BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com BloggingStocks http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/media/feedlogo.gif BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[CBS files motion to dismiss Dan Rather's breach of contract suit]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/16/cbs-files-motion-to-dismiss-dan-rathers-breach-of-contract-suit/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/16/cbs-files-motion-to-dismiss-dan-rathers-breach-of-contract-suit/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/11/16/cbs-files-motion-to-dismiss-dan-rathers-breach-of-contract-suit/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

CBS (NYSE: CBS) said it has filed a motion to dismiss Dan Rather's $70 million, breach of contract lawsuit, calling Rather's claims "far fetched" and "baseless."

Rather, the former anchor of the CBS Evening News filed suit against CBS, its former parent Viacom (NYSE: VIA), CBS president/CEO Leslie Moonves, CBS and Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone, and one-time CBS News president Andrew Heyward, alleging that he was erroneously blamed for the 2004 "Memogate" scandal about President George W. Bush's Vietnam-era military record.

"There was no such nefarious scheme, and Rather's allegations bear no resemblance to reality," CBS said in its motion, Reuters/Hollywood Reporter reported. "CBS and its executives are not now, and never have been, out to get Dan Rather."

CBS's shares were virtually unchanged Friday, falling 8 cents to $27.14 in mid-day trading.

Media Analysis: Although Rather is unlikely to win his suit, the suit represents another demerit for CBS, a network adrift. Few organizations have done more to tarnish their reputation and trample on their tradition and legacy than CBS, the network of Edward R. Murrow and Eric Sevareid. The tasteless, disrespectful treatment of Rather during his departure stands in stark contrast to the respect, decorum, and professionalism that was the network's norm for generations.

CBS files motion to dismiss Dan Rather's breach of contract suit originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 16 Nov 2007 13:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>ABCbroadcast journalismbroadcast networksCBSCBS Evening NewsCBSCorpDan RatherDanRatherevening newsFoxMoonvesMurrowNBCRedstoneSevareidVIAViacomFri, 16 Nov 2007 13:43:00 EST<![CDATA[Will Sumner Redstone pay his daughter $1.6 billion to make her go away?]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/07/21/will-sumner-redstone-pay-his-daughter-1-6-billion-to-make-her-g/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/07/21/will-sumner-redstone-pay-his-daughter-1-6-billion-to-make-her-g/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/07/21/will-sumner-redstone-pay-his-daughter-1-6-billion-to-make-her-g/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Sumner Redstone, Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA) and CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS),Chairman, has now admitted what he and his daughter, Shari, previously denied -- she will leave Viacom and CBS if Sumner can come up with the money. The Wall Street Journal [subscription required] reports that Shari will sell her 20% stake in the family holding company, National Amusements, for $1.6 billion.

Sumner's disputes suggest that being rich does not necessarily mean being happy. Unless by happy you mean getting into fights with your family and close business associates and then taking those battles into the legal system.

National Amusements owns 100 movie theaters around the world and the Redstone family stakes in Viacom and CBS. And Shari, in a statement issued last night, claimed that National Amusements had been "publicly" valued at $8 billion.

Meanwhile, in a letter posted on the Forbes web site, Sumner suggests that he will buy out Shari at a price that is "acceptable." But he leaves his kindest cut for the last sentence -- pointing out that he gave his children their stakes in National Amusements and it is he "with little or no help on their part" who built "these great media companies."

Continue reading Will Sumner Redstone pay his daughter $1.6 billion to make her go away?

Will Sumner Redstone pay his daughter $1.6 billion to make her go away? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 21 Jul 2007 07:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>inthenewsNational AmusementsNationalAmusementsRedstoneShariSumnerViacomSat, 21 Jul 2007 07:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Time Warner gets another "Happy Feet" bump]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/01/11/time-warner-gets-another-happy-feet-bump/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/01/11/time-warner-gets-another-happy-feet-bump/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/01/11/time-warner-gets-another-happy-feet-bump/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) is trading up almost 1% at $22.50 this morning. It appears that the company may have a second wave of business from its box office hit Happy Feet: video games.

This morning Sumner Redstone's Midway Games (NYSE: MWY) announced that it had shipped more than 1.8 million copies of its "Happy Feet" video game, which is of course the game based on the popular dancing penguin Warner Bros.' movie. MWY shares have been dead of late and are down more than 50% from yearly highs, but shares are up 11% today as it is a niche-oriented video game developer with more exposure to individual game launches than larger video game publishers.

Even though Redstone competes via Viacom, Inc. (NYSE:VIA), it is amazing how frequently media moguls end up helping out their competitors in media time after time.

Time Warner gets another "Happy Feet" bump originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 11 Jan 2007 11:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>happy feetparsonsredstoneviacomThu, 11 Jan 2007 11:09:00 EST<![CDATA[Synergy at Time Warner: forget it, says Bewkes]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2006/06/03/synergy-at-time-warner-forget-it-says-bewkes/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2006/06/03/synergy-at-time-warner-forget-it-says-bewkes/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2006/06/03/synergy-at-time-warner-forget-it-says-bewkes/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Jeffrey Bewkes, president of Time Warner, told his Sports Illustrated magazine division to go take a flying leap when they wanted to partner with AOL's sports channel to build a giant sports web site. Synergies, he told the Wall Street Journal, are bullshit.

As someone who made part of her career not just believing in synergies but putting solid numerical values to them and offering them up, like holy sacraments of PowerPoint, to the strategists at gigantic corporations: this is a hard pill to swallow. And though I see it not working more often than not, I also see so many areas -- yes, within Time Warner, where I work today -- where it does work. Heck, everyday I make my bucks on the back of the synergy.

But instead of calling them "synergies," now, Time Warner is calling them "adjacencies." Sumner Redstone split up Viacom and CBS because the "clout" he was supposed to get from his company's huge size "got us nowhere." Is the day of the synergy over and done with?

Continue reading Synergy at Time Warner: forget it, says Bewkes

Synergy at Time Warner: forget it, says Bewkes originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 03 Jun 2006 14:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>adjacenciesbewkesbewkes time warnerBewkesTimeWarnercalacaniscbsjason calacanisJasonCalacanisjeff bewkesJeffBewkesjeffrey bewkesJeffreyBewkesredstonesumner redstoneSumnerRedstonesynergiessynergytime warnertime warner presidentTimeWarnerTimeWarnerPresidenttwxviacomwall streetwall street journalWallStreetWallStreetJournalwsjSat, 03 Jun 2006 14:34:00 EST