There is no doubt that commercial radio in the United States has been hurting financially. Furthermore, NPR is about to, conceivably, lose some funding from the federal government.
The three biggest groups have been through bankruptcy proceedings, and one is likely to do so again. Connoisseur just bought Alpha Media for what was essentially their debt; in other words, the business had no equity.
You can see that revenue peaked in 2019 at nearly $17.8 billion, and 2024 revenue was projected at $15 billion and is still declining, even with digital included.
The decline from 2019 to 2024 was just over 15%. Add in inflation which means those 2019 dollars were worth 82 cents in 2024 and the decline in real terms was greater than 30%. That’s why many people who were employed in our business in 2019 are doing something else today.
My reason for citing the commercial revenue statistics is the furor over federal funding cuts to public radio and NPR. As I was writing this column, Congress voted to rescind federal funding for public broadcasting and the final decision now rests with the Senate, as President Trump will sign the rescission bill if it gets to his desk.
A recent article by Paul Farhi for the Local News Initiative brought the question home for me. Farhi’s article highlighted the less wealthy operations in the public radio and NPR sphere with Blue Ridge Public Radio (BPR) based in Asheville, North Carolina, and public radio stations that serve small communities in Alaska, as well as native tribes in the Southwest.
The story said that “On average, federal sources account for about 14% of a typical public radio station’s annual budget”, yet the same article cited a former NPR manager who has researched public media finances who suggested that “one out of ten public radio stations could go dark if federal money goes dries up.”
Commercial radio revenue was down 15% over five years (and that includes surviving COVID, which was a 23% revenue decline in just one year) and over 30% in real terms. Sure, a few operations have gone silent, and a number of AM licenses, along with a handful of FM licenses, have been handed in to the FCC. But by and large, commercial radio is still going, just with fewer people. Yet for public radio, a 14% revenue decline is considered existential.
Farhi’s story started with Hurricane Helene that devastated large areas of Western North Carolina last fall and stated, “For days…BPR was the only source of lifesaving news, weather updates, road closures, potable water locations”.
But didn’t we read about how 570 WWNC in Asheville was on the air the entire time doing the same thing? Give BPR credit for keeping their two signals on air during the storms and the aftermath and serving their communities in a time of dire need, but don’t forget the commercial operations that were doing the same thing.
Farhi also mentions Alaska, which has a public radio network that serves a number of small communities and specifically mentions KTSK in Wrangell. KSUT, which was started by the Southern Ute Tribe in Colorado, is also cited and was one of the three public broadcasters that initially sued the Trump administration over the federal subsidy.
I’ve not worked in public radio, but beyond sending money back to NPR and other operations for programming costs as well as overhead (personnel, operating costs, etc.), doing local news is a major expense. Whether it’s a one-person operation or a multi-person newsroom, that can cost serious money. And as Farhi’s article mentions, some of the smaller public broadcasters are the only local news operations in their area, thanks to the decline or demise of local newspapers, and some stations are in areas that are far from cities with local TV newsrooms.
I won’t take sides on the federal support for public broadcasting question, but perhaps public radio needs to consider some new approaches. Is it time to look at other methods of covering the fiscal hole that may be about to happen?
It appears that about 10% of public radio listeners actually donate. Not everyone can afford to send money, but my guess is that many more can. It’s well-known that the public radio audience skews old and the Boomer cohort has the cash. If you use public radio and support it, send some money their way. Give up eating out once a month or make coffee at home a few days a month rather than going to Starbucks, Dunkin’, or your local shop and send the savings to your local station.
Public radio needs to innovate as well. The pledge drives, better known as “begathons” aren’t new. Are there new ideas out there to generate interest and dollars? Is anything working that makes money for public broadcasters?
Private foundations have often supported public media. Rather than supporting the national efforts, why not direct some cash to the stations that Farhi cites? Rather than lawsuits, can’t a foundation or two support KSUT or Alaska Public Radio that can’t easily find more local donors and play an important local role?
Finally, what about revenue sharing? Admittedly, that’s what NPR and CPB are supposed to be about. And even very successful big market public stations have been laying off people lately. Still, is public radio a major source of local news in places like New York, Washington, or San Francisco, markets that have local newspapers, all-news radio, and multiple television local news operations? Do their listeners come to them for local news or for national programming? Revenue sharing works for the National Football League so why not public radio?
Sorry to use tired cliches, but “it’s always darkest before the dawn” applies here. The cutoff of federal funds should not be existential for public radio, but should be a reckoning to consider how the service fits in the 2025 media landscape. My column of April 8 cited a recent Pew study that showed 42% of the US hadn’t heard of NPR, despite a half century of broadcasting.
If commercial radio can survive the loss of 30% of revenue in real terms, an average 14% cut for public radio should not be existential. But it will require new ideas, new strategies, and new tactics to get the system back on a solid foundation. Good luck!
Let’s meet again next week.
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