CBS, the American television network owned by National Amusements, is offering viewers the chance to watch repeats of the reality show Survivor and enjoy the “drama, betrayal and intrigue” all over again. One wonders why viewers would bother when they could derive as much entertainment from observing the predicament of the channel's parent company and its aggressive chief executive Sumner Redstone.

Having sought to disinherit his daughter, Shari, who also sits on the board, and having been sued by his son, Mr Redstone is now trying to shore up his company's finances. National Amusements is struggling under $1.6 billion (£1billion) of debt owed to a syndicate of lenders, led by Bank of America. Of that sum, $800 million is set to mature on December 19. The sale of the company's stake in Midway Games is the culmination of talks with lenders.

Mr Redstone has already been forced to dump $233 million of his family's non-voting shares in CBS and Viacom. The sale was triggered after a sharp drop in the shares in CBS and Viacom, in which National Amusements has a controlling stake, had threatened the company's debt obligations. Now Mr Redstone is believed to be in talks about offering lenders some of National Amusements' remaining assets as collateral for the unsecured $1.6 billion loan.

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