Tribune Co. purchase prompts wide range of Web commentary

The sale of Tribune Co. to real estate billionaire Sam Zell triggered a wide range of instant commentary and analysis, from concern about the buyer's lack of media experience to relief that the lengthy auction was finally over.

MarketWatch.com

A lack of confidence in the future of newspapers and traditional media.

"After an exhaustive six-month review, we believe this complicated and heavily levered transaction is another indication of the waning interest in the newspaper business given the ongoing secular challenges that are weighing on the fundamental outlook," Bear Stearns' Alexia Quadrani said in a note posted on MarketWatch. (Link)

HuffingtonPost.com

Zell's lack of newspaper experience has generated anxiety at The Times. Zell, or "dude" as he is described, "is not a newspaperman, he's a profit man, which makes the LAT nervous. So — expect more drama to come." (Link)

AdAge.com

Will cross-ownership issues for Zell to break up the company, despite statements to the contrary?

"Tribune's top Washington executive, Shaun Sheehan, said it's a "potential possibility" that the sale today will mean the company will now require a FCC waiver to keep its Chicago holdings together. Mr. Sheehan said the company will argue that the sale to Mr. Zell -- a less-than-majority owner -- will not constitute a change in control. While that could be a tough case to make given the notoriety surrounding the sale, Mr. Sheehan said he ultimately expects the cross-ownership rule to be overturned, rendering the entire issue moot." (Link)

The Future of News.com

The future looks bleak.

"In an industry without a credible vision in sight for rebuilding circulation and increasing advertising revenues, Zell, a master of recognizing undervalued properties, is almost certainly going to restore value to this struggling operation by reducing costs rather than building revenues." (Link)

TheStreet.com

The deal will mean a mountain of debt as the newspaper business faces falling circulation and revenue.

"This is an awful heavy debt load for a company like this that is in the midst of a secular downtrend," said Richard Dorfman, managing director with Richard Alan, a financial advisory and investment firm. "It's one thing to have debt like this on a company that is growing and very profitable. But that's not the case here." (Link)

Talking Business News

Private ownership will allow the focus to be on journalism and not Wall Street.

"In addition, I am going to assume that Zell won't turn around and flip the operations in an IPO a few years down the road. As a private company, these papers will be able to invest in improving the content without having to worry about shareholders who want higher EPS numbers every quarter." (Link)

Bloggers and web headline writers also had fun with puns, including:

"The Zell Tolls for Thee, Tribune" — Chicagoist.com

"'Zell-ing' the LA Times -- Are Broad/Burkle & Geffen still in it?" — Saigon Bob

"April Zell's Day! Tribune Will Sell To Zell!" — Huffington Post