What I Did Just Now Could Make Me Go Blind

[lglavin@lycosmail.com]

No, not that.
What I did was check the 'New Securities Issue' in the
Wall Street Journal for Friday Sept 8 (pg C13).
The print is smaller than the news text and even the
stock tables, but I checked THIS ONE PARTICULAR ITEM
because it shows how much big bux are involved in 
radio biz today:
Clear Channel Communications: a 1.5-billion-dollar 
offering of commercial debt was priced thru Credit
Suisse First Boston and Solomon Smith Barney.
Part 1; $750-million maturity Sept 15, 2003...
coupon 7.25% 120 basis points over Treasurys.
Part 2: $750-million maturity Sept 15, 2010...
coupon 7.65% 196 basis points over Treasurys.
So there you have it...a billion and a half of 
debt by a company whose stock is down markedly
(not so badly and Cumulus and Citadel) in a 
business that is losing listeners because of cookie-
cutter programming designed to BOOST the bottom line 
to pay off past debt.  Absolutely no manager of a
Clear Channel station of any type will be allowed to
program it in any way that doesn't add to the
bottom line.  The CC honchos will make Mel Karmazin 
look like St. Francis of Assissi!

Laurence from Methuen

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