News 2 getting new management company

Atlanta-based Gray Television has reached a deal with creditors of bankrupt Young Broadcasting to take over the management of seven of the latter’s TV stations, including News 2.

Gray (Ticker: GTN) runs more than 30 stations around the country, including stations in Knoxville and Bowling Green. Young President Deb McDermott, who ran News 2 before moving up the ladder, is getting a new contract.

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News 2 parent headed for auction block

Investors looking to bid on bankrupt Young Broadcasting’s assets have until July 10 to submit their papers, according to recent court documents filed in New York. Young, which owns WKRN News 2 as well as 10 other TV stations around the country, filed for Chapter 11 early this year, unable to handle its debt load. Operating numbers for May show that WKRN posted a profit of almost $237,000 on net revenue of $1.9 million.

HT: Bonna Johnson

WKRN parent Young Broadcasting files for bankruptcy protection

A letter from company CEO Vincent Young courtesy of the station’s blog:

On Friday, February 13, 2009, we announced that in order to facilitate our balance sheet restructuing, we filed voluntary petitions for relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in New York. We have more than 20 million dollars of cash on hand and plan to continue to operate our business in the ordinary course as we reorganize. Our television station will continue broadcasting without interruption, our employees will be paid as usual and our vendors and suppliers will be paid for all post-petition goods and services.

Chapter 11 bankruptcy is a tool to enable us to restructure our debt and strengthen our business so that we can better navigate the current challenging economic environment and compete in the marketplace effectively. Our company generates significant profits, but those profits are not sufficient to support all of our debt. While we are in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, we will negotiate with our lenders and creditors to restructure and reduce our debt. We took this decisive action to make us a stronger and more financially secure company.

The full bankruptcy petition can be seen here.

Shares of News 2 parent delisted

Officials at Young Broadcasting say they will not contest the ruling by the Nasdaq, which resulted in its shares going off the exchange this morning. The company has a market company of a little more than $1 million.

News 2 parent skipping bond payment

Young Broadcasting says it has a 30-day grace period on the note and has hired UBS and a national law firm to help it analyze its restructuring options.

Channel 2 off the Dish?

It could happen, says industry pub Multichannel News, detailing Young Broadcasting’s quest for cash.

“We believe that a penny per day per subscriber is a reasonable demand for our award-winning news, sports and entertainment programming.”