Cox to sell Austin American-Statesman

Cox, a privately held company based in Atlanta, said Wednesday it will use proceeds from the sales to pay down debt.

Cox intends to sell the Austin American-Statesman and five other community papers in Texas, including the Waco Tribune-Herald; three papers in North Carolina, including the Rocky Mount Telegram; and two in Colorado.

The company will also sell its Valpak direct coupon mailing business. It did not say how much it expects to fetch for the properties.

The news comes the same day Tribune Co., one of the largest publishers in the country, took a $3.8 billion charge to write down the value of its newspaper brands. A day earlier, E.W. Scripps Co. took an $874 million charge for the same reason.

Newspapers revenues have declined sharply in the past few years as advertisers shift spending online. Investor sentiment toward newspapers has been slumping badly, and several would-be sellers of newspapers have had difficulty getting deals done.

"Looks like the newspaper people are bailing out," said Edward Atorino, an industry analyst at The Benchmark Company.

"But there are still people out there like billionaires and local businessmen who like the business and will be interested--at the right price," Atorino said.

Recent acquisition activity reveals a mix of interest for newspapers. Tribune had three suitors lined up when it put Long Island daily Newsday on the block two months ago.

Cable operator Cablevision Systems Corp. wound up getting the paper, prevailing over Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. and Mort Zuckerman, a real estate magnate who owns the New York Daily News.