HEY CITADEL BASHERS: HERE'S ONE FOR YOU...

[TheBigA]

Says the guy with one of the highest "posts per day" rates on Radio-Info.com. For somebody who thinks that posting on message boards is pointless, you do an AWFUL lot of it.

So what? What does that have to do with the issue?

You don't seriously think that the radio industry trades don't troll Radio-Info for leads, do you?

Do you not understand that we're not talking about reality TV, where people vote those they don't like off the show. This is real life. If you are an employee of a company, and that company screwed you, you are not going to get anywhere by complaining in message boards. It's not a popularity contest, and I think Farid is a big boy and knows he's not going to be elected Mr. Popularity. He doesn't care, and isn't seeking your vote. Unless that's the game we're playing, it doesn't matter. He runs the company. Until he's convicted of a crime, or voted out by his Board, he's going to stay there, regardless of what you, anyone on this board, the trade press, or the financial community think.

Smart investors don't make decisions with their money based on hearsay or complaints by people on message boards who are unwilling to file public charges in a court of law. The absolute BIGGEST reason why someone shouldn't invest in this company is because it's part of an industry that is not growing. That industry includes TV, cable, movies, books, newspapers, recordings, and any content-based company. They are ALL bad investments, regardless of who's running them.

And regardless of whether or not anyone invests in Citadel, it will have no effect on Farid keeping his job.

 

[JustPastBuffalo]

As a former Citadel Buffalo employee, I've been watching this thread carefully. I'll step carefully here. The Financial Times offers its perspective on this matter. Has anyone given any thought to the possibility that some present or past Citadel employees may have consulted counsel? Instead of throwing pejorative accusations like "grow a pair" around, it might be worth considering that it's not so much a matter of testosterone as it is a matter of financial resources. Very few former employees of any company, whether it's Clear Channel, Bank of America, Wal-Mart or Citadel, have the resources that R2 Investments, a heavy-hitting hedge fund, possesses. Last I checked, an experienced corporate litigation firm charges about $300 an hour. There would be hours of depositions and filings. I'd ballpark at least $5 thousand before an employee's case reached the courtroom. Most former or present employees use that kind of money to pay the rent and put food on the table. Just my 'bucktree80.'

 

[TheBigA]

Has anyone given any thought to the possibility that some present or past Citadel employees may have consulted counsel?

I would hope so. The best way to do those things is as a group, perhaps with a lawyer who will work on a percentage. There are ways to go about it that don't eat up personal funds. I know a lot of folks who are claiming losses in the company match of their 401K. But that's not much of a case. I also know a lot of disgruntled former ABC Radio employees who felt wronged by the way things went. But once again, not much of a case. Sure, the company has made a lot of enemies. Class action lawsuit? The question is: How much of a judgement will they get? Probably not much. That's why they don't pursue it. The only case that has a chance is one has proof that the company broke a law. The company lawyers already anticipated employee lawsuits, and covered their behinds. A long time ago, all of these companies required employees sign "at will" statements. That pretty much ended the days of benevolent employers. If you signed one, you basically signed away your rights.

Regardless, my point is that a former employee won't get justice in message groups.

 

[SirRoxalot]

You apparently don't think that public pressure and a company's perception has any effect on the board, or the company's revenue. When a guy like Mickey Luckoff calls Citadel management into question, it gets attention. Shareholders start looking for other examples of poor management, and Google brings to a hotbed of discontent. That can certainly create an atmosphere where there could not only be pressure on the board, but it could affect revenue.

Farid would like to believe that all selling is done by the numbers, but it just isn't so - especially for local business outside of the top 10-15 markets. Local business is 80% of the radio business. Word gets around to advertisers that they're doing business with "not very good people", and they may not spend as much, or at all if the CPP is close.

Most radio people aren't going to take on corporate in court because the odds of winning are long, the cost of litigation is high, and it's likely to be career suicide. Corporate lawyers make a living stringing out lawsuits until litigants run out of money and/or will. And getting radio people to get a group together is akin to herding cats. Most people in this business are individualists, not joiners.

So, they use the tools that serve them best - the power of persuasion - and utilize technology that's difficult to control or censor, a/k/a the Internet. If you were so sure that they wouldn't be noticed, you wouldn't be on here trying to hard to dissuade people from speaking their piece. You are quite transparently a corporate shill, but even you must have a bad taste in your mouth when it comes to Farid.

 

[TheBigA]

You apparently don't think that public pressure and a company's perception has any effect on the board, or the company's revenue.

Hate to point this out, but there's really no public pressure. One very senior, highly paid, former ABC GM resigned. If the bankruptcy court were to consider it, purely on the numbers, they'd applaud his move. Had he not resigned in a huff, you'd lump him in with all the other suits you despise.

Let me remind you that complaining about Citadel didn't start last month, or last year. It's been going on for years. It continued through bankruptcy, and the company's return. It hasn't stopped. And what effect has it had? Please tell me. Who paid the price for Citadel's bankruptcy? Who walked the plank?

If you were so sure that they wouldn't be noticed, you wouldn't be on here trying to hard to dissuade people from speaking their piece. You are quite transparently a corporate shill, but even you must have a bad taste in your mouth when it comes to Farid.

And once again you have an incredible imagination. Keep pissing in the wind. Keep tilting at windmills. Be my guest. All I'm saying is it's a tremendous waste of time. There's a big difference between "speaking their piece" and expecting results. I'm in the results business. You'd be better off spending all this time and energy starting your own company, and kicking Farid's ass in the marketplace, since it's obviously so easy to do. Keep coming up with excuses why you should let people you consider crooks off the hook. Your fear of failure is exactly what they're counting on, and why they're able to screw people every day.

 

[SirRoxalot]

For someone who considers posting on discussion boards "a tremendous waste of time", you spend more time on here than any other poster short of David Eduardo - and certainly more than any regular on the Buffalo board. If you're in the "results business", your "results" must be tied to the time you spend here, which means that you're a paid corporate shill.

The alternative is that you like hanging around on message boards, which, according to you, "is like masturbating and saying it's just like making love." Now, either you're getting paid to be here, or onanism is high on your priority list.

 

[TheBigA]

For someone who considers posting on discussion boards "a tremendous waste of time", you spend more time on here than any other poster short of David Eduardo

So I like to my waste time. That's my choice. Big deal.

You and others think posting in message boards is a way of affecting change or hurting Citadel. And you're not. That's the difference. If you truely want to make a change, this isn't the way to do it. The idea that I'm getting paid to post once again implies that posting on message boards has value. That is your opinion. You put a value on it. I don't. It's very obvious in looking at broadcasting over the past 5 years that posting on message boards has had absolutely no effect on the people in power. I accept that.

 

[intheeno]

Rox its like calling the kettle black....you've got over 1000 more posts than he or her. Get off your horse.

 

[SirRoxalot]

Rox its like calling the kettle black....you've got over 1000 more posts than he or her. Get off your horse.

Yeah, but I've been a member a lot longer. Look at the posts per day. I'm not even close.

 

[John C]

John C, don't bother looking for actual facts. Big A has shown time and time again when anyone rises to his challenge and proves him wrong, he finds a way to either change the context, discredit the source or just simply weasels out of it.

Review his posts from the past and you'll see this guy spends most of his time arguing with posts made by others.

He's aptly chosen the handle, "Big A" - because that's what he is.

Well said, Yogoidar. I won't waste any more time on this thread.