Air America restructures under new banner

[never cry wolf]

Air America restructures under new banner

By John Cook
Tribune staff reporter
Published June 19, 2004

The investors in Air America Radio, the liberal talk radio network that launched in March, are restructuring the company to free it of any obligations incurred by ousted chairman and founding investor Evan Cohen.

The investors, including Highland Park couple Sheldon and Anita Drobny and Air America Chief Executive Doug Kreeger, formed a new corporation, Piquant LLC. They plan to use the new entity to purchase the assets of Air America from Progress Media and RadioFree America, two related companies that own and operate the network.

"We have an asset purchase agreement we've entered into," said Norman Wain, another investor. "Progress Media and RadioFree America are selling all of their assets to Piquant."

Anita Drobny will be chairwoman of the board of the new company, according to people familiar with the deal.

The purpose of the transaction is twofold: to eliminate Cohen and his partner Rex Sorensen's shares in the company, and to insulate the cash-strapped network from any debt or other obligation that Cohen may have incurred.

more (free subscription req'd.)---> http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-0406190169jun19,1,3470820.story

Randi has said on her show last week that she is pretty sure that these original investors were moles intended to insure failure. I did a quick google and newsmeat but came up with little.

However, Sheldon and Anita Drobny are def on board!

http://www.newsmeat.com/fec/bystate_detail.php?st=IL&last=drobny&first=sheldon

http://www.newsmeat.com/fec/bystate_detail.php?st=IL&last=drobny&first=anita

[wryter2000]

1. Good news!

Good for the Drobny's! :bounce:

On edit: That's an impressive list of donations. :yourock: Drobny's!

[NMDemDist2]

2. growing pains, but they have proved there is a market for

liberal radio... rock on AAR

[Baltimoreboy]

11. Growing pains?

If a Repug station "insulated themselves from debt" they'd get skewered for it.

[Tansy_Gold]

3. If you go back to the original news items reporting on

the original difficulties -- stepping down of top execs, etc. -- you'll find that two of the top investors were publicly described as "Republican operatives."

I'll see if I can find the stuff in my files or through google.

[LittleApple81]

4. Randi said that yesterday again during her program. I am happy that

they are fixing their problems. I NEED AAR!!!

[KharmaTrain]

5. Are They On Board???

For now at least. The Drobnys and their company An-Shell media were the ones who did the original legwork on the network, then backed out and now are back in again. There's a lot of other inside games that went on that made the launch and first couple months very hectic...leading up to the departure of Cohen and virtually the entire upper management team.

Kudos to those on the "talent" side, who have missed paychecks and still aren't sure if the next one will be there, for working hard to make the network go. The first phase NYC trends looked promising (way overblown by AAR) and if the network survives into the fall with these numbers or more, then it may be able to really cash in and make it out of the critical first year. Right now, it's operating on the Drobny's checkbook...will they keep writing checks and for how long?

This article is worth a good read...and if people aren't able to get in, I've got a subscription and will get excerpts. This is the "sausage" side of the business...yes, some is political, but a lot is ego and games.

Yes, there's a "conspiracy" to keep this network from suceeding, but it wasn't from the inside. Nowhere have I read where Mr. Cohen ever attempted to sabotage the network, just poor business decisions. The wall is that of Clear Channel that holds the licenses of hundreds of stations that could carry some of AAR's programing, but won't consider it. It's the monopolization of the radio airwaves that lock out those who don't have the political pull and fat wallets.

AAR still needs to restructure its business plan, and hopefully that's going on as part of this latest shuffling. Of course affiliates in major markets are also a priority...especially Chicago where a company owned by a big Democratic contributor sits with 3 possible signals that AAR should be on, but, again, ego and games have prevented it.

Stay tuned...

[never cry wolf]

6. Very interesting

You seem to have some insight, IMR. Can you tell more?

[KharmaTrain]

8. I'm Just A Curious Bystander...

...but those who've read my previous posts know I'm somewhat familiar with what's going on here. Best left discussions, either privately or in the Media forum.

Cheers!

[seventhson]

7. The original team with the Drobny's is still in, including Jon Sinton

and the talent.

But there definitely is a feeling at aar that there were republican operatives out to prove it couldn't work (including, possibly, cohen and his partner who were republican operatives in Guam or somewhere in the south pacific).

I think we own a HUGE debt of gratitude to the Drobneys for their efforts and commitment to this which was their brainchild and which was inspired by Mike Malloy and also, I understand, Carol Kay of www.Makethemaccountable.com (a worthy website - go visit and tell her I said hi)

On the first day of programming I called up aae and gave props to DU and to the drobny's and was SHOCKED to get rebuiffed by Randi Rhodes who said the Drobnys were no longer involved (and you KNOW how nasty she can be when she is dissing you).

She also kinda dissed my props to Jim Hatfield (altho that may have been inadvertent), Those who heard it may remember. It was a historic first day and an exciting but bitterseet moment for me.

anyway - the reason this is happening is IMHO, because there WAS an effort to derail the project from within and there is evidence for it -- but mostly the evidence that the management was not committed to the project as the Drobneys clearly are and that the "big" investors did not bring the money to the table that they had promised the Drobneys and others. That is why they had to restructure and get these moochers out of the mix.

May God Bless the Drobneys and all they DO!!!

[seventhson]

9. kick

[dbt]

10. Mo Kick!

In spite of the fact that there's "no market Liberal ideas in this country."

:evilgrin:
dbt