WYTHEVILLE, Va. — The Federal Communications Commission granted Bouldin Radio LLC’s applications to acquire a five-license Southwest Virginia radio cluster from Three Rivers Media Corporation on November 4.
The approved assignments cover three full-power stations and two FM translators:
- WXBX 95.3 FM, Rural Retreat
- WYVE 1280 AM, Wytheville
- WLOY 660 AM, Rural Retreat
- W227DS 93.3 FM, Rural Retreat
- W260DI 99.9 FM, Wytheville
The FCC’s approval clears the regulatory step but does not complete the sale. Radio News Now found no consummation notice for the applications as of November 7, so Three Rivers remains the licensee of record until the parties close and report the transfer. The purchase price was not confirmed in the public sources reviewed.
For ownership tracking, the transaction would add three full-power licenses and two translators to Bouldin Radio while removing the same licenses from Three Rivers. Translators should be tracked separately from full-power station totals. Bouldin’s exact companywide ownership count still requires facility-level reconciliation because its public station list describes stations it operates and does not establish that every facility sits under the same legal licensee.
Bouldin, led by managing member Roger Bouldin, already operates stations in Northeast Tennessee, Southwest Virginia and West Virginia. The company says it emphasizes local staff and community involvement. The acquired stations have carried local news, weather, high school sports and Virginia Tech sports alongside their music formats, but the assignment record reviewed by RNN does not establish new commitments on staffing, formats or capital upgrades.
The community question now moves to closing and integration: whether Bouldin preserves the cluster’s local service and employees while combining it with its regional operations. RNN will continue to track the consummation notices and any programming or staffing changes.
Sources: FCC application public notice; FCC lead assignment application; Bouldin Radio station information.
Related: FCC Approves Broadway Communications’ WVOK-FM/WTAZ Purchase.