Tom Hicks, the Texas businessman whose investments helped engineer one of the most significant turning points in radio consolidation, died Saturday at age 79. He is also remembered for his well-known tenure as owner of the Texas Rangers and Dallas Stars.
In October 1993, through his private equity firm Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst, he backed the purchase of KFBK-AM and KGBY-FM in Sacramento from Group W Radio by the newly formed Chancellor Broadcasting, led by Steven Dinetz. That deal became the foundation of what would grow through mergers and acquisitions into AMFM Inc.
Under Hicks’ financial direction, Chancellor quickly expanded its radio footprint throughout the 1990s, acquiring stations across major U.S. markets and pioneering the scale-driven strategy that would define the era. In June 1999, Chancellor merged with Capstar Broadcasting to form AMFM Inc., the largest radio company in the country at the time. Just four months later, AMFM agreed to merge with Clear Channel Communications in a landmark $23 billion deal that combined the two biggest entities in radio and permanently reshaped the industry.
The resulting company, later rebranded as iHeartMedia, remains the dominant player in US radio today, operating more than 850 stations.
Beyond broadcasting, Hicks was a fixture in Texas sports and business. He owned the Texas Rangers from 1998 to 2010 and the Dallas Stars from 1995 to 2011, leading both franchises through some of their most successful periods. But his influence on radio remains one of his most enduring legacies.
