Huron Daily Tribune Changes Distribution Days

Effective after December 25, 2009, the Huron Daily Tribune's publication days are switching to Tuesday through Saturday with Saturday being the large weekend edition and also the day that the TMC will be published. They will no longer publish on Mondays & Sundays. Inserted preprints will only be accepted on Tuesday, Thursdays and Saturdays.

The preprint shipping location will also change effective after December 25, 2009; please contact the Daily Tribune for more details on the shipping.

Washington Times Ceases Sunday Edition

The Washington Times published its last Sunday edition on December 27th, 2009. The paper will continue to publish Monday through Friday. The publication is also increasing its single copy price from $0.50 to $1.00 per issue.

The Times is owned by New World Publications.

Heartland Publications Files for Chapter 11

Reuters
Reporting by Sakthi Prasad in Bangalore; Editing by Jon Loades-Carter
December 21, 2009

"U.S. newspaper publisher Heartland Publications LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday, hurt by a fall in advertising revenue due to the economic downturn and growing competition from Internet-based alternatives.

As of Oct. 31, 2009, Heartland Publications reported about $134.3 million in total assets and about $166.2 million in total liabilities, court documents show.

Heartland Publications currently owns 50 community newspapers mainly in the Southern part of the United States.

The company said due to declining revenue, it had initiated cost saving measures and has budgeted a $1.3 million decrease in operating expenses for 2009.

For the trailing twelve months ended Oct. 31, 2009, the company recorded a revenue of about $55.2 million and it expects revenue for the 2009 calendar year to fall about 11.6 percent.

Most newspaper publishers including The New York Times Co, McClatchy Co and Gannett Co Inc, have been reporting declining ad revenue and circulation on the back of a weakening economy and growing competition from the Internet.

The case is In re: Heartland Publications LLC, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware, No. 09-14459."

Washington Blade & Southern Voice Closes

The Washington Blade, a gay and lesbian publication closed suddenly on November 16th, 2009. The Blade had a weekly distribution of 23,000 in the Washington D.C. area.

The paper is owned by Window Media, which also ceased publication of the Southern Voice, Atlanta David, South Florida Blade, and 411 Magazine, per the Washington Post.

Hopi Tutuveni Closes

Arizona Daily Sun

December 1, 2009

The Hopi Tutuveni has been published with one interruption since the 1970s, and distributed to readers from Hopi to Tuba City, Flagstaff and Winslow.

One other employee works at the Tutuveni, which once employed four people.The council approved a 4 percent larger budget for last year than the current year, at $21.8 million.

The tribe plans to take in $18.5 million next year, according to the council's spokeswoman, Tina May.

She quoted one tribal council member who called the newspaper "ineffective."The council will set aside $471,113 for a new executive director position it has recently created -- in addition to a newly elected chairman and vice chairman.
Tribal employees will not receive raises to adjust salaries with inflation, May wrote.

Further, the council has called for a financial audit of every tribal village, and that the villages pay back taxes for overdue payroll taxes, if due.

Minneapolis Star Tribune emerges from bankruptcy - September 28, 2009

The Minneapolis Star Tribune emerged from bankruptcy protection today with its main lenders becoming the new owners and its debt slashed by 80 percent.

Out from Chapter 11, the Star Tribune can now make decisions without a judge's supervision, as Minnesota's largest newspaper and the nation's 14th largest on weekdays tries to ride out an advertising drought and boost revenue in print and online.

The move was largely expected after a federal bankruptcy judge in New York approved the Star Tribune's reorganization plan Sept. 17. The newspaper had filed for bankruptcy protection eight months earlier, saddled by debt from Avista Capital Partners' 2007 purchase of the newspaper from the McClatchy Co.

New board Chairman Michael Sweeney said today was "the first day of a new beginning" as the 142-year-old newspaper got "a new lease on our future."

Newsday Marketeer Closes

The Newsday Marketeer closed on December 15, 2009. The Marketeer was a weekly shopper that had 35 editions covering Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island.

Northwest Arkansas Newspaper Merger

The Benton County Daily Record, Northwest Arkansas Times and Morning News of Northwest Arkansas became zoned/city editions of the Arkansas Democrat Gazette on November 1, 2009, when a deal between Stephens Media and the Democrat Gazette Northwest Arkansas Operations was reached.

Roscommon County Herald News Closes

The Roscommon County Herald News closed on Sunday November 8th, 2009. The Herald News was owned by Sunrise Printing & Publishing, and the assests were sold to the Houghton Lake Resorter.

The Houghton Lake Resorter will look to strengthen its distribution into the area formerly covered by the Herald News. The Lake Resorter is a paid Thursday community publication.