Curtis Media could purchase Aisling
Broadcasting stations
By Scott Nicholson
A local family of radio stations built on its flagship
AM station, WATA, may soon become part of the state’s
largest radio broadcasting group.
Curtis Media Group has made an offer to buy WATA-AM Boone,
WECR-AM Newland, WECR-FM Beech Mountain, WMMY-FM Jefferson,
WXIT-AM Blowing Rock and WZJS-FM Banner Elk. The stations
are part of the Aisling Broadcasting group that went into
court receivership earlier this year.
Group owner Donald W. Curtis has been in business 40 years
and already has 19 stations, including WQDR, WPTF and WSJS.
The company is based in Raleigh and started out buying smaller
stations and is now seeking stations in larger markets.
Curtis’s contract offer is of $2.325 million, and any
challenger must make a bid at least $85,000 higher. Curtis
would buy the stations under licensee name High Country Adventures
LLC.
“Those are great community stations and we have some
stations in Lenoir, and don’t anticipate many or any
staff changes,” Curtis said. “We obviously hope
to make some improvements but they will be minor.”
“We’re impressed with the Boone economy and the
college there,” Curtis said. “They’re all pretty
well positioned. We operate on whatever the community needs.
We don’t have any preconceived notions.”
Superior Court Judge James L. Baker appointed George Reed,
managing director of Florida-based Media Services Group, receiver
for Aisling Broadcasting in March. The receivership was the
result of a civil suit financial lender Branch Banking and
Trust Company filed against Aisling Broadcasting of Banner
Elk. Tom Lanier is acting as general manager through the receivership
sale.
“We have in fact accepted an offer and we are waiting
on approval from the court and there will be a hearing on
that,” Reed said. “And we’re waiting on approval
from the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) and that
usually takes a couple of months.”
Reed said more than one offer had been made and a new buyer
could still come in and compete at the last minute.
“There’s a process where theoretically someone could
come in and make a higher bid, but that would come up at the
court hearing,” he said.
“I’ll continue to run the business with Tom Lanier
until we actually have a closing.”
Former owner Jonathan Hoffman said he paid nearly $6 million
for the stations in 2004.
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