So you’re saying that they are in so much debt they can’t eat out and have to “eat our own cooking”? lol! I think their eyes are bigger than their stomachs and if they don’t watch out they are going to have to take a huge enema.
When Cumulus was first formed, Lew and John got into a bidding war with Randy Michaels and Jacor to see who could accumulate the bigger/better broadcast conglomorate.
Michaels sold Jacor and it became Clear Channel.
Cumulus, as well as Clear Channel, and others were spending money like druken sailors. They would pay 5, 10, 20 times book value for a station just to get a leg in the market.
A lot of times they would buy a fringe station near a large market and move the transmitter site in order to gain access to the larger market. This was done by everybody, not just Cumulus.
When the economy started to turn, radio companies and especially Cumulus were saddled with a ton of debt as a result of their expansion. The biggest expense in radio is personnel, so that’s where they trimmed.
That’s why the Bob and Tom’s and the Delilah’s of the industry are syndicated. It’s cheaper to pay one high salary and then place the program in multiple markets.
If you own the station, you save the day-part personalities salary and you maximise the commercial avails. If someone else owns the station, you can sell the syndication and hold a portion of the avails for yourself.
Cumulus Media, at one time, had a stock price of around $50 a share. I believe they are now trading at less than $10 bucks. Some of the purchases were combo deals of cash and stock.
Do they owe a ton of money....you bet. Are the Dickey Brothers using their properties for political purposes? No way. It’s about ROI and that’s all it’s about.