• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, January 16, 2009

In the coming week, Clear Channel Communications will begin a sweeping restructuring with the goal of cutting $400 million in costs.

The plan entails layoffs at the media giant's radio and outdoor advertising divisions, including its international outdoor ad operations, although it is unclear exactly how many positions will be affected. Clear Channel will also slash programming budgets and back-office expenses.

The news was first reported by the New York Post on Friday.

According to this report, Clear Channel Radio will probably adopt a system of "national programming" to reduce dependence on local staffs at its network of about 1,000 radio stations. This fits with President and CEO John Hogan's decision this past summer to bring back the position of senior vice president of programming, working alongside sales executives with responsibility for specific regions.

In July, Brad Hardin, Darren Davis, and Clay Hunnicutt were appointed to the revived position, overseeing different regions of the country.

The restructuring comes at the behest of Clear Channel's new corporate owners, Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital Partners, two private-equity firms which joined forces to take Clear Channel private in a $17.9 billion deal last year.

While the economic downturn is partly to blame, an unnamed source quoted by the Post indicated that the restructuring also aims to eliminate areas of inefficiency left over from the company's rapid expansion in the 1980s and 1990s.