Newsmax joins the Newsweek auction

Only a handful of bidders are believed to have submitted “letters of interest” to buy Newsweek from the Washington Post Company by yesterday’s deadline.

The letters allow them into the second round to take a more detailed look at the financials.

Newsmax, the right-leaning Web news business headed by Christopher Ruddy, with backing from Richard Mellon Scaife, confirmed it is in the hunt. In addition, TV Guide owner OpenGate Capital, the Beverly Hills venture capital firm, which famously purchased the weekly magazine for $1 and persuaded seller Macrovision to loan it $9.3 million, is also in the hunt, sources familiar with the situation said.

“Newsmax Media, Inc. has made a bid for Newsweek,” the company confirmed yesterday. “The company’s bid for Newsweek’s print and online assets is congruent with its objective to diversify and expand into numerous distinct media brand offerings, like any major multi-title publisher.”

A third letter of interest was submitted by Ritchie Capital Management CEO Thane Ritchie, according to Bloomberg.

Others, such as supermarket magnate Ron Burkle, who heads Yucaipa Partners, and Daily News and US News & World Report owner Mort Zuckerman did not submit bids to Allen & Company by yesterday’s deadline.

Executives associated with the Allbritton family that owns Politico.com and other media assets, did not return calls seeking comment. Carlos Slim, the Mexican billionaire, was believed not to have pursued a bid after expressing some interest.

Newsweek magazine is on target to lose about $10 million in 2010, based on first-quarter losses of $2.3 million.

Jon Meacham, Newsweek editor-in-chief, has said he would like to make a bid, but it could not be learned if he had secured backing by the deadline.