Entries
Rumored Copley Suitor Puts Out Racy, Alternative Publications, but Has Debt Woes
Black Press Ltd. of Vancouver is once again rumored to be making a deal with Copley Press for the Union-Tribune, which has been on sale since July. As I reported last August, the owner David Holmes Black (no relation to …
Japan's 12.7% Quarterly Economic Plunge Stuns World
Japan's economy contracted at an annual rate of 12.7 percent in its October-December quarter, compared with the previous year, much worse than economists had expected. It was the biggest drop since one quarter in 1974. The number was down 3.3 …
Names of $100,000 City Retiree Club
On Wednesday, Councilmember Carl DeMaio released information on 86 retired City employees raking in $100,000 a year or more in pension benefits. DeMaio did not release any names. I have been provided a list from a source I believe to …
La Jolla Pharmaceutical Down 91.42%, Dropping Lupus Drug
Biotech La Jolla Pharmaceutical stock is down a whopping 91.42 percent this morning (Feb. 12) to 19.8 cents -- quite a half-day plunge. The company said it would stop developing its lead drug candidate, an experimental treatment for lupus. An …
Pension Deficit $2 Billion, Funded Ratio 66.3 Percent
The City has admitted that the pension system is just 66.3 percent funded and the unfunded actuarial liability is $2 billion as of Jan. 31. Today, Councilmember Carl DeMaio revealed that 86 former City employees are getting pensions of more …
Here Are the Banks Using Your Tax Money for Pro Sports Naming Rights Scam
Bloomberg News has published the names of the U.S. banks getting bailout funds while putting money in the pro sports naming rights swindle. The banks are getting Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) funds. The purchase of naming rights is a …
List of Madoff Investors Now Public. Some San Diegans Tell Their Tales of Woe
Names of thousands of apparent customers in Bernie Madoff's alleged $50 billion Ponzi scheme were filed in Manhattan Bankruptcy Court yesterday (Wed. Feb. 4). The amounts of money they had invested in the scheme were not revealed. The Reader's Matt …
It Looks Like Copley Press Was Spending Money on Acquisitions When It Should Have Been Spending on Technology
In the mid-1990s, Copley Press went into debt to buy some Illinois papers. In the early 2000s, the company strained its finances again by buying some Ohio papers. At the time, some in the company said top management should be …
U-T Axe Was to Fall Friday. It Didn't. Newspaper May Need Employees to Slam Together Long-Delayed Pagination System
Last Friday (Jan. 30), Union-Tribune employees throughout the Mission Valley building expected massive layoff announcements. In the advertising department, employees "were getting diarrhea, had bumps on their arms, were finding it hard to work," says an observer. Managers knew nothing. …
Three-Way Battle for Control of Biotech Amylin Looks Possible
Two investment groups have announced their intention to nominate five-member slates to the 12-person board of biotech Amylin Pharmaceuticals. Hedge fund Eastbourne Capital Management, which owns 12.5 percent of Amylin's stock, said this morning (Feb. 2) that it intends to …
Two Congressmen Say Citigroup Shouldn't Pay NY Mets $400 Million for Naming Rights When Sucking $350 Billion from Federal Government
Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich and Republican Rep. Ted Poe have sent a letter to New York beggar-bank Citigroup, saying that since it has received $45 billion of bailout funds, plus another $306 billion in loan guarantees from the federal government, …
Alan Gin's USD Leading Indicators of San Diego Economy Continue Plunging
The University of San Diego leading indicators of the San Diego economy continue plummeting. According to calculations of economist Alan Gin, the December index was at 108.4, down 2.1 percent from November. But look at the index compared with past …
Guess Who's San Diego's Newest Author: Michael Ellis of Metabolife, Writing from Prison
Michael Ellis, the former head of Metabolife, is at Taft Federal Prison in California until mid-February. When he gets out, he will give interviews about his new self-published book, "The Metabolife Story," which is, he says, about "The Rape of …
L.A. Times Says Chargers Closer to Moving North. Fabiani Suggests It's True
The Los Angeles Times has been reporting this week that the Chargers may be closer to a move to that area. First, the newspaper reported that the team has hired a sports promotion group to expand the team's marketing in …
San Diego Home Prices Down 38 Percent from Peak Three Years Ago
November home prices in the 20 major metro areas were down a record 18.2 percent compared with a year earlier, according to Case-Shiller Home Price Indices released this morning (Jan. 27) by Standard & Poor's. San Diego did worse: the …
Stock of Charlotte Russe, Retailer That May Sell Itself, Comes Down Sharply
On Wednesday (Jan. 21), Charlotte Russe, retailer of fashion merchandise to females in their teens and twenties, shot up to $5.89 in after-hours trading. The company announced that day that it might sell itself and has received "expressions of interest" …
San Diego Rent Declines Are 22nd Highest Among Major Metro Areas
San Diego metro area apartment rents dropped 2 percent through last year -- the 22nd largest decline among large U.S. cities, according to data from Axiometrics.com compiled by Business Week Magazine. San Diego rents declined 1.6 percent in last year's …
Unemployment Jumps to 7.4 Percent in December. Retail, Publishing, Construction Off Sharply
San Diego County unemployment hit 7.4 percent in December, up from a revised 6.9 percent in November, and up from 5 percent a year earlier, according to the Employment Development Department. State unemployment was at 9.1 percent and the U.S. …
Brandes Investment Partners Still Underperforming Sharply, Losing Clients
San Diego's money management firm Brandes Investment Partners continues its string of disastrous investments, particularly in financial and newspaper companies. Today (Jan. 20), the stock of Royal Bank of Scotland plunged 69.31 percent. The British government owns the majority of …
This Year's Super Bowl Will Be Spelled G-A-N-G-S-T-E-R, No Matter Who Plays
No matter what two teams play in this year's Super Bowl Feb. 1, the relationships of National Football League owners to organized crime should be on display, although mainstream media will almost certainly ignore the facts. The best source on …