NorthEast Radio Watch 2/17/2025: Townsquare, For Better or Worse

In this week’s issue… Townsquare moves studios, cuts staff – Wake up with Mistress Carrie – No flip for WADO – Remembering Maine’s Colby, Binghamton’s Sommers – Suburban Toronto FM could go silent

By SCOTT FYBUSH

Jump to: ME – NH – VT – MA – RI – CT – NY – NJ – PA – Canada

*You know the old line – “I have good news and bad news, which do you want first?”

Where Townsquare Media is concerned, we’ll start with the good news this week, because there’s definitely both good and bad from the company in this week’s headlines.

In Augusta, MAINE, today’s moving day for the local Townsquare cluster. For many years now, country “B98.5” (WEBB 98.5 Waterville) and top-40 “Moose” (WMME 92.3 Augusta) have operated from a rather inconspicuous facility tucked away behind a strip mall (Spirit Halloween and all) on Western Avenue.

That changed this morning, when Cooper Fox and the B98.5 morning show signed on from bright new storefront digs in downtown Augusta.

CEO Bill Wilson and COO Erik Hallum were on hand a couple of weeks ago for the ribbon-cutting at the new facility, which features virtual (Wheatstone “Glass-E”) consoles instead of physical consoles, among other new tech.

*That’s the good news. The bad? Another round of cutbacks at the company, and while we’re still awaiting the confirmation of more of the names involved, we know of at least one big one on the Jersey Shore, where Steve McKay is out as brand manager of WFPG in Atlantic City and WOBM in Toms River.

“This truly caught me off guard,” McKay told RAMP, which first announced his ouster. McKay is a familiar Mid-Atlantic name from his stints at crosstown WJRZ, along with WEJM in Philadelphia and WBHT in Wilkes-Barre. Before arriving at Townsquare in late 2022, he’d been PD of WTCB and WOMG in Columbia, South Carolina. He’s now on the hunt for new work.

Looking to get into station ownership? Our StationSale division has some great new listings for you, including a major market FM translator opportunity, a profitable Midwest FM, an inexpensive entry into a fast-growing Western market, and a turnkey profitable FM/AM/translator small-market combo that’s ready for a new owner. Drop me a line at scott@fybush.com and I’ll set you up with an NDA and all the details…

And if your noncommercial FM station is ready to think about translators, there’s a filing window coming soon from the FCC and it’s the perfect time to start making plans.