Salem Media Group has announced a series of transactions that will pay off all of the company’s debt including the sale of seven of their Christian AC stations to Educational Media Foundation.
EMF will acquire Salem’s music stations “104.7 The Fish” WFSH-FM Athens/Atlanta GA, “95.5 The Fish” WFHM Cleveland, 102.7 KBIQ Manitou Springs/Colorado Springs, 94.9 KLTY Dallas, “95.9 The Fish” KFSH La Mirada/Los Angeles, “104.1 The Fish” KFIS Scoppoose/Portland, and “103.9 The Fish” KKFS Lincoln/Sacramento for $80 million, plus a $10 million advertising and marketing agreement. EMF will take over those stations around February 1 with EMF paying for the stations with a $72 million promissory note due in 2027 at 3-month SOFR + 1.00% starting July 1, 2025.
With the sale, Salem will conclude its operations in the Christian AC format focusing in the future on just its Christian Preaching and Conservative Talk operations. The company for now retains “95.9 The Fish” W240CX /WTOH-HD2 Columbus.
Salem has also repurchased its remaining $159.4 million of its outstanding 7.125% Senior Secured Notes due 2028 and issued $40 million of a new series of convertible preferred stock. The new stock series was issued to The Christian Community Foundation, Inc’s WaterStone who will become a major investor in Salem not to exceed 49% of the company’s common stock or 46% of the company’s voting rights. The Waterstone investment will be overseen by their COO Rick von Gnechten.
Salem CEO David Santrella said, “Upon the closing of these three transactions, we will have transformed and significantly improved Salem’s balance sheet and capital structure. With the exception of its revolving line of credit, Salem will have no outstanding debt. Salem will also have the benefit of working with an important new strategic investor that is expected to bring significant new opportunities to the company as well as offer incredible expertise in the area of digital media.” David Santrella added, “As a result of these transactions, our ability to service our national ministry partners and listeners with the important content provided by Salem has been greatly enhanced.”
Salem Executive Chairman/co-founder Edward G. Atsinger added, “We have made a strategic decision to exit the Contemporary Christian Music format in order to pay off all of Salem’s long-term debt. We could not be more delighted that the buyer is EMF. EMF has demonstrated over many years a unique ability and dedication to creating and distributing the highest quality Christian music content to its listeners in a positive and encouraging way. I am confident that their impact on listeners and their communities will be incredibly effective.”
EMF Interim CEO Tom Stultz says all of the acquired stations will flip to their “K-Love” or “Air 1” networks based on market needs, “As Salem has leaned into its talk and information programming, we are honored to carry the torch and keep Christian music flowing over these frequencies. These strong stations expand our coverage area and help us deliver on our mission to reach more people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We feel it is an incredible opportunity to continue serving listeners with Christian music in these important markets.”
Salem retained Guggenheim Securities, LLC to serve as the Company’s financial advisor in connection with the 2028 Notes Repurchase.
