Some cash-strapped broadcast owners are shutting down radio stations at an eye-catching rate. A majority of the signals are on the AM dial, but some FMs have suffered the same fate.
Ceasing operations is a drastic move for companies trying to cut costs quickly and in some cases stave off bankruptcy.
“Instead of a ‘reduction in workforce,’ consider this a reduction in radio stations,” said one industry observer.
Townsquare and Cumulus are among large companies that have shut down underperforming stations. AM stations are often the target because of high utility costs and a general loss of confidence in the AM band.
RadioInsight reported in March that Cumulus would shutter about 20 stations that month.
A Cumulus spokesperson told Radio World that the moves are part of an ongoing effort to optimize the company’s portfolio and allocate resources effectively across local markets.
“We have determined that certain stations are no longer the right strategic fit within their respective markets,” according to an emailed statement.
“As a result, we have made the decision to suspend operations at these stations — an adjustment that impacts very few individuals — while we evaluate the best path forward, allowing us to focus on strengthening and maximizing the impact of our other brands.”
The company said it is considering whether to change format or sell the stations.
Cumulus FM stations listed as silent in the FCC’s Licensing and Management System in early May include WJBC(FM) in Pontiac, Ill., WLXX(FM) Richmond, Ky., KJMO(FM) in Linn, Mo., and KOLI(FM) in Electra, Texas.
Inside Radio reported that Cumulus took WLAW(FM) in Muskegon, Mich., off air in March.
Meanwhile, Townsquare has cited “economic conditions in the market” as the reason for shutting off a number of AM stations as well as several FM signals.
In late March, Townsquare filed notice with the FCC to cancel the licenses of KVLL(FM) in Tyler, Texas, and WUPE(AM) in Pittsfield, Mass. It also requested temporary authority to go silent for another AM station in Maine, and its FM translator.
Townsquare COO Erick Hellum told Inside Radio that the stations “were never big performers, but over the past few years losing money, with significant tower lease and utility expenses.”
By the numbers
There are still more than 4,300 AM stations in the country. But as of the end of 2024 the total had declined about 8% over the past 14 years, according to Radio World calculations. And at the end of the first quarter of 2025, there were 60 fewer licensed AM stations than 12 months earlier.
The number of commercial FMs was virtually unchanged in the past 12 months at 6,625, but it is down by about 150 stations from pre-pandemic.
(The category of noncommercial FM is booming right now, with more than 300 new NCEs compared to a year ago for a total of 4,634, after a recent filing window for new CPs.)
Meanwhile the number of FM translators dropped a bit last year to about 8,800. Observers believe that if more AMs go silent, many will take their translators with them.
The commission does not maintain a list of stations that surrender their broadcast licenses, which makes it difficult to track specific trends.
Stations that go silent must file a notice of suspension of operations in the Licensing and Management System within 10 days of ceasing operation, according to the FCC.
At this writing, according to FCC data, 118 AM stations, 105 FMs and 161 translators are licensed but silent. The commission does not track how that compares to past periods.
Voluntary cancellations of a broadcast license can be by formal letter or by using the cancellation function within LMS. Licenses can be surrendered or simply not renewed.
“No longer viable”
Smaller broadcasters also are turning off their AM signals.
WIRY(AM) in Plattsburgh, N.Y., announced via Facebook in early March it would cease operations after 75 years. Licensee Hometown Communications cited increasingly difficult market conditions.
“The rise of digital platforms and social media has changed the way audiences consume content, leading to declining traditional radio listenership,” it wrote on Facebook.
“Coupled with rising music royalty costs, a shrinking media sales force and decreasing profit margins, we have reached a point where it is no longer viable to continue broadcasting.” The post did not give a final date of broadcasting for WIRY.
Of course the radio industry, led by the National Association of Broadcasters, has been working to convince Congress to require AM radio reception in new vehicles through the proposed AM Radio in Every Vehicle Act. That effort so far has drawn a lot of bipartisan support but not secured the bill’s passage. Headlines about station closures aren’t likely to help the effort.
Opponents including the Consumer Technology Association have cited station numbers as indicative of a declining role for AM radio in American society.
We asked the NAB for comment on the reports of stations closing. Senior VP of Communications Alex Siciliano replied: “Local stations are making incredibly difficult decisions in a rapidly evolving and unforgiving media landscape.
These aren’t isolated cases. They’re part of a broader trend that underscores the urgent need for the FCC to modernize its rules and level the playing field. Without meaningful reform, longstanding community stations are finding it harder to compete and survive.”
Media brokers contacted by Radio World for this story do not find the trends surprising.
Today’s evolving landscape creates situations where the cost of operating a radio license exceeds its financial benefit, said Gregory Guy, managing partner of Tideline Partners.
“With declining revenues, several factors can contribute to this, including technical issues, competitive disadvantages and expensive tower site leases made under different market conditions,” he said.
Guy says occasionally stations are unsellable for various reasons in the current market. The “line between viable and non-viable stations continues to shift,” he says.
“There are also fewer potential buyers considering a potential purchase. The selling process can take months or years in some cases.”
George Reed, president of Media Services Group, says whether to shut off a station boils down to simple economics for most commercial broadcasters.
“They may not have wanted to sell to a competitor and/or there may not have been any buyers. It is tough to compete with entrenched competitors with a standalone, even if it is an FM signal,” Reed said.
However, further deregulation of media ownership caps, as proposed by the NAB and others, could be a game-changer, Reed says.
“There is no question that deregulation will help, perhaps save, the radio business. The competitive landscape has changed dramatically since the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The FCC was late by two decades on cross-ownership,” Reed said. “Thankfully, Brendan Carr’s FCC appears to recognize the current crisis and be willing to deal with it.”
Longtime industry observer Jarry Del Colliano recently wrote in his Inside Music Media newsletter that he expects further station cutting.
“This trend will not only continue but increase as consolidators have run out of ways to cut enough expenses to avoid bankruptcy,” Del Colliano wrote this spring. He expects other major groups may employ the same tactic.
Beasley has several FMs listed as silent in the FCC LMS window. A company spokesman said WCHZ(FM) in Warrenton, Ga., was off the air as the result of an executive decision to cease programming.
In addition, WGUS(FM), licensed to Ellenton, S.C., has been off air since Hurricane Helene last summer. It’s not clear if those stations will return to the air. A message sent to a Beasley spokesperson seeking further comment was not immediately returned.
