WSJ Profiles Pittman

CAN RADIO SAVE THE VIDEO STAR? Clear Channel CEO Bob Pittman explains how and why he seeks to make radio “cool again” in a Wall Street Journal profile this morning, which states: "It is a challenge unlike anything else he has taken on. Whereas his involvement with both MTV and AOL occurred when they were fresh and new, radio is one of the oldest of old media. Its future was bleak even before the Internet and satellite radio came along, but now traditional radio faces an array of digital competitors in streaming music services, from Pandora to Spotify.” The article notes Pittman’s goal is made more difficult by Clear Channel's $20 billion debt, with reported losses of $4 billion for 2008 and 2009. “By 2011, the outlook improved, but the company was still in the red to the tune of $302 million,” according to the piece. Former MTV colleague Tom Freston said of Pittman: “Bob’s drawn to the challenge of a turnaround and working on something that most people think is doomed.” (10/15a)