Fisher CEO colleen brown "responsible for $173 million in losses"

Ooo boy. The heavy artillery has been dragged out.

(photo: Colleen Brown in better days)

FrontFour, the NY stockholder cabal trying to take over Fisher Broadcasting (KOMO radio & teevee, KVI, Star 101) responded vituperously to "set the record straight" after a nasty-gram the Fisher board sent Tuesday.

In a long press release, they wrote that Fisher's letter "... is full of misleading propaganda, half-truths and false claims about FrontFour that are self-serving and intended to entrench the Board and senior management."

Then they went straight for the throat of CEO Colleen Brown.

"Five years ago Colleen Brown was hired as President and CEO with the promise of a Fisher turnaround FrontFour says this has not happened. "Under Ms. Brown, Fisher has continuously and seriously underperformed despite its ownership of valuable television broadcast assets in Seattle and Portland (top 25 DMAs), leading radio stations, and Fisher Plaza, a 300,000 square foot mixed use building in Seattle. Since April 1, 2006, when Ms. Brown first implemented her strategic plan for the Company, Fisher's shares have lost 48% of their value , as of December 31, 2010. Adding insult to injury, over this same time period, Fisher has spent $91.6 million on three acquisitions that have failed to generate returns. Despite these substantial investments, equity value has declined from $363 million to $190 million. In other words, Ms. Brown has presided over the destruction of $173 million of the Company's equity value over the past five years."

FrontFour is trying to put four of its own to make a majority on the Seattle broadcaster’s board of directors. Fisher says they'll sell the company, if given the chance. Fisher's probably correct.

We've often wondered how Colleen Brown has survived during the depressing decline of the company- she's had some dark days, this must be one of the darkest.

The high stakes shoot-out will happen at the stockholders' meeting May 11.

The old Seattle flour-milling company turned media outlet has been in financial turmoil for some time, even putting up their Seattle home office for sale. (It hasn't sold).

(photo: Fisher Plaza: a high-tech elephant of the white variety)

As critical as we are of Fisher, their bewildering business decisions, and nasty management, to lose this old local company to Wall Street sharks would be a Seattle tragedy. 

Comments

[joanie]

I don't know much about Brown but you can bet her being a woman makes her a much riper target.

[Jerome]

There goes the only black mail in Seattle media-token weatherman Steve Pool

[Pete]

Poole is safe. He's not a woman, so he can appear on KOMO past age 40.

[Eastlaker]

They HAVE been stoopid. Maybe they should be broken up and the good pieces sold to companies like Clear Channel. Stoopid shouldn't last long in the marketplace

[Rat_Bastard]

Steve Pool is one of Seattle's most beloved TV personalities...
My issue with him these days is that all of the other guys around him are letting their hair go grey while Steve now looks like he's wearing a jet black spray painted, snug knit cap...
It's ridiculous.
Fisher spends way too much on Steve's hair and not enough on it's KOMO radio website.
Dan Lewis, of course...
Now he has a world class head of hair that can compete with ANY other throughought the cosmos.
(and you can quote me on that)

[dave (not dave ross)]

I will say this for John Curley, the show seems to be improving, (when hes there) and he has been taking unscreened phone calls. They are regular callers at times, but real phone calls all the same, imagine that on KIRO!

[Bill Wippel]

Fisher Broadcasting local holdings exhibit the last vistage of hometown ownership. Facts are facts. But they should be taken in context. Most broadcast properties have lost tremendous value in the past 30 years. (2 AM's sold last week in WA for $25,000!) Many are so much in debt it is hard to imagine such circumstances when I started in broadcasting 61 years ago.

Because of the internet, neighborhood blogs, I-pods, blackberries, etc., the competition for viewing/listening is severe. Cable was a threat to local TV (Remember KOMO TV's battle with one cable company that kept them off their air?) and now radio's audience is diminishing rapidly as well. God only knows what holds next. The sitiuation at Fisher Broadcasting is about shareholder value. Many of their stockholders have not yet seen a return of their investment made years ago. Our economy will not recover for years. The time for change appears very much a reality. The group from B.C., if it is successful, will sell off the broadcast properties and keep the real estate. At least that is what I am told. In order to make money, the buyer of the broadcast properties would have to cut staff and broadcast services. KOMO4 and KOMO Newsradio are priorities at my household. I would hate to see the change. However reality says it may very well happen.

[John DeRosa]

She's terrible.

[Chucks]

This has to be the nearly perfect CEO to a certain poster on this blog. The only thing that might move her to perfect would be if she were a minority.
She is a powerful officer in a corporation, female and not only does she not make a profit, she looses huge amounts of money for the evil corporation and their greedy rich investors.

[Tommy008]

my God, still playing the gender card, Joanie, 11 years into the new century. Really weak. Pathetic......Dave, did you hear Curley last night.....have to give him a hand for taking calls, Dori thinks he needs no calls, he's so interesting to listen to,......the main thing that stood out was his mention of having a role on one of the soaps just snnounced to be folding, back in the early 80's.... i think it was Al My Children.....he played the roommate of the young male hunk of the show at the time. After a few weeks they changed the plot so that the hune dropped out of college, and Curley was written into the script...very weird to hear him throw this bit of info out without any furhter explanation....to get apparently a speaking part of i assume at least a few lines, on one of the soaps at such a young age is a big deal....was this guy an aspiring actor back then? it almost seems he had to be completley into acting to get the part over all the competition....was this part in the soap a promising career opener that only proved to be a heartbreaking false start as his nascent acting career petered out into an aborted nothing? Is the fact that he doesn't care to really let us in on this chapter of his life stem from embarrassment over being a failed actor?.....this is the kind of crap you expect from Curley - throwing some surprising or startling piece of personal info out with no back story included sfterwards......what a goon... oh by the way- i was on All my Childern in 1982.....of course you were John everybody was back then...it was just what college kids did..

[Tommy008]

sorry should have red - "and Curley was written out of the script"

[joanie]

Does anybody read Tommy?

[Tommy008]

haha Dear, yes it's true.......oh BR , so glad you called- Sparky and I were just discussing the blog.......does anyone even bother to read Tommy anymore, those long pieces with the misspellings and .....yes BR oh my i'm laughing yes...what a truly horrid little man, this Tommy008 fellow ,,...more tea, Sparky?....haha the sparkler did a funny drawing today BR ,sketching out what she thought Tommy really looks like...sitting there typing in his underwear or good god with his underwear....im sorry BR? ...WHAT?...OH GOD YES..more like it...hohoho. yes i know dear..we are truly some superior, special folk... Tommy just endorsed the vulgar cretin Donald Trump.....one of my evil, superior WHITE MEN WHOSE DEATH I CHEER FOR AND PRAY FOR EVERY DAY. IF WE COULD JUST GET THESE BASTARDS TO DIE OFF...sorry to shout in your ear, BR- i just lost it momentarily... did i tell you about our new neighbors?..the husband sells RV's ! yes yes I know BR .....HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF ANYTHING MORE ASININE...an RV salesman...no im not joking BR.. A COARSE COMMON CAR SALESMAN actually in my neighborhood, within the Seattle city limits, not out in Midway or Fife or some such white trash hangout....oh they're the worst BR.. Chuck the husband says the most vulgar harsh things.. his views are truly disturbing...god i wish they'd move out....haha...yes BR...oh my yes......

[KPTK plays no commercials, only PSA's.]

They deserve it for putting a broad in charge, women can't handle money well.

[Puget Sound]

Does anybody read Tommy?

Posted by: joanie | April 15, 2011 at 09:03 PM

answer: joanie, without fail.

[joanie]

No, actually, that's the point - the one you usually miss. I can't get through him so was wondering if anybody else can.

Always explaining to you. Just like the old times.

[Andrew]

So if a CEO is a woman, they should be allowed to ruin a company? It's argument like that which truly hold back equality. I wouldn't hire a woman if I was worried that she might play the gender card to excuse a lack of effort and creativity.

[Bevis Building Maintenance]

"Did i tell you about our new neighbors? The husband's an RV saleman." hahaaha what a High-larious spoof of Joanie blathering away on the phone while serving tea to Sparky....check it out folks about four posts abovr me......good job Tommy......

[Jovita is Tommys friend]

Tommy talkin to yourself with another name thingire is pretty funny but also kind of pathetic. We all read what ya wrote. If we think its worth repeating, we will!