Confirmed: Fanjul, Related Group Looking To Buy Herald

As I reported Monday, the giant developer Related Group and the Fanjul sugar family, owner of Florida Crystals, have been in talks to try to purchase the Miami Herald. From the Herald today:

... Miami real estate developer Jorge Perez confirmed Monday that he and Florida sugar magnate Alfonso Fanjul held talks with executives from the McClatchy Co. and The Miami Herald Media Co. about a possible sale of the Miami paper.

''Nothing has materialized,'' said Perez, chairman of Related Group in Miami.

Perez said he met a couple times with newspaper executives about a month ago but hasn't talked since.

''It didn't proceed any further than that, at least on my side,'' Perez said.

Fanjul, CEO of West Palm Beach-based Florida Crystals, couldn't be reached immediately for comment.

It isn't clear whether McClatchy -- whose stock has slid 80 percent this year -- has met with other potential buyers.

''It's absolutely not our policy to comment on any market discussions of any acquisitions or dispositions,'' said Elaine Lintecum, treasurer of Sacramento, Calif.-based McClatchy, which owns 28 other daily newspapers in addition to The Herald and El Nuevo Herald.

A developer and a sugar magnate might buy the Herald, huh? A lot of people, I'm sure never thought they'd see the day of such an idea even being considered. Someday we might look back at the golden era of corporate newspaper companies, before the real profiteers took over. Imagine that.  

What I really love, though, is that the Herald buried the information about their own business under a headline about their competitor's (Tribune's) bankruptcy. Classic.