Belo announced today that its revenue dipped 7% in the third quarter, compared to last year’s Q3.
In addition to a significant decrease in political advertising, the company also experienced a drop in total spot revenue. Belo took in $2.1 million in political advertising in the third quarter, compared to $11.2 million for the same period last year. And total spot revenue, excluding political, was down 2% for the quarter with local spot revenue flat and national down 5%.
The company, which just reached a new retrans agreement with DirecTV after weeks of high-stakes negotiations, announced that retrans revenue was flat in the third quarter.
Finding a silver lining, Belo reported that automotive advertising was up 7% in the month of September and the company sees continued momentum going into the fourth quarter.