Sinclair...Again

[GoldenShine9 1513]

Not that it matters too much when WMAZ absolutely crushes everyone else in the market...but that puts SBG over 39.0% though?

[TVIntheDesert 183]

A couple days late, but Harry Jessell of TVNewsCheck used his Friday editorial to ask why his man-crush David Smith isn't on the board of the NAB.

[effseesee 101]

 

I'm telling you this is going on for while now. We're coming towards the ninth month of this wait (one month longer than the Barrington wait). Of course this is Sincrap we're talking about. And as I said before, they would do anything to keep the stations up in their fold. I'm shocked they got some sense to say that they're divesting WHP, but not after they proposed to swap the transmitters. And going back to Birmingham, I know they said that WBMA is treated as "one station", but I thought they said that WCFT & WJSU is treated as an "Enhanced Coverage Duopoly"? That why Mumblow was proposed to get both WABM & WTTO. I'm thinking that if the FCC allows the JSA waivers to happen in this case for WMMP & WABM, then I wouldn't be too shocked if they attempt to reassign some of the incumbent JSA markets that Anderson & Mumblow have, and turn them into HSH stations.

 

But I'm still shocked that the DOJ haven't shotdown this deal already, like they did with the proposed Carma deal six years ago. And if the DOJ don't do anything, let it sit idle until the July 27 date, Robert can call Hearst up, they'll acquire it, and Hearst would find a indie buyer for WHTM, and boom problem solved.

 

But with all of these entaglements with the Allbritton and the three other deals (New Age, WPFO & KRNV/KENV) which is still waiting for the greenlight, you would think that they would slow the hell down. Well....

 

Based on tonight's paperwork, guess who's buying WGXA from Frontier for $33M???!!!!

 

Are they going to pick up KPVI when Frontier closes that sale?

[CircleSeven 1955]

 

Are they going to pick up KPVI when Frontier closes that sale?

 

I doubt they'll do that. But you've seen recently, Frontier have re-sold stations to Gray in the western part of the U.S. And Frontier received FCC approval on three more stations in the west (KVIQ, KXTF & KPVI). I'm puzzled as the whether Frontier is going to either keep those properties, or resell them to another buyer in the future.

 

And since those previous actions, I would've thought Gray would be a better fit for WGXA, not Sincrap. But then since their successful acquisition with Barrington, and since they do own that Albany, GA station, they probably want to expand that footprint in that part of Georgia.

[tyrannical bastard 3951]

As if Sinclair pulling WNWO from BuckeyeCableSystem and blowing up their management was not enough.....

 

It looks like we have a new logo...that can be seen on northwestohio.com

It's on "The Voice" ad on the right of the page

 

how much longer before the blue button gets retired?

 

IMHO, i'm having horrible flashbacks of Newport's "overhaul" of WPTY....the "24" is virtually identical, minus the circle and the kerning is closer on WNWO's version.

[sanewsguy 511]

Took me awhile to find it because I have Ad-Block on.

 

It's tolerable, I guess. Better than that blue button.

[channel2 979]

That "24" looks like it's from the 1970s...they could have done worse, though.

[NEOMatrix 1299]

Took me awhile to find it because I have Ad-Block on.

 

It's tolerable, I guess. Better than that blue button.

I wouldn't exactly call WNWO or NBC great TV. Sinclair should just cut its losses and make up with Buckeye because there is no way in hell they're getting $2.00/mo per subscriber for a dead last station.

[Rusty Muck 4374]

I wouldn't exactly call WNWO or NBC great TV. Sinclair should just cut its losses and make up with Buckeye because there is no way in hell they're getting $2.00/mo per subscriber for a dead last station.

S!nclair should, but they won't. A lot of ego massaging at play here, plus I don't think they bothered to realize that they don't have, and will never have, leverage as the fourth station in a three-station market. Buckeye holds ALL the cards.

 

Their petty fight with Buckeye will likely last for a year or two, or until NBC becomes the #1 ranked broadcast network (and that may not happen for years).

[Rusty Muck 4374]

That "24" looks like it's from the 1970s...they could have done worse, though.

The sad thing is, sanewsguy's current avatar was used as WNWO's logo from late 1979 until 1995.

[tyrannical bastard 3951]

Thanks sanewsguy for posting the ad....I tried to copy the image from the website, but the forum settings prevented me from doing so....

 

It's too bad that the discussions on "cursed" tv stations and markets disappeared (found it....thanks bammy9!), because THIS station and THIS market is damned for all eternity!

 

The brightest spot in the station's history was ABC buying WTVG, forcing WNWO to pick up NBC, at a time when they ruled the ratings. Malrite was big on expanding the news product too, coming fresh off of turning WUAB's news department into "Cleveland Television News" so WOIO could enter the news game with their new CBS affiliation.

 

As said before, Toledo's proximity to Detroit and other markets have really made the going difficult for WNWO. They signed on as the flagship of the long-forgotten "United" network which only lasted a month, and it took several years to wrangle away ABC from both WTOL and WTVG which shoehorned programs on to their schedules, leaving the leftovers for WDHO (their original call letters). The station performed so poorly that it was almost repossessed by creditors, and was ultimately seized by the Bank of Boston in the 80s. They sold to local owners, who changed the call letters to WNWO. The local owners sold out to Malrite, which merged with Raycom, resulting in the SECOND station Raycom owned in Toledo since they owned WUPW at the time. The Liberty merger forced WNWO to be sold again to Barrington, making WTOL the THIRD station owned by Raycom.

 

Being only a week after Sinclair blew up the ENTIRE management team, I would imagine things are a mess. And with so many stations to control, things like this are going to keep happening because there's only so many people to call the shots and keep things consistent.

 

WTWC in Tallahassee looks to have an identity crisis of their own. They have their old "NBC 40" logo and on their facebook page (with a paltry 259 likes) has a "nbc forty" logo. This has been going on for quite a while now.....

 

Perhaps we'll see some changes soon....but these stations are seemingly at the bottom of a very long list as Sinclair clearly has some bigger fish to fry up the corporate chain......

[bammy9 26]

It's too bad that the discussions on "cursed" tv stations and markets disappeared, because THIS station and THIS market is damned for all eternity!

It didn't disappear. It's in the "It Came From the D Block" section.

[NewsMaster 226]

I bet WEYI is just as bad as WNWO, if not worse. WJRT dominates that market and WNEM is a distant but solid second.

[CircleSeven 1955]

I bet WEYI is just as bad as WNWO, if not worse. WJRT dominates that market and WNEM is a distant but solid second.

I thought WNEM was the bread and butter of the market?

[NewsMaster 226]

 

I thought WNEM was the bread and butter of the market?

 

I always thought it was WJRT by a long shot but I could be mistaken...

[Rusty Muck 4374]

I bet WEYI is just as bad as WNWO, if not worse. WJRT dominates that market and WNEM is a distant but solid second.

I thought WNEM was the bread and butter of the market?

I always thought it was WJRT by a long shot but I could be mistaken...

In any event, WEYI is basically the third station in a two-station market, and that obviously would date back to the stigma of having been the lone UHF 'big three' affiliate in a market with two VHF stations.

 

But WNWO has arguably had it much, much worse due to 1.) their troubled and tumultuous history, Overmayer Network notwithstanding, 2.) the market being so close to Detroit, where either WXYZ (during their ABC affiliation days) or WDIV (since they became an NBC affil) were and are easy OTA options, and 3.) WTOL and WTVG's utter domination of the market.

[tyrannical bastard 3951]

This Block/Sinclair retrans debacle is getting close to being the longest one on record between a station and a cable/satellite provider, not counting fights to get a station on the system itself.

 

Is it too far fetched to think the only way out of this is for Sinclair to purchase Buckeye Cable, or Block itself?

 

Doing so would have lots of conflicts, especially with the Toledo Blade and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, as well as with WAND in Decatur, IL and KTRV in Nampa, ID.

[Mrtraveler01 738]

 

This Block/Sinclair retrans debacle is getting close to being the longest one on record between a station and a cable/satellite provider, not counting fights to get a station on the system itself.

 

Is it too far fetched to think the only way out of this is for Sinclair to purchase Buckeye Cable, or Block itself?

 

Doing so would have lots of conflicts, especially with the Toledo Blade and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, as well as with WAND in Decatur, IL and KTRV in Nampa, ID.

 

That's why I don't see it happening. I think Sinclair is ultimately going to have to cave and slightly bruise their ego. I know it's not like them to give up but this really is a losing battle for them.

[CircleSeven 1955]

And even if Block wanted to sell, I don't think they would dumb enough to sell it to those Devils anyway.

[Rusty Muck 4374]

This Block/Sinclair retrans debacle is getting close to being the longest one on record between a station and a cable/satellite provider, not counting fights to get a station on the system itself.

 

Is it too far fetched to think the only way out of this is for Sinclair to purchase Buckeye Cable, or Block itself?

 

Doing so would have lots of conflicts, especially with the Toledo Blade and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, as well as with WAND in Decatur, IL and KTRV in Nampa, ID.

Actually, Block offered KTRV to S!nclair on a silver platter in exchange for a revised retrans fee comparable to WTOL and WTVG (according to Block's complaint letter to the FTC). S!nclair promptly turned it down and doubled down on the stupid.

That's why I don't see it happening. I think Sinclair is ultimately going to have to cave and slightly bruise their ego. I know it's not like them to give up but this really is a losing battle for them.

I don't see S!nclair caving for about a year... they think they still have a chance. But in reality, it's Block who holds all the cards and have all along.

 

It's almost to the point that S!nclair doesn't even care if not just WNWO's news operation, but WNWO outright, goes under because of this. After all, they MUST!!! force Block to clear a hypothetical news channel no one will watch, whose only existence is predicated on a merger with Allbritton that is less than 90 days from having the clock run out on them.

[Mrtraveler01 738]

 

Actually, Block offered KTRV to S!nclair on a silver platter in exchange for a revised retrans fee comparable to WTOL and WTVG (according to Block's complaint letter to the FTC). S!nclair promptly turned it down and doubled down on the stupid.I don't see S!nclair caving for about a year... they think they still have a chance. But in reality, it's Block who holds all the cards and have all along.

 

It's almost to the point that S!nclair doesn't even care if not just WNWO's news operation, but WNWO outright, goes under because of this. After all, they MUST!!! force Block to clear a hypothetical news channel no one will watch, whose only existence is predicated on a merger with Allbritton that is less than 90 days from having the clock run out on them.

 

Once again, my belief that Sinclair's execs brains are smaller than their egos is reinforced.

 

Did that whole, "trade facilities in Harrisburg" thing pass muster in the FCC or are they still rejecting them?

[Samantha 2895]

 

Once again, my belief that Sinclair's execs brains are smaller than their egos is reinforced.

 

Did that whole, "trade facilities in Harrisburg" thing pass muster in the FCC or are they still rejecting them?

 

The thing is still hanging in the wind, with the looming Outside Date of July 27. Sinclair is dragging this out by trying to see if they can simply give some of the stations they want to divest to Howard Stirk Holdings, which in turn is trying to get an FCC JSA waiver because of its minority ownership and production of public affairs programs on its pre-existing stations.

 

Speaking of the Sinclair-Allbritton filing, perhaps the most unrelated item in a long time showed up in the filing recently. It appears our Brecksville, Ohio (in Cuyahoga County) commenter has something to say about cable and the Pac-12 Networks?

[GoldenShine9 1513]

The closing date is 84 days away. When was the last time a date ran out on a proposed deal? If it happens this time, Allbritton would likely have to bend and announce multiple buyers...

[bhratbrat 437]

Or maybe Allbritton will continue to run the ops as is.

[Samantha 2895]

We might get some indications this week as to how SBG is doing with their 1Q 2014 earnings report due Wednesday [7:30am Eastern, conference call 9:30am Eastern].

 

Some facts about SBGI from their 2013 annual report to stockholders, filed with the SEC:

 

75.8% of Sinclair common stock is controlled by David, Duncan, Robert and Frederick Smith. They mutually vote each other into the Board of Directors under a Shareholders' Agreement which runs 2005-2015. Three of the Smith brothers are 60 or older (Robert is 50).

 

Other large stockholders are FMR, LLC (Fidelity Investments), Blackrock, Inc., and The Vanguard Group.

 

In relationship to Sinclair's sidecars, the brothers are all board members of Cunningham Communications, Inc.; most are also board members of several other concerns including The Sinclair Relief Fund, Gerstell Development, L.P., Keyser Investment Group, and Beaver Dam LLC. Keyser Capital is a private equity and real estate investment company established by Sinclair in January 2007. The Sinclair Relief Fund is a 501c3 formed in September 2005, after Katrina.

 

Also in relation to Cunningham, Sinclair has option agreements with all the FCC license subsidiaries to purchase assets and voting stock if FCC rules ever change. Beginning in 2013, well, let's quote the filing:

 

"Beginning on January 1, 2013, we are obligated to pay Cunningham an annual LMA fee for the television stations equal to the greater of (i) 3% of each station's annual net broadcast revenue and (ii) $5.0 million, of which a portion of this fee will be credited toward the purchase price to the extent of the annual 6% increase. The remaining purchase price as of December 31, 2013 was approximately $57.1 million. Additionally, we reimburse Cunningham for 100% of its operating costs, and paid Cunningham a monthly payment of $50,000 through December 2012 as an LMA fee."

 

One board member, Martin R. Leader, is a retired partner of the firm ShawPittman, now known as Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman. This is the firm that is representing SBGI legally, including in the Sinclair-Allbritton case. He has been on the Sinclair board since 2002.

 

Their new CFO, Christopher S. Ripley, spent 12 years with UBS where he handled media M&A among other things.