IHeartMedia will save money but lose jobs with automation: These Pa. radio stations may be affected – PennLive

The nations largest owner of radio stations has announced a massive shift in technology with the aim of modernizing the company.

IHeartMedia, formerly known as ClearChannel, has announced a major restructuring plan that will include larger investments in technology, automation and more centralized workflow for its various markets. The company owns five radio stations in our region: FM stations Bob 94.9, River 97.3 and Alt 99.3, and AM stations WHP 580 and Fox Sports 1460.

In a press release, the company announced that the new structure will enable the company to maximize the performance of each of its markets and the company overall -- with its unique scale and multiple platforms, adding that the changes will enhance iHeartMedias position as the number one audio company in America, continue its successful transformation as a technology- and data-powered 21st century media company, and accelerate the development of new platforms and services.

However, AllAccess.com reports that the company released an internal memo that also shared that the changes would result in employee dislocation, which would include layoffs, "some by geography and some by function -- which is the unfortunate price we pay to modernize the company.

Requests for comment from the IHeartMedia stations in our area were directed to Jeff Hurley, IHeartMedias senior vice president of programming for the Allentown-Harrisburg region. A statement from IHeartMedia made no specific mentions of changes or layoffs coming to any of the stations in the region, but that the loss of any job is significant.

Here is the full statement released from IHeartMedia:

"We are modernizing our company to take advantage of the significant investments we have made in new technology and aligning our operating structure to match the technology-powered businesses we are now in. This is another step in the companys successful transformation as a multiple platform 21st century media company, and we believe it is essential to our future it continues our momentum and adds to our competitiveness, our effectiveness and our efficiency with all our major constituencies.

During a transition like this its reasonable to expect that there will be some shifts in jobs some by location and some by function but the number is relatively small given our overall employee base of 12,500. That said, we recognize that the loss of any job is significant; we take that responsibility seriously and have been thoughtful in the process."

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IHeartMedia will save money but lose jobs with automation: These Pa. radio stations may be affected - PennLive