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WHAM SOLD!!!

WSYR, WETM etc. Too!!!

dustintv said:
Clear Channel has sold all of its TV stations including WHAM to a private equity firm:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070420/tc_nm/clearchannel_takeover_dc_8

Is WHAM-AM up for sell too with the other radio stations CC is selling off, or shall WHAM 13 return to be WOKR? Will they continue their lead, or are they in a position to be mishandled?
Click to expand...

I should have also mentioned that this also includes other NY stations owned by Clear Channel too. See what happens with all the talk deals with Rochester and the problems at WROC?

Here's the full list of Clear Channel's Empire State stations being sold:

Albany-WXXA
Rochester-WHAM, CW-WHAM
Syracuse-WSYR
Binghamton-WIVT, WBGH-CA
Elmira-WETM, WTTX-LP
Watertown-WWTI, WBWT

Looks like they owned a station in every market except in New York, Buffalo, Plattsburgh, and Utica.
 
Re: WSYR, WETM etc. Too!!!

dustintv said:
dustintv said:
Clear Channel has sold all of its TV stations including WHAM to a private equity firm:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070420/tc_nm/clearchannel_takeover_dc_8

Is WHAM-AM up for sell too with the other radio stations CC is selling off, or shall WHAM 13 return to be WOKR? Will they continue their lead, or are they in a position to be mishandled?
Click to expand...

I should have also mentioned that this also includes other NY stations owned by Clear Channel too. See what happens with all the talk deals with Rochester and the problems at WROC?

Here's the full list of Clear Channel's Empire State stations being sold:

Albany-WXXA
Rochester-WHAM, CW-WHAM
Syracuse-WSYR
Binghamton-WIVT, WBGH-CA
Elmira-WETM, WTTX-LP
Watertown-WWTI, WBWT

Looks like they owned a station in every market except in New York, Buffalo, Plattsburgh, and Utica.
Click to expand...


Clear Channel used to own WUTR in Utica, but sold it a few years ago to Nexstar....which was ironically one of the top bidders to buy the Clear Channel TV group.

If that had happened, WHAM and WROC would have likely become a virtual duopoly (I'm sure one of the stations would be spun off to Mission Broadcasting). Who knows what would have happened with the JOA with Sinclair's WUHF.
 
Re: WSYR, WETM etc. Too!!!

Stitch said:
Nexstar....which was ironically one of the top bidders to buy the Clear Channel TV group.
If that had happened, WHAM and WROC would have likely become a virtual duopoly (I'm sure one of the stations would be spun off to Mission Broadcasting). Who knows what would have happened with the JOA with Sinclair's WUHF.
Click to expand...

Ironic isn't it that Nexstar, one of the cheapest broadcasting companies on planet Earth, wanted to spend billions to purchase Clear Channel TV stations? Can you imagine if Nexstar owned Channel 13? They will first come in and replace the management. Then they would check out how much each reporter and off-air person makes then proceed to rework that person's contract so that they would make less money, or just not renew contracts. ( Rachel Barnhart would have a stroke if Nexstar was the new owner). As for the on-air anchors, they would leave Alhart alone but the rest of them would be open targets. And forget about the current system 13 has of having on-air replacements ready for the future. That policy would be tossed out the window. The people at 13 are very fortunate that Nexstar didn't buy them. I mean just look at what Nexstar has done to WROC/WUHF and you can see why the people at WHAM TV dodged the bullet. On the other side of the coin we have no idea what the new owners of Channel 13 are like either.
 
The name of the new company is Providence Equity Partners. They seem to have holdings in dozens of cable, TV, cell phone and other communications companies. Included among the list, they are the largest shareholder in MGM and a co-founder of the YES Network.

Company website:
http://www.provequity.com/

I didn't read every single description on the portfolio page, but it looks like in most cases, they have stakes in these companies, but I didn't notice them owning anything outright. ClearChannel TV could be the first entity this company has complete control over.

Being privately owned, you wonder if they will just own the company and reap the profits, or if they will make CCTV a public company (of which it retains majority ownership). Of course, PEP won't even have the deeds in hand until the end of the year, so it could be awhile before we hear what they've got planned. Hopefully they won't end up making us all wish Nexstar really won the bid!
 
Hey TV watchers,

You may want to do some homework before gossiping about Rochester TV ownership!

The man picked to head up the new chain that just bought Clear Channel is named Sandy DiPasquale.

Those truly tuned into the tv biz in western New York, are very familiar with him.

He headed up stations in Buffalo and Rochester.

DiPasquale was behind Sunrise Television, the company that owned WROC before Nexstar.

It's DiPasquale who gutted WROC. He was behind the axing of dozens of employees. Top Management was shown the door the day Sunrise took over, live truck operators were cut in favor of photographers running the trucks, and top anchors were sent packing.

While many of you speculating TV fans like to blame Nexstar for the pennypinching, you have no idea what you are talking about!!!! By the time Perry took over there was no meat on them Humboldt St. bones, after Sunrise canabalized the place.

Sunrise also cut out all promotions and prevented news staff from making public appearances, saying it was not an important part of it's plan.

While the ClearChannel sale affects 50 plus stations, you can be sure the New York stations, especially the upstate ones, will get extra special attention, from the boss...god help you all

For those of you WROC'ers who survived the mid 90's Sunrise purge...have fun watching the show
 
SNOOZENEWS said:
Hey TV watchers,

You may want to do some homework before gossiping about Rochester TV ownership!

The man picked to head up the new chain that just bought Clear Channel is named Sandy DiPasquale.

Those truly tuned into the tv biz in western New York, are very familiar with him.

He headed up stations in Buffalo and Rochester.

DiPasquale was behind Sunrise Television, the company that owned WROC before Nexstar.

It's DiPasquale who gutted WROC. He was behind the axing of dozens of employees. Top Management was shown the door the day Sunrise took over, live truck operators were cut in favor of photographers running the trucks, and top anchors were sent packing.

While many of you speculating TV fans like to blame Nexstar for the pennypinching, you have no idea what you are talking about!!!! By the time Perry took over there was no meat on them Humboldt St. bones, after Sunrise canabalized the place.

Sunrise also cut out all promotions and prevented news staff from making public appearances, saying it was not an important part of it's plan.

While the ClearChannel sale affects 50 plus stations, you can be sure the New York stations, especially the upstate ones, will get extra special attention, from the boss...god help you all

For those of you WROC'ers who survived the mid 90's Sunrise purge...have fun watching the show
Click to expand...



Oh yes I remember what happened at 8 back in the 90s and all I can say is that if this is the same person who chopped off heads back then the people at Channel 13 better be prepared for some dark days ahead.

Yet it would really surprise me if someone came in and decided to upset the apple cart at 13, which has been a stable organization for years, just to save a few bucks. But then again look at the state of broadcasting today.
 
SNOOZENEWS said:
The man picked to head up the new chain that just bought Clear Channel is named Sandy DiPasquale.
It's DiPasquale who gutted WROC. He was behind the axing of dozens of employees. Top Management was shown the door the day Sunrise took over, live truck operators were cut in favor of photographers running the trucks, and top anchors were sent packing.

While many of you speculating TV fans like to blame Nexstar for the pennypinching, you have no idea what you are talking about!!!! By the time Perry took over there was no meat on them Humboldt St. bones, after Sunrise canabalized the place.

Sunrise also cut out all promotions and prevented news staff from making public appearances, saying it was not an important part of it's plan.

While the ClearChannel sale affects 50 plus stations, you can be sure the New York stations, especially the upstate ones, will get extra special attention, from the boss...god help you all

For those of you WROC'ers who survived the mid 90's Sunrise purge...have fun watching the show
Click to expand...

I bet that bit of information is welcomed news to the staff at Channel 13. :eek:
 
For those of you WROC'ers who survived the mid 90's Sunrise purge...have fun watching the show
Click to expand...

As one of those people who survived the 90's purge, I am truly, truly concerned for the folks at 13 if this is true. Smith/Sunrise decimated Channel 8. In fact, when John Purcell was the GM, he held a station meeting in the studio. So here we were, all the employees, standing room only and in walks Purcell. The first words out of his mouth was this, and I will never forget them for as long as I live, "I'm John Purcell. Take a good look around you, because by the end of the year half of you will be gone." Nice huh? That's how he opened up the meeting. By noon that day there was a line out the door at the post office on S. Winton across from Tops Markets from people sending out their resume tapes. It was one of the darkest days in Ch 8 history. If you think I'm being overly dramatic, I'm not.
 
A GM named John Purcell...that sounds really familiar. Any chances anyone knows how long he lasted and where he is now?
 
I just want Binghamton's WIVT (ABC) & low power/cable sister WBGH (NBC)... who share studio and news, as NewsChannel 34 to bring back SPORTS and their 11pm newscast... a 5 minute weather and headlines segment at 11pm is not good tv.
 
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