when the chains choke on debt, who buys the papers?

i'm looking at you, cnhi, gatehouse, jrc, medianews and tribune. so when these companies finally run into banks that won't refinance debt payments, there will be two options: shut down everything, or sell it off piecemeal. i doubt the banks are going to let assets that still bring in some cash just wither away.

if there is a firesale, who buys these joints? do we see some bigger companies try to pick up the pieces of fallen-apart empires? are there enough businessmen in these many markets to pick up these shards and try to make something of them? if it's the latter, does local control of newspapers really solve many of the issues that exist? (i'd say no to that.)

 

I posted this once on the JRC thread, but it still applies.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/04/business/media/04papers.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

Nobody's buying in bulk. Have heard that one of the San Diego TV stations may be interested in the SD Union-Tribune.

 

The next six months will be a good time to buy a newspaper in a decent market. Minneapolis, for example. Actually, you'd be buying the debt. 1/10th of a cent on the dollar would be a good investment.

 

would seem that way to me, too. but who knows in this economy.