Black-owned Radio One Inc. has agreed to acquire a majority interest in Reach Media Inc., a Dallas media company owned by popular radio personality Tom Joyner.
Radio One will pay $56.1 million in cash and stock in a deal that will give it ownership rights to Joyner’s syndicated radio show, which reaches 8 million listeners on 115 stations, company officials said Monday.
The purchase also gives Radio One control of www.BlackAmericaWeb.com, an Internet site that has about 800,000 members.
Analysts said the acquisition is a winning deal for both companies. Radio One can build off the recognizable Joyner name while Joyner will have access to the capital and resources that comes with being owned by a large public company.
“Our visions are the same,” Joyner said. “Both companies are trying to reach African- Americans through media. With those goals, I thought it was natural that we come together.”
Radio One, started in a trailer by Catherine L. Hughes 25 years ago, is the largest radio company targeting black listeners, reaching 13 million people on 69 stations.
