• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, March 2, 2012

NBC News and Dial Global are partnering to create NBC News Radio, a round-the-clock radio news network with national distribution courtesy of Dial, which provides programming and services to over 8,500 radio stations nationwide.

The network will carry live, breaking news from NBC and MSNBC, as well as reports from NBC News reporters, including NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams, David Gregory, host of "Meet the Press," "Today" co-anchor Ann Curry, "NBC Nightly News" weekend anchor Lester Holt, NBC News political director and Chief White House correspondent Chuck Todd, chief Pentagon correspondent Jim Miklaszewski, chief foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell, chief Justice Department correspondent Pete Williams and senior investigative correspondent Lisa Myers.

Dial Global already distributes NBC News content through its CNBC Business Radio offering, including hourly one-minute weekday business reports, weekend feature vignettes, simulcasts of CNBC’s opening and closing bell stock market reports and excerpts from CNBC interviews.

Dial also has distribution agreements for CBS Radio News and CNN Radio. Dial Global will stop distributing CNN Radio twice-per-hour newscasts April 1, the day that it starts carrying NBC.

This is the latest in a series of strategic moves by Dial Global, which merged with rival Westwood One in August of last year, bringing together complementary portfolios of sports, talk, news, and entertainment programming. The merger followed Westwood’s sale of its traffic division to Clear Channel in April.

NBC News is also looking to raise its profile. In October, Brian Williams introduced “Rock Center,” a TV news magazine with contributors including Ted Koppel, Meredith Vieira and Chelsea Clinton, among others. The program airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m.