Edward G. Atsinger III Transitions to Executive Chairman of the Board of Salem Media Group; David Santrella to Chief Executive Officer and David Evans to Chief Operating Officer
December 20 2021 - 5:20PM
Business Wire
Salem Media Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: SALM) announced today that
Edward G. Atsinger III, Salem’s current Chief Executive Officer,
will transition to the newly created role of Executive Chairman of
the Board of Directors effective January 1, 2022. Additionally, its
Board of Directors has appointed David Santrella to become Chief
Executive Officer. Currently Mr. Santrella serves as the company’s
President of Broadcast Media. In addition David Evans, Salem’s
current President of Digital Media and Publishing, will be promoted
to the position of Chief Operating Officer. Finally, Stuart W.
Epperson, Salem’s current Chairman, will resign from Salem’s Board
of Directors effective January 1, 2022, transitioning to the
position of Chairman Emeritus, and Stuart W. Epperson, Jr. will
join the Board of Directors, filling the vacancy created by Mr.
Epperson Senior’s resignation. These changes reflect the Board’s
ongoing succession planning and are designed to provide leadership
continuity as the company continues to execute its strategic
initiatives.
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Edward G. Atsinger III (Photo: Business
Wire)
Since founding Salem in 1974, Mr. Atsinger, along with his
brother-in-law Mr. Epperson, has grown the company from a single
radio station into America’s leading multimedia company
specializing in Christian and conservative content. He has been a
driving force in Salem’s mission to serve the Company’s audiences
nationwide with content that is unavailable through mainstream
media channels. As Executive Chairman, Mr. Atsinger will be
chairman of the Board, assuming leadership of the board of
directors while providing oversight and guidance to both the CEO
and COO. Mr. Atsinger will continue to be engaged full-time and
focus more of his attention on macro strategy and planning,
M&A, external relationships, government affairs and leadership
development. This will allow the company to continue to benefit
from Mr. Atsinger’s decades of experience and skills.
“I am pleased to serve as Executive Chairman and to oversee the
succession to the next generation of leadership of our company. I
am looking forward to working with the executive team to continue
Salem’s vitally important mission of serving the media needs of the
audiences interested in Christian content and public policy
programming with a traditional conservative focus,” said Mr.
Atsinger. “With Salem well-positioned for continued growth into the
future, now is the right time to take the next step in implementing
our long-term leadership transition. We have a tremendously
talented, deep and dedicated leadership team at Salem. David
Santrella and David Evans each have played a critical role in
developing and executing the strategy in place today, and I am
confident they have the vision, skills, experience and capabilities
necessary to provide continued leadership of Salem well into the
future.”
Mr. Atsinger concluded, “Most of all, I am blessed to lead our
talented and dedicated team. I am extremely proud of Salem’s
employees and personalities who create and distribute the content
that allows us to serve our loyal and dedicated audience of
listeners, readers, and now viewers. It is this talented team that
has allowed Salem to become the business it is today. Building and
expanding this platform over nearly 50 years has been and will
continue to be the focus of my life’s work.”
Mr. Santrella said, “I am deeply honored to have been appointed
as Salem’s next CEO. I look forward to working in close partnership
with David Evans to take advantage of the tremendous opportunities
that exist in today’s media landscape, to further the mission of
our company and to grow our business. I am blessed that I will have
Ed alongside me in my new role.”
Mr. Evans said, “I am looking forward to working together with
Dave and the rest of our talented leadership team as we further
combine traditional media and digital media in new transformative
ways. We have a substantial and passionate audience that accesses
our content and brands in many ways and we’re focused on ensuring
they can enjoy it and engage with us across multiple
platforms.”
Mr. Epperson, who has served as Salem’s Chairman of the Board of
Directors since going public, said, “Our Board of Directors has
engaged in thoughtful long-term succession planning, and today’s
announcement demonstrates the strength of that process as well as
the depth of talent at the executive management level to drive the
company’s continued growth and success. I am confident that David
Santrella and David Evans are perfectly qualified to continue
working with Edward and the rest of the management team to build on
our success and drive Salem into the next phase of its growth.”
ABOUT SALEM MEDIA GROUP:
Salem Media Group is America’s leading multimedia company
specializing in Christian and conservative content, with media
properties comprising radio, digital media and book and newsletter
publishing. Each day Salem serves a loyal and dedicated audience of
listeners and readers numbering in the millions nationally. With
its unique programming focus, Salem provides compelling content,
fresh commentary and relevant information from some of the most
respected figures across the Christian and conservative media
landscape. Learn more about Salem Media Group, Inc. at
www.salemmedia.com, Facebook and Twitter.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20211220005636/en/
Evan D. Masyr Executive Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer (805) 384-4512 evan@salemmedia.com
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