MediaCo Holding Inc. is proving one thing very clearly in 2026:
The future of media revenue is increasingly digital.
The multicultural broadcasting company behind iconic brands including Hot 97 and WBLS posted a strong first-quarter revenue increase, driven largely by explosive digital growth that continues transforming the company’s overall business model. But underneath the headline gains, significant financial pressure and operational challenges remain impossible to ignore.
MediaCo reported first-quarter revenues topping $31 million, representing double-digit year-over-year growth as digital operations rapidly expanded across the company’s portfolio. Most notable was the continued surge in digital revenue, which climbed dramatically compared to the same period last year and now represents roughly half of the company’s total revenue mix — a major shift from where the company stood only a year ago.
That evolution matters.
For decades, traditional radio companies relied heavily on spot advertising and terrestrial broadcasting revenue. But MediaCo’s latest earnings paint a much different picture of where the business is heading. Digital streaming, FAST channels, video distribution, and multi-platform advertising are increasingly becoming the center of the company’s long-term strategy.
And nowhere was that more visible than inside MediaCo’s television and video operations.
Driven by EstrellaTV and the company’s expanding free ad-supported streaming television portfolio, the video division showed meaningful improvement during the quarter, significantly reducing operating losses while generating a sizable revenue jump. The performance further signals how aggressively broadcasters are pursuing streaming and connected-TV opportunities as consumer viewing habits continue shifting away from traditional platforms.
But while digital growth is accelerating, the company’s legacy audio division moved in the opposite direction.
Radio-related revenues declined during the quarter while expenses continued rising, resulting in a significant operating loss for the audio segment. Traditional spot advertising also weakened year-over-year, continuing a trend many broadcasters across the industry have been battling as advertisers increasingly shift dollars toward digital targeting and streaming platforms.
And that is where the MediaCo story becomes larger than one company.
In many ways, MediaCo’s earnings reflect the broader identity crisis happening throughout the radio and television business right now. Broadcasters are trying to reinvent themselves as digital-first media companies while still carrying the operational weight, infrastructure costs, and debt loads tied to traditional broadcasting.
That balancing act is expensive.
Despite the revenue growth, MediaCo’s overall operating losses widened during the quarter, while auditors reportedly continue raising concerns surrounding the company’s long-term financial stability. The company also disclosed ongoing accounting issues tied to its Estrella acquisition involving asset valuations and internal financial reporting procedures that remain unresolved.
Meanwhile, MediaCo has continued restructuring portions of its debt obligations in an effort to buy additional time and maintain liquidity flexibility moving forward.
Still, there are signs the company believes its long-term direction is working.
MediaCo’s aggressive digital pivot appears intentional and increasingly necessary as media consumption habits continue evolving. Younger audiences are consuming content differently, advertisers want measurable digital engagement, and streaming platforms are becoming central to audience growth strategies across nearly every major broadcasting company.
For legacy broadcasters, standing still is no longer an option.
The challenge now becomes whether companies can successfully complete the digital transformation fast enough to offset declining traditional revenue while simultaneously managing mounting operational and financial pressure.
And that question is no longer unique to MediaCo.
It is quickly becoming one of the defining business questions facing the entire broadcast industry.
The future of broadcasting may still include radio towers and FM signals — but Wall Street increasingly wants to see streaming numbers, digital growth, and multi-platform revenue attached to them.
On The Dial covers breaking radio industry news, including layoffs, programming changes, talent moves, and broadcast trends across the United States.