The nation’s second-largest newspaper company had paid off most of its old debt and still generates positive cashflow. But it might head to bankruptcy anyway so investors can get paid.
The number of employees soon to be cut at the No. 1 U.S. newspaper chain is about the same number as the No. 2 chain has in total. But newsrooms should mostly be spared — for now.
What will the largest local news company need to do and be to be successful in the 2020s? Neither Gannett nor Gatehouse has offered any big vision of what that is, or could be, even fueled by new money.
The merger of the United States’ No. 1 and No. 2 newspaper chains will likely spark a new wave of consolidation among its smaller competitors. But will the potential cost savings be eaten up by debt payments to financiers?
A combined GannHouse (Gatenett?) would own 1 out of every 6 daily newspapers in America. The goal? Buy two or three more years to figure out how to make money in digital.
In an industry where expense reduction is the prime strategy, much more consolidation is likely on the way. Little regulation prevents it, and the financials all favor it.
Doctor, Ken. "Newsonomics: Let the 2019 Consolidation Games begin! First up: Alden seeks to swallow Gannett." Nieman Journalism Lab. Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard, 14 Jan. 2019. Web. 5 Jul. 2020.
APA
Doctor, K. (2019, Jan. 14). Newsonomics: Let the 2019 Consolidation Games begin! First up: Alden seeks to swallow Gannett. Nieman Journalism Lab. Retrieved July 5, 2020, from https://www.niemanlab.org/2019/01/newsonomics-let-the-2019-consolidation-games-begin-first-up-alden-seeks-to-swallow-gannett/
Chicago
Doctor, Ken. "Newsonomics: Let the 2019 Consolidation Games begin! First up: Alden seeks to swallow Gannett." Nieman Journalism Lab. Last modified January 14, 2019. Accessed July 5, 2020. https://www.niemanlab.org/2019/01/newsonomics-let-the-2019-consolidation-games-begin-first-up-alden-seeks-to-swallow-gannett/.
Wikipedia
{{cite web
| url = https://www.niemanlab.org/2019/01/newsonomics-let-the-2019-consolidation-games-begin-first-up-alden-seeks-to-swallow-gannett/
| title = Newsonomics: Let the 2019 Consolidation Games begin! First up: Alden seeks to swallow Gannett
| last = Doctor
| first = Ken
| work = [[Nieman Journalism Lab]]
| date = 14 January 2019
| accessdate = 5 July 2020
| ref = {{harvid|Doctor|2019}}
}}
