New report details perils of radio consolidation
December 14, 2006 – 4:44 pmThe Future of Music Coalition has released a report damning the social and economic impact of consolidation in the radio industry. Key findings include:
Just fifteen formats make up three-quarters of all commercial programming. Moreover, radio formats with different names can overlap up to 80% in terms of the songs played on them.
Niche musical formats like Classical, Jazz, Americana, Bluegrass, New Rock, and Folk, where they exist, are provided almost exclusively by smaller station groups.
Across 155 markets, radio listenership has declined over the past fourteen years, a 22% drop since its peak in 1989. The consolidation allowed by the Telecom Act has failed to reverse this trend.
Concerns about the corrosive effect of radio biz megafirms like Clear Channel are nothing new, of course.
As somebody who learned the joy of a top college radio station in Ft. Collins, CO, I was tremendously disappointed by the private sector radio stations in the Philadelphia and New York markets. As a refugee, I’ve become part of public radio’s swelling audience. (Thank heavens for WBGO.) In other words, radio consolidation has already driven me to seek alternatives. All the same, I look forward to reading the report in detail.