Iorio announces retirement
January 5, 2021PBRTV announced the sale of WJAS (1320) back in November and this morning we have an official announcement of the sale in addition to the retirement of Frank Iorio.
In a press release this morning from Krol Media Associates:
The owner of Pittsburgh Radio Partners, LLC, Frank Iorio Jr. announced the sale of Talk Radio 1320 WJAS to St Barnabas Broadcasting. St Barnabas Broadcasting is a division of St. Barnabas Health System.
Once the sale is finalized, Iorio also announced his retirement after more than 50 years in radio. A career that started in Pittsburgh at WIXZ Radio in 1971, would lead from Pittsburgh to Boston, Philadelphia and Washington DC where he served as Director of Sales at NBC for ten years.
Iorio began his radio ownership career in Louisville, Kentucky in 1989 when he and a few investors purchased WVEZ and WWKY. In 1994, Iorio moved back to Pittsburgh and purchased WBVP and 106.7 the Force in Beaver Falls, PA while adding several other stations to his portfolio in Warren, Erie and Altoona PA.
In 2014, Iorio bought WJAS radio from Renda Broadcasting. Upon taking ownership, Iorio made strategic changes to the station by changing the format from Nostalgic/Standards to Conservative Talk Radio. WJAS flipped formats with iHeart Radio’s 104.7 FM who then began their BIG Country format. An FM translator at 99.1 was added to the WJAS mix a few years later.
In the six years that Iorio has owned WJAS, the station has become a leader in the Pittsburgh market for Talk Radio. Iorio recognized that listeners aged 35-64 had a specific appetite for Conservative Talk and WJAS delivered what they wanted. “Over the years, I have bought and sold 9 radio station’s and this one is different because it is my last. It makes retiring bitter- sweet as WJAS has exceeded all of our expectations. I am proud to have owned a Pittsburgh radio station that has become such a profound leader in the market,” said Iorio.
Today, Talk Radio 1320 WJAS continues to be a leader in the Pittsburgh talk market.
The station is set to close sometime mid-January. St. Barnabas plans to retain the current format and staff.
