BIG CUTS IN FUNDING FOR “IOWA PUBLIC RADIO” MAY LEAD TO SALE OF FCC LICENSES

Earlier this week, Iowa Public Radio (IPR) learned it is losing $875,000 in annual revenue from the state’s university system. The money is around 10% of IPR’s budget.

The cuts were a surprise but they were not unexpected.

The change was made after the presidents of Iowa State University, the University of Iowa and the University of Northern Iowa recommended to the state’s Board of Regents that they end direct funding for the three major stations that comprise IPR.

In April the Iowa legislature cut $187 million in funding for the three universities. The three schools passed the pain along to IPR. The changes were made, in part, because of revenue shortfalls due to closures made in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

IPR covers all of Iowa but they don’t have stations

in Sioux City or Council Bluffs/Omaha

At the Regents meeting, there was discussion of selling the three FCC licenses.,  or find a way to transfer ownership to IPR.

The Board wants the sale or transfer to happen to get the expense of operating the stations off their books.

This discussion has been going on for over 15 years. 

In 2004 two of the three stations had operating deficits. At that time, the three stations had different formats and there were not common goals.

Though the idea of “Iowa Public Radio” had been tossed around for years, it was advice from consultant Ron Bornstein that made IPR a reality.

We know this is all true because our parent company, ken Mills Agency, LLC, also was pursuing the Iowa consulting gig. 

Bornstein was chosen because his firm had close relations with CPB and they had proven success in consolidating stations

We have a copy of Bornstein’s final report in front of us right now. It is comprehensive, detailed and actionable plan. In the next year the Regents and school presidents  made the changes that Bornstein recommended. That is when Iowa Pyblic Radio was born.

Here are clipsfrom the report. Bornstein described the positives and negatives of stations in 2004:        

At the conclusion of the report, Bornstein recommended that the universities end their funding of the stations one step at a time.