Clear Channel has everyone guessing
Will the 26.7 billion bucks buyout close next week, or won’t it? Rumors are flying that some of the lenders want out. But Thomas...
Political hot in Indiana, North Carolina and Wisconsin
Weekly tracking by Vic Miller and his team at Bear Stearns credits the jump in political ad spending for the week of March 16th...
Spitzer story makes mega-splash
Gee, do you suppose the story of a well-known governor being caught up in a prostitution scandal would move the meter in the weekly measurement of media coverage by the Project for Excellence in Journalism?
Clear Channel tender pushed back
It now looks like closing of the deal to take Clear Channel Communications private won’t be this week. The company’s bond tender, which had...
Gores Group invests more in WW1
Westwood One announced that Gores Group has closed the second tranche of its investment in WW1. It bought an additional 7,142,857 shares of WW1...
They sure look local
After seeing the FCC’s latest tally of broadcast stations this reader was puzzled by the Commission’s current hand-wringing over localism.Amazing, isn’t it? 29,593 broadcast...
Down month for Journal
February was a down month across the board for Journal Communications. Radio revenues were down 11.5% to 5.17 million and television was down 2%...
Clock ticking for Interep
A blog item on adrants.com prompted our interest yesterday. It recounted word from a “tipster” that Interep would be filing bankruptcy within the next month. Knowing that Interep’s 99 million bucks in outstanding bonds aren’t due until July 1, we at RBR/TVBR put in calls to Interep executives.
Election coverage pledge from Journal Broadcast Group
It’s not like the Journal Broadcast Group hasn’t been heavily into election coverage before, but the company is making a detailed commitment this year...
No Florida primary do-over
Broadcasters in Florida won’t be getting a windfall from a new Democratic presidential primary. State party officials have dropped the idea of a mail-in...
Just how many stations are there, anyway?
If you’d been wondering just how many radio and TV stations the FCC has under license, we have the answer for you.
March Madness goes multi-platform
CBS is making use of its portfolio of outlets for coverage of the NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament. This is cross marketing at its best.
New York Times Co. settles with dissidents
Rather than fight with the Harbinger hedge fund, officials of The New York Times Company decided to meet with the dissident shareholder and try...
SBS into the movie biz
Spanish Broadcasting System announced the incorporation of its wholly-owned film subsidiary, Megafilms. SBS says the new unit will produce Spanish-language filmed content including full-length...
Supreme Court to hear Fox indecency case
The US Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether the FCC has the authority to fine broadcasters for “fleeting expletives,” taking up the Commission’s...