By: Jennifer Saba Another major daily is going on the block. This time, Cox Enterprises is looking to unload the Austin American-Statesman.
The Atlanta-based company retained Citigroup and Goldman Sachs to assist with the sale.
The auction also includes Cox's community newspapers in North Carolina, Colorado, and Texas, as well as its direct mail operation Valpak.
"This decision was made as part of an ongoing strategic review of our portfolio and enables us to maintain our strong and stable financial performance by further paying down debt," Jim Kennedy, chairman and CEO of Cox Enterprises, said in a statement.
The company said that approximately 80% of its revenues come from sources other than its newspaper, radio, and television properties.
The other newspapers involved in the auction are the North Carolina properties The Daily Reflector in Greenville, the Rocky Mount Telegram, The Daily Advance in Elizabeth City, and Savings Source Direct.
In Texas: the Waco Tribune-Herald, Longview News-Journal, The Marshall News Messenger, The Lufkin Daily News, and the Daily Sentinel in Nacogdoches are on the block. In Colorado the papers are The Daily Sentinel in Grand Junction and The Nickel.
The company said it will retain ownership of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Palm Beach Post in Florida, and the Dayton Daily News in Ohio.
"Newspaper businesses are an important part of Cox's history, and we greatly value the contributions the employees of these companies have made to our company," Kennedy said.
The Austin American-Statesman is the second major daily in weeks to be put up for sale. The privately held Copley Press announced in July it was seeking buyers for its flagship The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Kennedy vowed, ?We will continue to own and operate industry-leading companies, invest in existing businesses and maintain a level of financial discipline that ensures we are well positioned for ongoing success.?
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