Showing posts with label Mesa East Valley Tribune. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mesa East Valley Tribune. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Freedom Communications Sale of East Valley Tribune Approved
A federal judge has approved the sale of the East Valley Tribune to 1013 Communications LLC (13th Street Media) as part of Freedom Communications bankruptcy. This sale will also include the following Freedom publications: Ahwatukee Foothills News, the Sun City Daily News-Sun, Glendale/Peoria Today, Surprise Today, and the Clipper.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Mesa East Valley Tribune to Keep Publishing
The Mesa East Valley Tribune will continue publishing beyond its 12/31/2009 closing date. This is to facilitate uninterrupted distribution of the paper until the deal with 13th Street Media is completed.
Monday, November 30, 2009
East Valley Tribune May Have a Buyer
By Mike Sunnucks
Phoenix Business Journal
A Tucson newspaper publisher has a letter of intent to buy the East Valley Tribune and rescue the Mesa paper from closure. A letter of intent has been finalized between Freedom Communications, which owns the Tribune, and Randy Miller's Thirteenth Street Media.
Miller owns the Tucson Explorer newspaper. The Tribune confirmed the pending sale which includes Miller buying the Mesa paper's assets and debts. A price was not disclosed.
California-based Freedom is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and was planning on closing the Tribune at the end of the year if a buyer was not found.
The Explorer is a free weekly paper with a 50,000-reader circulation. Miller also owns the Telluride (Colo.) Daily Plant, a free daily newspaper. A statement by the Tribune said Miller would model the East Valley paper after the Explorer with a focus on local, suburban news.
Miller is expected to keep a "substantial number" of the Tribune's remaining 140 employees, according the Tribune's statement. The sale needs to be approved by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court handling Freedom's Chapter 11.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Mesa East Valley Tribune to Close December 31st
By Nick R. Martin November 2, 2009 10:53 AM
The East Valley Tribune, which has seen a roller coaster year that included laying off nearly half its staff and winning a Pulitzer Prize, will be shutting down on Dec. 31, staffers were told today.
Publisher Julie Moreno broke the bad news at about 10:30 a.m., telling employees that the Mesa newspaper's parent company, Freedom Communications, has been unable to find a buyer for it, the company confirmed at about noon.
Freedom, which declared bankruptcy Sept. 1 awash in more than $1 billion in debt, had put the newspaper up for sale hoping to make some hard cash from the deal. But no serious buyer stepped forward before today's announcement.
"There were people who expressed interest," said Freedom spokeswoman Maya Pogoda. "However, none of the bids were suitable."
The closing makes the Tribune the second Arizona newspaper to shutter this year. In May, the state's oldest newspaper, the Tucson Citizen, was shut down by its owner, Gannett. The Citizen has since become a local blogging website for the media chain.
"This is probably the most difficult decision a company can make," Freedom CEO Burl Osborne said in a news release. "But ultimately, after considering all available options, this is the best alternative for our company."
It's not yet clear how many employees are still at the Tribune, but its closure will not be a cheap proposition. A source who attended the meeting said staffers were told they will be given severance packages equal to one week for every year of service they had with the company.
Freedom's other newspapers in the Phoenix area, including the Ahwatukee Foothills News and the Daily News-Sun in Sun City, will remain in tact, said Pogoda.
The Tribune has had a year of ups and downs. Early in the year, the newspaper laid off about 40 percent of its staff and reduced its number of days in print from seven to just three. The remaining staffers were also forced to take pay cuts and time off without pay.
But the newspaper also rode a wave of praise this year as it racked up numerous statewide and national awards for a series it ran last year focusing on crime and immigration enforcement by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. Among the awards was the highest given out to newspapers: the Pulitzer Prize. The Tribune was given the Pulitzer for local reporting in April.
In mid-September, the Tribune was put up for sale by its parent company, which bought the newspaper about a decade ago. Rumors of potential bidders spread in recent weeks, but no formal announcement was ever made.
Pogoda would not discuss specifics about the newspaper's finances, however she said "economic and industry" forces had played a role in its demise.
"They've tried for about a year to make certain changes to improve it," Pagoda said. "But they just weren't able to."
Publisher Julie Moreno broke the bad news at about 10:30 a.m., telling employees that the Mesa newspaper's parent company, Freedom Communications, has been unable to find a buyer for it, the company confirmed at about noon.
Freedom, which declared bankruptcy Sept. 1 awash in more than $1 billion in debt, had put the newspaper up for sale hoping to make some hard cash from the deal. But no serious buyer stepped forward before today's announcement.
"There were people who expressed interest," said Freedom spokeswoman Maya Pogoda. "However, none of the bids were suitable."
The closing makes the Tribune the second Arizona newspaper to shutter this year. In May, the state's oldest newspaper, the Tucson Citizen, was shut down by its owner, Gannett. The Citizen has since become a local blogging website for the media chain.
"This is probably the most difficult decision a company can make," Freedom CEO Burl Osborne said in a news release. "But ultimately, after considering all available options, this is the best alternative for our company."
It's not yet clear how many employees are still at the Tribune, but its closure will not be a cheap proposition. A source who attended the meeting said staffers were told they will be given severance packages equal to one week for every year of service they had with the company.
Freedom's other newspapers in the Phoenix area, including the Ahwatukee Foothills News and the Daily News-Sun in Sun City, will remain in tact, said Pogoda.
The Tribune has had a year of ups and downs. Early in the year, the newspaper laid off about 40 percent of its staff and reduced its number of days in print from seven to just three. The remaining staffers were also forced to take pay cuts and time off without pay.
But the newspaper also rode a wave of praise this year as it racked up numerous statewide and national awards for a series it ran last year focusing on crime and immigration enforcement by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. Among the awards was the highest given out to newspapers: the Pulitzer Prize. The Tribune was given the Pulitzer for local reporting in April.
In mid-September, the Tribune was put up for sale by its parent company, which bought the newspaper about a decade ago. Rumors of potential bidders spread in recent weeks, but no formal announcement was ever made.
Pogoda would not discuss specifics about the newspaper's finances, however she said "economic and industry" forces had played a role in its demise.
"They've tried for about a year to make certain changes to improve it," Pagoda said. "But they just weren't able to."
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Freedom Communications Seeks Bankruptcy Protection
Sept. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Freedom Communications Inc., the owner of more than 30 daily newspapers including the Orange County Register in California, sought bankruptcy protection after print advertising revenue declined.
Freedom, owner of eight television stations, has assets of as much as $1 billion and debt of more than $1 billion, it said today in Chapter 11 papers in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Delaware. The Irvine, California-based company’s revenue totaled $734 million last year, according to Moody’s Investors Service Inc.
The company said it filed to implement a pre-petition agreement it reached with its lender on a restructuring of its debt. A majority of the lenders will support a “pre-negotiated plan of reorganization,” Freedom said in a statement.
“Reaching this agreement with our lenders provides us with an orderly process to realign our balance sheet with the realities of today’s media environment,” Freedom CEO Burl Osborne said in the statement.
The average weekday circulation of the Orange County Register in the six months through March fell 12 percent from the year-earlier period to 233,626, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. That compares with a 7.1 percent industrywide decline.
Freedom’s Gazette of Colorado Springs, Colorado, in the period lost 2.4 percent of its weekday circulation, to 91,599.
Newspaper Bankruptcies
U.S. newspaper publishers including Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune, and Journal Register Co., owner of 20 daily newspapers, previously filed for bankruptcy as the recession speeds declines in ad spending and more readers seek news from the Internet.
Industrywide ad revenue fell 29 percent to $6.82 billion in the second quarter from $9.6 billion a year earlier, according to figures released by the Newspaper Association of America. Ad sales dropped 28 percent in the first quarter, the Arlington, Virginia-based trade group said.
The drought has forced publishers to cut jobs, wages and sections, and boost newsstand prices. Ad sales make up more than half of revenue for publishers including New York Times Co. and Gannett Co.
U.S. advertising revenue for media and entertainment companies will decline through 2010, not returning to growth until 2012, when marketers increase spending on the Internet, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP said. The New York-based accounting firm predicts print-ad sales will continue to fall until 2013.
Blackstone Group LP owns a 27 percent stake in Freedom and Providence Equity Partners Inc. holds about 18 percent.
The case is In re Freedom Communications, 09-13046, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware (Wilmington).
Freedom, owner of eight television stations, has assets of as much as $1 billion and debt of more than $1 billion, it said today in Chapter 11 papers in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Delaware. The Irvine, California-based company’s revenue totaled $734 million last year, according to Moody’s Investors Service Inc.
The company said it filed to implement a pre-petition agreement it reached with its lender on a restructuring of its debt. A majority of the lenders will support a “pre-negotiated plan of reorganization,” Freedom said in a statement.
“Reaching this agreement with our lenders provides us with an orderly process to realign our balance sheet with the realities of today’s media environment,” Freedom CEO Burl Osborne said in the statement.
The average weekday circulation of the Orange County Register in the six months through March fell 12 percent from the year-earlier period to 233,626, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. That compares with a 7.1 percent industrywide decline.
Freedom’s Gazette of Colorado Springs, Colorado, in the period lost 2.4 percent of its weekday circulation, to 91,599.
Newspaper Bankruptcies
U.S. newspaper publishers including Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune, and Journal Register Co., owner of 20 daily newspapers, previously filed for bankruptcy as the recession speeds declines in ad spending and more readers seek news from the Internet.
Industrywide ad revenue fell 29 percent to $6.82 billion in the second quarter from $9.6 billion a year earlier, according to figures released by the Newspaper Association of America. Ad sales dropped 28 percent in the first quarter, the Arlington, Virginia-based trade group said.
The drought has forced publishers to cut jobs, wages and sections, and boost newsstand prices. Ad sales make up more than half of revenue for publishers including New York Times Co. and Gannett Co.
U.S. advertising revenue for media and entertainment companies will decline through 2010, not returning to growth until 2012, when marketers increase spending on the Internet, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP said. The New York-based accounting firm predicts print-ad sales will continue to fall until 2013.
Blackstone Group LP owns a 27 percent stake in Freedom and Providence Equity Partners Inc. holds about 18 percent.
The case is In re Freedom Communications, 09-13046, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware (Wilmington).
Sunday, May 3, 2009
East Valley Tribune (Mesa, AZ) - Ceasing Saturday Distribution
The East Valley Tribune will cease distributing its Saturday edition effectivie May 9th, 2009 per advertisting representative Patty Dixie. The East Valley Tribune will continue its Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday editions.
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