From Friday's R&R:

"Sources inside of Clear Channel tell R&R that a budget freeze for the first quarter, and possibly longer, is now in effect. All marketing, research and new hires are on hold for the time being, unless an offer had already been made. Theories about the reason for the freeze include slow first-quarter revenue, keeping the bottom line attractive as the final stages of the buyout take place or, the most popular idea, both.


The hiring freeze is probably the most difficult after the fourth quarter for people at the station level, where staff all across the country was trimmed. Anyone in the process of interviewing for key positions after the new budget had kicked in now has to make do with their current situation."

And keep in mind that most of the executives, including the Mays, will remain in place and on the corporate board after the company is taken private. Apart from spin-offs of smaller markets, things are unlike to change under the new regime.

get rid of the hd iboc noise on 2280,1190,2000 KEX,please, please!!!,then put theOldies and liveDJ's back on zsuper62,620!!!! then we will be happier and listen more!!!

We will?

62kgw...now that was a well thouht out post.

62kgw may be happier, but tens of thousands of others couldn't care less.

OK, I'm not at all surprised that the Mays & co. have golden parachutes. I am a bit surprised that the supposed economic downturn that is going on right now has trickled down even to Clear Channel. Maybe buying all those iPODs wasn't such a good idea.

IPOD christmas presents. A little bit like the Grecian Trojan Horse tale isnt it?

Hook up a 25KW Harris transmitter to a San Disk 4 GIG MP3 Player. Buy about 15 of them and just download whatever music and spots for each day. Plug and play, have the traffic manager/receptionist/H.R person plug it in each morning. Dont forget to turn the lights out when you leave.

Wow. Did KEX ever hire their new AM Drive anchor?

>> Hook up a 25KW Harris transmitter to a San Disk 4 GIG MP3 Player. Buy about 15 of them and just download whatever music and spots for each day. Plug and play, have the traffic manager/receptionist/H.R person plug it in each morning. Dont forget to turn the lights out when you leave.<<

Oh it's even easier than that. With NexGen, everything can be loaded and run remotely. No need to worry that the traffic manager/receptionist/H.R person will forget to plug it in.

Hmmm. Can see why the FCC is talking about requiring local staff at stations. Despite all the rhetoric about live and local, we may all end up as automated stations networked from wherever, in a highly regulated low profit margin, money losing business.

Wasn't there a WKRP episode where the "Future WKRP" was shown, with one man in a spartan office with a desk, a chair, and a telephone-looking device sitting on the desk, and IT was the radio station. How prophetic.

I just researched and the episode that I was thinking about was in Season 3, "Bah Humbug"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WKRP_in_Cincinnati_episodes#.22Bah_Humbug.2 2

In "Christmas Future", Herb is the only employee left, and the entire radio station is a "computer" the size of a telephone receiver sitting on his desk.

Very prophetic indeed.

You know some guessed it all back then !

PCs were just taking off in the form of Apple Computers mainly. I remember talk in the industry way back in the WKRP TV days , early 80s, about automation systems that would be totally PC type computers.

And the thing is, I'm sure that software could be written for an entire radio station's programming to be generated from a single desktop PC: songs, voice-tracked breaks, ID tags, PSAs, even Emergency Broadcast Tests. In fact, I'll bet it would be relatively easy and require little programming from the end user. The PC could even be accessable from the internet, and the web site's request utility used to tweak rotations.

I wonder why it hasn't been done, honestly.

might as well. Ownership doesn't seem to concerned now about vts intro-ing the wrong song, airing outdated weather forecasts or spots, rerunning the SAME Bob Costas cut for weeks or not having any local fill in a syndie show and hearing the whole 3 minutes of bumper music.

For whatever reason you can't complain about the lack of loyality or declining listenership when your product is delivered in a shoddy, uncaring manner.

Actually it has been done. The station group I last worked for bought a class A ( now a Class B ) FM licensed to Walla Walla, programming top 40. This was a purchase about, oh, 9 years ago. The former ownership had been using a PC with a Microsoft program knock off of Windows Media Player that was being sold by some obscure provider I had never heard of for an automation programm. It was a windows 98 compatible affair. Real cheap !

My understanding is that the program was unreliable, screwed up a lot ( you could certainly tell from all the dead air ) and the PD, living in the 'Cities' the Sale MGR who lived in Wally World had to constantly massage the thing to get it to work properly. Lot of freeze ups etc. Finally the studio was moved to the Tri Cities and the station was put on the Audio Prophet Wizard , but not after a long LMA period and with the PD running between the Tri Cities and Walla Walla getting the station back on the air all the time rebooting windows 98 !

> I wonder why it [an Internet-managed, automated
> station] hasn't been done, honestly.

There is an open-source group called "CampWare" that is developing an open-source Linux-based application that does this. The program is called "CampCaster." CampCaster provides both a "live-mode" interface for use in the studio and a web-based interface for remote administration. The remote interface allows for audio to be uploaded into the server, playlists to be built, and for schedules to be managed. All parts of the CampCaster system can be made to run on a single computer. The currently released version of CampCaster has some bugs, but it is in use by a small number of radio stations, primarily in third-world countries.

Not to be nit picky but just for the sake of accuracy, the station in Walla Walla must be a Class C2. It's the same signal as a B but with less protection(60dbu compared to 54dbu). The country is divided into zones, one for B and one for C and they don't overlap.

Ya , that is right.

Our engineeer told me about the upgrade that the station went through and what I remembered was the class B analog that he described. I brought up it must that be a class B now when he told me what the transmitter power output was. And he said, Ya, that is what it amounts to.

"get rid of the hd iboc noise on 2280,1190,2000 KEX,please, please!!!,then put theOldies and liveDJ's back on zsuper62,620!!!! then we will be happier and listen more!!!"
Actually, my radio doesn't get 2280 or 2000 so I don't care what is on there and it doesn't bother me. Nor does it bother anyone else. I do not hear any noise on 1190, just programming. And, on my HD radio, it sounds much better than any other position on the dial. It sounds much better after the HD kicks in, also. Basically as good as any FM station in town. So, if they played music, it would sound just fine the way it is.

I don't know what 620 has to do with it, either. CC appears to be happy with what they program now. They have higher ratings now than when they were playing music so people must be happier now.

You have to remember that the good old days are gone and they aren't going to come back.

I'm almost certain that it was a typo on 62kgw's part.

He probably meant 1180, 1190, 1200.

Please consider the following an open letter from me to all fellow board participants:

I've been following this message board since about 2000, when I heard it mentioned on KPAM. In that time, I have found that this is a good place to share information and to learn interesting facts about broadcasting. However, a more important lesson that I have learned is that "venting" regarding the policies or procedures of specific broadcasters or companies is only tolerated to a limited extent--and that is as it should be.

Let's face it: everyone is entitled to having and expressing their opinions. Within some boundaries, this makes for good discourse. However, once one has made it clear that one doesn't like something, it is unrealistic to expect that repeatedly expressing this view will be more likely to effect a change in the state of affairs. I have found that all that is accomplished by repeating complaints over and over is that the people to whom the complaints are directed get pissed off and defensive, and no changes are made. The other participants on the board get frustrated from having to read the same statements over and over again, and they tune out. The end result is just a big waste of time.

Some people just don't know when to quit.

Oddly enough, there often seems to be a correlation between not knowing when to quit and just how far out in the ether that person's opinions are.

It's called the "HERB" syndrome with the more advanced incureable strain being the "Wayne" complex!

I will admit that sometimes, I find myself crossing the line, so I am in no way claiming to be perfect or any kind of an authority.

I think it happens to most of us from time to time, me included. Radio is a passion and there is much to be intense about. After all, pdxradio.com is just a modern way to have a discussion. Many times you talk without much thought, but it allows us to share our real feelings.

Our "platform" has been really messed up in recent times. Mistakes have been made and those of us who love radio and the audience are likely to have something to say about it. Let the chips fall as they may. I'm willing to forgive anyone who perhaps goes a bit over the line. I'm still happy to hear what they have to say!

meanwhile, back in the jungle...

http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200801281309DOWJONESDJONLINE 000536_FORTUNE5.htm

resume z super62 on 620 soon,please!!!!now is the time.

This from All Access:

--------------------Clear Channel Takes Two AMs Dark--------------------

CLEAR CHANNEL has filed Notifications of Suspension of Operations and Requests for Silent Special Temporary Authority with the FCC for its Spanish Adult Hits KNFX-A/AUSTIN, MN and Country KMFX-A/WABASHA, MN.

The stations went silent on JANUARY 10th and CLEAR CHANNEL says that the move was "due to financial performance issues." The applications were required because the stations will remain silent for more than 30 days.

Is this move of taking stations dark for "underperformance" something that Clear Channel has done before? I haven't heard of this happening before. Is there a school, religious organization, or non-profit that they could donate these stations to for a tax deduction?

KMFX is a daytimer that nobody would want, but KNFX has 500 watts night power and doesn't make sense without more info.

cheaper to turn it off and keep it on the books as an asset rather than sell it for actual value.

See, if they were still operating "IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST" the license would go back and someone else might want to take a shot........

Under current FCC rules they have to get it back on by January 10, 2009 or they lose the license. Keeping it "dark" but on the books for an extended period is not an option.

ah, serving the people of Portland in the meantime...

As a Clear Channel alumni of 13+ years (and hired and fired twice from CC) I can honestly say that my former employer is not doing anything different than other companies in the business. I suppose the constant attention Clear Channel gets on this board just comes w/ the territory. The largest radio chain IS a big target.

....and no I am not off my medication.

Understood: the "big guys" like Clear Channel often get the most attention just because everybody knows who they are. It does still boggle my mind that a radio station that is presumably running an automated format cannot bring in enough money to pay for its maintenance and its electric bill.

The sad part, and this isn't just a radio issue, but a Wall street philosophy, The cuts aren't being made in most cases to maintain profitability but rather mantain margin for investors.

Understand that when a company is in trouble and the cuts mean the difference between RED ink and BLACK ink, then the average person can be sympathetic. However, when an industry has grown itself to feature a few major players; Oil, Radio, Auto, whatever, and these industries change their focus to stock price rather than customer service, then their actions tend to draw more scrutiny than would otherwise be warranted.

Since this happens to be a forum about radio, Then radio is what we talk about and of course, the major players will attract the most attention. I am under the belief that many smaller groups have followed the business model set by Clear Channel, but not developed by them. (as you said, the biggest gets the attention) Take outlying stations consolidate the operations into a central location, if you can move in a few more all the better, double up duties, trim staff, automate. Efficient to be sure, but there comes a point where the quality begins to suffer. as quality suffers, the customer base (in the case of radio, listeners and advertisers) will begin to seek and sample alternatives. If those alternatives meet their needs, you have lost that customer. A diminishing customer base will mean either a need to increase sales or further cuts to maintain the required profit margin to keep stock prices at a level to keep investors happy. At some point, there will be no more cuts to make but by that time, the industry itself will be reduced to just a shell of itself. Radio got away from what it did best and now competes on several platforms, without excelling in any. The gimmicry of HD only dilutes their audience and product further. Webcasting is fine as an enhancement, but I hear far too many stations emphasizing the webcast over the terrestrial broadcast.

The record industry is in trouble. They too consolidated their way into a few major players, and made some critical blunders in the areas of artist development, but more importantly, product pricing. Now they are at the point where they lose sales to file sharing, artists marketing directly to consumers, with the result being fewer jobs and an industry in decline. Radio and the recording enjoyed a mutual relationship benefical to both, both suffer because of decisions made at the boardroom level, the extent of course is open for debate.

This country is a consumption based economy, dependent on a broad middle class comfortable enough with their wage scale to spend, and confident enough in long term employment to take on debt. Any one segement losing jobs can be absorbed by an emerging sector. When it happens across the board, then the econmy slows down. Too much loss of buying power and the economy stops.

Maybe companies ought to be adding people rather than cutting them..........

On a similar vein, pick a market. Seattle, Portland, Cleveland, Miami, doesn't matter. Now remove all the stations that were moved in from other COLs after 1996. Would the remaining stations be showing better numbers than current?

Can you make an argument that the move ins were not a smart business decision? A station that was profitable in Smalltown maybe should have stayed in Smalltown. yet a move in can become part of the cluster and enjoy the cost savings. Still, another mouth eating from the same pie...

Lets get really radical. Report montly job loss. The population of the country must be decreased by that many. a laid off or terminated worker gets 30 days unemployment At the end of 30 days, those without a new job or called back to work will be immediately deported. Citizen or not. Wal*Mart greeter, or Banking Exec terminated in a merger. After all, if there is no concern for moving a job to another country, consolidating and trimming staff, takeovers, buyouts or other job cutting measures, then we certainly can't have all these people putting a drain on tax derived services.... If the economy begins to grow, we can invite some of these people back

Thank you, Roger. Your 2/11/08 11:32 AM post is one of the most eloquent that I have seen on this board!

The economy grew under Bushenomics, but the middle class shrank. The economy grew under Bushenomics, but wages did not. The amount of broadcast license holders shrank. Broadcast jobs numbers shrank.

Alternative sources for infotainment grew. Alternative mobile infotainment system storage grew. Non-broadcast wireless delivery options grew.

1984: video killed the radio star
1996: congress killed radio
2008: IP killed the traditional broadcast business.

and what year was it that MTV stopped airing music videos?

hey, just asking!

..and because the economy grew and wages didn't the resultant increase in the money supply did not circulate... it exchanged among the investors. Now, as the stack market shrinks and interest remains low, the excess dollars are not being used to expand the economy through consumption. That is the whole idea of lower taxes... putting money back into the hands of people to spend. The recent rebate proposal does not help, as it is an ADVANCE on next year rather than a real increase in income. I for one will be banking mine to offset next years tax. That defeats the proposal as an economic shot in the arm as I have no confidence that real job growth will occur in that time period. However I estimate that because of the "REBATE" instead of a refund next year I will be writing a check to the IRS for 500.00+ as will many others in a similar economic bracket.

> and what year was it that MTV stopped airing music videos?

According to Wikipedia, they didn't jettison the music videos in one fell swoop. Instead, they gradually cut back on the airing of music videos in favor of animated programs and reality shows. According to Wikipedia, MTV currently airs two hours (!) per week of full-length music videos.

doh!

Have you seen the Jim Cramer story making the news today? They're quoting the 2/8 telecst of WALL STREET CONFIDENTIAL.

The show founder and writer, Jim Cramer, says the radio business is a “wasting asset where cash flow is going down.” He also points out that “the ultimate dead deal is Clear Channel."

But get this quote! "Radio is finished as we know it. The guys who run radio are these big people and they always regard themselves as big people. I laugh because they are big in their own minds.”

I wonder what it's gonna take to try a different approach? Jeeez!

TIME TO REPROGRAM kex TO BE "FULL SERVICE" AGAIN!!!!!:mUSIC/live localDJ's/NEWS/TALK/SPORTS/wheather/traffic!!!!
NO:HDnoise
YES:CQUAm amSTEREO!!!

I saw that news clip on Allaccess.

I like the way he refers to all the " Egos " in the radio biz...The way things have been going lately all the Egos will be relocated to the unemployment office !

Well, you can hope that since the industry can no longer meet the unreasonable rate of return that they expect that the fat wallets wil get out. Maybe mega radio is dead, but it can still be a viable platform. Someone will have to take a bath on overpriced properties, and possibly the "cluster" mentality will have to change. Breaking off a cluster license and putting it as a stand alone in separate facilities will be akin to starting a new one, cost wise.

As for "egos" in the radio biz......

The boys in the tailored suits have far bigger egos than the people behind the mic.......

I just think we've clearly reached the point where the current methods must be rejected. I mean radio is really like the Titanic now, or worse. There's no need for this disaster. My guess is that there are several of you on this board who could turn around many of the failures here in this market.

Why the stand-off?

Many of the people you speak of were shown the door for various reasoning. Some people were very outspoken on the direction radio should take. Some left on their own when the resources allotted were not near enought to deliver the product desired. Some got out for greener pastures and less bulls***. Sometimes a company never knew what they had. People with experience as PDs, NDs, Production whizzes, filling a PT shift or board opping just to keep their hands in until an opportunity popped up. There are some great people on the sidelines. If you read the home pages of Clear Channel, Cumulus, Entercom, and other smaller companies, they all mention the fact that they hire the best and brightest. Actually they fire the best and the brightest. Those are the Creative, the Idea people, the innovators, and yes, the boat rockers, the pot stirrers, those who ask why, before jumping from the plane. Sure they trim dead wood, but many times they throw the baby out and keep the bath water.

Not to say that those remaining lack talents, but many lack passion and fire. They fear the axe, and keep their head down. No sense play Whack a Mole at the office when the guy in the suit is the one holding the Mallet.

We can all name some great radio people on the outside, and some mediocre ones who keep their jobs.

These companies have a business model in place. Operations are not usually open for discussion at the station level. Joe Worker does the job assigned, nothing more. The monthly station meeting is for passing out directives, not a forum for ideas.

I can remember only one occasion where the staff was asked about their thoughts and ideas. We were told to be honest, and all thoughts and ideas were welcome. Oddly enough, three people were let go within a week of that meeting. This at a place with infrequent turnover. ( yes, I was one, and while not critical, I did offer some suggestions regarding programming, promotions and sales. Wow, and I thought the new manager wanted to get up to speed since we were familar with the market and he wasn't.)

The fact of the matter is The companies don't ask for ideas from the sidelines, nor would many be willing to add the costs involved in incorporating some of these plans. Look at CCs attempt to take on K-hits, Look at the lack of effort in developing Movin. Even without the flooding, would BC try to seriously battle in Centralia? These are all decisions out of the hands of the people at the station level. Here's 12 dollars and 38 cents, that's your budget, don't ask for more. Now go out there and own the market or in a cluster at least protect the flank.......

Amen

wow, I'm fired up! I'll take you, you, you, and you. C'mon gang, let's put on a radio station!

(with apologies to Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland and those Grand MGM musicals!)

at the very least we could form "THE HE-MAN CORPORATE RADIO HATERS CLUB". I'll be president, You can be the vice president and Alfalfa can be the second vice president.

Reeeeee-markable!

There are still a few glimmers of 'radio' over here. We have a pretty good live morning team show on 97.5 KOOL-FM ( Super Hits of the 60s and 70s) (KOLW) now a Gap West station along with KORD ( country )with good , live people and several others in that cluster that sound good. And still they do creative voice tracking on those stations too.

Gap is #1 here, the other ownerships are running on lean and they sound like it ! And their numbers show it.

Call their GMs and tell em to ad live people.

(d)

One of my friends just joined a CC station, here is his report:

"Working with CC now for 7 months and I have ceased to be amazed...or amused.

Mark Mays' motivational memos are classic examples of their ignorance of people, as well as the broadcasting business."

In many cases, management makes no attempt to learn the background and experience level of the people on staff. Other than the person who actually hires you, the rest of your co-workers are probably in the dark as to your strengths and weaknesses.

You have to have been in a situation where the guy who follows you is a production whiz and never cuts a spot to realize places might work harder, but definitely NOT smarter. Better still, a station that makes the production room "OFF LIMITS" to ALL PART TIME EMPLOYEES.... Imagine that.

guys and gals...call me crazy...but I can't fault CC the time I worked for them. At least at an all news/talk station..corporate left us alone to do our thing and didn't meddle. Thanks to Robert Dove for keeping the corporate wolf away from the door. At the time , we had some talented people and could have used more...what news station doesn't have that complaint. Its too bad that's not the case now with the new owners. Self-destruct mode..."make it so, number one."

Not caring for the people who work for you is thier first mistake. It's just a matter of time before people will leave and nobody will want to work for them. I'm guessing they are building thier portfolio and will sell for a nice sum of $$$, just like they did when they bought the markets of Eugene/Albany & Medford. They paid pennies on the dollar for those markets.

Yes Dan, I did get your e-mail. Very interesting

Here's another corporation trying to figure out why their radio stock is doing the Titanic thing.... amazing!

http://sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/927720/000110465908014526/a08-6928_1ex1.htm

Proof once again that the bean counters have not a clue! The Emperor has no clothes!

Did you read your own postings before commenting.

The document is a complaint filed by a Chicago investment company which bought almost 10% of Spanish Broadcasting when it went public in 1999 at the height of the "radio stock bubble" and is now shocked, shocked that the stock has tumbled in value -- while the President of the company (who is also founder and majority shareholder) has continued to pay himself well as CEO.

The non-profits and high-wealth individuals who gave "The Discovery Group" their money to invest are no doubt pissed as hell that the value of those investments have plunged. But the Discovery Group placed huge bets on small companies looking for big returns...a high risk/high reward strategy. They lost. **IT happens.

Those who bought ANY of the small broadcasting stocks which have gone public in the past 10 years, especially those who bought in 1999 at the peak of the bubble, have taken a terrible bath.

But this (and others like it, Beasley Broadcast, Regent, Salem, etc) have all lost up to 90% from their all time highs because INVESTORS (NOT BROADCASTERS) decided these companies were golden, and paid way way to much for the stocks during the bubble.

Many of these companies are still live and local. Many still have full airstaff.

The entire business model for radio is broken. Advertisers are able to buy much more narrowly focused media at lower costs. They can pay for results by only paying for those who click an ad and go to their site. The most attractive demos to advertisers are often the ones radio has failed to hold onto in an internet/Ipod/myspace world.

Wanna buy a one day (ONE DAY) wrap around on Yahoo? It's $750,000.

And guess what? It works!

And why not? You get 25 million pairs of eyeballs...hey, that's more than The Today Show.

http://www.katu.com/news/business/17016171.html

20's of thousands want super 62 oldies(and Elvis) back and also theywant less noise on k e yuchs!!!!

There's no market for anyone over the age of 55. We're lucky to get anything from 1964!

With the collapse of Clear Channel being taken to private is the more of the same to come. Nobody is going to loan funds to companies who rely to much on barter as a source of income.

The stations will not release the barter income and expenses, yet barter keeps on increasing. Once Clear Channel were to be taken private and the amount of bartering is disclosed the financiers would be stuck with the bag of over paying for Clear Channel.

Many on this board have called Clear Channel "Cheap Channel" which while correct would lead to any invester looking at Clear Channel as being at peak income revenue at this time. Buy out specialists(Mitt Romney and Company) like to come in find a company that they can run even cheaper, spin off portions of the company, resale move on after making millions for the sale off.

Clear Channel is not that kind of a company, so the banks have cold feet about lending the billions that are needed for the deal, and that's just the beginning.

Sucking up the difference in the current stock price relative to the 'promised' price per share makes for cold feet in anybody's reality.

Who is gonnah take the hit, the sellers or the buyers??? Or both? Meanwhile...back at the ranch...

Thought you might enjoy this brief selection from the new book on Clear Channel – “Right of the Dial.”

“Growing up in Clear Channel, it was all about how much profit we could make, “ says (a GM) Webb. “It was all about the margins.” And those margins were formidable by anyone’s measure—in the 50 percent range, by some estimates, putting Clear Channel in its first few years around the 98th percentile of profitable radio companies in the nation.

“Mays had zero in programming,” says Webb. “It was all about how much are we going to collect? Not bill, but how much are we going to collect this month?”

More hilarity!


http://insidemusicmedia.blogspot.com/2008/05/weird-channel-deal.html

....“It was all about the margins.”

Argue all you want, but the quote above is a primary reason the listener went on to sample other alternatives and is staying away. No concern with local delivered content. Listeners don't buy time and since they don't deliver revenue, no effort is made to keep them interested in the message being delivered.

People will sit through commercials if the surrounding content is interesting, interactive and relevant. Most of what you hear on the dial isn't. It's not just CC, but they set the tone and as the big kid on the block they catch the lions share of the heat....

Look at Z100's ratings, they are horrible! Yet they continue to put on the same half assed product. When will they ever learn?

Never having been a Z100 fan/listener, what exactly is their targeted audience age?

I'll take a stab in the dark and say "Women 18-34".

I would guess they tell advertisers that it is 18-34, but really it is 12-22.

///A slightly edited version of the latest Randall Mays memo is below.\\

From: Randall Mays

As all of you know we have now signed up the new Merger Agreement and we hope to close sometime during the third quarter.

I think as most of you also know by now, there are certain provisions in the Merger Agreement that make it extremely important for us to be as judicious with cash as we possibly can between now and closing. First, as part of the deal, Clear Channel shareholders will potentially be forced to roll a portion of their shares into the new transaction. It is the preference of our board that no one be forced to roll (everyone has the option to roll and the board would prefer that this remain an option rather than a requirement). There is a certain level of cash which we will need to have at closing in order to insure that no one has to do anything that is not of their choosing.

Additionally, the debt provided by the banks to fund the transaction was fixed at the time of signing the amendment to the merger agreement. Thus, any additional cash outlays between now and the deal closing, have to be funded 100% with equity. For those of you that have run levered return models, it is very difficult to make deals attractive when you have to fund them with 100% equity. Post closing this will not be the case and we will go back to our normal procedures so don’t infer anything in this other than there are timing issues with respect to capital before closing.

What does all that mean? As we look forward between now and closing this means that we will be extremely judicious in any capital spend of any type. We also are going to be very closely monitoring cash generation and balances.

…

Randall

If you go over budget, your screwed. I there is a capitol outlay, someone loses his or her job to fund it.

Another Mays memo.....

Deere, advertizer,

Please spend more munny with your local Clear channal sale rep, we want as much cash as possible before the sale closes. This will insure that some of the top ezecatives gets as much bonus as possibell. We have fierd lots of peeple in recent times including my persinil secatarry as well as many on the air staff peepil to help this positin and to shore up the stock price. Probilly,?(sp?) once the new guys take over they will want even more cuts and our produck won't be atractive to you no more.

You can probilly tell now that we don't sound as good like we did at the begininning. That is why? I am making this persinal appeal to you persinally.

Thak you for youre continued support, we look forword to continuing to take your mony after the sale is done with.

Sinderly

Youre freind,

Randall (big Randy) Mays

Money, money, MONEY.

But, what about the audience?

what about the audience?

They let them go in an earlier round of budget cuts......