Before Charter stumbled into what's been a fairly complicated and disagreeable bankruptcy, the company tried -- and failed -- to sell itself, according to one company adviser. Charter's significant debt load made the company particularly unattractive as the credit market began to tighten. Charter's bankruptcy and reorganization aims to eliminate $8 billion in debt, though creditors have balked at the plan because the final plan would reinstate about $11 billion of its senior bank debt at below-market interest rates -- while Paul Allen would retain some control of the final operation.