Local radio newsrooms show slight uptick in personnel. The typical (median) radio news operation in 2023 had a full-time news staff of two, with the increase being led by non-commercial radio stations which came in with a median of three news people; commercial radio remained at one.
According to the RTNDA, this year’s numbers indicate that overall news staffing has improved since last year. It’s not a lot, but the average radio news operation increased from 3 full-timers to 3.2 while part time remains unchanged at 1.6. However, breaking these results down by market size shows a different picture: While staffing improved across major, medium, and small markets, large markets stations report a full-time staffing decline of 1.1 from last year and a 1.6 decline overall.
The use of a centralized newsroom by multi-station groups has returned to numbers resembling pre-COVID years. Last year’s two-thirds (66.6%) of all multi-station local groups operating with a centralized newsroom represented a surprising 10-point drop. But this year’s report of 79.4% usage is another indication that radio staffing is returning to pre-COVID levels. Or maybe it’s just correcting last year’s aberration.
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