MEDIANEWS GROUP

'MediaNews Group', based in Denver, Colorado, is one of the largest newspaper companies in the United States. It is privately owned and operates 40 daily newspapers in 9 states, with combined daily and Sunday circulation of approximately 1.7 million and 2.3 million, respectively. The company also owns KTVA, a CBS affiliate in Anchorage, Alaska, and radio stations in Texas.
The company's chairman is Gary Wright and its chief executive officer and vice chairman is founder William Dean Singleton. The president is Jody Lodovic. Steven B. Rossi is executive vice president and chief operating officer.^[1]

Contents

History

New England Newspapers

Corporate Culture

Antitrust Allegations

Newspapers

Dailies

Weekly newspapers

Television Station

Other properties

References

External links

History

Singleton founded MediaNews Group in 1983.
In August, 2006, the company took out around $350 million in loans to purchase four newspapers from McClatchy Company. Among those providing the loan was the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.^[2] The loan was mostly used to help pay for the acquisition of two significant San Francisco Bay Area newspapers (and some smaller papers), including the ''San Jose Mercury News'' and the ''Contra Costa Times'', the dominant papers in the San Jose and Contra Costa County, California markets; in total, the purchases amounted to roughly $737 million.

New England Newspapers

In 1995 MediaNews made its first foray into New England, purchasing the Berkshire Eagle and associated newspapers, including the Vermont dailies ''Brattleboro Reformer'' and ''Bennington Banner''^[3] and Connecticut daily ''Middletown Press'', the last of which it sold soon after to Journal Register Company.^[4]
In the next two years, MediaNews expanded its footprint across Massachusetts' northern tier with its purchases of the ''North Adams Transcript'' (1996), ''Sentinel & Enterprise'' in Fitchburg (1997) and ''The Sun'' of Lowell (also in 1997).^[5] MediaNews also purchased the ''Connecticut Post'' in 2000, paying $203 million.^[6]

Corporate Culture

MediaNews Group is known as a cost-cutter in the newspaper publishing industry. The company has a reputation for buying smaller daily newspapers in a single area (examples include Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area) and consolidating their operations, including sharing staff writers and printing facilities. As a result of the cost-cutting, according to an article in the ''Los Angeles Times'',^[7] some former employees say that the newspapers are focused on making a profit to the detriment of good journalism.
On the other hand, Singleton is quick to point out that MediaNews is committed to print journalism, not diversification into other media. ''The Berkshire Eagle'' editor David E. Scribner, two years after MediaNews bought his newspaper, said the staff respected Singleton despite layoffs because of his hands-on leadership and "traditional emphasis on good writing."

Antitrust Allegations

On July 14, 2006, San Francisco businessman and real estate investor Clint Reilly filed a lawsuit against MediaNews Group and ''San Francisco Chronicle'' parent Hearst Corporation, alleging that the two companies have been conspiring to control advertising rates, a violation of antitrust laws. In November 2006, Reilly's attorney presented to U.S. District Judge Susan Illston a letter from Hearst senior vice president James Asher to MediaNews President Jody Lodovic that said the two companies agreed to "offer national advertising and internet advertising sales for their San Francisco Bay Area newspapers on a joint basis, and to consolidate the San Francisco Bay Area distribution networks of such newspapers ...." Illston, suggesting she had been misled by the companies when they said they had not been collaborating, issued a 14-page ruling ^[8] forbidding Hearst and MediaNews from working together on national advertising sales or distribution. On December 21, 2006, the ''San Francisco Bay Guardian'' and nonprofit Media Alliance filed suit to make the details of Reilly's lawsuit -- and MediaNews and the ''Chronicle'''s response -- public.^[9] As a result of the filing, many documents in the case were voluntarily disclosed by the defendants. The judge allowed redacted versions of two more documents to be released. She kept 17 others under seal. One of the documents unsealed was the deposition of Hearst's Asher, who says that as of September 2006, his company had recorded cumulative losses of $330 million on its investment in the ''Chronicle''^[10], which it acquired in mid-2000. He said Hearst proposed selling the ''Chronicle'' to MediaNews, but MediaNews didn't offer enough money. Asher also said Hearst and MediaNews have discussed working together for years. Although the trial was scheduled to start Monday, April 30, 2007 in U.S. District Court in San Francisco,^[11] the parties announced Wednesday, April 25, 2007 that a settlement had been reached.^[12]

Newspapers

Dailies

Daily newspapers owned by MediaNews, alphabetically by state and hometown, are:

★ ''Kodiak Daily Mirror'' of Kodiak, Alaska ★ ''Fairbanks Daily News-Miner'' of Fairbanks, Alaska ★ ''Alameda Times-Star'' of Alameda, California ★ ''East Bay Daily News'' of Berkeley, California ★ ''Burlingame Daily News'' of Burlingame, California ★ ''The Argus'' of Fremont, California ★ ''Chico Enterprise Record'' of Chico, California ★ ''Contra Costa Times'' of Contra Costa, California ★ ''Eureka Times-Standard'' of Eureka, California ★ ''Ft. Bragg Advocate-News'' of Fort Bragg, California ★ ''Daily Review'' of Hayward, California ★ ''Lake County Record Bee'' of Lakeport, California ★ ''Long Beach Press-Telegram'' of Long Beach, California ★ ''Marin Independent Journal'' of Marin, California ★ ''Mendocino Beacon'' of Mendocino, California ★ ''Milpitas Post'' of Milpitas, California ★ ''Monterey County Herald'' of Monterey, California ★ ''The Oakland Tribune'' of Oakland, California ★ ''Inland Valley Daily Bulletin'' of Ontario, California ★ ''Oroville Mercury Register'' of Oroville, California ★ ''Pacifica Tribune'' of Pacifica, California ★ ''Palo Alto Daily News'' of Palo Alto, California ★ ''Paradise Post'' of Paradise, California ★ ''Pasadena Star-News'' of Pasadena, California ★ ''Tri-Valley Herald'' of Pleasanton, California ★ ''Red Bluff Daily News'' of Red Bluff, California ★ ''Redlands Daily Facts'' of Redlands, California ★ ''Redwood City Daily News'' of Redwood City, California ★ ''The Sun'' of San Bernardino, California ★ ''San Jose Mercury News'' of San Jose, California ★ ''San Mateo County Times'' of San Mateo, California ★ ''San Mateo Daily News'' of San Mateo, California ★ ''Santa Cruz Sentinel'' of Santa Cruz, California ★ ''The Daily Breeze'' of Torrance, California ★ ''Ukiah Daily Journal'' of Ukiah, California ★ ''The Reporter'' of Vacaville, California

★ ''Times-Herald'' of Vallejo, California ★ ''San Gabriel Valley Tribune'' of West Covina, California ★ ''Whittier Daily News'' of Whittier, California ★ ''Willits News'' of Willits, California ★ ''Daily Democrat'' of Woodland, California ★ ''Los Angeles Daily News'' of Woodland Hills, California ★ ''Brush News-Tribune'' of Brush, Colorado ★ ''Denver Post'' of Denver, Colorado ★ ''Fort Morgan Times'' of Fort Morgan, Colorado ★ ''Lamar Daily News'' of Lamar, Colorado ★ ''Journal Advocate'' of Sterling, Colorado ★ ''Connecticut Post'' of Bridgeport, Connecticut ★ ''The News-Times'' of Danbury, Connecticut ★ ''Sentinel & Enterprise'' of Fitchburg, Massachusetts ★ ''The Sun'' of Lowell, Massachusetts ★ ''North Adams Transcript'' of North Adams, Massachusetts ★ ''The Berkshire Eagle'' of Pittsfield, Massachusetts ★ ''The Detroit News'' of Detroit, Michigan ★ ''St. Paul Pioneer Press'' of St. Paul, Minnesota ★ ''Alamogordo Daily News'' of Alamogordo, New Mexico ★ ''Current Argus'' of Carlsbad, New Mexico ★ ''Deming Headlight'' of Deming, New Mexico ★ ''Farmington Daily Times'' of Farmington, New Mexico ★ ''Las Cruces Sun-News'' of Las Cruces, New Mexico ★ ''Silver City Sun-News'' of Silver City, New Mexico ★ ''Public Opinion'' of Chambersburg, Pennsylvania ★ ''Evening Sun'' of Hanover, Pennsylvania ★ ''Lebanon Daily News'' of Lebanon, Pennsylvania ★ ''York Daily Record'' (and ''Sunday News'') of York, Pennsylvania ★ ''El Paso Times'' of El Paso, Texas ★ ''The Graham Leader'' of Graham, Texas ★ ''Park Record'' of Park City, Utah ★ ''The Salt Lake Tribune'' of Salt Lake City, Utah ★ ''Bennington Banner'' of Bennington, Vermont ★ ''Brattleboro Reformer'' of Brattleboro, Vermont ★ ''Charleston Daily Mail'' of Charleston, West Virginia

Weekly newspapers

★ Brooks Community Newspapers, publishing six weekly newspapers in Connecticut

★ Gazette Newspapers, two weekly newspapers in Long Beach, California

★ The Greater New Milford Spectrum in New Milford, Connecticut

★ Impacto USA, a Spanish-language newspaper in Long Beach, California

★ Lake Country Newspapers, several weeklies in Texas

★ Nashoba Publishing, several weekly newspapers in northern Massachusetts

★ Silicon Valley Community Newspapers, nine weeklies near San Jose, California

★ Texas-New Mexico Newspapers Partnership, including two weeklies in New Mexico

Television Station

★ KTVA (CBS Affiliate) in Anchorage, Alaska.

Other properties

Other MediaNews properties include:

★ LA.com, a portal site based in Los Angeles, California

★ Lake Country Radio of Breckenridge and Graham, Texas

★ U-Entertainment of Los Angeles, California

★ Woman Magazine of Norwalk, Connecticut

References

1. Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Form 10-K for the year ended June 30, 2006.
2. ""Gates Foundation Makes MediaNews Loan", ''Toronto Star''. August 22, 2006.
3. Elfland, Mike. "Sentinel & Enterprise Sale Set," ''Telegram & Gazette'' (Worcester, Mass.), January 8, 1997.
4. "Business Briefs," ''Union-News'' (Springfield, Mass.), August 26, 1995
5. "Lowell Paper Sold," ''Telegram & Gazette'' (Worcester, Mass.), July 9, 1997.
6. Gatlin, Greg. "MediaNews Drops Bid." ''Boston Herald'', August 9, 2000.
7. Menn, Joseph. "There Are Two Sides to This Publisher's Story". ''Los Angeles Times''. March 22, 2006.
8. U.S. District Court Order Re: Second Application for Temporary Restraining Order, November 28, 2006.
9. Williamson, Kate. "Weekly, Nonprofit Sue to Open Records". ''San Francisco Examiner'', December 22, 2006.
10. Said, Carolyn. "Hearst, MediaNews Talks Included Possible Sale of Chronicle", ''San Francisco Chronicle'', February 1, 2007.
11. "MediaNews, Hearst Trial Set to Proceed", ''San Francisco Examiner''. February 9, 2007.
12. Hearst, MediaNews Group settle Reilly suit Bob Egelko

External links

★ MediaNews Group official site