San Diego Union-Tribune

Eric Kallgren    Boulder Colorado USA

Posted at 10:23pm on Monday, May 25th, 2009

The San Diego Union-Tribune won a 2009 Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning on April 20, 2009.

The Pulitzer was awarded to Steve Breen of The San Diego Union-Tribune for his agile use of a classic style to produce wide ranging cartoons that engage readers with power, clarity and humor.

The prize is awarded for a distinguished cartoon or portfolio of cartoons, characterized by originality, editorial effectiveness, quality of drawing and pictorial effect, in print or online or both, ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Eric Kallgren    Boulder, Colorado USA

Posted at 4:54pm on Monday, May 11th, 2009

The San Diego Union-Tribune made a round of layoffs affecting all departments on May 7, 2009.

The newspaper had this report:

"The San Diego Union-Tribune conducted a round of layoffs in all departments Thursday, the latest in a series of staff reductions the newspaper and its counterparts across the country have taken in recent years.

The move comes three days after Platinum Equity, a Beverly Hills private equity firm, completed its acquisition of the paper from its longtime owner, the Copley Press Inc.

A total of 192 positions will be eliminated, effective July 6, the company said in a statement. Senior managers told the affected employees Thursday in meetings organized by department. The company said employees will receive transition assistance and termination benefits.

The number of cuts in each department, including the newsroom, were not disclosed.

The 60-day notice is required under federal law for a company the size of the Union-Tribune when conducting more than 50 layoffs.

“These are tough times for the entire newspaper industry, and a time of transition for the Union-Tribune,” said Drew Schlosberg, the company's director of community and public relations. “Any decision to reduce staff is difficult. “We will be working diligently to make the transition for those affected as easy as possible. ”

The company's work force is now at 850 employees after several rounds of buyouts and layoffs in recent years.

The Union-Tribune, like other large newspapers, has been hit by both declining print circulation as well as a decrease in advertising that has been accelerated by the recession. Schlosberg said the paper has a late-week circulation (Thursday-Saturday) of just over 300,000 a day, with the daily paper estimated to reach more than 662,000 readers. Its Sunday circulation is 330,000, with a readership believed to be more than 890,000. The Union-Tribune's Web site, SignOnSanDiego, draws more than 3 million unique users each month."

Eric Kallgren    Boulder, Colorado USA

Posted at 2:32pm on Monday, March 23rd, 2009

The price was under $50 million...

On March 19, 2009, the Wall Street Journal reported that Platinum Equity is a "fire sale buyer" that paid less than $50 million for the San Diego Union-Tribune. The writers said the price was supported by the real estate included with the deal.

Eric Kallgren    Boulder, Colorado USA

Posted at 2:20pm on Wednesday, March 18th, 2009

March 18, 2009: The San Diego Union Tribune reported today that its parent company, The Copley Press Inc., has sold the newspaper to a private equity company. The sale ends an 80-year run for the Copley family of La Jolla as the dominant force in San Diego's news media:

"SAN DIEGO — The parent company of The San Diego Union-Tribune announced Wednesday that it has reached an agreement to sell the newspaper to the Beverly Hills private equity firm Platinum Equity for an undisclosed price.

La Jolla-based The Copley Press Inc. had been seeking a buyer since July 2008, when it hired investment bankers to explore “strategic options” amid a nationwide decline in newspaper advertising and circulation.

Copley executive vice president Harold W. Fuson Jr. said Platinum emerged from that process as the bidder best equipped to maintain the Union-Tribune's position as one of San Diego's leading institutions.

“This is a vital business with a long tradition of public service and a pre-eminent position in one of America's finest media markets,” Fuson said in a written statement. “At this important juncture, we believe that Platinum Equity is the right partner for the Union-Tribune, its employees and the San Diego community.”

Platinum specializes in acquiring businesses facing complex operational challenges in declining or transitioning markets. Since its founding in 1995, the firm has completed more than 100 acquisitions in a range of industries.

Louis Samson, the Platinum Equity principal leading the Union-Tribune acquisition, called the newspaper “a good fit for Platinum” and its operations-focused approach.

“We have a long history of creating value by helping established companies navigate difficult market transitions,” Samson said in a written statement. “The Union-Tribune is more than a business. It's an institution in San Diego.

“But it faces enormous challenge in a period of tremendous upheaval for the newspaper industry. We will bring a strong operational focus that helps ensure the Union-Tribune not only survives in this market, but thrives.”

Samson could not immediately be reached for further details of Platinum's plans for the newspaper. The firm said in a statement that its team includes David H. Black, whose company Black Press owns dozens of community newspapers, mostly in western Canada, and has expanded its U.S. presence with acquisitions of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin in 2000 and the Akron (Ohio) Beacon Journal in 2006."