New England Media Changes Hitting Worcester Radio, Boston Globe and WEEI v Sports Hub
Monday, October 19, 2015
As GoLocal reported earlier this month, many of the leading media companies who have holdings in New England are getting beat up on Wall Street. No stock has lost more value than the mega-radio group Cumulus that has major holdings in the market.
Could Cumulus Be Headed for Bankruptcy?
Media expert Jerry Del Colliano sees bleak times ahead for Cumulus - the parent company of Worcester's WXLO, The Pike + WORC FM.
Del Colliano, the publisher of Inside Music Media says the company outcome looks like it will be eventually bankruptcy. "You don’t hire a podiatrist to do brain surgery and you don’t hire a magazine CEO known for bankruptcy to turn around a radio group," said Del Colliano. "Mary Berner is tough, experienced in cost-cutting and can see this through to the dissolution of the company.”
He also says that the future of talk radio is dim. “Talk is general is dying because it is aging out. Even without Cumulus, talk would be sunsetting. I do not see talk as a revenue producer for a company that badly needs increased revenue. On the other hand, music doesn’t work on AM stations so talk may be a placeholder,” said Del Colliano.
Moreover, he does not see the stations being sold. "The (value of radio stations) market is depressed, multiples are low. Bankruptcy will relieve them of their debt and allow the company to package itself for either a merger or sale.
In a series of layoffs and buy-outs the Boston Globe has trimmed 50 plus reporters and editors. A dozen cuts hit Boston.com a few weeks ago, then 17 Globe Staffers took buyouts, and an estimated twenty or more were laid off last week in the newsroom. A memo from the Globe’s Union — Boston Newspaper Guild — to its members said, “As you know, twenty of our valued friends and colleagues lost their jobs in layoffs at the Globe this week. It’s always hard to see our newsroom lose good people; it’s much more difficult when the decision to leave is not their own,” according to Boston Magazine.
WEEI Gets Spanked (Again) by the Sports Hub
In the big battle for Boston radio, The Sports Hub won the most recent ranking battle between The Sports Hub and WEEI. Data provided by Nielsen via radio online http://ratings.radio-online.com/cgi-bin/rol.exe/arb013 ; unveil that a June loss by The Sports Hub may have been an outlier.
Ratings for September show The Sports Hub as the #3 station in the market for age 12+ with a 6.0 rating versus WEEI’s 5.4. Both stations benefitted from nearly non-stop coverage.
Toucher and Rich beat Dennis and Callahan in the morning drive and The Sports Hub won the mid-day as Zolak and Bertrand crushed the ever changing mid-day show on WEEI by nearly 3 to 1.
Boston is the 10th largest radio market in the United States with approximately 4.2 million listeners. Providence is the #44 sized market with just under 1.4 million and Worcester is #117 market in the US with 441,000 listeners.
Third Projo Executive Editor in Two Years
Executive Editors at the Providence Journal historically serve at the helm of the news function for decades, but in the Projo has just hired its third Executive Editor in the past two years.
Last, week the Projo’s parent company, GateHouse Media, announced that David Butler, who currently serves as Executive Vice President and Editor-in-Chief of a group of 75 daily newspapers, including the San Jose Mercury News, is the new Providence Journal Executive Editor and Senior Vice President of News & Audience Development.
“It's no secret that newsrooms across the country are challenged to keep up with the fast-paced world of social media and evolving reader platforms. However, a state-wide newspaper and website, like the Journal can continue to play a critical role in providing Rhode Island residents useful information and thought-provoking journalism,” said Janet Hasson, President and Publisher of The Providence Journal. “I am confident Dave will provide outstanding leadership to the Journal newsroom as it navigates the changing environment and remains focused on our mission as the leading Rhode Island media source.”
Related Slideshow: The Living History of the Telegram and Gazette
From contamination to a sale, and injunction to layoffs, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette has been through quite an interesting run in a very short time. Since 2012, GoLocal has been chronicling the goings on of Worcester's only daily printed newspaper. Take a look at our coverage:
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