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Radio station owner
switches news service
to Fox from ABC

Broadcast behemoth Clear Channel Communications Inc. is changing its national news service aired on dozens of its more than 1,200 radio stations around the country, seven of which are in Hawaii.

The Texas-based company announced yesterday it would switch from ABC Radio News to Fox News Radio Service for more than 100 of its news/talk stations, including KHVH-AM 830 and KHBZ-AM 990 in Honolulu. KSSK-FM/AM 92.3/590, which has a full-time local news staff, generally prepares its own news but it also uses network feeds, including Clear Channel's news service.

"It's our corporate network with all the Clear Channel stations strung together," said Chuck Cotton, Hawaii market manager.

"Basically every story that's filed within Clear Channel goes into that network, so we have access," as do other Clear Channel stations to KSSK's news work.

The selected Clear Channel stations will pick up Fox feeds as early as June 1 or as late as Aug. 15, Cotton said.

Fox also will have access to Clear Channel newscasters' reports, potentially including major news stories out of Hawaii.

Top Clear Channel executives also are seeking to reduce commercial clutter, and the current ABC News contract requires stations carrying its newscasts to give up air time for commercials. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Fox deal carries no such requirement.

Under the five-year deal with Fox, Clear Channel stations can choose to receive top-of-the-hour newscasts, a nightly news broadcast and/or 24-hour national news coverage.

ABC Radio remains the big dog of radio network news, serving more than 2,500 stations around the country. The initial deal with Clear Channel will increase Fox's affiliated radio stations to nearly 300 stations. "Clear Channel is a big catch for them," Cotton said.

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