iHeartMedia’s NEW OPERATIONAL STRUCTURE IS GOOD NEWS FOR PUBLIC RADIO • IMAGINING WXXI-FM AS A NEWS/TALK STATION

Screen shot from iHeartMedia website

Never has the nature of commercial radio and public radio been so different. 

While public radio thrives on its heavy investment in news and its engagement with listeners, commercial radio’s top company – iHeartMedia – announced a new internal game plan that embraces shareholders at the expense of local service.

According to Nielsen, iHeart is the number one audio company in America as measured by their audience reach. In 2017 iHeart reported total revenue of $6.2 billion dollars and operates 858 radio stations in more than 150 markets in the U.S.

But they still have trouble turning a profit.

After emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2019, iHeart has invested big bucks in digital platforms such as podcasts to create new revenue streams. Most of their income still comes from radio stations.

On Tuesday (1/14/20), iHeart announced a new organizational structure that puts markets into four divisions, creates new hubs to further consolidate programming and establishes new sales hubs that sell commercials for radio and digital services.

According to a press release, iHeart says they are “modernizing” the company by making use of new technology, artificial intelligence and leverage its gigantic size to keep its leadership position in the audio marketplace.

One of the new divisions, called the Community Division, will lump together stations in smaller markets that are geographically close and are “culturally similar.”

The new plan also creates Centers of Excellence using artificial intelligence and other technology into hubs that iHeart (quoting from the press release) will "provide a better experience for listeners and business partners and a more efficient process for all of its employees."

THERE WILL BE “EMPLOYEE DISLOCATION”

A stated goal of the new plan is to cut expenses by “dislocating” certain employees. Most people know this means layoffs, firings, ending redundancies and the need to spend more time with the family.

iHeart CEO Bob Pittman said in the press release:

Bob Pittman

"There will be some employee dislocation -- some by geography and some by function -- which is the unfortunate price we pay to modernize the company.”

“We have had to make some tough decisions, and in the process some employees have been affected.  Please know we were thoughtful in this process and have provided enhanced severance benefits as well as outplacement assistance for any impacted employees.”

“We want to thank them for the valuable contributions they have made."

Missing from the iHeart plan is any improvement to local service, increasing value for listeners, investing in new employees or presenting programming that benefits society. Meanwhile, public radio is increasing its reach on several platforms.

iHeart’s new plan reminds us of a restaurant where the owners remodel the current space, buy a groovy new sign and design a new, beautiful menu. Then the owners fire the head chef and lays off half of the wait staff.

NIELSEN AUDIO “FALL QUARTER” RATINGS FOR SYRACUSE, ROCHESTER & BURLINGTON

Please note: The Nielsen data we use comes from two sources and this may affect comparisons between Fall 2019 and Fall 2017 and Fall 2018.

The 2017 and 2018 data came from the Radio Research Consortium (RRC) and is mediated by them. RRC used to aggregate listening to multiple frequencies an assign it to a single station. Spark News does the same thing but there may be slight differences in the methodologies.

RRC no longer makes Nielsen ratings available to the public. Only paying customers can know the Nielsen numbers from RRC. Spark News now republishes data directly from Nielsen.

Things haven’t changed lately in the ratings for Rochester, New York.

For many, many years WXXI-FM has aired a full-time Classical music format. 

NPR News programming is on WXXI-AM. NPR news magazine are heard on WRUR and WEOS. All of the stations listed on the chart are operated by WXXI.

This means that NPR News in Rochester is on inferior frequencies and does not reach a listener base that other NPR News/Talk stations enjoy.

The map on the right shows WXXI-FM’s projected coverage area. 

91.5 FM covers a remarkable area from Buffalo to almost Albany. 

If NPR News/Talk programming aired 24/7 on WXXI-FM would have double-digit AQH share and perhaps 200,000 estimated weekly listeners.

Of course, the folks who run WXXI know this but for some unexplained reason, they don’t act on it. 

Just down on I-90 from Rochester is Syracuse where two stations typically out-perform WXXI-AM. 

WRVO is the established noncommercial market leader but Syracuse University’s WAER is now a player. WAER’s schedule during peek listening hours is now all news and information. Jazz music airs later at night.

Vermont Public Radio News, which is heard on several signals in the Burlington-Plattsburg metro, is an indication of the listening impact WXXI-FM might have if they switched to all news.