VA Radio: Sandton Ordered To Sell Stations

In Fredericksburg, VA, The Free Lance–Star’s new owners have 12 months to sell its four radio stations, according to a FCC ruling.

Sandton Capital Partners had petitioned the FCC to receive the licenses for WFLS–FM and its sister stations, and a waiver of its newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership restriction (NBCO).

The FCC assigned the licenses to Sandton, but it denied the waiver request and does not anticipate granting extensions, according to its ruling.

“While we are pleased to have the broadcast licenses fully transferred to us, we must also acknowledge that the FCC ruling requires a divestiture within 12 months,” said Sandton principal Rob Orr in an email.

“During the approval process, the company presented what we believed were strong arguments to maintain the previously grandfathered exemption regarding cross ownership of the Star Radio Group and The Free Lance–Star, but we simultaneously planned for this contingency,” he said. “We will, of course, fully comply with the FCC’s order and look forward to saying more about our specific plans for divesting the Star Radio Group in the future.”

The FCC first restricted newspaper/broadcast cross-ownership in 1975 as a way of promoting diverse viewpoints in local markets. The restriction did not apply to The Free Lance–Star Publishing Co., which had been in the Rowe family for 130 years.