Sun-Times Media Group (formerly Hollinger International) is a Chicago-based newspaper publisher.

History

Sun-Times Media Group was founded in 1986 under the name ''American Publishing Company'', as a holding company for

Hollinger Inc. Hollinger Inc. was a Canadian media company based in Toronto which was established by businessman Conrad Black. At one time, the company was the third-largest media empire in the world. The company went bankrupt in 2007. History Hollinger Inc. ...

's American properties. It focused on newspapers, mostly in smaller markets. In February 1994, it acquired the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago T ...

'', holding an

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...

(IPO) to fund the acquisition. At the time, it was the fifteenth-largest U.S. newspaper group. It changed its name to ''Hollinger International'' in 1994. Hollinger's non-American properties, which included ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

'' and ''

The Jerusalem Post ''The Jerusalem Post'' is a broadsheet newspaper based in Jerusalem, founded in 1932 during the British Mandate of Palestine by Gershon Agron as ''The Palestine Post''. In 1950, it changed its name to ''The Jerusalem Post''. In 2004, the paper w ...

'' were added to the company in 1996, and its Canadian papers in 1997. It created the ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...

'' from the ''

Financial Post The ''Financial Post'' was an English Canadian business newspaper, which published from 1907 to 1998. In 1998, the publication was folded into the new ''National Post'',"Black says Post to merge with new paper". ''The Globe and Mail'', July 23, ...

'' in 1998. That year, it began a process of shrinking the company, selling many of its small papers to the private equity firm

Leonard Green & Partners Leonard Green & Partners ("LGP") is an American private equity investment firm founded in 1989 and based in Los Angeles. The firm specializes in private equity investments. LGP has invested in over 95 companies since its inception, including Petc ...

, who formed Liberty Group Publishing. In 2000, it sold most of the rest to four media companies ( Bradford Publications Company,

Community Newspaper Holdings CNHI, LLC (formerly Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc.) is an American publisher of newspapers and advertising-related publications throughout the United States. The company was formed in 1997 by Ralph Martin,

Paxton Media Group Paxton Media Group of Paducah, Kentucky, is a privately held media company with holdings that include newspapers and a TV station, WPSD-TV in Paducah. David M. Paxton is president and CEO. The company owns 32 daily newspapers and numerous weekl ...

, and

Forum Communications Forum Communications Company is an American multimedia and technology company headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota. With multiple online and print news brands throughout Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin, Forum Communications off ...

). Its Canadian holdings, notably the ''

'', several smaller papers, and a majority stake in the

Southam Southam () is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. Southam is situated on the River Stowe (called 'The Brook' by many locals), which flows from Napton-on-the-Hill and joins Warwickshire's R ...

newspaper chain, were sold to

CanWest Canwest Global Communications Corporation, which operated under the corporate name Canwest, was a major Canadian media conglomerate based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with its head offices at Canwest Place. It held radio, television broadcasting an ...

in 2000 in connection with

Conrad Black Conrad Moffat Black, Baron Black of Crossharbour (born 25 August 1944), is a Canadian-born British former newspaper publisher, businessman, and writer. His father was businessman George Montegu Black II, who had significant holdings in Canadi ...

renouncing his Canadian citizenship to gain a British peerage. That year, Hollinger International bought the Chicago-area publications of

Copley Press Copley Press was a privately held newspaper business, founded in Illinois, but later based in La Jolla, California. Its flagship paper was ''The San Diego Union-Tribune''. History Founder Ira Clifton Copley launched Copley Press c. 1905, eventu ...

(''

The Herald News The smaller of the two main newspapers in Massachusetts' South Coast, ''The Herald News'' is a daily newspaper based in Fall River, Massachusetts. Its coverage area includes Fall River and the nearby towns of Dighton, Freetown, Somerset, Swanse ...

'', ''

The Beacon-News Tribune Publishing Company (briefly Tronc, Inc.) is an American newspaper print and online media publishing company. The company, which was acquired by Alden Global Capital in May 2021, has a portfolio that includes the ''Chicago Tribune'', th ...

'', ''The Courier-News'', and ''

Lake County News-Sun The ''Lake County News-Sun'' is a regional newspaper based in Gurnee, Illinois, United States, that predominantly covers news for Lake County, Illinois, a part of the Chicago metropolitan area. It is currently owned by the Chicago Tribune Media ...

'', along with several smaller papers). Conrad Black was fired by the Hollinger International board in 2004 for fraud. He attempted to sell his stake to the

Barclay brothers Sir David Rowat Barclay (27 October 1934 – 10 January 2021) and Sir Frederick Hugh Barclay (born 27 October 1934), commonly referred to as the "Barclay Brothers" or "Barclay Twins", were British billionaires. They were identical twin brothers ...

in January 2004 and the brothers launched a

takeover In business, a takeover is the purchase of one company (the ''target'') by another (the ''acquirer'' or ''bidder''). In the UK, the term refers to the acquisition of a public company whose shares are listed on a stock exchange, in contrast to t ...

bid for the rest of Hollinger International. However the sale was blocked by a judge in the United States after the company's board lodged a court action against the sale. The Barclay brothers later bought The

Telegraph Group Telegraph Media Group Limited (TMG; previously the Telegraph Group) is the proprietor of ''The Daily Telegraph'' and ''The Sunday Telegraph''. It is a subsidiary of Press Holdings. David and Frederick Barclay acquired the group on 30 July 2004, af ...

which included ''

'', ''

The Sunday Telegraph ''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961 and published by the Telegraph Media Group, a division of Press Holdings. It is the sister paper of ''The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', kn ...

'', and ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. It is owned by Frederick Barclay, who also owns ''The ...

''. On November 16, 2004, the sale of ''

'' to Mirkaei Tikshoret, a Tel Aviv-based publisher of Israeli newspapers, was announced.

CanWest Global Communications Canwest Global Communications Corporation, which operated under the corporate name Canwest, was a major Canadian media conglomerate based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with its head offices at Canwest Place. It held radio, television broadcasting an ...

, Canada's biggest media concern, announced it has agreed to take a 50 percent stake in ''The Jerusalem Post'' after Mirkaei buys the property. In February 2006, Hollinger sold substantially all of its Canadian assets. The corporation's name was changed to Sun-Times Media Group on July 17, 2006. On March 31, 2009, the company filed for bankruptcy protection under

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

of the

United States Code In the law of the United States, the Code of Laws of the United States of America (variously abbreviated to Code of Laws of the United States, United States Code, U.S. Code, U.S.C., or USC) is the official compilation and codification of the ...

. In September 2009, Chicago financier

James C. Tyree James C. Tyree (October 30, 1957 – March 16, 2011) was a Chicago financier who was chairman and chief executive officer of Mesirow Financial since 1994. In 2009, he led a team of investors that took control of the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' newspaper, ...

and a team of investors had a $5 million bid accepted to purchase the Sun-Times Media Group, contingent on the paper's unions accepting deep compensation cuts and work-rule changes. The purchase was completed the next month. Tyree died suddenly in March 2011. Jeremy Halbreich, chief executive, said that Tyree will be greatly missed and that his death will make no changes in the media company's strategy. Since the Tyree-Halbreich takeover, the organization has shown accelerating declines in circulation, advertising revenue and quality of editorial content. Industry analysts have repeatedly pointed to the group's failure to craft a competitive online product as evidence of continued decline. On December 6, 2011, the company announced it will institute a

paywall A paywall is a method of restricting access to content, with a purchase or a paid subscription, especially news. Beginning in the mid-2010s, newspapers started implementing paywalls on their websites as a way to increase revenue after years of ...

to access its online content from December 8, 2011. Later in December 2011, Chicago investment group

Wrapports Wrapports LLC was the American-based privately owned publisher of the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' and the '' Chicago Reader''. It was headquartered in the ''Sun-Times'' building in Chicago. History The company was launched in late 2011 by Michael W. F ...

, L.L.C., led by Chairman Michael W. Ferro Jr. & CEO Timothy Knight, bought the properties of Sun-Times Media Holdings.

Corporate governance

;November 17, 2003 *

resigns as chairman after an internal inquiry alleges that Black had received more than $7 million in unauthorized payments of company funds. ;January 14, 2004 * Hollinger International files a million lawsuit against Conrad Black and

David Radler F. David Radler (born 1942 in Montreal, Quebec) is a Canadian executive active in finance and news media. Radler was once president of Ravelston Corporation, a privately owned corporation owned by Conrad Black and Radler to control their former ...

. ;October 2005 *Gordon A. Paris, chairman of the board of directors, president, chief executive officer and director *Paul B. Healy, vice president, corporate development and investor relations *Peter K. Lane, vice president, chief financial officer *

Robert T. Smith Robert Tharp (R.T.) Smith (February 23, 1918 – August 21, 1995) was an American World War II fighter pilot and ace, credited with 8.7, 8.9 or 9 Japanese aircraft while fighting with the American Volunteer Group (Flying Tigers). Early life He wa ...

, treasurer *James R. Van Horn, vice president, general counsel and secretary *John Cruickshank, chief operating officer, head of the Chicago group * Members of the board of directors: Gordon Paris,

Richard Burt Richard R. Burt (born February 3, 1947) is an American businessman and diplomat who served as United States Ambassador to Germany and was a chief negotiator of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. Prior to his diplomatic career, Burt worked as ...

, Daniel Colson, Cyrus Freidheim,

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (; ; born Heinz Alfred Kissinger, May 27, 1923) is a German-born American politician, diplomat, and geopolitical consultant who served as United States Secretary of State and National Security Advisor under the presid ...

, Shmuel Meitar, John O'Brien,

Richard Perle Richard Norman Perle (born September 16, 1941) is an American political advisor who served as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Strategic Affairs under President Ronald Reagan. He began his political career as a senior staff member to S ...

Graham Savage Sir (Edward) Graham Savage CB (born 31 August 1886 – 18 May 1981) was an English civil servant who largely invented the concept of comprehensive schools and originated the phrase. Early life Born Erpingham, Savage was the son of Edward Graham ...

, Raymond G. H. Seitz, and

James R. Thompson James Robert Thompson Jr. (May 8, 1936 – August 14, 2020), also known as Big Jim Thompson, was an American attorney and politician who served as the 37th governor of Illinois from 1977 to 1991. A moderate Republican who sometimes took more ...

. ;November 2006 * Cyrus Freidheim is hired as president and CEO. ;February 2009 * Cyrus Freidheim resigns as CEO after New York-based hedge fund Davidson Kempner forces the ousting of all but one member of the board of directors. * Jeremy Halbreich becomes the new chairman and interim chief executive.

References

External links

Sun-Times Media Group
official site
Pioneer Press
local newspapers' site (part of ''Chicago Tribune'')

Extensive background information, including past and present media holdings.

Complete 512-page copy of the Report of Investigation by the Special Committee of the Board of Directors of Hollinger International Inc.

{{2008 economic crisis Newspaper companies in Chicago Publishing companies established in 1986 1986 establishments in Illinois Chicago Sun-Times Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2009

History

Corporate governance

See also

References

External links