The Bids Are Rolling In! Wait, And Another! And Another!

Okay, so I was all ready to type up a post saying that PNI — the parent company of both the Inquirer and Daily News, which McClatchy is selling after buying Knight Ridder — had gotten only two bids, and then another story moved across the wire saying it had gotten three bids, then I went and got a sandwich, then I came back to as many as six companies who could be buying the papers.

Dow Jones is reporting that these groups have submitted official bids:

• Canadian publisher Black Press Ltd, with investment firm Onex Corp.
• Texas investor Christopher M. Harte
• Philadelphia businessmen Brian Tierney and Bruce Toll, and others
• Yucaipa, paired with the Newspaper Guild
• Possibly the New York Daily News, but maybe not. They dunno. It seems like they didn’t. But maybe they did.

MediaNews may make a bid, but declined to comment to Reuters on if it did or not. Which probably means it didn’t.

So what does this all mean? Well, not much, since these are the groups we all knew might put in bids for the paper. But since it seems like everyone put in a bid, who knows, there could be even more. Heck, it might come up that I made a bid for the papers. (I’m partnering with Bain.)

Bids roll in at McClatchy for Philly newspapers [Reuters/ABCNews.com]

Canadians, Yucaipas And Robot Cars, Oh My!

As the year continues, we’re getting closer to having a new owner for the Inquirer and Daily News — although no one really knows who’s in the lead to buy those papers, the rest of the PNI assets and the other papers McClatchey will sell after acquiring them from Knight Ridder.

At the charge of all this (and doing a fine job) is Inquirer biz reporter Joseph DiStefano, who reported today that the Yucaipa/Newspaper Guild bid brought in some Wall Street backing if the deal were to go through. He also reported yesterday that, later this week, a group of Canadian newspaper investors will visit the two papers’ offices at 400 N. Broad Street.

Pardon the pun, but: Canada, eh? Not bad. I’m not sure if it’d be good for the paper — though it would certainly be nice for the Flyers beat guys — but perhaps they could bring beavers or cold air masses or socialized health care. (Actually, the union’s plan might as well be socialized health care. I long for a $5 co-pay.)

Canadians aside, PR Week recently asked DiStefano about what it’s like to cover your own company’s sale:

It is a little bit weird covering your own company when your own union is a player in trying to organize one of the several groups that’s trying to buy the paper. That adds another level of weirdness onto it. But it’s a lot of fun. I guess I’m the kind of person that, if I’ve got to go somewhere and it’s a long trip, I’d rather be driving the car than [being] a passenger. You don’t get there any sooner, but you have the illusion of control.

No control when you’re the driver, hmm? DiStefano must have one of them robot cars. Those guys get all the perks over there.

Interview: Joseph DiStefano [PR Week]
Yucaipa brings Wall Street support for Inquirer-Daily News bid [Inky]
Canadian investors join Philly paper chase [Inky]