Corporate Interference: The Commercialization and Concentration of Radio Post the 1996 Telecommunications Act

Abstract

Since the 1996 Telecommunication Act was signed by President Clinton, the U.S. commercial radio industry has undergone unprecedented merger activity. The Federal Communications Commission reports that in the first year of the act, 20 percent of the commercial radio stations in the country changed owners. The result is a highly concentrated industry with the top ten radio groups controlling 821 stations, 320 of which are owned by one firm. The author investigates the impact of the act on the radio industry with particular attention paid to the effects of radio consolidation on minority ownership, programming diversity, and community radio. Preliminary research indicates a fast decline in local music and news and diverse programming since the consolidation frenzy. Advertising dollars and economies of scale rule the bottom line of large radio groups. As a result, formats attracting high-consumption demographics are replacing formats that appeal to working-class, urban, and nonwhite audiences.