The Federal Communications Commission has reported fluctuating figures in the number of licensed broadcast radio stations during the first half of 2023. Between the end of Q1 and the conclusion of Q2, the landscape of licensed broadcast radio stations saw marginal, but telling, flux.
As AM struggles for audience and to maintain its place in the dashboard, it suffered ill effects from the fight. At the end of Q1 2023, the FCC reported a total of 4,472 AM stations. However, by the end of Q2, this figure slightly diminished to 4,463, marking a reduction of 9 AM stations over the quarter.
Similarly, the number of FM Commercial stations dipped from 6,681 in Q1 to 6,675 in Q2, suggesting a decrease of 6 stations in this category.
Contrary to the downward trend seen in AM and FM Commercial stations, FM Educational stations witnessed a slight uptick from 4,219 in Q1 to 4,236 by the end of Q2. Because of this specific boost, the total number of stations remained relatively steady with a total of 15,372 in Q1 and 15,374 in Q2.
In the case of FM Translators and Boosters, there was a marginal drop of 4, bringing the count from 8,939 in Q1 to 8,935 by the end of Q2. The most notable decrease occurred within the Low Power FM category, which saw a reduction from 1,999 stations in Q1 to 1,989 in Q2.
