Westwood One
Parent Cumulus Media | | |
Website | westwoodone |
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Westwood One, Inc. is an American radio network owned by Cumulus Media. The company syndicates talk, music, and sports programming.
The company takes its name from an earlier network also named
Content syndicated by Westwood One includes talk shows, music programs and 24-hour formats. It is particularly prominent in sports radio, distributing the CBS Sports Radio network and holding various play-by-play rights, including the National Football League's main radio package.
History
Dial Global was founded as X Radio Networks, a division of Excelsior Radio Networks. It merged with Dial Communications and Global Media in 2006, from which it derived the Dial Global name. Dial Global initially specialized in syndicated weekend music programs of various types. In 2007 it acquired the former
Dial Global began exhibiting signs of financial distress in late 2012, a possible side effect of its numerous acquisitions. On November 15 of that year, Dial Global announced a disappointing third quarter that it attributed in part to the financial impact of its exposure to the controversy surrounding a certain controversial talk personality, which was widely assumed to be a veiled reference to Rush Limbaugh in the wake of the Rush Limbaugh–Sandra Fluke controversy (although Limbaugh has no direct association with Dial Global). It simultaneously announced that it had filed for delisting from NASDAQ.[1] At the time of the announcement, Dial Global stock was trading at $2.00 a share; by mid-January 2013, DG's stock was trading at .30 a share. In a SEC 8-K filing dated January 15, 2013, DG announced that it had extended a loan waiver agreement with certain lenders.[2]
On August 29, 2013, Cumulus Broadcasting announced its intent to acquire Dial Global for $260 million, and merge it into its existing Cumulus Media Networks division. To fund the sale, Cumulus sold 53 radio stations to Townsquare Media (a radio broadcasting company owned by Oaktree), and traded 15 more stations to Townsquare in exchange for a cluster in Fresno, California formerly owned by Peak Broadcasting—which was also being acquired by Townsquare.[3][4]
On September 4, 2013, ahead of the completion of the purchase, Dial Global announced that it would rename itself Westwood One, citing stronger name recognition.
The company's numerous acquisitions prompted rival Talk Radio Network to file an antitrust lawsuit against what was then Dial Global in August 2012.[7] Cumulus settled the lawsuit with TRN on amicable terms in March 2014,[8] which was followed by TRN filing another lawsuit over the issue in April 2016.[9] Cumulus won the lawsuit in late 2017, and TRN ceased operations at the end of that year.
By 2015, Westwood One had been fully integrated into Cumulus Media Networks, with Westwood One as the surviving brand. The merger resulted in layoffs from its Westwood One's facilities in Colorado, including some of its in-house airstaff (who would be offered vacant positions at Cumulus stations). The company stated that it planned to leverage talent from Cumulus's local stations (particularly in major markets) for its 24-hour formats.[10]
Cumulus filed for
Talk programming
- America in The Morning with John Trout (Airs live on weekdays 5-6 a.m. ET)
- The Chris Plante Show (9 a.m.-Noon)
- The Dan Bongino Show (Noon-3 p.m.)
- The Ben Shapiro Show (3-4 p.m.)
- The Matt Walsh Show (4-5 p.m.)
- The Michael Knowles Show(5-6 p.m.)
- The Mark Levin Show (6-9 p.m.)
- America at Night with Rich Valdés (10 p.m.-1 a.m.)
- Gary McNamara(1-5 a.m.)
- Meet The Press(Sundays)
- Real Estate Today from the National Association of Realtors (Weekends)
Sports programming
- CBS Sports Radio
- Olympics on Westwood One
- NBC Sunday Night Football
- Triple Crown on NBC
- NFL on Westwood One Sports (Monday Night Football, Sunday Night Football, Thursday Night Football, Thanksgiving games and all playoff games)
- PGA Tour: The Masters and PGA Championship
- Tennis
- UFC Radio Network
- NCAA Radio Network
- Football: regular season games, SEC Championship Game, Army–Navy Game, FCS Championship
- Basketball: regular season games, conference championship week, NIT semifinals and finals, NCAA men's tournament (all games), NCAA women's tournament (Sweet 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and finals)
- Other sports: Women's Frozen Four(hockey)
- Soccer
- EFL Championship (in partnership with Talksport)
- EFL Cup (in partnership with Talksport)
- FA Cup (in partnership with Talksport)
- Premier League (in partnership with Talksport)
- La Liga
- CONCACAF Champions League
- CONCACAF Gold Cup
- Westwood One FC
- Premier Boxing Champions
Music and entertainment programming
- The Adam Bomb Show
- 2Hours
- American Country Countdown
- Blair Garner Show
- The Bob and Sheri Show
- The Bob & Tom Show
- Café Mocha
- The Big Time with Whitney Allen
- Backtrax USA with Kid Kelly
- (Only in the United States. International distribution is handled by Premiere Radio Networks.)
- (Only in the United States. International distribution is handled by
- The Hollywood 5
- Flashback
- The Lia Show
- Country Gold with Terri Clark
- Country Countdown USA
- Nash Nights with Shawn Parr
- The Nighttime Radio Program with Bernie Mack
- Power Source Country
- The Lu Valentino Show
- Zach Sang and The Gang[12]
- The Daly Download with Carson Daly
- The History of Rock & Roll(both the 1978 and 1981 versions are available)
Nights with Elaina
News
References
- ^ Dial Global Posts Disappointing Q3 Financials, Points Finger At Rush Limbaugh For Some Problems All Access Radio Group, November 16, 2012
- ^ Dial Global files 8K on loan waiver extension Radio Business Report, January 16, 2013
- ^ "Official: Cumulus Buys Dial Global, Spins Some Stations To Townsquare; Peak Stations Sold To Townsquare, Fresno Spun To Cumulus". All Access. August 30, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
- ^ "Cumulus Makes Dial Global And Townsquare Deals Official". RadioInsight. August 30, 2013. Retrieved August 30, 2013.
- ^ Moses, Lucia (September 4, 2013). "Dial Global Brings Back WestwoodOne Name". Adweek. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
- ^ "Dial Global becomes WestwoodOne ahead of Cumulus acquisition". Los Angeles Times. September 4, 2013. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
- ^ Tuesday, August 28, 2012 Archived August 30, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. RadioInfo.com. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
- ^ TRN companies and Cumulus Media announce amicable Westwood One settlement. Press release (March 7, 2014). Retrieved May 22, 2014.
- ^ "Cumulus Hit With Antitrust Suit Over Advertising Payouts - Law360". www.law360.com. Retrieved March 14, 2018.
- ^ "A 'Significant Number' Of People Laid Off At Westwood One". All Access. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
- ^ "Scripps Acquires Triton Digital". RadioInsight. October 17, 2018. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
- ^ "Zach Sang Launching Syndicated Nights Show". allaccess.com. Retrieved March 14, 2018.