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BREAKING NEWS: AAR Sold to New Buyer - Announcement Coming Today

D

dampier

AAR has been sold to a new buyer, according to network officials.

Air America Radio will be continuing forward with its left-leaning talk show lineup after the sale is complete.

The network has not yet divulged the buyer.
 
Maloney mentions the French family, Kreeger, etc. though some on this board doubt his veracity. As of
right now I can't connect to either AAR or AAPlace site--either too busy or being changed in some way
(perhaps to reflect the breaking story).
 
Phillip Dampier said:
AAR has been sold to a new buyer, according to network officials.

Air America Radio will be continuing forward with its left-leaning talk show lineup after the sale is complete.

The network has not yet divulged the buyer.
Click to expand...

I've seen the articles about a pending sale (NYT, Newsweek, AP, Madison newspapers), but I've really seen nothing about any announcement today.

Where did you get that information?
 
Here's the Madison, WI newspaper articles regarding Terry Kelly:

[url]http://www.madison.com/tct/news/stories/index.php?ntid=11162 9[/url]

Air America might get local hand

Kelly reportedly is financial backer

By Judith Davidoff
The Capital Times
Published: December 18, 2006

[quote title=Quote:]The New York Times reported today that local entrepreneur Terry Kelly is going to be the main financial backer in an attempt to revive Air America, the liberal news network that recently filed for bankruptcy.

The article also noted that the investor group included a new partner, but Kelly declined to name the partner.

Kelly, a Democratic Party activist and one of the original investors in Air America, did not return phone calls from The Capital Times seeking comment this morning. He is also the founder of Weather Central. ...[/quote]

[Click link above for the complete newspaper article.]


[url]http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/entertainment/index.php?ntid =111582&ntpid=1[/url]

MON., DEC 18, 2006 - 10:00 AM

New owner for Air America?

State Journal staff, New York Times

[quote title=Quote:]Air America Radio may be in the hands of a new owner soon, with the potential to lift the company out of financial woes that have plagued the progressive talk network.

Terry Kelly, a Madison businessman and investor in Air America, said he hopes new financial backing will prevent Clear Channel Radio from changing Madison's Air America station, WXXM-FM (92.1), The Mic, to an all sports format, which is planned for Jan. 1.

A potential partner signed a "letter of intent" to take over the network. Kelly, a former board chairman of the network who will "lead the way in finding the appropriate new equity investments," said the investor group includes a new media partner, but he declined to name it. ...[/quote]

[Click link above for the complete newspaper article.]
 
Air America Radio will be continuing forward with its left-leaning talk show lineup after the sale is complete
Click to expand...

That may or may not be. The Bankruptcy Court doesn't care one way or the other, and neither does the creditors committee. The important thing was that someone was willing to purchase the assets of the company and assure that there would be some return for the secured and unsecured creditors.

What the owner does afterward is his own business. I'm not entirely sure they could condition a certain business model as part of the Chapter 11 estate sale. Remember, the important thing was that the assets were sold and the re-organization continues, for the benefit of the creditors.

That is issue #1--the creditors. This has stopped being about any format or its success or an political ideology/party. This a bankrupt estate, and its efforts are for the creditors.
 
Okay, Here are rumored buyers with the source of the rumor.

Richard French, RNN TV, Source-Brian Baloney
Mark Greenberg, Showtime, Source-Brian Baloney
Roy Langbord, Showtime, Source-Brian Baloney
Terrence Kelly, AAR investor, NY Times
Doug Kreeger, AAR investor and former CEO Source-NY Times
George Soros, billionaire, Source-NY Times

Who's crazy enough to buy AAR?
 
I read somewhere that Richard French, who currently owns WRNN (the former WTZA) in upstate NY, might be buying Air America. French currently hosts a nightly evening show on the TV "network" and would likely schedule himself on an AAR show.
 
Actually, Richard French, Jr. is the owner of RNN and chief money-man of the clan... Richard French III is the one who is on the air most of the time on RNN...

Other members of the family have had some association with the cable news network at one time or another.
 
Actually, Richard French, Jr. is the owner of RNN and chief money-man of the clan...

Does it really matter who is going to bail out Air America as a vanity-press operation? Whether it's daddy buying an outlet for his son, or someone buying his own personal broadcast toy, it still boils down to the only way Air America has any chance of surviving is if some Charles Foster Kane decides it would be a fun hobby to play with, or some new liberal true believer is willing to throw his money into the propaganda project that the former true believers couldn't afford any more.
 
Radio_Realist said:
Actually, Richard French, Jr. is the owner of RNN and chief money-man of the clan...

Does it really matter who is going to bail out Air America as a vanity-press operation? Whether it's daddy buying an outlet for his son, or someone buying his own personal broadcast toy, it still boils down to the only way Air America has any chance of surviving is if some Charles Foster Kane decides it would be a fun hobby to play with, or some new liberal true believer is willing to throw his money into the propaganda project that the former true believers couldn't afford any more.
Click to expand...

...That's why Dick French bought RNN
 
Actually, there is a business strategy behind the French's decision to buy Air America Radio. They already own WRNN-TV which offers a regional news outlet in the New York market. By buying AAR they can now provide programming on AAR's New York affiliate WWRL which will enable them to cross-promote with their TV news service.
 
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