Investors annoyed with Sinclair, Wall Street questioning their decison.

[kerry-is-my-prez]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=710&e=7&u=/usatoday/20041012/pl_usatoday/plantoairdivisivefilmraisesquestions

Plan to air divisive film raises questions

Wall Streeters, political activists and media critics Monday were trying to answer a perplexing question: Why would Sinclair Broadcasting CEO David Smith embroil himself in controversy by ordering his stations to air Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal- a documentary challenging Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry (news - web sites)'s Vietnam service - within days of the presidential election?

The decision annoyed investors. Sinclair's shares, which have lost about half their value in 2004, closed Monday at $7.38, down 12 cents. That's about as low as they've been since 1995.

"I don't want my media companies that cover the news to be making news," says Barry Lucas of Gabelli & Co., which owns about 4% of Sinclair.

-snip-

But many believe Sinclair's provocative decision shows how much the company has riding on the election. With its heavy concentration of Fox and WB affiliates, ranking in the middle of the pack in mostly midsize markets, Sinclair is barely profitable and laden with debt. It had a net profit of $14 million on revenue of $739 million in 2003.

[Memekiller]

1. Hit the investors!

And advertisers. It's working!

[northzax]

2. it had a ONE percent profit margin?

now that's a spectacularly well run company.

I bet the CEO made more than 13 million last year, whaddya think?

[lil-petunia]

4. I love it. When the financiers get unhappy, watch out!

Damned thugs. I am sure that they play games with their $$$ no less than Enron, just on a smaller scale.

[NewYorkerfromMass]

7. Well yes- when you add in all the O's and board members

you're talking about several million in compensation and for what?....
I'd fire them all, personally, based on those crummy numbers.

edit: closed at 7.14 today! http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=SBGI

[TahitiNut]

8. Over $1M.

Pay and other compensation, not including stock options ...

Smith, Frederick G. $194,956.00
Smith, J. Duncan $194,965.00
Faber, Barry M. $305,190.00
Marks, Steven M. $1,023,717.00
Smith, David D. $1,005,462.00
Amy, David B. $464,962.00



Current stock option values ...

Faber, Barry M. $167,651.00
Marks, Steven M. $264,370.00
Smith, David D. $1,374,200.00
Amy, David B. $803,600.00

[BrotherBuzz]

3. Sinclair smells just like ENRON

'If you can't win fairly, just change the law to favor your position.

<snip>
Sinclair hopes to change that by solidifying its hold on local
markets by controlling, for example, two stations in more
cities and sharing operating and news-gathering costs. But it
needs the federal government to relax several media
ownership restrictions.

Sinclair wants officials to permit a company to own two or
more stations in more communities than allowed now. It also
wants the FCC (news - web sites) to ease a restriction that
bars a company from owning TV stations reaching more than
35% of all homes, and to lift the rule that keeps companies
from owning newspapers and TV stations in most markets.

That's where the parties part ways. FCC Chairman Michael
Powell, a Republican, has made media deregulation a priority,
although many of the FCC's rule changes are tangled in
court.
<snip>

[symbolman]

5. Keep the heat on

Here's my flash with resources..

All the links are clickable and will help with this cause, use this please and pass it around, the more people that get it the more damage we can do to those bastards!

Turn up your speakers and let's get the word out with MEDIA :)

Hope you like..



http://web.takebackthemedia.com/geeklog/public_html/staticpages/index.php?page=20041013042650709

[frylock]

6. sbgi started at 7.50/share monday morning..

down to 7.14/share at close today.