The pending shutdown of one of the major radio groups in Milwaukee raises the question: How many major radio groups are there in each market?
Answering the question may be somewhat controversial since it’s first necessary to define what constitutes a “major” radio group. Each market has its own mix of unique circumstances, with many smaller stations making valiant efforts to compete with larger signals owned by larger group owners.
For purposes of this list, a group is considered to be “major” if it owns at least one commercial FM station that is class B, C, C0, C1, or C2 providing city-grade service to the majority of the market. (Those classes are the equivalent of FM stations using 50kW or more, though some may be technically less than 50kW if their antennas are higher — see this explanation of FM classes for more on that.)
Markets with 5 major radio groups:
Milwaukee: Audacy, Good Karma, iHeart, Milwaukee Radio Alliance, Saga
Markets with 4 major radio groups:
Cedar Rapids: iHeart, KZIA Inc., NRG, Townsquare
Minneapolis: Audacy, Cumulus, Hubbard, iHeart
Omaha: Flood, iHeart, NRG, SummitMedia
Rapid City: Haugo, Homeslice, Mid-Century Radio, Riverfront
Markets with 3 major radio groups:
Appleton-Oshkosh: Cumulus, Midwest, Woodward
Bismarck: iHeart, Radio Bismarck Mandan, Townsquare
Des Moines: Cumulus, iHeart, Saga
Eau Claire: iHeart, Mid-West Family, Stewards of Sound
Grand Island (Tri Cities): Flood, Legacy, NRG
Green Bay: Cumulus, Midwest, Woodward
La Crosse-Tomah: Magnum, Mid-West Family, Sparta-Tomah Broadcasting
Madison: Audacy, iHeart, Mid-West Family
Marquette: Armada, Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, Mediabrew
Minot: iHeart, Programmers Broadcasting, RadioDifferently
Rochester, MN: Blooming Prairie Farm Radio, iHeart, Townsquare
St. Cloud: Leighton, Townsquare, Tri-County Broadcasting
Wausau-Stevens Point: Midwest, Muzzy, NRG
Markets with 2 major radio groups:
Davenport (Quad Cities): iHeart, Townsquare
Dubuque: Radio Dubuque, Townsquare
Duluth: Midwest, Townsquare
Fargo: Midwest, Radio Fargo-Moorhead
Grand Forks: iHeart, Leighton
Lincoln: Alpha, NRG
Mankato: Alpha, Subarctic
Sioux City: iHeart, Powell
Sioux Falls: Midwest, Townsquare
Waterloo: NRG, Townsquare (an additional group has multiple stations, but none is more than 25kW)
There are additional markets with two competing major groups, but for brevity, I have limited this list to current or former rated markets.
Note: Midwest and Mid-West Family are separate, unrelated companies.