Cumulus Media endured a tumultuous week of widespread layoffs in early August 2026, cutting on-air talent, programmers, sales staff, and podcast network roles across multiple markets nationwide while the company awaits final FCC approval to emerge from its Chapter 11 restructuring.
The reductions, described as a broader organizational realignment amid ongoing financial pressures and debt reduction efforts, hit stations from San Francisco to Detroit, Little Rock, Mobile, Columbia (SC), Shreveport, Albuquerque, Peoria, and elsewhere.
They included the ouster of key podcast leaders (such as SVP of Marketing and Podcasting Carolyn Chauncey and VP of Podcast Operations Jay Soderberg), though Cumulus denied reports that it had eliminated the entire Cumulus Podcast Network team and affirmed the network remains operational.
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| KNBR's Greg Papa |
The decision came shortly after Papa, 63, returned home from a grueling 78-day hospital stay at UCSF Medical Center involving a life-saving bone marrow transplant for leukemia and treatment for lung failure; he had missed most of the prior 49ers season and expressed hope of resuming the radio show from a home studio.
The Papa firing sparked intense public outrage given his health battle and decades as a defining voice in Bay Area sports radio. Facing the backlash, Cumulus Media was forced to issue a statement via KNBR acknowledging the situation. The company said it was “not able to comment on the specifics of his departure” but emphasized deep “respect and gratitude for everything Greg has given to KNBR, its listeners and its team.” It called him “one of the defining voices of Bay Area sports radio,” credited his contributions with helping shape the station, stated it is “exploring ways we can bring his voice back,” and wished him strength, healing, and a full recovery.
The combination of broad staff cuts and the highly criticized handling of Papa’s exit defined a particularly rough stretch for the radio giant.