Tribune and McClatchy are both approaching critical deadlines that could lead to mergers, divisions — or even the first big nonprofit newspaper chain in the United States.
By gutting local advertising overnight, COVID-19 has accelerated strategies — like cutting print days, corporate consolidation, or even closing down offices — that publishers had hoped could wait a while longer.
The coronavirus pandemic is proving the value of local news to millions of readers, driving up subscriptions. But the advertising collapse is knee-buckling. “If it’s a couple of months, we’ll make it through. If it’s six months, all bets are off.”
The multi-trillion-dollar CARES Act should extend a lifeline to many small local publishers. But for bigger companies and chains, the help they’ll receive is still up in the air — “It’s very unformed.”
It’s generated controversy over its fundraising, its paywall, and its staffing. But it’s also about as close as a major American city has gotten to a digital news site that can go toe-to-toe with the local daily newspaper.
Will Chatham Asset Management, the hedge fund set to gain control of the company, want to operate it after bankruptcy? Or will it look to cash out via merger as quickly as possible?
Doctor, Ken. "Newsonomics: This is how the 5 biggest newspaper chains could become 2 — and it all comes down to one day, June 30, 2020." Nieman Journalism Lab. Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard, 6 Dec. 2019. Web. 24 Apr. 2024.
APA
Doctor, K. (2019, Dec. 6). Newsonomics: This is how the 5 biggest newspaper chains could become 2 — and it all comes down to one day, June 30, 2020. Nieman Journalism Lab. Retrieved April 24, 2024, from https://www.niemanlab.org/2019/12/newsonomics-this-is-how-the-5-biggest-newspaper-chains-could-become-2-and-it-all-comes-down-to-one-day-june-30-2020/
Chicago
Doctor, Ken. "Newsonomics: This is how the 5 biggest newspaper chains could become 2 — and it all comes down to one day, June 30, 2020." Nieman Journalism Lab. Last modified December 6, 2019. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.niemanlab.org/2019/12/newsonomics-this-is-how-the-5-biggest-newspaper-chains-could-become-2-and-it-all-comes-down-to-one-day-june-30-2020/.
Wikipedia
{{cite web
| url = https://www.niemanlab.org/2019/12/newsonomics-this-is-how-the-5-biggest-newspaper-chains-could-become-2-and-it-all-comes-down-to-one-day-june-30-2020/
| title = Newsonomics: This is how the 5 biggest newspaper chains could become 2 — and it all comes down to one day, June 30, 2020
| last = Doctor
| first = Ken
| work = [[Nieman Journalism Lab]]
| date = 6 December 2019
| accessdate = 24 April 2024
| ref = {{harvid|Doctor|2019}}
}}
