Hearst Cuts Deal with S.F. Guild; Times Co. Sells HQ Chronicle Union Takes a Hit; New York Building Gains $225M (Financial Report‪)‬

Newspaper fortunes -- and the lack thereof -- took another wild ride in the last week, with Hearst's San Francisco Chronicle saying this evening it had forged a deal with its largest union to stave off a sale of the daily or its closure, while The New York Times Co. cut a $225 million deal to sell (and then lease back) its headquarters building in midtown Manhattan. Further, The McClatchy Co., The E.W. Scripps Co. and The Washington Post Co. all reported more on their fiscal 2008 years, with McClatchy speculating that it may lose as much as $5.3 million it's owed by bankrupt publishers. The Chronicle reported on its web site tonight -- under an unbylined article -- that it had reached a tentative deal with the California Media Workers Guild, Local 39521, with the union making concessions on hours, wages, benefits and staff cutbacks. The Guild, an affiliate of The Newspaper Guild/CWA, represents 483 workers at the 339,430-circulation daily, with about 218 in news and 265 in non-news jobs.