Well, the reality of the internet has hit the newspapers.
It really was only a matter of time. In fact, the only time I really craved a newspaper was after Obama won the presidency. All the newspapers here in Chicago, was flying off the racks. I had to end up ordering the Tribune and Sun-Times on line because I could not find a paper anywhere.
Tribune Co. _ owner of the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun and other dailies _ filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Monday, the first major newspaper publisher to take such a step since the Internet plunged the industry into a desperate struggle for survival.
The media conglomerate was smothered by a drop-off in advertising and a crushing $13 billion in debt from the company's takeover a year ago by Chicago real estate mogul Sam Zell.
Chapter 11 would buy the Tribune Co. time to put its finances in order. Analysts said the company will almost certainly have to sell off some of its major holdings _ and that could prove extremely difficult because of the bad economy and the poor outlook for newspapers.
"When you look at the near term, prospects for the company and the industry are certainly not very bright," said Dave Novosel, an analyst with the Gimme Credit research firm.
New York Times had been rumored for months to have financial difficulties, well it was put it out there today.
The New York Times Company plans to borrow up to $225 million against its mid-Manhattan headquarters building, to ease a potential cash flow squeeze as the company grapples with tighter credit and shrinking profits.
The company has retained Cushman & Wakefield, the real estate firm, to act as its agent to secure financing, either in the form of a mortgage or a sale-leaseback arrangement, said James M. Follo, the Times Company’s chief financial officer.
The Times Company owns 58 percent of the 52-story, 1.5 million-square-foot tower on Eighth Avenue, which was designed by the architect Renzo Piano, and completed last year. The developer Forest City Ratner owns the rest of the building. The Times Company’s portion of the building is not currently mortgaged, and some investors have complained that the company has too much of its capital tied up in that real estate.
The company has two revolving lines of credit, each with a ceiling of $400 million, roughly the amount outstanding on the two combined. One of those lines is set to expire in May, and finding a replacement would be difficult given the economic climate and the company’s worsening finances. Analysts have said for months that selling or borrowing against assets would be the company’s best option for averting a cash flow problem next year.
Standard & Poor’s recently lowered its credit rating on the Times Company below investment grade, and Moody’s Investors Service has said it was considering a similar move. Times Company stock, which has lost more than half its value this year, closed on Friday at $7.64, down 30 cents.
Other stuff, here.
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