Question of the day
Friday, May 21, 2021 - Posted by Rich Miller
* Crain’s…
After months of almost cinematic twists and turns, an overture from a Swiss billionaire and campaigns from journalists for local ownership, shareholders have decided the fate of Tribune Publishing: Hedge fund Alden Global Capital will buy the Chicago Tribune parent for $17.25 per share.
Shareholders voted for the deal this morning in a meeting open only to those who hold stock. The meeting lasted less than 15 minutes. Alden, already the company’s largest shareholder, will pay $454 million for the roughly two-thirds of Tribune Publishing it doesn’t already own. Alden’s per-share price values the company at about $630 million.
The acquisition will put Tribune Publishing fully under the control of Alden, which has a reputation for deep cost-cutting, including newsroom layoffs, at roughly 200 newspapers it has acquired in a buyout spree across the troubled industry.
In a statement on the deal, Alden President Heath Freeman said: “The purchase of Tribune reaffirms our commitment to the newspaper industry and our focus on getting publications to a place where they can operate sustainably over the long term.”
* The Question: Your thoughts on this sale?
- 47th Ward - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 2:41 pm:
I think it’s a civic disaster. To own a newspaper is to take on a major responsibility. When many of these great newspapers were family owned, turning a profit wasn’t necessarily the main goal. But for corporate owners and hedge funds? It’s the only goal.
This is a sad day for Chicago.
- Anyone Remember - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 2:49 pm:
Agree it is a civic disaster. In view of Alden’s history, is this a about running a newspaper or getting their hands on 700 West Chicago Avenue?
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/a-hedge-funds-mercenary-strategy-buy-newspapers-slash-jobs-sell-the-buildings/2019/02/11/f2c0c78a-1f59-11e9-8e21-59a09ff1e2a1_story.html
- EssentialStateEmployeefromChatham - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 2:53 pm:
It could have been worse, it could have been Gannett/Gatehouse who have destroyed the SJ-R and most other major downstate papers.
- don the legend - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 2:57 pm:
Not so fast Essential State Employee. Don’t underestimate Alden Global. They could easily be worse.
- Keyrock - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:05 pm:
You could have a poll. Choices could be “civic disaster” and “civic catastrophe.”
- Uncle Merkin - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:08 pm:
Thank God the unions bought the Sun-Times so it didn’t get mixed up into this deal.
- Chicago Cynic - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:10 pm:
Catastrophic.
- Fav Human - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:10 pm:
Like the Sears purchase, it’s about the real estate, and nothing more.
- Banish Misfortune - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:15 pm:
The Trib has been unreadable for so long that it is hard to get too worked up about it being worse. I know that people keeping saying that there is good reporting but if you can’t even open the paper it is already a lost cause.
- Not for nothing - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:17 pm:
My thoughts are: there hasn’t been one moment when the editorial board stood up for its newsroom and asked for a civic minded philanthropist to take over. Or asked Alden to spare cuts. Or called out Michael Ferro when he was preying on women.
That newsroom should resign en masse and find a way to write under blockclub’s flag.
And let that masthead die.
- The Doc - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:22 pm:
The one trick pony editorial board aside, I think the Trib generally does solid reporting, and I’m sure there’s a feeling of dread with this transaction.
Nothing in Alden Capital’s history suggests this will strengthen the paper. It is indeed a sad day.
- The Professor - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:35 pm:
Disaster! Through many owners the Tribune has been a mainstay of reliable journalism since the mid-nineteenth century. It will soon be gone. So, let’s now get our facts from Facebook? Oh brother!
- Anon 3:33 - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:35 pm:
Maybe the upside will be the end of John Kass. Talk about “unreadable”.
He’s moved on from trying to be provocative to outright dog-whistling.
- K3 - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:37 pm:
RIP to the Trib. Sad. Bad for democracy in IL. It’s editorial board and columnists have been an outright dumpster fire for years (Kass, McQueary, etc), but there are still some great reporters there.
- Rich Miller - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:37 pm:
===So, let’s now get our facts from Facebook? ===
Stop. There’s another newspaper in town and a whole bunch of other reliable outlets. WBEZ has a huge staff of reporters, for instance.
- 47th Ward - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:39 pm:
===to outright dog-whistling===
It’s not a dog whistle when everyone can hear it. He’s a terrible writer with nothing new to say who is only interested in increasing his number of clicks. He will not be missed. He’s probably kicking himself for not taking the early retirement buyouts they did last year.
- Three Dimensional Checkers - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:46 pm:
I don’t enjoy seeing anyone lose their job, but this happens all the time and has happened since Robert McCormick’s time. Capitalism’s logic applies to newspapers just as much as it applies to box factories or anything else. I would love to see much more public funding of media and the arts.
- JoanP - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:46 pm:
Disastrous. Alden has no “commitment to the the newspaper industry”. They destroy newspapers.
- Last Bull Moose - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:50 pm:
The business model for newspapers no longer works. The basic concept was to sell the readers to the advertisers and the advertisers to the readers. News and commentary were thrown in to increase readership, so there was more to sell.
In the decentralized world of the internet there is little need for the matchmaking middleman. There are still opportunities for niche publications and local papers. Capitolfax is a niche entity, and I hope a profitable one.
There may be other assets. Penn Central failed s a railroad but was a terrific real estate play. Others have indicated that may be the situation here.
We need to figure out how to have an informed populace and civil discourse with new technology and economics. Not sure how we do that.
- BeatCal - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:53 pm:
If you want to blame anyone, blame FB, Google and Amazon.
Collectively, they get 90% of every incremental advertising dollar.
Twenty years ago a newspaper would enjoy 25% cash flow margin.
Today, most are losing money.
Because of BigTech
- Candy Dogood - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 3:56 pm:
This is genuinely terrible.
- Northsider - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:00 pm:
I think it’s time to switch to the Sun-Times and Block Club Chicago.
- Newspaper man - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:00 pm:
Two things can be true at the same time. It’s a disaster for the paper and the Chicago area since it’s one less light on the scammers. There is also a lot of fat at that place and trimming will happen with little consequence.
- Oswego Willy - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:01 pm:
Chicago was a strong 2+ newspaper town, now the Trib is almost everything it once despised.
It’s not social media, high tech, but it is margins, profits, and pushing an agenda or folding an outlet to alleviate a foe.
It’s a terrible day for Chicago.
- Smalls - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:06 pm:
I will be cancelling my Tribune subscription, and will instead put the same amount of money towards nonprofit news organizations. Here is a link to where they are all participating together in a fundraiser. https://www.savechicagomedia.org/
- Wensicia - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:09 pm:
I’m sorry this had to happen, already so many great reporters and columnists have left the paper. The few that are left face an uncertain future. It’s a death sentence for the paper.
- James - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:11 pm:
=Thank God the unions bought the Sun-Times so it didn’t get mixed up into this deal.=
=The Trib has been unreadable for so long that it is hard to get too worked up about it being worse.=
I Second these comments.
- Joe Bidenopolous - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:17 pm:
=I think it’s time to switch to the Sun-Times and Block Club Chicago=
Did that years ago. Couldn’t justify supporting that god-awful Editorial department.
=There is also a lot of fat at that place and trimming will happen with little consequence.=
They’ve been “trimming the fat” there since Zell bought it in 2007. IIRC, the first buyouts were offered within months of him taking over and Ann Marie Lipinski was one of the first out the door. They’ve been doing buyouts and layoffs almost annually since. Yes, there are still some good reporters there, but it’s mostly a hollowed-out shell of its former self.
- The Way I See It - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:18 pm:
A crying shame …
- Amalia - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:21 pm:
terrified for the people who work there. and anticipate that they will cut the opinion writers I like and not the ones I do not like.
- SpiDem - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:24 pm:
The hyper-capitalist Chicago Tribune Editorial Board should be very excited about this
- Frumpy White Guy - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:38 pm:
Anything that hastens the end of the Tribune is very good news.
- Really - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:39 pm:
Not a big deal. Good journalism has been missing at the Trib for the better part of a decade. If they were to close tomorrow they wouldn’t be missed.
- Shield - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:52 pm:
Who would have guessed just a few years ago that it was the Sun-Times which might emerge as the surviving newspaper in Chicago?
- lake county democrat - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 4:59 pm:
Cynicism (pretty much my reaction to everything). I’m hesitant to criticize multi-millionaires who give to charitable causes - many don’t - but zeesh, it seems like Chicago’s big money donors are “buying naming rights” more than anything else.
- Original Rambler - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 5:02 pm:
I may be stopping my overpriced subscription if drastic cuts are made the historical Alden way. I’ll be watching.
- DuPage - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 5:04 pm:
The iceberg has been hit.
- Original Rambler - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 5:07 pm:
I agree with The Doc way up above. Trib does a good job linking to national news and its non-local editorials are very good. The local stuff is thinly disguised propaganda. I enjoy when they get called out here.
- Wensicia - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 5:48 pm:
Must read:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/alden-tribune-chicago-investors-journalism-democracy/2021/05/21/477f81de-ba4f-11eb-a5fe-bb49dc89a248_story.html
- Rich Miller - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 5:57 pm:
Wensicia, the board was pretty clear that it wasn’t going to sell to anyone but Alden.
- Annonin' - Friday, May 21, 21 @ 7:11 pm:
Tribbies wrecked themselves..maybe Griffin and Roy Moore get columns