David Field has stepped down as Audacy‘s president and CEO and as a member of the board, after 27 years leading the radio broadcaster and audio company and its predecessor. The board has appointed Kelli Turner, current Audacy board member, as interim president and CEO, effective immediately.
The board has commenced a search for a permanent CEO. Field will continue to serve in a new position as special adviser to the CEO and the board.
Field’s exit comes after Audacy filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last year, in a bid to slash its debt load. In a memo to staff Wednesday announcing his departure, Field said the company “emerged from our restructuring last September with the industry’s strongest balance sheet.”
“It has been 27 years since I took the helm at Audacy,,” Field wrote in the memo. “With the company now in a strong competitive and financial position and building on a year of industry-leading growth, it is the optimal time to pass the baton to new leadership and for me to move on to pursue new goals and challenges.”
Popular on Variety
Field has served as CEO of Audacy (previously Entercom) since 2002 and as president since 1998. Under his leadership, the company has grown from 15 stations with $35 million in revenue to a multiplatform audio business with $1.2 billion in revenue, more than 230 broadcast stations across 47 markets, and podcast networks Cadence13 and Podcore and podcast studio Pineapple Street Studios. Prior to joining Entercom, Field was an investment banker at Goldman Sachs in New York.
Turner has served on the Audacy board since September 2024. She also has served on the boards of directors of several advertising and music technology companies, including DoubleVerify, Downtown Music Holdings and Central European Media Enterprises. Turner was most recently managing director and CFO of Sun Capital Partners, a private investment firm, and before that was president and COO of SESAC Holdings, a music licensing and rights management company owned by Blackstone.
“David has left an indelible mark on the industry, growing Audacy from a few small radio stations into a scaled multi-platform audio content and entertainment powerhouse,” said Michael Del Nin, chairman of the Audacy board. “He has built a great company with leading positions across the country’s largest markets and an outstanding portfolio of exclusive, premium audio content. Under David’s dedicated leadership, Audacy has been positioned for long-term success, and we look forward to working with Kelli and the entire team as the company begins its next exciting chapter.”