Gay newspaper, Washington Blade, the latest to close

Posted by Jennifer Lush on November 17, 2009 at 11:52 AM

The Washington Blade, a gay newspaper with a circulation of 23,000 announced it would close its doors yesterday.

The decision was a result of an inability to find a buyer for the paper which had been forced into Chapter 7 bankrupcy. The publication, belonged to Window Media and Unite Media, both of which were bought by the Avalon Equity Fund with assistance from the Small Business Administration in 2001.

Last year, the SBA said Avalon did not meet certain capital requirements, and took control of the fund as a court-appointed receiver. It sought to sell the assets of the fund, unsuccefully, thus resulting in the Blade's closure.

The news came as a shock to the 20 employees, who recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of the paper. Founded in 1969, the publication was one of the most influential of its time in an era where the topic of homosexuality was still taboo.

"We found out when two of the corporate officers were waiting for us when we got to work this morning," said Kevin Naff, editor of the Blade. "It's not a complete surprise. The abruptness of it was what was surprising."

Staff had braced themselves for a sale or reorganisation, and the announcement of liquidation was a heavy blow. Naff and other staffers immediately began an effort to revive the paper as an employee-owned operation.

Blade staff "are determined to come back and make a go of it as an independent entity," he said. "Our first meeting is tomorrow."

Several other publications owned by the Fund have been told they will be liquidated.

Employees at Atlanta paper the Southern Voice, similarly found their offices locked on Monday and a note posted on the door saying that the company had ceased operations. The note told workers to return on Wednesday with boxes to collect their belongings.

The announcement comes amidst a climate of bankrupcies and closures in what has been a particularly tough year for the US newspaper industry. Earlier this month Arizona paper the East Valley Tribune said it would close at the end of the year after equally failing to find a buyer. Another media organisation, the Sun-Times Media Group managed to avoid a similar fate by scraping through a deal with Chicago financier Jim Tyree in late October.

Source: New York Times