The University of Northwestern-St. Paul has bucked recent trends with the announcement of a planned acquisition of Omaha station KGBI(FM).
Pending approval by the Federal Communications Commission, the university will purchase the station from Salem Media Group, which has programmed the station with a Christian contemporary music format.
And it seems likely to retain that format, based on a statement from the University of Northwestern Senior Vice President for Media Jason Sharp.
“We look forward to expanding our network in Omaha and continuing the work of pointing people to Jesus through music and programming that makes an eternal impact,” Sharp said in the announcement.
[Read about other station sales trends here.]
The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of this year, and the purchase terms were not disclosed in the announcement. Patrick Communications’ Greg Guy served as the broker representing the University of Northwestern-St. Paul.
In addition to its latest planned acquisition, the University of Northwestern-St. Paul operates 20 non-commercial Christian contemporary stations, including stations in Minneapolis and Duluth, Minn.; Sioux Falls, S.D.; Fargo and Bismarck, N.D.; Des Moines and Waterloo, Iowa; Madison; Kansas City, Mo.; and Hartford, Conn.
