Madison-based Civic Media is continuing its Midwestern expansion with the purchase of 13 radio stations in Illinois and Iowa from the Pritchard family.
Broker Kalil & Co. announced Oct. 13 that Civic Media is buying stations in the Galesburg, Illinois, and Burlington, Iowa, markets from Pritchard Broadcasting Corp., Titan Broadcasting LLC, and Galesburg Broadcasting Company.
The sale follows the August death of John T. Pritchard, who held 100% of Pritchard Broadcasting and Galesburg Broadcasting. His son, John C. “LJ” Pritchard, holds 100% of Titan Broadcasting.
His obituary notes that John T. Pritchard was a champion of Galesburg, serving on numerous boards and committees and as mayor from 2013 to 2021.
In the Galesburg market, the stations include:
- WGIL/1400 and W229BO/93.7 (Galesburg), News/Talk
- WLSR/92.7 (Galesburg), Classic Rock “Laser”
- WAAG/94.9 (Galesburg), Country
- WKAY/105.3 (Knoxville), Adult Contemporary “K FM”
- WZIE/106.1 (Abingdon), Classic Hits “Z106.1”
In the Burlington market, the stations include:
- KBKB/1360 and K283CK/104.5 (Fort Madison), Sports
- KBUR/1490 and K257GC/99.3 (Burlington), News/Talk
- WQKQ/92.1 (Dallas City, Ill.), Classic Rock “KQ92”
- KKIM/93.5 (Burlington), Adult Contemporary
- KHDK/97.3 (New London), Contemporary Hits “Hot 97.3”
- KBKB-FM/101.7 (Fort Madison), Country “The Bull)
- KDMG/103.1 (Burlington), Country
- KGRS/107.3 (Burlington), Hot AC
KBKB-FM and KGRS are owned by Titan Broadcasting, while the other Burlington-market stations are owned by Pritchard Broadcasting.
The purchase will mark Civic’s entrance into Illinois. Burlington will be its second Iowa market following the recent purchase of NRG Media’s stations in Waterloo-Cedar Rapids.
Civic and sister companies also own stations in Wisconsin, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and Minnesota.