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Comment by GiorgioG | Hacker News Reader

As much as I want to blame the hedge fund for running this paper into the the ground, the reality is the paper was financially dead long before the hedge fund came along. The hedge fund ultimately prolonged the paper’s life. Short of a billionaire buying into it as a money losing affair, this paper’s days are numbered.

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I have two perspectives on this:

1. From what I have found, the hedge fund involved is big into distressed assets. That could mean either trying to turn them around or finding a way to profit from the eventual house clearing. My guess is the deal was structured so they could come out ahead in either result.

2. Being in/from Denver - the post has long just reposted or otherwise used alternate media to be their sources. Meaning their journalistic side has been spotty for quite some time.

as a Denver native, I completely agree with point 2. The post hasn't produced much quality-original content for quite some time. I can't think of any specific type of coverage where they provide the best available. They're beat on national news by national papers, local news by several of our TV stations, sports by blogs like BSN Denver, and so on. There's nothing right now that makes me say "I think they could turn it around".

For 2, Denver is a small enough market that it's no surprise that it is not large enough to support a local paper like the New York Times.

Are you saying that only the largest cities in the country can support local journalism? What does mean for the civic future of the country?

Sure, the hedge fund is merely doing its job. Which is bleeding as much money as possible from the paper. To benefit its shareholders. Right?

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