Negotiating the Globe's future
As the newspaper industry faces declining readership and the migration of readers online, The Boston Globe dealt with the threat of closing, contract concessions, layoffs, and a potential sale.
Analysis
Brian McGrory
A free press no more
Usually when the higher-ups at my company call a meeting, it involves a lot of euphemisms such as “cost-savings plans’’ and “streamlining measures’’ and assorted other phrases like, “Don’t be alarmed, but we may shut the place down next week.’’
Steven Syre
New York Times Co. wants room to breathe
There are all kinds of sellers of big-ticket items. The New York Times Co. comes across as highly motivated and a little too aggressive.
Kevin Cullen
Bottom line? Boston Globe is a business
If you ask anybody why they got into this business and they say it was for the money, they are either certifiably insane or no longer in the business.
Steven Syre
Will Times Co.close the Globe?
There seems to be a new effort to articulate a plan, rather than simply threatening to close the newspaper.
Front page blues
The financial troubles swamping newspapers are not unique to the Globe.
What went wrong?
Secure in their profits, newspapers underestimated the impact of the Web.
A jewel in the crown
loses its luster
loses its luster
At the time, the acquisition of the Globe by the Times was dubbed "royal marriage." But now, the marriage is in trouble.
Taking care of business
Even if the Globe improves revenues, the business won't resemble the hugely profitable enterprise of years past, columnist Steven Syre writes.
Boston ponders
future of Globe
future of Globe
Who might be lining up to buy the newspaper and possibly stave off a shutdown?
Opinion and reaction
Globe editorial
What newspapers do
Quality journalism - the type that verifies claims and demands attribution - is expensive.
Names
Ben Affleck reflects on role of newspapers
The actor grew up a reader of The Boston Globe and can't imagine his hometown paper going out of business.
Op/Ed
Readers, have a say in saving your paper
We're selling the paper with one hand and giving it away on Boston.com with the other. That's never made any sense, Scot Lehigh writes.
Threat to Globe triggers flood of feelings
Many worry, a few shrug, but most adamant that the city needs its major daily newspaper.
What they're saying
A sampling of reaction on news of the threat to close the Globe.
01/21/11
Taylors back entrepreneur’s
plan to bid on the Globe
A Wellesley businessman who wants to buy The Boston Globe has gained financial backing from two members of the Taylor family, which owned and published the newspaper for generations.
News
10/20/10
Local group plans Globe bid
A group of investors and management specialists want to buy The New England Media group, which includes the Globe and Boston.com, from The New York Times Co., according to a statement.
10/01/10
Globe plans subscriber-only site
The Boston Globe next year will split its digital news brands into two distinct websites, keeping Boston.com free while establishing a subscription-only pay site, BostonGlobe.com, which will feature all the content produced by the newspaper’s journalists.
01/20/10
Times will charge for online content in 2011
The Times Co. said it will adopt a metered model approach, in which users are allowed free access to NYTimes.com for a set number of articles per month, then charged once they exceed that number.
10/27/09
Globe, Herald circulation tumbles
Circulation at The Boston Globe, the Boston Herald, and many other newspapers around the country fell sharply in the six-month period that ended in September as more readers got news from the Internet.
10/22/09
Times Co. narrows loss
The New York Times Co. cushioned the blow from an a big drop in advertising by shedding more payroll and collecting more money from newspaper subscribers.
10/16/09
Times Co. optimistic, cautious on Globe
Chief Executive Janet Robinson said the Globe and its website, Boston.com, would remain a part of the Times Co., thanks to deep cost cuts and new revenue that had improved finances at the paper.
10/15/09
Times Co. takes Globe off market
The New York Times Co. said yesterday that it will not sell The Boston Globe, citing significant improvement in the Globe’s financial standing - a decision that ends months of uncertainty.
- Times Co. CEO credits Globe workers for turnaround
- Sighs of relief heard as the Boston Globe saga subsides
- Read the memo from Times executives to Globe employees
10/14/09
2 groups submit offers for Globe
The New York Times Co. has received offers to buy The Boston Globe from both finalist bidders - Platinum Equity, a California investment firm, and a group led by Stephen Taylor - according to a person briefed on the bids.
10/08/09
Familiar name, interrupted record
Stephen Taylor (above) is trying to buy back the Globe, for a sliver of the $1.1 billion the Times Co. paid for it. He is the great-great grandson of the paper's first publisher, a fifth-generation member of a clan with newspaper ink in its veins.
10/07/09
An iron fist, a golden touch
Beverly Hills buyout firm Platinum Equity is one of two bidders trying to buy the Globe. Platinum founder Tom Gores (left) said the company is pursuing newspapers because he believes they can be rebuilt into successful companies.
10/06/09
Globe union files charges vs. president
The treasurer of The Boston Globe’s largest union yesterday formally accused the organization’s president of misappropriating union money or property, violating its constitution, and disobeying orders.
09/29/09
Union leader takes leave
The Boston Newspaper Guild president has taken medical leave, as union officials prepare to file internal charges against him, alleging he signed another officer's name on a check, according to members with knowledge of the matter.
09/28/09
Guild case linked to signature
The president of the Boston Newspaper Guild signed the name of another union officer on a check that required a countersignature, according to members with knowledge of the matter.
09/19/09
Former Globe publisher joins cousin's bid
Stephen Taylor gained a significant backer in his bid to buy The Boston Globe, according to people involved - his cousin Benjamin Taylor, the last member of the family to serve as publisher after The New York Times Co. bought the newspaper.
09/15/09
Two bidders visit Globe
Two potential buyers of The Boston Globe visited the newspaper recently - one a group headed by Stephen Taylor (left), whose family used to own the paper, and the second, Platinum Equity of Beverly Hills, a private equity investment firm.
09/09/09
Times 'does not need' to sell
At a meeting with employees of The Boston Globe, executives from The New York Times Co. said that the company does not need to sell the Globe if offers are not satisfactory.
08/21/09
2 bidders invited to meetings
Separate groups led by Stephen Taylor and Platinum Equity have been invited to a series of onsite meetings at the newspaper in early September. But a high-profile group led by Stephen Pagliuca and Jack Connors has yet to receive an invitation.
08/07/09
Times: No rush to sell Globe
The Boston Globe, once projected to lose $85 million this year, has been placed on a stronger financial footing that will allow The New York Times Co. to be patient in pursuing the newspaper's sale.
08/07/09
Calif. buyout firm in bidding for Globe
An investment firm that recently purchased a San Diego newspaper has emerged as a third bidder for The Boston Globe, according to people briefed on offers submitted to The New York Times Co.
07/31/09
Two local groups offer early bids
Two Boston groups submitted preliminary bids yesterday to buy The Boston Globe to meet a deadline set by owner The New York Times Co., according to people with knowledge of the offers.
07/24/09
Times Co. expects sale of Sox stake
In a conference call reporting better-than-expected second-quarter earnings, Times Co. chief executive Janet Robinson would not comment on what she termed “speculation” that the Times Co. is preparing to sell the Globe.
07/21/09
Globe union approves big cuts
The Boston Globe’s largest union overwhelmingly approved a package of $10 million in wage and benefit cuts, ending more than three months of tense bargaining and brinksmanship.
07/20/09
Union votes on second contract
The Boston Globe’s largest union votes today on whether to accept a $10 million package of pay and benefit cuts after nearly four months of bitter negotiations and labor unrest at the 137-year-old newspaper.
07/17/09
Sides gird as Guild vote looms
Just days before The Boston Globe’s largest union votes on $10 million in concessions, supporters and opponents of the contract proposal are actively campaigning, distributing flyers, blasting e-mails, and sometimes, just plain arguing.
07/07/09
Deadline for bids postponed
The New York Times Co. has postponed tomorrow's deadline for prospective buyers of The Boston Globe to submit preliminary bids for the newspaper.
07/03/09
Two suitors join forces on bid
Former advertising executive Jack Connors and private equity investor Stephen Pagliuca have joined forces to prepare for a potential bid to buy The Boston Globe, according to people briefed on the sales process.
06/26/09
Deadline set for Globe bids
The New York Times Co., through its investment banker, has asked potential buyers of The Boston Globe to submit preliminary bids by July 8, according to people briefed on the sale process.
06/26/09
Times chief warns of more cuts
The chairman of The New York Times Co., Arthur O. Sulzberger Jr., said Thursday that the Boston Globe will probably need more cost reductions - on top of the $10 million in wage and benefit cuts its largest union is already considering.
06/25/09
New deal would soften pay cut
Boston Newspaper Guild members got their first look at a new package of deep pay and benefit cuts Wednesday night, and many still don't like it. But union members and officials say they expect the $10 million in concessions to be ratified next month.
06/24/09
Globe, Guild reach new pact
The Boston Globe and its largest union reached a tentative agreement last night on $10 million in wage and benefit cuts, following three months of bitter labor talks that threatened to close the 137-year-old paper.
06/23/09
Globe, Guild call talks productive
The Boston Globe and the paper’s largest union went another day without an agreement, but the union president said the two sides are close to finalizing a pact.
06/22/09
Union, Globe may have new deal
The Boston Globe and leaders of its largest union are close to reaching a new agreement when they meet today to discuss a $10 million package of wage and benefit cuts, union members say.
06/19/09
Globe union to vote July 20
The largest union at The Boston Globe has set a date for a new contract ratification vote, even though it said it has not yet reached a tentative agreement with The New York Times Co.
06/18/09
Vote's timing complicates talks
A new agreement appeared nearly in place Tuesday night, but how to deal with the draconian pay cut while the contract awaits ratification is holding up a resolution, union members said.
06/17/09
No agreement yet as talks continue
Boston Globe management and the paper's largest union ended another marathon bargaining session early this morning without resolving their contract dispute, but will talk by phone today and meet again Monday.
06/16/09
Union postpones NLRB meeting
Officials of the Boston Newspaper Guild postponed a scheduled meeting with the National Labor Relations Board today so they can resume negotiations with Boston Globe management.
06/16/09
Globe, union talk into the night
The two sides agreed to resume bargaining later Tuesday as they try to end a bitter standoff over deep wage cuts and other concessions.
06/16/09
Paper's bidders may join forces
Members of three local groups considering bids for The Boston Globe could end up consolidating into a single team, according to two people involved in the possible purchase of the newspaper.
06/15/09
Union says it has offer to resolve dispute
A representative of the Boston Newspaper Guild says the union will bring "an offer of resolution" to a meeting today with Boston Globe management, in an effort to come up with cost-cutting measures the union can support.