Report: iHM Removing What Makes Radio Relevant

“Bloodbath” is how some radio business insiders are describing the big round of layoffs for employees and on-air personalities affecting America’s largest owner of radio stations, iHeartMedia.

According to savingcountrymusic.com, the percentage of employees laid off by the company wasn’t especially high considering the company’s estimated 12,500-strong labor force, but it was who received pink slips that has left so many radio professionals and their local listeners in shock.

"iHM is replacing employees for algorhythms, eliminating local and regional talent for more national programming, and generally eliminating the last element that makes radio interesting and important, and able to compete with streaming services and podcasts in the digital age: a local personality to connect to and to serve you music, sports, and news with a local perspective.

"Though these moves will most certainly offload salary for the company and streamline operations, it’s at the expense of one of the last things that makes radio relevant. Undoubtedly for a major media company to survive, they must modernize, especially when it comes to a dying medium such as radio. But the future of radio remains local, and removing the local element is what has made the medium less viable over time.

"As major corporations like iHeartMedia continue to try and cost cut their way to profitability, locally-owned and privately-owned radio stations that set their own playlists, allow local and regional stars their first entry point to an audience, and can engage with communities through local appearances and events will be the ones who survive.

"The cuts may keep iHeartMedia in the black for the short term. But it’s at the expense of the last reason why anyone would turn their radio on in the first place, or pull up a local station through an app: to hear someone you can personally connect with, and serve you the audio content that is most relevant to you. Instead of doubling down on what makes radio cool, they’ve assured that further cuts in on-air personalities that communities connect with will be needed in the future in the further automation of American radio."

Today, Jerry Del Colliano, publisher of Inside Music Media, outlined where he believes iHeartMedia is headed.  Among other moves, Del Colliano expects:

• There will be only one manager per Market
• High paid market managers will be targeted. They would be succeeded by less-compensated sales managers
• Regional managers will become increasingly unnecessary

Meanwhile, Radio Insight is maintain an ongoing list of those affected.