Seattle paper joins the endangered list

Heart Corp. is reportedly considering putting the Seattle Post-Intelligencer up for sale:

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/01/report_seattle_newspaper_may_b.html

While a sale doesn't necessarily imply a newspaper is in trouble, I think it's safe to assume that in today's environment it probably is a sign of distress.

Most chain newspapers are burdened with excessive levels of debt from the speculative buying spree of the past decade or so. When the historians look back on that era they may very well conclude that the best chance the industry had to survive was squandered back then when still-profitable newspapers spent money on acquisitions instead of investing in technologies and marketing strategies that would enable them to survive the Internet age.

Whether of not the Seattle paper can find a buyer that can make it work will depend on the financial details and how much debt any new owner has to service. Unless the current owners are willing to take a short-term loss in order to staunch long-term losses from continued ownership it may be hard to make a deal that keeps the paper alive over the long term.