I have often said that I believed the ABC Radio sale to Citadel Broadcating would never happen. After all it has been 15 months, (A Disney year) since the deal was announced. So I was shocked, shocked, shocked, and amazed to find out that information regarding the spin off and subsequent merger was sent to Disney shareholders. The materials said that the deal should be done by June 15th.
I love Disney and I love Disney to own things. However, I agree with letting go of ABC Radio. While keeping ESPN Radio and Radio Disney it was hard to see why Disney should maintain a conventional radio pressence. Radio has gone confrontational. Shock Jocks and abbrassive talk show hosts run the air waves. None of this fits with any Disney brand. And if it doesn't fit with Disney, ABC, or ESPN, why hang on to it when you can get some money to invest in some growth. I wish ABC could run a general interest radio network, but I'm afraid those days are gone. I wish Citadel the best. As a shareholder, I expect good things from them.