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Union-Tribune staffers say columnist Gerry Braun is leaving the paper. His wife, Ruth McKinnie Braun, was one of the employees who camped out in the lobby to be able to get early forms for the latest buyout. She succeeded and got the buyout. According to sources, her husband tried to get the buyout but was turned down. So he quit and is already gone. A voice on his telephone number at the U-T says it is no longer a working line. I have not been able to reach him or his wife. Braun was a breath of fresh air at the U-T; his columns weren't knee-jerk pro-establishment, as most of the rest of the paper is. He had been a very good reporter covering City government, but was moved to writing coach when complaints about his honest coverage piled up. Finally, the paper was smart enough to give him the column in early 2007. On the money front, there are rumors that the New York Times, Tribune Co., Black Press of Canada (already reported here) and William Dean Singleton's MediaNews have been snooping around. The Tribune Co. rumor sounds preposterous. Real estate entrepreneur Sam Zell saddled it with $13 billion in debt when taking it over, and Standard & Poor's thinks it may default by the end of the year. However, Zell might be able to dump other assets (he will get a pretty penny for the Chicago Cubs), and may be lusting for the La Jolla real estate, which has lots of parking space that could be utilized in more productive and remunerative ways. Bloomberg News thinks Singleton's highly-leveraged MediaNews (owner of the Denver Post and San Jose Mercury-News) is a candidate for default. However, Singleton, too, could dump other assets. He has coveted the Southern California market. I have not been able to reach Black Press, but it has lost a bundle in the first half of the year, according to public records. Copley's balance sheet was pure until management started making acquisitions in the mid-1995. However, it sold those acquired papers last year, saying that the proceeds would be applied to estate taxes following the death of owner Helen Copley. That explanation was not too credible, since the company had had years to figure her tax liability. But the company may have eliminated its debt as well as satisfying the IRS from the proceeds of the sales of the Ohio and Illinois papers. Copley got almost $390 million for them. The company has peeled off other assets such as Casa del Zorro in Borrego and Copley News Service. If its balance sheet is pristine once again, it might be more attractive to buyers.
Union-Tribune staffers say columnist Gerry Braun is leaving the paper. His wife, Ruth McKinnie Braun, was one of the employees who camped out in the lobby to be able to get early forms for the latest buyout. She succeeded and got the buyout. According to sources, her husband tried to get the buyout but was turned down. So he quit and is already gone. A voice on his telephone number at the U-T says it is no longer a working line. I have not been able to reach him or his wife. Braun was a breath of fresh air at the U-T; his columns weren't knee-jerk pro-establishment, as most of the rest of the paper is. He had been a very good reporter covering City government, but was moved to writing coach when complaints about his honest coverage piled up. Finally, the paper was smart enough to give him the column in early 2007. On the money front, there are rumors that the New York Times, Tribune Co., Black Press of Canada (already reported here) and William Dean Singleton's MediaNews have been snooping around. The Tribune Co. rumor sounds preposterous. Real estate entrepreneur Sam Zell saddled it with $13 billion in debt when taking it over, and Standard & Poor's thinks it may default by the end of the year. However, Zell might be able to dump other assets (he will get a pretty penny for the Chicago Cubs), and may be lusting for the La Jolla real estate, which has lots of parking space that could be utilized in more productive and remunerative ways. Bloomberg News thinks Singleton's highly-leveraged MediaNews (owner of the Denver Post and San Jose Mercury-News) is a candidate for default. However, Singleton, too, could dump other assets. He has coveted the Southern California market. I have not been able to reach Black Press, but it has lost a bundle in the first half of the year, according to public records. Copley's balance sheet was pure until management started making acquisitions in the mid-1995. However, it sold those acquired papers last year, saying that the proceeds would be applied to estate taxes following the death of owner Helen Copley. That explanation was not too credible, since the company had had years to figure her tax liability. But the company may have eliminated its debt as well as satisfying the IRS from the proceeds of the sales of the Ohio and Illinois papers. Copley got almost $390 million for them. The company has peeled off other assets such as Casa del Zorro in Borrego and Copley News Service. If its balance sheet is pristine once again, it might be more attractive to buyers.