The President of the KOCE Foundation, Dr. Jo Ellen Allen, has taken the time to pen a rebuttal to my commentary from yesterday. She takes umbrage at what she feels was a factually misleading piece penned by me.
I will let you read Jo Allen’s piece (click the attachment below) for yourself, but apparenlty we are going to be doing a he-said, she-said on some of the most basic facts in this case.
I will restate that despite what Allen says:
- Daystar was and is willing to pay considerably more for KOCE than the Foundation is prepared to pay – to the tune of millions and millions of dollars; and,
- Daystar’s offer was in CASH, not a complex web of financing with a few million down, the rest to follow after five years, and, oh yes, a sweetheart deal with a zero percent interest rate!
I will make my point succinctly — government, whether at the federal, state or local level, should not be in the business of televison. Government shouldn’t be producing television programming, nor should tax dollars be taken from one person to provide entertainment for someone else.
I applaud the generosity of KOCE viewers, and I applaud those KOCE Foundation Board Members and others who have come up with private capitol to help the KOCE Foundation bid on the station. I also applaud the Coast Community College Trustees for selling the station.
But if the KOCE Foundation cannot raise the necessary funding to be the highest cash bidder (and it is not me, but rather The Honorable David Sills, the Presiding Judge of the Appellate Court who says that the KOCE Foundation bid was NOT the highest), then the station should be awarded to whomever is the highest bidder. To do otherwise is to make a de facto gift of public funds (equal to the difference between the highest bid and what the Foundation actually pays).
Remember, the "Golden Trash Can" legislation (AB 523) actually says, "…the governing board of a community college district may sell, for less than fair market value, a nonprofit educational television station…"
If the KOCE Foundation bid was the highest bid, why are they seeking a change in the law to allow the station to be sold for less than fair market value? If their objection was to the law requiring that it be the highest cash offier, they could just change that one word. Clearly they want to go much further..