Now that the New York Times Company has cut costs at its money-losing Boston daily, the Boston Globe reports that its parent company has hired Goldman Sachs & Co. to try to sell the newspaper. The Times Co. isn’t confirming anything.
Having slashed wages, even for employees covered by a union where members refused to approve contract concessions, the New York Times Co. is continuing to publish the Boston Globe. With labor and community relations strained, it’s not hard to imagine that the Times Co. would be happy to be rid of the Globe, which is still expected to lose money this year, despite some $20 million in recent cost cuts.
According to the article in the Globe, Times Co. was already talking to potential buyers before the union concession votes, with bids requested about two weeks after that outcome was known. None of the potential bidders were identified, nor was there any discussion of a potential price tag. The Times Co. acquired the Boston Globe for $1.1 billion in 1993.
