TV group Young Broadcasting files bankruptcy

NEW YORK - Young Broadcasting Inc., owner of 10 TV stations affiliated with the CBS and ABC networks, said Friday it has filed for bankruptcy protection in a U.S. court in the Southern District of New York.

The New York-based company said it will continue to operate the stations without interruption.

TV broadcasters in the U.S. are under pressure as the economic downturn sends advertising revenue spiraling downward. Credit rating agency Moody's Investors Service warned last week that broadcasters entered the recession with high levels of debt and already were struggling to retain audiences as more customers turn to portable gadgets and the Web for entertainment.

At the same time, broadcasters — and some of their cable counterparts — are facing tough times absent must-see television such as major political campaigns or the Olympics.

On Thursday, the fourth-largest U.S. cable operator, Charter Communications Inc., said it expects to file for bankruptcy by April 1 and get relief from creditors.

The St. Louis-based company has never made a profit since it began trading publicly in 1999.

And last December, Chicago-based Tribune Co., which owns flagship newspapers such as the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, The (Baltimore) Sun, The Hartford Courant and other dailies, as well as 23 television stations and the Chicago Cubs baseball team, sought bankruptcy protection amid a $13 billion debt load and sinking ad revenues.

Young Broadcasting owns a national television representation firm, Adam Young Inc., and the following stations:

_ WKRN-TV in Nashville, Tennessee (ABC)

_ WTEN-TV in Albany, New York (ABC)

_ WRIC-TV in Richmond, Virginia (ABC)

_ WATE-TV in Knoxville, Tennessee (ABC)

_ WBAY-TV in Green Bay, Wisconsin (ABC)

_ WLNS-TV in Lansing, Michigan (CBS)

_ KLFY-TV in Lafayette, Louisiana (CBS)

_ KELO-TV in Sioux Falls, South Dakota (CBS)

_ KWQC-TV in Davenport, Iowa (NBC)

_ KRON-TV in San Francisco

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