Pappas Telecasting owner files Ch. 11 bankruptcy

Fresno's KMPH-TV (Channel 26) and KFRE-TV (Channel 59) are among 13 television stations owned by Visalia-based Pappas Telecasting Companies involved in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing Friday.

The company has been having trouble securing loans to pay its debts. Chapter 11 protects a company from its creditors while it implements a plan to resolve financial problems.

Local television watchers need not worry, because the bankruptcy protection means the stations will continue to operate as usual while financial matters are addressed, company officials said.

"The viewers will see no change at all. And as for the employees, their pay and benefits will continue," said Steven Alfieris, the company's vice president and special counsel.

Alfieris said Pappas owns one radio station in Modesto, KMPH-AM (840), which has a news-talk format. That station would not be affected by the filing, Alfieris said Friday.

There is no time frame for how long the Chapter 11 filing will be in place. It was filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. According to the filing, Pappas Telecasting owes more than $5.8 million to its top 20 creditors. The biggest sum owed, $1.4 million, is to Fox Broadcasting. KMPH is a Fox affiliate.

The same document shows that the company's estimated assets total $100 million to $500 million.

Company executives said in a news release that the bankruptcy action became necessary when efforts to resolve outstanding financing issues broke down between the Pappas Telecasting affiliates and their more than 11 separate, mostly nonbank, lenders. Nonbank lenders are any financial institutions other than banks, Alfieris said.

One factor in the decision to file for the Chapter 11 protection was the state of the financial markets, which has made it more difficult for many businesses to obtain new or replacement financing, according to the news release.

Harry J. Pappas, the group's founder and chairman, put KMPH-TV on the air in 1971. It became the centerpiece of his media company as it grew across the country.

Bee staff writer Ben van der Meer contributed to this report.

This story was originally published May 17, 2008 at 3:32 AM with the headline "Pappas Telecasting owner files Ch. 11 bankruptcy."