McClatchy, Tribune, Buffett, and the need to think outside the box

On Thursday, McClatchy—the publicly-traded owner of 30 local newspapers, including the Miami Herald, the Charlotte Observer, and the Kansas City Star—filed for bankruptcy. The company will continue to operate, but is seeking relief from debt and pension obligations; if that goes to plan, it’ll pass into the control of Chatham Asset Management, a hedge fund which is already McClatchy’s top creditor, and which also owns the Canadian publishing giant Postmedia and the parent company of the National Enquirer. On Friday, McClatchy’s DC bureau reported that a federal pensions agency has concerns about a 2018 transaction between McClatchy and Chatham that could put the brakes on the bankruptcy process. Still, McClatchy—which has been family-controlled since the aftermath of the California Gold Rush—looks likely to end up in the hands of the 21st-century prospectors who increasingly own the local-news business. Local-news-watchers have traced McClatchy’s present plight to its decision, in 2006, to buy Knight Ridder, then America’s second-biggest newspaper company, in a deal worth $4.5 billion. (Yes, with a “b.”) The deal burdened McClatchy with debt, and since it was struck, ad revenue and print-circulation figures have cratered. A recent hike in digital subscriptions has offered some respite; still, between the Knight Ridder acquisition and the middle of last year, McClatchy cut nearly 60 percent of its operating expenses and more than 80 percent of its full-time staff,... Continue reading at 'Columbia Journalism Review'

[ Columbia Journalism Review | 2020-02-17 13:11:10 UTC ]
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Jack Fuller, Prizewinning Chicago Tribune Journalist, Dies at 69

Jack Fuller won a Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing at The Chicago Tribune and later became Tribune Publishing’s president. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2016-06-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Gannett Says It Is Determined to Woo Tribune Publishing

The courtyard of the Tribune Tower, home of The Chicago Tribune. Gannett has made an offer worth $864 million to acquire the paper’s owner, the Tribune Publishing Company, which has rejected the bid. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2016-06-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Shareholder Sues Tribune Directors, Chairman Over Spurned Gannett Bid

A Tribune Publishing investor sued the media company's directors and Chairman Michael Ferro for spurning an $864 million buyout offer from Gannett and seeking a cash infusion from a billionaire health-care entrepreneur.Tribune's board members are seeking to unfairly entrench themselves by taking... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2016-06-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Players’ Tribune and Budweiser team up for new content studio

Derek Jeter’s The Players’ Tribune and Budweiser are launching a content studio, which will focus on short-form videos and photos for Facebook, Instagram and other social platforms. The launch is part of a broader strategy at The Players’ Tribune to diversify its video content and grow audience... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2016-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Backed by Billionaire, Tribune Rejects Gannett's Latest Bid

Tribune Publishing, infused with a $70.5 million investment from billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, rejected Gannett's latest takeover offer, escalating the battle between the newspaper publishers.Gannett's revised proposal is "clearly inadequate" to control the owner of the Los Angeles Times and... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2016-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tribune Publishing's No.2 shareholder pushes for sale

The second-largest shareholder of Los Angeles Times owner Tribune Publishing said Wednesday that passing up a buyout offer from rival publishing company Gannett could "destroy enormous shareholder value."  In a letter sent to Tribune's board and filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission,... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2016-05-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Comics at BEA: New Books from Raina Telgemeier, Jessica Abel, Box Brown

Comics publishers seemed happy with BookExpo's move to Chicago show, citing the opportunity to meet new Midwestern retailers. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-05-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tribune and Gannett meet in Chicago with no progress on deal

Gannett and Tribune Publishing leadership met in Chicago Thursday, but no progress was made on an unsolicited bid to buy the Chicago-based newspaper chain, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.The meeting, held at the suggestion of Tribune Publishing Chairman Michael Ferro,... Continue reading at Baltimore Sun

[ Baltimore Sun | 2016-05-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tribune Publishing Says No to Gannett’s $815 Million Offer

The Los Angeles Times building. The owner of the newspaper, Tribune Publishing Company, rejected an unsolicited offer from Gannett. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2016-05-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A ‘Three-box Solution’ for Leading Innovation

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[ Knowledge@Wharton | 2016-05-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tribune Publishing says temporary restraining order would kill O.C. Register bid

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[ Baltimore Sun | 2016-03-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Judge grants restraining order blocking Tribune Publishing purchase of O.C. Register

A U.S. District Court judge has approved a temporary restraining order to block Tribune Publishing’s purchase of the Orange County Register and Riverside Press-Enterprise, a decision that the owner of the Los Angeles Times has described as a “death-knell” to its bid. The publishing company's... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2016-03-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Startup of the week: Book In A Box

The concept behind Book In A Box - that aspiring authors can outsource the entire writing and publishing process - might be controversial, but then founder Max Tucker has made a bestselling publishing career out of profitable controversy. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-02-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tribune has possible rival in bid for Orange County Register

Digital First Media, the owner of the Los Angeles Daily News, has indicated interest in bidding for the Orange County Register and other assets of bankrupt publishing company Freedom Communications. That move could set up a three-way bidding war for the Register among Digital First, Freedom... Continue reading at Baltimore Sun

[ Baltimore Sun | 2016-02-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2015-12-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Slate | 2015-12-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Lucy Maud Montgomery: From hat box novelist to Google Doodle tribute

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[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-12-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tribune Offers $3 Million to Fund Freedom Bankruptcy Case

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[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-11-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new company founded by a former Penguin Random House digital exec is making a big bet on original, serialized digital fiction. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-09-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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