Ky. radio station owner elected to BMI board of directors

BMI, a leading music rights management company, has elected a Kentucky radio station owner to its board of directors.

Steve Newberry, president and CEO of Glasgow, Ky.-based Commonwealth Broadcasting Corp., was elected during BMI's annual shareholder meeting in Nashville earlier this week.

Commonwealth owns 22 radio stations across Kentucky, including three in the Tri-State - adult contemporary WTTL-106.9 FM (Madisonville), country WWKY-97.7 FM (Providence) and sports talk WTTL-1310 AM (Madisonville).

Newberry is an active broadcaster, having served in high positions with the National Association of Broadcasters, the Kentucky Broadcasters Association and the Kentucky Authority for Educational Television, among his many affiliations.  Last year, he received the National Radio Award, the industry’s highest leadership honor.

Founded by broadcasters in 1939 as a competitive force in the licensing of music, BMI is widely credited with shepherding the creation and explosion of American forms of music including Jazz, R&B, Country and Rock and Roll.  BMI is headquartered in the World Trade Center complex in New York City.