Western Communications Files Bankruptcy

Western Communications field for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection per an article by David Nogueras at OPB News.  The company hopes to recover from bankruptcy in six months.

Western Communciations owns the Bend Bulletin, along with four other papers in Oregon and two in California.

Tracy Press Publisher Files for Bankruptcy

The Tracy Press, a weekly publication, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.  The Tracy Press was formerly a daily newspaper, which reduced distribution to twice a week because of declining circulation, and then last year reduced to once a week. 

The Press will continue publishing during the re-organization.

Freedom Communications Emerges from Bankruptcy

Freedom Communications announced on May 1st that they have formally emerged from Bankruptcy, with its dept decreased from $770 millon to $320 million.  Freedom Communications owns 32 daily newspapers across the country, including the Orange County Register, Colorado Springs Gazette and New Bern Sun Journal.

Freedom Communications had filed for bankruptcy on September 1st, 2009.

Brown Publishing Files for Bankruptcy

Newspaper publishers Brown Media Holdings Co. and Brown Publishing Co. filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection on April 30th.  An unnamed bidder plans to assume a substantial portion of the liabilities and assets.

Brown Publishing has publications in ten states: Ohio, New York, Texas, South Carolina, Illinois, Iowa, Colorado, Utah, Arizona and Wyoming, which includes fifteen daily publications, thirty two weekly publications, forty one shoppers / free publications and eleven business publications. The sale will include all the assets.

Some of the papers involved are the Delaware Gazette, Wilmington News Journal, Troy Daily News and Piqua Daily Call.

Heartland Publications to Emerge from Bankruptcy

Heartland Publications has had its reorganization plan approved by a federal judge and emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy on April 30th per Editor & Publisher. Heartland Publications had filed for bankruptcy last December 21st.

Heartland Publications publishes fifty paid newspapers covering nine different states.

Baltimore Jewish Times Files Bankruptcy

Alter Communications, parent company of the Baltimore Jewish Times filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection on Wednesday, April 14th. The publishers are committed to continuing the weekly publication of the Times.

Singleton's MediaNews Group Emerges From Bankruptcy

CHICAGO MediaNews Group’s holding company said Friday it is out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

On Jan. 22, the parent of The Denver Post and 53 other dailies filed a so-called prepackaged bankruptcy that had been approved in advance by its lenders.

Under the plan, confirmed March 4 by a U.S. Bankruptcy judge in Delaware, the debt of Affiliated Media, the newspaper group holding company, drops to approximately $165 million from $930 million to approximately $165 million.

Secured lenders exchanged their debt for an 89% stake in the company, but Chairman William Dean Singleton remains in control of the chain with the power to appoint four of the seven directors.

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.

Morris Publishing Group Exits Bankruptcy

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Augusta, Georgia approved Morris Publishing Group's reorganization plans on Wednesday, February 17th allowing the group and its publications to emerge from bankruptcy.

Morris Publishing had filed for bankruptcy on January 19th, 2010.

Canwest puts newspaper division under court protection and starts auction process

TORONTO - The cross-country newspaper chain run by Canwest Global Communications (TSXV:CGS) is being acquired by the insolvent company's banks for $925 million as they aim to get their loans repaid by selling the National Post and other big-city dailies to the highest bidder in an auction that starts next week.

The Winnipeg-based broadcaster and publisher of the Post and other papers and websites from Vancouver to Montreal said Friday it had reached a restructuring agreement with its creditors, mainly the company's bankers.

Under the deal, the Big Five Canadian banks agreed to make what's considered a "stalking-horse" bid setting the base price for an auction that could fetch more than $1 billion, according to some estimates. The plan keeps the newspaper assets in the hands of Canwest until a group of interested outside buyers are assembled and their offers evaluated.

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."

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."

Triple Crown Media, Filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Today

DOVER, Del. — Triple Crown Media Inc., which owns daily and weekly newspapers in Georgia, on Monday became at least the 11th newspaper publisher to seek bankruptcy protection over the past year.

In a prepackaged Chapter 11 filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, the Lexington, Ky.-based company listed assets of about $33 million and liabilities of about $86 million.

Triple Crown, which operates six daily Georgia newspapers and one weekly with a total daily circulation of about 95,000, has about 330 employees. It announced early last year that it was cutting its work force by 5 percent because of the economic downturn and increased paper and fuel costs.

The company's daily newspapers are the Gwinnett Daily Post, The Albany Herald, the Rockdale Citizen, the Newton Citizen, the Clayton News-Daily and the Henry Daily Herald. It also published the Jackson Progress-Argus Weekly.

Philly Newspapers' Parent Company Into Bankruptcy

The group of business people who paid $562 million to return The Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News to local ownership in 2006, only to file for bankruptcy protection earlier this year, have now filed for Chapter 11 protection themselves.

Philadelphia Media Holdings LLC (PMH) filed for bankruptcy protection in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Philadelphia, claiming assets of between $100,001 and $500,000, and liabilities estimated between zero and $50,000.

A PMH spokesman said PMH is a holding company with no employees or revenue. "What it holds is the actual legal entity Philadelphia Newspapers LLC and other smaller properties that are also incorporated separately," spokesman Jay Devine said.

Last Feb. 21, Philadelphia Newspapers, the publishing company of the two dailies, filed for Chapter in Philadelphia, to restructure its debt load of $390 million in debt load.

When Philadelphia Newspapers filed for bankruptcy last February, it wasn't thought necessary to include PMH in the filing, headded. But PMH is also named in some litigation along with Philadelphia Newspapers. Since the litigation is stayed during bankruptcy proceedings, filing for Chapter 11 ensures that PMH cannot be pursued in court separately.

PMH is the group formed by local public relations executive Brian P. Tierney to buy the newspapers from The McClatchy Co.,which acquired them in its acquisition of Knight Ridder Inc. The group put up $152 million in cash and borrowed the rest of the $562 million purchase price.

According to the bankruptcy petition, filed last Wednesday, the largest stakeholders in PMH are the Carpenters Pension and Annuity Fund of Philadelphia with a 30.35% interest, followed by luxury housing magnate Bruce E. Toll with a 20.26% stake. William A. Graham IV is listed as having a 16.88% stake. Tierney's interest in PMH totals 6.75%.