Air America Radio, in Chapter 11 bankruptcy
proceedings since October, will be rescued at the 11th
hour by Manhattan real estate developer Stephen L.
Green.
Al Franken, the best-known host of the liberal
network, will announce his expected departure on his
show later today, to explore a run for the U.S. Senate
from Minnesota.
Green is the brother of Mark Green, the New York
Democrat who served as the city's public advocate in
the 90s and ran for mayor against Michael Bloomberg in
2001.
He has already signed a letter of intent, and plans to
finalize
a purchase agreement within the week.
Air America CEO Scott Elberg confirmed the sale. "This
is a great
thing, for our affiliates, the company, the audience
and every employee
in our organization."
Green is chairman of SL Green Realty Corp, a real
estate investment trust specializing in office
buildings with a market cap of $12 billion.
Brother Mark is a frequent guest on Air America, and
sat in for David Bender, the host of the Air America
show Politically Direct, for a couple of weeks earlier
this month.
When Franken leaves the network in a few weeks,
he'll be replaced by Thom Hartmann, who already has
a syndicated show on the network's lineup.