kansas City, and Columbus. The survey period covered September 14 through October 11. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. In Portland, Alpha Media’s news/talk KXL-FM rises two-tenths to finish with a 6.9 share (weekly, 6+ AHQ share) that keeps it locked in the #3 rank, while iHeartMedia’s news/talk KEX-AM, adds three-tenths for a 1.7 share good for the #21 rank. In San Antonio, iHeartMedia’s news/talk WOAI-AM tacks on two-tenths for a 2.8 share finish that lifts it to the #13 rank, while Alpha Media’s news/talk KTSA-AM rises four-tenths to a 2.6 share and climbs to the #15 rank. In Salt Lake City, Bonneville’s news/talk KSL-AM/FM rockets up 1.7 shares for a 6.9 share that puts it in the #2 rank, while iHeartMedia’s news/talk KNRS-AM/FM plunges 1.1 shares to a 2.9 share that puts it in the #15 rank. It should be noted that Nielsen released updated information for the Nassau-Suffolk (Long Island) and Riverside markets and that is now reflected in the first-round report. See Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets here.

Industry News

iHeartMedia Debuts “The Patriot” in Vero Beach

iHeartMedia Treasure Coast announces the debut of the new “Newsradio 107.9 FM/1370 AM The Patriot” on (former oldies) WZTA-AM/W300BQ, Vero Beach. The station is airing “The Brian Mudd Show” in morning drive, simulcast from its home base at WJNO-AM, West Palm Beach. Otherim programming includes Premiere Networks’ “The Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show” and “The Jesse Kelly Show,” as well as programming from Westwood One. iHeartMedia SVP of programming Jason Carr says, “We’re excited to bring ‘The Patriot’ to Vero Beach with local talk and news from ‘The Brian Mudd Show’ and some of the biggest names in national talk radio. ‘The Patriot’ will super-serve the growing Vero Beach community, with the most up-to-date news, weather and sports updates, including sources like FOX News and the Florida News Network.”

Industry News

Round One of October 2023 PPMs Released

imThe first of four rounds of ratings information from Nielsen Audio’s October 2023 PPM survey has been released for 12 markets including: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Philadelphia, Nassau-Suffolk (Long Island), and Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario. The October 2023 survey covers the period of September 14 – October 11. Today, TALKERS magazine managing editor Mike Kinosian presents his Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets. In New York, Red Apple Media Group’s news/talk WABC sheds three-tenths for a 3.1 share (weekly, 6+ AHQ share) finish and remains ranked #11, while iHeartMedia’s news/talk WOR is steady with a 1.2 share good for the #23 rank. In Los Angeles, iHeartMedia’s news/talk KFI slips three-tenths to a 4.5 share and the #5 rank, while Audacy’s crosstown all-news KNX-FM falls four-tenths to a 3.3 share good for the #10 rank. In Chicago, Audacy all-news WBBM-AM/WCFS-FM climbs seven-tenths to a 5.6 share but remains ranked #3, while Nexstar Media’s news/talk WGN inches up two-tenths to a 3.6 share and steady at the #8 rank, and Cumulus Media’s news/talk WLS-AM ticks up one-tenth to a 1.5 share but drops back to the #25 rank. It should be noted that, for reasons unexplained, there is no October data for the San Jose and Middlesex-Somerset-Union markets. There is also a noteworthy reduction in data in the Nassau-Suffolk and Riverside markets. See Mike Kinosian’s complete Ratings Takeaways from this group of markets here.

Industry News

Michael DelGiorno to Host AMs on WLAC, Nashville

Talk radio personality Michael DelGiorno posts news on his Facebook page that he’s taking over the morning show on iHeartMedia’s news/talk WLAC-AM/W252CM, Nashville on November 6. The 5:00 amim to 8:00 am show will be simulcast on the company’s KTOK-AM, Oklahoma City and KAKC-AM, Tulsa. iHeartMedia Nashville market president Dan Endom says, “We are thrilled to welcome Michael, a true broadcasting legend, to iHeartMedia Nashville. Michael’s extensive knowledge of the airwaves coupled with his innate ability to connect with audiences will elevate our programming to new heights.” DelGiorno served with Cumulus Media’s crosstown WWTN-FM, Nashville from 2007 through March of this year. He also previously hosted shows on KFAQ and KRMG in Tulsa.

Industry News

TALKERS News Notes

iHeartMedia Inc will hold an earnings call to discuss its financial results from the third quarter of 2023 and its business outlook on Thursday, November 9 at 8:30 am ET. The company will release its Q3 2023 financial report prior to the earnings call.

Beasley Broadcast Group Inc will report its 2023 third quarter financial results before the market opens on Wednesday, November 1. The company will host a conference call and webcast at 11:00 am ET that morning to review the results.

Red Apple Media’s 77WABC is saluting law enforcement today (10/25) with “Respect the Blue, Trust The Blue, Back the Blue, “an all-day tribute honoring the men and women in law enforcement who risk their lives every day to keep New York City and America safe.” The day’s events include a drive to raise money for the 77WABC Foundation’s Back the Blue Fallen Officer Family Fund.

iHeartMedia Memphis — including news/talk WREC-AM — announces the 8th annual “Cognac, Cars & Cigars” on Saturday, November 4. A portion of the ticket proceeds will benefit local charity Merge Memphis, a non-profit with a mission to serve homeless women.