A little good news can go a long way these days, and the news of Larry Wilson buying the Paul Allen stations (KXL and KXTG) in Portland, OR, is very good news. Unless you've been living under a rock, or perhaps have entered the radio industry since Larry Wilson left, you already know that Wilson was the founder of Citadel Broadcasting, which he sold for over $2 billion. His legacy was a great company, great management, and great success market by market. Wilson was known for how well he cared for his employees, and the company events he held at his ranch in Wyoming are legendary.
Larry phoned me almost two years ago and told me he was waiting in the wings for the right opportunity to get back into the business he loved and missed. But it was also clear he wanted to get back in because he believes radio is a great business and a profitable business. He came to our Radio Ink Convergence conference to study how radio and digital fit together.
A little over a year and a half ago, Larry and his acquisition team invited me to dinner to dig more deeply into my insights on radio in a digital world. Clearly, Larry gets it. He understands the huge opportunity I've been trying to get the radio industry to embrace: Radio, when fully integrated into the digital world, becomes a much more powerful medium. It was just a matter of time before Larry's methodical search for the right properties would be the start of Larry Wilson 2.0.
On Tuesday Larry announced he's buying the first of many stations he plans to acquire with no debt, only equity. He promises to not fall into the trap of overpaying because if you buy right, you can operate well and flourish. I have a hunch we're about to watch a wild ride.
Larry Wilson is a beacon of hope for this tired and bloodied industry and its thousands of employees who have been on their knees praying for someone who values employees, talent, promotion, localism, and reinvestment in radio --values that others tell me are "unrealistic" and "not possible" in this day and age. But they are values that will be be shown to improve profitability when properly managed.
Clearly, we have many great companies in this industry who already value these core principles and who follow them religiously to this day. But many of today's industry icons look down on them as the rare exceptions. Because Wilson was a major player, his re-entry provides hope that he will again build a large, successful company based on those ideals.
Everyone knows that Larry Wilson does nothing small. The name of his new company, Alpha -- as in "alpha dog" -- says that Larry and his equity partners are serious about the radio business and the huge opportunity there is to succeed if you are not underwater and saddled with debt.
Wilson's biggest challenge will be buying properties right and having patient capital to get through this recession. Meanwhile, if he's investing in his stations while others are shrinking, it's a giant opportunity to grab market share. A year or two from now he will either look like the smartest guy in the room -- or the most foolish. Only time will tell.
I, for one, am happy he's back, because his very presence will increase confidence in the radio industry from other financial institutions and will probably signal other true-to-the-core broadcasters who have been waiting in the wings that maybe it's about time for re-entry.
FYI, I phoned Larry today and recorded a brief podcast.
Eric Rhoads
www.RadioInk.com
Great news when someone like Larry Wilson gets back in the ring - ding ding, seconds out....
Posted by: Donny Hughes | May 13, 2009 at 08:47 AM
Larry is exactly what this business needs now. So happy to see him back in the game!
Posted by: Bob Neumann | May 13, 2009 at 03:51 PM
Eric, you have it right! We have the same reaction here at Armada, now is the time for the equity people to be investing in radio.
Chris Bernier, CEO, Armada Media
Posted by: Chris Bernier | May 13, 2009 at 04:25 PM
I am happy he's back also.
Posted by: Mary Quass | May 13, 2009 at 04:47 PM
Eric - I worked for Larry and agree with just about everything you wrote. He was good to work for, passionate about our industry and engendered loyalty because he treated his folks with respect and wanted everyone, not just himself, to succeed.
One correction. The Ranch is in Montana.
Posted by: Neal Gladner | May 13, 2009 at 06:15 PM
Why is Larry Wilson good news?
He's a broadcaster.
Look at Citadel when he had it and what has happened to it since he left.
Larry Wilson's re-entry is great news for broadcasting.
Posted by: Dave Combes | May 13, 2009 at 06:42 PM
Great news, I would love to talk to him!
Posted by: John Caracciolo | May 20, 2009 at 02:25 PM
Larry sold out to Citadel. A company that doesn't value, people or talent. What does Larry really value? MONEY!
Posted by: SCOTT | June 12, 2009 at 03:36 PM
Citadel, as explained to us when he bought the radio stations I worked for, is a fortress, because radio was a war, a war to be fought to the bitter end, the one with the strogest 'fortress/Citadel', won . . . unfortunetly the end was for many of the 'valued' employees his henchman fired . . . Larry, the wheeler dealer is back, but to late to save radio.
Posted by: Mike | June 25, 2009 at 11:52 PM
Does anybody know if Larry made sure that CBS Radio in Portland cut the staff, traded off stations to Clear Channel before he finalized the deal?
At 64 he is probably the front man for a dying industry.
Posted by: Double J | August 11, 2009 at 09:06 PM