Alpha Media is firing back at a highly charged petition filed with the FCC by its former CEO Larry Wilson that could delay the company’s emergence from chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In a statement, Alpha says Wilson’s petition with the FCC is “based on inaccurate information and baseless claims.” Read more

Two of Alpha Media’s minority owners have filed separate petitions with the FCC that could throw roadblocks in the company’s ongoing Chapter 11 financial reorganization. Former Alpha Media CEO Larry Wilson is asking the Commission to deny the license renewal of four Alpha radio stations. And Southern Stone Communications CEO Paul Stone has petitioned the Commission to deny Alpha’s request for a temporary waiver to its foreign ownership rules. Read more

Seven Bridges Radio sports talk WJXL “1010XL Jax Sports Radio,” flagship station of the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars, has been named the new radio home for University of Florida Gators football, men's basketball and conference baseball's SEC games, along with all Gators talk shows. The four-year deal was announced this week by the University's Athletic Association, Florida Gators Sports Properties and WJXL. Read more

Local radio and TV are Americans’ frontline defense against misinformation about the COVID-19 vaccines. That is the message NAB President Gordon Smith told Congress Thursday. While social media and cable news may spread conspiracy theories, he said supporting local broadcasters’ fact-based approach is the best way to keep getting people to roll up their sleeves. Some Democrats think local media should even be classified as “critical infrastructure.” Read more

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting’s board of directors unanimously approved a distribution plan for $175 million of emergency stabilization funds for public media allotted by the American Rescue Plan Act, which was signed into law on March 11. The plan divides the money among television and radio stations, ensuring the preservation of small or rural stations. Read more

March’s monthly update of call letter changes from the Federal Communications Commission includes a couple of rarities. Not only is the fast-growing Educational Media Foundation absent from the list, but iHeartMedia was the month’s most active call letter changer. The three were tied to format changes in Miami and Tucson. Still, with about 850 stations the three changes by iHeart represent a small number for radio’s biggest group. Read more

Radiotopia has signed The Stoop podcast from cousin PRX. Hosted by Leila Day and Hana Baba, The Stoop digs into stories from across the parent diaspora. Launched in 2017, The Stoop features conversations about what it means to be Black. The podcast network Radiotopia is a partnership between PRX and Roman Mars and has become home for shows outside the public radio realm. Read more

RAB to present live-video presentation, “Radio Works for Restaurants”... Jacobs Media VP/General Manager Paul Jacobs to receive an award from Michigan State University… Xperi will host NAB Show Premiere session on HD Radio data services… AWMF Scholarship Program now accepting applications for the 2021 fall semester...CBS Audio to host a five-part radio series on climate change. Read more

Audacy CEO David Field is confident the radio industry “is going to see significantly greater shares in audio spending going forward.” In a video interview with MediaVillage, he adds, “We now have data, analytics and attribution to demonstrate the efficacy of (the medium). We also now have a product line which is more diverse and robust, with podcasting and streaming.” Read more

The war between the TV industry and Nielsen escalated this week when ABC, CBS, NBC and other networks issued a demand to the measurement provider to submit to an Ernst and Young audit of its ratings methodology during the pandemic. The concern is that Nielsen undercounted viewers by letting its sample quality suffer during the lockdown months of 2020. Nielsen says it has “full confidence” in the way it measures TV viewing. Read more