Star Tribune Buying City Pages, Killing Vita.MN

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The Star Tribune Co. announced Wednesday that it's buying the alternative news and entertainment weekly City Pages.

A story on the Star Tribune's website didn't disclose how much the newspaper company is paying for the weekly, which is currently owned by the Denver-based Voice Media Co., but it said the purchase will be financed via the Star Tribune Co.'s operating cash flow.

As a result of the buy, the Star Tribune said it will stop printing Vita.mn, a weekly that took the newspaper's entertainment content and reshaped it to compete head-on with City Pages.

The weekly's news employees will also come under the umbrella of the Minnesota Newspaper and Communications Guild, the Star Tribune article said.

Although the Star Tribune and City Pages will be connected, the alternative weekly will still maintain its independence. The article said that the newspaper's executives won't touch the weekly's coverage of the Twin Cities, including its reporting on the Star Tribune.

Meanwhile, the top dogs at the newspaper still have to figure out if they'll accept all the advertising that City Pages does. Currently, the weekly publishes ads for unlicensed businesses, such as escort services.