SMG Names Edward G. Atsinger III as Executive Chairman

RADIO ONLINE | Monday, December 20, 2021 | 4:52pm CT

Edward G. Atsinger III

Salem Media Group CEO Edward G. Atsinger III will transition to the newly created role of Executive Chairman, effective January 1, 2022. Additionally, its board elevates President of Broadcast Media David Santrella to CEO. Salem's current President of Digital Media and Publishing David Evans is promoted to COO. Stuart W. Epperson, Salem's current Chairman, will resign from Salem's board, effective January 1, and transition to Chairman Emeritus. Stuart W. Epperson, Jr. will join the board filling the vacancy created by Epperson Sr.'s resignation.

Since founding Salem in 1974, Atsinger, along with his brother-in-law Epperson, has grown the company from a single radio station into a leading multimedia company specializing in Christian and conservative content. As Executive Chairman, 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.

"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 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," he added.

"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," Atsinger concluded.

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."

Evans commented, "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."

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."