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Tuesday, March 10, 2009

City / Media No Decision on the P-I

Posted by on Tue, Mar 10, 2009 at 11:25 AM

Hearst spokesman Paul Luthringer, who isn't returning my e-mails at the moment, today returns an e-mail from Seattle Post-Intelligencer reporter Dan Richman and states that, contrary to newsroom hope and rumor, there is still no decision on the newspaper's fate.

"We are still evaluating our options," Paul Luthringer said in an e-mail. "Timing of the decision is uncertain."

When asked what decision he was referring to, he responded, "These options exist: 1) Seek buyer. If no buyer, then 2) Go digital, or 3) Close. No decision has been made."

However, as the experience of Denver's Rocky Mountain News has shown, these decisions can come rather quickly. By most counts, Hearst's 60-day sale period expired yesterday, so it's reasonable for people in the P-I newsroom to have concluded that an announcement would come today. It's also somewhat odd that "seek buyer" is still an option on the table even after the sale period has reportedly ended. Could this be what's causing the extended evaluation of options?

 

Comments (5) RSS

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1
FYI, the "seek buyer" period for the Rocky Mountain News expired several weeks before the closure was announced.

However, you are correct that, once closure was announced, everything happened pretty quickly (announcement at noon; the final issue was "put to bed" at 8:30 that evening.
Posted by Fifty-Two-Eighty on March 10, 2009 at 11:55 AM
2
I guess Bill Gates and Paul Allen are waiting until the market pops before they exercise their option.
Posted by Will in Seattle on March 10, 2009 at 12:03 PM
3
Could it be that management just doesn't want people stealing everything that isn't nailed down, 'cause that shit's all gotta get auctioned off?
Posted by Big Sven on March 10, 2009 at 12:35 PM
4
Why doesn't Index Newspapers buy the P.I.?
Posted by Chip Chipmunk on March 10, 2009 at 1:09 PM
5
Transaction take time. I am in the business, but not on this deal. I think Broadwater out of New York is running the deal for Hearst.
Posted by Stanley on March 10, 2009 at 1:33 PM

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