Big newspaper news breaking

Arkansas Business had the jump on the announcement that the competing Hussman and Stephens news operations in Northwest Arkansas will merge. That’s the Stephens’ flagship at top. At bottom is one of the local papers Hussman bought up that he stuffs with a NW Ark. edition of his Democrat-Gazette.

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This had to happen. Hussman has been committed to newspapers. The Stephens Inc. people liked newspaper profits back in the day when they reliably coined 30 percent profit margins. But a semi-bloody war and implosion of daily newspaper businesses have made the enterprise somewhat less attractive.

I’m guessing that a “merger of news operations” means lost jobs. We shall see. Other Stephens and Hussman papers elsewhere in Arkansas apparently are unaffected.

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UPDATE: News now breaking on Stephens Media’s Arkansas News website. It published the joint news release, which says the companies will l seek Justice Department approval for a joint venture, with Stephens in charge of editorial and Hussman in charge of business operations in NW Ark, but Hussman continuing to maintain a regional edition of the D-G. They cite operating losses as the reason. They’ll make a show of trying to sell the Morning News to an outside investor who’d like to compete with these billionaires, but it is only a show and you need not expect anyone to rise to the offer. There are, of course, other anti-trust considerations in this combine, particularly the Hussman-Stephens might against the smaller media competitors in NW Ark. and elsewhere. Does the Obama administration still believe in anti-trust laws? Previous administrations didn’t.

Control of daily newspaper print media in Arkansas is consolidating, with implications for many. It appears that the result will be a regional D-G stuffed in papers bearing imprints of former independent newspapers in Fayetteville, Springdale, Rogers and Bentonville. One newspaper instead of the two currently fighting for readers. Printing jobs seem certain to be lost in that consolidation.

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I’d rather own the business side of a joint venture, by the way. And I wonder if Justice will talk about terms of agreement, if any — length, means of dissolution contemplated, future sole ownership, etc.

To the jump for D-G’s breaking coverage:

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