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Massive reduction at Hubbard

Kelly A said:
When caught off guard by unforeseen events like this, some companies will look to financing from lenders to keep their heads above water before FTE cuts, where others will make difficult cuts before taking on debt as a last resort.
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And most, numerically, radio stations can't get loans. Broadcast lenders will do deals with groups that have distributed exposure over multiple markets with multiple stations in each. It is really hard for smaller groups and local stations to get a lender to cover any more than the real estate of transmitter sites and other real property. Banks don't like the lack of tangible assets a radio station has.

So in such situations, the only possibility is cutting expenses to the maximum.
 
The other negative on getting a loan on a radio station is technically the license is owned by the Government and is 'lent' to the broadcaster so long as they fulfill the obligations required to retain the license. It is my understanding a bank can't repo a license because that would be an illegal transfer of control.
 
"CAT THOMAS duties in CHICAGO at WSHE are being absorbed by WTMX VP/Brand & Content JIMMY STEAL"
:rolleyes:

Oh, please. When you're no longer on the air, time to drop the alias.
 
b-turner said:
The other negative on getting a loan on a radio station is technically the license is owned by the Government and is 'lent' to the broadcaster so long as they fulfill the obligations required to retain the license. It is my understanding a bank can't repo a license because that would be an illegal transfer of control.
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Most large groups have lines of credit with various lenders. The more prudent groups though, won't use their lines of credit for business continuation unless it's to cover costs which ultimately will be repaid by insurance or the government.
 
On the subject of Covid-19 and the impact on morning radio shows. I am sure that there will be an impact, but a successful morning show is probably slightly more immune to the layoffs simply because listeners often are tuning in just to listen to the show. Not to take away from any of these extremely talented people who were let go, but it probably is harder to keep your position when the company can argue that listeners will tune in regardless for a music-centred midday, evening, or afternoon drive show.
 
fordranger797 said:
On the subject of Covid-19 and the impact on morning radio shows. I am sure that there will be an impact, but a successful morning show is probably slightly more immune to the layoffs simply because listeners often are tuning in just to listen to the show. Not to take away from any of these extremely talented people who were let go, but it probably is harder to keep your position when the company can argue that listeners will tune in regardless for a music-centred midday, evening, or afternoon drive show.
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But if the morning show ratings don't result in dollars through the door, then the cost benefit of keeping an expensive morning show is negated.
 
Kelly A said:
But if the morning show ratings don't result in dollars through the door, then the cost benefit of keeping an expensive morning show is negated.
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Very true. As it stands right now, Hubbard Seattle has some "powerhouse" morning talent. I would bet that they will cut costs everywhere else before they will start making cuts to their biggest shows (until the cost benefit flips).
 
seatownmedia said:
Here is the deal. Radio has been dying well before this crisis. I don’t say this lightly because radio provided a nice career for me. But this may be the fatal blow.
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I'm not sure how some changes at one radio company are going to kill an entire industry.
 
seatownmedia said:
Yes, referring to the general industry, not Hubbard specifically.
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But the research that's come out says the crisis hasn't killed radio listening. It's killed advertising. So if advertising is the lifeblood of radio, yes that's bad.

At the same time, KUOW isn't affected by that specific problem, although charitable giving is also affected.


http://www.insideradio.com/free/des...cle_1fcb9a10-7efa-11ea-9267-1b019fa2570d.html

https://news.****************/cgi-bin/rol.exe/headline_id=b16206
 
TheBigA said:
But the research that's come out says the crisis hasn't killed radio listening. It's killed advertising. So if advertising is the lifeblood of radio, yes that's bad.

At the same time, KUOW isn't affected by that specific problem, although charitable giving is also affected.

https://news.****************/cgi-bin/rol.exe/headline_id=b16206
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And if charitable giving is down, then public radio inevitably will be affected, no?

With states gradually allowing businesses to reopen, a few categories at a time, mostly on a far smaller scale than their business models are built around, will those businesses start to advertise again, or does radio continue to feel the pinch until American business is completely unshackled, which, I assume, will happen only after a cure or vaccine is found and widely distributed; in other words, in a year or more? What sort of radio industry will still be around next spring?
 
CTListener said:
And if charitable giving is down, then public radio inevitably will be affected, no?
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Sure, for example NPR staffers and unions have accepted pay cuts:

https://current.org/2020/05/npr-union-agree-to-cuts-to-employee-pay-benefits/

But they haven't cut programs, services, or bureaus.

CTListener said:
What sort of radio industry will still be around next spring?
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I don't think anyone knows. The radio company plans I've seen cover the next three months. Then again, just about every other business is planning to be returning in some way by the end of the summer, including for example the NFL.
 
TheBigA said:
Sure, for example NPR staffers and unions have accepted pay cuts:

https://current.org/2020/05/npr-union-agree-to-cuts-to-employee-pay-benefits/

But they haven't cut programs, services, or bureaus.



I don't think anyone knows. The radio company plans I've seen cover the next three months. Then again, just about every other business is planning to be returning in some way by the end of the summer, including for example the NFL.
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Barring second and third waves that some in the medical community are saying will be the result of reopening anything before the vaccine/cure is developed, tested, approved, produced and distributed. Those would put the country back in lockdown much more quickly than it came out.

Of course, after a year of that, those who say the cure has become worse than the disease may hold the dominant view in the White House, Congress and state legislatures, and we may just see everything reopened regardless -- let the bodies of the unlucky 2 percent stack and decompose where they may.
 
What happens with business generally (contraction, cost-cutting, etc.) will obviously affect not just commercial radio, but non-commercial radio as well. I can see some NPR stations cutting local programs to the minimum, and cutting costs otherwise. Corporations that are hurting aren't going to be underwriting anymore than they'll be advertising on commercial radio.

If it has hit KING-FM, it will undoubtedly hit elsewhere in non-comm land. Some non-comms have a lot of infrastructure (translators, etc.) to support. The JPR network in Southern Oregon / Northern Cal comes to mind. Big network, a lot of stations, and low population territory.

Any continuance in business contraction is probably going to hit religious radio too. People with no spare money aren't going to be donating.
 
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