The Titans

Red is the new black. Not only was it a crimson-ink-stained year for moguls, but there's blood on the boardroom floor: Several major media conglomerates lost their heads. Just about the only two corporate honchos who aren't on the endangered-species list are Viacom's Sumner M. Redstone and News Corp.'s Rupert Murdoch. Of course, they also have ownership stakes so big that they can't be fired. With stock prices in the Dumpster, market capitalizations a fraction of their 2000 levels, ongoing concerns about accounting practices and mistimed acquisitions, and a still sputtering economy to boot, no CEO can claim bragging rights. But some have fewer reasons to cry. Entertainment Weekly consulted more than a dozen financial analysts who follow the entertainment biz to offer some triage.

1 VIACOM Officers: Sumner M. Redstone, 79, chairman-CEO; Mel Karmazin, 59, president-COO Even if he weren't an owner, Redstone would still be securely on top since Viacom boasts what may well be the strongest balance sheet among media companies. But while the well-regarded Karmazin made nice with Redstone under board pressure, the No. 2 keeps dropping hints that he might bolt when his contract expires this December. It's unclear who would succeed Karmazin: Viacom Entertainment chair Jonathan Dolgen or CBS prez Les Moonves, who boosted the net with Survivor and CSI to challenge NBC's Nielsen dominance? The Osbournes gave MTV its biggest hit, while TNN is up 50 percent among 18- to 49-year-olds. As Redstone eyes Europe for possible expansion of cable nets, the beat goes on in Viacom's radio division, which still reigns in many top markets. DVDs are helping the once ailing Blockbuster rewind itself. And while Paramount pinches pennies with shrewd coproductions, its slate is light on blockbusters: In the last year, only Vanilla Sky and The Sum of All Fears topped $100 million domestically. That puts pressure on December's Star Trek: Nemesis.

2 SONY CORPORATION OF AMERICA Officers: Sir Howard Stringer, 60, chairman-CEO; John Calley, 72, chairman-CEO, Sony Pictures Entertainment Having grossed more than $800 million worldwide, Spider-Man led a summer bonanza, helping Sony break its record of $1.27 billion for domestic box office in a calendar year -- on Aug. 19. Still swinging on its mighty PlayStation 2, Sony's games division increased sales 52 percent last year, to $7.5 billion. While maintaining market share, Sony Music saw more layoffs and some costly misfires (Jacko, anyone?) that renewed speculation about Tommy Mottola's future. Signs of life: Dixie Chicks. Still lacking a network of its own, Sony scaled back domestic TV production. It also sold off its stake in Telemundo, the Spanish-language net. What to do with the cash? Stringer recently dismissed talk of a major acquisition (after reportedly flirting with MGM), but Sony remains one of several bidders for Germany's insolvent TV giant, Kirch Media.

3 NEWS CORPORATION Officers: Rupert Murdoch, 71, chairman-CE; Peter Chernin, 51, president-COO; Lachlan Murdoch, 31, deputy COO Patience has paid off for Murdoch, who may revive his dream of building a global satellite empire now that regulators seem to be balking at EchoStar's acquisition of DirecTV (a company he's long coveted). He just agreed to buy the Italian pay-TV group Telepiu in a fire sale from Vivendi Universal. Investors dig his ambition -- the stock's held up better than most media companies' over the last year -- but News Corp.'s strength is its stable executive suite, not its big-ticket buys: Witness the $5.7 billion in charges that the company has taken on its acquisition of Gemstar-TV Guide. The studio slate has been strong, led by Ice Age and Star Wars: Episode II (though Fox collects only distribution fees on the latter), while TV production scored with syndication sales for The Practice. And who needs Paula Zahn? Fox News repeatedly bested rival CNN in ratings, while revenue from all its cable nets increased 28 percent last year. Not so at Fox's broadcast net, hurt by a weak ad market and a shallow bench to replace canceled hits like The X-Files. Still, American Idol brought some summer relief