http://www.medianewsmonitor.org News of Singleton and MediaNews Copyright 2009 The Newspaper Guild en-us Tue, 09 Feb 2010 02:01:53 -0500 Tue, 09 Feb 2010 02:01:53 -0500 http://sjguild.org/rss/jpg/MNMonitor.jpg http://www.medianewsmonitor.org 140 50 http://www.medianewsmonitor.org/news.php?ID=7220 The MediaNews bankruptcy marches ahead. So far, proceedings in Delaware bankruptcy court seem to agree with the idea that Chapter 11 proceedings will be limited to MNG’s holding company, Affiliated Media Inc., and will not affect employees or union contracts. David R. Hock of Cohen, Weiss and Simon represented The Newspaper Guild/Communications Workers of America locals at the first day hearing on Jan. 26. It appears the pre-packaged bankruptcy will come to a swift conclusion, heading for confirmation without objection on March 4. http://www.medianewsmonitor.org/news.php?ID=7220 http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2010/01/medianews_group_reportedly_wor.php In its reporting about the impending bankruptcy filing by Affiliated Media, the holding company of MediaNews Group, its owner, the Denver Post left the B-word out of the headline — and its published version of an Associated Press story about the filing left out intriguing info included by other papers, including details of MediaNews boss Dean Singleton’s salary. http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2010/01/medianews_group_reportedly_wor.php http://newsosaur.blogspot.com/2010/01/next-for-medianews-rolling-up-ailing.html Ailing newspapers in Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul and San Francisco eventually could shrink or shut down after MediaNews Group emerges from bankruptcy. The prospect of future seismic shifts in the newspaper industry from Salt Lake City to York, PA, were signaled last week when Affiliated Media, the parent of MediaNews, filed for bankruptcy to eliminate all but $165 million of its $930 million in debt. http://newsosaur.blogspot.com/2010/01/next-for-medianews-rolling-up-ailing.html http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2010/01/medianews_group_bankruptcy_sto.php A blog published last week noted that the Denver Post had managed to report about an impending bankruptcy filing by the holding company of its parent firm, MediaNews Group, without using the word "bankruptcy" in the headline — a neat example of spin. http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2010/01/medianews_group_bankruptcy_sto.php http://www.twincities.com/minnesota/ci_14249716?nclick_check=1 Members of the Newspaper Guild at the St. Paul Pioneer Press voted Friday to go down to a 37.5-hour work week and take an unpaid week of furlough in exchange for a no-layoff agreement. http://www.twincities.com/minnesota/ci_14249716?nclick_check=1 http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1004061331 NEW YORK The holding company for newspaper publisher MediaNews Group filed for Chapter 11 protection Friday and expects to emerge from bankruptcy in a month or two. Affiliated Media Inc., the privately held parent company for the owner of The Denver Post, San Jose Mercury News and 52 other daily newspapers, had said Jan. 15 it would be making the move. It said it had a deal with creditors that will cut its debt to $165 million from $930 million. http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1004061331 http://www.minnpost.com/braublog/2010/01/21/15194/union_pioneer_press_the_only_medianews_paper_losing_money When Pioneer Press holding company Affiliated Media announced a pre-packaged bankruptcy Friday, the press release noted that of its 54 dailies and more than 100 non-dailies, "all but one of our newspapers is profitable." Turns out the unprofitable one is the Pioneer Press. http://www.minnpost.com/braublog/2010/01/21/15194/union_pioneer_press_the_only_medianews_paper_losing_money http://www.medianewsmonitor.org/news.php?ID=7188 After months of largely theoretical existence, the nonprofit Bay Area News Project leapt toward reality today by announcing the hiring of its top leaders: CEO Lisa Frazier and Editor-in-Chief Jonathan Weber. Following the exit of founder partner KQED from the project, the group also said it will supply stories to the new Bay Area sections of the New York Times. http://www.medianewsmonitor.org/news.php?ID=7188 http://www.medianewsmonitor.org/news.php?ID=7179 MediaNews Group’s planned bankruptcy filing raised alarms throughout the company, and Guild members have wasted no time getting our legal department on the case. Our East Bay leaders were part of a national MNG Guild gathering in San Francisco, where an announcement was issued the day after the long-rumoured debt plan was unveiled. http://www.medianewsmonitor.org/news.php?ID=7179 http://www.contentbridges.com/2010/01/media-news-bankruptcy-and-the-fog-of-media-war.html Who will be next? And is the mating of banko companies the look of the next year? Dean Singleton bit the bitter bullet last week. After staving off bankruptcy for all of 2009, telling MediaNews execs that the company would not need to take that route, the company succumbed. MediaNews is following Morris into bankruptcy, both taking the neater, pre-packaged route, allowing quicker movement through the courts and, importantly, a continuity of leadership. http://www.contentbridges.com/2010/01/media-news-bankruptcy-and-the-fog-of-media-war.html