The End Of The Mays Era
A Message From Radio Ink Publisher Eric Rhoads
A Message From Radio Ink Publisher Eric Rhoads
The year was 1979, and I was consulting KITY and KONO in San Antonio, which competed with Lowry Mays' single station, WOAI. Even then, his name was legendary in San Antonio. He had owned the station forever and was a formidable competitor. That's my first memory of encountering the Mays name in radio.Yesterday I was reading a paragraph written by our editors for our coming "40 Most Powerful People in Radio" issue, and I added the line, "Since the resignation of brother Randall Mays earlier in the year and with the strong direction being pushed by Clear Channel's new owners, I anticipate that Mark Mays may soon step down as CEO of Clear Channel." I had no idea that would happen before those words even made it to print.
Mark Mays will continue as Clear Channel's chairman, just as Randall continues as vice chair. But when Mark Mays, the last of the family left inside the daily operations of the company, steps down at the end of this year, it will be the end of an era.
Who Invented Consolidation?
Radio consolidation was not invented by Lowry Mays, but he was the first to build a significant group of stations, thanks in part to the acquisitions of AMFM Inc. (Jimmy de Castro), Capstar (Tom and Steve Hicks), Paxson, and others.
Several years before anyone was thinking about widespread industry consolidation, Steve Hicks discussed the idea in the pages of Radio Ink, responding to an editorial I'd written about the possibility. Bud Paxson made the first move, convincing the FCC to allow him to LMA radio stations. But it was Lowry and sons who built the Clear Channel empire, consolidating the consolidators. Lowry Mays had a big vision, and he came a long way from that single AM station in San Antonio.
The Evil Empire
It's been a wild ride for Clear Channel, which quickly became known as the "Evil Empire." The industry wanted to cling to its creative past and didn't like continual budget cuts, voicetracking, loss of localism in many markets, nationalized programming, and other perceived negatives. Most of those negatives have been softened or disappeared over the past few years -- though echoes of old issues continue to be heard, including some old news about an alleged lack of local coverage after a 2002 train derailment in Minot, ND, that came up at an FCC hearing in March (Clear Channel fired off a letter to the FCC to once again attempt to correct the record). Perhaps the image has softened because of industry acceptance. Or perhaps Clear Channel has shown that they are continuing to evolve and innovate.
A Kinder, Gentler Clear Channel?
Today some are celebrating that soon, no one named Mays will be operating Clear Channel. Others, perhaps more informed, know that Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners are a force to be reckoned with, and they have their own ideas and initiatives to pay down the debt and squeeze out a profit. Will we see a kinder, gentler Clear Channel with the Mays family out of the management suite?
I suspect that if we do see a gentler Clear Channel -- and I think we already have, in the last year or so -- that is a result of being out of the public markets, where the pressure to perform quarterly dictates difficult decisions.
A Dream To Take Over The World
I've always had mixed feelings about Clear Channel and have written many scathing pieces over the years, including one about how Lowry had a dream of taking over the world. To his credit, when I saw him face-to-face after writing it (which is always difficult) he was a perfect gentleman, as he always has been. When there was an occasion for a thank you, I always received a personal phone call.
Yet for all the things we've found wrong with Clear Channel over the years, there are a lot of things the company can be credited for doing. In spite of our disagreement about how radio stations should be operated (it's easy to be an armchair quarterback), the fact remains that they pulled off an amazing feat, creating the ultimate radio company, with the most radio stations.
Though I've always fantasized that, when I'm invited onto their board, I'll get Clear Channel to understand that investment in talent, entertainment, localism, and local management autonomy will bring them more profit in the long run, I also know I might not have been able to handle the pressures of the decisions they were forced to make to survive.
Goodbye And Good Riddance?
Perhaps others will say goodbye and good riddance, but I've never been one to stomp on someone's grave. We should be grateful for the spectacle Clear Channel gave, for the positive things they've brought the industry and the employees who remained, and we should understand that the Mays family are not at all evil people.
On the contrary, they are wonderful people, who like the rest of the industry had to learn how to consolidate and keep Wall Street happy while feeling their way in the dark. Though many, including myself, have demonized them for decisions we didn't agree with, they made history, changed the face of radio forever, and opened the door to many innovations, good and not so good.
Someone was going to fully consolidate radio, and it just so happened that Lowry and sons pulled it off. And chances are the radio industry would have demonized whoever made those decisions.
So Long, Farewell
Today feels like the long-anticipated last episode of Dallas. Everything is big in Texas, and the Mays family, good Texans, built the world's biggest radio company. But, like all dynasties, this had to have a closing episode. So as Mark, Randall, and Lowry ride off into the sunset, let's tip our hats and wish them so long and farewell.
Eric Rhoads
Radio Ink
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