YOUNGSTOWN WYTV-33 expects no impact in bankruptcy

Plans to install transmitters and new digital equipment are proof that the station is doing business as usual, a manager said.
THE VINDICATOR, YOUNGSTOWN
By CYNTHIA VINARSKY
VINDICATOR BUSINESS WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The top local official at ABC-TV affiliate WYTV Channel 33 says local station operations will be "absolutely unaffected" by its holding company's filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this week.
Stations Holding Co., the Illinois-based holding company for television giant Benedek Broadcasting, filed for court protection from its creditors after it failed to make a $10.2 million interest payment in November, according to published reports.
Benedek is the operating company and owner of WYTV, along with 22 other network-affiliated television stations around the country. Bob Romine, WYTV general manager and vice president, stressed that the holding company and operating company are separate entities.
"The only people impacted by this are the bond holders and the lenders," he said. "The reality of the situation is, it is kind of non-news. It's so far over our heads at the station level, it's never impacted us."
Capital improvements: Romine, who was attending an annual meeting for a broadcasting group in New York City on Wednesday, said Benedek has allocated $12 million for capital improvements at its television stations this year.
WYTV is expecting delivery of more than $1 million in high definition TV transmitters next month, and by the end of the second quarter the station will be installing a new digital platform of cameras, recorders and other equipment worth about $200,000.
"If there was anything to be concerned about, we wouldn't be receiving all that new equipment," Romine said. "It will have no impact whatsoever on the local station operations."
According to the Chicago Tribune, Benedek owed interest on $154.7 million in senior notes that were issued in 1996 to finance acquisitions.
The newspaper also quoted company attorneys who said no layoffs are anticipated at any Stations Holding subsidiaries. Payments to vendors and programming suppliers will also continue as usual.
Trouble signs: Signs of financial trouble showed up in Benedek's third quarter report, filed in November with the federal Securities and Exchange Commission. The company reported $32.7 million in net revenue for the quarter, down 17.2 percent from the same period in 2000.
The SEC report quoted K. James Yager, president and chief executive, saying that the company's bottom line was affected by its decision to run commercial-free programming after Sept. 11, and many of its advertisers reduced or canceled their usual ads for about two weeks after the attacks.
Yager also cited cost increases related to extended news coverage. He said the attack-related drop in advertising followed a national advertising revenue decline of 15.5 percent.
Romine said the Chapter 11 filing could be good news for Benedek television stations, in the long run. The filing should help the holding company to reorganize its debts, he explained, so that both the holding company and the operating company can focus their attention on operating their television stations.
vinarsky@vindy.com