Charlotte Radio: Layoffs Reported At Beasley Stations

Beasley Broadcast Group, which acquired seven Charlotte radio stations this month from CBS Radio, has shed about a dozen or more jobs at the operation in a wave of layoffs that began Friday, accoridng to The Charlotte Observer.

Bill Schoening, Charlotte market manager for Beasley, said Monday he could not comment on the reports, and calls and messages to Beasley executives at its Naples, Fla.-headquarters were not returned. But some of the affected workers said Monday they were surprised to learn a week before Christmas that their jobs were being eliminated.

None of the layoffs appear to have hit the top talent ranks at the stations, which include three of the city’s best-ranked stations, Urban WPEG 97.9 FM Power98,  UrbanAC WBAV 101.9 FM and Country WSOC 103.7 FM.

Beasley also operates sports-talk stations Sports WFNZ 610 AM the Fan and WBCN 1660 AM and pop stations WKQC 104.7 FM and WNKS 95.1 FM Kiss95.1.

On Dec. 1, Beasley took over the Charlotte stations, part of a transaction with CBS Radio that also included station transfers in Tampa, Miami and Philadelphia. CBS had operated radio stations in Charlotte since 1997, but traded them to gain operations in larger cities where there was synergy with other broadcast properties. When the deal was consummated, Beasley wound up with 53 radio stations in 12 cities, including 12 stations it already operated in Eastern North Carolina.