NorthEast Radio Watch 12/22 & 29/2025: New Owner in the Finger Lakes

In this week’s issue… Bishop sells Finger Lakes group – Morning show exit makes headlines – Flyers radio crew suspended – What’s happening at this abandoned Mass. AM site? – CFNY doc to premiere 

By SCOTT FYBUSH

*We’re biased here – the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York is one of our favorite parts of the country, a well-kept secret of scenic beauty, great wine and some pretty good radio, Across the northern Finger Lakes, most of that radio comes from one source, the Finger Lakes Radio Group that’s part of Alan Bishop’s FLX Media.

Now Bishop, a radio veteran who’s worked everywhere from the UK offshore pirate station Laser 558 to upper management positions in Rochester, is selling his group of radio and digital properties to TOTIB Media, a new company led by Scott Swanson, a downstate entrepreneur who’s had roles in a variety of digital media businesses including iSpot, but who’s never owned radio stations before.

The $2.2 million deal was brokered by George Kimble, whose very long history with Finger Lakes Radio Group goes back to his late father’s founding of WCGR (1550 Canandaigua). His father’s death not long afterward put George and his brother into ownership at a young age, and over the decades Kimble built the group up to include multiple stations stretching from Canandaigua to Auburn and south to Dundee and Ithaca, eventually with Bishop as both general manager and minority owner.

After an attempted sale in 2016 failed to close, Bishop became the full owner of the group, which currently includes news-talk stations WGVA (1240/106.3) in Geneva and WAUB (1590/96.3) in Auburn, AC WNYR (98.5 Waterloo), classic hits WFLK (99.3 Seneca Falls), classic rock “Wall” WLLW (101.7 Geneva), country WFLR (1570 Dundee, plus translators in Dundee, Geneva, Penn Yan and Watkins Glen), classic rock “Lake” WCGR (1550 Canandaigua plus two Rochester-area translators), as well as digital news properties.

The sale to TOTIB includes all of those radio stations and most of their transmitter sites, with sales VP Frank Lischak staying on board to replace Bishop as GM.

“Scott understands the role these stations play in people’s daily lives, and he understands what it takes to operate a strong local media business. I’m confident this is the right next chapter,” Bishop said in announcing the deal, which begins with an LMA on New Year’s Day.

Bishop’s not exiting the business entirely; in addition to retaining a consulting role as part of his non-compete with TOTIB, he also keeps his Chadwick Bay Broadcasting stations in Dunkirk near the Pennsylvania border, classic hits WDOE (1410) and “Kix Country” WBKX (96.5).