Wednesday morning headlines

Time Warner's future: New CEO Jeff Bewkes told analysts this morning that he wants to cut deeply into the company's New Line film studio, questioning whether it makes sense to have a separate infrastructure from Warner Brothers. He also wants to separate AOL's Internet-access business and is in discussions to potentially reduce its holdings in Time Warner Cable. Bewkes’ plans have been long-awaited by investors, who are frustrated at the company's languishing stock price. (WSJ)

Market is into Disney: It chose to ignore a 27 percent drop in first-quarter net income and focus on strong ad revenues and a better-than-expected showing at the theme parks (those can be vulnerable in downturns). The stock is up almost 6 percent in early trading. (LAT)

Bearish signs: There's a little upside action this morning, but the problem is that promising rallies never extend quite long enough or far enough, and then some bad news - such as yesterday's horrendous service sector report - brings it all down. It's really a tease for what many believe is a bear market – and lots of short sellers out there. (Marketbeat)

Pressure to end strike: Variety is reporting that a group of showrunners and screenwriters last week threatened to return to work if there wasn't any movement towards resolving the strike. Their belief is that prolonging the work stoppage would be counterproductive. This was around the time that WGA West board member Phil Alden Robinson and SAG president Alan Rosenberg released letters that were critical of the Directors Guild deal. While the end of the strike early next week is still a good bet, don't be surprised if Saturday night's general membership meeting gets ugly.

Coliseum deal is close: An agreement with USC could be reached as early as next week. Todd Dickey, senior vice-president and general counsel at USC, told the LAT: "Are we close? Yes. We have worked through 99 percent of the issues." USC will likely pay the Coliseum Commission about $1.6 million in rent for next season.

Housing cut from Boeing site: The original plan for land north of Long Beach Airport called for the usual mix of office, retail and housing. But the 1,400 residences included in the Douglas Park project have been scratched for obvious reasons, with additional office space now planned. Now all they need are new employers. (LAT)

Fear of flying: A quarter of domestic flights failed to arrive on time in 2007, the industry’s second-poorest performance on record (December was the worst month). But the really bad news is that air-traffic controllers are leaving their jobs at the fastest rate since President Reagan fired more than 12,000 striking controllers 27 years ago. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association has declared staffing emergencies in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, New York and Southern California. From the WSJ:

There are no solid numbers that show how much staffing issues contribute to delays, and the biggest causes of delays are adverse weather conditions and airline missteps, officials say. Yet entry logs on FAA operations provided by the controllers' union show the impact of short-staffed facilities on arrival times. A Dec. 27 entry reads, "JFK GDP IN EFFECT DUE TO STAFFING," indicating a ground-delay program was initiated because of a controller shortage. A Jan. 2 entry showing increased separation distances required between planes in Southern California bore this explanation: "OTHER: STAFFING." FAA operations chief Hank Krakowski said the California delays Jan. 2 were a result of too many controllers calling in sick at Orange County's John Wayne Airport.