Anger is building across the news/talk radio industry over ABC News Radio’s use of pre-recorded newscasts. Several industry figures aren’t holding back their frustration.
The practice, which sources confirm is limited almost entirely to weekend overnight windows, has become a flashpoint for stations and executives who expected a live product around the clock.
Barrett Media spoke with three sources across the industry, each granted anonymity to speak candidly, and their comments reveal genuine concern about trust, timing, and transparency.
The controversy centers on a relatively small window of programming. Industry sources confirmed to Barrett Media that ABC News Radio does utilize pre-recorded or re-aired newscasts in select windows, almost always limited to weekend overnights. On average, the network uses this practice for roughly two hours per week.
That figure is modest on paper. However, it hasn’t stopped strong reactions from those who rely on the network every day.
A Question Of Trust, Not Budget
A former network news radio executive spoke first, framing the issue as one of principle rather than finances.
“I don’t view this as a budget story. I view it as a journalism story,” they stated. “Every newsroom has to make difficult financial decisions, and I understand that reality. However, once you present something as a live network newscast, listeners deserve to know whether it’s actually live. That’s a basic principle of trust. Radio has always built credibility on immediacy, especially in news. If a listener hears a breaking story during a network newscast, they assume the people delivering it are responding in real time. That’s the expectation we’ve spent decades creating.
“Instead, using a pre-recorded report without making that distinction blurs an ethical line,” the former executive argued. “Cost-cutting isn’t the issue that concerns me most. Transparency is. Our audience trusts us to tell them what’s happening now, not to create the impression that something is live when it isn’t. Once that trust starts to erode, it’s incredibly difficult to earn back. That’s my biggest worry with all of this.”
That sentiment — that transparency matters more than the practice itself — carried into the next conversation, too.
Timing Matters As Much As Transparency
A current major market news/talk program director, who moved their station to ABC News Radio after CBS News Radio shut down, addressed the operational side of the issue directly.
“My concern isn’t that ABC News Radio uses pre-recorded newscasts,” the major market Program Director shared. “I don’t want to be understanding about it, but I know that (expletive) happens. So I can understand why it might be a necessity. What frustrates me is when they’re being used. Overnight hours and weekends are exactly when my team has the fewest people available. That’s when I depend on the network the most.
“If a major international event unfolds, or a significant national story develops, I need a network that’s prepared to react immediately,” they continued. “Instead, I’m getting content that may have been produced well before it hits my air. That’s a different product than what I believed I was getting. We made the switch after CBS News Radio shut down because we wanted a dependable national news partner around the clock. During weekday business hours, the service has been strong. But what they’re doing in overnights and weekends leaves a gap. That’s the part that’s difficult to reconcile.”
Their frustration points to a deeper irony many affiliates now feel. Stations turned to ABC News Radio because they wanted dependability after CBS News Radio’s exit, and that promise hasn’t fully held up in the hours affiliates need it most.
A third source, a radio station owner who uses ABC News Radio across their company, went further and pointed directly at disclosure.
“What disappoints me most isn’t even the decision itself, it’s that nobody told us,” the owner shared. “If ABC News Radio had been upfront about using pre-recorded or recycled newscasts, we could’ve evaluated whether that aligned with our expectations. Instead, we believed we had a live network news service. That’s a big difference.
“We believe that the best radio is live radio. That’s what we prioritize in our markets. That’s what we want out of our partners. Listeners turn us on because they expect to hear what’s happening right now. If a network replaces live coverage with recorded content, it changes the value proposition for us. We ask listeners to trust us every day. I expect the same honesty from the companies that supply the news we put on our stations. The lack of disclosure is what leaves the worst impression.”
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Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing daily news stories, features, and opinion columns. He joined Barrett Media in 2022 after a decade leading several radio brands in several formats, as well as a 5-year stint working in local television. In addition to his work with Barrett Media, he is a radio and TV play-by-play broadcaster. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.