At least three groups submitted bids Tuesday for newspapers up for sale by McClatchy Co., the Sacramento, Calif.-based newspaper publisher that agreed to acquire 32 papers this month from Knight Ridder.
Denver-based ap Inc. – the nation’s seventh-largest newspaper publisher and owner of The Denver Post – bid for at least some of the papers, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing people involved in the process.
MediaNews is interested in at least three northern California newspapers bought by McClatchy: the San Jose Mercury News, Contra Costa Times and the Monterey Herald. Media- News already owns 22 papers in California.
The Newspaper Guild, a newspaper workers union, confirmed it submitted a bid for all 12 papers up for sale.
The union has financial backing from Yucaipa Cos., the Los Angeles-based investment firm headed by Ron Burkle, who is also the largest shareholder in the Boulder-based grocery chain Wild Oats Market.
Bruce Toll, vice chairman with homebuilder Toll Brothers, confirmed he is teaming with several investors to bid for the two Philadelphia papers, the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Philadelphia Daily News, according to MarketWatch.com.
A Knight Ridder spokesman declined comment Tuesday.
Larry Grimes, president of W.B. Grimes, a media investment bank in Gaithersburg, Md., said MediaNews is “the odds-on favorite” to win the three California papers and the pair in Philadelphia.
MediaNews president Jody Lodovic described the situation Tuesday as “fluid” but declined to provide details about a potential bid.
Gannett Co., publisher of USA Today and the nation’s largest newspaper chain, had reportedly been considering making a bid, but the Los Angeles Times reported that people close to the bidding said there had not been a Gannett bid.
McClatchy, which set a 5 p.m. Tuesday deadline for bids, wants to sell the 12 papers to help finance its pending $4.5 billion cash and stock purchase of Knight Ridder, the nation’s second-largest newspaper publisher based in San Jose, Calif.
The 12 papers could fetch up to $1.5 billion, according to Grimes.
Staff writer Will Shanley can be reached at 303-820-1260 or wshanley@denverpost.com.
