Tampa Tribune left out of deal

RICHMOND, Va. — In a sale announced Thursday morning, Berkshire Hathaway's subsidiary BH Media Group is purchasing 63 daily and weekly newspapers from Media General. Absent from that sale, however, is Media General's Tampa Tribune.

In a statement, Media General said it is discussing the sale of its Tampa print assets with other prospective buyers. In addition to the Tampa Tribune, Media General owns TBO.com and NBC-affiliate Channel 8 (WFLA).

In February, Richmond, Va.-based Media General announced it was exploring the sale of its newspaper operations to reduce its debt. In the deal with BH Media Group, Media General will receive $142 million in cash for its papers and their digital assets. In a separate arrangement, Berkshire will also provide Media General with a $400 million term loan and a revolving credit line of $45 million.

The Tampa Tribune has undergone several changes in the past year, including laying off 165 employees in December — 16% of its work force. In March, the paper announced William R. Barker as president and publisher of the paper. The paper was operating under an interim publisher since November, when the paper replaced former publisher Denise Palmer.

After Berkshire's acquisition of the Omaha World-Herald, Buffett stated he was interested in purchasing more newspapers. The Medial General deal includes newspapers in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Alabama.