Citadel Broadcasting Corp., the third-largest radio broadcasting company in the U.S., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Sunday in an effort to restructure its hefty debt load.

In documents filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, Las Vegas-based Citadel listed total assets at Oct. 30 of $1.4-billion (U.S.) and total debt of $2.46-billion.

Citadel owns and operates 224 radio stations and produces news and talk radio programming for 4,000 station affiliates and 8,500 program affiliates.

The company’s largest shareholder, with a nearly 29 per cent stake, is private equity firm Forstmann Little & Co. Creditors of some of its largest unsecured claims are: JPMorgan Chase Bank NA, whose claim was listed in the filing as “unknown,” Wilmington Trust Co. with a $49.2-million claim and The Walt Disney Co. with an $11.2-million claim.