On March 15, 2018, iHeartMedia (formerly Clear Channel Communications) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, seeking to restructure more than $20 billion in outstanding debt accumulated from the disastrous 2008 leveraged buyout by Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners. The bankruptcy filing …
iHeartMediaClear Channel CommunicationsBain CapitalThomas H. Lee PartnersRush Limbaugh+1 moremedia-consolidationbankruptcyleveraged-buyoutprivate-equityconservative-media+3 more
On July 24, 2008, Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners completed a historic $26.7 billion leveraged buyout of Clear Channel Communications, the nation’s largest radio broadcaster with over 1,200 stations. The transaction, led by Bain Capital (founded by Mitt Romney in 1984), loaded the …
Bain CapitalThomas H. Lee PartnersClear Channel CommunicationsiHeartMediaMitt Romney+1 moremedia-consolidationprivate-equityleveraged-buyoutregulatory-capturedebt-loading+3 more
By August 30, 2000, Clear Channel Communications completed its acquisition of AMFM Inc., creating a radio empire of 1,240 stations nationwide—representing a 30-fold increase from the 40 stations Clear Channel owned before the 1996 Telecommunications Act eliminated ownership caps. This unprecedented …
Clear Channel CommunicationsRush LimbaughAMFM Inc.Lowry MaysRepublican Partymedia-consolidationradio-monopolyconservative-mediatalk-radiopropaganda+3 more
Clear Channel Communications begins an unprecedented consolidation spree following the February 1996 Telecommunications Act, acquiring $581 million worth of radio and television stations within just four months of the act’s passage. Before the Telecommunications Act eliminated ownership caps, …
Clear Channel CommunicationsLowry MaysFCC Federal Communications CommissionLocal Radio Stationstelecommunicationsmedia-consolidationradioclear-channelderegulation+2 more
President Bill Clinton signs the Telecommunications Act of 1996 into law, eliminating the national cap on radio station ownership (previously 40 stations maximum) and increasing the television audience reach cap from 25% to 35%, triggering one of the largest media consolidation waves in American …
Bill ClintonU.S. CongressFederal Communications Commission (FCC)Clear Channel CommunicationsViacom+1 moremedia-consolidationderegulationtelecommunications-actcorporate-lobbyingfcc+2 more