March 18, 2008
Maine newspapers for sale
The owner of the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram is selling its cache of Maine papers.
The Seattle Times Co. made an official announcement yesterday that it was dumping Blethen Maine Newspapers, which includes the Portland Press Herald; the Morning Sentinel in Waterville; the Kennebec Journal in Augusta; the Coastal Journal, a weekly in Bath; The Maine Switch, a weekly in Portland; and MaineToday.com. An internal memo to Seattle Times employees written Monday, and acquired by the Portland Phoenix, says a tough economic environment for newspapers was behind the decision to sell. Blethen Maine Newspapers has 509 full-time employees and 189 part-timers, according to the Portland Press Herald.
The Seattle Times Co. is owned by the Blethen Family, which bought the Maine newspapers from Guy Gannett Communications in 1998. The company has never disclosed what they paid for the papers, but experts have pegged the sale price at roughly $200 million. Frank Blethen, president and CEO of The Seattle Times, admitted the company paid "top dollar" for the Maine newspapers in 1998, but says getting half that price "would be a reasonable assumption," the Press Herald reports.
The Seattle Times Co. made an official announcement yesterday that it was dumping Blethen Maine Newspapers, which includes the Portland Press Herald; the Morning Sentinel in Waterville; the Kennebec Journal in Augusta; the Coastal Journal, a weekly in Bath; The Maine Switch, a weekly in Portland; and MaineToday.com. An internal memo to Seattle Times employees written Monday, and acquired by the Portland Phoenix, says a tough economic environment for newspapers was behind the decision to sell. Blethen Maine Newspapers has 509 full-time employees and 189 part-timers, according to the Portland Press Herald.
The Seattle Times Co. is owned by the Blethen Family, which bought the Maine newspapers from Guy Gannett Communications in 1998. The company has never disclosed what they paid for the papers, but experts have pegged the sale price at roughly $200 million. Frank Blethen, president and CEO of The Seattle Times, admitted the company paid "top dollar" for the Maine newspapers in 1998, but says getting half that price "would be a reasonable assumption," the Press Herald reports.
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