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Media

Lenfest secures sole ownership of Philadelphia newspapers

By
Keith J. Kelly
Published June 18, 2014, 6:07 p.m. ET

Philanthropist and former cable-TV mogul H.F. “Gerry” Lenfest has hammered out a deal to become the sole owner of the parent company of the Philadelphia Inquirer, buying the stake held by the family of the late Lewis Katz.

The deal removes the uncertainty surrounding ownership of the paper.

Lenfest and Katz had just last month won an auction to acquire Interstate General Media, which also owns the Philadelphia Daily News and Philly.com, from their feuding partners when Katz was killed in a plane crash.

“Today is the beginning of a bright future for Philadelphia’s three most important institutions for news: The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News and Philly.com,” Lenfest said in a statement.

The ownership consortium, which included insurance executive and Democratic power broker George Norcross III, purchased IGM for $55 million in 2012.

The partners pledged to take a hands-off approach on editorial decisions, but within months partners led by Lenfest and Katz were fighting with a Norcross-led faction over the direction of the Inquirer.

The feud became public when Norcross moved to fire Editor-in-Chief Bill Marimow despite objections from Lenfest and Katz. In November, a court ordered the owners to reinstate Marimow.

The feuding co-owners sued and countersued until a Delaware court settled the matter by ordering a closed auction, in which the winning bidders would buy out the other business partners.

The Lenfest/Katz team won on May 14, agreeing to pay $88 million. But before the deal closed, Katz and six others perished in the plane crash near Boston, tossing the ownership into new turmoil. Initially, there were reports that Drew Katz would take over his father’s stake, but he decided against it.

“We have not had time to grieve not only the loss of our father but also the ongoing pain of losing our mother less than six months ago,” Drew Katz said in a statement. “In light of these extraordinary and completely unanticipated circumstances, I have decided to sell my father’s stake in IGM to Gerry Lenfest.”

The media entrepreneur is now faced with the task of filling many of the key positions on the editorial and business sides. Lenfest took over as acting publisher after the resignation of Publisher Robert Hall, a Norcross ally.

Some newsroom observers are waiting for signs of that “bright future” proclaimed by the new owner. So far, the hiring of Brian Tierney as consultant has not been greeted favorably by staffers.

Tierney, a public-relations executive, bought the papers in 2006 and sold them in a bankruptcy auction three years later.

IGM, which has been downsizing and slashing pay, employs about 1,800 people.

In addition, Lenfest drew some heat for not attending the Katz memorial service or making any statement to the staff in the days following his death. On Wednesday, he seemed to be trying to make amends on that front.

“Lewis and I shared a strong belief that our city deserved the very best daily news resources, each with a commitment to the highest of journalistic standards,” he said.

“I continue to mourn the loss of Lewis, but his proud legacy will continue through my dedication to preserving these publications for many generations.”