Radio workers for the Walt Disney Company are feeling the effects that journalists can certainly sympathize with: Everything is going digital. The company announced that it would be selling 23 stations and laying off more than 200 employees accordingly. Instead, Radio Disney will aim to distribute content digitally.
"Radio Disney will increase its investment in both digital distribution platforms and music-centric programming to optimize the network for long-term growth and to better reflect the habits of its listeners, a national audience of kids and families," read a statement from the company.
The statement claimed that the company would help the laid-off employees transition into unemployment.
The selloff will include 22 AM stations and one FM station in major markets such as New York, Chicago and Philadelphia. The company will hold on to its Los Angeles branch for the purpose of originating the national programming feed. The stations in line to be axed will stop broadcasting on September 26.
No buyers have been suggested as of yet, but this isn't Radio Disney's first foray into cutting back. The company silenced six stations during 2010 and an additional seven stations during 2013.
Disney has been invested in both digital and satellite radio distribution for years, operating through Sirius/XM, Aha Radio and ShowMobile, but to name a few. The company also offers content through the WATCH Disney App.
As a service that aims largely at a younger audience (and its parents), Radio Disney seems to realize that kids are more interested in the internet than a wavelength.
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