Radio+Television Business Report

The Federal Communications Commission has largely shut down alongside the federal government, with more than four out of five employees furloughed and day-to-day systems frozen - including the licensing and comment portals broadcasters rely on for transactions and regulatory engagement.

Advertisers are flooding Connected TV with dollars, but a new industry report suggests they're flying blind. The missing ingredient isn't creative firepower or bigger budgets. It's data. Specifically, the standardized metadata that would allow them to know exactly what they're buying.

The nation's largest local television broadcaster has set a date to reveal its third quarter performance - a critical snapshot of a summer that saw the company's $6.2 billion agreement to acquire rival Tegna and embroilment in controversy over the since-retracted decision to preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! on its ABC affiliates.

The National Association of Broadcasters is opening the door for broadcast engineers and technology professionals to share their expertise on the biggest stage in the industry, with a new call for proposals that could shape the conversation at next year's marquee event in Las Vegas.

A veteran news executive with a track record of launching innovative broadcast technology and driving digital growth across multiple markets is heading to New York's Southern Tier to take the reins at a CBS affiliate with a storied history in the region.

The Jennifer-Witz-led satellite radio giant that's been navigating a return to focus on its in-car presence has set a date to reveal how it performed during the summer months and whether its strategy is paying off in subscriber numbers and revenue growth.

Saga Communications has expanded its Board of Directors from seven to eight members with the addition of an AI industry leader and former Senior Partner at Ernst & Young. The move continues Saga’s stated commitment to board refreshment, following the addition of Michael Scafidi at the company’s 2025 Annual Shareholder Meeting.

The NAB Crystal Radio Awards give national recognition to radio stations for their year-round commitment to serving communities. A panel of judges representing the broadcast industry and community service organizations will review applications and select 50 finalists and 10 winners.

The Bill Wilson-helmed “Local First” company with a strong digital revenue engine has decided when it plans to release its third quarter financial results. The answer? It will be bright and early to start the week of the Forecast conference in New York.

 Anna M. Gómez, the fiery lone Democrat on the Commission, on Thursday will be at Ole Miss speaking out against GOP-fueled efforts she believes squelch freedom of speech. Her visit comes on what's expected to be the second day of a federal government shutdown due to a lack of funding.

Google's plans to drop the Univision broadcast television network from its main bundle on YouTube TV have come to fruition. This led TelevisaUnivision and the MMTC to lambast the "big tech" giant for a move they say is discriminatory against Spanish-speaking audiences.

The iHeartMedia stations serving the home of Major League Baseball's Brewers have a new Vice President of Sales. She'll work closely with the stations' sales executives to deliver "innovative marketing solutions for advertisers" across the company's broadcast, digital, and live event platforms.

A writer at large for The New York Times focused on media and politics is to thank for getting the Chairman of the Federal Communications Communications to suggest that a tiered premium licensee opportunity could be one way a broadcast radio or TV station would be able to avoid adhering to strict public interest obligations.

Jim Rutenberg, a writer for The New York Times, asked Brendan Carr during a post-November Open Meeting press conference on Tuesday if the FCC should look at programs such as "The View" to see whether the ABC chat show and similar programs are bona fide news or something running afoul of Commission rules.

As FCC Chairman Brendan Carr sees it, Nexstar and Sinclair pre-empting "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" because the groups each did not believe network programming supplied to them was fit for their viewers amounts to a "significant win" if the goal is to empower local TV stations to comply with their public interest obligations.

Hearst Media Production Group will begin provide programming for a three-hour educational and informational (E/I) block on a nationally distributed Spanish-language digital multicast network that's part of NBCUniversal Local's Telemundo Station Group.

The voice of the nation's broadcast media Inside the Beltway on Wednesday issued a statement that, while designed as a voice of support for TelevisaUnivision in its carriage fee dispute with YouTube TV, also served as an opportunity to blast a key member of the "GAFAN" group.

She's based in Florida's state capital and has been an active trader of low power television properties in recent years. Now, Kristina Bruni is agreeing to acquire a LPTV property in two of the biggest markets in the Lone Star State.

A noncommercial FM radio station serving Astoria, Ore., will go dark on Wednesday, silencing its emissions. The reason why has everything to do with Washington, D.C., and Capitol Hill, and not the State of Washington, where the station's tower is located.

The Media Bureau's Audio Division, on its own motion, is proposing to amend the Table of FM Allotments by substituting the FM channel or class for five existing vacant FM allotments located in various communities in Alabama, California, and Texas. Why? Compliance with minimum distance separation requirements is the reason.