LOS ANGELES — Every Saturday at 10am, listeners to iHeartMedia-owned conservative Talker KEIB-AM 1150 “The Patriot” can gain a greater sense of investment opportunities in the energy sector by tuning to “The Smart Oil & Gas Radio Show.”
The program has also been heard on iHeart’s KTRH-AM 740 in Houston, on radio stations owned by iHeartMedia, Emmis Communications, and on SiriusXM Satellite Radio. The central figure behind the show happens to be barred by FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, from acting as a broker or otherwise associating with a broker-dealer firm.
This explains why a group of plaintiffs have sued the four audio media companies in a Dallas Federal District Court, arguing that they should be held liable, in some way, for airing programming tied to “a known fraud recidivist.”
“The Smart Oil & Gas Radio Show” is linked to Mark Allan Plummer.
And, in the eyes of FINRA and many investors, including the group filing suit against iHeart, Audacy, Emmis and SiriusXM, he’s bad news.
The lawsuit, filed November 19, takes aim at the owners of radio stations that made “the knowing, reckless, and voluntary choice to provide a platform on their radio airwaves” to Plummer.
For the companies, the legal question is whether or not they should be held liable for financial advise presented on a radio program they air through a syndication agreement.
The group of plaintiffs say yes, even if Plummer is not an employee and has no control over the content — aside from airing it or not.
“Because of Defendants’ choice to broadcast Plummer and provide him with a public platform to spew fraud, ordinary individuals like the Plaintiffs here listened to Plummer’s
radio show and invested millions of dollars with Plummer and his cronies for purported oil and gas opportunities,” attorneys Rebecca Gibson, Kodie Bennion and Joel Bailey of Hedrick Kring state. “Plaintiffs lost all of their investments.”
Oftentimes, a radio station will air a disclaimer before and/or after a program noting that it is not responsible for the content of a program it airs — especially if its paid programming. In this case, the plaintiff group says Audacy, iHeartMedia, Emmis and SiriusXM each “buried their head in the sand” by ignoring the FINRA punishment and similar sanctions from the SEC and the Texas Securities Commissioner over a nearly 10-year period.
The investigations of Plummer date to 2012; his program dates to at least 2015. “[T]he Radio Stations turned a blind eye and continued renewing their contract with Plummer year after year,” the attorneys write.
Among those who suffered financial losses based on Plummer’s advice is Brenda M. Reinhart. Through her LLC, she invested $140,000 in the Emilio Barrera Jr.-led Petroleum Resources of Texas (PRT) after listening to Plummer’s radio show on Audacy-owned KRLD-AM in Dallas. In or around December 2017, after working as a salesperson for two of Plummer’s now defunct oil and gas companies, Barrera acquired PRT to use as a vehicle to raise money for oil and gas projects.
Smart Oil & Gas has been acting as a sales agent for PRT.
In Austin, M. Leslie Boyd invested $70,000 after listening to Plummer’s radio show on KLBJ-AM, then-majority owned by Emmis Communications and today owned by Waterloo Media.
Then, there is Michael DeJohn, who tuned to “The Patriot” and invested $35,000 after listening to Plummer’s radio show on SiriusXM’s Fox Business Channel, 77ABC podcasts (tied to the John Catsimatidis-owned WABC, whose Red Apple Media is not named in the lawsuit), and KEIB. Charles A. Allison made a similar investment, valued at $100,000, after listening to Plummer’s radio show on an unnamed SiriusXM channel — likely Fox Business Channel.
In Houston, TME Investments listened to “The Smart Oil & Gas Radio Show” on KTRH and, based on what it heard, invested $478,000 in “PRT” in connection with not one, but two wells.
Some 27 plaintiffs are suing the audio media companies.
But, should they be targeting their fight against Plummer, who their attorneys describe as “a licensed petroleum engineer who has been involved in a series of failed companies and investments related to oil and gas ventures?”
That’s now up to a Texas Federal court, which is being asked to consider a count of Aiding and Abetting a Violation of the Texas Securities Act; Negligent Misrepresentation; Civil Conspiracy; Assisting and Encouraging; and Violations of the The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or “RICO.”
Then, there’s a claim of “Unjust Enrichment.” According to the attorneys, “It would be unconscionable for Radio Station Defendants to retain the advertising revenue from the ‘Smart Oil and Gas Show’ in light of the fraudulent activity that it facilitated, which caused Plaintiffs severe financial loss.”
The attorneys seek a jury trial, with each of the media companies responsible for damages and attorneys’ fees.
